An Almost Lan

Chapter 19

A/N: AU and OOC, just a reminder.

Thank you for your votes and comments, they really encourage me!

Thanks to @CALActorsTypist on Twitter for editing this, remaining errors are all mine.

Why did the ground never open and swallow you when you most need it? This time, it was not a rhetorical question, since those were exactly Wei Ying's wishes. Of course the ground-swallowing thing would include his so-called best friend and the source of his embarrassment, Xue Yang.

"Would you shut up?" Wei Ying murmured in a scolding tone to his friend, while elbowing him in his belly, not so subtly.

Horrified, he scrutinized his sister contenance only to find it changing from a demure visage to an impish face sporting a very telling grin. Turning his gaze towards Lan Huan, who was fighting very hard against a burst of laughter that threatened to escape him.

The doctor there seemed to be the only one with some sense of propriety, a faint blush tainted his cheeks as he harrumphed again and clarified.

"Well yes, they were engaged in acts of a private nature, which are completely natural between a married couple. And yes, I believe Mr. Qiren's wrist showed marks of restraint."

Suddenly, Wei Ying wished he could bleach his own brain as he was invaded by the fervent desire to erase that mental image from his mind. He knew it was a) impossible and b) too late since that idea had been imprinted in his mind with demolishing precision. Thank you Xue Yang! He thought.

A few meters away, hiding just behind the corner of a corridor, he distinguished Lan Zhan's ears, which were completely red. It seemed that Lan Zhan had been privy to Xue Yang's outrageous and shameless ideas.

"Well, that's irrelevant," he heard himself say to the doctor. It was very much not, and most probable than not, he would need a couple of sessions with his therapist to regain some peace of mind regarding that mental image. "When can we visit him?" he asked the doctor.

"As a matter of fact," the doctor started, "I was coming to tell you that you can visit him now. He's awake and alert. He just needs to rest and stay a couple of more days for us to exhaust every possible hidden threat to his health through some more tests, and he will be good to go. I'll discuss the necessary care when he goes back home with his wife."

"Why don't you go and visit him," Lan Huan told Wei Ying, "I'm sure he will be very happy to see you."

"No...I," Wei Ying hesitated. He, of course, really wanted to see Uncle Qiren, but something inside him, gnawing his gut, told him that it was better that Uncle Qiren's real family would go first.

"I think you and Lan Zhan should go first," he finally expressed.

"Nonsense," this time it was Jiang Yanli who said it, "he has been seeing us frequently, while it has been several months since he saw you in person."

"He would want to see his family!" Wei Ying blurted. Clearly, it had been a lapse in his control, but still it was what he sincerely felt.

The grim faces of his siblings and Xue Yang clued him, it had been the worst thing to say.

"YOU are his family too," Jiang Yanli stressed.

"A-Li is right," Lan Huan declared, "he will be elated. Please go on."

Involuntarily, Wei Ying's eyes searched for Lan Zhan, scrutinizing his face in search of reluctance or plain opposition. He found none. Instead, he found Lan Zhan's pained gaze. Wei Ying assumed it was caused by their uncle's illness. Yes, that would be the reason, nothing more.