Chapter 278

Zhao Jianguo stared at the Morse code spelled out by the whiskers outside the Door Gap — three dots, two dashes, three dots — identical to the signal that had flashed on the robot's screen earlier. He didn't move, didn't call anyone, just gently placed the half-melted lollipop in his hand on the edge of the Control Console.

The triplets were still asleep, breathing evenly, smiles on their faces. The curves on the monitor were smooth, as if they had truly entered some candy castle. But he knew that beneath this calm lay something pressing.

At that moment, the check-in system's interface popped up on its own, with no notification sound or vibration, only a line of text floating in the center of the screen: "Connection request: S-rank special envoy — Chen Jianguo."

Zhao Jianguo stared at those words for two seconds, then tapped confirm.

Light rose from the ground — not a lamp, not a projection, as if the air itself had been lit. Spiral beams of light circled the center once, and a human silhouette gradually took shape. Clad in a dark gray uniform, with a silver insignia on the shoulder, they stood ramrod straight.

"You finally answered." Chen Jianguo spoke, his voice not loud, but every word was clear.

Zhao Jianguo didn't rise, his hand still resting on the Control Console, "You could have come earlier?"

"Being able to come doesn't mean being able to speak." Chen Jianguo glanced at the three children on the bed, "Now you can."

He raised his hand and traced a line in the air. A light screen unfolded, displaying several lines: 2035, the first spacetime collapse; 2042, humanity built the joint observation network; 2050, the Spacetime Management Bureau was officially established.

"We don't manage time." He said, "We mend the rifts. Whenever a line breaks, we go and reconnect it."

Zhao Jianguo listened, without interrupting.

"These three of yours aren't ordinary children." Chen Jianguo turned to him, "They are core members of the Future Decision Group, designated F-07, F-08, and F-09. In another timeline, they have already directed three world-line repair operations."

Zhao Jianguo frowned slightly, "Which line?"

"That's a line you've never seen." Chen Jianguo lightly tapped his finger, the light screen switched, and the image became a ruined city, sky gray-yellow, buildings collapsed, streets empty of passersby. The camera zoomed in, revealing graffiti on the walls depicting three children's faces, with the words "Saviors Return" written below.

"That is their prophetic mural from when they were ten." Chen Jianguo said, "In the Northern Border City of 2063."

Zhao Jianguo said nothing, merely gazing at the shattered buildings on the screen and the blurred graffiti on the walls.

At that moment, Zhao Chen on the bed twitched, his eyelids fluttered, and he opened his eyes. He sat up slowly but steadily. Zhao Xing and Zhao Yang also woke, one rolling to sit up, the other swinging his legs over and standing beside his brother.

"Dad." Zhao Chen called out, his gaze already fixed on Chen Jianguo.

Chen Jianguo nodded slightly, "Can you hear me speaking?"

The three nodded in unison.

"Good." He waved his hand again, and the light screen shifted, now showing three youths in uniform standing before a high platform, behind them a massive star chart, holding data tablets as they issued commands.

"Is that… us?" Zhao Yang pointed at the image.

"Three years from now." Chen Jianguo said, "You voluntarily applied to join early, skipping training and entering the command echelon directly."

Zhao Xing stared at the black-clad version of himself and noticed a metal ring on the left ear, flashing intermittently, as if receiving a signal.

"Why are you showing us this?" Zhao Chen asked.

"Because the system has begun sealing off information." Chen Jianguo's voice sank, "Just now the memory weaver cut out — not a malfunction, but someone doesn't want you to know the truth."

Zhao Jianguo jerked his head up, "Who?"

"An existence with higher permission." Chen Jianguo looked at him, "You thought you were the only check-in? Nationwide, there are seventeen recorded, spread across different eras. Your group is the one closest to the source."

The room fell silent for a few seconds.

Zhao Yang suddenly reached out and touched his own image on the light screen. As his fingertip made contact, the whole image shuddered, then shifted — the future Zhao Yang turned his head, lips moving, no sound, but the mouth shape was unmistakable.

Zhao Xing read it aloud: "We're coming soon."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the alarm sounded.

Red light spun across the ceiling as the system flashed text: 【Detected worldline convergence trend! Data stream abnormal, locking……】

The light screen warped, numbers flew everywhere, and finally formed a circular chain of links hanging in midair.

Chen Jianguo's face changed, and he immediately shut off the remaining projections, leaving only a single sentence hanging in the air: "Worldline convergence is irreversible; the only variable is choice."

He looked at Zhao Jianguo, "You're not just their biological father. You are the 'Guide' — the system chose you not because you're strong, but because you can make them willing to return."

Zhao Jianguo remained silent, his fingers digging into his palm.

"Return?" Zhao Chen repeated the word, "We… don't actually belong to the present, do we?"

"You are lifeforms projected down from the future." Chen Jianguo said, "To avert a major collapse, you were sent back to this era and implanted into ordinary families. Your mission is to wait for the awakening node, then restart the decision network."

"What about our parents then?" Zhao Yang's voice lowered.

"Foster parents." Chen Jianguo replied, "The feelings are real, the bloodline is not."

Zhao Xing bit his lip, "So every time I dream of an earthquake, it's not a premonition — I already knew it would happen?"

"Exactly." Chen Jianguo nodded, "Your brains retain fragments of memory, merely suppressed. The memory weaver should have erased fear, but it also loosened the seal."

Zhao Jianguo stood up, walked to the children, and examined each of their faces in turn. They were all calm, not frightened — rather, it seemed they had finally understood something.

"You have to make a decision." Chen Jianguo said, "If you continue as ordinary children, the system will completely erase your cognition; you will no longer dream or see these images. Or — "

"Or what?" Zhao Chen asked.

"Or accept identity verification and initiate the return protocol. Within seventy-two hours, you will be taken away, enter the Management Bureau headquarters, and begin your duties."

"Then what?" Zhao Yang asked.

"Then you will go to mend the next rift." He said, "It could be in twenty years, or as soon as tomorrow."

Nobody in the room spoke.

The data on the monitor jumped suddenly; Zhao Chen's brainwave frequency rose, nearing the waking limit. Zhao Xing's hand unconsciously drifted to his ear, as if a metal ring were truly there. Zhao Yang lowered his gaze to his own shadow and noticed it was shorter than usual.

Chen Jianguo regarded them, "The me you see now is only the portion authorized for display. The true Management Bureau is far more complex — there are factions, disputes, and even betrayal. If you return, it won't be just a job; you'll be going to war."

"We don't want to go back." Zhao Yang blurted out.

"Then forget it." Chen Jianguo raised his hand, ready to shut down the system.

"Wait." Zhao Chen suddenly said.

He stepped forward, "If we choose to return, can we bring someone with us?"

"Impossible." Chen Jianguo shook his head, "Only lifeforms registered in the records can cross over."

"He's my dad." Zhao Chen pointed at Zhao Jianguo, "Whether biologically related or not, he's raised us for eight years."

Chen Jianguo fell silent for a moment, "The rules don't allow it."

"Then change the rules." Zhao Chen fixed him with a stare, "You're the ones who mend rifts — rules are something that can be mended too."

Chen Jianguo looked at him, his gaze changed.

The alarm sound kept blaring, and red light pulsed onto the wall. The tendrils outside the door began to move slowly, each one retracting into the crack in an orderly fashion, as if receiving orders.

The cracks on the glass remained, clearly visible.

Zhao Jianguo walked to the window, reached out and brushed the slit, and a faint chill ran up his fingertips.

He turned his head to the three children, then looked at Chen Jianguo, "If they leave, will I still be able to see them?"

"No," Chen Jianguo said, "the time corridor does not permit bidirectional flow."

"Then I won't let them go," Zhao Jianguo's voice lowered, "I'll stay here and watch them grow up."

"But they weren't meant to grow up," Chen Jianguo said, "their time is frozen. The longer we delay, the more unstable reality becomes. The next earthquake might exceed magnitude four."

Zhao Chen suddenly smiled, "I remember you said we are repairers."

"Right."

"Then we'll start repairing now," he said, looking at his two younger brothers, "starting with the house."