He didn't dream. But he could feel those horrors that waited for him there, pressing in around him in the darkness like many hands imprinting into a suspended black satin sheet. He knew they would be there for him next time, when the sheet had fallen away and the inky nothing became something much worse.
But thankfully, this time, he didn't dream.
Jiang Cheng woke as soon as the needle was pulled from his skin. He blinked and looked around blearily at the unfamiliar walls that surrounded him. He didn't feel such agony as he'd felt when they were flying, but there was a weight to his limbs and pressing on his chest that made it difficult to move.
Perhaps he just didn't have the energy for it.
"Where are we?" he muttered, not bothering to sit up yet. "The air is heavy here."
"Just another inn."
He turned his head to see his nephew kneeling beside him, spinning a shiny needle between his fingers. Jiang Cheng scowled.
"I'm going to kill your advisor when I find her," he muttered.
"She saved your life," Jin Ling snapped. "You owe her."
"Tch."
He considered telling him that he'd specifically told Luo Qingyang to leave him behind and thus, couldn't be expected to owe her anything. But he knew that the effect of his words would not be the one that he wanted. So, Jiang Cheng kept his mouth shut and sat up.
"We're very close to Nightless City," Jin Ling said. "The others say that's why the air feels like this. Wei – they say it's from a build up of yin energy in the area. It can awaken memories. Bad memories specifically. They think that's why the clarity bell doesn't protect us. It's not a hallucination."
"The bells don't only work for hallucinations," Jiang Cheng said. "They could protect against this too."
Jin Ling shrugged. "Maybe Xue Yang is stronger."
Jiang Cheng bristled at the thought of some random demonic cultivator becoming powerful enough to overcome the clarity bell of his clan.
"I didn't recall any memories," Jiang Cheng said, shifting the subject.
"The others have been trying to figure that out too," Jin Ling said. "They're probably still out there trying to figure it out. Yu Qingqi wonders if it was a re-experiencing curse. She said she's heard of curses like those being used to torture people. It makes you feel like you did during all the worst periods of your life, but… all at once."
Jiang Cheng's fingers curled. What Jin Ling had said seemed ridiculous at first. That level of pain from memories?
But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
He hadn't remembered anything specific. But how he'd felt, he could remember that. He had even been able to place some of it as he'd experienced it… the massacre of Lotus Pier… Yanli's death… Wei Wuxian's death… being held prisoner in his own home…
He was beginning to hate this Xue Yang more than he ever thought he could. He'd made a fool of him again.
"Jiujiu?" Jin Ling said. "Are you all right?"
He was brought back to the present. Jiang Cheng nodded. "Are you?"
Jin Ling nodded too, but winced and brought his hand up to his temple.
"Is lying to me becoming second nature to you now?"
"No," Jin Ling said quickly. "I'm better than I was. Luo Qingyang helped me. Zewu-jun showed her the trick he showed you and she decided to modify it with Wen Ning's needles and, well anyway, I'm doing much better than before."
"Good," said Jiang Cheng. "That's good."
A bitterness lingered on his tongue when he said it. For some reason, the idea of Lan Xichen teaching Luo Qingyang the meridian technique bothered him greatly. He didn't know why.
His best guess was that some part of himself had wanted to know something that Luo Qingyang didn't so he could lord it over her at some point.
But he really wasn't sure that was it.
"What's the plan now?" Jiang Cheng asked.
Jin Ling shrugged. "We're staying here to rest," he said. "The others have decided that flying allows us too little time to adjust to the thickening miasma, so we'll be walking the remainder of the way to Nightless City in the morn – where are you going?"
"To have my say," Jiang Cheng said without stopping. He was already halfway to the door. "I won't have all of them deciding everything for me. Why didn't you wake me sooner?"
"I didn't delay," Jin Ling said. "I was-"
The door to their room opened with an obnoxious creak. He was shocked to hear the voices of the others so close by.
When he looked down the hall, he counted nine other rooms and could spot no stairwell. This was a small establishment indeed.
"It couldn't have been magic like that!" he heard Wei Wuxian say loudly. "The clarity bell would have blocked it out!"
"Powerful as the Jiangs are," said Luo Qingyang, "they are not impervious. Even your own craftsmanship can be bested by others. Don't ignore what Yu Qingqi has suggested just because you don't like it."
"What does it matter?" piped up Lan Jingyi. "The bells were obviously overcome or had no effect in the first place and whatever this is has obviously gotten worse as we get closer to Nightless City! Why argue? We already know how to solve it! We have to defeat Xue Yang!"
Jiang Cheng turned around, one hand still on the doorframe, to see Jin Ling's grimace. His thoughts were written all over his face. Jin Ling was worried about what his uncle would do after being forcibly rescued by the others of their group.
He was right to be worried.
"A-Ling?" said Jiang Cheng, voice falsely calm. He saw Jin Ling tense. "Who was it that carried me here?"
Jin Ling folded his arms. But for as combative as he tried to appear, Jiang Cheng knew better. He had paled by several degrees.
"What does that matter?"
"If it doesn't matter, why won't you tell me?" Jiang Cheng pressed him.
"Because it's a waste of breath."
"So is denying me."
"But if I continue to deny, what use is asking?"
His fingers clamped down on the wooden frame beneath them. "Was it Zewu-jun?"
"Stop asking me," Jin Ling snapped.
He hadn't looked away from him. So it hadn't been Lan Xichen.
But then who? No one else could have. They had all been busy carrying someone else, except for Huaisang who couldn't even carry his own personal items and Jin Ling and Lan Jingyi, who had seemed much more concerned about Lan Sizhui.
Unless…
"It couldn't have been…" breathed Jiang Cheng. His knuckles burned white as he clenched the doorframe tighter.
"You're wasting your time," Jin Ling said. "I'm not-"
"It was your advisor, wasn't it?"
Jin Ling averted his gaze, only for a moment, but Jiang Cheng saw it.
The wood groaned in protest under his fist.
"How?" Jiang Cheng asked, his voice little more than a whisper.
"She carried you on her back?" Jin Ling said slowly, confused.
"No, I meant how was she able to?"
"She's… strong?"
Jiang Cheng laughed darkly. "I bet she loved that," he said. "The perfect chance for her to humiliate me without repercussions."
"Jiujiu, I don't-"
"Who would I be if I didn't thank her for what she's done?" Jiang Cheng asked, ignoring Jin Ling. "I owe her. It's like you said. In fact, I should go thank her right now. I'm sure she's out there with everyone else."
He turned on his heel, but Jin Ling called after him. "Jiujiu, don't!"
"Don't what?" he growled over his shoulder. "I just told you I'm going to thank her. Why involve yourself?"
"You're not going to thank her. I know you aren't."
"Tell me what I'm going to do, then, since you presume to know better. Want to make my decisions for me too, Jin Ling? Everyone else is doing it. Why not you too? What a great way to get back at me for being so involved in your affairs!"
"I don't know what you're going to do, but it's nothing good," said Jin Ling. "I don't want you to pick a fight with her."
"And who are you to order me around?" Jiang Cheng demanded. "Since you admitted that you don't know what I'm going to do, perhaps you should stay out of it."
He took a step out into the hallway when he heard the unmistakable sound of a sword being drawn.
"I don't know what you're going to do," came Jin Ling's shaky voice from behind him, "but I will protect her."
Jiang Cheng was astonished. Jin Ling had certainly defied him in the past, but usually his defiance was indirect in nature – a trick here, a misleading lie there. Never ever had he stood so boldly against him.
"What are you doing?" Jiang Cheng asked, turning around to watch Jin Ling tremble as he brandished Suihua. "Jin Ling, what the hell are you doing?"
"Promise me that you'll leave her alone," Jin Ling said firmly.
"You're not going to fight me. Put that down."
"Promise me!"
Jiang Cheng didn't answer. He crossed the room, paused to glare at Jin Ling, and took Suihua from his slackened grip.
"What the fuck has gotten into you?" Jiang Cheng asked, rolling the hilt in his fingers. "You're in no condition to fight me anyway."
"I know," Jin Ling said. "And you're in no condition to speak with Luo Qingyang. You're going to do something that you'll regret. Please don't speak with her."
"What you did just now," said Jiang Cheng, bearing down on Jin Ling, "drawing your sword on me? Wars have been started over less."
"I-"
"But a newborn calf does not fear a tiger," Jiang Cheng went on. "There are things that you have not lived to see. I'm grateful for that, and you should be too. But if you're not careful, you will bring those horrors upon yourself."
"Jiujiu, I was wrong to have threatened you," Jin Ling said, annoyed, "but you're overreacting. You and I – Jiang and Jin – will not war against one another."
Jiang Cheng pinched his nephew's cheek the way he often did to correct his behavior. Jin Ling slapped his hand away.
"You're a clan leader now," Jiang Cheng said. "What you do will serve as an example for your disciples. It will set the tone of your command. If any of your people had seen what you'd done just now, they might have thought they were free to treat Jiang disciples as they see fit. And if any of my disciples had seen what you'd done, there could have been trouble."
Jin Ling gulped.
"Think before you act," Jiang Cheng stated through gritted teeth. "Consider the station of those you would challenge."
"Then you will bear that in mind when you speak with Advisor Luo?" Jin Ling said. "You will remember that she's under my protection?"
Jiang Cheng sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm not going to harm your advisor," he said. "I promise."
Jin Ling didn't look convinced, but Jiang Cheng said no more. He headed out into the hallway and closed the door behind him, much to his nephew's annoyance.
"I'm not going to sit in here doing nothing!" Jin Ling called after him.
The sound of boots racing across the floor was easily heard from the other side of the door, but Jiang Cheng didn't wait for him. He wanted to speak to Luo Qingyang. Jin Ling was only going to get in the way.
He followed Wei Wuxian's voice down the hall and into the main room of their new inn.
Dusty cobwebs stretched between the rafters above. But the dust suspended in the air was nothing compared to the the thick layer of gray velvet on the chairs, tables, and floors. The footprints of their party were the only patches of clean floor.
There was neither the smell of food nor the chatter of staff drifting out from behind the kitchen door. In fact, the only noise to be heard was Wei Wuxian, who was animatedly recalling some tidbit about demons that would be helpful for facing the huli jing.
Jiang Cheng wasn't listening to him. The hair on his arms stood on end.
"Where is the innkeeper?" he asked. "Where are all the people?"
Wei Wuxian cut off abruptly as he and everyone else turned to look at him.
All nine of them, Wen Ning included, were crowded around one small table as if there was something atop it that they needed to see. But there was nothing there except dust.
Many of them inclined their heads. Only one of the nine smiled at him.
"Hello, Sect Leader Jiang," said Lan Xichen, his voice as dull as his eyes. "Are you feeling any better?"
It seemed odd that he would ask. Lan Xichen's shoulders were slumped. His hair was slightly unkempt. He looked terrible himself. Why would he ask about someone else?
"I'm fine," Jiang Cheng said.
His eyes were inadvertently drawn to Wei Wuxian, and for a brief moment, they regarded one another. Wei Wuxian was looking at him that same way that he had in the woods when the wall of smoke had cut them off from the others.
But his fear didn't make him angry like it had before. Instead, it hurt.
He looked away, focusing on Luo Qingyang instead.
"Have anything you'd like to say to me?" Jiang Cheng snapped at her.
Yu Qingqi shrank down a little and slipped her arm around Luo Qingyang's. Luo Qingyang, however, drew herself up taller and met Jiang Cheng's glare with one of equal intensity.
"Funny," she said, "I was going to ask you the same."
Everyone around the table instantly became uncomfortable, but Yu Qingqi was perhaps the most affected. She was practically shaking as she clung to her wife. Did she really think Jiang Cheng was so stupid as to attack Luo Qingyang in front of everyone? To attack her at all would be beyond foolish.
"Please," Lan Xichen said quietly, "don't fight. I know that Advisor Luo disregarded your orders, but she did so for your protection."
Ungrateful. That's what they all thought of him. It was plain to see on the faces of Lan Wangji, Wen Ning, and Lan Jingyi, but he knew the others were thinking it too.
"Jiujiu."
Jiang Cheng glanced over his shoulder to find Jin Ling standing behind him. Though he'd expected him to follow, he hadn't heard him approach.
Jin Ling was pleading with him. Just like Yu Qingqi, he seemed to think that Jiang Cheng was going to pick a fight with his advisor.
"I just want to talk to her," Jiang Cheng said shortly.
"Hm," Luo Qingyang replied. She didn't seem to believe him either. "Maybe we'd better talk outside. We're torturing the others."
"No!" Yu Qingqi exclaimed. "Stay here. It's better if you both talk here."
"Don't worry about it," Luo Qingyang said, stealing the words right from Jiang Cheng's mouth. However, she said them much more lovingly than he would have. "It will only take a moment."
"Jiujiu," said Jin Ling, unmoved from his place behind Jiang Cheng. "Remember what you swore to me."
Jiang Cheng's jaw ached as he clenched his teeth tighter. "If you think my memory is as weak as that, it must be a wonder to you that I can remember my own name."
Jin Ling's gaze cast downward briefly, and then back up again.
"I remember my promises," Jiang Cheng went on, "unlike some."
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Wei Wuxian shift a little.
Jiang Cheng didn't care.
He motioned for Luo Qingyang to follow him, then marched off toward a door that he assumed to be the exit without waiting to see if she would indeed come with him.
It was late in the day. The sun was a crimson circle in the distance, not long for the horizon.
There was still plenty of light left for him to see that the whole town was abandoned, just like the inn. Street vendors had left their carts, full of wares, in the streets. Those that carried essential items like food or clothing were picked over, but the others – art, make up, flowers – they were untouched.
The smell of desiccated petals wafted toward him as he surveyed the scene.
"I expect they will all be like this," said Luo Qingyang from beside him. "All of the towns and cities from here to Nightless City will have been left behind."
"From the miasma?" Jiang Cheng asked.
"That or corpses that it attracts… or something worse."
"Hm."
They stood side by side for a moment, neither speaking. Jiang Cheng was trying to rein in his fury before saying anything.
"I won't apologize to you," Luo Qingyang said suddenly. "I'm not sorry for what I did."
"You disobeyed me," Jiang Cheng said.
"I am under Jin Ling's command, not yours."
"Does the title of clan leader mean nothing to you?"
"I can't say that it means a great deal to me."
Jiang Cheng took a deep breath. Zidian was growing warm on his finger, but he willed himself not to fiddle with it.
"So you admit that your actions were to spite me?" he asked.
"My actions saved you."
"I didn't need you to save me," Jiang Cheng snapped as he finally turned to look at her. "I didn't want you to save me. I refuse to be indebted to you for this."
Luo Qingyang glanced at him curiously for a moment before going back to studying the echoes of the town around them.
"I don't consider you to be indebted to me," she said evenly. "It's like you said: you specifically asked me not to help you. I can't collect for something that you didn't request."
"I didn't need your help."
Luo Qingyang laughed. It wasn't harsh or mocking, nor was it a sound of amusement. Her laughter was borne of exhaustion.
"You didn't want my help," she said, "but you certainly needed it. Try not to confuse yourself, Sect Leader."
"I'm not confused," Jiang Cheng hissed, "and I'm not so weak as to need you."
When Luo Qingyang laughed again, it was with contempt.
"How fragile the ego!" she exclaimed, rounding on him with all the fury of a pestered viper. "It must be very tiring to be inside your head, Sect Leader. Every comment is a veiled insult. Every event is a competition. And every perceived loss – real or not – means dishonor. I imagine the disappointment of your life is almost unbearable."
Without thinking, Jiang Cheng seized the front of her hanfu. Zidian began to spark in earnest.
Brown eyes, wide with shock, stared up at him. And then, as they flicked back and forth, taking in his face, they… softened?
"I know you're not weak," Luo Qingyang said quietly. "Not physically weak anyway."
Jiang Cheng frowned and his grip on her slackened. She reached up and removed his hand from her collar.
"I was almost immobilized by the miasma too," she murmured. "Wei Wuxian and Lan Sizhui were. It would be hypocritical of me to assume that you're the weak one when there were others who were equally affected."
"I know you're thinking it," Jiang Cheng said. "I know you're all thinking it, hypocritically or not."
His tone lacked the bite that he'd intended. He was still puzzled as to why Luo Qingyang was looking at him that way.
"Don't you get tired of making assumptions that turn out to be wrong?" she asked.
"Don't try to make me out as the fool," Jiang Cheng snapped. "I heard what you said after you flung that needle at my head."
Luo Qingyang crossed her arms, but somehow, she looked even less antagonistic than before.
"You didn't listen very well," she said. "I told you that the weakness I perceive in you is not from this."
"That's just a backhanded way of insulting me."
"Sure," Luo Qingyang admitted. "I still think it's important that you know I find you despicable because of the way you treat the people around you, especially the people you should care about. It has nothing to do with how you've been hurt before. I've been hurt too. I know what that's like."
She was making an uncomfortable amount of eye contact with him. Jiang Cheng wanted to look away, but he didn't dare. He wasn't about to give her another reason to call him weak.
"The war – it did a lot of terrible things to plenty of strong people," she said softly. "You don't need to be ashamed of that. There was nothing more that you could have done. What happened to you says nothing about you and everything about them."
The way she was talking… the way she was staring at him… did she… had she somehow figured it out? Had someone told her? Who would have told her? Even Wen Chao wouldn't have said anything. Like she'd pointed out already, it would have reflected poorly on him too.
So how did she know? Did she know?
Jiang Cheng's heart pounded in his chest. He knew he needed to say something, else he would prove her right in his silence. But what could he say that would not incriminate himself further? What if she didn't know anything and he inadvertently made it clear to her? Just the thought of it made him ill.
"Of course the atrocities committed by the Wens weren't my fault," Jiang Cheng said hotly. "You think I consider the massacre of Lotus Pier my doing? Or are you projecting your own thoughts onto me?"
Luo Qingyang sighed in exasperation. "You know that's not what I'm talking about," she said. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I didn't expect you to anyway. I just wanted to tell you that what was done to you wasn't your fault and has no bearing over how I see you."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"It happens to men too," Luo Qingyang said, speaking as though she hadn't heard him. "Maybe more than you know. You weren't the only one. It isn't just women. It doesn't-"
She cut off abruptly as Jiang Cheng seized her by the collar again, this time even more aggressively than before. The veins in his hands and forearms stood out prominently as he held her inches from his face.
"I don't like what you're insinuating," Jiang Cheng said in a deadly whisper. "You don't know a thing about me. If you start spreading your baseless lies about me, I'll make you wish that you'd left me for dead. Do you understand?"
Though he could feel her quake in his grasp every time a small bolt of lightning arced off of Zidian, Luo Qingyang's expression was anything but terrified. Her mouth was pressed into a hard line of disapproval. Her brow was set low with hatred.
"Forget it," she said without a trace of fear. "I shouldn't have said anything. There's nothing I could offer to you anyway. A friend might help you heal, but I can't be that for you, not in any genuine capacity."
Jiang Cheng tightened his grip. His fingers began to ache.
"Kindly release me, Sect Leader," said Luo Qingyang, "and neither you nor anyone else will hear another word about this from me."
"Swear it," he said through gritted teeth.
"I swear it."
The joints in his hand creaked as he numbly released Luo Qingyang.
She smoothed the front of her robes. Jiang Cheng tried to quiet the slew of frantic thoughts that crashed around inside his skull, paralyzing him.
Luo Qingyang waited to see if he would say anything. When he didn't, she walked past him to return to the inn. He couldn't do anything to stop her. Why would he stop her anyway? The only options left to him were to kill her to ensure she would keep his secret, which was something he couldn't afford to do (and didn't really want to do), or he could trust her to keep her promise.
She paused by the double doors.
"To reiterate," she said, "I don't consider you indebted, but I hope that going forward you might consider it an incentive to do better for others."
He was more than annoyed by what she'd said, but he knew that if he opened his mouth, he was going to start yelling at her, which would alert the rest of their travel companions to the fact that things weren't going well between them. Jiang Cheng definitely didn't want to involve the others.
With that, Luo Qingyang turned on her heel and threw open the door to the abandoned inn. Jiang Cheng's knees begged him to sit down. They grew weaker by the second. But he had to wait until she was gone. He had to.
"Oh!" Luo Qingyang exclaimed, nearly colliding with Lan Xichen, who was standing frozen with one hand outstretched as if he'd been about to open the door himself.
It seemed Jiang Cheng would have even longer to wait before he could collapse.
"The others were getting worried," Lan Xichen said.
"Nothing to worry about," Luo Qingyang answered tersely. "Everything is sorted between us now, isn't it, Sect Leader Jiang?"
Jiang Cheng nodded stiffly when she glanced back at him. Luo Qingyang seemed satisfied, but Lan Xichen did not. The air of uneasiness around him when he'd first run into them didn't fade like it should have.
But, Luo Qingyang passed him and headed inside all the same.
Jiang Cheng and Lan Xichen regarded each other for a moment as the door slowly closed. They were going to go their separate ways, which suited Jiang Cheng just fine.
He needed a moment to collect his thoughts and try to calm down. His skin buzzed with anxiety. The sounds of the birds were muffled by a faint ringing in his ears.
Just as the door was about to close completely, it stopped. Slowly, it creaked open, again.
"Do you mind if I speak with you briefly?" Lan Xichen asked.
"I would rather not," Jiang Cheng said without thinking.
"Very well."
Lan Xichen began to walk away, letting the door swing shut behind him.
"No, wait," Jiang Cheng called after him with a heavy sigh. "What is it?"
Lan Xichen shuffled forward, looking much smaller than Jiang Cheng had ever seen. He was a tall man, taller than Jiang Cheng, and muscular too. It was quite a feat for him to seem small.
"I wanted to say," Lan Xichen mumbled, hardly daring to make eye contact, "that I am sorry if what I did humiliated you."
"What?"
"I didn't want to disregard your wishes," he said, "but that resulted in Luo Qingyang carrying you instead. And I know you two don't get along. I feel I should have done something more."
Jiang Cheng was utterly confused. "You worry about a lot of little things," he said. "I would not have liked to be carried by anyone."
Lan Xichen nodded. Then he gestured toward the door.
"Should we go back inside?" he asked. "The others want to decide what we're doing as soon as possible."
Jiang Cheng sighed again. "Go ahead," he said. "I'll be in shortly."
Lan Xichen left without another word and Jiang Cheng at last found himself with a moment of peace and quiet. There was no Jin Ling to challenge him… no Wei Wuxian to enrage him… no voice to listen to except for the one in his head. He was alone.
Peace wasn't the right word for it, though. The empty street before him was quiet, but the terror of those fleeing residents still haunted the alleyways and clung to the peeling paint of the store signs.
Jiang Cheng did not feel at peace here.
He could still feel the pain in his chest that had caused him to tumble from the sky. It was now a dull ache, but it was still there, reminding him of what horrors from his past would greet him if he continued on the path he was on.
Jade green and ruby red whirligig blades shone, motionless in the sunlight. They were neatly arranged in a deep cup on a vendor's stand across the way. Everything else – paper dolls, burr puzzles, and kites – were broken and askew, lying on the ground or leaning precariously off of the battered stand. But those whirligigs were untouched.
Absentmindedly, Jiang Cheng pressed his hand against his chest.
"I don't know if I can do this," he whispered.
His knees quaked again. The whirligigs didn't move.
Your enemies won't wait for you to be ready, a stern feminine voice echoed in his head. Able or not, challenges will come. You can cry, but you cannot lose. So, wipe your tears, pick that up, and go again.
This wasn't helping him. He felt no calmer than he had when he'd left the inn with Luo Qingyang. Which meant that there was no sense in him staying outside.
Resigned to his fate, Jiang Cheng traced Lan Xichen's steps back into the inn.
"Finally decided to join us, Sect Leader?" Luo Qingyang sneered from across the room.
It seemed that they were on exactly the same terms that they'd been on before. Luo Qingyang was herself again, not an ounce of fear in the way she addressed him.
Her wife, however, stared wide eyed at Jiang Cheng and wrapped her arms tighter around Luo Qingyang's waist as if she feared he would come pull her away at any moment.
"Have we made a decision already?" Jiang Cheng asked, making a conscious effort to keep Zidian from sparking again.
"Of course not," said Lan Xichen. "We waited for you."
"So kind of you to keep us waiting," Luo Qingyang added.
Jiang Cheng bit his tongue and swallowed the copper taste of blood along with the retort he'd wanted to give her.
Jin Ling shifted uncomfortably where he stood between Lan Sizhui and Huaisang. Wei Wuxian was avoiding his gaze. But everyone else seemed to be in varying states of agreement with what Luo Qingyang had said.
"Where do we stand currently?" Jiang Cheng asked.
"One camp, mostly," Lan Xichen said casually. "Most of us feel that we should not continue flying to Nightless City as that form of travel doesn't afford us enough time to adjust. Since some of us are still not fully recovered, this option has been very popular."
Jiang Cheng had expected the others to look to him as one not fully recovered since he was one of the only ones who hadn't been able to move when they'd fallen from the sky.
However, Lan Xichen and everyone else looked at Wei Wuxian. Naturally, this forced Jiang Cheng to look at him too and realize that he was still extremely pale. In fact, he looked very much like he had at the height of his power, when he'd earned the title of 'Yiling Laozu'.
He looked like he had then… except for that face. That face was not the same.
Jiang Cheng looked away.
"Why do you wait for me?" he asked, directing the question toward Lan Xichen. "If the majority already feel this way, what's the point in waiting for me?"
"Exactly!" Luo Qingyang exclaimed, shooting a reproachful look at Lan Xichen.
Lan Xichen paid her no mind. "What are your thoughts on the matter?" he asked. "Perhaps what you have to say will sway others."
Jiang Cheng doubted that very much. And so too did many of the others.
But Lan Xichen waited patiently for him to say something. He was acting as if no one else was present. Having his undivided attention began to make Jiang Cheng feel self-conscious.
The logic of the majority certainly made sense. But Jiang Cheng was very eager to be done with this Xue Yang business as soon as possible.
"If we walk, how long will it take us to go the rest of the way to Nightless City?"
"That depends," Lan Wangji replied before Lan Xichen could. "If we don't get stopped by corpses, we could make the trip within a day. If we have to detour or fight, it becomes more difficult to estimate."
"At worst, it could take us a little over three days to get there," said Lan Xichen.
Three days. That was far too long, especially since they didn't even know for sure that Xue Yang was in Nightless City.
"Who disagreed?" Jiang Cheng asked.
"What?" said Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji in unison.
"You said that most of you wanted to walk there," Jiang Cheng said. "Who wanted to fly?"
"Why should that matter?" Jin Ling asked hotly.
Jiang Cheng didn't answer. He studied the faces of those around the table.
Maybe the loud Lan boy? He seemed very eager to be done quickly.
Or maybe Huaisang, who had also been adamant about getting to Nightless City swiftly. He didn't have to use his own energy to fly there. It would cost him very little to fly.
The more he thought about it, the more Jiang Cheng found himself going in circles. With enough mental gymnastics, he could find a reason why any of them would have voted against the group – anyone except Lan Sizhui and Wei Wuxian, both of whom still looked unthrifty.
Just when he was about to repeat his question, a hand raised, very slowly, into the air.
"It was me," Wei Wuxian said, his mouth set in a grim line.
Jiang Cheng stared at him in disbelief.
"I want this over with."
He was finally looking at him, but Jiang Cheng wished he wasn't. There was neither fear nor hatred in Wei Wuxian's gaze. Instead, it was that same look of resignation he'd given him some fifteen years ago when Jiang Cheng had practically begged him to cast aside the Wen Clan remnants. It was that same disregard for his own safety.
Jiang Cheng swallowed hard. "I think we should walk," he said firmly. "We're not far from Nightless City anyway. Our method of travel will make little difference."
Wei Wuxian chuckled quietly but didn't argue.
"And we need the extra time to inspect Suihua," Lan Jingyi put in suddenly.
Jin Ling stiffened.
"I don't think he's told anyone," Lan Jingyi went on as if he hadn't noticed, "but Suihua hasn't been working right since the battle of Jinlintai."
"It works fine!" Jin Ling insisted. "I was able to fly here, wasn't I?"
"Yes, but you weren't able to fly during our hunt last night."
"I didn't see you fly either!"
"I was stuck!"
"How do you know that I wasn't?!"
"Sizhui told me!"
The two of them snapped at each other like bickering children. Although there were usually some in their group – namely Wei Wuxian and Lan Xichen – who found their squabbles amusing, no one was in the mood today. Neither of them showed the slightest hint of a smile. Wei Wuxian actually seemed annoyed.
Jiang Cheng was more than annoyed.
"Your sword has been dysfunctional since Jinlintai, and you didn't think to mention it to me?" he said.
Jin Ling blanched. "It's fine," he said, the heat in his voice a little cooler than it had been.
"Give it here," Jiang Cheng demanded, holding out his hand.
Jin Ling gripped Suihua's handle where it hung at his waist and backed away from the table. "Not until you tell me what you're going to do with it."
"That depends on what is wrong with it," Lan Xichen said calmly. "Please hand it over, Jin Ling."
"No!" Jin Ling yelled. "I won't! I-!"
"Do you really think I'm going to destroy it?!" Jiang Cheng yelled back.
"You won't tell me what you're going to do! What am I supposed to thi-? What the hell?!"
Midsentence, Suihua had gone whizzing from his hand. It zoomed across the table and settled into Wei Wuxian's outstretched palm.
"It should not have done that," Wei Wuxian commented blithely.
Jin Ling lunged across the table at him. Lan Jingyi caught his arm and hauled him back.
"Don't you dare damage it!" Jin Ling yelled. "Give it back to me!"
Wei Wuxian ignored him. He twirled the blade between his fingers with his eyes closed. A deep red glow began to emit from Suihua, growing in intensity with each twirl.
"This blade has been tampered with," Wei Wuxian said. "When was the last time you crossed paths with Xue Yang? Excluding last night."
Jin Ling stopped struggling against Lan Jingyi. He frowned.
"What does Xue Yang have to do with it?"
"Suihua is riddled with demonic energy," Wei Wuxian said. "Its subtlety and signature details bear a strong resemblance to Xue Yang's work. I would not have detected this spell unless you had handed Suihua to me, which you don't do often. And I really could have done without the last time you handed it to me. However, this isn't Xue Yang's best. Not by a long shot."
Jin Ling's frown deepened.
"So, when was the last time you met him?" Wei Wuxian asked again.
"Yi City," Jin Ling said numbly. "I don't think I've run into him since… except…"
Everyone around the table leaned in closer to hear his next words, but they didn't come. He was lost in thought.
"Except what?" Jiang Cheng snapped at him.
"I've… seen things," said Jin Ling slowly, "for the past month or so. I didn't mention it to anyone because it seemed like my mind was playing tricks on me. There were figures of people who couldn't have been there. Every time I turned to look, they were gone. I thought it was nothing."
"That doesn't sound like nothing to me," Jiang Cheng said.
"Well it does to me," said Wei Wuxian, opening his eyes as the red light in Suihua died. "Yi City seems right. This was a slow-acting poison, kind of like what Lianfang-zun used on Chifeng-zun. Really the poison was more of a side effect than anything."
"Was?" Jin Ling asked.
Wei Wuxian flashed a weak smile and passed Suihua back to him. "It's gone now," he said. "Your sword should be back to normal."
As if to test it, Jin Ling backed away from the table and swung Suihua a few times through the air.
"Don't do that again," Jin Ling grumbled, sheathing it once more.
"I think what you meant to say is 'thank you'?"
"Tch."
Jiang Cheng cleared his throat, disgruntled that he had to be the one to feed Wei Wuxian's desire for attention.
"You said the poison was a side effect," he said. "What was the incantation designed to do?"
Wei Wuxian's face became grim. "Yes," he said. "We have a bigger problem. It was designed to spy on Jin Ling."
A general surprise overtook the table. Though, quite by chance, Jiang Cheng happened to notice that Huaisang's only reaction had been to cover the lower half of his face with his fan.
Paranoia, with sharp eyes and thick hide, reared its great head.
Jiang Cheng glared at Huaisang, causing him to flutter the fan a little bit. When Huaisang glanced to the side, he noticed that Wei Wuxian was watching him too, but only for a moment. Wei Wuxian shifted his attention back to Jiang Cheng.
"Now that we've gotten rid of it," said Yu Qingqi meekly, "do we think the huli jing will have a harder time stalking us?"
"Maybe," Wei Wuxian said thoughtfully, "but I think it was largely designed to eavesdrop on conversations. The really irksome part is that although this spell would have required the Yin Tiger Tally initially to overcome Suihua's power, it obviously didn't require the tally to still be intact to maintain it. It's overall a simple spell that just requires a lot of energy at the start. As a simple spell, it only delivers auditory information. It doesn't necessarily help to locate Jin Ling unless someone says where he's going."
"Which we've been doing a lot lately," said Jiang Cheng sourly.
"True."
"Wait," Jin Ling said, face white. "Could it hear everything that I said?"
Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow at him. Jiang Cheng crossed his arms and scowled at Luo Qingyang who had, just like Huaisang, quickly hidden her face.
"I would imagine it would hear you even if you were whispering," Wei Wuxian said. "I don't know if the same could be said about those you were talking to."
Jin Ling picked at his sleeve the way he did when he was nervous. When he looked in the direction of the Lan juniors, a strange thing happened.
None of them could seem to meet each other's eyes. Neither Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi, nor Jin Ling and Lan Sizhui, nor Jin Ling and Lan Jingyi could stand to look at one another for longer than a few moments. Invariably, someone turned away. They seemed quite frightened.
What was going on? Last that Jiang Cheng knew, they were all getting along well together again after a period of being at odds. Were they embarrassed that Xue Yang had heard them fighting? Or…
Jiang Cheng turned to watch Luo Qingyang again. She seemed incredibly nervous. Yu Qingqi was at a loss beside her.
There was definitely something else going on – something that Luo Qingyang was privy to and Jiang Cheng was not.
"Something wrong?" he asked her.
She shook her head, but would not raise it. Everyone else was watching her now too.
"Why are you shaking?" Wen Ning asked, looking between her and the obviously uncomfortable boys. "You seem scared."
"She's always been sensitive to my misfortune," Jin Ling said in an unconvincingly nonchalant tone. "Don't pay her any mind."
Jiang Cheng's blood was boiling. Why should Luo Qingyang know more about Jin Ling than he did? Why was he keeping secrets from him? And why was he keeping secrets with her? It didn't make sense…
…unless he was correct in his suspicions.
He'd hoped he was wrong. But as fate would have it, most times he wished to be wrong, things turned out exactly as he'd predicted.
"Perhaps it would be best if we found something to eat and retired for the night?" Lan Xichen suggested once the tension in the room had risen too high. "We have a long journey ahead of us, especially since we've agreed to walk."
Wei Wuxian muttered something under his breath but followed Lan Wangji away from the table all the same.
Jiang Cheng had half a mind to demand that he repeat whatever it was that he'd said. After all, he was sure it was some gripe about his choosing to side with the others just to spite him, which wasn't incorrect, but Jiang Cheng was angry about it all the same.
He'd taken a few steps in his direction when Wei Wuxian's knees suddenly buckled beneath him.
Without thinking, Jiang Cheng threw out his arm and caught him before he could hit the back of a splintered wooden chair.
"Jiang Cheng?" Wei Wuxian said in astonishment, staring down at the sharp edge that had almost cut him.
Lan Wangji whirled around and scowled at him. Jiang Cheng hardly noticed. He knew the others were watching him too, but his insides were being minced by a thousand knives. He really couldn't be bothered by their opinions.
"Um, thanks, Jiang Cheng," said Wei Wuxian awkwardly. "You can let go of me now."
But he couldn't release him. Letting him go meant watching him disappear.
"Jiang Wanyin," said Lan Wangji in a testy voice.
Jiang Cheng shook his head to clear it. This stupid miasma was going to be the death of him.
"Take him," he said gruffly, pushing Wei Wuxian toward Lan Wangji. "He's in my way."
With that, Jiang Cheng stomped out of the inn again, leaving the others to find food without him.
He made it no further than the wooden patio where he and Luo Qingyang had argued. His skin was feverish. His chest ached.
He gripped the railing and leaned out over it, staring at the dirt of the road below and trying to hear the sound of the wind over the ringing in his ears.
Was this going to be a constant feeling from here forward?
Movement caught his eye and Jiang Cheng looked over to find Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji marching off across the street. They must have found a side door out of the inn. No one had come through behind Jiang Cheng.
They disappeared into an alleyway between a tailor's shop and an apothecary, likely looking for food.
"Are you all right?"
Jiang Cheng jumped and spun around, ripping Zidian off his finger as he went. Lan Xichen raised his hands to shoulder height.
"My apologies," said Lan Xichen. "I didn't mean to frighten you."
Jiang Cheng merely shook his head, replaced Zidian, and went back to the railing to look out at the street as if he were a wise old man about to spout some profundity. It seemed that yet again he would not be left alone to sort through his problems. Nowadays, there was always someone poking their nose into his business.
"Frighten me," Jiang Cheng scoffed.
He was feeling combative again, very eager to prove that his actions inside had been the result of the miasma and nothing more. He could not bear to have anyone think otherwise.
But it seemed that that was exactly what Lan Xichen was going to do. Out of the corner of his eye, Jiang Cheng could see he was scrutinizing him. And, when he opened his mouth, his words only confirmed that he thought there had been something more at work to make Jiang Cheng do as he had inside.
"Why don't you deny it when others accuse you of killing him?" Lan Xichen asked.
"What?"
Even though he hadn't been clear as to whom he was referring, Jiang Cheng knew. He only acted like he didn't.
"People say all the time that Sandu Shengshou vanquished the Yiling Laozu at the first siege of the Burial Mounds," Lan Xichen said, stepping closer even though every fiber of Jiang Cheng's being screamed at him to stay away. "I've seen them say it in front of you, but you never correct them. Why?"
Jiang Cheng shrugged, trying to appear casual even as his fingers tightened around the railing in front of him.
"Not worth the time."
"You didn't kill him," Lan Xichen said firmly.
Jiang Cheng wouldn't look at him, but he could feel his eyes on him. "I know that."
"So say it."
"Why?"
"Just say it," Lan Xichen insisted, taking yet another step closer.
"This is ridiculous," Jiang Cheng said. "I'm not playing your game."
"Do you want the credit for killing him?"
Zidian hissed and popped at first. But what Lan Xichen had said echoed in the caverns of his mind. Jiang Cheng hadn't considered it the first time… or the second time… or the third… but when it kept replaying over and over again, he had no choice but to hear it – a million times in the blink of an eye.
His grip loosened. "I… don't know," he said.
Lan Xichen's response was immediate. "Then why did you keep the flute?"
At last, Jiang Cheng looked at him, bewildered. "You know about that?"
"I was there in Guanyin Temple," said Lan Xichen simply. "I pay attention."
"Tch. I didn't want anyone else to use it."
"You could have destroyed it."
It was vexing how quickly Lan Xichen's rebuttals came. It almost felt like he'd rehearsed the conversation ahead of time and was prepared for anything that Jiang Cheng might say.
"It's a high class spiritual weapon," Jiang Cheng hissed. "It's not easy to destroy."
"Not easy isn't the same as impossible. I could have destroyed it."
"Hm."
"By your lackluster response, am I meant to assume that although I could have destroyed Chenqing, you do not possess that same ability?"
"No," said Jiang Cheng, more forcefully than he'd meant to.
Lan Xichen gave him no time to recover from his wounded pride. He continued his interrogation without pause.
"Then did you keep it as a war trophy?" he asked. "Proof that you finally beat him? Proof that you're better than he is?"
Each word felt like a hot needle driven into his chest.
"Is this what you think of me?" Jiang Cheng asked, watching the dry weeds below rather than look at Lan Xichen to see the truth on his face. "You think that my only basis for hating Wei Wuxian was that he was a better cultivator than I am?"
"People have held grudges for less," Lan Xichen said. "Is this what you want me to think of you?"
"I... I don't know."
"You refuse to deny killing him. You claim to hate him. What else am I to think?"
"I didn't say that I killed him."
"But you won't deny it outright."
"Why does that matter?"
"It makes you seem dishonest."
"You think I'm lying about that?"
"No, actually," Lan Xichen said softly. "I think you're lying about hating him."
This again. He'd said it before when he was drunk. Apparently it had been a drunken truth. Lan Xichen really thought that Jiang Cheng didn't hate Wei Wuxian.
"I'm not lying," Jiang Cheng said. "I loathe him."
"I believe that you did. You used to hate him in earnest. But your heart isn't in it anymore."
Even when he told him outright, Lan Xichen wouldn't believe him. What was the point?
"I don't need to have this conversation with you," Jiang Cheng said.
"Say it. Deny that you killed him."
"No."
"Are you happy that he died?"
"Wha-? I… I don't know."
"Do you still want him dead?"
"Hatred is all that I have!" Jiang Cheng screamed, whipping around to face Lan Xichen's startled look. "Hatred is all that I am! If I lose that… there's nothing else."
Lan Xichen tilted his head. His expression was incredibly compassionate when he spoke again, "Anger is a poison, Sect Leader."
"Your qi replenished after you indulged your anger in Jinlintai!" Jiang Cheng shouted. "How can you still preach this to me?!"
"You're right," Lan Xichen admitted. "It has to be acknowledged in order to be released. I failed to acknowledge mine and that was equally damaging. But it is long past time for you to let go of yours."
"This is stupid!" Jiang Cheng shouted. "What you're doing is stupid! You're always acting like you're better than I am! I don't have to listen to this!"
"I don't mean to be condescending," Lan Xichen said. "You did help me before. Please let me do the same for you."
"You want me to forgive Wei Wuxian? Is that it?"
Lan Xichen sighed and shook his head, seemingly more to himself than in answer to Jiang Cheng. "There is more to you than hatred."
"There isn't," Jiang Cheng said. "Stating what you want me to be will not make it so."
At that moment, he noticed movement between the buildings. When he looked over, he saw Wei Wuxian marching their way with Lan Wangji in tow. It seemed like he very much wanted to speak with one of them, and the distinctly annoyed resignation on his face made it clear enough which of them he wanted.
"I haven't deluded myself into thinking you're anyone else," Lan Xichen insisted. "No one can be defined solely by their hatred. There isn't nothingness behind that anger. I think you know that. You're afraid of what awaits you when you let go of it."
"I'm not," Jiang Cheng said, beginning to move away from him so as to avoid having to converse with Wei Wuxian. "And I'm not going to sit here and listen to this."
"Your anger is causing you more pain than the pain you fear."
"I'm leaving, Zewu-jun."
Jiang Cheng stepped off the patio outside the inn. Wei Wuxian's gaze followed him. There was no doubt now as to whom he wished to speak.
"You're making this harder than it has to be," Lan Xichen called after him.
Jiang Cheng ignored him.
It was not like Wei Wuxian to initiate confrontation with Jiang Cheng. And it was equally uncharacteristic of Jiang Cheng to run from Wei Wuxian. Yet, there they both were, about to do exactly that.
Jiang Cheng still did not voice any response to Lan Xichen. He continued as if nothing had happened, keeping his eyes trained dead ahead of him to avoid Wei Wuxian.
"Jiang-!"
Despite efforts to ignore him, Jiang Cheng's focus snapped to Wei Wuxian as soon as he'd started to bellow his name. And as soon as their eyes met, both of them froze.
On cue, Jiang Cheng's fury returned.
It was that face. That ghostly complexion and those pencil-fine features. That face that was not his face. That face that was now Wei Wuxian.
He hated it!
"Jiang Cheng…?" Wei Wuxian said, his tone wholly different from before. He spoke softly.
"Don't you even breathe in my direction," Jiang Cheng hissed.
Lan Wangji rested his hand on Bichen's hilt, but Jiang Cheng paid him no mind. When Wei Wuxian cast a glance at Lan Xichen and took a hesitant step backward, it was all the room that he needed to escape from them.
Jiang Cheng moved as quickly as he could without running. He left the same way that Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian had come.
"It's not safe out there!" Lan Xichen called after him. "If you go too far, you'll be outside of the boundary we made!"
Jiang Cheng offered no response.
He continued onward through the winding alleyway and past a row of talismans plastered across the walls of the buildings at the outskirts of town. No doubt, it was the boundary that Lan Xichen had spoken of.
He went on into the wilderness and finally stopped at a creek, where he wiped all evidence of his conversations from his cheeks with the back of his hand.
And there he stayed for some time, watching little fish dart to and fro beneath the bubbles. The sun dipped lower and long shadows stretched across the ground. No matter how long he stood there, the ache in his chest would not subside.
Eventually, he was forced to leave by a large band of fierce corpses. They had good timing too. Jiang Cheng didn't want to get stuck out there in the night without a lantern. It seemed he would barely have enough time to make it back.
He dispatched two of the corpses just to vent some of his anger. Then, he left.
By the time he made it back, it was dark outside and everyone had already eaten. No bowls or plates sat in front of them when Jiang Cheng opened the door. As the hinges squeaked to announce his arrival, everyone looked up at him.
Jin Ling, Huaisang, and Lan Xichen all let out long sighs of relief. Others, too, reacted variably upon seeing him. Wei Wuxian leaned back in his chair while Lan Wangji sat up straighter. Lan Sizhui's face relaxed while Lan Jingyi's hardened. And Yu Qingqi offered a polite smile (and covertly placed her hand atop her wife's) while Luo Qingyang rolled her eyes and shook her head.
They'd all been waiting for him.
Jin Ling pulled his bow off of his shoulder and hung it on the back of his chair.
"Jiujiu," he said, stepping forward, "have you eaten?"
Jiang Cheng changed the subject. "Were you going somewhere?" he asked, pointing at Jin Ling's bow.
"I was going to find you if you didn't come back soon," said Jin Ling crossly. "There are swarms of corpses out there. It's dangerous."
Jiang Cheng laughed wryly. " You're going to criticize me for going out at night? Perhaps you've forgotten who is the elder between the two of us, who is more experienced."
Wei Wuxian loudly cleared his throat before Lan Jingyi could give Jiang Cheng a piece of his mind as it seemed he was about to do. "Now that it seems no one needs to go out to track anyone else down – not naming names! – I think Lan Zhan and I will retire to one of these exceptionally homey and, most importantly, affordable rooms. Goodnight!"
He linked arms with Lan Wangji and stood, pulling him up with him. Despite his cheery tone, Wei Wuxian's movements were rigid. He didn't look at Jiang Cheng as they passed, but he did cast a very dark look at Lan Xichen, who frowned in response.
Whatever problem Wei Wuxian had with him, it seemed that neither Jiang Cheng nor Lan Xichen was aware of it.
However, when Lan Xichen looked in his direction, wordlessly asking if he knew what was going on, Jiang Cheng scowled at him too. Wei Wuxian's mysterious animosity toward Lan Xichen wasn't enough to make Jiang Cheng forgive him for the intrusive questions he'd asked earlier. Lan Xichen didn't have alcohol as an excuse this time.
A door on the other side of the room swung open and Jin Ling emerged carrying a bowl with faded patterns etched along its circumference. Jiang Cheng hadn't even noticed Jin Ling leave.
"You should eat," Jin Ling said as Luo Qingyang, Yu Qingqi, Lan Sizhui, and Lan Jingyi took their chance to leave for bed as well.
Huaisang stood nervously beside Lan Xichen, who hadn't moved. Presumably, they were sticking with the same rooming situation as before and Huaisang didn't know if he was expected to go off to get ready for bed with or without Lan Xichen.
"What is this?" Jiang Cheng asked as Jin Ling set a bowl of what seemed like random food items in front of him.
"It's what we could find," Jin Ling explained. "I didn't turn my nose up at it, so I expect you should have no issue."
Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes. "I'm not hungry."
"Then take it with you," Jin Ling insisted, thrusting the bowl into his hands.
If it were just him and his nephew, Jiang Cheng would have pushed back. But all three of them were watching him expectantly and he was not in the mood to have any more conversations, particularly with Lan Xichen.
So, he took the bowl with him and he and Jin Ling selected a room to stay in.
When Jin Ling offered him the place nearest the window - a spot coveted by both of them, which meant that Jiang Cheng often ceded it to his nephew – Jiang Cheng decided that he would eat the food that he'd been given. He seemed very worried about him for some reason. The immediate relief he saw wash over Jin Ling made him feel a little bad for refusing the meal earlier… but only a little.
They settled into bed not long after, and Jiang Cheng listened to the crickets sing, wondering how on earth he was supposed to sleep with this dull, awful feeling in his core.
"I'm worried about the miasma," Jin Ling said from the other side of the room.
Jiang Cheng glanced over, but Jin Ling wasn't looking at him. He was staring at the ceiling.
"It's only going to get worse from here," Jin Ling went on, "but it was already terrible."
"We're almost done," said Jiang Cheng. "And there's nothing to stop you from going home."
When Jin Ling did look at him, it was with a fury to match his grandmother's.
"I'm not going to abandon the fight," he said hotly. "Xue Yang tampered with Suihua and he-"
Jiang Cheng waited for him to finish what he was going to say, but Jin Ling never did.
"You have an injury that needs time to heal," Jiang Cheng said. "You're not abandoning anyone. Don't be an idiot."
"Tch."
Jin Ling rolled over to face the wall. He didn't speak again.
"Brat," Jiang Cheng muttered under his breath.
He didn't know where Jin Ling had gotten that defiant, argumentative personality, but it sure as hell didn't come from his mother.
His money was on Jin Zixuan.