Black Ribbon Blindfold

Scorching August.

Beep, beep, beep—!

The piercing chirping of cicadas mingled with the intermittent honking of horns, echoing through the crowded streets. The blazing sun baked the grayish-brown asphalt, heat rippling through the air until the entire street seemed distorted.

Beneath the few patches of shade by the roadside, several young men huddled together, cigarettes dangling from their mouths as they waited for the traffic light.

Suddenly, one of the young men puffing smoke seemed to spot something. He gave a soft sound of surprise, his gaze falling somewhere at the street corner.

"Arno, what are you looking at?" his companion asked.

The young man named Arno stared blankly toward the street corner for a long while before speaking. "Tell me... how does a blind person cross the street?"

His companion froze, hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "Generally speaking, blind people have someone looking after them when they go out, or they have guide dogs. In more modern cities, there are also voice announcements at the traffic lights. If all else fails, maybe they can inch across by following the sounds and using a cane?"

Arno shook his head. "What if no one is looking after him, he has no guide dog, there are no voice announcements, and even his cane is being used to carry peanut oil?"

"...You think you're funny?"

His companion rolled his eyes and followed Arno's gaze. The next moment, he froze as well.

At the opposite corner of the road stood a teenage boy in a black short-sleeved shirt. Several thick layers of black silk ribbon were wrapped around his eyes, completely blocking out all light.

His left hand held a cheap shopping bag packed with vegetables, while his right hand gripped a white cane slung over his shoulder like a carrying pole. At the end of the cane hung a large bucket of golden peanut oil, gleaming beneath the sun!

Black ribbon over his eyes, cane over his shoulder, vegetables in his left hand, oil carried in his right...

The bizarre sight immediately drew the attention of a large crowd nearby.

"Hey, look, that guy is so weird."

"With all that cloth wrapped over his eyes, can he even see where he's going?"

"Didn't you see the cane in his hand? He's blind, obviously."

"What era is this? Blind people usually wear sunglasses now. Who wraps silk around their eyes in this heat? Wouldn't that feel suffocating?"

"Exactly. And have you ever seen a blind person not use a cane for walking, but carry things with it instead?"

"Young people these days really know how to have fun."

"..."

Even the summer cicadas could not drown out the surrounding whispers. Passersby curiously studied the boy, quietly debating whether he was truly blind or merely pretending, while also watching the flashing red light with anticipation.

Just then, a crisp voice sounded beside the boy.

"Big brother, shall I help you cross the street?"

It was a little girl in a school uniform, around twelve or thirteen years old. A few glistening beads of sweat clung to her cheeks, and her large black eyes watched the boy with pure, simple concern.

The boy was slightly startled. He turned his head toward the little girl, a smile appearing on his lips.

"Okay."

He shifted the bag of vegetables to his right hand, freeing his left hand to wipe the sweat from the hem of his shirt before gently taking the little girl's hand.

Click—!

The light turned green.

The boy stepped forward, crossing the street together with the little girl.

The little girl was nervous, looking left and right for oncoming cars. Her steps were cautious and timid.

As for the boy... he walked steadily.

To everyone watching, it did not look like a kind little girl leading a blind person across the street. Instead, it looked more like an older brother taking a child across.

The road was not wide. In little more than ten seconds, the two reached the other side. The boy thanked the little girl, then headed straight into a secluded alley without looking back.

"He isn't blind." Seeing this, Arno declared with certainty, "He can definitely see."

One of the young men behind Arno rested his chin on one hand, deep in thought. Then, as if he had suddenly realized something, he exclaimed in understanding.

"I get it. He's cosplaying Blind Monk!"

Smack—!

A large hand landed sharply on the back of his head. Arno cursed, "Idiot! All you do every day is play games. Who the hell would cosplay Blind Monk in the middle of the street? Does he have a death wish?"

After pausing for two seconds, Arno muttered quietly, "Besides... Blind Monk's blindfold is red. This doesn't even look like the right cosplay."

"Arno, you're one to talk..."

"Shut up."

"Oh."

As the two bickered, the young man who had remained silent all along watched the boy's departing figure, his brows knitting slightly.

"What is it?" Arno noticed his gaze.

"I know him."

"You know him?"

"That's right." The young man nodded. "When my cousin was still in elementary school, I heard that a student at his school had an accident. Something happened to his eyes, and he could only keep them covered with black ribbon. Supposedly, he also had some mental problems..."

"Mental problems?" Arno froze and carefully recalled what he had just seen. "He didn't seem to have any problems to me."

"That was ten years ago. Maybe he recovered by now. But back then, the incident seemed to have caused quite a stir. The student dropped out just a few days later, and I heard he was transferred to a special school for the blind."

Just then, another person eagerly cut in. "So what kind of accident was it? It made him blind and gave him mental problems? Don't tell me he ran into something supernatural?"

"I don't know." He paused. "But... I heard it was something even more absurd than that."

"He's had a hard life." Arno sighed. "What was his name?"

"I think it was Lin... Lin... Lin Qiye?"

Amid the evening glow, Lin Qiye pushed open the door.

Almost instantly, the fragrance of food from inside drifted into his nose. He sniffed, swallowed, and carried his things into the house.

Creak—!

The old door let out a piercing squeal, masking the sound of stir-frying from the kitchen. A middle-aged woman pushed open the kitchen door, and upon seeing Lin Qiye carrying several bags, she cried out in surprise and hurried over.

"Little Seven, why did you bring back so many things at once again?" The woman wiped her hands on her apron and hurriedly took the items from him, fussing nonstop.

"Such a huge bucket of peanut oil? You child, did you go spending your government subsidy recklessly again?"

"Auntie, the government subsidy for disabled people is meant for living expenses. Using it to buy oil is making the best use of it." Lin Qiye smiled.

"Nonsense. That money is supposed to be saved for your university tuition. How can you spend it carelessly? I'm telling you, the money Auntie earns from work is enough to support the three of us. Don't go taking out your own money all the time."

Auntie carefully wiped the oil bucket with her hand, looking somewhat distressed as she muttered, "Such a big bucket of oil, and it's a brand-name one too... it must have cost a lot, right?"

Before Lin Qiye could say anything, Auntie suddenly realized something.

"Wait... how did you bring back so many things?"

"Oh, I met a few kind people on the way. They helped me carry them back," Lin Qiye said calmly.

"Good, good. Looks like there are still more good people than bad in society... Did you thank them properly?"

"I did." Lin Qiye changed the subject. "Auntie, where's A Jin?"

"He's on the balcony doing his homework... Oh, right. The doctor from the Psychiatric Hospital came for your routine checkup this year. He's resting in the room. Go let the doctor examine you. Auntie will finish cooking, then call you both when it's ready."

Lin Qiye's steps paused slightly. He gave an acknowledging sound, then turned and walked toward the bedroom.

"Hello, I'm a doctor from Sunshine Psychiatric Hospital. My surname is Li."

When Lin Qiye pushed open the door, the young man seated on a small stool in the bedroom stood up and spoke gently. He wore a pair of large black-rimmed glasses and looked refined and scholarly.

Lin Qiye raised his brows in surprise. "Wasn't it always Dr. Han before?"

"Dr. Han was promoted to vice director last year." Dr. Li smiled, a trace of envy appearing in his eyes.

Lin Qiye nodded slightly and gave an acknowledging sound.

That made sense. Dr. Han was already quite old and highly skilled, so becoming vice director was hardly surprising. It was only natural for a younger doctor to take over his regular checkups.

After Lin Qiye sat down, Dr. Li cleared his throat and took a stack of medical files from his bag.

"Sorry, I've only just started here, so I'm not very familiar with your situation yet. Let me get a basic understanding first," Dr. Li said apologetically.

Lin Qiye nodded.

"Your name is... Lin Qiye?"

"Yes."

"You're seventeen this year."

"Yes."

"Your birthday?"

"October 5th."

"Mm... The records say that you lost your sight ten years ago, and were sent to our hospital because of certain issues?"

"Yes."

Dr. Li pondered for a long while. "Did you ever change your name?"

"...No. Why do you ask?" Lin Qiye was taken aback.

Dr. Li scratched his head awkwardly. "Ahem... Looks like I was overthinking it."

He pointed to the age in the medical file, then to the words "ten years ago." "Look, you went blind ten years ago, when you were exactly seven years old. And your name is Lin Qiye, so I thought you changed it after losing your sight..."

Lin Qiye was silent for a long time before shaking his head. "No... I've never changed my name. Before I was born, my parents had already decided that my name would be Lin Qiye."

"Well, that really is quite... ahem." Dr. Li stopped halfway through, realizing it would be impolite, and promptly fell silent.

"Quite a coincidence," Lin Qiye said flatly. "It really is."

Dr. Li was somewhat embarrassed, but he quickly changed the subject. "Mm... The medical records do not seem to explain in detail the accident that caused your blindness and mental instability. If it's convenient, could you tell me about it?"

Before Lin Qiye could speak, Dr. Li hurriedly added, "I don't mean to offend you. The more we understand our patients, the better we can treat them. Of course, if you don't want to talk about it, I won't force you."

Lin Qiye sat quietly there. Beneath the black ribbon, his eyes seemed to be watching Dr. Li.

After a long while, he slowly spoke.

"There's nothing I can't say... It's just that you might not believe me. You might even send me back to the psychiatric hospital."

"No, no. Don't think of this as a doctor-patient relationship. This is just a normal chat between friends. It won't come to that." Dr. Li spoke half-jokingly. "Even if you told me Taishang Laojun dragged you into an Alchemy Furnace, I'd believe you."

Lin Qiye fell silent for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"When I was little, I liked astronomy."

"Mm, and then?"

"That night, I was lying on the roof of my old home, watching the moon."

"What did you see? The Moon Rabbit?" Dr. Li smiled.

Lin Qiye shook his head. His next words froze Dr. Li's smile on his face.

"No, I saw an angel." Lin Qiye spoke seriously, gesturing in front of himself with both hands.

"A Seraph shrouded in golden radiance, with six white wings."