Chapter 1

Time: Early morning
Location: A certain national standard hospital
A stunningly beautiful girl lay curled on her side on the snow-white hospital bed, sleeping deeply.
After a while, as if haunted by a nightmare, her relaxed brow furrowed tightly, and large beads of sweat began to form on her face. With a startled gasp of "Ah!", she jolted awake from her dream.
Where is this?
A hospital room?
Am I... sick?
Xia Xi frowned, slowly and confusedly sitting up in bed. She looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings with a mix of shock and doubt, feeling an unreal sense about the fact that she was ill.
After all, Xia Xi's body was famously as strong as an ox.
She lowered her head and looked at her hands, which had clearly become much fairer, and her panic deepened.
This, this doesn't seem like my body.
What in the world is going on?
Could it be that I've...transmigrated?!
"Yes, you have transmigrated." Just as Xia Xi was utterly bewildered by her current situation, a cool, detached voice suddenly echoed in her mind. Although the words confirmed her suspicion, they made her frown slightly, extinguishing the last shred of hope she'd been clinging to.
"Who are you?"
Silence followed. Just as Xia Xi began to think the voice had been an illusion, the androgynous voice spoke again.
"Hello, Xia Xi. Nice to meet you. Welcome to the storyline of the novel Pampered Love. Due to your perfect fusion with the female supporting character Xia Xi in this novel, you have been automatically bound to me, your system. I am the Female Supporting Character Salvation System, code name 131."
"Female Supporting Character Salvation System? What is that?" Despite the surreal experiences since she woke up that morning, Xia Xi had managed to maintain remarkable calm and rationality. She zeroed in on the key issue, furrowing her brow as she asked, "And why am I bound to you?"
"Because you have already died in your original world, and if you wish to continue living in this world, you must bind with me." The system's voice was unnervingly calm, as if discussing the weather rather than a person's life and death. "I am not an object; I am a system."
"I died? How is that possible?" The earlier information was so shocking that Xia Xi completely ignored what the system said last. After a long pause, her voice filled with disbelief, she said, "How could that be? Are you lying to me? I was just drinking with friends last night, perfectly fine. How could I suddenly die?"
"Host, the cause of your death was a mishap due to drinking. At yesterday's Golden Horse Awards after-party, you drank too much. On your way home, you got into a car accident, crashed into the guardrails on the side of the road, and died on the spot."
Though the system's voice remained as unruffled as if discussing the weather, it sent shockwaves through Xia Xi's heart. Her mind went blank, leaving only one thought:
I actually died on the spot because of drunk driving. Such an undignified death? This cause of death might not only fail to earn sympathy from my fans but also constitutes a crime. The perfect image I worked so hard to build, ruined just like that!
The more Xia Xi thought about it, the more despairing she became. Her initial determination to return to her original world wavered slightly.
To think I couldn’t even leave behind a good reputation after death. The ancients often said drinking leads to trouble, they weren’t wrong.
System: -_- [Host, I’m afraid that’s not the point.]
"Creak..."
Just as Xia Xi was still reeling from the devastating news that "she had died, and from drunk driving, no less," the door to the hospital room was suddenly pushed open from the outside. A handsome man walked in. When he saw Xia Xi sitting on the hospital bed, squinting at the ceiling in a daze, a flicker of displeasure flashed quickly in his eyes. His tone was indifferent as he said, "Xia Xi, you need to recognize your position. Don’t do such meaningless things again in the future."
Huh?
Xia Xi, who had been lost in thought, was caught off guard by the magnetic voice and was genuinely startled. She turned her head in confusion, her expression blank as she looked toward the source of the voice. Then, a flurry of question marks filled her mind, who is this person, barging into someone’s home like this!
Wait... this is a hospital. Anyone can come and go as they please.
I’ve already crossed over; I’m not in my old world anymore.
"Host, this man is Luo Chu’an, your current boyfriend and the male lead in 'Pampered Love,'" the system’s voice chimed in at just the right moment, cutting off Xia Xi’s endless train of thought and answering the questions in her heart. It even played a random video clip in her mind, giving her a rough idea of the original host’s interactions with Luo Chu’an to prevent her behavior from seeming too different and giving her away. Truly, the service was quite considerate.
The male lead from a book?
Hearing the system's explanation, Xia Xi couldn't help but narrow her eyes, carefully scrutinizing this male lead from head to toe. Even with her discerning eye, Xia Xi had to admit that this man truly possessed handsome features.
Luo Chu'an noticed Xia Xi staring at him without saying a word for a long time, feeling that she must have treated his earlier words as empty air. He slightly furrowed his brows, a hint of displeasure in his tone. "Xia Xi, did you hear what I just said? You-"
"Ring…"
A piercing phone ringtone interrupted Luo Chu'an's next words. He pulled the phone from his pocket, and a flicker of confusion crossed his eyes when he saw the name on the screen.
"Hello?" After answering the call, Luo Chu'an's tone was completely different from the cold indifference he had used with Xia Xi moments before, it was warm and gentle, like a refreshing breeze, embodying the image of a refined gentleman. "Alright, I understand. I'm free right now. Wait for me there; I'll be right over."
After hanging up, Luo Chu'an hurriedly left without looking back. He didn't tell Xia Xi where he was going, nor did he spare another glance at the ill Xia Xi.
Perhaps, in his heart, he had never cared about this woman who was nominally his current girlfriend, never treating her as an equal.
Xia Xi, who had been lost in thought, was startled by the loud slam of the door. She stared blankly at the empty hospital room before her.
Huh? Where did he go?
How did he disappear in the blink of an eye? Where's that fairly good-looking man from earlier? Didn't the system say he was some kind of male lead?
Xia Xi's expression was utterly bewildered. She had no idea how to react to the situation unfolding before her, both emotionally and expression-wise.
At that moment, Xia Xi thought of the system that had just provided her with information, feeling that it might offer a satisfactory explanation.
"System..."
The hospital room was eerily quiet, with no response.
"System, stop playing dead. Come out now!"
After a moment of silence, the strange mechanical voice sounded again, its tone still impeccably polite. "Host, how may I assist you?"
Xia Xi nodded, not dwelling too much on why the system was so slow to respond, and got straight to the point. "Can you give me a rundown of the general situation in this world?"
Upon hearing this, the other party paused briefly before continuing after a short while, "Host, no problem. I will transmit the storyline of this world to you."
Storyline?
As soon as it finished speaking, without giving Xia Xi any time to react, a flood of fragmented information suddenly surged into her mind, making her feel dizzy. It took her a while to adapt before she gradually returned to normal, piecing together the vast amount of information in her mind bit by bit.
It turned out that the framework of this world was based on a novel titled Pampered Love, and Xia Xi had now become the vicious supporting female character in this story, someone dedicated to creating trouble for the female lead and male lead's relationship, causing misunderstandings and trying to break them apart.
However, things did not go as planned.
Since "Pampered Love" is a sweet romance novel where the protagonists' relationship grows stronger with each passing day, Xia Xi's actions not only failed to drive the main couple apart but instead became a catalyst for their bond, making their feelings for each other even more solid.