[Jin Guangyao abandons his broom to step forward and gently catch Lan Xichen's arms before he can complete that bow.] Er-ge is never an imposition. [just, like, put that fool notion out of your head, Zewu-jun.
He smiles, squeezes Lan Xichen's forearms, then releases him.] I will quickly finish cleaning up, put on a clean robe, and then we can depart. Please, [a gesture to the modest yet comfortable seating in the parlour,] make yourself at home.
---
[The rest of the afternoon passes in a pleasant, albeit surreal blur for Jin Guangyao, who had almost managed to forget where he had transmigrated to until the moment he and Lan Xichen stepped outside the siheyuan and his strange new blood began to glow beneath his skin. It had been an alarming thing to witness the first time he'd experienced it, but by this point Jin Guangyao is merely annoyed (and a bit self-conscious, as the glowing blood seems to make strangers more inclined to look his way). But with Lan Xichen for company and the mild exercise of their walk to invigorate him, it's easy enough to put the lingering stares out of his mind, and provide Lan Xichen some detailed commentary of what he's noticed and experienced of this world as they walk through its streets.
(In summary, he's noticed A Lot, and most of it is very bizarre, but much of his cultivation methods still seem effective. His talismans, sword, and guqin strings helped dispatch the draugr that plagued many of the Sleepers last month. For obvious reasons, he chooses not to discuss using a selection from the Purification Tone to ease Mike Enslin's mind in the aftermath of that experience.)
The hot chocolate on offer by a vendor on the boardwalk is hot, rich and sweet, and warms Jin Guangyao's cold fingers. The cinnamon bun turns out to be a hit as well, so much so that he eagerly parts with a single, well-crafted evil-repelling talisman in exchange for a dozen to-go. The Bone Moon is vivid in the sky overhead when they at last make their way back down the Willful Machine's main thoroughfare and into the security of the siheyuan once more. Once inside, Jin Guangyao places the cinnamon buns on the countertop, then moves throughout the rest of the home's three bays, touching the little lunar-powered lanterns so that they emit a comfortable glow.]
What did you think of it? [This he asks with a little smile after they have finally settled down onto some more comfortable seating in the parlour, with familiar tea to drink and some comfortable blankets to ward off the chill.] The chocolate drink. [another pause, before he asks more seriously, carefully,] Is that enough to make you believe that this is real?
no subject
He smiles, squeezes Lan Xichen's forearms, then releases him.] I will quickly finish cleaning up, put on a clean robe, and then we can depart. Please, [a gesture to the modest yet comfortable seating in the parlour,] make yourself at home.
---
[The rest of the afternoon passes in a pleasant, albeit surreal blur for Jin Guangyao, who had almost managed to forget where he had transmigrated to until the moment he and Lan Xichen stepped outside the siheyuan and his strange new blood began to glow beneath his skin. It had been an alarming thing to witness the first time he'd experienced it, but by this point Jin Guangyao is merely annoyed (and a bit self-conscious, as the glowing blood seems to make strangers more inclined to look his way). But with Lan Xichen for company and the mild exercise of their walk to invigorate him, it's easy enough to put the lingering stares out of his mind, and provide Lan Xichen some detailed commentary of what he's noticed and experienced of this world as they walk through its streets.
(In summary, he's noticed A Lot, and most of it is very bizarre, but much of his cultivation methods still seem effective. His talismans, sword, and guqin strings helped dispatch the draugr that plagued many of the Sleepers last month. For obvious reasons, he chooses not to discuss using a selection from the Purification Tone to ease Mike Enslin's mind in the aftermath of that experience.)
The hot chocolate on offer by a vendor on the boardwalk is hot, rich and sweet, and warms Jin Guangyao's cold fingers. The cinnamon bun turns out to be a hit as well, so much so that he eagerly parts with a single, well-crafted evil-repelling talisman in exchange for a dozen to-go. The Bone Moon is vivid in the sky overhead when they at last make their way back down the Willful Machine's main thoroughfare and into the security of the siheyuan once more. Once inside, Jin Guangyao places the cinnamon buns on the countertop, then moves throughout the rest of the home's three bays, touching the little lunar-powered lanterns so that they emit a comfortable glow.]
What did you think of it? [This he asks with a little smile after they have finally settled down onto some more comfortable seating in the parlour, with familiar tea to drink and some comfortable blankets to ward off the chill.] The chocolate drink. [another pause, before he asks more seriously, carefully,] Is that enough to make you believe that this is real?
[that he is real, he means.]