mijobooks Chapter 103 Calling out someone else's name in my dream? Lin Zhou: It was actually myself.
Chapter 103 Calling out someone else's name in my dream? Lin Zhou: It was actually myself.
"...Seventh Brother."
These two words are light and airy, like a feather falling on the water.
But in Lin Zhou's ears, it was like two depth charges exploding loudly.
His muscles tensed instantly, and his arm, which was supporting him on the edge of the bed, trembled violently, almost causing him to fall onto Su Qingge.
Seventh brother.
This code name was both too familiar and too distant for him.
That was his only identity when he walked on the edge of darkness and traversed through a hail of bullets.
The problem is, how did Su Qingge know?
In this world, in this family, he was always just Lin Zhou, the gigolo who only knew how to stay around the stove and occasionally spout nonsense.
"Could it be...?"
Lin Zhou stared at Su Qingge's face, which still had a slight frown even in her sleep, and the switch in his mind called "vinegar jar" was kicked over with a snap.
An extremely absurd yet perfectly reasonable conjecture grew wildly in his mind like weeds.
Could it be that she's not calling for me?
Could it be another man in this world named "Old Seven"?
"Well done, Su Qingge, you've kept it well hidden."
Lin Zhou felt as if there was a wad of cotton stuffed in his chest, making him feel suffocated.
He slowly straightened up, looked at the cold moonlight outside the window, and a self-deprecating bitter smile appeared on his lips.
No wonder.
No wonder she proposed to me so resolutely on that rainy night seven years ago.
No wonder that although she was indifferent over the past seven years, she never abandoned him.
So, I was a stand-in?!
Is it because I look like that so-called "Seventh Brother"? Or is it that I have that person's shadow in me?
"I'm actually jealous of a dead person, or some random guy?"
Lin Zhou clutched his chest, feeling a faint scent of green tea wafting from his "soft rice hat" (a metaphor for being a kept man).
Although that "wild man" could very well be her past self, in Su Qingge's mind, they were two different people!
In her dream, she called out another man's code name, still in that tone of dependence and longing.
Who can stand this?
"Su Qingge, you're amazing, you really are amazing."
Lin Zhou ground his back teeth, just about to reach out and pinch her nose to wake her up and ask her what was going on.
Just then.
Deep within my mind, the system notification sound that had been silent for so long suddenly rang out without warning.
**[Ding! A severe logical conflict has been detected in the host's emotions!]**
**[Memory Mist Unlocking Progress: 10%... Loading key memory fragments...]**
"Buzz—"
A sharp ringing sound instantly pierced my brain.
Lin Zhou's vision went black, and his body swayed. He had to support himself on the bedside table with one hand.
The surrounding bedroom, the moonlight, and the sleeping wife and daughter all seemed to recede like the tide at this moment.
Instead, there was a blazing fire and the acrid smell of gunpowder.
That was seven years ago.
It wasn't a rainy night in Beijing, but across the ocean, in a chaotic neighborhood engulfed in war.
The screen shakes violently, like a first-person action movie.
"boom!"
A rocket exploded in the street not far away, sending debris flying.
In my memory, Lin Zhou—or rather, "Old Seven"—was wearing a bulletproof tactical vest, his face painted with camouflage paint, and he was crouching down as he ran wildly down the corridor of an abandoned building.
His mission was to evacuate, but before that, he had to ensure the safety of one of the hostages.
"Help... Is anyone there...?"
A faint cry for help came from a room that had been partially destroyed by the bomb.
Old Seven kicked open the deformed door.
Beneath the swirling dust and the precariously collapsing beams, a shivering Chinese girl huddled.
She was wearing her performance costume, her face covered in ash, her eyes filled with despair and fear, like a frightened fawn.
That is……
Su Qingge, 20 years old.
That year, she had just debuted and was performing abroad with her troupe when she unfortunately encountered a local armed riot.
The seventh brother in my memory didn't waste any words. He rushed over and pulled her out from under the rubble, took off his bulletproof vest and covered her with it, then held her protectively in his arms with one hand.
"Don't be afraid, come with me."
That was their only conversation.
They broke through enemy lines amidst a hail of bullets.
Only after she was put on the evacuation helicopter did the girl clutch his sleeve tightly and ask, crying:
"What's your name? I'll repay you!"
The seventh brother didn't turn around; he simply turned his back to her, waved, and left behind a dashing yet cold silhouette.
"Code name Seventh, forget about it."
The scene abruptly ended.
Lin Zhou suddenly opened his eyes, panting heavily, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
He stared at the ceiling, his gaze gradually clearing from confusion to a complex, indescribable look.
"Holy crap..."
Lin Zhou couldn't help but curse under his breath.
It turned out to be the case.
So this is what a "closed loop" is.
There is absolutely no such thing as stand-in literature, nor any wild men.
He was the one who saved her abroad seven years ago, and he was the one who took her in on a rainy night after she returned to China.
The "Seventh Brother" she called out in her dream was her longing for her savior.
The man she married in real life, "Lin Zhou," was repaying a debt of gratitude to a down-on-his-luck young man.
So this woman has always loved me, both emotionally and physically?!
"This is fucking..."
Looking at Su Qingge sleeping peacefully in his arms, Lin Zhou felt the sourness in his heart instantly disappear, replaced by a feeling of fullness and tightness.
She actually remembered it all along.
Even if it's just a fleeting encounter, even if it's just a code name.
She kept that gratitude and dependence hidden for seven whole years, and perhaps... that was the underlying reason why she chose to marry him without hesitation back then?
"Silly woman, so you recognized me all along? Or... were you just gambling?"
Lin Zhou reached out and gently traced his fingertips across her delicate eyebrows and eyes, his movements incredibly tender.
Regardless of the reason.
This affection is too heavy.
Just as Lin Zhou was immersed in this belated truth, his heart filled with mixed emotions.
"Sizzle—sizzle—"
A very slight vibration came from the pair of pants he had casually placed on the bedside table.
It's not a smartphone.
It was the Nokia that he had thrown away, but then inexplicably got a replacement card for.
Lin Zhou's eyes narrowed, his previous tenderness vanished instantly, replaced by a sharpness like a blade.
He rolled out of bed, picked up his phone, and moved with the lightness of a black panther hunting its prey.
I went out onto the balcony and closed the door.
On the screen was an encrypted text message.
There was no sender, only a short line of text that carried an unquestionable, commanding tone:
**"The Masked Singer Auditions. Plan B, activated."**
"Seventh Brother, you can't escape this time."
Lin Zhou stared at the line of text, the blue light from the phone screen reflecting on his face, flickering on and off.
He took a cigarette out of his pocket, sniffed it, but didn't light it.
Is there no way to avoid it?
Lin Zhou turned around, glanced at his sleeping wife and daughter through the glass, and a cold, extremely dangerous smile slowly curled at the corner of his mouth.
Since you insist on forcing me to take action.
Then I'll show you what it means to be—
A max-level character slaughtered newbies in the starting village.
"Feed?"
He didn't reply to the text message, but instead dialed a number directly, his voice low but carrying a lazy, murderous aura:
"Director Yan? This is Lin Zhou."
"Reserve a spot for me on that Masked Singer competition tomorrow."