Chapter 54: Where Did the Time Go?

Yu Dazhang took advantage of the morning’s free time to visit his former police academy.

If his mother had come to the school a year ago to inquire about him, she would have first asked his teachers.

Yes, he still couldn’t fully trust Zhou Zizhe.

It’s like solving a case—even if something sounds truthful, it still needs evidence to back it up.

At the academy, Yu Dazhang directly found his former teacher, and the answer matched exactly what Zhou Zizhe had said.

He asked two other teachers as well, and they gave the same response.

So this couldn’t be fake.

Zhou Zizhe didn’t have the power to get the academy’s teachers to lie for him.

Back at the branch team in the afternoon, Yu Dazhang helped the task force consolidate evidence and did some auxiliary work.

All team members, including Lu Zhongxin, noticed he was distracted.

Sometimes they had to call him several times before he responded.

This naturally made them suspicious.

What’s wrong with this fatty?

He was fine when he arrived this morning, went to the detention center, and came back this afternoon like his soul had been stolen.

Lu Zhongxin specifically called him outside for a private talk.

But Yu Dazhang just shook his head and said nothing was wrong.

He knew deep down that telling his master about last year’s events would be useless—Lu Zhongxin didn’t even know him back then.

Around four in the afternoon, Lu Zhongxin saw he was off, and let him leave early.

No one on the team objected; they assumed Yu Dazhang had been under too much pressure and was just mentally dazed after suddenly relaxing.

Has this ever happened before?

Not only has it happened, it’s happened many times.

He returned home.

Yu Dazhang sat on the living room sofa and glanced at the wall clock.

Five ten.

His mother finished work at five; counting in time to buy groceries, she’d be home in at most fifteen minutes.

He ran through the whole thing in his mind, preparing to ask key questions when she returned.

First, confirm one thing: I went missing a year ago.

My body getting fat happened after I disappeared.

Second, what happened to me before I vanished?

Or rather, what unusual behavior did I display at the time?

Why think that?

Because Yu Dazhang ruled out the possibility of being kidnapped.

For one thing, kidnappers don’t just grab anyone—our family’s circumstances were too poor for them to even consider targeting us.

Not to mention they fattened me up and then released me.

What, do kidnappers have some weird fetish for making people fat?

It made no sense whatsoever.

So I must have done something myself back then that caused the disappearance.

Third, why do I have no memory of the past year?

Right now, Yu Dazhang really wanted to sing: Where did the time go? I haven’t even properly enjoyed the food yet, and I’ve already gotten fat~

Is it just the memory of the past year that’s gone, or the memory of this entire life?

He carefully recalled everything.

He finally confirmed it.

The version of myself before I disappeared was identical to my past life.

That meant all the changes occurred within the past year.

My reincarnation’s got a twist—it comes with amnesia.

Just as he found it amusing, the door opened, and the front door swung open as Li Xuehe walked in carrying several shopping bags.

She immediately saw her son sitting on the sofa, staring at her blankly.

“Why are you home so early today?” Li Xuehe asked.

“Mom, come sit down first.” Yu Dazhang patted the sofa beside him after she took off her shoes. Seeing he didn’t answer but instead told her to sit, Li Xuehe instantly realized something was up.

She first carried the shopping bags into the kitchen, washed her hands, and lingered for a full minute before coming out.

She sat down opposite Yu Dazhang:

“What’s wrong? Why so serious?”

Mom, you just gave yourself away!

Yu Dazhang had clearly seen her eyes flick to the left while her right hand pointed to the right as she spoke.

The movement was tiny, casual.

But he knew it was an unconscious gesture people made when fabricating lies.

Also, when she came to the sofa, she stepped back half a pace before sitting.

That was an instinctive protective motion—a psychological preparation for the lie she was about to tell.

Playing psychology games with his own mother was awkward… Yu Dazhang asked directly:

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“Didn’t I go missing a year ago?”

Perhaps she’d anticipated this question, so Li Xuehe wasn’t overly surprised; she replied, “Did someone tell you, or did you remember it yourself?”

Yu Dazhang told the truth, but didn’t mention Zhou Zizhe—only that he’d learned it from his teachers at the academy.

It was his habit: never discuss cases at home.

Hearing it came from someone else, Li Xuehe sighed and said,

“Son, does it even matter whether you know or not? You’re fine now, our family is safe and sound—that’s enough.”

She didn’t want to talk… Yu Dazhang quickly assessed her mental state.

This was his mother—he couldn’t play mind games. He decided to use a roundabout tactic, shifting the topic:

“Does Dad know about this?”

Li Xuehe didn’t answer, only nodded slightly.

“Our teachers said many classmates suspected I got arrested for something.”

That was a lie he just made up.

He smeared himself with dirt to trigger her empathy and lower her guard.

The logic had big holes, but it didn’t matter.

Rumors didn’t need to be true—just enough to stir emotion.

Sure enough, Li Xuehe’s expression changed instantly:

“They’re lying! How dare they say that? Your father and I only asked if anyone had seen you.”

“Besides, if you’d done something illegal, how could you still be a cop? Don’t they use their brains?”

The roundabout tactic worked… Yu Dazhang instantly transformed into a master actor, switching to a frantic, agitated expression.

He leapt up from the sofa, feet lifting five centimeters off the ground—before immediately crashing back down.

Even so, it still made a loud “thud.”

“Rumors spread fast, but clearing them takes legs off!” he cried out in frustration:

“I just want to fight back, but I don’t even know where to start. What if there’s a class reunion? How can I ever show my face again!”

He sat back down, covering his face with both hands so his mother couldn’t see his expression.

His acting was a bit too intense… Yu Dazhang reminded himself inwardly.

Avoid eye contact—don’t give away any clues.

“I, I didn’t expect it to turn out like this,” Li Xuehe stammered, seemingly regretting having gone to the school to ask.

“Then tell me—what exactly happened a year ago?” Yu Dazhang changed his tone again, his voice filled with urgent need for the truth.

Seeing how desperate her son was, Li Xuehe’s heart ached. She spoke as calmly as she could:

“On April 30th last year, you suddenly told us you were going out. When we asked where, you refused to say—only that you’d be back in three days at most.”

“But once you left… you vanished completely.”

(End of Chapter)

(End of chapter)