Songcheng, Blue Bay Villa District, the Ye Family Residence.
It was early August, and the midday sun was scorching. The heat left the busy servants feeling restless and sluggish.
Suddenly, a scream shattered the silence.
“Ahhh!”
The servants turned in shock. Beside the living room sofa, a young woman dressed in a white long dress had fallen to the floor, as though someone had pushed her.
It was none other than the Ye family’s second young lady, Ye Ruoyin!
Everyone hurried over. Shen Qian, the mistress of the Ye family, quickly helped her beloved daughter up. However, she noticed a red, swollen handprint on her daughter’s cheek, while the exposed parts of her arms and legs were covered in conspicuous bruises.
Shen Qian was heartbroken. “Ruoyin, what happened?!”
Ye Ruoyin’s face was pale. Trembling, she slowly raised her hand and pointed toward the opposite side.
Everyone followed her gaze and saw a young woman about the same age as Ye Ruoyin standing on the other side of the coffee table.
She was also the Ye family’s eldest daughter, Shen Li.
At that moment, Shen Li was pressing her hand tightly against her chest, seemingly suffering from some kind of pain. She appeared completely unaware of the gazes directed at her.
Ye Ruoyin weakly pleaded, “Mom, please don’t blame Big Sister… I believe she didn’t do it on purpose…”
With just one sentence, she had already established what everyone was supposed to believe was the truth.
Without a second thought, Shen Qian scolded her, “Shen Li, I’ve warned you countless times! Ruoyin is your younger sister. Stop making things difficult for her! And now you’ve even pushed and hit her! How can you be so vicious…”
Before she could finish speaking, a flash of cold light suddenly streaked across her vision.
A fruit knife flew past Shen Qian and plunged diagonally into the hard marble floor.
The blade gleamed with a chilling light, reflecting Shen Qian’s rapidly changing expression. The servants nearby were so frightened that they immediately fell silent, not daring to make a sound.
Shen Qian looked up and met Shen Li’s indifferent gaze.
“I didn’t push Ye Ruoyin. If you don’t believe me, you can check the surveillance footage. But if you choose to turn a blind eye, then forget I said anything.”
Shen Li walked up to the stunned Shen Qian and Ye Ruoyin, bent down, and effortlessly pulled the fruit knife out of the floor.
She ran a finger along the sharp blade and spoke calmly. “Also, if you try to pin false accusations on me again, I don’t mind making them come true.”
Without even turning around, she casually flicked her wrist and threw the fruit knife.
In full view of everyone, the blade flew straight into an apple on the coffee table.
Shen Li stepped around the mother and daughter on the floor and strode toward the staircase.
The entire living room fell into deathly silence.
It wasn’t until Ye Ruoyin cried out in pain that Shen Qian finally snapped out of her daze. She immediately flew into a rage.
“How utterly outrageous! Butler, go lock her bedroom door! Let her stay inside and reflect on her actions! Without my permission, no one is allowed to give her food or water!”
She then looked at Ye Ruoyin, who appeared pitiful and helpless, and felt another pang of heartache.
“Ruoyin, I’ll take you to the hospital first!”
Ye Ruoyin answered obediently in a pitiful voice.
As the servants helped her out, Ye Ruoyin glanced suspiciously toward the second floor.
…
Inside the bathroom of the upstairs bedroom, Shen Li turned on the faucet while examining her familiar yet unfamiliar reflection in the mirror.
Heavy makeup, long blue curls—she looked just like a delinquent girl.
Shen Li frowned again. Lowering her head, she washed off the makeup, finally revealing her true appearance.
Her skin was as pale as porcelain, and her features were exquisitely beautiful and striking.
She had a naturally alluring pair of fox eyes. When she wasn’t smiling, the corners of her eyes lifted slightly, giving her a lazy and carefree appearance. But when her expression turned serious, her sharp, well-defined eyes and brows carried an intimidating chill.
She hadn’t used this face in six years.
She had originally lived with her maternal grandfather since childhood, depending on him for everything. However, when she was thirteen, members of the Ye family suddenly showed up at their door, claiming that she was the Ye family’s biological daughter who had been switched at birth. They had come to bring her home and reunite her with her real family.
Unexpectedly, as soon as she arrived at the Ye residence, her body was taken over by a transmigrator from another world, while her own soul was sent somewhere else.
It wasn’t until a year ago that Shen Li finally returned.
However, her soul had been too weak at the time to regain control of her body. She had no choice but to stay by the transmigrator’s side, silently observing the other woman’s life.
Only then did she discover that the transmigrator was not only at the bottom of her class academically and lacking any particular talents or abilities, but had also dropped out of school early to pursue a career in the entertainment industry.
The Ye family prided themselves on being an elite, wealthy family. Naturally, they couldn’t tolerate the transmigrator’s decision.
Perhaps out of guilt for having her live away from her biological family for thirteen years, they eventually agreed to her request after she stubbornly insisted on it.
Unfortunately, after three years of struggling in the entertainment industry, she remained a little-known celebrity. To make matters worse, she was surrounded by scandals and became the target of ridicule across the internet.
Ye Ruoyin, meanwhile, was the fake heiress who had been switched with Shen Li at the hospital.
Her biological parents came from a remote mountain village. Worried that Ye Ruoyin would suffer if she returned to live with them, the Ye family decided not to send her back. Instead, they allowed her to remain in the Ye household.
Unlike the transmigrator, who was utterly mediocre in every respect, Ye Ruoyin excelled academically and was both beautiful and well-behaved. She was deeply adored by the members of the Ye family.
Later, she was discovered by a talent scout after a dance video of hers went viral. She also entered the entertainment industry and quickly rose to fame, gaining millions of followers by cultivating the image of a talented, versatile, and adorable young lady from a wealthy family.
The contrast between her and the transmigrator couldn’t have been more obvious.
Even more cleverly, whenever the two happened to appear in the same place, paparazzi photos would inevitably surface showing the transmigrator supposedly bullying or targeting Ye Ruoyin. As a result, the entire internet would turn against her.
However, the transmigrator had never actually done any of those things.
The Ye family simply refused to believe her explanations. Instead, they were convinced that she was jealous of Ye Ruoyin and wanted to drive her out of the family.
As time went on, the Ye family grew increasingly disgusted with the transmigrator.
Just moments ago, the transmigrator had lost control after being provoked by Ye Ruoyin’s words. Shen Li had seized the opportunity to take back control of her body.
Thinking about this, Shen Li left the bathroom and found a set of clothes that was at least somewhat pleasing to her eyes. She then located the bag she had brought with her when she returned to the Ye family.
The belongings inside, including her phone and bank cards, had been kept untouched by the transmigrator all this time.
Shen Li removed the SIM card from the transmigrator’s phone and inserted it into her own. She then transferred all the stored data and files as well.
Once she had finished getting everything ready, Shen Li picked up her bag and prepared to leave.
However, the bedroom door was locked.
Her expression remained indifferent. She simply took a step back, raised her leg, and kicked the door with full force.
BANG!
The deafening crash startled the servants outside. They turned around in shock, only to see Shen Li walking out in a shirt and trousers before casually passing them and heading downstairs.
The bedroom door behind her was left hanging precariously on its hinges.
The servants were completely dumbfounded.
On the first floor, the butler caught sight of Shen Li. A flash of amazement crossed his eyes, and it took him quite a while to recognize her.
He couldn’t help but freeze for a moment.
Then he frowned. “Eldest Young Lady, Madam ordered you to remain confined to your room and reflect on your—”
“Get lost.”
Shen Li’s expression remained emotionless as she walked straight out of the Ye residence.
Taxis weren’t allowed inside the Blue Bay Villa District.
Shen Li switched on her phone and discovered that she couldn’t get a taxi at all. With no other choice, she began walking toward the exit.
Just then, a low-key Maybach drove past her before coming to a stop beside her.
The window rolled down, and a deep male voice sounded from inside.
“Excuse me, could you tell me how to get out of Blue Bay?”
Shen Li turned her head and met the gaze of the man sitting in the back seat.
The man had a rather indifferent expression, yet his sharply defined features were exceptionally handsome. His naturally falling bangs partially concealed his dark, narrow eyes. His skin was pale with a cool undertone, and his facial bone structure was remarkably refined.
As he spoke, the faint sound of prayer beads gently knocking against one another could be heard.
Shen Li’s gaze followed the sound downward and settled on the man’s hand.
His knuckles were prominently defined, with four distinct tendons stretching across the back of his hand. Faint blue veins traced beneath his skin, making his fingers appear long, straight, and elegant.
Around his wrist was a strand of black Buddhist prayer beads.
The beads were intricately engraved with densely packed Buddhist scriptures. They were clearly no ordinary accessory.
Shen Li had a slight weakness for beautiful hands, so she couldn’t help taking another look.
She continued staring until the man spoke again, repeating his question.
Looking at the man inside the car, Shen Li suddenly found herself asking, almost without thinking:
“I can give you directions, but would you mind giving me a ride?”