Chapter 25: Key

“Brother Nuo Nuo?” The little boy’s crisp voice was particularly distinct in the steeply quiet corridor.

“…brother?” Zhang Man asked, and saw that everyone’s eyes focused on him. He hastily showed them an embarrassed smile. “Well, he looked exactly like Kan Chen so I thought he was your child…”

Kan Chen’s face showed a strange expression but Xia Nuo’s attention was focused on something else. “Can two men also have a child together?”

“Of course,” Zhang Man nodded nonchalantly. “As long as you have enough points, not to mention birthing a child, you can even give birth to a lion. What, you interested?”

He knew that under the rules of the game, Kan Chen wouldn’t be able to hear them clearly so he spoke with confidence.

Xia Nuo: “…”

He shook his head, “No, no. I’m just curious.”

Birthing a lion… That’s a bit outrageous, right?

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But now, Kan Chen has probably realized something’s wrong.

Though he claimed to be Chang An’s boyfriend, the two of them stood together without that kind of ambiguous atmosphere at all. Not to mention that as soon as they met him, Chang An jumped straight into Kan Chen’s arms and didn’t even look at Zhang Man—that isn’t absolutely how a boyfriend is treated!

However, he didn’t expect the man to be really caught up with Xia Nuo. The man may not be aware of it, but the feelings in his eyes were real.

There is an old saying that there are three things in this world that can’t be hidden—poverty, cough, and love.

He suddenly began to admire this rookie player. Though he wasn’t sure the two would end up together, Chang An was really capable at making such a cold hearted big boss fall in love with him.

The beast from before? Where did it go?

Xia Nuo was unaware that Zhang Man had started to admire him. He listened to him and looked around to also look for the beast but he actually didn’t understand what he meant.

The Little Kan Chen beside him also listened to them talking about something he didn’t understand. Unwilling to be ignored, he ran to Xia Nuo with his short legs, and tilted his head as he asked, “Brother Nuo Nuo, why are your eyes red? Did this person bully you?”

Their way of thinking really was the same. When Little Kan Chen said this, it was aimed at the adult Kan Chen in front of him.

Somehow, when Little Kan Chen saw this man, he immediately harbored a subtle hostility towards him.

Is it because the same kind repels each other? Like a young beast that suddenly met a mature beast, both envious and wary about its strength.

He watched as the man put his brother in his arms, full of possessiveness. He couldn’t help but pout.

Why could this man hold brother Nuo Nuo in his arms?

He compared his height difference with the man and thought to himself: I must quickly grow up. When he does, I’ll also hold brother Nuo Nuo in my arms like that!

It’s no wonder that he wasn’t able to recognize the old version of himself. Compared with the teenager Kan Chen, the man’s facial features have obviously changed, and the outline of his face has become more profound and sharp. 

It would be hard to recognize their similarities at a glance.

Faced with Little Kan Chen’s confused eyes, Xia Nuo suddenly found that he was still leaning against the man. His fair skin suddenly blushed.

He struggled to get out of the man’s arms as he denied again, “No, no one bullied me.”

But Kan Chen kept him locked inside his arms without saying a word.

Xia Nuo looked up only to see the man’s raised chin and pursed lips. He stopped struggling and explained in a low voice, “I read a story with a sad ending. I couldn’t hold back my tears.”

Zhang Man looked at Xia Nuo’s shivering eyelashes and knew that he must be hiding something. He was sure that Kan Chen also saw this, but they all tacitly agreed not to expose him.

“Ahem, Chang An. You still haven’t introduced who this kid is.” Zhang Man quickly changed the subject.

“He’s…” Xia Nuo looked up at the silent, adult Kan Chen then at the innocent Little Kan Chen, not knowing how to explain.

Should I just say they’re the same person?

The two were both here and no one disappeared yet. Xia Nuo felt afraid that if he told them the truth, the current Little Kan Chen would immediately disappear.

But surely, Kan Chen would also know the identity of Little Kan Chen, right? He’d recognize his childhood appearance, right?

He looked up at Kan Chen whose eyes were sunken. He didn’t know what he was thinking so he was a bit uncertain.

“He’s me twenty years ago.” Kan Chen answered suddenly.

“Wow!” Little Kan Chen exclaimed, all because he had experienced something similar before. He didn’t hesitate to accept this statement and looked at the adult Kan Chen. “So this is what I look like when I grow up.”

Actually, if one takes a closer look, one would still find the similarities between the two. For example, their deep blue eyes were similar in shape and color.

Xia Nuo didn’t expect Kan Chen to reveal the truth. After being dazed for a moment, he looked hurriedly at Little Kan Chen—the little boy was still standing there. There was no sign of him disappearing.

He asked Little Kan Chen, “How did you get here? Do you remember?”

In the second space and time, Little Kan Chen was rejected by the teenager Kan Chen and disappeared. How could he appear here?

The current time period was different from the two previous times, but the system didn’t prompt him for anything. Could he have triggered a special mission?

Little Kan Chen shook his head, “I don’t know.”

He just wanted to follow Brother Nuo Nuo and watch the teenage version of himself. Who knew that in the blink of an eye, Brother Nuo Nuo would disappear and he’d be back in the small dark attic?

Was everything that happened just a dream? Brother Nuo Nuo actually doesn’t exist?

But he clearly remembered the young man’s friendly smile, soft palm, and the fragrance of the flower he handed him—even his hands still held a few petals.

It was those petals that confirmed his thought: It wasn’t a dream! He had to find brother Nuo Nuo!

With this thought, he suddenly appeared in this dark, long corridor and then…

—he finally saw Brother Nuo Nuo!

He didn’t feel afraid of the sudden change in the scene in front of him and instead felt happy to learn that the man in front of him was himself twenty years later.

After all, not everyone experiences this kind of bizarre encounter, like meeting your older self.

This version of him was tall and could easily hold brother Nuo Nuo in his arms.

That intimate gesture, once replaced by me, would look a lot better to my eyes!

Little Kan Chen smiled sweetly.

Damn, didn’t expect the big boss to be this cute when he was little?! Totally unexpected!

Zhang Man silently slandered Kan Chen in his heart, but it didn’t show in his face. “Nevermind that. The important thing to do now is to find the exit of the mirror space.”

“Do you see those doors?” Xia Nuo nodded. Zhang Man continued. “I now have three keys in my hand, which could open a total of three doors. Of these three doors, only one is the real exit. We need to find which one is real.”

“How?” Xia Nuo asked.

Zhang Man shrugged. “I don’t know but there must be a clue.”

If he knew, they’d already be out here, right?

Zhang Man’s eyes met Kan Chen’s for a brief moment. The man who hadn’t said a few words since now suddenly reached out to him and said, “Give me a key.”

Zhang Man: “…”

“Do you know which one is real?” He asked, a bit doubtful.

Xia Nuo and Little Kan Chen also looked at Kan Chen, with curious and hopeful eyes.

“I don’t know.” Kan Chen replied dryly.

Before Zhang Man could even stop him, he inserted a key into a door’s keyhole on his right. After a ‘click’, the wooden door slowly opened.

—behind the door stood a beautiful woman. The moment she saw Kan Chen, she revealed a frightened look.

“He Lina!” Xia Nuo immediately called out her name.