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Chapter Text

There was a constant beeping sound as he slowly opened his eyes. And there was pain everywhere.

What is going on?

The annoying beeping still continued. He tried to get his bearings, and realized… that he was upside down. He looked at the car’s dashboard and could see the airbags had deployed.

His car. He was still strapped to his seat. He was upside down. What happened? His brain felt like thick mush, he could hardly string any coherent thoughts. And the pain. All over his body. So much pain. 

There were footsteps running towards the car, and soon a man’s face came into view. He didn’t know this man. His first reaction was to reach for his belt…but… why? The man reached over and released the seat belt buckle. He immediately fell but the stranger held him up and pulled him out of the car.

Once out of the car he could see several other men, saying something to him but he couldn’t understand, or maybe he was just too confused right now. The pain in his head intensified and soon all he saw were stars.

*

When he woke up, it was to quiet whispers. He opened his eyes slowly but all he saw were white walls.

“Dr. Lan! He’s awake!” He heard a woman’s voice whispering loudly.

A woman came into his view. She was wearing a white lab coat and had a stethoscope around her neck.

“Sir? Can you hear me?”

He tried to respond but his throat was too dry. He made a sound instead.

“Nurse Wang, help me to adjust the bed so that he can sit up.”

The bed was slowly adjusted. He could see more of the room now. The room was rather big, with white walls. There was a glass sliding door, frosted, so he couldn’t see outside. He realized he tethered to an intravenous drip line on his left hand. And a heartbeat monitor at his fingertip.

It looked like he was in a hospital. But somehow, it did not feel like a hospital. Like there were some missing elements that he couldn’t quite point out.

“Sir? Can you tell me your name?”

He pointed to his throat. The nurse understood and helped him to drink some water from a glass by the bed.

The water felt good going down his throat. He drank half of the glass.

“Your name? Can you tell us please?” The doctor held a clipboard and a pen. She was asking him nicely though, as if it’s okay if he didn’t want to answer.

His name.

What is my name?

He looked at the doctor with bewilderment. “I… I can’t… I don’t know.”

“Hmm. It’s okay. Do you know what day is it?”

“Uh…no.”

“How about the month? The current season?”

A blank in his head. “I have no idea.”

“What year do you think it is, sir?”

“Uh…2020? 2021?”

The doctor nodded and wrote something on a clipboard. “Sir, you were in an accident. Did you remember that?”

“Ah, yes. I was… stuck in my seat.”

“Did you remember what happened?”

“Uh, no.”

The doctor took a plastic bag that had a jacket folded in it. “Sir, you were wearing this during the accident.”

He looked down to see the blue hospital gown that he was wearing.

“Can you confirm that this is your jacket?”

“Sorry, doctor…I don’t…”

The doctor seemed to understand his struggles. “Not a problem, sir. Just take a rest for now.”

The doctor and nurse bowed their heads and left the room. Such polite people. He wondered where he was now. Which hospital? He thought about the questions the doctor asked just now.

His name. He couldn’t remember. He closed his eyes and tried to rake through his memories. An older woman, smiling at him. His mother. What was her name? He couldn’t remember. A man, teaching him how to fix a clock. He thought this must be his father. But he didn’t remember his father’s name either. School? He was sure he had been to schools. No memories of his schools’ names. His classmates or teachers. University? He was sure he went to a university. To study what? Why was his mind a complete blank? It felt like the harder he tried to remember, the worse his memories seemed to be. He closed his eyes and fell back to sleep.

*

Food was brought to him and he ate ravenously. The food was rather bland, but he couldn’t remember the last time he ate, and what he ate. A picture floated in his mind. A bowl of soup, red in color. What was the dish? Was it prepared by his mother?

Feeling full, he leaned against the pillows. He couldn’t adjust the bed so he was stuck in the sitting position. Both of his legs had been braced. His chest hurts, and when he pulled at the collar he could see bandages around his chest. There were plasters at several places in his arm and fingers. His head hurts, but not as badly as before. There’s no bandages at any other places though. He wondered how long he had been here.

The same doctor came in not long after. She smiled at him and greeted him with a good morning. Is it morning? He couldn’t tell with the windowless room.

“My name is Dr. Lan Ziyi. Do you remember your name now?”

“Um, no. Sorry, Dr. Lan.”

“Don’t worry.” She glanced at the jacket that was placed on a table in the room. “You were wearing the jacket during the accident. There was a label inside the jacket, with the name ‘Wei Ying’.” She looked at him with a brow raised.

The name seemed familiar to him. “I… don’t know my name. But I feel like… I know that name.”

“Will it be all right for us to call you that for now?”

“Yes… I guess? Doctor, where am I? Which hospital?”

“Mr. Wei, I’m sure you have many questions.” She pulled a chair and sat down. “You were involved in an accident a week ago.”

It’s been a week?

The doctor continued. “The accident happened on a road outside the parameters of the Cloud Recesses.”

“Cloud…” The name sounds familiar, but he couldn’t place it.

“Mm. The Cloud Recesses is the residential area of the Lan Clan.”

“Dr. Lan…. So it’s your family’s...?”

“Correct. We have around 30 families here, and also other members of the Clan that were not biologically related. Most people live and work in here.”

“How big is this place?”

“Quite large. Maybe when you are a bit better we can go and show you around.”

“What…is the family business? This hospital is inside the compound?”

The doctor smiled. “We are involved in several types of businesses. We are not really in a hospital, more like a clinic. Although we do have more facilities than the usual clinics.”

“I… I don’t think I have money to pay for the treatment here, doctor. I don’t even know if I have a job.”

Dr. Lan Ziyi nodded. “I understand your concerns, Mr. Wei. Don’t worry about it. We are trying to help you find out more about your identity. We were waiting for you to regain consciousness. There was no identity card with you, Mr. Wei, no wallet or any other identity documents. You had a handphone but it was broken in the accident. We can’t even switch it on.”

“Huh.” That is weird. Why was he not carrying anything with him?

“Yes. So in the meantime, just rest. Tomorrow I will ask the nurse to help you in a wheelchair. It will do you good to get some fresh air.”

“Thank you, Dr. Lan.”

*

He was working on his laptop when there was a knock on the open door. He looked up to see a bodyguard standing there.

“Lan Jingyi, Hanguang-Jun is waiting for you at the pavilion at the South Lake.”

“Understood.” He locked the screen and grabbed his smartphone, all the info that he needed to present to Hanguang-Jun was in there.

He walked out of the office building where the IT offices were located and grabbed an electric scooter. The South Lake is about 10 minutes’ walk from the office building. It would be much faster if he took the scooter.

As he rounded a corner, he could see the pavilion in the middle of the lake. It wasn’t a lake, really, just a large man-made pond, constructed by the Lan ancestors a hundred years ago. The pavilion in the middle of the lake was big enough to place a round table for six. Hanguang-Jun liked to drink his tea in peace there, sometimes playing Go with his brother or other members of the Clan.

Lan Jingyi parked the scooter carefully by the grass and walked across the lake on the bridge. Hanguang-Jun was sitting alone in the pavilion, a teapot on the table. He had the Go board in front of him, playing against himself. He had an iPad next to him, playing classical music. The man noticed his approach and looked up.

Hanguang-Jun was wearing a light blue hanfu today, instead of his usual suits. He looked relaxed and calm. Lan Jingyi had honestly never seen such a beautiful man like Hanguang-Jun before. Sometimes during meetings he would get distracted by this man’s beauty. When they were out, women and men alike would stare at him, not realizing how ruthless and dangerous this man could be. Even now, sitting calmly at the round marble table, no one would have guessed that just two days ago, fifteen men had been killed in a casino when they had made the mistake of choosing to go against the Lan Clan.

Lan Jingyi bowed to him and greeted him good morning. “Welcome back, Hanguang-Jun.” The man had been away from Cloud Recesses for a week. Hanguang-Jun nodded towards a stool in front of him. Lan Jingyi understood and sat down.

“Tell me about the man.” Hanguang-Jun went straight to the point.

“Yes, Hanguang-Jun. Last Saturday, the cameras along the fences at the southwest road detected a crash. Four security guards were immediately deployed to investigate. They found a car turned turtle and a truck speeding away. They saved the driver and brought him back to our Healing Hall. Yesterday, the man finally gained consciousness but he seemed to have lost his memories. He did not remember his own name and thought that he was living in 2020, so he had lost at least five years of memories.”

“His injuries?”

Lan Jingyi looked at his smartphone, referring to Dr. Lan Ziyi’s report. “The injuries were quite extensive, one of his legs had fractured, he had a concussion, there were various small injuries on his hands and arms due to the flying glass fragments. He did not have any internal injuries though, so that was good. With treatment and physiotherapy, he could recover back to full health within six to nine months.”

“His identity?”

“He did not carried any wallet, or any identifying documents with him. We searched the car, nothing in the car either. No bags whatsoever. His smartphone was broken in the impact, it couldn’t even be switched on. But I am attempting to break into the phone. The only clue we had was the jacket he was wearing. There was a laundry tag attached inside, with the name ‘Wei Ying’. We think that might be his name.”

Lan Jingyi scrolled on his smartphone. “I have searched online for that name, there was a lot of Wei Yings listed, it’s not an uncommon name. I went through the photos but none of them looked like the man. I searched in Weibo, Douyin, Xiaohongshu, all the social medias, even Instagram and Facebook, none of the Wei Yings matched with this man. So either he did not have social media, or he was using a different name for his social media profiles.”

“Fingerprints.”

“Right. We took his fingerprints to see if we could track him down. But…” Lan Jingyi paused. Hanguang-Jun looked at him, waiting for him to continue. “His right thumb had been burned… like he had accidentally touched acid or some corrosive materials. So there were no useful fingerprints from there. His left thumb was injured, but there were old scars on it anyway, so we couldn’t get a good match from his left thumb either. As for the other fingers… the government only started keeping records on all fingers prints from 2018 onwards, so there might be a chance that he would not be in the system. I might have to pull a favor from my friends at the Records Department if we need to get more info.”

“Do it.”

“Yes, Hanguang-Jun.”

Hanguang-Jun took a white Go piece and placed it on the board. “The car.”

“Ah, yes. We tracked down the plate number. The car was a rented car. It was actually rented out by a woman and paid in full, with cash. We tracked down the woman in the rental records, it turns out that she was robbed a few weeks ago. Her driving license was used to rent that car. When we looked at the security cameras at the rental place, the woman who came in was a different woman. She was wearing a hat and sunglasses too, so she was definitely trying to hide her face. So for now, we are unable to track further who this man is, but he’s looking really suspicious right now.”

“Does he have any weapons with him?”

“None that we can find on him, or in the car.”

“Mn.” There was a crease between his brows. This man was indeed looking very suspicious so far.

“I think… for now… we can keep a close eye on him. He had lost his memories anyway, he had nowhere to go. If he regained his memories, we could return him and tail him around for a while, to make sure he is not from any of the rival clans.”

“All right. Make sure he is only at the Outer Sections, don’t allow him to come in the Inner Sections.”

“Yes, Hanguang-Jun. Would you like to meet him?”

Hanguang-Jun took a black piece and his hand hovered over the board. “Perhaps later. I’m busy.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Keep a close eye on him, and try to find out his real identity.”

“Yes, sir.”

*

It really was too boring just sitting on the bed. Wei Ying wished that they could give him something to read, at least. The lunch was delivered some time ago. He couldn’t see any clock in the room. He wondered if that was on purpose. The door was slid open and the nurse came in, pushing a wheelchair with a smile. Behind her, a tall, handsome man followed.

“Mr. Wei! I’m sure you would be happy… we’re taking you out for a walk! Or rather, you will sit, we will walk you!”

Wei Ying couldn’t help smiling. “Looking forward to it, Nurse Wang.”

The nurse helped to lower the handles by the bed, then guided the tall man to help move Wei Ying from the bed to the wheelchair.

“Lan Ruipeng, you push the chair and I’ll open the doors.” Nurse Wang told the tall man.

Lan Ruipeng nodded. “Mm.”

They pushed him out of the room and headed to a lift at the end of the corridor. Wei Ying noticed that they were on the second floor. The lift went down to the Ground Floor and Lan Ruipeng pushed him out of the lift, past a counter with no one behind it, and out of the door. The building was modern and clean, but so quiet. Wei Ying saw a sign saying ‘Healing Hall’ above the exit. He wondered if this building was a new one that had been built on the site of an ancient building, the original Healing Hall.

Right in front of the clinic was a garden, beautifully maintained, with various types of flowers and well-manicured shrubs. Lan Ruipeng pushed the wheelchair along a walking path in the garden. The sun was shining, low in the sky, which Wei Ying used to estimate the time to be around 5 p.m. Birds were calling out to each other somewhere. It was a wonderful sight.

“Summer?” He asked the nurse, remembering the question that Dr. Lan had asked him before.

“Yes, Mr. Wei.”

“What is the date, Nurse Wang?”

“Today is Friday, July 18th, 2025.”

“2025…” He had lost a significant number of years. He felt tears welling up in his eyes and quickly blinked them away.

“Just take a deep breath, Mr. Wei. You will be all right. You are healing nicely from your injuries.” The nurse reassured him.

Wei Ying did just as she said, taking a deep breath. They arrived at a small pond in the middle of the garden. There was a tiny fountain in the middle of it. Wei Ying looked inside and noticed several koi fishes swimming.

Nurse Wang showed him how to move the wheelchair and how to apply the brakes. Then she and Lan Ruipeng walked off to one of the small gazebos, allowing him some privacy.

He moved the chair slowly, enjoying the movements of the fishes and the soft breeze blowing through his hair. After a while, the heat started to get to him and he turned to look at the small gazebo. Nurse Wang saw him and immediately walked over.

“Mr. Wei, would you like to come back inside?”

“Yes, please.”

She gave him a kind smile. “I will take you out again tomorrow morning, okay?”

“Thank you, Nurse Wang.”

*

As she had promised, she took him out for a walk in the gardens again the next morning, and the morning after. Sometimes he could hear sounds carried over by the wind: women talking, children laughing, so he knew that there was definitely a community living here, although he could not see them. He enjoyed the fresh air. Sitting in the ward by himself was so boring. But he wished that he could see and talk to other people as well. 

*

A week after that, Dr. Lan declared that he could move out of the Healing Hall. Wei Ying was relieved, he felt like going crazy being held in the clinic. At least it will be a change in environment for him.

“We will place you in a small cottage, Mr. Wei. We can begin your physiotherapy as well as psychology sessions, to see if we can jog your memory back.”

“How long will it take, Dr. Lan?” He replied, sounding more miserable than he meant to.

“The physiotherapy? You could walk back as usual as soon as six months, maybe even earlier. For the memory loss…it’s more difficult to say. Some people regain their memories within a week, some, within months. And some…never.” Dr. Lan looked at him, not unkindly.

Wei Ying took a deep breath. “Okay, Dr.” He would have to see how things go. He hadn’t asked to leave this place yet, because he truly did not know where to go. But how long would they let him stay here? How long before he started to become a burden to them?

He was wheeled on the wheelchair again by Lan Ruipeng. That man was quiet, even when Wei Ying tried to talk to him. He did not responded to him at all.

There was a golf buggy waiting for him outside the Healing Hall. He was helped to sit at the back seat, and his wheelchair was folded and placed at the back of the buggy. Lan Ruipeng moved to the driver’s seat and started driving north.

They drove past the garden that Wei Ying had gone to daily and came to a gate. The automatic gate slid open slowly and they drove past a dark-tinted guard post. Wei Ying could see several low buildings – offices? Maybe? Lan Ruipeng continued driving and they passed through another gate, this one already open.

Wei Ying looked in wonder as they passed by several cottages – seven that he could see, he kept count – but he could also see a road leading towards the back with more cottages. Perhaps these were the quarters for the families that Dr. Lan Ziyi had mentioned. There were no one about, maybe the adults were at work and the children at school.

They passed by a large pond. There was a sign saying, “North Lake – White Flowers Lake”. It was a much bigger garden than the one Wei Ying had been to. The flowers planted around the pond were all white – different varieties but keeping the same color scheme.

Wei Ying saw a small house not far from the lake and instinctively knew this would be his new home. Lan Ruipeng drove there and parked at a small parking lot in front of the small house. Nurse Wang came out of the house and greeted him.

Lan Ruipeng removed the wheelchair from the back, helped Wei Ying on the chair and pushed him towards Nurse Wang.

“Welcome, Mr. Wei! This will be your new place.” She pushed him up the ramp and into the verandah that was overlooking the pond. A lady was standing by the door, she smiled and bowed to him.

“This is Lan Lusi, she will be your assistant here, please let her know if you need anything. She will help you as best you can.”

Wei Ying felt like a young master from the ancient China times. He smiled widely at the young lady. “Thank you very much, Lan-guniang!”

The woman giggled. “Come, Mr. Wei, let me show you around the house. I’ve brought some food also.”

She pushed the wheelchair and showed him where the kitchen was, the bedrooms, and the bathroom. There were two bedrooms but only one shared bathroom. The kitchen was small, with a small dining table that seats four. The living room had a couch with a TV. There was a desk phone hanging at the wall next to the entrance.

“If you need anything, just dial 1 here. I, or someone on duty will answer.” Lan Lusi smiled. She was a very cute girl. Wei Ying smiled and nodded his thanks.

Nurse Wang came in with a pair of crutches. “I thought you might want to use these too. It’s probably easier to move around the house with these, instead of the wheelchair.” She placed the crutches by the sofa.

Lan Lusi gestured towards the kitchen. “I had placed some food in the kitchenette, but if you feel like eating something else, just let me know!”

“Wow, thanks, Miss Lan! Thank you, Nurse Wang!”

They both bowed to him and walked out of the house, closing the door slowly. Wei Ying wheeled himself towards the big window in the living room. The window overlooked the pond. He pushed the window ajar a little bit, to get a bit of the fresh air inside. He could hear the two women talking to each other just outside. Maybe they thought he had gone to the bedroom.

“Hanguang-Jun is certainly generous! To give a stranger such a comfortable arrangement!”

“Shh! We still don’t know who he really is! So in the meantime Hanguang-Jun is being careful.”

The women got into the buggy and Lan Ruipeng drove them away.

Hanguang-Jun… who is he? Their boss? Is he the clan leader? What a title… I wonder why he was called that. And they seem to be suspicious of me…why?

*

The next morning, Wei Ying decided to look around the garden outside his new home. This new place was definitely much better than the clinic. Dr. Lan and Nurse Wang had come to visit him early in the morning to check on him. 7 a.m., according to the clock at the microwave oven. He wanted to go back to sleep again, something tells him that he was not a morning person. But now that he’s up he didn’t feel like sleeping again, so he decided to check out this new garden. He had spent the whole day yesterday watching the television in the cottage. He didn’t feel like doing it this morning.

The wardrobe in his bedroom had been filled with clothes, fitting for his size. There was even a hat in there. He took the hat with him and used the wheelchair to move outside. His legs still hurt, but not as much as before. He knew that the bones were setting back and soon he would be able to walk again.

He pushed himself slowly and found the path to walk around the garden. Near the edge of the large pond he saw a young man painting on an easel.

“Good morning!” He’s eager for some company after being cooped up for so long in the Healing Hall.

The young man turned to answer. He was a good-looking man, maybe in his early 20’s, even late teens.

“Good morning!” He looked like he was trying to place Wei Ying’s face but was unable to. “Um… are you new here? “

“Haha! I guess you can say so! But I think I’ve been here for at least two weeks?”

“You…didn’t know?” The young man slowly rose up.

“Uh, I was in an accident! Then I woke up here! And has no memories whatsoever of my own identity.”

“Oh…you must be…”

“I’m Wei Ying. Or I think, that’s my name.”

“I’m Lan Sizhui. Nice to meet you, Mr. Wei.” The young man bowed to him.

“Great to meet you, Lan Sizhui! What are you painting?” He pointed at the canvas.

The youth laughed. “Trying to paint. I’m not very good at it. It’s a way for me to relieve some stress.”

“What? What kind of stress would a young man like you be in?”

“Haha, Mr. Wei! I am doing my Master’s degree while working…so sometimes it’s a bit too much for me.” The man looked down to his hands.

“You shouldn’t call me Mr. Wei, it’s so formal! Call me Wei-gege, it’s fine! Hmm… what are you studying? If you don’t mind me asking? And what is your job?”

Lan Sizhui smiled. “I work with the Finance Department here in Cloud Recesses. I’m studying Business Administration.”

“Ugh, so boring!”

Lan Sizhui laughed out loud. “You are right, Wei-ge! It’s a very boring job! But my family is counting on me, I can’t let them down!”

“Such a filial son!”

“Um…well, I have to return their kindness to me… I was abandoned as a child and Hang… I mean, the Lan clan, rescued me and raised me as one of their own.” He gave Wei Ying a small smile. “So of course I have to do my best!”

Wei Ying felt a pang of familiarity. What Lan Sizhui described somehow felt familiar to him. Was it related to his real life? His real identity? He sometimes got these feelings of nostalgia, of deja vu, as if he had experienced those feelings before.

He smiled instead. “Come, let me see your painting! Maybe I can give you a few pointers!” That was another thing that had baffled him. When he saw the easel, canvas and paint set, somehow he knew that he could paint, that he had the skills.

They spent the next hour or two with the painting process and mixing of colors on the palette. Lan Sizhui had a nice set of colors, obviously money was not a limitation for him here.

“Why didn’t you just join a proper painting class, huh, Sizhui? You have a knack for this!”

“Well…I am quite busy with my job and my studies… and other chores…so I don’t really have time for it. Besides, I didn’t want to bother Hang… I mean, the clan, with these silly endeavors…It’s just a way for me to forget about my job for a while.”

That was the second time Lan Sizhui almost misspoke. Wei Ying caught on that but didn’t want to say anything for now.

“Is it true that there are many families living here? Are your adopted parents living here too?”

Lan Sizhui smiled, carefully cleaning his brush in a jar of water. “Yes, we have a lot of families living within the compound. The children went to school at the nearest school in town.”

Wei Ying noticed that he avoided answering the second question. Never mind, there’s time for that later.

“Come on, Wei-ge, it’s getting too hot out here. I’ll send you back to the cottage.” Lan Sizhui put aside his brush.

“Thank you, young man! Will we get to see each other again?”

“Sure, Wei-ge! I’ll come by the lake when I’m free in the afternoons! You can teach me more about painting!”

They went back to the cottage. Lan Sizhui helped him out of the wheelchair into the sofa. He walked over to the kitchenette. “Wei-ge! They’ve sent you your lunch! I’ll bring them over to the sofa, okay?” He took the covers off the food , and brought the tray to the living room.

“Ahhh, Shizui! Don’t bother about me!” he accepted the tray from him.

“It’s no bother.” He went back to the kitchenette and filled a glass with water and returned. “It’s been a long time since we had any visitors anyway. We’re happy to have you here.”

Wei Ying looked at the young man. He seemed genuinely helpful, and he couldn’t detect any deceit in him. Maybe there are good people in this world.

*

Lan Sizhui kept his word, he came to the lake every afternoon after that day to paint. It was the highlight of Wei Ying’s day. There’s only so much TV that he could watch anyway. He was beginning to feel restless, like there was something that he was meant to do, but he had forgotten to do it. So Lan Sizhui had been a great distraction for him.

After their painting sessions, Lan Sizhui would send him back to the cottage. Once there, he would help tidy up the house and even made simple meals for him. Wei Ying was greatly touched by his kind gestures.

“Your mother must be proud of you, Sizhui.”

The boy smiled. He smiled so easily. “I don’t really have a mother, Wei-ge. All the other mothers here helped to raise me.”

“Ah, really? What about a father then?”

“Well… I don’t really have a father either, but I do have a father figure, one of the leaders of the clan kept a close eye on me.” He came over and sat next to him in the couch, handing him a mug of coffee.

“Is it that Hanguang-Jun?”

His head snapped up in surprise. “Uh…”

“I was just making a wild guess! I heard people talking about this guy but I really don’t know who he is!”

He nodded. “That’s right… Wei-ge… Hanguang-Jun is one of our leaders here. He spent a lot of time raising me up… he didn’t do that with any other kid. But he’s like, 10 years older than me, so he’s not quite a father? More like an older brother?” He smiled. “But I do see him like a father sometimes… when I’m in trouble or need advice I always go to him.”

“I understand. He must mean a lot to you, then.”

“Mn, he does.” He stood up to leave. “Wei-ge… I might not be able to come by for the next few days… can I leave my paint set and canvas here with you? You can go ahead and use them! When I’m back I can see your works!”

“Ah, you have to go away somewhere? Sure, just leave them here! Let me see what I feel like painting in the next few days!”

“Yes, I have a business travel trip. I’ll come back and see you as soon as I’m in Cloud Recesses again, okay!”

“All right! See you, Sizhui!”

As the young man walked away, Wei Ying couldn’t help feeling that he would miss his presence for the coming days.

*

One thing that Wei Ying noticed was that there was another lake house, not too far from his cottage. That house was much bigger, with lots of large windows. There was no one during the day, but at night he could see the lights were on and a man was walking around the house. He seemed to live alone, though. Sometimes it felt like the man was looking at him, all the way from there, when he was out on the balcony overlooking the waters. Wei Ying wondered if he could visit that house later, when he could walk properly again.

*

Wei Ying asked for a calendar so that he could keep track of the days he spent here, and Lan Lusi obliged. He also asked for chili oil, and she brought him five different varieties. He was really enjoying his stay here, but he hated the fact that he felt so useless. There was nothing he could give back to his benefactors here.

Dr. Lan Ziyi finally removed the cast from his leg, and while the leg was still in bandages, he felt a lot freer to move around. He was given a walker with wheels, like the one that elderly people used and found that he liked using this a lot more than the wheelchair. He was taken to the clinic for his physiotherapy sessions daily, with an extremely patient physiotherapist, Lan Linghe, who turned out to be Dr. Lan Ziyi’s husband. He had a weekly session with a psychologist, a Dr. Hui Lang, but he really couldn’t do much since he was really unable to recall anything. He was told it was possibly a traumatic response due to the terrible accident.

Lan Lusi was helping him to set up the easel by the lake this morning. “Mr. Wei, Dr. Lan told me that in two weeks’ time we can try taking you out to the nearby town. Dr. Hui Lang had suggested that maybe going around the town might jog your brain to remember some things.”

“Two weeks from now! Why not tomorrow?” He pouted in response.

“Dr. Lan said in two weeks’ time, you will be able to walk better.”

“Ahhh…all right then. Guess I’ll just have to be patient!”

She smiled at him. “Mm! You are already making really great progress!” She looked around the garden. “I will take my leave now, Mr. Wei. If you need anything, just give me a call! I will come back later to bring your lunch.”

“Thank you, Lusi-meimei!” She laughed when he called her that. He had also asked her to call him Wei-gege but she had refused to.

It’s been four days since he last saw Lan Sizhui and he missed that kid already. Over the past four days, he had only managed to create one painting, where he captured the white chrysanthemums planted along the paths. Today he was going to start on a new canvas, and this time he wanted to paint the lake.

He was engrossed in the painting background color, after making the rough sketch, when he suddenly felt like he was being watched. He turned to see a man standing not too far from him. How long had he been standing there? He almost stopped breathing, because he was sure he had never seen a man as beautiful as this one in his life before. At least, in his recent memory.

He was wearing a white shirt and a black jacket, something that looked casual, yet so stylish on this man. He even had a wide-brimmed hat with a black ribbon. This man could have been a model, here to be on a photoshoot.

“What are you painting?” The man asked, and oh, he had a really nice voice. A deep voice that left Wei Ying rattled, somehow.

“Uh…I was thinking to paint the lake here!” He pointed towards the water, as if the man couldn’t see the lake itself.

“Sounds good.”

“Are you… a member of the clan too? I’m Wei Ying! Or I think that’s my name! I can’t remember, you see? I was in an accident and lost my memories!” He didn’t know why he had to explain all that, but he was feeling a little bit nervous around this man.

“Mn. I know.” Huh, he knew.

“And you are..? Do you work here too?” He felt like he had to know this guy’s name.

The man hadn’t moved an inch. “You can call me Lan Zhan. Yes, I work here too.”

“Lan Zhan! What a great name! Come sit with me! I’m pretty lonely here since Lan Sizhui left!”

Lan Zhan started walking towards him slowly. “Sizhui was here…?”

“Yeah, he was the owner of the painting set, really! But he went away on a business trip, and now I’m missing him!”

The man looked like he was about to smile. A beginning of a smile, maybe? He looked even more handsome now that he’s closer. He had a slightly long hair, up to his shoulders. It gave him a roguish look, in a way.

“Yes, but he’ll be back soon. I was away on business trips too. I should’ve come to see you sooner.”

“Are you the one who helped me during my accident?” He looked at the man with more interest.

Lan Zhan seemed to consider his answer. “You could say that, yes.”

What does he mean by that? So cryptic.

“Tell me about more yourself, Lan Zhan! I’m bored of just sitting in the cottage alone! Come on, sit down!” Wei Ying gestured to a bench nearby.

“You are recovering.” Lan Zhan took a seat.

“Yes, yes, but I need company too! I think I might be an extrovert in my real life!”

“Real life.”

“I mean, my previous life? Anyway, tell me about yourself!” He didn’t know how he got the courage to be this shameless with a stranger.

“I am a… manager here.” This man seemed to be careful with his words. Maybe he’s wary of Wei Ying. He was a stranger here, after all.

“Ah! All right, that’s a good place to start.” He turned back to his canvas. He took the palette and began selecting the colors he wanted to use. “Could you tell me a bit more about the Lan Clan? I have been here for a few weeks already and hardly know anything! No one would tell me anything!”

“Mn, what do you want to know?”

“Well, how did the Lan Clan became so wealthy? What businesses do you guys run? I didn’t mean to be nosy or anything, I’m just curious!”

“Mn, I understand. The wealth had been passed on through several generations, so we were lucky in that sense. We used to be involved in the arts – musical instruments and performances, but now we have diversified our businesses.”

“So you guys used to sell musical instruments? And perform..? Wow! And now?”

“Many things. Restaurants, performance halls, sports centers, hotels.”

“Woooowwww! That is awesome, Lan Zhan! No wonder you guys are so rich!” He couldn’t help himself.

Lan Zhan made a small nod. “Mn. A lot of hard work.” He didn’t even deny that they were wealthy. But he didn’t came across as arrogant either. Wei Ying decided that he like this odd man.

“I would think so! Hey Lan Zhan, if I never get my memories back, will you take me to work for you?” He grinned at the man.

He hesitated for a second. “It depends. What are you good at?”

Wei Ying stared at the canvas. He knew somehow he had the ability to paint. But what else is he good at? He turned to look at Lan Zhan. His face didn’t seem to change, but Wei Ying could see the change in his eyes.

“I’m sorry, Wei Ying.”

“No, no! That’s a good question, actually! I should start figuring that out! Maybe then I could remember what I used to do!”

“Do you think you used to be an artist?”

He dabbed the paint to the canvas mindlessly. “Hmmm…to be honest, I don’t know, Lan Zhan.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out.” Lan Zhan stood from the bench.

“Ah, are you leaving already? Don’t leave me!” He was truly shameless.

“Please excuse me, Mr. Wei, I have other matters to attend to.”

“Will you come here again?”

“Would you like me to?”

“Yes, please!” He grinned. “I would certainly look forward to seeing such a handsome face again!”

Lan Zhan’s face did not change at all. How amazing. Maybe his ears were slightly red? What an intriguing man.

“I’ll see you again, Wei Ying.” He raised his hand to bid him farewell and walked away. Even his walk was stylish. Wei Ying felt like he just had a teenage crush.

*

Lan Zhan came to visit him again the next day, but late in the afternoon.

“What do you have there, Lan Zhan?” Wei Ying was slouching at the sofa, watching a drama. His eyes ran over Lan Zhan, standing at the door in a white long-sleeved shirt. He looked good. Gorgeous.

“A phone for you.” He handed a small box to him. “Yours were broken beyond repair in the accident.”

Wei Ying accepted the box gratefully. “Ah…thank you! Thank you! Mr. Lan!”

“I didn’t know what was your previous number. So I put in a new sim card instead, is that ok?”

“Of course, Lan Zhan! I’m just happy I have a phone again!” He brought the box close to his chest.

“Mn. Have you eaten your dinner?” Lan Zhan walked over to the kitchenette.

“Um…not yet. Didn’t feel like it.” Wei Ying opened the box to reveal a newly bought phone. It had been turned on already. He took it out of the box.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. Just… I’m alone here. I didn’t feel like eating dinner by myself.”

He could hear Lan Zhan sighing all the way from the sofa. “I will eat dinner with you.” Lan Zhan moved towards the counter where Lan Lusi had placed his dinner.

“Really??” He grinned widely and quickly reached for his crutch. “You should have said earlier! Now I feel like eating!” Wei Ying knew he was behaving terribly, but he didn’t care. He didn’t know why he wanted to keep Lan Zhan with him as long as he could. He wobbled his way to the dining table where Lan Zhan put the plates. He sat carefully in the dining chair and pulled out the new phone from his pocket.

“Okay, there’s wi-fi here.”

“Yes, the IT office had set it up for you. You can check your new number in the WeChat settings.”

“Is your number here?” He smiled and looked at Lan Zhan. Over at the counter, the man stopped pouring the soup into a bowl.

“No.”

“Lan Zhannnn… can I have your number please? Or am I not handsome enough for Lan-gege?” He put on his most annoying voice and face. Let’s see if he can get some reaction out of that stony face!

“Wei Ying can have my number.” Lan Zhan put the dishes in front of him. Lan Lusi had sent all his meals in tiffin carriers, and usually the amount of food was much more than he could eat. He knew Dr. Lan was hoping that he would eat more to speed up his recovery. Apparently he had lost some weight in the past month. But he hadn’t worked up the appetite, and he was sure in his previous life he had a family to eat his meals with.

Wei Ying passed his phone to Lan Zhan as he took a seat. The man typed the number in and passed the phone back to him. Wei Ying immediately opened the messaging app and sent Lan Zhan a message.

===
Wei Ying: Hello, handsome guy!
===

There’s a vibrating sound from Lan Zhan’s pocket. He took out his phone, read the message, and kept his phone back in his pocket. He continued eating with no changes in his expressions at all.

How is this man so serious all the time? He didn’t even reacted to my message!

“Lan Zhan, how was your day?”

“No talking during meals.”

“Ah?”

“It’s the Lan Clan rules.”

“Ohhh… do I have to follow the Lan Clan rules too?”

Lan Zhan gave him a look. But he still answered the question. “No. Unless you married into the Clan.” His eyes didn’t leave Wei Ying’s face.

Wei Ying couldn’t help blushing. “Ahaha…in that case, I will talk, and you can listen!”

Lan Zhan did not roll his eyes, but Wei Ying could see that he really wanted to.

“Maybe I can marry into the Clan if Lan Lusi is free to date me!”

Lan Zhan scowled. “She already has a boyfriend. Don’t disturb her.”

Wei Ying laughed out loud. “Aha! Is her boyfriend Lan Sizhui? Are you allowed to marry within the clan? Of course you do, Dr. Lan Ziyi is married to Lan Linghe.”

“Gossiping is not allowed in Cloud Recesses.”

“Come on… Lan Zhan!”

He relented. “Sizhui is too young to have a girlfriend.”

Wei Ying howled with laughter. “Oh my god, Lan Zhan, you sound just like you’re his dad!”

“I am not.”

“Haha, I know you’re not! It’s Hanguang-Jun, right?”

Lan Zhan’s hand stopped. He put his spoon down.

“Lan Zhan, do you know him? He’s one of the Lan Clan leaders, right?”

“I do.”

“They said that he is a very generous man, helping me to recuperate here! What is he like? Are you close to him? Is he like, an old guy?”

“What is ‘old’?”

“You know, like, in their 60’s or 70’s… years old?”

“He’s not that old.”

“Is he handsome? Like you? You know, I’ve noticed that all the Lans I’ve met so far are so good-looking! It is so unfair! What kind of genetic pool do you have here?”

Lan Zhan didn’t answer. Wei Ying took that as a cue to continue. “Do you think one day I could meet Hanguang-Jun? I would like to thank him properly.”

“Maybe.”

“You’ll point him out to me, won’t you, Lan Zhan?”

“Mn.”

“Eh, Lan Zhan? Why have you stopped eating?”

“You’re done with the questions?”

“Ah…yes…” he replied with a sheepish grin.

Lan Zhan picked up the spoon and continued to eat again. Wei Ying looked down, chided, and continued their dinner in silence.

This guy really didn’t like me, did he? Wei Ying resigned to his fate, that maybe Lan Zhan would not be visiting him again.

*

The next morning, Wei Ying was still looking at his new phone when there was a knock at the door.

Lan Zhan had bid him good night after cleaning the plates and kitchen when the dinner was over last night. As usual, he had that expressionless face on him. Wei Ying had asked him to come again for dinner the next day and he had answered ‘Mn’, which could mean anything honestly, but Wei Ying hoped it meant ‘Yes’. He’ll just have to see it tonight. He sent him a good night message over WeChat and there was no reply. Lan Zhan didn’t even read his message.

After dinner he had pulled himself into bed and used his new phone until he fell asleep. And this morning he was still going through the news sites, finding out about the various happenings in this world that mostly confused him. He was surprised with the world’s pace now after a world-wide shutdown due to a viral disease back then. That was something he was still wrapping his head around.

The door opened and Lan Sizhui walked in.

“Sizhui! My boy!” He waved his hands happily.

Lan Shizui’s response was more sedate. “Hello, Wei-ge.”

“Ahhh, I missed you so much! Come give your Wei-ge a hug! Did you just got back?”

“Yeah, I just got back yesterday, but I was just too tired, so I slept. Today I felt better and thought of you immediately.” Lan Sizhui hugged him fondly.

“Look at this!” He held up his new phone.

“Yes, Jingyi told me you have a new phone.”

“Jingyi?”

“Yeah, my cousin. He works with IT. He was the one that set up the phone for you.”

“Please thank him for me!” He pulled the young man close to make him sit next to him.

Lan Sizhui asked about his painting progress, and they spent the next hour admiring Wei Ying’s paintings, before Lan Lusi arrived to take him for his physiotherapy session.

“Mr. Wei, we’ll take you to town this coming Wednesday, are you excited?” The pretty young lady smiled.

“Yes! Very much! Sizhui, will you come with me?”

“Let me check my schedule, I’m sure I can arrange something. I would love to show you around Caiyi City!”

“All right!” Wei Ying pumped his fist in excitement, while Lan Sizhui and Lan Lusi laughed.

*

That particular day’s physiotherapy session was extra difficult for him, so he spent the afternoon sleeping on the couch with the TV on. When he opened his eyes, the sun was already low in sky. It’s probably already 6 p.m.. There was a good smell in the air. Something’s cooking at the kitchenette. He raised himself slowly and turned.

Lan Zhan was wearing an apron, frying something. He turned from the stove and looked up.

“Wei Ying.”

“Hey, Lan Zhan!” His heart burst with happiness. He’s so glad that the man came, he was pretty sure he had annoyed Lan Zhan last night, to the point that he might never show up again. But he’s here, and he’s making something. Wei Ying grabbed his crutches and walked to the dining table.

“Oh my god! Is that dumplings! What’s in it?”

“These are shrimps, and these are vegetarian.” He pointed at the two plates on the table.

“Vegetarian options?” He looked at Lan Zhan.

“I am vegetarian.”

Wei Ying gasped. “Is that a Lan Clan rules too?”

“While in Cloud Recesses.”

“Ah… I wonder how people marry into this Clan. So many rules!”

Lan Zhan stared at him. “They learn the rules. Get used to it.”

“You think it’s possible for me to marry into the Clan?” He wiggled his brows teasingly.

Lan Zhan’s eyes never left his face. “It’s certainly not impossible.”

Wei Ying blushed when he heard that. “Ah, Lan Zhan, you’re teasing me! Who thought you could be such a funny man, huh?” He picked up the chopsticks on the table. “Let’s try your cooking!”

*

Wei Ying woke up with great anticipation on that Wednesday morning. Both his legs felt better, although his left leg was really not done healing yet. His right one was taking all work to get him around. They would use the crutches today, but the wheelchair was brought along, in case he felt tired walking.

Using the buggy, he was ferried through the gates, and past through another gate, to a waiting luxury van. They helped him into the van and off they go, to Caiyi City.

Lan Lusi and Lan Sizhui were with him this morning, and they had not stopped chatting with him since he left the cottage. The windows were tinted very dark, that he almost couldn’t see outside. But he knew that they were going downhill, and soon they were stuck in the city traffic. They stopped at a mall and Lan Sizhui wheeled him around.

They spent 3 hours around the Caiyi City Mall, going through the shops.

“Anything you want to buy, Mr. Wei?” Lan Lusi asked him with a smile.

“Can…can you buy me things? But I don’t have any money.”

“Sure, I have been given the green light to buy you whatever you want.”

“Wait… is this green light given by the Hanguang-Jun?”

Lan Lusi’s face showed a surprised reaction, but she tried to hide it quickly. She glanced at Lan Sizhui. Lan Sizhui nodded.

“Yes, Wei-ge, so don’t worry.”

This Hanguang-Jun fellow is really nice! Wait til I tell Lan Zhan about it!

In the end, Wei Ying bought some t-shirts and snacks. There were some things that he was not allowed to buy after all, such as electronics. He didn’t want to complain, after all he was already indebted so much to the Lan Clan.

They walked around the city after the visit to the mall. Lan Sizhui introduced him to some of the landmarks in the area, as well as some photogenic spots where they took photos. Lan Lusi was too serious, but Lan Sizhui was willing to pose funny poses with him. He had a great time in Caiyi that day.

*

That evening, he sat at the dining table and opened his notebook. Dr. Hui Lang had given him the notebook for him to write down all the pieces of memories that he saw in his mind. He clicked on his pen, jotted down the date, and wrote.

‘The smell of beef soup from one of the restaurants’
‘Some of the roads seem familiar, like I’ve driven down the roads before.’
‘I don’t remember the mall, but there was a music shop down the road from the mall, and I sensed a strong feeling of dejavu looking at that shop.’
‘One of the landmarks, a statue, felt familiar. I felt like I’ve waited for someone there.’
‘The train station felt familiar too. I knew immediately how to purchase the tickets. I feel like I’ve taken train rides here many times before. But I don’t remember what the destinations were.’

There was a knock at the door. “Come in!”

Did Lan Sizhui forget something? Lan Lusi had already delivered the dinner. The tiffin carrier sat on the kitchen counter, untouched. The door opened and Lan Zhan stepped in.

“Heyyyy! Lan Zhan! This is a pleasant surprise!”

Lan Zhan gave him a small smile. Wei Ying should have taken a photo of it with his handphone, but he was too mesmerized to see Lan Zhan’s face. He came in and walked towards the dining table.

“Aren’t you going to have dinner?”

“Was waiting for you!” He wasn’t, because he didn’t expect him to drop by again, but Lan Zhan does not need to know that.

“Mn. What do you have there?” Lan Zhan started unpacking the dinner from the tiffin carrier into plates.

“It’s my memory book! Dr. Hui asked me to jot down anything… any memories that popped up, any scene that seems familiar and write it down here.”

Lan Zhan came to the table with the plates. “And do you have a lot of those?”

He shook his head. “Not really. But I don’t want to give up.” He sighed. “What if I never got my memories back, Lan Zhan? What do I do?”

Lan Zhan looked down at the table. “You’ll make new memories, then. We’ll help you get a job, if you want to. Tell me what do you want to do?”

He gave a wry smile. “Ok, Lan Zhan, let’s list down all the businesses the Lan Clan have! Maybe I can get myself a job at one of the places! Do you have workers dormitory and all that? Do you think I could stay there?”

“You could stay here. No one’s staying here.”

“Hey, you have to ask Hanguang-Jun first!”

“Sure. Come, eat.” Lan Zhan placed the fried rice into his bowl.

They ate in silence, Wei Ying for once lost in his thoughts. All the places that he had visited today, yet not many places seemed familiar to him. Is it possible that he was not from Caiyi? Was he just visiting here on that fateful day? What was he doing in Gusu?

When they were done eating, Lan Zhan asked if he could see the notebook. Wei Ying had nothing to hide, so he handed the notebook over. While Lan Zhan was going through it, he began a one-sided conversation with him.

“What are the jobs that are available for me to do, Lan Zhan? Can I work at the restaurants? Do you think I can be a cook? Or maybe I’ll just be a waiter, huh? Should be easy enough. Or do you think I can manage a restaurant? Isn’t that too hard?” He put his head on one of his palms, with the elbow on the table. Staring at Lan Zhan. “What other business are there? Hotels? At worse I can just be a cleaner at the hotel… but if you send me for training, I’m sure I could be a manager too!”

Lan Zhan did not answered. Wei Ying continued talking. “I forgot the other businesses you have! Remind me again, Lan Zhan! Musical instrument store?”

Lan Zhan looked up from the notebook. “Performance halls.”

“Ah, so this is where all the traditional musical instruments were played? Is it only Chinese instruments or also the Western ones?”

“Both.”

“So just these orchestra performances?”

“Depends. Sometimes we also have plays.”

“Wow, that’s so cool! Hmm, but I don’t think I can work there.”

“Do you think you can play any instruments?”

“I really don’t know. Why don’t you show me a few instruments, Lan Zhan? If you can?”

“Mn. Maybe next week.”

“Okay! What other business did you mention before? Gyms?”

“Sport centers.”

“That didn’t seem like you, Lan Zhan. What sports do you play?”

“Tennis. Boxing. Fencing.”

“Wow, you can do all that at the Lan Sports Centers?”

“We have seven different centers, some have tennis courts and swimming pools, some only have the boxing rings. One has the fencing halls. One has an archery field.”

“You know, I wouldn’t mind working at the sports centers either! You have to take me to these places, Lan Zhan!” He smiled happily.

“Mn. Okay. When you are better.” Lan Zhan glanced at his legs.

“Of course! Of course! Anything else?”

Lan Zhan seemed to be considering something. “Mn, maybe it will not be suitable for Wei Ying.”

“Ah, what is it? Is it a female only place?”

“No.”

“Then? Let me hear it first, Lan Zhan, then I’ll tell you if it’s suitable for me or not!”

“Casinos.”

Something was triggered in his mind. His hands holding chips. Poker cards on the table. A glass of whisky. People laughing. A beautiful lady in a red evening dress. Wei Ying’s breath hitched.

“Wei Ying?”

He looked at Lan Zhan.

“Are you okay?” Lan Zhan’s face didn’t change, but there was concern in his eyes.

He smiled. “I wasn’t expecting a gentleman like you to be involved in such business, Lan Zhan!”

“Mn. Family business. I just inherited them.”

“Yes, of course… do you think I can go visit the casinos too? Not to gamble of course! I have no money! Just to look around!”

Lan Zhan was looking right into his eyes. “We’ll see.” Then he slowly pushed his chair back and stood. “It’s late, I have to go.”

Wei Ying looked at the microwave oven. “Eh? It’s only 8.30 p.m., Lan Zhan!”

“I go to bed at 9.”

Wei Ying looked at him with his mouth open. “You are truly unexpected in so many ways, Lan Zhan. Is this your bedtime since you were seven?”

Lan Zhan glared at him. “Clan rules. Good evening, Wei Ying.”

He slowly stood up and grabbed his crutches leaning on the wall. “Thanks for coming, Lan Zhan! Will you come again tomorrow?"

“We’ll see.”

Wei Ying couldn’t help feeling a pang of disappointment to hear that. As Lan Zhan walked out of the door, he shouted after him. “Reply my messages, won’t you?”

Lan Zhan did not replied.

*

Lan Jingyi opened his eyes and slowly rolled out of bed. He walked into the shower and took a bath. He looked at the bottles arranged in the nook and pumped a bit of shower gel. The soap smelled nice. He looked for a facial wash but couldn’t find it. It wasn’t his apartment.

As he dried himself off, he walked out of the bathroom, and looked at the man lying on the bed. His contact at the Records Department. The man was lying fast asleep naked, utterly spent after their rigorous activities.

He walked over to the desk where the laptop was still on, and logged into the website. The login asked for a multi-factor verification. Lan Jingyi walked over to the bedside table and picked up Ouyang Zizhen’s handphone. He put the phone in front of Ouyang Zizhen’s beautiful face to unlock the screen, then looked for the multi-factor identification app to key in the code. In three seconds, he was in.

He had seen the website before. Ouyang Zizhen had shown him, when he was showing off to Lan Jingyi, trying to entice him to bed. Lan Jingyi had posed to be a teacher, and was so impressed with Ouyang Zizhen’s access to the country’s database that he rewarded him with passionate kisses. Since the first time they ‘accidentally’ met, they had met up a few times; always dinner first, then to Ouyang Zizhen’s apartment. He never spent the night there though, leaving after the deed was done. Satiated and slowly building up trust.

Lan Jingyi searched for ‘Wei Ying’. As expected, there were hundreds of Wei Yings. He patiently scrolled through each record, looking at the pictures, to see if he could find the mysterious man. He had time. During the dinner that night, he had placed a little amount of white powder inside Ouyang Zizhen’s drink. Ouyang Zizhen liked to make fun of him when finding out that he didn’t indulge in alcohol, but the joke’s on him. Now he would be deep in sleep until the next morning. The Lan Clan’s chemist, Zhang Ruoyi, had given him the packet with express warning not to overdose the amount.

He spent half an hour going through those records, stopping only to put on his clothes. Then he took his pendrive and plugged it into the laptop. He had saved Wei Ying’s fingerprints records in there.

As he tried to match the fingerprints in the database he realized a snag in his plans. The current fingerprints database had only captured all 10 fingers since 2018. That means, if Wei Ying had not left the country and went through immigration since 2018, then his records would not be in the database. His two thumb prints were unusable.

He let the search run while going through Ouyang Zizhen’s things in the room. He discovered a box of Polaroid photos of him with a pretty girl. Guess they both batted for both teams. He kept it back exactly like he found it.

In the end, the search was unsuccessful. Whoever Wei Ying was, he had not left the country for the last eight years.

Lan Jingyi left the with no new information, but he had a Plan B to refer to when he sees Lan Sizhui.

*

Lan Sizhui stared at the photos on the table, referring to the notes accompanying the photos. Across the table, Wu Yichen, Hanguang-Jun’s assistant, nodded his head. “I think we could widen the area of search.”

Wu Yichen had followed them around discreetly that day when they were in Caiyi City. He took a lot of photographs of Wei Ying. And then he had canvassed several areas, asking people around if anyone had seen his ‘lost brother’. So far, no one had recognized Wei Ying.

“I have a feeling that Wei Ying is not from Gusu. Maybe he’s from a different city.” Lan Sizhui looked at him.

Wu Yichen nodded. “I’m going to Lanling tomorrow for an errand on behalf of Hanguang-Jun. I could ask around while I’m there.”

“Good idea. When will you back?”

“In a week. But if I receive any news, I’ll call you right away.”

“Great. Thank you, Yichen.”

Wu Yichen bowed to him and left the room.

*

Wei Ying was getting bored. Lan Zhan had not replied to his messages. Well, he did sent a message. “Good night, Wei Ying.” And nothing else. How busy was this man, really?

Lan Zhan had not visited him for some days. While he enjoyed Lan Sizhui’s visits, he missed the company of the quiet Lan Zhan somehow. It’s like they were having a full conversation, even though only Wei Ying was talking most of the time. He found that he could talk about almost anything with him. He talked about the TV shows he watched, the news he read, even the sports games he had been following. Lan Zhan was a good listener and gave appropriate hums and comments to his long speeches and reviews. He even made savage comments that left Wei Ying bent double with laughter. Lan Sizhui had told him that Lan Zhan would be away on business, so he knew that he wasn’t avoiding him or anything like that.

His progress in walking again had been significant. Even the physiotherapist had been pleasantly surprised to see his progress.

“You’re a very healthy young man, Mr. Wei. You’ll be able to walk without the crutches soon.” Lan Linghe patted his shoulder.

Wei Ying had been relieved to hear that. He didn’t want to outstay his welcome, although none of the Lan Clan had mentioned anything about that. He just felt restless, being an invalid, and unable to contribute with anything.

Lan Sizhui came with a good news that afternoon.

“Wei-ge, would you like to visit one of our hotels? Maybe you would like to see if there’s a job that you would like to take there?”

“Yes! That sounds great!”

“Okay, tomorrow we’ll take you there. Get ready!”

*

The hotel was called Blue Orchids Hotel. Sitting in the middle of the city, it’s all modern architecture and sleek design. Wei Ying was thoroughly impressed with the layout and exclusivity that the hotel exudes.

The hotel manager, Lu Huasen, met up with them and showed them around. When they were done, they sat down by the pool, and drinks were brought to them.

“So what do you think, Wei-ge? Any memories brought up?”

“Not really… I don’t think I’ve ever been here.”

Lan Sizhui turned towards the hotel manager. “Mr. Lu, do you have any vacancies for now at this hotel?”

“Yes, young Mr. Lan. One of our managers just resigned to further her studies. Her position will be replaced by a junior manager that we trained. If Mr. Wei is interested, he could take up the junior manager position..?”

“Ah…do you think I can do it?”

“Not a problem, Mr. Wei, we will provide the training needed. Our hotel is wheelchair accessible, so you could use the wheelchair freely.”

“That sounds great, actually.” Wei Ying looked at Lan Sizhui with a smile.

“Do give it a consideration, Mr. Wei.”

“Thank you, Mr. Lu, I will!”

*

The next day, Lan Sizhui and Lan Lusi brought him to the sport centers owned by the Clan.

“Blue Bolts Boxing?” Wei Ying gave Lan Sizhui an incredulous look.

The young man nodded and smiled. “M-hm.”

“Why is everything called Blue something?”

“Because of our family name. Lan.”

“Ugh. Of course. Do you have clan members working here too?”

“Yes. The management employees are all clan members.”

Wei Ying made a face. “What if they refuse to be a clan member?”

“Then they can get a job somewhere else.” Lan Sizhui actually smirked.

“Do I have to be a clan member?" Wei Ying pointed to himself.

“Hanguang-Jun said, not necessarily.”

“Ah, thank God for Hanguang-Jun and his sensibilities!”

Lan Sizhui laughed. “Mm, I didn’t think he was being sensible at all.”

“What?”

“Never mind, forget it, Wei-ge!”

They met the manager of the place, Cheng Yuxi. He was a tall, lean man with a ready smile. He answered all of Wei Ying’s questions, from equipment to membership.

“I don’t think I could work here, Mr. Cheng…not with my condition right now.” Wei Ying pointed to his legs.

“Yes, I understand, Mr. Wei. It would be quite difficult. Except for the secretarial work, almost all the roles here are quite physical. But Mr. Wei…” Mr. Cheng took a pair of boxing gloves. “I think you can fight.”

“What?”

“Something tells me that you know how to. Call it a fighter’s instincts. Do you want to try? Just stand in place. I won’t hit you properly, just taps.”

“Okay…sure.” Wei Ying put on the gloves with Lan Sizhui’s help.

The manager was right. After a few back and forth taps between the two of them, Wei Ying made a hook that would have hit Cheng Yuxi directly in the face if he hadn’t stopped himself. Cheng Yuxi nodded.

“See? You know some techniques.”

“Will you look at that, Sizhui? I knew boxing!”

“Wei-ge, don’t forget to write this down in your notebook!”

*

Lan Zhan was standing in the lobby of the Purple Lotus Hotel when he noticed the painting. He walked over to the painting and took a closer look. The painting was placed on a wall further back, where most people might not have noticed it. It was a painting of a lake with lotuses growing in the waters. A lone boat sailed in the lake. Lan Zhan tried to look for the artist’s signature but couldn’t find it. Something about the painting seemed familiar to him, but he couldn’t quite place it. He was sure he had never been to such a lake before.

A woman walked towards him, dressed in a lavender-colored suit. The secretary for the Jiang Clan Leader. He was here to discuss a business arrangement with the man. He had requested to open a restaurant in Gusu, selling Yunmeng-style dishes. They had agreed to allow the Jiang Clan to go ahead, provided that 10% of the revenue goes to the Lan Clan. The Jiang Clan Leader had agreed. He had even asked his staffs to pack up some of the dishes that will be sold at the restaurant. Lan Zhan had lingered in the lobby while waiting for the food to be packed. He personally found the Jiang Clan Leader to be an arrogant man, and preferred spending as little time as possible with him.

“This painting… who is the artist?” He asked the secretary.

Jiang Zu Er seemed hesitant to answer. “Hanguang-Jun…this…”

Lan Zhan waited for her reply.

“Uh… this was... painted by one of our clan members. But he was no longer part of the clan.” She looked sorry to say that.

Being a mafia clan member is a dangerous job. It was likely that the artist had been killed in the line of work.

“Jiang-zongzhu must like the painting very much.” He remarked.

“Um… yes. It has sentimental attachments for him.” She lifted her hand to point towards the entrance of the hotel. “This way please, Hanguang-Jun. The food packs are ready.”

Lan Zhan followed her to the entrance.

*

He was exhausted that evening, even though it was just a mock fight with Cheng Yuxi. They went to visit the Blue Dolphin, a sports center with an Olympic-sized swimming pool, after the boxing place. Then to the Blue Nets, a sports center with two basketball courts. Both places teemed with people. No wonder the Lan Clan were so wealthy. Wei Ying had suggested to Sizhui to have a basketball tournament for the youths in Gusu while they were watching the games. Lan Sizhui had looked at him as if he was a golden egg-laying goose.

As he lay on the sofa, tired out, with the television showing some silly gameshow, there was a knock on the door.

“Come in!” He shouted in response.

Lan Zhan walked in with a paper bag. He had that small smile on his face again. Wei Ying really should start taking photos of it, because that smile appeared just for a few seconds before it’s gone.

“Lan Zhan!!! Come here, I missed you!” He held out his arms. Lan Zhan did not made any attempts to hug him. Wei Ying was slightly disappointed.

Lan Zhan sat down on the carpet next to the sofa. “I’ve brought some soup.”

“Wait, did you just came back to Cloud Recesses?” He sat up on the sofa and adjusted his legs carefully.

“Mn. I just came back from a trip to Yunmeng.” Lan Zhan took out two take-out bowls from the paper bag. He handed one to Wei Ying. The wonderful smell of soup wafted out when he pulled off the cover.

“What kind..?”

“This is lotus-root soup, a famous dish in Yunmeng. Yours has beef in it. Mine is the vegetarian version.”

Wei Ying slid down from the sofa so that he was sitting on the carpet next to Lan Zhan. He took the spoon Lan Zhan handed to him and began to take a sip.

The soup was good. Really good. It was… Oh, what a great smell. And the taste was heavenly.

“Wei Ying!” Lan Zhan looked at him in panic. Wei Ying had never seen him like that.

“Wha..?” He suddenly realized he had tears streaming down his cheeks. He took another sip, then another, and those tears just kept falling. He looked at Lan Zhan. “Lan Zhan, what’s happening to me..?” His voice quivers. “Why…?”

Lan Zhan had put down his bowl to the side. He held Wei Ying’s face with both his hands and wiped away the tears with his thumbs. “Wei Ying, are you okay?” He looked genuinely worried.

Wei Ying nodded. “Lan Zhan, I have no idea why I cried.”

Lan Zhan took the bowl from him carefully and set it aside. “Do you still want to eat it? The taste must be triggering something within you.”

“I... I don’t remember.” He shook his head slowly.

“Close your eyes. What do you see?”

A woman smiling. Who is she? “Jiejie…” He whispered.

“You have an older sister?”

“I don’t know, Lan Zhan…” His eyes were still wet.

Lan Zhan rubbed his thumb gently over his eyes, wiping off the tears. “It’s okay. Just take deep breaths.”

Wei Ying did as Lan Zhan said, closing his eyes. The woman…is she his sister? When he opened his eyes again, Lan Zhan was looking at him, concern in his eyes. They were sitting so close together. If Wei Ying leaned a little closer, he could have kissed Lan Zhan’s red lips.

Wait, wait, what am I thinking?? Stop it!

He pulled himself awkwardly away, and reached for the bowl. “Come on, Lan Zhan, let’s not waste the soup!”

“Mn.” Lan Zhan did not seem to notice his inner turmoil at all. They ate the soup in silence, then Lan Zhan collected the empty bowls and threw the rubbish in the bin at the kitchenette. He brought over two glasses of water.

“Wei Ying, I’m so sorry.”

“What are apologizing for, Lan Zhan?” He smiled.

“I made you cry.”

“No, you didn’t! The soup did! Haha!” He reached over, and because he was shameless, gave a quick pinch on Lan Zhan’s cheek.

Lan Zhan shook his head. His ears had turned red. “I was not expecting that, to be honest.”

“Neither was I! Please don’t apologize, Lan Zhan, it wasn’t your fault! Are you really that worried? Shall I make a complain to Hanguang-Jun about you? Ask him to punish you?”

“Mn. I will perform handstands later.”

“What? Is that a form of punishment here? Wow…” Bet you have muscles under that shirt.

Lan Zhan ignored him. “So, an older sister? Do you think you can draw her face from memory?”

“That’s a good idea, Lan Zhan! I’m going to do that tonight!”

“Mn. Tomorrow you can pass it to Lan Lusi. She might be able to help find out more.”

“Great!”

Wei Ying told him about his visits to the hotel and sports centers. When Lan Zhan yawned, Wei Ying looked at the microwave clock. “Lan Zhan! It’s already 9! You should have stopped me!”

“Mn. Wei Ying was enthusiastic to share.”

“Ah, I could have told you the stories tomorrow! Next time, just stop me!”

“Mn.” Lan Zhan stood up to leave. “I don’t mind listening to Wei Ying.”

Wei Ying could have sworn that he had forgotten to breath at that moment. Lan Zhan walked to the door and turned to look at him. “Good night, Wei Ying.” That small smile appeared again.

“Good night, Lan Zhan.” As he watched the man walked away through the window, he knew that something feels different between them now.

*

Dr. Hui Lang looked at the notebook that Wei Ying handed to him. As the psychologist went through the pages, Wei Ying played around with the fidget spinner on the table. He wondered if the psychologist got that toy just for him. He couldn’t stop spinning this thing. So fun.

“You have quite a lot of recollections here, Mr. Wei.”

“Mm, but I don’t have any related to my personal information… isn’t that weird?”

“It’s difficult to say, sometimes certain parts of the memory are repressed due to the trauma associated with it. We do not know for sure why your personal information like name, address, or phone numbers were repressed. It may take some time to get them all back. For now, all I can suggest is for you to keep experiencing new things: food, songs, activities…that might help to trigger the memories back.”

“Thank you, Dr.. I will certainly not give up on that!”

“Do you need anything else? Anything you want to share with me?”

“Mm, there is something… but not now. Maybe the next time I see you?”

“Sure, no problem. You can always come by if it’s urgent, anyway. See you again next week, Mr. Wei. Take care.”

*

After Wei Ying left his office, Dr. Hui Lang joined an online meeting with Hanguang-Jun.

“Hui Lang.” Hanguang-Jun said when the meeting started. He appeared to be in his office. There was a gun-cleaning kit in front of him, and he had a gun unassembled on the desk.

“It’s quite an interesting situation, Wangji.”

“Mn?” Lan Zhan picked up the barrel and pushed a brush through it.

“You know I have to keep my client’s session confidential, right?”

“I’m just making sure he’s not going to bring harm to our clan, Ge.”

Dr. Hui Lang sighed. “Yes, I know... So far, these are the capabilities that he had realized he had: painting, boxing. Talking to strangers. He knew how to use computers quite well. He’s familiar with using the trains. He had familiarity with Yunmeng-style food. He thinks he knew how to play poker to win.”

“What do you think? What kind of person is he?”

“I am thinking that he grew up in a quite wealthy environment, with his hobby of painting. The family could be from Yunmeng, or perhaps his grandparents are from there. The fact that he did not remember much of his family could mean that there could be an issue there – a fight, death, estrangement… Also, he should be an independent man, since he could drive and know how to take trains. Perhaps his job required him to travel quite a bit.”

“Salesman?”

“Possible, but many jobs could fit in that profile as well. I’m sorry, Wangji. There is not much data here to create a good profile.”

“I understand.”

Dr. Hui Lang looked at his notes. “Oh, wait.”

“Mn?” Lan Zhan looked up to the camera.

“Something that caught my eye. It’s rather strange.” Dr. Hui Lang frowned.

“What is it?” Lan Zhan put down the brush.

“He seemed to be able to tell time without looking at a watch or a clock. I’ve noticed it on three separate occasions. I don’t think even he realized it himself. It was just something he mentioned off-hand. He always seemed to know when our one hour session was up, too.”

Lan Zhan frowned. “What do you make of it?”

“It’s something that soldiers… usually special ops…you know, the elite forces, that kind of specialized training. These kinds of men would develop this ability.”

Lan Zhan was surprised. “Huh.”

“Yeah, Wangji. It struck me as the strangest thing about him.”

Lan Zhan looked out of his window. “All right, Ge. We’ll just keep a close eye on him. Thank you.”

“Take care, Wangji.”

The online meeting was ended.

Chapter Text

Wei Ying decided to accept the role as the junior manager at the hotel. That was the only one, realistically, that he could perform now, with his limited ability to move around. It was decided that he would start in 3 days’ time.

“Lan Zhan, when I get my first salary, I will take you out for lunch or dinner, okay? Thank you very much for all your help!” They were at the park that afternoon, Wei Ying had set up Lan Sizhui’s easel there. He was not expecting to see Lan Zhan that day, so he was extremely happy to see him.

“I’m happy to see you all excited for your new job.” He looked expressionless, but Wei Ying felt that he could start reading this man’s micro expressions now. Lan Zhan looked happy.

“They said I could sleep over at the hotel too, if I’m too tired. They have a few rooms that they used for employees.”

“Sounds good. Please don’t overwork yourself, Wei Ying.” Lan Zhan stood up to leave. “I’ll be away for the next few days for business trip again. I’ll come see you later.”

“Okay, Lan Zhan. I’ll miss you!”

The man did not even bother to reply to him, but Wei Ying smiled nonetheless.

*

Lan Sizhui put a black Go piece on the board. He’s playing Go with Hanguang-Jun that afternoon at the South Lake, while waiting for Wu Yichen to come. Lan Jingyi had just arrived at the pavilion in the middle of the lake, and was pouring some tea for himself.

Wu Yichen crossed the bridge and bowed to Hanguang-Jun, and nodded to the other two. He took a seat next to Lan Sizhui.

“Report, Hanguang-Jun. We have asked around in Lanling but it seemed that no one was familiar with Wei Ying. One lady from the news kiosk at the train station did recognized him, saying that she had seen Mr. Wei passing through the station a few times. A cashier at a supermarket close to the train station also recognized him. But other than the fact that he had been to the train station, and had shopped at the supermarket, we could not confirm that he lives or work there.”

“Mn. Thank you, Yichen.”

“Hanguang-Jun, I don’t think he’s from Lanling.” Lan Sizhui said. “He turned to Lan Jingyi. “Did you manage to track down the image of the woman that Wei-ge had drawn?”

Lan Jingyi put down his teacup. “It’s quiet difficult, since it was just a drawing, there’s too many hits in the database. But Hanguang-Jun gave him a soup from Yunmeng, right? I think the sister lives in Yunmeng, or they were originally from Yunmeng.”

“Yunmeng have a lot of spicy dishes, right?” Wu Yichen said. “Why not ask the cooks to make a few Yunmeng dishes? See his reaction when he eats them?”

“Hm, good idea! Hanguang-Jun, if you’re okay, then I’ll tell the chefs to make some Yunmeng dishes?”

“Mn. Go ahead.”

*

The first day of work at the Blue Orchids Hotel went well. Everyone was so friendly and helpful to him. Apparently everyone already knew that he had been involved in an accident two months ago, and had lost all his memories. He didn’t want people to pity him, but it certainly didn’t hurt to have everyone being nice to him.

He was shown how to use the computer system, how to arrange events in the hotel calendar, and how to create simple posters. When lunchtime came, he was quite tired, although still very enthusiastic about his new job.

He was given a free meal for lunch, and decided to take it at the hotel’s garden. There were a few small gazebos scattered around the garden, and he pushed himself to one of them. He took a picture of the lunch pack and sent it to Lan Zhan.

==========
Wei Ying: My first day at work! Lunchtime! <image>

==========

He placed the phone on the table and started eating the fried noodles. His phone buzzed. He took it and was surprised to see a reply.

==========
Lan Zhan: Looks good!

==========

He smiled happily. He hadn’t seen Lan Zhan for three days. He missed the man so much.

*

Wei Ying worked at the Blue Orchids Hotel for a week, and so far it’s been going great. He liked meeting the hotel customers, especially the children. They asked a lot of questions about his legs and even tried to push his wheelchair around. Some clients were a bit difficult, but Wei Ying turned on his charms and the issues were quickly resolved with the help of his colleagues.

He made new friends with the hotel staffs, and enjoyed learning new things about them. There’s always something to do. The new job was challenging but he was slowly getting the hang of it.

Lan Zhan had not dropped by the cottage since that day, and he found that he missed the man a lot. He didn’t even know why he was having all these feelings. He sent messages to him, but he did not replied, or when he did, it was late at night, which made Wei Ying think that Lan Zhan might be overseas. He finally gave up, resorted to shamelessness, and asked Lan Zhan for a photo.

===========
Wei Ying: I haven’t seen your handsome face for so long, Gege, send me a picture of yourself! I’ve missed you! <image>

===========

He included a photo of himself pouting. So childish, he knows. When he was about to sleep, his phone beeped. Lan Zhan had replied to his message.

==========
Lan Zhan: Good night, Wei Ying. I miss you too.

==========

Lan Zhan had actually sent him a photo! He was not smiling in the photo, but he was so beautiful, standing on a rooftop with the sun behind him. The city behind it looked like a European city…. Maybe Paris?

Wei Ying stared at the message for a long time. He didn’t know which one made his heart beat erratically : the beautiful shot or the message saying he missed him too.

*

“So what was the news that you managed to get from Qinghe, Hongyi?” Hanguang-Jun asked, after dinner had been cleared away and the servants had left. It was time for tea and light desserts. And catching up on news of the underworld business.

“Lots of rumors, Wangji-xiong. I don’t know which one to believe, to be honest.”

It was an inner circle only dinner at the Orchid House, Lan Xichen’s residence. Lan Qiren, his uncle and patriarch of the Lan Clan, was sitting at the head of the table. On both sides of the table were his nephews, Lan Xichen and Lan Zhan. Sitting next to Lan Zhan was Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi, both who had been identified as the next generation of Lan Clan leaders. Next to Lan Xichen was Bai Hongyi, their cousin, and Wu Yichen. Both were also Lan Zhan’s assistants.

Even though Lan Qiren was the patriarch, he had retired from the business and was mostly participating as an observer and advisory role. He hardly even makes any comments during their meetings. Ever since Lan Xichen had been left incapacitated from an attempt on his life, the role of the leader of the Lan Clan had been on Lan Zhan. His elder brother was more like a helper and advisor for him now.

Bai Hongyi had just returned from a meeting with the Nie Clan in Qinghe. While he was there, he took the opportunity to get some intelligence about their biggest rival, the Wen Clan. To go into Qishan itself was deemed too dangerous. But the members of the Wen Clan liked to visit the high-end brothels and night clubs in Qinghe.

“Sounds exciting, Hongyi-ge!” Lan Sizhui smiled.

Bai Hongyi began. “The biggest rumors swirling around the Wen Clan now is the mystery of their hitman, Yiling Laozu.”

Lan Zhan and Lan Xichen sat up straighter. The Yiling Laozu had caused a lot of problems for the Lan Clan.

“The Yiling Laozu? People say he’s like a ghost! No one had ever seen him, no one knows how he even looks like. Sometimes I feel like it’s just some bullshit made up by the Wen Clan to make them look even more fearsome and ruthless.” Lan Jingyi scowled.

“No, he’s definitely a real guy. I almost got a glimpse of him, when he hit one of our agents at Gusu Port. He was so quick, we had no idea how he could have escaped.” Wu Yichen replied.

Bai Hongyi nodded. “Rumors said he had a success rate of 98%. He’s that good.”

“So that 2%... who was the guy that got away?” Lan Jingyi smirked.

Bai Hongyi smiled. “Interesting rumors about that too. Some people say… that missed target was Nie Mingjue. Another interesting rumor even said that it was Wen Xu. But… the most interesting rumor was… it was Hanguang-Jun.”

Lan Zhan raised a brow. “Was there an attempt for me from the Wens? Surely they wouldn’t dare.”

“Wen Xu might be crazy enough to direct the Yiling Laozu to do it.” Lan Sizhui said. Lan Zhan huffed.

“So what was the mystery about him, Hongyi-didi?” Lan Xichen asked. He reached for the rose-shaped dessert in front of him.

“Hmm, several rumors. One: the Yiling Laozu is dead. Two: He had gone missing for the last one month. Three: He had gone renegade against the Wens, and joined other Clans.” Bai Hongyi raised three fingers.

“What?!” Wu Yichen and Lan Jingyi spoke at the same time.

“There was even a rumor that he had found a girl, gotten married, and ran off from the Wens. But this rumor was the one I found to be least likely.” Bai Hongyi made a face.

“Your sources?” Lan Zhan asked.

“All from the Wen Clan. Which means, the Wen Clan themselves are either in the dark about what is really going on, or Wen Ruohan is purposely allowing these rumors to spread.”

“But this doesn’t look good for the Wen Clan. It looks like they can’t control their own people.” Lan Sizhui countered. “And this is Yiling Laozu, one of their most valuable assets. He had wreaked havoc on all of the other Clans. Surely they wouldn’t want this news to get out.”

“As far as I know, no other Clan is aware of these rumors, only us.” Bai Hongyi shrugged.

Lan Xichen looked at him. “Let’s look closely at the rumors.”

Bai Hongyi nodded. “Right. The first one: that Yiling Laozu is dead. This rumor arises because no one had been able to contact him. And he did not contacted anyone either. He had never done this before. He’s a professional. So that made people think maybe he was dead. But… there was no corpse. No dead bodies. So… this rumor, while possible, is not yet proven.”

“So that leads to the second rumor, that he’s just missing. Not dead.” Wu Yichen said.

“M-hm. If he’s not dead, then he’s missing. Was he detained by one of the other clans? We know all the clans had been hit by the Yiling Laozu. Even the Lan Clan had been targeted by him five times before. The source told me that since one month ago, he had not been answering his messages and calls.”

Lan Jingyi put down his teacup. “So something happened to him a month ago. They didn’t search for him?”

Wu Yichen answered. “The only person who knew how he looked like is Wen Ruohan. Even Wen Xu and Wen Chao didn’t know how he looked like. He had a mask or a disguise on all the time.”

“Well, with that kind of job… I would understand why. But now they can’t even look for him.” Lan Jingyi raised his hands.

“But why the third rumor? Had Yiling Laozu ever hinted that he wished to leave the Wen Clan?” Lan Xichen asked.

“I’m not sure. Some people had said that he seemed to have a soft spot for the Jiang Clan. There were several opportunities for him to kill the Jiang Clan members, but he let them go instead. And there was one time, when he joked to Jin Guanshang, that he’d rather join the Lan Clan than the Jin Clan, when that old man offered money for him to leave the Wen Clan.”

“Join us? Seriously? Why? There’s no way he could follow our rules, he’s too unruly and unpredictable!” Lan Jingyi snickered.

Bai Hongyi laughed. “Apparently Jin Guanshang asked him the same thing! And he replied “Because Hanguang-Jun was drop dead gorgeous.””

Everyone laughed. Lan Jingyi actually whooped. Lan Zhan’s ears turned visibly red.

“We need to keep an eye on this. This man is very dangerous.” Lan Zhan said instead.

Wu Yichen tilted his head. “Mm, within one month… he could have been anywhere in the world right now, if he wanted to run from the Wen Clan.”

“I bet he’s in one of those remote islands in the Caribbean! He should be rich by now with all the hits he had done!” Lan Jingyi grinned.

“I’ll miss the Chinese food, if I were him.” Lan Sizhui replied.

“You can afford to hire a Chinese cook, if you were him!” Bai Hongyi laughed.

“Hanguang-Jun, can we buy an island?” Lan Jingyi turned towards him.

“No.” Lan Zhan answered without hesitation. Lan Jingyi shrugged.

“I’m curious… why did you think that it was unlikely for him to run off with a girl?” Lan Xichen asked Bai Hongyi.

“Because Jin Guangshan also offered him a harem of women, if he was willing to join the Jin Clan. And he replied that he’s not interested.”

“Maybe he ran off with a man, then!” Lan Jingyi laughed out loud.

Lan Shizui smacked his shoulder. “Get a hold of yourself!”

*

Wei Ying was lying on his bed. He took his phone, opened his WeChat and typed:

========
Wei Ying: When are you coming back? I owe you a lunch, remember? 😊 Don’t you want to take advantage of my hard-earned money?

========

It’s been two weeks since they last saw each other. Three months and 2 weeks since he had the accident. His only identity now is Wei Ying. He had no ID, and no bank account. The hotel had agreed to pay his salary every two weeks, in cash. Lan Sizhui had suggested for him to go to the police station, but something had stopped him. He refused to go to the police station, for reasons he couldn’t explain. He was sure that he would regain his memory soon. It’s just a matter of time before he could go back to his real home.

His phone beeped. He unlocked the phone to read the message.

========
Lan Zhan: Tomorrow.
========

He smiled, and pulled his blanket. The thoughts of seeing Lan Zhan again was turning him hard.

*

The next day, he slept on the couch as soon as he arrived home from work. He was exhausted that day. A school bus of young children visited the hotel today, to visit the large orchid nursery situated within the hotel. He helped the other managers to deal with the children and their questions. He had a great time with the kids, but they had burned off all of his energy. He was glad to come back to the cottage. He didn’t even bothered going to the bedroom, just kicked off his shoes, pulled off his shirt, and threw it on the floor. Within a minute, he was asleep.

He had a feeling like he was being carried, but he was really too tired to even open up his eyes.

The next morning, when he woke up, he was lying on his bed, in the bedroom. He had no idea how he got there. He was still wearing his singlet and pants from yesterday. At his bedside table was a small box of Ladurée macarons.

He took a picture of the box and sent them to Lan Zhan.

=========
Wei Ying: Lan Zhan! Did you come by last night?

========

He went to take a shower and got ready for work. When he arrived at the hotel, he asked Wu Lianxin, one of the managers there.

“Hey Lianxin-jiejie, can you suggest to me any nice places for lunch?”

Wu Lianxin considered his question. “Mm, what kind of vibe are you going for? Is it for a romantic date? Or business?”

Wei Ying keyed in his login details in his computer. “Well… I guess it’s not a business lunch.”

“Okay, I have a few options! Hey, the nearest restaurant here, just down the road, the Azure Skies, gives us hotel employees 15% discount! You might want to try that! Or… Golden Peonies Café… that’s nice too… or another one is the art café… it’s called Grey Slate.”

“Hmm, let me search them online. Thanks Lianxin-jiejie!”

“No problem! Don’t forget to finish the poster for Seafood Week!”

“I’m on it!” He grinned.

*

Lan Zhan replied to his message when he was having his lunch in the garden.

==========
Lan Zhan: Yes. But you looked so tired, I didn’t dare to wake you up. Have you tried the macarons?
==========

Wei Ying tapped the answer straightaway.

===========
Wei Ying: I tried one of them! It was soooo good! <3
              > Why didn’t you wake me up? I’ve been waiting to see you!
              > Wait, did you carried me to the bedroom?
===========

Oh no. Did Lan Zhan actually held him, and he had no memories of that? He missed the opportunity?! He’s an idiot.

He sipped the chicken soup that’s he having for lunch today. He had searched online and decided to try the Azure Skies. The Golden Peonies looked like a café for girls…all full of flowers. And the Grey Slate looks kind of depressing with all the grey walls. The Azure Skies had an open air garden within, where customers can dine while enjoying the sunshine. And looking up to the blue skies, he guessed. He picked up his phone again to tell Lan Zhan. His phone beeped before he could start typing.

==========
Lan Zhan: Glad you liked them.
               > Yes
=========

Wei Ying bit his lip. So Lan Zhan did carried him last night. He didn’t know why…but he could feel blood rushing to his face, and his heart beat faster.

“Wei-ge, what’s wrong? You’re all red? Are you messaging your girlfriend?” Nie Minghou, another junior manager, teased him. Wei Ying had almost forgotten the presence of Nie Minghou and Wu Lianxin there with him.

“Haha, what are you talking about?” He tried to deflect.

“He was asking me this morning for recommendations of places to bring a date!” Wu Lianxin, the traitor, told Nie Minghou. “Oh, have you decided where to go?”

That reminded Wei Ying. Instead of answering her, he picked up his phone again.

===========
Wei Ying: Lan Zhan, have you been to the Azure Skies Cafe? Can we go there for lunch this Friday? I’m off on that day!
===========

Wei Ying was not expecting a quick answer, but Lan Zhan immediately replied with an “Okay.”

“Look! Lianxin-jiejie! He looks so happy!” Nie Minghou pointed at him. “Someone’s going on a date…!” He teased him in a sing-song voice.

Wu Lianxin nodded her head. “I bet you that he’ll be married by the end of the year.”

“Are you crazy! It’s already October!” Wei Ying looked at her with wide eyes.

“Haha, I believe you, jiejie! She had a good knack for these kinds of predictions, you know!” Nie Minghou was not helping in any way.

Wei Ying sighed. “You guys are killing me.” He couldn’t wipe the smile off his face, though.

*

Wei Ying finished his shift early that day, as he had started early as well. As he got off the van dropping him off at the gate, he was surprised to see Dr. Lan Ziyi.

“Dr. Lan! I haven’t seen you for a while!” He had been seeing her husband for physiotherapy sessions twice a week. But not Dr. Lan Ziyi for some time. He hobbled with his cane towards the doctor. He had swapped his crutches for a cane now.

“Just checking on you, Mr. Wei. I am free this afternoon and was walking around. How are you feeling?” She asked kindly.

“I feel good, Dr. Lan! Just a bit tired. Maybe because I haven’t been working for some time..?”

“Mm.. you know what? You could try some traditional Chinese medicine…we have an in-house practitioner here. Do you want to try? Her building is right there.” Dr. Lan Ziyi pointed towards a small building behind a row of ornamental bamboos.

“Hmm…why not? Let’s see if the doctor could prescribe something for me!” Wei Ying had never considered that option before.

They walked together slowly to the traditional medicine clinic. “Sometimes, if I get too tired, or if I have trouble sleeping, I will ask Dr. Zhang to prescribe me something. While modern medicine is great, sometimes I just want a more natural way of healing, you know?” Dr. Lan Ziyi said.

“Yeah, I understand.”

Dr. Lan slid open the door and called out. “Dr. Zhang Ruoyi! Good afternoon!”

Wei Ying stopped as he walked inside.

Lan Zhan was sitting at a round table, with a beautiful woman holding his wrist. They were talking in low voices, and Lan Zhan was actually smiling at her.

“Oh!” Dr. Lan Ziyi had also stopped in her tracks. “I’m sorry! I didn’t realize you are seeing someone!”

They both turned to see them. Dr. Zhang Ruoyi let go of Lan Zhan’s wrist gently and went to her computer to type something.

“Don’t worry, Dr. Lan! I’m already done!” She smiled. She turned to Lan Zhan. “I’ll have someone to send the tonics to you later, okay?”

Lan Zhan stood up and bowed. “Thank you, Ruoyi.”

Wei Ying felt a pang of jealousy. They looked so familiar with each other. Is she Lan Zhan’s girlfriend? He didn’t know why he had never considered that Lan Zhan might already have someone special.

Lan Zhan smiled at him as he passed. “Wei Ying, I will see you later.” He nodded to Dr. Lan Ziyi.

“Lan Zhan.” He nodded. His heart was beating fast from seeing that sweet smile.

Dr. Lan Ziyi helped him to sit at the round table. Dr. Zhang Ruoyi was gentle with him. She held his wrist to take his pulse.

So that’s why she was holding Lan Zhan’s hand just now. Wei Ying felt foolish for being jealous for no reason.

She asked a few questions about his sleeping and eating habits, then wrote down a prescription for him.

“I need to concoct the tonics for you, Mr. Wei. I’ll have someone send it to you tomorrow, okay? The instructions will be printed on the package.”

“Thank you, Dr. Zhang! You are so nice! And pretty too!”

Both of the doctors laughed. “Be careful, Zhang Ruoyi! Next he’ll ask you out on a date!”

“No! No! I wouldn’t dare!” He shook his head. If she was Lan Zhan’s girlfriend, he certainly couldn’t come in between them!

They both laughed at him again. They fussed over him and reminded him to take his meals at regular times and sleep early. Wei Ying was glad to be under the care of these two caring ladies.

*

Lan Sizhui looked up from his laptop to see Wu Yichen coming towards him.

“Yichen, we need to check the shops at Caiyi Square. Some of the shop owners had not paid the protection fees yet.”

“Young master, I have to go to Yiling in two days. I will be back in two weeks.”

“Problems with the Wen Clan?”

Wu Yichen nodded. “I’ve heard rumors… that there a problem within the Wen Clan inner circle. But we couldn’t get a clear picture what the problem is.”

“But they know you, Yichen.”

“I’ll put on a disguise and stay low. Will update you and Hanguang-Jun when I got back.”

“Two weeks is a long time…”

“It could take longer, we’ll see.”

“No problem, I’ll go with Lan Ruipeng for the protection fees. Can you take Mr. Wei’s pictures with you too? See if you can get any info?”

“Sure, no problem.”

*

That Friday, Wei Ying woke up feeling nervous. He couldn’t even explain why he felt that way. The last time he saw Lan Zhan was at that traditional medicine clinic. That was a day ago. Wei Ying slapped his own face.

Get a grip on yourself!

He spent the morning cleaning his cottage. There was a housekeeping maid that came every day, but she left most of his things untouched. Wei Ying straightened and tidied everything.

Then he spent the rest of the morning reading, although he really couldn’t pay much attention to what he was reading. He finally gave up and slept on the couch. He was woken up with a knock on the door. Lan Ruipeng opened the door.

“Mr. Wei, I’m supposed to send you to Azure Skies today?”

“Ah yes! Hold on, let me wash my face! Oh, where’s Lan Zhan?”

“Uh… he will meet you there. He has a meeting nearby there this morning.”

“Okay! Okay! I’m getting ready now!”

In the end, he was ten minutes late. When he arrived at the café, Lan Zhan was already waiting at the table. He looked so beautiful, with the sun reflecting off the pool in the middle of the restaurant.

“Wei Ying.” Wei Ying would never get used to the way Lan Zhan called his name.

“Lan Zhan! I’m so sorry! I fell asleep!” He grabbed the chair and sat down. He placed the cane carefully against the wall.

“Not a problem, you had been working hard.”

“Still…I’m sorry for keeping you waiting!”

Lan Zhan looked down on the menu in his hands. “Mn. Don’t mind waiting for Wei Ying.”

Wei Ying’s heart skipped a beat. This man is too much sometimes!

“Lan Zhan! I have so many things to tell you!”

“Mn, order first. I will listen.”

Lan Zhan was really a good listener. Wei Ying told him about his first day, his impressions of the hotel, how great his colleagues are, stories of some of the guests in the hotel… He realized that he had missed this: the quiet, constant companionship of Lan Zhan. Lan Zhan was interested in everything he had to say. He didn’t laugh out loud, but he did smiled, and gave a short laugh when the joke was really funny. Wei Ying felt like he wanted to keep his attention all the time.

“Did you tried any meals from Yunmeng again?” Lan Zhan asked as their plates were cleared away.

“I did, Sizhui and Lusi-meimei brought me some for me to try. But those food didn’t trigger any memories for me… there must be something special in that soup you brought me, Lan Zhan!”

“Mn.” Lan Zhan seemed to be deep in thought. “Do you want to order desserts?”

“No, I’m full, thank you! What about you?”

“I’m good. Let’s go, I’m going to bring you to another place.”

“Ooh, can’t wait!” Wei Ying grinned and called the waiter for the bill.

When he got the bill, he was surprised to see a 30% discount. “Eh? Isn’t it just 15% for Blue Orchids employees?”

The waiter glanced at Lan Zhan quickly and smiled. “It’s our special promotion today, for first-time customers.”

“Ah… how lucky for us, Lan Zhan!” He laughed and paid the bill. Lan Zhan looked at the waiter and smiled. The waiter accepted their payment nervously and even offered a free dessert to take home.

“No need! I’m already so full!” Wei Ying smiled. This restaurant had a really great customer service!

Lan Zhan then took him to visit a wine store that belonged to his cousin, Lan Jiarui. The owner allowed him to taste several different types of wine, but he decided that the best was the local Gusu brew called Emperor’s Smile. As he drank it though, it tasted familiar to him. He realized that he had drank this before. But he couldn't remember when, or where.

He panicked when Lan Jiarui packed him a few bottles of the wine for free.

“No need for this, Mr. Lan! It’s too much trouble for you!” The wine were quite expensive.

“It’s no problem at all, Mr. Wei! My cousin here doesn’t drink, so why not just give away some for his friend?” The way Lan Jiarui said the word ‘friend’ made Wei Ying felt like he did not meant friends… but he didn’t want to dwell on it.

“In that case, I will accept it! I’ll make sure to come here again!”

“Thank you, Mr. Wei!” Lan Jiarui bowed.

As they drove back to Cloud Recesses, he asked Lan Zhan. “If the Lan Clan could not consume alcohol, how come your cousin could make and sell wine?”

“It was the ancient rules of the Lan Clan for a few hundred years. Alcohol causes a lot of problems and excessive consumption is not good for health. Those staying in Cloud Recesses still adhered to the rule, but Lan clan relatives that had moved out do not have to.”

“And the business?”

“They were simply taking advantage of the market demands.”

“I guess they also supplied the alcohol for the rest of your business ventures, right?”

“Correct.”

“How lucky, to have such a great arrangement!”

“It’s just business, Wei Ying.”

He turned and looked at the perfect profile of Lan Zhan. Somehow at that moment, he sounded different from the Lan Zhan he knew.

They took a walk to a different lake in the Cloud Recesses when they arrived. Wei Ying had been curious and Lan Zhan indulged his curiosity and brought him to a different pond.

“How many ponds are there in here, Lan Zhan?”

“I don’t know… I think there’s seven. I’ve never counted.”

Wei Ying came closer to the waters. “Hey, is that a catfish? The chef at the hotel made a dish with catfish the other day, it was really good!”

“Be careful, Wei Ying. The lake is quite deep.”

“Don’t worry, Lan Zhan! I know how to swim!” He caught himself. Wait, he knows how to swim? Really? He peered into the dark water. Could he really swim in there?

Lan Zhan caught his hand and pulled him away. “Wei Ying! You’re going to fall in.”

Wei Ying looked at him in surprise. “I’m sorry… I was just thinking how I just remembered that I could swim. I got distracted.”

“Mn. Be careful.”

Wei Ying looked down at their intertwined hands. He didn’t want to let go. It feels like their hands fit together really well. Lan Zhan’s hand was bigger than his, and lighter in color. Lan Zhan seemed to look at a direction behind Wei Ying, and quickly let his hand go. Wei Ying was a bit disappointed. He stole a look behind him and could have sworn that there was a man standing behind the trees.

“Let’s get you back. You must be tired.”

“Okay, Lan Zhan.”

*

Wei Ying had to work on Saturday and Sunday, so he didn’t get to see Lan Zhan again. But they messaged each other, although Lan Zhan was usually slow to reply. Wei Ying had a day off on Wednesday, so they met each other again, this time for dinner and then to see a musical performance at one of the Lan’s performance halls.

Before the performance started, Lan Zhan brought him to a room full of traditional Chinese instruments.

“I thought you might want to try playing, and see if it jogs your memories.”

“Sure, Lan Zhan! Thank you!” He looked around the room in wonder. Various instruments were displayed, some placed on tables, some kept in cases.

They spent the next half an hour going from one instrument to another. In the end, Wei Ying discovered that he knew how to play a dizi, and no other instrument.

“I’ll find a new one for you, you can practice it later.”

“Thank you, Lan Zhan!” He was so tempted to pinch his smooth porcelain cheeks, but decided not to.

“Let’s go to our seats.”

“Mn!” Wei Ying held on to his elbow as they left the instruments room.

It was a great performance by the Blue Birds Orchestra, and Wei Ying truly enjoyed the entire performance. As they walked out of the hall, Wei Ying leaned closer to Lan Zhan.
“Lan Zhan, you should have students performing too! And make the tickets super cheap! That way you can attract more young people to attend these halls!”

“Mn, good idea. I’ll tell the director.” Lan Zhan gave him a small smile. He wanted to see more of it. He wanted to see Lan Zhan’s smiles every day.

When Lan Zhan dropped him off at his cottage, he stood in front of the door.

“Lan Zhan, I had a great time tonight.”

“Me too.”

Wei Ying had a crazy impulse to just pull Lan Zhan towards him and kiss him. But he didn’t dare to. Has their relationship gone to that level? With this dilemma in his mind, he saw Lan Zhan opening his mouth, as if to say something. But he seemed to change his mind, and instead said “Good night, Wei Ying.” and walked away.

“Good night, Lan Zhan.” He whispered to the retreating figure walking elegantly away.

*

Wei Ying spent the day in a dreamy haze, creating promotional posters while thinking of Lan Zhan. While checking the rooms, he thought of Lan Zhan. When he was double-checking the stocks, he wondered what Lan Zhan was doing at that time. He was embarrassed at how smitten he had been of that man. He didn’t messaged him at all. Maybe he needs to maintain some distance from Lan Zhan. Get some air. Give some space.

He was thinking of Lan Zhan’s hand in his during the journey back to Cloud Recesses. As he slowly made his way back to the cottage from the gates, he heard a crying sound. He looked around the flower bushes and saw a little girl crying on the ground.

“Hello, little girl! Are you lost?” He asked gently.

The girl looked up at him warily. She nodded her head, wiping her tears on her chubby cheeks. She looked like she’s maybe four, or five years old.

“Where did you come from? Come, let’s go find your mother?”

She shook her head. “Not Mama. Ruoyi-jiejie.”

“Oh, you were walking with Dr. Zhang?”

She nodded her head. Sure enough, there was a shout from somewhere in the gardens.

“Yan Zi! Yan Zi-meimei!” Wei Ying recognized the doctor’s voice.

“Here! Here!” Wei Ying shouted in response, waving his hands.

Dr. Zhang Ruoyi appeared from behind the row of pine trees. “Mr. Wei..?”

“She’s here!” He pointed to the ground. From where she’s standing, she won’t be able to see the little girl.

“Hold on!” Dr. Zhang disappeared behind the tree line, and then appeared again, this time pushing a man in a wheelchair. Wei Ying looked at him in surprise. First, because there was another person here in Cloud Recesses that also used a wheelchair. Second, because of the uncanny resemblance of this man to Lan Zhan.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Wei! Did you just returned from work?” Dr. Zhang greeted him happily. She stopped the wheelchair and applied the brakes. “Let me introduce you, this is Zewu-Jun, he is one of our clan leaders.” Then she walked around to the flower bush to locate the little girl. The girl jumped at her with joy.

Zewu-Jun smiled at him. “A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Wei.” He extended his hand.

Wei Ying shook the man’s hand. “The pleasure is all mine, Zewu-Jun! Thank you very much for helping me, and hosting me here in Cloud Recesses.”

“Ah… I can’t take the credit for that, that is all the good work of my brother.”

“Your… brother? Is it… Hanguang-Jun?”

“Yes, that’s right.” He smiled. It was kind of disarming, to see such a big smile, from someone who resembled Lan Zhan so much. “Xiao meimei? Where did you go?” He turned to the little girl.

The little girl was hugging Zhang Ruoyi. She left her and ran to his side. Zewu-Jun ruffled her hair affectionately. “This is my cousin’s daughter. We were walking together this afternoon… I think she was distracted by something and we lost her.”

“It was a beautiful butterfly…Zewu-Jun.” She replied in a low voice.

Wei Ying couldn’t help smiling. Such a cute girl. “Were you taking Zewu-Jun for a walk, Dr. Zhang?” He smiled at the beautiful doctor.

She nodded in response. “Mm! I volunteered at the children’s nursery when I’m free. Today I took her out to see the flowers and we ran into Zewu-Jun. We were talking and suddenly we realized she was gone! Aiyah, Zi-er, I was so worried!”

Zewu-Jun looked at Yan Zi and pretended to frown, silently warning her not to do it again. The girl smiled and bowed her head, chided. Wei Ying looked at Zewu-Jun and Zhang Ruoyi. Maybe the two of them were...? A glimmer of hope rose in his heart. But he didn’t dare to ask it out loud. It’s not his place.

Zewu-Jun smiled at him. “One day, you have to have tea with me, Mr. Wei!”

“Oh, I would love to, Zewu-Jun!” He bowed to the handsome man. Dr. Zhang Ruoyi smiled at him too.

“Don’t forget to drink your tonics, Mr. Wei!” She reminded him gently.

“Ah, I didn’t! They’re so bitter though..! But it works!” He laughed.

“Ruoyi-meimei is very talented.” Zewu-Jun looked at her with pride. She blushed in response and looked away.

Oh, something’s definitely going on here. Wei Ying laughed and asked for leave, waving goodbye to three of them.

*

The next evening, Lan Sizhui invited him to see a boxing match at the Blue Bolts Gym. He’s always happy to spend time with the young man, so he agreed. At 7 p.m., there was a knock at the door, and a young man stood there.

“Good evening, Mr. Wei. I am Lan Jingyi.” The man introduced himself.

“Sizhui’s cousin!”

He grinned. “That’s right! You remembered!”

“Yes, you set up my phone for me! You work in IT!”

“Correct! Are you ready to go? Sizhui will meet us there.”

“Sure, let me wash off this plate first.” Lan Jingyi nodded, and sat at one of the dining chairs while he cleared his dinner. He suddenly had an idea.

“Hey, Jingyi?”

“Yes, Wei-ge?” This guy was already so familiar with him. He wondered if Lan Sizhui talked about him to Lan Jingyi.

He whispered conspiratorially. “What is the relationship between Zewu-Jun and Dr. Zhang?”

“Dr. Zhang Ruoyi? The TCM doctor?” He whispered loudly back. Wei Ying already knew that he liked this Lan Jingyi.

“Mm-hm!” He nodded a few times with a smile.

“Look, Wei-ge… this is considered gossiping… and gossiping is not allowed in Cloud Recesses.” He raised his palms.

“But you’re gonna tell me anyway!” He winked.

“Haha! Wei-ge! Well… I am not sure… I mean, I may be wrong. But I think Zewu-Jun has a crush on her. And no one else dared to approach her…because… you know… he’s one of the clan leaders.”

“Well? Why aren’t they married then?”

Lan Jingyi gave him a wry smile. “Because…well, I think it’s because… she’s in love with the wrong brother.”

“Ohhhh nooo…Ruoyi-meimei, why??? So I’m guessing… Hanguang-Jun is not interested in her?”

Lan Jingyi shook his head. “I think, he’s not interested in anyone… he’s always been so focused on his work… at least, not until recently.”

“What? Tell me! Give me the news!”

“No, no, Wei-ge, I’ve said too much already!” He stood up. “Let’s go! Let’s go!”

*

When they got into the gym, a fight was already going on. Lan Jingyi found him a seat, and Lan Sizhui appeared out of nowhere and sat with them.

“Sorry I’m late!” Lan Sizhui held his hands together.

“No problem! It’s good to see you!” Wei Ying hugged his shoulders. Lan Shizui laughed. He explained to Wei Ying about the match, who were the boxers, their profile and winning records, and how people were betting which one would win.

Wei Ying enjoyed watching the match very much. The atmosphere was great. He didn’t realized so many people would be here to watch the match. As they were fighting, he could recall some boxing moves and steps. He realized that he must have been trained to box. Or at least to fist fight. He wondered when he had trained for it. And where.

During the break, Lan Ruipeng came by their seats. He whispered something to Lan Sizhui. Wei Ying only heard a little bit – “Hanguang-Jun”. He wondered if the old man was here too. Once their whispered conversation was over, Lan Sizhui looked at Lan Jingyi.

“Jingyi, there’s a fight about to start in the basement. Do you want to see it? I think an idiot had put up a challenge against Wei-ge’s friend here.”

My friend? Who? I have a lot of friends.

Lan Jingyi grinned. “Let’s go!”

They left their seats and made their way to the back, towards a door with a bodyguard. The guard tapped his card and opened the door for them. There was an elevator, but they took the stairs down to the basement. Wei Ying could walk down the stairs with his cane, it didn’t hurt that much. Lan Ruipeng was waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs, and guided them to a corner.

The basement was full, with people Wei Ying believed were the Lan Clan members. The crowd here was even noisier than the one upstairs. Everyone here seemed to be strong and muscular… was everyone here a boxer? Or a fighter?

Wei Ying gasped when he looked at the ring. At one corner, was a heavily muscled man, in red boxing trunks. And in the other corner, was Lan Zhan, in a white singlet and blue trunks.
Lan Zhan? What is he doing here?
Wei Ying had never seen Lan Zhan with a singlet. He always wore long sleeved shirts, tunic, or t-shirt. Wei Ying had never seen him sleeveless. He wondered if he was hiding a tattoo. They had already started fighting, and now was about to start the second round.

The fight started again and they began boxing. The other man looked like he was stronger, but Lan Zhan was more agile. His punches were fast and hit the targets successfully. When his opponent tried to fight back, he moved out of the way to the point that his opponent got annoyed swinging into the air.

Lan Zhan gave a few more punches – strong ones, his opponent didn’t get a chance to avoid them, and the man was swaying. Slowly, he began to sway even more, giving out useless punches, and then, he was down on the floor.

“Knock-out!” The referee shouted. The crowd went wild.

Lan Sizhui grabbed his hand. “Let’s go, before he sees you.”

Wei Ying was not done admiring the muscles on Lan Zhan’s arms. “What, why?”

“He didn’t want you to see him fight.”

“Then why did you take me down here?”

“Because we wanted you to see him. So don’t tell him, okay?” Lan Jingyi gave a wicked smile.

They ran up the stairs. Well, the boys did, he took the elevator. “You boys are so naughty!” He pointed a finger at them. The other two laughed with glee. The crowd was chanting “Hanguang-Jun! Hanguang-Jun!”. Wei Ying wondered if the clan leader was also down there in the basement. He had yet to meet the Clan Leader.

Apparently the night of fun was still not over. They took him to a small casino not far from there. It was called Blue Lilies. Anyone would have missed it if they weren’t looking for it, the entrance was so subtle & discreet. Wei Ying already knew that this place was exclusive, just based on the vibes and interior designs of the place.

Lan Sizhui talked to one of the ladies, and she went to the back. As Wei Ying looked around, he had the familiar feeling again in his mind. He felt like maybe he had been to a few casinos before in his life. He wondered if he should play a game of poker, just to see if he knew how to. The casino lady returned and handed something to Lan Sizhui with a seductive smile. He thanked her politely and came closer to Wei Ying.

“Wei-ge, do you want to try anything? I have a few chips here for you.”

“Oh, no, Sizhui, what if I lose? I don’t even know what I’m good at.”

“Don’t worry, Wei-ge. It’s on me.” He grinned.

“You sure? Hmm, maybe I can try a game of poker. Just once.”

“Go ahead. I have to talk to someone, I’ll come back and get you in a short while.” Lan Sizhui said. He and Lan Jingyi walked away.

Wei Ying chose a table and decided to just use all the chips. There were three other players. He found himself playing close attention to the other players’ faces…. And could figure out some of the telling signs. He ended up winning the game. As he collected the chips, he slowly walked away from the table, looking around for Sizhui and Jingyi. His head was whirring. He knew what to do, the rules of the game, what actions to take, what to look out for. He knew how to play. And he was good at it. He must had won poker games many times before.

The place was small, and he couldn’t see any of the boys. He walked to the bar and placed an order. Again, he didn’t know why he ordered the drink, but he knew it’s his favorite. From behind the bar, he could see a door. The door opened, and a man came out, talking on a phone. Wei Ying looked into the room before the door was closed again. It was just three seconds, but within that timeframe he saw Sizhui standing in front of a case filled with cash. He looked serious. Stern, and Wei Ying had never seen him with that expression before.

He felt disturbed when he saw that scene. Perhaps not disturbed. Uneasy. He realized that he didn’t really know the true nature and extent of the Lan Clan’s business. He had heard before, and watched on TV, casinos are usually owned by gangster groups. Is that what the Lan Clan really was? A mafia family, hiding behind legitimate businesses? Why hadn’t he suspected anything before? He was too naïve.

He looked down on his drink and finished it. He paid for the drink, and slowly stood up and walked out of the casino. He stood outside, and breathed in the night air. What had he landed himself in?

How had he gotten into that accident? What was he doing in Gusu? That fateful event, that led him to meet the Lan Clan. And Lan Zhan. He had bits and pieces of his memories, but nothing that could help him identify who he was, what he did. He began walking down the road, feeling miserable, despite the fun experiences he had that night.

Did he still have his parents? Did he have any siblings? Why isn’t anyone looking for him? Was he a terrible person before, that no one had missed him? He looked at his fingers… there were no marking of rings that could have been worn for some time. He didn’t think he was married. Or maybe he was, but now divorced? Did he have any kids? Is there a child out there missing him as his or her father? Is there a girlfriend? Boyfriend?

He didn’t know how long or how far he had walked. He just kept walking mindlessly, not even paying attention to the shops he passed by. He came by a bench overlooking a river and sat down there. Tears fell unbidden down his cheeks. He felt so alone, all of a sudden. He was truly alone. He didn’t even know if his name was really his real name. Maybe he was wearing someone else’s jacket on that day. Maybe the jacket had been rented, or stolen. Or bought at a thrift shop.

How long could he stay with the Lan Clan? He’s not really one of them. How long before they started seeing him as a burden? With his salary, he couldn’t really afford a nice cottage, with free food provided for breakfast, lunch and dinner. He had been taking advantage of the Lan Clan’s kindness for too long. But where could he go? How would he survive out there, by himself?

“Wei Ying.” He heard someone calling his name.

He turned to see Lan Zhan walking towards him. He had changed into a long sleeved jacket and t-shirt. He looked worried. Wei Ying felt a stab of guilt seeing Lan Zhan like that.

“Sizhui called me, saying that he had lost you…”

“I’m sorry, Lan Zhan, I just wanted to take a walk.”

“Are you okay?” Lan Zhan grabbed his arm, peering closely at his face. His beautiful face was filled with worry. Wei Ying wanted to smooth out the line between his brows.

“I’m fine. I’m sorry.”

“You’ve been crying.”

“Lan Zhan…” He looked at him, unable to verbalize all of his overwhelming feelings inside.

“Come on, let’s get you home.” Lan Zhan took his hand and pulled him along, walking towards a black SUV illegally parked by the roadside.

There were no conversations as they made their way back to Cloud Recesses. Lan Zhan had always been quiet but this time he seemed to sense that Wei Ying was not in the mood to talk, so he did not push it.

Lan Zhan parked outside his cottage, and walked with him to the door.

“Do you need me to stay with you?” Such a tempting offer, but unfortunately Wei Ying was too miserable to accept it. He shook his head.

“I will see you tomorrow, okay? Let me know if you need anything.“ Lan Zhan’s voice was soothing, gentle. Wei Ying nodded his head. Lan Zhan held his face, just for a few seconds, staring into his eyes. Oh, Wei Ying was so tempted to kiss this man. But then Lan Zhan let go of him and started walking back to his car.

Wei Ying crashed into his bed, and cried again, until he fell asleep.

*

Wei Ying threw himself into work the next day, and the day after. The melancholy intensified as he did not see Lan Sizhui and Lan Zhan. He knew they were giving him some space, and he was glad for that. But he also felt so lonely, with the weight of his situation feeling heavy in his heart. He hated being alone. He hated being forgotten.

He took long walks, after his shifts were done. Either in the huge area of the Blue Orchids Hotel or at the Cloud Recesses. He found out that there was an inner area with gates that he was unable to get into. He settled by walking outside the gates, admiring the buildings that he could see inside. He guessed Lan Zhan’s office and residence must be inside there. He wondered what the man’s living quarters looked like. He wondered if he could ever step inside his home.

*

The dinner that night was meat buns. Usually Wei Ying love these. He looked at the buns on his plate. He did not really have any appetite.

There was a knock at his door. He shouted, “Come in!” and the door opened to reveal Lan Zhan standing there. He stared at him in surprise. Lan Zhan walked in slowly, his eyes enquiring if he needed to leave.

“Sit down here, Lan Zhan.”

“Am I disturbing you? Do you want me to leave?” Lan Zhan asked him softly.

“No… I’ve had enough time alone, Lan Zhan! Come and sit with me!” He waved his hand to beckon him over.

“Have you had your dinner?”

“I have no appetite to eat without you, Gege.” He pouted shamelessly.

Lan Zhan actually smiled. “Then I will eat with you.” He took a plate and cutleries and sat in front of Wei Ying. They ate the buns together, in silence, while looking at each other.

As Lan Zhan washed the plates, Wei Ying looked out the window. “Oh, it’s a full moon tonight, Lan Zhan! Shall we sit outside and enjoy the moon?”

“Mn.” Lan Zhan took out two mugs and took a tin of hot cocoa from the kitchen cupboard.

They sat on the verandah outside his cottage, admiring the moon. It’s already mid-October. Soon the season will be over and winter will set in. Lan Zhan set the mugs of hot cocoa on the small table.

Wei Ying hugged himself. “It’s been more than three months, Lan Zhan.”

“Mn. Drink.”

Wei Ying smiled and took the mug. The hot cocoa was lovely, not too sweet. Hot, but not scalding hot. It’s perfect. Just like Lan Zhan. “You take such good care of me, Lan Zhan.”

“Mn. I like taking care of you.” He looked right into his eyes.

Wei Ying couldn’t help blushing a little bit. “Lan Zhan…!”

“Wei Ying?” The merriment in his eyes was evident.

He tried to hide the inner turmoil he’s having. “It feels weird, staying here with the Lan Clan… taking advantage of all the kindness… but I have no way of giving back to the Clan.”

“You’re working for us, right?”

“But I’m… not a member of the Clan?”

“Do you want to be?” Lan Zhan looked amused.

“Mm, maybe I should marry into the Clan? What do you think?” He was trying to tease Lan Zhan.

“No problem. Any woman you have in mind? You have already met a few, right?”

“Lan Zhan!” He scolded him, not serious at all.

“Is it Zhang Ruoyi?”

“What? No! I was just talking to her! I thought she was your girlfriend!”

“I don’t have a girlfriend, I’m gay.”

Wei Ying looked at him with his mouth open. “Lan Zhan, I’m an idiot.”

Lan Zhan frowned. “Disagree.”

“Lan Zhannn… you really have no idea who do I wish to marry?” He pulled the sleeve of Lan Zhan’s shirt.

He shook his head slightly. “No idea. Tell me.” He had a smug smile on his face though.

“I’ll tell you. Come here.”

Lan Zhan shifted closer to him. He held Lan Zhan’s face, leaned over and softly kissed his lips. Lan Zhan’s eyes widened.

“What do you think? Can you guess who is it now?”

Lan Zhan leaned over and kissed him back, softly at first, then hungrily. But then he stopped suddenly.

“Wei Ying.”

“What’s the matter, Lan Zhan? Why did you stopped?” Lan Zhan shouldn’t have stopped. He should keep kissing him forever.

“I… I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

“What..?” He looked at Lan Zhan in confusion.

“You’ve lost your memories. You’re in a vulnerable situation. I don’t want to take advantage of you, of the situation.”

“Lan Zhan, are you planning on hurting me?”

“Ah? No.”

Wei Ying held Lan Zhan’s arms with both of his hands. “Mr. Lan, listen. I like you. I like you very, very much. I adore you. I want to spend time with you. I like eating with you, talking with you, going to performances with you, doing anything and everything with you. Like you, admire you, love you, whatever you. Understand?”

Lan Zhan nodded his head. The beautiful man actually looked dumbfounded.

“And it’s not because I’m just being grateful to you. I mean, I am. But it’s not solely because of that. I just really like you, okay?”

“Mn.”

“Lan Zhannnn…” He tugged at the man’s sleeve.

“I think we should continue this discussion inside.”

“I agree. Inside, in my bedroom.”

“Mn.”

Wei Ying took his hand and dragged him inside, taking care to lock the front door.

*

Wei Ying turned to look at the man lying naked next to him. The moonlight was streaming through the window. In the silver light, Lan Zhan looked like a sculpture made out of jade. How did he get so lucky?

Lan Zhan noticed him gazing. “Wei Ying.”

“Mm?”

“You are so beautiful.”

Wei Ying blushed. “What? Lan Zhan, you’re teasing me!”

“Mn. When you smiled… I can’t think straight anymore.”

“Lan Zhan! You’re so horrible! Ugh, I love you so much, you know that?”

He held Wei Ying face and stroked his cheek gently. “Wei Ying. I love you too.”

Wei Ying smiled. “I’m glad, Lan Zhan, after all I just lost my virginity to you!”

“Are you sure..?” Lan Zhan narrowed his eyes, teasing him.

“Don’t you doubt me, Gege!”

“Mn. I trust you.” He leaned over and kissed him again.

*

Lan Zhan came back again the next night, and the next. It was becoming a pattern: they start by having dinner together, then they pretended to watch the television, started making out on the sofa, and that quickly escalated to the bedroom. Wei Ying absolutely loved this new routine. As they laid together, out of breath, Wei Ying stared at Lan Zhan’s beautiful face and stroked his hair.

“You keep coming back here, huh?”

“Mn. Wei Ying makes me happy.” Lan Zhan nuzzled his face to his neck.

“Ugh, you!” He playfully smacked Lan Zhan’s arm.

“It’s true.” He caught Wei Ying’s hand.

“At this point, why don’t you just move in here, huh?”

“Maybe you should move in with me. I have a bigger place.”

“When am I going to see your place, Gege?”

“Soon.” Lan Zhan rolled him around and began spooning him. Wei Ying was almost late for work the next morning. 

Chapter Text

It was cloudy day. November was approaching and soon the air would turn cooler. Lan Zhan looked out of the meeting room window. He was waiting for the others to arrive for the meeting to start. The glass door was pushed open and Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi entered. Bai Hongyi followed behind.

They bowed to him. “Hanguang-Jun, Wu Yichen just returned from Yiling. He has something to report. “

“Bring him in.”

Lan Jingyi reopened the door. Wu Yichen had just arrived in the building. He walked quickly down the corridor, and entered the room, bringing with him a file.

“Hanguang-Jun.” Wu Yichen bowed to him.

“Speak.”

“While we were in Yiling, we canvassed the area with photos of Mr. Wei. After some time, we found an old lady that recognized him. She said he was helping her with her taxes.”

“Taxes?”

Wu Yichen made a lop-sided smile. “Yes. Apparently he was a tax consultant, working at one of those tax-filing companies. He helped her to file her taxes. She ran a small flower shop in Yiling.”

“Did you checked the company?” Bai Hongyi asked.

“We went to the company, pretending to need help on taxes. We told them that we were recommended a consultant named Wei Ying. They confirmed that there is indeed a consultant named Wei Ying working there. One day he didn’t show up for work, and he was unreachable. They assumed he wanted to leave the company, but just refused to resign formally. Apparently they had a lot of people leaving the job that way. He had been fired for not showing up for more than two weeks.”

“Jingyi?” Lan Zhan looked at him.

“Hanguang-Jun. I hacked into their security cameras. They only had cameras at the entrance, back exit, and in the room where they kept money. They only had recordings up to four months ago, after that the recordings will be erased to make room for new recordings. So far, I can confirm that Mr. Wei had come in the office for work every day from the front entrance camera recordings. There’s only one month of recordings to go through though, since he had been missing for three months.”

“Anything unusual?”

“No… to be honest, it seems that he was just a normal tax consultant.”

“His background?”

Jingyi nodded. “I hacked into the Employees Records. His form mentioned that he is single. His emergency contact information is someone called Jiang Cheng, listed as ‘brother’, but if you call the number, the account did not exist. He put in his address as 2-31, Red Roses Apartment.”

Jingyi placed a print-out on the desk. “I looked for the blueprint of the apartment. It is only four-stories high. The address goes by: floor, then house number. So by referring to his house address, his apartment should be at the second floor, house number 31.”

He looked up to Hanguang-Jun. “But there’s a problem. All of the floors, even the Ground Floor, have only 30 units. There’s no house no.31.”

Lan Sizhui looked at him with wide eyes. “So he gave an address that doesn’t exist?”

“Mm.”

“Any cameras at the apartment?” Lan Sizhui asked.

“Nope. This is one of those old buildings, with cheap maintenance fees.”

“Cameras nearby?”

“Plenty. There was a convenience store, a bank, and a club along the same road as the apartment. But when I hacked into them, none kept recordings beyond one or two months. Wei Ying might live there, but we don’t have it on security cameras.”

Lan Sizhui rubbed his chin. “I think this is the best lead we’ve had so far. What do you think, Hanguang-Jun? Shall we pay a visit to Yiling?”

“Yes. Go with Jingyi.”

“Yes, Hanguang-Jun.”

*

The next day, Lan Jingyi and Lan Sizhui were standing outside the Red Roses Apartment in Yiling. “How do we find out where Wei-ge actually lived?”

Lan Jingyi pulled his cousin’s arm. “Sizhui, look.” Lan Sizhui turned to see Lan Jingyi pointing to a postman coming out of the apartment complex.

“Excuse me!” Lan Sizhui ran over and stopped the postman. “Excuse me sir, I have a question for you.”

The postman looked at him in surprise. “Sure, young man, go ahead.”

“For this apartment here… The last apartment number is 30. If there were letters addressed to number 31, what would you do?”

“I’d stuff it at house number 30’s pigeon hole. I assumed the sender had made a typo.”

Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi looked at each other. “We need to find who is the occupant for house number 30.” He turned back to the postman. “Thank you, sir!”

They decided to pretend to be some sort of door-to-door salesman, giving free gifts. They bought five small packs of rice and brought it with them. There was no security at the apartment, but they passed by a few older women, who were looking at them curiously.

“This apartment might not have security guards, but their security system of busybody aunties is really effective.” Lan Jingyi whispered.

“Let’s just do this quickly and leave.”

They walked up to the second floor, and walked all the way to house number 30. Lan Sizhui pressed on a bell by the door. There was a faded sign above the bell, with the character ‘Wen’. After some time, the door slowly opened.

“Hello?” An elderly lady was at the door. Lan Jingyi and Lan Sizhui were caught by surprise.

“Hi, madam, how are you? We are from the Jasmine Rice Company! Today we are giving away free rice packs! Would you like to receive one?”

“Uh…how nice.”

“Madam, how many people do you have living here? We have some extra here, we could give you more!”

“Oh, it’s just me and my two grandchildren… and their friend. One pack is fine, young man!”

“No problem, madam! We’ll just give you two! Please give it a try! If you like it, don’t forget to buy it the supermarket!”

“Oh, thank you, young man!”

“No problem, Madam Wen! Is that right..? I read the sign here.”

“Yes, that’s right. Thank you my dears.”

“Have a good day, Madam Wen!” They gave the rice pack to the elderly lady, bowed to her and waited for her to close the door before leaving.

As they left the complex, Lan Sizhui asked. “What did you manage to see, Jingyi?”

“The house looks clean, sparse, not much furniture.”

“She confirmed that their family name is Wen.”

“Do you think they are related to the Wen Clan?”

“Difficult to say. Wen is quite a common family name.”

“So, Wei-ge lives here? How are they related?”

“She said two grandchildren, and their friend. Maybe Wei-ge is that friend.”

“You think he was staying there as a tenant? Tax consultants don’t make much money, huh?”

“I don’t think so. Sounds like a very boring job. But why did he lie in the Employees Information Form? He didn’t want his employers to know where he lived?”

“It does looks suspicious. We need to find out who are the grandchildren.”

“I can hack the database again.”

“Your contact at the Record Department?” Lan Sizhui raised an eyebrow.

Lan Jingyi smirked. “Time for me to turn on my charms again.”

Lan Sizhui huffed with derision. “Can you check his emergency contact too?”

“Sure.”

*

Lan Jingyi unlocked the database at Ouyang Zizhen’s laptop again. It had been too easy for him, he wondered if Ouyang Zizhen was just that careless.

He had met Ouyang Zizhen in Lanling this time, as he had a conference there. They went for dinner, and as usual the evening ended with them on the bed, with him on top, and later, inside Zizhen. He had added a little sedative in Zizhen’s wine as well, just a little, so that he didn’t get a terrible headache tomorrow. Ouyang Zizhen still had 2 days of conference left.

In the address section, he typed in 2-30, Red Roses Apartment. Then he clicked ‘Enter’ and let the search engine run. He went to the bathroom for a shower.

When he came out of the shower, the search had ended. He looked at the result. Owner: Wen Qing. Occupation: Doctor.

He searched for Wen Qing next. There was 22 Wen Qings, but only one was a doctor and lived in Yiling. He downloaded all the information and saved it into his pendrive to look at it later.

He searched for Jiang Cheng. There were 78 Jiang Chengs, too many. He narrowed the search to Yiling area. Only three Jiang Chengs. One already deceased, and the other two were 70 and 75 years old. He didn’t think these people would be Wei Ying’s brother. Guess he had lied about his emergency contact as well. But why did he do all this? It doesn’t make sense for a tax consultant to behave in such a bizarre manner. Unless… he had something to hide.

He erased all his search history and locked the laptop screen again. He needs to discuss this with the others. His guts were telling him that something didn’t make sense. He pulled the blanket over Ouyang Zizhen and gave him a kiss before leaving.

*

Lan Zhan was finished with the day’s work and turned off his laptop. There was a knock on his door, the one from his brother’s office next door. The door opened and Lan Xichen rolled himself into the room. He smiled to see his little brother.

“How are you, Wangji-didi?” Lan Xichen seemed to be in a happy mood.

“I’m doing great, Xiongzhang. Is everything okay?” He put all the papers he had into a pile by the side. Bai Hongyi would help him to sort all of it out later.

“Just going around, I was bored at the Orchid House.”

“Your music class was over?”

“Mm-hm. Thought I’ll come by your office to disturb your peace.”

“You are never a disturbance to me, Xiongzhang. Shall I brew you a pot of Pu-er?”

“Yes, please. You always have the best quality ones.”

“Mn.” He went to the cupboard and took out two porcelain cups. He clicked on the reheat button for the electric kettle.

“Wangji-didi. If I may ask..?”

He glanced at his brother. “What is it, Xiongzhang?”

“How is Mr. Wei doing?”

“He’s doing a great job at the hotel.” He took down the container of the Pu’er tea leaves and opened it.

“He’s been fitting well in the clan, hasn’t he?”

“Mn. He gave a few ideas for the hotel, the performance halls, even the basketball sports club. We’ve had had increased revenue from his ideas.” Lan Zhan poured hot water into the teapot.

“That sounds great. He seems to be quite friendly with Sizhui and Jingyi too.”

“Yes. They clicked.”

“Auntie Ziyi and Uncle Linghe seem to like him too.”

“Mn.” He knew his brother was getting somewhere.

“Ruoyi-meimei as well.”

“Mn.” Patience, Wangji. He brought the teapot to the table where his brother was sitting.

“And you, too.”

“Xiongzhang.” He gave a look to his brother.

“I’ve heard… that you even spent a few nights at his cottage.”

Lan Zhan felt his ears turning warm. “Xiongzhang.” Of course his brother would know. There’s hardly anything that missed his purview.

Lan Xichen smiled and raised his hands. “I’m not trying to intrude in your personal life, Wangji. But…”

“But?”

“I’ve never seen you like this with someone. So…besotted. If you are serious about it, why not make it official?”

“Xiongzhang!”

“I’m not joking. I can talk to Shufu. I don’t think he will object.” His brother had that pleasant smile on his face.

“I… I have not been 100% honest with Wei Ying. He didn’t know the true nature of our business.”

“Then maybe you might want to introduce him to the business slowly.”

“What if…he couldn’t accept it?”

Lan Xichen huffed. “I think it’s highly unlikely. The way he looked at you…”

“Xiongzhang.” Lan Zhan pouted. “Besides, it is dangerous to be my partner. If the other clans found out, he would be made a target.”

“Think about it. We’ll just have a private ceremony. We’ll keep it a secret as long as you want to. I’m sure our clan can protect him, Wangji. We can train him to protect himself, even.”

He bowed his head. He knew his brother was making some sense here. “Mn.”

“Just let me know when you’re ready.”

“Thank you, Xiongzhang.”

His brother smiled and drank his tea.

*

Wei Ying was working in his laptop when he got a message.

============
Lan Zhan: Coming over in 15 minutes.
=============

Wei Ying gasped in delight. Lan Zhan didn’t stop by last night, and even this morning he had mentioned that he had work to do, and might not be able to drop by. But seeing that message… Wei Ying quickly finished his report, saved it, and shut down the laptop. Then he went to the shower to clean himself up and get ready.

He put on a t-shirt and nothing else, and got into bed. He heard the knock on the door, the sound of the door opening, and Lan Zhan’s voice calling him. He heard his footsteps approaching the bedroom and smiled. Lan Zhan appeared at the door, wearing a suit and looking tired.

“Lan Zhan! Did you just finished work?” It’s already 9 p.m. He was working late today?

“Mn. The meeting proceeded in an unexpected manner.” He closed the bedroom door and took off his suit jacket. Wei Ying’s eyes widened to see the holster on his chest. Lan Zhan was carrying a gun?

Lan Zhan removed the holster and placed it on the side table. He made to move his cufflinks, and noticed the blood spots at his sleeves.

“Lan Zhan! Are you hurt?”

Lan Zhan shook his head. “It’s not my blood.” He took off the cufflinks and placed them in a small tray at the table. Then he removed the gun at his back and placed it at the table too. Wei Ying stared at him as he unbuckled his belt next. He had imagined Lan Zhan undressing in front of him many times, but certainly did not have guns in those daydreams.

Lan Zhan placed his shirt and pants in the laundry basket and stepped into the shower.

Wei Ying was still staring at the guns on the table when Lan Zhan walked out of the bathroom, all cleaned up with only a towel on his waist.

“Lan Zhan…”

“Wei Ying?”

“Why do you… have guns..?” He watched Lan Zhan poured himself water into a glass and drank it. “Weren’t you attending a meeting this evening?”

“I did. The people I had the meeting with decided to turn the verbal discussions into a physical fight instead. The guns were for protection.”

“Lan Zhan. You’re going to have to tell me the exact nature of your business.”

Lan Zhan threw his towel on to a chair. “Sure. After I’m done with you.”

Wei Ying looked at the view in front of him and his brain nearly short-circuited. “Come here!”

*

As they cuddled afterwards, Wei Ying turned to Lan Zhan. “You owe me an explanation, Gege.”

Lan Zhan’s face was still red from their intimate activities. “Do you want to start from the beginning..? Or just tonight’s meeting?”

“All the way from the beginning, Gege.”

Lan Zhan sat up and leaned against the headboard. He didn’t even bothered to cover himself up. Wei Ying was very distracted with the sight, so he turned to the table where the guns were placed. “We had an agreement with the Yao Clan. They would be able to set up their businesses in Gusu, and they would pay us off 20% of the revenue.”

“Seriously? Wait, why? Why do they have to do that?”

“Mn. We found out recently that they had cheated in the books. Instead of 20%, they had been paying us 10 to 15% over the last year. Why..? In return, our clan members keep them safe. The Lan Clan controlled the Gusu City, Wei Ying. Even the mayor is a Lan.”

Everything was churning fast in Wei Ying’s head. “Everything…? Are the people even aware of this, Lan Zhan?”

Lan Zhan smirked. “Even the café we had our lunch, Wei Ying. Isn’t it better for us to control the city, and provide security, peace and harmony? Rather than let other clans take over our city? And terrorize its citizens, like the Wens?” He reached over and caressed Wei Ying’s cheek. “Some people knew, most people were unaware.”

“What was the Yao Clan… How did you guys even found out they cheated?”

“Betting shops. We hired a new guy recently. He’s good with numbers. He was the one who noticed the weird numbers.”

“Damn, they were just too stupid to take such a risk.”

“I guess now you know a bit more about my job..?”

“Lan Zhan… honestly, it scares me… but…” He sat up and gave him a quick kiss. “There’s no one I want to be with. Other than you.”

Lan Zhan smiled and pulled him closer. “Love you, Wei Ying. Love you so much.” He murmured amidst an onslaught of deep kisses.

*

The following morning, Wu Yichen and Lan Sizhui entered Hanguang-Jun’s office. They were the last to arrive. Zewu-Jun entered from the door adjoining Hanguang-Jun’s office with his. Lan Jingyi and Bai Hongyi were already setting up their stuffs. Lan Sizhui took his place next to his father figure, Hanguang-Jun.

Bai Hongyi put the sketch that Wei Ying had drawn of his sister in front of Lan Sizhui and Lan Zhan.

“Hanguang-Jun. We found her. Or rather, we think we know who this woman is.”

“Speak.” Hanguang-Jun laced his fingers together.

“I showed the sketch around in Lanling. One of the older servants from Jin Mansion mentioned that the sketch looks a lot like the late Jin Furen.”

“Jin Guangshan’s wife?”

“No. His daughter-in-law. Jin Zixuan’s wife.”

“You said “late wife”. She’s dead?” Lan Sizhui asked.

Bai Hongyi nodded. “That’s right. She’s always been a bit sickly. She usually remained in the Jin Mansion due to her ill health. I believe in her final years, she was sick with cancer, and finally passed away two years ago.”

“Two years ago…” Zewu-Jun murmured.

“What was her name?” Lan Sizhui asked.

“Jiang Yanli.”

“Jiang..?” Lan Wangji frowned.

“Wei Ying put a ‘Jiang Cheng’ as his emergency contact. But with a fake phone number. And when Jingyi looked for a Jiang Cheng in Yiling, none fitted the profile.” Lan Sizhui answered.

“What is the background of Jiang Yanli?” Wu Yichen asked.

Lan Jingyi got to work on his laptop. “Let me see… Jiang Yanli… daughter of Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan. Both deceased. One brother: Jiang Wanyin. Husband: Jin Zixuan. One son: Jin Rulan.”

“Jiang Wanyin is the current Jiang Clan Leader. Jiang Fengmian and his wife died a few years ago… due to a boating accident.” Zewu-Jun looked around the room.

“There were rumors that it was not an accident. Depending on who you hear the rumors from, some had said it was actually Wen Ruohan. And some said it was Jin Guangshan himself.” Bai Hongyi added.

“Killing your own family members… Jin Guangshan might be a terrible person, but even he would not stoop down that low.” Lan Sizhui said.

Bai Hongyi raised a brow. “Well, the rumors were that it was someone from the Jin Clan.”

Lan Zhan had a feeling that he knew which Jin family member Bai Hongyi was talking about, but decided to keep quiet. He trusted Bai Hongyi, there’s a reason why he was his Master of Whispers.

“Disgusting.” Lan Jingyi shook his head.

Lan Shizui leaned forward. “Wait…if she had only one brother…Jiang Wanyin…then how is Wei Ying related to her? Why would he refer to her as Jiejie?”

“Good question.” Lan Jingyi tapped at his laptop again, searching for information.

Bai Hongyi turned to him. “Jingyi, look for news, or photos… say, from 10 years ago.”

“When they were still teenagers? Hold on.” Lan Jingyi clicked and tapped the keyboard.

Lan Sizhui poured a fresh cup of tea for Hanguang-Jun. He could tell that his clan leader was slowly getting agitated. He glanced at Zewu-Jun. Zewu-Jun actually looked thoughtful.

“Wangji, I just remembered. Wasn’t there a boy hanging out with Jiang Wanyin? They were like brothers. They came for a semester of basic musical studies once, taught by Shufu.”

Lan Zhan tried to remember. It must have been when they were 12, or 13. He remembered the Jiang Clan heir coming to the studies, accompanied by the son of Jiang Fengmian’s assistant. Was that Wei Ying? He had avoided them during that semester, because he couldn’t stand Jiang Wanyin’s arrogance, and the assistant’s son kept teasing him. He looked at his elder brother. “It’s possible. I had forgotten.”

Lan Jingyi pulled away from his laptop. “Okay, there were several photos that I could find. You were right, Zewu-Jun, there was a boy in the photos, he looks like Wei-ge too. Perhaps he was close to the Jiang family?”

“Find the name of the assistant.”

“Hold on… let me see… Jiang Fengmian’s last assistant was Shen Yang. Before that… it was… Wei Changze.” He looked around the room. “Searching for info on Wei Changze.”

“This must be Wei Ying’s father.” Bai Hongyi said.

Lan Jingyi continued. “Here it is. Wei Changze. Secretary for Jiang Fengmian for more than 18 years. Died 16 years ago, together with his wife, in a car accident. Left behind a son, Wei Wuxian, aged 14 at that time.”

“I think the Jiangs must had taken him in after his parents’ death.” Wu Yichen ventured. “That would explain why he referred to young Jin Furen as Jiejie.”

Bai Hongyi turned to Lan Jingyi. “Wei Wuxian..?”

“Searching for info on Wei Wuxian… huh.”

Lan Sizhui looked at him, curious. “What? Jingyi?”

“There is… no info. There’s many Wei Wuxians… but none of our Wei Wuxian.” He shook his head. “That does not make any sense. No social media, no photos tagged to him.”

“You mean, he’s been scrubbed online? Someone purposely deleted all of his online presence..?”

“Yeah, exactly. You can pay for that, you know. But…why?”

Wu Yichen turned to him. “Jingyi, search for Wen Qing.”

“I did. She was a doctor working in Yiling University Hospital.”

Wu Yichen continued. “But where was she working before that?”

“Hold on… let me find out.”

Lan Sizhui stood up and walked around the room. He had too much nervous energy. He needs to work it off. He took his phone and messaged Wei Ying.

==============
Lan Sizhui: Wei-ge, where are you?
==============

He didn’t reply. He must be at work, the hotel employees were not allowed to use their phones during work hours.

Lan Jingyi replied. “Before working at Yiling UH, she was working in Qishan General Hospital.”

Bai Hongyi spoke. “That’s the Wen Clan hospital.”

“Is she part of the Wen Clan? How was she related to Wei Ying? Are they married?” Zewu-Jun asked.

Lan Jingyi glanced at Hanguang-Jun and typed to make a search. “Nope. No marriage records for Wen Qing. Searching for Wei Wuxian… nope, no marriage records for him either. Whatever their relationship is, it’s not marriage.”

“Can you hack into the Land and Real Estate database? Find out if Wei Ying had any property or real estate?”

“That will take some time, Hanguang-Jun.”

“Then we will reconvene later. Let’s keep all this in this room for now.”

“Understood, Hanguang-Jun.”

*

“Wei-ge, we’re going to a benefits function this weekend!” Lan Sizhui smiled at him. He walked to the kitchenette with the tiffin carrier for dinner.

“Me..?” Wei Ying looked up from the sofa that he’d been slouching. He had just arrived home 15 minutes ago.

“Yes! I’ve talked to your manager to allow you to come. It’ll be an event to raise money for the Gusu Museum and Gusu Youth Orchestra.” Sizhui placed the noodles into a bowl. “I’ll bring you a suit to wear, okay?”

“Sounds fun! What will happen during the event?”

“The Youth Orchestra will perform, as well as the Lan Orchestra. We’ve also invited the Gusu Troupe to perform a short play – The Legend of the White Snake.” Lan Sizhui placed the bowls at the dinner table. “Do you want to perform with your dizi, Wei-ge? I’m thinking of performing the qin as well, just to add more things to the agenda. I’m trying to get Wu Yichen to perform magic tricks too!” Sizhui laughed.

“No way! I’m not good enough to play for people! I’ll just enjoy your performance, okay? Who is Wu Yichen?” He hobbled towards the dining table.

“He is Hanguang-Jun’s assistant. Okay, okay, I’m not going to force you!” The young man smiled. “Just make sure you come!”

“I’ll look forward to it!”

They had dinner, watched the television, and then at 8 p.m. Lan Sizhui excused himself. “Don’t forget about the charity event, okay?”

“Sure, sure! I don’t think you’ll let me forget it!” He laughed as the boy waved his goodbye.

*

As he laid in the bed with Lan Zhan later that night, he told him about the charity event.

“Mn. It was Sizhui’s and Jingyi’s idea. We supported them, of course.” Lan Zhan playfully nibbled Wei Ying’s ear.

“Will you be there? For the dinner?”

“I’m not sure. I have an important meeting that night.”

“Lan Zhan…!” He pouted to Lan Zhan’s chest. “Surely you are not thinking of missing it!”

“How about this? I’ll come by early, and then leave early for the meeting? That way I still showed my face there.”

Wei Ying pulled himself up and kissed him. “That’s better! Pick me up at 6.30!”

"Mn."

"Lan Zhan? You seem...distracted. Since yesterday." He shifted himself on the bed. "Did something happened?"

"No... just something that came up at work. I'm sorry, Wei Ying."

"No need for apologies, Gege!" He snuggled to Lan Zhan, smiling. 

*

Lan Zhan looked so gorgeous in his suit that Wei Ying wished he could just pull him into a room and ravish him. By the way Lan Zhan was looking at him, it seemed that he was thinking the same thing too.

“Just hold on for a few hours, okay, Gege?” He whispered to Lan Zhan.

“Mn. Didi better behave himself tonight.” Lan Zhan whispered back to him, with red ears.

Wei Ying was introduced to more Lan Clan members that night, including Lan Zhan’s uncle. The old man looked at him with suspicion, that Wei Ying almost felt like hiding behind Lan Zhan. But Lan Zhan assured him that his uncle liked him.

“Are you sure, Lan Zhan?” He whispered while they were waiting for the dinner to be served.

“If he didn’t, he would have made it known.” Lan Zhan squeezed his hand.

Halfway through the dinner Lan Zhan excused himself and left. Apparently the meeting is happening just next door, at the Blue Jasmine Casino, also owned by the Lan Clan. Wei Ying tried to make himself look interested and engaged with the conversations around him. At least the performances were very interesting. He clapped enthusiastically after each performance, especially after Sizhui’s qin performance.

Once the performances and dinner were done, people milled around for more mingling as the donation boxes were passed around. Lan Sizhui came to him and smiled.

“Wei-ge! How did you find it so far?”

“It was great! Good job, Sizhui!” He patted and squeezed the young man’s shoulder affectionately.

“Are you going to leave now? Would you like to see the casino next door? They have a great buffet there too, if you’re still hungry! I think Hang… I mean, the meeting will probably end soon, if you want to wait there?”

“Sure! I haven’t been to the Blue Jasmine yet!”

“Great! I’ll get Wu Yichen to accompany you.”

*

He recognized the handsome man to be the magician performing earlier that night. The man politely bowed to him and introduced himself.

“This way please, Mr. Wei.” He waved towards the entrance.

As they walked down the corridor connecting between the event hall and the casino, Wu Yichen turned to him and smiled. “I hope you are doing well, Mr. Wei.”

“Mm?”

“I have worked for Hanguang-Jun for many years. I had been groomed to be his assistant since I was a teenager. I have never seen Hanguang-Jun so happy before. Thank you, Mr. Wei.”

Wait, what?

Did Wu Yichen mistook him for someone else? Before he had a chance to ask, they had already arrived at the casino’s side entrance.

They went straight to the bar. A beautiful lady was sitting there with a drink, wearing a light blue, off-shoulder silk dress. Wu Yichen whispered something to her. She glanced at him and smiled. She slid off her stool and walked over.

“Hello, Mr. Wei. My name is Lan Churan, I am a manager here. Please have a seat.”

“Thank you.” He walked to the bar and placed an order with the bartender waiting for him.

Lan Churan showed him the directions for the buffet spread and restrooms. “We have a lot of things to do here, Mr. Wei. Do you have a favorite game to play?”

“I like poker.”

“Let me know if you’d like to play tonight. Chips on the house.”

“That is really great, meimei, but it’s okay. I just want to people-watch tonight.”

“Very good. Let’s have some fun.” She winked and turned around, and then discreetly indicated to an old man at the roulette table. “That is Mr. Hong, he made a lot of money in gold mining. Roulette is his favorite game. Next to him is his young wife, they just married 6 months ago.”

“Nice.” He took a sip of his whisky.

“At the Blackjack table we have young Mr. Jin Zixun, not my favorite customer personally, but he liked to spend lots of money so we welcome him all the same.”

“Why isn’t he your favorite?”

Lan Churan sighed. “The list is too long, Mr. Wei.” Wei Ying laughed out loud.

She nudged his arm gently. “Oh, in that corner? Over there in the grey, gaudy suit, is Su Mingshan, the leader of Su Clan. He is here to negotiate some deals with the Lan Clan.”

Wei Ying looked at the man in grey suit. He had an annoying face.

“And of course, you know him… That is Hanguang-Jun. He is the leader of the Lan Clan.” Lan Zhan had just walked out of a door.

Wasn’t that Lan Zhan? Is she pointing to Lan Zhan?

“Hanguang-Jun…” He stared at him, but the man was busy talking to a few people.

“Yes, have you met his older brother, Zewu-Jun?”

“Yes…” He felt like an idiot. Of course. He had thought they looked so similar. He had just thought it was because they were relatives. Even Wu Yichen had some similar features to Lan Zhan. Ugh, so he had been fooled by Lan Zhan! That man’s going to get punished tonight!

While he was thinking about how he should carry out the punishment, a fight broke out. Two men, then four, and then it seemed like ten men were involved in a fist fight. Someone pulled out a gun, and a shot was fired.

That shot sent the casino into panic. The women screamed and everyone started to scramble for the exits. The fighting got worse. A man was sent flying. People were screaming and running, it was a total pandemonium. Broken glasses on the floor. Wei Ying thought only of Lan Zhan.

Lan Churan had disappeared. Wei Ying tried looking for Lan Zhan in the commotion. He saw men in red streaming into the casino. The Wen Clan. What are they doing here? Wait. How did he know that? How did he knew who these men were?

They started hitting everyone in their way. Someone came towards him with a gun. He kicked the gun away and boxed the man right in his face. The man went down with a thud. Other men started noticing him and targeted him.

More of the men in red started attacking him. His response was impulsive, he did not even have to think what he had to do. The punches, kicks, swerves, they were all done automatically. He knew how to fight. He’d done this many times. He didn’t know how he knew what to do, but it was all easy for him. One after another was flying off. He saw Lan Zhan about to be attacked by the Wen gangsters. He took a chair nearest to him and threw it at the attacker, stopping him. Lan Zhan took the chance to shoot the man.

The Lan Clan members ran towards him, helping to fight off these thugs. He turned around to run away from there. He had a feeling that the Wen clan gangsters were coming for him. He entered a corridor behind a door, with the Wen clan members following him close behind. A man took a huge vase by the wall and aimed it directly to Wei Ying’s head. As the vase crashed on his head, he fell to the floor, seeing stars, before losing consciousness.

*

He was sitting in a room. The room was decked with maroon-colored items. Maroon curtains, maroon sofa, red flowers. There was a family crest at the wall. The Wen Clan.

Across the room from him, Wen Xu was smiling. He hated this bastard. He thought that he was smart, but he’s really very much an idiot. But he’s the first son of Wen Ruohan, so nobody dared to go against him. And right now, Wei Ying was really trying not to listen to his boring speech.

Wei Ying had worked for the Wen Clan in return of a favor. Wen Ruohan would leave his friends - Wen Qing and Wen Ning, and the rest of that particular Wen branch, alone. Wei Ying had owed his life to Wen Ning and Wen Qing. He had been kicked out of Jiang Clan, left on the street, and had been stabbed in a violent attack, by rival clans. Wen Ning had found him bleeding in the alley, and Wen Qing had saved his life. He was treated in a Qishan hospital, his medical fees paid by the Wen Clan. The Wen Clan mafia family gained an asset when the Jiang Clan chose to cast away theirs.

The whole Wen family branch, that had never been involved in any underworld activities, had fled Qishan to settle in Yiling. None of the Wen Clan gangsters were allowed to touch them, as part of the deal. The breakaway Wen branch had to leave all of their belongings, all of their wealth: houses, shops, everything, behind. They couldn’t do it anymore, to be associated with Wen Ruohan and his vicious clan members. They had terrorized the people of Qishan. So they had set up a new life in Yiling, starting from scratch. Some of them had done well, while some others had been struggling.

The money that Wei Ying had earned from his hitman job had been used to set up an orphanage, since many of the Wens that had ran away had also lost their parents. He also bought a 50-acre farm on the outskirts of Yiling, where some of the Wens had settled in and worked on. The farm lands were cheaper than the market price because it had bordered a cemetery. He knew nothing about farming himself. He had built several houses to place the families there. He built a small house for himself. Wen Ning and Wen Qing also had a small farmhouse, living together with their grandmother. But because both Wen Ning and Wen Qing worked at the Yiling University Hospital in the city, the commute was too far. So they bought an old apartment to stay in during the weekdays, and spent the weekends at the farm. Sometimes Grandma Wen would come over to their apartment.

Wei Ying chose the apartment because there was no CCTV there. Wei Ying also used the apartment address for mails. He purposely gave out the wrong address when filling in forms because he knew of the postman’s habit of just stuffing the wrongly addressed mails into their pigeonhole. That setup had worked wonderfully well.

His cover as a tax consultant had been a great arrangement. The business was not slow, but not busy enough that he couldn’t slip away for a few hours. They had three entrances and exits, but only two were covered with security cameras. The third exit was thought to had been cemented over, but Wei Ying only made it seem that way. No one in the office knew. He always made sure he was caught in the cameras entering and leaving the office.

His manager was an old man waiting for retirement. He didn’t really care if Wei Ying didn’t show up a day or two – with excuses, of course. That’s because Wei Ying was the best tax consultant there – he worked fast, he was friendly and helpful, and the clients always asked for him. He was the least problematic employee there, so the boss was willing to give him a lot of leeway. Nobody ever asked about his job, it was so boring. Once he started talking about it, threw in a few boring and confusing terms here and there… people will change the subject. This job was the perfect cover for Wei Ying.

“Yiling Laozu, this job will be the biggest payout for you.” Wen Xu finally ended his spiel and got to the point of the meeting.

Wei Ying adjusted his mask. “How much?”

“5 million yuan.”

Wen Ruohan had never paid for a job with that much money before. It sounds too good to be true.

“I don’t believe you.”

“My accountant will show you the proof. You just need to finish the job. With your proof.”

“Who is the target?”

“Hanguang-Jun.”

“Again? I failed the last time, remember?”

“Mm. I think my brother’s prize of a million yuan was not a good incentive enough for you back then. With 5 million, you can actually retire.”

“5 million is not enough.”

“Fine, 15 million. That’s my last offer.”

“Did your father know about this? He would be looking for me, and then there would be no more retirement.” Wei Ying hated dealing with this useless idiot.

“Of course he knows about this! We have been looking for your replacement, anyway. He won’t be looking for you anymore after this job.” He responded with disgust in his face.

“Who is it? My replacement?”

“Do you really need to know? Someone younger than you, and just equally as talented. With none of your “ethics” bullshit.” Wen Xu mocked him, swirling his wine.

“When do I have to do it?”

“I’ll give you a month to do it… We can get our people to help you with the preparations. Just tell them what you need.”

“Why do you want to kill him so much? It’s such a big risk. If they knew it was Wen Clan, the consequences could be severe.”

“One, the Lan Clan had been getting too bold lately. We need to put them in their place. Two, they have Zewu-Jun, don’t they? He is weak, and replacing him as the Clan Leader would put the Lan Clan further down the ladder. Hanguang-Jun’s heir is just a young kid. This would be the downfall of the Lan Clan, haha! And three, it’s you, Yiling Laozu. No one will be able trace it back to us.”

“I seriously think you’re making a mistake here.”

“I didn’t need your opinion, Yiling Laozu! I just need the job done!”

“I need to stake out their place first. The Cloud Recesses.”

“No problem! Do whatever you need! I just want to hear the good news by next month!”

“All right. Take me to see your accountant.”

~ ~ ~

His plan had been to finish the job with poison. He had tried to shoot Hanguang-Jun the first time, and that plan had failed. So he thought he had to figure out a different way to do this time. He had a contact through the dark web, a person codenamed Twin Phoenixes. This person could create a customized poison that would not be detected through forensics – at least not at first pass. The poison could be in liquid, gas or even solid form. The price was high but it’s worth it.

Wei Ying’s plans were to find a way to sneak in to the Cloud Recesses, place the poison in Hanguang-Jun’s office or home, and let it do its work. He doesn’t even need to be physically close to Hanguang-Jun in order to get this job done. It’s less risky this way.

The problem was getting inside the stronghold of the Lan Clan. He thought about pretending to be an electrician, or plumber, in order to get inside. But he also wondered if he could just scale the fences and make his moves in the cover of darkness, at night.

He asked one of the Wen clan members to help him rent a car. He would drive along the perimeters of Cloud Recesses, and identify which parts were not within view of the security cameras, and if there were any possibles locations that he could sneak in. There must be a blind zone that he could take advantage of.

He didn’t brought any weapons that day, all he needed was just to identify and memories the cameras’ dead zones. As he drove along the road outside Cloud Recesses, he heard a loud roar of a truck. He decided to ignore the truck but something didn’t felt right. He speeded up a bit, and the lorry picked up speed too. He kept his eyes on the security cameras along the high fence. He noticed that there’s a stretch of road where the cameras were too far apart, with some trees growing by the roadside. He made a mental note that this would be the best place to alight and scale the fence. He would need someone to drive the car to drop him off, though.

The truck’s roar was deafening as it crashed into the back of the car Wei Ying was driving. The force was so great that the car turned a few times. All he could do was hang on tight. He looked out the window and saw the truck’s driver dressed in a maroon shirt. Had to be one of the Wen goons. The airbag went off. Something came flying and hit him on the head. His vision went black.

*

When he opened his eyes, he was sitting on the floor, propped against a wall. Lan Zhan was crouching in front of him. He held his head. “You saved my life, Wei Ying.”

“Lan Zhan… Lan Zhan…” He looked at Lan Zhan with his eyes wide open. “I remembered. I remember everything.”

The man remained expressionless as usual. “Stay here, I’ll be back.” Lan Zhan ran towards the sounds of fresh gunfire. Wei Ying felt his eyelids closing slowly as he lost consciousness again.

*

He opened his eyes slowly. Felt the blood dripping slowly from his head. He raised his head slowly, and then tried to sit up. He had slid down onto the floor. How long has it been? The fight was still ongoing, judging from the distant noises. His eyes refocused, and he saw a man in red walking slowly towards him. He immediately recognized the man. Wen Zhuliu.

Wen Zhuliu approached him with a smile on his face.

“Hey… I know you.” He said in a mocking tone. “It’s been a long time since I last saw you, Yiling Laozu. My boss had been wondering if you were dead. We’ve been looking for you all over.”

Of course Wen Zhuliu had recognized him. He had spent so much time with Wen Ruohan when Wei Ying was there. Although he had worn a mask, he knew Wen Zhuliu was smart enough to recognize him without it. They had been on missions together many times before, anyway.

Wen Zhuliu pulled his collar and lifted him up to his feet. “Honestly, I don’t blame you for laying low. When the boss found out that Wen Xu tried to kill Hanguang-Jun, and Wen Chao tried to kill you, he was so mad… I thought the Wen Clan bloodline would have ended that day.” He gave a smug smile and patted Wei Ying’s shoulder. “And then you disappeared on us… Wen Ruohan was livid. We’ve been searching for you everywhere, Yiling Laozu, where did you disappeared to?”

“He was with us.” Came a voice at the far side of the corridor. They both turned to see Hanguang-Jun walking towards them. Three Lan Clan members stood at the door, pointing their guns and rifles at them.

Lan Zhan placed a gun directly to Wen Zhuliu’s head. “You certainly have the nerves, Wen Zhuliu, to come this far into Lan territory.”

Wen Zhuliu smiled. “Just trying to retrieve what was ours, Hanguang-Jun.” He looked pointedly at Wei Ying.

“Lan Zhan… I didn’t know… You know I had lost my memories!” He tried to plead.

“Did you, Yiling Laozu? Or were you just pretending, to infiltrate the Lan territories?” Hanguang-Jun’s voice was chilling.

“Lan Zhan…” Wei Ying closed his eyes. The Lan Zhan standing in front of him now was unrecognizable.  
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

“I trusted you!” Lan Zhan’s eyes were red, piercing into him. “I heard what he said just now. Wen Xu sent you to kill me? When are you going to get the job done?”

“Lan Zhan, please, I can explain.” Wei Ying lifted his hands slowly.

“Wen Zhuliu, maybe I should just allow you to leave this place tonight. After all, you’ve just lost your young master Wen Xu. You can take back his body, along with his father’s valuable asset here.”

“Lan Zhan! Please!” He looked at the man in disbelief.

“You don’t want to go back to your boss? Wen Ruohan?” The look that he was giving to Wei Ying made his heart shrink. Now he understood why everyone feared Hanguang-Jun.

“Lan Zhan… listen to me, please!”

Lan Zhan beckoned to his men. “Take this man away and dispose him permanently.” He pointed to Wen Zhuliu. Wen Zhuliu’s eyes widened in shock, but there’s nothing he could do with four guns pointed at him. He threw a last look at Wei Ying.

“See you in hell, Yiling Laozu.”

As they walked away, Hanguang-Jun turned his attention back to Wei Ying.

“Lan Zhan, please. Let me explain.” He tried to speak slowly, calmly, to appease the Hanguang-Jun.

Hanguang-Jun blinked. “Speak.” The gun never left his hand, although it was no longer pointed at Wei Ying’s face. A door opened along the corridor and Dr. Zhang Ruoyi walked out of it. She looked at them standing there with surprise. She was wearing a dark blue evening dress, a halter neck with a shawl. She must had come straight from the charity event next door. There was a first aid kit in her hand. Wei Ying wondered if someone had sent her to look for him.

“Hanguang-Jun.” She approached them slowly.

“Stay there.”

“Let me look at him quickly. He’s bleeding.” Dr. Zhang Ruoyi spoke softly. Hanguang-Jun looked at him, then nodded to Dr. Zhang. She approached him slowly, and asked him to sit on the floor. She removed her shawl and set it aside, then opened the first aid kit box. As she turned her back to him, he saw the tattoo on her back, just below the right shoulder. A tattoo of two phoenixes.

Twin Phoenixes. The Master Poisoner that he was planning to contact in the dark web.

It finally sunk in to him. The Wen Clan had their Yiling Laozu. The Lan Clan had the Twin Phoenixes. No wonder Hanguang-Jun was close to her. She was their most valuable asset.

Dr. Zhang dabbed some lotion to clean the wound at his head, then covered it with gauze and dressings. “He still needs medical attention, Hanguang-Jun.”

“We’ll see about that. You wanted to explain.” Hanguang-Jun reminded him. His gun was again pointed at Wei Ying.

“Yes, yes. Okay.” He took a deep breath. He had to think clearly. This would be a moment of life-or-death for him. Right now, Wei Ying had no doubts that he would fire a shot at him, if he was not satisfied with what he had to say.

“Lan Zhan. It is true, I am Yiling Laozu.” He swallowed. “I was sent to kill you by Wen Xu. But Wen Chao sent a truck to hit me, probably to derail Wen Xu’s plans. I don’t know, those two are complete idiots.” He took a breath. “I lost my memories. I really did, I swear. I forgot everything, my identity, my mission, all of it.”

He looked at Lan Zhan with pleading eyes. “But I swear, I wasn’t trying to fool you. I swear, my feelings for you were real. I would never sleep with a target. I’m a professional!”

Zhang Ruoyi glanced at Hanguang-Jun and tried to suppress her smile. Lan Zhan shot her an annoyed look, as if saying, ‘Shut up.’

He turned to Zhang Ruoyi. “You understand, right? Ruoyi-meimei?”

She shook her head. “Yeah, I wouldn’t do that either, Wei-ge.”

“Don’t call him Wei-ge.”

“Sorry, Hanguang-Jun.” She turned to Wei Ying. “I definitely wouldn’t go that far, Lan-furen.”

“Ruoyi!” Lan Zhan scowled at her. If Wei Ying didn’t know it, he would have thought these two were a married couple. He couldn’t help smiling looking at their interaction.

“Sorry, sorry, Hanguang-Jun! I’ll just stand at the end of the corridor, okay?” She took the first aid kit, took out a small gun from under her dress, and stood at the end of the corridor. She looked at them both with interest.

“Why shouldn’t I just shoot you now, Yiling Laozu? You have killed many of my men.”

“Yes, yes, I do realize that now… but I am really sorry, and I do not wish to kill any Lan Clan members ever again. I promise.” He raised three fingers to swear it.

“Are you quitting the Wen Clan then? How will Wen Ruohan react to this? Are we keeping him, Hanguang-Jun? It’ll be fun to work with him!” Zhang Ruoyi commented from the end of the corridor. Lan Zhan glared at her.

“Yes! Please keep me, Hanguang-Jun! I have asked you before, right? To be one of the Lan Clan members? But… now I need your help with Wen Ruohan.”

Lan Zhan’s face was sour. “You’re going to leave the Wen Clan and join us? How much money do you want?”

Wei Ying felt tears forming in his eyes. “Lan Zhan… I just want to be with you. It can’t be anyone but you.” A tear made its way down his cheek. “I told you. My feelings were real. Don’t you feel the same way too?”

Lan Zhan looked dumbstruck hearing his question. His eyes changed, from the cold eyes to… concern? Worry? Disbelief? Apologetic? Wei Ying wished he could tell.

“I think it will be a great benefit to the Lan Clan to have the Yiling Laozu. No one would dare to touch us. He’s not even asking for money, just a marriage certificate. We’ll have to do something about Wen Ruohan though.” Zhang Ruoyi spoke out.

Lan Zhan looked at him. “You’re not lying to me? Is that what you want?”

“I swear it, Lan Zhan. Now that I’ve known you, fallen for you… I don’t think I could back to the Wens. But I will need the Lans’ protection from them. For me, and for the Wen branch in Yiling. I will do all that I can to help the Lan Clan. Please believe me, Lan Zhan.” He put his hands together.

Lan Zhan finally put his gun down. “I believe you. But if you ever betray me, Yiling Laozu…”

“If I ever do that, the Twin Phoenixes can kill me herself with her poisons. I know.”

Lan Zhan and Zhang Ruoyi looked at each other, and then at him.

“All right, let’s go.”

*

He was brought to the clinic again, and treated by Dr. Lan Ziyi. The next day, he was sent back to his cottage. Just before lunchtime, he heard the front door open. He wondered if Lan Lusi had come to send him the lunchbox.

But it was Lan Zhan that appeared at his bedroom door. He looked at him with worry, completely different from the Hanguang-Jun in the corridor last night. He walked slowly towards Wei Ying.

“Wei Ying.”

“Lan Zhan.” He sat up on the bed.

“I… I’m sorry.” He drew a deep breath. “You were right. Thank you for reminding me. My feelings for you…” Lan Zhan sat on the bed and took his hand. “I want to be with you. I don’t want to lose you.”

“Lan Zhan…”

Lan Zhan held his chin. “Were you serious about getting married?”

“Yes! Yes, of course!”

“Mn. Then let’s do that.”

Wei Ying pulled him close and kissed him. “I can’t wait!”

Lan Zhan’s eyes narrowed. “Before that… there are business that we need to take care of.”

Wei Ying grinned. “Let’s do this.”

*

As expected, Wen Ruohan was furious when he found out that his son, Wen Xu had been killed in the brawl at the Blue Jasmine. What was worse, his other son, Wen Chao, was mysteriously killed in an accident with a truck at the borders of Yunmeng two days later. Upon finding out that the Yiling Laozu was still alive, he ordered the Wen Clan members to attack the farm that Yiling Laozu owned in Yiling, to kill all the Wens living there. Unfortunately for them, they were met with gunfire from the Lan Clan members. None of the Wen Clan attackers survived.

Two weeks after the incident at the Blue Jasmine, Wen Ruohan was admitted into the Qishan General Hospital, and died the next day. The cause of death was recorded as heart attack. The rumors swirling in the underworld said that he had been slowly poisoned. No one knows for sure.

*

On November 15th, 2025, Wei Ying tendered his resignation from the role as junior manager in Blue Orchids Hotel. He smiled and told his manager that he planned to be a housewife.

On December 20th, 2025, a private ceremony took place in the Cloud Recesses. The rumor mill went into a frenzy, with some saying Hanguang-Jun had gotten married. No bridal gown had been ordered or sent to the Cloud Recesses, though, so the rumor remained unproven.

Yiling Laozu resurfaced for a short while, but then disappeared again. A body was found in the waters off Gusu Port, believed to be of Yiling Laozu. He was given a cremation and the ashes spread at sea. That marked the end of the legendary Yiling Laozu.

*

Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian were both wearing red. They made the first bow, then the second bow, and then turned to each other, and made the third bow.

They served tea to Lan Qiren, and Grandma Wen. Zewu-Jun and Wen Qing wiped the tears in their eyes. They then had a banquet in the great dining room of the Orchid House. The guests were the inner circle of the Lan Clan only, and certain members of the Wen breakaway branch only. There were not even thirty people in attendance.

Wei Wuxian resigned as a junior hotel manager, as well as an assassin. His focus was just to live happily with his husband, involved in charity projects and teaching dizi at the Lan Performance Hall. Sometimes he helped to coach boxing for young boys at the Blue Bolts Gym. Except for a select few, no one knew of his previous life. He is now simply known as Wei Ying, or sometimes, Lan-furen.

== The End of Sub-Story 1 ==