Chapter 68
"Qin Yi?"
Noticing that he was distracted for a few seconds, Lian Yu stretched out his hand and waved it in front of Qin Yi.
Looking back on my life, it was just a matter of seconds. Like a vast and mighty cloud, it ended up being just a drop of rain falling between my eyebrows. Qin Yi pursed his lips and continued, "Later, a tasker came to our world. He occupied my body and replaced my consciousness, just to complete his own mission."
The atmosphere was so oppressive that Lian Yu realized she couldn't help but lower her voice when she spoke, as if she was afraid of disturbing something. "And then?"
Qin Yi shook his head slightly: "I don't know."
This wasn't a lie Qin Yi had told; he truly had no idea what had happened in between. He only remembered that when he woke from his long sleep, everything had changed. The internet was flooded with photos of him and the person he hated most, and his apps were filled with stories of how their relationship had evolved from "enemies to close friends to lovers." And yet, Lian Yu seemed to have completely vanished from the world.
He searched desperately, but could only piece together a completely unrecognizable Lian Yu from fragments of information.
That Lian Yu pushed him away out of jealousy, then, with ulterior motives, publicized their past relationship at the height of his career. On her way to negotiate terms with him, Lian Yu was in a car accident, crippled, and her football career was ruined. That Lian Yu blamed him for all her misfortunes and stormed into his apartment with a knife.
The kind of people he likes are not like that.
Qin Yi didn't believe that all these abnormalities must be related to the tasker. Facts proved that Qin Yi's intuition was correct. He found that the tasker seemed to have left something in his body. He didn't know what that thing was called, but he seemed to have abilities that were unimaginable in the past because of that thing.
He became a creature neither god nor ghost, just like the tasker. On the day he passed the assessment of the Time Management Bureau, he saw that familiar figure after a long absence.
"Little..." Before he could even utter the affectionate call, he was pulled back by the people he was traveling with.
"You don't know that guy, do you? He's a famous scumbag, incredibly terrifying. You'd better not mess with him." The other person made an exaggerated expression and wiped his neck. "I heard he's going to bring in a new guy this year. I don't know which unlucky guy gave him the chance."
Qin Yi always prided himself on being calm, but at that moment, his mind felt like it was submerged in water, his surroundings buzzing. He chased after the tall, sturdy figure who had pushed open the door. The person walking with him seemed to be shouting something behind him, but he couldn't hear a word.
But when the figure was right in front of him, he hesitated.
The once bright and cheerful boy had changed. His brows furrowed unconsciously, and his eyes held a hint of impatience and annoyance. Like a cold front sweeping in from the Siberian plateau, Qin Yi shivered under the bright sun.
He had left in such a hurry that his umbrella had fallen onto his workstation. Even though he was no longer human, the direct sunlight still made him feel uncomfortable, his fragile skin burning. He hunched his shoulders, wanting to leave, but feeling reluctant.
Even though he was hesitant, Qin Yi still looked greedily at the profile in the sunlight.
As long as Xiaoyu is still alive, even if she has already changed beyond recognition, he will——
The man in the sunlight turned around, and those cold eyes met his gaze. Qin Yi's heart shuddered at the cold glance. Lian Yu stared at him for a moment, then suddenly strode towards him.
Qin Yi instinctively took a step back, his heart beating rapidly.
"No!" Just as Lian Yu stretched out his hand, Qin Yi quickly raised his arm to block in front of him.
With a swish sound, Qin Yi felt himself enveloped in a cool, shady atmosphere. He slowly lifted his eyelashes from behind his arm, the familiar voice reflected in his dilated pupils. The inky umbrella handle was gripped in his powerful palm, veins bulging faintly on the back of his hand.
Emotions surged in Qin Yi's chest. He opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, the umbrella handle was stuffed into his palm.
Lian Yu turned and left.
"How could it be!——" Qin Yi raised his voice, and Lian Yu really stopped and turned to look at him. Qin Yi couldn't keep himself calm under Lian Yu's gaze. He pursed his lips and said in a weak voice: "Why did you bring an umbrella?"
It never rains in the Time Management Bureau.
"It's just a habit."
"Why do you have such a habit?"
"I don't remember." Lian Yu paused, then answered without any expression.
Qin Yi stopped asking questions and just looked at Lian Yu.
Perhaps it was because Qin Yi's gaze was too direct that Lian Yu's cold and hard mask slipped for a moment, revealing the young man he once was. Lian Yu touched the tip of his nose, "Anything else?"
Qin Yi shook his head.
"Then...you should go back quickly." Lian Yu looked at the glaring sun in the sky, and then his eyes fell on the umbrella in Qin Yi's hand: "You can keep that umbrella. Anyway, I probably won't use it again in the future."
Qin Yi suddenly clenched the umbrella handle in his hand, and his eyes felt sore.
Great, it's Xiaoyu, it's Xiaoyu. Even if her personality has changed a lot, even if she has forgotten herself, Xiaoyu is still the same Xiaoyu.
It doesn’t matter if he loses his memory, he will make Xiaoyu remember him.
So when the opportunity presented itself to Qin Yi, he accepted it without hesitation. It was merely the separation of something that had become one with him, the heart-wrenching pain of ripping it apart. But as long as Xiaoyu could return to their world together, it was all worth it.
Fortunately, that day is coming soon and his mission is about to be completed.
Qin Yi glanced at the almost full favorability bar above Lian Yu's head.
This was the second time Qin Yi's attention wandered. Lian Yu blinked, apparently realizing something. He looked back at Qin Yi and whispered, "That seems to be a very long story."
"yes."
The voice was drowned out by the sound of fireworks in the sky. Children's excited screams were heard in the city. The sky lit up in an instant, and millions of silver flowers bloomed. The colorful colors were reflected in the young man's dark eyes.
A lively heart beat in Lian Yu's chest, responding to the rhythm of the fireworks in the sky.
The warm body pressed against him, and in the interval between the rising and blooming of the fireworks, he heard Qin Yi whisper: "We'll talk slowly later."
Qin Yi raised his hand, hugged the back of his neck, and stood on tiptoe.
Now, it's time to enjoy the fireworks.
Lian Yu almost instinctively found the most suitable position. He wrapped his arms around Qin Yi's slender waist, leaned in, and slowly deepened the kiss. His tiger's mouth fixed the young man's thin jaw, and his fingertips caressed it tenderly.
The next time the fireworks were lit, Lian Yu opened his eyes, and a bright white was reflected in his pupils, like the moon hanging high in the sky.
The disguise faded away, the sky and the earth were so white, the snow fell on the treetops, covering a red plum blossom.
Lian Yu looked at the pair of red eyes that were as bright as rubies, his heart beating wildly. He was breathing heavily, and his hands holding Qin Yi's cheeks were so tight that veins popped out.
But when she called out, she spoke softly: "Xiaoqing."
He remembered it all. Xiaoqing, Qin Yi, those young people in their little world who had told him over and over again not to succumb to fate—and those eyes that had looked at him from the podium in the classroom near midsummer.
"I'm sorry," Lian Yu put his hand on Qin Yi's forehead, his throat rolling: "I'm sorry... I forgot you, I'm sorry..."
Qin Yi shook his head, tears gleaming in his eyes: "I don't blame you."
[Resentment value: 0]
[Favorability: 100]
At the horizon, the last of the fireworks faded away. The air was filled with grayish-white smoke, and it was eerily still, as if the world had paused.
[Congratulations to the tasker for completing the task. Rewards will be redeemed soon.]
The moment the announcement sounded, Lian Yu froze. He looked at Qin Yi in astonishment, and Qin Yi's expression told him that he had heard it too.
Qin Yi suddenly broke away from Lian Yu and started vomiting.
Something like the peeled apple peeled in a circle, a long strip of it came out of Qin Yi's mouth. Qin Yi grabbed the apple peel painfully and tried to pull it out, but it was endless and gradually piled up on the ground into a small mound.
"Xiaoqing!"
Lian Yu frantically reached out to support Qin Yi, but couldn't stop the thin body from falling. An unprecedented fear overwhelmed Lian Yu.
Suddenly, the vomiting stopped.
The tail of the long strip landed silently on the top of the hill. Qin Yi knelt down exhausted and fell into Lian Yu's arms. Sweat soaked Qin Yi's heavy robe, making him feel cold and weak as if he had just been pulled out of the water.
Lian Yu tightened his arms and stared in horror at the long strips piled on the ground: "What on earth is this?!"
The body in his arms suddenly moved slightly, and the voice was hoarse, like a cuckoo that had coughed up its last mouthful of blood: "I want to take you back..."
The long strip on the ground suddenly began to wriggle as if it had life. It floated in the air, slowly coiled up, and finally formed a clock.
The world was silent, the second hand ticked away.
"...Xiaoyu." Qin Yi raised his head and smiled slowly at Lian Yu: "Finally, we meet again."
"Don't you remember me?" Qin Yi lowered his eyes and stared at Lian Yu, a sinister smile in his eyes. He pushed the stunned Lian Yu to the ground, climbed on top of Lian Yu, and lifted Lian Yu's face with his cold fingertips. "I'm number two, or should I call Tu Tu?"
A shrill scream echoed in my mind.
The clock twisted and deformed, melting into a pool of pitch-black pus, in which the bright green code swirled and surged like maggots. The mechanical rabbit jumped wildly, and the expressions on the display screen collapsed and changed constantly, crying, laughing, screaming -
Scream, scream, scream.
"Shut up!" Lian Yu suddenly pushed Number Two away and covered his head with his hands: "Shut up, shut up, shut up!"
Number Two embraced Qin Yi's body and soothed him gently with Qin Yi's voice: "Don't be afraid, Xiaoyu, don't be afraid, I'm here."
The screaming finally stopped.
Lian Yu's shoulders were still rising and falling violently, his cheek pressed against Qin Yi's chest, damp from sweat or tears. "Don't leave me," he said.
"No." Number Two slowly stroked the back of his head. "The timeline has returned to its original position. I'm free. Haven't you always wanted to settle down in this small world? I'll take you back to where we first met. From now on, we can be together forever, and no one will interfere with us anymore."
Lian Yu felt a star wind blowing behind him, which was the time tunnel leading to the original small world.
He let Number Two lead him by the hand as they walked toward the tunnel. As they neared the tunnel entrance, the star wind blew fiercely, lifting the damp hair from his forehead. Lian Yu looked back at the timeline. The clock slowly became transparent, then faded into nothingness.
"Qin Yi is not a defector."
Number Two's expression twisted for a moment, but he quickly smiled again: "So what? Even if it was all a lie, you can't change anything."
Number Two paced around Lian Yu, his fingertips stroking Lian Yu's chin, his red eyes gazing at Lian Yu: "Come with me, at least you'll have this face to remember, right?"
Lian Yu fell silent.
Seeing Lian Yu like this, Number Two smiled contentedly and took Lian Yu's hand again: "Then let's--"
But the next second, Lian Yu suddenly broke free from Number Two's hand and rushed toward the timeline that had nearly melted into the void. He grabbed the rotating hour hand on the clock. In an instant, the wind stopped, and the fluttering flags on the city wall froze.
The clock hands turned back, the wind died down, and the fireworks that had been extinguished for a long time bloomed again in the night sky. Then, the city walls turned into soil, the sun rose after dusk, and the moon hung high after the morning glow.
"What are you doing!" Number Two rushed over to stop him, but was wrapped up by the sweeping star wind.
In a flash, the world changed drastically.
Sunlight filtered through the mottled branches. Lian Yu was woken from his sleep by the person sitting in front of him. He pointed at the youthful, fair-skinned boy on the stage and said, "Lian Yu, look!"
Lian Yu met those clear red eyes, and his long snow-white eyelashes trembled. The boy pursed his lips and walked towards him from the podium with his schoolbag on his back.
"Long time no see." Lian Yu extended her hand to the boy, revealing a pair of white teeth and smiling with her eyes curved: "My name is Lian Yu."
This time, let me come to you.
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