"Hands up! Don't move!"
The moment Bei Yao regained consciousness, she heard the sharp command. She followed the sound, and as the dizziness in her head subsided, she saw eight men pointing batons at her.
The men were on high alert, as if ready to strike at any moment.
Bei Yao raised her hands.
The leader demanded sternly, "Who are you? How did you find this place?"
Bei Yao was equally puzzled. One moment she had been in her Marxism class, the next she found herself in this strange place.
Her heart raced as she glanced around, momentarily stunned.
Surrounding her was a vast sea of purple lavender flowers. The ground beneath her feet was soft, and when she looked down, she noticed a small patch of roses, seemingly freshly planted.
She stood at the highest point, and as realization dawned, a chill ran down her spine—she was standing on someone's grave.
Just ahead was a tombstone, but in her current predicament, facing several hostile men, Bei Yao didn't dare move.
She spoke up, "I don't know how I got here either. Can I leave right away?"
The men exchanged uneasy glances.
One of them said to his companions, "We can't let her go. This is forbidden ground. If anyone finds out someone broke in here, we're all dead. Yesterday was the anniversary of that lady's death, and he's still staying at the manor nearby..."
At the mention of this, the men shuddered involuntarily.
Hearing their discussion about silencing her, Bei Yao panicked and turned to run.
The men reacted swiftly, chasing her around like hawks hunting a chick, and after a few circles, they dragged her down.
A section of the rose garden was trampled. Though they had caught her, their faces were paler than Bei Yao's.
Damn, these were the flowers Satan had planted with his own hands.
With Bei Yao captured, a baton pressed against her cheek.
Someone said, "Kill her quickly, and see if we can replant the flowers."
Her arm throbbed with pain, and she was shocked by how casually these men discussed murder, as if it were as simple as eating a meal. Even if trespassing on someone's grave was wrong, it didn't warrant death—especially since she had appeared there unintentionally the moment she regained consciousness.
Facing an inexplicable death, she refused to accept it and glanced toward the tombstone.
If she had to die, she at least wanted to know whose grave she had offended.
It was late June, and the purple lavender sea swayed in the breeze.
She saw the photo on the tombstone.
Bei Yao froze—it was a face identical to hers. The girl in the photo smiled brightly, her almond-shaped eyes curved happily. Staring at her own likeness on the tombstone, she felt an overwhelming sense of absurdity.
Her eyes quickly scanned the inscription below.
The bold, forceful characters seemed to have been carved stroke by stroke, ancient yet simple: Tomb of My Wife, Bei Yao.
This was... her grave?
But there was no time to think—the baton was about to strike.
Gritting her teeth, Bei Yao shouted, "Wait! I can help you."
Seeing their disbelief, she hurriedly added, "I look exactly like the woman on the tombstone. Look for yourselves."
None of the men dared to look.
One of them growled, "Why believe her? Do you want to live or not?"
"Please don't," Bei Yao pleaded, on the verge of tears. "You've damaged this rose garden—you'll be punished too. Since I look just like her, your... your boss will surely show mercy."Fearful of the unknown punishment, someone mustered the courage to glance at the tombstone, then stared at Bei Yao in shock, looking as if they had seen a ghost.
"It's... it's exactly the same."
"What do we do now?"
"Should we take her to see that person first, as she said?"
In June, the modern villa built amidst a sea of flowers carried a distinct antique charm.
Bei Yao was handcuffed and pushed before a man wearing gold-rimmed glasses.
"Mr. Yu, this is the woman."
Yu Shangxian looked up, and his habitual fake smile froze when he saw Bei Yao. His expression darkened, growing serious.
He yanked Bei Yao closer.
After scrutinizing her face carefully, he sneered, "The people behind you have some nerve, daring to send you here after getting you plastic surgery to look like her. Don’t think you can gain an advantage without taking risks—save it. Someone tried this trick before, and he doesn’t like substitutes."
Shocked by the girl’s appearance, Yu Shangxian composed himself and added, "You didn’t even put in much effort. Judging by your age, you look at most like her when she was seventeen or eighteen. If she were still alive, she’d be twenty-six by now."
Bei Yao felt like crying but had no tears. First, she was mistaken for a tomb raider, and now she was being treated as a spy.
The whole way, she had been wondering, who would use the words "my beloved wife"? And in this world, it seemed she had been dead for a long time.
Her memories were incomplete; only that notebook recorded the future. These people didn’t seem like law-abiding citizens. Having already experienced something as unbelievable as rebirth, Bei Yao’s ability to adapt was quite high. She boldly guessed, "Is the master of this place Pei Chuan?"
Yu Shangxian’s expression turned peculiar.
The name Pei Chuan hadn’t been spoken by anyone in a long time.
After the "Rebirth" chip was deployed worldwide, everyone only knew of the notorious "Satan," and almost no one called him by his real name, Pei Chuan. Over time, even Yu Shangxian, as his right-hand man, had nearly forgotten that their leader Satan was once Pei Chuan.
Gazing at the young girl’s innocent and youthful face, a glint flickered in Yu Shangxian’s narrow eyes. The resemblance was uncanny—too much like that beautiful girl who died young. It wasn’t just the facial features; even more similar was the pure, clear light in her eyes.
Satan’s temper had grown increasingly worse over the past two years, and even Yu Shangxian sometimes tread carefully. While Yu Shangxian appreciated this dog-eat-dog, frenzied world, he didn’t want their leader to descend completely into a world-destroying madness.
Regardless of the girl’s origins, it was worth a try.
Ignoring Bei Yao’s question, Yu Shangxian shoved her forward.
"I’m warning you, no matter who sent you, when you see him later, you’d better not show any fear. Otherwise, humph, you’ll lose your life before completing your mission. And..." Yu Shangxian’s tone turned subtle, "Call him just like you did earlier."
Bei Yao asked, "Call him what? Pei Chuan?"
Yu Shangxian narrowed his eyes and nodded.
Bei Yao felt like a fledgling bird entering a new world. Everything seemed strange and bizarre, with humans seemingly lacking any restraints.
Yet, thinking of the "Satan" from the diary, her heart tightened with a mix of tension and complexity.
She had also been curious about what Pei Chuan from that past would eventually become. But now, on the verge of meeting him, she felt a timid reluctance.Ascending the spiral staircase, Yu Shangxian halted his steps: "Go in by yourself later."
Being an old fox himself, bringing this woman upstairs felt like carrying a ticking time bomb—there was no predicting how things would unfold from here. Although Yu Shangxian anticipated the changes "Bei Yao" might bring, his own life was equally important.
If Satan accepted her, all would be well; if not, he likely wouldn’t escape unscathed either.
Yu Shangxian gave her a push: "Hurry up."
He certainly wasn’t going in.
Bei Yao staggered slightly, her gaze fixed on the elegantly carved wooden door standing ajar. Her emotions were tangled, yet curiosity burned fiercely within her.
The Pei Chuan they spoke of seemed nothing like the one she knew.
Pausing briefly, she nudged the door open with her elbow.
The dimness of the room took a moment to adjust to. In the dappled light, her eyes immediately landed on the man reading a book.
She froze. The man sat in a wheelchair, a fallen-angel mask covering his face.
Hearing the noise, he frowned and lifted his gaze.
Their eyes met, and for a moment, the air grew still.
His breath hitched.
Bei Yao exhaled softly. Though she had been tense earlier, the sight of his dark, profound eyes instantly reassured her—this was still Pei Chuan, not so different from the one she knew.
The man pressed his lips together. The girl before him was only nineteen, her soft, long hair cascading down as if haloed by a faint glow.
She tilted her head slightly and slowly walked toward him.
In that short distance, Pei Chuan had countless ways to kill her. Yet his hands rested stiffly on the wheelchair, and to his own surprise, he allowed her to approach unchallenged.
Bei Yao reached out, the handcuffs still around her wrists, hesitantly moving toward the mask on his face.
Before she could remove it, he gripped the cold metal of the cuffs, stopping her.
His voice was low: "Bei Yao?"
Bei Yao nodded, a flicker of joy in her heart. Everyone along the way had treated her as an imposter, but her Pei Chuan had recognized her at a glance.
She replied clearly, "It's me."
His dark eyes watched her quietly, devoid of any emotion.
Bei Yao said, "I don’t know how to explain it, but I woke up on that grave. I have no idea what happened. Do you believe me?"
He remained silent.
Bei Yao grew anxious. "You don’t believe me?"
He closed his eyes briefly. "I believe you."
Bei Yao marveled at how readily he accepted her story—something she herself had struggled to come to terms with, yet he asked no questions and simply believed.
She recounted her origins, and Pei Chuan listened in silence throughout.
She summarized simply, "In my world, you’re in prison right now."
She stole a cautious glance at him, but the man before her seemed to be thriving here.
Bei Yao slumped in defeat. "I was supposed to visit you tomorrow, but I don’t know how I ended up here."
Pei Chuan averted his gaze. After a long pause, he said, "I’ll have someone remove your handcuffs."
He made a call, and soon Yu Shangxian and Gao Qiong arrived.
Seeing Bei Yao unharmed, Yu Shangxian raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Gao Qiong’s reaction was far more direct: "Holy shit! This is freaky."
Unfamiliar with them, Bei Yao instinctively moved closer to Pei Chuan.
Pei Chuan’s fingers stilled imperceptibly.Gao Qiong took a moment to process: "Satan, she's been dead for ages. How could she possibly appear here? She definitely has malicious intentions. Let's implant a chip in her—she'll tell us everything then."
Though Bei Yao didn't understand what "chip" meant, she clearly grasped the malice in Gao Qiong's words.
It seemed that ever since arriving in this inexplicable world, everyone wanted her dead.
Feeling insecure, she nervously crouched beside Pei Chuan and tentatively grasped his hand.
You won't listen to them, right?
Pei Chuan froze momentarily.
Witnessing this scene, Gao Qiong's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Holy shit! This unidentified woman with 'ulterior motives' has some fucking nerve!
Satan will definitely chop her hand off! Absolutely!
Pei Chuan's thumb gently stroked the small hand in his palm before he lifted his gaze to give Gao Qiong a warning look. "You've frightened her."
"..." A thousand curses raced through Gao Qiong's mind!
Bei Yao breathed a sigh of relief.
Pei Chuan released her hand. "Don't be afraid. They won't harm you. Your clothes are stained with mud—go change first."
Bei Yao followed someone away, glancing back repeatedly with every step.
Gao Qiong's face flushed crimson with anger as she whispered to Yu Shangxian: "Damn that scheming bitch! If I'd known this would work, I'd have fucking gotten plastic surgery to look like Bei Yao ages ago."
Yu Shangxian nearly burst out laughing but maintained a serious expression as he warned: "His temper has been unpredictable these past two years. You saw what just happened—surely you understand. We haven't seen him this gentle in many years. Whether that woman is real or fake doesn't matter—what's important is that we live comfortably."
Gao Qiong gritted her teeth so hard she felt like punching her own silicone breasts.
She had seen it—Satan touching that girl's hand. If she'd known the doppelganger trope would work, she would've gotten plastic surgery to become the boss's woman long ago.
Yu Shangxian gave a sinister chuckle. "Who knows how long she can last without exposing herself? Let's wait and enjoy the show."
However, the two waiting for entertainment soon had their faces metaphorically slapped.
Bei Yao changed into a dress and sat at the dining table.
It was June, and the air conditioning was on in the dining room, carrying a faint scent of lavender.
She and Pei Chuan were having dinner.
The long dining table was extravagantly set. She watched the man across the table eating in silence. He didn't remove his mask even while eating. Gao Qiong and Yu Shangxian stood nearby—it seemed he was accustomed to dining alone, and even when others were present, they merely stood guard.
Bei Yao now felt an extremely complicated sense of familiarity.
In this world full of people who wanted to kill the "fake Bei Yao," only Pei Chuan believed her. And though he seemed somewhat strange, she understood—he was her Pei Chuan.
The Pei Chuan who bought her Olympic tickets, carried her through campus paths, and turned himself in for her.
She moved her chair to sit beside him.
This was much better than staring across the long table.
When he looked up at her, she gave him an intimate smile.
Pei Chuan gazed at her strangely but said nothing.
Gao Qiong's mouth twitched.
She couldn't stand it anymore—this impostor wasn't being careful at all. Back when the real Bei Yao was brought over by Pei Chuan, their cold and distant atmosphere had been the normal way they interacted.In her memory, Bei Yao wasn't like this—that Bei Yao didn't like Satan, somewhat feared him, and while she felt gratitude, her demeanor was only respectful, never intimate. Satan's eyes often dimmed with sadness.
But this damn impostor was a careless, clingy little girl.
If you're going to imitate her, at least carry some of that reserved, polite respect!
She could both act coy and cling to people, and the perceptive Satan actually allowed everything without objection. Gao Qiong gritted her teeth so hard they nearly cracked—this bitch was definitely a scheming slut!
The impostor was picky with her food. By Satan's side, she didn't seem the least bit uncomfortable. Only occasionally would her big eyes glance at the two door guardians—Gao Qiong and Yu Shangxian.
Yu Shangxian found the girl lively and amusing, smiling at her. Gao Qiong, however, was not pleased and glared at her.
What are you so proud of? Once Satan's novelty wears off, you're done for.
Bei Yao didn't understand Gao Qiong's inner thoughts; she naturally felt no pride. Having arrived in an unfamiliar place, she realized she didn't know anyone except Pei Chuan.
This world seemed to have changed a lot—for instance, the people around him were faces she had never seen before.
That Yu Shangxian appeared refined but was cunning and sinister at heart. Gao Qiong also looked fierce.
Her intuition told her that the person sitting and eating with her was now the most terrifying one. But because he was Pei Chuan, Bei Yao wouldn't fear him.
After the meal, it was time for Yu Shangxian and Gao Qiong to report.
Gao Qiong kept her mouth shut.
She shot a sidelong glance at Bei Yao, her meaning clear—Satan, this is a spy, you're not going to let her listen in, are you?
The "little spy girl" sat on a small stool, bewildered, and met her gaze.
Yu Shangxian barely stifled a laugh.
He was smarter than Gao Qiong, choosing to report only on unimportant matters.
Then Yu Shangxian asked Pei Chuan, "Will you still be gardening tomorrow? I heard the flowerbed was disturbed by this young lady's appearance."
Hearing this, Bei Yao instinctively looked at him. She felt embarrassed—it wasn't intentional.
Pei Chuan said, "No need."
After the report was finished, Gao Qiong had a sudden thought and struck up a conversation with Bei Yao: "How old are you this year?"
Bei Yao replied, "Nineteen."
Gao Qiong grinned with delight: "Satan, she says she's nineteen!" Bei Yao was twenty-two when she died. This idiot! She's given herself away.
Pei Chuan's gaze fell on Bei Yao. Everyone was looking at her, and Bei Yao grew nervous—she was indeed nineteen, what was wrong with that?
Yu Shangxian raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly.
Pei Chuan said, "Alright, if you're done talking, go back to sleep." He paused, then added to Bei Yao, "Pick any empty room here to stay in. You can choose whichever one you like."
Bei Yao gritted her teeth. Not far away, there was still "her" grave, and everywhere there were people trying to implant some messy chips into her.
Bei Yao felt a strong sense of crisis. In her heart, she was his girlfriend and still very fond of him.
So when Pei Chuan pushed his wheelchair to leave, she tugged on his sleeve.
Pei Chuan turned back. The girl's eyes were moist as she asked uncertainly, "Can I stay with you?"
His heart trembled.He knew this was also Bei Yao, yet he had grown accustomed to her treating him with reverence. In the past, she wouldn't even speak intimately with him, and Pei Chuan had also become used to treating her with the same respectful courtesy as he had the previous Bei Yao. But this current version...
He gazed into her clear almond-shaped eyes, remaining silent for a long time.
Gao Qiong was about to jump up—she swore she could barely contain herself. The ages didn't even match up anymore! With such an excessive demand, she refused to believe Satan could still tolerate it!
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