[System, I'm going to the Time Administration's annual meeting. You can take on the missions and plot points yourself. Remember to maintain your character and don't mess around.]
In the last world, the host went completely wild. For the first half of it, I was on edge.
Later, even the Heavenly Dao was trying to cling to her leg, so the system stopped caring so much. Maintaining one's character was originally meant to prevent the host from being expelled by the world's consciousness.
When the world's consciousness itself listened to her, what was there to fear?
"Mm, go ahead."
After saying goodbye, Zhu Jin opened her eyes. Above her was a white, plastered ceiling, which seemed to be peeling in places.
She was lying on a dorm bed, with the curtains drawn. Faint light filtered in from the window, but it wasn't very bright; it was an overcast day.
She closed her eyes and received the memories and mission of the original host.
The name of this body was Lu Jin, she was 20 years old, a sophomore at Hai Cheng University Affiliated School.
Lu Jin had come from the countryside. Her family had two older sisters and a younger brother. She was the only one who had gone to university, so even though her parents were from a very common patriarchal rural background, they treated her very well.
Before university, the original host's grades were excellent. She was one of the few people from their small county town to get into university, so she was rather proud.
However, after arriving in the big city, she discovered her grades weren't outstanding. Her classmates from wealthy families traveled abroad and made connections with high society. Even with mediocre academic performance, they achieved success in other areas.
She, on the other hand, had accomplished nothing.
In such an environment, her mindset slowly changed.
She learned to be competitive and sycophantic, hooking up with rich boys. She even went to clubs to catch wealthy men. Her grades deteriorated, and she became increasingly decadent.
Ultimately, she became someone's mistress. Pregnant, she was chased to her door by the original wife and beaten. During the struggle, she accidentally fell, miscarried, and died from excessive bleeding.
Even when reading the original host's storyline, Zhu Jin felt no emotion.
However, she discovered something unusual in the original host's memories. In this world, she and the mission target knew each other.
The mission target, Lu Chongyan, was originally born into a well-off family. He was a product of the second child policy and had an older sister who was 16 years older than him.
His sister had been doted on for 16 years. The sudden appearance of a younger brother made her very unhappy. She had even threatened suicide, wanting her parents to abort him.
But her parents still gave birth to Lu Chongyan.
To appease her, her parents bought her a house for hundreds of thousands of yuan, but she was still unhappy. She went on a cycling trip with some friends, but an accident occurred en route, and she lost contact.
Her parents drove to find her and were hit by a fatigue-driving truck driver on the highway, dying instantly.
Her parents were dead, but she showed no remorse or sadness, nor did she intend to raise her brother. She promptly sold her parents' house and moved into a new home alone.
Relatives brought the two-year-old Lu Chongyan to her door, but she refused to let them in. The relatives already had children and didn't want to raise an unexpected child, so they left Lu Chongyan at her doorstep.
When the woman discovered him, she took Lu Chongyan to the countryside and sold him for 3,000 yuan to a childless couple.
Saying "bought" isn't quite right. The couple who had no children wanted to adopt one. The woman brought someone with her, and the couple fell in love with the beautiful child at first sight, deciding to adopt him.
The woman then extorted them, asking for 3,000 yuan.
The couple, who already liked Lu Chongyan and knew that if they didn't adopt him, his heartless sister would sell him elsewhere, gritted their teeth and paid the money.
At that time, 3,000 yuan was no small sum.
Lu Chongyan's surname wasn't originally Lu. The family that bought him was named Lu, and he later took that name.
That family lived next door to Lu Jin's family. Their village was called Lu Family Village. Most people in the village were surnamed Lu, but there wasn't much blood relation, especially since Lu Chongyan was adopted.
They were considered childhood sweethearts. Chongyan's grades were originally quite good, but during his middle school years, his adoptive father's leg was broken in an accident. The medical expenses made their family's life difficult.
His adoptive mother was illiterate and in poor health.
So, he dropped out of school after middle school and went out to work to support the family.
Lu Jin attended high school in the county town, and Lu Chongyan worked in the county town. They were neighbors. Lu Chongyan was good-looking, and over time, they developed feelings for each other. When Lu Jin graduated from high school, she confessed her love to Lu Chongyan.
However, it was also she who was first captivated by the prosperity of the city. She looked down on Lu Chongyan, who lacked education, status, and wealth, and they soon broke up.
She indulged in the decadent urban life and became utterly degenerate.
Lu Chongyan also embarked on a path of darkness due to her abandonment and other events.