STG 01
Chapter 1: Black Silk Over the Eyes
The scorching heat of August.
Beep beep—!
The shrill cries of cicadas mingled with the incessant honking of car horns, echoing through the bustling streets. The blazing sun beat down on the grayish-brown asphalt, waves of heat rising, distorting the entire street as if it were melting.
Under the sparse patches of shade by the roadside, a group of young men huddled together, cigarettes dangling from their lips as they waited for the traffic light to change.
Suddenly, one of them, exhaling a cloud of smoke, seemed to notice something and let out a puzzled sound, his gaze fixed on a corner of the street.
“Ah Nuo, what are you looking at?” his companion asked.
The young man named Ah Nuo stared blankly at the street corner for a long moment before finally speaking. “Tell me… how does a blind person cross the road?”
His companion froze, hesitated for a few seconds, then slowly replied, “Well, usually, blind people have someone to take care of them when they go out, or they use a guide dog. In more modern cities, there are even audio signals at crosswalks. If all else fails, maybe they could inch their way across using sound and a cane?”
Ah Nuo shook his head. “But what if there’s no one to take care of them, no guide dog, no audio signals, and they’re even using their cane to carry a bottle of peanut oil?”
“…Are you trying to be funny?”
His companion rolled his eyes and followed Ah Nuo’s gaze. The next second, he, too, froze in place.
At the opposite corner of the street stood a young man in a black short-sleeved shirt, his eyes tightly wrapped in layers of thick black silk, completely blocking out all light.
In his left hand, he carried a cheap shopping bag stuffed with vegetables. His right hand gripped a white cane slung over his shoulder like a carrying pole—and at the end of that cane dangled a large, golden bottle of peanut oil, glinting in the sunlight!
Black silk covering his eyes, cane hoisted over his shoulder, vegetables in one hand, peanut oil in the other…
The bizarre sight instantly drew the attention of everyone nearby.
“Hey, look at that guy. He’s so weird.”
“With that much cloth over his eyes, can he even see?”
“Didn’t you notice the cane? He’s obviously blind.”
“What era is this? Blind people usually wear sunglasses. Who wraps their eyes in silk like that in this heat? Isn’t it stuffy?”
“Exactly! And have you ever seen a blind person not using their cane to walk but instead carrying stuff with it?”
“Kids these days sure know how to have fun.”
“…”
The summer cicadas couldn’t drown out the murmurs of the crowd. People eyed the young man curiously, whispering about whether he was truly blind or just pretending, all while watching the blinking red light with anticipation.
Just then, a clear, youthful voice rang out beside the boy.
“Big brother, do you need help crossing the street?”
It was a little girl in a school uniform, around twelve or thirteen years old, her cheeks dotted with glistening sweat. Her large, dark eyes were filled with pure, simple concern as she looked up at him.
The young man seemed slightly taken aback. He turned his head toward the sound of her voice, a faint smile appearing on his lips.
“Mm.”
He shifted the bag of vegetables to his right hand, wiped the sweat from his left hand on his shirt, then gently took the little girl’s palm.
Click—!
The light turned green.
The young man stepped forward, walking across the street hand in hand with the girl.
The little girl was nervous, her eyes darting left and right as she cautiously watched for cars, her steps timid and hesitant.
As for the young man… he walked steadily.
To the onlookers, the scene didn’t look like a kindhearted girl leading a blind man across the street—it looked more like an older brother guiding a child.
The street wasn’t wide. In just over ten seconds, the two reached the other side. The young man thanked the girl, then turned and walked away without a backward glance, heading toward a secluded alley.
“He’s not blind,” Ah Nuo declared after witnessing this. “He can definitely see.”
One of the young men behind Ah Nuo stroked his chin thoughtfully, then suddenly brightened as if struck by inspiration.
“I get it! He’s cosplaying Lee Sin (Lee Sin : The Blind Monk)!”
Whack—!
A sharp slap landed on the back of his head. Ah Nuo cursed under his breath. “Idiot! All you ever think about is games. Who the hell would cosplay Lee Sin in the middle of the street? You got a death wish?”
After a pause, Ah Nuo muttered under his breath, “Besides… Lee Sin’s blindfold is red. This isn’t even accurate.”
“Ah Nuo, you’re the one who—”
“Shut up.”
“Oh.”
As the two bickered, another young man who had been silent all this time stared at the retreating figure of the boy, his brow slightly furrowed.
“What’s up?” Ah Nuo noticed his gaze.
“I know him.”
“You know him?”
“Yeah.” The young man nodded. “When my cousin was in elementary school, I heard there was a student who had an accident. Something happened to his eyes, so he had to cover them with black silk. They said he had mental problems too…”
“Mental problems?” Ah Nuo blinked, thinking back to what they’d just seen. “He didn’t seem off to me.”
“That was ten years ago. Maybe he’s better now. But back then, it was a pretty big deal. He dropped out of school not long after and supposedly transferred to a special school for the blind.”
Just then, another guy chimed in excitedly, “So, what kind of accident was it? Something that could make someone go blind and crazy? Was it some kind of supernatural thing?”
“No idea.” He paused. “But… I heard it was something even weirder than that.”
“Poor guy,” Ah Nuo sighed. “What’s his name?”
“I think it was… Lin… Lin… Lin Qiye?”
.
.
.
Under the glow of the sunset, Lin Qiye pushed open the door.
Almost instantly, the aroma of cooking wafted from inside, filling his nostrils. He sniffed, swallowed hard, and stepped inside with his bags.
Creak—!
The old door let out a sharp screech, drowning out the sizzling sounds from the kitchen. A middle-aged woman pushed open the kitchen door, gasped when she saw Lin Qiye loaded with groceries, and hurried over.
“Xiao Qi, why did you carry so much back all at once?” The woman wiped her hands on her apron and quickly took the bags from him, fussing.
“A whole bucket of peanut oil? You silly boy, did you use the government subsidy again?”
“Auntie, the government’s disability subsidy is meant for living expenses. Buying oil is putting it to good use,” Lin Qiye said with a smile.
“Nonsense! That money is for your college fund. You can’t just spend it like this. Listen, the money I earn from work is enough to support the three of us. Don’t go spending your own money.”
She carefully wiped the oil bucket with her hand, her expression pained. “Such a big bottle, and a brand-name one too… this must’ve cost a lot, huh?”
Before Lin Qiye could respond, she suddenly realized something.
“Wait… how did you carry all this back?”
“Oh, I ran into some kind strangers on the way. They helped me.” Lin Qiye said calmly.
“Good, that’s good… There are still good people in this world. Did you thank them properly?”
“I did.” Lin Qiye changed the subject. “Auntie, where’s Ah-Jin?”
“He’s doing homework on the balcony… Oh, right! The doctor from the mental hospital came for your annual checkup. He’s resting in your room. Go see him. I’ll call you when dinner’s ready.”
Lin Qiye’s steps faltered slightly. He gave a quiet “Mm” and turned toward the bedroom.
.
.
.
“Hello, I’m Dr. Li from Sunshine Mental Hospital.”
As Lin Qiye entered, the young man sitting on a small stool in the bedroom stood up and greeted him warmly. He wore large black-framed glasses and looked every bit the gentle, scholarly type.
Lin Qiye raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Wasn’t Dr. Han the one who usually came before?”
“Dr. Han was promoted to deputy director last year,” Dr. Li said with a smile, a hint of envy flashing in his eyes.
Lin Qiye nodded slightly. “Ah.”
That made sense. Dr. Han was getting on in years and was highly skilled. A promotion to deputy director wasn’t surprising. Sending a younger doctor for routine checkups was only natural.
Once Lin Qiye sat down, Dr. Li cleared his throat and pulled out a stack of medical records from his bag.
“Sorry, since I’m new here, I’m not too familiar with your case yet. Let me just go over a few basics first,” Dr. Li said apologetically.
Lin Qiye nodded.
“Name… Lin Qiye?”
“Yes.”
“Seventeen years old.”
“Yes.”
“Hmm… The records say you lost your sight ten years ago and were admitted to our hospital due to… certain issues?”
“Yes.”
Dr. Li pondered for a moment. “Did you change your name at some point?”
“…No. Why do you ask?” Lin Qiye was taken aback.
Dr. Li scratched his head sheepishly. “Ahem… Never mind, I must’ve overthought it.”
He pointed at the age on the record, then at the words “ten years ago.” “See, you lost your sight ten years ago, which would’ve made you seven at the time. And your name is Lin Qiye—‘Seven Nights.’ So I wondered if you’d changed it after going blind…”
Lin Qiye was silent for a long moment before shaking his head. “No… I’ve never changed my name. My parents named me Lin Qiye before I was even born.”
“That’s quite a… ahem.” Dr. Li caught himself mid-sentence, realizing how impolite that sounded.
“Coincidence,” Lin Qiye said flatly. “Yes, quite the coincidence.”
Dr. Li coughed awkwardly and quickly changed the subject. “Right… The records don’t go into detail about the accident that caused your blindness and mental health issues. If it’s alright, could you tell me about it?”
Before Lin Qiye could answer, Dr. Li hastily added, “Not to pry. Understanding the patient better helps with treatment. Of course, if you’d rather not talk about it, I won’t push.”
Lin Qiye sat quietly, the eyes beneath the black silk seemingly fixed on Dr. Li.
After a long pause, he spoke slowly.
“It’s not that I can’t talk about it… It’s just that you might not believe me. You might even send me back to the mental hospital.”
“No, no, don’t think of this as a doctor-patient conversation. Just two friends chatting. It won’t come to that,” Dr. Li said lightly, half-joking. “Even if you told me the Jade Emperor dragged you into his furnace, I’d believe you.”
Lin Qiye was silent for a few seconds, then nodded.
“When I was little, I loved astronomy.”
“Mm. And then?”
“One night, I was lying on the roof of my old house, looking at the moon.”
“What did you see? The Jade Rabbit?” Dr. Li chuckled.
Lin Qiye shook his head. His next words wiped the smile right off Dr. Li’s face.
“No. I saw an angel.” Lin Qiye said seriously, even gesturing with his hands.
“A seraphim, bathed in golden light, with six white wings.”
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