Ch 34: Text Messages Across Time

“Mr. Lin, this is the hotel’s milk oatmeal porridge. It’s completely natural and unsweetened. Would you like a bowl?” At 9:50 in 2024, the hotel attendant knocked right on time. Xuhu Hotel was a high-end establishment. Recently, besides the autumn pear soup, they had also been serving red date porridge, tangyuan, and other small snacks.

“I’ll have a bowl.” Seeing that today’s porridge looked quite good, Lin Wu accepted.

The oatmeal had been freshly cooked with milk and oats. Though unsweetened, it retained the natural fragrance of both, and tasted excellent. After finishing it, Lin Wu’s new memories refreshed on schedule.

【We’ll begin a new ending line…】After carefully organizing his thoughts, Lin Wu sent the message.

So far, since obtaining the phone, there had been seven ending lines—

1. Wang Jiahui killed, Luo Xiaorong dies in a car accident. (11.19, 12.15)
2. Wang Jiahui killed, Luo Xiaorong killed. (11.19, 12.17)
3. Wang Jiahui and Luo Xiaorong killed at the same time. (12.2)
4. After buying the lottery ticket and leaving, the number of victims rose to nine.
5. Returned to ending 1.
6. On the day Wang Jiahui was attacked, they tracked the suspect and successfully captured Guo Chengchun. Wang Jiahui survived, Luo Xiaorong was killed on 11.26.
7. On November 25, they tracked Luo Xiaorong. She did not go missing then, but was killed on 12.5.

…

Now the change in events lay in the November 25 surveillance. He wasn’t sure whether the five people Wang Manshan brought had leaked information, or if there had been some other mistake. To be safe, he decided that in the next ending line, he would act alone.

“What if it fails?” In the residential compound, Qin Weidong frowned as he replied. The two had returned an hour earlier and were sitting as before, one on the bed, one on a chair.

“If we don’t find the killer, we take Luo Xiaorong and leave,” said the thirty-seven-year-old Lin Wu.

They had left once in the fourth ending, and the number of victims had risen to nine. Now that Guo Chengchun had been arrested, he wasn’t sure whether the earlier killings had been his doing or someone else’s. He planned to try again. There might still be a turning point.

“That’s the safest approach,” seventeen-year-old Lin Wu agreed.

Watching them exchange messages, Qin Weidong felt a bit left out. “I don’t know how you two met in the future, but it feels like you think exactly the same…”

Lin Wu didn’t respond.

Over the next ten minutes, he asked about details from the seventh ending. At 10:27, the connection ended.

“There are two left. One for each of us.” As soon as Lin Wu put down the phone, Qin Weidong handed him a strawberry. He had bought three boxes that day: one for Luo Xiaorong, one for himself, and one for Lin Wu. The ones for the two of them had been washed together, and he had been feeding Lin Wu all evening just like the day before.

“I can eat it myself…” Lin Wu still wasn’t used to being fed.

“It’s fine, focus on your studying.” Qin Weidong waved him off.

And so, Lin Wu could only study while eating. The entire evening was basically feed, feed, feed. Now, seeing Qin Weidong holding a large strawberry, Lin Wu knew refusing wouldn’t work, so he leaned forward and took a bite directly from Qin Weidong’s hand.

Lin Wu had fair skin and red lips. The strawberry was bright red as well. Watching him take a bite, Qin Weidong found it oddly pleasing. After Lin Wu finished, Qin Weidong ate the remaining half in one bite.

At 10:35, Qin Weidong changed his quilt cover, while Lin Wu brought in a plastic basket filled with toiletries like towels and shampoo.

“Going out?” Qin Weidong asked curiously.

“I’m going to the bathhouse. Want to come?”

Their home didn’t have a private bathroom, so they usually went to the public bathhouse. It had been built by the steel plant, and residents liked going there. It cost one yuan per visit. Lin Wu usually went alone, while Luo Xiaorong went with Hao Shuqin.

“A public bathhouse…” Qin Weidong froze a little. He had never been to one at a steel plant, but based on what he knew, wasn’t it just a big open room with twenty or thirty showerheads, everyone bathing together?

He got along well with Lin Wu, but hadn’t imagined standing naked face to face like that.

“There are partitions, right?” Qin Weidong asked uncertainly.

“There are three large open sections and five VIP rooms. The open sections don’t have partitions. The VIP rooms are private.” The VIP rooms cost ten yuan each. Translated on Hololo novels. Most people preferred the open area unless they were factory leaders.

“Oh…” Qin Weidong didn’t really want to go, but since Lin Wu had invited him, refusing might seem unhygienic. And he prided himself on being clean.

“What time does it close?” he asked.

“11:30.”

“Alright, let’s go together.” Qin Weidong decided not to overthink it. He had brought plenty of toiletries with him, including a towel and slippers. After packing up, they informed Luo Xiaorong and headed out.

The bathhouse was about a hundred meters from Lin Wu’s home. When they arrived, it was 10:50.

There weren’t many people left inside. Lin Wu took out two yuan. “Two regular tickets.”

“Wait.” Qin Weidong stopped him and pulled out two ten-yuan bills. “Two VIP tickets.”

“There’s probably barely anyone inside now. No need for VIP,” Lin Wu said, surprised.

“There are only three people in there. It’s pretty spacious,” the staff member added.

“I don’t like bathing in open spaces. I prefer a small room,” Qin Weidong said vaguely. In truth, he had been to bathhouses before, but bathing together with Lin Wu now just felt strange.

Seeing his insistence, Lin Wu assumed it was just a matter of personal preference. “Then one regular ticket and one VIP ticket.”

He wasn’t going to waste money on a VIP ticket, even if Qin Weidong paid.

Three minutes later, they entered the changing room.

The changing room had a hundred lockers and was very large. Qin Weidong looked at his tag: No. 225. After searching twice, he still couldn’t find it.

“Um…” He went to Lin Wu to ask, only to see that Lin Wu had already found his locker and was changing. After removing his uniform and lifting his undershirt, his lean, pale back was revealed, with a layer of light muscle and clean lines.

Qin Weidong froze.

Lin Wu was 182 cm tall. Not short among boys. Qin Weidong had always thought he was soft-built, but now he realized there was a subtle strength in his frame.

“What is it?” Lin Wu turned around after putting his clothes away.

“Uh…” Qin Weidong caught a glimpse of his front and immediately turned away. “Where’s locker 225?”

“In front, bottom row.” Lin Wu pointed.

“Oh!” Qin Weidong quickly moved over. They were separated by a row of lockers now. Even after reaching his own, his heartbeat still felt off.

He opened the locker and tried to calm down. Soon, Lin Wu finished changing and came over. “You done?”

“Almost. You go ahead.”

“Alright, I’ll go in first.” Lin Wu picked up his things and headed inside to shower.

Qin Weidong felt extremely tense, an abnormal kind of tension. He sat on a bench outside for a while, then changed and went in. The bathhouse was very large, with three open sections. When he entered, three people were just leaving, carrying their things. Inside, only he and Lin Wu remained.

He heard the sound of water from the middle section. Not daring to look, he hurried past with his belongings, found a VIP room, went in, and locked the door.

The VIP room was about ten square meters, with a storage rack and a stone bench worn smooth at the edges. The environment was slightly better than outside. He put his things on the rack, sat down, turned on the shower, and began thinking: it wasn’t like he’d never been to a bathhouse before, so why did it feel so awkward? Why was he so nervous?

He felt like he’d eaten too many strawberries and his brain was acting strange. Just as he was thinking, someone knocked on the door.

“Who is it?” Qin Weidong, too absorbed in thought, jumped at the interruption.

“Need your back scrubbed?” Lin Wu’s voice came from outside.

“No need, I’ll do it myself!” Qin Weidong quickly turned the water up, signaling that he was busy.

“Oh…” Outside, Lin Wu left with the bath cloth, slightly disappointed. He had actually wanted Qin Weidong to help scrub his back, but since they had only just gotten to know each other, he hesitated and didn’t say it.

Half an hour later, Lin Wu came out of the bathhouse. Qin Weidong had already changed and was waiting on the sofa by the entrance.

“Let’s go.” Lin Wu returned the key and said.

“Mm.” Qin Weidong followed behind him, looking at him thoughtfully.

“What’s wrong?” Lin Wu asked.

“You’ve got a pretty good build,” Qin Weidong said, genuinely appreciative.

He finally understood what had felt so strange. He had always thought Lin Wu was the frail type, but his body lines were smooth, and his physique was actually very good. Among the people he knew, those with better builds weren’t as fair as Lin Wu, and those fairer than him didn’t have his physique. And if someone had both, they definitely didn’t look as good as Lin Wu.

“Not bad,” Lin Wu said with a small smile.

Back when money was tight, he had studied nutrition carefully, trying to maintain a healthy diet for both himself and Luo Xiaorong at minimal cost. He also did exercises between classes every day, and when he ate too much, he would run a few laps on the field. With a teenager’s metabolism, his physical condition was actually quite good. He just looked slim because of his fair skin, which had always given people the impression that he was easy to bully.

“Let’s go.” Qin Weidong, having figured it out, pushed those strange feelings aside.

The reason he had felt that way was simply because it was his first time seeing a boy who was fair-skinned, well-built, and good-looking all at once. After spending more time together, it wouldn’t feel strange anymore.

…

The next day at 10:12, in the Xuhu Hotel of 2024, the eighth ending refreshed on time. Lin Wu once again skimmed through everything—

October 21: After the incident, Li Jing transferred schools.
November 19: He prepared a brick in advance, Wang Manshan and the others were ready, and Guo Chengchun was captured.
November 25: He followed Luo Xiaorong alone. She went about her routine as usual. The killer became suspicious and did not act.
November 26: He had Luo Xiaorong quit her job and prepared to leave Xuhu with her.

“No… moving… want… to work.” Luo Xiaorong resisted the idea of quitting her job.

“Only by moving can I get into a good university,” Lin Wu lied gently to reassure her.

“Okay…” Luo Xiaorong didn’t understand, but seeing how insistent he was, she eventually agreed.

Lin Wu was decisive. That very afternoon, he went to handle her resignation.

“Is your mother unhappy at work, or is someone bullying her?” a steel plant supervisor asked.

“She’s doing fine. I just want to go somewhere else…”

Luo Xiaorong had originally gotten her job at the plant because of Lin Haiming. After a token attempt to persuade them to stay, the supervisor agreed.

On November 30, after collecting her final paycheck, Lin Wu went to the construction site at the plant.

“Everyone, focus. Let’s try to finish within three months.” At the site, a middle-aged man wearing a helmet labeled “Daming Construction” was directing work.

There had previously been a two-story office building there. After restructuring, the plant planned to expand it. The foundation of the new building had already been laid. It was a small project and would be completed quickly.

Lin Wu stood to the side and observed.

The middle-aged man, seeing how young Lin Wu looked, walked over. “Looking for someone?”

“I’m a family member of an employee. Just passing by and taking a look,” Lin Wu replied with a smile.

“I see…” Outsiders weren’t supposed to linger on construction sites, but since they weren’t plant employees and Lin Wu had mentioned being related to a worker, it was unclear who exactly he was connected to. People came and went frequently here. After a moment’s thought, the man said, “Be careful.”

That meant he could stay as long as he didn’t cause trouble.

“Got it.” Lin Wu found a quiet spot and took out his vocabulary notebook. While pretending to study, he carefully observed everyone around him.

Daming Construction was a small team. Twenty-three workers had participated in the steel plant project. After Guo Chengchun’s arrest, twenty-two remained. Translated on Hololo novels. There were both men and women. On construction sites, people generally didn’t care about gender when it came to heavy labor.

There were seventeen workers present that day. Lin Wu examined each of them in detail.

And somehow, every single one of them looked like the killer.

✧˖°.──⋆⭒˚.⋆💌⋆⭒˚.⋆──✧˖°.