You on the other side of time

The stuffy heat of the room filled his nostrils, and Si Yang moved his arm, feeling a heaviness all over his body. Opening his eyes, he found himself lying flat on his hard bed in the dormitory. He knew he had returned to the correct timeline. Looking down at his phone beside his pillow, he checked the time and, as he expected, it was still March 9th.

The events that had unfolded flashed before his eyes like a fast-forward. As his roommate closed the door, his mind gradually cleared, leaving only one unwavering conclusion: he was truly trapped in time.

During his first two or three time travels, he was still speculating, testing the waters, and even clinging to a sliver of hope that it was just a coincidence. But now, he had no more doubts. The past timeline progressed one month at a time, while the normal timeline seemed to be standing still, waiting for the two timelines to merge. As for what would happen after the merger, he dared not think about it.

But right now, the most pressing issue is that the matter remains unresolved. He couldn't help but wonder, if the two timelines completely converge and the matter is still unresolved, does that mean the tragedy will repeat itself? The child trafficker on the bridge, the child falling into the river, and his family once again plunging into endless public scrutiny?

He vaguely guessed that the only way to break the time loop was to completely resolve this matter. Once the matter was resolved and the truth revealed, there would be no need for the time loop to continue. But he couldn't understand why, even though his past self had such a clear mind, whether it was reminding himself to "mind his own business" or desperately searching for clues, he still couldn't resolve this issue.

Where exactly did things go wrong? Was some crucial information overlooked? Or did our interference actually make things worse?

Si Yang scratched his messy hair, his hands falling limply to his sides. Fortunately, after several time loops, Si Yang was becoming increasingly clear about what he needed to do next. He had a general idea of ​​who to look for and what clues to investigate.

Just as I was pondering this, my phone suddenly vibrated; it was a call from my counselor.

This time, the counselor didn't subtly suggest he stay home to rest, as before. Instead, he went straight to the point: "Si Yang, after careful consideration, the school leaders have decided to allow you to study from home, and your graduation will be delayed by one year."

Si Yang had actually anticipated all of this. But hearing it from his counselor, who had always cared for and valued him, still made him feel a little sad.

Things turned out to be more serious than he had imagined.

After hanging up with his counselor, he noticed his phone screen was covered in missed calls, all from Wen Jinxin's phone—at least a dozen. A chill ran down his spine; a sense of foreboding washed over him. He quickly called back.

The phone was answered after two rings, and Wen Jinxin's voice came through, broken and intermittent, "Brother Yang, Yingmei has been rescued. Fortunately, she's alright, she's fine..."

But upon hearing the word "rescue," Si Yang's heart leaped into his throat.

"What did you say? Emergency treatment? What happened to Yingying?"

He couldn't understand where the timeline had been changed this time. How did the situation suddenly become so dire? What exactly happened to Si Chuying? Her parents were so worried about her, staying by her side every step of the way these past few days. How could something still happen?

On the other end of the phone, Wen Jinxin's voice choked even more. "Auntie said she just went out to throw out the trash and when she came back she saw Yingmei lying on the living room sofa with two empty amoxicillin bottles on the sofa, each containing 100 tablets. Auntie was terrified and rushed her to the hospital for a stomach lavage. She couldn't get through to you, so she called me."

He paused, seemingly trying to compose himself on the other end of the line, and tried his best to calm his voice. "When she was taken to the hospital, she was deathly pale and couldn't even speak. Fortunately, she was brought to the hospital in time and didn't suffer any lasting effects. She had her stomach pumped and is currently under observation at the hospital. She should be going home this afternoon."

"What the hell did I do wrong?!" Si Yang, who had been suppressing his emotions for too long, completely broke down at this moment. He roared into the phone, "I just wanted to save that child! The child falling into the river was truly an accident, and that river was clearly a shallow, stagnant one. How could the child disappear in the blink of an eye?"

He squatted on the ground, burying his face in his hands, wanting to cry but unable to. If he had another choice, he would definitely be someone who minds his own business, avoiding that damned bridge with his sister and going as far away as possible.

It's one thing if the human traffickers can't be caught, but the single mother who clearly saw her child being thrown down by the traffickers turned around and kicked them while they were down, pushing all the blame onto them. He was truly heartbroken.

On the other end of the phone, Wen Jinxin was stunned for a long time. He and Si Yang had been brothers for over ten years, and he had never seen him so devastated. Even when someone pointed their finger at him and cursed him, he would constantly comfort himself, telling himself not to punish himself for someone else's mistakes, otherwise he would lower his moral standards to the same level as the other person.

"Yang, calm down." Wen Jinxin clearly heard Si Yang's voice breaking, followed by a series of urgent car horns and footsteps. He guessed that Si Yang was running towards the hospital. "Don't run so fast, be careful."

"Calm down my ass! I've been calm for two weeks, and what have I gotten in return? The public opinion is getting fiercer, the school is delaying my graduation, and my sister almost got into an accident—my own sister! The calmer I am, the more those people push their luck and embolden them." Si Yang was in excellent physical condition, and even while running, he spoke without being out of breath.

"Brother Yang!" Wen Jinxin took a deep breath and raised his voice, "I've been transferred to your case now, to assist in finding the child and see if there are any eyewitnesses around. I'm actively applying to see if there's a chance to issue another statement to clarify the facts. But it's difficult right now because the child's mother has already tacitly admitted to various media outlets that you were the direct cause of the child falling into the river."

"The child was thrown down by the traffickers when I was fighting with them! The child's mother saw it with her own eyes, I fucking..."

After saying that, he suddenly stopped. There was a small shop by the roadside with sparkling clean windows. He saw his reflection in the glass. His hair was a mess, his down jacket was unbuttoned, revealing a thick down liner underneath, but he was only wearing athletic shorts and sandals. He looked disheveled, like a homeless refugee.

"Brother Yang, I believe you, I really believe you. But it's no use believing you. That's how the world is. Truth is in the hands of the majority, and as long as someone stirs things up, the truth becomes irrelevant."

Wen Jinxin was telling the truth.

The single mother is now only focused on finding a scapegoat. If she can't find her child, at least she can get some compensation. Expecting her to come forward and clarify the truth is simply impossible. The only hope now is to find those human traffickers or other eyewitnesses who were present at the time and produce solid evidence to clear Si Yang's name.

Of course, finding the child would be a turning point; the child is a little over three years old and should be able to remember some things. But two weeks have passed, and there's still no news. The chances of finding the child are so slim they're almost negligible.

Si Yang took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He tried to clarify some of the things he had just asked Jin Xin, and hurriedly asked, "Wait, wait, aren't you a traffic auxiliary police officer? Why are you involved in criminal investigations?"

On the other end of the phone, Wen Jinxin paused for a moment, his tone tinged with confusion, "Brother Yang, what are you talking about? I've always been a police officer and auxiliary police officer. You forgot, I happen to be a police officer and auxiliary police officer in the Jiuyanqiao community, so they assigned me to assist in handling this matter..."

He paused, then added, "I guess you were too rushed and too tired, and you even forgot this."

Upon hearing Wen Jinxin's words, Si Yang froze in place.

In the normal timeline, and even in the first three times I returned, Wen Jinxin was just a traffic police auxiliary officer. Although I mentioned to him the first time I returned to the past that he should wait for the recruitment notice for police officers and auxiliary officers and give it a try.

It turns out that his past interference really did change people other than himself. He thought he was just trying to change the fate of that single mother and child, but he never expected that his closest brother would also have his life trajectory changed by him.

Hearing that there was no response from Si Yang, Wen Jinxin became a little worried. "It was you who suggested that I take the police officer/auxiliary police exam. I don't remember exactly when, but it was in the summer, when we were wearing short sleeves."