Extra 1 Part 2
Qiao Yu x Lin Qing in the Parallel World
Qiao Yu’s actual takeover of that world came some time later. During that period, she deliberately ignored the existence over there, immersing herself in life and work, refusing to dwell on the fact that in countless parallel worlds, there was one where she and Lin Qing were in love.
However, this behavior was abruptly halted one day when Cong Ye, in a panicked frenzy, rushed over on a weekday afternoon exclaiming, “The novel I’ve been following has been altered!” This marked the beginning of a series of subsequent developments, making the existence of that world the most popular topic during their company’s leisurely discussions.
After that unreliable colleague was banished to exile, Qiao Yu, who is of the same origin as the host, naturally became the next person in charge of the world, but all of this happened after the dust had settled over there.
“…I have to say, you in that world are quite formidable.”
With a weary expression, Cong Ye wiped his face and silently closed the interface of the novel.
“I was wondering why this book hasn’t been updated for such a long time. I opened it a couple of days ago and found out that everything has changed… And she has already returned from exile now — is she the first host who can return normally?”
“Yes.”
Although it didn’t concern her much, Qiao Yu still felt some sympathy towards Cong Ye, furrowing her brows as she checked the information coming back from the system.
“…But something seems off. The condition of ‘me’ is too terrible. There shouldn’t be any side effects in that place that would deteriorate someone’s health, right?”
With this in mind, Qiao Yu followed the clues and identified the problem. The proposed 《Suggestions for Optimizing Treatment for Hosts after Failure》 were successfully adopted, a cause for celebration.
“That being said—”
After some time, Cong Ye, who she thought to have abandoned the novel, enthusiastically approached her during break time and unfolded the contents of that book in front of her.
“Have you read it? Your love story with Lin Qing, have you read it, have you?”
It was downright annoying, deliberately provoking. Qiao Yu turned her head away, struggling internally for a moment with her previous statement of “being able to resist not reading it”, and reluctantly spoke up in the end.
“…The you over there is more likable than the you over here.”
“You’re so out of line!”
Cong Ye was making a huge racket. If it weren’t for the fact that he was the boss’s son, Qiao Yu really wanted to kick him out of the coffee room and not let him disturb her rest. Just as she was grinding her teeth in annoyance and pondering the feasibility of doing so, a hand gently rested on her shoulder.
“Did someone call for me just now?”
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The voice was gentle and soothing, like a clear spring washing over rocks, effortlessly calming Qiao Yu’s restlessness while causing her heart to skip a beat.
“No… Oh, Cong Ye seemed to have mentioned your name.”
Instead of immediately turning around, Qiao Yu decisively passed the question to Cong Ye. Glancing sideways, she saw that the young master, who had just been chirping away in self-righteousness, was now gaping dumbly as if he were a fish unexpectedly thrown ashore.
“N-No, we were just discussing—”
He looked thoroughly uncomfortable, his voice sounding strange, and he coughed twice before returning to normal.
“…Lin Qing, you must have heard about it too, right? It’s about, well, the parallel world’s Qiao Yu — the one who turned the whole mission upside down.”
“What on earth?”
Qiao Yu couldn’t help but comment, “This ambiguous description, I really don’t know what he’s trying to say.” The next moment, she heard Lin Qing behind her burst into laughter.
“I’ve heard about it.”
The hand on her shoulder gently pinched her, prompting Qiao Yu to instinctively turn around, meeting those clear eyes with a smile.
“That’s the world where Qiao Yu and I are in love, right?”
“…”
Suddenly, a buzz rang in her mind, and Qiao Yu suddenly understood. Cong Ye’s use of that particular expression just now was actually for her consideration. After all, saying such things in front of Lin Qing could easily catch her off guard.
And now, hearing these words spoken directly by Lin Qing herself, the effect was truly remarkable for her.
“Y-Yes!”
Seeing Qiao Yu standing there dumbfounded, feeling useless, Cong Ye’s attempts to signal her were futile. He had no choice but to raise his voice and continue the conversation himself, patting Qiao Yu on the back with a slap.
“So you’ve already told Lin Qing, huh? Here I was worried you two might feel awkward—”
“She didn’t say.”
Before Cong Ye could finish his sentence, Lin Qing interrupted. Cong Ye looked over in surprise and saw Lin Qing gazing steadily at Qiao Yu, her delicate face showing a hint of confusion.
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“I heard it from someone else. Qiao Yu, you haven’t said a word to me about it all this time.”
“…Ah, I, uh, forgot.”
Startled by Cong Ye’s slap, Qiao Yu snapped back to reality, feeling awkward, and avoided eye contact, lowering her gaze.
“It’s not that big of a deal.”
“I think it’s quite significant. It’s rare to have a world where we’re both in love, you know.”
Qiao Yu’s slightly lowered mood went unnoticed as she heard Lin Qing’s feigned dissatisfaction. Lin Qing deliberately held her hand, slowly interlocking their fingers.
“It’s so rare, and you knew about it without telling me. I also want to see what it’s like for you and me to be in love.”
Lin Qing furrowed her brows, pondering for a moment before speaking thoughtfully.
“…Quite hard to imagine, isn’t it?”
Qiao Yu’s heart turned into ice.
She knew there was no malice in Lin Qing’s words. Lin Qing stood as a good friend, speaking the most ordinary words, but for Qiao Yu, they were the most lethal poison because of the unintentional implication of “never considering” hidden in her words.
“Want to see?”
Qiao Yu heard herself speaking, her voice unbelievably calm, but each word was especially difficult, as if tiny ice blades were scraping against her throat.
“Mm.”
Lin Qing, unaware of the truth, nodded earnestly. Qiao Yu smiled gently, her tone relaxed.
“Then be with me.”
“I like you. I’ve liked you for a very, very long time.”
Her voice was soft, but every word was crystal clear. Qiao Yu heard Cong Ye, who had been sidelined, let out a gasp as if he were suffocating, but she ignored him, exhaling softly and lifting her eyes to meet Lin Qing’s gaze.
Upon that familiar and beloved face, which she had known since childhood, appeared genuine surprise and a hint of confusion, undisguised. Lin Qing opened her mouth, then after a long while, spoke.
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“…Are you serious?”
Serious? Of course, I am serious. How many nights have I dreamed of you, confessed my love to you a thousand times in those dreams? I truly like you.
Qiao Yu suddenly relaxed her expression, shattering the tense atmosphere, as mischief danced in her eyes and brows.
“Just kidding.”
The following days passed uneventfully, much like before.
The only noteworthy event was when Qiao Yu, disguised as the system for her counterpart, uncovered the world’s secrets and used this as a reason to submit a request to meet the host to the higher-ups, ultimately managing to help her a bit.
The Qiao Yu on that side surely couldn’t imagine that the “God” she spoke of had such structured regulations and can’t even fall in love.
Lost in thought, Qiao Yu absentmindedly played with her dipping sauce dish, and suddenly, there was an extra piece of meat under her chopsticks.
“…Hey, Qiao Yu, stop daydreaming, eat the meat, and after this meal, don’t rush to leave. I have something to tell you.”
“Huh? What’s going on? Acting like thieves, and even bribing.”
Qiao Yu looked inexplicably at Cong Ye sitting beside her. He glared at her, then glanced at the meat, but showed no intention of explaining.
Perplexed, she looked at the dipping sauce dish, preparing to eat the meat. Suddenly, another pair of chopsticks reached over from the side, skillfully taking the meat away, and quickly offering a new piece.
“Sorry, Cong Ye. This one has onions on it, she doesn’t eat them.”
Lin Qing, sitting on her other side, smiled apologetically at Cong Ye, then winked at Qiao Yu as if seeking acknowledgment, before smoothly eating the piece of meat Cong Ye had taken.
…What’s going on here.
Qiao Yu sighed heavily, resignedly picking up the piece of meat and eating it in large bites, chewing with bitterness and resentment.
They were currently at the company’s biennial memory maintenance dinner. Tomorrow was the day the company organized memory sorting, and no one knew what memories the people around them would choose to forget after tomorrow. So, there was always a dinner before this event, giving a heroic sense of “seizing the moment and gathering everyone together before potential forgetfulness.”
Of course, after tomorrow, some people might forget about today and having this meal with their colleagues. After all, a work dinner was often not a memory worth remembering.
Seated between Cong Ye and Lin Qing at the dinner, she couldn’t help but admit that her attempt to cover up her impulsiveness from before had been somewhat successful. At least Lin Qing had fully accepted her excuse of it being a joke, and since then, everything had been business as usual.
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Only Cong Ye, who knew the truth, looked at her with a hint of sympathetic understanding in his eyes, which irritated her.
No matter what Cong Ye wanted to say, she had to make him agree to forget that memory tomorrow first.
Qiao Yu made up her mind. After the dinner dragged on, she finally nodded to the impatient Cong Ye, then turned to Lin Qing, who had been waiting for her.
“…I have a little something to attend to, so why don’t you go ahead without me?”
They lived close by and usually went home together, so she needed to explain to Lin Qing. But Qiao Yu decided not to mention Cong Ye’s name, after all, if that guy was suddenly looking for her, it was most likely to talk about Lin Qing. She had some empathy, so she decided to cover for him for now.
“Something’s up?”
Lin Qing furrowed her brows, probing.
“What is it? I can wait for you.”
“No, it’s alright.” Qiao Yu thought, who knows how long Cong Ye will take. She couldn’t let Lin Qing wait indefinitely. Qiao Yu hastily waved her hand, wracking her brain to come up with a dry excuse. “I have plans with a… friend. I’m not sure how long it’ll take.”
“A friend? Can’t I come with you? Is it a friend I don’t know?”
“…”
Although it wasn’t entirely surprising for Lin Qing to have such questions, considering their social circles had largely overlapped since childhood, Lin Qing’s inquiries today seemed a bit excessive, unlike her usual self.
Seeing a hint of confusion in her expression seemed to trigger something in Lin Qing, as she lightly bit her lower lip before finally relenting.
“…Alright then, I’ll head back for today.”
“Yeah, take care on the way.”
Though her expression still appeared somewhat unsettled, Lin Qing obediently left. Qiao Yu followed a few steps to see her off, then turned around to rendezvous with Cong Ye, who had been hiding in a secluded spot, and followed him to his office.
“—So, what’s the deal? Why are you silently laying out all this stuff?”
Qiao Yu looked perplexedly at the various bottles and jars Cong Ye had arranged on the table, all in unfamiliar packaging, but it was clear at a glance what they were.
“…Just a heads up, drinking in the office is against the rules.”
“It’s already after work hours!”
LP: ​This is such a long chapter I have to cut it into four parts