...This, this isn't her body at all!

What on earth happened?

She distinctly remembered the betrayal by her teammates. At the victory feast marking the completion of the mission, in a moment of heedlessness, she drank a glass of deadly poisoned champagne handed over by the team leader. Its scent clashed with the perfume she was wearing. However, when she woke up, she no longer saw her own house, the people she knew, and even her body wasn't her own anymore!

Could it be... she had transmigrated?

She glanced at her own hand again, a flash of astonishment and post-disaster confusion glittering in her eyes.

But Ruan Li was never an indecisive person.

Although the current situation was unclear, it was obvious that she absolutely couldn't be caught by these two people. Judging by the circumstances at hand, her fate would certainly be death.

With this thought, she suppressed the intense pain in her body, propped up her body with both hands, and in a situation where no one had reacted, she sprung up fiercely!

She grabbed hold of a pink-dress-clad girl!

At the same time, she used a twig picked up from the ground, aiming its brittle tip at her opponent's neck...

Capture the leader first to capture the outlaw!

"Nobody move! If anyone dares to take a step, I'll poke a hole in her neck!"

"Let go of our young lady immediately!"

"You, you wretch! How dare you!" The girl in the pink dress was instantly frightened, flusteredly ordering her subordinates, "Quickly, grab her... Ah..."

Before she finished speaking, that seemingly fragile twig had already pierced her neck.

A fresh streak of blood oozed slowly from the wound.

The arena abruptly fell silent.

"All this insistence on disregarding my warning, do you have any clue how pigs die?"

The young girl in pink was taken aback, utterly clueless about the reason behind such question. Instinctively, she asked back, "How do they die?"

Ruan Li replied with a cold smirk, "Well, they die out of stupidity, of course."

As she spoke, she swiftly lifted her foot and nimbly kicked away the weapon the girl in pink had surreptitiously picked up. At the same time, she applied a bit of pressure with her hand, pushing the branch against the other's neck a bit deeper.

"I advise you to refrain from such cunning tricks. If you irk me, I might accidentally pierce this branch right through, ruining that face of yours... don’t you worry, I have an eye for aesthetics," she threatened mockingly, frightening the pink-robed girl to a standstill.

Seeing the stalemate, a servant discreetly slipped away from the crowd, exited the courtyard, and ran outside. It was evident that he had gone to fetch reinforcement.

Ruan Li noticed his action and inwardly chuckled; she had been waiting for them to lose patience. On arriving in this strange place, with a body unfamiliar to her and not even an idea of her identity, she figured it was better to escalate the situation for a clearer understanding of her current predicament.

With a swift tap on the girl in pink, she dropped to the ground exhausted, like a power-depleted eel. Meanwhile, Ruan Li promptly took a seat on the nearby teak chair, resting one foot on the toppled girl. She extended her free hand gracefully, scrutinising something intriguing with a spark of curiosity in her eyes.

But all the while, she never took the branch off the defeated girl's neck.

She was like a young leopard ready to pounce. She looked innocent but was, in reality, harboring a lethal threat.

The girl clad in pink was the legitimate eldest daughter of the marquis' mansion. Having lived a privileged life, she'd never experienced such humiliation. Her eyes widened in rage!

"You...you're asking for death!"

"I don't know whether I am seeking death, but I do know that if you move, your blood will flow faster. If no one comes to save you and you end up dead, that won't be fun at all..."

Ruan Li spoke, shifting to her other foot. Her tone carried a tinge of regret as if she was genuinely concerned about the other's death.

As she spoke, she started to laugh. A gentle smile decorated her youthful face that was blooming into unparalleled beauty.

To the girl in pink, this smile seemed like a demon emerging from the pitch-black night...

Merciless!

Frightening!

Once the situation was under control, Ruan Li gently rested her left hand on her right hand, which was holding a branch, and felt her pulse. Very quickly, she determined her physical condition: other than mild malnutrition, she was losing too much blood.

Wondering if there were any medicinal herbs around that she was familiar with, she heard a weak feminine voice, "Li'er, quickly... quickly let go of the young miss."

Ruan Li looked up and saw a beautiful woman in her thirties sprawled on the ground, her face filled with terror.

"Who are you?"

"Li'er, what's happened to you? I'm your mother!"

Mother?

Ruan Li sneered coldly. Although she was unsure of her current identity and the nature of their relationship, how could she, having only met once, obey someone who, under the guise of motherhood, had been unable to protect her when she was wronged? Impossible!

As such, Ruan Li just gave her a cold glance before turning her head back.

The lady felt the chill in her gaze and couldn't help tensing up, sadness seeping onto her face instantly.

As expected, little Li still blamed her, hated her for giving birth and making her suffer in this world... The tears welled up and rolled down her cheeks. However, for fear of getting her daughter into trouble, she could only plead with the lady pinned to the ground.

"Mi-miss, little Li...she just hit her head. Please, don't punish her. If you must, please punish me instead..."

"It's you who hit your head!"

Was this woman feeble or just plain stupid!

The person at her feet was clearly hostile, intent on killing her. Instead of begging for forgiveness, it was better to fight for her own survival. She, Ruan Li, relied solely on herself for everything, and it was not for others to beg for mercy on her behalf.

Just as she was about to tell her to get up, an enraged roar exploded from outside the courtyard...

"Bastard! Get down here now!"