Chapter 1 Li Yue
The last time Li Yue was in this world, she killed the female lead without having seconds thoughts.
[Host, I would like to remind you that you are not allowed to kill the villain, the female lead and the male lead of this world.] The robotic voice echoed inside her head. Like an alarm clock, it kept on repeating its words until she acknowledged them.
"I know!" she hissed, clearly irritated.
[You said the same thing in the previous- ]
"The female lead tried to kill me!" Frowning, she continued walking down the stairs, the sound of her footsteps made by her high heeled boots echoed against the marble tile beneath her. "Are you saying that I should have let her kill me?"
[Negative. You are not allowed to kill anyone with your own hands.]
She sealed her lips, dissatisfied at the script the voice always followed every time they argued.
"Stop disturbing me." She eyed the huge family portrait which sat in between two huge statues her parents got from Rome.
In this world, she was in possession of the body of a woman named Li Yue, the beautiful secondary female lead who will die a miserable death because of her stupid obsession. Such thoughts were swirling in her mind as she walked down the perfectly twisted spiral stair, its smooth banister guiding her towards the huge living room of the mansion.
"Young miss," A voice called out from behind her
"Butler Zhi," she nodded at the man in his sixties who had served her family before she was even born.
"Where are they?" she asked.
"I would not advise meeting— "Seeing the meaningful smile on her face, the butler halted and sighed. "They are at the back, in the garden."
"Wonderful." She beamed a beautiful smile at him.
Li Yue and the female protagonist of this world, Li Weiwei, were switched at birth. And today would be the day the rich Li Family would confirm this with the help of a DNA test. The test which proved that they were raising the wrong daughter after all.
In the original timeline, Li Yue never witnessed this meeting as she was dead drunk the previous night; she spent the day cooped up in her bed, recovering from intense hangover.
"Young miss, I don"t think this is a good idea." She heard the butler"s aged voice behind her.
"Why not?" she asked as a cold gush of wind greeted her. Surprised, she instinctively took a step back before s.h.i.+vering and closed the door almost immediately.
"It"s too cold. Why are they even outside?" Despite wearing a turtleneck sweater dress paired with tights and comfortable boots, the bitter onslaught of the cold January still licked her skin, numbing her face and extremities.
The butler did not respond, instead, he handed her a knee-length velvet coat to help her with the cold.
"Thank you, Zhi." Beaming, she immediately covered herself and walked out of the mansion.
"I heard that they are meeting the real heiress today?"
It was not a secret that she had lost her position as the Li Family"s heiress. In fact, her grandmother, the matriarch of the family, always reminded everyone of this fact. Her grandmother always told her of how it all made sense then. Li Yue does not look anything like members of the Li Family. She was too pale, the shade of her brown eyes was too light and even her hair colour was lighter than the Li Family"s usual charcoal black hair.
"Young miss— "
"Zhi," she interrupted him. Li Yue did not miss the worry in the eyes of the butler. "Don"t worry. My bags are already packed." She smiled. "Meeting her would not affect me in any way."
"Young miss, your father told you not to leave the mansion. Why would you— "
She shook her head as she continued treading towards the garden, interrupting the butler. "It"s for my own peace of mind."
In the original timeline, Li Yue never left the mansion and witnessed the changes in the way her parents treated her take place. From the way they directed cold gazes at her to their clearly deteriorating relations.h.i.+ps, Li Yue could only watch as reality hit her like the solid hit of a brick to the face.
She was no longer favored. That was the harsh and cold truth the original Li Yue refused to accept.
A heavy sigh escaped the old butler"s lips. "Then… I will help you bring them downstairs."
"Hmmm. Thank you."
Everyone knew of how she never changed her mind once she is set on something. Trying to convince her otherwise would be useless. She heard the butler leave her side as the beautiful garden ornate with various flowers, all of which blossomed in winter welcomed her. Smiling, she eyed the outdoor seating in the middle of the flower garden. Its bamboo canopy shone against the sun, making it look even more relaxing, alluring even. To add to its organic feel, the seating inside was made of wood which complemented the craggy volcanic rock that was used as a coffee table in the middle.
"Yue!" surprised flashed in her adoptive mother"s eyes. She awkwardly looked at the three people sitting to her opposite.
"Mother." She smiled at Tang Ruyi. "It"s cold out here. Would you like me to ask the servants to bring some hot drinks for everyone?" She turned her light brown eyes at the two older people sitting opposite to her parents. The longing in their eyes were apparent. Slowly her gaze turned towards the young woman sitting in between them. As expected, Li Weiwei looked just like Li Gue, the man who raised Li Yue as his daughter.
"Please… please… don"t worry. We already asked someone to bring it for us." Her adoptive mother said. "I — um— we are having an important conversation, would you mind waiting for us inside?"
"Li Yue, go inside. It"s cold out here." Her adoptive father, Li Gue added, his usually stern voice was undeniably softer this time. She wondered if this was because of Li Weiwei"s presence.
"I"m here to tell you that I"m going to stay in an apartment outside of the university. I"ve already packed my luggage and my ride is currently waiting outside. I thought I should just come here to let you know that I am leaving."
She did not miss the changes apparent in her parent"s facial expressions.
"You— why would you leave?"Tang Ruyi asked, confusion written all over her face.
"I"ve decided to give everyone time to adjust." She said in a firm tone.
She then met the eyes of the woman sitting opposite to her mother. A small smile broke into Li Yue"s face. While these people are technically her biological family, she was not very open to the idea of getting to know them. Of course, this was because she already knew that they only wanted to squeeze the money out of her.
In the original timeline, Li Yue ran to her real family when she finally accepted the fact that she had lost the favor of the Li Family. That was her biggest mistake.
"Li Yue…" Li Gue"s stern gaze met hers. However instead of quivering under the man"s stare, she smiled a beautiful smile.
"I will see you soon father." She uttered and did not wait for anyone to react. She then walked out of the garden under everyone"s surprised gaze. In this world, her mission is to find and save the villain from the fate of falling madly in love with the female lead. Why would she waste her time a.s.sociating herself with these people?