Chapter Text
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. Fortunately (or unfortunately) for Wei Wuxian, while he is without any doubt a single man, his fortune can hardly be categorized as mediocre, and would be much more accurately described as poor.
Of course, things could be worse. All things considered, in Wei Wuxian’s case, they should be worse. He’s the son of a couple who eloped when they were barely of age—a couple who then found themselves caught in a military skirmish and killed. With that, Wei Wuxian found himself on the streets, quite alone, when he was barely tall enough to reach the flat top of a fruit stand.
His childhood was filled with snapshots of nicking money bags from skirts, sleeping in empty apple baskets, tying his hair with stolen red ribbon from a booth with a man who yelled terrible obscenities, and of course, running from the dogs. His most vivid memory is still fleeing from a big white dog with black spots, sprinting so hard he could barely feel his lungs, until he crashed headlong into the leg of Jiang Fengmian, who would later become his adopted father.
Jiang Fengmian’s home would offer him shelter and the solace of a good name. Although he was still, in and of himself, utterly poor, he could travel into shops and not get shooed out; the Jiangs would always pay back the stores for anything he took. The money was not his, but he could dream that it was, in the same way that he could dream that his new family belonged to him. He’d never had siblings before, and so Jiang Wanyin and Jiang Yanli were his first introduction to the concept. He didn’t think he’d botched it all too terribly, at least until he turned seventeen.
Wei Wuxian then had the audacity to join the militia, practically buoyant with the idea of carrying on his parents’ military legacy, however weak it had been. Madame Yu, eager to rid herself of the son she had never asked for, was more than happy to sponsor him. A few years were all it took to see Wei Wuxian rise in the ranks, and when he turned seventeen he was leading his own force. It was a feat practically unheard of, and it would have been a lie to say he hadn’t held pride in it.
Of course, it couldn’t last. Barely three months after his promotion, Wei Wuxian was expelled from the militia entirely, never to hold another post or enter again. Gone was his reputation as the youngest Colonel Yunmeng had ever seen; instead, he became known as a traitor. No one knew for sure whether betrayal had been his crime, but Wei Wuxian’s silence was enough to cement it as truth.
Perhaps, in another world Wei Wuxian would have considered wanting a wife. He’s handsome enough, and it would have been the smartest course of action for a young bachelor without much of a fortune. With his past soiling his chances, however, Wei Wuxian had long since decided that finding a wife would be the last thing on his mind. He planned to get as much as he could out of his life, and he was lucky that Jiang Fengmian hadn’t kicked him out of the house yet. He figured he would stay around until he couldn’t, and then he’d try to contact some friends who didn’t know him as a traitor to the cause. He’d heard, once, that Xiao Xingchen had earned himself a ship…
“Hey,” demands Luo Qingyang, snapping her fingers in front of Wei Wuxian’s face. “Did you hear anything I just said?”
Wei Wuxian blinks, and then grins. “Of course I did. You always have my full attention, princess.”
“And now I know I don’t, because I’ve told you dozens of times not to call me that. Just because the Jins are my patrons doesn’t mean I’m a princess. How’s it any different from the way the Jiangs are with you?”
“I’m adopted.”
“Not officially you’re not. Or else you’d be called Jiang Wuxian, wouldn’t you?”
“Wow. That really doesn’t have as nice a ring to it, does it?”
“Oh, shut up. Since you claim you were listening the whole time, what are you going to wear?”
“This, of course,” Wei Wuxian says, pouting as he pulls on his red tunic, grey jacket with its buttons messily undone as he likes them, and grey trousers stained with grass. “What’s not to like?”
Luo Qingyang rolls her eyes. “And now I really know you weren’t listening. If you’re going to wear that to my ball, I’ll have the Jiangs disown you personally.”
“You won’t have to,” Wei Wuxian says with a laugh before crossing his arms. “I’m glad I wasn’t listening. Why would I attend a ball?”
“There will be plenty of pretty ladies there. And it’s my ball.”
“I wouldn’t go even if it were the ball of the gods themselves. That’s not the point. What am I supposed to say to those pretty ladies? Hey, I’m the one everyone is calling a traitor? What a suit!”
Luo Qingyang eyes him with a raised eyebrow. “The Wei Wuxian I remember would have been thrilled.”
“Things have changed.”
“This much?” She sits up and leans in, her eyes suddenly serious. “Wei Wuxian, this is getting out of hand. It’s been years. Why don’t you just spread a rumor back, tell everyone that it’s not true?”
“If it were that easy, don’t you think I would’ve done it already?”
“Well then, use this time to get your mind off things. Entertain yourself.” She sighs. “The Jins are coming, which is why it’s my ball. One of them—Jin Zixuan—has bought Koi Tower up the road and is moving in soon. Supposedly, he’s bringing a whole entourage, and none of them know who you are. Some of them are also quite...stiff-necked.”
“Are you implying something?” Wei Wuxian asks with a faux-offended frown. “I’m not a pest . I just like having fun like a normal person.”
“No implication,” Luo Qingyang says, perfectly innocent. “I’m just saying it might be more interesting than going fishing in that creek. It has nothing in it, and you don’t know how to fish anyway.”
“Hey! Did Jiang Cheng tell you that?”
“Yes, but your failed fishing attempts aren’t exactly a secret. We can see you down there. It would help if you used a pole.”
“I seem like more of a man if I catch one with my hands.”
“Not if there’s nothing in the water. Which there isn’t.” She pauses and then adds, “Just come, alright? It’ll be fun. For old time’s sake? If anything, I’ll be there and we can play cards in a corner or something.”
“Fine. Only for you though, princess.” He gets to his feet, brushes himself off, and lifts her hand. When he kisses it, she slaps him with her other one, and he laughs and runs up the hill toward Jiang Fengmian’s Lotus Pier with his best friend hot on his heels. For an instant, he lets himself believe that they’re children again, without a worry in the world, and then he remembers.
He’s agreed to attend a damned ball.