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[daozhangs]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, XIAO.XINGCHEN. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 018.07.154.55 *** XIAO.XINGCHEN has joined 018.07.154.55 <XIAO.XINGCHEN> You have reached Xiao Xingchen. <XIAO.XINGCHEN> I am often away from my laptop, but I will do my best to answer as soon as I'm able.

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[legbreakings]

[ Jiang Cheng aims for a vaguely annoyed grunt - it actually comes out a staticky crackle but it still gets the point across. That's not much of an answer, but then again he also hasn't voiced much of a question. Fair enough, maybe. ]

Why are you helping me? [ he asks again, voice no sharper but a little more insistent now. He frowns a little, for that is still not the question he wants to ask. ] You're going well beyond what anybody could expect or ask of you. [ He gestures vaguely at the table and all that has been laid out on it. None of this would have been hard to acquire at home but here? He can only imagine the lengths Xiao Xingchen would have gone to for it. ]

[daozhangs]

( it's true, he did put in a decent amount of effort to gather such supplies, but at no point did he consider it undue. but of course jiang wanyin is unused to receiving gestures of friendship, and of course he finds himself weighing the effort against all that he thinks he has or hasn't done to deserve it.

xingchen is quiet for a long moment, painting a line of script. then, ) Perhaps it is. ( a beat as he reaches out to dip the tip of his brush in the paint, returning to his lines of script, albeit slower now that he speaks at the same time. ) It's true, you would never have asked or expected it. You would have stomached the rites without incense or joss papers, and you would have walked away feeling as though you've insulted their memory rather than honored it.

( that slip of paper is set aside to dry, and he claims the next from the pile. ) Forgive me - that wasn't a proper answer, not to the question you asked. In truth, I'm not sure I have one which would satisfy you. I help because I consider you a friend. I help because you are strong and kind-hearted and you deserve more than to question such things over that which was done was beyond your control. I help because I meant what I said, that I won't allow my own absolution until you've found yours as well. Choose whichever sits best with you. ( and he starts in on the script of this new slip of paper, leaving jiang wanyin to consider his words. )

[legbreakings]

[ Jiang Cheng sits there, quiet and a little bit sullen at having been seen so keenly. Yes, he would have walked away and felt the pain of it, and he hadn't expected that Xiao Xingchen would already perceive him so well.

He looks down at his hands, folded on the tabletop on top of his sheathed sword. ] I'm none of the things you say about me. You don't know me very well, if you asked anyone at home they would tell you something very different about me.

[ No, that's not right either, that's ungrateful, he shouldn't hide from... he doesn't even know what he is trying to hide from. Can you seek to hide from too much kindness?

He bows his head in solemn gratitude. ] What I mean to say is: Thank you.

[daozhangs]

( xiao xingchen is a man who by no means hesitates to show positive emotion, but beyond such things as sympathy and calm stern anger, he is never quite so free with the less pleasant sort. and so when jiang wanyin pushes an abrupt bit of distance between them with his 'you don't know me very well', xingchen's lips merely press to a subtle line for a moment, the lines of the script under his brush going that much more careful and precise. it's true. he doesn't know him well, and it's discourteous to act as though he does. it's something he needs to be more careful about in the future, because he never wants to overstep with the only proper ally he has found here thus far. (you see? he's not even saying 'friend' anymore, quite a bit more courteous already.)

the rest of the words, however, are less true. he said that jiang wanyin is strong and kind-hearted, and he doubts he could find a single person back in their homeland who would dare deny jiang-zongzhu's strength. as for his kind heart... well, of course others would say differently. his reputation as sect leader depends on it. but xingchen recalls the smile with which he complimented the daozhangs' 'kindness in saving the world' - it was something he valued, at the time. and even now, xingchen has received nothing but kindness from the man, however rough the edges of that kindness can be.

but he doesn't plan to argue the point, since it clearly isn't his place, and so he lets the words sit in silence as he finishes up one more joss paper slip. he has only just claimed the next when more words come - a correction, an expression of gratitude. his lips curl just slightly, acknowledging the words without drawing further attention to them. instead, he offers a considering: ) These should be ready within the hour. I've not yet figured out where we might undergo the rites. ( indoors seems ill-advised, what with the burning, but outdoors is loud and not at all private. )

[legbreakings]

[ He has clearly said something wrong, has misstepped - as someone who is very quick to withdraw and pull up his walls, Jiang Cheng is very sensitive to others doing so, and he can read something very familiar in Xiao Xingchen's body language and the painstakingly neat brushstrokes. He averts his eyes, teeth gritted; feeling a measure of regret but not enough to make him overcome his pride and apologize. That would be asking for far too much, most of all when he is feeling as raw as today.

So he decides to simply move on, and Xiao Xingchen seems to be thinking the same thing, what with his small change of topic. Jiang Cheng ducks his head in quiet gratitude though the man won't be able to see it. ] We could find a park, or we could leave the city. There is a forest and a lake to the west of the city, it's a quiet enough place. Peaceful. I don't think many people visit it. [ Well, not comparatively, anyway, not compared to how crowded Bavan itself is. It might be the best they can do without travelling far. ] I... I owe you thanks. Again. It is kind that you would go with me.

[daozhangs]

( a forest and a lake both sound much better than trying to do this in the ambient chaos of bavan proper, and xingchen would enjoy a walk in fresher air and quieter scenery. but ultimately, the choice isn't up to him. these are jiang wanyin's dead to mourn, and they'll perform the rites wherever jiang wanyin thinks they should be performed.

now comes a second 'thanks' in less than a minute, but this time he's smiling more properly even as he shakes his head a little. ) You owe me nothing. As for where we perform the rites, I leave that to you. Is there a place which resonates to you? One which feels right?