The Gentle Breeze Reflects in My Eyes - Chapter 5

Chapter 5

A single, feathery sentence landed heavily on Gu Yitong’s heart. Suddenly, she seemed to understand why, in that other life, Xia Lusheng had never asked her for anything, and why she had been so devoid of presence.

What she had perceived as aloofness was, perhaps, Xia Lusheng’s deep-seated inferiority.

Gu Yitong reached out toward the girl’s eyes, her fingertips gently brushing against the long lashes. Xia Lusheng didn’t flinch or pull away, allowing the touch.

After a long silence, Gu Yitong crouched down, took Xia Lusheng’s hands in hers, and said with earnest deliberation: “Lusheng, you are not a burden. You are Aunt Xia’s continuation in this world; you are a treasure.”

“And you won’t ‘drag anyone down.’ Taking care of you now isn’t a burden, and once you become a brilliant cellist, the pride you bring us will be something no one else can replace.”

Xia Lusheng’s face remained unreadable. She pulled her hands back, her fingers picking at the smooth egg until its surface was pitted and uneven.

She didn’t say a word.

Seeing her like this, Gu Yitong knew the words hadn’t truly sunk in. She sighed inwardly; she was being too impatient. She couldn’t expect Xia Lusheng to drop her guard and accept her in a single day.

After a moment of shared silence, Gu Yitong offered a compromise: “Then, how about I find a different place for you to play?”

Xia Lusheng lowered her head and bit her lip. The egg in her hand was finally crushed into pieces, falling to the floor. After a long pause, she gave a small, tentative nod. Gu Yitong let out a breath of relief.

She knew she was asking a lot of Xia Lusheng.

For a blind person, familiar places mean safety. Going somewhere new meant sensing and mapping an entire environment from scratch, adapting to strangers, and potentially facing unfriendly people whose pity or mockery she loathed. The mere thought sent a wave of unease through the girl.

Gu Yitong took her hand again. “Just give it a try. If you aren’t happy there, we won’t go.”

Hearing this, Xia Lusheng finally relaxed a fraction.

Gu Yitong placed the remaining egg back on the towel and pulled Xia Lusheng up, feigning a look of mild disgust. “Come on, let’s go to the bathroom and wash your hands. Don’t you find all these egg bits messy?”

Xia Lusheng stammered, “I… I didn’t mean to.”

Gu Yitong looked at the embarrassed girl with a smile. “I’m not blaming you. We’ll just wash them clean. Think of it as a chance to get to know the bathroom ahead of schedule.”

Gu Yitong led her in but released her hand once they entered, letting her navigate. Knowing Gu Yitong was right there, Xia Lusheng walked forward with a sense of security, successfully located the sink, washed her hands, and retraced her steps perfectly.

Gu Yitong placed the white cane back in her hand. “Go to the bed.”

Xia Lusheng understood this was a test of her spatial memory. She followed her mental map and, to Gu Yitong’s delight, found the exact spot where she had been sitting on the first try.

Gu Yitong reached out and rubbed Xia Lusheng’s head encouragingly. “Good girl, Lusheng!”

Xia Lusheng’s pretty brows are knitted together. She tilted her head up toward Gu Yitong with an expression of such concentrated conflict and mild “disgust” that it was impossible to ignore. “You… you didn’t wash your hands. You just touched the eggs, and now you’re touching my hair…”

Even though she knew Lusheng couldn’t see her, Gu Yitong felt as if the girl was staring right into her soul, accusing her of her hygiene crimes.

Gu Yitong let out a small “ah” and pulled her hand back with a laugh. “I suppose that’s true. By the way, you’re only sixteen—how did the Mapo Tofu Hotel hire you in the first place?”

Two years ago, she was only fourteen. Pure child labor.

Xia Lusheng looked blank. “Can’t sixteen-year-olds play the cello? The doctor who treated my mother found the place for me. He said he knew the owner and that it didn’t matter if I couldn’t see.”

Gu Yitong understood. Likely, the physician took pity on the girl’s plight and found her a sanctuary.

“Alright, I’m going to make some food. You rest for a bit.” Looking at the time, it was already 2 PM, and neither had eaten lunch.

…

That evening, after moving the punching bag to the guest room, Gu Yitong lay in bed and dialed Qi Die’s number.

It picked up almost instantly. “Gu Yitong,” Qi Die growled, “you better have a damn good reason for skipping work!”

“Die, I brought a kid home.”

The line went silent for a heartbeat. Qi Die’s voice dropped. “Is it the one you mentioned? The one the auntie entrusted to you? Xia… something?”

“Xia Lusheng.”

“Right, right. She actually agreed to go to your house?”

Qi Die was Gu Yitong’s best friend and roommate throughout high school and college; she knew everything. Gu Yitong recounted the day’s events in full.

When she finished, Qi Die snorted. “Fine, fine, I get it. You want this underage girl to play at my cafe, right? Send her over. Even if someone reports me for hiring a minor, I’ll treat her like a VIP. No one will lay a finger on her.”

Gu Yitong felt a surge of warmth. “Thank you.”

“Hmph!” Qi Die sounded haughty. “Don’t thank me yet. I’m taking her as a hostage! If you can’t keep the company afloat and make me the laughingstock of my brother, I’ll ‘harm’ the hostage!”

Qi Die was a genuine “rich second generation,” but she wasn’t a spoiled brat. With her savings, she had opened a cafe, a net cafe, and a hair salon—three businesses that seemed unrelated but were connected by her four passions: coffee, gaming, hairstyles, and eating.

Their current joint venture, the “Gourmet Society,” was related to that fourth passion. It functioned like a travel agency but for food. They acted as intermediaries, recommending restaurants based on client tastes. If it grew, they planned to guide clients through cuisines across the country.

However, since they were new, the concept wasn’t widely accepted yet. They survived on corporate orders—arranging business dinners, booking tables, and handling the menu so the clients only had to show up and pay. Qi Die refused to use family money, so the company was currently in a “feast or famine” state.

Gu Yitong chuckled. “Alright, stop joking. I’m going to check if the girl is asleep.”

Hanging up, she crept toward the master bedroom. The door was ajar, and the lights were off. When she flipped on the living room light, the spill revealed Xia Lusheng.

The girl was sitting on the bed, leaning against the headboard, curled into a tight ball. She looked up at the sound of the light.

Gu Yitong frowned, sat on the edge of the bed, and felt her forehead. “Why aren’t you sleeping?”

Xia Lusheng hugged her knees and buried her face. “Every time I lie down and close my eyes… I feel like I’m being pushed down in that room again. I’m afraid to reach out next to me. I’m scared I’ll touch… him. But the more I’m scared, the more it feels like someone is right there.”

Gu Yitong’s heart ached. “Oh, honey. Why didn’t you call me if you were scared?”

Xia Lusheng stayed silent, her head buried.

“From now on, if you’re scared or need help, call me if I’m here. If I’m not, call my phone, okay?”

Xia Lusheng hesitated, then silently shook her head.

Gu Yitong sighed. “Is it because you think you’ll be a bother to me?”

Xia Lusheng stirred and nodded. Her muffled voice drifted up from her knees: “I… I have no right to ask you to stay with me. You don’t owe me anything. What identity, what status do I have to make you take care of me? You have no obligation… I don’t have the ‘standing’ to trouble you. I shouldn’t.”

The last few words were so quiet Gu Yitong almost missed them.