Chapter 194: Jiang Jianyuè and Jiang Jianyuè Pro

The noisy bustle of Shinjuku’s streets and the background music of the coffee shop faded away in an instant, transforming into a silent, black-and-white film.

Yuki Asahi’s gaze flickered frantically between the two “Jiang Jian Yues.”

To the left was the Jiang Jian Yue he was intimately familiar with, whose hand he was currently holding.

To the right was the shop clerk.

They had the exact same pale gray hair, the exact same blood-red pupils, and the exact same face.

The clerk wore a simple green apron.

However… the curves outlined by that apron were the complete opposite of Jiang Jian Yue’s.

Her startlingly full figure seemed to declare that they were two entirely different people.

“Yue…?”

Yuki Asahi murmured unconsciously, his grip on Jiang Jian Yue’s hand tightening instinctively.

“That… who is…?”

Jiang Jian Yue did not answer.

All of her attention was focused on that “fake.”

“Wow~”

Meiguan’s irritating voice chimed in her head right on time, dripping with undisguised excitement and schadenfreude: “You clearly didn’t eat enough chive dumplings; you’re really lacking in the nutrition department.”

‘Shut up.’

‘A clone?’

‘A hidden hand from GPRI?’

‘Or… a new trick from the Curtain Cluster?’

‘Why… does she have the same face as me?’

A flicker of hostility flashed in Jiang Jian Yue’s eyes.

On the other side, Cuiyue’s fear had reached its peak.

The girl who looked exactly like her was highly likely to be that “Jiang Jian Yue” person whom the Tokushu Jishou Taiou Honbu treated as an enemy.

The words the boy beside her had just blurted out confirmed the suspicion in her heart.

She had originally thought she had replaced the Jiang Jian Yue of this world, but that was not the case at all!

Then what exactly was she?

A clone?

“May I take your order?”

Another clerk standing next to Cuiyue clearly had not noticed the bizarre standoff.

Still wearing a professional smile, they attempted to break the deadlock.

“Yuki.”

Jiang Jian Yue’s icy voice suddenly rang out as she gave Yuki Asahi’s hand a firm squeeze.

“Go inside,”

Jiang Jian Yue commanded quickly in a voice only the two of them could hear.

“Find the manager. Tell him that we want to take this clerk… somewhere to talk.”

“Huh? But…”

Jiang Jian Yue glanced at the hesitant and timid Yuki Asahi, a faint look of disappointment in her eyes.

Yuki Asahi’s heart skipped a beat, and he immediately nodded.

“I understand.”

‘This is PUA, isn’t it?’

Meiguan said with a chuckle, but Jiang Jian Yue ignored her.

At the entrance, only the two “Jiang Jian Yues” remained in a silent confrontation.

The crowd surged past them as if separated by an invisible barrier.

Jiang Jian Yue kept her voice very low.

“If you dare to run, I’ll break… your legs. You know the strength of the DRG…”

‘Threatening me?’

Anger flared in Cuiyue’s heart, but she forced herself to calm down after hearing Jiang Jian Yue’s last words.

DRG?

Was that the organizer of the GSAC?

In that case, running away now would be the worst possible move.

Being hunted down by this “original owner” on the streets of Shinjuku would definitely cause a riot, and it would be even harder to explain things then.

She could only nod slightly, straightening her chest a little.

Soon, Yuki Asahi walked out with a middle-aged man who appeared to be the manager.

After a brief conversation with Cuiyue, the manager reluctantly let her go.

***

What was supposed to be a date had turned into a bizarre outing for three.

Inside a corner booth of an elegantly decorated family restaurant, Jiang Jian Yue flipped through the menu expressionlessly, while Cuiyue stared at the water glass on the table in silence.

“Um, Miss Cuiyue?”

Yuki Asahi tried to break the ice.

“What would you like to eat?”

“Just water for me.”

Cuiyue did not give the unfamiliar boy any face, not even bothering to look up at him.

“Yuki.”

Jiang Jian Yue closed the menu.

“A strawberry parfait.”

“Eh?”

“For her.”

Jiang Jian Yue pointed at Cuiyue.

“And order the hamburger steak too.”

Soon, the food was served.

This “date lunch” had officially turned into a Hongmen Banquet.

Jiang Jian Yue took a small sip of her juice, her blood-red eyes staring straight at Cuiyue as she cut to the chase.

“Who are you? Who gave you that face?”

Cuiyue picked up her spoon without ceremony, her mind racing at top speed.

‘She doesn’t know I’m a traveler. She thinks I’m a clone or a fake who got plastic surgery.’

‘The faction behind her is very strong.’

‘I don’t know her information or personality yet.’

‘But she didn’t start a fight immediately, and the information about the DRG is relatively positive.’

(The information Cuiyue had searched for was mainly focused on Japan).

‘She’s being somewhat friendly.’

‘It’s better to explain my situation.’

Cuiyue took a deep breath, looked up, and spoke in a flat tone, “I don’t know.”

“A few days ago, I lost all my memories. I woke up in an alleyway on the street.”

She omitted the part about the Tokushu Jishou Taiou Honbu.

As for the matter of being a traveler, she naturally could not say it out loud.

“Later, a kind man took me in… I only decided to come out and work to survive.”

“I didn’t know there was another face like mine in this world. I didn’t mean to impersonate you. This isn’t something I can decide.”

‘The person in front of me…’

Jiang Jian Yue felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

It wasn’t just because of the face.

It was a deeper sense of familiarity, as if their souls were resonating.

This feeling made her extremely uncomfortable.

Meanwhile, Cuiyue was also quietly observing Jiang Jian Yue.

She felt that same soul-level familiarity, but it was only a fleeting flash.

‘No, it’s a little different…’

Cuiyue couldn’t quite put her finger on what was different.

“So,” Jiang Jian Yue’s voice softened slightly, though it remained cold, “you’ve even forgotten your name?”

“Yes.”

Cuiyue lowered her head.

“Then what do you go by now?”

“I…”

Cuiyue paused.

She knew this was the most critical step.

She didn’t look up, keeping her head bowed.

“I didn’t know what to call myself.”

“A word just suddenly popped into my head.”

“So I… I named myself…”

“Cuiyue.”

“…”

Yuki Asahi blinked blankly.

“Cuiyue? That’s a very pretty name…”

Clang!

The juice glass in Jiang Jian Yue’s hand slammed onto the table, splashing a few drops of tea.

At that moment, her pupils constricted into dangerous pinpricks.

Yuki Asahi was startled by her sudden reaction.

“Yue? What’s wrong?”

Jiang Jian Yue did not answer.

Her breathing almost stopped at that moment.

‘CuiyueOfficial…’

‘There is absolutely no way a second person in this world could know that name!’

Cold sweat instantly broke out on Jiang Jian Yue’s back.

‘This woman in front of me…’

‘What on earth is she?!’

“You…”

Just as the atmosphere in the booth reached a breaking point—

Cuiyue’s cheap, second-hand mobile phone rang at an inopportune time.

Seeing Jiang Jian Yue’s reaction, Cuiyue realized she shouldn’t have said that name.

she hurriedly stood up to answer.

“Hello? Manager?!”

“What?! You’re still loitering out there?! Has that relative of yours left yet? Even if they haven’t, get your butt back here right now! The shop is so busy it’s about to explode! Do you still want your paycheck or not!”

“I’m coming! I’m coming back right now!”

Cuiyue hung up the phone, stood up, and bowed deeply to Jiang Jian Yue and Yuki Asahi.

“I’m sorry! I have to go back! I am very sorry!”

Having said that, she didn’t wait for a response from the two of them.

She pulled open the booth door and rushed out.

Inside the booth, only Yuki Asahi and Jiang Jian Yue, whose face was so grim it looked like it could drip ink, remained.

Meiguan’s voice rang out eerily: “It seems this Jiang Jian Yue Pro has many little secrets.”

‘You know something, don’t you? Hmm?’

Jiang Jian Yue recalled Meiguan’s “body” that she had encountered in the Jiang Family Old Residence.

This person named Cuiyue clearly resembled her more than Jiang Jian Yue herself did.

A mature “Jiang Jian Yue.”

“Meiguan doesn’t know anything~”

Meiguan said, her voice pinched and cutesy.

‘Useless snack.’

Jiang Jian Yue’s expression was gloomy, and her mind was filled with a thousand swirling thoughts.

Suddenly, she felt a warmth on the hand she had placed on the table.

She looked up sharply and found Yuki Asahi’s worried gaze.

“It’s nothing.”

Jiang Jian Yue let out a sigh of relief, her heart filled with a trace of warmth.

‘What was I being so restless for?’

‘Was I infected by the Sakura Girl?’

“Let’s not… let this disturb… our date.”

***

Cuiyue ran all the way back to the coffee shop, only to be met with a harsh scolding from the manager and strange looks from her colleagues.

She kept her head down, apologizing repeatedly as she put on her apron and dove back into the hellish afternoon rush.

She carried trays, wiped tables, and was rushed by customers.

But none of this physical exhaustion could compare to the storm in her heart.

That “Jiang Jian Yue” and the boy beside her…

Her reaction to the name “Cuiyue”… was too intense.

Why?

Cuiyue’s heart sank.

‘Could it be… that name has some profound connection to Jiang Jian Yue herself, or to this body’s past, that I don’t know about?’

‘Did I… did I…’

‘Mess it up?’

The more she thought about it, the more afraid she became.

Her hands began to tremble as she held a cup of coffee.

***

Cuiyue worked until late at night before dragging her lead-heavy legs back to Mr. Sato’s small apartment.

She took out the key and gently opened the door.

“I’m back…”

The apartment was pitch black; there was no response.

“Mr. Sato? Are you asleep?”

Cuiyue turned on the light in the shinkai, and a heavy smell of alcohol and cigarette smoke hit her face.

She frowned, changed into her slippers, and walked inside.

The lights in the living room weren’t on; only the television emitted a silvery glow.

A boring late-night talk show was playing, but it had been muted.

Mr. Sato was sitting on the floor in front of the TV, his back to the door, with several empty beer cans scattered around him.

“Mr. Sato?”

Cuiyue walked a few steps closer.

“Did you… drink again?”

Mr. Sato did not turn around.

“Cuiyue…”

His voice was incredibly raspy, as if he had aged 10 years in an instant.

Cuiyue felt that something was wrong.

It seemed Mr. Sato had experienced something.

She walked over and moved in front of him, only to find that this middle-aged man, who always wore a slightly decadent smile, was currently covered in tears.

He was crying silently.

“Mr. Sato! What happened?!”

Cuiyue panicked instinctively.

She leaned down to kneel beside him and held his shoulders.

Mr. Sato slowly raised his head, his cloudy eyes shimmering with despair under the dim light of the TV.

“Today…”

He opened his mouth, his voice trembling.

“The company… sent me a layoff notice…”

“The economy is bad… I am… I’m the one with the worst performance in the department.”

He grabbed his thinning hair tightly and let out a stifled sob.

“I… I might… lose my job…”