Chapter 1

It was September, ten o’clock in the evening. The moon quietly hung high in the sky, bright and beautiful, while a gentle breeze carried the cool, sweet fragrance of osmanthus flowers.

In Hongxing Village under the Xiaomei Mountain Commune, every household had already extinguished their lamps. Life was hard for the villagers, and no one was willing to waste lamp oil. At this hour, even if they could not sleep, they would not light their lamps.

Yet at this moment, a sudden light flared in the room at the west end of the village, the place where Educated Youth Lin lived.

A slender, delicate woman was dragged out of the room, only to be surrounded and beaten at the doorway. The people shouted filthy curses as they struck her.

“Shameless whore! Sneaking into Educated Youth Lin’s room in the middle of the night—have you no shame?”

“Slut who flirts with every man! How could Guo’an ever fall for a cheap woman like you?”

“Beat her to death, beat her to death! A woman this shameless doesn’t deserve to live!”

Fists rained down on Gu Yinyin like a violent storm. She had no time to explain or fight back before a mouthful of blood burst from her lips, and she fainted on the ground.

Only then did the crowd stop. Yet Gu Yinyin’s mother-in-law, Li Ailian, still cursed bitterly: “Dead? Impossible! She must be pretending!”

Gu Yinyin’s head throbbed so violently it felt as though it would split open. She lay motionless for a long while before slowly opening her eyes. She stared blankly at the people around her, yet in her mind it felt as though countless pieces of information were being forcibly poured in.

She had originally been a senior high school graduate, eighteen years old this year. She had just received her exam results: first place in the entire county. Getting into the country’s best university posed no problem at all. But when she went hiking with her best friend to celebrate, she was pushed down the mountain.

Just like that, she had entered the world of a period novel, becoming the character who shared her name—Gu Yinyin.

Inwardly, Gu Yinyin gnashed her teeth and cursed her best friend, Mei Ling. But then she realized—with shock—that in this novel, the original owner’s best friend was also named Mei Ling.

In the book, the original Gu Yinyin had been instigated by Mei Ling to believe wholeheartedly that her husband, Shen Guo’an, had a mistress outside and was raising an illegitimate child. In a fit of rage, she went running into Educated Youth Lin’s bed, because Mei Ling had told her that Educated Youth Lin liked her very much, often asked after her through Mei Ling, and even said he was willing to take Gu Yinyin away from this impoverished countryside to live a good life in the city…

Beautiful as a flower yet foolish to the core, the original Gu Yinyin, swept up in emotion, truly went to find Educated Youth Lin in the middle of the night. But just as she had taken off her outer clothing and before she could even crawl into his bed, Mei Ling brought along Gu Yinyin’s mother-in-law, her husband’s younger sisters and brothers, as well as Educated Youth Lin’s destined partner, Mei Qing. They caught her red-handed, showering her with abuse and beating her mercilessly.

Before everyone’s eyes, the original Gu Yinyin had no way to deny it. Very soon, the Shen family drove her out of the household under the pretext that she was a jinx. She was not allowed to see her two children again. Her maiden family refused to take her in either. With nowhere left to turn, Gu Yinyin threw herself into the river.

After her death, the male lead, Educated Youth Lin, and the female lead, Mei Qing, lived harmoniously together, striving toward prosperity, eventually returning to the city and making a fortune.

As for Gu Yinyin’s husband and children, they, too, gained both promotion and wealth. Mei Ling, by cozying up to Gu Yinyin’s mother-in-law for decades under the guise of being Gu Yinyin’s best friend, succeeded in becoming Shen Guo’an’s wife and the children’s stepmother. Though emotionally she was never accepted by Gu Yinyin’s husband and children, she nevertheless enjoyed every material benefit.

When the children mentioned Mei Ling, they would politely call her “Aunt Mei.” But whenever their mother, Gu Yinyin, was brought up, they would frown and snort: 

……

Gu Yinyin had not expected that the original owner had not even lived long enough to throw herself into the river. After being beaten, she had simply died on the spot. That was the only reason Gu Yinyin was able to cross over.

Yet in her mind there inexplicably existed a belief—that the original owner also belonged to her, as if she were another version of herself from a parallel world.

Still, wasn’t this just far too cowardly and muddle-headed?

Her whole body ached, and she lay motionless on the ground.

Her sister-in-law, Shen Meijuan, leaned in and asked: “Our eldest sister-in-law! Did you really have an affair with Educated Youth Lin? What were you doing in his house in the middle of the night?”

Then came her mother-in-law’s voice, gritting through her teeth: “What is there to deny? Someone saw her going in with their own eyes! This little whore! Shameless thing! Doing such filthy deeds while my son isn’t even at home! Gu Yinyin, you slut!”

Just hearing that voice, Gu Yinyin could already picture how sharp-tongued and venomous the woman must look. She had only just graduated from high school, spending most of her days in school, where had she ever encountered people like this?

But Gu Yinyin was a steady person. She believed that panic never helped; only calmness in the face of crisis could lead to a way out.

She closed her eyes, then opened them again, recalling what the book had written about the next part of this scene.

In just a moment, her so-called best friend Mei Ling would feign surprise and ask: Yinyin, why are you here?

Then she would turn to look at Educated Youth Lin and say: Educated Youth Lin, isn’t that tea mug Yinyin’s? How come it’s here with you? Don’t tell me you two have already gotten together? Oh heavens! That tea mug was sent back by her husband!

Just with those few words, Mei Ling would provoke the Shen family into laying into Gu Yinyin even harder, leaving her no chance to explain a single thing.

Gu Yinyin gritted her teeth and made up her mind. She opened her eyes and fixed them on Educated Youth Lin, who stood at the doorway, holding a tea mug in his hand. She climbed to her feet, strode over, and snatched the mug straight from his grasp. Then, grabbing a hoe propped near the doorway, she steadied herself by leaning on it.

Her insides were trembling violently, but if she wanted to live, she had to remain calm right now.

At the doorway stood many people: members of the Shen family, who had come to question her; Mei Ling, who was scheming for her downfall; Mei Qing, who was waiting to reap the benefit; and villagers, gathered simply to watch the spectacle.

As for who exactly had beaten her just now, she had no way of knowing.

Li Ailian, her mother-in-law, lunged forward, trying to slap Gu Yinyin across the face again. But before she could get close, Gu Yinyin swung the hoe up, shouting angrily: “What are you doing!”

With the hoe blocking her, Gu Yinyin avoided the blow. Li Ailian and her daughter Shen Meijuan instantly erupted in curses, but Gu Yinyin roared back: “Shut up! Whoever dares curse me again, I’ll hack them to death!”

She raised the hoe high and smashed it down onto a brick on the ground. The brick shattered into two pieces instantly. At last, both Li Ailian and Shen Meijuan fell silent.

The onlookers were all stunned. The usually quiet, submissive Gu Yinyin—who had always been at the mercy of her mother-in-law—how had she suddenly changed so completely?

Perhaps she had been caught in adultery and then beaten, so now she was lashing out in shame and anger?

Mei Ling bit her lip. Standing among the crowd, she gazed at Gu Yinyin’s beautiful face. Her mind wandered back to the events of her previous life: after Gu Yinyin had married Shen Guo’an, the two of them lived in harmony. More than ten years later, when Shen Guo’an had amassed wealth enough to rival a nation, Gu Yinyin still looked as youthful and radiant as a twenty-year-old girl. It could be said that under Shen Guo’an’s doting, Gu Yinyin had lived her entire life without ever suffering much hardship.

And what about herself? As Gu Yinyin’s so-called best friend, all she had received was a modest apartment in the city, nothing compared to Gu Yinyin’s name being tied to over a dozen villas—sea-view homes, lake-view homes, river-view homes, everything one could imagine. If Gu Yinyin had not been so stingy, if she had casually given her just one villa, she would not have lived so miserably.

Gu Yinyin had once been pampered by Shen Guo’an like a little princess, while Mei Ling’s husband would occasionally beat her. Gu Yinyin had even persuaded her to divorce him. Divorce—how disgraceful would that be? The very thought made Mei Ling seethe with hatred. In her eyes, she must have been nothing but a laughingstock to Gu Yinyin!

In this life, she would not allow Gu Yinyin to live so well. From the very beginning, she had even competed with Gu Yinyin for Shen Guo’an’s hand in marriage. Unfortunately, Shen Guo’an had not cared for Mei Ling, and in the end it was Gu Yinyin who married him.

But that did not matter. Mei Ling played the role of the caring friend, using the excuse of “it’s for your own good” to drive a wedge between Gu Yinyin and Shen Guo’an. And at present, the results looked quite promising.

She stepped forward, her face full of anxious concern. “Yinyin, why are you in Educated Youth Lin’s house so late at night? Don’t tell me you really… ai! You’re far too foolish!”

Gu Yinyin looked at her with mocking disdain. Suddenly, she raised the cup in her hand and said loudly: “You want to know why I came here? I came to take back my cup! The new cup my husband sent me—why is it in Educated Youth Lin’s house? Educated Youth Lin, would you care to explain?”

She recalled the book’s description. As the male protagonist, Educated Youth Lin valued his reputation highly. He should, in theory, tell the truth.

Educated Youth Lin glanced at them, realization dawning in his heart. He felt awkward and cleared his throat. “This cup was given to me by Mei Ling. She said it was from her sister, Mei Qing.”

Mei Qing immediately stepped forward. “I never gave it to you! Lingling, what is going on here?”

Mei Ling froze, momentarily caught off guard. She had not expected Gu Yinyin to even have the courage to fight back. With her usual temperament, Gu Yinyin should never have dared to refute anything.

“Yinyin, then perhaps I remembered it wrong? I recall you asked me to give the cup to Educated Youth Lin, but you didn’t want others to know, so I borrowed my sister’s name. Ai… forget it, just treat it as my mistake. Yinyin, next time I really can’t help you. Look at this situation… sigh, forget it, forget it.”

Her words immediately reignited the fury of Gu Yinyin’s mother-in-law and sisters-in-law, who were now convinced beyond doubt that Gu Yinyin had an affair with Educated Youth Lin.

But the next second, to everyone’s shock, Gu Yinyin gathered all her strength and slapped Mei Ling hard across the face.

The crowd froze. Gu Yinyin, slender and graceful, who had always spoken in such a soft and gentle tone—who could have imagined she could strike with such force?

Mei Ling was knocked to the ground, utterly unprepared. She stared at Gu Yinyin in shock, a faint fear creeping into her heart.

Gu Yinyin’s gaze was ice-cold. “Speak like a human being.”

Whether it was the Mei Ling she had known in her previous life or the one before her now, both were detestable beyond words. And the fact that they looked exactly the same only made Gu Yinyin regret that her slap had not been even harder.

Mei Ling clenched her teeth. There was no way she could admit fault, so she could only say: “I took it by mistake.”

Gu Yinyin stepped forward, grabbed her by the collar, and demanded: “Hmm? Took it by mistake?”

Mei Ling’s cheek still burned, panic flickering in her heart. She could only stammer out an apology: “I’m sorry, Yinyin, it was my fault. I took your cup and gave it to Educated Youth Lin under my sister’s name, thinking it would help their relationship. Consider it borrowed from you—I planned to return it once I had money. I was muddle-headed, it’s my fault. Don’t be angry. Have you forgotten how good I’ve been to you? Between us, do we really need to fuss over these things?”

Her shameless expression was exactly the same as that of the so-called best friend from Gu Yinyin’s past life, making her loathing surge to the extreme.

Gu Yinyin curved her lips in a cold smile. “Am I your father or your mother, that I shouldn’t fuss over these things? So I should let you smear filth on me as you please? If I hadn’t reacted quickly today, I would already be beaten to death by now. Mei Ling, oh Mei Ling, you really are my good sister. No need to delay—let’s settle our accounts today.”

Gu Yinyin closed her eyes slightly in thought, then opened them again. “Over these years, you’ve borrowed so many things from me that I can hardly keep track anymore. The watch Guo’an bought for me, the leather shoes, the new clothes, the money he sent back, the eggs and cured meat from my maiden family—and even those earrings on your ears, the hairpin in your hair, the trousers you’re wearing right now, aren’t they all mine? You—return them to me right here, right now!”