I Share the Same Face with a Monster - Chapter 5

Chapter 13

I soon realized I couldn’t cry anymore.

Not that I couldn’t cry when I was sad.

Movies could still make my nose sting.

When I thought of my mom in the middle of the night, my eyes would still burn.

But the moment a camera was pointed at me, it was like my tear ducts had been sealed shut.

Sister Lin scolded me. “Something has been really off with you lately.”

I said, “Maybe I was even more off before.”

She didn’t understand.

People online started praising me for being clear-headed.

A strong female lead.

A real, living person in domestic entertainment.

Big-sister energy.

These new labels were plastered onto me, layer after layer.

I hated them.

And I enjoyed them.

That was the worst part.

The Faceless Man began appearing more and more often.

Not just in the bathroom mirror.

In the reflection of the elevator, on the car window, when my phone screen went black.

He stood behind me.

Like a quiet accomplice.

Chapter 14

I asked him his name.

He said he didn’t have one.

“Every face has a name.”

“I don’t have a face.”

“Then should I give you one?”

He looked at me.

He had no eyes.

Yet I felt as if he was watching me intently.

“What do you want to call me?”

I thought for a moment.

“Zhou Yan.”

“Why?”

“Because I hate this face, and you grew out of that hatred.”

He said, “All right.”

He accepted it just like that.

If anything, it made me feel a little uneasy.

“You’re not picky?”

“You gave it to me.”

“So?”

“So it’s fine.”

The words were so light.

Yet they were like a fine thread winding around my wrist.

I looked away.

In the mirror, Zhou Yan raised a hand and touched his blank face.

“Zhou Yan.”

He repeated it once.

His voice was very low.

As if, for the first time, he had owned something.

Chapter 15

The third incident happened because of Su Man.

Her team released a wave of planted articles, claiming that my breakdown on the livestream had been a publicity stunt.

They also hinted that my abnormal state on the red carpet was because I had taken something I shouldn’t have.

Sister Lin was so angry she smashed a cup.

“She’s trying to drag you into a drug scandal.”

I didn’t say anything.

I really had used something.

Not drugs.

A monster.

That night, Su Man asked to meet me.

The location was a private club.

She sat on the sofa, her makeup flawless.

“Xu Zhiyi, you’ve gotten very bold lately.”

I said, “I’m doing all right.”

She smiled faintly.

“You think you can turn things around just by changing your persona?”

“That face of yours will expire sooner or later.”

I’d heard that line many times before.

But coming from her mouth, it was still grating.

I said, “Still better than expiring before the packaging’s even been opened.”

Su Man’s expression changed.