Time Travel: My Comfortable Life After Going to the Countryside

After dinner, Liu Xiangyang called Zhao Xiaoman aside, took out the cloth bag he had prepared earlier from the dormitory, and handed it to her.

Zhao Xiaoman took it, opened it, and was stunned.

Inside were neatly folded pieces of light pink polyester fabric, along with a piece of white cotton cloth. Underneath were two boxes of face cream, several bars of sandalwood soap, and a pair of sandals.

She looked up, her eyes sparkling.

"This...this is all for me?"

Liu Xiangyang nodded.

Zhao Xiaoman took out each item one by one, touching the fabric and smelling the face cream, her lips curving into a wide smile. Turning to the bottom, she suddenly felt a soft package. Pulling it out, she saw it was several pairs of stockings, flesh-colored and so thin they were almost translucent.

She froze, holding the stockings, somewhat bewildered.

"What...what is this?"

Liu Xiangyang leaned close to her ear and whispered a few words.

Zhao Xiaoman's face flushed instantly, red to the roots of her ears. She looked down at the few pairs of thin stockings, then looked up at him, bit her lip, and whispered:

"Then...then I'll wear it for you tomorrow."

Liu Xiangyang smiled.

"it is good."

The two walked slowly along the path behind the hospital. It was already completely dark, and the streetlights were dim and yellowish, with only one every long distance. Zhao Xiaoman walked beside him, her hand sometimes hanging down, sometimes raised, sometimes hanging down again, before Liu Xiangyang finally took her hand.

Holding hands, they walked around for a while, and Liu Xiangyang led her around the security office. The small building was dark, with only one window on the second floor lit up, and the curtains were drawn tightly.

Zhao Xiaoman glanced at it but didn't think much of it.

Around nine o'clock, Liu Xiangyang escorted her to the girls' dormitory building.

Zhao Xiaoman stood at the door, holding the cloth bag in her hands, looking up at him.

"Shall I go up?"

Liu Xiangyang nodded.

Zhao Xiaoman stood on tiptoe, kissed him on the cheek, and ran away.

She ran to the door, then turned back and waved at him.

Liu Xiangyang smiled and waved, watching her disappear through the door.

-

The hospital fell silent.

The streetlights were still on, but there were hardly any people around. The outpatient building was pitch black, and only a few windows in the inpatient department had lights on.

Liu Xiangyang stood in the shadows for a while before walking toward the building housing the security department.

He walked slowly, his steps light, skirting the shadows as he passed streetlights. His mental energy was constantly spread out, and within a thirty-meter radius, no movement could escape his perception.

The security office building is located at the very back of the courtyard, next to a warehouse, and behind that is the wall.

Liu Xiangyang went around to the back of the building and stood against the wall. He scanned the second floor with his mental energy—in the window with the light on, there were two people. One was lying on the bed, breathing evenly, probably asleep. The other was sitting at the table, occasionally flipping through papers, probably on duty.

Zhou Zhiming is not here.

Liu Xiangyang frowned and scanned the room again carefully. In the innermost room on the first floor, there was a person lying down, breathing erratically, tossing and turning, seemingly unable to sleep.

He reached out to the window of that room.

The window wasn't large, and it had iron bars. A curtain was drawn on the inside of the glass, but it wasn't fully closed, leaving a gap. Liu Xiangyang leaned against the wall and glanced inside.

The room was dimly lit, with only a sliver of light coming in from the hallway. A person lay curled up on the single bed, their back to the window.

Liu Xiangyang stared at the figure for a few seconds, then scanned it with his mental energy—it was Zhou Zhiming, who had lost a lot of weight and was huddled under the covers, occasionally shivering.

Without further hesitation, he put Zhou Zhiming into his spatial storage.

Outside the window, all was quiet. Inside, an empty bed lay, the bedding still bearing the shape of where someone had lain. Liu Xiangyang turned and vanished silently into the night.

-

He proceeded cautiously, avoiding all streetlights and places where people might be, and climbed over the back wall of the hospital, heading out of the city along a small path.

The night was dark, there was no moon, and only the occasional bark of a dog could be heard in the distance. Liu Xiangyang walked slowly, his mental energy constantly spreading out, so that no movement within a thirty-meter radius could escape his perception.

When they reached a grove of trees outside the city, he stopped, looked around to make sure no one was there, and then released Zhou Zhiming from his spatial storage.

Zhou Zhiming was curled up on the ground, unconscious. Liu Xiangyang leaned against a tree and waited for four or five minutes.

Zhou Zhiming slowly woke up, first looking around blankly, then suddenly sitting up. He saw Liu Xiangyang, paused for a moment, then looked around again—a dark forest, not the security office.

A hint of surprise flashed across his face.

"Liu Xiangyang? You're the one who rescued me?" He struggled to his feet, brushed the dirt off his clothes, and said with a hint of relief at surviving a close call, "But actually, it's not necessary. My family has already made arrangements. I'm just going to hide at the farm for a year or two, and I'll be out then. Thank you for your kindness, but I still have to go back to the security office..."

He said this and started to walk out.

Liu Xiangyang didn't move, looking at him: "Teacher Zhou."

Zhou Zhiming stopped and looked back at him.

Liu Xiangyang looked at him, his voice low but each word clear: "I'm here to send you on your way."

Zhou Zhiming was stunned: "You... what did you say? This joke isn't funny."

Liu Xiangyang took two steps forward, getting closer to him, and looked into his eyes: "Zhao Xiaoman is my woman."

Zhou Zhiming's face turned pale instantly. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but couldn't utter a word. His legs began to tremble, and he took a step back, then another, until his back hit a tree.

"You...you can't...murder is illegal, there's no need to do this for a woman..."

Liu Xiangyang didn't speak again, his mental energy locked onto Zhou Zhiming, and he activated the decomposition technique.

Zhou Zhiming's eyes widened, his mouth agape, as if he wanted to shout but couldn't. His body, starting from his feet and moving upwards, gradually turned into tiny particles, like sand scattered by the wind.

First his legs, then his chest, then his hands, then his shoulders. He looked down as his body disappeared, his eyes filled with terror.

A few seconds later, he disappeared completely.

Liu Xiangyang looked down at the ground beneath his feet. The particles had already mixed with the soil, leaving no trace. He scanned the ground again with his mental power, but there was nothing there except a tree, a patch of grass, and the same soil as before.

He stood there for a few seconds, then turned and walked back out of the woods. The night breeze blew in his face, cool and refreshing. Liu Xiangyang suddenly stopped.

He touched his chest and felt his heartbeat. It was normal, no different from usual. There was no panic, no fear, and not even any discomfort.

It was as if he had just casually tossed away a bag of trash. He frowned, felt around again, but still felt nothing. Liu Xiangyang stood there for a few seconds, shook his head, and continued walking back.

When Liu Xiangyang returned to the hospital, the main gate was already locked. He climbed over the back wall and tiptoed back to his dormitory.

Wang Dazhu next to him was snoring and sleeping soundly. Liu Xiangyang took his toothbrush and handkerchief to the sink, brushed his teeth and washed his face calmly. After washing up, he returned to the dormitory, lay down on the bed, closed his eyes, and quickly fell asleep.