Lu Quning waited nervously for the result from deep in the woods. Only a few people remained in the clearing.
He kept pacing near the sightseeing cart, his anxious behavior attracting a suspicious glance from Shen Ke, who had just come back from picking grapes.
After a while, the group emerged from the trees.
Lu Quning immediately fixed his gaze on Ye Lin’s face, the latter’s expression was thunderous.
Did it work?
Lu Quning’s heart skipped a beat.
“Ah Lin, my brother, he.. ” He stepped forward, trying to pretend to show some concern about Lu Jiu’s condition.
But Ye Lin brushed past him, bumping his shoulder, walking away without a backward glance.
It was the first time Lu Quning had seen him lose his composure like that, and he couldn’t help feeling surprised. Could it be that Ding Jiaye and Lu Jiu had a really ugly fight?
Lu Jiu’s mouth was pinned shut and kissed for a long time. This time, no one interrupted (the group had quickly scattered and fled). Bai Yun kissed him with unrestrained indulgence.
The grape pulp in his mouth was completely gone; even the sourness was ground into sweetness between their lips and teeth.
When Lu Jiu was almost out of breath, the man even teased him, “Jiujiu, don’t you know how to breathe through your nose?”
Lu Jiu, furious, stomped on the man’s shiny leather shoes. Only when he was on the verge of fainting did Bai Yun finally release him. Lu Jiu gasped desperately, taking in a huge breath of air.
“So cute,” the man murmured with a smile in his eyes, leaning forward to kiss him again.
“Next time, don’t pretend to be so experienced.”
Bai Yun pinched Lu Jiu’s chin as the latter panted heavily, his eyes rolling white. “Fine, fine, I’m not, you’re the amazing one.”
Seriously, who could not lose their breath being kissed like that? Was that his fault??
Bai Yun smiled like a fox, “So, was it sweet? Want two more?”
Now that Lu Jiu had recovered, he started grinding his teeth again and squeezed the two remaining grapes in his hand.
Judging by their firmness, he could tell roughly which one was sour and which was sweet.
Bai Yun rubbed his chin. “Mm, looks like Old Ye wasn’t lying this time, they really are sweet. But you can keep the ones in your hand. He’s sending me an entire box later anyway.”
Lu Jiu gave a thin, fake smile. “Why can’t you take these? I could feed them to you myself.”
Bai Yun’s grin deepened. “Wouldn’t want your teeth to go sour, Jiujiu.”
Wow. How considerate of him.
Then the man suddenly switched topics, as if casually, “Three years ago, at the entrance of the Zhihua Hotel, a little girl gave you a scarf. Do you still remember that?”
Lu Jiu frowned, flashes of memory surfacing.
Three years ago, the Zhihua Hotel, a family gathering.
He’d had a bad argument with Lu Mingyang during dinner and went downstairs to sit by the flowerbed at the hotel entrance.
He wanted to talk to someone but didn’t want to dump negativity on his friends. So he kept opening and closing his chat app, his ride-hailing app and in the end, just sat there staring blankly into the snow.
Snowflakes fell softly onto the umbrella the hotel waiter had brought him; the cold wind swirled around his feet.
Footsteps approached. A pair of small feet entered his view.
A little girl with twin ponytails, wearing a red wool coat, held out a plaid cashmere scarf with both hands.
Startled, he followed her line of approach and saw a black Bentley, and a few figures standing beside it, smiling.
A tall man in an overcoat stood under an umbrella. Amidst the drifting snowflakes, Lu Jiu couldn’t see the man’s expression clearly, but somehow, he just knew, the man was looking at the little girl gently, maybe even smiling.
Lu Jiu’s eyelashes trembled slightly. He looked back at Bai Yun. “Of course I remember, it was your scarf. Do you want it back?”
Bai Yun’s lips curved upward, “It’s enough that you remember.”
Then, almost offhandedly, he added, “Jiujiu, what’s given to you is yours to keep.”
That afternoon, the vineyard manager led them to a wine tasting. Ye Qin and Bai Yun, the two “elders,” disappeared once again.
Lu Jiu followed the group but didn’t drink but his stomach still felt uneasy, so he just watched them sip and swirl their glasses.
He kept thinking about his conversation with Bai Yun that morning.
It was at that moment, when Bai Yun had asked that question, that he suddenly realized, unknowingly, he had already become part of this body.
As if he hadn’t transmigrated, he had returned.
Although the memories in his head had only now sorted themselves out, they were his. Everything in them was truly his own.
It was… strange.
“111, I’m different from the other players your Quick-Travel Bureau caught, right?”
“Of course! They’re legitimate players. They have to complete missions and earn points, only when they’ve earned enough can they revive in their original worlds. Otherwise, they have to keep traveling endlessly. But your case…. you were affected by an accident. We found you to make it up to you! You don’t have to grind points. As long as you finish the tasks and correct all the parallel worlds that were disrupted, you can return to your real world!”
“…To make it up to me, huh? Then why threaten me with death if I fail a mission?”
“Uh… that, I don’t really understand either. I’m a new system, you see! Not very familiar with the Bureau’s internal affairs. Maybe they just want you to hurry and fix the timelines? can’t waste time, right?”
“But you haven’t given me a second mission yet.”
“Yeah, I don’t get it either! Headquarters hasn’t sent one down!” 111 sounded equally frustrated.
For a system, only being able to chat with its host was pretty boring!
Lu Jiu found the whole situation oddly fascinating but come to think of it, the strangeness hadn’t really begun with the car accident.
The day before he ended up in this world, he’d reunited with his old senior, they spent a night together.
The next morning, they parted on good terms.
As he was leaving, the man, adjusting his tie, smiled and said, “Let’s keep in touch.”
He hadn’t thought much of it.
Even though he couldn’t quite let go of that man, Lu Jiu didn’t believe anything real could happen between them. So, as always, he wandered through the crowd aimlessly, tired and without purpose.
A blind man by the street suddenly pointed at his stomach and shouted with fervor, “It’s there! It’s already there, this is fate! A bond spanning lifetimes, the fruit of love itself!”
It was the kind of absurd, funny moment that colored his dull life now and then.
Back then, he just smiled and said to the man, “Uncle, maybe go get that checked out?”
If he could go back now, he’d definitely ask that blind man what exactly he’d seen on him that day.
As for the “fruit of love” Lu Jiu rubbed his lower abdomen.
Yeah, sure. Total nonsense.
That night, they had a barbecue outdoors. The smoke made Lu Jiu dizzy, so he went inside.
He washed an apple and bit into it blankly.
Just his luck, finally got to go on a trip, and now he could only eat fruit.
“Maybe you should go see a doctor,” 111 said gravely. “You humans aren’t built like us systems!”
Lu Jiu raised an eyebrow. “What kind of hiring standards does your Quick-Travel Bureau have? Can I apply to be a system too?”
Just as he said that in his mind, someone walked in and leaned against the wall.
It was Ye Lin.
Lu Jiu glanced at him, shifted against the counter, and was about to leave.
Ye Lin suddenly spoke, “Do you… really like men?”
“…” Lu Jiu chewed, swallowed his bite of apple, and said flatly, “Didn’t you already know?”
Ye Lin’s lips pressed tight.
Yeah, he had guessed.
Because yesterday, Lu Jiu had said, “I just don’t like people who smell old.” He’d never said he didn’t like men.
Lu Jiu gave him a look and tried to walk away again. The smell of barbecue on him was making Lu Jiu’s stomach churn.
But Ye Lin turned his head aside, asking in a pained voice, “Ding Jiaye’s twenty-nine, you think he’s too old. But Bai Yun’s fine?”
Ha.
Ha ha.
Lu Jiu gave him a long, amused look. “That’s because Bai Yun doesn’t smell old.”
Forget “old” that man just stood there and it was like he was flirting.
Okay, that might sound a bit narcissistic but Lu Jiu was serious.
“What are you trying to say?” He bit into the apple again. “Ye Lin, don’t tell me that after three years of not speaking, you suddenly care about my orientation.”
“I don’t have a problem with you liking men!!” Ye Lin lifted his head in panic.
“Then what? You like me?”
Ye Lin froze.
Lu Jiu had just been joking but seeing his reaction, he narrowed his eyes and stopped chewing.
“You like me?” His tone went cold.
“Ye Lin, you’re the one who ran away the moment you saw me ‘go crazy.’”
“I didn’t… “ It wasn’t for the reason everyone thought he’d run!
But when Ye Lin met Lu Jiu’s calm, almost detached eyes, all his words stuck in his throat.
…Yes. This was Lu Jiu.
After running away for three years, Ye Lin finally had to face the fact that this version of Lu Jiu, calm, cold, sharp had once seen him at his most pathetic.
He clenched his fists slowly; the pain helped him focus.
“I can explain.”
“Did you ever think I might not care to listen?”
“Then, Jiujiu.. ” Ye Lin stepped closer. “Do you like Bai Yun?”
“What if I do? And what if I don’t?”
“If you don’t,” Ye Lin said, trying to keep his voice steady, “Can we talk about what happened three years ago? Can you… give me another chance?”
Lu Jiu stared at him and then bent forward, vomited all over the floor.
Ye Lin: “…………???”
Elsewhere in the estate, out on the terrace, Bai Yun was smoking and gazing at the night.
He suddenly heard Ye Qin answering a call.
“What? Jiujiu threw up?”
✦ ✧ ✦
Cressilia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
We have reached the inevitable coffee solicitation.
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
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ChaptersChapter 1 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (1)Chapter 2 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (2)Chapter 3 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (3)Chapter 4 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (4)Chapter 5 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (5)Chapter 6 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (6)Chapter 7 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (7)Chapter 8 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (8)Chapter 9 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (9)Chapter 10 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (10)Chapter 11 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (11)Chapter 12 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (12)Chapter 13 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (13)Chapter 14 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s room (14)Chapter 15 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (15)Chapter 16 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (16)Chapter 17 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (17)Chapter 18 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (18)Chapter 19 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (19)Chapter 20 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (20)Chapter 21 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (21)Chapter 22 Part 1 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (22)Chapter 22 Part 2 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (22)Chapter 23 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (23)Chapter 24 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (24)Chapter 25 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (25)Chapter 26 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (26)Chapter 27 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (27)Chapter 28 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (28)Chapter 29 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (29)Chapter 30 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (30)Chapter 31 Part 1 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (31)Chapter 31 Part 2 · After Breaking into the Big Boss’s Room (31)Chapter 32 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (1)Chapter 33 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (2)Chapter 34 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (3)Chapter 35 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (4)Chapter 36 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (5)Chapter 37 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (6)Chapter 38 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (7)Chapter 39 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (8)Chapter 40 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (9)Chapter 41 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (10)Chapter 42 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (11)Chapter 43 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (12)Chapter 44 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (13)Chapter 45 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (14)Chapter 46 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (15)Chapter 47 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (16)Chapter 48 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (17)Chapter 49 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (18)Chapter 50 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (19)Chapter 51 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (20)Chapter 52 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (21)Chapter 53 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (22)Chapter 54 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (23)Chapter 55 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (24)Chapter 56 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (25)Chapter 57 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (26)Chapter 58 · The Empire’s Number One Beta Crown Prince (27)Chapter 59 · Hatching Baby Zombies (1)Chapter 60 · Hatching Baby Zombies (2)Chapter 61 · Hatching Baby Zombies (3)Chapter 62 · Hatching Baby Zombies (4)Chapter 63 · Hatching Baby Zombies (5)Chapter 64 · Hatching Baby Zombies (6)Chapter 65 · Hatching Baby Zombies (7)Chapter 66 · Hatching Baby Zombies (8)Chapter 67 · Hatching Baby Zombies (9)Chapter 68 · Hatching Baby Zombies (10)Chapter 69 · Hatching Baby Zombies (11)Chapter 70 · Hatching Baby Zombies (12)Chapter 71 · Hatching Baby Zombies (13)Chapter 72 · Hatching Baby Zombies (14)Chapter 73 · Hatching Baby Zombies (15)Chapter 74 · Hatching Baby Zombies (16)Chapter 75 · Hatching Baby Zombies (17)Chapter 76 · Hatching Baby Zombies (18)Chapter 77 · Hatching Baby Zombies (19)Chapter 78 · Hatching Baby Zombies (20)Chapter 79 · The Mermaid on the Shore (1)Chapter 80 · The Mermaid on the Shore (2)Chapter 81 · The Mermaid on the Shore (3)Chapter 82 · The Mermaid on the Shore (4)Chapter 83 · The Mermaid on the Shore (5)Chapter 84 · The Mermaid on the Shore (6)Chapter 85 · The Mermaid on the Shore (7)Chapter 86 · The Mermaid on the Shore (8)Chapter 87 · The Mermaid on the Shore (9)Chapter 88 · The Mermaid on the Shore (10)Chapter 89 · The Mermaid on the Shore (11)Chapter 90 · The Mermaid on the Shore (12)Chapter 91 · The Mermaid on the Shore (13)Chapter 92 · The Mermaid on the Shore (14)Chapter 93 · The Mermaid on the Shore (15)Chapter 94 · The Mermaid on the Shore (16)Chapter 95 · The Mermaid on the Shore (17)Chapter 96 Part 1 · The Mermaid on the Shore (18)Chapter 96 Part 2 · The Mermaid on the Shore (18)Chapter 97 · The Mermaid on the Shore (19)Chapter 98 · Give me a drop of blood (1)Chapter 99 · Give me a drop of blood (2)Chapter 100 · Give me a drop of blood (3)Chapter 101 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (4)Chapter 102 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (5)Chapter 103 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (6)Chapter 104 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (7)Chapter 105 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (8)Chapter 106 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (9)Chapter 107 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (10)Chapter 108 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (11)Chapter 109 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (12)Chapter 110 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (13)Chapter 111 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (14)Chapter 112 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (15)Chapter 113 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (16)Chapter 114 · Give Me a Drop of Blood (17)Chapter 115 · Extra 1: A Little Conversation After Drinking (1)Chapter 116 · Extra: A Little Conversation After Drinking (2)Chapter 117 · Extra: A Little Conversation After Drinking (3)