CH 29

Wei Ying felt the carriage stop moving and closed his eyes once again. He had no idea where he was but heard the men call for help and felt himself being lifted and moved somewhere. Voices found their way to his ears as he made a mental note of how many people he heard.

'We only got one ready…'

'Stick him in with her, he's Lan after all'

'What does Lan have to do with anything?'

He felt his body being dropped to a cold stone floor and his hands being bound behind his back with some type of rope. Whoever they were they obviously didn't want him to escape when he 'woke up'. Listening to a lock being closed and various pairs of feet shuffling into the distance he finally dared open his eyes a crack. Around him was dark, he knew that they hadn't been travelling long enough for the bright daylight to turn to night so he must be inside somewhere. Moving his head as little as possible he looked around. 3 sides of the room seemed to be solid stone, the 4th was open with just metal bars between them and the outside. A cell then not a room? As if to reinforce the idea a man stood with his back to the bars, guarding what could only have been the cell door.

His mind was still somewhat not working due to the drug, although the confusion had already worn off. These people had defiantly not planned of capturing anyone as powerful as him. Turning his head slightly the other way he caught a glance of YanLi who, just like himself, had obviously just been dumped on the floor of the cell without any thought for her dignity. Seeing this view made Wei Ying's blood boil and he barely held himself back from standing up right then and strangling the idiot standing guard at the door, simply to make himself feel better. He had to remind himself that at the moment his sister was unconscious, he didn't know when she would wake up and he had no idea how many more men there were outside the cell. From the conversation he had heard earlier though he could work out that he wasn't the target. For some reason these men were after his sister.

Wei Ying laid there for a while, thinking over who could have any problem with his sister and coming up blank. Everyone thought he was dead so they couldn't be using her to get to him, that left two possibilities, Jiang Cheng or Jin ZiXuan. Someone wanted to use her to control either his brother or that airhead peacock she married. Hearing movement outside the bars once again, Wei Ying closed his eyes. He didn't know how powerful they thought he was, or when they expected the 'Lan Clan disciple' to wake up, but for now pretending to still be unconscious was the safest plan. As a second pair of steps approached the bars Wei Ying concentrated on listening, knowing anything he could hear might be important in understanding his present situation.

'Anything happened?.' voice one said

'No they are still both unconscious. I haven't heard a noise from either of them. Anyway why did we bring back two I thought the plan was just one?' replied a second voice.

'I don't know. But I've heard the boss changed his mind and wanted them both. Apparently the boy in there is HanGuang Jun's plaything so we can possibly use him too.

The shock of being called 'HanGuang Jun's plaything' made Wei Ying open his eyes a fraction and look at who was speaking such foolishness. However the men continued talking, the once quiet tones had now risen to a more conversational level, obviously not concerned about being overheard. Lights had been hung in the hallway where the men stood, their backs to him. One man stood at the door to the cell while the other stood off to one side, his hands in the pockets of his robes.

'You mean?….' The man at the door began.

'Yep.' Cut in the man to the side, obvious glee and sarcasm dripping from his voice. 'The famously incorruptible HanGuang Jun is a pervert. Not only that but it seems he likes forcing his own junior disciples into fulfilling his own twisted desires. Think about it….' The man at the door had turned slightly, the outline of his face filled with attention as he listened. The other man was obviously getting involved in his own story as he continued as he removed his hands from his pockets and they became more animated. 'Think about it…' He repeated 'he is the younger brother of a leader of a Sect known for being righteous and honourable. Is anybody going to believe a little disciple when they tell someone that the only way of advancement up the ranks in Gusu is to offer their ass up to the Sect leaders perverted little brother?'

Wei Ying's hands had turned white. He had never been so thankful for his wrist being bound in his life. The pressure and pain from twisting his wrists in the rope was the only thing keeping him sane. Someone had seen him and Lan Zhan together that night, he didn't know who or how, but someone had!. Lan Zhan's oral shield that night obviously hadn't stopped anyone peeking in through a window, but then who would have thought of that? Wei Ying twisted his wrists again, the pain clearing his head a little. Obviously the same man who thought of this, he concluded. Well if they wanted to think he was nothing more than a weak cultivator who was being forced into Lan Zhan's bed against his will he could work with that. It would give them more a surprise when they realised who they had actually caught.

While he had been regaining his self control though the two men had still been chatting away. Although he had missed a part of the conversation something pulled his attention back to the two fools who obviously knew nothing.

'He will only get one?' The man at the door was asking. It was becoming obvious that he knew a lot less than the other man. Although because this was because he had been on guard or was just a subordinate to the other man, Wei Ying didn't know.

'Yep only one' The other man raised one finger as if to make his point. 'Who do you think he will choose. The sister of one Sect leader and wife of a futre sect leader, or the boy who he currently shares his bed with? The boss had something worked out before, but imagine what the other Sects will say if the great HanGuang Jun actually chooses the boy….'

The rest of the sentence was left unspoken. Such things didn't need to be said, even a fool could understand what would happen if Lan Zhan was given a choice between himself and YanLi. If Lan Zhan didn't choose YanLi then the GusuLan Sect would have diplomatic problems with both the Yunmeng and Jin Clans. However only himself and a few selected people in Gusu knew Wei Ying wasn't a Lan Disciple. If Lan Zhan chose a member of another Sect over one of his own, his reputation would be completely ruined. Whoever had set up this little trap knew Lan Zhan well and had effectively backed him into a corner there was no escape from. There was only one thing wrong with this tidy little plan though. The man they had captured wasn't who they thought he was!

While Wei Ying had going through the process of being drugged, captured and reigning in his temper after being called a plaything. Lan Zhan had been aimlessly walking around the roads and alleys of the town. He had seen some of these alleyways multiple times already today but couldn't bring himself to care about such trifling matters. All that was going through his head was the same thing over and over again. He had woken up that morning…..his head ached and he couldn't remember why. He had moved to get out of bed only to realise one of his arms had no feeling and the other was wrapped around something. Looking down he had been astonished to see that, that something, was in fact Wei Ying. He had no clue why Wei Ying was in his room let alone sleeping in his bed. Confusion had only grown when he had freed the arm Wei Ying was currently sleeping on, only to notice the distinct lack of clothing either of them wore. Wei Ying had somehow gotten into his bed after they had both removed their clothes.

Lan Zhan knew he had drunk the night before, but he had been too emotionally exhausted from keeping Wei Ying at bay. He wanted to explain everything to the other but couldn't bring himself to begin. He thought that if he drank a little maybe it would give him some courage to open up to Wei Ying about his fears. Just when he thought that maybe his plan might have worked Wei Ying moved his shoulders in his sleep. Any hope Lan Zhan had had sunk in an instant. On the shoulder Wei Ying had multiple marks, bit marks. Lan Zhan's breath had hitched as he counted three even on the area he could see. Looking more carefully he noticed round Wei Ying's wrist was an unmistakable red ring, it looked painful even at a glance. He was no fool, even though he couldn't remember what had happened he knew the marks where not there yesterday. Yet waking up this morning in Lan Zhan's bed…...Suddenly Lan Zhan had felt sick….he needed to get out of the room…...away from Wei Ying.

He hadn't cared where he went or what he did, he had just wondered the streets asking himself the same questions over and over. What had he done last night to make Wei Ying look like that?…..How would Wei Ying ever forgive him? And the most scary question of all…..had he forced the man he loved into something he didn't want? No memories of the night before were forthcoming which wasn't helping his nerves or his temper. Slowly he noticed is body tiring slightly and looked up at the sky. The sun showed it was already passed midday, he had been aimlessly walking for hours. With a huge sigh Lan Zhan decided that the only thing he could do was to return to the inn. Wei Ying would already be at his reunion with his sister, so he would sit and wait. He had to face Wei Ying, he had to know one way or the other what happened. Even if Wei Ying hated him, stabbed him, insulted him or told him he never wanted to see him again. Only that way could he know if he needed to give up what was in his heart and truly walk away.

Having made this decision Lan Zhan lifted his head, straightened his back and walked back to the inn with something like his usual purposeful stride. However he had literally just entered the door of the inn when an extremely flustered innkeeper literality ran up to him. The same innkeeper who normally bowed and scraped to him was simply staring at him out of breath. It didn't take too much of Lan Zhan's brain power to work out something was wrong. He waited patiently for the innkeeper to get his breath back and begin speaking.

'Master Lan' The man begin before he had fully gotten his breath, which resulted in a breathy, pant rather than an actual normal tone. 'A Young Master appeared in the inn this morning wanting to speak with you, when I said you were not here he refused to leave. He said he would not leave the inn by even one step until he had spoken to you. He refused to give me a name and him and the men he bought with him locked themselves in the private dining room. They will not allow even me inside however the man has been shouting at the other guests all day.'

Lan Zhan raised his hand and the innkeeper fell silent. His hand slightly tightened on Bichen as he turned towards the closed doors to the small private dining area. Taking a small breath and making sure he had his normal impassive look on his face. He walked towards the doors.