After dinner.
Dishes were washed.
The kitchen was cleaned up.
Tang Qing held two bottles of chilled beer.
He also brought a folding lounge chair to the rooftop of the rental house.
The building was sixteen-stories high and they lived on the top floor which was very close. The rooftop was seldom visited at night, hence it was quiet, except for the occasional distant honk.
Wang Qiang was chatting with his wife.
She just found out, this month, that she was pregnant.
He was treating her like a treasure.
Last week.
When Tang Qing received the news of Wang Yan's wedding, he thought he would be able to accept it calmly today. However, when it actually happened, he realized he could not lie to his heart.
Although he wanted to wish her happiness,
he found that a glooming char inside him could not fade away for a long time. Was it unwillingness? Reluctance? Or he couldn't let go? Or… this perhaps is life!
Tang Qing comforted himself.
Though he knew this was utterly foolish.
How can one deceive his own heart?
He laid on the lounge chair.
Looking at the scattered lights of the surrounding buildings.
The city, far away which faltered red, made Tang Qing feel alien and distant. He felt no connection with the city, and even had a momentary urge to return home.
Thinking of this.
Tang Qing found it a bit amusing.
Does he, as an ordinary man, harbor thoughts of becoming an immortal?
It would be more reasonable to dream about it at night.
He vigorously shook his head to dispel that 'stupid' thought.
He took out a lighter.
Lit a cigarette and inhaled a mouthful. He had quit smoking five years ago and took this one from Wang Qiang. He felt a strong burning sensation in his lungs.
"Cough, cough, cough"
It had been a long time since he smoked; he could not adapt to it immediately.
But he was eventually adapted to it after a few puffs, given several years of his smoking history.
His thoughts began to drift.
Back to his youthful days.
After graduating from senior high school.
Tang Qing thought life would be more vibrant and beautiful.
However.
A car accident shattered his dream.
It was June 2005.
After the National College Entrance Examination and completely filled college application forms, he and his childhood sweetheart, Lin Jiaxue, returned to their hometown.
They stayed at Tang Qing's house for a night.
As Lin Jiaxue's grandmother had a big birthday the next day, Tang's parents decided to close the shop for two days. However, an old overloaded truck suddenly lost control while turning, crashing into their coach.
You could sit anywhere on the village bus.
If there was a seat, you could sit.
His parents and Lin Jiaxue, who sat in front, were killed on the spot, while Tang Qing who sat at the back only suffered a concussion and minor fractures.
In an instant.
He lost the most important people in his life.
Unable to bear the blow, he fainted on the spot.
When he came to, it was already the next day.
In the following two days.
He did not respond to anyone calling him.
He just stupidly stared at the ceiling. On the fourth day, he regained normalcy, was discharged from the hospital and resolved to live well, for the sake of those who had passed away.
Later.
With the help of his uncle and Lin Jiaxue's parents, the funeral was arranged. After sorting out his parent's shop, he lived in the village till the university semester started, fetched the notification letter from his uncle, and went to register.
Of course.
The driver responsible for the accident and the bus company compensated some money.
But he didn't touch a penny of it, keeping all of it in the bank. Spending any of it would be humiliating.
And so.
A puff of smoke.
A sip of beer.
Tang Qing revisited his past life bit by bit.
His childhood joy, the confusion of middle school, the decadence in university, the dissatisfaction of work, the
expectations of his parents, past regrets, all replayed like a movie in his mind.
His immature and naive past.
Made him smile faintly from time to time, sometimes even laughing out loud, but gradually, he wept unreservedly.
The car accident.
It inevitably emerged in his memory.
His childhood sweetheart, his happy family, full of hope, the promise of no change in a hundred years, all has turned to smoke,
disintegrated into dust.
Heartache.
Not many have truly experienced this feeling.
But the pain that reaches into one's heart, the agony of regret, can hurt the most.
At this moment.
Tang Qing couldn't tell if he was crying or laughing.
These memories.
Were his all.
And his most precious treasure.
"How nice it would be if I could go back to the past!"
Tang Qing, who was slightly drowsy, looked at the stars all over the sky and murmured.
And so.
Tang Qing gradually fell asleep, not noticing a slight crack in the space in front of him, causing only a few people in the whole city to experience a momentary mental dullness.
That night.
Tang Qing had a dream, a very long dream.
He dreamt that he returned to senior high school.
He saw his parents and Lin Jiaxue again, but he could only watch as a bystander.
He couldn't speak.
He couldn't move.
Only a spectator, with the impending car accident approaching, he was powerless to change anything. In the end, he could only watch the tragedy happen again. The overwhelming sadness from that moment kicked him out of the dream.
"Ah!"
Awakening from consciousness.
Upon regaining control of his body.
Tang Qing suddenly sat up.
The sorrow in his eyes had not yet dissipated, and his heart thumped vigorously from the shock, unable to calm down for a long time.
Gently wiping the fine sweat on his forehead.
Images from his dream still occasionally flashed through his mind. Even though it ended tragically, it allowed him to once again experience the near-real presence of his family. He was already very happy about this.
"Huh? What's that smell?"
A strange yet familiar scent wafted over.
His brain instinctively began to gather all his memories for comparison, to identify this smell. It was indeed very familiar, as if he hadn't smelled it for many years, but he couldn't remember what it was.
"That's right, it's the smell of the scallion pancakes my aunt used to make."
In less than half a second.
Tang Qing had identified the source of the scent.
When he was in high school, he used to board at his uncle's house in the city.
His aunt used to make these pancakes for him in the morning.
This was aunt's specialty, incredibly delicious, but he hasn't had them since leaving Jiang Province. Just thinking about it, his mouth was filling with saliva uncontrollably.
But why would there be this smell at home?
The now fully awake Tang Qing,
Slowly focused his eyes on what was in front of him.
Only then did he notice the change in his environment; this was a small room of less than ten square meters. The desk, wardrobe, fan, desk lamp, and posters were both familiar yet foreign.
Where is this?
His brain worked rapidly, quickly recalling and comparing memories.
As if suddenly realizing something, Tang Qing's eyes widened as he looked around. Yes, wasn't this the house he lived in during high school at his uncle's? Tang Qing's grandmother had two children, his mother and uncle.
Throughout high school, Tang Qing lived at his uncle's house.
His uncle, Qin Yugang, was thirty-six that year, and after retiring from the military, had become a police officer.
He was currently the Deputy Station Chief at the Chengnan Police Station.
Inheriting a decisive and straightforward military style, he stuck to his principles and did not curry favor with others.
Before Tang Qing's rebirth,
Uncle held the position of Chief of the police station in the Economic Development Zone and also served as the Deputy Director of the Municipal Public Security Bureau. Without any special opportunities, his political career was probably going to end here.
Being able to retire from a proper position would already be very good.
The Aunt was a Chinese teacher at a primary school.
She was very kind and had two daughters. She always wanted a son, but was too old to want to have another baby. She was very good to Tang Qing and treated him as her own son.
That's strange.
The uncle's house,
Wasn't it torn down to become a public park during the old city renovation in 2015?
As compensation, they got three houses.
Even though they were all small apartments, they were still very good.
Knowing that Tang Qing wouldn't want their compensation, his uncle and aunt wanted to give him a house for his future wedding, but he refused. He knew both his uncle and aunt were good people, but it's not appropriate to benefit from them in this way.
Especially from such caring relatives.
Did I time travel?
This thought just made its way into Tang Qing's mind and gave him a start. He wanted to deny this absurd idea, but the sight in front of him kept confirming this guess.
Tang Qing lifted his hand, looking at his fair arm and the school uniform trousers he was wearing. In order to confirm it wasn't a dream, he pinched his arm hard, imitating the old people.
It hurts...
Looking at the bruise on his hand, a somewhat incredulous Tang Qing gave himself another hard slap.
"Smack!"
That really hurt.
This is definitely not a dream!
It just seemed so silly to hurt himself twice.
"What the actual... sweet mother of roasted chestnuts..." Tang Qing muttered a nonsensical phrase under his breath.
He really had time-traveled.
He lifted his head again and took a closer look at the arrangement of the room.
After seeing the torn calendar on the bedside with its date, Tang Qing completely believed it. This calendar was given to him by Lin Jiaxue, who said it was a promotional gift from a seasoning manufacturer. They had given her a bunch, so she gave one to him.
The calendar with its white background and red letters displayed: October 1, 2004, National Day.
2004?
In that year, Tang Qing was just 17 years old.
He had unexpectedly woken up from a 30-year-old man and became 17 again.
"I really came back...back to when I was 17...the senior year just started...my parents and Lin Jiaxue are still there... everyone...everyone is still alive... living... this is so great…" Tang Qing murmured to himself.
His mind was filled with countless thoughts.
Tang Qing's nose felt sour, and his eyes couldn't help but become moist, but he was happily going crazy inside. To start again, I can change everything, I can...
Ten minutes passed.
Tang Qing comfortably lay on the bed.
His hands folded behind his head, looking at the ceiling, quietly sorting his thoughts, his emotions gradually stabilizing.
His experience at thirty told him.
If all this is true.
He must seize this opportunity to live well, not allowing tragedies to happen again. The helplessness from his dream and his prior life experience made him cherish this hard-won opportunity immensely.
"I must make sure they all have good lives." Tang Qing quietly pledged to himself.
"Grumble..."
Tang Qing's stomach began to protest.
He had been too excited to feel anything earlier, but now after calming down, he realized he was actually quite hungry.
Smelling the faint aroma in the air.
Tang Qing quickly got up to have breakfast.
As he opened the door to his room, the familiar living room came into view - the old sofa, old color TV, and the old table and chairs.
He had lived here for three years in his prior life.
Everything was so familiar.
Three bedrooms and a living room, which his uncle bought four years ago. Otherwise, the previous two-bedroom and a living room couldn't accommodate them, especially since his two daughters were growing up, it was not fitting for them to share a room.
Later, Tang Qing moved in.
The two sisters were squeezed into one room again.
However, he got along greatly with his two cousins, so he didn't think there was anything wrong, on the contrary, he was quite happy.
Today is National Day.
He remembered that his uncle's family would go to his aunt's hometown today in his previous life. Since her hometown was in the county town below, they left very early and would only return on October 5, four days later.
While eating the green onion pancake in his hand.
And sipping the lukewarm milk in the cup.
Knowing that all his loved ones were still around, and even being able to see Lin Jiaxue later, Tang Qing felt an unprecedented sense of peace. A deep sense of happiness welled up inside him.
After finishing breakfast.
He glanced at the wall clock, it was only seven o'clock, still very early.
He planned to go directly to Lin Jiaxue's family store around eight. Today was National Day, so even with a lot of homework assigned by the teacher for the holiday, Lin Jiaxue would definitely go to help at the store.
Tang Qing, who didn't have anything to do, started cleaning the room.
In his prior life during his time at his uncle's house, he seldom cleaned.
Even his room was usually cleaned by his aunt and his cousins, often times they even washed his clothes for him. Looking back now, Tang Qing felt quite speechless and guilty.
"You lazy pig, you might as well die of laziness.", Tang Qing muttered to himself.
Half an hour later.
After finishing the cleaning, Tang Qing lay back on the bed.
Staring at the white ceiling, he started to space out.