Chapter 1: Swept Away While Visiting Ancestral Graves on Qingming
The saying “Drizzling rain falls during Qingming” couldn’t be truer. Every year, around the Qingming Festival, it would always start to rain in a light, continuous drizzle.
The three members of the Wen family braved the heavy rain every year to return to Yunwu Mountain and pay respects at the graves of their grandparents and mother.
Wen Jun was driving, while Wen Yao sat in the car chatting with their father, Wen Changping. As she animatedly gestured, she complained to her brother and father about a novel she had been reading recently. The rain outside showed no sign of letting up, and faint rumbles of thunder could be heard, yet none of it dampened the cheerful atmosphere inside the car.
Suddenly, at a bend near the mountaintop, two foxes dashed out from the rain, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. Wen Jun, startled, instinctively yanked the steering wheel.
But he had forgotten—they were on a winding mountain road in Yunwu Mountain. To the left was a sheer rock face, and to the right, a bottomless cliff. His sudden maneuver managed to avoid the foxes, but the car, accompanied by their screams, crashed through the guardrail and plunged down the mountainside.
It was unknown how much time had passed when Wen Yao finally regained consciousness. It felt as though a thousand-pound weight was pressing down on her body, making it impossible to move. Even her bones ached.
What was worse was the pounding pain in her head—memories that didn’t belong to her were pouring into her mind uncontrollably.
Before she could make sense of these foreign memories, she opened her eyes and saw that she was surrounded by a group of people. They were dressed like the extras in historical dramas, wearing simple peasant clothing. Wen Yao froze. Had their family been rescued by some film crew?
Beside her, two other people were also slowly waking up. They, too, were momentarily stunned by the unfamiliar scene before them, but only for a brief second before the older man panicked and shouted—
“Yao Yao! Xiao Jun!”
Wen Yao’s pupils dilated as she stared in disbelief at the man who appeared to be only in his thirties. The young man next to her was equally shocked.
“0081,” Wen Yao said, fixing her gaze on the man.
The man gasped sharply when he saw Wen Yao. Before he could respond, the young man beside them immediately followed up, “1752.”
“Hiss…” The man seemed unable to believe what he was witnessing but still responded instinctively, “2216.”
The three of them widened their eyes simultaneously, staring at each other in utter disbelief.
They had just recited the last four digits of each other’s phone numbers. As a family who had relied on each other for years, they knew one another’s phone numbers by heart.
But what was going on? The numbers were correct, yet the people before them were not the ones they knew—at least, not in appearance. And yet, they couldn’t say they were entirely unfamiliar, because just moments before waking up, Wen Yao’s mind had been forcibly stuffed with all those strange new memories.
One thing was now clear—this man, who had correctly recited her father’s phone number, was the father from her memories.
Had they somehow fallen into a parallel universe after plummeting off the mountain?
The onlookers were utterly bewildered by their exchange, unable to understand what was happening.
At that moment, a voice came from the crowd, “Alright, since they’re fine, everyone should disperse. Thanks for your help today.”
Wen Yao followed the sound and saw an energetic, thin old woman standing not far away. Her dark, wrinkled face bore a shrewd expression. Her hair was neatly combed, and her sharp eyes radiated intelligence. However, as she looked at the three of them, there was a distinct trace of disdain in her gaze.
Noticing their stares, the old woman snorted coldly before saying, “The house collapsed, but you’re lucky it didn’t kill you. Since you’re fine, clean up the mess yourselves. We’re leaving.”
With that, she motioned to the people beside her and prepared to leave.
It was only then that the three members of the Wen family noticed the wreckage behind them and the dust covering their bodies.
Had they… come back to life in the bodies of a family that had been crushed to death?
Before they could process the situation, a small figure suddenly darted from the old woman’s side—a three- or four-year-old child—who grabbed onto Wen Yao’s hand and refused to let go, looking up at her with an aggrieved expression.
The old woman squinted and called out, “Datou, are you coming or not?”
The little boy pursed his lips and shook his head at the old woman, clutching Wen Yao’s hand even tighter.
Wen Yao recognized him—this was the younger brother from her memories. But right now, they desperately needed to figure out what was happening, and having this little one around would make things inconvenient.
Thinking quickly, Wen Yao crouched down and gently coaxed, “Datou, be good. Go home with Grandma first. I’ll come pick you up once I’m done cleaning up.”
The boy’s eyes flickered at her words. He tilted his head slightly in confusion, as if he had sensed something off.
Wen Yao felt a pang of unease. Could this little one have noticed something strange?
According to her memories, this younger brother was soft, adorable, and always looked up at people with big, round eyes. However, for some reason, even though he was almost four years old, he still couldn’t speak.
Not wanting to raise suspicion, Wen Yao quickly led him to the old woman.
“Grandma, sorry to trouble you. I’ll come get Datou once I’m done here.” She lowered her head, trying her best to imitate the timid demeanor of the girl from her memories.
The old woman took the boy’s hand and simply gave a curt “Mm” before turning to leave with the others. Wen Yao finally let out a relieved sigh. But as she looked up, she met the boy’s lingering gaze—his big, round eyes filled with confusion and curiosity as he kept glancing back at her while being led away.
Only after the crowd had completely dispersed did Wen Yao stumble over the rubble and rush to the two men.
“Dad? Bro?”
“Yao Yao? Xiao Jun? What the hell happened to you two?” Wen Changping stared at his now much-younger son and daughter, still unable to believe his own eyes.
Wen Jun was just as dumbfounded. “Dad, Yao Yao, what’s going on here?”
Wen Yao scratched her head and paced in circles, trying to piece things together.
“We were on our way to pay respects at the cemetery. The car went off the cliff, and then we ended up here. Most likely, we’ve crossed into some parallel universe and taken over someone else’s bodies.” She lowered her voice cautiously.
A sharp intake of breath came from both men.
Wen Changping was stunned. “Then… back in our world, we’re dead?”
Wen Yao casually brushed some dust off her head and replied, “My brother’s car was brand new. They said it was built tough. Even though Yunwu Mountain is high, at least our bodies should still be intact.”
The father and son: “…”
Wen Jun muttered, “I had a medical seminar next week.”
Wen Changping sighed, “I paid into my social security and pension for years, and I only got to collect my retirement benefits for one month.”
Wen Yao spread her hands. “Well, I was a freelancer, so I’ve got nothing to lose. Besides, we died together as a family—nothing to fear. But since we’re all gone now, I wonder what will happen to our house and savings.”
Wen Changping pondered for a moment before replying, “The house was allocated by the Agricultural Research Institute, so they’ll probably reclaim it. As for the savings, they should go to your aunt, since she’s our only living relative.”
