Death or Life

I thought Xu Yan would deny it outright.

But, unexpectedly...

Xu Yan gazed at him in silence, her red lips pressed together, not saying a word.

That reaction instantly made Jiang Ran realize—

Cheng Mengxue's death definitely wasn't a simple accident! There had to be more to it!

He didn't say anything either.

He stayed silent.

Waiting for Xu Yan to speak, waiting for the real answer.

However...

"We don't know."

Xu Yan finally shook her head and said softly.

"What do you mean, you don't know?"

Jiang Ran was confused.

"There must be some conclusion about how Little Xue got into that accident, right? Surely there's some account of what happened at the time?"

Xu Yan looked away.

"Jiang Ran, you should know better than anyone that there were no surveillance cameras on the road where Little Xue had her accident. Nobody knows what happened at the time."

"Of course, the official cause of Little Xue's death was a car accident. It's just that what happened before that..."

She trailed off, then looked at Jiang Ran.

"In theory, you should know better than anyone, because..."

"[You were right beside Little Xue when she had the accident, and the route you two were taking wasn't anywhere near the exam venue.]"

What?

Jiang Ran couldn't believe this clue.

When Cheng Mengxue died, he had been right there?

And the route they were taking hadn't even been toward the exam venue?

That was strange.

June 8, 2023, was the second day of the college entrance exams. They should have been heading to the exam venue to take their tests. Why had they deliberately taken a detour?

Unfortunately...

After the Worldline Jump, he had only retained the memories of the original Worldline. He had no memories of the history of this new one.

As a result, even though the Jiang Ran from two years ago had witnessed Cheng Mengxue's death with his own eyes, his mind was still completely blank now. He couldn't recall a single image.

"Sorry. I don't remember."

Jiang Ran answered honestly.

"Maybe what happened really affected me so badly that my memories became confused, and I even lost some memories I couldn't bear to face."

"Could you tell me again? Since I was with Little Xue the whole time, I must have told the police everything when they investigated or took my statement afterward."

Xu Yan gave a helpless smile.

"I just answered you, Jiang Ran: 'We don't know.' Nobody knows what happened at the time."

"Because..."

"[Back then, you gave the exact same answer you're giving now. You couldn't remember what happened, or why you'd taken Little Xue on a detour. You couldn't remember anything.]"

Listening to Xu Yan's account, Jiang Ran furrowed his brow.

Sure enough.

Things were getting more and more complicated.

Let's sort this out.

According to Xu Yan...

Two years ago, on June 8, 2023, the two of them had suddenly changed course instead of heading to the exam venue, taking a detour in the opposite direction.

Then, at some point, something had happened, and Cheng Mengxue had ended up in a car accident and died.

Jiang Ran had been with Cheng Mengxue the whole time. He should have witnessed everything and known exactly what had happened.

But this was the strange part...

The only eyewitness, Jiang Ran, had lost the relevant memories. He couldn't remember anything.

Missing memories.

Why was it such a coincidence?

Why had he just happened to lose the most crucial part of his memories?

"Honestly, I don't really want to talk to you about this."

Seeing Jiang Ran's troubled expression, Xu Yan continued.

"I still remember the scene at the hospital. So many people were crowding around you, asking questions. There were police officers, adults, teachers... Everyone wanted to hear the truth from you."

"But you were in a terrible state then, too. You said you couldn't remember anything, that the first thing you saw when you opened your eyes was Little Xue lying in the road, covered in blood. You were obviously badly shaken."

"The doctors thought you'd suffered temporary amnesia from the shock. It's a kind of self-protection mechanism in the human brain, and it's not unique to you. Similar symptoms show up in all kinds of accidents."

As Xu Yan spoke, Jiang Ran began connecting the pieces in his mind, gradually putting the events in order.

No wonder everyone said he'd been traumatized and couldn't get over Cheng Mengxue's death.

No wonder he'd missed two exams, leaving him with a college entrance exam score only good enough for a junior college.

No wonder his parents, who had always hoped he'd succeed, were afraid he might do something rash or never recover, and hadn't let him retake the exams.

And no wonder Xu Yan and Wang Hao had constantly tried to console him, telling him it wasn't his fault and he shouldn't blame himself so much.

There were three main reasons behind everything that followed:

1. He and Cheng Mengxue had changed their route together instead of going to the exam venue.

2. There were no surveillance cameras at the scene of the accident, and he had lost his memories, leaving no witnesses to establish the truth.

3. The reason for everything was unknown, so he was bound to fall into deep self-blame and doubt, believing he had caused Cheng Mengxue's death.

Everyone believed that the Jiang Ran from two years ago had lost his memories because of the shock.

But Jiang Ran didn't think it was that simple.

But...

What was the right answer?

It made sense that he, having arrived through a Worldline Jump, had no memories of this Worldline's history.

But why had the Jiang Ran from two years ago also been unable to remember anything when the police questioned him after Cheng Mengxue's accident?

He couldn't make sense of it, no matter how hard he tried.

"Sorry."

Jiang Ran lowered his head.

"I really can't remember..."

"Then don't try to remember."

Xu Yan walked over to him.

"Honestly, Jiang Ran, seeing you pull yourself together again over the past two days has made me really happy."

"You and Little Xue are only a year younger than me, but I've always thought of you as my little brother and sister. I've been worried about you this whole time."

"If you can't remember, don't force yourself. Just don't get stuck in a vicious cycle of blaming yourself. Like we've told you so many times... this isn't your fault. You haven't done anything wrong."

"No matter why you two didn't go to the exam venue, the car accident was still just an accident."

"Understand, Jiang Ran? Nobody wanted this accident to happen, and the driver didn't flee the scene. All the evidence shows it was just an accident. It had nothing to do with you."

She truly spoke as gently as an older sister.

"Lift your head. Give me a smile. The past is in the past. You have to look ahead and carry on with your life."

"Are you enjoying school? Have you found a girlfriend? Are you thinking of transferring to a bachelor's program?"

"Senior!"

A member of the film club waved from the screening room doorway.

"Senior, we're about to start the meeting. Are you coming?"

"Sure, I'll be right there."

After answering, Xu Yan looked back and patted Jiang Ran on the shoulder.

"Don't think about this anymore. The past is set in stone. Neither of us can change it."

"The lives of the living, and the future ahead of them, are what matter most. After all..."

"[The dead can never come back to life.]"

She turned away.

Then she waved to Jiang Ran one last time and walked off with the click of her low heels.

And so...

Jiang Ran was left alone in the screening room.

Vast and silent.

Cicadas rang loudly outside the window. Sunlight streamed in, casting beams of light through the air.

He remembered Xu Yan's body beneath the white sheet at the hospital.

He remembered Cheng Mengxue's flushed cheeks at the dining table on the luxury cruise ship.

"The dead can come back to life."

Jiang Ran murmured.

As long as he used the Spacetime Bulletin, there was no regret he couldn't make up for.

He raised his head and watched Xu Yan's retreating figure.

"[If I can bring you back to life, then I can bring Little Xue back to life, too.]"