#While listening to the Lotus Seed extra I was like 'aw this art is so cute.' | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

safyrhawke01 · 5 years

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Young Petals of Lotus Cove

Written for Yunmengduodays2019 Words - 2683 Summary - Three children of Yunmeng Sect go on an outing to enjoy the peaceful day and make everlasting memories.

The skies were clear on this day, the azure heavens barely dotted with white clouds, as a gentle breeze blew over the grassy knolls and shining water. The sun shone brightly over the beautiful Lotus Cove while the people carried on their daily chores.

In one particular household, three children rushed about spacious hallways, with matching smiles and breathless laughter. Two boys and a girl. The latter was Jiang Yanli, the eldest child and only daughter of Sect Leader Jiang Fengmian and Lady Yu Ziyuan. The boys were Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng. Jiang Cheng was the Sect Leader's only son, but he raised both boys as his own.

Wei Wuxian was the son of Jiang Fengmian's deceased friends, Wei Changze and Cangse Sanren, whom he had taken under, after the boy's parents had perished. He was a cheerful boy whose face was carved with a perpetual smile. With the exception of a few initial conflicts between the boys, things had turned out fine.

Wei Wuxian was, in particular, really caring towards his elder sister. He treasured her presence and her kindness, and often behaved quite childishly with her.

On this particular day, the boys had planned an outing with their sister. Jiang Yanli had a wicker basket in her hand as she walked with her two younger brothers.

They made quite the pair, Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian, with their purple robes. They were barely eleven of age, and they were always up to mischief, just like any other boy of their age.

Jiang Yanli herself was dressed in soft shades of lavender, complete with a dark ribbon that matched with her lovely gown. Her long hair billowed with the gentle breeze and the women who caught sight of this could only express their appreciation in delightful whispers.

The ladies were workers who tended to the farms that lay beneath the mountains. One of them spoke to the other with a wide smile. "Look how beautiful Lady Jiang is. I'm sure she'll turn out to be a really pretty girl."

"I agree. And I'm sure many suitors will come asking for her!"

Wei Wuxian who overheard their conversation was quick to notify his sister of this. "Did you hear that, Shijie? You're gonna get a long list of suitors for you!"

Jiang Cheng huffed and looked ahead with a smug expression on his face. "Of course, our Shijie is the most perfect woman. I won't let any random guy marry her. He has to pass through me first and has to fulfill lots of conditions!"

"True! Even I will test him! Only the best guy deserves Shijie!" Exclaimed Wei Wuxian heartily.

This evoked gentle laughter from their sister. She stretched out her free hand and gently caressed both of their heads as her face warmed with love. "At this rate, you'll scare away all the boys and I’ll end up with nobody!" She said as she chuckled.

The three children made their way up the hill in a cheerful manner, laughing about nonsensical things and chasing fluttering butterflies. Wei Wuxian even managed to pluck a flower for his Shijie and offered it to her with a wide smile. After this, he ran over to Jiang Cheng and messed around with him for a while.

After reaching the summit, which consisted of a beautiful clearing that was surrounded by green grass and trees, Jiang Yanli halted and caught her breath.

The boys had already began running around and jumping about, but she needed a moment. She opened her basket and took out a white kite with a lotus embroidered on it. Just as she was getting out the rope, Jiang Cheng bounded over to her and yelled excitedly. "Hurry up, Shijie, I want to fly it! The wind's really powerful today and I want to fly mine as high as possible!"

Jiang Yanli smiled sweetly at her youngest brother and handed the kite to him with the utmost care. He took the kite carefully and ran over to the clearing.

The hill was not of a high altitude, and so they were allowed to fly kites there. The summit provided them a view of the entire Lotus Cove along with the blue lakes that surrounded their home. Jiang Yanli walked a few steps towards the summit and felt a sense of joy as she gazed at their abode. Their place was quaint and famous, just as much as the Cloud Recesses or Jinlintai. It was her haven. Her home.

Her thoughts were halted when she saw a white kite flying in her vision. She glanced to the side and was surprised to see Jiang Cheng flying it with all the poise that a young boy could muster.

He had recently recovered from an illness and it had been her idea to take him outside. Wei Wuxian had readily agreed to this and so had her father. The latter somehow convinced their mother and here they were.

Then, she spotted Wei Wuxian sitting silently by the tree, fiddling with a stick. She smiled to herself and made her way to him, leaving an excited Jiang Cheng to fly on his own.

It seemed that Wei Wuxian could entertain himself with anything, including ants. He was poking at a line of ants that were climbing the tree and was fascinated by them. He looked up just as Jiang Yanli reached him.

"A-Xian, what are you doing?" She asked softly, running her palms gently over his hair. He smiled at her and pointed to his stick. "These ants are really interesting, Shijie! Look, look how uniformly they move!" He said in awe.

Jiang Yanli stifled her laughter behind the sleeves of her dress and smiled at him. "They are indeed interesting, A-Xian, but wouldn't you rather fly a kite with Jiang Cheng?"

Wei Wuxian made a confused sound and looked towards Jiang Cheng. "Ah, but I don't know how to fly one, Shijie," he said with wide eyes. Jiang Yanli felt her heart tighten as she heard this. Of course, the boy didn't know. He had spent a good part of his childhood on the streets without money, so obviously he did not have parents to buy a kite for him, let alone fly it.

She sighed and walked back to where she had placed her basket. Wei Wuxian looked on curiously as his sister gestured for him to join her. With quick steps he reached her and was quite surprised to find her take out another kite.

This one was also white in color and had a lotus embroidered on it. It's rope was brown in color while Jiang Cheng's was white. She held onto the wooden sticks of the kite and smiled towards Wei Wuxian.

"Do you want to learn to fly one?" She asked. Wei Wuxian gave her a bright smile and nodded his head vigorously. "I thought there was only one kite, Shijie!"

Jiang Yanli bent down and gently placed a kiss on Wei Wuxian's forehead. She looked at him with eyes filled with love as she spoke. "I requested father to give me an extra one. You're like his son too. And I already accepted you as my brother from the first time I saved you from the tree. Jiang Cheng also looks up to you as his elder brother, so obviously you'll also get a kite."

Wei Wuxian's smile would have put the sun to shame with how bright it was. He quickly wrapped his tiny arms around her and murmured his thanks to her.

With his warm fingers in her grasp and the kite in another hand, she led him to where Jiang Cheng was flying his kite. She stood in front of Wei Wuxian and held it for him to examine it.

She pointed to each component of the kite and taught him the name and the purpose of it. Wei Wuxian listened intently and nodded when she was done.

She then stood facing the open area of the summit. She gave the rope line to Wei Wuxian, asking him to hold onto it. She then held up the kite by it's bridle and waited patiently for the wind to pick up. She looked down at Wei Wuxian when she felt the tug of the wind.

She released the bridle slowly and made sure to release it slowly. She then stood behind Wei Wuxian and gently gripped onto the rope line. She held them taut and began to slowly let out some line. The kite slowly raised in altitude and flew higher.

Wei Wuxian watched her movements with furrowed brows and rapt attention, making sure to observe the way she held it. Soon enough, the kite was high in the sky, flying almost as high as Jiang Cheng's.

She then glanced towards Wei Wuxian and nodded her head at him. She gently coaxed Wei Wuxian's fingers to hold onto the line while he instinctively gripped onto the rope reel with his free hand. She still held onto his hand and guided him carefully.

"Release the line slowly, A-Xian. When you feel the wind going really strong, hold onto the line and try not to tug on it too much. When you want to bring it down, slowly pull in the line and walk towards it," she said softly.

Wei Wuxian had his lip between his teeth as he focused on getting the kite to fly properly. After a few turbulent attempts, he managed to get the kite to steady. The tail of his kite moved gently in the breeze and it looked really majestic.

Wei Wuxian yelled in excitement and called out to Jiang Cheng. "A-Cheng, look, look I'm flying a kite too!"

Jiang Cheng laughed at him and goaded him to see if he could fly higher than him. Their sister only laughed at their antics.

Wei Wuxian soon had his kite higher than Jiang Cheng and he laughed enthusiastically. After a point, even Jiang Cheng's kite flew at the same altitude as his.

Two white kites with lavender lotuses and purple tails flew in the sky proudly above Lotus Cove. The boys were beside themselves with happiness. One was happy to have flown a kite after a long illness, while the other was happy to have learnt the art of flying one.

Both boys looked at each other with matching grins while their sister looked on with a proud smile. She let out a sigh as she saw the happy spectacle. The boys were very dear to her heart and she would do anything in the world to make them happy.

After an eventful day, the three of them decided to go on a boat ride over the lake. Sitting on the small boat, Jiang Yanli managed to collect quite a few seeds and pods, peeling them for the boys to eat.

Soon enough, a fight broke out between the boys, which led to Jiang Cheng toppling over the boat. This led to a roar of laughter from Wei Wuxian, who was quick enough to rescue him, even if he had been the one to push him. Jiang Yanli scolded both the boys and made them sit on opposite sides of the boat.

Both boys sat silently for a few moments before they began arguing again. They continued like that till they reached the pier, although they immediately disciplined themselves at the first call from Madam Yu.

Jiang Cheng received a scolding for getting wet while Wei Wuxian received an even severe scolding for Jiang Cheng's situation. This had no effect on the boy as he was used to this. They were fortunate that Madam Yu had not taken out her whip.

Jiang Yanli however, felt quite upset and she felt the need to rectify the situation. Even Jiang Cheng felt some amount of remorse.

Both the boys were sitting in the gazebo overlooking the lake with dejected expressions on their faces. The place was often visited by Madam Yu, but today the place was occupied by the boys. They had managed to light some lamps, and were sitting on the small chairs that faced the lake.

"Sorry for pushing you over the boat," came the soft whisper by Wei Wuxian. Jiang Cheng glanced at his older adopted brother with a soft frown on his face. "It's okay. I should not have made fun of your fear of dogs," he said in a regretful voice.

Jiang Cheng had earlier made a jibe at Wei Wuxian’s fear of dogs, for which the latter had pushed him, not knowing that his actions would cause him to fall off.

They equally felt remorse, and did not know what more to say or do.

After a few moments, however, they felt their mood immediately uplift as they saw their sister walk to the table with a tray in her hand. There was a big ceramic bowl on it with three smaller bowls and spoons. They eagerly looked on as she placed the tray over the small wooden table.

Jiang Yanli smiled at the boys and uncovered the big bowl, only to reveal their favorite dish. Lotus root and pork rib soup. Both boys let out sounds of excitement as their sister filled bowls with hot steamy soup.

"Shijie! When did you make this??" Asked Jiang Cheng with a surprised look on his face. She simply smiled at him and offered him a bowl. She then offered one to Wei Wuxian who obediently took the bowl.

"I managed to cook it while you two were sitting here," she said, moving over to where the boys were sat. They made space for her and subtly leaned against her side as she sat between them. Wei Wuxian looked up at her after taking a few sips. "Why did Shijie make the soup today?" He asked with curiosity.

She sighed and gently rubbed his back. "To celebrate," she muttered. It was Jiang Cheng's turn to give her a confused stare. "What exactly are we celebrating, Shijie?" He asked in an innocent manner.

She chuckled and kissed his cheek."You managed to recover from your illness, and A-Xian flew a kite for the first time. And, the soup is tasty. I think these are enough reasons now, aren't they?" She asked, winking at them.

Both the boys smiled widely and bobbed their heads. Wei Wuxian turned to his brother and nodded at him. "Congratulations for recovering, A-Cheng! I hope you stay healthy so that I can tease you more!" He said cheekily.

Jiang Cheng laughed and nodded as well, too tired to rise up to take the bait. "Congratulations for flying a kite, even if it's such a simple task!"

Jiang Yanli smiled despite herself and looked at the horizon. The sun was just setting and it cast a reddish hue over the vast lake. She sighed and wrapped an arm around both of them. "Promise me that we'll stay like this forever," she whispered silently.

Wei Wuxian was the first to nod. "Mn. I promise to stay forever with you and A-Cheng," he said, raising his palm and bringing three of his fingers together. He said it with such conviction that even Jiang Cheng did the same.

Jiang Yanli felt warmth blossom in her chest as she heard this. She embraced the boys and placed gentle kisses against their heads. Then, she also picked up a bowl and began to drink her share of the soup.

From the distance, Jiang Fengmian could not help but smile at the scene before him. He stared at the children for a long time, before he too made his way inside.

They were truly the pride of Yunmeng. They were like the blossoming petals of the Lotus that represented the sect. He was sure that as long as they stayed together they would remain strong and conquer any difficulty.

He only hoped that he had done right by his deceased friends. And he hoped that the children would remain like this for however long they lived. With such a prayer, he left the three to enjoy their moment.

#yunmengduodays2019 #Mo Dao Zu Shi #jiang cheng #wei wuxian #jiang yanli #jiang fengmian #yu ziyan #wei ying #lotus pier

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