Late at night, a bombshell of a trending topic exploded on Weibo.

#RisingStarZhuLinyunSpottedMeetingZhongFamilySecondSonZhongCeAtNight

Almost simultaneously, Zhu Linyun posted a cryptic Weibo update: a single red heart emoji, with no explanation. It seemed like a tacit confirmation of the rumored romance.

This turn of events overlapped eerily with what Cheng Susu had seen in her dreams.

On the villa’s terrace, a nearly empty bottle of red wine sat on a small glass table, and a tipped wine glass held the faint remnants of its contents. Cheng Susu reclined lazily on a deck chair, gazing at the starry sky with half-closed eyes. Her cheeks, usually pale and rosy, were tinged with an unnatural flush from the alcohol.

Though tipsy, she was far from incapacitated. The cool night breeze brushing past her face cleared her mind a little more.

She yawned languidly under the warm glow of the wall lamp. Her eyes darkened as she began to ponder the night’s trending topic.

The people involved in the gossip were all intricately tied to her life.

Zhong Ce, the second son of the Zhong family, was her new husband—or rather, her arranged-marriage partner. Both she and Zhong Ce had been offered up as pawns in a union orchestrated for the mutual benefit of the Cheng and Zhong families.

She didn’t know why Zhong Ce had agreed to marry her, but she was crystal clear on her own reasons: she wanted to escape the Cheng family.

It was a bitterly ironic situation.

Her desire to break free from the Cheng family was inextricably linked to the trending topic’s female lead, Zhu Linyun.

Zhu Linyun and Cheng Susu were swapped at birth—one the real daughter of the Cheng family, the other the granddaughter of the Cheng family’s nanny. Cheng Susu, as verified by a DNA test, was the true daughter, while Zhu Linyun was the granddaughter of Zhu Hui, the nanny. Years ago, Zhu Hui’s daughter Zhu Yan had died in childbirth on the same day as Mrs. Cheng gave birth. The baby’s father was unknown, and Zhu Hui, overwhelmed by grief and bitterness, swapped the two babies, driven by a yearning for the Cheng family’s wealth and status.

For the first 18 years of her life, Cheng Susu lived under the name “Zhu Susu,” while Zhu Linyun enjoyed the life of a Cheng family princess.

Fate eventually righted the wrong. Cheng Susu returned to the Cheng family as the biological daughter. She had naively thought she would finally experience parental love, but reality was cruel. She was deemed unfit for the Cheng family’s image—too common, too unrefined, a stark contrast to Zhu Linyun’s elegant demeanor. To avoid embarrassment, Mr. and Mrs. Cheng continued to favor Zhu Linyun.

Though Zhu Linyun had reverted to her original surname and left the Cheng household to reunite with her grandmother, Mr. and Mrs. Cheng still showered her with love and resources, even supporting her career in the entertainment industry. In stark contrast, Cheng Susu became a negligible presence in her own family.

She had long grown weary of this empty, loveless home. So, when the Cheng family proposed her marriage to Zhong Ce, she agreed without hesitation.

It had been over three months since Cheng Susu and Zhong Ce’s low-key wedding. Their married life was harmonious, albeit in a stage of mutual understanding. Both seemed intent on maintaining the façade of a good marriage.

If not for the dreams that blurred the line between illusion and reality, Cheng Susu might have imagined a peaceful life with Zhong Ce. But reality didn’t accommodate “what-ifs.”

Now, the media had indeed caught Zhong Ce and Zhu Linyun in an ambiguous situation. Zhu Linyun’s cryptic Weibo post confirmed the dream’s ominous trajectory.

If things continued this way, Cheng Susu foresaw her fate as the discarded first wife.

She narrowed her eyes, deep in thought, and decided to take matters into her own hands. She wasn’t ready to die a miserable death in some tragic soap opera ending. If necessary, she’d divorce Zhong Ce, take her share of the assets, and disappear.

Just then, a car’s headlights cut through the darkness.

Zhong Ce had returned from his rendezvous with Zhu Linyun.

Cheng Susu pressed her temples, pushing away the fuzziness in her head. Once her vision cleared, she got up, her hair a disheveled mess, and leisurely made her way downstairs.

Zhong Ce was being helped inside by his assistant, Xiao Gao.

Judging by his wobbly steps, he was drunk—a rare sight, considering Zhong Ce’s usual tolerance. Whatever had happened tonight must have been extraordinary.

Cheng Susu rolled her eyes and quickly took Zhong Ce from Xiao Gao’s hands. The moment Zhong Ce leaned on her, he clung to her like a snake, his hot skin pressing against hers. She stiffened, feeling his searing body heat.

Xiao Gao hesitated, his expression conflicted. “Madam…”

Cheng Susu waved him off before he could speak. She already knew what he wanted to say: excuses for his boss’s indiscretions. She had no interest in hearing them.

“Leave,” she said curtly.

Once the door closed, Zhong Ce, as if triggered, scooped her up and spun her around. Before she could react, he pinned her against the wall and kissed her hard.

Cheng Susu struggled, slapping his shoulder to no avail. Zhong Ce was out of control, muttering something about being drugged.

It was only after she carefully examined him that she realized he wasn’t drunk—he was under the influence of something else entirely.

The night spiraled into chaos, pushing both of them beyond their limits.

By morning, as sunlight streamed through the curtains, something felt profoundly wrong.

Zhong Ce woke up, only to discover something unimaginable. His body… wasn’t his own. And neither was Cheng Susu’s.

The two stared at each other, horrified.

Simultaneously, they screamed:
“AAAAAHHHHHHH!”