Genius Club

Chapter 1293: Chapter 7 Dark Dream_2

Thinking about this, Lin Xian smiled wryly:

“I didn’t expect I’d really have to be a ‘law-abiding good citizen’ in the truest sense.”

CC heard this and turned around:

“Isn’t obeying the law what’s most expected? What else do you want to do?”

“Nothing.”

Lin Xian spread his hands:

“I’m just lamenting that this isn’t my home turf, Los Angeles. Alright, let’s stop chattering, let’s hurry in and get a room.”

…

30 cents.

In New York’s poorest Brooklyn, the poorest district, the cheapest motel, the cheapest room… There’s no sense of expectation.

“A 30-cent standard room.”

Lin Xian placed two coins on the motel counter, the owner accepted them, then searched for a key and tossed it to Lin Xian.

Took the small key.

Lin Xian gestured to CC, and the two of them stepped onto the squeaky wooden staircase together.

He knew well.

In a 30-cent standard room, it’s impossible to have a private bathroom, no extra facilities, let alone a TV in 1952.

“I guess inside there are only two single beds, the bathroom is shared.”

Lin Xian yawned as he inserted the key into the lock.

Unlocked it.

Pushed the door open—

Moonlight streamed through the rising dirty curtains, casting silver frost on the floor, lighting up the cramped room.

It really was small.

No extra furniture, tables, or chairs, just a single bed occupying two-thirds of the room; moving past the entrance a little further risked kicking the bed corner.

“No.”

Lin Xian was dumbfounded:

“Just one bed?!”

“What else?”

CC retorted:

“What did you expect for 30 cents?”

Lin Xian was puzzled:

“A standard room… shouldn’t it have two beds? I thought it had two beds.”

“No worries.”

CC stepped past Lin Xian to the window.

She reached out to close the window, stopping the cold drafts, then pointed at the floor:

“I can sleep on the floor.”

“Let me sleep on the floor instead.”

Lin Xian said:

“It’s not right for a girl to sleep on the floor.”

CC shook her head:

“Being able to sleep in a place sheltered from the wind because of you makes me happy. Moreover, when sleeping in the park, police drive away the homeless at night, and you have to change spots several times throughout the night.”

“But, look at it now.”

CC spread her arms, looked at the narrow and shabby room, smiled slightly, her eyes curving into pretty crescent shapes:

“It’s warm here, and no one will chase us away, definitely the coziest night’s sleep. Hehe… Looking at it this way, although 30 cents is a bit expensive, it’s definitely worth the value!”

…

Lin Xian looked at the sincere smile on CC’s face.

His emotions were mixed.

He could see it.

CC really liked this place and was satisfied with this dirty, rundown, damp, crowded, no-bathroom, and faucet-less old room.

No drafts,

No one driving them away,

This was the most comfortable, happiest night in CC’s eyes.

Her smile was so sweet, so cheerful.

It gave Lin Xian an illusion… as if this place was a five-star hotel, a luxurious villa, a paradise on earth.

He closed his eyes.

Feeling a bit suffocated.

“You sleep on the bed.” Lin Xian pulled CC from the corner by the window and then wrapped himself in the church coat, using his arm as a pillow, lay down on the floor.

“Eh?”

CC blinked, looking at Lin Xian already prepared to sleep:

“No… you can’t do that, Lin Xian, you paid for the motel, how can you not sleep on the bed?”

“Alright, leave it at that.”

Lin Xian closed his eyes:

“Don’t say any more.”

“…”

CC didn’t speak, pursing her lips, looking at Lin Xian motionless on the floor.

Though she’d only known this amazing man for one day.

But she understood.

Once this man decided on something, it was hard to persuade him otherwise, just like the series of unusual things he did today.

After a long silence.

“Thank you…”

She said softly.

…

Later, CC went to the communal bathroom at the end of the second floor for a quick wash, tore off the hair tie from her hair after returning to the room, looped it around her slender wrist, and sat at the bed’s edge.

She thought for a while.

Clenched her fist.

As if gathering immense courage, she looked at Lin Xian lying on the floor:

“Actually, we could squeeze in together… back to back, and… the covers are thin here, on a cold day like this, we surely wouldn’t undress.”

Lin Xian got up from the floor.

Smiled:

“Don’t worry so much, haven’t you been wandering for a long time already? It’s been a long time since you’ve had a peaceful sleep, right?”

“So, don’t keep arguing over who should, tonight you enjoy this bed alone, have a comfortable sleep.”

“I’ll go out to wash up and use the restroom, then check the clock at the first-floor bar before coming back.”

With that, Lin Xian headed straight for the door.

The bathroom at the end of the second floor was just as rundown and dirty, after freshening up, Lin Xian went to the bar on the first floor.

Of course, a 30-cent room didn’t have a clock; to check the time, he had to come here.

On the cumbersome and old clock, the hour and minute hands were overlapped vertically, just at midnight, 12:00.

Convert to China time, and it’s exactly noon, 12:00.

Meaning…

Only 42 more minutes to his earliest dream time.

He was already eager to see what dream he would have in 1952, before history was solidified, after traveling through time.

Would it be returning to the first dreamland with Big Face Cat robbing a bank?

Or, like before, dreaming of only the struggling novelist Maomao surviving in The Ninth Dreamland?

“Feels like…”

He scratched the back of his head, feeling the “kite string” connecting the future space-time of the year 2234, linking to World Line 0.0001764.