Genius Playground

”Xiaoxue! What on earth happened to you back then? How did you end up in the United States?”

”Why didn’t you ever contact us? You just mentioned the QQ group... have you been lurking in there this whole time, just watching us chat?”

”Yeah! Why didn’t you contact us?! We all thought you were really dead!”

”We even went to visit your grave together... This... what you did tonight was way too scary.”

...

The classmates swarmed around Cheng Mengxue, chattering away and bombarding her with questions.

Even Wang Hao, who had been so scared he’d dropped to his knees, now scrambled up, shouting Xiaoxue’s name as he dove into the crowd.

And so, at the bustling hotel entrance, only Jiang Ran was left standing off to the side, observing the continuation of this surreal farce from a slight distance.

To be honest, Jiang Ran was also deeply conflicted.

To put it another way, if he had genuinely used the Positron Cannon to send a Time SMS, gone through the head-buzzing dizziness, and opened his eyes two seconds later... to find Cheng Mengxue appearing before him just like this...

...then he was sure he would be more excited, more unable to contain himself than anyone else.

He would have definitely been the first one to rush forward, grab Cheng Mengxue, and pour out all his grievances.

He’d tell her about Qin Feng’s betrayal, about how he struggled to repair the Positron Cannon, about how he’d gone through hell and back just to save her.

In that moment, Jiang Ran’s happiness, excitement, and elation would have been completely genuine.

He would have told Cheng Mengxue everything, exactly as it happened.

Without hiding a single thing.

After all...

’In his heart, aside from his parents, Cheng Mengxue was the closest and most trusted person in the world.’

But now, he didn’t dare.

Nor would he do such a thing.

The Cheng Mengxue before him was indeed the genuine article, truly lifelike. But there was one crucial difference... he hadn’t been the one to save her.

He didn’t understand how Cheng Mengxue had come ”back from the dead,” how she had returned to the world.

Was it really as she claimed, that she had simply lived incognito, hiding abroad with her parents for two years?

Or was it that Zhou Xiong and the so-called Lilith were truly all-powerful and omnipotent, and that the phone capable of granting any wish had actually forced Cheng Mengxue back to life?

Jiang Ran couldn’t determine the truth.

Just as, at this very moment... he was completely unable to determine if this Cheng Mengxue was real or fake.

This, perhaps, was the biggest difference between Jiang Ran and everyone else.

The others had no understanding of Time Travel and had never personally experienced a Worldline Jump. Furthermore, in their eyes, Zhou Xiong and Lilith’s ”Superpower” was really just ”Money Power.” To them, all this wish-granting was, in essence, just the result of absolute power and money bending the rules.

Therefore... in the eyes of the others, the matter of Cheng Mengxue standing before them had nothing to do with whether she was real or fake.

As long as she was alive, she must be real. There was no possibility of her being false.

What they saw, existed. What existed, was logical. And what was logical, was fact.

That was the logic in everyone else’s eyes.

But... Jiang Ran was different.

He had experienced far too much.

On top of that, Lilith and the phone that could grant any wish were two things that highly coincided with the Setting Collection he had written back in the day.

Under all these coincidences, Jiang Ran couldn’t help but doubt whether the ”Cheng Mengxue” before him was real or fake.

If she was real, then everything was fine.

But...

’What if she’s fake?’

The mere thought sent a chill down Jiang Ran’s spine, making his blood run cold.

’How could she be fake?’

’A clone?’

’Plastic surgery?’

’A disguise?’

’An impersonator?’

Countless bizarre possibilities flashed through Jiang Ran’s mind, but none of them could convince him.

Because...

’What’s fake is fake, and what’s real is real.’

This wasn’t about replicating an antique or making a high-quality counterfeit luxury item. Cheng Mengxue was a living person.

How easy could it be to impersonate a living person who had lived for over a decade, with a past, experiences, family, and friends? Wouldn’t the facade crumble easily?

At this moment, Jiang Ran could neither comprehend the logic of how Cheng Mengxue could be an ”imposter,” nor could he accept the reality that she was the ”genuine article.”

And so, he could only stand there in silence, listening quietly.

...

Over in the crowd, the atmosphere gradually grew cheerful.

Everyone chimed in one after another, surrounding Cheng Mengxue and asking about this and that. And just as he remembered her, Cheng Mengxue was gentle, kind, and patient, answering everyone’s questions one by one.

It turned out that two years ago, the car accident had left her with a severe brain injury, bringing her to the brink of death.

At the time, there was no hope for treatment in the country. In the emergency, Cheng Mengxue’s parents accepted a new medical treatment plan proposed by a scientist from the United States, and the whole family went abroad.

This medical plan involved cutting-edge research, and the other party’s demands were extremely stringent. First and foremost was strict confidentiality, with no leaks permitted whatsoever. Even more excessively, even after the treatment succeeded, she had to remain in the United States to cooperate with them for two years of follow-up research.

The plan they provided at the time was for Cheng Mengxue’s parents to fake their daughter’s death, have her ”cremated,” and arrange for the funeral. The other party assisted with many of the arrangements, ultimately burying an urn at Jingshan Bamboo Public Cemetery, successfully pulling off the grand deception.

Afterward, Cheng Mengxue’s parents sold their property and followed her to the United States. Under the other party’s strict requirements, they also cut off all contact with people back home, not allowing even the slightest correspondence.

”We didn’t dare defy them.”

Cheng Mengxue said honestly,

”For one, my parents were afraid that if they broke the agreement, they would stop my treatment. They didn’t dare gamble with my life.”

”For another, the scientist’s team was very good to our family. They did everything in their power and spent a lot of money to cure me, helped me with my recovery, and even cared about my education, sending me to a university in the United States.”