Wild Creatures

Chapter 137

This trail, calling it a road was being overly kind unnecessarily, was like tarmac for horses, in relation to his beloved white Mercedes, Lan Zhan thought. It was barely wide enough to accommodate his vehicle, plus the loose stones and debris from the overgrown hedge wasn't doing the suspension any favours, but Lan Zhan ignored all the warning signs because Wei Ying was somewhere here.

He could see the fluttering red ribbon up ahead, just out of reach but Lan Zhan didn't dare to press down on the gas for fear of stalling to a halt instead, his car giving up prematurely since the terrain is more suitable for a four-by-four jeep than a luxury sports car.

Finally the path opens up onto a field and he can see Wei Ying running towards a gate. It's protecting a house, but not just any house, this is sort of a ranch house minus the ranch bit.

Actually, Lan Zhan had no idea if there WAS a ranch involved, or even if this was private property or not, but Wei Ying was safe, if wildly waving at him to get out of his car.

"A-Yuan, A-Yi, we'll be right back, you can see us through the windows," Lan Zhan turns to the kids to reassure them. He points at the manically excited other parent just outside.

"Mn." A-Yuan says, very seriously.

JingYi just nods owlishly, and Lan Zhan gets the feeling that he's missing popcorn here. But he gets out of the car, checking his watch simultaneously. It was a good thing they had left home earlier than necessary.

"Wei Ying, what is it?" Lan Zhan comes closer to the vibrating ball of energy.

Wei Ying is so excited, his tongue is tripping over itself trying to get his words out.

"This is the house, Lan Zhan! This is it! The one I saw in my dream, and alright, it's not quite the same because we don't live here yet, but we're going to! It's this place, it's ours! We have to buy it!" He's barely breathing in his eagerness to explain.

Lan Zhan has taken a hold of his forearms, just to keep Wei Ying grounded. He smells amazing right now.

"There's no sign it's for sale. And we might be trespassing." That was his greatest worry, that some gun-toting hill-billy was gonna shoot first and ask questions later, and he didn't want to hang around here to find out.

But Wei Ying looked far from being ready to go, and they still had to reach the courthouse on time.

His golden eyes sweep across the wrap-around porch, and how much it suits this house. There's a good vibe around the place, good juju, Uncle Qiren would say, even if it was out in the middle of nowhere. Nothing a good WiFi signal couldn't fix, he thinks.

Chopped wooden stumps lie in a heap on one side, and there are dream catchers hanging from the roof, but there's a wonderful metal wind chime making colours dance on the green grass as the dim sunshine catches its pieces, and the breeze makes it sway and tinkle with music.

The space is quite messy and disorganised, Lan Zhan notes, but it is in an endearing way, rather like Wei Ying is.

Someone has taken the time and trouble to plant flowers in a hanging basket near the front door, and the scent of wildflowers drift towards them as they look around. The door itself is quite eccentric; instead of a door knocker, there's a huge oversized horseshoe dead centre on the dark green painted door.

"Can you imagine it, my love? In my dream, it was all white and brownstone, and I think...I think we had a swinging loveseat there," he points to a spot just outside the main window, coming to slide an arm around Lan Zhan's waist. "It's also a great place to raise children," Wei Ying adds, looking around at the fields of grass all around them.