Chapter 114 - Extra—Banquet (Part One) (2/2)
Wei WuXian, “You said it’s fine even if I violate them.”
Lan WangJi, “I did not.”
Wei WuXian, “Why are you like this? Just because you didn’t finish your sentence means you never said it? What happened to the HanGuang-Jun who always did what he promised?”
Lan WangJi, “‘Everyday’.”
Wei WuXian caressed his face, his tone tender, “Did your uncle scold you? Tell me. Let your
Gege spoil you dearly.”
Even with such an abrupt change of topic, Lan WangJi didn’t expose him, “No.”
Wei WuXian, “Really? Then what did he say to you?”
Lan WangJi hugged him soundlessly, “Nothing. It is rare that we are all together and a banquet will be held tomorrow.”
Wei WuXian grinned, “A banquet? Alright, alright, I’ll definitely be on good behavior and not lose face for you.” Suddenly, he thought of Lan XiChen and asked, “What about your brother?”
After a moment of silence, Lan WangJi replied, “I will see him afterwards.”
ZeWu-Jun had been in secluded mediation for days on an end. Lan WangJi was definitely going to have a long, heartfelt talk with him. Wei WuXian hugged Lan WangJi back and patted his back softly. Soon, he began again, “Speaking of it, why didn’t I see SiZhui and the squad this time back?”
In the past, these juniors would’ve crowded around them and begun chirping all the way from the entrance of the mountain. Hearing him mention SiZhui and the juniors, Lan WangJi’s brows relaxed somewhat, “I can take you to see them.”
After he led Wei WuXian to find Lan SiZhui, Lan JingYi, and the others, the juniors didn’t do anything apart from calling out in delight. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to do anything, but rather they really couldn’t.
The dozen-or-so all stood on their hands in the veranda hallway. All of them had taken off their outer robes, dressed in light, snowy strip. Head at the bottom and feet on top, they faced a few blank pieces of paper and a cake of ink. They supported themselves with their left hands and held a brush with their right, writing tight-knit characters on the paper with much difficulty.
Since they couldn’t let their forehead ribbons touch the ground, they clenched the ribbon tails in their mouths, dripping with sweat. Thus, they couldn’t say anything either. The so-called ‘calling out’ was only some muffled noise accompanied by bright eyes. Watching the teetering, trembling bodies, Wei WuXian asked, “Why do they have to do handstands?”
Lan WangJi, “As punishment.”
Wei WuXian, “I know it’s punishment. I can see that they’re copying the Lan Sect’s rules—I’ve memorized Righteousness already. What did they do to be punished?”
Lan WangJi’s voice was cool, “They returned to the Cloud Recesses after the prescribed time limit.”
Wei WuXian, “Oh.”
Lan WangJi, “They accompanied General Ghost on a night-hunt.”
Wei WuXian, “Hah! You’ve really got guts.”
Lan WangJi, “For the third time.”
Wei WuXian touched his chin, thinking it was only natural that Lan QiRen who hated all evil would punish him like this. Merely copying the sect rules while doing a handstand was already quite easy.
He squatted before Lan SiZhui, “Oh SiZhui, why is the pile in front of you especially thick? Am I imagining things?”
Lan SiZhui, “No…”
Lan WangJi, “He led the rest.”
Wei WuXian wanted to give Lan SiZhui’s shoulder a few pats, but there was no place for him to put his hand. After a pause, he put his hand underneath and patted from bottom to top, confident, “I knew it.”
Lan WangJi walked before the boys, glancing at their papers to examine them somewhat. He spoke to Lan JingYi, “The script is improper.”
Biting his forehead ribbon, Lan JingYi replied through tears, “Yes. HanGuang-Jun. I’ll recopy this one.”
The rest who hadn’t been picked on had passed the examination. All of them let out sighs of relief. As the two left the hallway, Wei WuXian recalled the suffering he went through when he himself received punishment back then, feeling quite sorry, “Just maintaining the position is hard enough. I might not be able to write when I’m upside-down. And I might not be able to write properly even when I’m sitting.”
Lan WangJi glanced at him, “Indeed.”
Wei WuXian knew he also remembered the days when he supervised him when they copied sect rules, “Was it the same when you were young?”
Lan WangJi, “Never.”
Of course. Lan WangJi had been the leading example of the disciples ever since he was young. Every word and every act of his seemed like they’d been measured by a ruler. How could he make a mistake? And if he never made any mistakes, how could he receive punishment?
Wei WuXian grinned, “I thought your shocking arm strength was trained by this.”
Lan WangJi, “There was no punishment. But it was still trained by this.”
Wei WuXian wondered, “Why would you do handstands if you’re not punished?”
Lan WangJi stared straight forward, “It calms the mind.”
Wei WuXian was right beside Lan WangJi’s ear, his voice almost like a hook, “Then what exactly was it that made the icy HanGuang-Jun feel less than calm?”
Lan WangJi looked at him without saying anything. Wei WuXian gloated, “With what you said, if you began to practice your arm strength ever since so young, you can do absolutely anything upside-down, can’t you?”
Lan WangJi, “Mn.”
Seeing his eyelids droop, almost as if he was a bit embarrassed, Wei WuXian grew even bolder in his words, “You can even do me upside-down?”
Lan WangJi, “I can try.”
Wei WuXian, “Hahahahahaha… What did you say?”
Lan WangJi, “I can try tonight.”
Wei WuXian, “…”
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