NCCnovel Chapter 121 - 92: Empathy (Part 2)
Chapter 121 - 92: Empathy (Part 2)
The little girl cautiously walked over from under the shade of the tree.
The girl appeared very shy. She didn’t disturb Gu Weijing, who was drawing, but stopped a few steps in front of Du Wen.
She tentatively extended the Snow White doll in her hand.
"Uncle, can you play with me?"
Du Wen had no interest in playing dolls with the little girl.
He was still dwelling on his report in his mind and only subconsciously took the doll.
When their skin touched, he felt the little girl’s hand was cold and skinny, like a dry twig.
He looked up and, out of professional habit as a journalist, glanced at her.
The girl looked wrinkled and shabby,
dark and small, like a little piece of charcoal.
Even though not quite a porcelain doll now, the chances of her turning into a beauty one day were slim.
The only highlight was her pair of beautiful big eyes,
besides that, her attire was lackluster.
The slightly oversized light blue dress had been washed repeatedly and seemed to be a hand-me-down from older children.
She had no other adornments apart from a red silk ribbon woven around her right wrist.
Wait... wait!
"What did I see?"
Red ribbon?
Du Wen’s heart suddenly skipped a beat.
This was a... Red Ribbon Doll!
The term ’Red Ribbon Doll’ is a kinder way to refer to AIDS-infected children.
Like some countries in Africa, due to rampant drug issues, Myanmar is also one of the countries heavily plagued by AIDS.
AIDS can be transmitted from mother to child, and this orphanage housed many children orphaned by drugs, so it wasn’t surprising to meet a child with AIDS.
Knowing this,
yet... with the sudden skin contact, a wave of repulsion instinctively surged in Du Wen’s heart.
It was as if he’d touched a mass of pathogens, he abruptly flung away the little girl’s hand.
"Don’t touch me!"
Du Wen didn’t actually use much force, but he had overestimated the strength of this little girl who looked about ten years old.
The girl was lightly spun around by his fling, her entire body like candy floss, and the doll in her hands cast aside.
The journalist had no time to mind the fallen girl and quickly pulled out a tissue from his pocket to repeatedly wipe his hands. Due to disgust and fear, goosebumps even rose on his hand’s back.
The fallen little girl looked at Du Wen with a fearful gaze, her big eyes brimming with tears, yet she didn’t dare cry.
Clearly, this wasn’t the first time she had experienced such an event, and she knew she might have caused trouble, making others unhappy.
She spoke in a voice as tiny as a mosquito: "Sorry, I just wanted to play with you."
As he regained his composure, Du Wen felt a bit embarrassed,
hoping to help the little girl up from the ground, yet unable to extend his hand.
Suddenly,
Du Wen saw a wealthy student in Fitz’s school uniform walking past him, kneeling on one knee to help the little girl up.
"Jasmine, are you okay? Did you fall? Is there any bleeding?"
Gu Weijing vaguely remembered this little one’s name was Jasmine.
At the moment Du Wen pushed Jasmine over, he instinctively realized what was missing from his painting—
Empathy!
He had once told Koizumi Katsuko that her artworks lacked a sense of authenticity,
and he had made the same mistake himself.
Without thunder in his mind, he couldn’t paint a stormy day properly. An artist unable to empathize with his characters can hardly convey a soulful portrayal.
Gu Weijing had never truly understood these children’s inner world.
His initial works were overly bookish and doctrinal.
A little girl playing with dolls under the tree shade.
In art textbooks, this scene is naturally depicted as innocent, peaceful, and plain.
Gu Weijing had drawn this quite naturally, perhaps with a hint of pity.
But these were his emotions, not those of the characters themselves.
He hadn’t paid attention to Jasmine’s inner world at all.
She actually wasn’t calm or joyous; she yearned for companionship and to play with other children but could only sit alone under the tree holding her doll.
Children with AIDS face discrimination in every aspect.
Not only are they undesired for adoption, but even orphanage children themselves, influenced by external environments, have isolated Jasmine.
They may not yet understand what AIDS is.
But older kids their age already grasp that this red-ribboned companion is "unclean," and being with her might make them unclean too.
Forget ordinary people; even volunteers generally hesitate to interact with them.
Gu Weijing had never understood Jasmine’s emotional world.
Lacking enough empathy,
it’s like stuffing a Russian borscht forcibly into dumpling skin as filling, ending in a mismatched mess.
"Waaa..."
Feeling someone caring for her, the little girl Jasmine, who had been pretending to be brave, burst into tears, leaning against Gu Weijing’s back, tears streaming down continuously.
Looking at this little girl, treated unfairly by fate, with her tearful, vulnerable gaze.
Gu Weijing felt an indescribable sorrow in his heart.
"Don’t cry, I’ll play with you, shall we?"
"They say I’m dirty and black, nobody wants to play with me, I can only always play dolls by myself..."