Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter

Dr. House's makeshift clinic.

The boy sat at his desk.

As he expected, Dr. House arranged another impromptu consultation.

Is it really 'temporary'?

No.

Dr. House pushed the sugar dish forward. "Nine Consciousness Alarm Bell have worked. Now, the most tangible reality is here."

The boy nodded.

Dr. House looked concerned. "[Time Lag Syndrome] has made you run faster and faster, ahead of time?"

"Have."

Qin Yiguan slowly said, "But at that time, illusion and reality were intertwined, and I was in a hurry. I saw Song Miao, but I didn't speak to her."

Dr. House opened his eyes slightly, and when he heard Qin Yiguan's last words, he seemed to lose all his strength and slowly leaned back in his chair.

"Dr. House."

Qin Yiguan straightened up and said, "You have done me a favor, and I will definitely do what I promised you. I will enter the Metaverse shortly and run as fast as I can until I see Song Miao and deliver your message."

But Dr. House shook his head absently. "To reactivate [Time Lag Syndrome], you'll need an injection of ' Black Drug.' After my nine Consciousness Alarm Bell, your brain has developed a defense mechanism; the Consciousness Alarm Bell won't work anymore. Once you fall into hallucinations, you'll never come back."

Dr. House sighed, "I appreciate your Yiguan and the sentiment, but let's leave it at that."

"I can come back."

The boy looked behind him, then went to the sofa in the corner and lay down comfortably. "Dr. House, you know I need to enter the Metaverse through dreams. You probably don't mind if I take a nap here, right?"

Dr. House's eyes flickered. "Are you really sure you can wake up from this illusion?"

The boy closed his eyes and said, "I'm sure."

Dr. House pondered for a moment, then asked again, "I still need to be 100% sure you really won't succumb to the illusion?"

Qin Yiguan did not answer.

His breathing had become even, and he seemed to have drifted off to sleep.

Dr. House was stunned, a feeling of being moved welling up inside him.

He made no further sound.

He silently turned around and opened the Void Panel.

Among them are his past with Song Miao, which is an electronic diary containing both text and pictures.

'Spring of 2117.'

"Song Miao and I traveled to South of the Colorful Clouds, where we saw countless bamboo shoots sprouting from the ground."

"She put on her wedding dress, and we took photos. Song Miao said she wanted to travel all over the Core Earth to complete a wedding photo series covering all four seasons, and this was 'spring' of that series."

'But in the summer of 2117.'

' Song Miao's [Time Lag Syndrome] flared up; she completely forgot this scene. I've told her about it many times, but she still can't recall the trip.'

Summer of 2117.

"Song Miao and I went to the Mongolian Grassland, where the green grass stretched like an ocean, swaying in the wind."

She put on her wedding dress, and we took photos. Song Miao said that this was the 'summer' of the four seasons wedding photos.

'But in the fall of 2117.'

' Song Miao's [Time Lag Syndrome] flared up; she completely forgot this scene. I've told her about it many times, but she still can't recall the trip.'

Dr. House, having read this far, didn't turn the page and turned off the virtual screen.

Looking back at Qin Yiguan, one could see that Qin Yiguan's eyelids twitched slightly, and his hands were placed at his sides.

Dr. House smiled.

--This is not the proper position for deep sleep at all.

It was at this time.

Qin Yiguan slightly opened his eyes and sat up.

Dr. House asked, "Have you seen Song Miao?"

The boy nodded.

Dr. House shook his head and smiled.

Qin Yiguan said, "I've delivered the message. Song Miao told me that she accompanied you to South of the Colorful Clouds to admire the bamboo forests and spring bamboo shoots, and also took you to the Mongolian Grassland to immerse yourself in a green ocean."

"You..."

Dr. House chuckled softly. "I'm a psychiatrist. That posture you were in was just a pose. When someone is truly asleep, if they're lying on their back, their arms will instinctively protect their small abdomen, or at least gently drape over it. Who would be 'lying like a corpse' like you? As for your eyelids, they're even less likely to twitch."

"You haven't even entered the Metaverse."

"You also have no way to escape the illusion."

"You were just behind me, peeking at my diary."

Qin Yiguan remained silent for a moment.

But the next moment, he slowly said, "Song Miao also said that in the autumn of 2117, you went to Fragrant Hills in Capital. Every autumn, the mountains are covered with red maple leaves, making it the most beautiful autumn in the world."

Dr. House suddenly froze.

The boy continued, "She also said that in the winter of 2117, you went to the far north and ran on the ice plains at -63 degrees Celsius. The whole world was white, without any other color. That was the most beautiful winter."

Dr. House looked even more shocked, his eyes wide, tears welling up. "How... how did you know?"

The boy smiled.

He was definitely pretending to be asleep.

But before leaving the Experimental Zone, he still had two-thirds of CHP4 in his possession. In fact, he only injected one-third of the Black Drug he got from Jingye Meinan, because the remaining two injections were hallucinations.

Qin Yiguan did not hesitate at that time.

All the medication was injected intravenously.

Then he started running, and kept running, until the surrounding scenery became blurry and indistinct.

And then, he met that beautiful woman again, wearing blue jeans and a round-neck short-sleeved shirt.

But this time...

Qin Yiguan stopped and looked at the girl with crescent-shaped eyes.

Is it Song Miao?

"Yes."

"A man named Dr. House asked me to pass on a message—he's been waiting for you."

At that moment, Song Miao, with the surging river of time behind her, had a happy smile on her face and her eyes were moist.

She opened her mouth slightly.

now.

The boy at Dr. House's clinic also opened his mouth slightly, "Song Miao said she didn't get lost, she went to chase time, not the Future, but the past. She wants to get back all the forgotten time, she wants to remember every scene, every spring, summer, autumn and winter we spent together."

Dr. House froze, tears streaming down his face. "She... remembered everything?"

Qin Yiguan paused, "She said there's still a little bit left, but it will be soon. After regaining all her memories, she will be waiting for you at the center of the world."

At this point, Qin Yiguan looked at Dr. House, "As for that 'center of the world,' she said it's a secret between the two of you."

Dr. House was in tears. "Yes... she remembered everything. It was a place only the two of us knew about."

Dr. House turned his back, seemingly not wanting anyone to see this emotional moment.

"Qin Yiguan, thank you."

now.

Outside the window, the You Minglan listened quietly to everything without making a sound, tears streaming down her face.

The boy sighed.

Mutual commitment is the most beautiful kind of love.

Dr. House in memories of the past.

Song Miao, on the other hand, is running, trying her best to find her past memories.

The river of time flows silently, and no one can stop it.

One day...

They will reunite with beautiful memories, every single second of which they have cherished.