Aging

"Can the medication really not be developed within these few months?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. An Shi, we’re already doing our best in the research… but Miss An Shiyu’s condition is inherently complex. A heart transplant would be the best solution, but relying solely on medication is just too difficult," the researcher in the white lab coat sighed.

"And as you know, Miss An Shiyu wasn’t expected to live past 16 in the first place… her current state is already far beyond expectations."

Facing the researcher’s answer, the gaunt old man standing before him had reddened eyes but still rubbed his wrinkled hands together. "You may go for now. I hope there’ll be some good news."

"Understood."

After the researcher left, Anshi Yilang sat in his office chair, lost in thought. He took out his phone—the wallpaper showed a family photo. A short-haired girl was being held by a pair of young parents, all smiling brightly.

"Ah…" Anshi Yilang sighed, only to suddenly hear a sound from the office door.

"I’m not seeing anyone today. Whatever it is, we’ll discuss it this afternoon."

"It’s me." The voice outside was all too familiar.

Hearing this, Anshi Yilang slowly snapped out of his daze. "Come in."

The office door opened, and a short-haired girl walked in—her hands in her pockets, her face tanned as if sunburnt, with even white streaks visible on her bare shoulders.

"You… got tanned?" Anshi Yilang asked.

"Yeah. Had a lot of fun," An Shiyu replied, then noticed the bloodshot eyes of the old man. She spoke plainly, "The medication… wasn’t developed, was it?"

"...No." The word barely escaped Anshi Yilang’s throat.

An Shiyu wasn’t surprised. She smiled faintly and said, "Let’s stick to the original plan, then. Here—"

She pointed at her chest.

"Mine is fine."

"No. Xiaoyu would never agree." Anshi Yilang shook his head. "Because of what happened to your parents, that child still hasn’t fully forgiven me…"

An Shiyu simply said, "This is the best solution. After all…"

"Isn’t this the reason I exist?"

"You’re my granddaughter too!" Anshi Yilang’s voice rose sharply, his emotions flaring.

"Well, I know. But this is enough." An Shiyu seemed to smile at his words.

"Today is my tenth birthday."

"So… you know what that means, right?"

Anshi Yilang: "…"

He fell silent, as if he had long known the answer.

"Every part of me ages faster than a normal person’s. Except for this one…" An Shiyu touched her chest but didn’t finish her sentence.

She turned around slowly and placed her hand on the doorknob.

As she opened the door, she suddenly glanced back, as if making a request.

"If you truly want to keep one of us… please decide quickly."

"Grandpa."

The door closed gently behind her. Watching it, Anshi Yilang slumped into his chair, looking as though he had aged ten years in an instant.

"Why did it have to come to this…" He covered his face in agony, the sound of his labored breaths the only noise in the room.

……

……

"Beep beep—"

"Honk honk—"

The congested highway was crawling with cars moving at a snail’s pace.

"Wow, why is there traffic on the highway too?" A voice came from the backseat. Tang Keke pressed her face against the window, seeing nothing but an endless line of vehicles ahead and behind them.

"It’s summer vacation. Traffic jams on highways aren’t unusual," Ye Shuang said, though the navigation system beside him indicated construction ahead. In situations like this, lanes were likely narrowed, slowing everything down.

Or maybe there was an accident.

"Alright, but at least it’s not the Spring Festival travel rush. That would be terrifying." Tang Keke recalled last year’s pre-Lunar New Year chaos—a sudden cold snap had left countless people stranded on highways for an entire week.

Some were even driving those tiny electric cars with barely 100-200 kilometers of range. Once stuck, they could only wait for rescue.

Then again, even rescue vehicles couldn’t get through.

"More and more people own cars now. Back when I was learning to drive, the roads were wide and parking spaces weren’t even marked," Ye Shuang chuckled. "It’s not a bad thing, really. Just that navigation wasn’t as convenient back then. If you got lost near a highway exit, there used to be professional ‘direction guides’ waiting to help."

"But as technology advanced, free navigation apps appeared, and those guides vanished overnight."

Ye Shuang instinctively glanced at the rearview mirror, his gaze landing on the girl in the backseat. A thought crossed his mind—if Bai Yuyou had been confined for so many years, even as an adult, emerging after a decade would make the world feel completely different, wouldn’t it?

When time stands still for you, it doesn’t take long to realize you’ve been left behind by an entire era.

"Hm." Bai Yuyou seemed to notice Ye Shuang watching her through the mirror and responded with a cute peace sign.

Ye Shuang smiled, then turned his attention back to the road. A thought struck him.

"Now that you’re both adults, why not get your driver’s licenses this summer?"

"Driver’s license?"

"Yeah. Learn how to drive," Ye Shuang said.

"Oh right, I can get my license now!" Tang Keke tugged at Bai Yuyou’s sleeve. "Yuyou, let’s sign up together!"

"Drive?" Bai Yuyou tilted her head.

"Yeah."

"No…"

"Huh? Why not?" Tang Keke blinked.

Bai Yuyou answered very seriously, "If I learn to drive… I can’t sit in the car with Ye Shuang anymore."

"You really are clingy, huh?" Tang Keke couldn’t help but laugh—this was such a Bai Yuyou-like response.

"I can sit in the passenger seat," Ye Shuang offered with a grin.

"Okay." Bai Yuyou nodded.

"Wait, you agree just because he can sit next to you?!"

……

Despite the traffic crawling at 30 km/h, Haizhu City and Heshan were close—only about a hundred kilometers apart—so they arrived in Heshan’s urban area fairly quickly.

"Let’s switch to the national highway. The expressway’s a lost cause right now."

Ye Shuang exited early and changed routes.

"Keke’s hometown… looks a lot like Haizhu City," Bai Yuyou murmured, gazing at the high-rises outside the window.

"Not really! This is Heshan’s downtown area. My actual hometown is in Laixu, Gonghe Town," Tang Keke pulled out her phone and showed Bai Yuyou the map.

"It’s a small town with really beautiful scenery."

"I just checked—there’s a scenic spot nearby too. Let’s stop by later," Ye Shuang added as he drove.