A Decision to Survive

Li Yue sat at the small desk in Song Rui's apartment, staring at the dim glow of the laptop screen. The artificial light cast an eerie glow on her face—Song Rui's face.

The tiny cursor blinked on the screen, waiting for her to type something.

But her hands remained frozen over the keyboard.

Her mind was too full.

Too full of anger.

Too full of determination.

The reality of her situation had settled in. She wasn't just lost in another time—she was trapped in a world that wasn't hers.

She had spent days panicking.

She had spent nights desperate to return.

But tonight—

Tonight, something changed.

Tonight, she made a choice.

If she was stuck here, if there was no easy way back, then she would not be weak.

She would survive.

And she would not let Lin Cheng win.

She had met him in this world.

Lin Cheng.

He was no longer a warlord, no longer the man who had been feared in the past.

Instead, here, he was something else entirely—

A famous actor.

A beloved celebrity, adored by millions.

But Li Yue had seen something beneath that charming smile.

Something dark.

Something familiar.

She knew a man like that could not be trusted. A man who wore a mask so well, that people mistook him for something good.

Just like before, Lin Cheng was dangerous.

He may have changed his name, his world, and his methods, but he was still the same underneath.

A predator.

A liar.

And she refused to let herself become his prey.

Not in this lifetime.

Not in any lifetime.

She looked at her reflection in the dark window.

Song Rui's reflection.

The woman staring back at her was not a princess.

She did not wear silk robes.

She had no attendants, no palace, no kingdom.

She was just a journalist.

A nobody.

But even so, Song Rui had power in this world.

She had a voice.

She had influence.

And most importantly—she had been hunting Lin Cheng before all of this happened.

That meant something.

Maybe… maybe this was not just a cruel accident.

Maybe this was fate.

Maybe she had been sent here to finish what Song Rui started.

Maybe this was a second chance.

A chance to bring Lin Cheng down.

Not with swords.

Not with blood.

But with something far more powerful in this world—

The truth.

Li Yue closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, hoping to still the trembling of her hands.

But the past clawed at her mind, refusing to let go.

She could still feel the suffocating weight of the ceremonial silk robe, the golden embroidery shining in the candlelight.

The heavy perfume of burning incense in the palace halls.

The cold, sharp betrayal in Lin Cheng's eyes.

Her dear friend—no, her deceiver—gripping the hilt of his sword as he knelt before her, voice thick with false regret.

"Forgive me, Your Highness."

"This is bigger than both of us."

She had trusted him.

And for that, she had been used—her life reduced to nothing but a strategic move in a war she never wanted.

She remembered the bitter taste of the poison.

The way the world blurred and vanished around her.

And then—

This.

Waking up here.

As someone else.

In a world that had long forgotten her kingdom, her people, and her pain.

She was supposed to be gone.

She was supposed to be dead.

But she wasn't.

And she would make sure Lin Cheng regretted ever thinking she would disappear so easily.

Li Yue turned back to the laptop.

There were files open—Song Rui's notes, reports, and saved articles.

She skimmed through them, her heart pounding.

A list of allegations against Lin Cheng.

Bribery. Blackmail. Suspicious disappearances of those who opposed him.

Song Rui had been getting close to something.

That meant she had been a threat.

Which meant—

Lin Cheng may have had something to do with their body swap.

Li Yue clenched her jaw.

If she couldn't return home yet if she couldn't reclaim her true identity—

Then she would live as Song Rui.

And she would finish what she started.

Lin Cheng thought he had won.

But he had no idea who he was dealing with.

The next morning, Li Yue forced herself to do something she had avoided since waking up in this body.

She left the apartment.

The city was loud. Too loud.

The sounds of metal beasts—cars, as she had learned—roared down the streets, their horns blaring. The air smelled of oil and food, an odd mix of flavors that made her dizzy.

People moved past her in a blur, speaking a language she only partially understood, wearing clothing that still felt strange against her skin.

She was an outsider in every sense of the word.

But she refused to be lost.

She had spent her entire life as a pawn in political games she could never win.

Not anymore.

She moved forward, one step at a time, memorizing the streets, the buildings, the paths.

Learning how this world worked.

If she was going to bring Lin Cheng down, she needed to know everything about the world she was fighting in.

She wouldn't let herself be weak.

That night, Li Yue returned to Song Rui's apartment, exhausted but determined.

She stood by the window, looking out over the glowing city.

This world was foreign.

But not impossible.

She had learned to survive once before.

She could do it again.

And so, as she gazed out at the lights below, she made a vow.

"You tried to take everything from me in my world, Lin Cheng."

"But I will take everything from you in this one."

And this time, she would not lose.