chapter 3

That day, Ning Qiuyan did not get to see Guan Heng.

All afternoon, with nothing to do and no internet, he stayed in his room playing the single-player puzzle game Xiaoxiaole (a popular tile-matching mobile game).

The melody of the song he’d heard on the bus earlier had really moved him.

He hadn’t touched his guitar in a long time. He’d planned to use these two days on Du Island-when he didn’t have to work thanks to donating blood-to play his guitar and get familiar with that melody. But now, with his hand injured, he wouldn’t be able to play for a while.

Fortunately, the food on Du Island was especially delicious, and the doctor who came to treat his wound was quite nice. Like Uncle Kang, the doctor was very kind to him.

It was only when he rolled up his sleeve for the blood draw that Ning Qiuyan felt a bit embarrassed.

He hadn’t really checked his appearance before leaving, and hadn’t noticed that the cuffs of his sweater were already covered in pilling. The sweater was hand-knitted, very warm, and he had worn it for many years.

Lately, he’d been going through a rough patch in life, so he’d gotten used to not paying attention to such details. Only now did he realize just how worn-out it was.

“You have a tattoo.” The doctor, surnamed Ling, wore glasses and seemed not to notice the pilled sweater. He asked, “You don’t look like someone who would have a tattoo.”

They were drawing blood now as a pre-donation check for the next day. Uncle Kang had already explained this to Ning Qiuyan in advance, so he was very cooperative.

On the smooth, delicate inside of Ning Qiuyan’s forearm was a tattoo he’d gotten not long ago. Since it was winter and he always wore long sleeves, no one had seen it yet.

“It’s in Latin. It means ‘moonlight on the mountaintop.’ My mother’s name is in the sentence. I got it to commemorate her.”

“Commemorate?”

“Yes, she passed away last month.”

“That’s very filial of you.” The doctor’s voice was soft, and his movements gentle. “Does it hurt?”

The needle pierced his vein.

Red blood flowed through the thin tube into a small vial.

Ning Qiuyan wasn’t sure if the doctor was asking about the tattoo or the blood draw.

But he shook his head and replied, “It doesn’t hurt.”

The doctor only took a small sample of blood; there was medical equipment on the island for testing.

He’d heard that it was common for wealthy families to have private doctors for the long term, and since Guan Heng’s situation was different from ordinary people, it probably required even more caution and care.

Ning Qiuyan asked, “Will you be drawing my blood tomorrow as well?”

“Yes. You can’t have breakfast tomorrow morning,” the doctor told him. “Each donation won’t take much blood-generally about two hundred milliliters, and at most it won’t exceed two hundred and fifty. We’ll keep track of your nutrition and health in real time, and if there’s any problem, we’ll stop immediately. Don’t be afraid.”

These details were written in the agreement. Ning Qiuyan nodded, then asked, “Does Mr. Guan need a transfusion every month? What illness does he have?”

He had looked up information before coming and guessed it might be thalassemia or leukemia.

But the doctor only told him, “Mr. Guan’s condition is rather special and quite complicated.”

Mr. Guan’s condition was special.

Uncle Kang had said the same thing. Since they were unwilling to say more, Ning Qiuyan didn’t press further; it wasn’t very polite to ask about the severity of someone’s illness anyway.

After playing Xiaoxiaole all afternoon, Ning Qiuyan’s eyes were very tired. (Xiaoxiaole is a popular mobile game from China featuring simple gameplay and colorful levels.)

In the evening, just as he cleared over thirty levels, a servant finally came to his room to inform him that dinner was ready in the dining hall.

Full of hope, Ning Qiuyan asked the servant if there was anywhere on the island with a better signal-he wanted to contact his friends and download more games-but the servant told him there wasn’t.

His hopes dashed, Ning Qiuyan felt like he was imprisoned in the internet age.

He couldn’t understand how people on this island managed to pass their long days.

Unlike during the day, at night the building was brightly lit everywhere.

All the curtains had been drawn open. As people walked through the house, every window offered a different breathtaking view of the outside.

The fountains, gardens, and shrubs outside the building were all illuminated by carefully designed ambient lighting, creating various landscapes that highlighted the luxury and opulence that should belong here.

When he arrived at the dining hall, the decor was even more dazzling.

Crystal chandeliers cast sparkling light, and the large wooden dining table was set with exquisite food and fruit, even champagne and tall glasses.

This silent building came alive at night, sweeping away the gloom and oppression of the day, transforming into another world entirely.

It was as if a day on Du Island had only just begun at this moment.
Uncle Kang was already waiting there. When he saw Ning Qiuyan coming downstairs, he naturally pulled out a chair for him and said, “Please, have a seat.”

There were only two sets of tableware on the table, gleaming under the lights, the spoons so polished they could almost reflect a person’s image.

Ning Qiuyan found himself gaining a new understanding of people from another class.

At that moment, a servant entered the dining room and quietly said to Uncle Kang, “Mr. Guan said he won’t be seeing guests tonight. You may handle the arrangements as you see fit.”

Uncle Kang asked in surprise, “Why?”

The servant replied, “Mr. Guan was originally sleeping in the southern room today, but he said it was too noisy in the afternoon and he didn’t rest well. He’s now returned to his bedroom to catch up on sleep.”

Upon hearing this, Uncle Kang glanced at Ning Qiuyan and replied calmly, “Alright.”

Overhearing the conversation, Ning Qiuyan felt a wave of belated nervousness.

The “Mr. Guan” they mentioned must be Guan Heng. So the two sets of tableware were not for him and Uncle Kang, but for the owner, Guan Heng, who had originally planned to dine with him.

Then, Ning Qiuyan immediately felt a wave of relief.

He secretly sighed with relief. Thankfully, the other party was not coming; he really didn’t want to have dinner with a fragile, noble, unfamiliar tycoon.

If they actually sat at the same table, there would be nothing in common to talk about.

Uncle Kang turned to Ning Qiuyan and said, “I’m sorry, Mr. Guan can’t join us tonight. On his behalf, I welcome you.”

Ning Qiuyan hurried to say he didn’t mind: “It’s all right, Mr. Guan should rest well. Health comes first.”

Those who are seriously ill tend to be sleepy-he understood very well.

Uncle Kang nodded slightly and withdrew.

*

That night, Ning Qiuyan slept fitfully.

Dinner was different from lunch; it was entirely vegetarian. It looked plentiful and well made, but Ning Qiuyan was still not full.

What’s more, when he sat alone in the bright, elegant dining room, with a soft napkin and fine, expensive cutlery, he still felt everything was too quiet-prosperity only on the surface, but lifeless underneath.

It was like the beginning of a horror film he’d seen as a child.

He didn’t know how long he had slept when a loud bang startled him awake.

He sat up with a jolt, not knowing what had happened, his heart pounding violently. Reaching for his phone, he saw that it was 1:30 a.m.

“Bang! Bang!”

Two more shots.

This time, Ning Qiuyan understood clearly-those were gunshots!

He immediately pressed the bedside switch to turn on the light, but just then, the power went out.

The room was pitch black. He could faintly hear barking dogs and distant voices.

With the light from his phone, Ning Qiuyan got out of bed and went to the window to look out, but it was just as dark outside. Apart from the white snow on the ground and the shadowy outline of distant mountains, he couldn’t make out anything.

Remembering Uncle Kang’s instructions, Ning Qiuyan quickly ran to the door and pressed the bell, but after waiting for a while, no one answered.

“Ah-”

A heart-rending scream echoed through the house.

Ning Qiuyan’s heart nearly leapt out of his chest.

The piercing cries reverberated inside; it was clearly a man’s agonized howl.

In his panic, Ning Qiuyan forced himself to calm down, and quietly opened the door a crack.

The corridor was so dark he couldn’t see his hand in front of his face, and there wasn’t a sound-the noise seemed to be at the far end of the house.

He closed the door and, eyes shut, tried to steady his ragged breathing. After a few seconds’ thought, he made a snap decision, grabbed his barely-used canvas bag from the carpet, picked up his guitar, and quickly opened the door and headed out.

Along the way, Ning Qiuyan didn’t run into a single person; the servants were gone, Uncle Kang was gone too.

All the strange things he had noticed since coming here seemed, at this moment, to have found their answers.

With only his phone’s flashlight and a vague memory of the house’s layout, Ning Qiuyan fumbled his way through the dark hallways, taking a long time to get downstairs, and even longer to finally find a door that led outside, his breath growing faster and faster.

Cold air flooded his lungs, stinging his cheeks.

The snow hadn’t stopped; the ground was blindingly white.

A thick pool of bright red blood had seeped into the snow, like melted sherbet.

At that moment, someone in front of the building caught him in the beam of a flashlight and shouted to the others, “Over here!”

The barking of dogs also headed in his direction.

Ning Qiuyan stood still for a few seconds, and, against the light, could make out a gun in the man’s hand.

He remembered the boy who had been handcuffed, and in an instant, thoughts of human trafficking, organ trading, even family vendettas-countless possibilities flooded his mind. He turned and ran.
The Forest was not far from the house. When he rushed in, he found it even harder to tell the way inside the woods.

On this unfamiliar, isolated island, Ning Qiuyan lost his sense of direction and stumbled several times. His guitar and canvas bag became burdens, and he had no choice but to abandon them as he fled.

He didn’t know how far he had run when, suddenly, there was a sharp “crack” beneath his feet-the sound of something breaking.

“Don’t move.”

At the same time, a low voice sounded, very close by.

It seemed to be right behind him.

Ning Qiuyan instinctively froze in place.

His face was numb from running in the cold, and as soon as he stopped, his nose and throat burned. He couldn’t help but gasp for breath: “Huff-”

“You’ve stepped onto thin ice on the lake. Move again and you’ll fall in.”

The voice was even closer now, and this time Ning Qiuyan was sure the person was right behind him.

It was the voice of a young man, as cold as the wind at this moment, with a tone of indifference, as if he wasn’t facing any real danger-nothing worth mentioning.

All along the way, Ning Qiuyan hadn’t noticed anyone following him. At least, every time he looked back in panic, there had been no one behind him.

How had this ghost-like person appeared right behind him?

A chill ran down Ning Qiuyan’s spine, and in this situation, he didn’t dare move a muscle.

The ice beneath his feet made another faint cracking sound.

Suddenly, Ning Qiuyan felt a tight grip around his waist.

“Ah!”

Before he could react, someone wrapped an arm around his waist and spun him aside. When his feet landed back on the snow, he realized the other person had effortlessly lifted his entire body and set him down to the side.

The ice collapsed into the water with a splash.

A dark hole opened up on the lake’s surface.

The snow was soft, and when he fell, his phone slipped into the snow as well.

By the time Ning Qiuyan staggered to his feet, the man had already moved two or three steps away.

In the darkness, the snow looked even whiter, making the man appear as a silhouette of pure shadow.

Ning Qiuyan panted heavily, barely able to make out that the other was extremely tall, with long hair. If not for his build, it would be hard to tell if he was male or female.

What made Ning Qiuyan doubt his own eyes was that, in such cold weather, the man seemed to be wearing only a thin robe.

He could even see the man’s neck and exposed ankles, as pale as the snow.

“Sir!” someone called out not far away, the lights in the Forest flickering, “Sir?!”

“Over here,” the man replied casually.

Ning Qiuyan picked up his phone, its screen covered in snow.

He didn’t know if water had gotten in.

Before he could decide whether to run again, people from the Forest were already approaching.

Bare branches stretched out in the night, clawing at the air. Several beams of flashlight swept across the man’s profile.

Ning Qiuyan stood frozen in place.

“Sir, what are you doing over here?”

Among the newcomers was the elderly Uncle Kang, and everyone seemed unharmed.

Seeing Ning Qiuyan, Uncle Kang shone his flashlight, trying to see him clearly. “Is that Xiao Ning? Xiao Ning, how did you end up so far away?”

Ning Qiuyan was still in the state of frantic escape, unable to think or answer.

The light was blinding, and he instinctively raised his hand to shield his face.

“Mm.”

The young man responded, as if too lazy to say more, his answer brief.

People spoke noisily, discussing the pursuit of something.

After Uncle Kang draped a coat-someone else’s-over Ning Qiuyan’s shivering shoulders and muttered a few more words, the man had already walked off with several others.

Uncle Kang didn’t scold Ning Qiuyan for running off. Instead, he asked gently, “Were you frightened?”

“Grandpa Kang, what’s going on?” Sweat beaded on the tip of Ning Qiuyan’s nose.

“We’ll talk when we get back,” Uncle Kang said, patting his shoulder.

Ning Qiuyan was still shaken, his mind lingering on the man in the snow.

In the shifting light, the man’s face was briefly illuminated: a high, straight nose and deep-set eyes so perfect they seemed painted, long lashes casting shadows, gently veiling the glint in his dark pupils.

Could someone that beautiful really exist?

That fleeting glimpse left Ning Qiuyan stunned.

He guessed that the man just now must be the legendary Guan Heng.