Chapter 1

After a busy day at work, Zhu Xinyue finally clocked out and headed home.
The bus was filled with a mix of unpleasant smells. As soon as Zhu Xinyue boarded, the stench made her cough, and she began to feel dizzy.
Adjusting her nearsighted glasses, she walked to the back row, sat down, opened the window, put on her wired earphones bought from a discount store, and started listening to the novel she hadn't finished reading yesterday.
The plot of this novel was cliche yet addictive, and there was a wealthy heiress in it who shared the same name as Zhu Xinyue.
Zhu Xinyue, a money-loving 996 worker who couldn't get rich in real life, could at least dream about the wealthy life of "Zhu Xinyue" in the novel.
The gentle AI voice came through the earphones, but without noise-canceling features, she could faintly hear the wind and the noise of the bus starting.
"Zhu Xinyue could never understand why her childhood friend would fall in love with someone other than her."
"She had given so much for him, yet Ji Qingyuan's gaze was always fixed on Jiang Rui!"
In reality, Zhu Xinyue frowned, feeling that something was off.
"She had given up her inheritance for Ji Qingyuan, remained devoted to him, rejected all her suitors, and even ran away from home to enter the entertainment industry, starting from the bottom as a variety show extra. She had even compromised her morals, knowing Jiang Rui was allergic to silk, she still applied a silk mask on her during a variety show, making her embarrass herself on camera.
"But all her sacrifices only earned her Ji Qingyuan's words: 'I only see you as a little sister, I've never had feelings for you. Even if you stood naked in front of me right now, I wouldn't feel a thing.'
"Zhu Xinyue's heart was completely shattered. Since she couldn't become Ji Qingyuan's lover, she would become the one he could never forget.
"So, Zhu Xinyue leaped from a tall building, dying on the spot..."
Zhu Xinyue pressed the pause button on her audiobook and directly deleted the novel from her library!
Her own life was already so tough, and she was still fighting to survive, how could another "Zhu Xinyue" degrade herself like this for a man who didn't love her?
Zhu Xinyue tugged at her earphones, accidentally pulling off her glasses along with them.
She was severely nearsighted; without her glasses, she was practically half-blind. She crouched down to feel around for her glasses on the floor.
But before she could find them, she suddenly heard a loud crash, and a massive impact flipped the entire bus over.
Zhu Xinyue's last thought before closing her eyes, at least she had bought insurance, so her family could receive the compensation.
[Loading...]
A crackling electric current sound filled her ears, and Zhu Xinyue's head throbbed with pain, feeling as if it were about to split open. Memories that didn't belong to her were forcibly poured into her mind, but they were shrouded in a thick fog, she could only sense their blurry outlines, unable to see them clearly.
[Are you willing to help the female supporting character "Zhu Xinyue" fulfill her wishes: 1. Reconcile with the Zhu family. 2. Protect Ji Qingyuan's career in the entertainment industry.
Choose "Yes," and you will become the female supporting character, Zhu Xinyue, in the novel "Starlight";
Choose "No," and you will die immediately.]
Was such a good thing even possible?
Without hesitation, Zhu Xinyue chose "Yes."
As the system's electronic voice faded, the strange crackling sounds disappeared along with it.
In the pitch darkness, the first thing Zhu Xinyue felt was the damp, cold wind. Chilly droplets splashed onto the back of her feet, and her ears felt as if covered by a thin film, making the sounds around her indistinct, there was music, and there were voices.
"Xinyue, don't you like Ji Qingyuan? Now's the perfect time to confess to him! He just won the Best Newcomer Award today, he's in a good mood, so he might just say yes!"
"Yeah, yeah! Once you're with Ji Qingyuan, you won't have to struggle as a variety show extra anymore. Just post a couple photo, and you'll become insanely popular! Don't forget about us when the time comes!"
Ji Qingyuan, Best Newcomer Award, variety show extra...
Zhu Xinyue remembered this part of the plot.
At this point in the novel, the female lead Jiang Rui hadn't appeared yet. Ji Qingyuan had debuted just a year ago and skyrocketed to fame with immense popularity and buzz, winning that year's Best Newcomer Award. His childhood friend "Zhu Xinyue," in her pursuit of him, ran away from home to become a variety show extra, but her acting was so poor that her screen time amounted to zero.
At Ji Qingyuan's celebration party, "Zhu Xinyue's" two influencer friends egged her on to confess her feelings to Ji Qingyuan. After being rejected by him, she flew into a humiliated rage and tried to push him away, only to slip and fall into the swimming pool herself.
The next day, the confession video went viral online, turning "Zhu Xinyue" into a laughingstock within the industry. Out of their childhood friendship, Ji Qingyuan not only helped her buy an apartment in Tianze City but also fed her numerous resources.
Zhu Xinyue, a cotton spirit who always had her achievements snatched by those with connections yet dared not speak up in anger, a money-grubber who dreamed every day of someone inexplicably giving her money.
Buying her an apartment and feeding her resources!
What was this?
This was her great benefactor!
What was the original host's dying wish? To protect Ji Qingyuan's career in the entertainment industry, right?
My same-named, different-parents sister, rest in peace. From today onward, your childhood friend will be under my protection! He is my great benefactor, Zhu Xinyue. From now on, when he picks up food with his chopsticks, I will never spin the lazy Susan! When he holds the mic, I will never cut the song!
Zhu Xinyue ignited with fierce determination, instantly sitting up from the lounge chair.
Her two influencer friends beside her were startled, and one with heavy smoky eye makeup nearly dropped the camera in her hands.
When Zhu Xinyue opened her eyes, all she saw was a blurry mosaic.
Even though it was nighttime, the place was brightly lit. It was as if someone had overturned a palette, blue, white, black, yellow, all sorts of colors. Light and shadows flickered before her eyes, but the faces of all the moving figures were indistinct. She couldn't even tell if the shadow in the distance was a crouching person or a dressed-up pet dog.
Damn it! Why did her severe nearsightedness carry over to this world? Clearly, other transmigration novels weren't written like this! Which female lead transmigrates with nearsightedness in tow?
[System: For every wish you fulfill, the system will help reduce your prescription by a certain degree. Once you complete all wishes, your vision will return to normal.]
Understood. This was a reward mechanism to prevent her from slacking off.
Having been gaslit by her company superiors for so long, Zhu Xinyue was wary, if the system treated her too well, she'd suspect it was setting her up for a big trap later.
In this unfamiliar environment, Zhu Xinyue could only rely on common sense to make judgments.
In front of her, an irregularly shaped azure swimming pool shimmered with reflections. A group of people in colorful swimsuits sat by the poolside, with cheers rising from time to time. Not far away, loud music blared, and a crowd had gathered around a long table. Behind the pool stood a three-story white villa; two floors facing the pool were lit with warm lights, but the upper floor was dark.
Zhu Xinyue's spot was closer to the villa, under a flat-roofed pavilion. Her two influencer friends, amid the noisy music, kept urging her about the benefits of confessing now.
Looking around, Zhu Xinyue was trying to determine which of the blurry figures was the male lead, Ji Qingyuan.
Based on her experience reading novels, she knew that in romance stories, the male lead was always the most handsome one.
Her gaze immediately locked onto one person, and she narrowed her eyes slightly.
From the very beginning, she had noticed him. Among the shifting, pixelated figures, he was the tallest, with the best physique and the most upright posture. Moreover, the others seemed to subtly revolve around him, sitting or standing in his vicinity.
He had proven with sheer presence that even as a pixelated blur, he was more refined and striking than the rest.
"I've got it," Zhu Xinyue stood up. "I'm going to confess to him right now!"
The smoky-eyed influencer immediately pulled out her camera, aiming it at Zhu Xinyue, and said, "Go ahead! I'll capture this highlight of your life!"
In the lens of the influencer’s camera, Zhu Xinyue appeared without her thick glasses. Her eyes were large and deep, as if a thin mist veiled her light coffee-colored irises, giving her a mysterious and cool aura.
With each step she took toward the man, she moved cautiously, afraid her poor eyesight might cause her to step on someone.
Unaware of her true thoughts, the smoky-eyed influencer couldn’t help but whisper to the red-haired influencer beside her, "Zhu Xinyue really likes him. Even her confession is so hesitant, she must be afraid that things won’t be the same between them afterward."
The next moment, Zhu Xinyue stood behind the man in the suit, tilting her head slightly to look up at him as if she had something to say.
As she drew closer, she caught the clean, fresh scent emanating from him.
To see him more clearly, she took another step forward, standing just a pace away. With her hands clasped behind her back, her gaze traveled from his feet upward, assessing whether he was indeed the male lead.
Flickering lights swept across the room, occasionally illuminating his jet-black hair or his dark gray suit, lingering briefly before sliding away.
Zhu Xinyue thought, Since Ji Qingyuan is here to receive an award today, he should be dressed formally, right?
"Mr. Ji, the driver is waiting at the entrance," a man who looked like a bodyguard approached, speaking to the suited man with utmost respect.
Mr. Ji? Ji Qingyuan? Zhu Xinyue had been about 70-80% sure before, but seeing him set down his champagne glass and prepare to leave, she knew she had to act fast or miss her chance. Summoning her courage, she reached out and grabbed the suited man’s hand.
All noise in the room ceased. Every pair of eyes turned toward them, and even the music softened.
As the lights continued to sway, the man turned around. A silvery beam of light, like a fluttering butterfly, swept over his shoulder and landed in Zhu Xinyue’s eyes.
He was, without a doubt, the most handsome man in the room. For a moment, Zhu Xinyue felt dazed as she took in his appearance.
The hazy light and shadows acted like the most skilled sculptor. He resembled a statue carved from plaster, flawless features, sharp contours, pale skin with only a hint of color in his thin lips. His dark eyes were like a night sea, exuding a chill that made Zhu Xinyue instinctively shrink back.
In the blink of an eye, the coldness in his eyes receded like a tide, as if the chill from moments ago had been nothing but Zhu Xinyue’s imagination.
The man raised an eyebrow slightly, as if asking her, “What is it?”
Zhu Xinyue’s eyes were red from dryness, and the harsh light made her light-sensitive eyes even more uncomfortable.
Tears streaming down her face, she confessed, “From the moment I first saw you, I liked you. You’re special, just standing there, you look as if you’re about to shatter. I want to give you a home…”
Before she could finish speaking, a man with light golden hair emerged from the nearby swimming pool. Someone teased him, saying, “Ji Qingyuan, your childhood friend Zhu Xinyue is about to run off with your brother!”
Zhu Xinyue froze.
Her eyesight might be poor, but her hearing was fine.
If the person who had just stepped out of the pool was Ji Qingyuan, then the person she had been holding onto was…
Ji Linyu withdrew his hand from Zhu Xinyue’s grasp, his dark eyes fixed on her. The corners of his lips curved into a polite smile, distant and detached:
“Miss Zhu, isn’t it a bit too soon to talk about marriage when we’ve only just met?”