novelraw Chapter 67 Gift
Chapter 67 Gift
Tap tap tap, tap tap tap.
Chalk danced across the small blackboard.
First.
The […] of that strange experience.
After the Positron Cannon was activated, the text message was not sent successfully. Instead, it was interrupted by a phone call from Nan Xiuxiu, and he pressed the answer button.
For reasons unknown, the instant he pressed answer, dizziness struck, a temporal shift occurred, a Worldline Transition (suspected) … and after he finally recovered his senses, he discovered that he was inside a prison, becoming cellmates with Pi Biao, “Hothead,” “Bookworm,” and “Killer,” and was forcibly dragged into a prison escape.
The chalk stopped.
He looked at the two words specially marked in brackets—suspected.
That’s right.
This was exactly where the contradiction lay.Logically speaking, since dizziness had appeared and his physical location had changed, that alone should have been sufficient proof that a worldline transition had definitely occurred.
Yet the contradiction was this—
After he was shot in the head and killed by a prison guard, he inexplicably experienced another bout of dizziness and temporal-shift symptoms, and then, even more inexplicably, transitioned back again to the moment when the Positron Cannon was activated.
Unfathomable.
Jiang Ran picked up the chalk again.
He wrote […]—Process of the Experience—on the small blackboard.
If he hadn’t misread the electronic clock, that prison experience took place on the morning of September 17, 2045. Today was May 15, 2025.
[…So… during that dizzy temporal shift, was I flung twenty years into the future?]
To be honest, he still didn’t really believe that experience had been real.
Even though every sensation had felt real—including the pain of bone fragments piercing into him when his head was blown apart—
He still couldn’t believe that he had casually taken a trip to the world twenty years in the future.
“If it really was the world twenty years from now, then Qin Feng should be forty already.”
Jiang Ran suddenly thought about age.
Not just Qin Feng being forty—he himself should have been thirty-nine.
But recalling how everyone in the prison had addressed him, it was all things like “kid,” “young brother,” “little bro.”
A thirty-nine-year-old man really shouldn’t match such youthful forms of address, right?
So this was another highly suspicious point, one that couldn’t be explained.
“This problem… let’s shelve it for now.”
There was no helping it.
Questions he couldn’t figure out could only be set aside.
So—
He picked up the chalk once more and wrote the final […]—Result—on the blackboard.
The result was tragic and theatrical.
He had been grabbed by the hair by a prison guard and smashed face-first into a desk twice, nearly half his face obliterated.
He thought he was unquestionably dead, yet after being shot in the head and dying, he somehow “traveled back again,” or rather, “crossed worldlines again,” returning to reality in 2025.
He wasn’t sure why.
Did he fully revive on the previous worldline every time he died?
That would be absurdly overpowered!
“No, no.”
Jiang Ran shook his head hard, quickly banishing that terrifying thought.
If he were asked right now to test whether suicide could return him to Worldline 0… he absolutely wouldn’t dare.
He was far more willing to believe that some other factor caused that headshot to yank his consciousness from 2045 back to 2025.
“Alright, that’s the whole thing, basically.”
He tossed aside the chalk, clapped his hands, and looked at the summarized conclusions on the small blackboard.
Having sorted everything out from top to bottom, his thoughts felt much clearer.
Then—
It was time to analyze the conclusion.
“So what exactly was that suspected trip to 2045… in essence?”
Jiang Ran came up with three possibilities:
[1. A pure delusional hallucination.]
The human brain can fall into confusion under many conditions—heatstroke, poisonous mushrooms, extreme exhaustion, and so on.
He jumped between worldlines so frequently that if it caused some side effect on his brain, it wouldn’t be impossible.
[2. The time travel was real. I really went to the future twenty years from now.]
There wasn’t much theoretical support for this guess.
If he had to force an explanation, maybe the dent smashed into the Positron Cannon casing damaged some internal component.
As a result, the Positron Cannon’s function accidentally changed, transmitting his consciousness to a future worldline.
This conclusion was ridiculous—let’s count it for now just to make up the numbers.
[3. I did not travel through time. Instead, my brain was forcibly stuffed with a segment of memory.]
Jiang Ran felt this possibility was more likely.
After all, subjectively he had spent an hour in the prison, yet not even one second was missing in the real world. In terms of temporal continuity, that didn’t really add up.
His own memory was already chaotic to begin with.
First, he possessed the All-Spacetime Memory trait named by Cheng Mengxue, allowing him to retain memories of previous worldlines, but not the current one.
Second, he genuinely had a history of amnesia.
From Xu Yan, he learned that when Cheng Mengxue was in a car accident, he had clearly been right beside her and witnessed the entire event—yet afterward he had no memory of it whatsoever… which was also highly suspicious.
And finally, there was the completely inexplicable resurrection after death.
A skull shattered and still coming back to life was impossible by both physics and biology. Only memory implantation made any sense.
“Sigh…”
Jiang Ran let out a long breath.
Things were getting more and more troublesome.
He could only hope that this unexpected experience had been nothing more than a freak farce.
“Tomorrow morning, May 16, I’ll conduct another time-traveling text experiment with Chi Xiaoguo.”
He looked at the calendar on his phone.
“There won’t be any accidental phone calls interfering. If everything goes smoothly, the time-traveling text will be sent to the college entrance exam two years ago… and Xiaoxue will be able to avoid the car accident and come back to life.”
“At that point, all these guesses and conclusions won’t matter anymore. Compared to Xiaoxue’s life, everything else is worthless.”
He picked up the blackboard eraser.
Swipe.
Jiang Ran wiped every last word off the small blackboard.
Then he turned off the lights, locked the door, left the activity room, and left Donghai University.
He took a taxi back to his junior college, went to the library, and spent another full day studying CRTs, focusing units, electron guns, and electron beams.
It wasn’t until six in the evening that he finally lifted his head and looked at the sunset gradually sinking outside the window.
“Time to go.”
He closed the book.
“Happy birthday!”
“Happy birthday!”
“Happy birthday!”
The moment he pushed open the villa door, several party poppers exploded right in front of him, ribbons and petals filling the air and burying him completely.
Jiang Ran instinctively stepped back, looking at the ambushing crowd at the entrance, all laughing loudly.
On the right, laughing the hardest, was naturally Wang Hao.
Behind Wang Hao stood dormmates No. 1 through No. 5, each holding a party popper and grinning.
This was completely unexpected.
On Worldline 1, did he really have such good popularity?
For a small birthday, all his dormmates showed up dressed up—it was a bit overwhelming.
It seemed he did possess a certain amount of personal charm.
However…
When his gaze shifted to the left, he immediately realized how shallow he’d been.
On the left side stood an entire row of girls.
At the front was Nan Xiuxiu holding a party popper, and behind her, lined up in a row, was her group of close friends.
It had to be said—the quality of Nan Xiuxiu’s friend group was insanely high. Every single one had fair skin, stunning looks, and long legs. It was basically a model squad, an idol girl group.
No wonder all five dormmates showed up—two of them were even wearing ties…
They were definitely here for Nan Xiuxiu’s friend group.
No.
98.74%.
“Birthday boy! Get inside already! We’ve been waiting forever!”
A very familiar blonde girl in a camisole shoved Jiang Ran inside.
He remembered her.
He had seen her before—on the day of the worldline transition, at the same birthday villa, this blonde camisole girl had shared a bedroom with Nan Xiuxiu.
The massive villa living room was lavishly decorated, the atmosphere festive.
A huge round table in the center was packed with all kinds of food, along with a gigantic birthday cake close to twenty inches wide…
How was anyone supposed to finish this?
Written on the cake in cream were the words “Happy Birthday, Jiang Ran!”, and someone had even carefully drawn a pink chibi doodle.
Only—
That gloomy expression, that world-weary gaze, that ridiculously smug pout, that sky-high, punchable mouth corner…
Jiang Ran pointed at the doodle character on the cake, puzzled.
“This doodle… don’t tell me that’s me?”
“It’s you,” everyone nodded.
“Is it?”
Nan Xiuxiu pointed at the chibi.
“You wear that stinking face every day.”
Jiang Ran didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
When he was in school, the type he hated most was this half-melancholic, half-bright, pretentious, fake-deep show-off.
On the internet, it seemed this archetype was collectively called “Jiahao.”
The punchable kid on the cake was, without question, a “purebred, competition-grade Jiahao.”
Wang Hao snorted and looked at Jiang Ran.
“You saying that’s not you?”
“I say it’s not you either!!”
Wang Hao suddenly exploded, leaping up and pointing furiously at Jiang Ran.
[…You’re not Jiang Ran at all!! Who the hell are you!!!]
The room fell dead silent.
Everyone stared at Jiang Ran, their eyes waiting for something.
Jiang Ran froze.
Facing Wang Hao’s furious glare and his rigidly outstretched finger, his heart trembled.
He saw through it?
Thinking back on their interactions over this period, Wang Hao had told him several times, “You’ve changed.”
On Worldline 1, they were close friends who lived together day in and day out. After Cheng Mengxue’s death, Wang Hao should have been the person who understood Jiang Ran best on this worldline—perhaps even better than Jiang Ran himself.
So—
Had Wang Hao realized that he had crossed worldlines and replaced the original Jiang Ran of this worldline, and was now calling him out?
“I…”
Jiang Ran was momentarily at a loss for words.
“Huh?”
Wang Hao looked confused.
“Bro, did you forget? Isn’t this mid-dialogue bit something everyone can recite backward?”
“Huh?”
Jiang Ran was stunned too.
“What are you talking about?”
“What do you mean what am I talking about!”
Wang Hao spread his hands.
“You were the one who started the Let the Bullets Fly meme, and now you can’t even finish the dialogue yourself!”
Several dormmates chimed in with disdain:
“Can’t even follow up a trash meme—fake Jiang Ran!”
“Ma Bangde, Ma Bangde, I told you you couldn’t be a county magistrate, yet you still insisted on buying the office!”
“This is so lame! Everyone was waiting for you to deliver the line, and you just dropped a massive turd!”
The tense atmosphere instantly dissolved, and the living room burst back into laughter.
“Have you been too tired lately? Your brain’s not turning!”
Nan Xiuxiu unfolded a birthday hat and placed it on Jiang Ran’s head.
“Seeing how scared you looked just now, I thought Wang Hao had really frightened you.”
“That just means my acting was good!”
Wang Hao thumped his chest.
“What do you think? Aren’t short dramas super popular now? You guys think I could land a role? I’m great at playing villains!”
Wang Hao’s humor drew giggles from the girls. No one paid any attention to Jiang Ran’s momentary slip anymore.
Jiang Ran lowered his head, saying nothing.
How could he not feel guilty?
He suddenly recalled a scene from The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber—the conversation between Zhou Zhiruo and Zhang Wuji.
After Zhang Wuji and Zhou Zhiruo broke apart, their first meeting afterward was when Zhang Wuji sought her help.
Zhou Zhiruo said: “We once had a marriage pact. My husband is now on the brink of death, and since I spared your life today, others will surely say I still harbor old feelings for you. If I invite you to help again, the heroes of the world will curse me as shameless and promiscuous.”
Zhang Wuji hurriedly replied: “We need only be true to our own conscience. Why care what others say?”
But Zhou Zhiruo answered with a single sentence that left Zhang Wuji speechless:
“What if I am not true to my conscience?”
Yes.
If Jiang Ran were truly without guilt, how could he have failed to recognize that the seemingly accidental exchange earlier perfectly matched the classic dialogue from the famous film Let the Bullets Fly?
That three–Best Actor showdown had been viral for over a decade across major video platforms. Jiang Ran could recite it backward in his sleep.
Yet just now, because of a moment of guilt, Wang Hao’s unexpectedly strong acting had overwhelmed him.
Worldline 1 was not a worldline that belonged to Jiang Ran at all.
Everything here felt unfamiliar to him…
Unfamiliar dormmates,
An unfamiliar girlfriend,
An unfamiliar school,
An unfamiliar history,
An unfamiliar world.
To him, this was a dream he was destined to escape.
He would eventually have to reclaim his friends, reclaim his past life, reclaim the worldline that belonged to him.
Before his eyes—
Everyone in this living room.
They all knew him, were familiar with him, and had been closely interacting with him for two years.
But from Jiang Ran’s perspective—
He had no memories of this worldline.
So to him, everyone was a stranger.
Right now, he was like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, hiding among a flock, trying to pass himself off.
“Alright, alright. Jiang Ran’s just too tired, that’s all.”
Nan Xiuxiu quickly stepped in to smooth things over.
“He’s been super busy lately. He and some friends from Donghai University’s radiation club are preparing for a competition.”
“That’s Donghai University—we’re talking top three in the entire Dragon Country. Of course it takes a ton of effort.”
Wow.
Both the dorm group and the friend group were shocked.
This was the first time they’d heard about it.
“Seriously?”
The blonde camisole girl stared wide-eyed at Jiang Ran.
“You’re actually working on a project with top students from Donghai University!”
“Of course!” Nan Xiuxiu planted her hands on her hips, beaming with pride.
Then—
She turned to Jiang Ran, smiling sweetly.
“Jiang Ran, even though you haven’t been able to spend time with me at all lately, I was a little upset.”
“But after thinking it through, I realized everyone has their own aspirations. I can’t hold you back from important things. Anyway, it’s good that you’ve found something you truly love.”
“When you and your friends from Donghai University win an award in the competition, we’ll celebrate again together!”
Jiang Ran smiled faintly and said nothing.
Once the first lie was told, it took countless lies to patch it up.
At this point, he had no idea how to continue fabricating the lie about “preparing a competition with friends from Donghai University.”
He could only place his hopes on the time-traveling text being successfully sent tomorrow morning.
And let everything before his eyes—
Turn into dust that vanished with the dissolution of a worldline.
“Come on, come on! Light the candles and sing the birthday song already!”
Wang Hao pulled number candles from a paper bag—one big 1 and one big 9—stuck them into the cake, and lit them.
Nan Xiuxiu stood up to turn off the lights. The entire living room fell into darkness, lit only by the two orange candle flames illuminating everyone’s faces.
“Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~”
After the birthday song, everyone urged Jiang Ran to make a wish and blow out the candles.
“Birthday boy, hurry up and make a wish!”
“This is your last nineteenth birthday—it’s definitely super effective!”
“Quiet, you guys! Let Jiang Ran make his wish properly!”
Facing everyone’s expectant gazes, Jiang Ran was swept up by the atmosphere as well.
He stared at the two flickering flames in the darkness, as if they were chasing two figures no longer by his side.
He clasped his hands.
Closed his eyes.
Facing the candlelight of his nineteenth birthday, Jiang Ran devoutly spoke the deepest wish in his heart:
[…I hope the time-traveling text sends successfully tomorrow, and saves Cheng Mengxue…]
[…I hope the time-traveling text sends successfully tomorrow, and saves Cheng Mengxue…]
[…I hope the time-traveling text sends successfully tomorrow, and saves Cheng Mengxue…]
After silently repeating it three times, he took a deep breath and blew out the candles amid applause.
“Fanghu~”
The blonde camisole girl raised her brows and started teasing.
“Hehe, what do you think Jiang Ran wished for?”
Wang Hao immediately answered.
“Obviously something about Xiuxiu!”
He burst into laughter.
“Don’t let Jiang Ran’s straight-laced look fool you—he’s totally a repressed perv on the inside!”
The others nodded along, throwing blessing-filled looks toward Jiang Ran and Nan Xiuxiu.
“Hehe, what a perfect match—talented guy and beautiful girl!”
“Jiang Ran’s wish must be to stay together with Xiuxiu forever, a hundred years of harmony!”
“Eh? Am I the only one thinking something else? Shouldn’t it be—”
Nan Xiuxiu hurriedly waved her hands.
“Hey, stop talking! Wishes don’t work if you say them out loud.”
“Alright, alright. It’s getting late, and the food’s getting cold. Let’s hurry into the gift segment, then start eating!”
After that.
Everyone took turns handing Jiang Ran their gifts.
The guys’ gifts were very casual—mostly small things, or very abstract things.
For example, in 2025, one dormmate actually gave him a Chicken Bro figurine… what kind of living fossil was this?
Another dormmate straight-up gave him a pack of cigarettes.
Jiang Ran accepted it blankly.
“Uh… I remember I don’t smoke, right?”
He wasn’t confident about this setting.
On Worldline 0, he definitely didn’t smoke.
But on Worldline 1, everyone said that after Cheng Mengxue died, he’d been depressed out of his mind—was it possible he picked up smoking during that time?
“Right, you don’t smoke.”
The dormmate replied.
“But we do! Just remember to bring it back to the dorm later!”
…………
Amazing. Left hand to right hand, internal economic circulation—truly worthy of a boys’ dorm.
The girls’ gifts, on the other hand, were pressure-inducing.
Nan Xiuxiu’s friend group seemed to be made up of rich girls. Their gifts were all expensive, mostly brand-name items, which made Jiang Ran anxious about how to return the favor.
Of course, the best solution was to restart the worldline tomorrow morning. Then these gifts would disappear, and return gifts wouldn’t be needed either.
Finally—
It was Nan Xiuxiu’s turn.
She smiled mysteriously and handed Jiang Ran a green gift box.
“Guess what’s inside?”