RALP Chapter 20

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No matter what, though, it will be helpful to know that You Haoyu doesn’t like men at all.

He will probably not be like Shen Chen, who pretended to understand and then seek out Xiao Tiantian to discreetly come back together.

Having finished all his noodles, Du You puts his bowl down, “I understand.”

One, he doesn’t remember Xiao Tiantian; two, he’s uninterested in men. If so, it certainly lowers You Haoyu’s threat as a member of the Top.

Even if Xiao Tiantian approached him, he will probably be rebuked.

At the end of the day, though, You Haoyu is not a person from this world. The fundamental solution is to send him back.

It will be difficult to do so though if they’ve even forgotten that they’ve transmigrated.

So, like, which world is You Haoyu from, exactly?

Du You sighs.

What a useless system.

System [Host, don’t think intentionally letting me hear that will work.]

You Haoyu hmphs coldly, “as long as you understand. Then I…”

Before he can finish, the man stands up, saying, “it is still raining outside, so stay here for the night.”

The crease between You Haoyu’s brows can probably squeeze a fly to death at this point.

The guy really didn’t understand at all. Stay the night? Did he even understand a single word he said?

Before he can retort, though, the person continues, “guest rooms are on the first floor, just pick one you like.”

Then he puts the dishes away, and heads for the bathroom on the second floor to shower.

You Haoyu is a bit shocked the man really is just leaving him there.

He really doesn’t understand Du You’s logic at all. Also, he is not angered, nor did he even have any other reaction listening to his provocative words. Instead, he lets him stay overnight here.

How could he just stay there when nothing makes sense.

“Wait.”

Du You stops, and looks back at him quizzically.

“Why are you helping me. What are you trying to achieve?”

“Achieve?” Without a second thought, Du You says, “I’m Robin…”

“You are not Robin Hood.”

Oh, he’s busted.

Du You’s only objective here is to tell him his parallel universe hypothesis and have this member of the Top stay far away from the Bottom and go back to his original world.

But if he doesn’t remember anything at all, is there any use to him explaining it?

You Haoyu furrows his brows seeing the man look at him seemingly deep in thought, “I don’t want to owe any favours. If you really do have any demands, you should state that early.”

Du You can only answer, looking at how stubborn he is, “understood. Please prepare yourself mentally.”

He might not believe that, but, just planting a seed of doubt in the back of his mind is good enough for now.

Looking at him getting serious, You Haoyu also focuses his attention.

One man stands on the stairs, the other on the ground. They are staring into each other’s eyes, from above and from below. The air is a mixture of fragrances left from the shampoo and instant noodles.

With a completely serious face, Du You asks, “do you know about parallel worlds?”

You Haoyu “…”

Hah?

About a dozen minutes later.

You Haoyu has listened to him quietly. His feelings have went from alert, to speechless, to exasperated in the end. Truly an emotional rollercoaster.

He still waits until Du You finishes his last sentence. Then, he waits for half a second before rushing forth to grab the man by his collar, yelling, “are you fucking messing with me?!”

He said he’s actually from another world, where he is a couple with Xiao Tiantian?

And all the men who have fallen in love with Xiao Tiantian will fuse into one?

Is he writing a fantasy novel?

A delusional sasaeng fan? Fine. Now this properly prim and proper CEO here also seems like a terminal stage patient, great!

Du You actually appears meek here, “you said you wanted to know.”

You Haoyu is so angry he’s actually smiling, “at least come up with something more believable if you’re going to craft a story.”

“That was not a crafted story.”

“Well, if you say I ‘transmigrated’ here, then how come I have memories all the way to back when I was a lil’ kid?”

That is a fair point. Since Du You doesn’t know why either, he can only take a guess, “maybe it was a transmigration into a foetus.”

“…”

Du You grabs You Haoyu’s hand and lightly pulls it away, “whether you believe it or not, I only sought you out for this reason. All you have to do is not approach Xiao Tiantian.”

You Haoyu looks displeased as ever, “I wouldn’t even if you had said nothing.”

“Good,” Du You pats him on the shoulder, “that is very helpful to me. Have a good night, and tomorrow the sun will rise again.”

Now that that’s dealt with, he’s going to turn around and walk up the stairs again.

“Wait.”

And he is stopped again.

You Haoyu is looking at him hesitantly, “is that… really the only reason?”

Du You fails to get what he is trying to get at, “what reason do you want?”

He can craft another reason for him.

Hearing that, the young man’s expression changes a few times before he backs off, “nevermind. Take it as if I didn’t say anything.”

Du You thus stops thinking about it, and tells him “good night” before heading for the bathroom upstairs.

Though he is still somewhat curious.

You Haoyu remembers nothing of the sort, then is he actually a member of the Top? Perhaps Xiao Tiantian got it wrong.

System [No, of course not, the Bottom has a system as well. That system is much more amazing than I am, so it could never get it wrong.]

Du You falls into thought.

If so, maybe he can steal that system from him and throw this useless one away.

System “???”

You Haoyu stood and saw Du You off until he disappears into the second floor, and the sound of water can be heard.

He actually doesn’t seem like he wants to do that, has he actually misunderstood him?

He turns around and looks at the front door. It’s unlocked. He can go away at any time if he wanted to.

You Haoyu looks back at the second floor, and puts his fingers gently under his nose. That collar just now had an unfamiliar but refreshing scent – it’s lavender.

What is that person actually thinking about?

…

Du You wakes up from his sleep. He’s thirsty.

Outside the window, the rain has stopped some time ago, it seems, and the clouds have parted to reveal a brilliant moon. The residual rainwater is still dripping down drop by drop from the roof, splashing on the leaves in the bushes and the cobblestone on the ground.

He yawns and heads downstairs for water. As soon as he opens his door, he can hear voices coming from below and a faint light.

It’s probably the television.

Du You looks at the time, and realises it’s two in the morning already. He walks downstairs into the living room.

There’s an old movie playing on the television. It’s a story about a leader of the underworld in the modern age.

You Haoyu is sitting on the sofa while hugging his legs. His handsome face is reflecting the rather sombre lighting the movie is showing onscreen, making his expression mysterious and unreadable.

He’s engrossed; he does not even notice Du You approaching.

Du You pours a glass of water in the kitchen, and walks back into the living room while drinking. He leans on the wall and follows it along for a while.

This is an old movie he had seen before as well. All the actors are talented in their acting and the story is superb as well. Though its rather convoluted plot meant that it remained a critically acclaimed box office flop.

Right now the scene is a flashback of when the young protagonist had lost his family and decided to take the path of damnation. It’s a small climax of the plot at this point, and quite a challenge to the acting skills of the young actor.

If the acting was subpar it would even affect the audience’s perception of the adult protagonist. They might see him as being melodramatic and overzealous rather than the original grey-zone straddling protagonist with its dangerous allure that was intended.

The young actor was highly successful.

Perhaps the director had taught him well as well, but the young actor, without relying on makeup and lighting tricks, have conveyed the character’s evolution with minute details on his facial expression. He is certainly talented.

While the scene was playing out, Du You starts to feel like the character is giving him a sense of familiarity. Then it hits him, and he asks, “this is you?”

You Haoyu seems spooked by the sudden noise. When he turns his head around, he sees the man leaning on the wall, his form buried in darkness.

He walks forth, dressed in his casual wear.

His hair is not held in place as usual with hair gel, and appears soft as it scattered about, making him look even younger. He can probably even pass for a university freshman.

You Haoyu takes a while to register him being the CEO of the Du Conglomerate.

Du You tilts his head in confusion seeing the young man look at him fixedly without reply, and asks, “well?”

You Haoyu snaps his head back.

Why would he be staring blankly at a man? That doesn’t make any sense.

He takes the remote and is about to close the TV, but the man sits next to him, “why close it? It’s not finished yet.”

You Haoyu’s hand pauses in midair, and then throws the remote away, “you can watch by yourself.” He stands up, about to leave after saying that.

“‘Unsung Hero of the Shadows,’ I’ve seen it before.” Du You looks back at the screen.

The current scene is when the young protagonist finally comes upon the corpses of his father and mother. But, because the perpetrator is still at the scene, he can only act as if he doesn’t know any of them.

With a great rage, fear and sadness all boiling in him, he gradually walks past the crowd of gathering onlookers.

You Haoyu stops and looks back at him with his brows raised. He’s surprised.

This is an old movie that wasn’t even popular back when it aired in cinemas. He actually watched it?

The kid in the movie looks to only be seven or eight years old, but the early makings of an intensive, highly aggressive sort of handsomeness can already be seen on his appearance. That pair of eyes, a pair of amber-coloured eyes, no less, is certainly eye-catching.

This is actually the first movie Du You saw when he transmigrated to this world, and this young actor was the one who left him with the deepest impression back then. For some reason, though, the list of the cast contained no information on the young actor whatsoever.

He didn’t expect to meet that person here.

“This is you?” Du You asks for a third time.

You Haoyu is quiet for a while before answering, “so what? You can laugh if you want.”

“Why would I laugh.”

“Isn’t it laughable to crouch here watching a movie from over ten years ago.”

That was his first, and only experience acting. After that, his father never again allowed him to step foot in the entertainment industry, until he rebelliously signed up for a talent show in secret.

He didn’t want to be an idol himself, nor is he interested in singing or dancing. Maybe it was only to fight back against his father when he signed the contract with that company.

Though, inexplicably, every time he is down in the dumps, he will pull this movie back out again. As if he is still immersed in that character – immersed in his past self.

Seeing him growing gloomier and gloomier, Du You tries to cheer him up, “I would also wake up in the middle of the night and then go eat a dozen packs of instant noodles.”

“…”

“What the hell was that comparison!”

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TL’s notes: There you go. Unsupportive, or rather, outright hostile parents! Umm… Try reading that with a less cheerful tone, thanks.