“Good morning, Mr. Bai.”, Gu Baicheng greeted. “I brought the documents you need for today. Since I know you were too drunk last night, I brought you hangover soup and medicine to deal with your headache.”

Hearing his secretary’s words, Bai Minglan’s heart, which was so confused earlier, started to beat faster. A light flashed past his eyes, yet it immediately dimmed down.

No. He can’t jump to conclusions just yet. There’s a lot of things he can’t figure out and if he makes a mistake, he might regret it. He has to calm down and keep his wits with him. This unusual situation may be a boon or a bane to him, depending on how he handles it.

“Put them right there.”, he instructed his secretary as normally as he could. He then turned his back on the man and returned to the bathroom.

Gu Baicheng didn’t seem to notice anything unusual with his boss as he just proceeded to do as he was told. He placed the documents on the large wooden table in front of the sofa. After that, he proceeded to the dining table to place the hangover soup and medicine.

As his boss was not someone who likes clutter, Gu Baicheng looked around the room first to see if there are things he needed to clean up. He opened the curtains as well to allow natural light to get into the room. He then nodded to himself when he was reassured that the room was tidy.

The bathroom door soon opened and Bai Minglan went out. Seeing that his secretary is still in the room, he thought that he won’t be able to organize his thoughts if this man is still here.

“What time do we need to leave?”, he asked, appearing nonchalant.

“We need to leave at 8 this morning so we can meet up with Lieutenant General Hu Feng.”, Gu Baicheng reported. “If nothing goes wrong with the talks, we should be able to return to Country A in the afternoon.”

Bai Minglan looked at the digital clock on the bedside table. Seeing that it was still 6 in the morning, he figured that he still has enough time for that meeting.

“Okay, I got it.”, he said while heading to the table to eat. “You can return to your room for now. I’ll call you when we are about to leave.”

“Got it, Mr. Bai.”, Gu Baicheng replied before heading toward the door.

As soon as his secretary closed the door, Bai Minglan’s gaze landed on the food in front of him. He then fell into a daze, for the nth time since he woke up, as he tried to organize his thoughts. He does remember his secretary bringing him food and medicine at this point in time. He also remembers that there is supposed to be a meeting with a top-ranking military official later within the day. It seems that he did return to the past. At this point in time, if he does follow exactly what happened in the past, then the meeting should end up a big success. Moreover, once the meeting ended, he should have participated in a couple of banquets that extended his stay in Country M for a couple of days.

What he is most happy though is the fact that at this point in time, Song Liuli is still alive! In fact, if he can remember correctly, they have just recently established their relationship!

Remembering that, Bai Minglan snapped out of his daze. He looked for his phone, which he eventually found inside the pocket of his pantsuit. Scrolling through his contacts, he immediately located the number that he was so familiar with in the past.

He hesitated to dial the number though. What if there’s a difference between his past life and this life? What if that difference lies with Song Liuli? Is he still worthy enough to return to the past and be happy with her once again? Is he allowed to make his mistakes right and provide her with happiness by his side? What if this life is not a return to the past but a parallel life? All these 'what ifs' are adding up to his hesitation in calling Song Liuli.

With a bit of fear, he tapped the screen to call the number. Regardless if Song Liuli changed or not in this life, he’d call her. At least, he can hear her voice!

After a couple of rings, the phone connected and a youthful, mellow voice flowed out that made Bai Minglan’s breath hitch. A current of electricity coursed through his veins, making him feel alive.

'This voice! It is exactly the same voice I remember!', Bai Minglan screamed in his head.

“Minglan?”, the soft voice once again called out, making him snap out of his thoughts.

“Mm.” Bai Minglan was only able to reply with a grunt as he was trying to prevent himself from choking to tears. He missed this voice so much!

Silence prevailed between them. Song Liuli seemed to be waiting for his words. Bai Minglan cleared his throat first before he spoke.

“Where are you?”

“Oh.”, Song Liuli replied. “I’m still at home. I’m getting ready to go to work. Why? Do you need me to do something for you?”

“No.”, Bai Minglan was silent for a while before he answered.

“Are you okay?”, Song Liuli asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

“I’m fine.”, he said, his lips slowly curving upward upon hearing the concerned tone in her voice. He missed this!

“Oh.”, Song Liuli softly whispered, seemingly not knowing what to say.

Hearing that, Bai Minglan chuckled. Oh how long he had wanted to hear that soft whisper again! A tiny bit of happiness bubbled at the deepest part of his heart. He cleared his throat to wash away the choking lump that may give away his emotions.

“What’s with the ‘oh’?”, he asked instead in a playful manner.

“Well, isn’t this the first time that you called me first?”, Song Liuli answered after a pause. Bai Minglan knows that Song Liuli might be weirded out with him now. “This is also the first time that you asked me where I am nor did you talk to me for no reason at all.”

“Was I that bad?”, Bai Minglan asked once again, with a downcast hint in his voice.

“It may be because we weren’t in a relationship back then.”, Liuli replied immediately as if she won’t be able to clarify herself to Bai Minglan if she was any slower. “Maybe you’ve changed because now we're together?”

Of course, Bai Minglan can sense a hint of uncertainty in Liuli’s voice. He felt as if Liuli’s words were meant to convince herself instead of him.

“Hmm.”

As the taciturn him is unable to explain himself, he wasn’t able to do anything but to hum his agreement. Silence then engulfed their call. After a while, it was Minglan himself who broke the silence.

“I’ll see you first thing when I get back.”, he said, not noticing how his voice turned a notch softer than it usually would.

Song Liuli didn’t reply immediately. Only when she was able to compose herself did she hum an agreement toward his words.