Genius Playground

This was the first time he’d ever heard about it.

He was certain that on the original World Line 0, this had never happened. It was a new piece of history in the current World Line 1.

”Are you sure nothing was stolen?” Jiang Ran asked.

”Nothing was stolen. At least, your mother and I couldn’t see anything missing.”

Dad Jiang chuckled.

”The thief couldn’t have come specifically to steal your old draft notebooks, right? HAHAHA, that’s hilarious. What did you write in there, state secrets? HAHAHA!”

Dad Jiang’s hearty laughter echoed through the basement, reverberating through the silent passageway. In the dead of night, it sounded like something straight out of a horror movie.

But to Jiang Ran...

’This was perhaps even more terrifying than a horror movie.’

If his dad had told him about the basement being burglarized and the draft notebooks being gone anytime before the last couple of days, Jiang Ran wouldn’t have been surprised in the slightest.

It was a common enough occurrence. Every residential complex had cases of basement break-ins.

But...

When he listed all the recent events together—

1. The short film *Genius Playground*, based on his middle school *Setting Collection*, had clearly won the Grand Prize at the University Student Film Festival, yet its release was forbidden.

2. A film production company and a major director bought the script’s rights for an absurdly, illogically high price and forced the entire film club to sign non-disclosure agreements, forbidding any leaks.

3. All materials related to the short film were destroyed. Not a single copy of the script or the film reel was spared, which made it clear that those materials must have contained some kind of ulterior secret.

4. At the class reunion, Zhou Xiong put on a ”show” with his phone, demonstrating ”the omnipotent Lilith who can grant any wish.” That scene was a perfect match for the content in his own *Setting Collection* and script.

5. The only remaining piece of evidence in this world—the *Setting Collection* he wrote in middle school, which should have been stored, unknown to anyone, in the basement—had now mysteriously vanished.

Strange.

Very strange.

Connecting all these incidents, the whole thing reeked of conspiracy.

Dad Jiang said the draft notebook containing the *Setting Collection* had been hauled away by a scrap collector with a tricycle.

’But Jiang Ran refused to believe something so simple.’

’It was obvious... ’

”That draft notebook... that *Setting Collection*...”

Jiang Ran muttered to himself.

”*It was stolen.*”

’That’s right.’

’When the basement was burglarized back in high school, it wasn’t that nothing was stolen.’

’The thief’s goal wasn’t to take valuables. They must have come specifically for the *Setting Collection*!’

”Huh? What’d you say?”

Wang Hao shifted on his butt and stood up.

”Whoa, nope, can’t hold it! I’m about to blow! Uncle! You have the keys, right? Hurry, take me upstairs, I gotta take a dump!”

True to form, the master of all things crude grabbed Dad Jiang and ran for the elevator.

Only Jiang Ran remained in the vast basement.

Everything fell silent in an instant.

He closed his eyes and began to think.

’It was a mess.’

’He had no leads.’

’But his intuition told him the truth behind these strange events was crucial.’

’He had to get the logic straight.’

He picked up a yellowed workbook, clicked a ballpoint pen, and began to organize his thoughts in a blank space.

*Why was our basement burglarized?*

This had only happened in World Line 1.

Since it differed from World Line 0, it meant the divergence in history must be related to the temporal Butterfly Effect.

In fact...

It was highly likely.

It was related to the Time SMS that Qin Feng had sent.

Dad Jiang had said the basement was completely and thoroughly ransacked, yet no items of value were missing.

That was because he had only focused on valuables, failing to notice the one thing that might have actually been taken—

the *Setting Collection* he had concocted back in middle school, the origin of everything.

’Although it was hard to imagine what value that thing could possibly have.’

’But the facts spoke for themselves.’

If someone in the year 2025 was willing to spend 12 million yuan—or perhaps even more—to buy the script for *Genius Playground*, then it stood to reason that the *Setting Collection*, the script’s prototype, must also hold a similar value!

’There was no doubt about that.’

Next came the second question.

*Who on earth would have broken into the basement when I was in high school?*

Almost instantly, a name and a figure appeared in Jiang Ran’s mind.

”Qin Feng.”

In the current World Line 1, he had never mentioned the *Setting Collection* to anyone. Even Wang Hao didn’t know it was stored in the basement.

But in the previous World Line 0, only two people had known this information.

Back then, Jiang Ran, Qin Feng, and Wang Hao had met up for barbecue after a long time.

Qin Feng was extremely interested in the story of *Genius Playground*. It wasn’t the first time he’d said so. He had tried to ask about the story’s details several times before.

At the time, Jiang Ran simply couldn’t remember the details and hadn’t paid any mind to Qin Feng’s unreasonable obsession.

During that barbecue, Qin Feng brought up *Genius Playground* again and even tried to pry some information out of Wang Hao.

But Wang Hao, ever the glutton, predictably only remembered the name of the setting collection and had completely forgotten everything else.

Qin Feng was very disappointed and complained that the two of them had terrible memories.

Afterward, Jiang Ran had suggested that Qin Feng come stay at his hometown for a few days during the summer vacation so they could go to the **basement** together and search for the old setting collection.

”Right.”

Jiang Ran continued his reasoning.

”Thinking about it now, Qin Feng’s focus on that setting collection and the script... it really did seem a bit unnatural.”

In Jiang Ran’s mind...

...his conversations with Qin Feng on World Line 0 gradually surfaced.

”A phone that can grant any wish, a diary that can travel through time... You know, the concepts you came up with in middle school are actually pretty interesting.”

”What exactly is the *Genius Playground*?”

.

”You originally called the story *Genius Playground* and said it was a game for eleven geniuses.”

”So, could you tell me... what kind of game is the *Genius Playground*?”

.

”Do you remember anything else?”

”Like... how do you join the *Genius Playground*? How do you get into the game?”

.

”You two... I have to wonder if you got your brains secondhand. How can you forget something you wrote and read so completely?”

”Who can be like you?!” ”You think we’re all you?”

.

”Alright, alright. If you’re really that interested, come home with me for summer vacation.”

”You can stay at my place for a few days, and we’ll have a good search through the **basement** to see if we can find that old middle school draft notebook.”

...

...

Slowly, Jiang Ran opened his eyes.

’That’s right.’

’On World Line 0, Qin Feng’s reactions had been very strange.’

’His interest in a setting collection that Jiang Ran had just made up on a whim went far beyond mere curiosity. It was a fixation, an obsession. He had been desperate to know what was inside it.’

’Could it be...’

Jiang Ran furrowed his brow, a bold hypothesis forming in his mind.

’Could it be that in the Time SMS Qin Feng sent to ten years ago, he specifically mentioned that the setting collection was in my basement?’

’That’s why he would have timed it perfectly, waiting until I was in high school and my middle school draft notebooks were stored in the basement... before coming to steal it!’