Friday morning dawned bright and crisp. The golden rays crept through the long windows of the warehouse and Feng Xueling stirred under the light blanket she slept in. It was the morning of the most important day of her rebirth; the day when the monthly exam she had bet on with Zhang Qiqi was conducted, and later in the evening, it would be the Dragon Gate Championship she had been 'invited' to.
Xueling yawned and sat up. In her last life, today had been just another day of the monthly test. She had, like usual failed and proven herself less than Xueyao, hoping her 'family' would accept her if she behaved like they expected. And ofcourse she'd never beaten up anyone in her highschool days in her last life, so the of course she hadn't been 'invited' to Dragon Gate. But in this life... Xueling looked around at the warehouse she had quickly made her home. Sunlight gleamed across the polished training mats. A few data monitors blinked softly in standby mode beside the punching bag. Weighted ropes coiled neatly near the wall, and the faint metallic scent of oil mixed with morning air. Every corner spoke of discipline, solitude, and purpose.
Xueling jumped out of bed and walked towards the full length mirror. There was no trace of the grey make up powder anywhere. Inky black hair cascaded like silk down to her waist, framing a small oval face and her slender frame. It made her porcelain white skin shine with pear like luster, her red lips and back eyes adding to her allure. The small plum blossom shaped mark on her right chest, just under the neckline, glowed like ruby, adding a seductive charm. If anyone else were to look at her, they would be floored by the sheer beauty of Feng Xueling.it was the kind of beauty that would launch wars, that people would kill for. But Xueling gazed unmoved at her reflection started putting on her 'grey powder' make up with practiced hands. Her mind was entirely on the big day ahead. The upcoming monthly test was ofcourse, a piece of cake. She could beat Zhang Qiqi with her eyes closed. The Dragon Gate Championship was entirely another thing…
Why had they been insistent on inviting her to the Championship? Because she beat up some street thugs? Hardly likely. Alley fights happened everyday and wouldn't make a blimp on the Dragon Gate's radar. Her mind worked furiously… the Chen family's trail behind the viral hype, Mr Chen at school asking her about Haicheng…. Her hands paused. Could it be about that night in Haicheng?
In both her lives combined, Feng Xueling barely remembered anything about that fateful summer trip to Haicheng. During their summer break last year, the entire class had gone on a 'celebrate-the-finals' trip. The Feng family, to keep up appearances of being 'good to both sisters' had ofcoruse agreed to send both her and Xueyao. The plan was for the class to hike up the mountain, camp there overnight, and come back down the next day. She remembered climbing up the mountain that morning. she thought she heard something near the end of the trail but when she went to check it out, she felt someone push her from behind. She remembered the panic of the fall, but that was all.
Xiaoman had later told her that she was found only the next afternoon, almost hypothermic from the rain and the cold, with a huge gash on her back. She had been gone for the entire day of the hike, that night, and a good part of the next day too. The teachers had tried to look for her, but the rain came pouring down and it was impossible for them to continue. When the Feng family had been contacted, they had ofcourse refused to send out a professional search and rescue saying she was only "fooling around" and would be back soon. When Xueling woke up, she found her whole body bruised and aching. Apart from the gash on her back, one of her shoulders had dislocated and her nails had been scraped raw. The doctors had suspected that she had survived an animal attack but try as she might, she couldn't remember a single thing about that night. She had shared her suspicion that she had been pushed and had tried to get someone to listen to her and investigate, but the Feng family had shut that down.
In her past life that missing memory of the night Haicheng had never come back to haunt her. But this time, its highly likely that it was because of that missing day and night in her memory, that she was targeted by dragon gate. If that was really the case, those people only suspected her, Feng Xueling, of being there that night. No way could she reveal her identity as the unloved daughter in the Feng family. She needed a disguise that would give her the ability to investigate that night, without drawing attention to her in real life.
Xuelings eyes roved around the warehouse as she lost in thought. Suddenly, they came to rest upon a dark blue silk scarf.
The scarf.
Deep blue, embroidered with crimson dragons swirling through clouds of silver thread. The night she'd been found, she'd been clutching it in her fist. Everyone had assumed it was hers — a hiking accessory, nothing more. But she'd never owned it. The silk was too fine, too rare, too untouched by time for a mountain storm's survivor.
Her pulse quickened as she lifted it. Smooth. Cool. Unnaturally vibrant.
So this was the only clue she had left from that night.
If they wanted to find the girl from Haicheng… maybe it was time to give them what they wanted.
By the time Feng Xueling reached the gates of Jinhai No. 1 High, the campus was already thrumming with noise. The air smelled faintly of chalk dust, wet concrete, and the breakfast buns being sold outside the canteen.Clusters of students whispered along the corridor; every conversation circled the same topic.
"The showdown's today.""Zhang Qiqi versus Feng Xueling!""I heard they even made a bet.""Loser has to knowtow and leave the school?""Yeah. Poor Xueling—she's doomed."
Xueling's shoes clicked softly against the floor as she walked past. The glances that followed her were a mix of curiosity, pity, and schadenfreude.She neither hurried nor slowed, her expression unreadable beneath her plain glasses.
Inside Class 3-A, the buzz only grew louder when she appeared at the door.Qiqi sat on her desk like a queen holding court, surrounded by hangers-on, her manicured fingers twirling a pink pen. Xueyao was beside her, pretending restraint but smiling just enough to let everyone see her confidence in the outcome.
"Look who finally showed up," Qiqi drawled, sliding off the desk. "You didn't run away after all."
Xiaoman, already at her seat, shot Qiqi a glare. "Why would she run? You're the one who looks nervous, Qiqi. Sweating already?"
The crowd tittered. Qiqi's smile tightened. "Cute. Let's see if you're still laughing when the marks are out."She turned toward Xueling, eyes glittering with provocation. "Ready to eat your words?"
Xueling set her bag down, took out her pens with slow, deliberate calm, and replied, "I'm always ready."
Before Qiqi could retort, the bell clanged and their homeroom teacher, Mr. Li, strode in carrying a thick stack of exam papers.
"All right, settle down," he barked. "Find your seats. Three hours. No talking, no notes, no excuses. Begin when I say."
The room quieted instantly.
Xueling didn't move to her usual place at the back. Instead, she walked straight to the first row—directly under the twin surveillance cameras mounted on the ceiling.
Mr. Li looked up, frowning. "Feng Xueling, that's not your assigned seat."
"I know," she said calmly, her voice even but carrying across the room. "I'd like to sit here today."
A murmur ran through the class. Qiqi leaned back in her chair with a loud, mocking laugh."Oh? Sitting up front now? What's the matter—trying to cheat more efficiently?"
A ripple of snickers followed.
"Hmmph! Have you ever seen anyone cheating when seated right up at the front?" said Xioman.
Mr. Li scowled. "That's enough, Zhang Qiqi. Xueling, go back to your seat."
But Xueling didn't budge. "Sir," she said, lifting her eyes, "since there's been… talk about this test, I'd rather make sure everyone can see what I do. That way, no one can say I cheated when I win."
The boldness of it stunned the class into silence.
Mr. Li hesitated, his stern façade slipping for just a moment. The room was too still; every student waited to see what he would do. Then he cleared his throat and looked away. "Fine. Sit wherever you want. But don't say I didn't warn you if you distract yourself."
"I won't," said Xueling.
She pulled out her pens, lined them up neatly, and sat down—calm, composed, right beneath the unblinking red light of the surveillance camera.
Qiqi's smile had gone brittle. "You're really putting on a show today," she muttered.
Xueling didn't even look at her. "Then enjoy the performance."
The bell rang.
Mr. Li began distributing the papers. "That's it! No talking, no looking around, and absolutely no early exits. Begin."
The rustle of papers filled the room like the flutter of wings.
The first problem was a wall of text: intricate, multi-step, meant to break the rhythm of even the top students. But Xueling's pen moved without hesitation, her wrist loose, her lines flowing like water.
One question, two, three.
Where others paused, she saw solutions unfolding like blooming patterns in her head. Her expression stayed serene, her breathing steady.
Zhang Qiqi twirled her pen between her fingers as Mr. Li dropped the thick stack of exam papers on the desk in front. The last test before the college entrance exams.Her classmates called it the "Reality Check." The teachers had promised a brutal paper — something that would "remind them to take their final month seriously."
She smirked. Let them tremble. I'll still be at the top.
But when the paper landed on her desk and she flipped it open, her stomach dropped.Dense, sprawling equations. Multi-layered logic proofs. A hybrid of math and physics that seemed designed to mock her confidence.
What the hell is this?
She forced herself to breathe. The first few questions weren't impossible — just longer than expected. She began scribbling furiously, flipping between formulas in her memory. But halfway through, her rhythm faltered. Her numbers weren't aligning. One step wrong, and the entire sequence collapsed.
Panic nipped at her.
And then — movement.From the front row, she caught sight of Feng Xueling.
That girl sat utterly still, her pen gliding across the page like calligraphy. No hesitation. No scratching out. Her expression was unreadable, calm in a way that made Qiqi's skin prickle.
What the hell is she doing? Showing off? Pretending to understand?
Qiqi bent her head lower, pushing harder. Her handwriting grew messier. The sound of her pen scratching furiously across paper filled her ears. But the more she rushed, the worse it got. Every time she peeked up, Xueling had already turned another page.
By the forty-minute mark, the whispers had started."She's already halfway done.""Is she serious?"
Mr. Li's steps echoed through the aisles. The camera's red light blinked silently over Xueling's head. She sat right beneath it, as if daring the whole world to catch her cheating — and yet she never once looked up.
Qiqi's pulse hammered in her throat.
Her eyes darted from her half-finished paper to Xueling's still, composed silhouette. The contrast made her teeth ache.
The harder she tried, the clearer it became — she couldn't keep up. The problems were too abstract, the logic too twisted. She had to reread every line twice just to understand the phrasing. The teachers had done it deliberately — this was a test meant to crush them before the final stretch.
And yet… Xueling didn't look crushed.
When Xueling finally put her pen down after an hour, folding her hands neatly on the desk, Qiqi's jaw clenched so tightly it hurt.
Arrogant bitch, she thought, grinding out another equation that refused to balance. Let's see how smug you are when the scores come out.
But deep down, a splinter of doubt had already taken root — a tiny, humiliating crack in her certainty that refused to be ignored.
When Xueling laid her pen down, the clock on the wall read 10:01 a.m.
A low gasp came from somewhere in the back. Mr. Li, pacing between rows, blinked. "Feng Xueling? You're… done?"
"Yes, sir."
He walked over, skeptical. "You understand you can't leave early, right?"
"I know," she said, sliding her answer sheet forward. "I'll wait."
And so she did.
For the next two hours, she sat perfectly still under the camera's gaze, eyes half-lidded, the faintest curve of a smile on her lips as her classmates squirmed.
Every few minutes, Qiqi would steal a glance at her—then away again, frustration mounting like static.
By the time the final bell rang, half the class hadn't finished.
"Time's up," Mr. Li announced. "Pens down."
As soon as Mr.Li collected the papers, tension that had been thick all morning finally cracked open, dissolving into chatter and laughter. Students stretched, groaned, and shuffled their papers together — some relieved, others pale from the beating the test had dealt.
The monthly exam was infamous for being brutal, but this one had outdone itself. Designed to crush overconfidence and remind everyone of how far they still had to go before the college entrance exams, it had left even the top students shaken.
Except, of course, for Feng Xueling.
She quietly stacked her pens, gathered her things, and prepared to leave like usual.
"She really finished early.""Under the cameras too…""Either she's insane or she's a genius."
Qiqi pushed back her chair, face dark. "Don't get carried away," she snapped at the murmuring crowd. "We'll see the results soon enough."
But as Xueling stood and brushed past her, she said quietly, "Yes, we will."
Her tone wasn't smug—it was simple fact.
And that made it worse.
By the time Xueling and Xiaoman reached the canteen, the lunchtime rush was in full swing. The air was thick with the smell of fried dumplings, soy broth, and chatter. Tables were crowded with students rehashing the test — arguing over question 14, complaining about the final physics problem, making half-serious vows to burn their textbooks.
Xiaoman plunked her tray down at a corner table and sighed dramatically. "I swear, that paper was an execution notice. Did you see the last two problems? What kind of sadist writes that?"
Xueling smiled faintly, her chopsticks pausing over her rice. "You did fine. You got through almost all the questions this time."
"Ha! Almost isn't enough," Xiaoman said, slumping forward. "Anyway, I'm sure you did well. You were terrifyingly calm."
Before Xueling could reply, a musical laugh floated from the next table — light, practiced, sweet.
"Calm?" Xueyao's voice carried easily over the canteen's noise. "That's one way to describe someone who's already given up."
The laughter from her little circle — Zhang Qiqi and a few other girls from their class — followed like an echo.
Xueling didn't even turn her head. "Then it's good that not everyone is as imaginative as you, sister."
The word sister landed softly but cut deep.
Xueyao set her chopsticks down, smile still perfectly in place. "Oh, Xueling, don't be angry. I'm only saying you shouldn't stress too much about today's exam. I know how hard things are for you." She tilted her head, eyes brimming with feigned sympathy. "The important thing is that you tried, staying up late and even leaving the house to study. So even if you fail again, Father won't be too harsh. After all, some people aren't made for academics."
Just as Xueyao expected, the crowd of students picked up on the gems of information she had dropped.
"She actually left home?
"Leaving home to study… like that is even possible!"
"I told you Xueling is just pretending! What serious student leaves home to study?!"
Qiqi giggled behind her hand. "Right, some people should focus on... other talents."
Xiaoman's chopsticks hit the table with a sharp clack. "Xueling has been at my place to study." She said, covering seamlessly for Xueling as she always did. "And you should not ask "what serious student leaves home to study" but "what happened at home so Xueling had to leave to study."
Xueyao's smile froze, just for a second. Then she sighed delicately, pressing a hand to her chest. "You misunderstand. Nothing really happened at home. We were just busy preparing for tonight's Crimson Pavilion Gala — it's not something everyone can attend."
At the mention of the Gala, the surrounding tables perked up.
"The Crimson Pavilion Gala? The one at the Ocean Pearl Hotel?""I heard half of Jinhai's elite will be there!""And the Gu family too, right? Yaoyao, are you going?"
Xueyao basked in the attention, lowering her lashes. "Mm, the Gu family is helping with the guest list. Father said it'll be a perfect warm-up before the robotics expo next month. Important people from the capital will attend — even someone from the Mo family, I heard."
"Wow, really?" someone gasped.
"Awww yaoyao, can I come please? Will you take me?" this was Zhang Qiqi ofcourse. She was the no.1 fake sister of Xueyao's group, eager to share the limelight of the Feng family.
"I can try to get you, in. If I ask Brother Mocheng, he will definitely let me bring a friend" said Xueyao shyly.
"Yaoyao! You are the best!" squealed Zhang Qiqi in delight! "Gu Mocheng is so good to you! Looks like you will soon be the little madam of the Gu family!"
"Stop it! We are still studying." Said Xueyao blushing. Her cheeks went pink and her eyes were downcast. "Although there is a family engagement, we aren't focusing on it just yet."
"Sister, you don't have to sulk because you weren't invited to the Gala. You know only people with potential can come…. You staying away from home in a pique isn't going to help you come."
Xueyao put on a angelic expressing and continued "afterall, we are a family. Even if you don't attend, that the Feng family attends should be enough".
Xueling finally looked up, her dark eyes unreadable. "You who would rather bring a friend than your own sister, you who would not keep a distance from your supposed brother-in-law.. I don't care about being family with you"
Color flushed up Xueyao's neck. "You—"
The chatter around got noiser "That's right! Why is Xueyao pretending? She would take a friend and not Xueling?!"
"And the family engagement should fall to the eldest sister… if I am right, Xueyao calls Xueling elder sister.. Who really is betrothed to the Gu family?
"Is Xueyao so shamless as to snatch her sister's fiancé?
"It's not like that!" cried Xueyao, her eyes rapidly filling with tears.
"Enough Xueling!" shouted Zhang Qiqi. Look at yourself! Your plain clothes, your unremarkable face, and that messy hair. How dare you think you are worth of Gu Mocheng!"
"You are just jealous our Yaoyao is much better than you"
Xiaoman shot to her feet, fury flashing. "Say that again—"
Xueling put a hand on her arm, stopping her. Her voice was soft but clear. "It's fine, Xiaoman. There's no need to argue with people who measure worth by invitations and borrowed names."
She stood, tray in hand, and glanced at Xueyao — a calm, level look that made the other girl's breath hitch.
"Enjoy your Gala," Xueling said. "And enjoy being favored by the Gu family. I want no part of your Feng family's glory or Gu Mocheng's attention."
Across the table, Xueyao froze — her perfect smile fracturing for a heartbeat before she forced it back into place. Her nails dug crescents into her palm beneath the tablecloth. How dare she say Gu Mocheng's name like that? How dare she act so calm, so untouchable?
"Xueling!" she managed, her voice trembling with outrage barely cloaked in sweetness. "You're being ridiculous. Brother Gu was only—"
"Only what?" Xueling's eyes flicked toward her, gaze so cold and direct that Xueyao faltered mid-sentence. "Only playing along like he always does? Keep him. You'll need him more than I ever did."
A stifled gasp ran through the surrounding crowd. Even Zhang Qiqi's usual smirk faltered. For a moment, nobody dared to breathe.
Then the whispers began to ripple through the room."Did she just—?""She said it right to Xueyao's face…""I didn't know she could talk like that!"
Qiqi snapped out of her daze and leapt to her friend's defense. "Don't act high and mighty, Feng Xueling! You think you're something special just because you made a bet? Wait till you lose — we'll see who has the last laugh!"
But Xueling was already turning away, her expression unbothered. "Then make sure to laugh loudly," she said without looking back.
Her footsteps echoed lightly on the polished floor as she walked toward the exit, sunlight spilling in behind her.
Behind her, Xueyao's composure cracked for real this time. She slammed her chopsticks onto the table, splattering soup across her silk sleeve.
Zhang Qiqi gaped, then hurried to pacify her.
"Calm down, Yaoyao. She is just being jealous and petty— Don't let her ruin your big night."
But as Xueling's calm silhouette vanished through the canteen doors, the unease in Qiqi's stomach only grew. Somehow, every time they thought they'd humiliate Feng Xueling, she ended up walking away taller.