Chapter Four
Indeed, my sister was a tyrant. I wish people would praise me for having lived with her for fourteen years without dying.
She’d add chili powder to my soup or make me take the blame when she caused trouble—these were everyday occurrences. Because we looked alike, she once made me cross-dress to go on a date in her place, exchanging favors with others. She even took photos of me in women’s clothing to blackmail me into doing things for her. Such indescribable experiences are too numerous to count; they remain vivid in my memory.
Recalling the hardships of these fourteen years, my sadness has long turned into anger. I can’t help but shed bitter tears for myself.
But I never expected that even after her death, I still couldn’t find peace.
Because of the telepathy between twins, I could communicate with her soul even if we were worlds apart—even after my sister’s death.
And this lawless sister was still in the celestial realm asking me to help her reincarnate. Due to her numerous misdeeds, it seemed even the deities couldn’t tolerate her; at this rate, she’d be banished to hell. While I felt she deserved it and didn’t want to help, her relentless telepathic persuasion left me no choice but to act on her behalf. After all, I only had to endure eleven days—after that, I’d be free.
This was the final stretch. If she really was in the celestial realm, things could get worse. If I didn’t help, she’d definitely retaliate against me—I could guarantee it. Such a fantastical story would be unbelievable if it were anyone else. But Tian had died, and I could still hear her voice, proving this wasn’t a dream. I didn’t want to accompany her to hell in the future.
Even after death, she couldn’t rest peacefully. The wonders of being twins can’t be summed up with just a sigh.
“Do a good deed each day!”
My sister… Tian’s telepathy was like an alarm clock, making it impossible to sleep.
“Go do some good deeds, big brother, for my sake.”
I lifted my head from the pillow, feeling like I’d had a nightmare.
“You need to redeem all my lost merits!”
“You scoundrel.”
I slowly crawled out of bed to wash my face and brush my teeth. Staring at myself in the mirror, I thought: You owe these debts; why don’t you find a way to repay them yourself!
Now, every day at school, I’m doing good deeds—which sounds nice, but in reality, I’m just dealing with the messes Tian left behind.
I did grunt work for the e-sports club to compensate for the computers Tian broke. I volunteered at the library to repay favors Tian owed for using it as her nap room. I even massaged the shoulders of the dean to make up for the trauma Tian caused when she snatched his wig. Along the way, I’ve heard enough sarcasm and ridicule. Rather than accumulating merits, it feels more like compiling a list of Tian’s victims.
Even within the school, there were so many victims; no wonder she was on the verge of being banished to hell.
To reincarnate into the human world, she at least needed to clear all her debts. But Tian continued to act recklessly even after death—truly staying true to herself! In the end, she dumped all her debts onto others… namely, me.
These past few days, I’ve been repeating these exhausting tasks daily. Tian might be carefree, but I find it really troublesome.
I accumulated merits on Tian’s behalf and wrote letters filled with my mourning for her, pretending I did everything for her sake. After sealing these insincere letters, I burned them for Tian. Initially, I found it bothersome, but these letters absolutely couldn’t be seen by others; otherwise, I’d be labeled as a sister-obsessed weirdo, which I definitely didn’t want. So the moment I finished writing, I burned them without wasting a second. This made my parents increasingly suspicious as they watched my strange behavior.
Through my insincere efforts, Tian’s evaluation in the celestial realm seemed to have improved.
“Big brother, don’t say that~ Things are progressing well here! The deities see how hard you’re working and have begun to reassess their judgment of me!”
Tian spoke excitedly; who knows if it’s true or not.
Please, don’t let it be true—you deserve that judgment; how could it be overturned?
“So, are you still in the cave?”
May you be trapped in that cave for eternity… No, for three lifetimes! Never to rise again! But Tian seemed intent on annoying me further.
“Eh-hehe, I’ve already come out! But they haven’t decided where I’ll go next, so I’m still up here~ So, big brother~ make sure to burn those letters filled with your love for me up to the celestial realm today too!”
Tian kept talking in my ear, even though her figure didn’t appear in the mirror.
Today was the third day of accumulating merits for Tian—in other words, including today, there were at most nine days left before Tian would have to reincarnate.
If, within these nine days, I could successfully reverse the deities’ judgment of her, she’d enter the cycle of reincarnation and return to the human world.
But honestly, even if all my efforts went down the drain now, I’d hope Tian gets sent to hell.
All the hardships so far are truly unacceptable. If Tian were resurrected, it’d be even more troublesome! So every day, while hoping Tian would go to hell, I still accumulated merits for her.
“The deities were moved by the letters you wrote me! Big brother, we really are telepathic twins!”
“Cut it out!”
Don’t you know that because I’m telepathically connected with you all day, rumors are spreading about me? Some people say I spend all day on the rooftop where you died, performing rituals to resurrect you—which isn’t entirely untrue!
After arriving at school, I habitually went to the rooftop. The door behind me was being banged on loudly, accompanied by shouts of “Pay up! Pay up!”
“Even if you’re depressed over your sister, business is business! Clear accounts even between brothers!”
“Why did he lend you money?!”
I sighed toward the empty sky, speaking to Tian.
“Eh-hehe~ I bet him that whoever won the game would treat the other to lunch. I beat him ten times in a row and made him buy everything from the snack shop~”
“Isn’t that self-inflicted?”
I opened the door and said to the male classmate behind me,
“Hey, Tian won the bet, right? Then she doesn’t owe you anything.”
“But she borrowed my game console and returned it broken! You have to be reasonable! As the saying goes, ‘The brother pays the sister’s debts.’ Who else should I find but you?”
“There’s no such saying! Stop making things up!”
How much does a game console cost… I have no money, really. In the end, I gave him my brand-new console that I’d begged my parents to buy, and the matter was settled.
But even after resolving one issue, Tian’s debts were too many to repay.
Honestly, I didn’t want to pay her debts. But if she bad-mouthed me in the celestial realm, I might end up in hell with her! Even if I’m making last-minute efforts, she might still end up reincarnating into hell. I’d rather let her go there alone.
“Do good deeds! Big brother, there are many classmates lined up next! Go, go!”
“This isn’t doing good deeds; it’s repaying debts! You want to accumulate merits, but you’re starting from negative one hundred, not zero!”
Negative one hundred would be merciful—it might be a thousand. Just thinking about it makes me want to cry.
Walking dejectedly down the corridor, Tian’s voice kept echoing in my ears.
“Well, I’m your little sister, right? Eh-hehe~”
“I… I…”
I want to kill someone… If you really come back to life, I will definitely get revenge!
“But we’re fraternal twins, right? We fought many times over who was older because I wanted to be the big sister!”
“How can you still be so immature even after death!”
The class bell rang, and I hurried back to the classroom.
After class, I ran elsewhere—this time to a very suspicious-looking club.
“Divine Examination Club?”
Tian whispered into my ear as I muttered to myself.
“I have many followers, you know?”
Followers? I knew Tian was somewhat popular at school. Although many disliked her, the fact that she caused so much trouble meant she was well-connected, right?
“Oh, you’ve arrived?”
A person wearing a camera around his neck turned to me as I knocked and entered.
“You’re Tian’s brother, right? I see, you two really look alike!”
“Hahaha, you’re too kind.”
Because news of me doing things for Tian had spread around school, many people sought me out—this was another instance.
I didn’t know if they wanted compensation or something else. Although Tian mentioned followers, based on my experience so far, nothing good would come of it. As I braced myself mentally—
“Well then, please put on this outfit.”
He suddenly handed me a set of clothes. I looked but didn’t reach out.
“Um, are my eyes playing tricks on me? This looks like a skirt…”
“Not ‘looks like’—it is a skirt.”
My mouth stiffened as I hesitated for a second before asking,
“Why are you giving me a skirt?”
The guy, seemingly the leader of this club, said,
“Because we had an agreement with her. She had been using our clubroom, and in return, she modeled for our photoshoots. This term, she had her eye on a certain contest’s prize, and we wanted the prestige. So we planned to take photos for the competition. We were saddened by what happened to her. But we didn’t want to give up on our agreement. We were worried about what to do, then heard that her twin brother was helping fulfill her unfinished business. We thought we’d give it a try and ask you. You wouldn’t want Tian to have regrets, right? So could you cooperate with us this once? Really, just this once—we won’t ask again!”
“…Alright.”
So basically, under some fancy name, this was just the photography club, right?
Tian bossed people around here and, in return, modeled for their photos.
But after her death, I had to take her place.
Wearing a pained smile on my face, I tried to convince myself internally.
This is the last time—this is the last time!
“Then, we’ll trouble you. Don’t worry; we’ll use makeup. I think no one will recognize you.”
That doesn’t make me happy at all—I don’t want to wear makeup.
“Here, this is a wig. There’s a curtain over there you can pull—go change behind it.”
The male student pointed to a corner against the wall. Though we’re all guys and it shouldn’t matter, I still didn’t want to change into women’s clothes in front of others.
“Got it.”
I agreed and walked toward the wall. After pulling the curtain, I hesitated while looking at the clothes in my hand.
“Hey…”
Then I started talking to myself, telepathically communicating with Tian.
“You didn’t tell me I’d have to cross-dress!”
When Tian wanted to telepathically communicate with me, I couldn’t avoid it. But when I called for her and the situation was unfavorable, she’d sometimes play dead and not respond.
“Aww, isn’t it a cute outfit!”
Today she responded, but definitely not out of kindness—she probably wanted to see me make a fool of myself.
Using a voice 50% more irritating than usual, Tian said,
“When we first discussed it, I thought they’d have me wear something revealing. By the way, I’ve worn quite a few outfits before! My top recommendation is the Wu Zhou dynasty attire. All the clothes here are from famous periods in our country’s history.”
“These aren’t celestial garments at all!”
“They’re outfits from the Tang dynasty’s 300 years—they make you look like a fairy, right?”
“You even worked as a model?”
“Because I really wanted that purse!”
You sold your looks for material desires? Sounds exactly like something Tian would do.
“But now that I’m dead, I can’t get the purse anymore. Oh well, nothing can be done—consider it a final big bonus~”
Who’s giving whom a bonus here?
But can I really pull this off? Although Tian and I look alike, the last time I cross-dressed was in elementary school.
Back then, I was even more entangled with Tian. It felt like there was no distinction between us—not even in gender.
As fraternal twins, we shared a room even in ninth grade. Bunk beds—she often bungee-jumped from my top bunk. Sometimes, after returning from the bathroom in the middle of the night, she’d kick me out of bed and take over—it was routine. At home, I hardly ever felt the breeze from the fan because Tian would always angle it to blow solely on her.
Though she looked cute, she had no idea what it meant to be ladylike. Speaking of which, as her twin, I look the same—not that I’m narcissistic.
Though forced, Tian and I were indeed inseparable.
“Big brother, stop dawdling and change already. Don’t tell me you’re shy at this point? I even know your underwear size!”
“Don’t say that out loud!”
Hearing someone outside the curtain ask, “Is everything okay?” I quickly replied, “No problem!” Without realizing it, I was talking to myself again. I really need to break this bad habit.
Draped in a flowing robe, waving a fan, I posed with a smiling face. The high updo of the wig was heavy, like balancing a bowl on my head, making my neck stiff from time to time.
“This is for this year’s Qixi Festival shoot—the theme is the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl.”
The club leader explained while continuously aiming the camera at me.
I wasn’t interested in the details.
But if this video got out, I’d be socially dead.
Who wants to see a male Weaver Girl?
Speaking of celestial maidens, Tian doesn’t fit the part at all. At best, she’s the Monkey King trapped under Five Finger Mountain (which has been proven true).
While fake-smiling under the flashing lights, I kept grumbling internally. They chose her as a model—truly blind; her only redeeming quality is perhaps a sliver of good looks.
“Can you strike a pose?”
“Sure, like this?”
Following the leader’s instructions, I posed as a celestial maiden gazing at the moon while fanning myself.
Honestly, I’ve had similar experiences before, so I’m not that resistant to cross-dressing. But it’s my first time wearing such lightweight clothes. Thankfully, the skirt was long, but the flowing sleeves were cumbersome.
“Whoa!”
I immediately tripped, falling forward onto the slick floor. The gauzy skirt fluttered up, exposing my underwear, but I had no time to adjust.
“Excuse me, is anyone here?”
Just then—as if by some divine prank—the door opened.
A timid girl peeked her head in from outside and locked eyes with me sprawled on the floor.
Then, something even worse happened.
I knew this girl.
I think she knew me too.
But I’d rather she had forgotten me.
The incident where I cried in front of her—I had sealed it deep within my memory, not wanting to recall it.
And now, in such an awkward situation. Please, don’t recognize me!
“Tian?”
Instantly, she looked at me with teary eyes, as if seeing someone she dearly missed.
“No, no, I’m not Tian.”
While pulling down my clothes to cover my underwear, I hastily waved my hands.
“Eh?”
She showed a surprised expression, unwilling to give up.
“Tian? You’re Tian, right?”
“No, no, Yang, he’s Tian’s brother. I asked him to help with the photoshoot.”
Only then did she realize, staring at me with her mouth agape.
“I’m terribly sorry; I made a mistake.”
She finally said mournfully, lowering her eyebrows.
I didn’t know how to respond—should I comfort her or laugh it off? I ended up standing there, frozen.
But seeing someone care so much about Tian was novel to me.
Running around the school these days had broadened my perspective. Tian’s reputation at school was indeed terrible; she was absolutely someone people disliked. There might not have been a single person saddened by her death.
But amid the ridicule, I’d occasionally hear some strange comments.
Previously, I went to the history research club. Tian had spilled drinks on some important documents there, and I was doing grunt work to copy them anew.
At that time, someone there said to me,
“By the way, I remember there was a girl who used to follow your sister around, but I haven’t seen her much lately.”
“A girl who followed her?”
I was puzzled. I didn’t interact much with Tian at school, but an image suddenly flashed in my mind.
“Yeah, the girl with two braids—she looked very well-behaved.”
The recollection ended abruptly.
Now, I looked up at her. Just like when she came to my house last time, the girl with two braids stood before me, her eyes brimming with tears.
“Yang, you’re here again?”
Hearing the club members’ voices, she raised her head.
“Yes, could I look at the photo album again? Also, if there’s anything I can help with…”
“No, no, rest assured. With Tian’s brother helping, this shoot is settled. So, brother, you can go change now. Thank you for your help today.”
“Ah, okay, then I’ll…”
Mumbling, I escaped to change my clothes.
Honestly, it was too awkward to be seen like this. The lightweight clothes on me suddenly felt as heavy as armor.
But she just said she came to help? Could it be that, like me, she was here to do things for Tian?
How is that possible? She and Tian weren’t particularly connected—probably just classmates. But she did come to my house during Tian’s funeral; could it be true?
If I’m running errands for Tian because of our telepathy, then she’s helping voluntarily without it? Such an oddity in this world—truly an eye-opener for me.
