"Wait!"
On the day of his college graduation, Zhang Yichen had just finished his part-time job and was about to enter his rented apartment when someone suddenly called out to him.
"What is it?"
He turned his head and saw a woman standing there, disguised from head to toe.
Hat, sunglasses, mask—everything about her screamed that she didn't want to be recognized.
If not for the oversized suitcase she was dragging and the baby in her arms, Zhang Yichen might have suspected she was about to do something shady.
"Your name is Zhang Yichen. You just turned twenty-two today. You were the top scorer in the national college entrance exam. With your grades, you could have attended any university in the world. So why did you choose some low-tier college that can admits students who can pay their way in?"
The woman stared at him for a long moment before speaking. Her clear, pleasant voice carried fatigue, sorrow, concern—and above all, suspicion.
"This… Auntie…" Zhang Yichen frowned. "Do we know each other?"
Judging from her tone and bearing, the woman seemed several years older than him.
Despite the hat, sunglasses, and mask, there was a faint kindness in her voice.
She even knew today was his birthday.
Other than himself, only the people at the orphanage—and the parents who gave him life—would know that.
He knew everyone at the orphanage.
But this woman? He was certain he had never seen her before.
Could it be… that the original owner of this body was her illegitimate child?
The thought struck him suddenly, as though he had stumbled upon the truth.
After all, Zhang Yichen wasn't originally from this world. He was a transmigrator.
It had been exactly one year since he arrived on Earth 2.O.
The original body had been an orphan. When the dean of the orphanage found him as a baby, his bundle contained not only his birth date and time but also a jade pendant carved with the character "Zhang."
That pendant had been his only proof of identity.
But it had been stolen a year ago.
On this very day last year, the original owner had just turned twenty-one. Exhausted from work, he collapsed from heatstroke and died. That was when Zhang Yichen crossed over and inherited his body.
"You… you actually called me Auntie!"
The woman's angry voice cut through Zhang Yichen's thoughts, tinged with something else—grievance.
Yes, grievance.
Zhang Yichen had perfect pitch. He could hear every subtle emotion in someone's voice.
There was no mistake.
Grievance? The original body had been abandoned for twenty-one years, and he hadn't even had the chance to feel wronged—yet she was the one aggrieved?
"What? Did you expect me to call you Mom?"
Zhang Yichen's patience snapped.
Call her Mom?
Impossible. Absolutely impossible.
She wasn't worthy of being the original owner's mother.
"Eh? Mom? Haha…"
Hearing his words, the woman suddenly laughed. The fatigue, sorrow, and grievance from before seemed to vanish instantly.
She hadn't laughed like that in a long time.
In just one year, she had fallen from grace, lost her status, and been buried in debt…
She truly couldn't hold on any longer.
And in her heart, it was all thanks to Zhang Yichen.
No one knew how much courage it had taken for her to come find him.
She never expected him to mistake her identity.
She also knew she shouldn't laugh at a moment like this.
But she simply couldn't help it.
"Well…"
After a long pause, she regained her composure. "I came today to give you a birthday present. Take good care of her from now on."
As she spoke, the woman lifted the baby in her arms and handed her to Zhang Yichen.
The soft, milky fragrance unique to infants drifted into his nose the moment the child entered his arms.
"You… I…"
He froze, instinctively cradling the child carefully.
"Huh?"
The baby was less than a hundred days old, yet her features were already forming—her brows and eyes bore an uncanny resemblance to his, seven or eight parts alike.
But what truly caught his attention was the jade pendant around her neck.
It looked achingly familiar.
Yes—apart from the string, it was identical to the one the original owner had lost.
No more doubt.
That woman had abandoned him once, and now she wanted to abandon his "little sister" too!
"You… you…!!!"
Rage surged through Zhang Yichen, nearly bursting from his chest. Whether she had lived in luxury or was struggling in poverty, she had never truly cared. Not then, not now.
From her appearance, she didn't look wealthy.
From her thin, frail body, it was obvious she hadn't been living well and probably couldn't afford to raise the child.
But that was no excuse for abandonment.
Even if she couldn't manage, if she had asked him for help, blood ties alone meant he wouldn't have turned her away.
Instead, she wanted to shirk responsibility!
"Mmm~"
Just as his fury was about to erupt, the baby stirred in his arms, as if frightened.
"You think you deserve to be called a mother?"
Zhang Yichen tightened his hold on the child, his voice dropping low, anger rumbling deep in his chest.
"I don't deserve it? I gave up my career to give birth to her. I was kicked out of my family. I lost almost everything. Now I can't even afford a full meal…"
"Gurgle…"
As if to prove her point, the woman's stomach protested loudly.
"Uh… well…"
Her face flushed with embarrassment, and she fell silent.
"You…"
After a brief pause, Zhang Yichen adjusted the baby in his arms, pulled out his key, and opened the door. "Come in."
"Alright."
Without hesitation, the woman dragged her suitcase inside.
The rented apartment was small—barely over twenty square meters—but neat and orderly.
The furnishings were simple: a sofa, a coffee table, a computer desk, and a two-meter bed.
"Sit and wait a bit. I'll make you something to eat."
Placing the baby carefully on the bed, Zhang Yichen headed straight to the kitchen.
The food was already prepared—steamed buns, rib soup, and a small plate of pickles with rice.
The buns were fresh and still warm.
The pickles were homemade, clean and crisp.
The rib soup had been cooked on schedule; though not as rich as a slow-simmered broth, it still carried a fragrant aroma.
He had developed this habit back in his third year of college.
That was when he had first arrived in this world, unfamiliar with everything.
And having just turned twenty-one, the orphanage no longer had any obligation to support him.
He had to earn his tuition, and also support himself.
He had plenty of skills, but as a newcomer in a strange world, he dared not reveal them.
The unfamiliarity, the strangeness, left him confused, helpless, and afraid…
But worse than that—on his very first day here, before his soul had even fully merged with this body, he had been… taken advantage of.
At the time, his soul was hazy and unfocused. He didn't even know who that "beast" was.
He didn't even know if the person was male or female.
Everything had been muddled and unclear.
When he woke up in the hospital, the original body's jade pendant was gone. In its place, he found three thousand ron in his pocket.
He didn't know if that money was payment for the pendant… or "compensation" for what had been done to him.
All he knew was this: in both his lives, he had been clean.
But now, his body was no longer pure.
And worse than losing his innocence—
He had fallen into depression.