The girl wiped her eyes and her face, and crashed into his body. Her entire soul was slammed inside. Leaning against the coffin, Wei WuXian slowly slid to the ground. The boys hurried to drag over a pile of straw for him to sit on. Jin Ling clutched the bell tightly, his thoughts unknown.

"You really did it." said Jiang Cheng.

"You made them all worried about you." said Nie Huaisang.

When the girl had just slammed into him, Wei WuXian suddenly thought of a problem, The maiden is blind. If I Empathize with her, wouldn’t I be blind as well and I won’t unable to see a thing? The effects would plummet. Oh well, only the ears should work as well.

"Why did I only thought about that now?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"Because you're dumb." said Wen Chao.

"More like you're talking about yourself." said Jingyi.

After a few dizzying moments, the soul that had been light felt as though it landed on firm ground. As the girl opened her eyes, Wei WuXian opened his eyes as well. However, the scene before his eyes wasn’t a field of pitchblack, but instead a clear landscape with bright colors.

He could see!

"She's not blind." said Wei Wuxian.

"Maybe she only became blind before she died." said Nie Huaisang.

Seemingly, at the time of this piece of memory, she wasn’t blind yet.

During Empathy, the scenes shown to Wei WuXian would be segments of her memory with the strongest emotions and that she most wanted to express to other people. He could simply watch quietly and feel what she felt. At the moment, the two of them shared the same senses. The girl’s eyes were his eyes; the girl’s mouth was his mouth.

"So we are also going to experience it." said Jin Zixuan.

"I hope it's nothing that painful. Such girl doesn't deserve such suffering." said MianMian.

"Which is impossible." said Jiang Cheng.

Sitting by a brook, the girl groomed herself in front of the water. Although her clothes were tattered, she still needed the most basic level of cleanliness. Tapping a tempo with the tip of her foot, she hummed as she fixed her hair, as though she wasn’t satisfied no matter how she fixed it. Wei WuXian could feel a thin, wooden hairpin poking around in her hair. Suddenly, she looked down at her reflection in the water. Wei WuXian’s viewpoint lowered as well. A young maiden with an oval face and a sharp chin was mirrored against the water of the brook.

There were no pupils within the maiden’s eyes, only a field of white.

"She has a blind eyes yet she's not blind?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"How did that happened?" asked Jin Zixun.

"Ask yourself. Isn't it obvious? She was born with it." said Jin Ling.

Wei WuXian wondered, This is clearly the look of someone who’s blind, but right now I can see, can’t I?

After the girl fastened her hair, she dusted her clothes and leaped up. Grabbing the bamboo pole by her feet, she skipped along the road. She swung her pole as she walked, ceaselessly swatting at the branches above her head, knocking at the rocks that she passed, scaring the grasshoppers within the bushes. As soon as somebody approached from afar, she immediately stopped skipping. Properly holding onto her pole, she knocked on the ground as she slowly wandered forward, appearing quite wary. The group that came was a few villager women. Seeing her situation, they all moved out of her way and whispered to one another. The girl nodded with hurry, “Thank you, thank you.”

"Is she fooling people?" asked Jin Zixuan.

"Why would she do that?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"If she's not really blind then why is pretending to be one?" asked Nie Huaisang.

"She must have her reasons." said Jiang Yanli.

"But that seemed so wrong especially when she fooled other people." said Jiang Cheng.

"Really?" asked Jiang Yanli while giving his brothers a look.

"It was just only one time." said Jiang Cheng.

"I don't think so. Every time you go out of Lotus Pier, you guys always do it." said Jiang Yanli making the two shut their mouth while glaring at one another.

One of the women seemed as though she felt sorry for her. Lifting the white cloth that covered her basket, she took out a steamed bun and gave it to her, “Sister, be careful. Are you hungry? Take this and eat it.”

The girl ah-ed and replied thankfully, “How can I take it? I-I…”

The woman shoved the bun into her hand, “Take it!”

She finally took it, “Sister, A-Qing is very thankful of you!”

So the girl’s name was A-Qing.

"Is she doing that for living?" asked Jin Zixun.

"Can't you see?" asked Zizhen.

"You admired a thief?" he asked in disbelief.

"When did she stole something?" asked Zizhen.

"Stop asking him. He's clearly the one who is blind." said Jingyi.

Bidding the villager women farewell, A-Qing finished the bun in just a few bites, and continued to skip along, hopping three inches high each time. Skipping with her inside of her body, Wei WuXian’s head spun from dizziness. He thought to himself, The maiden is so full of energy. Now I understand. She’s pretending to be blind. She was probably born with those white eyes. Although she looks blind, she can actually see, so she’s pretending to be blind with her eyes, tricking people into feeling sorry for her. Being a girl who roamed the streets alone, if she pretended to be blind, people would naturally think that she really couldn’t see and lower their guard. However, in reality, she could see everything. This allowed her to adjust according to the circumstances and was indeed a clever method of self-protection.

"I'm starting to like this girl. If she didn't die, we would have been a good friends if we met." said Nie Huaisang.

"You're going to teach her some bad things." said Jiang Cheng.

"Such a clever maiden." said Jin Guangshan.

"Oh not you. Get your filthy eyes off of her." said Jin Ling.

Despite this, A-Qing’s soul was truly blind, which meant that she did lose her sight before she died. Then, how did she go from pretending to be blind to being actually blind?

Was it that she saw things she shouldn’t have seen?

"We're going to find out." said Wei Wuxian.

"Who would do that to her? She's such a cute girl." said MianMian.

The juniors give Xue Yang a look which didn't go unnoticed by Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng who are always looking at them for possible clues.

When nobody was around, A-Qing skipped along; when people were around, A-Qing shrunk down and pretended to be blind. Pausing now and then, she arrived at a marketplace.

Since it was bustling with people, of course she’d show off her skills. Performing to the fullest, she knocked on the ground with her bamboo pole, her act as believable as ever. Slowly walking through the crowd, she suddenly ran into a middle-aged man dressed in bright, expensive-looking clothes. She pretended as though she was frightened, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I can’t see. I’m sorry!”

"Oh My God! Why did she do that? She could have harm herself." said MianMian.

"What a great pretender she is?" said Wei Wuxian.

"What is she planning to do?" asked Jiang Cheng.

She couldn’t see? She clearly rushed right into the man!

Having collided with someone, the man turned angrily around, as if he wanted to curse at whoever was in front of him. However, seeing that it was not only a blind person, but also a young maiden who looked rather pretty, if he slapped her face in the streets, he’d definitely be criticized by the passerby. He could only scold, “Watch where you’re going!”

"At least spoke softly, it's still a young maiden." said Lan Xichen.

"That's pretty normal especially when it comes to common people." said Jiang Cheng.

"If they think they are already above everyone else, they think they can do whatever they want even if it comes to disrespecting a person." he added.

"Coming from you." said Wei Wuxian.

"I have respect to common people. I only disrespect those who don't deserve any." said Jiang Cheng.

A-Qing continued to apologize. As he was about to leave, he still wasn’t satisfied, and squeezed A-Qing’s buttocks with his right hand. Since they felt the same things, it was as though the squeeze landed on Wei WuXian’s body. Instantaneously, Wei WuXian felt as if a blanket of goosebumps climbed over his heart. He wanted no less than to slam the man into the ground.

"I'm going to kill that man." said Jiang Cheng.

"What I hate the most is that people doing unacceptable things to women like harassing them. I'm going to cut off their fingers one by one." he added.

Lan Wangji was glaring at the man on the screen.

A-Qing shrunk herself into a ball as if she was deeply frightened. However, after the man was some distance away, she tapped her way into an obscure alleyway, and immediately spat on the ground. Fishing out a money pouch, she poured the contents out, counted them, then spat again, “Those lousy men, all of them are like this. Dressed as if they really are something, but they don’t have any coins. You can’t even shake a penny out of them.”

"She stole his money pouch?" asked Jin Zixuan in disbelief.

"I can't believe a maiden like her can also curse." said Meng Yao.

Wei WuXian was halfway between frowning and bursting into laughter. A-Qing was still young, possibly younger than fifteen-years-old, but she was already quite adept at cursing, and even more adept at snatching people’s money. He reminisced, If you stole my money, you wouldn’t have cursed in such a way. Back then, I used to be wealthy as well…

"You finally admitted that you're poor." said Jingyi.

"But I'm not poor." said Wei Wuxian with a pout.

"In the future, you are." said Jin Ling with a laugh.

"How could you say that?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"Because that's the truth." said Zizhen.

Wei Wuxian pouted at them.

Just as he was sighing about how he became so poor, A-Qing had already found her next target. Acting as a blind person, she walked out of the alleyway, wandered on the streets for a while, and did the same thing. With an “ah”, she drove herself into a white-robed cultivator, then apologized, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I can’t see. I’m sorry!”

"She should have at least change her limes." said Jiang Cheng.

"I agree. People will easily recognize her and will have suspicions on her intentions since she keep saying the same excuses and they will find out that she is a stealer." said Nie Huaisang.

"Are you by any chance supporting her in stealing?" asked Jin Zixuan.

"What's wrong with stealing?" asked Jiang Cheng.

Jin Zixuan was speechless.

"Wanyin, stealing is a bad behaviour." said Lan Xichen.

"Really?" asked Jiang Cheng while looking at Wei Wuxian.

"I don't think so." he said while Jiang Yanli shook her head.

Her brothers likes to steal back then and a-die have to pay it for them but of course it was Wei Wuxian's idea and he drag Jiang Cheng to do it.

Wei WuXian silently shook his head. This young beauty didn’t even change her lines!

Having been jolted by her, the person turned around. He helped her steady herself first, “I’m fine. Maiden, you can’t see either?”

The person was fairly young. His cultivation robes were simple yet clean, and he carried a sword wrapped in white cloth on his back. The lower half of his face was quite handsome, although somewhat emaciated. On the other hand, the upper half of his face was covered with bandages about four fingers wide. A soft tinge of blood vaguely seeped from beneath the bandages.

"Xingchen." said Song Lan.

"Oh! So we are going to find out what really happened to him because maybe him and that maiden became friends." said Nie Huaisang.

"That's good. We will finally solve their mystery." said a random cultivator.

A-Qing seemed to have paused shortly before answering, “Y-yes.”

Xiao XingChen, “Then, walk a bit slower. Don’t be so fast. You wouldn’t want to bump into someone again, would you?”

He didn’t mention at all that he himself couldn’t see either. Holding AQing’s hand, he led her to the side of the road, “Walk here. There are less people.”

"He's kind." said a random cultivator.

"Makes me wonder what really happened to them for him to end dead." said another random cultivator.

"And if he is really the one who killed his best friend." said Nie Huaisang.

Both his words and his actions were gentle yet careful. A-Qing reached out with hesitation, but in the end, she still snatched away the money pouch that hung by his waist, “Brother, A-Qing is very thankful of you!”

"What a liar?" laugh Jin Zixuan.

"A very cute liar." said Nie Huaisang.

"No wonder the juniors seemed to admire hee so much." he added.

Xiao XingChen, “Not Brother. It’s Daozhang.”

A-Qing blinked, “But you’re both Daozhang and Brother.”

Xiao XingChen smiled, “Then, since you call me Brother, why don’t you give back Brother’s pouch?”

"He knew it!" exclaimed Nie Huaisang.

"Of course, one cannot simply steal from a cultivator because of their good senses." said Wei Wuxian.

"Even if they're blind." he added.

No matter how quick a street-roamer like A-Qing was, they wouldn’t be able to fool the senses of a cultivator. Startled, she took her pole and sprinted as fast as she could. Yet, not having run very far, Xiao XingChen grabbed the back of her collar with one hand and brought her back, “As I’ve already said, you shouldn’t run so fast. What if you bump into someone again?”

A-Qing struggled to escape his grasp. With a twitch of her lips, her upper teeth bit down on her lower lip. Wei WuXian understood at once, Oh no, she’s gonna shout ‘molester’! Suddenly, a middle-aged man hurried out of a street corner. As he saw A-Qing, his eyes lit up at once. He stormed over as he cursed, “You little bitch. I’ve finally caught you. Give back my money!”

"How dare she curse a little maiden?" asked MianMian in anger.

"Stop defending the maiden. It was her fault for stealing the man's money." said Su She.

"But, it is not right to curse a maiden. She could have asked about it in a kind tone besides that man harassed her." said MianMian.

"Did you really expect that the man will spoke kindly? Look at him, he look like someone who has no respect for anyone." said Jiang Cheng.

"At least Xiao Xingchen is there. He won't let that man to hurt maiden A-Qing." said Nie Huaisang.

"You're right." said Song Lan.

Simply cursing wasn’t enough to relieve his anger. With a wave of his arm, his hand swung toward her face. A-Qing immediately looked down and closed her eyes. Yet, before the slap landed on her cheek, it was stopped halfway through.

Xiao XingChen, “Sir, please calm down for a moment. It’s quite an impolite way to treat a young maiden, don’t you think?”

"Yeah right. Doesn't he knew that it was a sin to hurt a maiden?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"When did it become a sin?" asked Jin Zixun.

"It is a sin because women can't fight back." said Meng Yao.

"Really?" asked MianMian while Madam Yu, Madam Jin, Jiang Yanli, Wen Qing and other female cultivators looked at him.

"Women are more scary especially when they're mad." said Jiang Cheng.

"Never underestimate a woman." said Wei Wuxian.

"They are more braver that you." laughed Jin Ling and Jingyi.

A-Qing secretly peeked from behind her eyelids. The middle-aged man clearly used a lot of strength, yet his hand was held by Xiao XingChen’s in a seemingly light way, unable to move an inch. Although he was nervous, he accused stubbornly, “What is a blind guy like you doing here? Saving the damsel in distress? So the little bitch is your lover? Did you know that she’s a thief? She stole my money! If you protect her, then you’re also a thief!”

"No, they're not." laughed Song Lan.

"If I am protecting her doesn't mean I'm also a thief. I am protecting her from the man." said Xiao Xingchen.

"My master said thet woman should be highly respected." he added.

With him in one hand and A-Qing in the other, Xiao XingChen turned around, “Give the man his money back.”

A-Qing fumbled out the small amount of money and passed it over. Xiao XingChen let go of the man, who counted the money. Everything was still there. Glancing at the blind cultivator again, the man knew that he’d be difficult to deal with, so he trudged awkwardly away.

Xiao XingChen, “You really are too bold. How do you dare steal things even when you’re blind?”

"She do that for living." said Su She.

"She should never do that again." said Xiao Xingchen.

"Then we must find her. We will take good care of here." said Song Lan.

"You're right. That way she won't di that again." said Xiao Xingchen with a smile.

A-Qing leaped up three inches high, “He touched me! He pinched my butt, and it hurt so much, so what’s wrong with me taking some of his money? There’s only so little inside of such a big pouch, and he’s being a bully about it. He’s gonna die flat broke!”

Wei WuXian disagreed, You clearly had stealing intentions and bumped into him first, but now you’re saying it like he wronged you first. What a fraud argument.

"It is wrong to take his money because it's called stealing but the man also have no right to harass her." said Nie Huaisang.

"Men should really show some respect." he added.

"But it was her intention to steal the man's money." said Wei Wuxian.

"But the man harassed her, so it was fine to took his money." said Jiang Cheng.

Wei Wuxian looked at him, dumbfounded.

Xiao XingChen shook his head, “Such being the case, you really should’ve known better than to provoke him. Today, if nobody was here, the matter wouldn’t have been solved with a mere slap. Maiden, take care.”

After he finished, he turned to the opposite direction and left. Wei WuXian observed, He didn’t ask for his money pouch back. This shishu of mine is gentle towards women as well.

"It was only respect." said Xiao Xingchen.

"But you are a flirt." said Jiang Cheng making Wei Wuxian pout.

"You should really learn from shishu. So that your cold jade of a lover will stop drinking vinegar." he added.

"Wait, they're lovers now?" asked Jin Zixuan.

"Oh! They're not together yet." laughed Jiang Cheng.

"You and brother-in-law too." said Wei Wuxian.

"We already have our parents permission. We're already dating." said Lan Xichen.

"When was that?" asked Jiang Cheng.

Lan Xichen just smiled at him.

"You can't escape now." laughed Wei Wuxian making Jiang Cheng glare at him.

Holding the money pouch that she stole, A-Qing stood and stared blankly for a few seconds. Suddenly, she stuffed it into her lapel, chased over with her pole, and crashed right onto Xiao XingChen’s back. Xiao XingChen could only help steady her again, “Is there anything else?”

A-Qing, “I still have your money pouch!”

Xiao XingChen, “It’s yours now. There’s not much inside, anyways. Before you spend all of it, be sure not to steal anything else.”

"What a kind man." said a female cultivator.

"They look cute together." said Nie Huaisang.

"Like siblings." said Song Lan with a smile.

"I wonder what it feeld like to have a brother like him." said a female cultivator.

"Aren't I a good brother?" asked the man beside her.

"You only scold and nag at me." she answered.

"Like ChengCheng here, but they are the most considerate brothers. They only care about your safety." said Wei Wuxian and Jiang rolled his eyes at him.

A-Qing, “I heard the filthy man curse. So you’re blind too?”

Hearing the second sentence, Xiao XingChen’s expression faltered at once. His smile disappeared as well.

The bold, innocent remarks of children were often the cruelest. Children didn’t know anything. Precisely because they didn’t know anything, they hurt people’s feelings in the most direct of ways.

Xiao Xingchen looked down.

"You will never be a blind man in this timeline. I will make sure of that." said Song Lan.

"Depends on the situation." said Xiao Xingchen making Song Lan glare at him

"You won't do such thing." said Song Lan in a stern voice.

Under the bandages wrapped around Xiao XingChen’s eyes, a smear of red grew darker and darker, almost seeping through the cloth. His raised his hand for it to hover over his eyes, while his arm trembled slightly. The pain and injury that came with gouging out one’s eyes were not that easy to heal. However, A-Qing simply thought that he was feeling dizzy. She beamed, “Then let me follow you!”

"Promise me you will never do that again." said Song Lan.

"It will severe our friendship. Look, I was not there with you when it supposed to be us together to roam the cultivation world." he added.

"We will follow our dreams and will never separate from one another. Xingchen, that's the reason why we became friends in the first place." said Song Lan.

"I promised." said Xiao Xingchen making Song Lan smiled at him. He only smiled at him and never to anyone else.

Xiao XingChen managed to smile, “Why would you want to follow me? To become a cultivator?”

A-Qing, “You’re tall and blind, and I’m small and blind. If we travel together, we can care for each other. My parents are gone and there’s nowhere I can stay. I’ll follow anyone to anywhere.” Being as clever as she was, she was afraid that Xiao XingChen would refuse her, so she took advantage of his agreeable nature and threatened, “I spend money really quickly. If you refuse to take me with you, the money will be gone at once, and I’ll have to go steal and trick people again. And then somebody will slap me hard and I’ll fall down and I won’t even be able to find my way. Poor me!”

"Please take her, I'm kind of interested to have her around." said Nie Huaisang.

"I agree. I found this maiden, I will take her to Lotus Pier and let her have a life she wanted. I will make her the happiest person in the world." said Wei Wuxian.

Damn, Lan Wangji is once again drinking vinegar.

"You want to have her?" asked Jin Zixun.

It only fueled Lan Wangji's jealousy.

"Yes." answered Wei Wuxian making Lan Wangji grip his waist so tight that he screamed.

"Lan Zhan!" he exclaimed.

Lan Wangji's face was too dark to read what is going in his mind.

"Wei Wuxian, you should really watch whag you're saying. Clear your words." said Jiang Cheng while glaring at Lan Wangji.

"I only want her to a younger sister, nothing else." he said.

"Lan Zhan, you're the only one okay? Only you and nothing else." he said while kissing the man's forehead.

"Promise? You'll never flirt, again? You'll never compliment a girl, again? You will never want anyone, again?" asked Lan Wangji.

"I promise." said Wei Wuxian while kissing Lan Wangji's nose and smiled at him.

Lan Wangji hugged him tightly.

"That was impossible." mumbled Jiang Cheng.

Xiao XingChen laughed, “Someone as clever as you should be able to fool others so that they can’t find their way. Who in the world can do the same to you?”

After watching for a while, Wei WuXian found something interesting.

Now that he had seen Xiao XingChen himself, he discovered that, in comparison to the real one, Xue Yang’s imitation really was precise! Aside from his face, all of the details were true to the real Xiao XingChen. If someone told him so, he could’ve even believed that Xiao XingChen had possessed Xue Yang’s body.

"Maybe Xue Yang observed him for a long time for him to act like him so precise." said Nie Huaisang.

"You're right. If Song Lan didn't say that the man earlier isn't Xiao Xingchen then maybe I will believe that it was really him." said Jin Zixuan.

"An actor can never really fool a person who was with the man he is pretending to be with for a long time." said Wei Wuxian.

Pleading, pestering, and pretending that she was pitiful, A-Qing clung to Xiao XingChen the whole way. Xiao XingChen warned her quite a couple of times that it’d be dangerous if she followed him, but A-Qing never listened. She wasn’t even scared after Xiao XingChen exorcised an old cattle that had gained consciousness when they passed a certain village. She still kept on calling him “Daozhang” and stuck to him as if she was syrup, never going more than three meters away from him. As she followed him, possibly deciding that A-Qing was quick-witted, brave, and never a hindrance all the while being a young, blind maiden with nowhere to go, Xiao XingChen finally gave tacit permission to her staying with him.

"That was kind of brave of her." said Nie Huaisang.

"if I'm the one who saw that, maybe I already fainted at the scene." he added making his friends laugh at him.

"Then, we must bring you at every night hunt." said Wei Wuxian.

"No thanks." said Nie Huaisang while shaking his head aggressively.

Wei WuXian originally thought that Xiao XingChen must have had a destination. However, as a few pieces of memory passed, judging from the climates and dialects, the places that they went couldn’t at all form a distinct route. He didn’t seem like he was going anywhere, but rather nighthunting by chance. He went to wherever people mentioned peculiar things were happening. Wei WuXian guessed, Maybe the YueyangChang Clan’s case had too big of a blow on him. He didn’t want to be among the clans and sects anymore, but he couldn’t give up on his aspirations, so he chose to night-hunt as he wandered around, solving as many problems as he could.

"Who would want to be with them when they are the reason why his reputation was ruined and made his life miserable?" asked Song Lan while gliding at the Jins.

"If it happened to me, I will also do the same." said Jin Zixuan while glaring at his family except his mother.

At the moment, Xiao XingChen and A-Qing were walking along a long, flat road with weeds and grasses of waist height growing on both sides of it. Suddenly, A-Qing cried out with an ah. Xiao XingChen immediately asked, “What’s wrong?”

"What happened to her?" asked Nie Huaisang.

"I hope it's nothing serious." said Wei Wuxian in a worried tone.

"Remember your words. Always put them in you mind." said Jiang Cheng, seeing that Lan Wangji was glaring at the maiden in the screen.

A-Qing, “Ugh. Nothing. My ankle twisted.”

Wei WuXian could clearly see that it wasn’t because her ankle twisted at all. She was walking as fine as ever. If not for that she was pretending to be blind in front of Xiao XingChen so that he couldn’t come up with any reasons to shoo her away, she could hop up to the heavens as she walked. A-Qing’s exclamation was because as she glanced around, she suddenly saw a black figure lying among the bushes of weeds.

"Who's that?" asked Jin Zixuan.

"Did someone throw a body there when they are done torturing them?" asked Nie Huaisang.

"He might have just blacked out." said Jiang Cheng.

"But, it doesn't look like that." said Wei Wuxian.

"We will find out." said Zizhen.