Chapter 88

Chapter 88

After the funeral, Yan Shixin returned with them and saw the third wife wiping away tears.

He held a puzzle cube and asked, "Why is Mom crying?"

"Because your Brother Xie has died," Yan Shiying replied.

"No, he hasn't."

Yan Shiying frowned. "What?"

"Brother Xie isn't dead," Yan Shixin said, staring at the cube.

Yan Shiqi crouched down to look at Yan Shixin. "Shixin, do you know where he is?"

"Of course he's in the book," Yan Shixin replied absentmindedly, his fingers constantly twisting the cube.

Yan Shiqi grabbed his shoulders, his eyes fixed intently on him with an urgent tone. "In a book? Then where are we? Where are we?"

Yan Shixin looked at him strangely. "We're in the book too, of course."

"Big Brother, do you understand what Shixin is saying?" Yan Shiying looked bewildered. *He's gone mad. Big Brother even believes a child's nonsense now.*

Shixin talks nonsense because he is a child with autism, but Big Brother is a worldly adult who has experienced so much. How could he...

Yan Shiqi's expression was anxious and serious. The wind blew, from day to night, from cold winds to spring breezes. The surrounding scenery seemed to wrap around him like arms, yet his focus on his thoughts left no room for anything else in his eyes.

The next day, Xie Yunshen's belongings were found. Old Mr. Xie squatted in the back garden, burning them one by one.

Uncle Zhao was by his side, helping him burn the clothes. He picked up a somewhat worn-out novel. "Should this novel be burned too?"

Old Mr. Xie paused for a moment and sighed. "Burn it. That boy loved this novel the most. Let's burn it for him."

Just as he was about to throw the novel into the fire, a voice came.

"Uncle Xie, I have some things I'd like to ask you." A figure appeared under the trees.

Old Mr. Xie squinted his puzzled eyes, looking at Yan Shiqi on the other side through the flickering flames and twisting smoke.

"Mr. Yan, the Xie family has let down the Yan family's trust over all these years."

In the study, Old Mr. Xie sat across the desk, smoking an old-fashioned dry tobacco pipe, his brows furrowed in worry.

He took out the novel with slightly curled edges from inside his coat and placed it on the table.

"I really can't bring myself to speak of the other matters."

Yan Shiqi picked up the book and opened the title page. A familiar name leaped from the page, making his heart suddenly skip a beat.

Xie Yunshen.

The Top Star Group case remained a trending topic for months. Many even suspected that the children who had gone missing in the Northern Border decades ago were also taken by the Top Star Group.

But Shangguan Hong denied this claim. "The Top Star Gate wouldn't be foolish enough to touch the children of wealthy, powerful families."

Meaning, there were plenty of poor children; they didn't need to go to the trouble of targeting the children of the rich.

Needless to say, this statement sparked furious condemnation from netizens, and people began to miss Black Impermanence again.

Apart from that, the "Youth Elixir" also implicated many prominent families, such as the Zhu and Huang families. Several wealthy families in the Northern Border had also purchased this elixir. However, since the purchasers were all deceased former family heads, it was difficult to hold anyone accountable, and they could only be fined.

The fines were minor, but the damage to these families' corporate image and the evaporation of their companies' market value were immeasurable.

In contrast, the Yan family frequently appeared on official commendation lists. Both online and offline, the image and strength of the Yan enterprise rose a notch. Among the Five Great Families of the Southern Province, the Yan family had completely eclipsed the other four, unlike in the past.

The strength among the Five Great Families was uneven.

Seeing that the Zhu and Huang families were about to be left far behind, they proposed that the Five Great Families hold a meeting called the Five Colors Conference, hoping for commercial cooperation and mutual advancement among the families, and they wanted Yan Shiqi to serve as the chairman.

For the past few months, Yan Shiqi had rarely appeared in public. Group affairs were basically managed by his two younger brothers.

Even matters regarding the Five Colors Conference were handed over to Yan Shiying.

That morning, Yan Shiying decided to ask his big brother one more time.

The night before, his big brother had entrusted him with many things, even giving him important documents and the password to a safe.

Yan Shiying didn't think much of it. He felt his big brother had indeed been too tired these years, and he should share the burden.

"Big Brother, about the Five Colors Conference, how do you..." Yan Shiying pushed open the study door, and the documents in his hand suddenly fell to the ground.

In a beam of light drifting with fine dust, Yan Shiqi sat at the desk with his head tilted back. Within that light, there was a glint of blood.

Yan Shiying ran over frantically...

Yan Shiqi died the day before the Five Colors Conference. It happened to be the day of Major Heat, and the weather was very hot. By the time people found him, his body had already begun to emit an odor.

Blood had spilled and fled from his body like a broken wine bottle. His clean and dignified face had lost its last trace of color, and the light in his eyes had been devoured by death...

He had shot himself.

When he died, he was still holding a piece of paper. Yan Shiying, trembling, took that paper.

On it, a few lines were hastily scribbled with a black ballpoint pen.

"Whenever Party A wants to find Party B, whether Party B is sleeping, eating, or using the bathroom (repeatedly crossed out), or in the sky or underground, Party A can come find Party B anytime. Party B will definitely be happy, and the contract is forever valid."

"Party A: Mr. Yan, Party B: Xie Yunshen"

There were also red thumbprints from both parties.

Only now, one end of this paper had grown heavy, stained with Yan Shiqi's blood.

Even though the police repeatedly confirmed that Yan Shiqi had died by suicide, Yan Shiying firmly believed that his big brother had been killed.

How could he believe that someone as rational and steadfast as his big brother would die for love?

Just yesterday, he had spoken to him in a very casual tone about some trivial matters regarding personnel within the group.

Just yesterday, he had looked at him calmly and praised him for his increasingly steady way of handling things recently.

Yan Shiying knelt on the ground, burying his head beside the sofa where Yan Shiqi lay.

On the desk lay a suicide note and a novel.

Yan Shizhou, his eyes red, picked up that novel. It had been flipped through repeatedly, the pages curled and yellowed.

"Big Brother... why..." Yan Shizhou opened his eyes wide, tears falling drop by drop onto the pages of the book.

"Mr. Yan!" Xie Yunshen's eyes snapped open with a suffocating sense of dread, his head throbbing with a dull buzz. Everything before him was dim, and the enormous text of a book seemed to weigh on him, making it hard to breathe.

He bolted upright, the book that had been on his face tumbling to the floor.

Having craned his neck back for too long, the sudden movement caused a wave of vertigo so intense he nearly fainted.

He remained seated, frowning at the items on the desk, in a daze for a good minute.

On the desk lay a hand gripper, a few novels, a gold-colored teacup, and an unopened letter.

He remembered this letter was an invitation from the Prince of Country E to attend a wedding. Ten years ago, he'd worked as the prince's bodyguard for a stint.

But Xie Yunshen had been too busy reading novels to bother opening it.

The golden teacup was a gold medal presented by the Bodyguard Association after he became a Golden Bodyguard. But since it looked just like a teacup, Xie Yunshen used it as a drinking cup.

Weird, what were these things doing here?

Xie Yunshen picked up the golden teacup and saw a scar on the back of his left hand.

This was from an injury sustained during a mission years ago; he'd almost lost the use of his hand back then.

He put the cup down, looking at his own hands—the familiar lines and sense of strength in them, different from what he'd experienced over the past year.

Xie Yunshen shot to his feet and took in his surroundings, the dusky light of twilight spilling in from the window.

A glass cabinet was filled with trophies and certificates; a poster of the world boxing champion hung on the wall.

Beside it stood a life-sized replica of golden armor and a golden helmet—his retirement gift from the Bodyguard Association.

He hurried to the dressing room mirror and stood stock-still.

A gray-and-white casual outfit, slightly disheveled hair, and a face different from the Xie Yunshen in the book.

He lifted his shirt, revealing the familiar scars and bullet wounds on his upper body.

He gave his cheek a slap, confirming this was his own face, his own body.

"Wait, no... Wasn't I just in Country C? I should have woken up at the Yan family home."

Even if not with the Yans, he should have been in a hospital. How could he have returned to his own body at a time like this?

Xie Yunshen stared at his reflection in horror.

Could all of this have been a dream?

No, that can't be...

Old Five, Lin Jin, Bai Lebai, Yan Shiying, and Shang Guanhong were all real people.

And Mr. Yan.

Mr. Yan...

Panicking, Xie Yunshen grabbed the book from the floor.

His fingers trembled as he flipped to that page.

The page where Mr. Yan died...

The exact same description.

Mr. Yan was dead.

How was this possible?

"Ah, our handsome guy is finally awake," a familiar, teasing voice called out.

Xie Yunshen turned abruptly, staring blankly at the man before him.

"Tsk, I mean, boss, you're retired, not dead. I sent you messages and you didn't even reply. Can't you break this habit of reading and ignoring..." The man leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. Seeing Xie Yunshen's pale face, he sighed, "Never mind, seeing your face like this, I can't even stay mad."

Xie Yunshen rose from his kneeling position and grabbed the man. "What time is it now?"

"What time? It's six in the evening, boss! You slept the whole afternoon. I've been waiting in the living room all afternoon..."

"I mean, what's the date today!" Xie Yunshen interrupted him impatiently.

The man calmly shoved his phone in front of Xie Yunshen, lighting up the screen for him to see.

March 7th, early spring.

Xie Yunshen pressed his palm against his forehead, trying to clear his head, standing there in disbelief.

"No, that's not right... Where's Mr. Yan? Isn't Mr. Yan here?"

"Mr. Yan?" The man paused, confused. "Have you gone crazy from reading novels again?"

Xie Yunshen suddenly remembered something and hurriedly sat at the computer, typing in keywords.

"Yan's Group"

The search results showed a Yan's Company, but it was nothing like the Yan's Group he knew—just a small company focused on household appliances.

He searched for "Top Star Gate."

The results were all forum discussions and excerpts from the novel.

There was no Top Star Gate in real life.

Xie Yunshen's heart sank like a stone in a deep pond, plunging into a dark abyss.

So, it was all fake.

A wave of desperate agony spread rapidly from his heart, flooding his bloodstream and pouring out from his chest. It felt as if an invisible hand were suffocating him; the sensation of choking to death was no worse than this.

Before closing his eyes, he had clearly seen Mr. Yan's tears.

And now he was being told it was all just a dream.

Xie Yunshen let his hands fall limply to his sides.

The colleague who had been joking around earlier now wore a serious expression.

Based on their decade of working together, Xie Yunshen was either possessed or had gone mad.

Psychiatric department.

"Your condition is a classic case of delusional disorder," the psychiatrist adjusted his glasses and stated matter-of-factly.

Xie Yunshen made to stand up, but was pinned down by the two colleagues on either side.

"What did you say..." Xie Yunshen, who had just been struggling, suddenly went still.

"This type of psychological phenomenon isn't harmful, as long as it's kept in check..."

"I meant the part before that!"

"Because of mirror neurons, we fall in love with characters in novels."

"Fall in love..." Xie Yunshen muttered to himself.

"Yes, based on your description, you have fallen in love with a character in the novel and have feelings for him."

At this, the two colleagues were also stunned. They looked at each other, and after two seconds of silence, suddenly burst out laughing, doubling over.

Left: "Hahaha... no way..."

Right: "Pfft haha, is this a 'try not to laugh' challenge? I lost."

Left: "Xie Yunshen falling in love with someone? Haha, the world must be ending."

Left and Right: "Old Xie, let's go, this guy's a quack!"

Doctor: "..."