Chapter 1: Forced to Act Without a Script

She had no idea how long she had been asleep. Her body felt warm, as if embraced by something, and there was a soft, fluffy sensation in the crook of her arm. She opened her eyes.

She saw four wooden lattice windows, all open to the dark night outside and a few scattered stars.

Clearly, this was neither the county hospital ward nor Li Jixiang’s room. Her mind went blank for a few seconds. The soft bundle in her arms stirred, revealing a tiny, rosy face.

“Mommy.”

The little face murmured sleepily, then drifted back into sweet slumber.

“Mommy—”

Had she traveled through time again?

Li Tian’er was so startled that her delicate body trembled, and she hurriedly pushed the chubby baby out of her arms.

She hadn’t even married yet—how could she be a mother already? Damn system, come out! You’re not human, playing tricks on me like this. I don’t want to be here, I want to go home—being Li Jixiang would be fine, anything but this.

She cursed a thousand times in her heart, but apart from the pink value frozen at 29,000 above her head, the world was utterly silent.

“Quack, quack…”

A few frog croaks drifted in on the breeze, mocking her childishness.

If there’s a child, there must be a husband! To live with a strange man day and night, sharing a bed every night—just thinking about it made her hair stand on end.

She reached out to feel around the bed. Apart from the plump little bundle, there was no trace of a man. Li Tian’er breathed a sigh of relief.

She tried hard to recall the original owner’s life, but no matter how she struggled, her mind remained blank.

Something must have gone wrong—how was she supposed to act without a script?

Li Tian’er wanted so badly to curse, but since she was here, she’d have to improvise, script or not. At worst, she’d just play the fool.

She switched on the room light and explored every corner of the one-bedroom apartment, even pulling out the drawers and turning them upside down. At last, she found a bankbook for paying the electricity bill, and saw the name Li Tiantian.

Returning to the bedroom, she sat on the edge of the bed, facing the vanity mirror embedded in the cabinet. Seeing features identical to her own reflected in the glass, Li Tian’er relaxed again. She could handle hardship, but if she’d become ugly, she’d rather die.

She turned on the bedside lamp and walked around the apartment.

The red telephone on the bedside table rang. The display screen, though blurry, showed a string of landline numbers.

Li Tian’er hesitated, unsure whether to answer, when the little cotton bundle on the bed shifted uneasily, seemingly disturbed by the ringing. She quickly picked up the receiver.

If the little one woke, she had no idea how to calm a baby.

“Hello~”

“Why are you only answering now!”

A man’s voice thundered in.

Her heart skipped a beat. Could this be the father of the cotton bundle? If it was, she’d have to divorce him! The voice was old, icy, and filled with angry reproach, making her deeply uncomfortable.

“Your mother is sick. Take her to the hospital right away, or she’ll die at home.”

Damn it—was that something a person would say? What role did this man have in her life?

No script made acting so much harder!

“Why aren’t you saying anything? If you don’t want to go, just let her die. You know my back hurts and it’s hard for me to walk—I can’t take her to the hospital.”

“Dad, where is Mom?”

Li Tian’er caught the implication and decided to improvise as best she could.

“Have you lost your mind since your husband died, that you don’t even remember where your parents live? Stop dawdling. If your mother dies, don’t blame me.”

“……”

Was that really her father? How could he speak so harshly!

The call abruptly ended with a click.