RRP Extra 6

Ji Ling was driving, taking Yan Yixuan down Zhongchuan Road.

 

The familiar scenery rolled by outside the window. When Ji Ling finally arrived at their destination, he parked the car but didn’t say anything right away.

 

Yan Yixuan got out on his own, and Ji Ling followed, stepping out from the driver’s seat.

 

And then, the moment he looked up, he saw the Western-style house peeking over the wall, its windows glowing softly with light through the delicate carvings.

 

Ji Ling opened his mouth like he wanted to speak, but no words came out.

 

He and Yan Yixuan stood there, side by side, wrapped in silence.

 

Ji Ling pulled himself out of the whirlpool of memories and turned to look at Yan Yixuan, who happened to be looking back at him.

 

The two of them just stared at each other.

 

After a moment, Ji Ling couldn’t help glancing over at Jun Garden again. This time, Yan Yixuan spoke first. “Don’t expect me to invite you in.”

 

Ji Ling let out a laugh. “I know.”

 

This was a place it had taken him years to move into. That front door—it was like Yan Yixuan’s last line of defense. You don’t just break through that whenever you feel like it.

 

But even knowing that, he still felt a little regret. He was standing outside now, yet he knew everything inside by heart.

 

Maybe it was the place, maybe the moment—Ji Ling felt a wave of nostalgia.

 

Yan Yixuan followed his gaze, then suddenly said, “Every time we were together, I always felt like you were thinking about something else.”

 

That was a bit unfair. Ji Ling answered honestly, “Even if I was thinking, it was still about you.”

 

Looking right at you, and still missing you at the same time.

 

Missing the days they spent together. A feeling someone like the present-day Yan Yixuan probably wouldn’t understand.

 

But Yan Yixuan said, “It’s really strange. Everything you did always felt so out of place to me… yet I kept going along with the version of you you gave me.”

 

As he said it, there was a hint of confusion in his eyes, but he looked straight at Ji Ling, gaze firm.

 

He asked, “So, have we met before?”

 

Ji Ling’s heart skipped a beat. “Of course we’ve met.”

 

Yan Yixuan added, “I mean, I know you’re Zong Bolin, not like that.” But as he spoke, he fell quiet, slipping into his own thoughts.

 

Of course, Ji Ling had carefully chosen his words to speak in a way that he knew would interest Yan Yixuan, to draw him in. Naturally, Yan Yixuan would feel a sense of familiarity.

 

Ji Ling reassured him, “Isn’t that a good thing? It means we get along really well.”

 

Yan Yixuan observed him closely, staring at him for a long time, and eventually gave up on his contemplation. He finally said, “Alright then, I’ll head back first.”

 

As Yan Yixuan turned to leave, Ji Ling called out loudly, “Young Master Yan, how far am I from winning the bet?”

 

Yan Yixuan smiled and gestured with his hand, indicating that it wasn’t too long, but not too short either.

 

Ji Ling watched as Yan Yixuan entered Jin Garden, feeling as though the night in the garden was about to swallow him whole.

 

This scene felt oddly familiar.

 

Ji Ling returned to the hotel under the night sky.

 

Perhaps it was because they had just reached Jin Garden’s gate today, but his mind kept drifting to many things from the past.

 

He had once sunbathed leisurely in Jin Garden’s backyard. Back then, life seemed so easy and carefree. He couldn’t help but imagine, if he hadn’t been in that car accident, what would have happened to Zong Bolin?

 

But he immediately dismissed the thought. With the stubborn and headstrong Zong Bolin from that time, he probably would have had a constant rift with his younger brother, and he certainly wouldn’t have developed a romantic relationship with Yan Yixuan.

 

Better not to think about it.

 

Then, fate had allowed him to return with his memories intact—not only could he be Zong Bolin again, but the company was still his, and he could correct his past mistakes, improve his relationship with his brother, and even continue pursuing Yan Yixuan.

 

Ji Ling couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time. Did he think the heavens were toying with him? But perhaps, in truth, the heavens were being kind to him?

 

However—

 

That kiss from Yan Yixuan today had stirred up his emotions, and Jin Garden had triggered a flood of memories. Without thinking, Ji Ling turned the car toward the hospital.

 

It was already late, well past visiting hours, but as the one paying for the medical expenses, Ji Ling had a caregiver’s card and smoothly entered the ward.

 

On the hospital bed, the real Ji Ling lay quietly.

 

Ji Ling thought to himself, why hadn’t he woken up yet? It seemed that they would never truly meet face to face.

 

Sighing, Ji Ling sat by the bed.

 

The nurse mentioned that Yan Yixuan often came to visit. Ji Ling couldn’t help but wonder, was this face really so appealing to Yan Yixuan?

 

The person lying on the bed was delicate and fragile, with skin as white as paper. At this moment, his large, pitch-black eyes were tightly shut, and his delicate face held no sign of life.

 

Ji Ling remembered how much time he had spent working on his own body, just so he could look a bit stronger.

 

It was this fragile person who had become a kind of proof.

 

If he hadn’t been lying here all this time, Ji Ling might’ve started to question whether his former self had ever really existed at all.

 

He couldn’t help but wonder—had he gotten too greedy?

 

He already had everything, yet he still missed Luo Tao’s shameless jokes, missed his group of energetic employees who would chirp ‘Boss, boss’ all day long without a care.

 

And he missed Yan Yixuan—who had been by his side ever since he became Ji Ling, walking every step of the way with him.

 

Ji Ling had always been someone who only looked forward, never lingering in the past. But this time, he found himself looking back.

 

He sighed again and looked at the person on the hospital bed, the one who still refused to open his eyes, and thought—

 

It’s time to return the name ‘Ji Ling’ to you. He was about to go back to being the real Zong Bolin.

 

He leaned closer, wanting to take a proper look at that familiar face one last time, but suddenly, his head felt heavy and everything in front of him went black…

 

“Ji Ling… Ji Ling? Ji Ling!”

 

Ji Ling’s eyes snapped open to find Yan Yixuan looking down at him with concern written all over his face.

 

Blinking in confusion, he heard Yan Yixuan’s gentle voice, “Did you have a bad dream?”

 

What… was going on?

 

Ji Ling’s heart tightened. He raised his hand and stared at it.

 

Fair skin, long and slender fingers—he froze for a moment before blurting out recklessly, “Wife?”

 

Smack—Yan Yixuan flicked his forehead and said, “Still half asleep, huh?”

 

It was then Ji Ling realized he was lying in bed. The bedside lamp was on, and he could clearly see that he was inside Yan Yixuan’s bedroom in Jin Garden.

 

…So the heavens really were messing with him.

 

“Are you feeling sick? Want some water?” Yan Yixuan asked while getting up to pour him a drink, but Ji Ling suddenly pulled him into a hug, not letting him go.

 

“What time is it?” Ji Ling asked.

 

Yan Yixuan stayed in his arms, a little puzzled by the question, and replied, “It’s almost dawn. Get some more sleep—we still have to go to the company later.”

 

Hearing Yan Yixuan’s casual tone, Ji Ling finally realized he had truly traveled back again. This version of Yan Yixuan remembered everything.

 

Ji Ling held him tighter, feeling the warmth he had longed for.

 

The only downside was that the height advantage he had finally gotten back was gone again… but this angle felt so familiar, and the way it felt to hold Yan Yixuan was exactly the same as before.

 

Yan Yixuan gently patted Ji Ling’s back, coaxing him to go back to sleep.

 

But Ji Ling didn’t budge. Instead, he pressed him back down onto the bed.

 

Yan Yixuan lay still, watching silently as Ji Ling started unbuttoning his pajama top. It wasn’t until Ji Ling slipped a hand into his waistband that he finally spoke up, “So… we’re not going to the office today?”

 

Ji Ling replied, “You’re the boss, and so am I. If we say there’s no morning meeting, then there’s no morning meeting.”

 

He leaned down to kiss Yan Yixuan, who kissed him back. Ji Ling’s hand wandered, skin against skin, warm and familiar. And when he entered, Yan Yixuan instinctively clung to him.

 

The sheer naturalness of that embrace, the way it just felt right, moved Ji Ling to his core. The emotions ran so high that he couldn’t help but be a little rough.

 

Yan Yixuan narrowed his eyes, indulging Ji Ling’s recklessness without a word.

 

When everything finally settled down and the two of them lay side by side, Ji Ling kept looking at his hands over and over again.

 

Yan Yixuan’s breathing was still uneven as he asked, “What kind of dream did you have? You were tossing and turning the whole time.”

 

Ji Ling curled his fingers into a loose fist and said, “I dreamt about the past.”

 

He continued, “From the moment we met—but it was a little different. It was like I lived through it all over again.”

 

“Oh?” Yan Yixuan said, stroking his hair. “Different how? Was it better or worse?”

 

Ji Ling smiled. “I’m not sure. Some parts were better… some were worse.”

 

Yan Yixuan listened and gently ran his fingers through Ji Ling’s hair. “Tell me.”

 

Ji Ling grabbed his hand, let out a sigh, and said, “You didn’t remember me. We had to start all over again. And just when I was beginning to get sentimental about Jin Garden, you woke me up.”

 

He still hadn’t won that bet.

 

Yan Yixuan laughed at that and teased, “Then I really woke you up at the right time. What if you ran off with the dream version of me? That’d be such a loss for me.”

 

Ji Ling kissed the back of his hand. Gods, his gentle young master really hadn’t changed.

 

Thinking back on it all—whether he was Ji Ling or Zong Bolin—life hadn’t been too bad. So what if he had less money now?

 

Zong’s company was thriving under his younger brother. And Ji Ling? He was much younger—wasn’t that a gain?

 

And he couldn’t help but smile at the thought of heading to work after sunrise, being greeted all the way with cheerful ‘Boss Ji!’ from his staff.

 

Dawn was approaching. Ji Ling lay in bed, staring up at Jin Garden’s familiar ceiling.

 

Then he heard Yan Yixuan whisper beside his ear, “Actually, I had a dream too. It was hazy though—I barely remember it now. I dreamt of the past too, but everything in it was different.”

 

Ji Ling turned his head to look at him.

 

Yan Yixuan frowned slightly, trying to recall. “It was strange. In that dream, you weren’t like how you are now. You felt like a complete stranger. But there was another person…”

 

He paused, searching his memory. “That person… felt like you. Did things exactly like you once did. I couldn’t help but want to get closer to him. I was just starting to wonder who he was, and then I woke up.”

 

Ji Ling’s heart pounded wildly. He asked, “Do you remember who that person was?”

 

Yan Yixuan gave it some thought, then apologized, “Not really. I think he was pretty rich.” Then he joked, “But I remember this—because he reminded me so much of you, I couldn’t help kissing him. Shouldn’t you be jealous?”

 

Ji Ling pulled him into a tight hug again, suddenly overcome with the urge to melt into him.

 

How could he be jealous of himself? No matter which version it was—Zong Bolin or Ji Ling—they were both him.

 

And that bet from another world… both of them had won.

 

Ji Ling thought, right now, he was truly content.

 

So please, he begged silently to the heavens, no more tossing him around.

 

He just wanted to hold his young master like this, and spend the rest of forever living peacefully together in Jin Garden.

 

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