Ye Wen once again tasted the perks of being born rich. Today, her wallet held over a thousand yuan—savings from her mother’s daily allowance. She even suspected her father would hand over a thousand yuan without blinking if she asked directly.
Daily allowance? One hundred yuan a day? Extravagant! After graduating college, her first job had paid just one hundred yuan *per day*. And this was ten years earlier, when prices were far lower. Back then, a hundred yuan a day was decent pay for an actual job—not just pocket money.
Ye Wen’s eyes locked onto the price tag beneath the boxed Barbie doll Lu Yu was staring at: 199 yuan.
That was steep even for adults, let alone kids. But Ye Wen was flush with cash now. A hundred-something yuan was barely pocket change.
“I’ll get it for you!” Ye Wen planned to buy Lu Yu off. *Once you accept someone’s gift, you owe them*, she thought. *Hope Lu Yu gets the hint…*
“Really?!” Lu Yu’s eyes lit up.
“Of course.” Ye Wen kept her tone light as she stepped into the spotless store.
“My sweet little Wenwen! You’re amazing…! Is your family loaded?”
“Uh… kinda?”
“How much allowance per day?”
“About a hundred…”
Silence. Ye Wen turned to see Lu Yu looking like she was about to faint. “That’s… the same as my mom’s salary…” she muttered.
Jin Jing’s eyes widened too. “Wow, Ye Wen, your family’s seriously rich…”
“Ah, don’t make a big deal out of it,” Ye Wen said quickly, not wanting wealth to wedge them apart. “Just treat me like anyone else.”
“What fake modesty!” Lu Yu wrinkled her nose.
“Huh? Wait—I didn’t—” Ye Wen shot a worried glance at Jin Jing, stumbling over her words.
“Relax, relax.” Jin Jing smiled, ruffling Ye Wen’s hair. “Lu Yu’s just teasing.”
“Hoo hoo! My little Wenwen’s so easy to tease!”
Ye Wen deadpanned at her. “Still want the doll or not…?”
“Yes! But I can’t take it for free. Can I pay in installments?”
“Uh…” Ye Wen had planned to gift it, but seeing Lu Yu’s earnest face, she nodded. “Whatever.”
Lu Yu beamed.
Ye Wen bought the lavishly packaged Barbie. Jin Jing and Lu Yu gasped again when they glimpsed the cash stuffed in Ye Wen’s wallet.
Gotta admit, products back then were legit. This 199-yuan Barbie came packed with what looked like over a hundred accessories.
The pedestrian street buzzed with shops, each displaying trendy goods in their windows.
“Look! A fortune-telling parlor!” Lu Yu bounced despite hugging the giant doll box.
“Hmm…” Ye Wen knew this street well. “Total scam.”
“Let’s try it,” Jin Jing suggested.
“Fine,” Ye Wen agreed.
Lu Yu glanced between them, lips pursed. She held her tongue—*probably remembering she owed Ye Wen a favor*, Ye Wen thought.
Inside the dimly lit parlor sat a woman with dyed purple hair, around thirty, looking witch-like under the moody lights.
“Little ones,” the owner rasped, her voice oddly magnetic. “Care for a reading?”
Lu Yu flinched back two steps. Jin Jing clung to Ye Wen’s arm, her soft chest pressed against it—a sensation Ye Wen secretly enjoyed.
“I offer many tests,” the owner smiled, the shadows making it look eerie. “Which would you like?”
“How much per test?” Lu Yu asked practically.
“Two yuan each.”
“What kinds of tests?” Jin Jing asked—the kind of question only someone flush with cash would make.
Ye Wen had wandered here often as a kid but rarely bought anything. Everything was overpriced. She’d only visited this parlor once before, and the details were fuzzy now.
The owner slid over a menu listing bizarre tests.
“Hmm… past life reading?” Jin Jing pointed, glancing at Ye Wen.
“Go wild. Even if you try every single one,” Ye Wen declared grandly.
“Let’s start with past lives~” Jin Jing smiled, looking strangely alluring under the purple glow.
“Who first?” Ye Wen asked.
“Me! Me!” Lu Yu scrambled into the chair opposite the owner.
“These readings work only if you believe,” the owner said, shuffling tarot cards with practiced ease. “Clear your mind. Pick one card.”
Lu Yu took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and drew a card. The owner chuckled. “Your past life was a happy little cat. Carefree. Died of old age.”
“A *cat*? Lame!” Lu Yu pouted.
Jin Jing patted her head. “A cute kitty suits you.”
“Shall you two draw together?” the owner asked.
“Can we?” Jin Jing leaned in.
“Of course.”
They each drew a card.
“You, my dear,” the owner said to Jin Jing, “were a sheltered young lady from a wealthy family. Married a merchant. Murdered by a jealous concubine.”
She turned to Ye Wen’s card, studying it closely. “Hmm… this one’s strange. Your past life seems… hidden. Or tangled in some unknown chaos. No clear story. But this much is certain—you didn’t die a normal death.”
“Not normal? Assassinated?” Lu Yu blurted.
“Not normal means… transcendent. Perhaps your past self escaped her world. Taken by the gods to heaven… or something.”
“Pfft! Ridiculous!” Lu Yu huffed.
“Haha… it’s just for fun. Don’t take it seriously.”
But Ye Wen fell silent. *If past lives were real…*
…
