Zhou Yuwei was awakened by the rain.
Still half-conscious, she vaguely saw a crowd of people running toward her, calling her name.
Then she blacked out again.
She clearly remembered that she had been on her annual vacation at a famous tourist destination in Yunnan Province. How had she ended up here in the blink of an eye?
She had just secured a major contract for the company. Her business partner was also her best friend.
With a grin, her best friend accepted the signed contract.
“You’re amazing! I knew it—when President Zhou takes action, she’s worth an entire team by herself. But seriously, aren’t you ever going to find yourself a boyfriend?”
“When would I have the time?” Zhou Yuwei replied irritably.
“You do now.” Li Zhihui waved the contract in her hand before gathering up the stack of documents on Zhou Yuwei’s desk.
“I’ll take care of everything from here. You just go enjoy yourself for a few days and use up all the vacation time you’ve been saving over the years. Don’t rush back. I’ve already had Tianqi book your flight. It leaves tonight, and you’ll be at your destination in just a few hours. Oh, and Xiaohui—your personal assistant—has already packed your luggage and shipped it ahead to your hotel.”
Zhou Yuwei stared at her in disbelief.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re already thirty-two.”
“I haven’t even had my birthday yet this year. I’m only thirty-one, okay?”
“Does one year really make a difference? You’re still in your thirties. Hurry up and go have a romantic encounter before it’s too late. Come on, come on! Get to the airport! Xiao Huang’s already waiting downstairs.”
Everything happened so fast that before Zhou Yuwei knew it, Li Zhihui had shoved her into the company car.
“Bye-bye! Have fun! Enjoy your trip, and come back with a whirlwind romance!”
While sitting in the car, Zhou Yuwei received another WeChat message from her.
Hope you find your very own Prince Charming on a little pony. It doesn’t matter if he’s poor—you’ve got enough money for both of you. The important thing is that he’s a good man.
Then Li Zhihui made another phone call.
“Tell President Shen that President Zhou has already left.”
Zhou Yuwei was speechless.
Has this woman been watching too many TV dramas?
She suddenly remembered the drama Li Zhihui had been obsessed with a few days earlier.
It was set somewhere in Yunnan. Li Zhihui had even come over carrying her tablet and insisted on making her watch several episodes.
At the time, though, Zhou Yuwei had been far too busy to care.
She hadn’t paid much attention to the plot. She only remembered thinking that the actress truly lived up to her reputation as a heavenly beauty. She was stunning, the soundtrack was wonderfully soothing, and the scenery was breathtaking.
The place itself looked beautiful.
“Beautiful, isn’t it? I thought so too when I went there before. You can even take a walk along the seaside.”
“Ride a white horse while I’m at it?” Zhou Yuwei had teased.
“As if! That’s a TV drama, not real life.”
“So you do know the difference.”
“But at least the scenery is real.”
“That’s true. It really is beautiful.”
“Don’t you want to go see it for yourself?”
“When I get the chance someday, I definitely will. So stop talking about it already and hurry up and look over the proposal I sent you this morning. If it looks good, I’ll go negotiate the deal.”
“If you think it’s good too, then I’ll make the arrangements. How about holding this year’s company retreat there?”
“Oh, knock it off and read the proposal.”
Back then, her mind had been completely occupied with the new contract. She hadn’t been in the mood to travel at all.
Sitting in the car now, Zhou Yuwei took a deep breath before smiling as she gazed out the window.
Yeah… it’s been a long time since I’ve taken a real vacation.
“President Zhou is going to Yunnan.”
“Mm. President Li arranged everything. Food, lodging, entertainment—the full package. The three-in-one policy. I’d be crazy not to go.”
“Exactly. President Li is being unusually generous this time. President Zhou, you should relax over there and enjoy yourself for a few days.”
Everyone at the company knew that President Zhou was a workaholic.
She was always the first person to arrive at the office and the last one to leave.
Because he was her driver, that also meant he kept the same schedule.
Still, he never complained.
After all, she paid him well.
More importantly, she wasn’t the type of boss who made life difficult for her employees. She held herself to impossibly high standards, but never demanded the same from everyone else.
From time to time, she even gave them bonuses or thoughtful gifts.
So…
Where was this place?
She clearly remembered arriving at the guesthouse Li Zhihui had booked for her. She’d been exhausted, so after taking a shower, she’d gone straight to bed.
How had everything changed after one night’s sleep?
After landing, Li Zhihui had even texted her, saying she had prepared a huge surprise.
Could this… be the surprise?
What on earth is going on?
“You’re awake?”
A woman’s voice came from beside the bed.
Zhou Yuwei saw a woman in her forties walking over with a bowl of brown sugar water.
“You’ve finally broken into a sweat. Your fever should be gone now.”
The woman replaced the damp towel on her forehead.
“Yuwei, this is our fault. Things aren’t good at home right now. Mom promises that next time I’ll buy you a big birthday cake and celebrate your birthday separately, just for you, okay? This time, you’ll have to bear with us.”
Their eyes met.
Confusion filled Zhou Yuwei’s gaze.
Then, suddenly, a flood of memories rushed into her mind.
Hiss…
Her head hurt terribly.
It was as though she’d just woken from an incredibly long dream.
In that dream, she was also named Zhou Yuwei.
She was the younger daughter of Zhou Kun, a worker at a furniture factory.
She had just turned eighteen and was in her final year of high school.
Their family lived in the factory’s residential compound.
There were two daughters in the family.
Because of their financial situation, her parents had decided to celebrate her birthday together with her older sister’s.
She had gotten angry and run out into the hutong.
Then…
Lightning had struck her.
And then…
She had come here.
In that dream, there had also been a rather pretty girl with two braided pigtails and a floral blouse. Her voice was filled with bitterness and deep resentment.
“My parents don’t love me. I’m the extra one in this family—the unnecessary child. No one has ever cared about me, so I don’t want to care about them anymore either. I don’t want this body anymore. You can have it.”
Then she disappeared.
Zhou Yuwei was speechless.
“Don’t go!”
She suddenly opened her eyes and shouted.
Don’t go!
What kind of situation is this?
She didn’t want this body either!
She wanted to go back!
She and Li Zhihui had spent ten long years building their company from the ground up.
The two of them had finally become successful and wealthy.
She didn’t want to start all over again!
“Yuwei! You’re awake! Are you alright? You scared me to death!”
It was still the same woman.
But the surroundings had changed again.
Everything around her was stark white.
It looked like a hospital.
“You stubborn girl. Why are you so hardheaded?”
A man’s voice came from behind the hospital bed.
Zhou Yuwei turned to look.
She moved too abruptly, causing the IV tubing attached to her wrist to sway.
“Don’t move. You’re still on an IV. Be careful or it’ll start bleeding.”
The woman spoke again.
“You must be hungry. I made some millet porridge for you. You can’t eat anything greasy yet, so have a little to settle your stomach first.”
The woman looked at her second daughter with obvious heartache.
“Um… could I have some water first?” Zhou Yuwei asked hoarsely.
She was unbearably thirsty.
Her throat burned as though it were being sliced open by knives.
“Of course. Mom will get you some.”
As Zhou Yuwei reached for the enamel mug, the woman stopped her.
“I’ll help you. Your hand isn’t free right now.”
“Thank you…”
She still couldn’t bring herself to say the word Mom.
Looking at all these unfamiliar faces, Zhou Yuwei could only sigh inwardly.
Li Zhihui…
You really did give me one enormous surprise.