Genius Playground

Regrets... Mutual Aid Association?

Jiang Ran fell into thought as he heard the strange name.

It sounded like an organization where a group of people, all harboring regrets, gathered to console, encourage, and support one another.

It actually sounded quite positive.

Then again, whose life is without regret?

Family, love, friendship, career, studies, opportunities... Regret is a constant throughout life. No one lives a life completely free of it.

Everyone has had a brash youth, and everyone has acted impulsively and come to regret it.

But...

What could be done about it?

What’s in the past is in the past. It can’t be changed, can’t be fixed, can’t be altered.

A truly strong person should bravely let go of the past, face their regrets, and always move forward.

He couldn’t help but recall what Xu Yan had said at the airport during summer break when they were seeing Cheng Mengxue off:

”Regrets are a constant companion in life, but they also serve as a reminder to cherish the present and the people in front of you.”

That’s the long and short of it.

But...

Then again...

’If a real opportunity to fix a life’s regret was placed before them, how would those who claim to be magnanimous, who claim they can take things in stride and let them go... how would they choose?’

Jiang Ran fell silent.

He suddenly felt his earlier thoughts were a case of ”easier said than done.”

If not for wanting to fix the regret of his father’s early death, Qin Feng wouldn’t have suddenly switched sides, causing a massive change in the timeline;

If not for wanting to fix the regret of Cheng Mengxue’s death, I wouldn’t have run around frantically rewriting history;

In truth, the principle was the same.

People feign magnanimity when urging others to be forgiving, but have no trouble justifying their own double standards.

”Jiang Ran.”

Seeing Jiang Ran remain silent, Fang Ze looked up at him.

”Do you believe... the bullshit this Regrets Mutual Aid Association is spouting?”

Bullshit.

Images flashed through Jiang Ran’s mind: Zhou Xiong flaunting his power at the class reunion, Cheng Mengxue suddenly appearing behind the crowd, Lilith’s eyes revolving around the Ferris wheel...

”I don’t.”

Jiang Ran stated bluntly,

”There are many kinds of regrets in life. If it’s about fixing regrets related to money, career, or even love, I could tentatively believe it.”

”After all, there’s a saying: ’Where there’s a will, there’s a way.’ Even the ’one that got away’ from your youth, the one you could never get, might be picked up in a Maybach after you’ve grown up.”

”As for regrets about money and career, that’s even easier to explain. Those economic matters are reversible. With a benefactor’s help, you could become a millionaire at any time.”

”But if you’re telling me that the Regrets Mutual Aid Association can fix *all* of its followers’ regrets and grant *any* wish, then I definitely don’t believe it.”

He spread his hands.

”Can they bring dead relatives back to life? I’d imagine that for most people in the world, their greatest regrets are related to life, aging, sickness, and death.”

”Can this Regrets Mutual Aid Association instantly eliminate cancer cells, resurrect someone who’s been cremated to ash, make an old person young again, or turn a newborn baby boy into a girl?”

”Honestly, I absolutely refuse to believe a plot straight out of a fantasy novel like that, and I don’t think the Regrets Mutual Aid Association is capable of it.”

After listening, Fang Ze sighed.

”You’re right. I think the same way. We’re on the same page.”

With that said, he sank back into his chair, his face filled with worry.

”But my brother... he’s probably just stubbornly fallen for it, believing the bullshit from this cult. He seems to think that if he just follows their every command, if he’s absolutely obedient, the Regrets Mutual Aid Association will help him fix all his life’s regrets.”

”I’ve told my brother so many times that our lives are great now. We have enough money, I can get a great job on Wall Street after I graduate... Our income, our finances, our future—it’s all bright. Our lives no longer have any regrets.”

”But... my brother doesn’t see it that way...”

At this, Fang Ze furrowed his brows and pressed his lips together.

”I have a feeling... the regret my brother ultimately wants to fix is resurrecting our dead parents, to give me a complete family again... Heh. It’s such a ridiculous, outrageous wish. I don’t even know what to say.”

...

Jiang Ran patted Fang Ze’s shoulder, telling him to relax a little.

It was clear that all the emotion Fang Ze had been holding in had come pouring out tonight. He was emotionally volatile, a far cry from the calm, elegant, and quiet young man he appeared to be during the day.

”Your brother... maybe he just had a moment of weakness, got carried away, and that’s why he was brainwashed and deceived by the Regrets Mutual Aid Association.”

Jiang Ran offered comforting words, but privately, he had his doubts.

’Logically, the impression the Assassin gave him wasn’t of someone who would be easily obsessed or get carried away. On the contrary, the Assassin was composed, mature, cool-headed, and rational. It was hard to imagine that such a resourceful and meticulous person could be brainwashed by the Regrets Mutual Aid Association with such a low-level tactic. A tactic like that... what was the difference between it and one of those scam texts meant for idiots?’

”I am Emperor Qin. I’m not actually dead. I have 10 billion in gold buried underground. I just need you to transfer me 200 yuan to unfreeze these assets. Tomorrow, I’ll march over with my Terracotta Army and make you commander of all my forces!”

Honestly, even his old roommate Number 1 wouldn’t fall for a scam of that level.

So why would the Assassin—Fang Ze’s brother, Fang Yang—who was clearly a highly intelligent person, believe in it so fervently?

Could it be...

’That there’s more to this story?’