Goddess, Are You Blind? (GL) - Chapter 26

Ji Yun looked at Xue Funian curled up in her arms. She didn’t have the heart to wake her. Tilting her head slightly, she noticed the sunlight seeping through the drawn curtains, scattering dust motes in the air.

She pulled Funian’s head closer into her embrace. Yesterday had truly frightened her. Don’t be fooled by how she’d still managed to smile in front of the two thugs—in her heart she had been terrified. Not for herself, but for fear that they might harm Funian.

Fortunately, when she finally saw Funian, aside from the red marks on her wrists and ankles where she had been tied up, there were no other injuries. Only then had Ji Yun’s suspended heart finally settled.

But in that same moment, she felt utterly drained, as if her whole being had been hollowed out. It was also the first time she truly recognized her own heart.

And once you recognize it, it’s easier to face it.

She stroked Funian’s long hair gently.

Funian had mentioned more than once that she wanted to trim her hair, but Ji Yun had never taken her. She thought it wasn’t easy to grow it so long, and besides, it was beautiful—she couldn’t bear to cut it.

With Ji Yun’s touch, Funian had already woken, though she kept her eyes closed. The events of yesterday still lingered as a shadow in her heart. She even wished it had all been just a dream, that nothing had happened at all. But finally, she curved her lips in a self-mocking smile:

“Jiejie, you’re awake?”

Hearing Funian’s voice, Ji Yun made a muffled sound in reply, her throat still hoarse. She felt Funian about to move, so she held her tighter, not letting her slip away.

“Ah Nian, were you afraid yesterday?” Ji Yun’s voice was still low and husky from sleep, soft yet resonant.

Funian stopped struggling, nestled in Ji Yun’s arms, and after some thought, she nodded.

“At first I was. But later… I wasn’t anymore. Because I knew you would find me.”

Ji Yun couldn’t reply. She pressed her chin lightly against Funian’s head, stunned into silence.

“We have to reward Gouzi later,” Ji Yun said at last, her voice thick. “If not for him, I wouldn’t have found you.”

Funian, sensitive as ever, immediately heard the undertone of guilt in her words. She quickly wrapped her arms around Ji Yun’s waist.

“Jiejie, don’t blame yourself. If not for you, after my car accident, who knows where I’d have ended up. If not for you, yesterday could have been far worse. Gouzi was also a gift from you. So really, it all comes back to you—I should be thanking you.”

Her voice was clear, bright, and in the brilliant morning sunlight, it loosened the knot of unease in Ji Yun’s heart.

“When did you learn to say such sweet words?” Ji Yun chuckled softly.

“They’re the truth.” Funian tilted her face up with a smile.

“More and more clever with words,” Ji Yun teased. She lifted the thin blanket away, got out of bed, and turned off the air conditioner. “Today, we have to take Gouzi to the vet. Alright?”

At the mention of Gouzi, Funian quickly rose from bed too. “Can I come?”

Ji Yun hesitated, but when she saw the faint nervousness and grievance on Funian’s face, she finally smiled and nodded.

“You’re Gouzi’s mother, of course you have to come.”

She knew Funian was afraid that she’d be forbidden from going out after yesterday’s incident. Truthfully, Ji Yun had thought of just that. The people coveting Funian’s inheritance were becoming restless, willing to use vile methods now. Ji Yun dared not risk exposing her.

But seeing Funian’s trembling, pleading look, she couldn’t harden her heart. She compromised—better to keep her close at all times.

Hearing her consent, Funian happily began to change clothes. Ji Yun stood aside, shaking her head with a helpless smile.

But Funian suddenly said, in a small voice: “But Jiejie, your foot hasn’t healed yet, maybe we should… maybe ask Zhang Shuai for help.”

“You want to go with Zhang Shuai to take Gouzi?” Ji Yun countered with a question instead of answering. She saw Funian clutch her clothes hem tightly and sighed with a wry smile.

“I won’t go then. I’ll stay home with Jiejie.”

That made Ji Yun laugh aloud—she really hadn’t spoiled this little girl for nothing.

“Stop fussing. My foot’s not crippled, it’s just scratched up.” She helped fasten Funian’s buttons and quickly tied her hair up into a loose bun, messy but charming.

Gouzi was heavy, too heavy for either of them to carry, so they walked him slowly. He still limped pitifully, and Ji Yun’s heart ached at the sight.

Holding Gouzi’s leash with one hand, Funian clinging to her arm, the three of them left home together.

The sunlight outside was dazzling. Ji Yun squinted as she drove, suppressing the pain in her injured foot as she carefully kept the car steady.

“Ah Nian,” she said suddenly, “once Gouzi’s leg heals, let’s do the surgery.”

Funian froze, then nodded softly. “If Jiejie says so, then so it is.”

Ji Yun turned her head, reached over to grip Funian’s hand tightly, and smiled. “It’s not because I think your blindness is a burden. I just want you to be able to see again—to use your own eyes, to see the world you want to see.”

Funian’s heart trembled. She turned her face toward the window, shaken by how deeply Ji Yun could read her.

“Don’t be afraid, Ah Nian. If it succeeds, wonderful. If not—then nothing changes. I’ll still be here. I can be your eyes.”

Her words struck Funian’s heart. When she had first woken to blindness, she had felt abandoned, condemned to walk the world alone. But Ji Yun had taken her home, given her a place, a reason to trust again.

And now—Ji Yun promised she’d never leave.

Funian’s hand clenched her clothes hem again. Ji Yun noticed, let go of her hand.

Funian immediately panicked, grabbing it back. “Jiejie—” Then, realizing she was distracting her while driving, she let go quickly. “Drive carefully.”

Ji Yun laughed. “Ah Nian, what am I going to do with you? We’re here.”

At the vet’s, the news was harsh: Gouzi’s leg was broken. Funian wept, clutching him tight through treatment, refusing to let go even when the doctor set the bone. Ji Yun felt bitterly sidelined, even glaring at the dog for stealing all of Funian’s attention.

The vet advised weeks of recovery. Ji Yun suggested leaving the dog at the clinic, but Funian stubbornly refused—until she realized Ji Yun was right: she couldn’t even care for herself. Slowly, her head drooped.

Ji Yun’s heart twisted painfully at her defeated look. She bent down, whispering with forced cheer: “It’s alright. Gouzi is my son. A father’s job is to care for his son and his wife.”

Funian’s eyes widened, then flushed pink. Ji Yun smiled at her shy reaction.

On the way out, Ji Yun teased her again: “Ah Nian, you’ve got Gouzi now, your heart’s full of him, no room for your poor Jiejie anymore.”

Funian blinked in confusion, panicking when Ji Yun pouted. “No, Jiejie, I do care for you—”

Before she could finish, she suddenly hugged Ji Yun tightly, burying her face in her chest. Ji Yun froze, then softened into the embrace.

…

Days later, Ji Yun often called Bai Qing over to keep Funian company. Bai Qing’s teenage son Bai Zhi tagged along, and Funian sometimes tutored him in his studies. The boy, awkward at first, quickly grew fond of her calm presence.

One afternoon, after Ji Yun left the house, Funian quietly asked Bai Zhi for help. Handing him a business card, she asked him to dial the number.

The name read “Cheng Jirui.”

When the call connected, Funian spoke softly: “It’s me. Can we meet?”

Jirui was shocked—he never expected her to call, knowing Ji Yun would never allow it. After a pause, he agreed.

They arranged to meet at “Corner Café,” near Funian’s old campus.

With Bai Zhi accompanying her, Funian arrived. Jirui rushed up, helping her sit. He asked where her guide dog was, and she calmly replied she wanted to discuss exactly that.

She recounted the kidnapping and near-death ordeal. Jirui broke into a sweat just listening, his hands clenching as he noticed the red marks still on her wrists.

“I want you to investigate,” Funian said firmly. “Who is after my life? And my family’s accident—was it really an accident, or deliberate?”

Her blind eyes stared unflinchingly at him.

Jirui’s heart ached. Once, she’d never cared about such ugly things. But now she stood at the storm’s center, forced to confront it.

“You’re suspicious it was all a plot?” he asked.

Funian nodded. “At first they wanted my father, for the shares. Now, they want me—because seventy percent of the company rests in my hands.”

She smiled faintly. “If you can’t help, I understand. I just can’t let Jiejie carry any more of this.”

Jirui wanted to slap himself for blurting: “Why not ask Ji Yun?”

Funian froze, then shook her head with a soft smile. “I don’t doubt Jiejie. She’s already exhausted herself arranging my surgery. I just don’t want her to suffer more because of me.”

Jirui swallowed, guilt flooding him. “…Alright. I’ll ask my contacts in the police to keep an eye out. And I’ll monitor the company for suspicious moves. Leave it to me.”

Funian bowed her head slightly. “Thank you.”