ic inbox, ryslig.

[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.

Comments

[legbreakings]

I don't know. I don't have answers right now.

It is much to deal with.

[daozhangs]

It truly is.

( and, after long moment, )

My company isn’t particularly helpful or soothing at the moment.

( which is why he had tried to find some other reason to go. some other need he might meet to compensate. )

[legbreakings]

Don't say stupid things like that!

Your company is always pleasant to me.

[daozhangs]

( funny how the tables seem to have turned. wasn’t it jiang wanyin who once delivered the ‘no, you’re not listening, i’m truly unpleasant’ arguments? even if they they never worked on xingchen, just like it wouldn’t work on jiang wanyin here and now.

instead, )

I've decided to eat the next person who leverages the gods' powers to inflict upon us their opinion of what we need.

( which illustrates the dwindling quality of his company far better than any actual argument, really. )

[legbreakings]

[ Jiang Cheng gives a startled, amused bark of laughter. ]

That's a guaranteed way to get indigestion.

[daozhangs]

No more so than eating those who don't deserve it.

[legbreakings]

Well. Yes. I will give you that.

[daozhangs]

I'd thought you might.

[legbreakings]

I'm sorry. I'm not at my best right now.

Is your house alright? Did the garden survive your absence?

Is Runyu going to be alright?

[daozhangs]

There's no need to apologize. Neither am I.

The house is well, and the garden didn't survive the snow. I haven't planted it anew yet. You said that you'd assist me, don't you recall?

Runyu will be fine. This week has left us all with quite a bit to think about.

[legbreakings]

That it has. I suppose I will value it for the experiences. Once some time has passed.

[ Once he can value it for what he got to experience instead of only feeling the loss. ]

I will help you with the garden. By whatever measure of help I can provide. I can water the plants.

[daozhangs]

You'll be helping me put those plants in the dirt before you do. I'm not letting you off the hook quite so easily.

[legbreakings]

Fine fine! Bossing me around already before we have even started do you have no fear!

[daozhangs]

No more or less than I ever have.

[legbreakings]

Outragous!

[daozhangs]

Perhaps.

[legbreakings]

Now you're mocking me!

[daozhangs]

( unfortunately, he’s in no proper mood to fall into their usual bantering games. ) I simply agreed with you. You’ll have to forgive me if such a thing offends.

[legbreakings]

Sorry. It's not the time for that.

I will gladly help with your garden.

[daozhangs]

I never doubted for a moment.

[legbreakings]

Good. Good. You shouldn't be given reason to doubt. I try to keep my promises, whenever possible.

[daozhangs]

( and he always has kept his promises. of the two of them, xingchen can quite honestly say that jiang wanyin has kept more of them, perhaps by virtue of offering fewer but such semantics are irrelevant. xingchen has never been given reason to doubt him. reason to doubt himself, perhaps, but never jiang wanyin.

which makes all of this feel a bit silly, really. dancing around the true question at hand here. after a pause in which he doubles back, )

Forgive me, but I've listened back and I can't quite tell if you've invited me over or simply complimented my company.

[legbreakings]

[ It would be easy to put an end to the conversation there but Jiang Cheng finds he doesn't want to so... ]

Whichever you would like it to be.

[daozhangs]

I don't get to decide if it was an invitation. Only whether or not I accept if it is.

[legbreakings]

Fine. Be like that.

It was an invitation.