What Should I Do If I Time-Traveled Forty Years Later and My Lover Has Become an Old Man? - MLFYL: 24

Dr. Chen grabbed the day’s list and started flipping through it.

When he spotted Yu Yao’s name, he couldn’t help but frown, trying to place where he had seen her before. It wasn’t a huge deal, but that nagging feeling of familiarity—like he was on the verge of remembering but couldn’t quite grasp it—was really bothering him.

Where had he seen this young woman, and when? He was still mulling over that as he wrapped up his day.

Funny how little things like this can throw you for a loop.

With a thoughtful look on his face, he headed home. His wife popped out of the kitchen and noticed him.

She asked with curiosity, “What’s up? Did you run into a tough case at the hospital today?”

Dr. Chen smiled at her and replied, “No, I just saw a patient who felt really familiar, but I can’t place her.”

His wife raised an eyebrow with a teasing smile, “Is it a young woman?”

He was taken aback, “How did you know?”

Her expression shifted in an instant, “Chen Wenrui, how dare you check out young girls while you’re at work!”

Dr. Chen quickly waved his hands, “No, no, I would never! It’s just so odd. She’s pregnant—what’s that got to do with me?”

Chuckling, he walked over to his wife, nudged her to sit down in the living room, “I must’ve just misread the vibes. Honestly, I don’t know her.”

His wife chuckled and gave his cheek a playful pinch, “Oh, I don’t think you’d actually go through with it.”

They had been inseparable since kindergarten, sticking together through elementary, junior high, high school, and even university. True childhood sweethearts, they were.

After sharing a laugh, their junior high school kid came home from school, and the family enjoyed a lively dinner at the restaurant. Somehow, the conversation shifted to their parents.

Dr. Chen’s daughter sighed, “My deskmate’s parents are divorced. She says she really envies our family because you guys get along so well.”

Dr. Chen’s wife lovingly served soup to their daughter and replied, “Your dad and I have been friends since we were little kids. We were even in the same class in kindergarten. Growing up together in such a lively environment, it’s no wonder we have a strong bond.”

As Dr. Chen listened, a sudden memory flashed in his mind. He nearly choked on his food, quickly grabbing a napkin to cover his mouth.

His wife looked alarmed, “What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”

He coughed and exclaimed, “I just remembered something!”

His wife looked puzzled, “What did you remember?”

With a hint of excitement, Dr. Chen said, “That young pregnant woman I saw today—now I know why she looked so familiar.”

Before his wife’s expression could turn serious, he.hurriedly added, “She reminds me of a teacher from our kindergarten. We called her Teacher Yu back then. She taught us for over a year, then suddenly left, and I cried for ages.”

When his wife heard this, her eyes lit up, and she exclaimed, “Oh, it’s Teacher Yu!”

As Dr. Chen spoke, he pulled out his terminal to look for some old photos from back in the day. Unfortunately, he couldn’t find them. In the end, his wife decided to ask her parents and managed to dig up a picture with “Teacher Yu” from forty years ago.

The snapshot was from a kid’s birthday party, where everyone—teachers and students alike—was sporting little hats, chomping on cake, and holding red apples.

Dr. Chen pointed at Yu Yao in the photo, his eyes widening in excitement as he exclaimed, “This is it! This is it! It’s just like her—she hasn’t changed a bit!”

His wife gazed at the old photo, feeling a wave of nostalgia, “I really liked Teacher Yu back then. Hey, Chen Wenrui, remember when we were kids and we both argued about who would marry her? I wouldn’t let you have her, insisting I would be the one. You were so upset! Eventually, I had to agree that we’d both marry her together. Hahaha!”

Dr. Chen shot an awkward glance at their daughter, who was giggling beside him.

He thought to himself that the downside of knowing his wife since childhood was that she had all the dirt on him, and she’d bring it up whenever she felt like it.

After the family finished looking at the photos, Dr. Chen sighed, “Maybe she’s Teacher Yu’s daughter or a relative. They look so much alike.”

His wife nodded, “Yeah, maybe. Speaking of which, it’s weird how Teacher Yu just up and resigned one day, and we never saw her again. Who knows where she’s been all these years?”

After chatting for a bit, the couple moved on to other topics.

That person who looked so much like their beloved teacher was just a tiny blip in their otherwise calm life. Little did they know, the Teacher Yu they had fond memories of was actually the unusual patient they encountered that very day.

…

Yu Yao lay in bed, sighing to Jiang Zhonglin, “You know, back in the day, my class was packed with kids, and now they’re all in their forties, older than me. I can’t even imagine what they’ve turned into. Honestly, we probably wouldn’t even recognize each other if we bumped into each other on the street. And that little fatty? After all these years, he definitely doesn’t remember me.”

The circle of old friends who remember her—and whom she remembers—was shrinking.

She couldn’t help but reach her hand out from her quilt into Jiang Zhonglin’s, grabbing his hand, holding his fingers, and staring at him wide-eyed.

He was taken aback by this little moment.

Seeing the way she looked at him, he rolled over and gently ruffled her hair, “I haven’t been in touch with anyone from your past except for Yang Yun. Want me to check in and see where they are now? Do you want to meet up with them?”

Yu Yao shook her head.

If she really wanted to, she would’ve reached out ages ago. Sure, she had a bunch of friends back then—good times, eating, drinking, and hanging out—but her closest friend was always Yang Yun. The rest were just work and school acquaintances. They hadn’t really known each other for long, and those connections faded over time. It’s been forty years; probably only two people even remember her.

Plus, everyone’s older now, and it just feels pointless to dig up the past. If it didn’t match the bond she had with Yang Yun, it would just be an awkward meeting again.

With their hands intertwined, part of them sticking out from the quilts, she quietly inched her way under Jiang Zhonglin’s quilt after a while.

Professor Jiang shifted a bit and reached out from under the quilt.

Yu Yao, all snug in the warmth, teased, “Hey, hey, hey, just a heads up, you better not mess this up, or else you’re gonna get it.”

“…I just pulled your quilt up to keep you covered. I didn’t want you to get too hot and roll out, leaving you uncovered.”

“Oh, fine then.”

Jiang Zhonglin draped her purple flower quilt over them, and they ended up sharing one blanket, barely taking up half the bed.

She nestled into the empty space beside her and tugged on Jiang Zhonglin again. With no choice, he shifted a little, and they both found themselves in the middle of the bed.

There was an air of respect about the old gentleman. Yu Yao suddenly thought that if things were different, she would’ve just pulled him into bed without hesitation instead of this slow dance of nudging.

“Jiang Zhonglin?”

“Yes? What’s wrong?”

“Husband?”

“…”

“I’ve got a question for you.”

“What is it?”

“Have you had anyone chasing after you all these years?”

Jiang Zhonglin fell silent, seemingly bracing for a sleepless night if he revealed the truth.

“Say something,” Yu Yao nudged the old man, pinching his fingers playfully.

He took a moment to think, weighing his response based on all those years of life experience, and finally said, “No.”

Yu Yao almost burst out laughing at his careful answer, but she kept a straight face, “You’re lying, Mr. Jiang. You must’ve been quite the looker back in the day. I bet you had a line of admirers.”

Jiang Zhonglin thought for a second, “Honestly, when I came back from teaching in those remote areas, I was just a skinny, sunburnt mess. Not attractive at all, so no one really liked me.”

She shot back, “So it’s not that you don’t want a second chance at love; it’s that no one was interested?”

He raised an eyebrow, “Is this how you ask questions? You’re quite sneaky, you know.”

Unable to hold back her laughter any longer, Yu Yao shook next to him, and Jiang Zhonglin couldn’t help but chuckle at the youthfulness she brought.

He gently patted her back, “Alright, time to sleep.”

She nestled into his arms, closing her eyes with a soft, “Mm.”

As the days went on, the routine continued with morning sickness making its usual appearance. Whenever she felt nauseous enough to vomit, Yu Yao would take a bit of medicine.

Unfortunately, even on days she didn’t throw up, her appetite was still pretty much nonexistent. Jiang Zhonglin often made soup, but even the most basic, flavorless broth was too much for her delicate stomach.

There wasn’t any other option, so she ended up eating sour and spicy dishes with bold flavors every day. After a few days, blisters started forming in her mouth.

She opened up wide, and Jiang Zhonglin carefully sprayed some medicine on the growing blister.

“No more spicy food for you,” he declared.

It’s tough—eating hurts her mouth, but if she doesn’t eat, she can’t eat.

“When I was pregnant, I loved sour bayberries and unripe sour plums. You should give them a try,” Yang Yun suggested.

But the fresh fruit supermarket only had ripe and sweet stuff—no unripe fruit in sight.

Jiang Zhonglin remembered that his old friend had plum trees, so he hopped on his bike to grab some for Yu Yao.

His friend was pretty surprised to hear he was going to pick plums, especially since he had no idea Jiang Zhonglin liked them, particularly the sour ones.

Once Jiang Zhonglin explained that his pregnant wife was craving them, his friend shot him a knowing smile, like, “Wow, you’re a great husband.”

Even though he couldn’t help but clarify that the baby was conceived that year, his friend just kept smiling.

“Sure, go ahead and pick them! Take as many as you want!”

“My wife picks plums every year to make dried plums. Don’t forget to take some dried ones with you.”

Even though he was super generous, Professor Jiang felt a bit awkward with his friend’s expression.

“She really got pregnant before she traveled back in time…”

“I get it, I get it, she was pregnant before.” His friend nudged him playfully, “Man, you’re quite the champ in your age—got any tips for me?”

Professor Jiang just blinked for a moment, then pushed up his glasses and replied calmly, “I don’t smoke or drink.”

His old friend, who was a heavy drinker and smoker, immediately turned away and shooed him off, “Get outta here and don’t come back!”