Chapter 24: Mutated Room

Only two houses remained on Little Rabbit Island, and they had obtained two keys.

Yin Xian already knew everything that had happened in the Employee Dormitory. Whether or not to continue entering the houses was a choice they had no choice but to face.

With the key she got from her mom hanging on his claw, Yin Xian examined it closely and said aloud,

“This keychain… looks familiar.”

Wang Jiexiang was eating something delicious and didn’t even look up.

“It’s the key to the rental we used to live in.”

Yin Xian was puzzled. “That house doesn’t exist on Little Rabbit Island. Why would it show up?”

Wang Jiexiang wanted to say she didn’t know, but “I don’t know” was his line.

“Maybe it’s another gaming metaphor. Maybe we unintentionally completed a hidden task and got a hidden key as a reward. Just keep it on you, maybe it’ll come in handy.”

She directed Yin Xian to do some chores.

“Go ask the juicer for a small pouch.”

He did as told.

A pink pouch appeared in Wang Jiexiang’s hands. She eyed it up and down and adjusted the strap to its shortest length.

“Come here.”

He walked over to her, and she hung the pouch on him.

“Still too long.”

Wang Jiexiang tied two knots in the strap, and now it fit perfectly.

The white rabbit wore the pink pouch, which now held two keys.

“Aww, how cute…”

She reached out to pinch his cheek as she spoke, but Yin Xian ducked to avoid her.

Wang Jiexiang looked up in annoyance—then suddenly, from the corner of her eye, she caught sight of something extremely unusual.

“Look behind you!”

He wasn’t falling for that.

“What’s that? It looks so weird.”

She wore a surprised expression. Yin Xian stayed crouched, unmoved.

“I’m not joking.” Wang Jiexiang simply picked him up and turned his body to face the direction she indicated. “It’s really there—look.”

On this small, open Little Rabbit Island, one could see from the northernmost point all the way to the southern end.

There were five houses on the island. Wang Jiexiang had entered three; after she completed them, they disappeared, leaving Little Rabbit Island more than half empty. The only two remaining were Yin Xian’s grandpa’s house and the place where he boarded in high school… One of these houses looked different now.

A section of land that was supposed to be empty was now occupied by an extension from the house.

Wang Jiexiang stiffly asked, “The one that changed—is it your grandpa’s house?”

“No, it’s the high school one.”

They left their half-eaten food and walked up to the house.

It had originally been a standalone building with light green outer walls, parts of the paint flaking off in patches. The front side showed three windows, the highest one bearing the red characters for “Tutoring” inside.

Now, a mud house had appeared on the right side—something that wasn’t there before. Compared to the tutoring dorm, it looked crude and dilapidated: a roof with broken tiles, dirty wooden windows, walls cracked and gray-black.

The mud house clung to the green one like a deformed tumor. It looked grown on—because its walls were fused seamlessly with the green walls, with no visible joint or seam.

The front doors of the dorm and the mud house had merged into one, right at the junction between the two buildings.

Just like the houses, the left half of the door was iron from the dorm, the right half wood from the mud house. There was only one lock, and it was on the iron door.

Wang Jiexiang pointed at the mud house, stunned. “That’s my old home!”

Yin Xian reacted instantly. “The one you went back to in the Employee Dormitory world?”

“Yes.”

His high school dorm and her hometown house had merged… Wang Jiexiang stepped forward, staring at the strange door, her thoughts racing.

“Does this mean that the world inside is just like before? I’ll meet you again, and you can take me to my hometown. Maybe… maybe I’ll get another chance to see my mom.”

Yin Xian frowned and poured cold water on her hopes. “Even if you do, it won’t really be your mom. If it’s like last time—you can’t see her or speak to her—you’ll just feel even worse.”

Wang Jiexiang choked on her words, unable to argue.

“Is this key for that door?”

He pulled out the key from the pink pouch.

It matched the lock.

It could open.

Wang Jiexiang and the rabbit exchanged looks, both fully aware of the risks waiting inside.

“How long have you gone without sleep? Even if you want to go in, you need to rest first.”

He noticed how bloodshot her eyes were.

“I…”

They were just about to figure out what to do next when suddenly, Little Rabbit Island was flooded with blinding light.

Wang Jiexiang wasn’t unfamiliar with this scene.

One of the unsolved mysteries of Little Rabbit Island.

“The sun’s out again?” she asked, shielding her eyes.

“Yeah.” The rabbit told her, “Go home and get a good sleep.”

“Will you have to wait for me for a long time again, like last time?”

Wang Jiexiang didn’t know if he had time to hear that.

The rabbit’s silhouette was drowned in white light. She tried to keep her eyes open, but the brightness was unbearable.

Everything on Little Rabbit Island was washed out in white. The light grew stronger.

Soon, she couldn’t see anything—just white.

Her eyelids ached; she closed her eyes, tears leaking from the corners.

Wang Jiexiang wiped away the tears on the back of her hand and opened her eyes.

She was standing at the back door of her cake shop.

The air smelled pleasantly of freshly baked bread. A few batons she’d tossed away the night before hadn’t been cleaned up. The afternoon sun was warm.

Time had been paused from the moment she left.

Wang Jiexiang took a deep breath and then cursed out loud.

“Damn! That means I have to work another half shift!”

And that wasn’t even the worst part.

“Where’s my ring?” She opened her hand. All ten fingers were bare.

Wang Jiexiang had had enough!

“Those were ten big diamond rings, and I didn’t even get to warm them up!”

She rubbed her hands together, hoping to feel some leftover warmth from the rings.

After dutifully working a half shift, Wang Jiexiang was so exhausted she couldn’t stand straight.

Thinking about going back to Little Rabbit Island tomorrow and still having to work afterward, she decisively told her staff to take a week off and taped a notice to the shop door.

Back home.

Wang Jiexiang shivered.

Her bedroom was drafty and cold—colder than outside.

A huge hole in the window… “How long’s that been there? Why hasn’t it been fixed?”

She checked her phone for the repair service number—the call log showed it was made this morning.

The bed had turned into the paper crane to carry her to the island—that had only happened last night!

Wang Jiexiang was exhausted.

“I want the system,” she moaned, shaking her bed.

“My time isn’t that precious. You don’t need to freeze the real world time so efficiently.”

She cupped her hands around her mouth like a megaphone and yelled at what she guessed was the crane’s head.

“I’m going to sleep now. If you dare wake me halfway through again, I’ll rip your head off and tear off your wings.”

And so, completely drained, she collapsed onto the bed. Wrapped in her thick blanket, Wang Jiexiang fell into an unconscious sleep.

That night, she had a string of jumbled nightmares.

She dreamed Yin Xian had turned back into a human. When she tried to complain to him, he covered his ears and said, “I don’t know, I don’t remember.”

She dreamed she was still in the Employee Dormitory. The cafeteria menu had spicy rabbit meat on it, and she saw little bunny Yin Xian being captured.

She dreamed of her mother, who asked her why she hadn’t visited all these years.

Compared to the first two, the last one felt the most real.

When she woke up, Wang Jiexiang dug out the only photo she had of her mother, hidden in the back of a drawer.

It was from Chinese New Year when she was nine. An uncle her dad knew had come back from the city and taken a photo of their family with what was then a very trendy camera.

Her, her mom, her dad, her grandma, and some relatives whose names she no longer remembered, all seated around the table.

The little girl who had never taken a photo before sat nervously next to her mother, eyes fixed on her.

Everyone—including her father and grandmother—was smiling.

Her mother had the most beautiful smile.

She held her by the shoulders, looking so young, her smile gentle and lovely.
—

In the early morning, the sky was filled with damp mist.

Wang Jiexiang, who had left home early, rode her paper crane toward Bunny Island.

The little birds that always woke early chirped noisily in the trees, and she waved to greet them.

The paper crane sailed from the just-brightened daytime back into the star-filled night.

From afar, Wang Jiexiang saw Bunny Island, shaped like a cookie.

The island looked different now.

She had been away only a few days, but a dazzling diamond hill had appeared, and the temporary play area where she played music and ate lobster had tripled in size. Carrots were neatly stacked around the play zone, guarding it like a fortress.

The wild grass on Bunny Island had grown taller, and the bunny Yin Xian, wearing the pink pouch she had sewn for him, waited for her at the paper crane’s landing spot.

Wang Jiexiang rushed over and threw her arms around him in a full embrace.

Yin Xian was startled as she picked him up and touched him all over midair.

“Your hands… they’re poking me…”

She looked down and laughed in delight. “My ring is back!”

“As thanks, here’s your gift.” She pulled something from her pocket and placed it on his head.

Yin Xian’s ears twitched; his head felt warm.

“A pineapple bun?” he sniffed.

“Yep, I made it,” she smiled. “This time it won’t break your teeth.”

Yin Xian opened his little pouch, took out a key, and stuffed the pineapple bun inside.

Wang Jiexiang had already spotted the renovated play area. Knowing Yin Xian’s personality, if she didn’t ask, he’d never mention it himself. She didn’t stand on ceremony—she bounced over to go play.

“Glug glug glug—”

Wang Jiexiang downed three big cups of carrot juice and wiped her mouth with satisfaction. “So satisfying.”

Yin Xian teased her using the same words she had once used on him.

“Why are you so stubborn? There’s watermelon juice, pear juice, tomato juice—and you only drink carrot juice.”

“None of your business!” she slammed the table, full of energy. “One more cup!”

“Alright,” the bunny started up the juicer again. “Anything else?”

Wang Jiexiang thought for a moment. “A small tent, a very bright light, and two woven bags—to hold your favorite snacks.”

He paused the juicer and turned to look at her.

“What’s with that look?”

She tapped his nose lightly, speaking casually.

“You’ve got to be prepared, right? What if I get trapped again? You want to starve to death again?”

Yin Xian remained silent, his expression serious.

“Don’t be like that. I’m being selfish here.”

Wang Jiexiang pulled out the photo she had brought.

“If, like you said, that house is part of your inner world… remember what my mom looks like. Maybe in the next world, I can see her again.”

He couldn’t promise her anything. “That’s just a theory. If everything could be changed by my will, I wouldn’t still be trapped here.”

“I know…”

Wang Jiexiang sniffled and changed the subject: “Do you remember anything from high school?”

“Studying.”

Yin Xian thought hard and added like squeezing out toothpaste: “My parents divorced, I went to a boarding cram school, and buried myself in books.”

“Anything besides studying?”

He shook his head.

He couldn’t convince Wang Jiexiang not to go—because he, too, wanted to escape Bunny Island. Even though he already sensed that something was wrong with those houses. Even though he knew they could be trapped and die inside.

Wang Jiexiang knew this too.

She also knew that asking him about what was in the houses before entering never really helped.

In the first room, she encountered a kidnapper. After coming out, Yin Xian didn’t want to talk about it.

In the second room, he never mentioned that his parents were fighting and he had been locked in at home, with no one to teach him how to ride a bike.

In the third room, he said he wanted to switch from tech to sales and had a falling out with his family—but that wasn’t the real issue from that time.

What Yin Xian said never got to the core of the problem.

It was like he didn’t really know himself; or maybe, intentionally or not, he avoided the real issues.

Wang Jiexiang had her reasons for going.

Ever since she saw her parents and grandmother, and received the keys to their rental apartment, she could no longer back out.

Although they didn’t yet have a clear grasp of the situation, she had a hunch that she was somehow connected to all these unsolved mysteries.

“This is you. So the one next to you is your mom?”

Yin Xian recognized the people in the photo.

Wang Jiexiang nodded.

The bunny paw swiped again, stopping on the faces of her father and grandmother.

He said, “I’ve seen these two before.”