The meaning of protecting you with my life

Unexpected choice of supervisors

When Jiang Fengmian came back to the tent, everyone inside was long awake – aside for Wei Wuxian who was still unconscious, just having Lan Wangji passing him spiritual energy – and waiting for him. Ever since the Lanling Jin sect disciple delivered the message and Jiang Cheng had send him away, Yu Ziyuan had been on pins and needles. It was clear that this was not the end of it.

Even though she had not participated in the war as such and had not had much time to assess the situation and the feelings of the allied forces in relation to Wei Wuxian, she already understood that her son was a valuable asset. Most probably one that Jin Guangshan and the Lanling Jin sect wanted to seize for themselves. Not that they would let them of course, but it was infuriating that they had even tried.

Her head snapped up to look at her husband. Jiang Fengmian's face was pale and collected but she could see the fury in his eyes. Something must have happened and Yu Ziyuan had no doubts that it was connected to the Lanling Jin sect trying to take Wei Wuxian away from them.

Before she could ask what had happened, Jiang Cheng was ahead of her, already running towards his father and all but blurting out worriedly: "Father, we need to do something. A Lanling Jin sect disciple came and wanted to take Wei Wuxian to their own doctor, saying that we are not good enough for him. I am afraid they want him for themselves. They had been too aggressive in the last few hours. I have even overheard that Jin Guangshan wanted to take up the position of the Chief cultivator when I went to fetch food! They are definitely planning something; we need to protect Wei Wuxian."

Jiang Fengmian put one hand on his son's shoulder and replied. However, not by something Yu Ziyuan wanted to hear.

"A-Cheng, please slow down. It will be fine. They have only tried it. In the meeting I just went to, Jin Guangyao publically declared that A-Ying will stay with us. They will surely not try anything after such statement. But..." Her husband hesitated for a second and Yu Ziyuan had a distinct feeling that she would not like his next words. "They want to keep the power balance between the greet sects by having the other three taking hold of a piece of Yin iron each. I am worried that if any of them would want to tip the power balance in their favour, they would come for A-Ying, he is apparently the only one who can control the Yin iron.

They want to keep an eye on him, all three of them. After the meeting, I went to talk to them, to reason with them to change the decision since no one from the Yunmeng Jiang sect had been there while it had been made. But they would not listen to me, they even threatened to make A-Ying go to seclusion under their watch if we do not comply with their wishes. They want to send someone from their sects to Lotus Pier to keep an eye on A-Ying at all times.

I tried my best but in the end, I do not see any other solution but to let them come. The Yunmeng Jiang clan is still too weak from the massacre of Lotus Pier to be able to stand against all three of the great sects. And we cannot have A-Ying to be pulled into this fight. He has had enough trouble because of us. We should probably not even tell him anything about all of this. Once the tension after the war will lessen a bit, we can try to appeal to the other sects again."

Yu Ziyuan saw how Jiang Yanli and Jiang Cheng paled and she could tell that all colour disappeared from her own cheeks as well. She did not know if she was more afraid or furious at the moment. She hated how the other sects were trying to manipulate them and she hated even more that they could not do anything about it, not if they did not want to start another war with Wei Wuxian as its middle piece. She was so scared that they would try to take him away at the smallest of chances even though they were now showing them good grace.

Thousands of possible solutions were running through her head but none seemed possible or would ameliorate their position. She was sure that Jian Fengmian had already gone through the same process before even going to see Nie Mingjue, Lan Xichen and Jin Guangshan; and if he was coming back with these kind of news, she believed that it was the only option available.

Still, it did nothing to reassure her, on the contrary. She was terrified for Wei Wuxian. They just got him back and they were about to lose him again? They still had to prove to him that they were now a true family, all of them, they could not let him be taken prisoner by some other sect! What would they do to him? How would they treat him? Even if it was the righteous Gusu Lan sect, she was not certain that they would be too kind while having a demonic cultivator in their midst. No, Wei Wuxian had to stay in the Yunmeng Jiang sect.

As if her worries materialized, it was at that exact moment that the sect leaders of the other great sects came inside the tent. Jin Zixuan was trailing behind his father like a lost puppy, his eyes glued to the floor. Beside him walked another young man, a Qinghe Nie disciple judging by her robes, apparently also very nervous and bothered.

Jin Guangshan had the audacity to look pleased; at least Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen were slightly sorry about the whole situation when the Gusu Lan sect leader explained which apologetic voice, avoiding eye contact with anyone and greeting the Yunmeng Jiang clan and Lan Wangji with a bow.

"We are sorry for our intrusion, we will not take long. We came to discuss the topic of Young Master Wei's... company for the foreseeable future. I believe Sect Leader Jiang had already informed you about the arrangement."

No one spoke and Lan Xichen looked even more uncomfortable, coughing slightly to clear his throat. He could surely feel the eyes of the Yunmeng Jiang clan members' on him but to his credit, he really seemed apologetic. Yu Ziyuan could guess from his reaction that he had not agreed to the arrangement, at least not at first. He had probably found himself in a tight spot, after all, Cloud Recesses had burned down not long ago and the Gusu Lan sect was not as strong as they had been, they could not oppose the Lanling Jin sect any more that the Yunmeng Jiang sect could.

Even if they were to join forces, Yu Ziyuan was not sure they would have succeeded. Both sects had suffered losses during the Sunshot campaign, while the Lanling Jin sect had only sent a couple of disciples, keeping their main forces in Koi Tower. Had they planed all of this in advance? It was very much possible.

Yu Ziyuan looked back at Lan Xichen when he had found his voice again and continued, sounding even more apologetic still: "From the Lanling Jin sect, there will be Jin Zixuan. We have come to know that he wished to court Maiden Jiang so it would be convenient for them to be closer. For the Qinghe Nie sect, there is this young lady here, Nie Qing, formerly Wen Qing, chosen personally by Nie Huisang. She could help with Young Master Wei's healing; she is a very competent doctor. And for the Gusu Lan sect, I wish to present Lan Wangji, my own brother and the sect heir. It would hopefully be very instructional for him to spend some time away from Gusu and learn more about other sects' cultures."

Yu Ziyuan's eyes were now only small slits as she way eyeing Lan Xichen and the two other sect leaders with suspicion. The choice of the so called supervisors, even if Lan Xichen had called them company, was more than surprising. It almost looked like Jin Guangshan had no say in their choosing. They were not all that bad, she had expected some strict disciples who would spy on Wei Wuxian every single second of his days, but it was not so bad. It was actually way better than she could have hoped.

Suddenly, she was not all that enraged anymore, at least Wei Wuxian would have Lan Wangji by side and Jiang Yanli Jin Zixuan. And the former Qishan Wen sect disciple? Yu Ziyuan had already heard about her, she truly was an excellent doctor, her reputation preceded her. This seemed more like their win than that of Jin Guangshan really. She could live with this, at least for the time being, she would be glad to welcome all three into her home without reservations.