Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 1

Another rainy season had arrived, and just like that, spring in Haicheng had passed. The blazing summer was drawing near, and Haicheng University’s graduation ceremony was approaching day by day.

The students who had just struggled through the college entrance exam eagerly awaited their admission letters, while the “veterans” who had lived through four years at Haida began packing their bags, ready to set out in different directions.

The girls’ dorm 4023 of the School of Finance’s Accounting Department was no exception—the four of them hadn’t all been together for quite some time.

Qi Zheng was the only one who still lived in the dorm every day. The other three either rented apartments near their internship companies or had already moved in with their boyfriends.

This Tuesday, Jiang Youyou came back to campus to hand in her employment agreement. In the half-empty dorm building, not many people were left. Yet she wasn’t surprised at all to see Qi Zheng lying on the bed, eyes closed, earphones in, listening to who-knew-what.

Jiang Youyou placed the takeout she was carrying on Qi Zheng’s desk, carefully setting it in the corner instead of near her computer. She couldn’t quite say why, but usually indifferent Qi Zheng had suddenly changed recently—tidying her desk until it gleamed like polished wood.

“Qi Zheng, why are you still sleeping until noon again?”

Qi Zheng had known the moment someone entered the room, but she didn’t react. She simply didn’t want to talk.

She had transmigrated into a book a month ago—into what she considered the dumbest, most melodramatic romance novel she had ever read. Worse still, she had become the stupidest, weakest, most miserable cannon fodder.

Her mood over the past month had been terrible. If only she had arrived earlier, she might have avoided falling straight into this pit. The original owner was hopelessly love-brained—stupid and reckless—coming up with something as ridiculous as pretending to be in a relationship just to provoke her “missing” lover.

Well, not even a lover, really. More like a sugar mama. The original Qi Zheng had a tragic life: her father was a gambler, her mother had abandoned the family when she was in primary school, and she grew up shuttling between her aunt and grandmother’s homes.

She had struggled her way into Haida, taken out student loans, and scraped by on part-time jobs and campus work. Then her father’s mountain of debt dragged her down too. Facing the threat of seeing him maimed, Qi Zheng agreed to Lin Muyun’s request and became her girlfriend.

Lin Muyun was a wealthy heiress, five years her senior. When Qi Zheng was a junior, Lin Muyun left for an overseas branch of the family business, so their time together wasn’t long. Though Qi Zheng accepted her financial help, she thought she had essentially sold herself to Lin Muyun. Who knew that by senior year, Lin Muyun would suddenly vanish?

No messages, no emails, phone calls always going straight to voicemail. Qi Zheng didn’t even know whether Lin Muyun was still abroad or already back in the country. In her daze, she realized she had lost not just her sugar mama, but also her heart.

While classmates were busy finding internships and signing contracts, Qi Zheng drifted through her days, eating, sleeping, and desperately trying every way possible to find Lin Muyun. Nothing worked.

Lin Muyun had once promised her a position at her company, so she waited with peace of mind. But as the last few students without jobs dwindled, her advisor called her frequently, asking about her progress. Qi Zheng brushed them off most of the time.

Not until a stranger contacted her did Qi Zheng realize Lin Muyun’s disappearance might have been intentional—her way of shaking Qi Zheng off.

Obsessed with getting an explanation, Qi Zheng rashly agreed to that stranger’s condition: a new relationship contract.

Thus, her benefactor changed from Lin Muyun to Shen Zhibing.

Compared to delicate heiress Lin Muyun, Shen Zhibing was wealthier and more thorough. She even hired a lawyer, drew up a contract, and had Qi Zheng sign and seal it.

When Qi Zheng transmigrated, it was one week after that contract had been signed, and she was furious. But now stuck in this identity, she couldn’t break the contract even if she wanted to—she didn’t have the means.

And now, she had bigger worries than Lin Muyun. Shen Zhibing, her new sponsor, was no easy woman to deal with.

Young, beautiful, unimaginably wealthy, born with status that made others cautious. At first glance, she was a darling of heaven. But Qi Zheng knew: as the female lead of a melodramatic romance novel, Shen Zhibing couldn’t possibly be normal.

Her obsession with love was extreme, her persistence terrifying. In the novel, Qi Zheng had been tormented miserably, ending with a tragic fate. Qi Zheng had no intention of following that path.

…

Jiang Youyou packed the last of her things into a large backpack, officially moving out of the dorm. Qi Zheng had obviously been awake but silent; Jiang Youyou didn’t linger.

“I bought you fried noodles from the gate, with extra vegetables. Hurry up and eat.” Slinging her backpack, Jiang Youyou opened the door, a hint of reluctance in her expression.

After all, they had lived here four years, through both joy and friction.

The water dispenser by the door stood empty—ever since only Qi Zheng lived there, she’d switched to bottled water.

“We’re having a dorm dinner next week. Don’t forget to come,” Jiang Youyou reminded her of their old tradition—once weekly, then biweekly, then monthly, until it dwindled to just twice a semester.

“Okay, I know.” Qi Zheng finally sat up, removed her earphones, and answered faintly.

With one last glance at the room, Jiang Youyou left.

Only after the door closed did Qi Zheng truly exhale.

Even a month in, she wasn’t close to these so-called roommates. Luckily, all exams and papers were done—just graduation certificate and ceremony left.

She herself had also studied finance in her real life, but being smarter and skipping grades, she’d already been working for two years before transmigrating.

The noodles smelled good—at least her tastes aligned with the original owner’s. She had just eaten a third when her phone rang. Seeing the name on the screen, her brow tightened.

“Speak of the devil.” According to the plot, this would be their first official meeting since the contract signing.

Shen Zhibing’s Bentley hadn’t driven onto campus—though no one would have stopped her if she wanted. She simply didn’t see the need to cause a scene over a plaything. That’s why she’d switched cars today.

“I’m outside the gate. You have fifteen minutes.” Without waiting for a reply, Shen Zhibing hung up.

Fifteen minutes—enough only if she sprinted nonstop at 800-meter pace. Not a surprise; they had agreed on this meeting during the contract signing. Qi Zheng had only remembered this morning.

Even though it wasn’t her signature on that paper, she still had to bear the obligations. Who could understand such frustration? She seethed inside but couldn’t break the contract—not without money.

Still, she refused to be weak like the original. Lin Muyun, Shen Zhibing—did they think just because they were beautiful and rich they could toy with people’s feelings and bodies? Did they think everyone was some shallow, gold-digging fool?

Abandoning half her noodles, Qi Zheng grabbed her bag, changed shoes, and rushed out.

She was going to meet Shen Zhibing—but she wouldn’t be too obedient. She had to show she wasn’t easy to control.

Yet as a reader, she couldn’t help but worry. Shen Zhibing’s golden cage was filled with countless ways to torment her.

She arrived eight minutes late. The chauffeur respectfully opened the door. Shen Zhibing’s sculpted, icy profile appeared, eyes not even glancing at her.

“You’re late.” Her voice was as cold as her expression.

Qi Zheng wiped sweat from her forehead—she had run hard. The tone made her bristle, but she swallowed it, frozen in place.

After a pause, with no one entering, the car door stood open, cool air clashing with the outside heat.

“What are you waiting for?” The CEO’s voice grew colder, her displeasure evident.

The chauffeur, familiar with her temper, winked at Qi Zheng, urging her not to delay.

Unwillingly, Qi Zheng got in. To others, the luxurious interior might have been enticing; to her, it was a cage. Her mind spun with strategies to survive—she wouldn’t be reduced to a spineless puppet.

The car glided through the city toward the suburbs. Qi Zheng knew: they were headed to Shen Zhibing’s villa—the gilded cage of her future.

“Did you handle the matter I mentioned last time?”

The sudden question stunned her. She had been relying on her memory of the plot to play her role, but this random test caught her off guard.

Her confusion made Shen Zhibing’s eyes flash with anger—clearly, few dared dismiss her words.

“Did you forget, or did you just not care?”

“There’s been a lot going on before graduation—I didn’t think of it for a moment.”

A reasonable excuse. Shen Zhibing studied her for a while, then let it go.

Finally, the car slowed, rolling into a lavish estate. For the first time, Qi Zheng’s expression shifted—she took in the sight of the villa she had only ever read about.

The novel’s descriptions had struck her as absurdly overblown, vulgar even.

But standing there in reality, she couldn’t help but sigh: the world of the rich was truly beyond imagination.

Shen Zhibing stepped out without sparing her a glance, lips curled faintly in disdain.

Yet, since this woman was to act opposite her, Shen Zhibing wouldn’t tolerate her being too incompetent. She had planned to remind her to mind her manners—but to her surprise, Qi Zheng had already adjusted, walking behind her with calm composure, exactly one and a half steps away.

Shen Zhibing looked at her again, only to find her attention wasn’t on her at all.