YA Ch5: Lao’er
The two of them chatted passionately for a long time. Que De raised two questions: “First, if you traveled through time and ended up in Lu Dayu’s body, then where did Lu Dayu go? Second, you ran away, but what about your eighteen-year-old body? According to South American theory, a body without a soul will be possessed by evil spirits and needs exorcism.”
As he spoke, Que De took out a wind chime made of some kind of nut shell and shook it around Lu Yu’s head.
Lu Yu stopped him from continuing: “Master, let me remind you. One cannot, or at least should not, use a bell from now to exorcise demons from ten years ago.” And one shouldn’t charge exorcism fees across time either!
Que De regretfully put away the wind chime. “Alright, back to our questions.”
Lu Yu relaxed and leaned back in his chair. “According to the laws of time travel, there are two possibilities. If time is not unique, Lu Dayu in this timeline died, and I took over his identity, while the other timeline version of me died at eighteen. If time is unique, then Lu Dayu didn’t die and went back to replace me.”
“Interesting,” Que De nodded, “but the second possibility also creates a paradox. If Lu Dayu went back and was reborn, he would inevitably make changes, but your current life hasn’t been affected.”
Lu Yu scoffed, “How do you know it hasn’t changed? We don’t know what the original timeline was like. Maybe what we’re experiencing is already altered by Lu Dayu.”
“No,” Que De wagged a finger, “I saw the news. Your company failed to go public. If he were reborn, he would have avoided those issues.”
Lu Yu: “…” Why bring up that sore spot?
With a sigh, Lu Yu reluctantly glanced at Ming Yan. “That means if Lu Dayu went back, we might switch back after a while.”
Various time-travel novels do mention ending up in your future self’s body, but 90% of the time, you switch back. Collect enough intel in the future, then return, making it a cheat to become a success story.
“Well,” Que De looked down and wrote a consultation conclusion, “set a reminder in your smart assistant for a follow-up. We can also agree on a code word. At each follow-up, we check it to see if Lu Dayu has returned.”
A code word.
Lu Yu thought for a moment: “I love Ming Yan.”
Ming Yan looked up, “Hmm?”
Lu Yu’s ears turned red, “That’s the code word.”
Que De smacked his lips, “OK.” Then he pressed the intercom button on the desk, notifying the reception to change Lu Yu’s snacks to dog biscuits at his next visit.
Lu Yu: “… Your service attitude deserves a one-star rating.”
Lu Yu went out to pay the bill, and Ming Yan stayed behind for a family consultation.
Que De handed Ming Yan the report he had just written.
Ming Yan, who had listened to their conversation that jumped from relativity to exorcism, thought Que De would write a soul-transference talisman for him. Instead, the report was full of medical terminology, concluding:
“Clear logic, mentally sound, preliminary diagnosis: memory loss due to external impact.”
Que De: “He likely fainted due to a cervical issue causing insufficient blood supply to the brain, then hit his head, resulting in temporary amnesia.”
Ming Yan was speechless: “So all that discussion was just to entertain him.”
Que De shook his head proudly, “Not entirely. I just chose a method he could accept to test his mental state, which led me to an unexpected discovery.”
Ming Yan: “What discovery?” He only felt that the already silly Lu Xiaoyu had been made even more confused by Que De.
Que De pulled up Lu Yu’s medical records, showing a bunch of complex data charts. “He’s been drinking too much and sleeping poorly these past two years, causing hippocampal damage and some memory decline and slow reactions. But strangely, now that he’s lost his memory, his reaction speed has returned to that of his youth.”
Ming Yan had noticed this too but wasn’t optimistic: “A concussion usually only causes a few hours of memory loss. He lost ten years. This abnormal improvement might not be a good sign.”
It was like a hard drive being wiped to boost computer speed. However, the human brain isn’t a computer, and wiping the hard drive inevitably causes significant damage.
Que De shook his head, “But his brain shows no organic lesions. The brain is unpredictable; there have been cases where someone suddenly mastered a language they never studied after a fever. My suggestion is to observe for a while and have regular check-ups.”
Leaving the clinic, Lu Yu gritted his teeth over the long bill. “Now I get why he’s called Que De (lack of virtue). This is such a scam.”
Ming Yan, looking at the completely youthful mannerisms of Lu Xiaoyu, recalled Que De’s parting words:
“Current scientific research on the brain has only covered a thousandth. Unexplained phenomena are called ‘miracles.'”
“Miracles…” Ming Yan reached out and tugged Lu Yu’s ear. “Why did you agree on such a code word with Que De? Before you time-traveled, we were still classmates, right?”
“Well, now we’re spouses.” Lu Yu obediently tilted his head for him to tug.
Ming Yan, both annoyed and amused, shook his head. Not only was his reaction fast, but his adaptability was also quick. “Alright then, Lu Dayu would never say that. This way, we can indeed tell the real from the fake.”
“Why, is he that cowardly?” Lu Yu put the bill in his pocket, eagerly opened the car door for Ming Yan, and couldn’t resist sneering at Lu Dayu.
The two of them went out for dinner on the way, and Lu Yu took a good look at the city night scene ten years later, commenting, “I thought people would have evolved to drinking nutrient solutions instead of eating by now.”
“That only happens in the interstellar era when resources are scarce, Father,” Lu Dongdong, who was inside the smart assistant, couldn’t help but interject.
“Shh, don’t let anyone hear.” Lu Yu cautiously looked around and said, “You’re different from other smart assistants. Don’t let child traffickers steal you.”
On the way back, Lu Yu finally managed to get driving rights.
Ming Yan sat in the passenger seat, looking at the scenery passing by outside the window, lost in thought.
Lu Yu couldn’t help but talk to him: “How’s my driving? Haha, I used to race cars when I was rebellious. My skills are top-notch.”
Ming Yan turned his head in surprise: “You used to race? When did that happen?” It was the first time he’d heard of this.
“Lu Dayu never mentioned it?” Lu Yu was also surprised. To him, it was something worth bragging about. “When I was a minor, I was very rebellious back then. Whatever was dangerous, I’d do it. Later, someone even asked me to race on mountain roads, like in those comics, betting on races on winding roads. But I didn’t go.”
Ming Yan: “Why didn’t you go?”
Lu Yu said naturally, “Because I met you. I thought that since I’d have a wife in the future, I couldn’t take risks. I had to live well.”
“Pfft…” Ming Yan was amused by his serious nonsense. “You’re so glib.”
“Really.” As Lu Yu spoke, he drove into the garage, simultaneously stepping hard on the brake and accelerator, drifting and parking perfectly. He stylishly blew a strand of hair off his forehead and looked at Ming Yan.
Ming Yan quickly got out of the car to check if he had scratched the nearby Bentley.
Lu Yu didn’t get the praise he expected but received a glare instead, which left him dazed and confused as they headed home.
“Come on, take a bath first.” After Ming Yan busied himself for a while, he called Lu Yu, who was playing with the fish ball, to take a bath.
After a trip to the hospital during the day, they had to wash up and change clothes when they got back.
“Bath, bath, are we going to take one together?” Lu Yu stammered as he saw Ming Yan holding a bathrobe, looking like he intended to join him.
A smart assistant ball in a suit floated over from behind the sofa, circled the two, and disdainfully said, “Now I believe he traveled through time. His behavior isn’t an act; only a little virgin would be so useless.”
“Whack!” The suit ball received a tail flick from the fish ball.
“Who is this?” Lu Yu looked at Ming Yan.
Ming Yan explained, “This is the protagonist of your second book, ‘Golden House,’ Shen Baishui. He’s currently in my smart assistant.”
“Ah, it turned out to be the Lao’er1(Second eldest child in a family),” Lu Yu smiled and stretched out his hand. “Come here; let Daddy hug you.”
Lao’er did not move: “Heh.”
Lu Yu: “…” This kid is really not cute.
Lu Dongdong: “Lao’er, you can’t be rude to Father.”
Lao’er sneered, “With his demeanor, what right does he have to be my father? One day, I’ll control this family, and you’ll rely on me for pocket money.”
“Baishui” means “spring” or “fountain,” which is also associated with “money.”
Lu Yu looked at the little guy with slicked-back hair and folded arms, silently evaluating his character: arrogant, cold, and ambitious. He must be a domineering CEO type.
The domineering Lao’er, because of his arrogant remarks, successfully received another tail flick from the merman Lao da2(the eldest child in the family), and the two little guys started fighting.
Footnotes:
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