In the dining room.
Xu Zhiyuan sat down, tense yet feigning composure. The servant immediately brought out lunch.
While the He family didn’t take Xu Zhiyuan seriously, the servants dared not neglect her.
Xu Zhiyuan had been worried that the servant might try to make conversation, but after serving the meal, the servant simply stepped aside to wait. Though no conversation was attempted, being watched like this still made her somewhat uncomfortable.
In truth, it would be best if there were no servants at all—just someone coming to clean the villa at fixed times. That would be her most, most, most ideal living environment. How free and easy it would be to live alone.
Trying hard to ignore the servant’s presence, she took a bite of rice and was nearly overwhelmed by how delicious it was. Was this the kind of rice wealthy families ate? Did it cost tens of thousands per pound? Another bite of the dishes—no need to even describe the flavors—the ingredients themselves were of exceptional quality. She suddenly felt that everything she had eaten in the past was practically garbage.
Enjoying the meal, Xu Zhiyuan relaxed even more, eating her fill at lunch.
Only after finishing did she remember the servant’s presence again, quickly recalling whether she had done anything improper earlier. Her body tensed unnaturally, her movements slowed, and she became much more cautious.
“I’m finished.”
Xu Zhiyuan’s voice wavered slightly, but she tried hard to appear natural.
She stood up and walked out of the dining room, forcing herself not to look back, afraid she might see the servant’s suspicious gaze.
Arriving in the living room, she felt at a loss again, unsure how to position her hands and feet. The furniture looked even better and more luxurious than what she had seen in TV dramas about wealthy families. She decided it was better to return to her room.
Originally intending to look around, she instead turned and went upstairs back to her room. Only after locking the door did Xu Zhiyuan’s body fully relax.
Collapsing onto the bed, Xu Zhiyuan thought to herself that she couldn’t go on like this. The original host had a reserved personality and some insecurities, but she had also received proper upbringing—at least she wouldn’t have been as narrow-minded or acted as petty as she did now.
Now, she was Xu Zhiyuan from the novel, the mistress of this household. Until her storyline ended, this wouldn’t change. Why should she be so restrained in her own home? She ought to be more confident and assertive.
Xu Zhiyuan kept trying to convince herself, but the thought of having to interact with her nominal husband, in-laws, and her own family in the future made her nervous and filled her with resistance from the bottom of her heart.
Letting out a mental groan, she rolled over and buried her face in the blanket.
Forget it, let things take their course. Overthinking now was useless—it would only add pressure and make her miserable.
She should think about what to do in the future instead.
In the novel’s plot, she died in an accident while on her way to meet her boyfriend…
Yes, the original host had secretly found a boyfriend outside, rejecting the high-quality man He Jiayu. In the near future, she would get into a car accident while going to meet this boyfriend, and due to the Xu family’s interference, her rescue would be delayed, leading to her death.
Thinking of this, Xu Zhiyuan felt another wave of frustration.
When she read the novel, she had strongly disliked the Xu family. She even felt a sense of satisfaction when the Xu family went bankrupt, all because of their boundless favoritism and indulgence toward Xu Zhixiao.
The original host died from a car accident that ruptured her liver. Coincidentally, Xu Zhixiao, who had just returned from abroad in a sorry state, also had liver issues requiring surgery. Then the Xu family came to fight over the surgeon. During the struggle, the original host went into shock and just died like that.
Tragically, the Xu parents felt little remorse. After grieving for a while, they went right back to caring for Xu Zhixiao.
Utter idiots, absolute morons.
Xu Zhiyuan cursed furiously in her heart.
Fortunately, they later paid for their actions. Xu Zhixiao caused the Xu family to go bankrupt, and she even resented her parents for it. She took the family’s remaining savings, sold the house, and hired someone to harm the female lead, landing herself in jail.
The Xu parents were left with nothing. Only then did they regret their actions and remember the original host’s goodness, but it was too late for anything.
Whew~
Even so, Xu Zhiyuan still felt indignant.
Can’t dwell on it anymore. Better think about the future.
He Jiayu is the devoted second male lead. He married the original host just to appease his family and fulfill the duty of continuing the family line. But one thing is certain: right now, He Jiayu is not yet the devoted second male lead. He and the female lead only met half a year after he became a widower. They encountered each other unexpectedly on a blind date, got acquainted, and he was drawn to her during their interactions.
She didn’t know if He Jiayu would still fall for the female lead later, but she was determined to ensure she wouldn’t die!
Xu Zhiyuan didn’t know if she had also died in her previous life, but she felt that an opportunity for transmigration and rebirth like this probably only came once. If she died in this world, she might truly be gone for good.
She valued her life dearly. With so many years ahead, she definitely couldn’t go have tea with the King of Hell at such a young age.
Until she could avoid the plot, she absolutely must not go out unless absolutely necessary!
Xu Zhiyuan was formulating plans in her mind.
Coincidentally, she could pick up her old profession.
In her previous life, she stayed home making videos, analyzing popular films, TV shows, and music, sometimes taking on ads. Her standard of living was pretty good, with no worries about making ends meet.
In this life, she could also continue staying home making videos.
Once she had the idea, she needed to act on it.
Xu Zhiyuan got out of bed. From the original host’s memories, she saw where the laptop was. She went to the walk-in closet and found the laptop in her luggage.
There was a dressing table in the room, so she sat there fiddling with it.
First, create an account.
The short video platforms in this world differed from the real world, but not by much. The biggest short video platform here was Douyin, and the biggest social platform was Weibo. Looking at the familiar icons, Xu Zhiyuan fell silent for a moment before finding an excuse.
Fictional worlds are based on the real one; similarities are normal.
After creating the account, she started looking for suitable works.
She wondered if this world had Huanhuan or Minglan. With that thought, she entered the drama titles in the search bar, but found no results. Searching for character names yielded the same—either no relevant information or results pointing to something else.
She entered many drama titles, along with some world-famous literary works and historical figures. Some could be found, but most didn’t exist.
Xu Zhiyuan was stunned for a moment before a thought surfaced, making her heart race wildly.
The Four Great Classical Novels were still there, as were some world-famous works and figures. But Huanhuan was gone, Minglan was gone, let alone Qingchuan or Ruoxi.
This… this meant her money-making opportunity had arrived.
Xu Zhiyuan’s deer-like eyes were frighteningly bright.
She released the mouse, found paper and pen, listed the tools she needed, then took out her phone and began placing orders.
Remembering she also needed a quiet room, she quickly stood up and went downstairs.
At that moment, she was in a state of excitement, everything else already forgotten—until she reached the bottom of the stairs and saw the person who had just returned from outside.