[Real World] - 04

 But Yuan Junyu saw one thing very clearly.

That was that Jiang Nian planned to settle down as soon as he graduated. It wasn't exactly Jiang Nian's own wish, but his parents'. After returning home, Jiang's parents introduced him to their business partners' circle, teaching him how to manage the company. At the same time, they also arranged for Jiang Nian to go on several blind dates.

These were all sons of companies with good business relationships with the Jiang family.

Some of them already knew Jiang Nian and explicitly expressed their willingness to arrange a marriage.

Others didn't know, but after seeing Jiang Nian, they all became willing.

Later, many ex-boyfriends somehow got involved, including Yuan Junyu and Tang Zhengxin.

Although Jiang Nian didn't want to get married too early, he wouldn't go against his parents. Many arranged marriages were sometimes just for show. The Jiang Group was in a period of growth, and there was no harm in arranging a marriage.

Among the blind dates, Jiang Nian was most satisfied with Ye Wenwen. Firstly, he was familiar with him and knew his background well; secondly, Jiang Nian felt that Ye Wenwen was relatively stable and more suitable for marriage.

Jiang's parents were satisfied with Jiang Nian's choice. After some investigation, they discovered that the Ye family's power was unexpectedly strong, and Ye Wenwen was incredibly sincere, presenting various conditions and dowries that showed his favoritism towards Jiang Nian. Furthermore, they agreed not to sign a prenuptial agreement, meaning that if Ye Wenwen wronged Jiang Nian, half of the Ye family's assets would belong to her in a divorce.

This sincerity was far more genuine than any empty promises, and Jiang's parents were very satisfied.

There were others who were even more sincere than Ye Wenwen, such as Yuan Junyu, who practically gave Jiang Nian the entire Yuan Group, and Tang Zhengxin, who was similar, though Tang Zhengxin was self-made and not really considered a top contender in Jiang's parents' eyes.

Moreover, Jiang's parents had a reason for choosing this marriage alliance. Recently, the Jiang family had offended someone and had been under constant suppression. Unable to resist, they wanted to find a good husband for Jiang Nian before their complete downfall. They didn't want her to suffer, and under certain conditions, they would prioritize someone who loved Jiang Nian and whom she also liked.

Ye Wenwen had to meet these conditions even better.

After the Jiang family publicly announced their intention to marry into the Ye family, Yuan Junyu, having pleaded in vain, imprisoned Jiang Nian.

Yuan Junyu truly loved Jiang Nian; his love for her had become instinctive, a constant, ingrained feeling over the past twenty years. Anyone who tried to separate Jiang Nian from him felt as if they were tearing his flesh from his bones, aiming to inflict unbearable pain.

In his eyes, Jiang Nian marrying someone else meant he had been completely abandoned by her, that he had lost his reason for living. He didn't know the meaning of life; everything had become meaningless. Without Jiang Nian… what could he possibly do to sustain his life?

Yuan Junyu couldn't think of anything, and he dared not even consider it.

So he went mad.

He didn't want things to end so badly with Jiang Nian, nor did he want her to despise him. He had knelt down and begged her; he so desperately wanted to be with her. But Jiang Nian refused, even refusing to be his mistress. She only wanted her boyfriend, only her future husband.

Why? Why couldn't he be the boyfriend Jiang Nian favored, the husband she so firmly chose?

Even if it was just a brief encounter, Yuan Junyu wanted to force himself on her.

His first time with Jiang Nian was bitter. As a virgin, he couldn't find the right place. When he finally succeeded in entering the body of the woman he loved most, Nian Nian, his first reaction wasn't happiness or joy, but fear and pain.

He was afraid of losing Jiang Nian completely, and he was in pain that he had still come this far with her.

But Jiang Nian was very forgiving. Jiang Nian was perfect. He held the repentant Yuan Junyu, his slender fingers brushing against Yuan Junyu's cheek like a gentle breeze. He said tenderly, "Don't cry anymore. Be happy from now on."

He forgave Yuan Junyu's actions so casually that Yuan Junyu couldn't help but sink deeper into despair, while also feeling even more acutely the wall between himself and Jiang Nian.

It was a lack of mutual affection.

His love couldn't be accurately conveyed to Jiang Nian. No matter how much he went too far, he couldn't leave a mark on Jiang Nian's heart.

It was that Jiang Nian didn't see him as a normal man she could have an ambiguous relationship with; Jiang Nian only saw him as a brother, even though they weren't related by blood at all.

...Unbearable, unacceptable, yet utterly helpless.

Love cannot be forced.

After Jiang Nian was rescued by her family, Yuan Junyu stood alone in the room, his face still bearing the wounds inflicted by Ye Wenwen. He was numb, feeling nothing, only an emptiness, an endless bitterness in his heart. As the knife sliced ​​through his flesh, blood flowed and dripped onto the floor.

Yuan Junyu heard a strange voice.

So cold and emotionless, it sounded like a machine.

"Worldline error, protagonist is about to die, error under correction..."

This was the world's law.

In a blur, Yuan Junyu's mind was crammed with a bunch of strange thoughts.

Roughly speaking, he was the protagonist of a wish-fulfillment novel with no romantic subplot, experiencing setbacks along the way, but ultimately achieving what he wanted. In the end, no one loved him, and he loved no one, dying alone at home.

Jiang Nian didn't appear in his world, not even a trace, which was impossible given Jiang Nian's musical talent.

The "Yuan Junyu" in his mind only wanted a career, but he only wanted love.

Therefore, in the eyes of the world's laws, everything was a problem.

It needed to be corrected.

A brutal, merciless correction.

The reason Jiang Nian didn't appear in "Yuan Junyu's" world was because he was born weak and sickly, pampered by his family, who couldn't bear to let him go to school alone. Naturally, he didn't meet "Yuan Junyu." Even after he grew up and married, he soon succumbed to illness and died in his husband's arms.

Like a withered flower, beautiful, vibrant, yet so short-lived.

Jiang's parents hadn't focused on their work for many years, seeking medical help everywhere, hoping God would bless their son to live one more day. After a grand funeral for Jiang Nian, they couldn't bear the blow and died one after another. Jiang Nian's husband, who had loved him for many years, also passed away after arranging his parents' funerals.

All these events were just irrelevant gossip to "Yuan Junyu," who didn't even bother to learn the names of the main characters.

Therefore, the first step in correcting the world line was Jiang Nian himself.

According to the world line, Jiang Nian and his parents should have already died at this point.

"No—!!"

"No—!!"

Yuan Junyu was trapped in the space, screaming in anguish, but could only watch helplessly as the world line began to rotate. The laws of the world were cruel; they repaired the world line, but did not erase Yuan Junyu's memories.

Jiang Nian, sitting in her car on her way home with her family, suddenly felt a blinding light from the side. The next second, a huge crash resounded through the sky, followed by a massive burst of flames. People quickly got out of their cars to rescue those in need, but in the end, only Ye Wenwen, the driver, survived.

Ye Wenwen was stunned, his legs too weak to move. Finally, like a madman, he pushed through the crowd, holding Jiang Nian's body, unable to utter a single word.

He couldn't believe Jiang Nian was dead.

Tang Zhengxin didn't believe it either. He secretly followed Ye Wenwen and his group to find Jiang Nian, and naturally witnessed the scene. In fact, he immediately drove his car into the car rushing towards Jiang Nian. Strangely, even though he had smashed the front of his car to pieces, the car didn't stop and kept driving.

But none of that mattered anymore.

Tang Zhengxin was bleeding from his head in the impact, and his head was still dizzy and unable to react. But without Jiang Nian to restrain him, he could no longer maintain his outward kindness. He pushed Ye Wenwen away and pulled Jiang Nian into his arms.

Jiang Nian's body was still warm, and his eyes were tightly closed, making him appear to be merely asleep.

But his breathing had long since stopped.

How ridiculous. The first time he embraced his lover was when he died. No matter how

much Ye Wenwen tried to take her away, Tang Zhengxin held Jiang Nian tightly, even when his fingers were broken, he wouldn't let go. No one could ever separate him and Jiang Nian again.

He would die with Jiang Nian.

Without Jiang Nian, there was no reason for Tang Zhengxin to live.

"I want to die."

This thought flashed through Yuan Junyu and Tang Zhengxin's minds simultaneously. "

I really want to die.

" The world's laws soothed them, "Don't worry, he and his parents died without any pain; they lost their lives in a beautiful dream."

"Alright, it's time for you to return to the world."

At the moment the words fell,

the world completely collapsed.

Tears of blood streamed down Yuan Junyu's face, blood trickling from his lips. He spoke each word with bitterness, prayer, and unbridled hatred: "I don't want to be the protagonist. I'm willing to give my life just to bring Jiang Nian back to life."

"To bring back his parents' lives, to restore his original, beautiful, and happy life."

The protagonist at the center of the world, his prayers were effective.

Unfortunately, even after he sacrificed his life, it wasn't enough to restore everything to its original state. Jiang Nian and his parents hadn't died, but Jiang Nian remained in a coma. His parents searched everywhere but found no hope.

The only one who remembered Jiang Nian's death was Tang Zhengxin.

He was an accident.

The world's laws didn't grant Yuan Junyu complete memories. If Yuan Junyu was the protagonist on the surface, then Tang Zhengxin was the ultimate villain on the shadows.

Born into poverty, his father died early, and his mother remarried, only occasionally providing him with financial support. His childhood was dark, and no one treated him kindly as an adult, causing him to grow up completely distorted.

He studied diligently, then sought revenge, his mind twisted, hating the world. He rapidly developed his business, but only to suppress those he despised.

This Tang Zhengxin was a major obstacle for Yuan Junyu's business expansion, and in the end, Yuan Junyu won, ending with Tang Zhengxin's death.

However, everything changed after Jiang Nian came into his life. Tang Zhengxin's mind became twisted, but he no longer hated the world; he became a psychopath, a stalker, a delusional patient, a psychopath whose mind was solely focused on Jiang Nian.

This Tang Zhengxin was no longer a major villain.

Therefore, after losing Yuan Junyu, the world's laws sought out Tang Zhengxin, who could replace Yuan Junyu as the protagonist.

After understanding the whole story, Tang Zhengxin calmly made the same choice as Yuan Junyu: "I will give my life to bring Jiang Nian back to life."

The laws of the world couldn't understand Yuan Junyu and Tang Zhengxin's willingness to sacrifice their lives, their future, and everything else just to ensure Jiang Nian's well-being.

But the only protagonists this world could support were Yuan Junyu and Tang Zhengxin.

Unwilling to let the world collapse completely, the laws of the world ultimately compromised.

Before all this happened, it had actually erased the memories of Yuan Junyu, Tang Zhengxin, and other characters with storylines in the timeline regarding Jiang Nian. Strangely, it didn't work; they would always recall the memories, only to find that when they lost their memories, Jiang Nian had already married someone else and was deeply in love, causing them to go insane again.

No matter how many times the memories were erased, even if they couldn't remember, they would accidentally see Jiang Nian's photo and fall in love with her again, only to see her with someone else again, and then go insane.

This cycle repeated itself.

The laws of the world had no choice but to erase their memories and kill Jiang Nian.

But the result was even worse.

This time, Yuan Junyu and Tang Zhengxin didn't go insane; they inexplicably ended their own lives.

They felt as if their hearts had been forcibly ripped out, as if ants were crawling through their veins, gnawing at their flesh every single day and every second. They felt

utterly empty.

Utterly tormented.

The world's laws, in their last resort, had no choice but to allow both of them to retain their memories until Jiang Nian's death, then erase them to ensure the worldline returned to normal.

Unfortunately, Yuan Junyu defied the world's laws, signing a pact with the universe and sacrificing his life.

The world's laws could not stop him.

Now, Tang Zhengxin was doing the same.

The voice of the world's laws echoed from the void, saying, "I can grant your wish."

And grant Yuan Junyu's wish as well.

Jiang Nian's soul was no longer in this world. The world's laws allowed Tang Zhengxin and Yuan Junyu to follow Jiang Nian's soul to other worlds. The soul power they gained in those other worlds would be given to the world's laws after everything was over, to be used to correct the errors in the current worldline, change its course, and strengthen the world's laws themselves.

As for the laws of the world, the world, having lost its protagonist, began to grind to a halt. Out of curiosity about Jiang Nian, who was loved by everyone, He bound himself to her after she lost her memories due to soul turmoil. Claiming to be a system, He took Jiang Nian on tasks she didn't need to do.

While following Jiang Nian through various worlds, the laws of the world were surprised to discover why Tang Zhengxin could replace Yuan Junyu as the protagonist: their soul fragments were essentially the same; they were actually one person.

Therefore, after the fragments of Yuan Junyu and Tang Zhengxin, both without memories, had accumulated enough soul power, the laws of the world said to Jiang Nian,

"You've had a hard journey."

"Welcome home."

"Nian Nian."

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