"Come on, take a deep breath now, then exhale slowly~~"
"Very good, keep going~~"
"Next, I’ll count from one to three. With each number, you’ll sink deeper into sleep."
"One, your body feels heavier… You’re so drowsy, too drowsy to keep your eyes open… You need a good sleep now."
Knowing Huo Tingzhou had come from Qiongzhou Island, Doctor Liao spoke in a soft, soothing tone.
"Do you see that beautiful stretch of beach ahead…? Yes, lie down on it…"
"Let your body feel the warmth of the sand…"
"Perfect~"
"Now, I’ll start counting to two."
Doctor Liao’s voice lowered further, gentle as fine silk steeped in warm water.
"Two, your body is now completely enveloped by the sea sand. Distant waves crash against the rocks, and sunlight spills warmly over you."
"A comforting warmth is about to flow through your entire body… From this moment, your mind and body are completely relaxed."
"Sleep… Sleep peacefully…"
After a brief pause, he uttered the final number.
"Three!"
"Your subconscious is gradually opening… Now, let’s turn back time to an afternoon when you were six and a half years old…"
As Doctor Liao’s words faded, the lamp in the room was dimmed to a warm glow, and everything around grew utterly silent.
Huo Tingzhou’s eyelids fluttered slightly before closing completely at the count of three.
The lingering spots of light in his vision slowly twisted into the living room of the Huo family’s old house.
A little boy in pale yellow linen clothes sat hunched over a low table, clutching a brush as he practiced calligraphy.
Noticing subtle shifts in Huo Tingzhou’s expression, Doctor Liao quickly picked up a notepad.
"Tell me, what do you see?"
"A… a child sitting there. He’s writing… practicing calligraphy."
Doctor Liao wasn’t surprised—hypnosis often revealed third-person perspectives.
"Is anyone else nearby?"
"No… no one. The house is very quiet."
"Look around again. Are there people upstairs, downstairs, or behind you…?"
Before Doctor Liao could finish, Huo Tingzhou’s fingers suddenly clenched.
"Yes!"
A figure stood behind the boy, half a head taller, silently watching him.
Doctor Liao pressed further, "What does he look like? Did he speak to the child?"
Huo Tingzhou frowned. "No, he didn’t say anything. After a while, he picked up a book and came over. Then… then the ink spilled."
[I’m sorry, little brother. I didn’t mean to.]
[Please don’t tell Mom and Dad, okay? If you do, they’ll send me away.]
[Big brother, I won’t tell.]
[You’re the best! Come on, I’ll buy you a popsicle—your favorite red bean one.]
[Brother, I don’t want one. I need to finish practicing these characters.]
[Are you still mad at me?]
[Brother, I’m not angry~]
[You are!]
The older boy hung his head. [They were right. You never liked me. You never treated me as your real brother.]
The younger boy pressed his lips together. He truly wasn’t angry, but seeing his brother’s guilt, he finally nodded.
Then the scene shifted.
Without further prompting, Huo Tingzhou continued from the child’s perspective.
[Brother, where are we going? The popsicle stand is the other way.]
[Just follow me. I need to buy a comic book up ahead.]
[Wait here. Don’t wander off, understand?]
[Brother, I won’t move. I’ll wait right here. Come back soon.]
"Did the older boy return?"
"No."
Doctor Liao’s brow furrowed. He’d always assumed Huo Tingzhou’s abduction was accidental, but now the brother seemed suspicious.
"The child waited so long. He must’ve looked around. Did he recognize the area? Were there any unusual buildings?"
Unusual buildings?
"Yes. To his left stood a gray-white Western-style house. A city wall rose to the north, and train whistles echoed nearby. The streets were crowded."
Doctor Liao noted every detail.
"What happened next? Did anyone else approach the boy?"
"Yes… a man came. He said something happened to my brother."
"The child refused to go, but the man dragged him away."
Doctor Liao paused his writing. "What did this man look like?"
The question seemed to agitate Huo Tingzhou. His breathing turned ragged, and sweat beaded on his forehead.
"I don’t know. He wore a straw hat—I couldn’t see his face."
"He gripped my wrist so tight I couldn’t move."
"Then he shoved me into a sack. It was so dark inside… Other children were crying nearby."
"I heard the clatter of train wheels…"
Doctor Liao tensed. His patient had shifted from third-person to first-person—reliving the trauma.
He prepared to pull Huo Tingzhou out of the trance, but the man suddenly curled into himself.
Reality and nightmare blurred.
Two voices warred in his ears, overwhelming him.
Instinctively, he clutched his head, defensive and trembling.
"No—stop—!"
[Try running again, and I’ll beat you dead!]
The man kicked him repeatedly, then grabbed a wooden rod.
[Boss, you’ll kill him at this rate.]
[Good! This brat’s got guts, daring to escape. Let’s see which is harder—his bones or my stick! If he survives, we’ll dump him on the streets to beg.]
[But begging earns peanuts!]
[Look at his pretty face. We’ll fetch a fortune selling him down south.]
[Calm down. Don’t ruin his looks, or he’ll be worthless.]
[Fine. Use this instead.]
The man brandished a large syringe.
[This hurts like hell but leaves no marks.]
[First, drug him. I don’t want his screams drawing attention.]
"I won’t take it—cough—!"
[You’ll take what you’re given!]
As soon as the words fell, the man grabbed the syringe in his hand and stabbed it fiercely into Huo Tingzhou. A sharp, searing pain instantly spread throughout his entire body.
Yet at that very moment, the scene shifted once again.
This time, it was a sharp-faced woman with high cheekbones who struck him, gripping his face with a deathly tightness.
"From today onward, your name is Black Egg," she spat.
"This is your father, and I am your mother."
"Are you listening to me? Hurry up and greet us!"
"Hey, you little brat! Are you deaf or what?"
He didn’t stay with this family for long before being sent to another.
The man in this household was a butcher, and his beatings were even more brutal.
When he regained consciousness, he heard someone murmuring beside him.
"This child still has a breath left in him. Let’s take him back."
"Manman, why are you bringing him back? The kid is filthy..."
"Xiu Wen, this is still a human life. Let’s take him in—consider it good karma for our future children."
"Manman, you’re too kind-hearted."
Then, he heard the piercing cry of a newborn.
"Remember this—she is the eldest daughter of the Jiang family."
"From now on, your duty is to protect her safety. Wherever she goes, you follow. Understood?"
"Hey, I’m Jiang Si—"
"What about you? What’s your name?"
"I don’t have a name—"
Not only did he have no name, but he also remembered nothing of where he came from.
