In college, Qin Bing'er kept to herself, speaking little, burying her nose in her books; her days were both mundane and fulfilling. Time flew, and she was already in her senior year. Unexpectedly, as graduation neared, her life took a seismic turn because of one woman.

That woman was her deskmate, Xiao Li—a common name for a decidedly uncommon person. She was stunningly beautiful, possessed a boyfriend, and their relationship was rumored to have reached a level of comfortable intimacy.

The trouble all stemmed from Xiao Li’s boyfriend. Using the pretext of visiting Xiao Li, the young man would deliberately find excuses to strike up conversations with Qin Bing'er. Little by little, they grew close. Seeing this, the young man became even more garrulous on his subsequent visits. Qin Bing'er, being inexperienced and having already weathered the "Drunken Immortal" incident, let down her guard, and she and the young man began to get along exceptionally well.

Initially, Xiao Li paid it no mind. Seeing her boyfriend sneak into the girls' dorm with great effort just to see her, and visiting so frequently, she was naturally delighted. But later, watching him chat more and more animatedly with Qin Bing'er—noticing the increasing brightness in his eyes when he looked at Bing'er, while his conversation with her became sporadic—she began to sense something was amiss.

Qin Bing'er also noticed. She began, seemingly casually but with clear intent, to slowly distance herself from Xiao Li's boyfriend. But the young man was already hopelessly entangled and was not one to give up easily. Thus, he grew warmer toward Qin Bing'er and colder toward Xiao Li.

Seeing the situation escalating toward an unmanageable crisis, yet fearing a complete fallout with her boyfriend that would leave her with nothing, Xiao Li turned her wrath onto Qin Bing'er. At first, her comments to Qin Bing'er were merely curt, then they devolved into veiled insults and veiled accusations, until finally, she dropped all pretense. In moments of anger, she even resorted to spewing vulgarities at Qin Bing'er. Having never experienced such things, Qin Bing'er was overwhelmingly upset. Unwilling to engage in a direct confrontation with Xiao Li, she could only spend her days hiding from Xiao Li and her boyfriend, leaving her feeling aggrieved and helpless, as if she were the one who had done wrong.

One evening, Xiao Li likely had an argument with her boyfriend outside, and compounded by a bit of drinking, she returned to the dorm and began to act out, cursing indiscriminately. Any keen observer could tell she was preparing to unleash her fury on Qin Bing'er again. The other sisters tried to calm her down, but alcohol had clouded Xiao Li’s judgment. Seeing their attempts at mediation, she assumed they were siding with Qin Bing'er, which only fueled her rage. She turned on Qin Bing'er, who was reading, and unleashed a torrent of curses. Qin Bing'er’s patience snapped. She threw down her book and snapped at Xiao Li, "You are utterly unreasonable! I have absolutely no interest in your boyfriend!"

Xiao Li froze, astonished that this usually meek girl dared to argue with her, and with such cutting words. No interest in my boyfriend? How dare you disparage my boyfriend? Love, historically, has the power to drive the wise mad and turn gentlewomen into hooligans!

Qin Bing'er’s retort was like pouring oil on a fire. Xiao Li became relentless, and things soon escalated to grabbing and shoving, deaf to the advice of the other sisters. Seeing how irrational she was, Qin Bing'er stood up, intending to leave the dorm to get away from her.

However, the unexpected happened the instant Qin Bing'er turned away!

Seeing Qin Bing'er preparing to leave, Xiao Li felt an emptiness, as if a worthy opponent in battle had vanished. Moreover, alcohol had erased any concept of "reason." She reached out, grabbed Qin Bing'er’s collar, and yanked hard. With a sharp hiss, Qin Bing'er’s top was pulled down. Her smooth, delicate back, illuminated by the harsh fluorescent light, was exposed to Xiao Li and the few other sisters present.

It was a trial Qin Bing'er was fated to endure. Normally, she was extremely careful, always wearing a camisole underneath and waiting until the dead of night to bathe. She never dared to change clothes carelessly, her caution piled upon caution, all to guard the secret on her back. But today, she had neglected to wear her undershirt, wearing only a silk nightgown, and thus, disaster struck!

Qin Bing'er had never suffered such a profound humiliation. Her face drained of color, her body trembling violently. She spun around and delivered a fierce slap to the stunned Xiao Li. Xiao Li snapped back to reality as if waking from a deep sleep, shrieked, "Ghost!" and stumbled out of the room. The other sisters screamed, chaos erupted, and they scrambled out into the hallway outside the dorm.

Huddled in the corridor, the girls were distraught, shouting and screaming. Other female residents, hearing the commotion, rushed out to find out what had happened. Xiao Li, sobering up from the shock, clung to a sister from another dorm, weeping uncontrollably, her body shuddering.

The girls were bewildered, exchanging frantic questions: "What happened? What’s wrong?" In moments, the entire girls' dormitory was in an uproar. Heads crowded the windows of nearby buildings, everyone curious, inquiring and chatting about the unfolding scene.

"There's a ghost on Qin Bing'er’s back!" Xiao Li wailed hysterically.

With a thunderous boom, the girls felt their hair stand on end; their hearts were seized by an invisible hand, plunging them into panic. They screamed in unison, pushing, shoving, and hopping around in disorder.

The girls usually loved sharing ghost stories during their late-night talks in the dorm. Those strange and spine-chilling tales had terrified many before. Despite spending their days studying science, these students seemed completely immune to tales of spirits and deities. And now, today, right before their eyes, there was a "ghost" on Qin Bing'er’s back! No wonder the girls had lost all sense of judgment, descending into noisy chaos.

"What is going on?" At this critical juncture, the dorm supervisor rushed upstairs. She frowned as she surveyed the panicked girls and grabbed one who was about to bolt downstairs. "What is it?"

"There’s a ghost on Qin Bing'er’s back!" the girl shrieked, her face contorted with fear. Without even looking at the supervisor, she bolted downstairs, completely oblivious to the actual words Xiao Li had screamed.

"Ghost?" The supervisor’s face was clouded with suspicion as she pushed open the door to Qin Bing'er's room.

Qin Bing'er was huddled in a corner of her bed, curled into a ball, her back against the wall, her head resting on her knees, her shoulders heaving with quiet sobs, appearing utterly innocent and helpless. The supervisor cautiously approached, gently patted Qin Bing'er’s head, and asked in a trembling voice, "Are you alright? That... they didn't hurt you, did they?" Qin Bing'er did not look up; her shoulders shook even more violently.

The supervisor looked around but saw nothing unusual. Hearing the clamor outside and noticing several bold girls peeking in from the doorway, she turned to them and said, "Where is this ghost? It’s broad daylight! I think you lot are the real troublesome spirits! Go on, back to your beds. Xiao Li, you and the others come back and sleep too!"

Seeing the supervisor present, the girls gained a bit of courage. However, when the supervisor mentioned "broad daylight," one girl mumbled, "It’s not daylight at all; it’s clearly nighttime!"

The supervisor ignored her and urged the girls back to their rooms. Seeing that the supervisor hadn't been harmed by the supposed "ghost," and unable to see the phantom on Qin Bing'er’s back, the girls slowly returned to their respective dorms.

Xiao Li and the others, however, refused to go back to their room even if their lives depended on it. They wanted to tell the supervisor what they saw but feared they couldn't explain it clearly, and seeing the supervisor’s dark expression, they nervously fled to other rooms to crowd in with other sisters.

The supervisor saw no other recourse. She turned to Qin Bing'er and said gently, "You should sleep early too." Then she softly turned off the light and closed the door before heading downstairs.

It is often said that a woman's tongue is as swift as a rabbit's legs. In mere minutes, the incident spread throughout the campus, becoming mythical and sensationalized. Both male and female dormitories seemed to have exploded. The phones of Xiao Li and her group were almost overwhelmed with calls. They answered, their voices thick with tears and incoherent, trying to describe what they had witnessed to those calling in.

While the outside world was in an uproar, the scene inside the dorm was entirely different.

The pale moonlight spilled across Qin Bing'er's bed, lending an indefinable air of desolation. She was curled up in the corner of the bed, her shoulders shaking violently.

After an indeterminate time, Qin Bing'er lifted her head. Her eyes were swollen red, her face streaked with tears, her lips pale, her appearance haggard. Looking at the desolate room, her eyes quickly filled again, and tears streamed down her delicate, pale cheeks like pearls slipping from a broken string.

After a long pause, Qin Bing'er rose numbly. She picked up a small utility knife she usually used for cutting paper and, without hesitation, moved it toward her own fair wrist. Just as the utility knife made tentative contact with her cool skin, a sudden gust of wind blew through, slamming a window that had been ajar shut with a loud clang. The glass pane shattered with a crash, breaking into several pieces that fell onto a table near the window. Qin Bing'er flinched; the knife slipped from her grasp and clattered onto the floor.

"Can't I even die? Why are you tormenting me like this?" Qin Bing'er screamed towards the window, her voice raw and strained. The intermittent sounds of surrounding discussion seemed to be snipped short by this cry, creating a sudden silence, broken only by the cold midnight moonlight generously washing over Qin Bing'er’s pale face.

The pain in her back returned. Qin Bing'er frantically dragged a wine bottle out from under the bed and drank deeply from it with lips that lacked any trace of color. Get drunk, get drunk, let me die drunk, she screamed inwardly, but the wine seemed like mere plain water, having no effect whatsoever on her nerves.

She collapsed limply onto the bed, slowly stretching out. Her vacant eyes stared at the ceiling, tears rolling down ceaselessly, her heart filled with despair, loneliness, and helplessness.

She thought of Master Qinghe, the only person she had ever depended on, wondering what he was doing now.

Thinking of Master Qinghe brought back the painful memories of her twenty-plus years. From the moment she could remember, she realized she was different from other children. All her peers had a man called "Father" and a woman called "Mother" by their side; only she had the old monk, Master Qinghe, as her companion. All the other children lived in the village at the foot of the mountain, chasing and playing all day, laughing happily. Only she lived alone in a small hut halfway up the mountain, solitary, poor, and miserable. Even when Master Qinghe occasionally took her down the mountain, they left quickly, and he never allowed her any extensive contact with others. Of course, the only time they descended was when Master Qinghe’s wine bottle was empty, and he was unable to refuse her persistent demands.

Thinking of Master Qinghe’s wine bottle reminded her of the first time she deliberately drank alcohol. The wine Master Qinghe bought wasn't just for him; he let her drink it too, though always just a little bit, yet frequently. Every time he gave her wine, Master Qinghe would utter nonsensical ramblings she couldn't understand, like, "If you don't drink, you can't get by in life?" or "You finished half a jin today…" She was often left utterly confused and would ask him, but he would only smile meaningfully without answering. Over time, she grew accustomed to it, accepting the drink without pressing for answers to his cryptic words. But one day, Master Qinghe had been gone down the mountain for a long time, and her back began to ache inexplicably. In the throes of agonizing pain, half-conscious, she spotted the wine bottle he had forgotten at home. She didn't think much of it, grabbed the bottle, and gulped it down recklessly. Strangely, the more she drank, the weaker the pain became, and the clearer her mind grew. She began to roughly understand why Master Qinghe gave her the wine, though his crazy sayings remained a mystery. From then on, she was no longer satisfied with the small amount he offered. Many times, she secretly guzzled several mouthfuls when he wasn't looking. He seemed to notice but pretended to be oblivious every time... Baffling!

Later, her back pain grew more frequent, and each time, she relied on large amounts of wine to alleviate it. She also learned about the green, hairy pattern on her back that others lacked. She often speculated whether her ability to drink was related to this green pattern. When she asked Master Qinghe, he remained tight-lipped. As time went on, she simply stopped asking.

Fortunately, this life didn't last long. When she was seven, Master Qinghe finally took her to a place filled with many children, which she later learned was called a "school." While the other children brought water bottles, Master Qinghe put a wine bottle in her schoolbag, repeatedly warning her never to tell anyone, including the teacher, and to drink secretly. Though she didn't understand why, knowing that drinking stopped the pain in her back made her happily agree.

As she got older, secretly drinking wine became a habit, and this secret lasted until she graduated from high school.

She never imagined that on her very first day of university, this secret would be exposed to the light of day, bringing her such immense trouble and humiliation...

Qin Bing'er lay motionless on the bed, her thoughts a tangled mess. Faint, indistinct murmurs began to filter into her ears like the tide. Her eyes were dry now, and the cold moonlight illuminated her.

Vaguely, Xiao Li pushed the door open and said to her, "Bing'er, someone is looking for you!"

She felt a jolt of surprise. How could Xiao Li's attitude have changed so quickly?

Before she could respond, a thin, ragged monk stood by her bedside. She was overjoyed—wasn't that Master Qinghe? Why was he here? Did he know she had been wronged?

She wanted to stand up and throw herself into his arms to cry her heart out, but to her astonishment, she found she couldn't move at all. Master Qinghe stood quietly before her bed, gazing at her.

"Alas! It is time for you to go back!" Master Qinghe sighed.

"Yes, I want to go home. Master, take me back to the hut!" she pleaded urgently.

"The place you should return to is not our hut," Master Qinghe sighed again. "You have passed through the tribulation of birth, the tribulation of killing, the tribulation of human relations, and the tribulation of desire. Now, it is time to return to your own place!"

"Master, you’re speaking your strange nonsense again! Isn't our home my own place?" Qin Bing'er was anxious. Master Qinghe did not answer her. He extended his withered hand, pulled her up from the bed, and led her to the glass mirror in the dorm, saying, "Look for yourself!"

Qin Bing'er was utterly confused by his actions. What was so interesting about an ordinary mirror that she looked at every day without noticing anything strange? But when her gaze fell upon the glass, she shrieked in horror and quickly covered her eyes with both hands. Master Qinghe pulled her hands down, forcing her to stare directly into the mirror.

The mirror began to display a sequence of terrifying scenes, like a moving picture: a quiet valley, a white building, a man with brown hair and blue eyes, a brutally murdered woman, an infant sealed in a bottle, black hounds, sheer cliff faces, terrifying lightning, a damp cave, a thin monk, and a ferocious Vulture King... These scenes, sometimes bloody and horrific, sometimes filled with tender warmth, flashed before her eyes—clear and abrupt.

"Master, what am I seeing? Why is this mirror like this?" After a long moment, Qin Bing'er asked Master Qinghe, trembling violently.

"What you see is yourself!" Master Qinghe replied calmly.

"Am I... that infant girl?"

"Yes!"

"Impossible! You're lying to me! You're lying! I am not that infant girl!" Upon hearing this, Qin Bing'er cried out in agony, clutching her head with both hands, and randomly grabbed an object, smashing it viciously into the glass mirror. With a loud crash, the mirror shattered into pieces, and the bizarre scenes vanished.

"Go back! Return to the place where you belong!" Master Qinghe said to the weeping Qin Bing'er.

Qin Bing'er raised her tear-filled eyes. "Where is the place I belong?"

"Hasn't that place been with you all along?" Master Qinghe inquired.

"Are you talking about... it?" Qin Bing'er asked doubtfully.

"..." Master Qinghe remained silent.

"Master, why aren't you speaking?"

"Alas! 'Man is a former acquaintance; the former acquaintance is not a man. If you are a former acquaintance, you must be an acquaintance of man.' You must engrave these four lines of verse firmly in your heart. Go! Go to that place! Find a person with the character '' on their forehead! He will help you find the answer!" After delivering these words, Master Qinghe drifted straight out the window and quickly vanished from sight.

"Master—Master—" Qin Bing'er tried to stop him, but she tripped over something at her feet, cried out, and woke up from the dream.

What greeted her eyes was still the cold, desolate dorm room. The moonlight outside was gone; faint dawn light touched the horizon. Qin Bing'er rubbed her eyes and saw the vanity mirror, which had been hanging properly, shattered on the floor. Master Qinghe's words still echoed clearly in her ears.

After a long while, Qin Bing'er slowly got out of bed. Taking advantage of the dim light, she changed into clean clothes, carefully combed her hair using the broken pieces of glass on the table, washed her face, and brushed her teeth. Her expression was calm as she surveyed the familiar room one last time, let out a mournful smile, slung a small bag over her shoulder, and left the door.