GBT Chapter 132

Chapter 118

One year later

Early September, the day students return to school.

North City, Langxi Town, Changyue District. Motorbikes flew across the bumpy dirt road, stirring up a cloud of choking dust, extremely arrogant.

The motorbike returned, and a man in a flashy floral shirt struck a pretentious pose, shouting to the young man walking along the roadside with a suitcase: “Wangwang, are you going to the station?”

Chen Wang, or rather, Jiao Bai, wiped his face. He had only woken up an hour ago and was already at the residence of the barrier card owner, using the other person’s identity.

Over the past year, his tailbone, legs, back ribs, forehead scar… all the big and small problems had been repaired, even his dermatitis was gone.

Jiao Bai, eating dust, stood under the scorching sun for the first time in a long time, he grinned: “Yeah.”

“The temperature today is quite high, how long will it take you to walk on two legs,” the man in the floral shirt patted the seat behind the motorbike, “Get on, brother will give you a ride!”

“Thanks.” Jiao Bai sat on the motorbike without ceremony, his butt burning. He lifted the suitcase and placed it on his lap, holding the handle with one hand.

The motorbike sped away, stirring up dust.

The road was bumpy and the motorbike was driving fast, the feeling was indescribable. The muscles on Jiao Bai’s face were trembling, and his face was numb. He couldn’t open his eyes, and his butt felt like it was splitting into garlic cloves.

The man in the floral shirt sang all the way, and Jiao Bai had a literal pain in the balls all the way.

Arriving at the bus station, Jiao Bai’s legs were weak, his stomach was churning, and the corners of his eyes were physiologically moist. He saw off his neighbor and lined up to buy a ticket amidst the secret glances of several girls.

The owner of the barrier card, Chen Wang, had a large head and narrow shoulders, was less than 165cm tall, with a pointed mouth and monkey cheeks, sparse and messy eyebrows. When he smiled, he revealed a large expanse of gums. There was also a purplish-red birthmark on his left eyelid. His appearance was not good, and his family was poor. His personality was very similar to Jiao Bai’s, both refusing to admit defeat, not resigning themselves to fate, living passionately and stubbornly, desperately wanting to get ahead through studying. Unfortunately, he didn’t live to see the day, only his life ended.

When Jiao Bai died and escaped, Chen Wang was a sophomore.

Jiao Bai thought that he would also be a sophomore a year later, and there would be no leap in time. But he was confused at the time and didn’t consider a basic problem. He was a freshman, Chen Wang was a sophomore. When he was a sophomore, could Chen Wang fail a grade for some reason? No.

So, now he is a junior.

The moment Jiao Bai woke up, the barrier card was activated. He passively received two years of medical knowledge, as well as a notification.

Because Chen Wang had died suddenly last year, someone needed to use his body for normal activities. Therefore, the higher-ups sent a mission taker to live for him for another year, until Jiao Bai woke up.

Jiao Bai didn’t see Chen Wang’s body, and he didn’t know how it was disposed of. He only knew that Chen Wang of West City Medical University was no longer in this world.

From today on, he will continue the other person’s life trajectory.

He wouldn’t continue Chen Wang’s trajectory for too long. He would definitely find a way to return to his original circle and move forward in his own identity.

In this month, the waiting hall of the station was mostly filled with migrant workers and students. Jiao Bai didn’t wait long before getting on the bus to the train station in North City. He couldn’t remember the phone numbers of Qi Yi Liao and Zhang Zhen. Damn it, the more he tried to remember the numbers, the more blurred they became.

He wondered how much else had been interfered with.

The bus started, and Jiao Bai yawned. The sunlight shone on the glass window on his right, turning the drooping corners of his eyes a pale gold color. He leaned back in his seat and browsed his phone. In the Internet age, traces are left online every year.

A month ago, the Cen family officially announced bankruptcy, and the young master was nowhere to be found. Some said that he had died long ago, and that “missing” was just a way for the Shen family, the executioners, to fool the public. Others said that a netizen living in Italy had encountered someone who looked like him while watching an opera at a major theater last week… There were all kinds of rumors, none of which could be verified.

The Cen family and the Shen family had been at war for more than half a year, and the Qi family had not participated at all.

The Shen family also did not take the opportunity to deal with the Qi family, but chose to reorganize their forces and reign supreme in the city of South City.

Rumor has it that Little Shen Young Master forced his disgraced father to go into hiding for a family heirloom or something. In middle age, he couldn’t return home, and it would have been better not to have a son. The family affection of a large family was sigh-worthy.

There were also rumors that his father had appeared in a farmers’ market in an old street, with a pregnant woman by his side.

The Qi family had also changed a lot.

Qi Yi Liao used to be in the business world, but he lived the life of a retired person. In the second year after meeting Jiao Bai, he monopolized the real estate industry in North City, still taking a leisurely approach.

Starting last October, Qi Yi Liao, who almost always acted within his own sphere of influence and didn’t like to go outside, suddenly changed his established ways. He began to accept media interviews and go on talk shows.

Jiao Bai’s phone screen showed a photo. In the photo, the man’s hair had turned white, his facial contours were thin, and the fine lines at the corners of his eyes when he smiled were more than last year. The lines between his eyebrows were engraved as if they were carved on. His eyes burned as he looked at it.

Qi Yi Liao appeared in various cameras for him to see.

For Qi Yi Liao, who has a self-awareness, Jiao Bai, as a heterogenous person who wanders outside the plot line, even if he really dies and becomes a lonely soul, should remember the way home.

If he forgot due to some factors, Qi Yi Liao would remind him in this way. If once didn’t work, then twice, three times. With more times, he would eventually remember where his home was one day.

Qi Yi Liao, as Jiao Bai had hoped, relied on a hollow belief to persevere, and he also pulled Zhang Zhen along.

Jiao Bai clicked on the most-watched interview. In the video, Qi Yi Liao was sitting on the sofa, wearing a white shirt and black suit pants, clean and refined, but there was always an lingering loneliness and restlessness between his brows and eyes.

The host looked at the cue card again and again, and asked nervously and cautiously, “Do you know that you have been on a lot of trending searches, and have started a trend for black-and-white hairstyles?”

“I don’t know.” Qi Yi Liao smiled amiably, and spoke elegantly and lazily, “When the pressure is high, or when you get old, your hair turns white. This is a common phenomenon, a very painful and powerless thing, not a trend.”

“Yes.” Seeing him smile, the host breathed a sigh of relief and said, “You are now highly discussed on the Internet. Everyone is guessing when you will get married.”

Qi Yi Liao folded his long legs, interlacing his fingers on his abdomen. He lowered his eyes and gently stroked his cuffs, nodding after a long while: “No hurry, I’ll wait a little longer.”

Wait for me to dye his hair, wait for me to take care of him in his old age. Jiao Bai thought so the second before, and the next second, there was an exclamation next to him.

“Young man, are you okay?” An uncle kindly took out a wad of tissues from his pocket, tore off a piece, and handed it over, “Why are you crying?”

Jiao Bai was stunned, crying? He touched his face and lowered his eyes to look at the liquid on his fingertips. Alright, appropriate crying is good for physical and mental health.

Finding a reasonable excuse, Jiao Bai started to cry. He didn’t wail loudly to affect the passengers in the car, but just cried quietly. The watermarks soon covered his chin and wet his collar.

Seeing this, the uncle quickly tore off another piece of paper, and later simply stuffed the whole wad into his arms: “Why is this young man crying more and more fiercely? Are you reluctant to leave home? Can’t you go back during the winter vacation? If you really miss your family so much, can’t you make a phone call and video chat? The current era is so convenient.”

Jiao Bai thanked him, picked up the tissue, shook out a few pieces that had been torn off, and grabbed one of them to wipe his tears: “It’s okay, I’m happy.”

The uncle thought he was thin-skinned and embarrassed to admit it, so he comforted him a few times.

Jiao Bai wasn’t lying out of self-esteem. He was really happy—if his life before the mission was the first life, the mission period was the second life, then now is the third life.

His most difficult and messed-up times were over, and the people he cared about were waiting for him. This was a new beginning.

At more than nine o’clock in the evening, the train Jiao Bai was on arrived in West City, the final destination.

Jiao Bai dragged his old suitcase into the crowd, the wheels clanging and clattering. He was smiling, quickening his pace, faster and faster, energetic and excited, out of tune with the tired passengers around him.

West City, I’m back!

Jiao Bai strode towards the escalator. The phone in his coat pocket was ringing. He took out the phone and saw that the caller ID was “Star in the Sky”.

Star in the Sky, girlfriend???

Jiao Bai didn’t answer and hung up directly. He didn’t have Chen Wang’s memories and had to rely on the barrier card to identify the other person’s social circle.

Since “Star in the Sky” wasn’t in front of him at this moment, the barrier card didn’t respond.

Holding the mentality of “preferably not a girlfriend” and “I don’t want to deal with other people’s emotional problems”, Jiao Bai went to the exit. He took out Chen Wang’s ID card, passed the inspection, and a shout suddenly came from the crowd picking up people outside.

“Chen Wang.”

The soft and clear voice was like a ladle of mountain spring, dispersing the heat of the exit, and the noise was reduced a lot.

Jiao Bai looked around while walking, looking for the person calling him. Simple t-shirt and casual pants, baseball cap, mask, couldn’t see his face, his eyes were also drooping, slender figure, unique temperament.

Just when Jiao Bai was only a few steps away from the other person, the barrier card suddenly lit up.

Ran Ye: Twenty-seven years old, male, likes men, a highly respected master of the Mingyuan Temple, practiced for many years, predestined with Taoism, entangled in a karmic love affair at the end of last year, contaminated with worldly air, he is Chen Wang’s cousin.

Jiao Bai: “…”

Damn it, he really didn’t expect that the first acquaintance he would meet after his rebirth would be this one!

The style of the cousins ​​is too different. Jiao Bai walked towards Ran Ye, his cousin came to pick him up in person, are the two related that well?

A line appeared on the barrier card: No contact for many years, the only two contacts were through relatives’ videos.

Jiao Bai’s footsteps stopped. Heh, this is weird, shouldn’t Ran Ye have calculated something, knowing that his cousin was dead and his identity had been taken over, and came specifically to investigate and exorcise evil spirits?

If so,

That would be great! ! !

He was just afraid that no one would suspect.

Ran Ye walked over.

Jiao Bai showed an expression of disbelief: “Cousin, is that really you? Why are you here?”

“I came to pick someone up and happened to see you.” Ran Ye’s voice came from behind the mask.

Jiao Bai “Oh” said, looked around: “Then where’s the person you’re picking up, have they come out yet?”

Ran Ye didn’t answer, just said: “I’ll take you to school.”

“Thank you, cousin!” Jiao Bai looked flattered, his steps were half a beat slower, quickly dialing the first “Star in the Sky” in the call history. Ran Ye’s phone in front didn’t ring.

“Star in the Sky” is not Ran Ye.

Jiao Bai hung up the phone and smacked his lips, so Ran Ye really came to pick someone up and saw his cousin unexpectedly?

Then the person Ran Ye came to the station to pick up was probably the object of his karmic love affair.

The master has a car, and his driving skills are also very good.

Jiao Bai was sitting in the passenger seat, his fingers tapping randomly on the car window. Ran Ye was someone he knew from his “previous life”, and he was also related to the owner of the barrier card. Was this considered a bug?

After all, the system eliminated any possibility of people in his original circle discovering anything, preferring to arrange for a mission taker to temporarily manage Chen Wang’s body than to let him withdraw from his social circle for a year.

Jiao Bai stretched his head out of the car window, and the street scene of West City was in his eyes. Bugs are good, they are hope.

Ran Ye didn’t speak after getting in the car, until he received a call. The person on the other end didn’t know what they said, but the air of vitality around him became stronger, mixed with hail and frost.

“Cousin, if you have something to do, just drop me off by the side of the road. I can take the bus to school myself.” A young voice rang from the passenger seat.

Ran Ye turned his face to the side, the young man’s sharp and uneven cheeks were blurred by the light.

A few minutes later, Jiao Bai stood at the intersection with his suitcase, waving to Ran Ye in the car: “Bye.”

Ran Ye was about to leave when he heard those two words and suddenly glanced at him.

Jiao Bai had already turned around, without looking back. He deliberately said the words he said when they parted last year, making the same movements, both to test the extent of the system’s restrictions and as bait.

Ran Ye was his first hope, Master, pay more attention to your cousin.

Jiao Bai got into a taxi: “Master, go to Lanmo Mansion.”

The driver looked at the navigation: “Where?”

“Lanmo Mansion.” Jiao Bai repeated.

The driver looked at the back seat: “Student, what are you saying? I can’t hear you clearly.”

Jiao Bai’s face changed, and he said again: “Lan of orchids, Mo of ink, Mansion of mansion.”

The driver looked at him suspiciously: “What is it?”

Jiao Bai complained in his heart, but changed his tone without changing his expression: “I’m going to Langli.”

The driver was already impatient, he said: “Is your tongue injured?”

Jiao Bai: “…”

“Langli” doesn’t work either?

The barrier card has Chen Wang’s character information.

Jiao Bai understood where the problem was. He was Chen Wang, he could browse Weibo and read news, and getting along with his cousin was okay, but would Chen Wang go to Lanmo Mansion and Langli for no reason? No.

He can go, but at least there must be a motive from Chen Wang’s perspective.

Jiao Bai tried to search “Langli” online, but he couldn’t even type the words. Why? Because Chen Wang wouldn’t search this place for no reason. Damn it, he still had to be grateful that he was able to click on Qi Yi Liao’s interview video on the bus earlier, like he had found a loophole in the system.

“Go to Medical University.” Jiao Bai stuffed his phone into his pocket.

This time the driver heard clearly: “Your tongue is fine, so why were you slurring just now?”

Jiao Bai unscrewed the cap of the mineral water bottle and looked up, gulping down a mouthful of water. He didn’t know what was forbidden, so it seemed he had to test them one by one, in case he encountered a “bug”.

Qi Corporation

Qi Yi Liao was still working overtime. He didn’t know why he was restless, the words on the document floated in his pupils, he couldn’t concentrate, and his work efficiency was extremely low.

Before long, Qi Yi Liao threw the document aside. He activated the multi-functional wall of the office and started watching surveillance. This was his daily routine for the past year, and also his way to relieve stress.

Qi Yi Liao sat deep in the leather chair, watching one surveillance camera after another. These were all recordings of that child’s past life. He had watched them countless times.

Where did he run off to, why hasn’t he come back yet…

Qi Yi Liao pinched the bridge of his nose hard a few times. He looked at the surveillance, his fingers stroking the remote control, occasionally rewinding the progress bar.

“Third Brother, it’s not early,” Zhang Zhen came in. Before he could finish speaking, he saw the person behind the office desk suddenly look over, with an indescribable look in his eyes, “What’s wrong?”

Qi Yi Liao turned off the surveillance, threw the remote control away, and got up: “Go back.”

Zhang Zhen took Third Brother’s suit jacket and followed. He didn’t ask too much, even if he asked, he wouldn’t get a reply. After Bai Bai disappeared, Third Brother’s temperament became very strange.

Qi Yi Liao returned to Lanmo Mansion and went straight to the backyard. Zhang Zhen watched helplessly as he personally dug open Bai Bai’s grave.

The reason why Zhang Zhen didn’t stop him was because this wasn’t the first time.

From Bai Bai’s death until now, Third Brother had opened the coffin a total of four times, irregularly, very suddenly, his expression as if possessed by a fierce ghost.

At first, Zhang Zhen lost control of his emotions, roaring and scolding in pain, and even boldly threatened Third Brother with a gun to give his brother peace, but later he became numb, not knowing whether he was sympathizing with Third Brother or himself.

This time, Third Brother pried open his brother’s coffin, and like last time, stared blankly at a rotten skeleton.

Qi Yi Liao bent over, his arms resting on the coffin, he just looked at it like this, as if he had lost his sense of smell and couldn’t smell the stench.

Zhang Zhen felt Third Brother’s disappointment and gloominess. He didn’t understand, he couldn’t figure it out. Would Third Brother be happy only if he discovered that Bai Bai’s corpse had changed when he opened the coffin?

Leaving aside Third Brother’s thoughts, let’s talk about Bai Bai’s corpse, what else could be abnormal about it?

An absurd guess suddenly arose in Zhang Zhen’s heart. Could it be that Third Brother wanted to see the coffin become empty?

The cemetery was surrounded by bodyguards, and Lanmo Mansion was also covered with dense surveillance.

If the corpse could disappear, it could only be because of a ghost.

Zhang Zhen couldn’t help but look at the cemetery, wouldn’t Bai Bai be reincarnated, but stay here? If so, why didn’t he enter his dream? He came back to his senses when he saw Third Brother covering the coffin and getting out of the pit.

“Third Brother, I won’t stay tonight.” Zhang Zhen said, “I want to go back to my place.”

Qi Yi Liao filled the soil without saying a word.

Zhang Zhen turned his head to the side and sniffed. Every time the coffin was opened and closed, Third Brother did it himself, not allowing anyone else to fill a single shovelful of soil.

At more than ten o’clock, the lights of West City were dim, and the autumn chill at night was stronger than during the day.

Zhang Zhen drove back to Langli. On the way, he changed his route and went to the Medical University. The closer he got, the heavier his mood became.

If Bai Bai hadn’t died, he should be a sophomore now. Today was the first day of school, and Third Brother would probably send him to school in person, pick him up after school, and take him to Lanyi Zhai for dinner.

As for Zhang Zhen, he would wait for Bai Bai to finish dinner and take him around to stroll. Whatever he liked, he would buy for him.

But Zhang Zhen couldn’t spend much money, because Third Brother had already prepared everything.

Zhang Zhen suddenly slammed on the brakes, and the body in the driver’s seat shook violently with the car.

In front was a bright yellow Ferrari, the car owner didn’t get out of the car. He arrogantly cursed a few times, closed the car window, stepped on the accelerator, and ran away.

Zhang Zhen drove past, and he caught a glimpse of the figure sitting on the ground. There was also a schoolbag next to him. The schoolbag was broken, revealing the books inside. It looked like a Medical University student.

The student couldn’t get up, and seemed to be badly injured.

Zhang Zhen’s never-extinguished kindness broke through his rationality and ran out. At that moment, he seemed to hear someone’s voice in his ear, telling him to retain something.

Retain what?

Kindness.

Bai Bai told him to retain it, not to lose it.

Zhang Zhen parked the car on the side of the road. He unfastened his seat belt and got out of the car, squatting down and asking the stranger.

“Student, do you need me to take you to the hospital?”

Jiao Bai’s cursing stopped, and he suddenly raised his head.