Chapter 20: The Second Flower & School Uniform
Xu Yin fulfilled his promise.
He accompanied Wen Congyan for a lifetime, until that day.
A slightly warm breeze flowed in from the window, silently.
The old man lay in bed, with closed eyes, sleeping peacefully. There was a small dried pink flower by his pillow, and one could faintly see the way it fell into Xu Yin’s palm from the tree on that night decades ago.
Xu Yin sat by the bed and said: “Xiao 018, I want to quit the mission.”
This wasn’t the first time Xu Yin had said this. He had mentioned it several times in the past few decades.
018 asked with concern: “Are you sure? Quitting means it’s the end, and you can’t return to the original world…”
It’s equivalent to ending one’s life in this mission world.
Xu Yin nodded with a smile.
In the past, he didn’t care if he could be resurrected or not because he had no interest in life and the future. Even if the mission failed, he had nothing to care about.
But then he changed. He began to look forward to the future, to love, and to every day spent with Wen Congyan.
Until now.
They had walked through this life together, and for Xu Yin, his life had reached a perfect ending, and he didn’t need more.
Going back to the original world to start life all over again didn’t seem to make much sense. It wouldn’t be better than this lifetime.
“Well then…”, 018 reluctantly popped a bubble.
But at that moment, something strange happened.
—Golden light spots emanated from the old man lying on the bed.
Xu Yin was taken aback and immediately approached, saying, “Congyan? Congyan!”
However, the old man remained motionless, seemingly completely immersed in eternal sleep.
Xu Yin looked at the light spots in the entire room and furrowed his brow, asking: “Xiao 018, what’s going on?”
018 also seemed surprised: “This is a sign of soul transfer! A phenomenon that occurs when a host transfers from one mission world to the next!”
Xu Yin was astonished: “Is Wen Congyan also a mission holder?”
018 responded: “No, I’ve never detected a system on him!”
Suddenly, 018 said: “Could this be related to the bug on me? Wait, I’ll go ask Xiao A!”
Xiao A is the one who’s in charge of the main system, responsible for discovering the lingering bug on 018.
Soon, 018 returned and said: “Xiao A said that Wen Congyan’s soul transfer isn’t a bug but it’s within the contract. Since it’s connected to our mission world, it must be related to the contract between you and me. But neither of us remembers it, and I can’t find any information about it, probably due to that bug.”
Xu Yin had previously decided to end the mission because he chose to spend his life with Wen Congyan, so he hadn’t considered fixing the bug. After all, it didn’t hold much significance for him, and he kept his points in case of unexpected situations.
He currently has a total of over 16,000 points. Of these, 10,000 points were obtained after he officially completed the Life Mission “World-Famous Designer” at the age of 49. After that, the system would reward him with 10 points daily, and he could accumulate points from other tasks.
However, since Xu Yin had no intention of moving on to the next world, his enthusiasm for doing tasks wasn’t very high. Over the years, he had only accumulated just over 16,000 points.
Without hesitation, he said: “I have 16,000 points now. I remember you said that it takes 5,000 points for one repair, right? Let’s use all three repairs.”
018 replied: “No, leave 6,000 points just in case. I’ll use 10,000 points to repair it twice first and see how the progress goes.”
Xu Yin watched as 10,000 points were deducted from the task panel, and 018 fell silent.
After a minute of waiting, 018 said: “After two repairs, the progress is only at 5%.”
Xu Yin’s brow furrowed even more tightly: “Is there no data about Congyan at all?”
018 responded: “No, it might need to be repaired to 100%.”
Although Xu Yin had 6,000 points left, considering the progress at this rate, it didn’t seem meaningful to repair it once more.
He contemplated for a moment and asked: “Has Wen Congyan’s soul already transferred? If I enter the next mission world, will he be waiting for me there?”
018 said: “It’s very likely.”
Xu Yin took a deep breath.
He looked at the old man on the bed, gently caressed his face, and finally made a decision.
“Alright, then let’s go to the next world.”
*
When Xu Yin came to his senses, he found himself in a… dorm room.
It was noon, and the sunlight outside was intense, shining directly onto Xu Yin’s feet through the window.
He sat under the bed near the door, by the desk, something had just slid from his face, dropping onto the back of his hand.
Tears?
Crying again at the start?
Xu Yin had just raised his hand when the sound of keys turning began, and the door swung open. A boy in a blue and white short-sleeved school uniform walked in, saying, “Xu Yin, are you…”
When he saw Xu Yin’s red eyes, he froze, and his words became stammered, “Are you you you okay?”
Xu Yin, just as he did the last time he crossed over, calmly wiped away his tears and smiled, “Yeah, I’m fine.”
At the same time, he was quickly processing the information in his mind.
Just like last time, the original host was named Xu Yin, and he looked exactly like him. However, this time, the original host was 18 years old, a soon-to-be senior in high school.
The original host’s parents had been having marital issues for the past three years. He accidentally found out that it was because his father had a mistress outside their marriage, for how many years, he didn’t know. It seemed like she even had a child, who was the same age as him. In other words, when his mother was pregnant, the mistress was also pregnant.
This revelation threw the whole family into chaos.
Other relatives tried to convince the original host’s mother to consider the child and not divorce. His mother was heartbroken, but she listened to their advice and tried to maintain the marriage.
However, the impact of such a revelation wasn’t something that could be easily resolved. The mother fell seriously ill after learning about the affair and passed away from cancer within a year.
The original host suffered a major blow.
In reality, his emotions were very complicated after learning about his father’s affair. He harbored resentment towards his father but didn’t want to lose either of his parents. Therefore, after some hesitation upon learning about the affair, he didn’t try to intervene. He had some unreasonable hope in his heart, but he didn’t expect it to lead to his mother’s death – and the arrival of the mistress and her son six months later.
The mistress was named Wang Yuqi, and after her son entered the family, he changed his surname to Xu and became Xu Ling.
The original host’s father, without the slightest consideration for his deceased wife who had passed away just half a year ago, and without any regard for the original host’s feelings, lavished attention on Wang Yuqi and Xu Ling upon their arrival.
From that day onwards, the original host’s life took a drastic turn.
He protested, he quarreled, he questioned whether his father could justify his mother? But his father just accused him of being a child who shouldn’t meddle in adult matters, and that he would understand when he grew up.
Understand what?
That all men are bound to cheat?
The original host’s hatred for his father and Wang Yuqi reached its peak. He thought about running away from home but eventually abandoned the idea because he felt, why should he let Wang Yuqi comfortably stay in this house?
No, he wanted to break up his father and Wang Yuqi, he wanted to kick Wang Yuqi, the mistress, out of their home!
However, the original host’s feelings toward Xu Ling were quite complex.
Although Xu Ling was young, the original host knew that a child couldn’t choose their parents. Wang Yuqi might be a bad person, but Xu Ling might not be, so even when his father directly placed Xu Ling into his school and their class, the original host didn’t initially mistreat Xu Ling. At most, he just ignored him, maintaining a distance without any interference.
And Xu Ling always remained silent and indifferent, never raising objections.
Until one day, when the original host returned from a classmate’s house, his father slapped him in the face.
The original host couldn’t believe it and asked what his father was doing, but his father pointed to Xu Ling standing nearby, clenching his fist, and looking away as if he didn’t want to speak. His father yelled, “You still have the nerve to ask me? Why don’t you ask yourself how you’ve been treating your little brother? Do you not understand why I put him in your class? Was it for you to bully him?”
The original host was utterly bewildered, “You’re saying I bullied him?”
His father shouted, “Then what else? Do you think I slapped you for fun!?”
It was at this moment that the original host suddenly realized. He looked at Xu Ling and asked, “Did you tell my dad that I bully you at school?”
Xu Ling bit his lower lip, turned to the side, seemingly unwilling to answer.
This appearance further enraged his father, who directly dragged the original host closer, “Xiao Ling didn’t say anything, but do you think I’ve been eating for nothing for so many years? Can’t I see through his behavior?”
The original host looked at Xu Ling’s pretending-to-be-wronged expression and let out a cold laugh.
Did he bully Xu Ling?
Alright, he couldn’t just take the blame without reason. Since he was accused of bullying, why not actually bully him?
Recalling this, Xu Yin rubbed his temples.
The original host had many good friends in Class 7. When Xu Ling first joined their class and they learned he was the child of the “third party” in the Xu family, the good friends empathized with the original host.
Of course, they didn’t engage in actual bullying because they were all serious students and didn’t engage in bullying. However, they certainly didn’t welcome Xu Ling. After all, considering it from their own perspective, they found Xu Ling distasteful.
But from that day onward, things took a turn for the worse.
Actually, the original host didn’t do much. He had been a good kid from a young age, so even if he had some resentment, it usually amounted to some taunting and sarcasm directed at Xu Ling. There were a few times when he was close to getting physical, mostly because Xu Ling deliberately provoked him.
Oddly enough, those times “coincidentally” had other students nearby, and as soon as they saw the original host getting ready to act, they quickly intervened to stop him.
What about Xu Ling?
He silently turned and walked away, returning to his seat. He waited until the atmosphere in the classroom had calmed down in an awkward way before quietly shedding tears.
Other students in the class, having seen this many times, began to feel uncomfortable. They advised the original host, “Xu Ling can’t choose his parents either. Don’t be like this. He’s also in a miserable situation, given his mother.”
The original host angrily said, “You’ve all seen how I treated him at the beginning, right? I never bullied him! But he lied to my dad, saying that I bullied him at school!”
Other students couldn’t understand, “No way, Xu Ling doesn’t seem like that kind of person… Is it possible that your temper got you misunderstood by your dad?”
“No, wait, did you say that Xu Ling deliberately provoked you with his words?”
“No way… you’ve known each other for a while, and Xu Ling really isn’t that kind of person.”
“Xu Yin… Please, don’t lie just because you dislike Xu Ling, okay?”
“So, we’ve known each other for so long, do you think I’m the kind of person who would lie?”
The original host’s questions fell on deaf ears.
Slowly, the entire class’s attitude toward both him and Xu Ling began to change.
More and more people felt sorry for Xu Ling, and the original host’s close friends gradually distanced themselves from him, thinking that he had changed and his personality had become extreme and strange.
Even his best friend, Ye Xunran, at some point stood by Xu Ling’s side and furrowed his brows, saying, “Xu Yin, you’ve really changed.”
The original host had indeed changed.
He became gradually gloomy and spoke less.
He couldn’t eat, and sometimes he’d vomit shortly after eating, causing significant weight loss.
His grades declined. His rank, which had been lingering in the middle of the entire grade’s science class, dropped to the bottom.
The class teacher, being an adult, probably noticed something but couldn’t directly address it with a child. So, they called Xu’s father to school and explained the situation. However, Xu’s father coldly replied, “Change his class, I think his presence in the class is affecting all the other students. I recall that Class 12 has the lowest average score in the entire science class, right? Then put him in Class 12. His current grades are just like that.”
The class teacher was dumbfounded and tried to convince him for a long time, but Xu’s father wouldn’t change his mind. He even went to see the principal.
After several considerations, in the first semester of the third year, the original host was transferred from Class 7, where the grades were excellent, to Class 12, where the grades were poor.
And at this moment, it was the second day after the start of the school year.
Just after the last class in the morning, the original host bumped into Xu Ling in the restroom.
As Xu Ling passed by the original host, he whispered, “Are you happy in Class 12?”
The moment the original host turned around with a clenched fist, his wrist was grabbed from behind.
When he turned around to look, he saw Ye Xunran with a serious expression, who said, “Xu Yin, that’s enough!”
The original host stared at Ye Xunran for a while, pulled his hand away, hadn’t eaten his meal, and returned to the new dormitory. He sat at the desk, staring blankly.
As he sat there, tears overflowed.
…
After the recollection, Xu Yin sighed: “Why does it have to be this kind of family again.”
018: “Well, your real-life family situation isn’t great, and the construction of the mission world is influenced by the host’s real-life circumstances.”
Is it like this?
Well, that can be understood.
Xu Yin smiled bitterly.
His new roommate, Wang Feifei, the representative of the physical education class in Class 12, asked with caution, “Are you really okay? Did you even eat?”
Xu Yin had just had a confrontation with Xu Ling in the restroom, and they only heard about it after dinner.
Since they were roommates now, Wang Feifei and the other two felt it was necessary to check on Xu Yin’s situation. So, as the representative, he returned to the dormitory. He didn’t expect to see Xu Yin crying the moment he opened the door. Wang Feifei was left dumbfounded.
The whole grade was aware of what had happened to Xu Yin in Class 7 before. When they met him yesterday, his impression really was quite gloomy. It didn’t seem like he was someone who would quietly shed tears alone.
Wang Feifei was at a loss, “Should I help you get an afternoon off?”
“No need, I’m fine.” Xu Yin checked his phone. It was already 12:30.
Lunch break started at 12:45, and the first class of the afternoon started at 1:15.
He got up and said gently, “Let’s go to the classroom.”
Wang Feifei was confused. Xu Yin had been crying with red eyes just a moment ago, and now he was fine?
The dormitory was more than ten minutes away from the classroom building.
As they walked, Xu Yin contemplated.
018 had mentioned that the transfer of Xu Ling’s soul was within the contract between him and 018. It was only because 018 had experienced a bug and lost data that they both no longer remembered the relevant information.
Xu Yin carefully recalled, realizing that during the signing of the contract with 018 and the scene of his death in a car accident, there were parts of his memory that were hazy, and no matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t recall them.
He furrowed his brow, pondered for a while, and temporarily put this matter aside.
After all, for now, it appeared that 018’s bug wasn’t completely fixed. These lost memories couldn’t be retrieved. Therefore, the top priority was to find this world’s Congyan.
As Xu Yin thought about this, he ascended the stairs step by step and entered the classroom building, reaching the second floor.
The high school’s teaching building was separate with two floors. The Classes 7 and 12 were conveniently located at opposite ends on the same floor.
As they stepped onto the second floor, Wang Feifei suddenly felt nervous. Fvck, he had made a mistake. He forgot to remind Xu Yin to take the other set of stairs!
–They came up on the side that led to Class 7.
Wang Feifei took a couple of steps forward, trying to shift Xu Yin’s attention nervously, “Xu Yin…”
Before he could finish his sentence, the two of them appeared at the entrance to Class 7.
Inside, several students instinctively looked up, furrowing their brows when they saw Xu Yin. Some even displayed expressions of disdain.
A boy with a handsome appearance was sitting in the middle, quietly doing his homework. When he happened to glance up and see Xu Yin, he squinted his eyes.
The boy’s desk-mate, a taller and more handsome guy, noticed the commotion next to him and also raised his head, furrowing his brow.
The intense gazes in the classroom were almost palpable. Xu Yin, who was thinking about the situation with Wen Congyan, turned his head without even realizing it.
Wang Feifei was extremely nervous, reaching out to tug at Xu Yin’s sleeve.
However, the hostility in the eyes of Class 7 practically became tangible, as they remained ready for Xu Yin to start something. The whole class was on high alert.
But then Xu Yin cast a brief glance and redirected his gaze, walking forward with an indifferent expression, as if he hadn’t noticed anything.
Well, Xu Yin had too much on his mind concerning Wen Congyan, and he didn’t have the mental capacity to pay attention to anything else.
The students in Class 7 were stunned. He had walked past them so casually?
Wang Feifei was baffled as well. He took a few steps forward, tilting his head to look at Xu Yin, “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Hmm?” Xu Yin seemed as if he had just snapped out of a daze, and he smiled, “I’m fine, really.”
Although the thin boy was looking even more handsome, his smile had left Wang Feifei flabbergasted.
Meanwhile, in Class 7, a group of students exchanged strange glances.
“Has Xu Yin changed?”
“What are you thinking? He’s just pretending!”
“Just remember, he wanted to fight with Xu Ling at lunch!”
The classroom was abuzz with discussions, but Xu Ling quietly continued his work, twirling his pen.
A hand patted his back, and the boy beside him said, “Don’t pay attention to it.”
Xu Ling turned his head.
Ye Xunran frowned and said, “I’m here.”
Xu Ling lowered his gaze and replied with a cold tone, “Mm.”
…
Xu Yin continued to contemplate as he walked into Class 12. He didn’t notice the bewildered expression on Wang Feifei’s face.
When they reached the door of Class 12, Xu Yin temporarily put aside his thoughts about Wen Congyan. He lifted his head and looked towards the seat he remembered as the original host’s.
In the last row by the window, a stunningly handsome boy sat with a straight back, focused on his homework. He had calm, stern brows and eyes, a high nose, and thin lips.
His broad shoulders, long and powerful fingers, everything about him was incredibly familiar to Xu Yin.
The familiar appearance, the familiar posture. Even the way he looked up with his eyes was a match with Xu Yin’s memories. The only difference was a hint of youthful greenness.
Xu Yin opened his mouth, about to say the name “Congyan,” but he quickly retracted it. In this world, Congyan had a new identity, a new name.
Xu Yin swiftly retrieved all the information about this boy from his memories.
Yan Ningchuan, also 18 years old, in the class with the lowest average scores, yet he ranked first in his grade.
He was the serious class monitor of Class 12, the universally recognized school heartthrob.
A faint smile curved Xu Yin’s lips.
Simultaneously, he was his current roommate and desk-mate.
