Bai Chen

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Bai Chen (白晨)
Alias(es)	Xiao Bai 41; Little Boss 22; Young Master Chen 11
Gender	Male 1
Affiliation	G University, Room 704; university Pottery Club; Morning Breeze Teahouse; later a botanical research institute 1 11 42 157
Occupation/Role	Successful novelist in his original life; Plant Studies student and exchange student; botanical researcher; later a teahouse owner in Yunnan 4 18 140 157 158
Partner	Lin Jingchen 119 129
Status	Alive after returning to an earlier point in his original world; reunited with Lin Jingchen 158
First Appearance	Chapter 1 1

Background / History

Original life

Bai Chen’s parents died in a traffic accident during the year he began university, leaving him responsible for his younger sister, Bai Xi, who was still in elementary school. He worked numerous part-time jobs while studying and regretted being unable to attend her school events. Her insistence that she needed nothing from him often concealed hardship rather than independence 6 41.

When Bai Chen discovered that Bai Xi was malnourished despite the money he sent, he began preparing nutritious meals and asking her to send photographs of what she ate. He eventually became a successful novelist, but suffered from chronic stomach problems and rheumatoid arthritis in his original body 4 23 31 74.

Arrival in the parallel world

Bai Chen initially believes he has entered his sister’s melodramatic novel, The Deep Sadomasochistic Love of My Lover. He occupies the body of a same-named college freshman who had drunk himself into alcohol poisoning. This Bai Chen belongs to a comparatively wealthy family with living parents, an older brother, and an older sister 1 6.

Receiving much of the original owner’s memory, he resolves to complete his education, respect his family, and remain an inconspicuous supporting character until he can return home. In G University’s Room 704, he deliberately avoids becoming involved with Gu Yun, whom he identifies as a protagonist. Nevertheless, he carries Gu Yun to the clinic after an ankle injury and continues caring for him afterward 1 2 4.

A call from the original owner’s mother revives Bai Chen’s longing for his own deceased parents. He accepts her request to inspect Morning Breeze Teahouse, which the original owner’s father opened and named after him. The teahouse also gives him a place to practise pottery and regain some peace of mind 11 12 13.

Campus conflicts and growing attachment to Lin Jingchen

Bai Chen’s encounters with Lin Jingchen gradually move beyond the teahouse. Lin drives him back to campus, watches a meteor shower with him, and offers medical care when he develops a fever. Bai Chen appreciates that Lin disguises his helpfulness in ways that make it easier to accept 29 36.

After Gu Cheng and his companions humiliate Bai Chen at the teahouse, Lin intervenes and takes him to the hospital. Bai Chen accepts Lin’s friendship but remains cautious about relying on him. He subsequently learns the students’ family connections from Lin Sen, treating that knowledge as protection against further harassment 38 41.

His restraint does not mean he cannot fight. He throws Xia Wangqiu after Xia grabs him against his wishes, then defeats Shi Long and Mu Congnan during a cafeteria confrontation. Following an attempted kidnapping, Bai Chen considers involving the police, his family, and Lin rather than continuing to endure the danger alone 46 47 80 81.

During agricultural fieldwork in Shuiji Village, Bai Chen’s admiration for Lin becomes increasingly personal. Lin helps him correct his research proposal and catches him when he slips near a spring. Bai Chen later chooses Lin as his companion for the Face-Covering Festival in Longquan Ancient Town 54 55 57.

Miaojiang and the truth behind his transmigration

A photograph in a traditional-medicine clinic shows a young woman who looks exactly like Bai Xi. Bai Chen urgently arranges leave and travels to Miaojiang, hoping to find his sister. Despite warnings about local poisons and hostility toward outsiders, he reaches Mu Village and meets its High Priest, A Lingyi 88 89 94 96.

A Lingyi is not Bai Xi. She tells Bai Chen that he and the native Bai Chen are the same person across different worlds, that both original bodies had died, and that he cannot return to his destroyed body. She also tells him that Bai Xi is alive with a family and wants him to pursue his own happiness. After leaving, he collapses and loses his memories of his former life 97.

The later revelation contradicts the reassurance about Bai Xi’s survival: she foresaw Bai Chen’s death in a fire and used shamanic arts to send his soul into the parallel world. She arranged for A Lingyi to erase his memories in exchange for a means of saving the village from poisonous gu. Bai Xi died in the original fire, hoping her brother could live happily elsewhere 99.

A Lingyi tells Lin that Bai Chen had suffered severe depression and remained unable to feel at home in the new world. Lin ultimately conceals the truth, believing silence will protect Bai Chen’s happiness. Without those memories, Bai Chen becomes more receptive to Lin’s closeness 99.

Relationship, research, and rainforest survival

By the visit to the Lin ancestral home, Lin openly introduces Bai Chen as his boyfriend. Bai Chen studies botanical materials preserved by Lin’s grandmother and receives access to a secured collection containing rare medicinal herbs and Professor Askoda’s original research notebook 119 123 126 129.

Bai Chen is selected for an overseas exchange program. In B Country, he struggles initially with food and language differences, then catches up with his coursework. He and Lin maintain daily video calls while apart 132 140 141.

A tropical-rainforest expedition becomes a struggle for survival. Bai Chen encounters a dead classmate, rescues Sha from a pit, and confronts the guide Jem, who reveals that someone paid to have him killed. Using the terrain and a dagger, Bai Chen resists Jem despite serious injuries. The encounter ends with Jem falling from a cliff and Bai Chen barely surviving; Lin subsequently finds him 147 148 152 153.

After a month of hospital recovery with Lin beside him, Bai Chen attends Bai Chichi’s wedding and agrees to move into Lin’s apartment. He becomes more openly affectionate while continuing to insist on boundaries within their relationship 155 156.

Recovered memories and return home

Another clinic photograph restores Bai Chen’s lost memories. Learning that Bai Xi sacrificed herself for him plunges him into grief and guilt. During a crisis on the balcony, he expresses a desire to return to his dead family; Lin intervenes and promises to remain with him and seek treatment. Once his moods stabilize, Bai Chen returns to social life and joins a botanical research institute 156 157.

Bai Chen later dies in an explosion and awakens years earlier in his original world, with Bai Xi alive beside him. Recognizing the date as July 10—the day of his parents’ fatal accident—he calls them and alerts the traffic authorities about a drunk truck driver. His parents survive 158.

He studies Plant Studies again, continues unfinished research, opens a teahouse in Yunnan, and brings his parents there for retirement. Although his family is safe, years of separation from Lin damage his mental health. On the anniversary of their first meeting, he travels to Tibet, where Lin appears and calls him “Little Boss.” Their reunion confirms that Lin and their shared life were real 158.

Appearance

• Face: Fair-skinned and delicate-looking, with above-average rather than exceptional handsomeness 2 46.
• Eyes: Light-colored pupils that convey a childlike innocence 13.
• Expression: A bright, sunny smile and an approachable manner that make others initially regard him as gentle and easy to talk to 2 13.
• Build: Thin and frail-looking; his current body initially struggles with strenuous combat movements 46 149.
• Clothing: Wears affordable everyday clothes despite the original owner’s wealth and prioritizes warmth because he is sensitive to cold 2 74.

Personality

Bai Chen expresses care through practical actions: carrying an injured roommate, bringing food, monitoring medication, and ensuring an employee receives treatment. His compassion repeatedly overrides his intention to remain uninvolved in the supposed novel’s plot 2 4 23.

He is reserved with strangers, prefers quiet surroundings, and suspects unsolicited friendliness may conceal an ulterior motive. His internal commentary is irreverent, frequently interpreting people through romance-novel conventions. Those assumptions sometimes prevent him from recognizing genuine interest in himself 6 22 31 32.

Bai Chen values independence and dislikes using family status to intimidate others. Much of his early submission to bullying comes from fear that retaliation will harm the original owner’s family, not from an inability to defend himself. Once pushed beyond his limits, he is direct and forceful 42 46 47 81.

He refuses to reshape his life merely to win someone’s affection and dislikes people who treat feelings as toys. With Lin, he gradually becomes playful and openly affectionate, but still objects when physical or intimate boundaries are crossed 46 74 155 156.

His sense of responsibility toward Bai Xi is also a source of lasting distress. He often conceals his troubles, struggles to accept help, and experiences severe depression when grief and guilt overwhelm his ability to regard his life as his own 36 87 99 156.

Abilities & Skills

Pottery

Bai Chen is an accomplished potter whose work impresses professional craftspeople and experienced students 13 42.

• Won a city prize in his original life and shared much of the prize money with Bai Xi 12.
• Shapes vessels with practiced control and considers details such as carved patterns and openwork 42.
• Identifies subtle errors in hand position and pressure, helping another student overcome a persistent technical obstacle 46.
• Continues learning from masters and peers; declines a formal teaching commitment because of his coursework 13 42 46.

Botany and Research

Bai Chen pursues Plant Studies out of genuine interest, eventually entering professional botanical research 18 157 158.

• Investigates agricultural problems through competing hypotheses about soil, saplings, weather, and water 54 55.
• Studies Ci Qing’s handbook and recognizes rare plants recorded there during overseas fieldwork 126 141.
• Collects specimens and continues research begun in the parallel world after returning home 158.
• Accepts corrections to his work; his early proposal contains a calculation and reasoning problem that Lin helps him identify 54.
• Needs translation earbuds when studying abroad because he is not fluent in B Country’s language 140 141.

Martial Arts and Self-Defense

Bai Chen studied taekwondo from elementary school through high school. His parents initially encouraged it after he said he wanted to be as powerful as Spider-Man 46.

• Uses shoulder throws, joint control, and kicks against unwanted restraint and attacks 46 47.
• Adjusts his methods to avoid worsening an aching shoulder during the cafeteria fight 47.
• Uses a bent tree branch to distract Jem, cuts his wrist, and knocks away his stun baton 152.
• Has significant physical limits: his body initially aches after a throw, and Jem severely wounds him despite his resistance 46 152.

Writing and Artistic Knowledge

• Was a successful novelist and resumes writing after transmigration 4.
• Recognizes the traditional technique and high value of the painting Years of Youth 19.

Practical Care and Organization

• Cooks for his family; took over cooking after his father’s disastrous meal made Bai Xi seriously ill 55.
• Handles fieldwork group assignments efficiently, drawing on previous experience as a class monitor 18.
• Balances employee accountability with welfare, assigning extra cleaning rather than docking a struggling worker’s pay and arranging reimbursement for medical treatment 23.
• Tests and anchors vines to rescue Sha from a pit, continuing despite cuts to his palms 148.

Acting and Puzzle-Solving

• Uses partial inherited memories, limited speech, and imitation of the original owner’s manner to conceal his identity 2 59 60 70.
• Deliberately performs timidity when Shi Long confronts him 46.
• Combines clues from a picture frame and children’s records to solve an escape-room code 117.

Equipment / Items

• Computer: A costly model that alerts Gu Yun to Bai Chen’s wealth despite his inexpensive clothing 2.
• Racing helmet: Found among the original owner’s belongings; associated with the racer “Cool,” whom Bai Chen later identifies as Fang Ye 34 60.
• Antidote pills: Given free by an elderly doctor before the Miaojiang trip. The doctor claims they counter most local poisons, although Bai Chen’s village guide later dismisses their effectiveness against gu and confiscates them before the High Priest meeting 88 94 96.
• Bell and scented pouch: Supplied by his Miaojiang guide and used to repel a mysterious nighttime visitor 96.
• Motorcycle: Rides confidently with Lin as his passenger; the couple later joke that its rear seat belongs to Lin 103 119.
• Botanical archive key: Given by Lin as a “token of love,” granting access to rare herbs and original research materials 129.
• Translation earbuds: Used during his overseas exchange and rainforest fieldwork 140 141.

Relationships

Original-world family

• Bai Xi — Younger sister whom he raised after their parents’ deaths. She sacrifices her life to send him into the parallel world and arranges his memory erasure. After his return to the past, she is alive again and later enters the Beijing Dance Academy 6 23 99 158.
• His parents — Originally died in a traffic accident; his firefighter father remains an important model of duty and justice. Bai Chen prevents their deaths after returning to the past and later brings them to Yunnan for retirement 6 80 158.

Parallel-world family

• Bai Liang — The original owner’s father, a businessman who establishes Morning Breeze Teahouse. Bai Chen initially treats filial care as an obligation toward the life he has inherited 2 11 67 68.
• Yao Ting — The original owner’s mother. Her concern reminds Bai Chen of his late mother, and she encourages a relationship with Lin rather than Fang Ye 70 71.
• Bai An — Older brother whose stern manner makes Bai Chen anxious about exposing his identity. Warns him not to lead Lin on 70.
• Bai Chichi — Older sister, three years his senior. Supports his attraction to men, encourages his connection with Lin, and grows closer to him through their conversation before her wedding 47 67 155.

Friends, partner, and other connections

• Lin Jingchen — Boyfriend and eventual cross-world reunion partner. Their relationship develops through practical care, protection, shared botanical interests, and growing trust. Lin also conceals Bai Chen’s erased past and supports him when those memories return 38 99 119 126 156 158.
• Gu Yun — Roommate and close friend. Initially develops feelings for Bai Chen; during their farewell, Bai Chen affirms his love for Lin and helps Gu Yun recognize his attachment to Li Xingzhu 2 4 129.
• Lin Sen — Friendly roommate who offers food, companionship, and information about dangerous students. Later voices concerns about Lin while respecting Bai Chen’s trust in him 2 41 156.
• Lin Xiaoqian — Plant Studies instructor and Lin’s older sister. Recognizes Bai Chen’s reliability, entrusts him with class organization, and connects him with her brother through pottery 18 19.
• Wu Ting — Affectionate elder and teahouse investor who guides him around Morning Breeze Teahouse and encourages his interest in pottery 12.
• Xia Wangqiu — Pottery Club president who recruits and pursues him. Bai Chen rejects being used in Xia’s conflict with an ex and throws him after unwanted physical contact 31 42 46.
• Fang Ye — The original owner’s former deskmate and love interest. Exploited the original owner’s devotion; Bai Chen instead regards him with distrust and distance 61 64 67 74.
• Gu Cheng — Hostile roommate whose family influence makes Bai Chen fear consequences for his relatives. Bai Chen suspects him after an attempted kidnapping; Gu Cheng is also present at the final fire scene 6 81 159.
• Qin Yong — Police officer investigating the threat against Bai Chen. His kindness and sense of justice remind Bai Chen of his father 80.
• Ajike — Helps him reach Mu Village and demands an oath that his guide will not harm him 93 94.
• A Lingyi — Mu Village’s High Priest, whose resemblance to Bai Xi draws him to Miaojiang. Reveals his death and parallel-world identity, then erases his memories under her bargain with Bai Xi 97 99.
• Sha — Fellow rainforest survivor whom Bai Chen rescues from a pit after seventeen days trapped there 148.
• Jem — Rainforest guide and paid attacker. Seriously injures Bai Chen before falling from a cliff during their struggle 152.

Notable Quotes

“Don't cross the line again, or next time it won't stop at a shoulder throw.” 46

“Okay, I know. But I trust him.” 156