Chapter 1: Reborn
Leaving the Lu family.
In August, after a long day of scorching sun, Hejiang City finally saw a rainstorm.
The earthy, metallic scent of the soil wafted in from outside the ward, making Yuan An feel like vomiting. He tilted his head slightly and closed his eyes, forcing back the mouthful of blood stuck in his throat.
Standing at the foot of the bed, Chu Baihan glanced at him before tucking away the documents in his hand as if they were precious treasures.
Though his expression was solemn, excitement flickered beneath the surface, unable to be fully concealed.
He looked toward another pale youth sitting by the bed. His lips moved a few times before he finally let out a light cough, suppressing his agitation as he said, “Xiao Chu, this is wonderful! Youâre saved!”
Lu Suichuâs eyes brimmed with tears as he pressed his lips into a tight line. “Brother Chu, don’t say such things in front of Anâan.”
Chu Baihan choked on his words, casting a brief look at the tightly closed eyes of Yuan An.
Wiping the moisture from the corners of his eyes, Lu Suichu added, “Brother Chu, please step out for a moment. I want to talk to Anâan.”
Hearing this, Chu Baihan sighed. He reached out to stroke Lu Suichuâs hair and said, “Xiao Chu, donât be too sad.”
Lu Suichu gave a strained nod and watched Chu Baihan walk out of the ward.
Afterward, he turned back to Yuan An. The grief on his face had vanished without a trace.
“Yuan An,” Lu Suichu called out in a light, breezy tone. “I didnât expect you to die like this. Youâre getting off easy.”
He stood up and swept a triumphant gaze over Yuan An several times. Then, he leaned down and gripped Yuan Anâs wristâalready marked with a deep purple bruiseâforcing him to open his eyes and look at him. “Still, youâve done a good deed before dying. With your heart, Iâll be able to live well in this world. Iâll live with far more value than a piece of trash like you.”
Yuan An stared at the youth before him, whose features were so similar to his own. His emaciated body began to tremble uncontrollably.
His lips moved, struggling to spit out a few words: “Father… Brother…”
Hearing this, Lu Suichu suppressed his volume and let out a few laughs, his eyes filled with naked contempt. “Are you still fantasizing about your father and brother coming to save you? Hahaha, impossible. Why do you think theyâve been so good to you lately? It was all to coax you into agreeing to give me your heart, just like Brother Chu. You idiot!”
“If they werenât afraid that youâd complain to your unlucky mother after you died, the ones who would have come in just now to restrain you and force your hand to sign that donation consent form would have been the father and brother you rely on so much.”
The moment his voice fell, Yuan An began to struggle violently on the bed.
Lu Suichu had no intention of holding him down indefinitely. He let go and stood by the bed, looking down at him with an expression of pity and mockery.
Yuan An didnât look at Lu Suichu again. He struggled to get up from the bed, nearly tripping in the process.
His body swayed, but he walked toward the ward door with slow, steady steps.
Through the small window on the door, Yuan An saw two familiar figures.
It was his father and his brother. These two men, usually so composed, now wore expressions of sheer ecstasy.
They held that document together, their hands shaking with excitement. Their eyes scanned it meticulously, as if they refused to miss a single word on the page.
It was the heart donation consent form that Chu Baihan had just forced him to sign by pinning him down and gripping his wrist.
“Thatâs great. Xiao Chu won’t have to leave us so soon.”
“Fortunately, Yuan An agreed. This way, Xiao Chu can live a healthy life.”
Yuan An bit his lip until it bled, but tears still rolled down uncontrollably.
Watching the happy smiles of the two men through the small window, he suddenly felt all the strength drain from his body.
He could no longer support himself and collapsed heavily onto the floor. The mouthful of blood he had been suppressing finally spilled out, sliding from his pale, gaunt cheek onto the snow-white floor.
The image before him gradually blurred. Yuan Anâs lips twitched as he faintly saw Lu Suichu walking toward him.
“Why…”
Why? What did he want to ask?
Yuan An wasn’t sure anymore. He only felt the world growing darker and darker, so he simply closed his eyes tight.
It hurt so much. His stomach hurt; it was so cold.
He wanted to curl his body up, but he could no longer feel the existence of his limbs.
That persistent stomach pain seemed to be slowly fading away as well.
His consciousness began to scatter. The last thing Yuan An heard was Lu Suichuâs disdainful chuckle.
He couldn’t hear clearly what was said afterward. He only felt as if he were falling into a dark abyss.
Was he dying? If he died, would the pain finally stop?
But he really, truly was not reconciled!
…
The sunlight outside the window was somewhat piercing, and a gentle breeze stirred the blue curtains.
The doctor in front of him was saying something while holding a slip of paper, but Yuan An had no heart to listen at the moment. He stared at the tree swaying outside the window, watching a bird flap its wings and fly from the branches into the blue sky.
What… was going on?
“Yuan An, Yuan An! Did you hear what I said?”
Yuan An turned to look at the doctor.
The doctor repeated what he had just said: “You are currently in the early stages of stomach cancer. If treated promptly, the chances of recovery are very high. Do you plan to be hospitalized for surgical treatment?”
Yuan An froze. Early-stage stomach cancer? He had clearly died of terminal stomach cancer. Was he dreaming?
Could one still dream after dying?
Seeing Yuan Anâs dazed expression, the doctor sighed and said, “I understand. No one can accept the news of having cancer all at once. How about you go home and discuss it with your family first? You must get treatment in time. I have other patients waiting.”
Yuan An nodded. He took his examination report in a daze and left, sitting down on a chair in the hallway.
People came and went in the corridor. Medical staff wearing masks walked past him in a hurry. A father held his son while waiting for the nurse to call their number. A man crouched in a corner with his phone, his voice choked with sobs as he asked the person on the other end for a loan…
The expressions on everyoneâs faces were so clear. A familiar pang of pain would occasionally radiate from his stomach.
Would a dream after death be this realistic? Or rather, this wasn’t a dream.
Yuan An looked at his wrist and found that the bruise Chu Baihan had left was gone. He hurriedly pulled out his phone and saw the date on the screen: April, 20XX.
He had died in August of that same year.
A realization suddenly surged in his mind. Could it be that he had been reborn into the past?
Yuan An clenched his fist tightly, then quickly released it and gave his thigh a hard pinch.
The sharp pain confirmed his suspicion. The corners of his lips quirked up uncontrollably.
This wasn’t a dream or a post-death hallucination. This was the real world. He had truly returned to the past!
The phone vibrated gently at that moment. Yuan An quickly looked down.
It was a call. The caller ID showed “Director Xu.”
Director Xu?
Yuan Anâs eyes flickered as a memory from this time in his previous life surfaced.
His first script, Han Dao, had been scouted and purchased by the somewhat famous Director Xu. After learning that the inspiration for the story came from Yuan Anâs high school days, Director Xu had praised him several times, saying he was very gifted. He had even taken Yuan An along to help cast the actors, determined to film the script well.
Back then, Yuan An had been full of confidence and expectation for the movie.
On the day the movie was officially announced, Director Xu had personally written a plot summary for Han Dao. His original intention was to attract more interest from netizens, but he hadn’t expected something to go wrong.
Fans of a previously high-heat drama, Jiang Shang Yue, began a collective boycott of Han Dao, accusing Yuan An’s script of plagiarizing Jiang Shang Yue.
The fans even made a comparison between Director Xuâs plot summary and the main storyline of Jiang Shang Yue, finding them to be identical. Since Jiang Shang Yue had already finished its broadcast, its script completion date was naturally much earlier than Han Dao.
Consequently, netizens showered Han Dao with a barrage of insults.
By the time Yuan An snapped out of his thoughts, Director Xu had already hung up once and was calling a second time.
Looking at the vibrating phone, Yuan An finally tapped to answer.
Director Xuâs anxious and irritated voice immediately came through: “An Yuan, Iâve been calling you for half the day. Why didn’t you pick up? Have you seen the accusations of plagiarism online? You have to give me a straight answer. The movie is about to start filming, and suddenly such a scandal breaks out. The money you got for the script won’t even be enough to pay the damages!”
His tone was quite poor, but hearing it made Yuan Anâs heart warm involuntarily.
Once a script is sold, even if it is suspected of plagiarism, most directors and investors will ignore it for the sake of profit and continue filming regardless; copyright disputes are usually not their concern.
Director Xu had always valued talent. The reason he was so angry was, ultimately, because he believed in Yuan An and was worried about his reputation.
Thinking of this, Yuan An said the words he had always wanted to say: “Thank you.”
He remembered that before he died, because he had just learned of his stomach cancer, he had been lost and overwhelmed. When he received this call, he had only replied wearily and aggrievedly: “I don’t know what to say… Iâm sorry.”
At that time, Director Xu thought he was apologizing for the plagiarism. After a long silence, he had let out a disappointed sigh, said “I understand,” and hung up. They never contacted each other again.
Reflecting on the past before his death, once he understood the meaning behind Director Xuâs words, Yuan An had always wanted to say this to him.
He just never had the chance to reach out again.
However, just like in his memory, Director Xu remained silent on the other end for a long time.
Perhaps no matter what he said, Director Xu would be as disappointed as he remembered.
Yuan An lowered his gaze, his heart gradually sinking.
Yet, at that moment, he heard Director Xu say, “Were you cursed into stupidity by the netizens? I asked for a straight answer on whether you plagiarized. What are you thanking me for?”
For some reason, his tone had also softened slightly.
Yuan An froze again. Then, with reddening eyes, he said, “I… I didn’t plagiarize.”
Director Xu laughed. “As long as you didn’t plagiarize, itâs fine. I believe you. But I still hope you can produce evidence to prove it. We don’t fight battles we aren’t prepared for.”
Evidence?
Yuan Anâs heart skipped a beat.
In his previous life, because of the early cancer diagnosis and the overwhelming abuse from netizens, he had been too depressed and confused to know what to do. He had only posted a screenshot of a record from five years ago detailing the main plot of Han Dao.
By the time Yuan An pulled himself together the next day to organize more powerful evidence, he discovered that all his records related to the Han Dao script had been wiped clean, seemingly by a hacker.
He wondered if his evidence was still there now.
Thinking of this, Yuan An felt his heart rate quicken.
In a voice that couldn’t hide his excitement, he said, “Okay… okay. Iâm out right now. Iâll send it to you as soon as I get back!”
Perhaps this time, he could really prove his innocence.
After hanging up the phone, Yuan An immediately opened his Penguin chat app.
Because he was so nervous, his fingers trembled uncontrollably. It took three tries before he successfully tapped the little penguin icon.
He hurriedly scrolled through his Qzone history and found a post from five years ago. He took a screenshot and sent it to Director Xu via WeChat.
This was the same screenshot he had posted online in his previous life.
However, his memories told him that this screenshot wouldn’t be very effective; the fans would still insist that he had plagiarized.
Therefore, he had to go back as soon as possible to organize all the records of his script.
And also…
Yuan Anâs eyes darkened.
And also, he had to break away from the Lu family, stay away from those people, pursue his own life, and rewrite the fate of his previous life step by step.
At that thought, Yuan An stood up abruptly and walked quickly out of the hospital.
Author’s note:
Stomach cancer is generally discovered in the middle or late stages, but with regular physical examinations and attention to health, there is a chance it can be detected in the early stages.
So, babies, remember to get your check-ups!
Translator’s Note
Hello everyone! I’m your translator for this new project. This story starts off quite heavy with the betrayal of the Lu family, but don’t worry, our protagonist Yuan An is ready for a fresh start!
Terms used in this chapter:
- Xiao Chu (ĺ°ĺ): “Xiao” is a common prefix meaning “Little,” used as an endearment for younger people.
- Anâan (ĺŽĺŽ): Doubling a name is another way to form a cute nickname.
- Gege (ĺĽĺĽ): Means “older brother.”
- Penguin (äźéľ): Refers to QQ, a very popular instant messaging app in China owned by Tencent, which uses a penguin as its mascot.
- Rainbow Farts (彊čšĺą): A slang term for exaggerated, flowery praise or flattery, often used by fans for their idols.
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Seeing the family’s betrayal was so frustrating, but I can’t wait to see Yuan An turn things around.
See you in the next chapter!
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