Hourglass

XXIII

"A-Xian!!!" Jiang Fengmian called the bloodshot Wei Wuxian, ready to track down his son, "calm down first before you rush..."

"But A-Yuan?!"

"We know... Rushing won't help our situation..." He explained.

Wei Wuxian stood silent contemplating whether to wait or act immediately, "and you need spiritual tools to fight... Jin Guangshan had several Lan elders..."

"However, the great elder is still at Cloud recessess..."

"Father... I recieved reports that Great elder had taken Cloud Recesses under his control..." Lan Xichen paused, "Uncle is currently held captive... The news about our movements were leaked beforehand..."

"Must be that disciple..."

Mo Xuanyu, the disciple who followed Wei Wuxian at the end of the war. No one ever realized he was one of the spies Jin Guangshan planted in Yunmeng. Knowing how shy and discreet the boy was, they turned a blind eye. He was harmless and kind, if they describe.

Just what... Just what lead him to do this betrayal?

Something must be up... Wei Wuxian thought.

"Uncle... Where are Chenqing and the tiger seal?" Wei Wuxian needs them to fight. Knowing Jing Guangshan's cunning tricks just his hastily crafted flute wouldn't stand a chance against swarms of cultivator's coming after him.

Jiang Fengmian gave orders to his disciples to prepare for war. He then turned to Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji and asked him to follow.

They entered the ancestral home, Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan position themselves north and south of the large lotus emblem on the ground and inserted spiritual energy. The lotus formation turned creating staircase leading down. Jiang Fengmian let out a sigh as he signaled the two to follow.

No one except the main Jiangs knew this secret.

The moment they arrived at the lowest part of the underground hall, Wei Wuxian kneeled in one leg, staring at the coffin with clouded eyes. He tensed up, feeling many unpleasant gazes in his back. He gave his best to ignore them, knowing that in his current situation, all he could do was to bear with it.

Jiang Fengmian lifted the sets of arrays as ge stared at the glass coffin in the middle of the array.

"This is the thing... We never told you..."

Yu Ziyuan sighed placing a hand on Wei Wuxian's shoulder, "it was thirteen years ago..."

No wonder...

No wonder everything was suspicious...

Everything was weird and different from what he imagine...

"So I am really dead..."

He wondered silently, then... Why did he ended up knowing this corporeal body? He was still breathing, feeling pain, feeling everything in his grasps, making everything so incredibly difficult to understand. He remembered his son, who had mourned for him in the past. Imagine as he stared at his son with a sad smile reaching for him.

"Did A-Yuan know?"

Just this once, though, he wanted to reminisce everything. He wanted to settle his inner feelings towards his man and child, who he loved and hated at the same time. He glanced back at Jiang Fengmian who knew everything from the start.

"No..." Yu Ziyuan, "we never told him..."

Wei Wuxian didn't know how to feel about this. He had a reason to be grateful, but also a reason to hate; both extremely important as neither could be easily forgotten nor forgiven. He was still give a chance... To hold his son, to be true to his feelings and love again.