I'm Ugly, You're Blind - Chapter 2

3

Several days passed. I tried all sorts of medicines, but his eyes showed no improvement. I began seriously doubting my medical skills.

Then again, his injury must simply be too severe.

A few more attempts would surely do it.

I sighed and went back to sorting herbs. His voice came from inside.

“Miss Liu, you sighed. Have you encountered some difficulty?”

I looked toward the room in surprise.

Was the male lead’s hearing that good?

“You heard that?”

“To be frank, I practice martial arts. My hearing is rather sensitive.”

I nodded. At least that wasn’t a lie.

I sighed again, hoping to scare him.

“Nothing serious. It’s just that your eyes may be difficult to treat…”

Silence.

Then the door opened. Blindfolded, Wei Wuya stood in the doorway, tall and slender, with the beauty of someone weakened by illness.

“We do what we can and leave the rest to heaven.”

Pretty words. Why did he kill this body’s original owner later, then?

I couldn’t tell whether he was simply a superb actor. In all these days together, I had seen nothing of a man who killed at the slightest provocation.

The novel took place in an age of chaos. Imperial authority was crumbling, regional powers were rising, and everyone wanted that seat above all others.

Wei Wuya was no exception.

Except that he sought revenge.

During the struggle over the succession, his father, the Prince of Jin’an, had been framed. More than a hundred members of his household had been slaughtered, servants and little children included. Only he escaped.

After years of planning, he built his own power base and became the lord of Yuezhou.

According to the plot, in another two years he would storm the imperial capital and become emperor.

The book described him as decisive in slaughter and ruthless in his methods.

If he wanted to act, I would let him.

I only asked, “Since you’re well enough to walk, could you help me with something?”

He tilted his head in puzzlement. I led him to the stream behind the house.

“I’m tired of eating vegetables, and I have no money. There are plenty of fish here. Could you spear a few?”

I handed him an iron fork and brought over a stool to watch.

He turned his head toward me.

“Miss Liu. You’re asking a blind man to catch fish?”

I answered earnestly.

“You might not realize this, but I’m probably even less capable than you.”

He approached the water and applied a little force with his hand. A splash struck my face.

I suspected it was deliberate. How else could water fly that far, specifically in my direction?

Still, he did eventually spear a fish.

4

The next morning, I brought his medicine as usual.

This time, though, I wore a white veil over the red scar on my face. By my treatment schedule, his eyes should recover today.

I watched him finish the medicine, then began unwrapping the bandage.

The moment it came off, I ran outside and called through the wooden door.

“Young Master Wu, the light is bright. Open your eyes slowly.”

For a long while, there was no reply.

Could he still not see? That shouldn’t be possible.

Afraid he was disappointed, I offered more reassurance.

“It’s all right if you can’t see yet. I have plenty more medicines to try.”

This time, his answer came quickly.

“Why are you standing outside, Miss Liu?”

I let out a long breath. That meant he could see.

My next words sent him packing.

“Since your eyes have recovered, please leave.”

I had read the novel too long ago to remember every minor detail. Only its broad course and major events remained clear.

His blindness, for example. The original text merely mentioned that he was injured, not how or where.

But I knew that on his way back to Yuezhou, he would meet the heroine, Yin Ruxue.

After telling him to leave, I went into the adjacent bedroom and shut the door. I had no intention of getting close to him.

Above all, he was far too suspicious. In the novel, apart from a secret-guard organization he controlled with drugs and one friend at his side, he trusted no one. Even the heroine, who stayed beside him, earned his trust only gradually.

I just wanted an ordinary life here.

No involvement in important people’s loves and feuds.

A knock came from outside my bedroom door. His voice was gentle as water.

“I’m about to leave, Miss Liu. Won’t you come out?”

I held the door firmly shut.

“I’m ugly and dislike meeting strangers. I wish you freedom from illness and misfortune, Young Master Wu, and may all your desires come true.”

If I didn’t offend him, he shouldn’t kill me later.

Right?

“Then take care, Miss Liu.”

His footsteps receded. After a long wait, I cracked the door open.

The courtyard was silent. He must have left.

Only then did I open it fully. I had barely taken two steps when someone appeared beside me.

Who else could it be but Wei Wuya?

I recoiled in surprise.

“You didn’t leave?”

Thank goodness I still wore my veil. Otherwise, wouldn’t seeing my face make it easier to catch me later?

He smiled at me and spoke quite seriously.

“I must thank the person who saved my life face-to-face.”

He clasped his hands and bowed.

Caught off guard, I had no time to step aside.

When he straightened, he continued.

“Miss Liu, pretty faces are all alike. What matters in a person is the heart.”

He was comforting me. He sounded so sincere, and he was so handsome, that I almost believed him.

I nodded. “Thank you.”

After that, he left. He asked nothing else and said nothing more.

It really seemed he had only wanted to thank me.

Remembering how I had barred him outside, I wondered whether I had judged him too harshly. His suspicion and ruthlessness came from what he endured as a boy. After something like that, how could anyone trust easily?

When I went to tidy his room, I found a pendant of creamy white jade on the table. The character Ya was carved into it.

It was undoubtedly his.

I did not know whether he had dropped it or left it deliberately.