Jiang Ran set down the tools he had used for the “cri” and looked into the iron box.
Unexpectedly—
there wasn’t much inside.
“A glass bottle?”
He checked the corners.
There were no other items.
Only two transparent glass bottles about the size of soda cans.
Through the glass, he could see that each bottle contained a rolled sheet of paper covered in writing.
“Is this… a ssage-in-a-bottle? Or sothing like a ti capsule?”
Jiang Ran understood imdiately.
When he was younger, this kind of thing had been popular for a while.
You would write a letter to your future self—years or even decades later—or leave behind so kind of keepsake, bury it underground, and dig it up when the ti ca.
It seed aningful.
It had the feeling of a ti capsule.
But most of the ti… people buried them and then forgot about them. Or they forgot where they buried them. Or during the golden age of urban construction, an excavator would rcilessly destroy them.
In any case,
Jiang Ran was certain that in his mory, he had never buried this combination box together with Cheng ngxue.
“Though… can I even trust my mory anymore?”
Jiang Ran gave a bitter smile.
At the mont, he had very little confidence in his own mories. They always seed incomplete, missing pieces.
He picked up the two glass bottles.
Sticky notes were attached to the outside, with nas written on them.
One bottle’s note read: [Xiaoxue].
The other bottle’s note read: [Yanyan].
“Oh—”
Jiang Ran suddenly understood.
Sure enough, this had nothing to do with him. The rusted iron box must have been buried by Cheng ngxue and her cousin Xu Yan.
“Most likely they really were letters written to their future selves.”
Curious, Jiang Ran picked up Cheng ngxue’s “ti bottle” and pulled out the cork.
Pop.
Air sealed inside for who knew how many years escaped at last, completing its connection with the present.
Using tweezers, he pulled out the folded note inside and slowly unfolded it.
The handwriting was childish but neat, mixed with plenty of pinyin spelling.
Judging from that, the letter had probably been written very early—likely when they were in elentary school.
He flattened it on the desk and read the first line.
[Jiang Ran is a big idiot!]
An explosive opening.
Jiang Ran’s eyes widened, feeling as if a bullet fired from the past had struck him square in the forehead.
“Ahem.”
He straightened up and continued reading.
[Jiang Ran is a big idiot!
Seriously, every ti I tell him to learn swimming, he never takes it seriously!
What if he drowns again next ti? He might really die!
Sigh.
Forget it.
I’ll just learn properly myself.
If sothing like that happens again, and soone falls into the river, then I’ll be the one jumping in to save him.
Twenty-years-later …
You must already be a grown-up now, right?
Then you must be amazing, beautiful, and strong!
Are you still with Jiang Ran?
Are you still best friends?
I really hope you’re still the best friends in the world, just like we are when we’re little.
Can you promise sothing?
No matter where you are twenty years later, no matter what your relationship is…
If Jiang Ran ever runs into danger or trouble, please make sure to help him, okay?
After all, he once saved our lives.
He almost lost his own life doing it.
In my heart…
Jiang Ran will always be a great hero.]
Jiang Ran stared at the yellowing sheet of paper.
His breathing grew heavy.
It felt as though the air had turned solid—hard to inhale, impossible to release.
He set the letter down.
Rubbed his eyes.
“Sigh…”
A thousand thoughts condensed into a single sigh.
“Jiang Ran, what about you? What’s your dream!”
In his ears, he heard Cheng ngxue’s slightly drunken voice from the bonfire night, cheeks flushed red as she asked him from the highest point:
“Is it… becoming a savior?”
“Or a genius like Einstein, pushing science forward?”
“Or just… keep being a hero like you are now.”
He opened his eyes.
The Cheng ngxue with flushed cheeks and hazy eyes after drinking red wine was no longer beside him.
What ti and years had left behind
was only the doodle-covered letter
and an empty glass bottle.
[I will definitely save you.]
Jiang Ran clenched his fist.
“No matter what. I’ll keep my promise.”
Ever since he arrived on Worldline No. 1, that thought had never once wavered.
Even if the Positron Cannon was broken.
Even if it couldn’t be repaired anyti soon.
Even if the alternative—a spaceti shuttle—seed completely impossible for now.
So what?
He didn’t care how long it would take to bring Cheng ngxue back.
Months?
Years?
More than ten years?
It didn’t matter.
On this Worldline No. 1, he had only one goal.
Even if it took his entire life,
he would keep that promise.
If he said sothing,
he would do it.
That had always been his rule for living.
In the lower right corner of the letter, the date was written.
August 17, 2013.
Counting back, it must have been during the sumr vacation of second grade in elentary school.
Then it wasn’t surprising that the other bottle had been written by Xu Yan.
Every sumr vacation, Xu Yan would co stay at Cheng ngxue’s house for two months.
So
these two glass bottles—like little ti capsules—
contained the secret thoughts of two young girls,
ssages sent through ti to their future selves.
Jiang Ran picked up the bottle labeled Yanyan.
The letter inside must have been written by Xu Yan when she was eight—one year older than them.
Should he read it?
Jiang Ran hesitated for a few seconds.
“…Better not.”
“It wouldn’t be very polite.”
He and Cheng ngxue had been childhood friends. Reading hers was one thing—he hadn’t even known what it was at first. By the ti he opened it, it was already too late. Ignorance could be forgiven.
But Xu Yan’s…
He felt awkward peeking into soone else’s childhood feelings.
“Unless Xu Yan says I can.”
He picked up his phone and called her.
She answered quickly, and the two began chatting.
Xu Yan was also spending sumr vacation in Hang City and had plenty of free ti. She said she could et Jiang Ran that afternoon.
However, Xu Yan’s hotown was near Thousand Islands Lake—quite far away.
Fortunately, Jiang Ran had just bought a car. His father had told him to drive it during the sumr.
So he put the glass bottle back into the iron box, carried it downstairs, started the car, opened the navigation app, and drove toward Thousand Islands Lake.
Two hours later, Jiang Ran t Xu Yan at a tea restaurant.
“Ah, this thing.”
As soon as Xu Yan saw the rusted iron box, she imdiately understood.
“This is sothing Xiaoxue and I buried when we were in elentary school.”
“We must’ve watched so cartoon back then—maybe Doraemon—and suddenly wanted to imitate the plot. So we wrote letters to our future selves twenty years later.”
Xu Yan was still the sa straightforward person.
Right in front of Jiang Ran, she popped open the glass bottle, poured out the rolled-up paper, and unfolded it.
She read it.
After finishing,
she smiled slightly and handed it to him.
“Want to read it?”
“Is that okay?”
“What’s the problem? It’s not a love letter.”
Just as Jiang Ran had always felt—
Xu Yan was forever a gentle and thoughtful older sister.
Even though she was only one year older than him,
she was clearly far more mature.
Jiang Ran took the letter and began reading.
[Twenty-years-later , have you achieved your dream?
Don’t ever forget—we promised to beco an incredibly great director!
And we’ll make the greatest movie in the world!
Twenty years later, you’re already twenty-eight years old.
You must already have your own works by now, right?
Anyway…
No matter what difficulties you face, you must keep chasing our dream!
Never give up!]
Compared with Cheng ngxue’s letter, the one written by eight-year-old Xu Yan had far fewer spelling mistakes and pinyin.
Jiang Ran set the paper down and smiled.
“You’ve stayed true to your original dream.”
“Now you’ve already made a film that won the University Student Film Festival. That counts as achieving it early, doesn’t it?”
“How could it?”
Xu Yan chuckled.
“I’m still far from it… didn’t you read it? Eight-year-old demanded that twenty-years-later beco a world-class director and make the greatest movie ever!”
“I don’t have much ti left. Honestly, that childish dream probably can’t be completed on schedule.”
“But…”
She closed her eyes for a mont, as if recalling sothing.
“But I really won’t stop trying.”
Her eyes slowly opened.
“Even if it takes longer. Even if it takes many years. One day I’ll make a film… one that satisfies , one that I can be proud of for the rest of my life.”
“Still, I have to thank you, Jiang Ran. You gave this opportunity. Next sester I’ll be a senior. Rember what we talked about—the film company arranging job offers for us?”
“I chose the film company I like the most. The director I admire most works there. They really did send an offer and invited to intern anyti. After graduation I can officially join and beco that director’s assistant.”
“If you hadn’t written that script for our film club, how could an opportunity like this ever exist? I wouldn’t even dare dream of it.”
Xu Yan waved her hand.
“We’re friends. Helping each other is normal. You’ve helped plenty too, so there’s no need for thanks.”
Afterward, Xu Yan picked up Cheng ngxue’s bottle curiously and read the letter inside.
She licked her lips.
Then she looked at Jiang Ran with a aningful gaze.
“I’ve been aning to ask you sothing.”
“You’ve changed a lot recently. Studying seriously, handling all kinds of things… it’s like you’ve beco a completely different person.”
“Is it because… you t a really nice girl at school?”
“And she influenced you, so now you’re all bright and motivated?”
Pink.
In an instant, Jiang Ran’s mind flashed with that pink figure.
The sideways glance outside the campus wall.
The blooming figure on the rooftop terrace, like a red spider lily.
The carbon-fiber arrow piercing through a suitcase.
“Well…”
Jiang Ran didn’t know how to answer.
Because Nan Xiuxiu had indeed changed the depressed Jiang Ran of that tiline—
but that Jiang Ran wasn’t him.
“It’s hard to say,” he replied vaguely.
“Oh co on!”
Xu Yan smacked him lightly.
“You’re already an adult. Why are you being shy? Is it yes or no? Just answer properly—yes or no!”
Jiang Ran smiled helplessly.
Xu Yan rolled her eyes.
“Fine. If you won’t say it, I’ll just ask Wang Hao later.”
“Sotis it’s just like that. So people appear at a special mont in your life. Fate lets you et them just to push you forward at that one mont… to set your life back on the right track.”
Her eyes shone as she smiled slightly.
“My boyfriend was like that.”
Jiang Ran turned his head.
That mysterious boyfriend had appeared again.
“So your boyfriend… was bad at studying before? Then after eting you he turned his life around?”
“….”
Xu Yan neither confird nor denied.
“Bad at studying? That’s not even the main problem. Well, he was bad at studying, but that wasn’t all… he had no sense of responsibility, fooled around all day, caused trouble everywhere, basically like a street punk. Even dyed his hair yellow.”
“Anyway, before he t , my boyfriend was a complete ss. You could say he was good for nothing.”
“Oh.”
Jiang Ran nodded, listening carefully.
Another puzzle piece about Xu Yan’s mysterious boyfriend had been added.
“So you an he’s turned over a new leaf now?”
“Sothing like that.”
When Xu Yan spoke about her boyfriend, her smile carried a hint of sweetness.
“At least… I think he’s a pretty good person now.”
“How did you two et, anyway?”
Jiang Ran couldn’t help asking.
“That’s a long story.”
Xu Yan leaned back in her chair and looked out the window.
“That… is another story.”
Seeing that she didn’t intend to continue, Jiang Ran didn’t pry further into her private life.
They changed the topic, chatted about other things for a while, finished their tea, and prepared to leave.
“Then I’ll take this with .”
Xu Yan shook the glass bottle in her hand.
“Take it. It’s yours anyway.”
Jiang Ran put Cheng ngxue’s bottle back into the rusted iron box.
They walked together to the parking lot, and Jiang Ran drove Xu Yan ho.
“Keep it up, Jiang Ran.”
After getting out, Xu Yan raised her fist through the car window in encouragent.
“What’s in the past is already past. Let it go and look forward. Always look forward.”
“Yeah.”
Jiang Ran waved, pressed the accelerator, and drove away.
Once all the windows were closed, the excellent sound insulation left the car interior as quiet as still water.
Let the past go.
He glanced at the iron box on the passenger seat.
Inside it was Cheng ngxue’s bottle.
And the letter she had written.
How could he possibly let it go?
He looked ahead, at the straight road stretching into the darkness.
“I’m sorry…”
Many faces flashed through his mind.
“I can’t let it go.”
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