Chapter 31: I am Eshe Yu (1/2)

”Eshe?” The landlady calls out my name before I can knock. The landlady tells someone, ”She's here.”

”Yes, Aunty, it's me.” I push open the door and ask the question for the umpteenth time. ”How do you always know before I knock?”

The landlady doesn't answer my question as always. Instead, she speaks to the guest. ”You can talk to her and tell me what you have decided later.”

Her guest is twenty-something, dressed in khaki clothes with her dark hair tied up in a ponytail. From her get up, I guess that she is a wildlife photographer. She might be the new tenant.

She narrows her eyes and points her finger at me. ”Fang Aisa!”

Crap!

”The mentally unstable girl who committed suicide eight years ago? She was quite famous back then. You are not the first person to mistake me for her.”

”But you look exactly like her.” The woman walks to me to take a closer look. ”She would have looked just like you if she was your age.”

”I am Eshe Yu.” It's been eight years. I am on the other side of the country. What are the chances of running into someone who knows Fang Aisa?

”Yes, it's not possible. Fang Aisa died eight years ago. There was even a funeral.” There is a fake pity in her eyes. She does look strangely familiar.

The class president.

Of all the people in the world, it's her from my past who meets me after my fake death.

”That's sad.” I want to leave this village right at this instant. I don't want the deposit anymore. ”Do you need me for something?”

”My name is Wei Su Su. I am an anthropologist. I am here for work.” She smiles at me politely. ”I need a quiet place for my studies. I learned about the place that you are currently renting. I heard that you will leave tomorrow. I don't have a place to stay tonight. Can I stay at your place?”

”No.” Her face ashen when she hears my reply. ”I am leaving today. Actually, I am here to take the deposit. I need to pick up my cat from the cottage. After that, it's all yours.”

”This is wonderful.” She chimes happily. I go to my landlady. She hands me an envelope before I can say anything.

”I will miss you, Eshe.” The landlady's words don't meet her stiff facial expressions. ”Don't forget your cat.”