[sect leader. it prompts even more questions, doesn't it? master nie mingjue is as strong as a hurricane, just as furious too; the ways in which wei wuxian can imagine nie mingjue giving up his seat as sect leader don't paint a nice picture.

he'll ask. eventually. later. it might come up during their dinner, anyway; wei wuxian simply needs to be patient and ferret the information out piece by piece. for now, he reaches for nie huaisang with his free hand and pulls the other into a one-armed hug.]

Last I saw you, you were swimming away to safety from the Muxi caves, [wei wuxian murmurs against nie huaisang's shoulder. there were moments in the caves where wei wuxian had thought he might die. it's nothing too morbid; his mind considers the possibilities of every situation, and he knew there were high chances of his dying in the caves. at the time, his main regret was that lan zhan would have to suffer with him.

heroism demands martyrdom, and often. anything more and heroism becomes tragedy.

anyway—]

If you're paying, then I'm getting the spiciest dish they have on the menu! Let's go!

[and so wei wuxian, brand-new and shiny as far as the city is concerned, pulls both lan and nie into the restaurant like he's been here all his life.]