I'm crazy, don't mess with me. I just love to pretend to be crazy, remember that.

February 3, the afternoon before Pei Li's birthday.

Si Qian, who lied that she had something to discuss with Director Zheng about the script and wouldn't be going home that night, appeared in front of an old newsstand in Beijing.

Seeing the elderly gentleman sitting on the hand-made wooden chair in the newsstand, exuding an air of scholarly refinement, I knew this was a sure thing.

"Boss, do you have a newspaper from Beijing dated February 4th, 14 years ago?"

Yes, yes!

An elderly man who was reading under the lamp took off his broken reading glasses, which were missing limbs, carefully placed them on the table, and then propped himself up and walked over.

The old man looked at each year on the neatly arranged shelf, then pulled out a newspaper and handed it to Si Qian.

Having finally received the item, Si Qian revealed the most genuine smile she had shown all day.

Si Qian thanked the old man profusely and handed him a few red bills.

Thank you so much!

She'd searched almost half the city, and finally found it!

This thing is even harder to find than the small websites where she reads articles.

The old man picked up the money to return it, but before he could even look up, Si Qian was already gone.

……

Sitting in the car, Si Qian turned on the navigation to head to her next destination.

The two systems, exhausted from a day of torment, watched Si Qian, who seemed to be enjoying himself immensely, and felt utterly weary.

[Host, is it absolutely necessary to make up for these fourteen birthday gifts?]

"I promised him I wouldn't miss any of his birthdays!"

One must not be untrustworthy.

From 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Si Qian bought everything she needed to buy.

For her eleventh birthday gift, she prepared a daily newspaper for that day.

For his twelfth birthday gift, Si Qian prepared a fountain pen from a foreign brand.

For her thirteenth birthday gift, Si Qian prepared an old-fashioned record player.

For her fourteenth birthday gift, Si Qian prepared an action camera.

For her fifteenth birthday present, Si Qian prepared a game console.

For her sixteenth birthday gift, Si Qian prepared a Richard Mille watch.

For her seventeenth birthday gift, Si Qian prepared a shirt from a luxury brand.

……

At the age of 24, she personally painted a decorative painting of a family of four.

These are basically things that are currently usable and will not be left idle.

Looking at Si Qian's masterpiece, both Si Qian and 1748 fell silent.

Incredible: [Host, you mean... the third wheel next to you is me?]

1748 hesitated: "Is that...that cloud me?"

Si Qian revealed a wise look: "That's right, it's more important for the four of us to live a good life!"

While there was still time, Si Qian went out to buy picture frames.

As luck would have it, she bumped into Ji Mingxuan, who was coming out of the photo studio next door.

The boy's eyes were sinister as he stared intently at Si Qian, making her feel uneasy.

Ji Mingxuan stepped forward and greeted her with a smile: "What a coincidence, Teacher Si."

That's quite a coincidence...

Si Qian rolled her eyes at him in her heart, thinking that she must have forgotten to check the almanac before going out today, how did she end up running into this plague god?

However, it's still necessary to be polite on the surface.

Si Qian put on a smiling face: "What are you doing here?"

Upon hearing this, the boy's bright eyes instantly dimmed.

At this moment, Si Qian noticed that he seemed to be holding something in his hand, so she asked, "Are you here to develop photos?"

"Not really."

"--Um?"

Ji Mingxuan took out the photo and carefully wiped it clean, seemingly lost in thought: "I'm here to repair the photo."

She got excited when this was mentioned: "I know this stuff! I know a boss who's really good at recovering photos!"

She went to have Shen Peiyue's photos restored a few days ago, and the result was absolutely stunning!

Ji Mingxuan's face lit up with joy: "Really?"

"Hey bro, what photos do you have?"

Ji Mingxuan handed her the photo: "This one!"

Si Qian took it, wanting to see who this person was that Ji Mingxuan cared about so much.

Let me see what's going on—

thing?

Before she could finish speaking, Si Qian's lips drooped the moment she saw the photo.

The woman in the photo, wearing a white dress, is facing away from the camera and holding a headless snake in her hand...

Isn't that her?!

"Can this be restored? The shop owner said this photo is quite old, and I don't have the original, so it might be difficult..."

The phone used to take the photos was already broken.

This photo is probably the only evidence that Si Qian truly existed in another time and space.

Even though it has been well preserved over the years, it has inevitably faded and yellowed.

Si Qianxiao forced a smile: "Sure, but can you tell me who this is?"

So many years have passed, Si Qian doesn't believe that Ji Mingxuan, who was three years older back then, would have any improper thoughts about her.

The only possibility is that this guy wants revenge on me.

"Someone who means a lot to me."

Ji Mingxuan was oblivious to Si Qian's unusual expression, lost in his own thoughts.

“Teacher Si, I’ve never told you before that you look a lot like her.”

Si Qian shook her head vigorously, like a rattle-drum: "No, no!"

Even if it were true, they would never admit it!

Ji Mingxuan continued talking to himself, not caring whether Si Qian was listening or not: "She was the best person to me besides my mother, but I think I'm starting to forget what she looks like..."

Si Qian was somewhat surprised: "Such high praise?"

She thought...

It seems I was judging others by my own petty standards.

"Well, all I remember is that when I was three years old, a vibrant and beautiful girl appeared in my gloomy childhood. She was unrestrained and flamboyant..."

"and after?"

"But I never saw her again after that."

Ji Mingxuan lowered his eyes, concealing his disappointment.

So he was very afraid that he would forget her...

The protagonist who was completely unknown in his memory.

Si Qian never imagined that leaving without saying goodbye back then would have such a big impact on him.

She didn't know what to say, and could only offer a weak and feeble consolation: "If she were here, she certainly wouldn't want you to end up like this."

Ji Mingxuan: "I know."

Si Qian glanced at the time; it was getting late.

"I have something to do, I'll be going now—"

"Teacher Si, I really like you."

The unexpected confession left Si Qian stunned for a moment.

Immediately, without any ulterior motives, she patted Ji Mingxuan on the shoulder and joked, "Playing these tricks too much gets boring, you know."

Ji Mingxuan looked directly into her eyes and spoke slowly and deliberately:

"Teacher Si, I'm serious."

From the first moment I saw her.

“I’m serious.” Si Qian’s playful demeanor vanished as she had been joking with him, replaced by an extremely serious expression: “I’m telling you very clearly, I don’t like you.”

Most teenage boys express their affection for girls in surprisingly uniform ways.

Trick her, scare her, joke with her, and do everything you can to get her attention.

Then, contradicting themselves, they deny having feelings for the other person.

During the time Si Qian was his tutor, she would always think about what big gift he had prepared for her each time she came to the Ji family.

Was it the carcasses of animals or insects that he wanted to scare her into a fright, or was it him jokingly telling her he was going to lock himself in the basement...?

She doesn't think this is a way to express liking someone.

Even though he already knew this would be the answer, Ji Mingxuan still asked, "Why?"

"Because I don't like guys who dissect animals alive; they have no compassion."

Si Qian made up a reason, and after saying it, she picked up the picture frame she had bought and left without looking back, leaving Ji Mingxuan standing there dumbfounded.

He lowered his eyes, and after a while, he hurriedly raised his head to look at Si Qian's departing figure.

The boy's vision gradually blurred, and his hand, hidden in his sleeve, clenched into a fist...

Actually, Si Qian was wrong.

I don't like dissecting animals at all.

On the contrary, he was afraid of blood, the dark, and even more afraid of ghosts.

He was just too lonely and wanted to attract attention and gain recognition in this way.

When I was a child, I had a hedgehog. When its quills pricked someone, people's eyes would be drawn to the hedgehog.

Later, he became this hedgehog.

He didn't know what love was.

All he knew was that if a hedgehog pricked someone, it would result in being punched, kicked, and verbally abused.

But the hedgehog doesn't care; it has sharp spines to protect itself.

He didn't care, because everyone was afraid of him.

The street was crowded with people, and Ji Mingxuan searched for her figure in a daze.

But they found that Si Qianzhen disappeared into the crowd without looking back.

He immediately felt a stinging sensation in his eyes, and when he raised his hand to wipe them, he realized there were tears in the corners of his eyes.

It seems that the person who trapped him in his youth never looked back at him.

……

-

Completely unaware that she had broken someone's heart, Si Qian returned home and, to prevent Pei Li from suddenly entering and disturbing the surprise she was preparing, hid in her study to wrap the gift.

She didn't even turn on the lights, only leaving the light from her phone's flashlight on.

Because of the limited field of vision, when Si Qian finished wrapping the picture frame and stood up, she accidentally knocked something off the table.

wow-

Things spilled and fell all over the ground.

Having just finished her work, Si Qian could only squat down again to start tidying up.

Pen holders and pens were scattered everywhere.

Si Qian picked up and organized the documents on the table, reclassifying them.

Then a dark green hardcover notebook tucked under the documents came into view.

Fearing that some important document might have been misplaced, Si Qian opened it and took a look, only to find it was a diary.

Although Si Qian knew it was immoral to peek into someone's diary, she was genuinely curious about how Pei Li was doing after she left.

"I'm so sorry, Xiao Pei, I'll just take a look!"

After praying to heaven with her hands clasped together, she opened his diary with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation, and then turned to the day she left to start reading.

The black characters were so clear they looked as if they were embossed on the paper. His penmanship was vigorous and powerful, and you could even feel the raised marks on the back of the paper.

The diary contains scattered records of events that occurred during the fourteen years she was gone—

[February 4, 20x0, cloudy.]

They encountered a group of kidnappers, stronger than Pei Tianming.

They probably didn't get any money from me, so they took me home.

I just got back and found out that our housekeeper had quit her job; it was very sudden.

……

I think I've forgotten someone very important.

[August 4, 20x1, Sunny]

This year's birthday doesn't seem as exciting as it used to be.

That year, one figure lingered in my memory.

Who exactly is that person?

……

[August 4, 20x2, Sunny]

My deskmate shared half an orange with me; the taste was so familiar.

I think I smelled it on someone before.

……

Oh, it seems to be the family's nanny.

I can't remember what she looked like.

[February 4, 20x3, rain]

The smell of oranges always makes me feel at ease.

So I started desperately searching for citrus-based shampoos and body washes from various brands, seeking that peace of mind.

……

欸?

Why do I feel at ease with the smell of oranges?

[August 4, 20x4, Sunny]

My memory has suddenly become very bad in recent years.

If Pei Yi hadn't brought in the cake, I would have completely forgotten that it was my birthday today.

……

When Pei Yi held the cake and sang the birthday song, a voice in my head kept telling me that I should hate him to the core.

I just don't like him.

[February 4, 20x5, cloudy]

I found two dusty books on the bookshelf.

One criminal law, one constitution.

Who sent this?

Do I look like the kind of person who would break the law or commit a crime?

[August 4, 20x6, Sunny]

After reading the constitution, I noticed a sentence had been written on the last page—

May you be like the wild grass that grows freely in the mountains, unquenchable by fire and reborn with the wind.

That's not my handwriting.

[August 4, 20x7, Sunny]

My deskmate is so engrossed in reading a CEO romance novel that he insists on telling my fortune.

Fine, whatever. They even said my life is like that of a villain.

……

Sorry, I'm not ignorant of the law.

[February 4, 20x8, cloudy]

They mocked me, saying I was pathetic because nobody loved me.

……

They are indeed quite pitiful.

But in my memory, it seems that many people loved me.

[February 4, 20x9, rain]

I bumped into Pei Tianming and his family of three on vacation.

I don't know why, but seeing this scene made me feel a little sad.

……

It's strange that I would expect such an elusive and intangible fatherly love.

[August 4, 20x0, Sunny]

Everyone around me is implying that I had a miserable childhood.

I should hate everyone.

……

Yes, it was terrible.

[August 4, 20x1, Sunny]

I was bound to a stupid system that said I was the villain.

They even said a strategy guide user saved me.

LOL, do you think I'd believe that?

……

What about people?

[August 4, 20x2, Sunny]

No, it's been two years...

Where is she?

[August 4, 20x3, Sunny]

Is the system messing with me?

Where did they go?

[August 10, 20x4, Sunny]

It's finally here!

……

"Have you finished reading?"

"finish watching."

Soon, she realized what was happening, and her smile vanished abruptly.

She mechanically turned her head and saw Pei Li standing behind her, asking quietly, "Does it look good?"

"...It's quite beautiful!"

Caught red-handed, Si Qian touched her nose guiltily, then took out the cake she had made herself, inserted candles, and lit them.

Then I played a birthday song to distract him.

Happy birthday, baby!

"Thank you, Mr. Krabs!"

Si Qian smiled and urged him, "Quickly make a wish and blow out the candles!"

"No need to make a wish anymore, your wish has already come true."

"Oh, what did you wish for?"

"We will be together forever."

——End of full text——