novelraw Chapter 130 Between Brothers
Chapter 130 Between Brothers
Jiang Ran noticed it.
The moment the name Fang Ze was spoken, even the ever-composed and unflappable Killer showed a flicker of panic across his face.
Though it vanished in an instant, Jiang Ran had been watching him the entire time—and caught it.
So…
Just as he had guessed.
A pair of ill-fated brothers.
The Killer slowly stood, walked to the iron-barred vehicle door, and met Jiang Ran’s gaze from less than twenty centimeters away.
“You know my younger brother?”
“Yes.”
“Is he doing well? Did he send you here?”Jiang Ran only smiled, neither confirming nor denying.
He understood the principle—say too much, and you slip.
He did know Fang Ze from 2025. But this was 2045. No one could say what state Fang Ze was in now. Better to say less than more.
“Your brother asked me to tell you—”
Jiang Ran delivered the line he had prepared in advance:
“After you escape, don’t keep doing what you used to do. Turn over a new leaf. Start again.”
That wasn’t a lie.
Because during his all-night conversation with Fang Ze yesterday, that had indeed been the meaning he wanted to convey.
Fang Ze desperately wanted to stop his brother from continuing down that path. He wanted him to stop—completely. Even if it meant calling the police and having his own brother arrested, he wouldn’t hesitate.
Jiang Ran had thought those words would surely move the Killer.
However…
Unexpectedly—
The Killer, after hearing them, revealed a calm, relieved smile instead. His entire demeanor seemed to lighten:
“[That’s not something my brother would say.]”
“What?” Jiang Ran remained composed.
The Killer clenched his fist, eyes sharp as he stared at Jiang Ran:
“[My brother would never say something like that to me. He’s not that weak. And in his eyes… our relationship isn’t that good.]”
Jiang Ran met his gaze in silence. No words. No expression.
That same sense of dissonance surfaced again.
Last night, he had already felt it—how the Fang Ze described by Fang Ze himself differed drastically from the Killer he had seen with his own eyes in the future prison.
And now—
The Fang Ze described by the Killer also differed greatly from the roommate he had spoken to openly just last night.
So what exactly was going on?
[Which one of them is lying?]
If he laid it out carefully, it looked like this—
In Fang Ze’s eyes, his older brother Fang Yang was a stubborn fool, brainwashed by the Mutual Aid Society of Regrets, someone who had gone completely off the rails.
But from Jiang Ran’s interactions, the Killer—Fang Yang—in the future prison was calm, experienced, and resolute. Even Jiang Ran, an openly declared time traveler, couldn’t fool him. Let alone the crude doctrine of the Mutual Aid Society of Regrets.
On the other hand—
According to Fang Yang, his younger brother was not weak or helpless at all. He would never say something like “persuading someone to be good.” And in his brother’s eyes, their relationship wasn’t close.
Yet in Jiang Ran’s eyes, Fang Ze was a soft-featured, almost delicate young man. His voice was gentle, his mannerisms timid. And when he spoke of his brother last night, his eyes had been full of helplessness—almost anguish.
Contradiction.
Contradiction.
Contradiction.
There were inconsistencies everywhere in how Fang Ze and Fang Yang perceived each other.
But…
It wasn’t something that could be concluded so simply.
Because the Killer was, by nature, extremely cautious.
From his perspective, Jiang Ran was a stranger who had appeared less than two minutes ago. Even if he believed Jiang Ran was a time traveler, when it came to his own brother… he still wouldn’t fully trust him.
So this was very likely a reverse probe.
The Killer might be deliberately saying the opposite—trying to test whether Jiang Ran truly knew his brother, baiting him to see if he would slip.
Either way—
The words had already been spoken. Like water spilled, they couldn’t be taken back.
Right or wrong, Jiang Ran decided to continue the act. No backtracking. He would watch how the Killer responded.
At worst…
Tomorrow morning, in the next loop, he could start over.
“Whether you believe it or not—that’s your business.”
Jiang Ran turned around, expression unchanged.
“I’ve delivered your brother’s message.”
Then, to maintain an air of composure, he walked unhurriedly into Lu Yu’s Cell No. 4 infirmary room and patted his gaunt, withered face, trying to wake him.
At present, Lu Yu’s background was still a complete mystery.
Everyone knew he had won the Nobel Prize in Physics. Everyone knew he had graduated from Donghai University. But the problem was—among this year’s incoming students, his name simply didn’t exist.
Could it be…
That Lu Yu had transferred into Donghai University midway?
Hmm.
Actually, that was quite possible.
Donghai City had a unique transfer-student system that gave undergraduate students within the city a “second college entrance exam” opportunity.
Since its implementation in 2000, it had helped countless freshmen who had underperformed in the national exam to transfer into top-tier universities like Donghai University and Jiaotong University. Their diplomas were identical to those who entered through the regular exam.
Many families from other provinces weren’t aware of this information gap, often missing this “second chance.”
But in the end, this was just Jiang Ran’s speculation.
If he wanted to truly find out where Lu Yu was in September 2025…
He would probably have to ask Lu Yu himself.
“Lu Yu? Lu Yu?”
Jiang Ran tried every method to wake him, but there was no response.
Those pitch-black eyes stared blankly, unfocused—no one knew what he was looking at, or thinking.
“…Sigh.”
Jiang Ran couldn’t help but sigh.
What was he supposed to do?
Then—
Following the usual routine—
The five-person team regrouped and began the prison break.
Jiang Ran still carried Lu Yu on his back. To get past the right corridor with the guards and police dogs, Lu Yu remained a crucial “tool.”
Though he was essentially an immobile obstacle, placing this living obstacle behind Hothead would make him anxious, restless, irritable.
Which would, in turn, trigger a chain reaction—when faced with the countdown of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, he would grow impatient, jump early, stiffen his expression, draw the guards’ attention…
And so on.
When they reached the equipment room, something unexpected happened.
The Killer—
The same Killer who had just maintained composure, insisting his brother would never say such things—
actually approached Jiang Ran on his own and started talking.
“Which era are you from?”
“No comment,” Jiang Ran replied.
The Killer always held back on key information. Jiang Ran wasn’t some obedient assistant who answered every question.
“My brother… is he doing well?”
Leaning against the wall, the Killer asked again:
“He must be married by now, right? Does he have children?”
“Heh.”
Jiang Ran smiled without answering.
“Killer, if you want to know about your brother, you can wait until after we escape and see for yourself.”
“But escaping isn’t easy. You’ve probably noticed—I haven’t come here just once, and this isn’t the first time I’ve led you in an escape. Yet even now, there’s still no sign of success.”
“We’re missing too much information. Limited time, limited ability—it’s hard to break through all these layers.”
“So we’d rather be more honest with each other. The more information we share, the better our chances.”
The Killer narrowed his eyes.
“What do you want to know?”
Jiang Ran turned to face him.
“I want to know about the spacetime shuttle at Donghai University. About the Mutual Aid Society of Regrets. And…”
“[Who exactly you killed back then.]”
Silence.
After a few seconds, the Killer chuckled softly.
“I see. You’re from 2025.”
“I really didn’t expect it… Jiang Ran, you’re from the past—from twenty years ago. According to the rumors, the spacetime shuttle can only send people to the past, not the future.”
“So how did you manage this? Heh… forget it. I’m sure you won’t tell me anyway.”
Jiang Ran said nothing. He simply watched him.
That the Killer could immediately deduce he was from 2025 wasn’t strange.
Clearly, the murder had occurred in 2025. So Jiang Ran could only be from before that—before the killing happened.
Otherwise…
If it were after the murder, or after imprisonment, no one would ask such a foolish question. Anyone would already know who he killed.
“But… Jiang Ran, I still can’t give you the answer.”
The Killer held firm.
“If it’s for escaping, I’d give my life without hesitation.”
“But if you want answers to those questions… I’m sorry. Unless I see sunlight outside this prison, I won’t say a word.”
Hmph.
As expected.
Jiang Ran felt helpless.
The Killer was exactly that kind of person—cautious, airtight.
The reason he refused to speak was simple: he was afraid Jiang Ran was making empty promises.
In his mind, Jiang Ran was leading this escape precisely for those answers.
That was his only bargaining chip. His only hope of escape.
From the Killer’s perspective, Jiang Ran was a time traveler who had come here many times. Naturally, he would worry—once he handed over that final bargaining chip, Jiang Ran might never return.
An unresolvable chain of suspicion. A trust crisis that couldn’t be proven.
“This also concerns your brother’s safety.”
Since everything was already on the table, Jiang Ran pressed further:
“If you tell me these things, it might help your brother deal with his current troubles. An organization like the Mutual Aid Society of Regrets—you wouldn’t want your brother getting involved, would you?”
The Killer let out a low laugh.
“Then I’d rather not get out at all.”
He spread his hands.
“To be honest, I won’t gamble with my brother’s safety. Even if I spend my entire life in this prison, I won’t risk causing him trouble.”
“I can’t judge whether telling you these answers here would help him—or harm him.”
“So… if you really have the ability to get me out, we’ll talk outside.”
At that moment, Pi Biao and Hothead came out from inside, holding two tear gas grenades, complaining they didn’t know how to use them.
The Killer took them directly and slipped them into his pocket.
Jiang Ran picked up an electric baton and followed the group toward the fork in the corridor.
Along the way, he watched the Killer’s back.
Amid all the contradictions, one thing was certain.
Between these two brothers—
Whether from Fang Ze’s account, or Fang Yang’s behavior—
there was one undeniable truth:
[The older brother’s feelings for the younger brother are absolutely sincere, absolutely protective, absolutely genuine.]
Everything the Killer considered revolved around his brother.
He went to prison for his brother.
He was escaping—for his brother.
His brother was the sole driving force of his life.
As for the younger brother…
Whether Fang Ze’s helpless sincerity last night was real, or whether he was as cold as the Killer claimed—
That would have to be determined through further observation.
Jiang Ran trusted only his own eyes. Only his own judgment.
Even if Fang Ze had been deliberately playing the role of a weak younger brother—it didn’t matter.
Then they could both keep acting.
He didn’t mind continuing to play the role of a caring older brother.
After all—
His current priority was still information.
Information about the spacetime shuttle.
Information about the Mutual Aid Society of Regrets.
Information about Lilith, Zhou Weili’s phone, the setting script…
Jiang Ran lifted his head and looked at the Killer’s thin back.
“Killer.”
He spoke softly.
“Have you ever heard of… Lilith?”