You on the other side of time

After putting the rabbit away, Si Yang stood in the middle of the room, stunned. From falling into the river at midnight yesterday, to opening his eyes and returning to nine months ago, to seeing his sister's smiling face, it all felt like an absurd dream. He reached out and pinched his brow; the pain instantly brought him back to his senses.

According to the current timeline, the accident nine months from now has not yet occurred. He can protect his whole family simply by standing by and doing nothing.

"Forget it, at least call the police beforehand." Si Yang muttered, feeling vaguely uneasy. He felt that this matter wouldn't be completely resolved until he got through these next few months.

"Brother Yang, Brother Yang!"

A sudden, urgent banging on the door pulled Si Yang from his thoughts. He opened the door, and Wen Jinxin expertly put on shoe covers, his head instinctively glancing into Si Chuying's room. "Where's our Yingmei? Is she doing her homework?"

"Get lost, that's my sister. She's not even an adult yet. Keep your little schemes to yourself." Si Yang turned around and glared at Wen Jinxin.

Wen Jinxin chuckled, offering no explanation, and walked into the living room on his own: "I saw that Jinchuan is recruiting traffic police auxiliary officers. Do you think I should take the exam for traffic police auxiliary officers now, or wait and see what the official announcement for police officers and auxiliary officers comes out?"

"Didn't you want to be a policeman?"

Si Yang waved his hand, took a bottle of mineral water from the cabinet and handed it to Wen Jinxin, "Brother, don't give up on your dream. After all, you've been waiting for more than a month. In another two or three months, the announcement for the police officers and auxiliary police will probably be released."

Wen Jinxin took the bottle of mineral water and gulped down half of it. Water dripped down his chin, which he casually wiped with his sleeve. His tone suddenly turned somber: "If we wait any longer, we'll starve to death. In the face of life and death, what are dreams worth?"

For some reason, Si Yang felt that there was an indescribable sense of tragedy in his voice, and his heart clenched.

He knew Wen Jinxin's situation all too well.

When Si Yang graduated from junior high school, his maternal grandfather suddenly passed away. According to custom, blood relatives were not allowed to touch the body for the first three days. In the dead of night, on the seventh floor of an old-fashioned walk-up building, there was no one to turn to for help, and others would avoid the situation like the plague. It was Wen Jinxin who disregarded those taboos and carried the old man down the stairs.

It's nothing to share the good times; true brothers are those who share the bad times.

Wen Jinxin's parents work in a coal mine in the countryside. They worked tirelessly to save money for his tuition, which led to them developing pneumoconiosis and leaving them with only half the ability to work. He not only has to support himself but also shoulder the burden of his family. For the past month, Wen Jinxin has been working as a delivery driver to make ends meet while staying up late to study for his exams, and the bloodshot eyes in his eyes have never disappeared.

"Try to become a police officer or auxiliary police officer," Si Yang paused for a moment, then continued, "The chances of becoming a regular police officer or auxiliary police officer are high. Maybe one day you'll solve a case and fulfill your dream."

"But it's true, police officers and auxiliary police officers are more likely to be promoted to regular positions. Actually, it doesn't matter whether they are promoted or not. Doing what you like makes you more motivated, which is better than running a food delivery business." He noticed that there was no sound coming from Si Chuying's room, so he knew that she was probably not at home, and his interest in the conversation clearly diminished.

Looking at his desire to become a policeman, Si Yang suddenly recalled the accident nine months later. Back then, he thought he was a hero, but he almost lost his family. Human hearts are too complicated; he's probably only suited to dealing with silent cultural relics.

"I don't have your courage," Si Yang sighed. "I don't like interacting with people; I just want to study quietly."

"Hey, why think so much?" Wen Jinxin waved his hand and suddenly blurted out, "According to Song Wanxi's first law, as long as you have food and drink, you're good to go. Don't worry about things two hours or ten kilometers away. I'd better go deliver food and earn the rent first."

"Who exactly is Song Wanxi?" Si Yang couldn't help but ask.

From the various "laws" Si Chuying uttered to the casual quotations Wen Jinxin made, this name echoed repeatedly in his mind.

"I heard from Yingmei that she must be a really awesome girl," Wen Jinxin casually explained, walking to the door to take off his shoe covers and expertly throwing them into the trash can. "I'm off, Yang-ge. Call me anytime if you need anything."

The door slammed shut.

Si Yang stood there, his gaze unconsciously drifting to the wardrobe where the rabbit was hidden. The rabbit Si Chuying gave to Song Wanxi—should he return it?

The thought had barely crossed his mind when he suppressed it. If this truly was a second chance from heaven, then he would rather spend these nine months peacefully.

Si Yang walked to the bedside, a wave of exhaustion washing over him. For the past nine months, he hadn't had a single good night's sleep. Now, looking back, his tense nerves finally began to relax occasionally.

"I don't want to think about it anymore, I'm going to get some sleep."

"Thanks for Song Wanxi's 'poisonous chicken soup' (a metaphor for a cynical, overly optimistic outlook), then I won't worry about what's happening two hours or ten kilometers away..."

He lay in bed, closed his eyes, and quickly fell asleep.

……

……

"How carefree can he be? He's a murderer, and he can still sleep so soundly."

"Professor Xu is really impressive. He was only disqualified from taking the postgraduate entrance exam, and the school didn't give him any disciplinary action or anything."

"That child was a living, breathing human being."

"I heard his sister has also gone mad, and she's locked up at home every day and won't come out..."

"..."

"Shh..."

Si Yang turned over, and the noisy commotion immediately subsided. He gently tapped his head; it was heavy and aching, and he could barely open his eyes. He slowly tucked his hand, which had been sticking out of the blanket, under the covers, finally feeling a little warmer. The sounds around him became clearer.

"Stop talking, he's awake." A familiar voice entered Si Yang's mind.

He opened his eyes abruptly, the blinding white light making him squint. What came into view was the bed opposite his in the dormitory, and the clothes hanging at the head of the bed.

This isn't his home; it's a dormitory at Jinchuan University! Isn't he sleeping in his own bed at home?!

In his panic, he reached back onto the bed to retrieve his phone.

March 9th!! He actually came back, back to that supposedly correct timeline filled with rumors and accusations.

The dorm leader noticed he was awake and said expressionlessly, "Si Yang, we're going to the library to write our papers..."

"Bang!"

He was already used to this marginalized treatment. Explanations were weak; no one wanted to believe a suspect accused of "intentional assault." He sat up and gathered his thoughts.

Did I go to the Jiuyanqiao River on March 9th and fall off the bridge? Then I woke up by the bridge, and the date had changed to June 8th of last year. After that, I drifted off to sleep at home and returned to my dorm, where the date went back to March 9th. Could it be that going back nine months was just a dream?

Si Yang never believed in time travel. It seems reality has indeed dealt him a fatal blow.

He climbed down from the top bunk, put on a thick coat, and prepared to go back to see Si Chuying. His thesis and graduation were no longer important to him; he only hoped his sister would get better soon.

But it was really cold. He couldn't help but shiver and reached into his down jacket pocket, only to pull his hand back as if he'd been electrocuted.

Si Yang picked up the soft, squishy thing in his pocket with his index finger and thumb... It was that rabbit!