Chapter 72
Shen Yan was back. He was back in the original world.
Five years after marrying Su Yunzhe, with their son already in kindergarten, he woke up to find himself back in his old world, in his own home.
The time was still the second day after he had crossed over into the other world.
It felt as if he had merely slept and dreamed a dream, where he entered a world from a book, fell in love, married, and had a child with Su Yunzhe. Then, upon waking up, everything turned to nothing.
But Shen Yan didn’t believe it was just a dream.
The moments he shared with Su Yunzhe were far too real. After giving birth and recovering from confinement, he had been pinned to the bed by Su Yunzhe to pay back the debt from the past ten months, feeling the pain that kept him from getting out of bed for days. How could that have been fake?
The months of pregnancy, the nervousness, the excitement, and fear when the baby was finally born—how could any of that have been fake?
He had watched as their tiny wrinkled baby grew into a fair and tender little one, who now called him “Daddy” in a soft, milky voice. His son, the most adorable, handsome, and intelligent child in the world—how could that have been fake?
Yet, despite his belief that everything had been real, he couldn’t go back.
He had once cursed the strange situation that brought him into the book world, but now…
In the first few days, he couldn’t believe it. Every morning, he would habitually reach out to touch the space beside him, only to realize it was empty, and then he would be jolted awake, realizing that Su Yunzhe was not there.
And there wouldn’t be a little one sneakily opening the door, poking his head in, and softly calling him “Daddy” before running over to crawl into his arms.
A week later, he didn’t even want to open his eyes in the morning anymore, because he knew Su Yunzhe and their son wouldn’t appear.
His family noticed his strange behavior and became very worried.
But what could he say?
Tell them that he had been married with a child in another world, that he had been happy, and that he wanted to go back?
Even when he caught a cold, his mother insisted he be hospitalized. If he told them all of this, his parents would probably keep a constant watch over him.
So, he said nothing. Most of the time, he locked himself in his room.
He even took the original book and read it again. This time, he didn’t skip the parts with Su Yunzhe. He read carefully, paying attention to every word, and the more he read, the more he felt that the cruel, nearly twisted character in the book was nothing like the Su Yunzhe he knew.
However, aside from that book, he couldn’t find any trace of Su Yunzhe in his world.
After he and Su Yunzhe got together, there had been a moment of tenderness when Su Yunzhe had mentioned how he couldn’t sleep every night during the time they were separated, constantly thinking about Shen Yan.
At the time, Shen Yan hadn’t said anything, but inside, he had felt proud.
Only now did he truly understand how torturous it was to miss someone so much that it hurt and kept him awake at night.
He wished that now, he was the one dreaming, so that when he woke up, he could see Su Yunzhe and their precious son again.
“What’s wrong with you, silly? Can’t even talk to your sister?”
Shen Fei pushed the door open and saw her younger brother sitting on the windowsill, staring out at the sky in a daze. She couldn’t help but sense the deep longing that surrounded him.
At first, she had thought her brother was just infatuated with someone, but soon she realized it wasn’t just that—there was a sadness beneath his longing.
Shen Fei sat down beside him, looking at him with concern.
Shen Yan shook his head as usual. “Nothing, just writing lately…”
“Don’t lie!” Shen Fei grabbed his neck, pulled him over, and ruffled his hair. She gave him a playful slap on the back of his head. “Do you think you can fool me like that? If writing is really so tiring, maybe you’re just not cut out for it. Don’t bother! What’s really going on? Did some jerk break your heart? If that’s the case, tell me, I’ll make sure he regrets it!”
Shen Yan leaned on his sister’s shoulder, suddenly overcome with the urge to cry. He wanted to hug her and cry out all the pain he was feeling, to tell her how much he was hurting, how his heart ached.
Shen Fei was the type of person who would tease and trick her younger brother, calling him “silly” or “stupid,” but when anyone dared to bully him, she would roll up her sleeves and fight to protect him.
When Shen Yan was younger, she had tricked him into doing many silly things, so he often said, “I hate you, sister!” But whenever he was truly upset, Shen Fei was always there for him, scolding him and awkwardly comforting him.
So, in front of Shen Fei, Shen Yan felt like the most vulnerable, and it was easiest for him to open up.
But this time, it was different. What would saying anything do? Shen Fei would probably only worry about him losing his mind. What could she do?
“I’m fine,” he suppressed the urge to cry and looked up, forcing a smile at Shen Fei. “Didn’t you have work today? Why are you back so soon?”
Shen Fei gave him a half-hearted slap on the face, pretending to be disgusted. “Stop with the fake smile, it’s ugly. Fine, you don’t want to talk? Then I won’t listen. Anyway, today’s schedule got changed. I’m bored, so you’re coming with me to go shopping.”
Without waiting for his response, she dragged him outside and shoved him into the car.
Shen Yan didn’t say anything. He knew his sister just wanted to distract him.
That was fine. After all, staying cooped up in the house wouldn’t bring him any closer to seeing Su Yunzhe and their son.
It was probably a good idea to go out for a walk.
Shen Yan thought so, but in reality, once he was out, he leaned against the car window, staring at the world outside. It all seemed the same, nothing caught his attention, until a school flashed by. He froze, suddenly gripping Shen Fei’s arm, his voice urgent, “Turn back!”
Shen Fei was confused but immediately turned the car around, asking, “What did you see?”
Shen Yan didn’t respond. His eyes remained fixed outside until the words “Yucai Middle School” appeared clearly in front of him. Then, he whispered, “Stop the car.”
He got out and stood in front of the school, a place he had visited every year for the past five years during holidays. Shen Yan felt disoriented.
Why would a place that only existed in the book world appear in this world?
The original novel was set in H City, and many of its prominent landmarks matched real locations. For example, H City was by the sea, and there was a coastal road. However, smaller places were fictional.
Their residential area, Qingshui Bay, didn’t exist in reality, and there had never been a Yucai Middle School along the coastal road.
What was going on?
Shen Yan’s feet moved on their own toward the school gate, but a middle-aged gatekeeper stopped him.
The gatekeeper had a strange face and accent, nothing like the elderly man who had been stationed there every day in the book for the past five years.
Shen Yan felt a pang of disappointment, but he insisted on going in.
It was summer vacation, and only the graduating class was attending remedial lessons. After registering, the gatekeeper let them in.
Shen Fei followed behind in silence, but her expression grew more worried with each passing moment.
Shen Yan walked down the main path, continuing until he reached the staff dormitory building at the end. The red walls and gray tiles looked just like the ones in the book.
His heart raced, almost leaping out of his throat. He ran up the stairs, taking two steps at a time. Just as he was about to knock on the door on the first floor, someone opened it.
A young man, about sixteen or seventeen, looked at him in surprise. “Who… are you looking for?”
Shen Yan felt his entire body deflate in an instant. He almost lost his balance and had to grab the handrail to steady himself. “I made a mistake,” he muttered, quickly turning and running out.
Of course, it had all been a fantasy. He had imagined that two worlds could overlap. He thought that if he crossed into that world, maybe Su Yunzhe could come to this world as well.
But that was impossible.
In this world, Su Yunzhe had never existed.
How could a person who didn’t exist appear in the real world?
He suddenly felt so tired. After seeing Yucai Middle School, his heart had been filled with so many hopes, which were then crushed in an instant, leaving him feeling even worse than before.
When they got back into the car, he didn’t say a word. He didn’t even notice that Shen Fei had only been driving around the coastal road, not really taking him shopping as she had promised.
As dusk fell, the phone rang. His family was calling to ask if they wanted to come home for dinner. Shen Yan realized that Shen Fei had driven far out of H City.
He turned to look at her. “Aren’t we supposed to be going shopping?”
Shen Fei glanced at him and rubbed his head. “I don’t feel like it anymore. What do you want to eat? I’ll treat you.”
Shen Yan felt guilty. He knew he was worrying her too much.
“Since we’re already this far, let’s go to the fishing village ahead and have some seafood.”
He didn’t want to eat but didn’t want to disappoint Shen Fei either.
Shen Fei sighed inwardly, but didn’t say anything.
Her little brother had been pampered by the whole family since he was young. He had never grown selfish or spoiled, always considering others before himself. She didn’t know whether this was a good thing or a bad thing.
“By the way, sister, when was Yucai Middle School built?” Shen Yan asked, staring out at the darkening sea. After his immense disappointment, a small spark of hope began to rekindle in his heart.
“Hmm? I thought it was odd too. Why were you so surprised when you saw that school? Didn’t it always exist?” Shen Fei responded.
“Always existed?” Shen Yan asked in disbelief.
“Yeah, I remember it was already there when we were kids. It’s just been expanded and renovated in recent years. The school has a great reputation, and the location is fantastic. Why? Did you lose your memory or something?”
Shen Fei looked at him with concern.
Shen Yan’s strange behavior worried her. She didn’t understand why he had been so shocked by the sight of Yucai Middle School, nor did she know who he was looking for there. She had never known him to be acquainted with the school’s teachers.
Now, Shen Yan was even more confused. He couldn’t understand why he didn’t know when Yucai Middle School had been built. His expression made it seem like the school had suddenly appeared out of nowhere in his mind.
She wasn’t wrong in thinking this. In Shen Yan’s memory, Yucai Middle School had indeed seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
He clearly remembered that, aside from the coastal road which was the same as in the book world, everything else — the scenery and buildings — was different. He was certain that in his twenty-two years of life, he had never seen Yucai Middle School here before.
But in Shen Fei’s memory, the school had always been there.
What was going on?
Had the world changed after he entered the book?
But why was Yucai Middle School still the same as it had been, yet Room 101 wasn’t his grandparents’ house anymore?
Or was it possible that his mind had become muddled? That after entering the book world, his memories had become confused? Maybe Yucai Middle School had always existed here, and the author had simply borrowed real-world names for the locations in the book. So it wasn’t that the two worlds overlapped like he had hoped.
Shen Yan felt a headache coming on. The more he thought about it, the more his mind spiraled out of control, so he forced himself not to think about it.
Even so, the meal felt tasteless.
He used to love coming here to eat seafood because the ingredients were fresh, caught directly by the fishermen from the sea.
But today, everything he ate felt like chewing wax.
If it weren’t for not wanting to disappoint Shen Fei, he wouldn’t have eaten a single bite.
“I’m full, let’s go,” he said.
Shen Fei wasn’t blind. She could tell he was forcing himself. She had hoped to cheer up her silly brother, but he seemed to be challenging her instead, struggling to swallow each bite. She was worried he might choke on the food.
In the end, she gave up on eating and simply grabbed him and walked out.
Shen Yan felt embarrassed. He knew he was affecting the mood of his family.
He opened his mouth, about to say something, but suddenly froze. He quickly turned around, seeing a few people chatting nearby, before they all got into their cars and left. His mood darkened immediately.
Again?
Shen Fei, worried, tugged on his sleeve. “What are you looking at?”
Shen Yan shook his head lightly. “Nothing, I must’ve seen it wrong.”
It must have been a mistake.
Just now, he thought he had heard someone calling out the name “Su Yunzhe.” But when he looked back, all he saw were a group of successful-looking middle-aged people leaving.
He was probably just missing that person so much that he had hallucinated.
