Summary: Jiang Cheng's opposing secret about the golden cores is revealed when Wei Wuxian's is given out to hurt him.

Neither Lan Zhan nor Wen Ning had been fast enough to keep the other two from drinking on the boat.

Jiang Cheng pulled out four jars of strong, Yunmeng Jiang liquor. He got giggly first, far before Wei Wuxian.

Wei Wuxian fell into the same state when he finished the other half of the third jar. His alcohol tolerance was always greater than his brother's—that hadn't changed.

The four got off the boat.

Jiang Cheng almost tripped and was caught by Wei Wuxian. The shouting started then, the questions. Because as drunk as they were, Jiang Cheng could still remember he was angry and wanted answers.

Wen Ning intervened.

A secret was revealed to hurt Jiang Cheng.

To make him stop.

It only hurt Wei Wuxian instead.

"Stop," Wei Wuxian said. He was sobering up now. "I didn't-" He hadn't wanted Jiang Cheng to know. If he could make Wen Ning and Lan Zhan forget as well he would.

"How righteous," Jiang Cheng mocked, but his gaze was on Lan Zhan and Wen Ning, not on his brother who he now no longer considered the most self-righteous person here.

Lan Zhan spoke. He was biased.

Jiang Cheng didn't listen. He saw Wen Ning try to tug Wei Wuxian away, unfruitfully. He could see his brother try to say something again and fail.

It was funny to see that his brother had finally met a similar sort of impossible that couldn't be overcome.

Perhaps that was what made Jiang Cheng laugh.

The alcohol certainly helped.

He couldn't stop giggling. Eventually, Jiang Cheng threw his head back and laughed. He laughed until his jaw was sore. It was bitter and hopeful and both of those were far too strong for him.

In the morning, when Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian were sobered up and Jin Ling came, they would all talk properly. Something was needed to get Lan Zhan and Wen Ning to not interfere or go away, and something for Wei Wuxian to stay and try to talk. No more running away from the hard conversations. Jiang Cheng tried not to think of how this courage and spite and desperation wouldn't last long enough for that.

Wei Wuxian had been expecting anger. He moved forward, brushing off Wen Ning's attempts to hold him back.

When his brother was only a few steps away, Wei Wuxian saw his brother look at him. He could see tear marks and reddened eyes, and still didn't understand what was funny. He asked.

Jiang Cheng bared his teeth in a grin. He could see how Wen Ning and Lan Zhan saw Wei Wuxian as pure and good, and him as the opposite. He would never stand for being compared to Wei Wuxian—being cast as opposing sides, different and lesser in every way—but this time he could match his brother exactly.

"That's the really funny thing." The humor in his voice faded, slowly, as he put a hand on his brother's shoulder and yet he didn't direct his response to just Wei Wuxian.

He couldn't deny that he also wanted to see their reaction. He didn't want their acknowledgement, but maybe this really would stop them trying to castigate him as a great villain for long enough.

"I gave up my golden core for him first."

A/N

Something about how this scene goes (in the untamed tv version) feels awful to me.

It wasn't Wei Wuxian's choice to have Jiang Cheng know and it gets pulled out to hurt Jiang Cheng. Also, it's just a generally terrible idea to 1) get involved in personal family matters of two people by joining the argument 2) use a secret of someone else 3) not realize how said secret is both a testament to Wei Wuxian's heroism and flaws simultaneously.

And then on the other hand, Jiang Cheng doesn't defend himself and doesn't have anyone else there to do so while Wei Wuxian's side (Wen Ning and Lan Zhan) attack him. It's also really painful to see how self righteous this all feels and how much better a neutral mediator do that Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian actually communicate would be. Hence, either someone like Jin Ling is going to defend Jiang Cheng or Jiang Cheng is going to get drunk and pull out his own secret.

—

Extra:

During the time of Wei Wuxian's disappearance from the Sun Shot Campaign.

"You still haven't given up," Lan Zhan noted.

Jiang Cheng 's response was bitter, edges still undulled by alcohol. "Would you, if it was Lan Xichen?"

The change of perspective was uncomfortable.

"...No."