Time Travel Begins the Moment I Divorce My Wife - Chapter 15

Hua Jiangyu transferred another sum of money with a cold expression.

“Sister, give me a voice call tonight.”

Still going?

Ji Xunchi muttered to herself while unhesitatingly clicking to accept the transfer.

She had thought Strawberry Tip would storm off in anger after seeing the photo of her toned abs, never to invest another penny in such a blatant scammer. Yet, to her surprise, the girl could still endure.

This college student has quite the temper.

Lost in thought, Ji Xunchi zoomed in on the photo of her abs and examined it for a moment.

Could it be because of this picture?

Tapping the photo, she mused that she should have taken a less flattering shot.

“Sure, how about starting the call at nine?”

“Strawberry Tip: That time works.”

Glancing at the reply, Ji Xunchi put away her phone, turned on her computer, and began typing.

The nickname she had saved for Strawberry Tip had long since changed from “girlfriend” to her online handle.

When she made this change, the system hadn’t intervened at all, which meant she hadn’t broken character.

Ji Xunchi found this slightly odd.

She felt there was an undeniable contradiction in how the system handled her adherence to the original persona.

Given that the system would immediately bombard her with spinach bombs and blare mechanical warnings whenever she strayed from character, the logical conclusion was that as long as the system stayed silent, she was in the clear.

But the term “persona” inherently encompassed all outward behaviors and expressions.

As a screenwriter, crafting character personalities was second nature to Ji Xunchi. Yet everything she was doing now felt inherently inconsistent.

Why did the system repeatedly remind her not to break character when interacting with Strawberry Tip, down to minute details like using pet names such as “baby”?

Yet in her daily life, when she communicated with others outside of Strawberry Tip, the system rarely intervened.

Did that mean Ji Xunchi was performing flawlessly?

No, she didn’t think so.

If someone like Hua Jiangyu, a triple-crown actress were given a role to play perfectly for a while, it might be plausible. But Ji Xunchi knew her own acting limits all too well.

As a screenwriter by trade, how could she possibly possess such god-tier acting skills?

When the clock struck nine, Ji Xunchi kept her word and messaged Strawberry Tip on WeChat to ask if she was free.

Once the other side confirmed, she smoothly initiated the voice call.

On her left sat a cup of chrysanthemum tea, brewed earlier to soothe her throat. She took a sip to moisten it.

Hearing the sound on the other end, Hua Jiangyu couldn’t hold back her long-burning curiosity any longer.

“Sister, why do you always take a sip of water before our calls?”

Ji Xunchi: “…”

That was a good question.

Speaking in a forced lower register was different from her natural voice, and prolonged use dried out her throat. The tea was her remedy, but she hadn’t expected Strawberry Tip to notice such details.

“Just a habit,” Ji Xunchi deflected.

Detecting the subtle evasion, Hua Jiangyu’s mood grew complicated.

At the end of the day, she was still just a young girl, at an age full of romantic expectations, when she encountered a money-grubbing scammer. This scammer not only had decent looks but also a rather superior voice and physique. Even though she knew deep down what kind of person he was, after prolonged interactions especially since he didn’t come across as sleazy she couldn’t help but develop a few fleeting thoughts.

But those shallow, easily scattered feelings had already been worn away over the past two days by his cold indifference.

That brief moment of infatuation was like a fish darting through water gone in the blink of an eye.

She brushed aside the distractions and, from this moment on, firmly relegated Paradise to the role of a mere tool.

The keyboard clattered as Ji Xunchi was about to speak as usual when she suddenly noticed a PDF file sent by the other party.

[Tell me a story tonight.]

Ji Xunchi opened it, a collection of fairy tales and fables.

Had the college student changed her taste?

But the client had spoken. Glancing at the word count notification in the bottom-left corner of her screen, Ji Xunchi agreed.

“The elders say that in a far, faraway place, there lies a sea, a nameless one.”

The woman’s sultry, low voice crept into Hua Jiangyu’s ears through the headphones. Closing her eyes, Hua Jiangyu treated the voice as nothing more than a private, customized voice actor, feeling an unprecedented sense of purity.

So this was the peace of mind that came with a purely transactional relationship.

With her eyes shut, she immersed herself in the auditory feast, free from any distracting thoughts.

Ji Xunchi read one story after another until her throat felt like it was on fire, yet the other side showed no signs of wanting to sleep.

Gulping down several large mouthfuls of water, Ji Xunchi realized for the first time just how hard-earned this money was.

Thinking about it, she really was a sucker.

Every penny she received now would have to be paid back in the future. But what about the labor she was putting in during this time? Who was going to pay her wages?

With a pained expression, Ji Xunchi turned the page and continued reading.

Another ten minutes passed, and faint snoring sounds drifted from the phone.

Ji Xunchi’s eyes lit up instantly.

She called out softly a couple of times, but there was no response.

Hanging up the call, she downed the last bit of chrysanthemum tea in her cup.

And so, she missed the very faint murmur that followed.

There were no math classes all day, so Ji Xunchi was in high spirits.

Before school ended, Jiang Yu invited Ji Xunchi to her birthday party the day after tomorrow.

Since it was her eighteenth birthday, Jiang Yu and her parents had decided to make it a little more formal. But as ordinary students, no matter how formal, it was just about inviting some friends over.

“Tomorrow is entirely our peers’ time,” Jiang Yu assured, patting her chest. “My parents will prepare everything and then leave. You won’t feel uncomfortable at all.”

Ji Xunchi hesitated.

Jiang Yu pressed, “You’re my deskmate. You’re really not coming?”

As she said this, her expression turned threatening, as if she’d make Ji Xunchi regret it if she didn’t show up.

“…” Ji Xunchi relented. “Fine, what time?”

“Just come before ten. We’ll have lunch, and there are other activities in the afternoon.”

Pleased with her answer, Jiang Yu went off to invite others. Ji Xunchi overheard her muttering something about an amusement park probably the Sunday afternoon entertainment plan.

Since she was attending Jiang Yu’s birthday party, Ji Xunchi made a special trip out on Saturday to buy her a gift.

She noticed that the watch Jiang Yu often wore on her wrist was somewhat old, so she went and picked out one that roughly matched her taste not too expensive, but fitting for her identity as a cash-strapped student.

In the evening, after finishing her writing, Ji Xunchi dutifully read stories to Strawberry Tip.

Over the past few days, she had sensed a change in Strawberry Tip’s attitude toward her cool, straightforward, as if treating her like a sleep-inducing tool.

Ji Xunchi liked this change.

Accepting the transfer, opening the storybook, and beginning to read aloud this kind of monetary transaction left Ji Xunchi with no psychological burden whatsoever.

After lulling the other person to sleep, Ji Xunchi turned off the light, rubbed her tired eyelids, and went to bed as well.

The next day, she arrived punctually at Jiang Yu’s home, following the location sent to her.

Jiang Yu’s house was a two-story cottage with a grassy yard outside, now decorated with small balloons. A few inflated “happy birthday” balloons were being pieced together as the final touch.

Most of the guests who had arrived so far were familiar faces from their class.

“Happy birthday,” Ji Xunchi said with a smile, handing over the gift.

Jiang Yu took it, her eyes crinkling with delight. “Thanks, desk mate!”

She led Ji Xunchi inside, chatting as they walked. “Later, a few friends you might not know will come, but don’t worry, they’re all really easy to get along with!”

Ji Xunchi didn’t mind at all. Having experienced the tedious hypocrisy of adult socializing, these youthful class gatherings felt much purer, hardly stirring any discomfort or aversion.

Jiang Yu had a knack for making friends, and most of them were girlsin cluding all the guests invited today. Ji Xunchi nodded. “I don’t mind.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed Jiang Yu winking at her mischievously.

“There’s a super pretty girl coming later,” Jiang Yu said. “I’m so happy today!”

Seeing Jiang Yu’s beaming expression, Ji Xunchi couldn’t help but smile a little herself.

Jiang Yu leaned in and whispered, “Didn’t a guy confess to you a few days ago?”

Ji Xunchi was surprised she knew about it.

Jiang Yu’s face flushed slightly as she suggested in a hushed tone, “If you’re not interested in guys, maybe you could check out pretty girls instead.”

Ji Xunchi: “?”

“Girls are sweet and soft way better than those immature, smelly boys.”

There was no hidden meaning in her eyes, just pure sincerity in her suggestion. If there was anything else, it was a faint trace of nervousness buried deep within.

“…” Suddenly realizing her desk mate’s sexual orientation, Ji Xunchi responded calmly, “You make a good point.”

Relieved, Jiang Yu’s smile widened. “Right? If you’re not against it, you should check out that pretty girl who’s coming later!”

Ji Xunchi looked at Jiang Yu’s matchmaker-like expression and suddenly felt a twinge of regret.

She took back her earlier thoughts sometimes, youthful class gatherings weren’t so pure after all.

Hua Jiangyu was persuaded by Zhou Qingyi to attend the birthday party.

The birthday girl was Zhou Qingyi’s close friend from middle school. Though they had gone to different high schools, they’d kept in touch, and Hua Jiangyu had even met her a couple of times before.

For this 18th birthday celebration, of course, Zhou Qingyi was invited.

But after receiving the invitation, Zhou Qingyi immediately dragged Hua Jiangyu along with her.

Zhou Qingyi argued emphatically, “I should have dragged you out more to meet real-life friends, so you wouldn’t have been so bored that you turned to the internet to kill time and ended up wasting so much money!”

Even though Hua Jiangyu claimed she now treated her fake partner as nothing more than a tool, Zhou Qingyi still felt a pang of heartache whenever she thought about all the money Hua had thrown at that scammer.

If it weren’t for Hua Jiangyu disliking her voice, Zhou Qingyi would have volunteered to be the sleep-companion herself!

“Just come with me. You know Jiang Yu too, and if you show up, she’ll be grinning wider than anyone,” Zhou Qingyi said. “I heard she even knows this incredibly beautiful girl her deskmate, who’s just as stunning as you. Go meet her, and who knows? You might even get a chance at a sweet cross-campus romance.”

Hua Jiangyu frowned. “Stop talking nonsense.”

“So, are you coming or not?” Zhou Qingyi demanded, hands on her hips.

Rubbing her temples, Hua Jiangyu sighed in resignation. “Fine, I’ll go. You’ve already told Jiang Yu. How could I refuse?”

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