One week later, at Cangnan City No. 6 High School.
"Hey, look, is that person from our school? Why are his eyes covered with a cloth?"
"Wearing our school uniform, he must be from our school."
"He's holding a white cane; seems like he's blind."
"Weird, why haven't we seen him before?"
"Must be a new freshman this year."
"True, with a few circles of black cloth wrapped around his eyes, he actually looks quite handsome."
"But how does a blind person attend classes? Our school doesn't have special classes, right?"
"I don't know."
"..."
As expected, as soon as Lin Qiyue walked through the school gate, he attracted a wave of attention.
However, for scenes like this, Lin Qiyue had experienced too many. He calmly walked through the maple avenue, heading towards the direction of the teaching building.
To be honest, Lin Qiyue was prepared to face some tough guys before he came. In many mindless stories, there would surely be a few so-called "school bullies" who would mock him, setting the stage for him to prove them wrong...
However, those troublemakers were nowhere to be found. Instead, several students voluntarily approached him, asking if he needed help.
This left Lin Qiyue feeling inexplicably disappointed.
After all, with nine years of compulsory education, modern students weren't so foolish to cause trouble. Even if there were some cliques, the current trend emphasized a sense of "brotherhood." Helping a friend resolve issues and expressing camaraderie was acceptable, but bullying a disabled person would result in public condemnation, leading to a ruined reputation.
Lin Qiyue, as usual, climbed the stairs and quickly found his classroom, Class 2 of Grade 10. He had spent one year in a special school for Grade 10, and now, after transferring, he was considered a new student.
In most TV shows and novels, new students were often portrayed as being ignored, isolated, and having a miserable time, especially since cliques were already formed during the first year of high school. Without actively engaging, it was difficult to integrate into the class.
Lin Qiyue was well aware that he wasn't the proactive type. Even if he had spent the first year with them, given his aloof demeanor, he might still be a solitary figure.
But being alone wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Lin Qiyue enjoyed the solitude – no disturbances, a chance to focus on studies...
If someone tried to force him to build relationships, he wouldn't be able to do it.
Standing at the classroom door, Lin Qiyue took a deep breath, calmed himself, and stepped inside.
As Lin Qiyue entered the classroom, the previously noisy atmosphere suddenly came to a halt, and the air fell silent...
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
Just as Lin Qiyue was about to say something, the classroom erupted!
"Are you Lin Qiyue? Your seat is ready, over there."
"Lin Qiyue, are you unable to see? I'll guide you."
"Classmate, walk slowly; there are things on the aisle... Hey, you, quickly put away your backpack!"
"..."
Before Lin Qiyue could react, several classmates walked up, carefully guiding him to his seat. A tall male student even took Lin Qiyue's backpack and carried it on his shoulder.
With the escort of many, Lin Qiyue "safely" reached his seat.
Lin Qiyue: ...?
How does this match the script?
"Lin Qiyue, I'm the class monitor, Jiang Qian. If you need anything, just find me." A girl with a ponytail patted her chest.
"I'm Li Yifei, shout for me when it's time to eat, I'll take you there." The guy who helped carry his bag smiled.
"And me, I'm Wang Shao..."
"..."
Many people surrounded him, warmly greeting him.
For a moment, Lin Qiyue felt a bit bewildered.
To be honest, this was quite different from what he had imagined.
"Do you guys know me?" Lin Qiyue had a strange expression.
"Our class teacher told us about you," Class Monitor Jiang Qian replied, "But what left the deepest impression was your aunt. That day, she stood here holding a basket of eggs, giving each of us an egg, asking us to take care of you..."
In Lin Qiyue's mind, it seemed like a thunderbolt struck, and he stood there in a daze.
While others were chatting, he couldn't hear what they were saying anymore. He just stared blankly at the classroom, images of the hunchbacked middle-aged woman holding a basket of freshly boiled eggs, earnestly entrusting her nephew to the classmates, surfaced in his mind.
"Classmates, please help, my nephew has poor eyesight and a reserved personality. Take good care of him..."
"Young lady, you look so beautiful; my nephew is also very handsome. You will surely like him..."
"This child Qiyue, cold on the outside but warm on the inside. As long as you get along with him, you will surely get along well..."
"..."
At some point, the black ribbon on his eyes became slightly damp.
"Aunt..." he muttered to himself.
While everyone chatted, a female teacher with books walked in, saw Lin Qiyue sitting in the front row, offered a few words of comfort, briefly introduced him to everyone, and then started the class.
"Turn your books to page ninety. Today, we'll talk about the history and challenges of modern Greater Xia..."
Perhaps due to Lin Qiyue's presence, the teacher skipped the usual process of reading the textbook and went straight into explaining its content.
"One hundred years ago, there were over two hundred countries on Earth, distributed across seven continents and four oceans. Despite the lack of advanced technology in that era, people could still travel by ship to experience the collision of different cultures in various countries..."
"However, on March 9th of that day, a mysterious fog suddenly appeared in Antarctica, then rapidly spread at an astonishing speed, engulfing nearly 98% of Earth's landmass within 24 hours."
"The towering skyscrapers, ancient primal forests, and unfathomable oceans... everything was covered by the mist, leaving countless countries shrouded in darkness with no communication."
"But, when this inexplicable fog was about to invade the land of Greater Xia, it stopped."
"No one knows the reason, but it just stopped in this peculiar manner."
"For a hundred years, numerous theories and speculations have been put forward. Some say this fog is a type of organism that, after consuming 98% of Earth, stopped near Greater Xia because it was full; others claim it's due to the special magnetic field in Greater Xia hindering the fog's spread. Some even suggest that it's the accumulated heritage of Greater Xia over five thousand years protecting its territory..."
"The composition of this fog completely surpasses human understanding. Whether it's light, sound, radio waves, or other detection methods, none can penetrate this fog. No one knows what lies behind this mist, whether the other countries that were swallowed a hundred years ago still exist..."
"Experts speculate that the chances of survival within this fog are extremely low. Whether inhaled into the lungs or contacted with the skin surface, it is deadly
!"
"In the past hundred years, our country has sent countless well-equipped exploration teams into the fog, but not a single person has returned."
"Fifty years ago, our country successfully launched its first satellite. Images sent back from space showed that the entire Earth had turned into a pale white, leaving only Greater Xia as a pristine land."
"Today's Greater Xia is like an island on this planet, and we... perhaps are the last survivors of this planet."
"Therefore, the day when the fog appeared, March 9th, is called 'Survival Day.'"