Zheng Qing had originally only wanted to brush off the shadow, so he pulled the covers over his head and pretended to sleep.
But to his surprise, he actually fell asleep after only a little while. He slept from noon until sunset, and the sunlight outside had turned dark red, streaming through the window onto the snow-white walls in long, dim streaks.
Zheng Qing was awakened by a faint rustling sound.
He opened his eyes to a sea of white, almost thinking he had returned to the Blank Land he had once visited. But then he realized it was only the whitewash on the infirmary walls.
Unlike the pale, deathly white of the Blank Land, the white plaster walls before him were filled with a soothing softness under the sunlight, brimming with vitality.
It was not yet time to light the lamps.
The orange-red sunset shone through the spotless glass window and blanketed the infirmary in warmth and comfort, making Zheng Qing want to pull the covers over his head and go back to sleep.
But then a voice immediately woke him completely.
"You're awake?"
A familiar, hoarse voice sounded nearby. Zheng Qing tilted his head and saw Xiao Xiao sitting on the sofa to the right of the bed, peeling an apple. The fruit platter on the coffee table before the sofa was already filled with several kinds of washed, cut, and peeled fruit: grapes, pears, green dates, watermelon, and apples.
The young scholarship student immediately felt his mouth water, and his spirits lifted considerably. He raised an arm, grabbed the small brass bell by the bed, and shook it.
Jingle, jingle.
Pfft.
Accompanied by a soft sound like air escaping from a balloon, a little sprite dressed in white gauze suddenly appeared above the patient. She fluttered a