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

"How should I put it?" Yu Luying asked him.

“Look, even though you had that inexplicable sense of déjà vu,” Xiao Yao said to Yu Luying, “you still firmly and clearly remember that it was your first time going to Dongru, your first time going to my school, wasn’t it?”

“Yes,” Yu Luying replied matter-of-factly, “What else?”

“But Shen Jie,” Xiao Yao said, “soon she couldn’t tell which memory was real and which was fake.”

"Oh……"

“At first,” Xiao Yao said, “she was quite insistent that she got married at 30, and felt that she couldn’t possibly be wrong. But she quickly wavered and felt that the two memories were about the same in terms of credibility. In the end, she began to accept that she did seem to have married me earlier and that the memory of getting married at 30 might be wrong.”

“This is terrifying…” Yu Luying murmured.

"This memory replacement process lasted about ten minutes, and during this process, I could see her pain with my own eyes—a splitting headache, and she was frantically pulling at her hair..."

“It’s so pitiful,” Yu Luying said. “It’s like someone forcibly altered or implanted memories.”

"Actually, it wasn't that memories were forcibly altered; rather, they were forcibly altered into 'correct' memories by the changed worldline," Xiao Yao said. "In order to adapt to the new reality—that's my guess."

"How pitiful," Yu Luying sighed. "If even a person's own memories are replaced, is she still herself? Is she still the same person? Is she still alive? Xiao Yao, stop erasing her memories!"

"No, I didn't, don't talk nonsense." Xiao Yao denied it three times in a row: "After I discovered this principle—well, I didn't really discover it, anyway, I never told her about me and Xiao Shenjie again, nor did I show her any related items that would stimulate her memories—this was also Shenjie's own idea."

"That's good." Yu Luying agreed, "That's how it should be."

"However, the good thing is that the old memories, from the current perspective, will not disappear; they will just slowly become unfamiliar and blurry, and lose their sense of identity," Xiao Yao said. "Of course, the time sample is still too small, and it is too early to draw this conclusion."

“Just in case, you should have her write it down in a diary,” Yu Luying pointed out. “What if she completely forgets it after ten days or half a month?”

“That’s what I think too,” Xiao Yao told Yu Luying. “I’ve already asked Shen Jie to write down all the parts where she has dual memories, and she said she will write them down.”

“How could things have turned out this way?” Yu Luying murmured to herself, “How can someone remember getting married at 30 and 22 at the same time? If it were a difference of a year or six months, it could be a memory lapse, but eight years…”

"You remember the number 22 very well," Xiao Yao thought to himself.

"Do you know Mandela?" Xiao Yao suddenly asked Yu Luying.

“I know,” Yu Luying said. “Isn’t he the leader of the Republic of South Africa?”

“No stamp,” Xiao Yao said, “Do you remember when he passed away?”

"Huh?" Yu Luying said, "The last century, right? The 80s? The 90s?"

Is it the 80s or the 90s?

“I can’t remember, it was sometime in the 80s,” Yu Luying said. “She probably died in prison, and then…”

Xiao Yao didn't keep him in suspense any longer, because he was in a hurry to go back and have dinner with his wife and children: "Congratulations, you're mistaken, Mandela is still alive."

"Huh?" Yu Luying was startled. "You're kidding, right? How could that be?"

Xiao Yao waved his arm and said, "If you don't believe me, go to Canhua Internet Cafe and search for it now. Why would I lie to you?"

“That’s not right…” Yu Luying rubbed her chin with the base of her thumb and forefinger. “How could this be? I clearly remember…”

“Shen Jie told me that Mandela died on December 5, 2013,” Xiao Yao told Yu Luying. “You don’t need to be troubled or distressed, because you’re not the only one who got it wrong. When Mandela died in 2013, many people’s first reaction was, ‘Oh, he’s still alive?’”

Yu Luying: "..."

Xiao Yao said, "Those who made this claim were able to recount the reports they had seen back then, television clips of the funeral, and even Mandela's widow's tear-jerking speech. When this claim was made, it received a lot of responses from netizens who said they had the same memories."

Yu Luying: "I... am speechless."

“After the news of Mandela’s death was released in 2013, people around the world found their memories of Mandela to be confused, with different recollections of both the time and cause of death,” Xiao Yao said. “There was even a specific term for it: the Mandela Effect.”

"The Mandela Effect?" Yu Luying chuckled. "It sounds like the effect of global warming or greenhouse gas emissions."

"The Mandela Effect is a psychological phenomenon that refers to a discrepancy between the public's collective memory of history and historical facts," Xiao Yao said. "Why do you think this phenomenon occurs?"

"I... how would I know? I'm not a psychologist," Yu Luying thought for a moment, "It's just a rumor, isn't it?"

“Possibly,” Xiao Yao said, “but it’s normal for one person to have a false memory. But for a group of people to have the same false memory at the same time, don’t you find that strange?”

"What are you trying to say?" Yu Luying asked Xiao Yao.

"What does this make you think of?" Xiao Yao prompted. "I don't believe you really can't think of anything."

“The collective unconscious, the mirror under the bridge where we level up every day,” Yu Luying said. “Someone has used the collective unconscious space to tamper with the public’s memory.”

Xiao Yao was taken aback: "That's what you're thinking?"

"uh-huh?"

“That’s a very interesting hypothesis,” Xiao Yao nodded. “I hadn’t thought about it that way, but it’s very interesting, very interesting indeed. But the question is, what’s the benefit of altering this kind of public memory? Who would do something without benefit? It can’t just be because it’s fun, right?”

"How do you know there's no benefit?" Yu Luying retorted, "Then what are you thinking about?"

“My thinking is rather simple,” Xiao Yao said. “Could it be that someone went back in time and resurrected Mandela? Or rather, saved Mandela from the fate of dying in the 80s?”

Yu Luying: "..."

Just then, Yu Luying's phone rang; it was Yu Lihua urging her to come home for dinner.

"My mom wants you to go out to eat with her, are you going?" Yu Luying asked Xiao Yao after hanging up the phone.

“I…” Xiao Yao looked troubled.

“I understand,” Yu Luying nodded. “I’ll help you think of a reason to tell Mom.”

"Sorry, I'll definitely do it tomorrow." Xiao Yao reached out and squeezed Yu Luying's chubby hand.

“We might not invite you to our house tomorrow, you’re the eldest son who resurrected Mandela,” Yu Luying said.

"Sigh, being a man is really tough," Xiao Yao said.

"So besides the date of getting the marriage certificate, what else has she remembered?" Yu Luying suddenly thought of something and asked Xiao Yao.

“She remembers the three of us going to Navarre to look at wedding dresses, she remembers us being caught red-handed by Song Haijian, she remembers that she’s now locked up by her father, she remembers that you and I went to Dongru together…”

"How did you manage to get her to remember so much? Isn't it supposed to require the stimulation of related items or descriptions?"

"Oh, with such a short time and such a small sample size, do you take me for some great scientist? I'm just a seasoned reader of 'Science Fiction Emperor,' and I've only deduced a few hypotheses based on what I've seen..."

Night slowly fell.

Chapter 242 Bad Girls and Bad Women

2023-06-21

Xiao Yao and Yu Luying held hands and climbed up the river embankment, walking together towards Yu Luying's home.

Although they were said to be holding hands, it was actually just Xiao Yao holding Yu Luying's hand unilaterally, while Yu Luying seemed somewhat distracted.

A gentle night breeze caressed their faces as the sun had just lost its last rays. Low buildings lined both sides of the path, mostly old houses or small shops, standing quietly in the darkness.

The lights were sparse, with the faint glow from the streetlights illuminating the road ahead, but several hundred meters away, a mysterious darkness still shrouded everything.

A cool night breeze drifted slowly through the alley. The branches and leaves of the trees rustled softly. Occasionally, subtle sounds came from the walls beside me, like small creatures moving stealthily in the night.

The road surface was paved with uneven stone slabs, with some cracks and water stains faintly visible in some places. Under the cover of night, the stone slabs shimmered with a faint light.

In this tranquil setting, one can look up and see the dazzling lights of the Pearl of the Orient. In the distance, the glass curtain walls of skyscrapers reflect countless glittering lights, like jewels adorning the night sky.

Surrounded by these high-rise buildings, the low-rise, dilapidated "slums" gave Xiao Yao a feeling of... what was it called again? Magical realism? Cyberpunk?

Friends, welcome to Shanghai, the city that never sleeps.

"Hey, you still haven't told me how your investigation in the western suburbs went today?" Xiao Yao cleared his throat, breaking the silence first.

"You finally remembered to ask," Yu Luying said quietly.

"No," Xiao Yao quickly said, "wasn't this all about Shen Jie's memories?"

“…” Yu Luying remained silent.

Seeing her expression, Xiao Yao guessed that things hadn't gone very well: "By the way, when you came to see me this afternoon, you looked all sullen. Was it because I said I didn't want to come out?"

“You really are slow to realize things,” Yu Luying glanced at Xiao Yao. “But at least you thought of it, which is better than not thinking of it at all.”

"What's wrong?" Xiao Yao asked Yu Luying. "If anyone dares to bully you, I'll go and beat them to death right now."

“It wouldn’t be accurate to call it bullying,” Yu Luying said calmly. “It’s not a big deal. I was just a little angry at the time, but thinking about it afterwards, it’s not a big deal.”

"Just tell me, stop being so mysterious." Xiao Yao poked Yu Luying's waist: "I'll make the decision for you."

Yu Luying nimbly shrank back, dodging Xiao Yao's fingertips: "Let me just tell you directly, it's basically impossible to infiltrate the West Suburbs Garden."

"Oh? West Suburb Garden?" Xiao Yao asked.

“The name of that community is Xijiao Garden,” Yu Luying told Xiao Yao. “I walked around it many times. There is a main gate, a side gate, a special vehicle exit, and an iron gate that I don’t know if it’s an entrance or exit that was closed. All three entrances and exits are guarded by gatekeepers, and they ask whoever enters.”

"Oh, okay." Xiao Yao nodded, signaling Yu Luying to continue.

"There are no gaps or low spots in the wall. There are three power lines on the wall, and the warning sign has a lightning bolt drawn on it and says 'High voltage, consequences at your own risk.'"

“Tsk,” Xiao Yao said, “maybe there’s no high voltage, it’s just to scare people.”

“That makes sense,” Yu Luying said calmly. “I’ll go again tomorrow and try probing it with a metal rod.”

"Don't be silly," Xiao Yao said with a wry smile.

“The people who went into that community all looked like they were rich,” Yu Luying continued, “and there were also some who were obviously foreigners. I tried to sneak in through the main gate, but the security guard stopped me and asked what I was doing there. I said I was visiting a friend, and he asked me what number I was—it’s all detached villas inside, and he had to call to confirm.”

Xiao Yao nodded and said, "I can imagine, that's why Liang Yanan said that even if I got the address, I wouldn't be able to get in without her help."

“At first, I thought there were no security guards at the side door and that I needed to swipe an access card to open it. I waited there for a long time before someone came over, and then I followed that person in,” Yu Luying said.