"Baba, will you read us a story?" A-Yuan yawns, climbing onto Wei Ying's lap, already half asleep.

Wei Ying hugs him close, thinking that he has missed too many of these nights, too many times when A-Yuan had to go to sleep without a story from his Baba. And JingYi had so many of these to catch up on, it was a tragedy.

He turns to Lan Zhan, standing up.

"Do you have any children's books here? I forgot to bring any from home," he says, looking hopeful.

JingYi has made himself comfortable in Lan Zhan's lap, eyes already shut.

"I am not sure-"

Before he can even finish that sentence, Uncle Qiren is handing over three Dr. Seuss classics: Green Eggs and Ham, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and The Cat in the Hat.

His ears are terribly red.

Wei Ying and Lan Zhan are in shock as he turns and walks away.

***************

Wei Ying leans down and brushes their foreheads with his lips, smiling down at the children fast asleep. Lan Zhan does the same, and then they leave the bunny night light on and leave the door ajar as they exit the boys' bedroom in Lan Zhan's suite.

They meet Uncle Qiren outside, and he's holding his blanket and a couple of books.

"I thought I would read in there, just outside their room. In case they need anything," he clears his throat uncomfortably. "Until you return."

Wei Ying's eyes fill with tears at the sudden realisation of how much this man has done for their family.

"Uncle, can I please hug you?" He says, at the same time that Lan Zhan turns to look at him because his blood is suddenly smelling different, and Uncle Qiren throws a panicked look towards his nephew, who glares back with lightning speed, silently saying, you-better-and-I'm-not-asking.

Uncle Qiren doesn't even have time to nod before Wei Ying is in his arms and squeezing him tightly.

Uncle Qiren doesn't do hugs.

Uncle Qiren can't even remember the last time someone hugged him, or, and this is worse, the last time someone wanted to.

So he's shocked to find that it isn't as bad as he thought it would be.

"Thank you, Mr. Lan. You've brought us into your family and welcomed us so wonderfully, I can't even begin to express my gratitude." Wei Ying is blinking back his tears but there are so many, already overflowing down his cheeks. He sniffs, and the action reminds Lan Zhan of his bunnies.

Uncle Qiren pats his back awkwardly, huffing in response. His ears have gone past the horribly red stage to need-fire-extinguishers-stat colour. Quietly, he takes Wei Ying's left hand with the candy replica engagement ring.

For a second, both Lan Zhan and Wei Ying are holding their breaths, waiting for his reaction to their engagement.

"Is this true?" He looks at Lan Zhan, who then comes to stand protectively beside Wei Ying, his arm wrapping around Wei Ying's waist, a clear show of his claim.

"Mn." Lan Zhan has always been able to hold himself in check, able to wait until whoever he happened to be negotiating with (because Lan Zhan didn't 'chat') to reveal their thoughts first, before himself.

Now is no exception, so he waits for Uncle Qiren to continue.

"If you are engaged to my nephew, then you should call me Uncle or Shifu." He says calmly, as if he hasn't just exceeded any expectations from the young men standing in front of him, ready to justify their actions.

"Okay...Shifu. Uncle." Wei Ying is tripping over his words because he's so surprised.

He's called the senior Lan that to their children since it sounded less scary and intimidating than the more formal Mr. Lan, but now he was getting permission? From the man himself?

This was highly unexpected because they hadn't even been aware of each other a few weeks ago, and now Wei Ying was being officially welcomed into his family.

It was surreal.

Vampires seem more real and terrifying than this...

"Family does not say thank you." Uncle Qiren moves past him into the room behind them, a clear dismissal.

Though he may or may not have been afraid that Wei Ying would try to hug him again, hence the hasty retreat.

Wei Ying looks up at Lan Zhan smiling down at him, and he closes his eyes when Lan Zhan kisses his forehead.

This is more than he ever thought he would be able to have, all this love and acceptances from unlikely sources. He wraps his arms around Lan Zhan's waist and hugs him back, too emotional to be able to speak for now.

*************

They're sitting in the study waiting for Huaisang to turn up. Wei Ying is nervous, his knee bouncing up and down, expelling some of his excess energy, and Lan Zhan can smell the spike in his blood. It's a tangible thing, when Wei Ying reaches across to grab his wrist and turn it over so he can see the time on his watch, instead of looking at his phone.

Lan Zhan doesn't think he'll ever get used to it, the simmering joy that lives just under his skin at all times, waiting to blow up into a fiery need of electricity burning his nerves to a cinder every time Wei Ying touches him. It's the thrill of his touch, the snap of his realisation that this beautiful man loves him back, and the novelty of it.

It feels so new, and yet somehow, it is a feeling so right that he thinks he must have known Wei Ying in another life. There can be no other explanation for this certainty, the ease with which they are together, and the comfortable understanding that forever hums between them like a well-oiled engine, ready to go at a moment's notice.

Wei Ying sighs again; it's not yet eight o'clock.

"Anxious?" Lan Zhan brings his left hand up to kiss the ring on Wei Ying's third finger. He notes with deep satisfaction that Wei Ying hasn't taken it off once since he first began wearing it.

"Yeah." Wei Ying's eyes drift towards Lan Zhan's lips for a second, and the flash of desire is unmistakable. But he's back to business by the time he looks into Lan Zhan's brilliant, alert and perhaps constantly hungry eyes.

Regretfully, Lan Zhan tells himself that they will be alone later, and for now, it would be prudent not to think about the really hot body right next to himself.

"Why?" He forces himself to concentrate on what Wei Ying is saying, rather than the shape of his lips, how they're slightly pinker because Wei Ying has been gnawing on the bottom one out of nerves.

"This may sound silly, but I don't want to go back and face Wen Qing. Like, I can't get rid of this feeling I have, that she's going to take one look at my face and know that I don't trust her anymore. Like she'll suddenly develop psychic powers and will know about my grandmother's plans just by looking at me. Plus, ugh, Wen Laboratories. This is the third time we're going back, and I hate it. It's claustrophobic despite its size and I've had the worst experiences there. So..." he smiles ruefully, a little out of breath with his tirade.

"Nothing Wei Ying says is silly," Lan Zhan tells him adamantly. He ponders on Wei Ying's next problem of how to dupe Wen Qing.

Wei Ying isn't wrong in the assumption that Wen Qing might be able to tell something is wrong; she's an incredibly astute woman, probably used to talking with less than cooperative patients lying about their symptoms, so it's not a stretch to say that she's more intuitive than most. And factoring Wei Ying's open nature, how honest he is, not just verbally but with every gesture, every sigh.

Tonight is going to be difficult.

"How do you do it?" Wei Ying suddenly says, climbing into his lap to be closer.

"Mn? Do what?" Lan Zhan asks him, curious but not so much that he can't let himself enjoy a lap full of warm Wei Ying, eager and excited suddenly.

Wei Ying looks radiant despite the smudge of worry underneath his starlight, shimmering eyes, still bright after the emotional heaviness of today. He's left his lustrous locks in a high ponytail, his red ribbon tied around it and leaving the ends to dangle down his back. A few dark strands have escaped, framing his round cheeks and adding to his overall beauty. Lan Zhan feels lucky all over again.

He thanks the Universe for letting Wei Ying be the first one to find him in that alley, all those weeks ago.

It doesn't bear thinking about, that it could have been anyone else.

"How do you keep your face so...so...the same? I mean, I know you. I can usually look at you and know what you're feeling, thinking, and so on. But I know that's not the same for everyone, because they're not looking hard enough. So my question is, how do you do it?" Wei Ying rests his forearms on Lan Zhan's shoulders, letting them dangle casually behind him.

Lan Zhan has to think about it.

"I think, after I came back from the hospital visit. Everything had changed."

Wei Ying is instantly contrite. "My love! I'm sorry! I didn't think. We don't have to talk about it," he leans forward and presses his lips against Lan Zhan's forehead, lingering to express his regret at asking a question which was going to lead to painful answers.

"No need to be sorry," Lan Zhan lightly tells him off, kissing his nose.

"Hmm...you don't look upset..." Wei Ying studies him.

"I am not," Lan Zhan says with wonder.

It's the truth, and he's amazed because talking about that time, just after he lost his mother, even remembering it and the memories of his life trying to deal with that trauma had been too painful, too sad for Lan Zhan to deal with. But now he can, and he knows the reason why.

"These past few weeks, Wei Ying has helped to give me my mother back. I cannot say when it happened exactly, but I feel better talking about her. I can," he adds with a little smile. "When before, I could not at all."

It's an astonishing thought.

"Do you think you had somehow talked yourself into suppressing thoughts about her, then?" Wei Ying asks him, rubbing their noses together.

It is an unconscious action, and yet it reminds Lan Zhan of the many times his mother used to do that, calling him her little bunny. Maybe that was why Lan Zhan responded so well to Da Tuzi, because he had called Lan Zhan 'Xiao Tuzi' immediately afterwards.

"Mn. People who visited us here often expressed the courtesy of acknowledging my mother's death. It was in the papers," he remembers. "There is a horrible hunger in those kinds of people, to keep going on about the last story, of how she passed away, how sad they were even when they did not know her. I wanted to ask them, if they felt so bad now, after her death, why had they not bothered to visit her when she was alive? She was so lonely in those last few weeks. Sad."

Wei Ying wipes away the wet drops rolling down his cheeks.

"I didn't mean to make you sad," he whispers.

"I am not sad about that," Lan Zhan takes an unnecessary deep breath, wanting to explain himself better.

"Then?" Wei Ying gives up and hugs him, a fierce one that automatically makes Lan Zhan feel immediately better. His arms come around Wei Ying's body naturally, holding him close.

This must be what heaven feels like, something so right.

"It was easier not to show emotions openly. It used to upset my brother, and my uncle and I did not want to do that. But to those wolves hiding in sheepskin, my every tear was an excuse to dig into my wounds. They fed upon my pain. So I practised in the mirror until none of my feelings were exposed. I gave them nothing and it worked, because it made the conversation awkward, and they ended up looking silly." Lan Zhan sounds proud of that. "But I do not think this is the correct way for Wei Ying."

"Why?"

"Some people are like hardy flowers; they bloom whether the sun is shining or even if there's a storm raging upon them. My Wei Ying is like that. No way to hide his feelings."

"Lan Zhaaaan!" His voice is muffled against Lan Zhan's shoulder, the heat of his red face warm against his skin with only the thin cotton layer of his shirt between them. "Think of my fragile little heart!"

Lan Zhan simply smiles, kissing the side of his head.

"I have an idea of how to make this easier, tonight," he clarifies.

"Yeah? I'll do anything!" Wei Ying promises, eagerly listening. "Tell me."

"Our thoughts make up our expressions, yes?"

Wei Ying nods at him, the focus of all his attention.

"So perhaps, if Wei Ying can think back to the times that Wen Qing came over to babysit A-Yuan, whenever she did anything kind for you both, if you keep those thoughts in your head whenever you have to talk to her, remembering how you felt because of her actions, maybe you can avoid her detection. It's a slim chance, but I believe in Wei Ying's ability to pull it off."

"Just you saying that? It makes me believe in me." Wei Ying tells him, sounding a lot more hopeful now. "I used to think about the subtleties of the Universe like that."

"Mn?"

"Well, it happened so often that I kept thinking there was a connection between my thoughts and the "signs" of the Universe." Wei Ying makes the speech mark sign around the word.

"Please explain." Lan Zhan watches him curiously.

"So I'd be listening to a random song, and it would remind me of something, for example, about how much A-Yuan loves cheese, and I'd pick up some, only for him to request it on his eggs the next day for breakfast. He never did any tantrums or anything, really, the best kid given my financial woes back then, but I would've hated not being able to give him that smallest of wishes, you know what I mean?"

Da Tuzi knocks on the door and tells them that Nie Huaisang is waiting in the entrance of the manor for them, so they stand up to go and meet him.

"There were other things too, popping up randomly to grab my attention, and then something would happen to make them make sense. So I started wondering if everything was somehow connected in the most bizarre way. What if, in the most subliminal way, all of our thoughts are connected, to like, a higher power maybe? What if the Universe just wants us to be happy and keeps giving us signs so that we can be, but we're too focused on what's happening around us, and the next thing we've got to do, all the chores in our busy days, work etc, to notice? What if, all we have to do is stop everything and just look around for a moment to see it?"

Da Tuzi has disappeared, and they're standing just outside the door behind which Huaisang is standing.

But Lan Zhan pulls Wei Ying into a tight hug.

"Wei Ying is amazing," he whispers, validating Wei Ying's thoughts.

It was the first time Wei Ying had told anyone about this, normally worrying about being seen as a nutter for thinking hippy shit, as most people often slagged off thoughts about a higher power. Telling Lan Zhan was an act of supreme trust; only he hadn't imagined it would be taken so seriously, or that Lan Zhan would agree with him, and even more astonishingly, be in awe of it.

His fiancé was amazing.

Embarrassed, Wei Ying pats his back fondly.

"Now, let's chew gum and kick some ass!" He takes Lan Zhan's hand and they go out to meet Huaisang.

******************

"Aren't you going to, I don't know, blindfold me?" Huaisang asks, after they've been driving for about five minutes.

"What's the point?" Wei Ying questions that, cheerfully. "I bet someone who can recommend tracking device installed bracelets probably has a location history app on their phone."

Huaisang has the good grace to blush.

He's silent all the way to the National park and recs visitor's office, only the widening of his eyes giving away his astonishment at the expensive cars parked in the underground car park.

Xiao XingChen is waiting for them when they exit Lan Zhan's white Sports car.

"Welcome," he bows to them, an enigmatic smile playing on his lips.

They bow back and follow him to the elevator. Lan Zhan holds out his hand for Wei Ying, calling out, "Qinaide*." (*Beloved in Chinese).

That single word makes all the others turn to stare back at him, not sure if their ears are playing tricks on them. Wei Ying titters and the spell is broken as Xiao XingChen rolls his eyes, huffing out a sigh.

Huaisang definitely wants to know more about this, but they've just reached the correct floor, where Baoshan Sanren is waiting for them.

Tonight, she's wearing a fabulous Versace gown, all glittering rubies in a single line all the way to the floor and looping around her neck. The fabric is shimmering and catches the light, clinging to her lithe frame like a second skin, held in at her waist with an oxidised gunmetal chain hanging precariously on her slim hips, the two uneven lengths swinging at her side and chiming as she walks. The dress flares out in a circular cut at the bottom, reminding Wei Ying of medieval times.

His grandmother looks gorgeous this evening.

He celebrates the fact by giving her a naughty wolf whistle, and she throws back her head to laugh out loud. She winks at both Lan Zhan and Wei Ying, before turning her attention onto Huaisang.

"Welcome," she says, grinning at him.

Huaisang is looking all around himself, because there's certainly lots to see.

While Baoshan Sanren and Xiao XingChen take him inside one particular lab to show him part of their careful work, and the studies they conduct with different blood groups and their reactions to venom, and vice versa, Wei Ying holds Lan Zhan back so they're waiting outside the glass rooms.

He doesn't want to interrupt Baoshan Sanren on her tour of this floor, but at the same time, Wei Ying has a question for Lan Zhan.

"Qinaide?" He raises a brow, lips upturned still in barely held back laughter.

"Mn. I thought, since the pet names in English had garnered ridicule, I would try to fit one in our mother tongue." Lan Zhan looks way too sincere for Wei Ying to doubt him.

They're facing each other, and Wei Ying takes both of Lan Zhan's big hands in his own. Lifting them up to his mouth one by one, he kisses the back of them gently, keeping his eyes on his beloved.

"Lan Zhan... I want you to know, you don't have to find a pet name for me. I'm absolutely serious. This may sound silly but," he chewed on his bottom lip, "I love the way you say my name. You say it differently than anyone else, and that's the difference. It's not just your voice, or that deep tone you use when it's just the two of us, it's so much more than any of those things. It's you. You're the difference."

"So... Wei Ying does not like the names I chose." He decides that, and then pouts, fiercely.

Delighted with that expression, Wei Ying throws his arms around Lan Zhan's neck, giggling openly.

"You're too cute for words!"

*****************

Baoshan Sanren takes them back to her office when they've finished looking around that floor. She pours out generous amounts of Emperor's Smile in three glasses after Lan Zhan and Xiao XingChen declined, and Mo XuanYu begged for a taste, but he was told in a no mistaking tone that he was underage and not getting any.

Huaisang seems to be very interested in him, because Mo XuanYu is obviously fiddling around on a high tech computer with three monitors all going at once, and a gazillion tabs open simultaneously. However, his attention returns to Baoshan Sanren when she puts her glass down and clears her throat loudly on purpose.

"So, do you choose to come with us tonight?" Baoshan Sanren crosses one leg over the other, and the dress reveals a tantalising slit that rides up her thigh. There's enough material in the flare of her skirt to hide her bare skin, and she smiles to herself when she catches Huaisang looking.

"I want to come with you," Huaisang says, his tone neutral, gaze sharply assessing.

Wei Ying thinks, with the way they're both checking each other out, it resembles a Mexican standoff, minus the guns. Though he wouldn't put it past his grandmother to be wearing a thigh holster for fun.

Huaisang better watch out.

Wei Ying takes a healthy sip out of his own cup, smiling when Lan Zhan pushes it out of his range. He remembers the last time he drank the same drink, and how easily he had succumbed to its rich, powerful potency.

"Then that means you agree to the terms." No nonsense in her tone.

"Just to clarify, you want me to verify and run past you everything I want to put out there, before publication." To his credit, Huaisang doesn't sound scornful, or disrespectful in any way, just a tad laced with disbelief.

"Yes. It's to protect you as well, just so we're clear. We are trusting you with full transparency, and we would appreciate the same respect from you. At the moment, we are friends." She doesn't need to add that it can change at any time. It's both a reassurance, and a threat.

"I understand, and I agree to your terms." Huaisang replies, sounding firm and strong, sure about his decision.

"Very well, then I'll bring you up to speed. It's better if you know as much as we do so that we're all on the same page, and you're not caught off guard by anything that is discussed at the meeting tonight." Baoshan Sanren drains her glass and pours herself another one. "You're not drinking?" She asks him with a raised brow.

"No. If possible, I wish to remain alert tonight." Huaisang tilts his head in respect towards her. But it's written all over his face that he wasn't expecting Baoshan Sanren to be so candid.

"Alright. Personally though, it's nice to take the edge away for where we're going and what we have to do." She drains her second glass.

"See? Just to take away the edge," Wei Ying whispers, reaching for his glass again. "It's probably going to be extremely boring tonight."

Lan Zhan smirks. "What edge? Wei Ying is already soft like jelly!" But he brings the glass closer to his beloved. He doesn't think he can deny Wei Ying anything he wants, ever.

Baoshan Sanren holds out a closed fist towards Huaisang, with her other hand in an 'L' shape made from her first finger and thumb, using the former to count out her points on the fingers of her fist, releasing each one with every point or piece of information she imparts.

"Number one, Wen Rouhan is dead. Number two, Wen Qing is acting head at the moment, but that could change depending on their board of directors. Since she's been sucking up to them from the beginning, I reckon it's a safe bet. Number three, the missing people you found out about, the majority of them are under the influence of a highly addictive drug manufactured by the Wens; Wen Qing has promised to do her best to find a cure or at least, stop them from going feral. How much of that is the truth, or if she's just paying us lip service, remains to be seen. Number four, Wen Qing is in control of a number of sensitive items and documents, but the ones we're interested in belonged to my late husband. While she's promised to return these, in the event that she refuses to, or "forgets"," she makes the speech mark signs, "then it may well turn out that we will be hiring you, ourselves."

Of course, Wei Ying notices that she's being vague on purpose about what they want returned from Wen Qing, and he's grateful that she's so ready to protect the children, given how vulnerable they are. Secondly, he thinks that's a brilliant plan, counter exposure as a threat, should Wen Qing renege on their deal.

Also, the not-so-subtle bombardment of information, all of it shocking and with severe repercussions, is a power move intended to overwhelm Huaisang into forgetting certain parts of whatever she's telling him.

Wei Ying smirks, draining his glass, too.

His grandmother is a genius.

"So, are we ready?" He grabs Lan Zhan's wrist again, to check the time.

It's 8.45pm.

Fifteen minutes to get there.

"Yes. We can answer any remaining questions in the car, on the way there." Baoshan Sanren stands up, motioning towards Xiao XingChen. "Do you two want to wait by the car while I check my purse?"

Huaisang has no choice but to go, and Xiao XingChen grins at her lame excuse, while Wei Ying pretends to tie his shoelaces until they leave.

He nudges her gently after the door closes behind the two who have left the room.

"I've never seen you with a purse, grandmother," he giggles.

"And you never will, unless I have to strangle someone with it," she replies casually, as if she's tried that before.

"Okay, so spill. What did you want to tell us without Huaisang here?"