He pouts slightly at Lan Zhan, but doesn't try any harder.

Wen Chao arrives right on time.  His terrace now has a proper chair, which he lounges on while everyone else is standing.  

"It is time for the first recitation of our rules.  Which of you wants to be the first to go?"

No one answers.

Wen Chao looks over the group.  The other sect students are both incompetent and afraid of punishment, clearly.  

"Well, I'll just have to start calling people out myself."  He looks down the rows, making a show of considering each.  "Lan Wangji.  Perhaps you would like to go first?"

"I cannot."

"You cannot?  Aren't you one of those 'Twin Jades of Lan'?  You claim such a title, but you can't even remember a few rules?  So much for the reputation of the Lan clan.

"Jin Zixuan.  Can you do better than," he gestures, face showing disgust, "that?"

Wen Chao probably isn't smart enough to rub salt in the wound of the missing First Jade on purpose, not so indirectly, but nonetheless -

Wangji refuses to read anything into it. If they had caught Brother or found him dead, Wen Chao would have boasted of it openly by now. Nothing has been discovered and nothing has changed. He burns silently, rage and anguish.

Okay well Zixuan was going to recite the rules and do what he was supposed to, for Mianmian's sake if nothing else - he had in fact learned them. But if Lan Wangji, the follower of every rule ever is going to misbehave then there's no way Zixuan won't also rebel. He'd bring shame to his clan, to roll over so easily!

"No, I cannot either," he says loudly.

"Wei Wuxian, then."  

Maybe he'll actually get to send in the guards with whips, if this keeps up.

He makes silent eye contact until it looks like Wen Chao is about to say something, and then begins to say completely random words.  He keeps this up until he gets interrupted.

"Wei Wuxian!  How dare you?  Stop that at once!

"Soldiers, strike that one.  And take all three of them to the vegetable garden to carry manure for the day."

Manure?!

Several soldiers move in towards the disciples. One of them raises his whip, a black, coiled thing, and cracks it down at Wei Wuxian.

No.

Lan Wangji catches it with his bare hand. He grips it and yanks and now this guard no longer has a whip.

"Lan Zhan! You really do care!"
He gets between Lan Zhan and the nearest guard, they're going to attack Lan Zhan after that and he doesn't want to let that happen.

Why is Wei Ying doing that, that is the wrong thing for Wei Ying to do. Wangji puts a hand tight on Wei Ying's shoulder, ideally to toss him backwards if they are attacked. He keeps his eyes fixed on the guards around them.

The guard without a whip sort of does not want to attack the angry cultivator who just stole his whip. He glances at the other guards, then up at Wen Chao.

"Don't just stand there.  If they both want to be insolent, then subdue them both," he shouts, seeming to forget Jin Zixuan.  More guards are called over to help, since this is apparently too much for the ones who had been sent already.  He joins them, standing up from his seat and beginning to walk down the stairs.  

The guards descend on them with more whips and sheathed swords as blunt instruments. Several weapons come speeding towards Wei Wuxian at once.

Wei Wuxian ducks out of Lan Zhan's hold and away from the incoming weapons, and attempts to grab one of the sheathed swords.

He succeeds in grabbing the sheath; it will be more difficult to wrestle the entire sword away from the guard, who is currently shouting in alarm.  

Another guard shoots rope from his sleeve, which lashes around Wei Wuxian's torso and coils tight until his arms are forced back.

Actually fighting back here is a lot more problematic than just getting in their way; that makes him dangerous instead of simply disobedient. The remnants of his clan could pay dearly for it.

He decides not to hit ropeguard across the throat with this whip, yet, and instead focuses on blocking another sheathed sword aimed for Wei Ying's ribs.

He decides to spin away from the guard with the rope in the hopes of getting loose.  He gets about two turns before he trips, falls, and continues away from the guard, rolling along the ground.

Wow What The Fuck

The guard lets go of the rope in astonishment at this absurd behavior! Another less befuddled guard kicks Wei Wuxian in the chest.

And now Lan Wangji is between that guard and Wei Wuxian.

He stands there with his arms out, whip in hand, as though he can afford to do anything -