Duosheng Danyuan

In the deathly silent room, Su Wanqing could only hear the ringing in her ears.

Slowly, she heard her own heart pounding more and more fiercely.

"Yes, yes, something's missing from the fridge. I took potato chips and a Coke yesterday!"

"No, no, why? According to the rules, the supplies should refresh!"

"Yes, yes, I left my disciple's robe here yesterday when I came to Shengdan Academy."

"No, no, why, why is it a sun-protective shirt!?"

Countless entanglements and inner desires intertwined, forming an unsolvable knot, plunging Su Wanqing into a state of frenzied chaos.

The overlap between her memories and reality, which was both true and false, caused her to develop deep self-doubt.

"Clang!"

Suddenly, Su Wanqing, who was losing control of her emotions, dropped the glass on the table and shattered it on the floor with an unusually loud noise.

"Wanqing, what's wrong? Did you fall?"

"No, no, don't come in, I'll be right out!" Su Wanqing heard her mother's footsteps approaching from outside, so she quickly closed the half-closed door and blocked it with her body to prevent her "mother" from coming in.

Just hearing her mother's voice was enough to make Su Wanqing burst into tears. If she were to see her mother now, Su Wanqing had no idea what she would become.

"Really? Then be careful, we're not in a rush to leave. I'll go make some more potstickers for you, come out and eat soon."

"...Um..."

Hearing her mother's concerned voice outside the door, Su Wanqing's nose suddenly stung, but she gritted her teeth and didn't let the tears fall.

Sitting on the floor by the door, Su Wanqing's emotions gradually stabilized.

About ten minutes later, Su Wanqing stood up from the ground, pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth, and placed her right hand on the doorknob, as if she had made up her mind.

She figured it out. If her mother and brother outside were fake, then what she would see when she went out would be the living room of Jingxi Lodge from yesterday, and the illusion would crumble on its own; if her family outside were real... haha, if they were real, then nothing would happen.

Regardless, she has to face reality; it's something that can't be avoided.

Moreover, in her heart, she still felt that the outside world was more fake. After all, Gu Changfeng and Lin Xu's figures were so clear in her memory, completely unlike the friends in her dreams.

"Huh? What's going on?" Su Wanqing turned the doorknob, only to find that the door didn't open inwards as she remembered, but outwards.

Without thinking much, Su Wanqing prepared to push the door open. Just then, she felt something blocking the door. As she wondered what was happening, the sunlight outside the window gradually rose, and the optical fibers shifted their position, shining into her room through the screen window.

The sunlight was not gentle; it reflected on the mirror by the door, stinging Su Wanqing's eyes.

Blinded by the dazzling light, Su Wanqing instinctively covered her eyelids with her hand and looked toward the light.

In the mirror, she no longer looked as innocent as she had yesterday, but rather like a sixteen-year-old girl.

"Huh?" Looking in the mirror, Su Wanqing couldn't believe her eyes for a moment.

Without much hesitation, she released the doorknob, approached the mirror, and began to carefully observe herself.

"My ears are still pierced, and my face looks different than yesterday! Hey, does this mean...?"

Before she could even feel happy, Hao Hao had already slipped in from outside the door, hugged Su Wanqing's leg, and said in a childish voice, "Sister, you're so slow."

"Haohao?"

"Hurry up and come out, Mom's starting to rush you again, the second batch of potstickers is getting cold."

"Ah... okay." With that, Su Wanqing was led by Hao Hao's hand and headed towards the door.

However, what Su Wanqing didn't notice was that although Hao Hao was holding her hand and walking in front, he didn't take any further steps. In the end, it was she who opened the door herself.

She opened the door, and the scene outside was a place she knew all too well—her home.

"What!?"

"What's wrong?" Hao Hao asked, tilting his head in confusion.

Ignoring Hao Hao's doubts, Su Wanqing stared in disbelief at everything before her, feeling a bit dizzy and lightheaded, overwhelmed by the sudden beauty.

A beautiful mother, a sumptuous breakfast, familiar surroundings, and the little dog gently snoring.

"Finally willing to come out?" At the kitchen doorway, Mom was holding a plate of steaming potstickers and complaining to Su Wanqing in an annoyed tone.

"Ugh... Waaah... Waaah ahh!" Seeing her mother's familiar face, Su Wanqing, who had been suppressing her emotions, could no longer hold back and immediately rushed into her mother's arms, crying on her clothes.

"Oh dear, what's wrong with you? Good heavens, you didn't wet the bed again, did you?"

"Impossible! My sister hasn't wet the bed for a week."

"Where did I..." Before she could refute, a logically consistent memory appeared out of nowhere in Su Wanqing's mind, without her noticing any disconnect.

Two weeks ago, Su Wanqing got into the butler's car on the way home from the music hall, and they were involved in a car accident. The butler was seriously injured, while she, although without any obvious external injuries, underwent three days of check-ups at the hospital due to her parents' concerns, and was discharged after being confirmed to be fine. Since then, she has not gone to school and has been recuperating at home.

A week ago, she wet the bed because of a nightmare about a car accident.

Yesterday's bizarre rules were just another nightmare...?

The reason I got up so early today is because my parents booked a camping trip for Su Wanqing to help her relax, and since it's the weekend, Hao Hao can go along too. That's why I went to bed early and woke up at six o'clock.

Memories flooded her mind in a flash, but Su Wanqing didn't feel any problem; on the contrary, she felt a refreshing sense of clarity, as if a veil had been lifted from her eyes.

"How could I have taken a nightmare so seriously?" Su Wanqing thought to herself as she took a deep breath and smiled genuinely.

"Alright, alright, let's eat." Mom patted Su Wanqing's head, affectionately pinched her nose, pulled her to the table, and smiled, "These are all your favorite dishes."

As the sadness and panic gradually subsided, joy and happiness swept over Su Wanqing like a tidal wave. In this state, one's appetite is always at its greatest. Without thinking too much, Su Wanqing immediately began to wolf down her food at the table.

During breakfast, Su Wanqing chatted and laughed with her younger brother and mother, completely unaware of the oppressive danger. Indeed, the disciples were absolutely safe within the Tranquil Abode.

Soon, it was seven o'clock. Having eaten and drunk her fill, Su Wanqing, as usual, collapsed onto the living room sofa and stretched vigorously. Her gaze wandered, and she easily spotted the leftover potato chip wrappers and cola can on the coffee table. With that, the last vestige of doubt in Su Wanqing's mind was completely dispelled.

Su Wanqing turned on the TV and started watching the news to pass the time. She had already changed her clothes and shoes and was ready to go out at any moment. Meanwhile, her mother was putting on makeup, and her younger brother was changing clothes. Her father had gone to a campsite yesterday to prepare the ingredients and tools he would need for the day with his friends.

The clock ticked away clearly, even amidst the noise of the television.

"Alright, let's go."

"Roger that!" "Coming right away."

As the three of them reached the entrance hall, Su Wanqing suddenly remembered something and said, "Wait, I forgot my backpack. Let me go back to my room to get it."

"Hurry up, hurry up." "We're going downstairs first. Just come find us in the garage."

"OK."

With a wave, Su Wanqing quickly returned to her room. She packed her backpack, which she remembered had already prepared, and then, almost unconsciously, picked up the alarm clock from her bedside table.

"If it's a whole roasted lamb... Dad will keep track of the time, right? Hehe, just take this with you, so they don't have to keep watching the barbecue stall."

Thinking this, Su Wanqing turned off the alarm clock and put it in her backpack.

"Come on, we're ready to go." In the garage, Mom sat in the passenger seat and beckoned Su Wanqing to get in the car.

Once in the car and sitting in the back, Su Wanqing placed her backpack on her lap, fastened her seatbelt with great anticipation, and began to imagine today's camping trip.

Inside the backpack, the hands of the alarm clock slowly moved toward 8:10.

Perhaps because it was a weekday, even during the morning rush hour, there were very few cars on the street. The driver was driving his supercar at full throttle, and in just a few minutes, they had already driven away from the streets of the villa area.

Along the way, the door signs and shops looked just like she remembered, which made Su Wanqing even more convinced that yesterday's experience was just a dream.

Perhaps because she had gotten up too early today, Su Wanqing unconsciously dozed off as the cool breeze slipped in through the car window.

In the hazy light, the surroundings gradually dimmed. Facing the faint morning light, Su Wanqing's consciousness slowly sank.

"Ring ring! Ring ring!"

The jarring sound of an alarm clock rang out incongruously from inside the backpack, pulling Su Wanqing back to reality.

"Why did you bring the alarm clock with you, sister?" Hao Hao, who was sitting in the back row, asked in confusion.

"Wanqing, turn off the alarm clock quickly, it's too noisy," Mom urged.

"Ah, sorry, sorry." Rubbing her eyes, Su Wanqing quickly took the alarm clock out of her backpack.

The alarm clock clearly showed the time: 8:30, which was the alarm she had set yesterday.

"How could that be? I clearly turned off the alarm!"

Puzzled, Su Wanqing tried to turn off the alarm clock, but found that she couldn't turn it off no matter what she did.

"Why isn't it closed yet?" came the urging voice of the mother in the front row again.

"I don't know, it seems like this alarm clock is broken, I just can't turn it off." Muttering to herself, Su Wanqing was still in a daze.

"...Why don't you just remove the battery?" After a moment, Mom's voice came again.

"Ah, that makes sense." Su Wanqing nodded and turned the alarm clock in front of her to face away.

But just as she was about to open the back cover, a chill ran down her spine.

"Sister, what's wrong? Quickly remove the battery, do you need me to help you?"

Su Wanqing turned her head sharply and looked at Hao Hao beside her with a look of horror.

"What's wrong?"

Hao Hao had that bewildered yet naturally adorable look from Su Wanqing's memory, but those innocent eyes now seemed somewhat empty and lifeless to her.

"It's nothing... Oh, traffic light, Uncle Li, could you please stop the car for a moment?"

"Huh? Here?" Uncle Li, who was driving, asked in surprise.

"I'm thirsty and want to buy some drinks to take to the campsite."

"There's water in the car?" Mom asked, puzzled.

"I want to drink milk tea."

"Seriously, if you want milk tea, just buy it at the campsite; they have it there."

"Mom...please, I really want to drink milk tea. There's a shop right next door, just let me go for a minute. Dad won't scold us if it takes two minutes."

"I'm really impressed by you."

The car slowly came to a stop. Su Wanqing, suppressing the trembling of her hands, opened the car door and got out.

"No way?"

The alarm clock was still ringing, and Su Wanqing's hands, which were holding the alarm clock, were trembling uncontrollably.

Facing an alarm clock that clearly only had a charging port, Su Wanqing, relying on her memory, repeated the alarm clock's ringing motion countless times, until finally, she managed to open the battery cover on the back of the clock.

Looking at the two batteries in the battery compartment, Su Wanqing couldn't help but swallow hard. Gritting her teeth, she still managed to remove the batteries.

"Da, da da".

The sound of the battery falling to the ground was crisp and clear, while the alarm clock's mournful ringing faded away.

"I... I knew it..." Abrupt memories began to fragment in Su Wanqing's mind, and all the irrationalities that she had previously beautified were now completely stripped of their embellishment.

With a single tear, her trust in the world completely crumbled.

"Why aren't you moving?" The mother in the car behind me asked with concern.

"..."

Although she already knew that her world was an illusion, Su Wanqing still chose to turn back because she wanted to see her mother and younger brother one last time.

"Eek!...Ugh!"

With all her might, Su Wanqing managed to suppress the urge to scream.

The once adorable younger brother and loving mother are now both grotesque monsters with blood flowing from their seven orifices.

With her heart pounding, Su Wanqing took off running towards home.