In a hotel room, a man and woman were tangled together in a king-sized bed.

　　Gu Niannian stirred awake, only to find a man who held her in his arms. He’s young and handsome, under his black and tousled hair was a peaceful sleeping face.

　　Everything was so nice except for one thing—they’re both nuked.

　　Could someone tell her who’s this man, where’s she and what happened?

　　【Hello, host!】

　　A sweet, cutesy voice suddenly rang in Gu Niannian’s skull. She looked around in confusion. Who was talking?

　　【I’m Meng, a system from the novel Rich Family Stand-In: The Sweet and Pregnant Beauty. But my poor host… how did you end up in this book? And of all people, you transmigrated into the nutcase of the entertainment world—plastic surgery addict, scandal magnet, zero acting chops, and not a single fan in sight!】

　　What? Gu Niannian nearly wept.

　　After she died and got to the underworld, grim reaper told her there was a ghost hiding in a novel who refused to come out. Find that ghost, and she could pick the family she’d reincarnate into.

　　As a burnt-out corporate drone who died on the job, her only wish was simple—be the pampered daughter of a business tycoon in her next life, living a ridiculously rich, fabulously idle, inheritance-loaded kind of boring life.

　　“Gu Niannian, I can’t believe you’ve fallen so far just for a job opportunity.” The man besides her flung the blanket off, revealing his toned, fair chest. He looked down at the girl beside him, clearly faking sleep.

　　【This is Pei Jingzhi. He is the female lead’s ex in the novel. She dumped him back then, thinking he was just some average Joe. Tonight, he caught on to you trying to seduce him for Grape Entertainment’s resources, so he pretended to be asleep.】Meng added.

　　Hearing Meng's update, Gu Niannian doubled down on her act.

　　Just imagining Pei Jingzhi teaming up with the novel’s male lead to throw her—the so-called evil ex—straight into jail was enough to make her want to cry.

　　Pei Jingzhi looked at her peaceful, evenly breathing, so-called sleeping face and let out a laugh. The same woman who had just stripped him in the dark was now pretending to be an innocent little angel?

　　He narrowed his eyes and said coolly, “If you’re really going to play dead, I’ll just call the cops. You’ll be blacklisted, sued by every brand you’ve ever endorsed, and owe enough in damages to bankrupt your next ten lifetimes.”

　　“Pei Jingzhi? Why are you here?” Gu Niannian asked, realizing she couldn’t keep the act up, putting on a look of pure surprise.

　　With her dewy complexion, rosy cheeks, and wide, innocent eyes, she looked like a total sweetheart.

　　But Pei Jingzhi wasn’t deceived by her innocent look. He let out a cold chuckle when she tried to get out of bed. “Trying to run?”

　　“What are you doing?” Gu Niannian gasped as Pei Jingzhi grabbed her wrist and yanked her right back onto the bed.

　　Alone in a room, clothes disheveled, one on top of the other. Even with the blanket between them, the scene looked very sus.

　　Pei Jingzhi pinched her chin between two fingers, eyes full of mocking amusement. “Remember what you said when you dumped me?”

　　“Short? Quick? Disappointing?” Gu Niannian hesitated, then guessed.

　　Well, if it still haunted him after all these years, it had to be something extra spicy.

　　Pei Jingzhi froze. They’d only held hands, hugged, and kissed—never gone further.

　　Who the hell spread that rumor?

　　“Short? Ugly? Poor?” She tried again, pulling the blanket tighter under his chilling glare.

　　No way... In the novel, Pei Jingzhi was basically the total package—rich, hot, and dangerous.

　　His expression darkened further.

　　Short? He was at least six feet two inches tall.

　　Ugly? He had enough admirers to circle Jingcheng several times.

　　Poor? His dad ran Prosper enterprise, Penguin—one of the top five global conglomerates!

　　“Then could it be that you’re a kinky perv with some very special tastes?” Judging from his current behavior, Gu Niannian figured she might be getting close. She asked with the utmost sincerity.

　　Pei Jingzhi’s gaze turned glacial.

　　Gu Niannian gulped nervously, eyes turning red. “Wait... don’t tell me—you’re still hung up on me?”

　　“I don’t think I’d still pine for a plastic-surgery-obsessed, scandal-ridden, drama-queen attention seeker,” Pei Jingzhi sneered. “I’m not a fool.”

　　Honestly? Gu Niannian thought he totally did.

　　But she wasn’t about to say that out loud.

　　More importantly, she needed to get the hell out of here and go ghost-hunting.

　　Just then, her phone lit up and buzzed with a call.

　　“Gu Niannian, where the hell are you? The crew’s about to start filming and no one can find you. You’re a total flop with a blackened rep, not some A-list goddess!” her manager, Ms. Lan, scolded furiously. “I kissed so many asses to land you that second female lead role in Lucky Wife, Sweet Life. If you screw this up, you can go rot at home.”

　　Acting? Seriously?

　　Her only acting experience was in third grade—wearing a bedsheet and pretending to be Snow White.

　　Taking the chance, she whispered into the phone, “Hey, I’m at a hotel. With Pei Jingzhi. If you can...”

　　“Ah. My bad.” The moment Ms. Lan heard the name “Pei Jingzhi,” she immediately caught on—and hung up.

　　Well, that explains why Gu Niannian’s been acting so smug lately—turns out she climbed all the way up Penguin ladder.

　　Gu Niannian stared blankly at the screen.

　　Shit, that’s not what she meant!

　　All of a sudden, Pei Jingzhi snatched her phone away. Their eyes met, and panic bloomed in her chest.

　　“I know why you came here. To seduce me, right? Then go ahead.” Pei Jingzhi lowered his head, inching closer to her face. Then, just to mess with her, kissed her on the brow, and the tip of her nose.

　　Right before his lips touched hers...

　　BAM! Gu Niannian kicked him right off the bed.

　　She grabbed her phone and bag in a flash, shot him a panicked glance, and stammered, “I...I’m a decent girl, not what you think!”

　　Pei Jingzhi was stunned.

　　Then the corners of his lips curved up as he slowly got up, eyes following her every move.

　　“Interesting. What a decent girl... Sneaking into my room at midnight, stripping me naked, and trying to sleep with me.” His voice turned icy. “Come on, Gu Niannian. if you’re gonna sell it, sell it all the way.”