r18novel Chapter 19 Su Lingjuan: Qin Yu, you scumbag!
Chapter 19 Su Lingjuan: Qin Yu, you scumbag!
He fled the barbershop and returned home.
Qin Yu poured himself a glass of water, took a big gulp, and finally calmed down.
In his past life, he was too closed off and had never had any deep contact with other girls except for his deskmate Xin Zhiyan.
He, who had become slightly more cheerful after his rebirth, almost became withdrawn again today. In less than half a day, he ran into several women with different personalities whom he had never dealt with before.
Pulling himself together, Qin Yu looked at the furnishings in his home, which were almost exactly as he remembered, and his mood sank even lower.
Looking at his father's treasured purple clay teapot on the coffee table in the center of the living room, and the calendar that had been there for ten years, Qin Yu suddenly frowned—because the date written on the calendar was 2009.
Is the calendar wrong?
My father, Qin Weimin, would never make such a mistake.
Is it...
Because the time spent awake in class was too short, the process of organizing his memories was neither sufficient nor detailed, like having an incredibly vivid dream. And precisely because, like a real dream, some memories were missing, disordered, or even illogical fragments, he didn't think much of it at first.
Now that he's back home and calmed down, Qin Yu realized something was wrong, and the fragments of memory in his mind began to rapidly piece together.
A moment later, his gaze sharpened, his breath hitched, and a glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes—he had been reborn decades ago, not at the point in time a few years ago in his memory.
The correct time now is 2009, no wonder he felt something was off after leaving school, because the whole world had been spliced to decades ago.
It's like there's a timeline with five nodes: A, B, C, D, and E. He encountered an accident at node D, and based on his age, he should have returned to node C upon rebirth, but he actually returned to node B.
He should have been five years old at that point, but now he's fifteen instead. And the entire timeline from point B to point C seems to have vanished.
Spacetime folds, and the overlapping parts disappear.
It's like a game save file. It was supposed to be loaded from three days ago, but it ended up loading from seven days ago, but it still has all the equipment and memories it acquired three days ago.
His parents were still the same parents, and his eldest brother was still the same eldest brother, Qin Dao. Qin Dao still couldn't escape his fate; he was currently missing.
Missing? When?
Qin Yu strode to his desk, sat down, turned on his computer, and typed rapidly, quickly searching for various domestic and international information before finally entering "MH375".
MH375 has crashed!
This is a familiar incident, but this time, after the flight crash, no armed group claimed responsibility, and no news reports mentioned that it was due to a terrorist hijacking. The US government simply stated that "an investigation has been launched," and then there was no further information. This situation is similar to that of my previous life, but the specific details are quite different.
Why is that?
By the way, in my previous life, I was too immersed in my elder brother's grief and passively waited for official news instead of actively searching for information, so I may have missed some opportunities.
In a flash, the words "Tianya" (meaning "the ends of the earth") appeared in my mind.
Da da da!
A series of keyboard clicks rang out.
Qin Yu logged onto Tianya Forum and finally found a post seeking verification in the latest international hot topics section. Below was a detailed list of passengers on the flight posted by relatives of the crashed passengers.
Qin Yu's breath hitched—there really was one! He remembered that although there had been similar posts before, they were quickly blocked, and he hadn't seen any more detailed information. But this time, he finally saw the original post and various replies immediately.
After the family members verified the list of personnel, all the individuals had been identified.
There were 176 Chinese passengers on flight MH375, including 36 chip experts and assistants and 12 military experts, who were going to attend the International Chip Summit Forum.
Among the thirty-six chip experts was Zhang Ruolin, his brother's girlfriend. Qin Dao was also going to report to the Chicago Bulls in America, so the two traveled on the same flight.
Qin Yu lowered his gaze and began browsing the analysis posts below.
A person named "Intellectually Disabled Sanwa" wrote: "A week has passed, and no one has come forward to claim the plane, nor have any wreckage been found. The entire signal just mysteriously disappeared over the Pacific Ocean. I deduce that the entire plane may have been hijacked."
Another post was made by someone named "Zhang Zhongzhong": "I suggest that if you have the ability, you can organize your own search and rescue, or try to find evidence."
There are some things that are not convenient for the authorities to handle. However, if you discover any clues, you can send me a private message. Remember, you must provide solid clues or evidence; otherwise, it's just a waste of time.
If my assessment proves accurate, I can try to facilitate the involvement of relevant departments.
A post by someone named "Zhang Zhongzhong" immediately caught Qin Yu's eye. Qin Yu quickly opened his profile, noted down his ID, and continued reading, taking photos with his phone as he went, because the post and its replies could be deleted at any time.
"Hey upstairs, who are you? Such a big mouth. Don't try to fool these families, you might be a conman," someone questioned.
Zhang Zhongzhong did not reply.
"Can you tell me your identity? You're from a relevant department? Don't try to fool those families," another person asked.
Zhang Zhongzhong still did not reply.
"If you find any clues, can you really help? Right now, the chances of survival seem extremely slim." An account that sounded like a family member replied to Zhang Zhongzhong's post.
"Don't give up hope. We want to see them alive or dead. As you all know now, there are over fifty top experts in the chip and military industries on board, and they are of immense value."
I think they might survive unless they become completely useless.
"But they are all top experts; they can't possibly be without value." This was Zhang Zhongzhong's last reply.
Qin Yu scrolled down for another ten minutes or so, and when he clicked on the next page to see if Zhang Zhongzhong had any other replies, the screen displayed the message "This post does not exist."
After a moment's thought, Qin Yu tried accessing Zhang Zhongzhong's personal page directly by modifying the URL. Fortunately, the page was still there, and an email address was subtly left at the bottom in the form of a limerick.
"This Director Zhang is quite interesting." Thinking of Zhang Zhongzhong, who would later be known as the "Director of the Strategic Deception Bureau," Qin Yu finally smiled, and a glimmer of hope appeared in his eyes.
Everything needs to be done quickly.
Just as Zhang Zhongzhong said, as long as there is no trace of the person alive or dead, there is a possibility that the person is still alive.
After thinking for a moment, Qin Yu opened the official website of Xinhua News Agency, found the email address of Xinhua News Agency, and quickly typed on the keyboard.
A lengthy email of over 1,500 words was completed in less than 20 minutes.
After confirming that the email address was correct, he clicked send without hesitation.
A notification pops up in the center of the screen that "email has been sent".
Qin Yu stared at the screen for a full half hour, his Adam's apple bobbing, his eyes slightly red. He had done everything he could, but he still felt it wasn't enough.
What else could he do? Abandon everything to search for him? If Qin Dao really left, was that what Qin Dao wanted to see?
Qin Yu looked down at the ring next to the computer desk. It was an ordinary ring, the one Qin Dao wore after winning MVP at his first school sports meet. The reason it was with Qin Yu now was because Qin Dao had played basketball with him, and Qin Dao had put it on his finger when Qin Yu made his first basket.
After letting out a long sigh, Qin Yu's eyes cleared considerably. He reached out and picked up the ring, putting it on the ring finger of his right hand. Then he picked up a pencil from his desk and began sketching quickly in his sketchbook.
A moment later, two paintings appeared on the paper.
In the first painting, a man is seen holding a ball in his right hand, stepping outside the free-throw line, his body slightly bent.
In the second painting, the man's foot, which had just stepped outside the free-throw line, has already moved far away, and his entire body, like a soaring eagle, glides towards the basket. At this moment, the height of his jump is almost close to the basket, but the man's face is unusually blurry, only outlined with simple strokes and not depicted in detail.
Between the two paintings, seven neatly written characters in regular script read: "Paint your own face!"
After looking at the drawings in the sketchbook one more time, Qin Yu closed the sketchbook and put it into the innermost part of the third shelf of the bookcase next to him.
Finding someone requires money, connections, and time, rather than waiting six months for an armed group near the location where the aircraft signal disappeared to claim responsibility.
"You've already been reborn, can't you even afford to play games?"
After an hour of trying and finding no cheat codes similar to the system panel, Qin Yu stopped wasting time.
So what if there's no system?
Although he was usually a homebody, he had read some novels. Those people who were reborn in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s could turn the world upside down just by relying on their memories, without any cheat codes!
However, due to his father Qin Weimin's influence, it is definitely not allowed for him to directly participate in local business.
This is something their mother, Zhang Yun, taught them from a young age. When they were in elementary school, she would charge them money for doing their homework, but he always returned it.
However, after that, his mother Zhang Yun increased Qin Yu's allowance and instructed him not to have any business dealings with anyone.
Qin Yu didn't understand then, but he does now.
They cannot directly participate in local business activities, and even if they want to do business, they must avoid suspicion. Once suspicion is involved, there will be too many troubles.
The best way is to not engage in business.
Otherwise, if something goes wrong, he would truly become a "filial son," directly bringing his father into the mess.
hum... hum...
Qin Yu's phone, which had been set to vibrate mode, started vibrating.
Qin Yu picked up the phone; it was a call from Xin Zhiyan.
"This afternoon, should I consider it truancy or a leave of absence?" Xin Zhiyan was furious when she heard Qin Yu answer the phone.
"Hmm..." Qin Yu remained silent.
"What does 'hmm' mean?" Hearing Qin Yu's perfunctory reply, Xin Zhiyan became even angrier. She was currently acting as the substitute teacher for the class, and her good deskmate had skipped class, and Wu Yun, whom she had taken to find him, had also disappeared. "Wu Yun came to see you? Did you two meet?"
"Wu Yun? Looking for me?" Qin Yu was taken aback, but then he realized that given Wu Yun's relationship with him, it was only natural that he would look for him. However, he had spent the afternoon playing basketball and thinking about finding Wu Yun, so his mind hadn't quite returned to the topic yet.
"Why don't you just call Wu Yun directly?"
"I can't get through to him on the phone."
"Can't get through?" Qin Yu was taken aback for a moment, then realized what was going on. Wu Yun had a habit since childhood of keeping quiet until a task was completed.
"I understand. I'll try contacting him later and ask him to call you back."
"Oh, you've really gone through a lot, sparing yourself a few extra words. Thank you so much, busy person!" Xin Zhiyan said irritably and hung up the phone.
Hearing the busy tone on the phone, Qin Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, the thought of Xin Zhiyan's sullen face immediately brought a smile to his lips. Then, he couldn't help but think of the beautiful woman he'd met on the basketball court, no less stunning than Xin Zhiyan, and the one he'd encountered at "Super Cut Party"...
Qin Yu quickly stopped himself from thinking about it, feeling a chill run down his spine, and dared not continue.
"Damn it, don't come to the battlefield on Sundays." He felt utterly helpless and gave a bitter smile.
Fortunately, he and Xin Zhiyan aren't that close yet, and Xin Zhiyan wouldn't go to the basketball game for him on Sunday. Tomorrow is Friday, and he'll slip away after class, not wanting to talk to Xin Zhiyan much.
As long as their relationship doesn't improve, there shouldn't be a big problem. That way, Xin Zhiyan won't be able to go to Jinghu Sports Center on Sunday and see him and Su Lingjuan together.
It wasn't that he didn't want to refuse Su Lingjuan's bizarre request to pretend to be her boyfriend, but given Su Lingjuan's "super-cutting" style at the hair salon, Qin Yu was certain that if he stood her up, she would definitely come to the school to find him. If she really went to the school, he might really be in deep trouble.
At that point, even if it's mud falling into your crotch—it'll still look like shit, even if it's not. Although he used a pseudonym, if Su Lingjuan were smart enough, she should have already realized that he was using a pseudonym and that his real name wasn't Zhou Biao.
Ding dong.
A WeChat message notification sounded.
"Hmph! You little liar, men really are all the same."
"Brother Xiaoyu, you've deceived me so badly."
"Hmph, what a scumbag!"
"If you dare to stand me up, you'll be sorry! You scumbag!"
Qin Yu stared speechlessly at the four consecutive messages sent by Su Lingjuan, feeling bitter inside.
Isn't this just the other person trying to tie him down as a fake boyfriend? And it's just a pretense, so why is he being labeled a scumbag?
If only he had asked Zuo Li more about Su Lingjuan's situation at "Super Cut Party".
Looking at the message, Qin Yu felt inexplicably uneasy about Sunday. Could something go wrong?
No. 1, Building 6, Shimao City, Second Ring Road, Chengdu.
Su Lingjuan's face flushed slightly as she looked at the message she had just sent and the screenshot of the surveillance video from the hair salon that Sister Lili had sent, which showed Qin Yu looking handsome after getting a haircut.