I Am Afraid of Losing My Persona Every Day - Chapter 41
For the remainder of the National Day holiday, You Jinyuan opted to stay home, having lost interest in braving the crowds. She spent her days indoors, enjoying the air conditioning and playing games. However, one notable change occurred—Zhiyu’s messages became more frequent.
At first, it was just daily “good mornings” and “good nights,” but soon, Zhiyu shared updates about everything she encountered: photos of M City’s sights, pictures of meals her mom prepared, snapshots of their pet cat, and more, chronicling every detail of her life.
Despite having no direct connection to You Jinyuan, Zhiyu naturally shared these everyday moments as if they were close friends.
It dawned on You Jinyuan that Zhiyu was actively choosing to share her experiences with her. Recognizing this openness as valuable, You Jinyuan began to reciprocate slowly. However, her own life wasn’t as eventful as Zhiyu’s; most of her time was spent gaming. Consequently, Zhiyu added her as a friend in-game, and they often played together during their free time.
Have we become pretty good friends? You Jinyuan wondered, yet doesn’t that make things even stranger?
Since when do friends have s❤x?
But it seemed that’s exactly what Zhiyu intended. She treated You Jinyuan like a friend, reminding her to eat less unhealthy takeout, calling to wake her up before meals, and asking if there were any characters she still wanted to cosplay for future events. As their relationship grew closer, You Jinyuan felt increasingly uneasy.
Initially, she could comfortably interact with Zhiyu, but now, even seeing Zhiyu’s photos on social media made her scroll past swiftly, unsure of why she felt so guilty.
[“Link”] This place looks amazing! Big Sis, want to go together next weekend?
You Jinyuan clicked on the link Zhiyu shared, which led to a blog post about a Japanese curry restaurant. The blogger had skillfully taken and edited professional-looking photos, making the omelet rice dishes appear incredibly appetizing.
Zhiyu had remembered her love for curry…so this must be something she specifically sent after seeing it.
However, accepting meant having to meet Zhiyu in person, and You Jinyuan wasn’t prepared to face her yet.
The National Day holiday was long over, and since Zhiyu returned to City S, they had engaged in lively online conversations but hadn’t met face-to-face. For friends, such an invitation would be perfectly normal.
How should I decline this… You Jinyuan racked her brain but couldn’t find any valid excuse. She didn’t have work or pressing engagements; Zhiyu knew that after their recent interactions. If even Zhiyu had time to invite her out, there was no reason for someone as idle as herself to refuse.
“I’m feeling unwell due to my period this week. How about next week?”
That was the only plausible way to postpone it. In truth, You Jinyuan never suffered from menstrual pain.
“Painful periods? Would you like some ginger and brown sugar tea?”
Zhiyu’s immediate concern made You Jinyuan feel even more guilty.
Knowing You Jinyuan’s kitchen lacked essentials, Zhiyu promptly ordered ginger and brown sugar tea for delivery, ensuring it arrived still steaming hot.
You Jinyuan disliked brown sugar and despised ginger even more. Holding this cup of ginger and brown sugar tea felt unexpectedly heavy, as if weighing a thousand pounds despite its small size. With reluctance, she took a tiny sip, causing a shiver as the heat scorched her tongue, throat, stomach, and down to her heart.
Over the following days, Zhiyu showed extra care, mentioning her own experience with painful periods and empathizing with how uncomfortable it can be. Drawing from personal knowledge, she shared tips on relief methods.
From a friend’s perspective, she was truly impeccable.
Finally, overwhelmed by guilt, each conversation with Zhiyu felt like enduring torture, You Jinyuan decided to take the initiative:
“Let’s go try that curry place you mentioned this weekend.”
The restaurant was called Curry Cottage, tucked away in a hidden alley. Even with navigation, it was difficult to locate. When You Jinyuan reached the marked destination on her map, she found nothing at first. Following directions from online reviews, she took numerous twists and turns before finally spotting the warm yellow sign of Curry Cottage.
Just as its name suggested, the shop was incredibly small. Inside, most of the space was occupied by an open kitchen area, leaving only room for a bar counter where patrons could dine. The narrow aisle barely allowed enough space for one person to pass through, reminiscent of a traditional Japanese izakaya, with decor styled accordingly.
Outside, rain poured down relentlessly. The alley’s worn path, neglected over time, caused splashes like landmines whenever stepped upon, drenching the hem of You Jinyuan’s skirt. With such inclement weather and treacherous conditions, even Zhiyu had suggested postponing their outing earlier. Unsurprisingly, there were no other customers inside the restaurant; apart from them, not a single staff member was visible.
You Jinyuan closed her umbrella and placed it in the designated stand, then casually chose a seat and surveyed her surroundings.
“Welcome! Menus are on the wall.” A hunched figure emerged from behind the bar counter—an elderly woman. Only then did You Jinyuan realize someone was present; likely, the woman had been sitting out of view initially.
The elderly woman had silvery-white hair, her face lined with deep wrinkles that became more pronounced when she smiled, indicating her advanced age.
You Jinyuan glanced around and asked, “Are you here alone?”
“Hmm?” Puzzled by the question, the old lady replied, “There’s also Little Xu, but he went out to buy ingredients.”
You Jinyuan noticed a slight stiffness in her Mandarin. The aroma of curry wafted throughout the shop; it was already afternoon, and she hadn’t eaten yet today. The scent intensified her hunger, but with no staff present and uncertain when they would return, she instinctively felt that the elderly woman before her might not be responsible for preparing meals due to her age.
“In that case, I’ll wait a bit longer.”
Though puzzled, the old lady said nothing and sat back down. Silence filled the store, interrupted only by the crisp sound of raindrops hitting the eaves outside.
The rain continued to intensify.
After a while, the door curtain parted, catching You Jinyuan’s attention. A young woman entered, wearing a long dress drenched from the rain. Her wet clothing clung tightly to her figure, accentuating its curves even more, and strands of damp hair stuck to her cheeks, which she swiftly tucked behind her ears.
As she clumsily closed her umbrella inside, noticing You Jinyuan, all traces of distress vanished from her expression, replaced by a delighted smile. “Jinyuan, you’ve been here for a while?”
Avoiding her bright gaze, You Jinyuan replied, “I just arrived not too long ago.”
“My apologies for being late; there was heavy traffic on the way.” Zhiyu effortlessly took a seat beside her and said, “You must be hungry. Feel free to start eating without waiting for me.”
You Jinyuan wanted to clarify that she wasn’t waiting for Zhiyu but rather for the staff… At that moment, the elderly woman stood up with a knowing smile and repeated, “The menu is on the wall.”
You Jinyuan had already seen it earlier—a small blackboard displaying only one item: curry dishes.
“Grandma, I’ll have a pork cutlet curry omelette rice. How about you, Jinyuan?”
Seeing Zhiyu place her order so confidently, You Jinyuan glanced at the old lady, then back at the girl, her eyebrows furrowed slightly in confusion.
Zhiyu quickly understood her expression and chuckled softly, leaning close to whisper in her ear, “This grandmother owns the restaurant. She’s Japanese, and the shop has been here for almost twenty years now.”
A slight tickle by her ear accompanied the familiar scent wafting from Zhiyu. The sudden closeness made You Jinyuan clench her hands under the table, deliberately ignoring her quickening heartbeat as she turned away and calmly spoke, “I’d like a beef curry omelette rice, thank you, Grandma.”
Storyteller Tertium's Words
Enjoying My Translations? Support Me! If you appreciate the work I’m doing and want to see more, consider donating! A contribution of up to $30 will unlock every chapter, allowing you to read all the content I offer. Your support keeps this project alive and motivates me to bring you even more amazing translations. Thank you for your generosity!
Comments for chapter "Chapter 41"
NOVEL DISCUSSION
Support Site
"We require funds to enhance and develop additional features for the site! If you'd like to show your support, consider buying us a Ko-fi. Additionally, explore our more affordable subscription tiers for novels under the Teamaster's name."