You're my wife, don't doubt it!

"Eh—is that all?" Xiao Yao chuckled dryly.

“Hmm,” Shen Jie nodded and said, “I don’t actually object to Yunyun dating, nor do I need her to try to marry into a wealthy family. It’s okay if she falls for a poor boy, since our family isn’t short of money anyway.”

“That’s how it is,” Xiao Yao said.

“But I can’t let her find a man who’s particularly good at lying.” Shen Jie’s expression turned serious again, and she reverted to being that stern mother.

“I understand,” Xiao Yao nodded. “It doesn’t matter if he’s a poor kid, but if he’s after our family’s money, that won’t do.”

After saying this, he realized that, given his position and stance, his words were somewhat subtle and ridiculous, so he laughed self-deprecatingly.

Shen Jie didn't tease him, but continued talking to herself: "Actually, on the way back, I kept thinking, can Shen Tianyun really do this much? Not only can she get a girl to play me in the past and call me, but she can also find a boy to play you in the past and meet me?"

"To be honest, I'm curious. I really want to see what kind of person Tianyun has found, and what she's really up to," Shen Jie said.

"That sounds like a lot of fun," Xiao Yao commented.

“When I got back, I saw you two almost kissing on the sofa,” Shen Jie recalled. “Then I looked and realized that you really looked exactly like my husband when he was young. My mind went blank, and I had already written a script.”

"What script?" Xiao Yao asked curiously.

“About ten years ago, there was a lot of scammers on the internet who impersonated others to swindle money. They impersonated all sorts of people, like Qin Shi Huang, the Terminator, foreign princes, and mercenaries. Their acting skills were actually very poor, but the most outrageous thing was that people actually fell for it and believed it wholeheartedly,” Shen Jie explained.

“Auntie, it’s not that serious,” Xiao Yao said. “I even went to get a full set of plastic surgery just to scam your family’s money. The initial costs must have been too high, right?” Xiao Yao said.

"I thought Yunyun had first met a boy who was good at sweet talk, and under his influence and guidance, she started to have this idea and slowly made up this whole story, just because you and her father did look very similar when you were young."

"...Your imagination."

“Then I became very worried that she wasn’t just making up stories for me and herself,” Shen Jie said. “I felt that she was completely under this man’s thumb. If I couldn’t expose this scam, not only would my daughter be cheated out of money and her body, but she might even fall into this kind of mental control woven from fantasy, and might develop mental problems in the future.”

“Indeed,” Xiao Yao said, “we need to properly educate her: step out of fantasy and embrace reality, even if reality may not be so beautiful—but Auntie…”

"Try calling me 'Auntie' again!" Shen Jie said with a smile, clenching her fist as if to hit her.

“No, I’m assuming I’m that boy,” Xiao Yao explained. “Is it possible that I’m actually a well-intentioned third party who just happens to look like Xiao Yao and has been entangled with by your daughter? I’m the passive party.”

"If that's the case, Auntie still needs to give you a good talking to," Shen Jie said with a smile.

"what?"

“What I want to say to you is,” Shen Jie sat up straight in a serious tone, “young classmate, can you really accept that her ‘liking’ for you is just because you look like her father, and that it’s just a transference?”

“Auntie, I can accept it,” Xiao Yao replied seriously. “As long as she’s with me, I don’t care what her reasons are.”

“Ha,” Shen Jie said, “So, you genuinely like Yunyun, and you’re not just playing around with her? Will you continue to treat her well with a serious and responsible attitude?”

“Auntie, I will,” Xiao Yao said. “Wait a minute, Auntie, isn’t it too early to ask me these questions now…”

"It's not early," Shen Jie said deliberately with a stern face. "How do I know you're not eyeing the Shen family's fortune?"

“That’s me, Shen Jie,” Xiao Yao said, feigning seriousness. “Otherwise, why would I come to you?”

"Go to hell," Shen Jie said with a laugh.

“I’m starting to realize that you’re still the same Shen Jie,” Xiao Yao said with a smile. “You were so intimidating when you first came in. You’re still as lively as ever.”

"No matter how lively she is, she's still just a lively old lady."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute," Xiao Yao suddenly remembered something: "I have a serious question to ask you."

"You ask."

"Shen Tianyun said before that it was you who told her to tell me to go find the current you. Did you say that, or is Shen Tianyun forging an imperial edict?"

“I guess you could say that,” Shen Jie recalled. “You know, I didn’t take it seriously at the time. I just said, if you really run into your dad when he was young, tell him to go find me when I was young.”

"Ah."

“I said, the thing I regret most in my life is that I met Tianyun’s father too late. I wasted the best years of my life. I’m sorry to him and to myself.” Shen Jie said, “I said, the best time to be with Xiao Yao was from the beginning, and the second best time is now.”

“You didn’t know it was true at the time, that’s why you said that,” Xiao Yao asked Shen Jie. “Now that you know it’s true, would you still say that?”

Shen Jie looked deeply into Xiao Yao's eyes and said without hesitation, "Yes."

Xiao Yao grabbed Shen Jie's hand.

Without a word or any questioning, Xiao Yao could feel the intense... liking? Pity? Or... love emanating from the person opposite him.

This kind of love, as intense as the light of a bright incandescent bulb, was something he had never felt with 17-year-old Shen Jie, 15-year-old Yu Luying, or any of his peers.

Does Zhao Xiaomei qualify? If she's sincere, then she could be considered half a stan, but...

Ah, Tianyun, could Tianyun be an exception? Hmm, maybe a little, but not that strong.

Moreover, whether she can be considered a true "peer" is a matter of debate.

Anyway, this kind of love is like when you're getting food in the school cafeteria, the older ladies and older girls are so happy that you're good-looking that they not only serve you food without shaking their hands, but they also give you extra pieces of meat... No, what a terrible analogy.

Xiao Yao was lost in thought when Shen Jie waved her hand in front of his eyes and said, "Hey, hey, what are you daydreaming about, kid?"

“Meow Mommy.” Xiao Yao suddenly looked up.

"Huh? What meow...is it calling me?" Shen Jie was stunned for a moment.

“Mama Meow,” Xiao Yao asked Shen Jie, “I suddenly thought of another question—why did you not inherit any of the new memories of 17-year-old Shen Jie when history was changed?”

Chapter 240 Untouchable Memories

2023-06-21

Shen Jie was taken aback: "How would I know? I also want to know why. Don't forget, I'm the one who knows nothing about these things."

"Hmm..." Xiao Yao pondered.

The boy pondered to himself, "Could it be that this room, this so-called 2034, is just a parallel universe that's 30 years behind?"

If it's a parallel world, then the Shen Jie here isn't actually the Shen Jie in my world; in fact, you could say they're two different people.

Therefore, I have no obligation, no, I should not have any intimate physical contact with her.

But if that's the case, then Tianyun won't be my daughter anymore, so can I be with her?

Wait... what the hell am I thinking?

calm down.

The world cannot be parallel.

After Song Haijian's death, the news about him on Shen Tianyun's phone—old news—changed accordingly.

And that marriage certificate, yes, the marriage certificate!

Xiao Yao suddenly stood up: "Shen Jie, wait for me, I'll go get something to show you."

"Okay," Shen Jie nodded.

Xiao Yao returned to his room, opened a drawer, and took out the marriage certificate.

Instead of immediately returning to 2034, he paced aimlessly back and forth in the room, circling around several times.

I just wanted to clear my mind or sort out my thoughts.

Ah...right!

……

Xiao Yao returned to the soap room, found his grandmother's frying pan, poured some salad oil on it, and turned on the gas stove.

The boy placed the frying pan on the gas stove and tilted the pan to spread the salad oil as evenly as possible.

As he turned on the gas stove, he heard a slight hissing sound of gas and a faint smell filled the air.

A small ring of blue flames suddenly appeared.

He gently turned the gas switch, adjusting the flame to a medium size, allowing the pan to gradually heat up.

As the pot was quietly heating up, Xiao Yao walked to the refrigerator, opened the door, and the cool air that rushed in made his face feel comfortable in the summer.

Xiao Yao stuck his face inside, took two deep breaths, then reached in and groped around until he found a large plastic bag. He carefully took out a cold sesame seed cake from the bag, put it back carefully, then thought for a moment and took out another sesame seed cake.

As everyone knows, these sesame cakes were bought by the Yu mother and daughter from Dongru. Because their refrigerator was not big, they only gave Xiao Yao a few dozen.

Returning to the pan, the boy slightly shook the bottom, observing the salad oil sliding across its surface. He carefully placed a flatbread into the pan. Instantly, a faint sizzling sound reached his ears.

Xiao Yao gently flipped the sesame seed cake with a stainless steel tong to ensure it heated evenly. A faint aroma began to waft through the air, but it wasn't particularly strong. He gently pressed the cake, feeling its warmth inside.

"Is that about it?" Xiao Yao muttered to himself.

Just to be on the safe side, Xiao Yao decided to bake it a little longer.

……

It looks a bit burnt.

Xiao Yao quickly used tongs to lift the sesame seed cake out and put it on a plate next to him, and then put in a second sesame seed cake.

The microwave at home was broken, and Xiao Yao was too lazy to fix it. Even if the microwave wasn't broken, he couldn't imagine what the food would taste like.

Alright, this time we can't let it burn.

Xiao Yao carefully flipped the sesame seed cake over. When he felt it was about right, he used tongs to take it out and placed it on top of the previous sesame seed cake.

This is really not an easy task.

Xiao Yao turned off the gas, carefully confirmed that it was turned off, and happily carried the plate in his hand back to the bedroom, opening the wardrobe door.