Life and Death

Xu Changjia did not expect that his memories would return at this time.

His face beamed with excitement, yet his tone remained remarkably calm: "Memory Book, are you alright? You've been gone for so long, what happened to you?"

In a hoarse voice, the memory book calmly recounted the events that occurred after he was taken back to the world of Soul.

Because he violated the rules by privately showing the memory video to the host, the world master happened to be on patrol and retrieved the monitoring data from the previous memory book, discovering that he had been slacking off and hadn't even managed to gain ten more years of lifespan for the host in all these years.

Memory Book No. 011 could not refute this, because what the World Lord said was indeed true. He watched his host live so freely and did not urge her progress. He had always been rather Zen. Other memory books, after being bound to their hosts, did nothing but complete tasks.

He also had his own little selfish motives. Although he was not talkative and rather quiet, he enjoyed watching others live so freely and unrestrainedly. He did not treat these things as work, but rather as a kind of enjoyment, a way of participating in the vibrant lives of others.

Of course, he wouldn't tell the host any of this, he only mentioned that the world master had warned him and urged him to complete the mission as soon as possible.

Xu Changjia couldn't bear it, after all, it was she who caused the memory book to be punished.

"Then, how can I help you? Is it that if I urge them to enter the entertainment industry as soon as possible and embark on their path to stardom, you won't be punished by the World God?"

Yes and no.

The memory of the complex relationships involved didn't elaborate much, saying, "It's alright, host, just live according to your own plan."

"And your voice?"

"It's nothing serious, it's just that part of the chip was cut off."

She really didn't know how to comfort him, so she could only shift her attention away from the memory book and mentally tell him what had happened since he left over the past six months.

Although he already knew everything by accessing the memory monitoring system, the feeling of being cared for by the host was actually quite nice, so he naturally didn't stop her.

When talking about the passing of her parents, Hsu Chang-chia's voice became as hoarse as his.

Her vulnerability and fragility, which she never showed to outsiders, were completely exposed to him, since he knew everything about her.

Wiping away her tears, she asked him, "Memory Book, is it because I didn't actively complete the rescue mission that my parents still died, even earlier than in my previous life?"

Hearing her intermittent voice, Memory Book No. 011 was also moved with pity.

Fine, so be it. This time, Guan Xia won't be punished. The chip was cut off, but when I go back to the World Vice Lord, I can ask him to plead for it and get it back.

"No, host."

The premature passing of Xu's parents was a butterfly effect caused by a change in her life trajectory.

In her past life, after graduating from university, she searched for jobs and submitted resumes everywhere, without continuing her studies. She finally found a job and shared the good news with her parents, only to learn of their passing. She missed the start date and lost her job.

In this life, she was admitted to the graduate program at the same university. The opportunity changed from her job search to receiving her graduate school admission notice, but the result was different. She did not miss the opportunity to pursue graduate studies.

Their world exists outside of the human world. They rely on memory videos to compare each host's life trajectory. When a life deviates from its previous life, it is automatically marked in red and sent to the world master and world deputy master for judgment.

The last time the World Lord came to inspect, it was because he discovered that her life trajectory had deviated too much, which led to his violation of the rules.

Listening to the explanation in the memory book, she seemed to understand a little. "So, I can only change my own fate; my parents will still leave me."

This sigh tugged at her own heartstrings and also caused pain in the memory book.

He knew that the host was a person who valued loyalty and affection. If he felt this way towards him, how could he not have feelings for his own parents? But people are born, grow old, get sick, and die. The deceased are gone, and the living must move on.

He was tongue-tied and didn't know how to broach the subject, but then he heard her continue asking him in his mind.

"So, when you serve a host, are there no exceptions? Even if you don't help others, what about the host themselves?"

"have."

Xu Changjia became interested. Although she yawned several times, she was not sleepy at all and kept pestering the memory book to tell her stories.

Since I've already violated the rules by telling the host about the SOUL world, what harm is there in saying a few more words?

That was many years ago, when she was just a little girl, but he could never forget her eyes, and he made an exception and helped her time and time again.

The host was also a minor girl, but she was captured and used as an experimental subject in a lawless place, and had long lost the will to survive.

It's important to understand that if the host dies, these memories will be considered a failed mission, and they will be punished upon returning to the SOUL world.

At first, he just didn't want to be punished, so he went to the World Vice Lord to plead for the little girl to have another chance.

But later, seeing the little girl die time and time again from those injections, he felt compassion and repeatedly took all the punishments himself in exchange for the opportunity to help her.

The entire SOUL world knows how difficult this mission is, yet he still accepted the punishment without hesitation and came back to be with the little girl.

These few words made Xu Changjia realize how precious it was that she was still alive.

"So, how many times did she die, exactly?"

"43 times, but she's doing very well now."

Before coming to Junzhou to accompany his twelfth host, he went back briefly and saw that her lover treated her well and that she had her own child. That was enough.

She was about to say something more when the memory book interrupted her, "Host, you should go to sleep. It's already past four in the morning."

Well, that night, Xu Changjia finally got a good night's sleep, falling asleep almost as soon as he closed his eyes.

Perhaps it was because she and Zheng Ruoqian had confirmed their feelings for each other, or perhaps it was because her support had returned, making her no longer alone in this world.

She had just started thinking about how to live well, and hadn't figured out what path to take next, when her long, steady breathing reached the memory book's mind. She was still just an innocent child.

He moved a string of numbers on his body, then pulled the blanket up to cover her, before turning back to the SOUL world to ask the world's vice master for permission.

When she woke up again, the rain outside had stopped, and Aunt Chen had returned to continue cooking for her.

Seeing how thin she had become, Aunt Chen hugged her tightly, almost bursting into tears. After all, she had been cooking here for over twenty years; it would be a lie to say she had no feelings for her.

She was not comfortable with such close contact with others, even her parents, let alone Aunt Chen.

The memory book found the ever-changing expressions on her face somewhat amusing, so it told her some good news.

"Host, Aunt Chen's life trajectory has also changed because of you. This time she didn't get pancreatic cancer, but she has some minor illnesses and pains. She will continue to stay by your side and cook for you."

She looked at Aunt Chen with eyes full of joy, as if she herself had saved a life, and readily accepted her hug.

Ou Liyao and Zheng Ruoqian both got up early. They had endless work calls to take. Although they were still at her house, they were also trapped by work.

One invitation after another came knocking on my door. It wouldn't be right to refuse, but if I agreed, I couldn't leave with a clear conscience.

Therefore, when I saw her not resisting hugging people after finishing the phone call and coming out, I knew that she had recovered a lot.

Ou Liyao smiled and joked, subtly pulling her away from Aunt Chen's embrace, earning an approving look from her.

Zheng Ruoqian also came out, and now that everyone was there, the three of them sat down together for lunch.

Xu Changjia took the initiative to ask when the two of them would leave, because she had already delayed them for too long and couldn't let them be a burden for the rest of their lives.

They have their own careers to keep busy, and they can't possibly keep her by their side just because of her. When her parents were alive, they were always flying all over the world, and they didn't spend 24 hours a day with her.

Ou Liyao leaned closer to look at her. Although there was a dark patch under her eyes, they weren't swollen like walnuts. Her eyes also showed some spirit, no longer as lost and dejected as they had been a few days ago. She couldn't help but marvel at the power of love.

What she didn't know was that, besides Zheng Ruoqian, she had also come to understand the words of advice she had received from the memory book the previous night:

To live, to live happily and meaningfully, is the greatest respect we can show to the deceased.

"Since you've asked, I'll pack up and leave in a couple of days."

"I just canceled a project last time, so I'll spend the next couple of days trying to get the big boss from our partner back, and then I'll get back to work."

Her tone was relaxed and natural, sounding like she was joking. Xu Changjia responded with a couple of pleasantries and didn't ask any further questions.

Zheng Ruoqian's schedule had been arranged since he arrived yesterday, but he hadn't bought his plane ticket yet. The person he cared about was no longer as heartbroken as before, so he naturally took out his phone to check flights and prepared to go back.

He left even before Ou Liyao, but before he left, he wanted to have a formal start with Xu Changjia.

After secretly discussing it with her best friend, he took her to a private room at her favorite private restaurant and handed her his ticket for the inner circle of his Christmas performance.

And then there's that line, which Ou Liyao showed him: "A formal relationship begins with a bouquet of flowers," so naturally, his girl couldn't be left out either.

Xu Changjia smiled and took the tickets from his hand. "Two tickets, who do you want me to bring?"

"Anyone is fine, as long as you can come."

She counted on her fingers; she had indeed missed many of his performances in the past two years, but he had always saved tickets for her. Now that she was his girlfriend, it didn't seem appropriate not to go.

"Okay, see you at Christmas then."

A blush of red appeared on someone's cheek as the two wine glasses collided.

Seeing the surprise in her eyes, he knew he had made the right bet for the rest of his life.

An idea quietly popped into his mind, and he made up his mind to discuss it with the company when he got back.