A gentle, cool breeze drifted into the dim room through the open window. Along with the breeze came the tranquil silence of the outdoors and a faint scent of dry leaves. It was as if it had quietly entered to break the room's solitude.
With the curtains drawn, not even the evening light could penetrate the room. The entire space was submerged like a lightless, deep-sea night. The unlit chandelier hung silently in the stillness, and a cold, sterile emptiness enveloped the whole room. This was a lifeless, tiny world, sealed off from the rest of the universe. There was nothing, no movement of living things, no sound of breathing, not even a glimmer of hope.
Looking at the girl lying on the sofa, frail and despondent, who would have thought she was once a brilliant student at a prestigious medical university? The girl who once bustled with life on campus, filled with hope and excitement for the future, and possessed a charming smile—there was no trace of her now. It was like a bad movie.
Everything had been calm and quiet on that day, until the emotionless words reached her. She remembered her entire body trembling as Su Mo Han spoke. Her hands shook uncontrollably. Tears welled up in her eyes, forming a small, shallow pool. She couldn't say a word in return. She was too shocked to respond.
"Let's break up, Zhou Yu Tong."
Even though it had been over six months since the breakup, Su Mo Han's voice still lingered in her memories. It was cold, devoid of love and warmth, echoing repeatedly in her mind.
"We've tried for four years in this relationship. I can't walk any further. I'm tired, and I don't want to hold you back anymore. You deserve someone better."
The moment Su Mo Han left, she felt as if the entire world had suddenly disappeared. That feeling lingered, even now.
Yu Tong stared for a long time at her back as she walked away without even an apology. It was a simple, unacknowledged love. Sometimes, unpleasant events come with a cool, gentle breeze.
The air in the room was thick with the suffocating smell of stale alcohol. She was drunk every day, to the point where she couldn't tell if it was morning or night. She drank beer to numb the pain, but after a while, the pain would return silently, more subtly. Her body was dehydrated to the point where she couldn't tell if she was in a dream or reality. She woke up, not wanting to open her eyes. The feeling was awful. The first sensation she felt upon opening her eyes was a throbbing headache. She couldn't remember when she had fallen asleep.
Her lips were dry and her throat felt parched. When she licked her dry lips with her tongue, a thirst welled up in her throat, so she took the last sip from the half-empty beer can from the morning. For a moment, her throat felt cool. But days like these were not new to her. She hadn't eaten properly for many days, leaving her mentally and physically exhausted. She had no will to do anything.
Today was the same. After a sip of beer, she slowly got off the sofa. Just as she headed towards the bathroom, her head suddenly felt dizzy. Her eyes went blurry and she couldn't control herself. A few steps later, she lost her balance and fell to the floor. The contact with the floor felt cold and painful, but more than that, a feeling of emptiness dominated her mind. Just before her eyes closed, the dark ceiling she saw seemed to reflect the current state of her life. In that darkness, she felt her soul drift away. She didn't know how long she had been in the dark. It was as if she was being pulled out of a black tunnel and moving towards an endless light.
As the light grew brighter, she suddenly heard a cacophony of sounds and smelled a variety of scents. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw a large bed with beautiful silk curtains embroidered with gold. It was a world away from the sofa she had fallen from. She timidly turned her head and saw two maidservants in ancient Chinese clothes looking at her with worried expressions, just like in ancient Chinese movies. Their hairstyles and clothes had nothing to do with the 21st century she was familiar with. Suddenly, one of the maidservants cried out in alarm.
"The young mistress is awake! Go and call the physician quickly!"
Zhou Yu Tong's head was full of questions, but she couldn't say a word. Where was she? What happened? Was she still dreaming? At that moment, she understood one thing from the maids' words: "young mistress." Since when had she become a young mistress? Was this even her body? She wanted to run to a mirror and confirm what was happening.
Just then, the door opened, and she saw an elderly physician in his 50s and an old man who looked like a master from an ancient drama enter. The elderly physician examined her wrist while the master, who seemed wealthy, looked at her with concern.
"Please don't worry, Master, the young mistress is just weak. She'll recover with a good diet," the physician said.
The master sighed and said, "I've been so worried ever since my daughter fainted."
"The young mistress needs to rest well, Master. I will write a prescription. Giving it to her once a night will be enough."
According to their conversation, she had fainted. When the elderly physician and the master left, her gaze returned to the two maidservants standing by the bed. The worry on their faces was evident.
"W-where is this place?" she asked with difficulty. She noticed her voice was so delicate she almost didn't recognize it herself.
The two maidservants looked at each other, seemingly at a loss for words. One of them said, trembling, "Young mistress... what's wrong? This is your room."
Zhou Yu Tong frowned. "My room? Since when did my room look like this? My house... my house is not like this. Where am I? And who are you? I must be dreaming, I'm just dreaming."
Her questions seemed to frighten them even more. One of the maids immediately knelt down and said, "Young mistress! Young mistress... have you lost your memory? We are your servants. This is the residence of the Prime Minister, young mistress. Please be careful."
Prime Minister? Residence? These words were completely foreign to her. A sudden influx of the original body's memories rushed into her head, causing her a throbbing headache. As the memories of the original owner became intertwined with her own, she felt like her entire former life was being lost. But even though this was not a place she knew, it no longer felt foreign. She realized that her soul had entered the body of the most beloved daughter of a powerful Prime Minister from the Tang dynasty.