10.11 – I want to know exactly what it is that I"ve forgotten
translator: xiin
editors: alamerysl & BlueBug
Everyone was noisy and rowdy during all the way through lunch. n.o.body drank any alcohol, but quite a few people still managed to kick up a fuss.
After Mu Sichao took his facemask off, everyone was curious and questioned his relationship with Xue Ling. The two of them really looked too much alike - especially when they were next to each other. Although their temperaments were fundamentally different, they were both good looking, and people would naturally notice something after looking for a while.
Mu Sichao’s answer to these inquiries was: “He’s my younger brother.”
“His Majesty has a younger brother! But I never saw you collaborate with Darling all these years… This is really hidden too well."
Xue Ling waved his hand and said, “Shh, I was only found out by my elder brother recently. In the past, my family was very strict. They didn"t let me go online, and I had to secretly sneak in to sing for you guys. It wasn"t easy!"
In fact, n.o.body cared about the truth. Mu Sichao naturally followed Xue Ling"s lead and continued, "You guys shouldn"t mention it. If it wasn"t for your Gentleman bringing his boyfriend in front of me, I would never have known that my younger brother"s singing was so good."
Everyone gave Xue Ling and Wen Ruoyi teasing gazes. Their eyebrows seemed to all say "you two ** really hid things deeply". "Yo~~~~"
Xue Ling coughed and said, “What are you looking at me for? I didn"t see you guys looking out for me when my elder brother wanted to break my leg…"
“Wow, His Majesty wants to break Darling"s leg…"
“Do I look like a man who would resort to violence?” Mu Sichao helplessly pressed down on Xue Ling"s head, telling him not to make his stories so exaggerated.
Xue Ling tsked, unhappy as he bowed his head to silently eat the food that Wen Ruoyi had placed in his bowl.
The group did not use the matters between the two brothers to make trouble. They changed the topic and continued to talk, and were lively while discussing who would sing well later. So, even before the food on the table had been cleared, some of them had already hurried over to the KTV in order to set up their room.
Xue Ling was neither fast nor slow as he ate, occasionally picking at his food and then quietly eating it when Wen Ruoyi threatened him. By the time the four of them arrived at the KTV, there was already a long line of songs queued up. Xue Ling did not go up and join the crowd; he found a relatively long open area and lay down to digest after eating.
Malt Candy moved over to where he was and rolled his eyes at him, “You’re as leisurely as an old man.”
“I’m just afraid that if I sing, you’ll all bow down to my voice and ask me to sing all the time.” Xue Ling rolled his eyes back at him, and then sat up slowly as he leaned against Wen Ruoyi. "What are you doing? Do you think I"m lying down too happily and are jealous of me?"
“No, Darling~ How come I remember that you still had some dignity before? Where did it go now?"
“It got eaten by Gentleman.” Xue Ling grabbed Wen Ruoyi"s hand and stretched lazily. "Enough, isn"t it just a singing compet.i.tion? I"m coming~"
Malt Candy: “…” Although his purpose had been to have him come over and sing, why did he feel like he had been forcibly fed a mouthful of dog food? And Gentlemen hadn"t even spoken yet!
They spent the afternoon at the KTV. Mu Sichao even managed to take a nap while leaning against Su Wenjun during such a chaotic event. When he woke up, he said that he needed to do a tour of the stages and would leave first, bringing Su Wenjun with him as he left.
After he left, Don"t Leave In April leaned close to Xue Ling and asked curiously, "Darling~ The little brother next to His Majesty should be his boyfriend, right? The two of them seem to be stuck together."
Xue Ling had just been driven away from the mic because he had been hogging it the whole time. He was drinking water, but when he heard these words, his brow wrinkled and he spoke gleefully, "Why are you asking about this? Are you planning to expose my brother?"
“Not at all!” Don’t Leave In April was a young girl. As a manager of the channel, it appeared that she had stopped working in order to focus on music. She said to Xue Ling, “That little brother"s voice had a good timbre. My friend has recently been preparing to do a new series, and was worried that he wouldn"t be able to find the voice he wants. If you are a good brother, then introduce him to me~ From what you"re saying, it seems like he"s also in the circle."
“His name is Mountain River Sun and Moon. He’s part of the circle, and is also a voice actor. Just tell your friend to go and make an appointment." Wen Ruoyi interrupted the conversation as he stuffed a lozenge into Xue Ling’s mouth.
Don’t Leave In April received the information and jotted down Su Wenjun"s name with joy. She praised, "Gentleman is really great. I was afraid that Darling would trick me if I asked him."
“Did you notice that I was beside you when you say things like that?"
“Oh, Darling baby, muah~ You"re the cutest. Well, I"m going to report this happy news to the other people at the meet~"
Xue Ling stretched, and looked at the time before leaping up and saying, "It"s still early. Let"s go back to the festival. I want to get some fresh air~"
Wen Ruoyi naturally followed him as he left. The two of them said their goodbyes to the group that had basically entered a frenzy of singing, and walked out of the KTV amidst the noise.
Night came early in winter, and the sky was already tinged with red. Xue Ling yawned and slowly picked up his steps for a leisurely walk. "Aren"t you curious about why I sent a photo of us together?" He suddenly asked this question out of the blue as they walked.
Wen Ruoyi shook his head and said, “Not curious. I won"t stop you from doing things you like to do."
“Tsk.” Xue Ling turned his head to look at him, and began to walk backwards, stretching his hands towards Wen Ruoyi so that he could guide him as they walked. "Why are you so boring? You"ve already been chasing me for half a month and haven"t even received an answer. You don"t even seem happy that I sent out a photo of the two of us. Could it be that you really have no wishes and desires?"
His gaze met with Wen Ruoyi"s eyes as he spoke. Although they were gentle as usual, there seemed to be fierce flames burning in their depths.
Xue Ling"s steps paused subconsciously.
“No wishes and desires.” Wen Ruoyi seemed to savour these four words carefully before showing a smile that seemed like a spring breeze. Yet Xue Ling only felt a shiver run down his back as his hair suddenly stood on end. "If I had no desires, why would I be shamelessly stuck behind you all day? Would there be any need for me to take care of a certain person"s bad habits?"
“I think this is called housekeeper syndrome.”
Wen Ruoyi squeezed his hands tightly and spoke rather helplessly, "You"re really so hard to please. I"m working so hard every day to cater to you, but you ultimately just consider me as a housekeeper."
“Are you unwilling? If you"re not happy about it you can return my keys. I can guarantee that you won"t be able to get in the house tomorrow." Xue Ling blinked, and took a step back as he gleefully said, "Or, I can just gift you that key. I"ll change the locks when I get back."
“I"m willing. I"m especially happy to take care of you. If you"re willing to take pity on me a little and let me move in instead of having to run around every day, I"ll be even more happy." “
Xue Ling thought about it, raised his chin and said arrogantly, “Fine then. This official will allow you to stay close and serve me. I have time tomorrow, which is perfect timing for you to move your things in."
Wen Ruoyi had only been saying the things he felt he should say, and had been prepared for rejection early on. Unexpectedly, Xue Ling actually agreed. This pleasant surprise came too quickly; forgive him for not being able to respond for a while.
He tugged at Xue Ling"s hand and pulled him back towards him, directly sending this person into his embrace. Xue Ling had been caught unprepared, and his head smacked into his chest. He covered his b.u.mped head that throbbed a little and looked up at him, speaking through gritted teeth, "What are you doing?”
"Making sure that the person in my arms is real, and not just a fantasy I created!" Wen Ruoyi grinned widely as he rubbed his forehead for him, and then bowed his head to kiss him on the forehead. "Shall we find a place to have dinner? The performance will start after we finish. We can come back to the festival then."
Xue Ling pouted and made a sound of agreement. He muttered, "You"re already suspecting that I"m fake with just this. Exactly how lacking in confidence are you…"
“I just didn’t expect that you would forgive me so easily…” Wen Ruoyi was overjoyed, his eyes a dizzying shade of inky darkness. "You know, you were talking about breaking up with me with an icy expression only half a month ago."
Xue Ling thought in his heart that he also hadn"t expected to hold out for so long. Half a month - this world was really too peaceful. Other than cultivating, he really had nothing else to do. It was enough to occasionally tease the man; the relationship between them did not need to involve things like so-called forgiveness. After all, this was something the system had stirred up, so he wouldn"t take it so seriously, and he hadn"t really been angry…
Well, even so, he was still quite dissatisfied that the two brothers had faces that looked so similar to his own.
System: “…” Yes, yes, in the end it"s still my fault, my mess…
Alas, the system felt so disconsolate…
Its host had been living too comfortably recently. It should make him experience bad luck again in the next world - the unluckier the better.
Xue Ling had no idea what the system was plotting at the moment. He followed Wen Ruoyi as they left, and asked, "Do you think that I"ve really forgiven you, or am I only promising to date you again so that I can make you like me and toss you aside again so that you"ll thoroughly lose heart?"
Wen Ruiyi didn"t know whether to laugh or cry as he looked at him. "You don"t need to go through so much trouble. I won"t lose heart even if I"m dumped by you ten thousand times."
Xue Ling: “… Fine then, I"ll trust you this once." Actually, what the man said was not bad. Regardless of how many times his memories were reset, he would still be able to accurately find him without any errors and fall in love with him. Even if the system had laid out these traps for him and found two people who looked so alike, it had been quite unsuccessful. It was only because he was wavering that it made him appear like a sc.u.m.
Xue Ling thought about whether or not he would fall in love with a man if he was genuinely a sc.u.m, and finally concluded that he would beat the sc.u.m until he sharpened up, and then let the other party continue falling in love with him~
His temper had been spoiled rotten by the man over these worlds. If it was changed to someone else, they would definitely be unable to tolerate it. Xue Ling narrowed his eyes, and held tightly onto Wen Ruoyi"s hand. He leaned in next to his ear and said, “Wait till I find you.”
Wen Ruoyi looked back at him curiously and asked, “What?”
Xue Ling shook his head. "Nothing~"
This world"s plot only required a minor adjustment in order to develop smoothly. As the critical component to the change, as long as Xue Ling didn"t make a move, the story would not go in the direction of a BE. Therefore, he kept watch over Mu Sichao and Su Wenjun for several years, and during this period the two of them quarrelled, broke up, and got back together again quite a few times before finally settling down to spend the rest of their lives together. Xue Ling could finally relax, and brought Wen Ruoyi with him to travel around the world.
It was unknown if it was because Su Wenjun was often exposed to Wen Ruoyi and Xue Ling"s love, or if he had been slapped in the face too many times by Xue Ling"s poisonous tongue, but he matured faster than he had in the original story. The collaboration he arranged through Don"t Leave In April received many great reviews, and he slowly began to stand above the ma.s.ses. It was only after his strength and ability had been recognized in the circle, and he could stand on his own that his relationship with Thoughtful Dawn was made public.
By then, Thoughtful Dawn no longer accepted many audio dramas. He mostly acted as a host or performed in live shows. He had also made himself known in Xue Ling"s channel, and would occasionally link up with Xue Ling to sing together. If it wasn"t that "Twilight Darling" and "Thoughtful Dawn"s relationship was well known within the circle, and Xue Ling and Wen Ruoyi"s displays of love were so endless, many people would probably root for "Twilight Darling" and "Thoughtful Dawn" as a CP.
Xue Ling’s personality while he was in this world became more and more childish. He spent his whole life with Wen Ruoyi, and the longest time the two spent separated was when they didn"t see each other for a day. They spent their days glued together, and they only separated once every ten years or so. Every time anyone in the circle discussed it, they would all say that they were the model couple. After all, "Mountain River Sun and Moon" and "Thoughtful Dawn" were always on and off again, and other than at the beginning when the two of them had argued in public while secretly still being in love, the two of them had never gone through any disputes.
As long as it was something Xue Ling suggested, Wen Ruoyi would always nod his head and agree. Although what he did and what Xue Ling said was occasionally two completely different things, the two of them lived a beautiful life together, and even Mu Sichao was somewhat envious.
However, he was also very happy that his younger brother met Wen Ruoyi. He thanked Xue Ling very seriously, saying that he was very grateful to be able to see a side of Wen Ruoyi that he had never seen before.
When Xue Ling died and returned back to the system s.p.a.ce, the wisp of soul that had been separated from him in the previous world smoothly joined back with him, bringing with it some energy as well as some memories. Xue Ling learned about Yu Shaofeng and Chi Jian"s ending - the two of them became Dao companions and flew up together hand in hand. He also learned the story of what happened to himself and Chi Lan, and it made him laugh so hard his stomach hurt.
His soul had returned to its original state, and the power contained within his tails were fully balanced out. Xue Ling remained in his meditative position, and prepared to attack the shackles on his memories.
Those memories were sealed deep within his sea of memories and firmly locked away. Xue Ling attacked countless times before finally managing to create a tiny, tiny gap. Scattered memories floated out from within the gap like falling leaves, drifting and sinking within his sea of memories.
His perception became weaker and weaker. From the midst of confusion, Xue Ling seemed to have returned back to his childhood. It was a time period from which he had no memories at all. He had been held within the palm of someone"s hand, being stroked lightly with a finger.
“Alas…” There was a low sigh by his ear.
“Is there no way?” It was followed by the sound of a middle-aged person. Xue Ling had no way to control his own reaction, but he could feel that his body seemed to be struggling pitifully because of these voices, drilling into someone else"s embrace in confusion.
And then, he felt a hand against his back.
It was probably a child"s palm, very small, but it was very light and gentle when it touched him.
“Since this child"s fate is like this, all I can do is to find another place for him so that he can escape this catastrophe. But if that"s the case, Little Yan…"
“I don’t mind.” The soft and tender voice of the child was especially firm. “If not being by my side means that he can live, I"d rather lose him."
That voice remained in a thoughtful silence for a long time. Finally, it sighed quietly. “In that case, hand it over to me.”
His memories came to an abrupt end. Xue Ling did not know what the "it" they were referring to was, or whether or not it had been handed over. He also didn"t know who the speakers were, because everything in front of his eyes was dark the whole time. He could only vaguely sense through his confusion that someone was there.
Xue Ling suddenly woke up, and was greeted by the worried expression on the system"s fox face.
He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, there was a flash of resolution in his gaze. "System, let"s go to the next world. We need to speed up the pace. I want to know exactly what it is that I"ve forgotten."
The system didn’t know what he had managed to remember, but when it saw that he had regained his enthusiasm for the tasks rather than wanting to indulge in a love affair, it nodded happily~
“No problem. We"ll go at once~"
we have plot, guys, plot!!! next arc tomorrow~