Genius Club

The room was heavy with silence, and the atmosphere was tense and uncomfortable.

“Actually…” the woman spoke first, breaking the quiet. “Ever since I saw you impersonate me in the square and jump into the car with Big Cat Face, I thought you were crazy.”

“Has the misunderstanding been cleared up now?” Lin Xian asked.

“Now, I’m even more convinced!” she replied, her tone dripping with disbelief.

Lin Xian spread his hands in resignation. “So, you still don’t believe me? But since you’re here to steal Lin Xian’s safe, you must have done some homework on him, right? Don’t you know what he looks like?”

He pointed to his face. “Take a good look. Compare my face to the photos from your research. See if they match.”

The woman shook her head. “I didn’t research the owner of this safe. I have no idea what Lin Xian looks like.”

Lin Xian was at a loss for words. He never imagined proving his identity would be so challenging.

“But it doesn’t matter who you are,” she continued, her arms crossed as she stared at the formidable mechanical lock. “If this were an electronic lock, I could crack it in minutes. But it’s an 8-digit mechanical lock, and neither brute force nor listening techniques will open it quickly.”

She faced Lin Xian. “So, your identity is irrelevant. You could be anyone. But if you can open this safe, you’re my partner.”

“Deal,” Lin Xian extended his hand. Despite his desire to verify her story first, he had no means to prove he was Lin Xian. He had to compromise.

“What should I call you?” he inquired.

“CC,” she replied, shaking his hand briefly. “Just call me CC.”

Lin Xian noted the lack of normal names among the characters in his dream.

“What’s your plan?” CC asked, looking at him intently.

“Let’s try important dates from my life,” Lin Xian suggested. “We’ll go through them one by one.”

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Together, they tried every significant date Lin Xian could recall while CC manipulated the lock. But success eluded them.

“Not even my mom’s birthday…” Lin Xian muttered, disheartened.

CC shook her head. “How about your grandmother’s birthday next?”

“I don’t even know my grandmother’s birthday,” Lin Xian confessed.

“Can’t you tell I’m being sarcastic? We’ve already tried the birthdays of your seven aunts, your uncles, and even your dog! Think of something else,” CC chided him.

“Why does it have to be a date? An 8-digit code could be anything,” she added, looking puzzled.

“No, it has to be a date. Trust me, it’s a habit of mine when setting passwords,” Lin Xian insisted.

“Are you still pretending to be Lin Xian?” CC’s skepticism was palpable.

“I’ve told you a hundred times,” Lin Xian sighed heavily. “I’m not pretending to be Lin Xian. I am Lin Xian! Can you stop interrupting?”

“Your role-playing is impressive,” CC retorted sarcastically. “The dates you’ve mentioned belong to centuries past. If I didn’t need your help, I wouldn’t bother with this nonsense! Is your family a bunch of immortals or something?”

Lin Xian closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. He needed to dig deeper. There must be a date he had overlooked.

As they exhausted every possible date, Lin Xian began to doubt the situation. Was this really his safe? But it was his dream, wasn’t it? How could someone else’s safe appear in his dream?

He remembered a friend’s advice: “Your dream will never include anything beyond your own knowledge.”

So the 8-digit password had to be within his memory. What was he missing?

As he pondered, a sharp electronic beep pierced the silence, followed by a deafening alarm sounding off around them.

“Damn it!” Lin Xian cursed, kicking the safe in frustration.

“Think faster!” CC yelled as the alarm blared, sounding like a countdown to doom.

“I’m trying!” Lin Xian exclaimed, scratching his head in desperation.

His brain felt like it was overheating, his world spinning as memories flashed rapidly before his eyes.

“If you don’t figure it out, the police will arrive soon! I never should have trusted you!” CC screamed above the noise.

Lin Xian glanced at his watch: [00:41:27].

The dream was ticking down, with only 33 seconds remaining.

“Can you do this or not?” CC demanded. “Where’s all that bravado now?”

“Shut up!” Lin Xian shot back, the alarm growing louder.

His head throbbed painfully as memories surged. Then, a forgotten memory surfaced.

“I used to like a girl…” Lin Xian muttered, his voice strained.

“Are you mad? I don’t care about your love stories!” CC shouted over the alarm.

“She was my classmate…”

“I! Don’t! Care!”

“I’m not thrilled to share this, but it’s for the best!” Lin Xian shouted back, pointing at the safe. “19990707! Her birthday!”

He felt foolish, revealing such a personal secret.

“Hurry!”

CC quickly dialed the code and yanked the latch.

It didn’t open.

“The code’s wrong!”

The alarm continued: [00:41:47].

“20150609!” Lin Xian yelled, covering his ears.

“What’s this date now? Don’t tell me it’s the day you confessed!” CC shouted over the noise.

“Just enter the code!”

“It’s done!”

[00:41:56].

CC gritted her teeth and slammed the latch with all her might.

It still didn’t open.

Lin Xian felt his energy ebbing away, his vision blurring as he stared at CC by the safe. She turned to him, her eyes filled with contempt.

“Liar.”

[00:42:00].

BOOM!!!

A blinding white light enveloped everything…

Lin Xian awoke in a clean, orderly bedroom, early on a winter morning. He opened his eyes, the vivid memories of the dream still lingering.