Replacing the Evil Way

Chapter 94: Friends from another world

He Wei found himself wading through a thick, ink-like dark current, his feet seemingly stepping on an unknown substance that gave no sensation of solidity. However, he didn’t feel weightless, nor did he plummet. It was a surreal experience, even more fantastical than soaring through the clouds.

Finally, a faint point of light appeared in the distance, as if it were the exit to this “dark tunnel.” In the pitch-black darkness where he couldn’t see his own hand, that glimmer of light shone like a constellation. Step by step, he approached the light and discovered that it was… a streetlamp?

In the blink of an eye, what appeared before him was a strange street with the bright moon hanging overhead. He checked his wristwatch, only to realize that time had stopped since he had entered that black hole.

Where was he?

He Wei walked down the unfamiliar street. He passed by station signs with place names he was familiar with from his daily life, confirming that he was still in the city of Shengzhou. This particular station was called “Lianhua Fang.” Strangely, this was a route he took every day to work, but this street was foreign to him. All the shops, like flower shops, cafes, and barbecue stalls, looked different from what he remembered.

Ahead, a barbecue stall was emitting thick smoke from its grill, mixed with the aroma of meat. He Wei asked, “Excuse me, what time is it now?”

“Half-past eleven. Young man, how many skewers of meat would you like?” the vendor replied.

“What’s the date today?” He Wei asked again.

“Hmm? The date? Oh, I can’t remember that. I only know what day of the week it is,” the vendor said, wiping his hands on his apron before checking his phone. “It’s the 13th.”

April 13th.

He Wei remained silent, accepting the fact that he had returned to this day. All of this could only mean that the Möbius loop had always existed, and what he had experienced before was just a moment of calm before the storm, giving him the illusion that he had broken the cycle.

He Wei checked his pockets and realized he didn’t have his phone. He only had a few bills in his wallet, so he ordered a skewer of grilled corn to help the vendor. The vendor picked a large piece of corn and chatted with He Wei as he grilled it. He Wei asked how long he had been running this business here, and the vendor replied that it had been more than 10 years.

“Well, you’re certainly a veteran of this street.” He Wei said with a smile. He glanced at the street again and had a strange thought: Could this be the world of Cheng Zesheng?

He chatted amiably with the vendor and asked to borrow his phone. The vendor generously handed it over, and He Wei opened the browser.

When he searched for “Pianist Cheng Zesheng,” the results were all over the place, with no matches to his search. There was only one article from the police praising Cheng Zesheng, which contained the name “Cheng Zesheng.”

The results were clear. He had indeed arrived in Cheng Zesheng’s world, standing on the same land and breathing the same air. He wondered how Cheng Zesheng would react when he found out. However, the current Cheng Zesheng probably had no recollection of him because there had been no murder case and they hadn’t crossed paths.

Returning the phone to the vendor, He Wei took his fragrant grilled corn and left the barbecue stall. He walked while glancing at street signs, turned three corners, and finished his corn. As he tossed the cob into a trash bin and looked up, he found himself standing in front of the gate of an old residential complex.

This old residential community is named “Xiangxie Li,” which has a similar effect to the name “Hutongli,” both of which were chosen at that time to make things look trendy by using foreign place names. He Wei remembered the case records that Cheng Zesheng had shown him. Employee He Wei had lived in Xiangxie Li. On the night of the 13th, at 9 p.m., he left and returned at 12 a.m. with subtle changes in his clothing. He Wei glanced at his shoes and shirt, then at the surveillance cameras at the complex’s entrance, suddenly realizing that the footage from that time likely captured him from another world.

He must have been He Wei from an earlier loop because he couldn’t find Cheng Zesheng. That version of him, in despair, had sought solace in alcohol. He wouldn’t have appeared here so sober, stepping closer to the complex truth of this intricate loop.

Starting from the end of the first loop, He Wei had already changed enough details to cause a butterfly effect. At this point, he didn’t mind making more changes, so he turned and left, pretending he had never been here.

The surveillance cameras at midnight wouldn’t capture his presence again. If there was another loop, how would Cheng Zesheng view this case?

The buildings were unfamiliar, but thankfully, the streets hadn’t changed. He Wei took the subway to Xu’an Road, and after getting off, he found his friend’s bar in this world—Avenoir.

It was late at night, but the bar was still lit up in vibrant colors. This was a gay bar, a paradise for men seeking companionship. He Wei entered, receiving various looks from the patrons. He couldn’t help but sigh: Lian Jingyuan had really revealed his sexual orientation here. If Lian Jingyuan, who worked as a university professor, found out, he might be quite shocked.

“Mr. He Wei, why are you coming so late tonight?” The bartender gestured for him to sit. “The boss is meeting with customers; please have a seat. What would you like to drink? The usual?”

He Wei sat at the bar but was unsure what “the usual” meant, so he nodded, allowing the bartender to prepare a drink to quench his thirst. Soon, a blood-red drink with a slice of lemon sticking to the glass arrived in front of him. He Wei raised an eyebrow, “Bloody Mary?”

The bartender chuckled. “Mr. He, you have a good sense of humor. Isn’t this the pomegranate juice you often order?”

“…” He Wei took a sip and found it pleasantly sweet and sour, but not quite to his taste. So he asked the bartender to make him a whisky with less ice.

The bartender seemed surprised; it seemed he had never seen Mr. He ordered an alcoholic drink, let alone whisky. As He Wei sat at the bar, sipping his drink and waiting for Cheng Zesheng to come out, his alcohol tolerance was decent, and he couldn’t get drunk that easily. While his consciousness remained clear, a flush of red appeared on his cheeks.

“How come you ordered an alcoholic drink?” 

A hand rested on his shoulder. He Wei turned to see Lian Jingyuan’s warm smile. Cheng Zesheng sat down beside him. “It’s quite late now, and you didn’t even call me before coming?”

“It was a spontaneous decision.” He Wei looked at the bartender, pointed at Lian Jingyuan, and said, “Make a Tequila for your boss.”

Lian Jingyuan raised an eyebrow, then gently held He Wei’s hand. “There’s something not quite right with you. Are you drunk?”

He Wei shook his head; he wasn’t that easy to get drunk. Lian Jingyuan gazed at him through his glasses with tender eyes and asked, “I have a feeling there’s something on your mind. Can you tell me?”

Actually coming to find Lian Jingyuan was not in He Wei’s original plan, but he had a sudden idea, wanting to see what his best friend in this world would be like. The result didn’t disappoint him. From the moment he saw Lian Jingyuan’s eyes, He Wei understood that no matter in which parallel universe, Lian Jingyuan was still the same—refined, handsome, and kind-hearted, perfect to the point that you couldn’t find a single flaw.

“You truly are the same no matter where you are.” He Wei murmured.

Lian Jingyuan wore a faint smile on his face, but his eyes were filled with confusion. He thought that He Wei might have had a bit too much to drink, so he took the wine glass from his hand and replaced it with soda.

“What’s really going on?” Lian Jingyuan pushed his glasses up his nose. “Senior, if you ever encounter something you can’t solve, you should tell me. I won’t just stand by.”

He Wei rested his head on one hand, his slender index finger tracing the rim of the glass as it spun around. After a moment, he said, “I’ve been through a breakup.”

“…A breakup?” Lian Jingyuan blinked, never expecting that this would be the reason. He Wei chuckled, “Judging by your expression, I’m sure I’ve never been in a relationship before, right? Well, this breakup is quite unique; it’s entirely due to uncontrollable circumstances, a situation where the world didn’t give me a chance.”

Lian Jingyuan didn’t respond. He Wei sipped his soda, finding it uninteresting. He still wanted to drink alcohol. He was very sober right now, and he knew what he was about to do. It wasn’t about drowning his sorrows in alcohol; it was about using alcohol as a catalyst to perhaps make some bolder decisions to try and change the loop.

“Senior, even though I don’t know what exactly happened, if it’s not meant to be, maybe it’s better not to force it.”

“Not force it? I can’t do that.” He Wei smiled and was straightforward, “Until now, have you ever been in a relationship? I don’t think so. I guess the number of people you’ve genuinely liked can be counted on one hand.”

“You wouldn’t understand. You know he exists, but you can’t see him or touch him. There’s only a substitute around you, and that feeling can drive you insane.” He Wei raised his glass of soda water, “It’s like this glass of soda water. It looks like a mojito, but it lacks the essence of absinthe. No matter what you do, it can never become a mojito.”

For a moment, Lian Jingyuan was speechless, looking at He Wei with a mix of confusion and bewilderment. He seemed to not understand why his senior had suddenly become so talkative and sharp. The usual gentle demeanor had been replaced by a forceful one, and it was the first time that their conversation was being led by him.

“I admit that I don’t quite understand. Maybe your persistence is right,” Lian Jingyuan said, placing a hand on He Wei’s shoulder. He spoke with a tone of resignation, “Today, you seem different from usual, but it’s a good change.”

He Wei smiled and felt curious for a moment, “How do you usually see me?”

Lian Jingyuan picked a few flattering words—shy, innocent, cautious, and careful. However, in He Wei’s ears, it translated to “introverted, reserved, and naive.” He shrugged, not much he could do. The He Wei here had been that way since childhood, and even if their roles were swapped, their personalities were deeply rooted and couldn’t be changed.

In reality, he was also a part of this world, but due to certain special circumstances, he hadn’t continued living here. Thinking about it, He Wei’s thoughts wandered far and wide: If there hadn’t been that swap back then, if he had continued living here, would he still have developed the same kind of relationship with Cheng Zesheng?

Regardless of how, this time he was determined to find a perfect ending—at least one where he wouldn’t have to struggle alone with loneliness like he did with Cheng Zesheng.

He Wei looked at the clock on the wall; it was time to leave. Lian Jingyuan accompanied him to the door, and seeing his slightly flushed cheeks, he suggested, “Shall I call a taxi for you?”

“In that case, why don’t you give me a ride?” He Wei smiled. “Do you know how to get to Fulong Mountain?”

Although Lian Jingyuan didn’t understand why his Senior wanted to go to the mountains in the middle of the night, he still played his role as a junior and drove him there. On the way, He Wei looked out of the window, murmuring to himself, and Lian Jingyuan caught a few sentences related to the shops on the street.

Forty minutes later, Lian Jingyuan’s car was parked steadily at the deserted foot of the mountain. He Wei got out of the car, and Lian Jingyuan rolled down the car window and asked, “Senior, don’t you want me to accompany you?”

Bending at the waist and resting his arm on the car window, He Wei smiled and said, “I promise you, your senior will definitely come back safely.”

Lian Jingyuan felt uneasy. He looked up and met He Wei’s determined eyes, but he kept the words he wanted to say in his stomach. It was deep into the night, and the mountain was dark and treacherous. He couldn’t find anything suitable to give He Wei for protection. After searching for a while, he found a piece of twine wrapped in a transparent plastic bag that he had bought to decorate pottery. It was still unopened.

“I bought this to decorate clay pottery, but you can use it for protection.” Lian Jingyuan hesitated and added, “If you happen to fall into a pit, you can use the rope to climb back up.”

He Wei stared at the twine, and in his mind, he saw the image of Employee He Wei in this world, the one who had died in the murder case.

“Alright, I understand.” He Wei took the twine and said in a low voice, “If anything happens to me, you must remember to distance yourself from this matter. I don’t want to drag you into it.”

Lian Jingyuan’s unease grew stronger, “What on earth are you going to do?”

He Wei raised his head, looked into the distance, and smiled calmly, “Since there was no encounter, there would be no beginning. So, I have to figure out a way to create one.”