Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Xu Muchan was ushered into the villa complex by the Xu family.

The eager media reporters and live-stream hosts were held back by security, and Zhou Yang tactfully left as well, not wanting to disturb the family reunion.

Xu Zhifei held Xu Muchan's hand tightly, leading him along the path back to the villa, chattering about the time he got lost: "You were so small back then, like a little snowball of a kid, so well-behaved and obedient, everyone who saw you would praise you..."

As she spoke, she began to cry again: "It's all my fault. If I had kept a closer eye on you back then, you wouldn't have had to suffer all these years outside."

"Thankfully we finally found you. Don't be afraid even if you can't see for now—Mommy will find you the best hospital and the best doctors, and I'm sure they can cure you..."

Her slightly choked voice was very gentle, bringing back distant memories in Xu Muchan.

Xu Muchan could remember things from a very early age. He still remembered how his mother had held him in her arms, crying just like this, sad yet incredibly gentle, saying, "Muchan, don't blame your father and mother. We truly had no other choice."

And then Xu Muchan, barely three years old, was given away.

He had cried in fear, clinging to the shoulder of the man who'd bought him, frantically looking back, only to see his parents' figures growing more and more distant, smaller and smaller, until they disappeared completely.

They never once looked back.

Adults always seemed to think kids were too young to remember anything, so they could spin lies without any guilt once the children grew up.

Xu Muchan had actually stopped thinking about his parents' retreating backs years ago. As he grew older, he'd gradually come to understand his parents' choice—after all, there was no such thing as unconditional love in this world.

Even between parents and children.

Xu Muchan let his eyelids droop, listless, and said nothing.

He just instinctively squeezed the schoolbag in his arms.

The shrine in his schoolbag was quiet this time, not making the troubling noises it usually made. Xu Muchan didn't know why, but he felt a little disappointed.

His pale lips slowly pressed into a thin line. Xu Muchan suddenly stopped in his tracks, turned his face toward Xu Zhifei, as if he had something to say.

Xu Zhifei had been chattering away without getting any response from her son. Now that he was finally about to speak, she looked at him with eager anticipation, her motherly heart about to burst: "What do you want to say, Muchan?"

Xu Muchan's long lashes fluttered as he spoke, sounding genuinely puzzled: "I've always remembered you selling me to a middle-aged man for fifty thousand yuan, saying you needed the money urgently because the business had lost money. I cried at the time. Could I be remembering wrong? Was I actually abducted?"

The young man's expression was innocent and confused, with no hint of accusation, as if he were just looking for an answer.

Xu Zhifei and Xu Qingming's faces changed instantly.

The moment the old matter came up, the fear and trembling that had faded with time came rushing back. Xu Zhifei recalled something, and the muscles in her cheeks twitched oddly as she forced a smile: "You were only three then—how could you possibly remember? It must be that the kidnappers brainwashed you over all those years, and that's how you ended up with those memories."

Xu Qingming chimed in: "That's right. After you were taken, your mother and I were heartbroken for a long, long time. Especially your mother—she got seriously ill and almost died. Saying something like that, aren't you just breaking your mother's heart?"

Xu Muchan listened, face turned to the side, his pale cheeks almost blending into the gray sky.

He let out an "Ah" of realization, his voice light, as if a weight had been lifted: "Oh, so that's how it was. Sorry, I wronged Mom and Dad."

The young man didn't seem to be faking it; he'd clearly bought his parents' explanation.

Even the earlier awkwardness and stiffness in his demeanor had completely melted away, replaced by a child's adoring look toward his parents.

Seeing this, Xu Zhifei's heart, which had been pounding from the shock, gradually settled. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and quickly changed the subject, introducing the adopted son standing beside her: "After you were taken, Mom adopted a child from the orphanage to pray for your safe return—that's Wangchuan. Wangchuan is six months older than you, so from now on, you should call him 'big brother.'"

"If you're not comfortable calling him brother, you can just call me by my name." Xu Wangchuan cut in gently, perfectly playing the part of an accommodating, easygoing older brother.

The couple looked at him with growing satisfaction, pleased with their obedient, sensible adopted son.

Xu Muchan turned his head slightly, recognizing Xu Wangchuan as the one who'd whispered in his ear earlier.

He had always been sensitive to others' emotions, and Xu Wangchuan's last somewhat inexplicable remark had made him sense ill intent. His lashes trembled as he parted his lips and called out, "Brother."

The young man's voice was clear and bright, with an extra softness when addressing family. His jet-black hair contrasted with his small, fair face, making him look well-behaved and easily bullied—as if one could do anything to him without resistance.

After all, he was still blind.

Xu Wangchuan narrowed his eyes slightly and pulled him by the arm toward the villa: "Since you can't see, it's more convenient for you to stay on the first floor. I happen to live on the first floor too, so you can stay in the room next to mine. Let me show you around the house first so you can get familiar with it."

Xu Muchan obediently let himself be led into the villa.

The Xu family villa was located in Oak Manor by Jiunv Lake. It had three floors above ground and three below, standing alone with a total of fifteen hundred square meters of garden in the front and back. Because the neighborhood had a good environment and sufficient privacy, the Xu family spent most of their time here.

The first floor was originally the living room, dining room, and reception area, but because Xu Wangchuan hated taking the elevator, he had the servants clear out the empty rooms on the first floor and moved down from the second floor.

Now that Xu Muchan had returned and couldn't see, it worked out perfectly for him to stay on the first floor with Xu Wangchuan, so they could look after each other.

As soon as Xu Muchan entered the living room, he smelled a familiar yet strange odor.

It was a scent that was hard to describe. If forced to put it into words, it was something like the smell of incense mixed with the stench of animal blood and decay—the kind of smell that inevitably made one think of deities who appeared compassionate on the surface but actually required blood offerings, easily evoking disgust and fear.

He paused mid-step, turning his face in confusion, unsure if he had misidentified the smell.

When he was sold off, he had only been three years old, and the Xu family was nowhere near as wealthy as they were now. Back then, the family of three had been renting a three-story self-built house in the suburbs. By all logic, the Xu family had moved countless times since then—why was this smell still here?

It was even stronger than he remembered.

Recalling his childhood in the old house, Xu Muchan's lashes suddenly trembled, his lips pressed into a thin line, and his nerves tightened.

Xu Wangchuan looked at the boy who had suddenly stopped, puzzled: "Muchan, why aren't you walking?"

Xu Muchan said softly, "Let's walk a little slower. I want to familiarize myself with the route."

Xu Wangchuan understood. The blind young man holding his white cane was clearly memorizing the layout and route of his surroundings.

He said with great patience, "That was my oversight. Since you can't see, you really do need to take your time getting familiar with the environment. Let's walk slowly then. Ahead is the reception room—turn right after passing it and you'll reach your room. The servants have already cleaned it up in advance. If you need anything else, just let me know. My room is right next to yours, so if you call out, I'll hear you."

Xu Muchan hummed in acknowledgment and followed his directions, walking straight and then turning right.

Compared to the clumsiness he displayed, the blow of blindness wasn't actually as severe as others assumed.

Qiu Ze's earlier speculation that his eyes had been injured in a landslide wasn't quite accurate. In reality, his vision had started deteriorating long before that.

At first, it was just blurry vision and brief episodes of blindness. He thought it was nearsightedness from overusing his eyes, so he went to the county hospital for a checkup, but nothing was found.

After that, his vision grew worse and worse, and the episodes of temporary blindness lasted longer and longer. By that point, Xu Muchan had already considered the worst possibility and prepared himself as thoroughly as he could.

When he went completely blind half a month ago, Xu Muchan forced himself to quickly adapt to living without sight.

Although being in an unfamiliar place was uncomfortable, he wasn't nearly as panicked as he appeared.

Xu Wangchuan took him around the entire first floor. Xu Muchan had always had an excellent memory, and after losing his sight, his other senses had become sharper. He had already constructed a mental floor plan of the Xu family's first floor.

He didn't reveal this, however, and simply used fatigue as an excuse, saying he wanted to go back to his room to rest.

Xu Wangchuan dutifully escorted him back to his room and said, "There will be a family dinner tonight, and all the relatives will be there. Mom and Dad said they want to introduce you to everyone. We'll leave around eight-thirty. You still have two hours to rest—I'll come get you when it's time to go."

Xu Muchan nodded, clutching his schoolbag as he stood in the unlit room, looking a little pitiful.

Xu Wangchuan's mood improved slightly, his gaze roaming freely over the boy's baggy old school uniform, bootleg Adidas sneakers, and the black worn-out schoolbag he had been clutching tightly to his chest without letting go.

The schoolbag was stuffed to the brim, and he wondered what kind of treasure was inside. Xu Wangchuan curled his lips and reached out to grab it: "Give me the bag, I'll put it in the closet for you."

"Mom bought you new clothes, they're in the closet too. You can change before we go out."

As he spoke, the old schoolbag was already in Xu Wangchuan's hands. Taking advantage of the fact that the boy couldn't see, he opened it directly, curious to see what treasure a hick from the mountains couldn't bear to let go of.

As the zipper slid open, the head under the red cloth inside instantly spun a hundred and eighty degrees, staring at Xu Wangchuan.

The faded red cloth half-covered it, about to slip off but not quite, while the exposed lower half of the face was as pale as flour, with lips a bright blood-red.

Those lips curved upward, opening and closing with a wet, sticky sound, as if its mouth were full, or as if it were just learning to talk.

It called out eerily: "Xu Wangchuan..."

"Xu Wangchuan..."

"Xu Wangchuan..."

The muffled voice, impossible to tell if it was male or female, wrapped around Xu Wangchuan like a curse. The head in the schoolbag stretched its neck—long and thin like a snake—curving as it brought its face close, nearly nose-to-nose with Xu Wangchuan.

The blood-red lips opened and closed, revealing jagged teeth packed with bits of meat, yet its tone was eerily affectionate.

Xu Wangchuan yelped and instinctively hurled the schoolbag away.

The head tumbled out with a clatter, but the red cloth didn't fall off, still covering that creepy, talking face, with the faint outline of lips still moving underneath.

Xu Wangchuan's face turned pale, sweat breaking out on his forehead. Hands shaking, he pulled out his phone to check the time—18:12.

The God of Joy was supposed to appear only after midnight, so why was it here now?

Why had it come early all of a sudden?

Xu Wangchuan stared at the time on his phone screen, his nerves shot, his whole body seized up with fear.

Xu Muchan couldn't see, but he heard Xu Wangchuan's startled cry and the increasingly heavy, tense breathing.

The corner of his mouth twitched upward, then quickly pressed down. He asked, faking concern: "Brother, are you okay?"

The head that had rolled to the floor moved again, its snake-like neck stretching long, circling around to behind Xu Wangchuan, affectionately resting its chin on his shoulder, its lips blowing air against his ear.

Xu Wangchuan could even smell the foul, rotting stench emanating from the mouth as it opened and closed beneath the red cloth.

Finally, he could no longer care about Xu Muchan and fled the room as if running for his life.

Xu Muchan was left alone in the darkness. Following his memory, he took two steps, precisely grasped the doorknob, and closed the door. Only then did he leisurely turn back and pick up the schoolbag that had been thrown to the floor.

The shrine was sturdy, fortunately not damaged.

He fumbled to open the innermost wardrobe door, solemnly placed the shrine inside, then set the stone idol, slightly larger than a palm, on top. After carefully adjusting it, he bowed and said: "Thank you, brother. I've just arrived at the Xu family and I'm not familiar with this place yet. Bear with it for now—when I come back tonight, I'll find a chance to cook for you, make your favorite egg rice."

As always, there was no response.

Ever since Xu Muchan decided to return to Jiangcheng, his brother had not appeared again or spoken to him.

Xu Muchan was glad not to have to serve him, but he deliberately put on a dejected look, letting out a heavy sigh. He sat in front of the idol for a long while, then, with a face full of disappointment, closed the wardrobe door and lay down on the bed.

He folded his hands over his abdomen, suppressed his excitement, and closed his eyes.

Coming back to the Xu family really was the right call.