Gu Ran didn't expect to die in a car accident shortly after graduating from university. Her twenty-two years of life had been relatively smooth, though she was often labeled as "green tea," "sea king," or "vixen" – rather unpleasant titles. She used to believe this was due to others' envy of her beauty and wealth, and she never reined in her willfulness, becoming even more capricious.
Gu Ran saw herself lying in a pool of blood, covered in it. Her first reaction was that she was having a nightmare, but the dream didn't end for a long time. She watched herself being rushed to the emergency room. After a long while, the doctor told her parents that she had become a vegetative state. She saw her parents collapse in tears by her bedside. Though she thought it was a dream, her heart still ached.
Who was the killer? She could clearly see his face, but for some reason, she could never get a clear look. Perhaps she could never remember that face.
She saw her best friend arrive, calmly comforting her parents. She wanted to speak, but she couldn't.
Just as she was in despair, a childish voice came from above.
"Gu Ran, do you want your soul to return?" the voice said. However, her parents and her best friend Chu Yao seemed not to hear it. What a bizarre occurrence. Why was this dream so vivid, and why hadn't she woken up yet?
"Who are you?" Gu Ran asked. Soon after, a mechanical voice responded, asking if she wanted to bind to a system. Two options immediately appeared before Gu Ran: 'Yes' and 'No'.
There was even high technology involved? But before Gu Ran could ponder further, the childish voice reappeared, "Do you want to be resurrected? If so, choose 'Yes'."
Gu Ran was astonished. Could this not be a dream, but reality? Was it true or false?
Amidst her internal struggle, the mechanical voice sounded again, beginning a countdown.
Gu Ran chose 'Yes' in the last three seconds. If it was real, she would die anyway. Choosing 'Yes' might offer a chance to live. She was only twenty-two, in the prime of her life; how could she die like this? Gu Ran was unwilling.
"Binding... Host: Gu Ran, System: Seventeen."
"Binding successful, transferring to space..."
"Transfer successful!"
In what felt like moments, Gu Ran found herself in an unknown place. Visually, it resembled a research laboratory, filled with machines. It looked like high-tech equipment, unlike anything she had ever seen or heard of.
Before she could reach out to the display screen in front of her, the childish voice reappeared.
"Host, do you wish to access the interface now?"
Gu Ran was still in a daze, so she naturally wanted to clarify the situation. "Who are you? Where is this? Why am I here?"
Adhering to the principle of getting clear answers, Gu Ran bombarded it with a series of questions.
"My name is Seventeen, and I am the system bound to the host. This is a space station. As for why you are here, you just had a car accident, and you chose to have a chance at resurrection. In exchange, you must complete the tasks assigned by the space station. Upon completing the designated tasks, you will be resurrected."
Although Gu Ran found it hard to believe such things existed, she had no choice but to believe. Therefore, she decided to temporarily trust this strange system and complete the tasks.
"What kind of tasks?"
Gu Ran felt she needed to understand more, as this thing was truly bizarre.
"You will transmigrate into a book and complete tasks designated by the system. Your attributes are very suitable for completing such tasks, which is why the space station chose you."
Gu Ran remained doubtful. "What happens if I don't choose to complete the tasks, or if I fail them?"
"You will be annihilated, erased by the Time-Space Administration Bureau. So, host, this system advises you to complete the tasks properly! Now, do you wish to be transferred?"
Gu Ran finally understood the gravity of the situation. Her life was now in the hands of this so-called space station. But she couldn't die, so she had to complete the tasks well.
"Transfer now." As for the tasks, she believed she would complete them smoothly.
The door in front of her opened, resembling an elevator. "Please enter, host, and press the close door button. The system will transfer you automatically."
Gu Ran did as instructed, then plunged into darkness. She could only hear Seventeen's voice, "Transferring to 'World's CEO Falls in Love with Me.' Ten, nine, eight, seven... two, one, transfer successful!"
"Host, do you wish to receive the mission now?"
"Yes." As soon as Gu Ran finished speaking, her mind was flooded with a pile of memories that were not her own.
The original body's name was Shen Lusheng. Although her family background couldn't compare to the male lead or second male lead, she was considered from a renowned family in A City. Eventually, she was sent abroad by the Shen family and never returned to A City... Reading this, Gu Ran assumed she was the wicked female second lead. But she hadn't expected that she was merely a character who could barely be called the female third lead. What was even more outrageous was that her target for攻略 (gonglüe - strategy/conquest) was the second male lead, Jiang Yi, not the male lead Jin Moshen. She was the second male lead's fiancée. Out of jealousy that the second male lead liked the female lead, she was manipulated by the female second lead to frame the female lead. Consequently, she was disliked by the second male lead, who had always believed the female lead, and was then sent abroad by him, never to return.
Now, her mission target was the second male lead, Jiang Yi. Gu Ran's heart sank halfway as she inwardly mused that the time she had transmigrated to was when the second male lead was already deeply infatuated with the female lead.
"The second male lead's current favorability is zero. The target favorability is one hundred percent. Please complete the objective, host. There are villains and side quests in the mission. Completing side quests will earn the host extra points, which can be used to purchase items in the mall to assist the host in completing the mission. If you die during the mission, it will be considered mission failure. Host, you must be careful of the villains in the novel..."
Gu Ran silently recalled her romantic history. She had dated all sorts of men, but she had never been a mistress. She wasn't interested in other people's men and had no intention of interfering. However, the second male lead was devoted to the female lead, steadfastly believing in her, yet the female lead simply loved the male lead. Now, she had to conquer a devoted second male lead who was entirely smitten with the female lead, which she considered more difficult than conquering the male lead.
But when Gu Ran thought of her wonderful life, how could such a beautiful girl like her just die like this? So, Gu Ran pulled herself together. This was only the first mission; it shouldn't be that difficult, right? She had to give herself some comfort, Gu Ran thought.
However, what the system said next dealt another blow to Gu Ran. "Host, your mission is to make the second male lead abandon the female lead Bai Xiaotang and be with Shen Lusheng. Most importantly, host, remember this: never deviate from the character's persona. Once you deviate from the persona, causing the world to collapse, you will be immediately erased by the world. Host, you must remember this, remember it well..."
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