Chapter 1: The First Day of Transmigration – On the Formation of Lies

Outside the sleek and minimalist office door, many people passed by, craning their necks and straining their ears to catch the commotion inside.

“Who would’ve thought Secretary Yun was this kind of person?”
“Yeah, Miss Lin spent so much time preparing for tomorrow’s competition, and now Secretary Yun ruined the dress.”
“I always thought Yun Shuning was shady. Now it’s confirmed.”
“Exactly! Who does she think she is, acting all high and mighty? At the end of the day, she’s just a secretary. Who’s she trying to impress?”
“If it weren’t for her slight resemblance to Miss Lin…”

Yun Shuning frowned in irritation at the faint murmurs lingering around her. What kind of film set has no discipline like this?

Wait—

This wasn’t right.

She distinctly remembered being at home last night. How could she have ended up here without realizing it?

Kidnapping? Prank? Reality show?

Countless possibilities flashed through her mind—until she caught sight of her hands.

These hands were breathtakingly beautiful—slender, pale, with delicate bones and faintly visible veins that added a touch of strength to their elegance.

These weren’t her hands. Though hers had been complimented before, they were nowhere near as exquisite.

Just as she was lost in confusion, an angry voice snapped her back to reality.

“Yun Shuning, there’s surveillance footage of everything you did.”

He Chen stared at the woman slumped on the floor, her head bowed and unresponsive. His disgust deepened. “Do you have any idea how much damage your destruction of that dress will cost the company?”

Destroying a dress?

Yun Shuning kept her head down but discreetly scanned her surroundings. This seemed to be an office—an expensive one at that, given the orchid in the corner worth at least a million.

No one would use something so valuable just to play a prank on a D-list actress like her.

If this wasn’t a joke, then…

She quickly recalled the key points from the man’s words and suddenly remembered the novel-turned-drama she had been cast in—”Bestowed Upon You With Love.”

This novel was a product of the domineering CEO romance trend from years ago. The female lead, after a series of misunderstandings, parted ways with the male lead, got close to the second and third male leads, took revenge on various female antagonists, and eventually reconciled with the male lead in a grand finale.

The villainess in the book shared her name—Yun Shuning. Obsessed with the male lead, she repeatedly targeted the female lead and ultimately took advantage of a blackout to destroy the dress the female lead had painstakingly designed for a fashion competition.

Had she transmigrated into the novel?

A chill ran down her spine as she recalled the villainess’s fate. Since she had been cast as this character, she remembered the ending all too well.

For sabotaging the female lead’s dress, the male lead had her arrested. Under pressure from him and his rivals, she was sentenced to five years in prison.

The female lead’s admirers made sure she was “taken care of” behind bars. When she couldn’t take it anymore, someone suggested she fake mental illness to escape punishment. She succeeded in leaving prison—only to enter a far worse hell.

Mental patients naturally belonged in psychiatric hospitals. And in such places, it was much easier to pull strings than in prison.

Yun Shuning’s fingers dug into the floor, her knuckles whitening.

If only she had transmigrated a little earlier! Now, the original owner had already done the deed, and the male lead had caught her red-handed. No one would believe her no matter what she said.

What should she do?!

She had zero interest in experiencing this world’s prison system firsthand.

“I’ll handle this matter through legal channels—” He Chen’s patience had run out. People should always take responsibility for their actions.

“Heh.”

A soft, mocking laugh cut through the office.

He Chen’s brow furrowed as he turned toward the sound. From his angle, he could only see her profile, her expression obscured by her hair.

Was Yun Shuning giving up now?

“Do you have anything to say in your defense?”

Taking a deep breath, Yun Shuning slowly straightened her posture. Her hair slipped back, revealing a face that was both cold and stunningly beautiful.

Just moments ago, she had remembered a key figure from the novel—a man who had gone missing early on: He Chen’s uncle, He Yan.

He Yan had built the He family empire, giving the male lead the resources to crush his rivals and indulge in his tumultuous romance with the female lead.

The novel barely mentioned He Yan, mostly in passing from the male lead’s perspective.

He Yan was described as cold and detached, with no family, no friends—not even his assistants could approach him outside of work. He was elusive, disappearing without a trace.

Years later, when the He Corporation fell into chaos due to the lack of leadership, the male lead would step in as the heir, saving the company and securing his position as its true ruler.

Since the novel focused on the male and female leads, only a thorough reader would even notice He Yan’s existence.

If I fail, I’ll just end up dead anyway.

No matter what she did now, things couldn’t get worse.

Summoning every ounce of her acting skills, Yun Shuning stood up—slowly but firmly.

Voice, stage presence, physicality, expression. An actor needed mastery of all four.

Her posture was rigid, radiating desperation, yet her face was eerily calm—as if she had already accepted her fate.

When she spoke, her voice was soft, almost gentle, but her words made He Chen’s eyes darken.

“President He is quite skilled at manipulating the rules.”

“Four years ago, why didn’t you resort to legal channels for that matter?”

Four years ago was a very delicate time. That year, He Chen’s little uncle went missing. As a member of the He family’s branch line, He Chen had a good relationship with the main family and had once received praise from He Yan, which made him suddenly the most likely candidate to inherit the He family.

“What do you mean?” He Chen stopped what he was doing and looked at her sharply.

“President He has probably already forgotten the name He Yan, hasn’t he?” Yun Shuning turned her head to look at him. Her expression was as calm as ever, but a few crystal-like teardrops clung to her thick eyelashes.

As if she thought the tears made her look weak, she reached up and wiped the corners of her eyes harshly. Because of the force, a red mark appeared under her eye.

She now looked like a bow pulled to its limit, her voice filled with desperate resolve: “President He, does sitting in a seat you seized like a cuckoo stealing a nest feel especially comfortable?”

As soon as she finished speaking, the people eavesdropping outside the door vanished without a trace.

What a joke—if they overheard a wealthy family’s secret like this, they might be fired as early as tomorrow. The only reason they dared to listen at the door was because of the president’s tacit permission, but even so, they should know their limits.

But seriously, whose nest did President He actually take?

“Yun Shuning, what exactly are you trying to say?” He Chen stood up, glanced at the now empty doorway, and his voice, no longer cold as before, carried a trace of hesitation.

A strange premonition rose in his heart—Yun Shuning seemed to have a close relationship with his little uncle.

Yun Shuning heard the change in his tone.

This lie she told might sound easy to expose, but if this were really a world inside a novel, then she had some confidence.

Of course, she knew that He Chen couldn’t possibly be the true culprit behind He Yan’s disappearance. The author would never have the male lead carry the blame of removing his own uncle to seize the family fortune.

The author probably hadn’t even figured out how to explain He Yan’s disappearance, and in the novel, it was just glossed over.

But that didn’t stop her from placing the blame squarely on He Chen.

She once had someone she loved so deeply. But one day, he went missing in an accident. Everyone said it was an accident, but she didn’t believe it.

As someone who deeply loved him, she only wanted to find out the reason behind his disappearance. For that, she would stop at nothing.

When she opened her eyes again, Yun Shuning was fully in character.

“I’ve always known that wealth and profit can move people’s hearts.” She looked away, the corners of her mouth curling into a mocking smile. “With such a vast family fortune, it’s enough to make anyone take reckless risks, isn’t it?”

“What was your relationship with my little uncle?” After hearing her words, He Chen stepped away from the desk and stopped a few steps in front of her, his gaze complicated.

“Is that question really important?” Yun Shuning didn’t dodge his gaze, staring straight into his eyes. Her voice trembled slightly. “Words from someone who’s about to disappear don’t seem worth your concern.”

The light in her eyes made He Chen avert his gaze. When he saw her tightly clenched hands, he suddenly realized—she was afraid too.

He should have been angry. No one had ever pointed at his nose and accused him like this.

But seeing Yun Shuning looking like she was willing to give up everything for an answer, a subtle jealousy rose in his heart.

Even after so long, someone still held He Yan in their heart.

“Why do you think it was me?” he asked calmly.

Upon hearing his question, the calm on Yun Shuning’s face instantly cracked: “You’re asking me why?”

“Why do you think?” She suddenly laughed, her laughter full of sorrow. “Besides you, who else could take such a huge risk to stage an accident?”

Her suspicion was well-founded. After He Yan disappeared, He Chen was the biggest beneficiary. The entire He family fell into his hands.

“If I remember correctly, your previous fiancée was the daughter of the Deputy Director of the Public Security Bureau, right?” Yun Shuning silently thanked herself for memorizing the novel’s plot. “But a year ago, that Director was imprisoned for corruption and bribery.”

She didn’t say much more, but He Chen suddenly understood what she meant.

The Deputy Director of the Public Security Bureau held a position that allowed him to do a lot. And indeed, there was quite a connection between that man’s downfall and himself.

He had done it all to vent for Wanwan, but from Yun Shuning’s perspective, it looked like he was silencing someone.

In that moment, countless thoughts flashed through He Chen’s mind. As a CEO, once the initial shock passed, he quickly found a flaw in her story.

He took two steps back and spoke softly, with a hint of coaxing:
“If everything you said is true, shouldn’t you be targeting me? Why are you going after Wanwan?”

Yun Shuning raised her head and took two steps forward toward him, her expression completely calm.

This was the weakest point in her entire lie, but the more critical the moment, the more she had to hold her ground. She absolutely couldn’t panic.

“Why do you keep asking questions you already know the answer to?” She stopped in front of him, her eyes full of sarcasm, as if it was overflowing.
“He Chen, do you really not know why I’m doing this?”

Seeing his stunned expression, Yun Shuning quietly let out a sigh of relief.

Let him be confused for a while—she needed time to think of how to continue weaving the lie.