a letter arrives to lotus pier, it is a day late if it was meant to congratulate the sect leader on his day — who could have known it was sent intentionally late, most would assume the delivery service suffered delays on the road.
in any case, the parchment of the scroll is adorned with light blue clouds in the style of gōngbǐ, giving away its provenance. the calligraphy of the handwriting is beautifully executed, fit for heart-warming poetry or celebratory words. however, the words read:
jiāng wǎnyín,
it is your birthday.
— hánguāng-jūn.
Jiang Cheng was just about to dig into his long-awaited dinner when one of his ever-eager disciples raced in with a letter, bowing and practically trembling with the honor of passing along stationary. Jiang Cheng, of course, barely gave it a glance before dropping it on the table and returning his attention to his steaming bowl of food. Letters could wait. Hot soup didn’t.
Except…they couldn’t. He knew himself well enough to know he wouldn’t get a single bite down until he saw what fresh nonsense awaited him, so with a dramatic sigh, he flipped the envelope over. The paper was fancy, too — creamy parchment stamped with pale blue clouds, so dainty it practically screamed Gusu and ‘handle with pretentious care.’ Lan Xichen, then? Had to be something lofty or dire.
He broke the seal — expecting, maybe, an invitation to meditate or a very politely worded complaint asking him to take Wei Ying back — but his eyebrows hit his hairline as soon as he scanned the signature. Lan Wangji? Since when did Hanguang-jun send letters, let alone to him? And what did he want?
Jiang Cheng skimmed the neat, reserved calligraphy and, somehow, his indifference melted into full-on disbelief. The whole letter said exactly one thing:
That was it. As if Jiang Cheng hadn’t noticed the passage of time without Gusu’s second young master to remind him. “My birthday was yesterday, you bastard,” Jiang Cheng muttered, teeth clenched so hard his jaw ached. Even Wei Wuxian with how forgetful he was managed to do something on time. He crumpled the letter in his fist and let a current of electricity run wild, reducing the whole thing to a tidy pile of ash.
He flicked the ashes to the floor and glared at no one in particular. “That’s the guy you married, Wei Wuxian?” He half-shouted, like maybe if he said it loud enough, someone besides him would have to deal with Lan Wangji’s strangeness. .