A week later, at Cangnan City Sixth High School.
"Hey, look, is that person from our school? Why is he wearing cloth over his eyes?"
"He's wearing our school uniform, so he must be from our school."
"He's holding a guide dog cane, so he's probably blind."
"How strange, I've never seen him before."
"He must be a new student in the first year of high school."
"Don't say, with the cloth wrapped around his eyes, he looks kind of handsome."
"But how can a blind person attend class? I don't think our school has special classes."
"I don't know."
"..."
As expected, the moment Lin Qi Ye walked into the school gates, he attracted the attention of a large crowd.
However, this was nothing new for him. He continued walking through the maple-leaf avenue of the school, heading toward the teaching building, unaffected by the stares.
Before arriving, Lin Qi Ye had already prepared himself for the likely trouble. After all, in many mindless "self-improvement" stories, a situation like this would usually prompt a few "bully-like" characters to mock him, setting the stage for later "face-slapping" scenes.
However, no such troublemakers appeared. Instead, many students proactively approached him, offering help.
This left Lin Qi Ye feeling oddly disappointed.
It made sense though. These were students who had gone through nine years of compulsory education, so there weren't that many ignorant troublemakers. Even if there were small cliques, nowadays, the concept of "brotherhood" made it difficult for anyone to bully a disabled person. If they did, they'd soon be publicly shamed and ostracized.
Lin Qi Ye climbed the stairs and quickly found his classroom, Class 2 of the second year. He had spent a year at a special school for first-year students, and now he was transferring, becoming a new addition to this class.
In most TV shows and novels, transfer students were often depicted as isolated and lonely, struggling to fit in since various cliques had already formed during the first year. Without taking the initiative, it was hard to integrate into the class.
Lin Qi Ye knew he wasn't the proactive type.
In fact, even if he had spent the first year with them, his cold, standoffish demeanor would likely have left him still alone.
But being alone wasn't so bad. Lin Qi Ye actually enjoyed the peace and quiet, without any interruptions, allowing him to focus on his studies.
If he had to deliberately build relationships with others, he wouldn't even know where to begin.
Standing at the door of the classroom, Lin Qi Ye took a deep breath, composed himself, and stepped in.
As soon as Lin Qi Ye entered, the previously noisy classroom fell into a stunned silence.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
Just as Lin Qi Ye was about to say something, the class erupted in chatter!
"You're Lin Qi Ye, right? Your seat is ready for you, it's over there."
"Lin Qi Ye, are you blind? I'll take you there."
"Watch your step, there are things in the aisle... hey, someone, get your backpack out of the way!"
"..."
Before Lin Qi Ye could react, several classmates had already stepped forward, carefully guiding him to his seat. A tall boy even took his backpack and slung it over his shoulder.
With the crowd surrounding him, Lin Qi Ye "safely" arrived at his seat.
Lin Qi Ye: ...?
This wasn't what he expected.
"Lin Qi Ye, I'm the class president, Jiang Qian. If you need anything, just ask me." A girl with a ponytail said, patting her chest.
"I'm Li Yifei. If you're going for lunch, let me know and I'll take you," the boy who had carried his bag said with a smile.
"And me, I'm Wang Shao..."
"..."
More and more students gathered around him, warmly greeting him.
For a moment, Lin Qi Ye felt somewhat dazed.
To be honest, this was very different from what he imagined.
"You guys... know me?" Lin Qi Ye asked, a bit confused.
"The class leader told us about you," Jiang Qian replied. "But what left the strongest impression on us was your aunt. She stood here with a basket of boiled eggs, handing them to us one by one, asking us to take good care of you..."
Lin Qi Ye's mind seemed to be struck by a thunderclap, freezing in place.
The voices of the other students faded as his mind involuntarily flashed to the image of the hunched, middle-aged woman holding a basket of boiled eggs, earnestly asking the students to take care of him.
"Students, please help out. My nephew's eyesight is poor, and his temperament is cold. Please look after him more..."
"You know, this girl is really pretty, and my nephew is handsome too. I'm sure you'll like him..."
"Qi Ye, he's a cold person on the outside, but warm on the inside. Once you get to know him, you'll really get along..."
"..."
At some point, the black satin around Lin Qi Ye's eyes began to dampen slightly.
"Aunt..." he whispered to himself.
As the students continued chatting, a female teacher walked in, carrying a stack of books. Upon seeing Lin Qi Ye sitting in the front row, she first offered some words of sympathy, then introduced herself briefly before starting the lesson.
"Everyone, turn to page 91. Today, we'll be talking about the history and struggles of modern Dayan..."
Perhaps because of Lin Qi Ye's presence, the teacher skipped over the usual reading of the textbook and directly began explaining the content.
"One hundred years ago, there were over two hundred countries on Earth, spread across seven continents and four oceans, each with distinct customs and cultures. Even in that era when technology was underdeveloped, we could still sail to different countries and experience their cultural collisions..."
"However, on March 9th, a mysterious fog suddenly appeared in Antarctica and spread at an alarming rate, swallowing almost 98% of the Earth's surface within just 24 hours."
"The towering buildings humans built, the ancient forests, the bottomless oceans... everything was covered by the fog. Countless countries were consumed by it, disappearing without a trace."
"However, when this strange fog was about to invade Dayan's territory... it stopped."
"No one knows why, but it inexplicably halted."
"For a hundred years, countless theories and hypotheses have been proposed. Some say the fog is a living organism, and after consuming 98% of the Earth, it became full and stopped near Dayan; others say that Dayan's position in the world creates a unique magnetic field that prevents the fog from spreading; still others believe that Dayan's 5,000-year-old heritage protected this land..."
"The fog's composition completely exceeds human comprehension. No matter what method we use, whether it's light, sound, or radio waves, none of them can penetrate the fog. No one knows if the countries swallowed by the fog still exist behind it..."
"Experts speculate that the chances of survival for those who were in the fog are extremely low, because the fog is deadly when inhaled or when it touches the skin."
"In the past hundred years, our country has sent numerous well-equipped exploration teams into the fog, but none of them returned."
"Fifty years ago, our first satellite was successfully launched. The images sent back from space showed the Earth had turned a greyish white, with only Dayan remaining untouched."
"Now, Dayan is like an isolated island on this planet, and we... may be the last survivors of Earth."
"Thus, the day the fog appeared, March 9th, has been called 'Survival Day'."