Chapter 4
Gasping for air, Lin Mian’s eyes flew open.
He clutched his chest, expecting to feel the agonizing pain of shattered bones, but there was nothing. He was sweating, his heart hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. Slowly, he looked around.
He wasn’t on the cold, hard asphalt. He was in his own king-sized bed, surrounded by the familiar silk sheets of his bedroom. The morning sun was filtering softly through the sheer curtains.
A knock echoed at his door, and a briefcase-carrying maid’s voice called out, “Young Master, breakfast is ready. Master and Mistress are waiting downstairs.”
Lin Mian’s breath hitched. Was this the afterlife? Or… was it a dream?
With trembling legs, he threw on a robe and practically stumbled down the grand spiral staircase. As he approached the dining room, the voices of his family drifted out. It was the exact same conversation, word for word, that had happened right before his death.
He walked into the dining room. There they were. His father, his mother, his siblings, and Lu Chen-alive, whole, and looking at him with a mixture of worry and caution.
Master Lin cleared his throat, bracing for Lin Mian’s usual morning attitude. “Xiao Mian, sit down. Your father has something to say. It’s time you change your ways and start working in the family company…”
Before Master Lin could even finish his sentence, and before his siblings or Lu Chen could utter a single word of advice, the dam broke.
Tears spilled rapidly over Lin Mian’s cheeks. Without warning, he rushed forward and threw himself into his father’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
“Dad! Mom! I’m sorry! I’m so, so sorry!” Lin Mian wailed, his voice thick with raw emotion. He turned his tear-stained face toward his brother and sister, and then finally toward Lu Chen, whose eyes were wide with utter bewilderment.
“I will change! I promise I will work hard, I’ll go to the company, I won’t drink anymore! Please don’t be mad at me… I’m sorry for being such a horrible person!” Lin Mian choked out, gripping his father’s suit jacket as if his life depended on it.
The entire dining room fell into a dead, stunned silence.
Master Lin’s lecture died in his throat, his arms freezing mid-air before slowly wrapping around his weeping youngest son. Lin Heng and Lin Ran exchanged glances of pure shock, wondering if their brother had been possessed by a ghost.
Across the table, Lu Chen stood up halfway from his chair, his heart racing. He looked at the trembling, crying Lin Mian-who usually met any criticism with claws and fangs-now looking so fragile and deeply apologetic. A strange, overwhelming wave of protectiveness washed over Lu Chen, mixed with absolute confusion at this sudden, drastic change.
Lin Mian didn’t care how shocked they were. He just wept with gratitude. He was alive, they were alive, and he was going to rewrite his destiny.
The heavy silence in the dining room stretched so long that the ticking of the grandfather clock sounded like thunder.
Master Lin cautiously patted Lin Mian’s back, still expecting his son to laugh and say it was all a cruel prank. “Xiao Mian… are you feeling alright? Do you have a fever?” he asked, his voice softening into genuine fatherly worry.
“No, Dad… I’m just wide awake now,” Lin Mian choked out, finally pulling back. He wiped his face with the sleeve of his robe, his nose pink and his eyes swollen, looking incredibly pitiful.
Madam Lin, who had been holding her breath, immediately rushed over with a silk handkerchief. “Oh, my sweet boy, look at you. Don’t cry. If you don’t want to work at the company yet, we can talk about it-“
“No, Mom!” Lin Mian interrupted, gripping her hands. “I *want* to work. I want to learn. I’ve been a fool for too long.”
Lin Heng and Lin Ran looked at each other, speechless. Their younger brother, who usually slammed doors and threw vases when told to work, was now begging for a job?
Meanwhile, Lu Chen remained standing, his gaze locked onto Lin Mian. He noticed the sheer terror lingering in the boy’s eyes-a look that didn’t belong to someone who had just thrown a temper tantrum. It looked like the trauma of someone who had looked death in the face.
“Xiao Mian,” Lu Chen said, his deep voice slicing through the emotional chaos. “Sit down first. Drink some water.”
Hearing that voice, Lin Mian turned his head. In his previous life-just minutes ago in his timeline-he had seen Lu Chen kneeling in the dirt, completely broken, holding his lifeless hand. The image pierced Lin Mian’s heart. He had treated this man like an annoying shadow, yet Lu Chen had mourned him the deepest.
“Lu Chen…” Lin Mian whispered, his voice trembling as he sank into the chair next to him. “Thank you. And… I’m sorry for what I said before.”
Lu Chen’s breath hitched. *Xiao Mian is apologizing to me?* He offered a glass of warm water, his fingers brushing against Lin Mian’s cold, shaking hands. “It’s fine. Just calm down.”
To be continue
