Fang Yusheng had no time to enjoy the scenery along the way as he headed straight for the maple forest.
During this season, almost all of the maple leaves had fallen, but a few crimson leaves still hung on each tree. This made them not appear desolate, but instead gave a unique beauty to them.
The cold wind blew, and the occasional red leaf landed on Fang Yusheng. He did not care and continued walking forward.
He could not let Ah Sheng wait.
Fang Yusheng walked through the maple forest and finally saw Qiao Jiusheng.
She stood on the porch of the Spirit Lake Bridge, wearing a gray knee-length sweater. Below the sweater was a pure white pleated dress. The garden was very cold, and she had worn a white down jacket to ward off the cold.
Qiao Jiusheng had long hair, and a black top hat graced her head. It was unknown what she was looking at, but her expression was calm and peaceful. Upon hearing the rustling sound of the dead leaves being stepped on, Qiao Jiusheng turned around, revealing a delicate face.
Looking into the distance, she spotted Fang Yusheng, who had rushed over after a long journey. He arrived at the end of the path. Fang Yusheng had rushed here, and his hair had gotten a little messy. Traces of the cold wind blew across his face. Seeing his anxious look, Qiao Jiusheng smiled brightly and said, “You’re here, Yusheng.”
“I’m coming.” Fang Yusheng calmed his breathing and slowly walked toward Qiao Jiusheng.
He walked up to the wooden bridge. Just as he stepped on it to walk to Qiao Jiusheng, from the corner of his eye, he saw a glimmer of light in the upper reaches of the river. Fang Yusheng turned his head and looked over. He saw one, two, three… countless warm yellow boat-shaped river lanterns densely packed together, flowing toward him along with the water brought by the wind.
The sky was lead-colored tonight. It would probably snow.
He could not see the Milky Way.
However, beneath his feet were eternal stars.
Fang Yusheng was stunned.
Numerous river lanterns slowly floated to his feet.
The wooden bridge wasn’t very high up from the lake. Fang Yusheng walked to the side of the bridge, bent down, and took out a river lamp. After taking a closer look, he realized that there were words written on all four sides of the river lamp. The letters on the side facing him were written in black calligraphy.
This surprised him. “You wrote this?”
Qiao Jiusheng nodded and said, “Everything you can see, including all the river lanterns, was made by me.” She pointed at the words on the river lanterns and said, “I wrote every word on them.”
Fang Yusheng softly chuckled. He held the river lamp with a pleasant and charming smile on his lips. Then, he asked Qiao Jiusheng, “Who are you praying for?” Without thinking, he added, “For our children?”
Qiao Jiusheng shook her head.
Fang Yusheng was confused.
“Aren’t you praying for the children?”
Who is it for?
“It’s not for the child, it’s for…” Fang Yusheng casually turned the river lamp around. When he saw the words written on the other side of the lamp, he got speechless. His eyes stared at the words without blinking.
The air seemed to stand still for a moment.
Fang Yusheng could feel a numbing sensation running through his body.
“It’s for me…”
He softly sighed and read the words on the river lantern:
Fang Yusheng, I wish you a long life.
Fang Yusheng suddenly felt tears welling up in his eyes.
When he had first completed the design of a mini pistol by himself, he had also felt happy and excited. However, that excitement was not as great as what he felt at this moment.
“Why…” Fang Yusheng wanted to laugh but could not. His expression became especially serious. He turned his head and asked Qiao Jiusheng, “Why are you praying for me? And you’re wishing me a long life?” Why not wish me a healthy body instead?
Such a blessing is very strange, isn’t it?
Qiao Jiusheng stood upright, her hands supporting her cumbersome abdomen. When she looked at him, her eyes were filled with pain.
Why?
She knew very well that Fang Yusheng had passed away at the age of 55.
His death was full of strange events.
In her previous life, Qiao Jiusheng was surprised to see the news of his passing in the newspapers. However, she hadn’t been sad or upset. This was because in her previous life, Fang Yusheng was just a stranger to her, an unimportant person.
However, in this life, he had become her husband and the person she loved the most.
She was afraid that something from her previous life would happen to Fang Yusheng again.
Qiao Jiusheng smiled.
Fang Yusheng saw her smiling until her eyes turned red.
“Yusheng,” Qiao Jiusheng said. “People say that as long as you pray wholeheartedly, your wishes will definitely come true.” She took the river lamp from Fang Yusheng’s hand and placed it back on the lake. In front of her eyes, the lamp entered the bridge under her and floated away with the other river lamps. Only then did she turn back to look at Fang Yusheng.
Fang Yusheng’s gaze was complicated. At that moment, he had many questions he wanted to ask her.
But he had always been a patient man. He held back.
“I just want you to live a long life.” After a pause, Qiao Jiusheng said, “Live a long life with me. Watch the children grow up. Watch them get married and have children. If you’re lucky, take a look at your grandson.”
Fang Yusheng tried to outline that kind of future and realized that such a future had a fatal attraction to him.
“Do you think that I will die young?” Fang Yusheng’s tone was joking, but the moment he said this, he saw Qiao Jiusheng’s face turn pale.
Qiao Jiusheng quickly stretched out her right hand and pressed her index finger on his lips. Fang Yusheng shut his mouth and looked at the beautiful face in front of him with a complicated expression.
“Don’t say those words.” Qiao Jiusheng’s expression was solemn.
The end of Fang Yusheng’s previous life was his untimely death. Qiao Jiusheng was afraid that history would repeat itself.
“Alright, I won’t.”
Fang Yusheng turned around and looked at the river lights on the lake. He could not help but ask Qiao Jiusheng, “Have you been busy with this for the past two days?”
“Yeah.”
There were too many river lights. They were everywhere on the lake.
The river was filled with lights and looked blinding.
Fang Yusheng raised his eyebrows and looked at the upper reaches of the lake. He asked again, “Who is lighting the lights?”
Qiao Jiusheng answered, “Bufan, Qingqing, Jiang Wei. Oh, and Wei Xin.”
Fang Yusheng sympathized with them.
“It’s been hard on them.” The wind upstream was quite strong; they could catch a cold.
Retracting his gaze from the lake in the distance, Fang Yusheng looked at the few river lamps beneath him and softly said, “I found you.”
Qiao Jiusheng faintly smiled. “Yes.”
“Then shouldn’t you fulfill your promise…” Before Fang Yusheng could finish his sentence, he heard Qiao Jiusheng speak.
“Fang Yusheng, I love you.”
Fang Yusheng stopped mid-sentence.
When Qiao Jiusheng did not hear Fang Yusheng’s reply, she looked up at him. However, she saw that Fang Yusheng’s expression was a little dazed as if he had been frightened or gotten overly excited. She wanted to laugh, but she also felt sad.
He really loves me.
Qiao Jiusheng reached out to hold Fang Yusheng’s hand and said, “Fang Yusheng, Qiao Jusheng loves you.”
Fang Yusheng’s Adam’s apple moved up and down. He took a deep breath and spoke again. His tone was not calm, and his voice was a little hoarse. “Do you know?” He asked himself the same thing, then said, “This is the first time you said that you love me.”
Qiao Jiusheng raised her eyebrows. “Really?” I never told him?
“Yes.”
Fang Yusheng touched his heart and said, “Here! It’s jumping so fast now.” Although he knew that Qiao Jusheng loved him, this was the first time Fang Yusheng had heard her admit it. He was so excited that he did not know how to react.
Just as he felt helpless, Fang Yusheng seemed to hear a soft voice speaking.
Beep!
“Time wishing machine no. 199 is starting…”
Fang Yusheng blinked in shock and asked Qiao Jiusheng, “Did you hear anything?”
Qiao Jiusheng shook her head in confusion. Seeing that Fang Yusheng did not look right, she asked, “Wind?”
Fang Yusheng shook his head again.
“No, it’s the voice of a child.”
“What?” Qiao Jiusheng looked at her stomach and said, “Impossible. They’re still in my stomach.” Besides, a fetus could not speak.
Fang Yusheng heard that voice again.
“Time wishing machine no. 199 has been successfully activated!
“Congratulations to the host for achieving your wish and obtaining the sincere confession of love from the person you love! As your wish has been successfully fulfilled, the host will receive 40 years of new life. 20 years of the host’s lifespan will be deducted as the price of going back in time.
“The host has the right to unlock the memory lock. The password has been obtained. The password is—Fang Yusheng, I love you.
The child said a lot of things in one breath. Fang Yusheng confirmed that it wasn’t his imagination.
He turned his head and looked around. After confirming that no one else was here besides Qiao Jiusheng, he was stunned for a few seconds. He then asked, “Who are you?”
After a moment of silence, the voice resounded again. “Hello, Guest. I’m Time wishing machine no. 199.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m in your mind.”
Fang Yusheng’s expression changed. “Parasite?” And it’s a freaking parasite that can talk!
Another moment of silence ensued.
“I’m not a parasite. I’m number 199. I’m a time wishing machine that successfully bonded with you.” Number 199 sounded quite innocent.
Fang Yusheng was dumbfounded.
“What is this?”
No. 199 felt a little helpless. “Guest, you have already lost your memories of your previous life. As long as you activate the Memory Lock, you will be able to remember everything and remember me.” The time wishing machine knew that Fang Yusheng was suspecting its words. It felt helpless and could only say, “Qiao Jiusheng was reborn!”
Fang Yusheng was stunned.
Then, No. 199 exposed another piece of news. “She’s someone who has lived for a lifetime. That’s why when she first got close to you, she said that she knew you had someone you liked.”
Fang Yusheng felt his breathing become heavy.
Reborn…
Qiao Jiusheng felt a chill run down her spine when she saw Fang Yusheng questioning the air alone. She even wanted to bring him to the hospital to see the neurology department. At this moment, Fang Yusheng suddenly turned to ask her, “Were you reborn?”
Qiao Jiusheng’s expression drastically changed. “How did you know?”
Fang Yusheng’s expression changed. He silently asked the fellow called “No. 199” in his heart, “Did you just say that I lost my memories from my previous life?”
“Yes, host,” admitted Number 199.
“I can still remember them?”
“Of course, host.”
“How can I remember?”
No. 199 said, “You’ll remember it after a nap.”
Fang Yusheng pondered for a moment before saying, “I want to remember.”
“Yes, host.” After Number 199 said that, Fang Yusheng felt dizzy.
He fell asleep just like that…
It was a direct and violent move.
When Qiao Jiusheng saw Fang Yusheng, who was standing straight like a pen, suddenly fall onto the wooden bridge, she was so shocked that she almost lost her breath. “Fang Yusheng! What’s wrong with you!” Qiao Jiusheng’s cry of surprise attracted Qi Bufan, Fang Yuqing, and the rest, who were hiding in the distance.
The four of them hurriedly ran over. Wei Xin was shouting from afar, “Xiao Sheng, what happened to your man? He fainted from excitement?”
Qiao Jiusheng did not argue with her this time.
Wei Xin and Jiang Wei helped Fang Yusheng stand up and placed him on Qi Bufan’s back. Qi Bufan carried him and ran out of the scenic area towards the hospital.
When they arrived at the hospital, the doctor did a full body checkup on Fang Yusheng. The results of the checkup baffled the doctor.
“The patient doesn’t feel uncomfortable anywhere,” the doctor said to Qiao Jiusheng, looking confused.
Qiao Jiusheng quickly replied, “That’s impossible. He fell right in front of me! How can you still say that he’s fine?” Qiao Jiusheng suspected that this doctor was a quack.
The doctor was very embarrassed. “Madam, there’s really nothing unusual about your husband. It looks more like he’s asleep.”
Qiao Jiusheng was speechless.
She was still worried and anxious. So she immediately called Zhuang Long.
Even though Zhuang Long was an unruly person, he still rushed over as soon as he received the call. Ji Yinbing was also with him. When they arrived, it was already noon the next day. Zhuang Long borrowed the hospital’s equipment and gave Fang Yusheng a checkup. The results were the same as before.
Zhuang Long told Qiao Jiusheng, “He’s not sick.”
Upon hearing this, Qiao Jiusheng was confused. “If he’s not sick, why did he suddenly collapse?”
Qi Bufan also said, “Could it be high blood pressure or something?” He had often heard people say that some patients with high blood pressure, who were originally healthy, collapsed and never got up again.
Zhuang Long rolled his eyes. “His blood pressure is normal too.”
