Chapter Five

Sparks Amidst Snow

The sun was barely rising in the Center of Lanling City. Carp Tower was a pretty sight, overrun with pretty people dressed in pretty yellow clothing bearing the sigil of Sparks-Amidst-Snow. Pretty vermillion dots distinguished their foreheads. Pretty to everyone who didn't know enough to see the rotten core.

"He'll listen to us," bragged one leader, holding forth a chest of gold.

"Pfft, you don't buy out youngsters. You befriend them," said another man, who looked to be a commoner. Still, he was determined to force his way inside.

"This is bullshit," Jiang Cheng breathed.

No, he was not supposed to walk fast down the main road. But he didn't much care for showing respect right now. Not for anyone except Jin Ling.

"Indeed." Meishi would not want to be one of the social climbers vying for Jin Ling's favor within the tower.

They passed Jin Guangyao's murals, which had been desecrated with crude remarks, and Mei was surprised by her internal discomfort. There wasn't anything really to relish about seeing the words sister-fucker scrawled across a relief.

She had just wanted his exposure and humiliation. Not death, after which more and more lies could be written.

"Shouldn't be hard. With luck, the brat's probably inbred, too," laughed the first man.

Jiang Cheng sucked in a breath. That was an insult to Jin Ling, to Jiang Yanli, even to Jin Zixuan.

Without a word, Zidian lashed out and struck the man. He tumbled backwards, spilling gold everywhere.

Shouts rang out. The second man ran behind a group of older women, and Jiang Cheng scoffed at his cowardice.

On instinct, Meishi grabbed the gold and tested it with her teeth. She eyed the man coldly. "False, too. I'm quite certain that's a crime."

The man glared. Jiang Cheng he recognized, but this woman? "Who are you, you bitch?"

"My wife," Jiang Cheng spat, at the same time Mei replied, "A bitch."

The man paled, as Jiang Cheng and Mei exchanged confused glances.

She was confused that he would be indignant for her sake, and he was confused that such a diatribe barely bothered her, and that she would respond so combatively. Combative behavior was his specialty, not hers, right? That was why she'd insisted on coming along.

He really didn't know her, he thought with frustration.

"Let's not waste more time on him," suggested Meishi, quietly. She handed the false gold back to the man. She ought to behave a bit better right now. "May I suggest a better use for this? Buy food from the rich to give to the poor."

Jiang Cheng was displeased. "Or be rid of it entirely."

Mei smiled politely. "That, too."

Jiang Cheng shook his head at her. Her eyes softened to ward off any anger.

Apparently thinking better of a confrontation at the moment, with Zidian raised in his hand, Jiang Cheng approached the entry to Carp Tower. Disciples of Lanling Jin Sect pressed around every side of him, trying his patience.

He shoved a couple apart and, to his relief, heard Meishi apologize behind him.

A few turned to stare at Zidian.

Jiang Cheng's mouth twisted. "I suggest all of you get out of my way."

Jin Ling was stuck in the Fragrant Palace. More people than ants surrounded him. He felt as though he were suffocating. "Do you know what your uncle did? He wiped out most of our family!"

The He family was reduced to a distant cousin and his wife, and their four grubby children. "We demand retribution."

"Retribution?! I didn't harm you! And you make a nice living at the inn!" cried Jin Ling. Too much, too much! He was giving too much money away.

He could see Sect Leader Sheng glowering at him.

"The restaurant," corrected Master He.

"Even better than an inn," Jin Ling said quickly. "I –"

"If you don't think your uncle's actions deserve atonement, then, I'm not sure why you're still leader," sniffed Madame He.

"It's not that I don't think so –" Jin Ling began. He could feel his palms sweating.

"How can a spoiled brat understand us?!" cried another woman.

"Shut up!" Jin Ling heard himself shriek then, and oh, he sounded just like a spoiled brat, just like an unsuitable leader, just like –

Crack.

Purple flashed and sizzled before Jin Ling's eyes. The woman who'd called him a brat was sprawled across the floor.

His boot met one of the chests someone had brought to bribe him, sending food and trinkets skittering over the tiles.

"Have you no shame or respect? Taking advantage of your new leader! Cultivation Sects work best when everyone works together, instead of devouring each other like greedy wolves!" Jiang Cheng roared.

He advanced upon Master He.

"You can't hurt me, Sandu Shengshou," he insisted, clutching his wife like a shield.

Jiang Cheng whitened at the name; apparently, he was not fond of his nickname.

Master He continued, "You would hurt those hurt by Jin Guangyao?"

"Let's discuss how you would." Meishi leant casually against the door, pointing to Jin Ling. "Like that young man there. You could edify him, help him, but no, you want to guilt him into giving you money. Well, from what I know about you, Master He, you cut off ties with your family long before Jin Guangyao murdered them."

"How would you know?!"

"I have ears," Meishi replied, folding her arms. And a habit of searching for the last members of massacred sects. "I've always wondered, were you the one who sold out your second-cousin?"

Master He's face pinched. He looked rather like a snake to her. "You must be joking. You – "

Zidian struck him full-force in the mouth. His children shrieked, and at the sound Mei looked, for a moment, like she was somewhere else.

"You think you know power? True power does not have to tear down the vulnerable," spat Jiang Cheng, gripping his whip so hard his knuckles were white. He turned to face the stairs winding up Carp Tower, and the hundreds of ingrates trying to hurt Jin Ling. "If anyone tries to take advantage of my nephew, they will have a face-to-face conversation with Zidian. Understood?!"

Jin Ling's mouth opened and closed. But – wait – Meishi – should it be Aunt Meishi? – was prompting him with surreptitious gestures of her hand.

"Thank you, Sect Leader Jiang. I'd appreciate your guidance for the rest of today," said Jin Ling, stiff and formal.

Meishi nodded approvingly.

"Jin Ling," replied his uncle. His voice was harsh. His back was still turned.

Jin Ling's shoulders drew together. "Yes?"

You don't have to be afraid of me. You can ask me for help. Jiang Cheng wanted to tell him that every time he acted afraid, it felt like a failure on his part, like a knife in his heart.

What came out was, "You're the leader of Lanling Jin Sect. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

It sounded like a scolding.

Jin Ling nodded.

Lan Wangji strode across a rabbit-infested path towards his brother's jinshi, his heart set on finally asking. He had hesitated only because his questions would bring up memories, painful memories of Lan Xichen's sworn brothers, murdered by each other.

To his surprise, voices came from inside Lan Huan's jinshi.

"I'm rather flattered," Lan Xichen was saying with a soft laugh.

"Good." Lan Jingyi leapt to his feet. He clapped his hands. "You've given me more than enough ideas."

"Give it time, too," ordered Xichen.

"Yes, of course," said Lan Jingyi, not entirely truthful, and by Lan Xichen's resulting snort, he clearly recognized that. "Thank you again!"

He ran out of the doorway to smack into Lan Wangji. "Ah! Hanguang-Jun!"

"Brother?" Lan Xichen poked his head out. "Usually I hear your approach."

"We were busy talking." Lan Jingyi wore a suspicious grin.

"…" Lan Wangji watched their disciple race down the path. Jingyi was practically bristling with excitement. "What were you discussing?"

"A personal matter for Lan Jingyi." A flicker of a smile, an actual smile, appeared again on Lan Xichen's face. He waved his brother inside. "He wants to best support a relationship between Lan Sizhui and Jin Ling."

"…" Lan Wangji was dumbfounded. Sizhui? My Sizhui? And Jin Ling? Already?

"He recognized that he and I were in similar positions, you see," said Lan Xichen.

His brother's earlobes were red.

"Marriage suits you, Lan Zhan. I'm happy for your happiness," said Lan Xichen.

Lan Wangji hung his head. "I wish for yours."

Lan Xichen sat down. He was silent for a moment. When he spoke, his voice was raw with grief.

"Even if he came back, what would I say? What would I do? His actions were condemnable enough to justify execution."

Lan Wangji was stunned. For the first time, his brother acknowledged the truth – that he though he had seen Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian, he had been blinded to his own feelings. His own friendship.

Not that Lan Xichen would have ever acknowledged anything while Jin Guangyao had been married. And by the time Jin Guangyao had murdered his wife, the awful truth had broken their closeness forever.

But the killing blow, the killing blow; why did that have to be Xichen?

Lan Wangji reached out a hand, certain that no words could suffice.

"You have another matter on your mind," said Xichen, lifting his head so quickly that no one except Lan Wangji would notice the tears that had gathered in his eyes.

"You were with Meng Yao and Chifeng-Zun in Nightless City that day."

"Indeed." Lan Xichen laughed. "I'm a fool, Lan Zhan. I still believe him, that he didn't have a choice to kill the members of Nie Sect."

"Knowing Wen Ruohan, he did not," agreed Lan Wangji. Whether Meng Yao enjoyed it was not necessarily connected to whether he needed to do it.

He spoke carefully. "Did anyone ever find the young mistress of Wen?"

"The daughter?" Lan Xichen looked surprised. "We scoured the palace once it was taken. We never found a body, but there were so many. Most likely she died and became one of Wei Wuxian's corpses."

It was tragic. She was a child, and while Jin Guangyao had insisted she must die, he and Nie Mingjue were less certain.

Because Lan Xichen remembered the night the Cloud Recesses were burned, the night he had to flee even though he saw a Wen break Lan Wangji's leg, even though he knew he would likely never see his Father alive again.

There was a girl, perhaps eleven, watching the scrolls burn, watching him stumble away.

He dropped a scroll. It rolled towards her feet, and she picked it up, and her eyes widened, as if she had never seen its text before.

She hid it in her dress rather than let it burn. And told two Wen Sect disciples that he had fled in a different direction.

And so Lan Xichen had pitied her ever since.

"She was known to be clever and adept at hiding. She likely saw her father's death and tried to flee, though survival was unlikely once the corpses arrived." Lan Xichen paused. "I assume you ask because you have reason to believe she is alive, even after all these years?"

Lan Wangji nodded. He looked grim. "What do you know about the Tao Sect sympathies?"

Lan Xichen started. Understanding dawned on him. "You are speaking of Sect Leader Jiang's wife."

"She bears more than a passing resemblance to Wen Xu and Wen Ruohan, and little to her supposed family." But it was more than that. Lan Wangji too had seen her that night, watching her brother destroy the Cloud Recesses. She was ordered to stand there and watch the power of the Wen family. She looked scared, and Wen Xu patted her on the head.

Lan Wangji was quite certain he recognized her older features in Tao Meishi.

"The Tao family is close to the Nie clan," said Lan Xichen.

And Nie Huaisang may have started this all, thought Lan Wangji. Do you see?

Lan Xichen did see the same, but without anger or dread. He felt empty. So what if Nie Huaisang had? He, Lan Xichen, had still delivered the killing blow.

But if this were a revenge-driven conspiracy on behalf of the Qishan Wen Sect, why would Nie Huaisang support them? He wouldn't.

Or maybe Lan Xichen had never known anybody, apart from Lan Wangji. He'd never even known the man he loved, or that he had loved him.

"You can stay in the Blooming Garden tonight, if you wish." Jin Ling waved his arm as he led his uncle and his new wife down the hall after a dinner rich in foods served as only Lanling Jin could serve.

The boy's smile was sad. "It's for my uncles, after all. The heads of the household."

Jiang Cheng shifted. He really didn't want the room that used to be occupied by Jin Guangyao and his – uh – sister.

"Thank you, Young Master Jin." Meishi spoke before he could. Perfect. She would not have to sneak so much. So long as the books of forbidden rituals remained. If anyone had the ritual written, it would be Jin Guangyao.

Jin Ling nodded. He felt like a failure, a hateful failure.

He needed to go night hunting with his friends. They didn't think he was a failure.

Lan Jingyi liked to joke around with him, and though Jin Ling wasn't good at responding to jokes, he loved the feeling of inclusion.

And Lan Sizhui, whose gentle eyes made him feel safe and home, who cried last week to tell him he was actually a Wen, and made Jin Ling feel special knowing his secret.

And Jin Ling found himself staring at Lan Sizhui, over and over, because the sight of his friend made him so happy.

He needed that tonight. More than he needed Uncle Jiang Cheng.

"What you said to Master Yu – was that true?" Jiang Cheng asked as the doors shut behind them.

"It's certainly true that there's a rumor." Meishi rubbed her hands together. "My – Father – has a weak spot for orphans and abandoned children. After the He family was killed, he sought out their survivors, as he did with many others. But the circumstances didn't add up; they weren't hiding, and yet Jin Guangyao left them alone."

"Ah." Jiang Cheng sighed. No wonder Sect Leader Tao had set his sights upon him as his daughter's husband, then. "Pity he didn't live closer to Lotus Pier all those years ago."

If he had, could he have escape with Wei Wuxian? Could none of the past – core melting, core giving, demonic cultivation, Yanli's death, have happened?

For a second, Jiang Cheng was lost in possibilities. Most of all, the thought of friendship with Wei Wuxian never strained tantalized him.

He wanted him back.

Meishi regarded him closely. "You seem lost in regret."

Jiang Cheng shook his head. "Ha! No."

"I'm sure he would have helped," said Mei. What would have happened, then, if she and Jiang Cheng grew up childhood friends instead of enemies?

But no, she was only an orphan because of Jiang Cheng.

"You, too?" Jiang Cheng smiled. "Would you have made us your lotus tea?"

"No. I didn't learn that until later." Meishi rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "I would have punched you to disfigurement so no one would recognize you."

In fact, she had done that to herself, partially for discernment and partially for guilt, and caused Father Tao no end of anxiety.

"You would have thought that far?"

"I never stop thinking," she said cheekily.

"You couldn't best two teenage boys." Jiang Cheng smirked.

"Of course I could." She winked. "It's all in the surprise."

His hand caught her wrist. What could he say? That he was in awe? That she frightened him, just a little, because he couldn't understand her innumerable contradictions? "Let me guess: more kisses?"

Wait, that wasn't what he should have said. He could have slapped himself.

"You're still thinking of that?" she snapped in return.

Jiang Cheng swallowed. He looked sullen.

Meishi surveyed him. "Oh, I get it. You never kissed anyone before me. You're afraid you don't compare."

"I compare just fine," Jiang Cheng retorted.

"You do," Mei confirmed. She felt a rush of relief that she wasn't lying here. "You're the best man I've kissed."

"Am I." He wrinkled his nose. "Or are you just saying that to pacify me?"

"I'm not, but you're welcome to prove it again." Mei moved to sashay away.

He lunged forward to grab her wrist. He pushed his lips against hers, felt her gasp and open her mouth, inviting him further in.

Mei wrapped her arms over his neck. He swung her backwards, off balance.

"You!" She toppled towards the floor, and he caught her. "You did that on purpose!"

"So what if I did?" He pushed her beneath him, against the hard stone, because like hell was he using that bed, and pinned her arms above her head.

"Not even patient enough to move to a bed?" She breathed between his kisses, which had grown more feral.

She stuck out her tongue, but he took hers into his mouth. In response, Mei wrapped her legs around him, drawing him close enough to feel him hardening beneath his tunic.

Suddenly her eyes focused behind him, and despite their joint mouths, a small shriek escaped her lips.

Jiang Cheng whirled around and promptly wished for death.

His nephew stood there.

Jin Ling.

Saw.

Him. With his wife sprawled beneath him. Sweating and red-faced and engaging in activities Jin Ling did not need to know about.

"Uh." Jin Ling squeaked. He looked ready to vomit, or flee.

This was it. Surely this was when his legs were broken beyond repair. This was his reward for trying to mend his relationship with his uncle, to thank him for his help, to show him how strong he was by inviting him out with him –

"I didn't – I didn't mean – I'm off night-hunting!" squealed Jin Ling.

"You're not going alone!" Jiang Cheng clamored to his feet.

"You're busy!" shrieked Jin Ling, floundering for the door. He missed the handle in his hast and thunked his head against the doorframe. He narrowly dodged Jiang Cheng and sprinted down the hall.

"Jin Ling!" Jiang Cheng bellowed, but his nephew had already raced away.

He turned around, aware of his rumpled appearance, and saw several servants staring at him.

"Oh, piss off," he snarled before leaping back inside the room.

Meishi's face was a mix of embarrassment and amusement. Plus, Jiang Cheng's rudeness towards servants would certainly not endear him to the citizens of Lanling. This was perfect. "Shall you go after your nephew?"

Jiang Cheng hesitated. "I do want him to become more independent, but I – I can't lose him – you know."

"I know." Mei nodded. She reached out to straighten his tunic and smooth his hair.

After he left, Mei sank back to the floor.

What hurt her was that she was enjoying it. That she did like fucking Jiang Cheng, her enemy, and not just for revenge.

If he weren't her enemy, if he hadn't killed her brother and, by extent, her family, she would have been happy to marry someone like Jiang Cheng.

She always did like the dangerous boys, she thought with self-disgust. To find Wen Xu's sword, she'd pleasured many an unruly man, and she rather liked the feeling of control. But she didn't like their presence, and she felt embarrassed afterwards.

She didn't feel that way about her husband. She liked the nights they spent together, and their banter.

She stroked the satchel of herbs by her side. She was diligent to choke down the bitterest ones. It wouldn't do to have a child now. Besides, if Jiang Cheng ever threatened to break their child's legs, she would break his in retaliation.

If only she didn't have to hate him.

But now Jiang Cheng was gone. It was time to slip inside the room of treasures, to see if Jin Guangyao could prove himself useful after death.

Still, she sat there for longer than she liked, muttering repeatedly, "If only I didn't have to hate him."