Chapter 1

Yulia Shaw stole my credit for saving a life and was adopted by a wealthy family in the big city.

I worked hard to get into college, and after graduation, I couldn't wait to reunite with her.

But I never imagined she would lock me in a basement and starve me to death.

She sneered, "The credit will be mine once you're dead. Take this secret to your grave."

What she didn't know was that I'd already reconnected with my billionaire birth parents. That so-called credit? I never cared.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at that fateful moment—the day of the rescue that changed everything.

*****

"Help... Help me..."

The moment my eyes snapped open, I saw a middle-aged man flailing in the lake, his body already going under.

I stared at the all-too-familiar scene before me and at my own thin, frail body. That was when it hit me. I was back at that moment, reliving it all over again.

Without a second thought, I plunged into the water and swam with all my might toward the drowning man.

I knew exactly who was drowning.

Yannick Carter, a tycoon from Chalon, had come here to sketch when he accidentally slipped and fell into the lake.

I saved him in my previous life, but after I pulled him out of the water and went back to change, Yulia Shaw seized the chance to steal the credit.

We were both children from the orphanage. To repay his debt of gratitude, Yannick adopted Yulia and took her back to Chalon.

In my previous life, I didn't dwell on it. I believed I should give way to her, so I let her take the credit. Even after she left for Chalon, I kept writing her letters.

But every letter I sent sank without a trace. She never replied.

After finding my birth parents in college, I grew concerned about her well-being and went to Chalon to check on her.

Instead, I ended up sealing my fate.

I still remember the bone-chilling cold of that basement and the suffocating despair of being utterly helpless.

Yulia Carter sneered behind the iron gate, "You came here to tell Dad the truth about who saved him, didn't you? Not a chance. The credit for saving his life is mine and mine alone.

"As for you, take this secret to your grave."

It wasn't until the moment of my death that I realized Yulia had never cared for me. She resented me, looked down on me, and considered me a stain on her life, something she wanted to erase as quickly as possible.

Now that I went back in time, I would withdraw all the kindness I ever showed her.

For every evil deed she did to me in my previous life, I'll pay her back double in this one.

At twelve years old, rescuing a grown man by swimming nearly drained every ounce of strength I had. I almost drowned myself in the process.

Barely managing to drag Yannick ashore, I gritted my teeth and pressed on his abdomen until he coughed up water. Only after confirming he was breathing did I collapse beside him, gasping for air.

Just then, Yulia came running over.

At this point, she wasn't called Yulia Cater yet. We both went by the orphanage director Sophia Shaw's surname. I was Ruby Shaw, and she was Yulia Shaw.

Yulia, two years younger, clapped a hand over her mouth and gasped, "Ruby, did you save a man?"

I was too busy gasping for breath to spare her a thought.

She fixed her gaze on Yannick, sizing him up with a calculating look. Then, just like in my previous life, she uttered the same line.

Yulia feigned concern and said, "Ruby, your clothes are soaked through. Go back and change into some dry clothes. I'll keep an eye on him for you."

She was trying to get rid of me so she could take all the credit when Yannick woke up.

Not this time. I wouldn't let her have her way.

I said weakly, "Yulia, I'm too exhausted to walk back. Could you fetch me a towel?"

Yulia hesitated and tried to change the subject. "Who is this guy? He's not dead, is he?" she asked.

It didn't matter who he was. What caught my eye were his expensive clothes and that valuable gold watch. I could tell Yulia was plotting something.

Just then, Yannick groaned and regained consciousness.

Yulia's eyes lit up with a sudden idea. She dashed to the lakeside, deliberately splashed water on herself, then hurried over to help Yannick up.

With feigned concern on her little face, she exclaimed, "Are you okay? You nearly drowned. Good thing I saved you."

I watched her performance with cold detachment. In my previous life, I missed this scene. This time, I wasn't going to miss a single detail.

Her performance was convincing. Her hair was dripping wet, and her face showed not a trace of insincerity as she said, "I wanted to call an ambulance for you, but your cell phone was water-damaged, and I don't have one either."

Yulia lowered her head, her voice dropping to a pitiful whisper as she said, "Our orphanage is nearby. Why don't I take you there to rest for a bit?"

I'd rested enough, so I got up and supported Yannick from the other side, then chimed in, "Right, let's get you into some dry clothes at the orphanage before you catch a cold."

Yannick looked weakly at the two of us and asked, "Did you save me?"

Yulia gritted her teeth. She was itching to claim all the credit for herself, but with me around this time, there was no way she'd get away with it.

Yulia could only nod reluctantly and said, "Yes, we both pulled you out of the lake."

"Thank you both so much. You're my lifesavers," Yannick said.

He profusely thanked us. With our support, we all made our way to the orphanage.

On the way, Yulia was desperate to impress and lavished attention on Yannick. One moment, she asked if he was tired, and the next, she offered him a piece of candy, playing the perfect role of childlike innocence.

I remained silent, just gently supporting Yannick. Whenever his gaze met mine, I offered him a warm but subtle smile.

Only when we arrived at the orphanage and Sophia took over did Yulia and I breathe a sigh of relief.

But before long, Sophia called us back.

I knew the adoption moment had come.

Since Yannick already had a son, he was legally allowed to adopt one more child only.

So Sophia asked us, "Who would like to be adopted?"

Yulia instantly rushed over and clung to Yannick's leg. "Mr. Carter, please adopt me. I'll study hard and be good. All I want is a home," she said.

Yannick looked at me. I lowered my head, feigning sadness, and said, "Mr. Carter, why don't you adopt Yulia? She's always complaining this orphanage is a dump anyway. Now she finally gets to leave."

Just as I turned to leave, I let my legs give out and took a tumble right on cue.

Sophia rushed over to help me up, concerned in her voice. "Ruby, what happened to your leg?" she asked.

I said softly, "Mr. Carter is so tall and heavy. It took all my strength to save him, and I still haven't recovered."

"Oh, no," I called out.

Then I quickly feigned panic and added, "That's not right. Yulia and I saved Mr. Carter together. We both swam in the lake and pulled him out."

Sophia blurted out, "Since when can Yulia swim?"

In an instant, Yannick's expression darkened.

In my previous life, out of concern for Yulia, I looked into Yannick. I found that he was kind and principled, the type who had no tolerance for lies or deceit.

Now that Yulia's lies were exposed, let's see how she could still get adopted.

Sure enough, Yulia's face twisted with anger. She glared at me, her small face trembling with tears, full of pure venom.

I cocked an eyebrow at her.

I could put on an act too.