lotus pier is in chaos. 7yo jc couldn't rlly understand anything, except for the fact that his jiejie is missing. he was told to stay in his room with wwx and to never come out until someone comes for them. there was screaming and shouting outside that jc knows is his parents.

he's heard them enough over the years to just stay silent, but wwx is still restless and he had to stop him from trying to break out a few times. they distracted themselves with doodling on parchment, playing with the toys in the room and play-fighting until they fell asleep.

jc startles awake when he hears the door slide open. he sees a figure looming at them in the doorway making him jump to wwx's side shielding him from this figure. the figure steps inside the room, shushing jc as he holds a lantern near his face. it was his father.

"a-cheng, come with a-die for a walk?"
jc was on cloud nine. jfm rarely took him on walks so he agreed immediately, even if it was in the middle of the night.
"where are we going, a-die?"
jfm looks at him with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"we're going to save yanli."

they walked for quite a long time. jc felt tired but he didn't want it to end. he rarely gets these chances after all. he excitedly points out everything on the road and revels every time jfm hums in acknowledgement. as they neared an inn, he gets shushed. he then remembers.

they are going to save a-jie! jfm brought him on a rescue mission. wwx is going to envy him so much when jc tells him about this. he gets to see jyl first too. he misses her. they haven't seen her all day. he perks up as they enter a room full of people in red robes.

does he have to fight? he doesn't think so, his father didn't tell him to bring his sword. he stands silently as jfm talks with a person who seems to be the leader of the people in red robes. he only perks up when he hears his name being mentioned.
"Jiang Cheng? The Jiang heir?"

jfm nods fervently as the person laughs.
"Are you trying to fool me? The heir in exchange for a daughter?"
"My daughter is fragile. My son will be more useful to you."
jc gets pushed forward until he stands in front of the person who hums, amused.
"he looks like his mother."

"Interesting. I accept."
two of the people in red robes come forward, holding jc. the boy turns to his father.
"a-die? why are they holding me? a-die!"
jfm asks the person for a minute and crouches to jc's eye level. he gives him a smile but his eyes are cold.

"a-cheng wants to save yanli, right? so a-cheng has to go. it's okay because a-cheng is strong. this is for our sect, and because a-cheng is good, he will do it, won't he?"
"jiejie gets to be saved if a-cheng goes?"
"yes."
"a-cheng is good boy?"
"yes."
at this, jc smiles.

"then, a-cheng goes. a-cheng will be good for a-die."

the two men at his sides grab him roughly, leading him out of the room.
"what a heartless father you are, jfm," the bemused tone of he red-robed leader is the last thing he hears as the door closes. he is tugged and tossed into the next room, where he sees none other than jyl.

there is a strip of cloth tied around her mouth as a gag, and her wrists are red due to rope burn. at the sight of jc, she lets out muffled cries, rushing to his side.
"a-jie! a-cheng is here to save a-jie. a-cheng is strong."
the two men reach out for jyl.
"a-jie is safe now."

jyl struggles from the men's grips on her, tears streaming down her face as she is pulled out of the room, the door slamming in her face as jc waves her a teary goodbye. she screams and cries even as the men hands her to jfm. the warmth of jfm's arms felt cold to her.

in the room, jc obediently sits on the bed as one of the people ties his hands. he was obedient enough that they felt no need to gag him so they left him alone, locking the door. he crouches on the bed, biting his lips to stop his tears.
"a-cheng has to be strong"

jc wakes up to the sound of the door being slammed open. he scrambles to sit up on the bed as the leader from last night strides into the room. in the morning light, he can see their clothing better, the sun motif now familiar. he's seen that before. it's the wen sect.

"ah, you're awake. good, good. it'd be better to take you to qishan asap but the young master has stirred up some trouble so we're gonna have a detour alright? now, come. you're a good boy, aren't you?" he says, the last line dripping in mockery.

jc nods silently.

at lotus pier, yzy had cried in relief once she saw jyl during breakfast. that only lasted for a moment though, as jyl had burst into tears when she saw her mother.
"a-niang! a-niang," she sobs, "please save a-cheng. yanli is sorry."
then she realised. her son is not there.

her head whips towards jfm.
"WHERE IS MY SON?" she yells.
jfm is stoic when he replies.
"I did what I had to do. If he is to be sect leader, he can take care of himself."
"He's a child! Our child! What were you thinking?" she cries, zidian crackling in her rage.

"Where is a-cheng?" a new voice interrupts. wwx stares at them, wide-eyed. yzy suddenly laughs.
"You did this for this child, didn't you? You planned this. I didn't even realise you were gone last night. My tea... you put something in my tea. I can't believe this..."

she gives jfm an icy glare before turning to leave.
"where are you going?"
"to save my son."
"i have made a negotiation! if you step out from here, then you are disobeying me. yu ziyuan, if you leave, our marriage will be annulled!"
"then so be it"
she storms off.

as yzy leaves, jyl and wwx runs after her. at the gates, she stops and holds her daughter.
"i will come back for you," she hesitates then turns to wwx, "and you too. a-cheng would not have wanted you to be left behind."
both of the children were crying, apologising profusely.

smiling bitterly, she pats their heads. then, she leaves. she asks at every inn until she finally arrives at the last one, only to feel her blood run cold.

"I'm sorry madam. They were here until this morning. All of them have left the inn very early."

they travel on sword. jc is held in the arms of one of the wen subordinates, wrists still bound as they fly towards their next destination. it feels odd how he is being carried by a stranger, even his parents rarely carried him. he supposes the subordinate had no choice.

he is dropped down once they reach another inn. he doesn't recognise where they are but it seems to be a small town. the accent is not yunmeng's. the subordinate seems to be in charge of him as he keeps a hold on the back of his robes as the wen leader goes to the reception desk.

he is nudged forward when the wen leader walks towards the rooms. he didn't expect it to be so hard so he trips and falls, his left forehead meeting a jagged rock on the road, cutting the edge of his eyebrow. he whimpers in pain as the blood drips down the side of his face.

"stupid brat!" the wen tuts in annoyance and picks him up by the back of his robes.
the pull chokes him, making him dizzy but he still steps forward at another nudge, following another of the wens in front of him. he sees the wen leader enter a room at the end of the hall.

'a-cheng is okay, a-cheng is strong' jc repeats his head like a mantra as he feels his forehead throb in pain bec of the injury.
he expects to be left outside but he is shoved in as well but he is hidden behind one of the burly subordinates. he can clearly see if he peeks though.

the wen leader sits on the only chair in the room, head in his hands. there are two boys in front of him, one about his age in wen robes and the other probably older than him by a few years in gusulan.. robes?
the wen boy flails around in silence while the other just smiles.

[ note: this is originally a xicheng au idea but i realise i didn't tag the thread as such (my mistake) so there may be elements of it but I'll keep it general in case some are not comfortable with that. maybe I'll make a separate thread for the xicheng plot ]

"let me get this clear, you came here alone with our young master? kid, don't you know of danger?" the wen leader sneers.

"young master wen told me we will meet with his people. I am merely informing of his misconduct," the lan boy answers calmly.

the wen boy silently fumes.

the wen leader glares at the young wen boy who started furiously pointing an accusatory finger at the lan boy again. the lan boy looks around and suddenly his eyes meet jc's. it struck a sense of familiarity in him. he's met this lan boy before, the heir to gusulan, lxc!

then young master wen, similar to his age must be the younger son of wrh, wc!

the gaze of lxc on him was only for a fleeting moment as he is now looking at the wens again. the wen leader seems annoyed.

"lift the damn silencing spell so he can speak. i want to hear from him."

lxc shakes his head. "that is his punishment. he trespassed and hunted on the cloud recesses grounds. be grateful this has not reached the ears of my uncle and i had been the one who found him."

"what arrogance! you are outnumbered yet you dare speak this way!"

"it is not arrogance. i merely speak the truth."

wc looks as if he wanted to scream. he probably would if not for the spell. the wen leader grits his teeth. lxc looks at jc again.

"the silencing spell is a sacred lan technique. if you want me to lift it...

then please, close your eyes."

"do you think im stupid?!" the wen leader roars. the others closes in on the boy who still smiles.

"i will not pass on our secret technique," he says.

"fine! if you pull anything then you're dead," he then commands the others to do as told.

jc takes the chance and keeps his eyes open. he watches as lxc reaches for a xiao and blows. a harsh note fills the air and everyone drops to their knees. he then runs towards the door, grabbing jc on the way. they manage to exit the room but the wens are now hot on their tails.

they are now out of the inn but they are only two children running away from full-fledged adults. the distance between them is getting closer and closer until jc feels his right arm getting jerked behind in a harsh tug. he yelps as he falls backward, lxc's hold on him loosening.

then it all happens in a blink of an eye. jc almost falls into the grip of the wens again if not for the crackling purple whip that strikes swiftly onto the hand tugging him. the wen curses loudly. jc falls on his behind, lxc quick to come pull him to his feet again.

jc watches in awe as yzy steps closer until she is standing protectively in front of the two boys, zidian vibrant in her hands as she glares at the wens menacingly. she kicks the wen when he tries to get up and steps on his arm.

"what do you think you're doing to my son?"

before he can say anything, the rest of the red-robed entourage appears. the wen leader steps forward, face stuck in a enraged scowl.

"Violet Spider, what is this? I thought we had a deal?" he asks.

"You had a deal with the Jiang sect which no longer concerns me." yzy sneers.

"What is the meaning of this! What a waste of time. I want to go home!" wc complains from behind the wen leader.

"Young master wen, we are negotiating sect business here." the leader tries to say but the child is adamant.

"I don't care. Take me back to Qishan now! Or I will

tell my father that you were tricked by a mere child. That would cost you a head, wouldn't it?" wc threatens.

yzy looks amused, "you better heed the young master's advice or you will instead lose your head to me."

the wen leader grits his teeth, he had planned to kidnap a

jiang to get him a higher rank in the sect but this young master just had to get in his way! reluctantly, he calls for his subordinates to retreat. yzy looks pleased as she kicks the wen under her feet towards the rest.

then she turns to the two children behind her.

she mentally notes how lxc still holds her son's hand protectively. he steps out of the way, however, when yzy approaches. she looks at her son's dishevelled form, dried blood on the side of his face and dirt on his robes. tears well in her eyes as she cups the small face.

jc flinches slightly , not used to be touched in such a way by his mother.

"a-cheng, my son. a-niang is sorry for letting them take you. are you hurt?" she wipes his face gently.

the concern in her voice finally breaks the dam inside him. he bursts into tears.

"a-cheng tried r-really hard... *hic* needed to be br-brave for a-jie a-and the s-sect. a-cheng w-wants *hic* to be good b-boy for a-die and a-niang." he sobs, "a-niang, h-has a-cheng been g-good?"

yzy pulls him into a hug, crying as well.

"yes, a-cheng has been so good."

jc actually thought he would be scolded the moment he started to cry so the tender warmth of being enveloped in his mother's arms and the words of praise after such a scary experience overwhelms him so much that he can't stop crying. he holds onto yzy tight, savouring the moment.

the mother and son pulls apart after a while, but yzy holds onto jc's hand as she composes herself. she then turns to lxc who has been silently watching them while giving excuses to the questioning villagers. he bows once he sees her focus on him.

"madam yu." he greets.

"young master lan." she nods curtly, "I must thank you for saving and protecting my son."

"madam yu regards me too highly. it is madam yu that saved us both," he says, "and this may be presumptuous of me but since it is nearer, would madam yu and young master jiang like to

come to cloud recesses? the day is getting late and young master jiang is in need of medical attention and care."

jc looks at yzy. he knows his mother hates it when they have to stay anywhere but their own residence so he is surprised when his mother nods at the suggestion.

"what young master lan said is true," she agrees, "then, we will be in your care."

smiling, lxc leads the mother-son pair towards cloud recesses. they gain access quickly with the presence of the gsl heir and jc is immediately ushered to the physician's room.

meanwhile, yzy requests an audience with lqr to discuss today's happenings.

after jc is tended to and given a change of clothes, he joins the lans and his mother for dinner. the food is bland compared to yunmeng's but it tastes equally good after being starved for almost a day.

before they retire into their guest rooms (since gsl had different sections for men and women), yzy tells jc about taking him and his siblings to msy. jc feels a pang in his heart bec isn't this his fault? his parents are now separating because he isn't strong enough.

when the morning comes, they start their journey back to yunmeng immediately after having breakfast. yzy and jc both express their gratitude for gsl's hospitality before departing. all along the way, jc thinks about what his mother told him.

what does he need to do to fix this?

as they arrive in lp, jyl and wwx greet them at the gates. they tackle jc the moment they see him, almost all three of them to the ground with the momentum.

yzy gives a brief smile at the reunion but then she is quick to usher them inside to meet with jfm. no need to stay long.

jfm sits at the sect leader's seat, looking pensive as yzy and the children enter.

"I am here to announce that I will be taking the children with me to meishan. I take it that our marriage has been annulled," yzy says after a curt bow.

jfm looks displeased.

jyl and wwx gasp at the news, hearing it for the first time. jc who had already been informed, only stays silent.

"I can agree if you take a-cheng, but leave a-li and a-xian to me." jfm counters, looking poised even as yzy fixes him with an icy glare.

"of course," yzy scoffs, sarcasm dripping from her tone, "not even acknowledging your heir but wanting to keep that child."

behind her, jc recoils at the words. he finally connects the dots. he never saved his a-jie. he was a replacement. jfm was trying to send him away.

"but you must remember, jfm. jwy is your sect's heir. I will make sure of that. he will be trained in msy but i will permit two days of every week in lp to learn the ropes of a sect leader's responsibilities. and i don't care, these children are coming with me no matter what!"

"yzy, you-!"

in a moment of bravery, jc steps forward.

"a-die, a-cheng has tried very hard to be strong and brave," he starts, taking a deep breath for courage, "this time, a-die doesn't need to send a-cheng away. a-cheng will go. a-die does not need to bother anymore."

jfm seems shocked by his son's words. jc steps back again, and his siblings are quick to pull him into their hold protectively.

"a-li will go with a-cheng because a-cheng saved a-li!" jyl suddenly says.

"a-xian too! need a-cheng to pretect a-xian from dogs," wwx agrees.

with that, yzy ignores any protests from jfm, taking the children with her out of the hall. at the gates, her two trusted Spiders are ready with their things. the children spares one last look at what used to be their home before leaving with their hands entertwined.

they will still be back for some thing or another but it surely isn't home anymore.

and from then on, jc makes sure of one thing. even if he returns, he avoids jfm. that was his last goodbye, his promise to jfm to never show his face to the sect leader anymore.

they will only see e/o when the time jc inherits the sect comes. until then, sect matters are taught to jc by the elders of the sect while in lp and yzy while in msy.

he will be a great sect leader, one that is worthy of praise by his own standards, not anyone else's.

-END-

[and that is the end of the general arc! the xicheng-tinted arc will be soon, maybe? i hope you enjoyed this little thing that honestly spun out of control actually
if you have qs, don't hesitate to ask in my cc: https://curiouscat.qa/kittywanyin ]