Chapter Twenty-Four

"Ah-Yue, you should be resting." Jiang Yanli whispered as she and Jiang Cheng walked into Wei Ying's room, seeing the girl sitting beside her twin brother as she dabbed a damp cloth on his forehead.

"I'm fine, Jiejie. I want to help, and I want to be here when he wakes up." Jiang Cheng frowned as he looked at Wei Yue, crossing his arms as he watched her try to tend to her brother with one hand, seeing as the other one had two broken fingers.

"You should be taking care of yourself, Wei Wuxian deserves anything he gets." The two girls chuckled as they looked at him, Wei Yue standing as she let Jiang Yanli sit next to Wei Ying.

"I'm alright, Ah-Cheng." Wei Yue said, patting his head lightly before Yanli turned around.

"Ah-Cheng, can you go get the soup I made earlier?" She asked, watching as he nodded before he turned, rushing out of the room as the girls sat near Wei Ying. Wei Yue sat near his feet, tilting her head as she watched her brother move.

After they had returned to Lotus Pier, Wei Ying had fallen into a deep sleep due to the lack of food, the excessive blood loss, and the fever he had gotten from the endeavors that had accrued inside the cave. As soon as he had stayed asleep for the third day she began to worry for him, personally making and feeding him soup as she and Jiang Yanli nursed him back to health. Now, as he was opening his eyes, Wei Yue felt a wave of relief run through her as she watched him look at Yanli before his eyes shifted to his sister.

"Shijie, Yingying." He whispered, watching as the girls smiled.

'Don't move. You have been sleeping for three days and nights." Yanli whispered, placing a hand on his forehead as she checked his temperature. "Finally, your fever is gone." She stated, satisfied as Wei Yue smiled, standing as she moved to stand behind Jiang Yanli.

"Shijie, I'm thirsty." He whispered, his voice hoarse.

"Don't rush." Wei Yue looked over her shoulder as Jiang Cheng returned, soup in his hand. He gave it to Yanli and Wei Ying sat up, looking at Jiang Cheng.

"You, come here." He ordered, causing the youngest cultivator to turn and look at him.

"Why would you want me to come over? You want to kneel down and thank me?" Jiang Cheng asked, raising a brow at Wei Ying.

"You got there after an entire seven days! Did you want to kill us? I thought it'd take you five days at most." Wei Yue sighed, shaking her head as Wei Wuxian bit into Jiang Cheng.

"You've been killed? Then who is talking to me right now?" Jiang Cheng retorted, crossing his arms before Wei Yue looked at her brother.

"Are you stupid?" She asked, making him look at her. "It's a double-trip." She stated, rolling her eyes as Jiang Cheng nodded.

"I also had to dig through the blocked cave, and the Wen Clan was hot on my heels. You should be grateful we got you out in seven days." Wei Ying's face was blank as he thought, nodding before Yanli walked back over with his soup.

"Alright, stop arguing. I made soup for you." She said, holding it out for Wei Ying to take.

"Shijie, the lotus root sparerib soup that you make is the most delicious one in this world." Wei Ying praised, smiling as Jiang Yanli. "You are not aware, but those few days while I was in the cave, when I was hungry, all that was on my mind was the lotus root sparerib soup." He continued, smirking when Wei Yue nodded, placing a hand on Jiang Yanli's shoulder.

"Stop rushing. Drink it slowly." She told him, smiling widely as Wei Ying began to shovel the food into his mouth. "There's still some left in the pot." He nodded, looking at her.

"It's delicious." He said around some sparerib, smiling as he looked back down. As he went to eat more before he started talking. "Where is Lan Zhan? He's also been saved, hasn't he? Is he here? Or did he go back to Gusu?" His eyes looked between Jiang Cheng and Wei Yue, locking on Jiang Cheng when he opened his mouth.

"What nonsense. It's not like he's from our Sect. Why would he come here?" Wei Yue placed a hand on her dede's shoulder, smiling as she gave a small nod to her brother.

"Yes, he went back to Gusu." She finished, her brother frowning as he looked at her.

"Did he go back alone? Did he find his brother?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Lan Xichen went into hiding with the ancient books and music sheets they rescued." She murmured, looking towards the floor as she informed her brother of what she had learned.

"What about his father?" Wei Yue had let her hand fall from Jiang Cheng's shoulder, crossing her arms as she walked to the window.

"His father is gone." Jiang Cheng answered, his eyes following his Jie. Just as he was about to say something else Uncle Jiang walked inside, looking at Wei Ying as Wei Yue and Jiang Cheng bowed lightly.

"Ah-Xian. How are you doing? Do you feel better?" He asked, walking further into the room before stopping next to Wei Yue. Wei Ying passed his bowl to Yanli and went to stand, only to be stopped by Jiang Fengmian. "No need to get up."

"Uncle Jiang, I feel much better." Wei Ying answered, smiling gently before Jiang Yanli handed him a handkerchief. "I want Shijie to wipe my mouth for me." He pouted, making Jiang Cheng glare at him as his sister rolled her eyes.

"Don't you have hands?" Jiang Cheng asked, making Wei Ying look at him with narrowed eyes.

"My hands feel too heavy. I can't lift them up." She wiped his face before standing, looking at the twins.

"I'll go make something for you both to eat." She walked out and Uncle Jiang sat beside Wei Ying, leaving Jiang Cheng beside Wei Yue as they watched Wei Wuxian. "Ah-Xian, you and Ah-Yue have suffered hardships this time." Uncle Jiang said softly, looking between the twins.

"Uncle Jiang, I'm actually fine. I was just stuck in a cave for a few days." Wei Ying said, looking at his sister.

"Me as well, Uncle Jiang. The one with the real hardship is Jiang Cheng." She whispered, looking over at the younger boy.

"Yeah, he traveled back and forth to find us." Wei Ying finished, his eyes turning to Jiang Cheng.

"Father, are the Wen Sect's people still not returning the swords?" Jiang Cheng asked, making Wei Yue look at her Uncle as her hand ached to hold Yin and Yang again.

"They have been celebrating for the past few days." He informed them, his gaze moving away from the two looking at him.

"Celebrating what?" Wei Ying asked, looking worried.

"That Wen Chao had single-handedly killed the Tortoise of Slaughter." Hearing this Wei Yue scoffed, shaking her head as she looked at her brother.

"The Wen Sect killed it?" She asked, humor in her voice.

"What did you expect? Did you think they would say you killed it?" Jiang Cheng retorted.

"Those Wen dogs are talking nonsense, they have no face. Lan Zhan and Wei Yue were clearly the ones who killed it." Wei Wuxian stated, pointing to his sister.

"Really?" Uncle Jiang smiled, glancing at the girl beside him. "What a coincidence, the second young master of the Lan sect and Ah-Yue told me you were the one who killed it. So, who was it really?" He asked, looking between the two.

"I guess all three of us did something. But they were the main ones. I only went into the shell and chased it out. Lan Zhan and Wei Yue were waiting for it outside." Wei Yue sighed, shaking her head.

"It only died after it dragged on for six hours." She finished, Wei Ying nodding lightly.

"That's pretty much what Lan Wangji said. So it seems that you all killed it together. What's yours is yours. Why would you give him all the credit?" Jiang Cheng asked Wei Ying.

"I didn't. I just feel that, compared to them, I really didn't do much." He murmured, glancing at Jiang Cheng.

"Well done." Uncle Fengmian said, nodding lightly.

"Congratulations." Jiang Cheng said, the strange tone of his giving away that he was probably thinking how he should have stayed in the cave. Or that he was most likely thinking how he should have gone back inside with Wei Yingyue.

"What a pity that you weren't there as well. Or else you'd be able to share some of that credit. You'd also be able to chat with me and chase away the boredom. Good heavens, sitting face-to-face with Lan Zhan and Yingying these days almost bored me to death." Wei Yue smirked as she listened to her brother laugh, her arms crossed as she shook her head.

"It serves you right to be bored to death, You shouldn't have played the hero and you shouldn't have cared for such a hell of a thing. Either of you." Wei Yue looked over at Jiang Cheng, shocked slightly at his sudden outburst. "If in the beginning you didn't-"

"Jiang Cheng." Jiang Fengmian spoke up, cutting off his son. "Do you know in which ways what you just said is not appropriate?" He asked, a solemn look on his face.

"Yes."

"He was just angry and speaking without care." Wei Yue murmured, watching Jiang Cheng as he looked at the ground.

"Ah-Cheng, there are some things that can't be said even if you are angry. If you said them, it means that you still don't understand the motto of the Jiang Sect, that you still don't-"

"Yes, he doesn't understand, but what does it matter? As long as Wei Ying and Wei Yue understands!" Wei Yue winced as Madam Yu walked into the room, her aura making Wei Yingyue shitter as she glared at everything in the room.

"My lady, what are you doing here?" Uncle Fengmian asked.

"What am I doing here? What a joke that I am asked of such a thing! Sect Leader Jiang, do you still remember that I am also the leader of Lotus Pier? Do you still remember that every inch of the earth here is my territory? Do you still remember, between the ones lying and standing there and the one standing here which one is your child?" She asked, pointing between the twins and Jiang Cheng.

"Of course I do." Wei Yue was looking at the ground as she listened to Uncle Jiang's response.

"You do remember, but there's no use if you simply remember. Wei Ying, he really can't take it unless he stirs up some trouble, can he? Or his sister! If I had known, I would've made them stay in Lotus Pier properly and not go outside. Could Wen Chao really have dared to do anything to the two young masters of the GusuLan Sect and the LanLingJin Sect? Even if he did, it'd mean that they ran out of luck. Since when was it your turn to play the hero?" Wei Yue clenched her fist as she looked away, biting the inside of her cheek as she listened to Madam Yu. "I'm saying this right now. You can just wait. One day, he'll definitely get our sect into some big trouble. They both will." She sneered.

"Let's talk when we get back." Jiang Fengmian stood as he spoke, looking at his wife.

"Talk about what? Get back to where? I'll be talking about it right here. I have nothing to be ashamed of, anyways! Jiang Cheng, come over here!" She ordered, making her son move over to her after a moment of hesitation. She pushed him forwards for Jiang Fengmian to see. "Sect Leader Jiang, it seems that sometimes I have to say; Look carefully. This is your own son, the future head of Lotus Pier. Even if you frown upon him just because I was the one who bore him, his surname is still Jiang! I don't believe for one second that you haven't heard how the outside people gossip, that Sect Leader Jiang has still not moved on from a certain Sanren though so many years have passed, regarding the son and daughter of his old friend as son and daughter of his own; they're speculating if the twins are your-"

"Yu Ziyuan!" Wei Yue flinched as the man shouted at his wife, her heart beating fast as her eyes welled lightly.

"Jiang Fengmian! Do you think that anything will change just because you raised your voice? Do you think that I don't know you?" When Jiang Fengmian and Madam Yu left there was an awkward silence over the room, the atmosphere causing Wei Yingyue's anxiety to maximize before she turned, rushing out of the room as she ignored her brother's call for her.