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Chapter 1 Rebirth in the 1980s
Beijing.
In a small guesthouse near the train station, heavy snow swirled outside the window. Inside, the atmosphere between man and woman was heating up—
“Don’t be afraid, I’ll be gentle…”
A deep, magnetic male voice murmured beside her ear, sending a wave of heat rushing through Gu Jinshu’s entire body. Her throat felt dry and itchy, and her soft, boneless frame leaned helplessly into the man’s burning-hot chest.
Half-conscious, she half-opened her eyes and caught sight of his familiar, sharp, and well-defined features. The exposed shoulder beneath her cheek was strong and muscular. The next moment, he scooped her up in his arms. When her dizziness eased a little, she looked down and saw his perfectly sculpted eight-pack abs—her throat bobbed involuntarily.
Then she was once again swept into the boundless sea of desire.
Lu Shiyan glanced down at the now-unconscious Gu Jinshu, dark eyes faintly shadowed with worry.
Did I hurt her?
But the heat inside her body was still restless and churning. He cursed silently:
Damn it! Whoever made this drug deserves to die! Tomorrow, I’m hauling those bastards into the bureau for questioning!
By the time the fever burned out—well past midnight—Lu Shiyan gently carried her to be washed. Her skin was like porcelain, delicate and flawless; describing her as “skin like congealed cream” or “so smooth a breath could break it” would not be exaggerating. But when his gaze fell on the red marks scattered across her body, his expression darkened.
“Yep, it’s this room—no mistake about it! Qinghai-ge, I saw Gu Jinshu go in here! And she wasn’t alone—she went in with some man.”
“Chuxue, this isn’t a joke. What if you knock on the wrong door?”
“Qinghai-ge! Don’t you believe me?”
“Of course I believe you.”
Footsteps and hushed voices sounded outside the door.
Inside, Lu Shiyan had just finished cleaning up. Looking down at the small woman in his arms, he thought—seems like she’s in trouble…
Outside, Gu Chuxue raised her hand and pounded on the door.
When no sound came from inside, she thought smugly—They must be cuddling after the deed! Best if I catch them in the act.
She turned to the tall, thin Lin Qinghai, eyes bright with excitement.
“Qinghai-ge, help me kick the door open.”
His eyes flickered; then, lifting his foot, he prepared to kick—only for the door to swing open on its own.
With no time to stop, his kick was going to land on someone—if it was the man, good; if it was Gu Jinshu, also good.
That bitch dared to sneak around with another man behind my back!
But then he remembered—he was still engaged to Gu Jinshu. This would be the perfect excuse to break off the engagement.
Unfortunately, before he could finish the thought, a sharp pain shot through his lower abdomen. The next instant, he was sent flying backward two or three meters, landing hard on his knees in a humiliating “thud.”
“Qinghai-ge!” Gu Chuxue cried in alarm, running over to help him up.
She turned, ready to lash out—but when her eyes landed on the man before her, her mind went blank.
She wasn’t the only one stunned—Lin Qinghai was too.
Someone explain to me—why is the ‘other man’ the exact spitting image of the youngest, most accomplished, decorated commander in the entire military district, Commander Lu?!
Shit!!
“Get out,” Lu Shiyan’s thin lips parted, his aura heavy with suppressed fury.
Even his voice was identical!
Lin Qinghai shivered, not daring to ask questions.
Gu Chuxue, however, was still obsessed with “catching her cheating.” She wanted Gu Jinshu’s name ruined!
“Is Gu Jinshu in there? Make her come out!”
“There’s no one here you’re looking for. Get. Out.”
His commanding presence was unmistakable. The Gu parents could see instantly that this was someone important. Deciding that avoiding trouble was best, they forcibly dragged Gu Chuxue away.
Lin Qinghai hurried after them, but couldn’t shake the chilling feeling of a gaze stabbing into his back—like a knife hanging over his head.
Once they’d gone, Lu Shiyan returned to the room.
He had been worried that the commotion might have woken the little woman—but when his gaze fell on the bed—
Where was she?
Where was his wife, the very large and solid wife who had just been in his arms??
The window was open, and cold wind poured in.
Creak… crunch…
The street at 5:30 a.m. was unusually silent. Each step in the snow sounded sharp in Gu Jinshu’s ears, making her thoughts even more chaotic.
She had been reborn.
Reborn in 1985, into the 20-year-old body of someone with the exact same name as her.
A year ago, this body’s “parents”—poor pig butchers from the countryside—learned that she was not their biological child. Her real parents were the esteemed Gu family in Beijing, a family of scholars and professors.
The Gu family brought their biological daughter home but couldn’t bear to send their beloved foster daughter Gu Chuxue back to hardship in the mountains. So, they paid her adoptive parents to let her stay.
And so, the original Gu Jinshu became an “awkward” extra in her own home—
Adoptive parents who favored sons, real parents who doted on the foster daughter, an older brother who treated her like air, and even her fiancé of three years wanting to dump her to marry the foster daughter.
She was the very picture of a pitiful, unwanted girl.
The cold wind cut down her neck, and Gu Jinshu pulled her collar tight.
The Gu family was a genuine scholarly household—the parents were both professors at a university, with one son and one daughter.
The Sheng family, in contrast, was far poorer, living off the slaughter trade, with two daughters and a son—and a deeply ingrained favoritism for boys.
Gu Chuxue envied Gu Jinshu for having a fiancé who was a regimental commander. Privately, she made a fuss to the Gu parents more than once. The three of them even plotted together—
They wanted to push the blame for a broken engagement onto Gu Jinshu so that Gu Chuxue wouldn’t have to face public criticism when she married Lin Qinghai.
Hah! Lin Qinghai wasn’t any better.
Gu Jinshu suspected the original never knew that Lin Qinghai had already slept with Gu Chuxue.
Just now, the original had been tricked into drinking by Gu Chuxue—until she died from it.
When she opened her eyes again, Gu Jinshu had been reborn.
Hearing voices outside the door earlier, she had instantly decided to escape through the window.
She couldn’t let herself be caught—otherwise, her reputation would be destroyed.
It wasn’t that her mindset was old-fashioned—it was just the 1980s, when social thinking was still conservative.
Since I’m here, I’ll live well, no matter where I am.
She would carry on traditional Chinese medicine!
As for those “demons and snakes” who had schemed against the original, she would not let a single one go.
As for the man—her gaze flickered.
She had been drugged by Gu Chuxue and thrown into that room, and judging from his reaction, it seemed he’d also been dosed?
Sorting through her thoughts, Gu Jinshu’s first move upon returning home was to change clothes and pack her things. She could not stay in this house.
Just as she reached the door with her luggage, she ran into the four people returning from their failed “cheating bust.”
Gu Chuxue’s eyes widened.
“Why are you at home?”
“If I’m not at home, where should I be?” Gu Jinshu’s voice was cool.
“You—” should be in bed with another man! Gu Chuxue ground her teeth, jaw twitching in rage.
“Dad, Mom, since you can’t bear to part with Gu Chuxue as your daughter, it’s not suitable for me to keep living here. I’ll move out today.”