The Bai family living room had rarely been so tense.
Soft afternoon light filtered through the tall windows, casting long shadows across the marble floors. On the expensive cream leather couch sat Bai Zhi, legs crossed, her expression unreadable. Across from her sat her fiancé, Chen Yuxuan the perfect young master of the Chen family. Polished, poised, and proud.
Madam Bai and Old Master Bai had been called to attend, curiosity piqued by the rare request from Bai Zhi to "discuss something important."
Chen Yuxuan looked puzzled, even slightly annoyed.
"Zhi'er, what's this about?" he asked with a frown. "Why did you call me here so formally?"
Bai Zhi looked at him calmly, as if examining a glass sculpture she once thought precious but now saw as hollow.
"I'm breaking off our engagement," she said.
The room fell silent.
A pin could've dropped, and the sound would've echoed.
Madam Bai leaned forward, her face tight with disbelief. "Zhi'er, what are you saying? Do you even know what you're talking about?"
Old Master Bai narrowed his eyes. "This engagement was decided years ago. The Chen family is powerful. Why would you throw that away?"
Chen Yuxuan stood abruptly, his tone sharp. "Is this some joke? I thought you have been joking".
Bai Zhi's lips curled into a faint smile. "Does it look like I'm joking?"
"But… why?" Chen Yuxuan demanded. "We're engaged. Our families already agreed"
"Yes, they agreed," Bai Zhi cut in, "but I didn't."
He stared at her.
"We've known each other since we were teenagers, Zhi'er," he said, voice softening. "I've always treated you well."
Bai Zhi gave a light chuckle. "Have you? I must've missed that part."
She remembered too well how he had fawned over Bai Meilin in the last life, how he'd dumped her like trash the moment Meilin batted her lashes at him. How he had even proposed to Meilin on the anniversary of his original engagement to Bai Zhi.
Not again.
Madam Bai's face darkened. "Zhi'er, enough. You're being irrational. We won't allow it."
Bai Zhi turned her head slowly toward her. "I wasn't asking for permission."
"You!"
She couldn't play the mother card anymore, but she was sure soon enough she would play the long term caregiver card.
Old Master Bai raised a hand to stop Madam Bai from speaking further. His gaze turned calculating.
"Zhi'er, what do you want?" he asked, voice low. "What's changed?"
Bai Zhi's eyes gleamed. "I want a life that's mine. Not one scripted by others."
Silence.
Chen Yuxuan looked like he had swallowed a lemon. "So that's it? You want to chase some childish dream of becoming a singer or an actress and toss away the future we could have had?"
She stood up, smoothing her blouse. "I'd rather chase my dreams than marry a man who only sees me as a stepping stone."
Then she paused.
"Oh, and don't get any ideas about Meilin. She might seem sweet and innocent, but trust me, she bites."
or maybe he can get ideas. They do fit each others hypocrisy.
With that, she turned and left the room, her heels echoing with every step.
The Bai estate was in uproar.
No one had expected Bai Zhi, the once docile and obedient "eldest daughter," to break her engagement, much less do it so boldly, with witnesses.
But Bai Zhi didn't stop to explain herself. She had other matters to attend to.
Back in her room, she sent a few emails to industry contacts from her past life, the ones she remembered who had admired her screenwriting and vocals anonymously, never knowing it was her work behind Meilin's shining reputation.
She used a pseudonym: Z.
Within hours, she got replies.
Your demo is incredible. Are you available for a meeting this week?
The script is tight and emotional. We'd like to discuss optioning it.
Can we collaborate on a new OST project? Your style is fresh and layered.
She closed her laptop with a small smile.
In her past life, everything she created had been signed off under Meilin's name. Now, she was reclaiming her voice, literally and figuratively.
Later that night, as Bai Meilin walked past the study, she overheard servants whispering.
"…Miss Bai Zhi really broke it off with the Chen heir…"
"…and she didn't even cry! Just walked away like a queen…"
"…I thought she was just pretty. Who knew she had guts too?"
Meilin clenched her fists.
Things were slipping.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Bai Zhi should be losing everything bit by bit, crawling and desperate to remain loved.
But instead, she was… rising, like a Phoenix.
Bai Meilin stormed into Bai Zhi's room without knocking.
"Jie! What are you doing? Why are you being like this?!"
Bai Zhi didn't look up from the notebook she was writing in. "I suggest you knock next time."
Meilin huffed. "You broke your engagement! Don't you care about your reputation? About our family?!"
Bai Zhi slowly stood, her expression calm but cutting. "Don't mistake silence for weakness, Meilin. You've had your fun playing sweet little sister. But I'm not playing anymore."
Meilin's eyes welled with tears instantly. "I don't understand what I did wrong… I've only ever wanted to be close to you…"
That act again.
Bai Zhi had to admire her skill. If she hadn't known Meilin's true nature, she might've been fooled all over again.
"You've done nothing wrong," Bai Zhi said with a cold smile. "And I'm sure the people around you will believe that, for now."
Meilin's face froze, her tears drying up.
"You know something," she said in a whisper. "You… remember."
Bai Zhi tilted her head. "Do you?"
A long silence.
Then Bai Meilin's lips curled slightly, her sweet mask cracking. "So the little fool finally opened her eyes."
"No," Bai Zhi said softly. "She died. I'm someone else now."
The next morning, the Chen family officially confirmed the engagement had ended "on mutual terms."
Still, it was all anyone in upper society could talk about.
"Bai Zhi was the one who initiated it."
"I heard the Chen heir tried to change her mind and she refused."
"She must have someone else lined up. She's too calm…"
But Bai Zhi didn't care about rumors.
She had spent twenty years being obedient, selfless, and invisible and an extra ten years in the past doing same.
Now she was ready to be brilliant.
And those who had used her before?
They would watch her shine without ever being able to dim her again.