"Qi Weichen, let's break up."
After a long semester of agony, Chu Qing finally said this.
It was the last day of 2019, and a heavy snow fell in city A, turning the whole city white overnight. As most people had stayed up all night the night before, at this time, only Chu Qing and Qi Weichen were left in the usually bustling park.
After saying this, she pinched her palms silently, constantly reminding herself not to be cowardly, while trying to discern his current expression through the tightly wrapped scarf.
"Why?" Qi Weichen was silent for a long time before he spoke. His voice came from the scarf and sounded a little muffled. At first glance, it seemed like he was hit.
… What a joke, Qi Weichen is a god, not a human, and gods cannot be hit. Chu Qing felt that the thought that just popped up in her mind was ridiculous: "Can you take off your scarf first? The sound is not clear at all."
"Cold." Qi Weichen only said one word, but it fully expressed his rejection.
Look, even at this time, he is still worried about Lengre and He. Sure enough, the breakup has no effect on him at all. Chu Qing was relieved, but at the same time, she felt a little uncomfortable: "We have been in love for half a year, and now we are breaking up, and you don't even want to show your face?"
Qi Weichen didn't say anything for a while, and then handed everything in his hands to her. Chu Qing subconsciously took them, and then saw him take off his scarf in front of her, revealing a handsome face.
He was born with a perfect appearance, a pair of eyes like the night in winter, his black pupils revealing a chill that always made people unable to look away, his nose was high and straight, his lips were just right, his features were well-defined and rather cold, plus his 1.85-meter height and fair complexion, and his always clean and tidy school uniform and white sneakers, among the dusty high school students, he was simply the crane among the chickens.
It was because Chu Qing was attracted by his superior face that she embarked on a path of no return.
"Why did you break up?" Qi Weichen spoke again. Without the scarf blocking his voice, his clear and low voice appeared intact in Chu Qing's ears.
Chu Qing had already thought of a reason, and answered directly when he asked: "The college entrance examination is only half a year away, and I want to focus on studying."
Qi Weichen looked at her quietly, without any emotion in his eyes.
Chu Qing was most afraid of him looking at her like this, so she coughed and told the truth: "Okay, actually it's because we are not suitable for each other. Dating is supposed to be a happy thing, but in the end, each of us is more miserable than the other..."
"I don't feel it's hard." Qi Weichen interrupted her rarely.
Chu Qing was helpless: "I've worked so hard! I'm really not good at studying, I'm really not worthy of you!"
When she was chasing him with all her might, she never thought about getting herself a father! Ever since they were together, she had no freedom at all. She was either watched by him studying or tutored by him. The place they often went to meet was the library, and the thing they did most often was doing homework.
After a semester of hard work, Chu Qing's final grades improved a little, but the price she paid was that her reputation as the leader of a high school in City A was gone. Her former subordinates all stayed away from her, and no one respected her as "Master Chu" anymore.
And the most important thing is that despite her hard work, their relationship hasn't made any progress. They've been dating for half a year, but they've only reached the stage of holding hands, and they only hold hands once during the holidays. She deeply feels that Qi Weichen just enjoys the feeling of raising a poor student, and dating is just an excuse.
This semester was simply the most painful time for her since she started school. However, because Qi Weichen's words were all for her own good and she was not good at rejecting good-looking men, she kept putting off the breakup until today when she finally made up her mind to resolve it once and for all.
"We are not the same kind of people. I am such a hopeless person that no matter how much you teach me, I won't improve much. If I continue to be in a relationship with you, it will only waste your time. So, we should break up as soon as possible to avoid wasting your time." Chu Qing analyzed the situation with him seriously.
"No." Qi Weichen said coldly.
Chu Qing said sincerely: "Yes."
Qi Weichen stopped talking, staring at her with a pair of dark eyes.
Chu Qing didn't dare to look him in the eye. She lowered her head awkwardly. Noticing that his things were still in her hands, she asked for something to talk about: "What are these?"
"Pearl seeds, peanuts, hot packs, some snacks and a few test papers." Qi Weichen replied.
Chu Qing paused for a moment, feeling a little touched: "Is it for me?"
"It's for my girlfriend." Qi Weichen said lightly.
Chu Qing's feeling of being touched disappeared instantly: "... So now that we've broken up, you're not going to give it to me anymore, right?"
Qi Weichen lowered his eyes and remained silent. Heavy snow fell from the sky again. The snowflakes landed on his drooping eyelashes and quickly melted, making the corners of his eyes and eyebrows wet.
Seeing that he didn't say anything, Chu Qing didn't want to embarrass him, so she handed all the things to him: "Forget it, forget it, I don't want yours, keep it for yourself."
However, Qi Weichen did not reach out to take it. Chu Qing waited for a long time and had to put it in his hand. After thinking about it, there was nothing else to say. She scratched her head and said awkwardly: "Then... I'm leaving."
Qi Weichen's eyelashes twitched, but he still didn't speak.
Chu Qing sighed and turned to leave. At the moment she turned around, she saw the shadow of a car rushing out of the fountain in the park and crashing straight into them. Chu Qing was startled and grabbed Qi Weichen's arm and fell to the side. The moment she fell to the ground, her eyes went dark for a moment, and then her ears buzzed.
This feeling only lasted for a few seconds before she completely returned to normal. She immediately asked Qi Weichen, who was also lying on the ground, "Are you okay?"
Qi Weichen didn't answer, but frowned and looked behind her. Chu Qing was stunned for a moment, and looked in the direction of his gaze, and saw a long and wide road behind them. At this moment, there was a constant stream of cars on the road, and they were in the middle of the road, in a very dangerous position.
“How could it be…” Chu Qing opened her eyes wide and looked at Qi Weichen in shock.
Qi Weichen was somewhat calmer than her. After a moment of silence, he asked, "Do you feel hot?"
Chu Qing was stunned for a moment, and then she realized that she was hot. Not only was her body hot, but even the air and the roadside were hot. The sun was blazing overhead, and the lush willow trees on both sides of the road and the colorful flowers in the green belts all indicated that it was definitely not winter.
Chu Qing was confused and looked at Qi Weichen with a bewildered look on her face: "What happened?"
"I don't know," Qi Weichen met her gaze, still calm, "but you can go and ask."
Chu Qing: “…”
Half an hour later, the two of them took off all the clothes they could take off, and now they were sitting in the shade on the side of the road wearing only trousers and sweaters. Chu Qing rolled up the sleeves of her sweater, her face still flushed from the heat: "So, we have traveled through time and space, and traveled to 2042?"
"Yeah." Qi Weichen's answer was very concise.
Chu Qing slapped her thigh in grief and anger: "This is ridiculous! I was just hiding from a car, how did I travel through time?! I have an appointment with someone to go to the Internet cafe the day after tomorrow, how can I go now!"
"Even if you haven't traveled through time, you can't go there." Qi Weichen glanced at her.
Chu Qing looked at him: "Why?"
"The flu is serious, and entertainment venues that gather people will most likely be closed." Qi Weichen's temples were covered with sweat, but he spoke calmly, "Even if they are not closed, I suggest you do two more sets of papers at home and don't go out."
As soon as I suggested going out to play, he started to lecture me. Chu Qing, who was already thirsty, became even more depressed: "Let's not talk about the Internet cafe for now. What should we do now? Go home?"
"You can't go home. The technological level of 2042 cannot support time travel. Our time travel must be accidental. If you go back rashly without knowing the specific situation, it is likely to attract the attention of special agencies." The weather was hot, and Qi Weichen's voice flowed slowly like a clear spring.
However, Chu Qing's head was about to explode after hearing this: "I don't want them to notice me!"
"Then don't contact anyone for the time being." Qi Weichen said calmly.
Chu Qing stared at him blankly, and for a while she was completely desperate: "We can't use our own identity, and we can't contact our family. Are we going to be illegal here?"
Qi Weichen was silent for a long time: "No, we will soon know whether we can go home."
"How can you be sure?" Chu Qing asked immediately.
"First, we need to determine whether we can go back to 2019," Qi Weichen said, meeting Chu Qing's confused gaze. After a moment of silence, he explained, "There are two possibilities after we travel through time. One is to stay here and never go back, and the other is to travel back to normal time at some point in the future."
"Is there any difference?" Chu Qing's brain was no longer functioning as she was wearing thick clothes under the scorching sun.
"If it's the former, it means that in the eyes of our family, we have been missing for 23 years. In this case, there are no two of us in the same time and space, so we can go home directly. If it's the latter," Qi Weichen paused, his eyes calm and firm, "I believe that after I go back and grow up to be 41 years old, I will come to help me within three hours."
"?"
"It is 3 pm on August 25, 2042, Beijing time, at the intersection of Linyin Road and Haifeng Road in District C of City A. If the 41-year-old me does not show up within three hours, it means that I will not be able to travel back to 2019 in the future. There is only one Qi Weichen in this time and space in 2042." He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall of the convenience store not far away and said these words with a faint expression.
Chu Qing looked at him in admiration like a fool. Although she didn't understand much, she thought he was very powerful.
Qi Weichen glanced at her, got up and went to the store. After a while, he came back with two bottles of iced water, unscrewed the cap of one of the bottles and handed it to her. Chu Qing quickly took it and drank two gulps. The cool feeling went from her throat to her stomach. She sighed comfortably and then remembered to ask, "How did you get it?"
“I bought it.”
"... It's been more than 20 years, and you still have money to spend?" Chu Qing was a little shocked.
Qi Weichen responded and said casually, "Technology is advancing very quickly. The currency detector can not only verify the authenticity, but also determine the value of non-circulating banknotes. I gave the boss a hundred, and he gave me a bottle of water and three hundred new banknotes."
Chu Qing: “…” You are worthy of it.
Although winter turned into summer in an instant and the year jumped 23 years, but with such a genius student by her side, Chu Qing had calmed down a lot and sat lazily beside him to kill time.
An hour passed.
Two hours passed.
Chu Qing had already drunk three bottles of water, but still no one came to find them. She asked the person next to her uncertainly: "Will you forget to save yourself after traveling back in time?"
"Impossible." Qi Weichen was very sure.
Chu Qing thought, you haven't gone back yet, how do you know it's impossible? But seeing as she couldn't argue with him, she tactfully shut her mouth.
The two continued to wait. There were less than twenty minutes left until six o'clock in the afternoon. During these twenty minutes, Chu Qing felt that every minute and every second was so hard to endure. She looked at Qi Weichen countless times. Every time she saw the sweat on his forehead, she wanted to give up, but she couldn't say anything.
Just when the clock in the store was about to hit six o'clock, Chu Qing said with mixed feelings: "It seems that we are in the first situation. Now we should..."
Before he finished speaking, Qi Weichen suddenly stood up and looked forward. Chu Qing was stunned for a moment, and quickly followed his gaze.
They saw a bald uncle in his forties, wearing a short-sleeved shirt and black suit pants, walking towards them hurriedly. When he saw them, he waved to them eagerly, wiped the sweat from his face, and wiped it on his pants.
Chu Qing swallowed her saliva and uttered after a long while: "When you were 41 years old... you looked quite wealthy."