Glass Sight

Chapter One 一

"That's fine. We'll have to figure out something for you to do." He only added the second part to not make her feel more indebted. After all, she was just a child and he was the a powerful lord in the country of Kang. Moreover, she was almost fully blind, so there wasn't many chores she could do even if she became a servant. Even if she didn't insist, he wanted to help her. He couldn't help every orphan in the world, but seeing as she stumbled upon his path, he wouldn't abandon her.

As he walked towards the door, he heard her fall to the floor after trying to stand up. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she apathetically glanced in his direction, unsure if she was looking in the right direction.

"How would you be a servant if you cannot even walk without falling?" His strict tone reprimanded her and she began to visibly shake. He walked towards her to help her, but she ignored his helping hand and grabbed onto the nearest thing she could touch. Slowly, she stood up and began to walk as she felt the wall. Her strong perseverance made him realize that she would be an even better student than he hoped for.

"My Lord, please turn me to the direction of the servant quarters." She stubbornly said in her hoarse voice, even though uttering an entire sentence made her throat burn with pain.

His cold and handsome face finally cracked a smile. "Li Jianyu."

"Huh?"

"That's my name, but you can call me Shifu." He explained patiently, yet she was still confused.

"S-Shifu?" Did all of this servants refer to him as teacher?

"Yes, I wish to take you as my student. Do you accept?" She froze. Either he was serious or playing a very cruel joke on her since she was practically hopeless.

"Why?" The experiences she had gone through had made her doubt everything. Not just with Old Man Li, but even when her mother had been scorned by the entire village for being a single mother. Besides, she was currently disabled and practically useless. There was no medicine to heal her eyes and by the tone of the doctor from earlier, this man was a very distinguished man. What would he gain with her as his student? Perhaps as a servant, he would be getting some fame for taking in an invalid. But as a student, it was delusional.

"Because I do." Li Jianyu had no further explanation for her. He just wished that she could trust him a tiny bit. Although she had gone through a lot—in which he still didn't know what—he did save her. That should've accounted for a faction of belief.

"M-My Lord," she stuttered, falling to her knees. "Ying Yun is very grateful for being saved," she shivered as she spoke, "but please don't fool her." Her dry eyes swarmed with tears again. She had cried enough to last a lifetime during these past couple of days. She was tired of being the fool for everyone to be amused. Even if this man didn't want her to be his servant, he could've used a better excuse to send her off.

Although Ying Yun was blind, she could still sense the chilling aura that the man had released when she finished her plea. She didn't understand. Was the man angry because she refused to be a plaything for him? Because she refused to play the role of a fool and pretend to be his student?

"Ying Yun," Li Jianyu took a deep breath and murmured, "do not take my words lightly. If I says student, then that is what I mean."

Her head lowered and her eyes closed. It didn't matter if she closed them or not since she couldn't see anything, but closing them allowed her to think.

And the more that she thought about it, the more that she realized that she had no money nor family nor anywhere to live. Being his student had many benefits, such as the essentials she did not possess. Even if he was fooling her, then it didn't matter. Her mother had willed for her to live and she still had the mystery of the jade pendant and bracelet that she had found to be solved. If playing along with his game would guarantee her survival, then so be it.

She kowtowed three times and lifted her head. "Ying Yun greets Shifu..."

Some notes:

Shifu: means teacher. I'm sure you picked that up already. In this case, it would be for martial arts and such.

Li: is a surname. It's a different character and surname than Old Man Li. Li Jianyu and OML have nothing to do with each other.

Although I try to keep their conversations first person, occasionally, they will refer to themselves in third because it was a matter of respect and status. I'm not doing it in third person fully because it would've been "this servant is grateful" the entire time. And Li Jianyu would've referred to himself as "lordship" rather than "I" and it would be like that for all the characters with high status. So it's easier for you guys if I just do first person and not go the traditional route except a few times to keep the authenticity of the setting.

That should be everything, but let me know if you have any questions. See you Tuesday!

- Scarlettt

(P.S. forgive any errors since it's like 5am and I'm brain dead lol... I'll eventually find an editor for the entire novel or edit it once it's completed, so don't worry).