The scent of a lotus wafted in the air.

"This is painful..." Lan Jingyi groaned, as he hung upside down in a handstand, whilst trying to write down words onto a blank piece of paper. Beside him, Lan Sizhui struggled as well.

Who knew what was going through HanGuang-Jun's head at that moment, but he actually ordered his Clan's disciples into going through such a cruel punishment! His exterior is cold, his interior is cold as well! Only Wei Wuxian had to differ for that statement.

"What would you do if we don't have to complete this punishment anymore?" Lan Jingyi asked.

Lan Sizhui arched an eyebrow. He was confused at first, but then gradually sunk into an ocean of thoughts. "I would make sure if Jin Ling is okay. He looks like he got the heavier portion of the punishment, seeing how strict his Uncle is."

"Tch," Lan Jingyi clicked the roof of his mouth, "Young Mistress is fine. Well, you still seem like yourself, Sizhui. Always caring about others before yourself."

Lan Sizhui didn't answer to the last off-handed comment.

"Well," Lan Jingyi added, "If I could get out of this hell, I would run to Young Mistress and complain the hell out at him."

Both disciples of GusuLan were keen on finding Jin Ling, the brat who left them for a different "punishment". Despite them having contrasting personalities, both Lan disciples wanted to find the brat.

They were both unaware that their wishes were going to be granted...

...in less than ten seconds.

Wei Wuxian bursted into their punishment room, slamming the doors wide open. "Hey! Did anyone miss me?"

Astonished at the sudden appearance, Lan Jingyi fell over.

Lan Sizhui stayed in his handstand, using one spare hand to pull Lan Jingyi back up into his original handstand form. The two disciples were speechless, with the blood rushing to their heads.

"S-Senior Wei!" Lan Sizhui blurted. He remained in his handstand.

Wei Wuxian was expressionless, "...you know, you don't have to handstand while talking to me."

The two Lan disciples flipped over, landing into a position of kneeling. Lan Sizhui bowed and clasped his hands together, "What does Senior Wei need from us?"

A mischievous smile took upon Wei Wuxian's face. He leaned over to the young disciple, then whispered a few intangible words in his ear. He did the same to Lan Jingyi. When the latter finally processed all of the words and information, he let out an alarming yelp. "WHAT!?!"

The next day was a peaceful one.

It was the type of day where the wind wasn't too harsh, nor as empty as an abode. The streets of Lotus Pier was filled with stalls, which sold many products. Civilians and children rushed by, each wearing happy smiles and fulfilling expressions.

"What do you want to buy?" Wei Wuxian nudged the junior disciple beside him.

Jin Ling puffed out like a pufferfish. "I'm not a child! I don't need you to buy me anything!"

Beside him, Lan Jingyi shot him a disappointed look. "Well, I don't want to waste any of my pocket money. I'm going to rely on Senior Wei to pay for everything."

"Jingyi..." Lan Sizhui elbowed the said person in his ribs. "Don't be rude."

Wei Wuxian placed his hands on his hips. "Well, sucks to be you. I'm not the one paying. Say hello to my wallets," He turned around to point at the rest of the three couples, "Oh, and my husband." He adds when his finger lands on Lan Zhan.

Lan Jingyi, Sizhui, and Jin Ling, "..." They were already aware of their relationship. There was no point in displaying your love public...

"Where shall we go first?" Wei Wuxian sauntered.

And so, the group of three couples and the junior disciples set out... onto the streets of Lotus Pier!

Xie Lian looked at himself, finally feeling the worst pressure of being a babysitter. As a fellow scrap-picker, what was the chances that he'd have enough money? Not only couldn't he afford a baby bottle of milk, he also couldn't afford one single mantou!

Looking at his husband, who walked and looked ahead confidently, Xie Lian already felt bad enough that he always had to rely on Hua Cheng for the financial expenses.

"Hah..." Xie Lian sighed.

Hua Cheng shot him a confused look. "Gege? What's wrong?"

"Ehh... nothing, really, nothing!" Xie Lian waved his hands around in the air.

Seeing the nervous look that his lover displayed, Hua Cheng arched an eyebrow. He tried to think of reasons as to why his lover would fuss around for. Could it be that the streets are too dirty? Or is there nothing on display that he'd like to purchase?

Indeed, only Ghost City could satisfy his lover's needs...

If Xie Lian could hear Hua Cheng's thoughts at that moment, he would've disagreed more times than the amount of years he'd lived for.

"I want to buy tanghulu!" Lan Jingyi raised his hand. He pointed to a stall at the side, which sold many sticks of sugar-coated hawthorn. Just seeing the layer of sugar glossed across the fruits... it was enough to make all of the junior disciples' mouths water!

The group rushed towards the stand/stall, their feet clacking against the ground.

"How many are you purchasing?" The owner croaked. He had a long beard growing from under his chin. Just looking at his beard made Wei Wuxian want to stroke it.

"How much do you guys want to eat?" Xie Lian reached out. He patted himself on the chest, "It'll be my treat!"

The three junior disciples jumped up and down happily.

The remaining of the three couples felt complicated, "..." Somehow, Xie Lian didn't seem very reliable in terms of money.

"I want two!" Lan Jingyi roared.

"I'll have one." Lan Sizhui answered.

Jin Ling stood there awkwardly. Earlier, he said that he didn't need the adults to buy him anything... now, he wants to take back his words.

"Jin Ling?" Xie Lian asked. "What about you?"

The said junior disciple stood there, stunned. He didn't think he'd be called upon! Feeling a burst of happiness in his chest, Jin Ling shed tears right then and there.

"W-What are you crying for!?!" Wei Wuxian blurted out loud. Last time, he bought the little brat a bunch of tea snacks, and he never cried for him! How come, Xie Lian decides to treat him, and he cries!?!

Wei Wuxian eyed the scrap-picker. "Xie Lian... Tell me your secrets..."

Of course, his voice was very low, so Xie Lian didn't hear him. Instead, he crouched by Jin Ling so that the latter could look down at him. "How many tanghulu's would you like?" Xie Lian's voice was gentle and sincere. Such a kind scrap-picker can move the hearts of almost everyone!

Jin Ling was greedy. "I want five!"

"Alright, that would be eight in total." Xie Lian smiled.

By the sidelines, Shen Qingqiu couldn't help but mutter, "Isn't that too much for three people?"

However, his suggestion had gone down the drain, as Xie Lian directly turned towards the stall owner and asked for eight tanghulu's.

He turned over his sleeves and pockets, where only remained.

Legitimately is 9.50 Canadian Dollars, or 7.73 United States Dollar

Xie Lian debated with himself. Was 50 yuan enough to accommodate the three junior disciples? Was 50 yuan a lot of money, or no? It should be enough to buy eight tanghulu's for sure... it wasn't like one tanghulu costs about 10 yuan...

"That would be 80 yuan." The stall owner croaked.

At that moment, Xie Lian felt his entire world views flip upside down. The corner of his mouth twitched as he reconfirmed, "80 yuan? Are you sure?"

"Yes." The stall owner had never seen someone who couldn't even pay for eight tanghulu's. "It's... not like you don't have enough money, right?"

Unknowingly, he proceeded to rub salt into Xie Lian's wounds.

"Gege," Hua Cheng understood the situation now. "Don't worry. I can pay instead."

Xie Lian got up from the ground. "But... I just said that it would be my treat."

On the sidelines, Shen Qingqiu chuckled, "If we keep letting you treat us, you're going to eventually become bankrupt."

Nobody understood his words. Not even Luo Binghe, who didn't even care an ounce. As long as it was his Shizun speaking, then everything he says is right!

"Don't worry. Gege, let me treat. I am a powerful figure after all." Hua Cheng proceeded to show off his wealth. A hand of his went to fumble at his sleeves, pulling out a silver ingot-

However, he was rudely interrupted by Wei Wuxian, who frowned, "No no no! I want to treat in Xie-xiong's stead!"

Hua Cheng's smile became lopsided. "How come...?"

Wei Wuxian did not follow normal logic. "Xie-xiong is now my sworn brother! As fellow sworn brothers, we must pay for each other! Since he cannot pay, I will do it in his stead!"

Xie Lian, who just became the Yiling Patriarch's sworn brother, "..." He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Hua Cheng's mouth twitched. "But... I'm his-"

"Nuh-uh! That doesn't matter! I'm his sworn brother! I want to pay! Oh, how endearing! Xie-xiong's sworn brother, the Yiling Patriarch is going up against the bill to protect him! Can I have some applause? Or maybe Jin Ling, you can cry again for me?" Wei Wuxian shamelessly asked.

Nobody responded to him.

"Well, that's settled." Wei Wuxian said. "I'm going to pay. It's not like I can't afford 80 yuan."

He turned towards the stall owner, who was speechlessly watching the entire conflict play out. "Oh yeah," the stall owner finally recovered from his stupor. "That will be 80 yuan."

Wei Wuxian didn't take out money, nor a wallet. Instead, he shamelessly smiled, "Lan Zhan! It is your turn to shine!"

His husband and him had a mutual understanding.

Right when Wei Wuxian declared that sentence, Lan Zhan stepped forwards and pulled out a silver ingot, which was quite the same size as Hua Cheng's...

"There is no need." Hua Cheng insisted. "I am his husband. I should be able to pay—"

—pay and show off to his Gege.

However, his words were left unsaid. Lan Zhan insisted as well, on behalf of his lover's pride and shamelessness. Both husbands stared each other down, with a devastating emotion brewing within the depths of their eyes.

"Let me pay for my Gege." Hua Cheng deadpanned.

"I will pay for Wei Ying." Lan Zhan appeared cold and ruthless.

Right then and there, a storm was about to unveil. The two husbands threw their silver ingot on the stall's surface, then they blocked the other's ingots. Push and pull—push and pull—the same interaction continued on for a long time.

Meanwhile, another familiar figure entered the scenario.

Xie Lian was the first to notice him. "Oh, Wen Ning!" He waved hello.

Wen Ning was dressed up properly this time. He didn't wear the cheap rags like last time, and instead, dressed himself up in grey robes and endearing fabric. His hair was messily sprawled across his back, running down like river streams.

In his arms was a pile of flowers. There was a white lily, purple lotus, blue irises, pink peach blossoms, golden chrysanthemums, and more.

Wen Ning took a white lily and handed it to Xie Lian.

The latter was confused, but took the flower anyway. "What are you doing?"

Wen Ning expressionlessly told him, "I'm gifting all of you a flower."

Xie Lian fell silent. He leaned down to look at the white lily in his hands, which was as pure as the astounding clouds and tranquil breeze. If only the world was as pure and beautiful as this white lily... If only... For some reason, he wanted to cry.

Wen Ning and Xie Lian looked at each other. The two young men held gentle and caring sentiments.

At that moment, only they could understand the thoughts in which plagued their minds.

"Thank you." Two words, and Xie Lian spoke them like they were dragonfly wings, lightly tapping in the surfaces of the atmosphere.

Both gentle men bowed their heads. Their hearts were both soft and sweet.

On the other hand, Hua Cheng and Lan Zhan still weren't done with the payment.

"...I said that I will pay for Gege." Hua Cheng gritted his teeth. If he wanted to, he could explode Lan Zhan from the insides to out. However, this was supposedly a "friend" or fellow companion of Gege's. If he truly did explode Lan Zhan, he would be ignored and probably forced to sleep outside of their bedroom.

If Xie Lian knew what he was thinking, then he would've corrected him... Exploding Lan Zhan would probably make you the enemy of the entire cultivation world!

"...I said that I will pay for Wei Ying." Lan Zhan didn't back down to the Ghost King. For the sake of his Wei Ying, for the sake of his wifey... HE WILL NEVER GIVE UP!

"You two are so slow," Shen Qingqiu sauntered up to the stall. He took out 80 yuan, then shoved it into the stall owner's hands. Taking eight tanghulu's, Shen Qingqiu smiled coyly, "There, business is done."

He handed one tanghulu to Lan Sizhui, two to Lan Jingyi, and five to Jin Ling.

Finally, after arguing for almost the entire afternoon, the starving junior disciples finally got their tanghulu's... Next time, it would be best if they themselves paid for their food, instead of mooching off of their seniors. Who knows if a similar dilemma would occur.

Hua Cheng: What should I do if my wifey was given a flower?

Wei Wuxian: ...thank them?

Hua Cheng: Allow me to rephrase my question. What method should I use to kill... I mean, thank the person who gave my wifey a flower? ◉◡◉

Wei Wuxian: ...Wen Ning... hide（｀〇Д〇）

I remember reading a comment online that theorized "Xie Lian's gentle and cute personality was probably written after MXTX noticed how Wen Ning caught the hearts of many readers lol". Therefore, I just based the entire flower thing between Xie Lian and Wen Ning on this theory 😂

No but really, their personalities do resemble one another. What do y'all think?