Vivian Brown, the new junior associate at the law firm, had an uncanny ability to anticipate my every move. When our client, Mr. Li—an avid connoisseur of Big Red Robe tea—visited, I was moments away from ordering an $88,000 tin as a gesture of goodwill. But Vivian was already there, presenting the exact same vintage with a polished smile. After we secured a multi-million-dollar case thanks to her timely tea offering, the managing partner assigned us to draft a comprehensive proposal. I spent nights preparing two distinct approaches: one conservative, one aggressive. Yet at the presentation, Vivian produced identical documents, down to the footnotes. I dismissed it as coincidence—until the annual bar exam competition. Vivian, tears streaking her cheeks, pointed at me before the partners. "You copied my answers!" she cried. When our papers were compared, they matched word for word. Because she’d submitted first, I was branded a cheater. The managing partner declared me ethically compromised and terminated me on the spot. Even Ethan Xu, my colleague and boyfriend, turned away in disgust. Ruined, I succumbed to despair and ended my life. But with my final breath, one question burned: How? How had she mirrored my work? How did she always know? Then—I woke up. Back to the morning before Mr. Li’s arrival. Back to the moment before I reached for the phone to order that cursed tea. 1 “Excuse me, regarding the collaboration with your firm, we need to take some more time to consider. After all, your firm’s experience is rather… junior. We…” Inside the law firm, I listened to the big client, Mr. Li, about to reject our multi-million-dollar contract. My vision blurred for a moment, and then a shocking realization hit me: I had been reborn. Just then, Vivian Brown, the firm’s new junior associate, stepped forward with a gentle smile. She produced a box of Big Red Robe tea, valued at eighty-eight thousand dollars, and pushed it courteously towards Mr. Li. “Mr. Li, I heard you’re a connoisseur of Big Red Robe. I made a special effort to have some sourced directly from the origin for you to sample. Please, try it?” Mr. Li was a passionate lover of Big Red Robe. Hearing Vivian’s words, he beamed, unable to contain his delight. He accepted the tea, and immediately agreed to sign the contract. Vivian had successfully secured the multi-million-dollar deal, becoming the firm’s top contributor. Watching it all unfold, I felt a bone-deep chill. The exact same scene, identical to my previous life, had just played out again! It was like this in my past life too. Mr. Li had been hesitant to sign the contract. In desperation, I had called upon many friends, owed countless favors, just to discover he loved Big Red Robe tea. I immediately went to buy some. But Vivian had already gotten there first, presenting it and effortlessly closing the deal. At first, I thought it was just a coincidence and swallowed my frustration. But then, after that multi-million-dollar contract was secured with the tea, our managing partner was ecstatic. He urgently demanded that Vivian and I prepare a cooperation proposal that would impress the client. I approached it from a practical perspective, developing two distinct proposals tailored to the client's needs. The next day, however, Vivian presented two proposals identical to mine to the managing partner. He was thoroughly impressed and immediately decided to use her plan. I grew increasingly uneasy, yet I couldn't pinpoint exactly what felt wrong. Then came the firm's annual bar exam competition. Vivian, tears streaming down her face, accused me. “Cassidy, I know whoever gets first place in this competition will be recommended for overseas training. But even if you want to go abroad, you can’t just copy my answers!” I tried to protest, but when the managing partner compared our exam papers, my answers were, impossibly, identical to Vivian’s. Because she submitted her paper first, I was deemed to have cheated. The managing partner, convinced I had a serious character flaw, fired me. My colleague and boyfriend, Ethan Xu, also concluded I was morally bankrupt and broke up with me. Ultimately, I lost my job, succumbed to depression, and chose to end my life. To my dying breath, I couldn’t comprehend it. Why were my bar exam answers identical to Vivian’s? Why could she anticipate my every move, no matter what I intended to do? This time, I was determined to find out what was happening. I would not die confused again! 2 Soon, just like in my previous life, the managing partner called a meeting, instructing each of us to prepare a proposal for the contract. Whoever’s proposal was chosen would become the direct attorney for this multi-million-dollar deal. I meticulously recalled my previous life. I had drafted the proposal at the law firm, and I’d gone out for lunch and dinner. It must have been during those breaks that Vivian copied it. This time, to be absolutely safe, I completed the entire proposal on my personal laptop, never letting it out of my sight until I left work. After clocking out, I went straight home and pulled an all-nighter, refining both proposals. The logic and theoretical depth were far superior to what I’d produced in my past life. The next morning, armed with my polished proposals, I arrived at the firm. The moment I saw the managing partner, I handed them over. “Sir, I’ve prepared two different proposals from a practical standpoint, tailored to the client’s needs. Whether they prefer a conservative or aggressive approach, these will meet their requirements.” The managing partner frowned, a flicker of displeasure crossing his face. He opened the proposals, and his expression quickly soured. “Cassidy, I understand you’re eager for this contract, but you can’t just copy Vivian’s proposal!” I froze, disbelief washing over me. How was that even possible? Before I could react, Vivian approached, her tone feigning thoughtfulness, yet laced with thinly veiled arrogance. “Sir, please don’t be upset. Yesterday, I heard that Cassidy was watching my computer while I was out for dinner. And today, she brings in proposals identical to mine. While her actions are rather… low, she was only trying to gain your approval, after all.” Then she turned to me. “Cassidy, if you were interested in my ideas regarding conservative and aggressive strategies, you could have just discussed them with me directly. Isn’t it a bit too shameful to just copy them in secret?” I listened to Vivian’s words in utter disbelief. I strode forward and snatched the proposals from her hand. Sure enough, her proposals weren’t just identical in their core ideas; even the subheadings and paragraph formatting were exactly the same as mine! I couldn't hold back any longer. My gaze turned icy as I looked at Vivian. “You claim these are your proposals. Then tell me, what was your thought process? How did you analyze the conservative and aggressive approaches?” This part of the content, I hadn’t even written down. Vivian couldn't possibly know! Regarding the conservative approach, I had based my analysis on the opposing company’s overall reaction to lawsuits over the past five years— “Regarding the conservative approach, I based it on the opposing company’s overall reaction to lawsuits over the past five years. I believe this reflects their traditional, entrenched attitude when facing litigation.” My thought process hadn’t even fully formed in my mind before Vivian had already spoken it all aloud. Her fluent delivery was uncannily identical to my own thoughts, not a single word astray! I was stunned! How was this possible?! The managing partner’s eyes lit up. After all, this was truly an advanced concept. He quickly pressed her. “Vivian, what about the aggressive strategy analysis?” “The aggressive strategy includes relatively bolder clauses. This is to make the opposing company clearly see their own risks and opportunities, which will make them more receptive.” Vivian spoke again. My eyes widened, as if I’d seen a ghost. I couldn’t believe anything I was hearing. She had said exactly what I was thinking, even the logical phrasing was identical! A cold sweat broke out over my entire body. I felt as if Vivian was an actual mind-reader, lurking inside my head. It was terrifying! 3 “Vivian! You are truly outstanding! With you here, this contract will be absolutely seamless!” The managing partner was effusive with praise. My colleagues around me looked on with envy, murmuring amongst themselves: “Vivian is amazing! She came up with such an excellent proposal in such a short time. No wonder Cassidy was jealous and copied her!” “How shameful! She’s supposed to be a seasoned lawyer, a senior employee, yet she had the nerve to copy a new junior associate’s proposal. I’m truly embarrassed for Cassidy!” “Last time, when Vivian bought that expensive tea for the client, I saw Cassidy about to order it online. And now she’s copied her proposals again. Is she just targeting Vivian and trying to imitate everything she does? That’s disgusting!” “Fire her! I’d be disgusted to have someone like that in our firm. Fire her immediately!” My boyfriend and colleague, Ethan Xu, approached me, his face filled with impatience and embarrassment. “Cassidy, do you have any sense of shame?! I told you long ago not to compete with Vivian, but you just had to do something so shameless. It’s mortifying!” Everyone watched as Ethan, my own boyfriend, came forward to condemn me, further cementing their belief that I was a plagiarist. A torrent of vile insults assailed me, some even spitting in my direction! I stood frozen, my face pale, unable to believe any of this! How could this be happening? Was it truly just a profound connection between Vivian and me, our minds thinking so alike that our proposals turned out identical? But even if that were the case, why did she anticipate my every word, speaking it just before me? My thoughts grew increasingly chaotic. Vivian, however, chose that moment to speak, feigning magnanimity. “Alright, everyone, please don’t talk about Cassidy like that. I believe she was just a bit vain and made a mistake. I don’t think we need to fire her, do we? After all, it’s not easy for her to keep this job.” Ethan looked at her with even more tenderness. “Vivian, you are truly both brilliant and kind. Cassidy copied you, and yet you’re still defending her. Just for your kindness alone, Cassidy should kneel and apologize to you!” He then glared fiercely at me. Vivian chuckled softly. “Ethan, you’re being too serious. It’s just a small matter. There’s no need for her to kneel. I just hope Cassidy doesn’t hold a grudge and seek revenge on me because of this.” “Pfft! What right does she have to take revenge on you?!” Ethan scoffed. “Next week is our firm’s annual law exam. Once you get first place and go abroad for training, Cassidy probably won’t even be worthy of seeing you again for the rest of her life!” Ethan’s gaze at me was filled with disgust, just like in my previous life, as if he was afraid of being associated with me. I remembered when Ethan used to look at me with such admiration, saying I was the most brilliant lawyer, and the thought now was utterly laughable. I clenched my fists tightly. “I did not copy anyone, never!” Ethan, hearing this, didn’t believe a word. He scoffed, mocked me further, then joined the other colleagues, all surrounding Vivian as if she were a star, going over the two proposals I had just presented. Vivian reveled in the attention. She gave me a provocative look, her eyes brimming with triumph. In that one look, I instantly knew: this was absolutely no coincidence! Vivian had definitely used some method I didn't know about to copy my work! I had to find out!
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