Chapter 1

【If you don’t hurry up and wake up, they’re going to come in!】

【How awful. You were actually the baby who got switched. Your good days are over now.】

【They’re planning to make you pack your things and leave immediately!】

【They’ve already brought this family’s biological daughter home.】

【This is seriously hellish. They’re giving your room to their biological daughter.】

Birds were chirping beside her ear. It also sounded as though someone was talking. There was also an urgent pounding on the door.

Long Qi was extremely displeased. Who said she wouldn’t be able to live well? She was a practitioner of the mystic arts. No matter where she went, she would live a good life.

Her head felt as though it were splitting apart. She opened her eyes. The unfamiliar room was decorated in an opulent European style, with intricately patterned gold wallpaper, elaborate flowers and foliage carved into the furniture, and a four-poster European palace bed draped in pale-purple gauze curtains.

The riotous accumulation of patterns and colors made the room almost deafening to the eye, and there was no awareness of feng shui whatsoever. The room contained numerous sharp-cornered objects, and there was even a mirror at the foot of the bed facing it directly.

Turning her gaze, she saw two white-collared crows perched on the open windowsill. Their chattering was merely birdsong; they were not truly speaking human language. However, small animals possessed spiritual intelligence, and their calls contained many different meanings. Long Qi instinctively understood what they were expressing.

It was a wonderfully profound sensation that came from a fragmentary Daoist scripture she had cultivated, the Xuanjian. As long as she cleared away all distracting thoughts and kept her state of mind like a mirror free of the slightest impurity, she could perceive all things with perfect clarity and thereby understand them.

She had safely survived ten years of the apocalypse entirely because read the original at bailiantales.com of the almost cheat-like mystic powers she had gained from cultivating that fragmentary scripture.

Long Qi pushed aside the covers and got out of bed. Ignoring the pounding and shouting outside the door, she listened to the crows gossip while strolling around the room with great interest, examining every detail of its arrangement. The owner of the room did not appear to have any particular interests; there were no personalized trinkets to be seen.

Although the décor was rather elaborate and noisy, the furniture and objects in the room demonstrated extremely sophisticated industrial production capabilities. This indicated that the environment was prosperous, thriving, and stable. It was certainly not an apocalyptic wasteland where humanity struggled merely to stay fed and clothed.

Had she transmigrated? Long Qi’s footsteps paused as lines of glaring crimson text appeared within her vision:

〖This day has finally arrived. The family who once loved her dearly and spoiled her beyond measure are outside the door, urging her to leave. Zhu Qi looks around her room with tears in her eyes. Is she truly going to leave the family that gave her a life of luxury and raised her for twenty-four years, only to return to the home of her biological parents, who cannot even afford a car? She hates Liu Wan, the real heiress who wants to return. She hates the person responsible for switching the two infant girls all those years ago. She hates the entire world!〗

As the crimson text appeared, scattered memories concerning this tale of real and fake heiresses surfaced in Long Qi’s mind. The good news was that she had indeed transmigrated. The bad news was that she had become Zhu Qi, the fake heiress in this story. The Zhu family was extremely wealthy, and by piecing together all the available information, it was not difficult to determine that she had arrived at the crucial plot point where the real and fake heiresses exchanged positions.

This was interesting. What would happen if she refused to follow the plot? Could the plot actually make her die?

A languid smile curved Long Qi’s lips. She walked to the window and held out her hand, and one of the white-collared crows immediately stepped onto her finger. The little crow’s feathers were sleek and glossy. It tilted its head, its small, jet-black eyes gazing at Long Qi. Small animals instinctively adored the pure aura emanating from her body. It spread its wings and flapped them several times before urging her in a friendly manner: 【You’re awake? Hurry up, pack your valuables, and run away!】

The other white-collared crow on the windowsill said: 【Do you have any money? Take some money with you. You humans need to exchange money for food, or you’ll starve to death.】

Long Qi’s gaze softened as she stroked the little crow’s head with one finger. “You little ones certainly know a lot. It’s all right. You can go now. Come and play with me again when you have time.”

The two white-collared crows flapped their wings and flew out the window.

Long Qi stood before the mirror for a moment. The woman reflected in it had long, jet-black hair, aloof and elegant features, and a tall, slender figure. It was Long Qi herself. At that moment, however, the space between her brows was dark, her earlobes were tinged blue, and her complexion looked terrible. Her head was also throbbing faintly. These were signs of impending misfortune.

She closed her eyes and steadied her breathing. The words of her Daoist scripture flowed through her mind like water, and her heart became as still as a mirror. With every breath, the turbid qi within her body gathered and was slowly expelled, stolen content clearing her mind considerably. When she opened her eyes again, the person in the mirror looked somewhat healthier.

Only then did Long Qi stroll over and open the door.

Four people stood outside: the Zhu parents, as well as Zhu Qi’s older brother and sister, Zhu Sheng and Zhu Yuan. After knocking for so long without the door opening, all four had nearly decided to break in.

The moment they saw Long Qi appear behind the door, Father Zhu was the first to lash out, brimming with fury. “Zhu Qi, what is wrong with you? Are you deaf? I’m telling you, you must return to the Liu family today. Whether you’re willing or not, the Liu family is the family of your blood relatives! Our Zhu family has raised you for over twenty years. We’ve already done everything we possibly could for you!”

Mother Zhu could not help feeling somewhat reluctant. She had personally raised this child for over twenty years, after all, so naturally, she had some affection for her. But they had indulged this child far too much. All she ever did was eat, drink, and amuse herself. Although she had differentiated into an Alpha, she was rated only B-rank. Compared with their recovered biological daughter, Liu Wan, she fell far short. Liu Wan was an A-rank Alpha. The family had only so many resources, so of course they had to make room for their biological daughter.

Moreover, Liu Wan had already been brought home and was currently in the living room downstairs. The girl was polite and thoughtful, saying, “I only came because I desperately wanted to reunite with my biological parents and my older brother and sister. Please don’t hurt Zhu Qi because of me.”

Mother Zhu said, “Xiaoqi…everything in this room belongs to you. You may take whatever you want.”

Seeing Long Qi standing in the room without appearing willing to leave, Zhu Sheng said impatiently, “Why are you just standing there? Hurry up and pack your things. I’ve called a driver to take you to the Liu family.”

Zhu Yuan’s tone was the gentlest. “Xiaoqi, although you won’t be living in this house anymore, we’ll still regard you as our younger sister. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, come to us. Everything will be just as it was before.”

Long Qi stood where she was with one hand resting on the door, her clear, cool eyes examining the faces and demeanors of all four in turn. She quickly understood what sort of people they were. Through a fortunate coincidence in the apocalypse, she had spent ten years cultivating fragmentary Daoist teachings and had also studied a great deal of miscellaneous Daoist knowledge, including physiognomy. None of these people could be considered evil. Their faces showed that they had lived pampered lives and lacked nothing financially. But as for possessing exceptionally fine morals and character, that was certainly not the case.

Father Zhu and Zhu Sheng were both relatively tall and dressed handsomely, but their faces gleamed with oil, their eye sockets were dark, the whites of their eyes were reddened, and the flesh beneath their eyes was large and drooping. These were the features of people with disorderly private lives who indulged excessively in carnal pleasures.

Mother Zhu and Zhu Yuan had maintained themselves well. Their skin was fine, fair, and delicate, and they were clearly women accustomed to wealth and privilege. However, the ends of their brows and eyes drooped, giving them a frail appearance. Their cheekbones were relatively high, while the lower halves of their faces were pointed, forming the classic face shaped like the Chinese character “申.” People with this facial shape tended to be highly self-interested.

Judging from their physiognomy, this Read on BaiLianTales was certainly not a cheerful, harmonious family. Every one of them undoubtedly had their own agenda.

Combined with the scattered memories that had appeared from some unknown source, leaving this family with the flow of events was actually a good thing. The original Zhu Qi had grown into the sort of person in the story who cared only about eating, drinking, and having fun, then railed against heaven and earth when she fell from her social class. This family’s upbringing bore a great deal of responsibility for that.

What Long Qi needed to do now was continue acting according to the plot. But expecting her to pour her heart into the role and follow the original plot exactly was impossible. She was not truly the original Zhu Qi, and this body was unquestionably her own—the genuine article.

“All right. Let’s go, then.” Long Qi smiled and walked amiably out the door. She nodded to the four people on either side of her, then took the lead downstairs. The room was on the second floor. The birds had said that the real heiress had already returned, so she might as well go and take a look.

Long Qi was so cooperative that the members of the Zhu family found themselves uncomfortable instead. They grew suspicious, wondering whether she had no intention of leaving the Zhu family and was preparing to cause an enormous scene.

Zhu Sheng followed impatiently behind her and warned, “Xiaowan has already come home. She’s our real younger sister. Don’t try to ruin anything.”

“Zhu Qi would be very hurt if she knew you were speaking to her like this, wouldn’t she?” Long Qi replied indifferently as she descended the spiral staircase. After saying this, she suddenly noticed that the red plot text constantly hovering within her vision had faded slightly, becoming a little less glaring.

Long Qi clicked her tongue inwardly. Did she have to act out the general course of the plot before those words would disappear?

She looked up and saw three people seated in the magnificent European-style living room: a middle-aged couple and a young woman. All three were dressed simply but appropriately. The couple were typical working people and appeared somewhat ill at ease. The young woman was presumably the real heiress, Liu Wan. Like Long Qi, she had long, straight black hair. Her face was delicate and pretty, and she wore a gentle smile.

Judging from her features, the real heiress had long, elegant brows and clear eyes, suggesting that her heart was relatively pure. It appeared that she had grown up in the Liu family and had lived quite well.

Something stirred faintly in Long Qi’s heart as she noticed how closely Liu Wan’s face resembled her own. Their facial features and face shapes were very similar, and they were likely close in height as well, both exceptionally tall. Logically speaking, two people with different bloodlines and raised by different families should not have looked so much alike. Furthermore, the real and fake heiresses had been born at approximately the same hour, so their Eight Characters were very likely extremely similar as well.

Long Qi could not help wondering whether there might be some other hidden circumstances behind this farce of switched babies. However, this was not a suitable time to investigate. She could consider it later.

She nodded amiably to the Liu parents and Liu Wan. “Hello.”

Mother Liu had no attention to spare for Zhu Qi, her biological daughter. How could the grace of giving birth compare with the grace of raising a child? The daughter she had personally raised for over twenty years was naturally the one closest to her heart. Now that she had to entrust her to another family, she truly could not rest easy. Mother Liu held Liu Wan’s hand and said worriedly, “My daughter, Mom won’t stop you from returning to your biological parents’ home, but your father and mother’s house will always be your home. If you ever suffer any grievances in the future, come home and tell your mom and dad. Understand?”

Deeply moved, Liu Wan embraced Mother Liu, her eyes glistening with tears. “Thank you, Mom. You will always be my mother.”

Mother Zhu hurriedly said, “We desperately want Xiaowan to come home, but we would never demand that she sever her bond with the Liu family. Xiaowan is a good child belonging to both our families. Our two families should visit each other often from now on.”

The Liu parents were finally relieved. “That’s wonderful. That’s wonderful.”

The two families were enjoying a warm and harmonious reunion over one daughter, while Long Qi was the one being ignored. She watched the scene with great interest, then suddenly interjected, “Now that everyone has been reunited, what would you think if I said I didn’t want to leave the Zhu family?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she suddenly felt a stabbing pain inside her head. The lines of plot text within her vision turned a vivid, glaring crimson. She involuntarily raised a hand to her forehead as cold sweat rapidly seeped from her hairline and down her back.

Everyone’s expression changed. Long Qi practically became the target of them all. Apart from Liu Wan, nearly everyone faced her with expressions of fury.

Father Liu in particular had already heard from others that Zhu Qi, his biological daughter, knew how to do nothing except eat, drink, and amuse herself. The Zhu family had spent money to get her through university, but even after graduating, she had no proper career and continued asking her family for spending money. The Liu family could not afford to support a child like that if she returned to them! But they could not allow Zhu Qi to remain with the Zhu family either. That would only create trouble for their precious daughter, Liu Wan.

Father Liu berated Long Qi, “What are you saying? You’re a child of our Liu family. How can you shamelessly cling to the Zhu family? Anyone who hears about this will laugh at you for being greedy and vain! Hurry up and come home with us!”