Chapter 350: Chapter 349: When I Go Back...

’Right now, Zhou Mochen is eighteen, so Shen Chen... is only seventeen?’

"What’s wrong?" Her eyes were filled with an unmistakable concern, as if he were about to come down with some terrible illness. Shen Chen stared at her, stunned. "What’s with that look?"

’This topic... should I really bring it up?’

Xu Su hesitated for only two seconds before deciding her friend’s health was more important. She then spoke with great conviction, "Shen Chen, take my advice. You’re still young, so don’t play around so much. You need to learn some self-control and take care of your health."

Xu Su was worrying herself sick over the seventeen-year-old Shen Chen, wishing she could make him start living the retired life of a senior citizen right then and there, complete with a thermos full of herbal tea...

"What’s that supposed to mean?" Shen Chen’s brow furrowed tightly.

Zhou Mochen, on the other hand, was momentarily stunned, but he reacted quickly, instantly understanding what she meant.

’After all, he was still just a teenager, and he and Shen Chen were brothers who had grown up together. To hear that the future him might...’

Zhou Mochen’s expression instantly started to crack.

"It’s exactly what you think it means."

Since she’d already started, Xu Su had to finish. She pleaded with him like her life depended on it, "Just listen to me, you won’t regret it. I’d never hurt you. It seems like the you from six years in the future has damaged his body. Even with a drop-dead gorgeous starlet right in front of you, you’re willing but not able, you know?"

"..." Shen Chen was so stunned by this news that he froze solid. After a long moment, a vein throbbed on his forehead. "How do you know that?"

’If I really had a problem, would it become common knowledge?’

No matter how wild he might be in the future, hearing such news as a "tender" seventeen-year-old boy was enough to make his whole world crumble. "Did I tell you that myself?"

’Are we really that close?’

"Of course not!" Xu Su flatly denied it.

’Are you kidding me? It’s not exactly something to be proud of.’

She was too embarrassed to bring it up directly—it was all just a guess...

Xu Su sighed. ’How should I put this?’

’Other than a physical inability, what other reason could there be for a playboy to stop sleeping with women?’

"You used to play the field, but then you suddenly cleaned up your act."

The more Xu Su spoke, the more certain she became. She decided to press him, "Shen Chen, besides the possibility that you just *can’t* anymore, what other reason could there be for you to not touch a woman for over a year?"

’Shen Chen himself said he hadn’t touched a woman in over a year. That can’t be a lie, can it?’

"I’ve said my piece." Xu Su looked at the dumbfounded teenager. "Whether you listen or not is up to you. Shen Chen, you can figure it out for yourself."

’Friends are friends, but I can’t exactly forbid him from living his wild life.’

’I wonder if the seventeen-year-old Shen Chen has even started his playboy career yet.’

Thinking of this, Xu Su asked with a touch of curiosity, "You’re only seventeen. Don’t tell me you’ve already started..."

She was only halfway through her sentence when she met Shen Chen’s gaze and her voice died in her throat.

’...That look is terrifying.’

Shen Chen’s face was ashen as he glared at her, speechless for a long moment. Finally, he stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

Xu Su stared at the door, which had been slammed with a deafening CRASH. She roared in exasperation, "No good deed goes unpunished! I was just trying to help you!"

"Alright..."

Zhou Mochen, who had witnessed the entire exchange, felt the corner of his eye twitch. He took the girl beside him by the arm. "I know you meant well, but it’s normal that Ah Chen can’t accept this kind of thing right away. Give him some time to cool down."

After hearing that, Xu Su felt that it was indeed understandable for Shen Chen to not be able to accept the news right now. "You have a point."

She quickly forgave him for slamming the door.

Having suddenly arrived in this world and meeting the teenage versions of Zhou Mochen and Shen Chen all within half a day left Xu Su feeling both thrilled and a little lost.

’This is too surreal. I feel like I’m floating, like nothing is real.’

So, she tugged on the arm of the person next to her. "Zhou Mochen, is this all a dream of mine? You got younger and came into my dream, right?"

"So all that pinching and biting yourself just now was because you thought you were dreaming?" Zhou Mochen found this rather amusing. "How can I prove to you that I’m real?"

Xu Su thought about it seriously. Her eyes lit up, thinking herself an absolute genius. "Tell me a secret that no one knows but you. When I go back, I’ll find the twenty-four-year-old you and confirm it. If it’s true, then you’re not just a figment of my imagination."

’When I go back...’

’You’re so sure you can go back?’

’You’re already here. If you go back, what will happen to me?’

Zhou Mochen’s gaze was unreadable. He gave her a deep look before getting up to pour her a glass of water.

After Xu Su couldn’t resist urging him, he finally said lightly, "The summer before last, my dad wanted me to start taking over Zhou Heavy Industry, but I refused."

’The year before last,’ Xu Su blinked. ’Zhou Mochen was sixteen, and the heavy industry sector...’

"And?" Xu Su raised an eyebrow. "That’s it?"

Zhou Mochen looked down at her. "You don’t know what Zhou Heavy Industry does?"

Xu Su shook her head blankly. "What does it do?"

"Shipbuilding. It’s currently one of the top three shipyards in the world and number one in the country. Freighters, cruise ships, all kinds of boats and yachts—any ship you can think of, their family can build it."

Shen Chen, who had returned for some reason, answered Xu Su’s question in a calm, even tone. Seeing both people on the sofa turn to look at him, he tilted his head and chuckled. "I just felt like leaving like that wasn’t worth it."

In reality, he had regretted it the moment he walked out the door. ’Who says not touching a woman for a year and a half means you *can’t*? How could he possibly not be able to perform!’

Xu Su shot Shen Chen a glance but didn’t have the energy to deal with him. She turned back to Zhou Mochen. "You were asked to get involved with the family business, and you refused. That’s the secret?"

’Is that really such a trivial secret?’

It was true that she was worldly. She was used to the thirty-something Zhou Mochen who held all the real power, so no matter how massive this shipbuilding company was, Xu Su wasn’t particularly impressed...

...which is why she couldn’t understand just how incredible it was for a sixteen-year-old boy to be asked to take it over.

Zhou Mochen was taken aback by her question. After a moment, he said, "The reason I refused was that I wanted to do something I enjoyed first, and then I would follow his arrangements two years later. I even signed a gentleman’s agreement with my dad about it. Not even my mom knows."

"I see."

Hearing there was an agreement and that even her mother-in-law didn’t know about it, Xu Su finally nodded in satisfaction. "Okay, I’ve made a note of it. When I get back, I’ll ask the twenty-four-year-old you to confirm if this really happened."

She hadn’t known about this in either of her two lives. If it was true, then the boy in front of her wasn’t a fantasy from her dream but a Zhou Mochen from a real, existing parallel world.

"Is one secret enough?" Shen Chen walked over. "How about I give you a secret to check with the me from that world, too?"

"Of course you can," Xu Su said, looking up with bright eyes. "But it has to be a real secret, one that nobody else knows. Otherwise, the other you might think I just heard it from Zhou Mochen."