1 Prologue (1/2)
The Ye family consisted of four people who couldn't be more common even if they tried.
The father of the house, Father Ye, we shall call him for now, was a university lecturer. He was that kind of teacher who didn't leave much of a trace in his students' lives, the type that wouldn't be mentioned during his students' reunions when they reminisced about their university years.
Mother Ye was a normal homemaker, a respectable woman who managed the family to the best of her ability using her husband's slightly above average monthly salary.
The son, Ye Feng, was a university student, average in both studies and looks.
The daughter, Ye Shuang, had only been in work for two short years. Other than her personality that one could criticized for being slightly boyish, there was nothing worth knowing about her.
The family had a peaceful life; the parents would argue like a normal husband and wife, but it never escalated beyond a few angry words. The son had been through his rebellious period like any other young man in his high school years and had survived it without much fuss. The daughter had a boyfriend without telling her family in her second year of university but that had ended as silently as it had begun before she graduated…
There were more examples of the Ye family's normalcy but saying more would just be a waste of word count, they were that mundane.
However, that one fateful day, an ear-splitting scream that shattered the peace of the Ye family marked the advent of a life-changing event…
The kind neighbors that bordered on nosy rushed over in less than a minute. They banged on the door, hoping to get some first-hand gossip.
”Ol' Ye, Teacher Ye! What happened? Do you need help…”
Three minutes later, Father Ye, with a frown on his face, finally opened the door. He walked out immediately and slammed the door behind him, blocking the peeking eyes of the neighbors. Eventually, he forced an awkward smile and said, ”Nothing, nothing happened.”
”Really, nothing happened‽” The neighbors pressed with concern, ”Because Ol' Ye, you're not looking so well.”
”… It's really nothing; my wife was spooked by the scary movie she was watching, that's all.” Father Ye's eyes darted around from a guilty conscience. ”I… I was caught off-guard by her scream, and that explains the lack of color in my face.”
”…”
Is he for real? A scream like that in the middle of the day from a scary movie? Then again, this Mother Ye sure is young at heart to be enjoying scary movies like those young'uns even though she's already in her 50s.
The neighbors gradually quieted down. Even though they wished to get a concrete answer from Father Ye, more questions would be inappropriate.
”If… there's really nothing, then we'll go back for now.” The neighbors slowly bade Father Ye farewell, since, apparently, there was nothing to be seen. A few of them even turned around with regret in their eyes as they walked away.
Father Ye smiled appreciatively at the neighbors' kindness. After the group had left, he stood at the door for another three minutes to make sure there were no other Peeping Toms before he dashed back into the house. He was so fast that it seemed like he had teleported. The Peeping Toms, if there were any, wouldn't have had the chance to see anything.
In the Ye family's living room, the little brother was sitting on the edge of the sofa in a daze while Mother Ye rushed forward to ask, ”Ol' Ye, did anyone see anything‽”
”No, I don't think so…” Father Ye glanced at the grimacing, handsome young man lying on the sofa behind Mother Ye, and he said in a teary voice, ”But our Shuang Shuang…”
”What happened to my sister… No, my brother‽” Little Brother Ye felt like fainting as his upper body collapsed gently onto the sofa. His eyes were glued to the unconscious man on the sofa. As if acting on their own volition, his hands flew to the man's chest. ”What in the world is happening‽”