1

In the height of June's summer, the scorching sun that should have been shining brightly in the sky was instead obscured by layers of thick, dark clouds.

The dense clouds caused the previously bright day to dim significantly.

Pedestrians on the street, in twos and threes, looked up at the sky. Occasionally, someone sighed lightly, "It looks like it's going to rain heavily."

"Let's hurry."

"Ugh, why has it been raining every day recently? It's so annoying."

Voices of various sizes arose, and the already hurried pedestrians quickened their pace even more. Even those who were originally holding sun umbrellas glanced up at the sky before silently speeding up their steps.

Only one person stood still, rooted to the spot as if nailed there, completely motionless.

At this moment, someone passing by happened to glance at her pale, bloodless face and was startled.

The girl, noticing the pallor of the person's face next to her, felt her heart skip a beat. She suppressed an untimely sense of admiration and concern and asked worriedly, "Miss, are you okay?"

Wen Yixin was pulled back to her senses by this concerned inquiry.

She regained her composure, glanced at the girl, then quickly looked away. She responded softly that she was fine and, after expressing her thanks, continued to walk forward.

As she walked, Wen Yixin's gaze wandered, sweeping over the unfamiliar surroundings before slowly retracting. Her eyes lowered, and her fair fingers unconsciously tightened around the handle of the umbrella. Her brows furrowed slightly, as if faced with some difficult problem.

Wen Yixin tried to sort through the memories that had flooded into her mind earlier. After fully understanding them, the frown on her face deepened significantly.

She couldn't understand why, after fainting from a fall during dance practice, she had woken up here, in the body of someone with the same name as her.

Moreover, according to the memories in her mind, it seemed she had transmigrated into a book.

A book she had just read a few days ago, where the original character had very little screen time.

How little? In a novel of around 200,000 words, the original character's scenes totaled only about 10,000 words.

However, despite her limited appearances, the character Wen Yixin played was the classical dance teacher of the original protagonist, Qin Yi. She appeared only in a few scenes at the beginning, and then disappeared without a trace.

In the original story, it was mentioned that Wen Yixin eventually left K City alone, but it didn't specify where she went. The only hint was a single line: "She went home."

Those four short words marked the original character's exit from the story.

After recalling the memories and the original plot, Wen Yixin couldn't help but sigh softly.

In the brief time that passed, raindrops began to patter on the umbrella she was holding.

It had started to rain.

Wen Yixin watched the raindrops gradually spreading on the ground, yet she continued walking at a leisurely pace.

She seemed in no hurry to return home to avoid the rain.

Following the memories in her mind, Wen Yixin walked steadily in a certain direction. As she walked, the number of pedestrians around her gradually decreased until there were only a few scattered passersby and the occasional vehicle on the road.

At the same time, the rain intensified.

Wen Yixin looked up at the nearby residential complex and unconsciously quickened her pace.

According to her memories, the original character lived in that complex, which was also the same place where the original protagonist Qin Yi's family resided.

As this thought crossed her mind, Wen Yixin's pace slowed.

She suddenly remembered something.

At this point in the story, the original character had already agreed to start teaching Qin Yi dance lessons tomorrow.

Thinking about tomorrow's lesson, Wen Yixin let out a long breath, secretly grateful that the original character also specialized in classical dance; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to teach the class.

Lost in thought, Wen Yixin found herself standing in front of the complex's gate. Just as she was about to step inside, several car horns suddenly blared behind her.

Short and sharp, the sound was jarringly loud.

Wen Yixin snapped back to reality and silently moved to the side, ensuring she wouldn't be splashed by the water from the speeding cars before continuing her slow walk forward.

Seconds later, the cars sped past, splashing water behind them before quickly entering the complex.

Wen Yixin watched the cars almost drifting around the corner and couldn't help but frown slightly.

Just as her frown appeared, she saw one of the cars suddenly screech to a halt, followed by a young man leaning out of the driver's side window.

The young man seemed extremely angry, his voice not only loud but also raised in pitch.

He spoke so loudly that even Wen Yixin, who was far behind, could hear every word clearly.

"Hey, are you blind? Or just stupid? If you want to die, go jump off a building, don't throw yourself at my car!"

"Disgusting!"

After cursing a few more times, the young man finally drove off.

It was only after the car had left that Wen Yixin saw the person the young man had been shouting at.

It was a girl.

She was lying on the ground, and only after the car left did she slowly start to sit up.

The rain poured down on her, quickly soaking her clothes completely.

Her wet black hair clung messily to her pale cheeks and neck, adding an inexplicable sense of fragility.

Wen Yixin's gaze swept over the bloodstains on the girl's wrists and knees, and she unconsciously quickened her pace towards her.

As she got closer, her gaze settled on the girl's face, and she recognized her from the recesses of her memory—Qin Ruan, the older sister of the original protagonist.

On the other side, Qin Ruan, who was still half-sitting on the ground, stretched out her thin hand to press against the wet ground. Her fingers tensed, as if she was trying to use the force to stand up.

Unfortunately, after struggling for a few seconds, it was no use. She remained sitting on the ground, unable to get up.

The rain grew heavier, and the torrential downpour against her body almost seemed to convey a sense of pain.

Qin Ruan's eyes reddened slightly. She raised her hand to wipe away the rain on her face, but when her fingers touched her swollen right cheek, they involuntarily flinched.

Her eyes filled with a hint of moisture.

As if thinking of something, Qin Ruan suddenly lowered her hand, pressing her palm against the wet ground again.

Just as she was about to stand up, a shadow fell over her, accompanied by...

A beautifully shaped, jade-like hand.

Qin Ruan froze, raising her eyes to look at the hand's owner.

Her gaze climbed from the elegant fingers up to the delicate face, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

It was her.

Wen Yixin bent down slightly, extending her hand to Qin Ruan while also moving the umbrella in her other hand between them, effectively shielding Qin Ruan from the relentless rain.

She looked at the disheveled Qin Ruan and couldn't help but lift her hand slightly, speaking in a soft and gentle voice:

"Miss Qin, let me help you up."

"You..." Qin Ruan stared at her, her gaze fixed on Wen Yixin's face for a long time before she slowly uttered, "Do you know me?"

The day her mother invited Wen Yixin to the Qin family, she shouldn't have seen herself. So why did she recognize her?

Wen Yixin glanced at the wet strands of hair clinging to Qin Ruan's cheek. Unable to help herself, she reached out to gently tuck them behind Qin Ruan's ear.

As she did so, her gaze lingered briefly on the handprint on Qin Ruan's cheek before she nonchalantly looked away.

As their eyes met, Wen Yixin's soft gaze curved into a gentle smile. "Of course."

"I saw you that day when I left."

Qin Ruan was startled, staring at Wen Yixin in silence as if trying to recall when they had met.

Wen Yixin flicked her fingers against Qin Ruan's forehead, bringing her back to her senses before extending her hand to her again:

"Miss Qin, give me your hand."

"I'll help you up and take you to see a doctor, okay?"

Qin Ruan looked up at her, and when her gaze met Wen Yixin's eyes, which were filled with concern, a slight warmth blossomed in her heart.

She hurriedly looked away, but accidentally caught sight of the design on the umbrella above her head.

It depicted... blue skies and white clouds.

It looked like a bright, sunny day.

Even though the sky outside was pouring with heavy rain, at that moment, Qin Ruan suddenly felt like her world was clear.

"Miss Qin?" Wen Yixin, puzzled by Qin Ruan's continued daze, gently urged her, "If you don't get up soon, it might be too late."

She glanced at Qin Ruan's bleeding knee and ankle, then asked, "Or is your injury too severe to stand?"

Although the injuries looked like minor scrapes from a fall, there could be other unseen injuries.

Wen Yixin pondered this as she squatted down to check on Qin Ruan's injuries. Her pale green dress spread out on the dirty, wet ground, instantly soaking up the filthy water.

Qin Ruan's eyes narrowed as she focused on the hem of Wen Yixin's dress. She hesitated, wanting to lift her hand but suddenly noticing the grit and mud covering her fingers.

Her dirty hand was a stark contrast to Wen Yixin's beautiful one.

Qin Ruan's already pale face grew even paler. She bit her lip, and while Wen Yixin wasn't looking, she discreetly rubbed her hand against her soaked clothes several times. When she felt it was clean enough, she brought her hand forward, saying:

"My injuries aren't serious, I just twisted my ankle."

Wen Yixin looked at her, lips parting slightly, but before she could speak, Qin Ruan answered her unspoken question.

"I can walk, but it's hard to stand up. I might need your help to get up." Qin Ruan explained.

Wen Yixin nodded, "I'll help you up. Be careful."

"Okay." Qin Ruan responded and slowly reached out to grasp the jade-like hand in front of her.

Wen Yixin wedged the umbrella handle between her shoulder and neck. One hand held Qin Ruan's, while the other arm wrapped around her shoulder, slowly lifting her off the ground.