middaeg | [closed mingle] This is family business

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[closed mingle] This is family business

Who: Basically the whole Untamed/MDZS cast
When: One Mid-Septeril evening
Where: The Jin/Jiang family household
What: It's Family Dinner Time (and also time to reveal the truth about what happened back on their world)
Warnings: Discussions of murder and death, infidelity, revenge, and a lot of general family drama.

There are so many Mirrorbound from their world, and almost all of them are related in some way, through blood, marriage, or sworn bonds. After discussing it with his wife, Jin Zixuan decides it's about time they all sat under one roof to share a meal. Sure, one third of their contingent is not exactly on speaking terms with another third, and the last third is caught in the middle trying to live their lives as quietly and peacefully as they can, but Jin Zixuan has frankly had enough. He's heard bits and pieces of the future that is waiting for him once he returns to their world, but he's tired of the pretty lies, half truths, and careful dancing around subjects that everyone seems to prefer when he is around. He knows there is more to the story, and he is determined to find out what it is.

The evening begins innocently enough, with Jiang Yanli preparing delicious courses of food in their well stocked kitchen, and Jin Zixuan making sure the dining room is set for the numerous guests they are inviting. There is plenty of alcohol for the adults who like to indulge-- both bottles of grape wine and jars of baiju-- as well as sparkling fruit juices for those who are underage (sorry, Jin Ling) or who would prefer not to partake. The table decoration is tasteful and elegant, a mix of the local style and whatever Jin Zixuan has been able to scramble together that is reminiscent of their own world back home.

When guests arrive, Jin Zixuan greets them at the door and shows them to their seat in the dining room, having carefully plotted out who will sit where so as to avoid any unnecessary conflict (a skill he learned at an early age from his mother). After a few short words of thanks for everyone who came, the meal begins. The food is delicious, of course. No one would expect anything less from a cook like Jiang Yanli. And the conversation is polite, sticking to current events and the trials and tribulations of witch- or monster-dom. Then, partway through the evening, when the main course has been finished but dessert has not yet been served, Jin Zixuan speaks up, clearing his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Once again, I would like to thank you all for coming. You have all been a great help to myself, A-Li, and A-Ling as we attempt to find our ways in this world." A good start, neutral enough and gracious to boot. "However," he continues, his face losing its polite smile and turning gravely serious, "I know that there is much that you have been keeping from us. From me, in particular. We have both been made aware of our own deaths, and the many deaths that will follow. But the exact details of how and why those deaths occurred and who is really to blame have been conspicuously left out."

He turns his gaze to each guest seated at the table, each in turn. Everyone except Jin Ling and Jiang Yanli.

"I think it's time we were forthright with each other. Don't you?"

After that, all thoughts of dessert are forgotten. The table erupts into chaos. Guests can speak freely at the table, or pull individuals aside for more private conversations. Or, if the tense atmosphere is too much for them, they can simply choose to leave. But however the truth chooses to come out, Jin Zixuan is welcoming it. And keep in mind, he will know if you are lying.

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Jin Gunagyao recognizes that sort of move, being well familiar with trying to hide his changes before the worst of them became unavoidable.

They should be out of earshot from the dining room. And if Lan Xichen happens to hear him and disapproves of quite how he words things, surely Jin Guangyao can't be blamed for that either. Not after being put on the spot like this.

Hesitating briefly, he says in a seemingly-sympathetic tone, "Surely you can imagine there's a reason for some details being omitted. With how many people are close to Wei Wuxian, and the complications surrounding the circumstances, I suppose I should have expected the telling of it to be unclear.

There was an altercation between Zixun and Wei Wuxian, you see. Wei Wuxian was the prime suspect in the curse that had afflicted Zixun, and so he took a group of disciples with him to confront Wei Wuxian. I happened to see you, and could only let you know what was going on. You immediately left to try prevent anything rash from happening, but... I'm afraid to say that Wei Wuxian lost control of himself in the conflict and you were killed by the Ghost General."

All of this is obviously quite a lot to take in, so Jin Guangyao pauses there. If the truth is that his intention was to cause some trouble for Zixuan, and he'd admitted as much in the temple so many months ago now, at least that much could be omitted.

At first, when Jin Guangyao begins his explanation with talk of Zixun's curse and his plan to intercept Wei Wuxian at Qiongqi Path, Jin Zixuan is tempted to wave a hand and tell A-Yao to get on with it, skip ahead, he knows this part already. But... He keeps listening and it gets to the part he doesn't know. What happened-- or, will happen-- when he reaches Qiongqi Path.

He frowns, letting the ramifications of the words settle into him. The Ghost General. Of course. The Yiling Patriarch's loyal attack dog. Anyone who believed the worst of the rumors about Wei Wuxian would believe that he lost control and made the Ghost General kill the opposition.

But...

"That's... not what really happened, though, is it?" He hesitates to look his half brother in the eye, but finally manages to work up the nerve to do it. He's finally put two and two together to suss out the purpose of that alarm bell in his head, alerting him to other people's lies. But even without it, he would know Jin Guangyao wasn't telling the whole truth.

"Wei Wuxian said there was a second flute that day."

Jin Guangyao was prepared for that frown, perhaps surprise or shock. What he's not prepared for are those words, a look of genuine confusion passing across his face for a moment -- before the idea that blame beyond his admitted intentions is being placed on him out of earshot.

If the initial announcement that everyone should be more forthright sent his stomach into a pit, the idea that Wei Wuxian would rather spread a rumor of his own, that there was some sort of second demonic-influencing flute there, filled in that pit with blackest hatred.

Of course he would hardly let that show when he replies, puzzled, "Even if something so absurd had existed, how would I possibly have made it there faster than you? I didn't expect Wei Wuxian to sink so far as to spread rumours, knowing what others had already said about him in the past."

Knowing that he's treading dangerous waters, Jin Zixuan pays extra careful attention to that alarm bell in his head. He doesn't hear it ringing now. So his brother is telling the truth about not being at Qiongqi Path. He believes him, not only because of the alarm bell, but because of the logistics. It doesn't make sense that A-Yao would have gotten there before him. But someone else might have. Someone who knows musical cultivation.

He realizes he's going to have to ask more targeted questions if he's going to learn the full truth.

Patiently, again listening carefully for that alarm bell, he looks Jin Guangyao in the eye and asks, "Did you know of our cousin's plans ahead of time? Before you told me where he had gone."

It does take a little time to pull together that many disciples for an ambush, and Jin Guangyao had been so intent on getting involved in this or that around Carp Tower that he was very well informed. But still, it wasn't as if he'd planned it so much, like Zixuan seemed to be implying. It was only good timing.

He gives his brother a thin-lipped smile that isn't really so happy at all, golden slit-pupil snake's eyes staring, unblinking. "Do you think everything can be planned so easily? Are you to ask me next if I incited Zixun to pursue Wei-gongzi? If the others are so intent on casting me as a villain with false accusations added to what was indeed done, then I really don't know what I can say."

"If you're so intent on not being accused falsely, then why don't you just tell me what happened, in plain words, so that there will be no more misunderstandings?"

He knows his half brother, or perhapse more so, he likes to think he does. Sure, Jin Guangyao becoming a snake is just as fitting as Jin Zixuan becoming a peacock, but he honestly believes that if he asks his brother for the truth, the whole truth, he will receive it, or at least a close approximation.

"How did our father die? Can you at least tell me that much?"

Edited (noticed a typo) 2020-09-24 21:58 (UTC)

His expression freezes for a moment at that, the normally talkative Jin Guangyao dead silent in response.

Someone certainly had been talkative -- though once again, if vague about the details, it was for rather obvious reasons. It's too much to ask, this whole idea that it will somehow improve anything for him to confess, and infuriating, the idea that somehow Jin Zixuan is owed that confession, as if his brother ever did anything for him.

The silence definitely lasts a little longer than it should, while Jin Guangyao considers how he's probably already been implicated, no matter how little else has been said.

"You should understand that he'd become quite ill towards the end. He died doing what he enjoyed most. I really don't think I should have to spell it out further, should I?" he finally replies quite politely.

As the silence stretches on, Jin Zixuan begins to worry. What sort of pleasant lie is his half brother going to come out with this time? He's clearly thinking in that scheming head of his of how to choose his words carefully. What could he possibly say that would require this much forethought?

...Oh. That. Jin Zixuan makes a face, wincing slightly at the delicate phrasing of a decidedly indelicate subject matter.

"No. No need to elaborate." So the old man finally got his comeuppance. Jin Zixuan shakes his head, wondering if his mother was happy with the outcome. He has half a mind to ask after her, too, but he at least recognizes that Madame Jin is not a subject to be brought up to Jin Guangyao lightly.

He's beginning to get the feeling that he's stepped too far. That this whole 'trap them at dinner and force them to tell you everything' plan of his was not as well thought out as he had hoped. He's deft at navigating a battlefield, and a tense political meeting, but when it comes to matters as personal as this... He'd become clouded by his frustration at being so far behind everyone else.

Swallowing the lump in his throat and doing his best to regain his composure, he starts walking slowly once more, leading Jin Guangyao towards the front hall.

"I am sorry for this... confrontation. It felt necessary at the time, but now that I've heard..." The things he's heard that he doesn't want to think about ever again. He pauses again, and turns to A-Yao once more, looking him in the eye as sincerely as he can. "I hope we can move on from this. You are right to want to forge a new life here. I should follow your example."

Wouldn't that be nice, Jin Guangyao thinks bitterly. Except for the part where it isn't truly possible, not with things like this entire situation going on right now dogging his footsteps... well. Not exactly footsteps anymore, but whatever.

Who knew that killing someone still doesn't heal old resentments. So many things were tied to his father still, a whole chain of unfortunate events where he really didn't have any choice at all. The only decent thing the randy old stallion ever did was stay dead. So far anyway. Who knows, with this place.

How much is 'owed' to his brother, exactly, in the eyes of someone like Xichen?

Appearing rather more subdued, Jin Guangyao only bows his head a little in acknowledgement. Hesitant, he begins, "I hope for the same. It's true that more could be told of other events, in plain words as you say. But I don't know what good is supposed to come of revisiting these terrible things over and over again. This is a new world, and I'm grateful for the opportunity for a renewed beginning." That much convincing is fine, isn't it? If Zixuan has decided he doesn't want to know more, how can Jin Guangyao be faulted for not saying all of it?

He does want to know more. He desperately wants to know more. He wants to know everything, all the lives of everyone he will leave behind. But all of that is too much to ask, even for family. (For a given level of "family," anyway. It's not like the half brothers were ever close.) He knows he can't ask everything he wants to. At least not all at once. Hopefully, with time, the picture of the future will become more clear. He can only try to gain that insight one question at a time.

"Before you go," He stops again, glancing back to the dining hall where his wife-- his bonded-- is still trying to maintain peace. "One last request... I know how I will die, how our father will die. But what of my A-Li?" His eyes fall back on Jin Guangyao, full of a grief he doesn't know how to place yet. "I know that she will follow me, but... Could you please tell me how?" It's terrible news, but he has to hear it. To put his mind at ease.

Oh yes. Of course.

It could be worse, by a considerable margin. He could ask about Da-ge, whose death even Jin Guangyao is hard-pressed to find an easy way to discuss -- and yet knows it will come up at some time too.

He nods in acknowledgement. "After your death, there was a discussion conference with all sects in attendance, to settle upon what to do about the 'Yiling Patriarch' and those remaining at the Burial Mounds. Wei Wuxian made an appearance after our father spearheaded the decision to destroy them, and thousands upon thousands were killed by the corpses that he raised in his ire. You should know how chaotic a battle is. Some things are out of any man's hands, no matter how powerful. Though I didn't witness it myself... I understand she was caught up in the fighting by accident."

He explains sympathetically. Whether or not that will carry any weight when it comes to the fact that his decision to cause some trouble started this whole path for the two... remains to be seen.

Jin Zixuan's face is caught in a mix of shock and disbelief. "Th-thousands upon thousands??" Surely that is an exaggeration. Even during the Sunshot Campaign, their battles weren't so destructive. Not all at once.

Although it doesn't surprise him, to hear that Jiang Yanli was caught in the crossfire. Knowing her love of Wei Wuxian, her devotion to him and conviction that he was not the evil mastermind that so many saw him as... Of course she would not sit idly by while he slaughtered thousands and proved the others right. A-Li had no place on a battlefield. Not even here, where she was gifted with magic beyond her innate cultivating capabilities, could Jin Zixuan picture her fighting others with an aim to cause harm. She was too gentle, too mild, too pure of heart to belong anywhere near such things.

That she had been placed in such a position, as a consequence of Zixuan's own actions-- not that his death was his own action, but... If he had just stayed away from Qiongqi Path that day, perhaps...

He sighs. Nods. Begins again to slowly walk the rest of the way to the door, holding it open for Jin Guangyao to slide through.

"What's done is done. Thank you for telling me. And again, I am sorry for the way tonight ended. Please, come back another time. I promise your next visit will be more ...pleasant."

He nods slightly, serious, in confirmation of those thousands. Three thousand, five thousand... accounts differed, so why should he try to specify? If it sounds worse phrased that way, it's hardly ever close to the suggestion he had somehow played a much more direct role in Zixuan's death.

Not that it would have been a bad idea, but he certainly hadn't skilled like that, in terms of demonic cultivation.

But the suggestion of another visit being more pleasant... Will it really? Jin Guangyao very much doubts that. He shouldn't have agreed to come at all, even with Lan Xichen here.

"I'm sure," he lies reassuringly. "You've been very kind, to accept these words and still allow me a chance at life once more. I myself did not live such a long life either. It is unfortunate, how events played themselves out once, and revisiting such things is not how I wish to spend my time here. Surely you can understand, and think the same?"

The confirmation that the numbers are not just hyperbole sinks heavy into the pit of Jin Zixuan's stomach. To think, his death resulted in that many casualties. One piece strikes another down, the next fells two, those each fell two more... It gets bigger and bigger, the consequences of each succeeding action. If he knew of a way to stop all of it-- If there was anything he could do--

He sighs, nodding.

"I can't forget about trying to learn more of my future-- your past." To promise such would be an outright lie, just like the lie Jin Guangyao told when he agreed that his next visit would be pleasant. Hearing that alarm bell is bad enough. He thinks that to be the one to make it ring might be even worse. "But, I will attempt to focus my energies on the life I have available to me here."

Edited (I can't even blame autocorrect, I just fucked up a word.) 2020-10-04 18:22 (UTC)

The words, the idea Jin Zixuan might hear much worse if he keeps asking, will surely only make his brother even more curious then -- and that thought sears just as much to Jin Guangyao. Why should his brother be owed anything more, as if the murder of Nie Mingjue had anything to do with him, as if he needs to hear the sordid details told to him in confidence once by Madam Qin, as if he needs to hear of how everything that should have been well fell apart with his wife and son and why they died.

"Do you really think it so well advised to continue at all?" he urges gently, in contrast to his own internal ire. "If not for my sake, then for A-Ling. I think you can imagine some things must be difficult for him as well."

It's not a lie. Jin Zixuan would know if it was. He spares a glance towards the hall that leads to Jin Ling's room, where his son had run away to hide when all this unpleasantness started. How much hurt have Jin Zixuan's questions caused A-Ling already? A-Yao raises a good point. But then, doesn't he always? He never says anything without purpose, without effect. Jin Guangyao does not just make idle conversation. He elicits change with every word he speaks, or at least, he tries to. Usually, change that will benefit him in some way.

Still looking away, towards Jin Ling's room, Jin Zixuan nods and makes a resolution to himself. He won't stop looking for answers about the future— he can't, not now that he's started down this path— but he will be much more careful to do it in a way that he can hide his questions from Jin Ling's eyes. His son does not deserve to suffer just so that Jin Zixuan can satisfy his desire for truth.

He plasters a smile on his face before turning back to Jin Guangyao. The same sort of bland smile he would have given him back in Carp Tower, in response to some benign request to please join them in the Glamour Hall for tea.

Nodding, he says, "You're right, A-Yao. Of course you are. I didn't take A-Ling's feelings into account. From now on, I must do all I can to spare him any more torment."

Not technically a lie. Nothing about what he said was untrue. The warning bell remains silent. That's what matters for now.

Edited (I can keep my pet names straight, I swear) 2020-10-06 19:51 (UTC)

"It would be better that way. He is a fine young man," Which is maybe pushing it considering his temper and how spoiled he'd been - which may be in part Jin Guangyao's own fault - but not untrue either, "and I hope that you'll be able to make up for lost time here."

If well-wishes towards Jin Zixuan don't have the same sincerity, it's only that even in the absence of their father's presence in his life for years now, Jin Guangyao can still remember all too clearly who was the favored son and who was barely tolerated and carry that resentment still.

Regardless, the longer he remains, the greater the chance that there will be more interference, something to keep him from leaving and causing more troubles. If Jin Zixuan is at least satisfied for now, it'll have to be good enough. He bows slightly. "I'm sure we will see each other again, in no doubt more favorable circumstances, as you say. Until then."

Hm. Not strictly speaking a lie, but even without his alarm bell, Jin Zixuan can tell that hope isn't fully sincere. Oh well. It's no secret that the relationship between the two brothers is strained at best. They are both fully aware of their places in the hierarchy of the Lanling Jin clan, and which of them received the attention and favor. Even here, removed from all that, and with their father dead, one can't be expected to leave all that resentment behind so easily, can they?

In truth, Jin Zixuan never gave much thought to his many illegitimate siblings. He knew there were several out there, even though only some of them tried making themselves known in Lanling. He may have admired A-Yao's courage, in attempting to worm his way into the family, even though it was met with some understandable resistance. It was a brave thing that he did, withstanding their father's scorn with a polite smile still placed firmly on his face. Jin Zixuan knows this, and knows he did nothing to either help or hinder Jin Guangyao's acceptance in the clan. He feels no regret, but now... here... as he watches his half brother slither away from his front door, removed from everything that had been holding him back...

...He wonders if maybe he should.

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[closed mingle] This is family business

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I FINALLY GET TO USE MY BLOODY ICONS

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