Copycat - Chapter 9

Chapter 9 

◎I’ve Arrived in Your Hometown◎

When Wen Jiao woke up, her mother had already left. She opened her phone to check her unread messages, her pupils shrinking in shock. She quickly scrambled out of bed to wash her face. Cold water splashed on her cheeks, and her hazy sleepiness faded. She opened the messages again.

Zhou Ziyan: Wen Jiao, I’ve arrived in Province B. Zhou Ziyan: I’m at the high-speed train station. Can you come pick me up? It’s so cold outside. Zhou Ziyan: Crying_cat_face.jpg

The last message was 30 minutes ago. Wen Jiao grabbed a piece of bread, put on her clothes, and replied to Zhou Ziyan with one hand. She didn’t know why Zhou Ziyan would suddenly come to Province B. But in this situation, she obviously couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.

Wen Jiao: Send me your location.

The reply was fast, almost instantaneous.

Zhou Ziyan: Okay! Zhou Ziyan: Cat_scratching_face.jpg

Zhou Ziyan’s location was at the high-speed train station in Province B. Besides the emojis, she also sent a photo of her location at the station’s exit. Wen Jiao took a closer look at the photo. It was at Exit 3. She went downstairs, put her phone aside, and started the car’s engine. Out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly saw a pair of small leather shoes and black stockings in the bottom left corner of the photo that almost blended into the background.

Wen Jiao: …

She took the car keys out of the ignition and went back upstairs to grab a few clothes and put them in a bag. K County was more than 80 kilometers away from the provincial capital’s high-speed train station. It took Wen Jiao about an hour to drive there. She parked the car in a parking lot near the station and walked to the exit with the bag. Amidst the crowds of people with luggage, she saw a graceful figure that looked out of place.

“Wen Jiao!” The person recognized her at a glance and raised her hand, shouting in the crowd. Wen Jiao’s hands were in her pockets, and she looked at the person in front of her with a complex expression. The girl in the suit dress and small leather shoes was standing at the automatic door of the high-speed train station. Her cheeks were as red as persimmons, and she was shivering all over. However, she was waving her arms vigorously. The people around her were looking at her strangely, but she seemed completely unaware.

Wen Jiao’s usually calm steps became a little hurried. She ran toward her with the bag at almost a sprint. Amidst the various stares, Wen Jiao put her long down jacket over her head. The small person was covered by the large down jacket, revealing a small, delicate oval face. Her nose was red from the cold, and her fluttering eyelashes were covered in a layer of frost, but she was smiling brightly. Those round almond eyes were sparkling, staring at the person in front of her without blinking.

“…Why are you wearing so little?” Wen Jiao felt a little uncomfortable from being stared at. She held it in for a long time and only managed to say that.

“Because I wanted to see you as soon as possible.” Since admitting her feelings for Wen Jiao, Zhou Ziyan was finally able to honestly express her thoughts. She no longer tried to hide, and her gaze was firm, with a hint of obsession. She liked Wen Jiao, and she wanted to see Wen Jiao so badly she was going crazy.

“I was afraid that if I came late, I would never see you again.” Zhou Ziyan’s eyes were a little moist. “How can you be so heartless and just move out like that?” The moving boxes under the dorm desk had shattered her heart into a billion pieces. She couldn’t imagine how she would fall apart if Wen Jiao left without a word. China was so big. Where would she find her then?

Zhou Ziyan’s straightforward gaze made Wen Jiao a little uncomfortable. Wen Jiao had grown up in loneliness and was rarely relied on so openly. Wen Jiao turned sideways, avoiding her gaze, and opened the back car door for her. “…Get in the car first.”

“I want to sit in the front,” Zhou Ziyan said, shaking her head. She went straight to the front passenger door, got in, and buckled her seatbelt. The girl looked at Wen Jiao from the passenger seat with a look of anticipation. Wen Jiao rubbed her forehead, closed the back car door, and started the car.

“Wow, the windows are cranked by hand!” Zhou Ziyan was in the car, and everything seemed new to her. “How advanced!” Wen Jiao: … Wen Jiao didn’t know what to say for a moment.

The car had air conditioning and was warm. The road was flat and not bumpy, but Zhou Ziyan still got carsick. Halfway there, Zhou Ziyan squatted on the snow, wrapped in the dark gray down jacket, and threw up until she was dizzy. “Ugh… I’m sorry… Ugh… I don’t usually get… carsick.” Wen Jiao: “…It’s okay.” The car did have a strong smell of oil and should have been replaced a long time ago.

Wen Jiao stayed with her, stopping by the roadside every ten minutes, and they didn’t get to K County until noon. After all the trouble, the two of them finally got out of the car. In front of them was a double-row glass door. Zhou Ziyan was wearing small leather shoes, her eyes were full of anticipation, and she rubbed her hands, eager to get out of the car. “Is this your house? It’s so big!” Wen Jiao: “…This is a shopping mall.”

“Oh,” Zhou Ziyan tilted her head. She didn’t seem to understand why Wen Jiao would bring her to a shopping mall. Wen Jiao glanced at the leather shoes on her feet, grabbed the sleeve of her down jacket, and pulled her from the minus twenty-three degrees Celsius weather into the mall.

Zhou Ziyan was surprised as soon as she entered. On both sides of the open front yard were stalls selling Spring Festival couplets. All kinds of “Fu” characters were hanging in the center of the stalls, and paper cuttings of the Year of the Snake were hanging on both sides. Further ahead were two shoe stores. At the entrance, there were two huge plastic baskets filled with all kinds of shoes. Some were leather shoes, and some were even single shoes. A sign next to them said, “Everything 10% off.” Zhou Ziyan was fascinated and stopped there for a while.

“Hey, little girl, why are you wearing so little?” A short woman came out of the store, smiling and very talkative. “Do you want to pick out a pair of shoes? Your little leather shoes will be frozen as soon as you go out. Our store is a good deal. A pair of bread boots is only 500 yuan.” “Do you want to buy a pair?” the owner asked.

Zhou Ziyan was tempted and was about to pick a pair, but Wen Jiao immediately walked over and pulled her away from the store entrance. “What’s wrong?” Zhou Ziyan asked. Wen Jiao said bluntly, “She’s ripping you off.” Zhou Ziyan looked puzzled. “Is 500 yuan considered a rip-off?” She usually spent twice that amount on a single meal.

Of course, it was a rip-off. The prices in K County were different from those in City A. And the mall here didn’t sell big brands with after-sales service, but rather high-quality knockoffs from overseas. For example, the letters on the back of the bread boots were UCC. Wen Jiao didn’t know how to explain it to her, so she just said, “Follow me.”

Zhou Ziyan obediently followed her to a shoe store hidden in a corner. It was in a bad location, but it had a lot of customers. Wen Jiao took a pair of identical bread boots from the shoe rack and asked, “How much?” The owner, who was sitting by the heater and eating sunflower seeds, lifted her eyelids. “Fifty.” Zhou Ziyan’s round almond eyes widened like copper bells. “Please get me a size 38.” Seeing Zhou Ziyan’s surprised expression, Wen Jiao’s lips curved into a subtle arc. She pointed in Zhou Ziyan’s direction. “She’s wearing them.”

When Zhou Ziyan and Wen Jiao walked out of the mall, their hands were heavy. Zhou Ziyan was carrying two sweaters, a short down jacket, a pair of thick cotton pants, and a pair of thin fleece pants. Wen Jiao had two shoe boxes in each hand. They had only spent a total of 500 yuan. It turned out that 500 yuan could buy so many things. In comparison, City A seemed to use a different currency.

After getting in the car, Zhou Ziyan buckled her seatbelt. “Where are we going next? Are we going to find a hotel?” Wen Jiao’s action of starting the engine paused for a moment. “The hotels here might not be what you’re imagining.” Zhou Ziyan felt that she had left a very delicate impression on Wen Jiao. To improve her impression score, she insisted on finding a hotel. “I’m fine with any kind of hotel environment. Take me there.” Wen Jiao looked at her deeply.

One hour later.

After touring the rooms of the eighth hotel, Zhou Ziyan collapsed in the car and muttered, “I can’t stay here. I can’t stay here at all.” The size of the entire room was not even as big as her bathroom at home. The water heater was just a regular showerhead that could only adjust for hot and cold, not a specific temperature. Zhou Ziyan could only wash with 41-degree warm water, or she would get a rash all over her body. And the bed sheets were incredibly rough. Not even her maids at home would sleep on these.

Wen Jiao seemed to have expected this. She slowly started the car. Zhou Ziyan turned her head to look at her. Her long fingers held the steering wheel. The car was driving reliably and steadily. Her calm profile was like a fluttering butterfly, beautiful without knowing it. Although the conditions in K County couldn’t compare to City A, she could endure it if this person was with her. At worst, she would just buy a house here, renovate it, and buy all new appliances.

“Where are we going?” Zhou Ziyan rested her chin on her hand, smiling foolishly at Wen Jiao, completely oblivious to the fact that the car had entered a residential area’s parking garage. The car stopped. Wen Jiao unbuckled her seatbelt, opened the car door for Zhou Ziyan, and said calmly, “My home.”

When Wen Yilian was going upstairs with groceries, she received a text message from her daughter.

Wen Jiao: Mom, a friend of mine is here. Wen Jiao: I’m taking her to stay at the house in the east of the city. I won’t be coming home for dinner tonight.

Wen Yilian was a little surprised when she received the message. Wen Jiao’s personality was like hers, a little cold. She had never brought a friend home in all these years. This was the first time she had taken the initiative to have a friend stay at home. It seemed that Wen Jiao had made a very good friend in college. Wen Yilian gave a relieved smile. She put the key in the lock, turned it twice, and the door opened. The lights in the house were on. Wen Yilian was startled. A man in a suit and tie was sitting on the sofa, as comfortable as if he were the owner of the house. Wen Yilian frowned slightly, her tone impatient. “What are you doing here?”

Wen Jiao opened the door with her key. A spacious and bright house appeared before them, making Zhou Ziyan’s eyes light up. At the entrance was a sky-blue doormat embroidered with red-crowned cranes and bamboo. The bathroom was equipped with a high-tech smart showerhead and a bathtub big enough for two people. Big-brand shampoos and body washes were placed on the shower rack. The blankets in the bedroom were soft and had a faint pine cone scent from being dried in the sun. Everything was great, except for one thing. Zhou Ziyan looked at Wen Jiao, who was looking for slippers, with a hint of hesitation. She spoke hesitantly, asking, “Is this really your house, Wen Jiao?” The bedroom was clean and tidy, and it was clear that someone cleaned it regularly. However, the wooden bookshelf was empty, with not a single book on it. The chair still had a tag on it. The big-brand skincare products on the bathroom shelf still had their plastic seals on.

“Yes,” Wen Jiao finally found the shoe cabinet and took out two pairs of brand new slippers. “But…”

“There are no signs of life here at all.”

Before Zhou Ziyan could finish her sentence, the door to the house was opened from the outside. A middle-aged woman who looked a little old opened the door with a key. She was startled to see the two of them standing in the room in slippers. Then she saw Wen Jiao. The maid looked surprised. “Miss Wen, you’re back.” Wen Jiao nodded slightly to her. “Auntie Wang, you don’t have to come clean for the next few days. My friend is staying here for a few days.”

On the other side, Ren Jinggen was standing near the coffee table, so angry at the woman sitting on the sofa calmly drinking tea that he was stomping his feet. “Wen Yilian, are you even raising our child? If you don’t know how to, I’ll do it!” “Why didn’t you tell me that Wen Jiao’s internship was replaced?!” “Wen Yilian, I divorced you, I’m not dead!”