Chapter 1

In my last life, a plagiarism scandal destroyed me.

For ten years, every single line of code I wrote appeared on my "genius junior's" social media.

The internet mob tore me apart. The academic world cast me out.

In the end, my mother and I died in disgrace. Even in death, I couldn't clear my name.

I never understood why the robot I had spent a decade perfecting would obey my junior, who couldn't even write code.

Suddenly, I returned in time—one month before her meteoric rise.

This time, I wiped every code I'd ever written. Let her be the "genius." I'm done playing her game.

I busied myself forwarding discounts on a shopping app while she and her professor father panicked.

They demanded to know why I'd walked away from success.

I just smiled, pulled out my phone, and shared another shopping link.

*****

"It's truly incredible! This robot is almost like a real person.

"It's a shame you're the only genius in our institute. My daughter still can't even understand programming code. If she had half your talent, I'd be satisfied," praised Charles Howell, my PhD supervisor.

Charles stared intently at the humanoid robot I developed, then asked me to mentor his daughter, Ruth Howell.

Hearing these familiar words, I suddenly realized I had returned to the past.

The bone-shattering pain throughout my body from jumping off the 33rd floor still remained vivid in my memory.

I clutched my chest. Being alive felt so good.

Charles couldn't help but reach out and touch my robot, his eyes burning with desire.

He said, "Kelly, if you win first place in the National AI Robot Simulation Competition, I'll definitely help you apply for a grant from the higher-ups. This way, your mother's medical debt can be paid off. You have to work hard."‍

Suppressing my body's trembling and inner disgust, I nodded. "Thanks, Mr. Howell. I will put in my all."

As I watched Charles walk away, I could no longer contain my hatred; it surged in me like a tide.

Work hard?

And then what? For someone else to benefit? Did Charles really think I was still the obedient fool from my previous life?

In my previous life, Charles always encouraged me to innovate and research even harder.

To create the nation's top AI simulation robot, I only slept three or four hours a day, desperately cutting down on rest time.

I grew thin, my stomach started to ache, and my hair fell out in handfuls, but I didn't care about any of that.

At long last, I finished developing that AI robot.

It didn't just look human; it felt human too, from the texture of its skin to every subtle expression and movement, all flawlessly replicated.

On the day of the National AI Robot Simulation Launch, I stood proudly before the press. Full of confidence, I unveiled the red cloth covering the creation I had built from the ground up—Adam.

To my surprise, as soon as the red cloth was removed and I pressed Adam's switch, it punched me and sent me flying.

Ruth walked out of the crowd with a smile then. "Stop, Adam!"

Adam immediately stopped, walked respectfully to her side, and said, "Yes, Mother."

Everyone in the room was stunned. I lay on the ground, frozen in disbelief.

Ruth stroked Adam, looking down at me mockingly.

She said, "Kelly, you are excellent, but you shouldn't steal my work.

"Luckily, AI robots recognize their owners, or my years of hard work would have been in vain."

As Ruth spoke, her eyes reddened. She covered her face helplessly and trembled, as if she had truly suffered a great injustice.

The crowd became agitated and berated me harshly.

My mind was in chaos, a mix of shock and fury. "You can't even write code. How could you possibly build such an advanced AI robot? This is my work."

Ruth sneered, "Kelly, how could you say I couldn't write code? Why don't you show everyone a few lines of Adam's code yourself?"

I opened my mouth to argue back, but my mind went completely blank. I couldn't even recall the basics, let alone write a single line.

Panic and terror gripped me, as if an invisible hand was tightening around my throat, holding my fate in its grasp.

Seeing this, everyone rushed to congratulate Ruth while showering me with insults, calling me a plagiarist, a fraud, a disgrace to academia.

Every word stabbed me like a knife in the heart. I wanted to defend myself, but even the robot I built was on Ruth's side. I had no way to prove myself.

The press conference was broadcast live, and my reputation was completely ruined.

Netizens doxxed me, threw feces at my doorstep, and some even went to the hospital to harass my mother.

Even in her frail state, my sick mother spoke up for me. "Kelly is not the kind of person you all accused her of. She has dreams, ambition. She would never steal someone else's work. There must be some mistake."

The others retorted, "Mistake? When others accused her of plagiarism, she couldn't say a word. Wasn't that an admission?"

My mother tried to argue but her anger pushed her too far. Her heart gave out, and she died right there on the hospital bed, consumed by rage.