Which 'Me' Is the One You Love? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

[WARNING! WARNING! The target character’s emotional fluctuations are extreme. Host, please be mentally prepared. Current Favorability Progress: 50/100. Restoration Progress: +10. Current Restoration: 10/100!]

“What the hell is ‘Restoration Progress’?! I worked so hard for so long and it didn’t budge, but now that I’m screwed, it jumps 10%!”

A piercing alarm blared in Jiang Zhou’s mind, but at this moment, she had no time to worry about the system’s warnings.

Her hands gripped the bedsheets tightly, her jaw clenched, and veins popped on her forehead as she struggled to maintain control over her body and keep a shred of sanity.

How miserable! If she had known it would turn out like this, she never would have agreed to this “challenge.” What did a massive amount of Star Coins matter? A mere 100 million—she could have found another way to get it!

…Psych! One hundred million! How long would she have to work to earn that?! Damn it! Was she really going to surrender for the sake of 100 million?!

“Jiang Zhou.” A low call came from above. A woman dressed in a business suit slowly and methodically took off her jacket. “If this is what you want, then I will satisfy you.”

Jiang Zhou had ten thousand curses she wanted to scream. She didn’t drug herself; she drank it by mistake! It was an accident!

“Do you think I’m still ‘cold’ now?” Xia Shang paused, one hand pinning Jiang Zhou’s shoulder while the other began to undo the buttons of her blouse.

She remembered that what Xia Shang heard most from her every day was nagging—telling her not to be so cold, to express joy and anger, and preferably, to smile more.

“Is this enough emotion for you?” After seeing the “scenery” beneath the fabric, Xia Shang’s hand faltered for a moment, and then she forced a smile.

That smile… it’s the smile of a devil!

“Xia… Shang…” Jiang Zhou squeezed the words out from between her teeth, tilting her head back to look at the woman looming over her.

With long hair cascading down to her waist, the woman’s face appeared icy and refined, yet her hands were doing the work of a beast.

Xia Shang was her capture target.

Three months ago, Jiang Zhou received an anonymous invitation. The letter stated that by passing a challenge, she could obtain 100 million Star Coins; even if she failed, she’d get a one-million-coin consolation prize.

Though Jiang Zhou wasn’t exactly broke, she was still greedy for that 100 million. With that money, she could retire early, stop wearing various disguises day in and day out, and live a wonderful life of leisure.

And so, following the info in the letter, Jiang Zhou went to a strange research institute. After signing a contract as thick as her thumb, she was bound to a system and transported here.

“I’m here,” the originally cold voice replied, now tinged with a hint of desire.

“Let… go! Let go of me!” Jiang Zhou gritted her teeth, desperately calling out to the system in her mind to neutralize the effects of the drug in her body.

[System functions are not currently open. Host, please resolve this yourself,] the cold, mechanical voice replied. [Ding! Favorability Progress +1. Host, please keep up the good work.]

“Go to hell!” Jiang Zhou’s heart was filled with green regret. Greed! Greed! Greed! Now look what happened!

“System, I choose to abandon the mission. Transport me out!” Jiang Zhou didn’t want to lose herself over a mission. After all, she was still a “pure-hearted” single in reality! She didn’t want to give her first time to someone who might just be a string of data!

[Rule 51 of the Capture Manual: The Host can only leave the mission world under two circumstances: 1. Successful capture. 2. Mission failure, i.e., the death of the Host. Current conditions do not meet the requirements for withdrawal. Please continue to work hard.]

“F***!” Jiang Zhou cursed out loud.

Xia Shang’s hand jolted. Her obsidian pupils locked onto Jiang Zhou, reflecting a tiny “pupil earthquake.” “You’re telling me to… f*** you?”

“???” Jiang Zhou’s eyes widened. What kind of wild words are those? Don’t just make things up!

“Since this is what you wish for, then I will satisfy you.” Xia Shang tried to pull the corners of her mouth upward, her movements quickening. She seemed very satisfied with Jiang Zhou’s “reaction.”

“I…” Jiang Zhou wanted to explain, but her body honestly began to respond to Xia Shang’s actions.

I have a string of profanity, and I don’t know if I should say it!

[Ding! Favorability Progress +1] [Ding! Favorability Progress +2] [Ding! Favorability Progress +3] … [Current Favorability Progress: 99/100. Restoration Progress: 20/100. Host, please keep up the good work.]

Heh. Jiang Zhou lay flat on the bed, not wanting to say a word.

The deed was done, so why was the progress stuck at 99%? Was her sacrifice not big enough?

No, it wasn’t her fault. It was because Xia Shang wasn’t human! If you have the guts to jump 49% in one session, why don’t you have the guts to just max it out?!

“Awake?” A fully dressed Xia Shang appeared by Jiang Zhou’s bed. “Hungry?”

Jiang Zhou still didn’t want to talk. As expected of a “cold-type” target, she went right back to her true nature the moment she put her clothes back on.

Tsk, a beast in a suit.

“I cooked some porridge. You can get up and eat some if you need to.” Xia Shang’s gaze lingered on Jiang Zhou’s neck. The originally fair skin was now decorated by her—little spots of color that looked quite beautiful.

Jiang Zhou remained silent, enduring the soreness as she rolled over to face away from Xia Shang.

“There are some things to handle at the company. It will take about three hours. I’ll come back to have lunch with you,” Xia Shang reported her schedule. “I helped you bathe. If you feel unwell, you can call Dr. Zou.”

“You can call me, too. I’ll keep my phone for twenty-four hours a day,” Xia Shang added after a moment of thought.

Heh, women. Once they get what they want, they don’t cherish it. Heading to the office at a time like this… no wonder the progress is only 99%. Scumbag!

“I’m leaving. Goodbye.” Xia Shang bid a polite farewell, tucking the quilt around Jiang Zhou before she left to make sure she wouldn’t catch a cold.

Only after confirming Xia Shang had left did Jiang Zhou move, relaxing herself flat on the bed.

“System, clear the negative status from my body,” Jiang Zhou said expressionlessly.

[Request accepted. Request approved. Clearing…] The emotionless machine voice sounded.

Feeling her body return to normal, Jiang Zhou finally got out of bed and slowly put on the bathrobe beside her.

Opening the bedroom door, she shuffled in her slippers to the kitchen. She lifted the pot lid, and the aroma hit her.

Jiang Zhou’s mouth watered involuntarily. She comforted herself: Being able to make the cold-natured Xia Shang cook is at least a big step forward.

After eating her fill, Jiang Zhou began to think about how to break this deadlock.

Even though this body was virtual, the sensations were very real. Xia Shang had taken advantage of her, so she had to take it back. At the very least, she was going to earn that money!

Jiang Zhou’s current identity was Xia Shang’s assistant. She had been on the job for three months, which was exactly when she entered this world.

According to the system’s info, Xia Shang had a cold personality. She hadn’t smiled since childhood and was 100% rational in everything she did. No emotion could influence her; every action she took was for her own benefit.

Jiang Zhou’s goal was to capture Xia Shang, change her cold personality, and rewrite her original ending.

In this virtual world’s setting, Xia Shang would become the richest person in the country in three years, but she would also be hit by a massive wave of scandals.

Internally, she was accused of oppressing employees and driving them to suicide; externally, she was seen as indifferent to the elderly falling on the street, stingy toward a beggar who accidentally hit her car, and cold toward a kidnapped girl. All the “black material” crushed down on her.

Since the system didn’t give much background, Jiang Zhou didn’t know the specifics, only that Xia Shang’s end was quite tragic.

Once, Xia Shang went out shopping without bodyguards and was stabbed over a dozen times by the wife of an employee who had jumped to his death. She died after failed resuscitation.

When she accepted the invitation, Jiang Zhou’s identity was a somewhat famous “psychologist.” To play the role, she had studied a bit and formulated a plan.

For someone with Xia Shang’s personality, trying to capture her with “love” was a traditional approach.

Love comes in many forms—family, friendship—but in Jiang Zhou’s view, those were too slow. So, she chose the fastest method: romantic love.

Of course, Jiang Zhou’s plan did not include last night’s disaster play. According to her plan, the early stage should have been her sacrificing for love, treating Xia Shang well regardless of the cost, and becoming a special presence in her life.

Once Xia Shang was interested, it would be time to play hard to get, dangling the hook and using love to change her bit by bit. Jiang Zhou would help her avoid the tragic events. Once Xia Shang survived the “death node,” Jiang Zhou would make a graceful exit.

But why?! Why did this woman lay hands on her in less than three months? Even if it was because she drank the wrong thing, Xia Shang shouldn’t have pushed her down when the progress was only at 50%!

Shouldn’t the rational Xia Shang have sent her to the hospital, and then, under her accusing gaze, said with a poker face: “Sending you to the hospital was the most rational choice”?

“System, as long as the Favorability and Restoration progress both reach 100%, I get the 100 million, right?” Jiang Zhou asked.

[Host, please rest assured. I am a very professional system. As long as the tasks in the contract are completed, 100 million Star Coins will be deposited into your account.]

Jiang Zhou nodded. The tasks in the contract were just completing the worlds, right? She’d just work hard to max out the favorability and stay peaceful for three years.

However, Jiang Zhou, who had only skimmed through the contract, didn’t know yet… the contract never said there was only one world to complete.