Yu Yi suddenly frowned: “If what Young Master Meng says is true, doesn’t that mean there’s another Yu Yi in this world? She assassinated Chen Shilang, not me, because I was in the marquis’s residence at that time. So where is she now? Shouldn’t the Time-Space Management Bureau be arresting her, not me?”
Meng Qing praised: “Your reasoning is very clear. The first half is correct. At that time, there were two Yu Yis in your time-space. But after she successfully assassinated Chen Shilang, he could no longer frame your father, and you wouldn’t become a mission executor. Following your original life trajectory, you would continue living in the marquis’s residence until you married and lived out your life, everything happening normally within your own time-space. So, that mission executor Yu Yi who assassinated Chen Shilang disappeared.”
“Young Master Meng, there was originally a message you left in the jade dragonfly. Was that other Yu Yi your wife?”
“Yes, I met you and fell in love while completing a mission together, and we got married afterwards.” Meng Qing projected photos onto the table, explaining: “Look, this is you during the mission at the Civil War Warlord, this is a handgun, you’re practicing shooting, completely focused, not even noticing I was taking your photo. And this one, us on a roller coaster at an amusement park, look how messy your hair is, haha. And this, another mission where I caught a huge grouper, you were right beside me. We got married on this island…”
Yu Yi blushed slightly and corrected: “It was her, not me.”
Meng Qing stared at her intently: “She is you, you are her.”
Yu Yi’s heart raced as he stared at her, but she insisted: “These events haven’t happened and won’t happen again. The people in these photos are not me.”
She could see that he and his wife had a truly good relationship. She recalled his words when they first met at the octagonal pavilion, his subtle attitude towards her in the Chancellor’s residence, and how he left the jade dragonfly but deleted his words to that other Yu Yi.
He loved that mission executor Yu Yi, not her. This, she could distinguish clearly. A faint sourness rose in her heart; she could never become that Yu Yi.
He often thinks lately, if a person loses part of their past memories, though only a part, but the most important part, is he still himself? If he is no longer himself, then who would he be?
He did not argue with her, just softly asked: “You want to go home, right?”
Yu Yi’s tears that she had been holding back finally slid out of her eyes, and she asked tremblingly: “Can this concubine never go back home? Will I never see my parents again in this lifetime?”
Meng Qing silently nodded. When she was in a coma, Lin Bai sent an encrypted message that an arrest warrant had been issued for her, and her original time and space was already under surveillance. As soon as she returns, she will be immediately arrested.
Yu Yi sat there, hanging her head in a daze for a long time. When she raised her head to look at him, the tears in her eyes were already wiped away: “From now on, will this concubine have to live in this strange place?”
“This is just a temporary residence.” Soon they would discover that he had taken her away. Meng Qing was currently using a small device to shield his brain chip, but this was not a long-term solution. He wanted to find someone to remove the chip as soon as possible.
He stood up and said to Yu Yi: “Come with me to a place.”
But before going there, you need to change your clothes.” Meng Qing looked Yu Yi up and down, wondering if he should buy children’s clothing for a fourteen-year-old? No, that would be too small…
Yu Yi was still wearing the casual dress from the marquis’s residence. It was the spring season, and her winter clothes had been replaced with a thin padded jacket, revealing her slender figure. She became embarrassed under Meng Qing’s gaze, blushing and turning sideways to avoid his line of sight.
Meng Qing scratched the corner of his mouth, realizing she was no longer small. He would use the terminal’s clothing program to automatically select an appropriate size.
When choosing clothing styles, Meng Qing selected more conservative options that would not expose too much skin. However, the time and space they were going to required tighter clothing. Yu Yi blushed looking at the model wearing fitted pants and leather jacket, wondering if she could even show her face dressed like this. Fortunately, Meng Qing thoughtfully selected an additional short cape-style coat, which made Yu Yi feel slightly more comfortable.
Yu Yi had no choice in clothing styles, as they needed to wear the most mainstream attire for the time and space they were entering.
But for clothing colors and color coordination of inner and outer garments, Yu Yi insisted on choosing herself.
Meng Qing couldn’t help but think to himself that women in any time and space, regardless of age, were always particular about clothing matching.
After selecting the clothes, Yu Yi was still waiting for the clothes to appear suddenly like the previous furniture. She was ready to go to her room to change, but unexpectedly, after Meng Qing swiped on the terminal, her original dress instantly transformed into the final outfit she had selected.
Yu Yi sensed something unusual, looked down, and was startled by the scene. She touched her clothes, found them perfectly fitted and exactly matching the style they had chosen on the terminal, and felt slightly reassured. But when she looked at Meng Qing, her eyes carried a bit of shock and confusion.
Meng Qing saw her about to speak and laughed, pointing at the terminal: “You would change too slowly; this is faster.”
The person on the bed sat up drowsily, looking out the window: “Wow, is this what dawn looks like? Do your eyes need surgery too?”
Meng Qing said dissatisfiedly: “We clearly agreed to do the surgery tonight, yet you were sleeping soundly?”
The person they called “Left Hand” got out of bed, picked up a worn-out robe from the bedside, and put it on, scratching his messy hair: “I’m conserving energy and preparing for the best surgical preparation.” He glanced at Yu Yi, “Is she the body identifier if something goes wrong during the surgery?”
“Hearing such words from the person about to operate on the back of my head is truly reassuring.”
Left Hand raised his left hand and removed his glove: “As long as it’s still here, you can be completely at ease.”
Yu Yi was originally curious why this person slept with gloves on, and was now surprised to discover that his left hand was not made of flesh and blood, but of silver-gray metal, with many intricate movable parts, and the finger joints could bend freely.
Meng Qing turned to explain to Yu Yi: “That’s how Left Hand got his nickname. He replaced his entire left hand with an electronic mechanical hand so he could perform precise surgeries.”
“Hey! You, who I’m about to open your skull, dare to say this clinic is small and rundown? Do you want to walk out of here alive?” Left Hand said sarcastically.
“Of course, I want to live to a ripe old age.”
“Then let’s get started. Surgery begins in fifteen minutes.” Left Hand walked out of his bedroom.
Chapter 161: The Changed Present (3)
Yu Yi followed Meng Qing out of the bedroom. She saw a large double door at the end of the hallway with “No Unauthorized Entry” written in large characters. Left Hand had already walked to the door and pushed it open.
“Do you want to see?” Meng Qing asked.
Yu Yi shuddered and shook her head: “No. Could someone survive such a procedure?”
Meng Qing saw her worried expression and smiled: “It’s fine. This is a very simple surgery. Although risks exist, they’re so small they can be ignored.”
