"Jian Dan, are you there? What was it you wanted me to go with you to do just now? Are you listening?"
Jian Dan's consciousness slowly returned. A sudden brightness filled her vision, revealing a ceiling lamp and a snow-white ceiling. Beneath her was a soft bed. She sat up straight and realized she was in her own bedroom, holding a smartphone in her hand. The voice from the phone persisted relentlessly:
"Jian Dan? Jian Dan! Can you hear me?"
"Du Yanran."
Jian Dan whispered softly, and the next moment she hung up the phone. Right now, the last thing she wanted to hear was Du Yanran's voice.
The time displayed on the phone was 12:00 PM on July 7th. Today was her birthday, and tomorrow was Du Yanran's birthday. One of the many entanglements of their ill-fated relationship was that their birthdays fell right next to each other, and they were also classmates in the same school and class.
*Ring, ring, ring.* The phone started ringing again.
Jian Dan glanced at it and saw it was Du Yanran calling. She had no intention of answering right now; she needed to figure out the situation first, so she simply turned the phone off.
Jian Dan got up, walked over to the window, and looked out. She confirmed that this was the house she had lived in in the lower realm until she left, and also the only piece of real estate her mother had left her.
Downstairs outside the window, in the courtyard, elderly people were playing chess under the shade of the trees, young people were working out on public fitness equipment, and a few children were chasing each other and playing. The greenery in the courtyard's planting strips was lush, and various flowers bloomed in brilliant reds and purples, presenting a thriving scene. A breeze drifted over, carrying a trace of summer's stifling heat. Everything felt both familiar and strange.
She lay back down on the bed, rubbed her forehead, which still felt slightly uncomfortable, and slowly recalled what had happened on this day a hundred years ago—or rather, how the opening chapter of that book was written.
Today was her 18th birthday. In the morning, she had received a call from a law firm telling her that there was an inheritance left by her mother, designated to be claimed only after she turned 18, which was also a gift to congratulate her on reaching adulthood.
At that time, Jian Dan was both happy and apprehensive, so she subconsciously called Du Yanran and asked her to accompany her to handle the procedures.
It was also this time that Jian Dan acquired that set of white magnolia jade jewelry, which Du Yanran was the first to see and demanded as a birthday gift for the next day. This was the beginning of everything, and the beginning of Jian Dan toiling in vain for someone else's benefit.
"Hehe! It's only just beginning. Let's wait and see!"
Jian Dan murmured softly to herself.
Then she got up and turned her phone back on. As soon as it powered up, it started ringing. She checked, and it was still Du Yanran. Truly persistent.
"Hello! Jian Dan, are you okay? Why did we get cut off just now while we were talking? When I called your phone, it was turned off, and I was worried to death, thinking something had happened to you!"
A rapid, caring stream of words poured out.
It was always like this. No matter what happened, she would immediately make her position clear, terrified that others wouldn't know how kind she was, showing off her thoughtfulness at every turn.
"Yeah! The signal didn't seem very good just now, and I forgot to charge it, so it shut down automatically."
Jian Dan casually made up an excuse to put her off.
"We were only halfway through what we were saying earlier—what did you want to ask me to do tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow is your birthday, and I originally wanted to ask you to go pick out a gift, but plans change faster than we can keep up. Someone came from my father's side, saying they want to take me to Jingdu for the summer vacation. Things are a bit sudden, and I haven't decided yet, but I wanted to let you know first."
"Ah? That biological father of yours whom you've never met—why would he suddenly pick you up to spend the summer vacation this year? Could there be something going on?"
Du Yanran probed unhurriedly to get to the bottom of the matter.
"I'm not sure. I'll only know when we meet tomorrow. That's why I'm contacting you in advance to give you a heads-up that I won't be able to attend your birthday party. I'll make up for the gift later."
This same scene had played out in her past life. Her biological father had sent people to pick her up for the sake of his biological son, but would things go as smoothly as they did in the past life?