Butterfly Dream

"That group of experts was so enthusiastic," Su Yang whispered to Lu Ruoxi, his tone tinged with a hint of helplessness.

"Thank you for your hard work," Lu Ruoxi replied with a smile.

Then, Lu Ruoxi took the initiative to hold Su Yang's arm.

Shoulder to shoulder, they walked past Li Jinchuan.

After that, they didn't spare Li Jinchuan another glance.

However, as Su Yang passed by Li Jinchuan, he gave him a cold look.

The look in his eyes carried both a warning and disdain, as if he were looking at a buzzing fly.

Li Jinchuan's fists clenched tightly.

He felt an unprecedented sense of humiliation.

This was not the script he remembered.

In that "correct" world, Lu Ruoxi was supposed to fall head - over - heels in love with him at first sight.

She was supposed to rely on him, look up to him, and regard him as her only salvation.

Su Yang, on the other hand, was supposed to be a pathetic supporting character who should have died long ago.

Why?

Why had things turned out this way?

He stared at the intimate backs of Lu Ruoxi and Su Yang, and the paranoia in his eyes turned into a malevolent flame.

Mild methods were no longer effective.

His "leading lady" had been snatched away by someone else.

So, he had no choice but to use more extreme measures to take her back.

To destroy this... wrong reality.

...

At the top - floor apartment of Cloudtop One, Lu Chenyuan was in the kitchen, dealing with the freshly delivered ingredients.

Mo Qingli was sitting on the living - room sofa, flipping through a financial magazine on an e - ink screen.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone through the huge floor - to - ceiling windows.

The whole space was quiet and warm.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

Lu Chenyuan was a bit surprised. Who could it be at this time?

His mother had the key, and Lin Yuan and the others wouldn't come over without saying hello.

Mo Qingli got up and walked over to open the door.

It was Lu Ruoxi standing outside.

"Ruoxi?" Mo Qingli was also surprised.

"Sister Qingli, is Big Brother here?" Lu Ruoxi's face seemed no different from usual.

However, Mo Qingli could sense that there was something unusual about Lu Ruoxi today.

"Yes, come in quickly," Mo Qingli quickly invited her in.

Lu Chenyuan peeked out from the kitchen.

"Ruoxi, why are you here?"

Lu Chenyuan also noticed that Lu Ruoxi's complexion looked off. He immediately put down what he was doing, washed his hands, and walked out.

"What's going on?" Lu Chenyuan asked.

"Big Brother," Lu Ruoxi looked at him, her lips moving as if she didn't know how to start.

"Sit down and talk," Lu Chenyuan pointed to the sofa.

He poured her a glass of warm water.

Lu Ruoxi held the water glass and was silent for a long time.

Then Lu Ruoxi said, "Big Brother, I want to talk to you alone."

Both Mo Qingli and Lu Chenyuan were a bit surprised.

Lu Chenyuan and Mo Qingli exchanged a look. There was no trace of displeasure in Mo Qingli's eyes.

Lu Chenyuan gave an apologetic look, and Mo Qingli returned a reassuring one.

After the siblings went into the study, Lu Ruoxi told Lu Chenyuan everything that had happened on the forum today, without missing a single detail.

Her account remained as objective and calm as that of a scientific researcher.

There were no emotional descriptions, just a simple statement of facts.

"... He said that he remembered another story, just like me."

"He said that he would correct the wrong reality."

"His logic is seriously confused, and he shows a high degree of aggression and paranoia."

After finishing, she looked up, her gaze fixed directly on Lu Chenyuan.

This time, there was no longer the calm analysis of a bug in her eyes.

Instead, there was a deep, unmaskable confusion.

And also a hint of fear that she herself hadn't even noticed.

"Big Brother."

She called him.

"Strange images also appear in my head."

"In the images, there's a girl who looks a lot like me. She's stupid and cries a lot, and she takes a man as her whole world."

"There's also you in the images. But that you makes me feel very strange and scary."

"Li Jinchuan's appearance made me realize that those images might not just be hallucinations."

As Lu Ruoxi told her story, her voice began to tremble slightly.

"So..."

She took a deep breath and finally asked the question that had been weighing on her mind.

"Big Brother, who exactly are you?"

There was no hatred or accusation in her eyes.

There was only fear.

Fear that this big brother, who had pulled her out of the mire and sheltered her, might suddenly disappear.

Fear that everything she had now was just a false bubble.

The air in the study seemed to freeze.

Lu Chenyuan looked at Lu Ruoxi.

He saw the panic and dependence in her eyes.

He knew that this question would come sooner or later.

He didn't evade it, nor did he go into a long - winded explanation about time travel or the world in a book.

It was too complicated and too strange.

Lu Chenyuan just calmly looked at her and then slowly smiled.

That smile was as steady as ever, with a reassuring power.

"Ruoxi,"

he said, his voice as gentle and reassuring as always.

"In ancient times, there was a man named Zhuang Zhou. He had a dream where he turned into a butterfly."

"He flew happily in the dream and completely forgot that he was Zhuang Zhou."

"When he woke up, he was very confused."

"He didn't know if it was Zhuang Zhou who dreamed of being a butterfly or the butterfly that dreamed of being Zhuang Zhou."

He looked into Lu Ruoxi's eyes and asked word by word:

"Do you think it matters?"

Lu Ruoxi was stunned.

Zhuang Zhou dreamed of the butterfly, and the butterfly became Zhuang Zhou.

Of course, she knew this allusion.

"Whether it's Zhuang Zhou or the butterfly, what does it matter?" Lu Chenyuan continued.

"What's important is that the butterfly experienced the joy of flying in the dream."

"After Zhuang Zhou woke up, he still lived his own life."

"That stupid, crying girl who relied on others was the butterfly's dream."

"And you, Lu Ruoxi, the chief scientist of Yuanlong Technology, standing here, you are real. That's enough."

"As for me..."

There was a hint of calmness in Lu Chenyuan's smile.

"I'm your big brother. This will never change."

His words were like a warm stream, slowly flowing through Lu Ruoxi's confused heart.

Yes.

Did it matter?

Who she was, who her big brother was, which was the dream and which was the reality...

Did these really matter?

What was important was that she loved her current life.

She loved this big brother in front of her.

That was enough.

The panic and confusion in her eyes gradually faded away, and her eyes became clear and determined again.

"I understand, Big Brother,"

she said with a relieved smile.

At that moment, the nightmare of the so - called "past life" that had been haunting her began to slowly dissipate.

Lu Chenyuan nodded and picked up his phone.

"I'll call Su Yang and ask him to come over for dinner."

He dialed the number.

"Su Yang, come to Cloudtop One. Ruoxi is here too."

His tone was as natural as if he were calling a family member.

Lu Ruoxi looked at him, and the last trace of doubt in her heart completely vanished.

Big Brother not only accepted her reality but also her choice.

He respected her.

Consistent from beginning to end.