chapter 4

Uncle Kang told Ning Qiuyan that they were chasing a few deer.

When they returned to the house, the chandelier had already been lowered, and a servant was lighting the candles on the hanging ring.

The polished dark wooden floor, glass windows, ceramic utensils, and metal picture frames all faintly reflected the warm candlelight, as if dreaming back to the Middle Ages.

People came and went, each busier than the last. Ning Qiuyan didn’t know which hall he was in now; he only heard Uncle Kang instructing someone to go repair the power station overnight.

Everything on Du Island was self-sufficient, with its own power system, and power outages were very rare.

From their discussion, it seemed that a strong wind had unexpectedly snapped some trees, which in turn broke an electric wire somewhere.

Someone had found Ning Qiuyan’s lost backpack and guitar case in the Forest and brought them to him. The backpack was already wet, but the guitar case was waterproof. Ning Qiuyan squatted down to check if his guitar was intact.

Hearing this, he turned around in surprise. “Deer?”

“Yes.” Uncle Kang told him that there were actually many wild animals on Du Island, but most were herbivores, such as deer, cattle, wild rabbits, etc. The Guan Family also had their own livestock farm.

But tonight wasn’t about hunting-it was just an accident.

The wind was strong at night, and when the trees fell, not only did they crush the electric wires, but they also startled several deer that were overwintering in the Forest. Panicked, the deer rushed toward the light and charged into the mansion, smashing through the window glass after a bout of chaos.

Because someone was injured, they had to use a hunting gun.

Someone was injured?

Ning Qiuyan was startled and uncertain, recalling the bloodstains in the snow and those terrifying screams.

“A kitchen helper was pierced through the waist by a deer antler. It was quite serious,” Uncle Kang said. “There was a lot of blood.” He sighed and continued, “It’s been many years since something like this happened. Tonight, not only you, but no one managed to get a good night’s sleep.”

Such an accident was certainly enough to throw everyone into chaos.

No wonder Ning Qiuyan hadn’t met anyone inside the house earlier; instead, he only saw people outside.

Uncle Kang said, “Luckily you ran into Mr. Guan. Otherwise, if you’d accidentally fallen into the lake in this icy world, you’d have suffered for sure-the lake water would have given you frostbite.”

Ning Qiuyan asked, “Was that person just now Mr. Guan?”

“Of course,” Uncle Kang replied. “I don’t think anyone could mistake him.”

Although he had already guessed, Ning Qiuyan still found it unbelievable.

He had run out without a coat, wearing only indoor cotton slippers on his feet.

After running all that way, his clothes and shoes were soaked through with melted snow, leaving him shivering with purple lips, clutching tightly to the clothes Uncle Kang had given him.

But just now in the snow, he had seen Guan Heng dressed even lighter than himself.

He remembered Guan Heng’s exposed neck and ankles in the cold wind. Dressed like that, any ordinary person would be shivering, so could Guan Heng, a sick man, really be fine?

Ning Qiuyan couldn’t come to a conclusion.

Uncle Kang led him back to his room, telling him not to be afraid, that the electricity would be back by morning at the latest.

At the room door, Uncle Kang added, “Tonight was our oversight, but if anything else happens, don’t run off again. The island is so big, and besides us, there are no other residents. Where could you go? If you really disappeared, we might not even be able to find you.”

Ning Qiuyan’s face grew hot. He felt he hadn’t done anything wrong, but didn’t know what to say.

Sometimes people make mistakes even when they make the right choice.

Uncle Kang’s eyes crinkled with a smile. “But you’re very brave. In the middle of the night, with the wind and snow so fierce on the island-when I first came here, I was about your age, and in such a situation, I wouldn’t have dared to run outside.”

Ning Qiuyan asked, “Did you come to the island when you were young?”

“Almost fifty years now.” The Old Man’s kindly face was full of laughter. “No one knows every brick and tile of this house, every blade of grass and tree on the island, better than I do.”

With no hot water after the power outage, Ning Qiuyan returned to his room, quickly stripped off his wet clothes, dried himself as best he could, and curled up shivering under the covers.

After his midnight escape, he lay in bed wide awake, all sleepiness gone.

Thinking about Uncle Kang’s words, he suddenly realized something: Guan Heng had bought Du Island two years ago, but Uncle Kang said he’d been on the island for fifty years. Did that mean Uncle Kang had already been working here before?

He stared at the ceiling, surveying the house, and thought to himself that no wonder the exterior looked so historic-this house had been on Du Island for so many years.

Once he was warm, Ning Qiuyan turned over several times, finally hiding under the covers and taking out his phone.

He played three levels of the single-player Xiaoxiaole to help himself sleep, when someone came knocking at the door.

A servant brought Ning Qiuyan a pair of headphones, saying they were from Mr. Guan.

Ning Qiuyan stood at the door, the red marks from his pillow still on his face. “From Mr. Guan?”

The servant held up a candle and nodded. “Yes.”
Ning Qiuyan was puzzled. “Why did Mr. Guan give me headphones?”

The servant replied politely, “Sir said that if you have trouble sleeping, you could try playing some light music through the headphones. It should help you fall asleep quickly.”

After the door closed, Ning Qiuyan stared blankly for a minute or two before opening the headphone case.

The wireless headphones were brand new, and the battery indicator was still green and fully charged.

It seemed Guan Heng had a habit of giving gifts.

But they barely even knew each other. Besides, even if he wanted to give a gift in the middle of the night, why would it be a pair of headphones?

The phone screen still displayed the Xiaoxiaole game page.

A thought flashed through Ning Qiuyan’s mind, and he was stunned.

During dinner, the servant had told Uncle Kang that Guan Heng wouldn’t be coming to the dining room because he hadn’t slept well that afternoon due to the noise-specifically mentioning that Guan Heng slept in the room on the south side.

Ning Qiuyan’s room was also on the south side of the second floor.

Did that mean Guan Heng was sleeping directly above him?

In the pitch-dark room, Ning Qiuyan paced a few times, using his phone’s flashlight to examine the house’s structure.

After confirming that the walls here were thick and soundproof, and after trying to find any ventilation ducts like those often seen in movies, he suddenly stopped.

Was he being too paranoid?

Even if he had spent the whole afternoon playing Xiaoxiaole on his phone in this room, with the volume only halfway up, there was no way someone a floor above could hear the game’s sound effects, right?

Ning Qiuyan lay back down on the soft bed.

He thought of those deep, pool-like black eyes, and the faint light that seemed to be veiled within them.

*

Light woke Ning Qiuyan.

Last night, he had pressed the switch by the bed, and the lamp had finally responded, albeit belatedly.

The power was back.

Ning Qiuyan sat in a daze for a while, confirming that everything that had happened the previous night wasn’t a dream. The back of his heel stung a little. He sat up to check and found a tiny wooden splinter embedded in his flesh, probably from the Forest. He hadn’t even noticed it last night.

It took him some time to get the splinter out, and a small bead of blood welled up from the tiny wound.

The bedsheets were white, and worried about staining them, Ning Qiuyan hopped on one foot to the side table and wiped away the blood with a tissue.

He drew open the curtains and saw someone in the distance pushing a cart.

The snow had stopped, and a thick layer had accumulated on the ground.

The cart left two long tracks in the snow.

A deer antler drooped from the front of the cart-probably a frozen, stiff dead deer. He could vaguely see a bloody mess inside the cart, impossible to tell if it was intestines or other organs. The scene was extremely gory.

Ning Qiuyan watched as the person pushed the cart into the Forest he had visited the previous night.

Uncle Kang came to the room, apologetically telling Ning Qiuyan that he couldn’t have breakfast this morning because he needed to donate blood for Guan Heng today.

The doctor had already informed Ning Qiuyan of this yesterday, so it seemed his blood sample had passed the screening.

“You also need to take a shower,” Uncle Kang said. “Sir is very sensitive to smells.”

After two nights of poor sleep and with his stomach growling, Ning Qiuyan looked haggard and groggy.

Upon hearing this, he immediately lowered his head and sniffed himself.

Did he smell bad?

Uncle Kang was gentle but left no room for refusal; it was clear he wasn’t asking for Ning Qiuyan’s opinion. “I’ll have someone collect your change of clothes.”

With that, Uncle Kang left the room.

Ning Qiuyan sniffed his clothes again, then took off his shirt and smelled his arm and underarm, confirming that he was reasonably clean.

Since he had been paid, he felt he should cooperate as much as possible, so Ning Qiuyan went to take a shower.

As he put on another set of clothes, he thought of the vegetarian meal he had eaten the night before.

Eating vegetarian in advance, showering before the meeting.

It was a bit like the ancient practice of purification and ritual bathing.

Ning Qiuyan felt that what he was doing now was akin to a sacrifice.

Coming from the mainland to a small island in the middle of the sea, preparing everything, the sense of ritual was strong.

For the first time, he felt that the blood flowing through his body was extraordinary, capable of providing someone with significant help.

Ning Qiuyan didn’t waste much time. When he left the room, Uncle Kang was still patiently waiting at the door. Seeing him come out, he said, “Please follow me.”

The corridor lights were on again, and every curtain had been drawn shut once more.

Once it was daytime, the building reverted to the appearance it only had at night.

They went up to the third floor, entering Guan Heng’s completely private domain.

There was nothing particularly special here, except that the layout was much more open than downstairs. Aside from a small reception area, there was only a single, tightly closed large door.

“The doctor hasn’t arrived yet,” Uncle Kang said, “but before we begin, sir would like to speak with you first.”

Ning Qiuyan’s hair was still damp as he asked in confusion, “About what?”

Uncle Kang was succinct: “Just go in.”

It was a pair of white double doors with old brass handles, worn smooth from use, reflecting Ning Qiuyan’s shadow in a blurry outline.
The handle felt cold to the touch as Ning Qiuyan gently pushed open the door.

A spacious room came into view.

The room was as large as a hall, and there were no appliances or any medical equipment belonging to a patient in sight.

Every part of the room was covered with soft carpet. There was little furniture, but each piece was of high quality. The arrangement was a bit messy, full of signs of life, and carried a natural sense of sophistication.

It was very dim here, with only a single chandelier quietly glowing on the ceiling. The owner seemed to dislike natural light very much; just like the other floors, all the curtains in the room were drawn shut.

Suddenly, the sound of the door closing came from behind, startling Ning Qiuyan.

It was Uncle Kang who had closed the door for them.

“Please, have a seat.”

A male voice sounded in the room-it was the one he had heard last night.

Ning Qiuyan was startled again. He looked around every corner of the room, certain the voice came from behind the honey-colored wooden screen.

He could hear but not see the speaker, and felt embarrassed to go looking, so he stood where he was and said, “Hello, Mr. Guan.”

In a vase about half as tall as a person in the corner, a single dried reed was placed.

Not knowing where to look, Ning Qiuyan fixed his gaze on it, and soon heard Guan Heng ask, “What is your name?”

Ning Qiuyan was surprised-Guan Heng actually didn’t know the donor’s name yet.

He had thought the other party would have looked into it.

“Ning Qiuyan-‘Qiu’ as in autumn, ‘Yan’ as in inkstone.” After his dry self-introduction, he added, “Thank you for saving me last night.”

After he finished speaking, the room fell silent for a long time.

In the quiet, Ning Qiuyan could hear his own shallow breathing.

“You ran pretty fast last night.”

Guan Heng’s voice was closer now.

Ning Qiuyan turned his head and saw Guan Heng walking out from behind the screen.

Guan Heng seemed to have just gotten up.

He was even taller than Ning Qiuyan’s vague impression from before. His long, smooth hair was messily draped over his shoulders and back, the robe belt loosely tied around his waist, his whole demeanor lazy and relaxed.

What shocked Ning Qiuyan was that Guan Heng’s skin was extremely pale-paler than anyone Ning Qiuyan had ever seen, with a sickly cast to it.

If last night, after being rescued, Ning Qiuyan had thought Guan Heng’s condition wasn’t as serious as he’d imagined, now he was almost certain-Guan Heng was truly gravely ill.

No ordinary person would look like this.

Compared to last night, Ning Qiuyan could see Guan Heng much more clearly now.

Guan Heng’s eyes were deep black and very beautiful, but the slightly upturned corners carried a cold sharpness that could be called harsh, making it hard to meet his gaze.

“If you change your mind, I’ll have someone arrange for you to go back,” Guan Heng said as he walked to a low cabinet and took out a glass. “No need to force yourself.”

At that moment, Ning Qiuyan’s attention was drawn to Guan Heng’s fingers.

Guan Heng opened the fridge, took out something resembling red wine, and poured it into the glass. His pale, slender fingers formed a striking contrast with the vivid red liquid in the cup.

Who drinks red wine so early in the morning?

Before Ning Qiuyan could answer, Guan Heng paused mid-action, then asked knowingly, “You’ve showered?”

Was it the scent of body wash?

Ning Qiuyan couldn’t smell it himself.

It was such an ordinary question, yet for what it implied, he felt inexplicably embarrassed. “Yes.”

He really needed the money.

Under the light, Guan Heng’s features were striking. He looked no more than twenty-five or twenty-six, which meant he was much younger than the world had thought two years ago.

So young, yet possessing such wealth, but plagued by illness-even Ning Qiuyan felt a sense of regret for him.

“You don’t intend to leave,” Guan Heng ended the topic casually. “Pretend I didn’t say anything.”

He stepped onto the carpet and sat lazily on a high-backed black velvet sofa, then lifted his eyelids to look at Ning Qiuyan, his gaze gentle. “Come here, let me take a look.”

Ning Qiuyan walked a little closer, thinking Guan Heng meant for him to sit down.

But when he got near, Guan Heng gestured for him to squat by the armrest. “Lower.”

Then Guan Heng leaned over him, lowering his head to scrutinize him.

Those ink-black eyes were unfathomable. Whether it was a trick of the light or not, it seemed as if a ring of red shimmered in the center of his pupils, making him appear very dangerous.

In the dim light, a strand of the man’s jet-black hair fell, landing on Ning Qiuyan’s cheek.

He couldn’t help but blink.

“Now answer me, Ning Qiuyan,” Guan Heng looked at him and asked, his expression somewhat serious. “Are you of age?”

Just then, Ning Qiuyan’s phone suddenly rang.