Chapter 1: Transmigrated, But Something Feels Off

Madness. She must have gone mad.

All Li Wanbai did was take a flight, and somehow she ended up ten years in the future.

The electronic calendar on the wall of the private luxury hospital room displayed a date precisely ten years after she boarded her plane.

An hour’s journey had stretched into a decade.

Doing the math, Li Wanbai was now 28. The man she’d fallen for at 18 was sitting by her bedside, his features as handsome as ever, though exhaustion darkened the skin beneath his eyes and unkempt stubble shadowed his jaw, giving him a haggard look.

“Yu Baichuan?” Li Wanbai stammered, “W-why are you here?”

Yu Baichuan, once the heartthrob of Kyoto University, lived up to his reputation even now—his beauty tinged with the melancholy of a man undone. Li Wanbai, always a sucker for a pretty face, felt her heart skip a beat, nearly moved to tears.

For a moment, she was so mesmerized by his looks that she forgot to panic about having traveled a decade into the future.

“Why shouldn’t I be here?” Yu Baichuan’s voice was low, tinged with self-mockery. “Use me and toss me aside—is that your way, Li Wanbai? You must be the coldest person in the world. Right, I have no right to be here. Soon we’ll have nothing to do with each other. My presence must be an eyesore to you.”

What on earth was he talking about?

Li Wanbai stared, bewildered, as Yu Baichuan suddenly stood up, pulled a sheet of paper from his briefcase, and handed it to her.

The words “Divorce Agreement” blazed across the top, making her eyes ache.

In the blink of an eye, her 28-year-old self had married—and was now divorcing—the man she’d secretly loved at 18.

Even the fastest social media app couldn’t update this quickly!

Yu Baichuan gave a bitter laugh, gazing at her with a thousand unspoken words caught in his throat. In the end, he only managed: “I’ve already signed. This time, I’m really letting you go. Take care of yourself, Wanbai. Hurting yourself only wounds those who love you.”

As he turned to leave, Li Wanbai called out urgently, “Wait! Actually, I’ve time-traveled! I’m Li Wanbai at 18!”

She blurted it out, not caring if Yu Baichuan thought she was mad. After all, she’d only just caught her dream man, and now she was about to lose him to divorce—the whiplash was too much.

In her desperation, she told the truth.

Yu Baichuan paused, gazed at her, and gave a small, sad smile. “No need for such a clumsy excuse. I told you, I’ll let you go. This is really the end for us.”

His cool eyes were stormy with emotion; words of longing hovered on his lips, but he clenched his jaw and left without looking back.

He left her alone with her hand outstretched in silent protest.

I’m not lying! I really did time-travel. I know nothing about these past ten years.

What on earth happened?

Li Wanbai lay in bed, trying to process and piece things together, but nothing made sense.

She reached for her phone on the bedside table and, without hesitation, dialed Su Orange’s number.

Su Orange was her childhood friend—elementary, middle, high school, even college. If anyone in the world knew Li Wanbai best, it was her. And she was the only one Li Wanbai had ever confided in about her crush on Yu Baichuan.

It was Li Wanbai who’d lost a decade’s memories, not Su Orange. If she wanted to know what happened, Su Orange was her only hope.

“The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable, please…”

“The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable…”

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“The number you have dialed…”

Li Wanbai lost count of how many times she’d heard the flat, robotic female voice. The call never connected. How odd.

Su Orange was a notorious phone addict—how could she not answer after so many calls? What had happened?

Baffled, but undeterred, Li Wanbai dialed again.

This time, the call went through instantly.

Su Orange’s furious voice burst out, “Li Wanbai, are you insane? Why are you calling me so much? I’ve hung up on you a dozen times—don’t you get the hint? How shameless are you to keep calling? You were the one who said we were done, and now you won’t leave me alone. What do you want?”

“We’re… no longer friends?” Li Wanbai croaked, her beautiful eyes filling with despair. What had become of this world? The man she’d thought unattainable was now her husband—soon to be ex. The friendship she’d thought unbreakable was now shards on the floor.

Her voice was raw with sorrow. “So it’s come to this…”

Su Orange seemed to sense something in her tone and hesitated, but shrugged it off, grumbling, “Fine, I’m hanging up. Don’t bother me unless it’s important!”

“Wait!” Li Wanbai cried. “I know you might not believe me, but this is the truth—I’m Li Wanbai from ten years ago. I have no memories from 18 to 28, I don’t know what happened. Please, help me!”

A long silence followed. Then Su Orange’s voice, cold as ice: “Impossible. Don’t joke about things like this.”

A dial tone.

Li Wanbai stared at her darkened phone, lost and alone.

She couldn’t reach Yu Baichuan. Su Orange wanted nothing to do with her.

She tried calling her parents—no answer. She’d been blocked everywhere—WeChat, text, calls.

Before boarding that plane, she’d been her family’s darling, Su Orange’s best friend. Now, in a flash, she’d landed in a future where she was utterly alone and miserable.

She was at a complete loss, not even sure who to turn to.

Yu Baichuan had stormed out, leaving only the divorce agreement on her bedside table.

Su Orange, if anything, seemed to hate her now.

Li Wanbai eyed her phone and clicked her tongue in exasperation.

Anyone else, thrown ten years into the future after a simple flight, would be paralyzed by helplessness and confusion, swept along by life’s currents.

But not Li Wanbai. She rubbed her stiff cheeks, pulled herself together.

Romantic and friendly disasters could wait—she needed to make sure she could survive.

Checking her bank account, she was instantly stupefied by a dizzying string of zeroes.

So she’d lost love and friendship, but gained fortune.

Li Wanbai frowned slightly. Was this money earned legally?

“Wanbai!” The door to her luxurious hospital room swung open and in strode a middle-aged woman in a sharp business suit, exuding competence and authority. In the past, Li Wanbai would have avoided such a formidable teacher at all costs.

Unfortunately, now she shared a room with her, bedridden and with nowhere to hide. She mustered the courage to meet the woman’s gaze.

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Despite her severe, businesslike appearance, there was genuine concern in the woman’s eyes. “What happened to you? Are you hurt? I told you—no matter what, even if you’re getting divorced, you mustn’t hurt yourself! Look what a mess you’ve made, ending up in the hospital! Good thing it was just a superficial cut, meant to scare him. Hurting your body is one thing, but what if you’d scarred your face?”

Li Wanbai stared in shock. She recognized every word, but together they made no sense.

“Alright, Chen, calm down. You’re overwhelming her,” a gentle voice chimed in. The young woman who had entered with her winked playfully at Li Wanbai.

Compared to the stern Ms. Chen, Li Wanbai would much rather deal with this girl. Dressed in a simple white dress, her long black hair tied in a loose bun adorned with a bunny hairpin, she had the effortless grace of a campus beauty.

The look was so familiar—just yesterday, Li Wanbai had dressed the same way. The sudden sight of something familiar in this strange future made her instinctively feel at ease.

Li Wanbai managed a tentative smile. Ms. Chen glanced at her, then at the young woman, and sighed. “I knew it—you two are always conspiring to give me trouble! Anyway, thank goodness your face is unharmed. You’ve got a reality show next week—what would we do about the penalty if your face was injured?”

“Wait, what reality show?” Li Wanbai echoed flatly.

Me? On a reality show? Seriously?

Am I actually a star?

Her looks had always drawn praise, but she didn’t think that alone would land her a spot in showbiz. There were countless beautiful nobodies out there.

All she’d ever wanted was to be a rich and beautiful fashion designer—was that so hard?

“What’s with that reaction? You’re Li Wanbai! One of the most popular stars online. Among female celebrities, only a few veteran actresses can compete with you. As for men, barely anyone comes close. What’s the big deal about another reality show?” Chen laughed, patting her on the shoulder. “I’m just glad you’re alright. There are plenty of endorsements waiting for you!”

“Um, Ms. Chen? You’re my agent, right?” Li Wanbai swallowed, forcing a smile.

A sense of dread flickered in Ms. Chen’s eyes.

“Help her up, please. I have something to tell you both,” Li Wanbai said, embarrassed. “I’ve lost my memory.”

“You’ve what?!” Ms. Chen’s voice shot up, nearly splitting the heavens. “A-are you serious? How much do you remember? What do you know?”

“I only remember my life up to 18. It’s ten years later now, and I don’t recall a thing in between,” Li Wanbai admitted honestly.

Amnesia wasn’t something you could just blurt out to anyone.

Some might believe her, but more would think she was crazy—like Su Orange.

Out in the world, she’d keep it to herself; she didn’t want anyone thinking she was mad, or shirking responsibility.

But this Ms. Lu was different.

She didn’t seem like one for jokes. If she said Li Wanbai was a star, maybe she really was.

And Ms. Lu really was her agent.

The more shows and endorsements Li Wanbai took, the more profit her agent stood to gain. Ms. Lu’s only concern when she first arrived had been her face—a strictly professional relationship.

Such relationships were the hardest to dodge. It was best to be upfront right away.

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