Chapter Text
Thing about this weird not quite canon world of PIDW was that Shang Qinghua really didn’t know what freaky things from his draft folder were eventually gonna show up, in the worst possible time and place, naturally.
Take Shen Jiu’s elaborate backstory for example. If he’d had ANY idea he would actually have to come face to face with his not so one dimensional Scum Villain, well he probably would have made more of an effort to give the guy some redemption. Shen Jiu wasn’t supposed to be a good man, certainly, and yeah he definitely had issues with anger and projecting all his issues onto other people, but- he wasn’t a bad man either! Not really. Not deep down.
And in spite of Shang Qinghua’s best efforts, he really hadn’t been able to do anything to improve Shen Jiu’s life thus far. Right now, all the head disciples had their Qing-generational courtesy names, but the An-generation had yet to ascend. Frankly, they kept hoping the Qing generation would somehow manage to work through some of their interpersonal drama-not that they called it that of course. Insert a big fucking sigh, Shang Qinghua thought.
Instead of being forced to attend the An generation Peak Lord meetings, they now had their own version. These Not-Quite-Peak-Lord meetings brought to light every single problem between the Qing generation Lords.
Yue Qingyuan and his refusal to see how he inadvertently antagonized Shen Qingqiu constantly. Shen Jiu and his ability to see that by assuming the worst of everyone all the time, he was making his own life substantially worse.
Liu Qingge for being so fucking uptight that he refused to use any critical thinking at ALL when it came to Shen Jiu.
Qi Qingqi and her insistence on passing on rumors without knowing the facts caused no matter of grief to again, Shen Jiu, but also to Shang Qinghua too!
Mu Qingfang was probably the most even keeled out of all of them, but he had to be, as their top physician. But even he refused to look past the sharp exterior Shen Jiu presented to the world and stopped making an effort to understand the man. Of course, Shen Jiu immediately assumed that Mu Qingfang wanted nothing to do with him, and assumed that the doctor would refuse to treat him.
It wasn’t true, Shang Qinghua knew, Mu Qingfang absolutely would have done everything possible to help Shen Jiu if the man tried just a little.
Unfortunately, life had taught the next Qing Jing Peak Lord from an early age that no one was coming to help him.
But Shang Qinghua wanted to! He wanted to help him! All of this was his own fault, and he felt awful about it.
Mercifully, the meeting eventually ended and Shang Qinghua gathered his papers and headed for the exit. He nodded at Shen Jiu as he left and avoided Yue Qingyuan’s eyes completely. Once outside, he muttered, “What a shit show.” Someone behind him snorted, and Shang Qinghua whipped around, startled.
Shen Qingqiu was behind him, fluttering his fan gently in front of his face, peering at him with narrowed eyes. “Shang-Shidi, you don’t enjoy these meetings?” he drawled.
Shang Qinghua rolled his eyes. “They’re not very enjoyable, Shixiong,” he said truthfully. Shen Jiu merely stood there watching him with sharp eyes. Jiu-ge please! Have mercy on this poor author! Those looks are lethal! Shang Qinghua swallowed nervously, and words spilled out. “Would you like to join me for tea?” Wait, what did he just say??
“For what purpose,” Shen Jiu asked silkily.
Stuttering, Shang Qinghua said, “I-I like tea? And, um, I thought that you might also, and oh! I actually have a nice blend I just picked up, and-” He stopped when Shen Jiu held up an elegant hand.
Shen Jiu lowered his fan. “Fine.” he said. After staring at Shang Qinghua for several long seconds, Shen Jiu looked annoyed then added. “When?”
Relieved, Shang Qinghua actually smiled, “Oh, that’s lovely,” he said, and meant it. “We could, I mean, I’m available now, if you-”
“I will follow you,” Shen Shixiong said, then manifested his sword.
Heart sinking, Shang Qinghua said, “I, um, if you don’t mind, can we, I don’t usually just fly around, I mean I’m not very good at it, and you probably don’t want to have to save me if I fall off-”
Tilting his head to the side like he thought Shang Qinghua might be slightly insane Shen Jiu asked, “I’m surprised you would admit such a weakness to me, Shidi.”
Shang Qinghua wanted to cry. “Well, you- you’re my Shixiong, and, and, no one’s perfect! I bet there’s things you’re not good at too!” He looked at the ground, afraid to see the look on Shen Jiu’s face.
“Are you bullying Shang Shixiong, Shen Qingqiu?” Liu Qingge demanded from behind them.
Fuck, Shang Qinghua had completely forgotten that they really hadn’t moved that far away from the building.
“As usual, Liu Qingge jumps to the complete wrong conclusions. Do you even use the brain in that thick skull at all?” Shen Jiu said acidly. He looked toward Shang Qinghua. “Shang-Shidi,” he said almost gently, “Would you like me to fly us there?”
“Shen!” LQG sounded ready to spit.
“Yes!” Shang Qinghua yelped, moving closer (CLOSER!) to Shen Jiu, close enough that he smelled his hair oil. He stepped up onto Xiu Ya behind Shen Jiu. As they ascended, he called down, “And he wasn’t bullying me!” Honestly, Liu Qingge should just mind his business.
“Oh, I agree completely,” Shen Jiu said with feeling, and Shang Qinghua realized he’d been thinking out loud again.
Clutching Shen Jiu’s robes as they sped over the Peaks toward An Ding, Shang Qinghua couldn’t help but be a little excited that Shen Jiu had accepted his invitation at all. Wasn’t he notoriously standoffish? Wasn’t he supposed to favor his solitude? It had to be lonely, Shang Qinghua thought, especially since the number of people willing to have a normal conversation with the man wasn’t very high.
Shen Qingqiu brought them close to the ground right where the rainbow bridge connected to An Ding Peak. Shang Qinghua hopped off and instinctively, held out a hand to help Shen Qingqiu down, who blinked in surprise at the offer.
Shen Qingqiu cleared his throat. “Ah, no need.”
Awkwardly, Shang Qingua lowered his hand. What was he even thinking? Of course Shen Jiu didn’t need his help to get off his SWORD. He’s such an idiot.
“Thank you, anyway.” Shen Qingqiu said, not quite meeting Shang Qinghua’s eyes. He disappeared the sword into his spatial storage.
When Shang Qinghua chanced a peek at his shixiong’s face, he caught a faint hue of pink across his normally jade-like cheeks. Feeling his own face get hot, he gestured to the walkway which headed up in a spiral. “This way, Shixiong,” he murmured.
This whole thing was extremely poorly thought out on Shang Qinghua’s part. His leisure house was a total mess! He could probably get a disciple to bring them some snacks and he really did have some nice tea that Shen Qingqiu might like. No matter how nervous he was about this, he was not about to renege on his offer.
When they got to the top of the walkway, the path opened up to a wider open space with various gardens and homes. The inner disciples lived up here. An Ding Peak, dealing with logistics, was necessarily one of the biggest Peaks. Instead of one large peak, it was made up of more than ten smaller peaks, but all connected by bridges. Consequently, it was home to a large number of natural waterfalls, and the sound of running water was unexpectedly peaceful.
Shang Qinghua tugged at Shen Qingqiu’s sleeve for a moment to get the other Peak Lord’s attention. “If we take the second left turn, my home is at the end.” Friendly disciples greeted Shang Qinghua with a cheerful “Good afternoon, Shixiong!” Some kids did a double take as they saw who accompanied him, and Shang Qinghua couldn’t help but chuckle at their startled little faces. “Ah, come say hello to Shen Shibo! Were you lot raised in a barn? Manners!” He scolded gently.
Beside him, Shen Qingqiu gave Shang Qinghua an inscrutable glance then nodded politely at the bowing disciples who chorussed “Disciples greet Shen Shibo!”
One of the littlest Shimeis, Shi Hong, looked up at Shen Qingqiu with wide eyes. He caught her looking and said, “Yes?”
“Shen Shibo…is it true you have the prettiest Sword in the whole Sect? That’s what Shang Shixiong always says!”
Shang Qinghua ponders if he could get away with first killing this silly little girl, and then himself. He covers his face with his hands, horrified. He did always say that but no one was supposed to HEAR IT!
Shen Jiu gave him an appraising glance, while Shang Qinghua peeked through his fingers and wished for death. However, he said to the girl. “Would you like to see and decide for yourself? One can never trust rumors.”
Her eyes lit up and she bounced on her feet. “Please, Shen Shibo!”
Drawing his sword from his spatial storage, he unsheathed it for her to look at. Xiu Ya glowed a clear, light green. The blade itself was etched with bamboo leaves, and their outlines glowed a slightly brighter green. It really was lovely.
The longer Hong-er looked, the brighter Xiu Ya became, and it took a moment to realize that Shen Qingqiu was showing off for his little disciple!
“Well,” Shen Jiu prodded, “What does Shizhi think?”
“It’s so beautiful!” Little Hong-er looked like Shen Qingqiu hung the sun and moon.
“All right, all right,” Shang Qinghua said. “We’re going to need some snacks for our tea, Hong-er, can I trust you to bring us some?”
“Yes, Shixiong!” She turned to Shen Qingqiu and gave him a perfect bow. “Thanking Shen Shibo for letting this one see his pretty sword!”
“That was…remarkably kind of you, Shixiong,” Shang Qinghua said as they started down the path again. Did his eyes deceive him? Was his Scum Villian smiling a little bit?
“Little girls are generally easy to make happy.” Shen Qingqiu murmurs, keeping his face forward.
Too bad most Peak Lords aren’t that easy to please, Shang Qinghua thought.
“It's not that it’s hard,” Shen QingQiu said. (Fuck, was he thinking out loud again?) “It’s that they want unreasonable things. Liu Qingge wants respect when he gives none. Others seek forgiveness for things unforgivable.” He walked a few more paces. “As for Mu Qingfang, he would likely be happier staying a disciple, instead he’s stuck with this bureaucracy. As for Qi Qingqi, who knows?”
Shang Qinghua hesitantly said, “And myself? What are your thoughts on that Shixiong?” He was not expecting Shen Jiu to stop in the middle of the path, turning to face him directly. He searched Shang Qinghua’s eyes for something.
“This master thinks Shang Shidi may be the easiest to please of all.” He did not elaborate any further, spiking Shang Qinghua’s curiosity.
When they reached Shang Qinghua’s Leisure House, Shang Qinghua finally found the courage to say, "Please excuse the mess inside, Shen-Shixiong." Fortunately, although his desk was certainly cluttered, the rest of the visible house was not too bad. Now that he was the next Peak Lord a disciple came by a couple times a week to straighten up and blessed gods above, today must have been such a day.
“Please sit, Shen Shixiong, while I prepare the tea.” He gestured at the kneeling table in the south corner. The paper windows were open to let the breeze through, and the sound of the waterfalls traveled well on the air. He had several potted plants near the table as well, giving the entire corner a homey feel.
As Shen Qingqiu settled himself, Shang Qinghua called from the small kitchen, “This is Da Hong Poa tea, imported from the Wuyi mountains. It’s said that this tea cured the mother of an Emperor from a wasting illness. Not that I think you need anything like that,” he hastened to add. He carefully filled the teapot one third full with the precious tea leaves. He used a talisman to heat the water in a separate pot to boiling.“It’s just incredibly rare and difficult to get a hold of." Once the water was the appropriate temperature, he filled the teapot three quarts of the way up, then discarded the water to rid the tea of dirt or any dust. This also helped the leaves open to release their full flavor on infusion.“I think there’s only something like six bushes left in existence, but one of the tradesman owed me a favor so-”
“So you naturally thought of this Master when you have a rare and expensive tea?” Shen Jiu sounded a little skeptical.
Shang Qinghua refilled the tea pot with the hot water. This particular tea had a very fast steep time, just 15-60 seconds. He brought the tea service on a silver tray to the table. “I just knew, I mean I thought that you might appreciate such a rare blend.” He poured Shen Jiu’s cup, then his own.
Shen Jiu said, “You flatter this Master.” He brought his cup close to his face and breathed in the delicate flavor. After he drank his cup, he added, “As you say, a lovely blend.”
The silence that fell was almost companionable, but broken but a knock at the door. Shang Qinghua called, “Come.”
The little disciple, Hong-er and one of her older Shijies entered carrying platters for the two Peak Lords. One filled with osmanthus cakes and the other with lotus seed paste dumplings. The girls laid out dishes and left the snacks.
“Please help yourself, but this Shidi thinks you will find the osmanthus cakes pleasing.” Shang Qinghua said, leaning forward. Of course he knew all about Shen Jiu’s love of sweets. He also knew that the other man preferred to indulge in the privacy of his Bamboo house.
Shen Qingqiu gave him another rather inscrutable look, like Shang Qinghua was a puzzle he was trying to figure out. Finally, he asked calmly, “Is there something you need from this Master? If so, please say it.”
Ah Shen Shixiong, so suspicious! This author just wanted to do something nice for you! Shang Qinghua set his cup down and looked at the table. He wanted to make sure he didn’t screw his words up. Shen Qingqiu would see straight through any lies, and if he thought he was being pitied, he’d be furious. Finally, he peeked up from under his eyelashes at Shen Qingqiu. “This Master has seen the way some other people have talked to Peak Lord Shen, and it has never sat well with this one.” Shen Qingqiu keeps glaring at him like a laser beam. “This Master has no ulterior motives except companionship and friendship with Shen Shixiong.” Shang Qinghua feels himself getting more and more hesitant the longer he talks. Say something Jiu-ge!
Shen Jiu’s face does not even twitch. He carefully sets his teacup down. “You want…my company?”
“Yes?” Shang Qinghua manages. “I mean, you’ve been nice company so far?”
The other man searches his face for what seems like a long time. Shang Qinghua tries to maintain eye contact, he really does, but Shen Qingqiu is really absurdly pretty, and he can’t help feeling like a blushing stuttering mess. It doesn’t help that Shang Qinghua doesn’t exactly meet the xianxia standards of beauty and he knows it. So many other of the Peak Lords could be models in the other world and Shang Qinghua-well. He’d rather not think about it.
Finally, Shen Qinqqiu sighs like he’s terribly tired. But then! He reaches out and snares an osmanthus cake! “Fine,” he says, and takes a bite.
“Fine?” Shang Qinqhua echoes dumbly.
“Yes, Shidi, fine, your terms are acceptable.” Shen Qingqiu is not looking at him, but somewhere over his left shoulder.
Terms? Oh.
OH.
Companionship and friendship.
“Really?” Shang Qinghua asks, delighted.
“No, I’m lying just to mess with you, yes really!” Shen Qinqqiu says tartly.
“I’m really glad to hear that! Would you care for more tea?” Shang Qinghua asks eagerly.
Wiping his mouth carefully with the napkin. Shen Qingqiu pushes his empty teacup over to Shang Qinghua. “This Master would.”