Summer had given way to fall and then winter and still Lan Qiren found himself trapped near the Burial Mounds. He had grossly underestimated the time and effort that Lan Teegan and Wen Ning were willing to put in to tame the area. Although they had a long list of techniques to try, they were still working on their original approaches. "When we discussed it with Wei Wuxian, we realized it could take years, possibly even decades, before we could tell whether a method worked or not." However, even they had agreed that the prayer wheels were not a success. Resentful energy clogged the wheels until they couldn't spin at all, and so Lan Qiren had moved onto playing Inquiry. He held out little hope for the technique. The sprits may not have been mad when they'd died, but being trapped in the Burial Mounds had done nothing good for their sanity.

As New Year's approached and the noise in the streets surpassed its usual inappropriate levels, Lan Qiren wished his nephew had found them a house further from town. He understood that many chose to remain awake late into the evening, but they could at least respect their neighbors by taking the lateness of the hour into consideration. As he lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, he wondered if he'd ever get a good night's sleep again. And so when he heard the shouting did not surprise him until he realized it was coming from inside the house.

Lan Qiren sat up in his bed and listened until he identified the shouting as coming from Yin Jiaying, the servant who had apparently come with the inn when Lan Wangji had bought it. As the shouting gave way to a more muted conversation, Lan Qiren listened carefully. He couldn't make out the words, just the tone as Lan Teegan responded to Wen Ning. She sounded worried. After donning himself in his headband and an outer robe, Lan Qiren headed downstairs. Yin Jiaying gave him a quick bow, little more than a nod, before dashing off towards the kitchen. Lan Qiren made his way down the hall to the only lit room: Wen Ning's apothecary.

He had never been in the room, but didn't take the time to look around. There was a boy. He'd been laid out on a large wooden table and wasn't moving. Wen Ning gathered supplies: a large needle, herbs. That meant the boy was alive, didn't it? Wen Ning wouldn't need those supplies if the boy were … not alive.

A whimpering to the left caught Lan Qiren's attention. "Didi. Didi." Lan Qiren turned to see Lan Teegan holding a girl. The child was leaning forward, towards the table, or no, not the table, towards the boy, but not struggling against Lan Teegan's hold. She stared angrily as if she thought Wen Ning would hurt the boy. Lan Qiren thought to explain that Wen Ning was an accomplished doctor but then realized the girl wasn't angry. She was afraid. He was certain, although he didn't know how, that the girl wasn't afraid of Wen Ning but afraid that she'd lose her brother. Lan Qiren wasn't sure that she wouldn't. They boy was bloody and didn't move. He barely seemed to breathe.

"Apologies, shifu. We didn't mean to disturb you." The words brought his attention back to Lan Teegan and the girl. It was difficult to judge ages but she was older than the boy, perhaps nine to his six. Her hair was matted and her clothes frayed and dirty as if she'd been wearing the same outfit, if one could call it that, for months.

"Always strive to help those in need." Lan Qiren rattled off the rule without thought. "Who are these children? How did they get here so late? Where are there parents?" No, none of that was important at the moment. "What can I do to help?"

Before anyone could reply, Yin Jiaying ran in with a pan of steaming water. Not even wincing at the heat, Wen Ning dipped cloths into the water and wiped blood from the boy's arm. Lan Qiren could see that he wasn't needed. He'd never had medical training. What did he think he could do here? Regretting his lack of such a necessary skill, Lan Qiren was about to leave the room when he had another thought. He cleared his throat but Wen Ning didn't look up from the boy. That couldn't be a good sign. "I can get my guqin. There are healing tunes that I could play if you think they might help."

Wen Ning looked up and gave an emphatic nod before turning back to the boy's injuries.

Lan Qiren walked very quickly to his room, telling himself that one did not run except in emergencies. Then he thought of the boy's wounds. This very well could be an emergency. He ran.

When he returned to the apothecary, Lan Qiren noticed there was no good place to sit. The far wall was filled with a colorful array, jars filled with ingredients Lan Qiren could not name most of them although the bright red of the hong hua stood out as did the more muddy-colored cicada shells. A cabinet full of drawers hid the wall to his right. Lan Teegan was holding the girl in the far corner of the left wall. Lan Qiren sat in the left corner closest to the door. He thought he'd be out of the way there and if nothing else, at least he wasn't blocking the girl's view.

Lan Qiren let the rest of the room drop from his notice as he focused the power of his healing music on the boy. The let music carry away his sense of time and so, when Wen Ning stepped back from the table, Lan Qiren was startled to see the night sky brightening as he brought the tune to a close. The girl ran over to the boy but stopped just shy of the table, staring intently.

"You may hold his hand but do so gently," Wen Ning said.

She took her brother's hand reverently, as if holding a holy icon. "Will he be alright?"

Wen Ning squatted down until they were close to the same height. "He will recover, but he must rest. You should sleep as well."

"No." Lan Qiren didn't understand how such a small child could look so ferocious. "Not sleeping."

Wen Ning looked distressed at her refusal and Lan Qiren could see there was little Wen Ning could do. He couldn't force the child to sleep. Lan Qiren cleared his throat. When Wen Ning looked over, he started playing one of the calming tunes, one that induced sleep. Wen Ning nodded and Lan Qiren continued to play.

The girl was more stubborn than Lan Qiren had expected. Even though he was directing the calming music at her, the girl only agreed to lie down once bedding had been brought into the apothecary, and even then she insisted on putting herself between her brother and the door. As she lay down, she announced, "I'm not going to sleep." Lan Qiren continued playing and her eyes dropped further and further shut. She jolted herself awake twice but her breath evened out quickly and soon she was snoring lightly.

Wen Ning stood at the far end of the room. His stance, which suggested a guardian's protection more than a doctor's attention, reminded Lan Qiren that he didn't know how the boy had gotten his injuries. Wen Ning looked as if he would stand there forever if necessary. It was a side of the man that Lan Qiren had never seen.

Lan Teegan knelt next to Lan Qiren and bowed. Why was the fool woman showing him respect now? Didn't she see he was busy? "Shifu, the children are asleep. You could stop playing."

He would not stop. "They have been through much. They need a restful sleep. I will continue."

"I will bring you tea."

"Quietly," he whispered. "Do not wake the children."

He didn't understand why she was smiling as she left the room.