Chapter 9: Costume Change

“Hair dye, sunglasses, beret, mask…”

“Uwah! No, no, no!”

“If I wrap myself up this tightly, doesn’t that just scream ‘I’m suspicious’?!”

Ye Jinyi removed the sunglasses and beret, then added a scarf instead.

“Just a plain down jacket, regular jeans… and finally, a pair of Martin boots. That’ll do!”

She then hit the order button.

Payment successful: 553 yuan.

“Uwawawa～”

Ye Jinyi looked at the number on the screen, and tears spilled from her eyes.

More than the tears at the corners of her eyes, it felt like her heart was bleeding.

No need to worry about the landlord’s debt collection anymore—chances were she wouldn’t live long enough for it to matter.

Ye Jinyi took off the clothes she had just put on and curled back under the covers.

Her future looked pitch black.

But hey, pitch black was perfect for sleeping.

A few days later.

Knock knock knock~

“Your delivery.”

“Coming～!”

Rubbing her sleepy eyes and wearing her oversized T-shirt, Ye Jinyi opened the door to see a delivery guy holding out a package.

“Please sign.”

“Got it～”

Ye Jinyi took the pen from the courier, signed her name, and handed it back.

After confirming receipt, the delivery guy gave her the package and turned to head down the stairs.

Ye Jinyi closed the door and used her key to slice through the packing tape.

She opened the box and pulled the items out one by one.

After setting the clothes on the bed, she took only the comb, hair dye, and wig cap to the bathroom.

Standing on her computer chair, Ye Jinyi first combed her hair smooth.

Then she opened a tutorial video on her phone, following along with a beauty vlogger step-by-step to dye her hair.

By the time the video ended, she had finished dyeing it.

Staring at the black-haired loli in the mirror, Ye Jinyi felt she gave off a faint air of elegance.

“Black-haired loli’s not bad either～”

She was very satisfied with the new hair color.

Totally not because it felt like giving her in-game daughter a new skin!

“Now for a ponytail—and I’ll basically look like an ordinary little girl～”

Ye Jinyi searched for another video on her phone and followed along as the vlogger carefully tied her hair into a ponytail.

“Now, except for the face, this head looks completely different!”

She gave her face a final rinse, then hopped and skipped out of the bathroom with her big chair.

After placing the chair back in position, Ye Jinyi let her oversized T-shirt droop and pulled out the pixelated sunglasses she had ordered—putting them on.

Next came the mask—also purchased—now covering her face.

Finally, she changed into her brand-new outfit.

With everything ready, Ye Jinyi opened her phone’s camera, flashed a peace sign, and snapped a selfie.

“Yay～”

Click.

After taking the photo, Ye Jinyi took off her sunglasses, opened the gallery, and browsed through the pictures.

“Looks amazing!”

Ye Jinyi was thoroughly satisfied with her current outfit.

The pixelated white dots on the mosaic sunglasses really helped redirect attention, keeping people from focusing on her eyes.

The mask did a great job concealing the shape of her face.

And the ordinary clothes helped her blend into the crowd without standing out.

“Why does this feel like I’m some celebrity dodging paparazzi?”

After listing all the pros, Ye Jinyi suddenly realized her behavior was just like one of those big-shot celebrities in soap operas, constantly hiding from the press.

“If only I really were a celebrity.”

She sighed, then reached for the door handle, ready to go out for some fresh air.

Staying cooped up in this 10-square-meter coffin room every day—she was about to turn into a vampire.

Walking down the street, Ye Jinyi hummed a song called “Pinkie Promise,” her sweet voice occasionally stopping passersby in their tracks just to enjoy a few more moments of this heavenly sound.

A northern wind brushed against her cheeks, bringing with it a crisp coolness.

After finishing the tune, Ye Jinyi’s thoughts turned to the boring little matters of daily life.

“Come to think of it… where should I go have fun today?”

As she pondered, her eyes happened to catch a glimpse of a poster at the entrance of a nearby stationery store.

“Anime Dimension Carnival.”

“Comic convention?”

Ye Jinyi considered it for a moment—actually, not a bad idea.

As a little otaku herself, she was a seasoned member of the anime world.

In this era where real girls were elusive, her 2D waifu had become her last source of soul-deep comfort.

No more thinking—let’s go straight there!

Upon arriving at the venue, Ye Jinyi was suddenly struck by a problem she had no way to solve.

She didn’t have any form of ID to prove she was actually 23.

She looked up at the notice beside the convention entrance: “Original ID required for entry.”

Tears welled up in Ye Jinyi’s eyes—tears that only the undocumented could understand.

“Finally got a vacation, and I can’t even go out to have fun?”

Drenched in sorrow, Ye Jinyi turned and left.

She had placed her hopes in the wrong place.

Then again, where could she go now?

Even a children’s amusement park would require a parent to accompany her, wouldn’t it?

With that thought, Ye Jinyi sat down on a bench in the shopping mall, feeling defeated.

“So I really have zero human rights now?”

She felt like she had been completely shut out from the world—like she no longer belonged to anything or anyone.

“Whatever,”

Ye Jinyi muttered.

After thinking for a moment, she hopped off the bench and rode the escalator out of the place that clearly didn’t want her.

“Might as well go buy some food.”

She remembered there was a big supermarket not far from here—perfect for stocking up on supplies.

While walking along the road, Ye Jinyi passed by a villa district—the area where Guiyun City’s wealthiest people lived.

Her former boss, as it happened, supposedly lived there too.

These palatial villas had nothing to do with her anyway.

Ye Jinyi simply recalled an old saying: Suffer in silence, so your boss can drive a Land Rover.

Truly, the wisdom of the ancestors was deep and profound.

Arriving at the large supermarket, Ye Jinyi grabbed a shopping cart and started pushing it along.

Gazing at the dazzling array of goods and the countless promotional signs plastered everywhere, Ye Jinyi suddenly found herself caught in the trap of consumer capitalism.

She had no idea how many useless discounted items she’d picked up before it finally hit her.

What the heck am I even doing?

Ye Jinyi slapped her cheeks lightly to regain focus, then helplessly began putting all the meaningless items back on the shelves.

Once she returned the excess products, she looked down at the handful of actual food items in her cart and fell into deep thought.

Alright, capitalism—you win.

This time, though, Ye Jinyi swore to stay alert.

She was going to protect her precious little money.

Capitalism, I’m ready to fight you!

With renewed resolve, she continued pushing her cart through the store.

When she reached an air conditioner unit, she paused there for a brief rest.

But the moment the cold air hit her, Ye Jinyi suddenly felt an unnatural chill.

“Why is it getting so cold all of a sudden? Even air conditioning shouldn’t drop the temperature this fast, right?”

She quickly opened her eyes—and noticed something strange.

The once-varied items on the shelves around her had all turned into the exact same brand of lipstick.

“Huh?”

Ye Jinyi hurriedly looked around, but it seemed no one else had noticed anything unusual.

Just as she was trying to make sense of it, a flash of pink caught the corner of her eye.

She spun around to follow it.

“A… pink plush bear? Walking on its own?”