Chapter 1: Reborn as a rental girlfriend

“Here’s the 100,000 we promised you in advance. The deal is done. From now on, you can leave the young miss.”

Thump!

Ten stacks of red banknotes slammed onto the table with a dull thud.

Song Yao’s eyes lit up. She leaned in close to the pile of crimson bills, inspecting them again and again, then stuffed them all into the black plastic bag she’d brought.

Sitting across from her, the mature office-lady type pushed up her glasses. “You’re not even going to count it?”

“What’s there to count? I trust big clients like you wouldn’t shortchange me my hard-earned money. Let’s work together again sometime~”

“The young miss’s problem is resolved. We won’t be cooperating anymore.”

Song Yao wore the look of a money-grubber. The office lady couldn’t help but sigh. “You’re so young. You could do anything. You even go to a decent university. Why choose this line of work?”

“It pays fast.”

Song Yao answered with righteous confidence. “Look, less than half a year and I’ve got 100,000. What job could a student like me, who hasn’t even graduated, find with a salary this high?”

The office lady’s eyes were full of disdain.

What right did someone who’d do anything for money have to get close to the young miss?

If not for the fact that she could ease the young miss’s symptoms, she would never have let Song Yao within half a step of her.

“Our deal is over. From this moment on, stay far away from the young miss. Otherwise, you’ll bear the consequences.”

“I understand. But I need a buffer period to leave her. If we just cut ties out of nowhere, it might upset her.”

“That’s none of your concern. We’ll handle it ourselves. You can take your money and go now.”

The office lady issued the eviction notice outright.

Song Yao had no intention of lingering. She grabbed the plastic bag and walked out of the private room.

Did they really think she enjoyed dealing with rich people?

Every one of them acted like they were worth millions.

Stepping out of the opulent golden doors, Song Yao glanced back at the towering five-star hotel and sighed.

This would probably be her last time here. The lobster and abalone were pretty good. Too bad she wouldn’t get to eat them anymore.

After finding a bank to deposit the money, Song Yao finally boarded the bus back to school with peace of mind.

On the bus, she pulled out her phone, opened a note titled “Client List,” and found the name Chen Siyu.

Behind the name, she jotted down the client’s request in simple terms.

Family commission: Help the reclusive young miss become more outgoing.

This was a big order—the largest Song Yao had taken since entering the industry.

Chen Siyu wasn’t just Rongcheng University’s campus beauty; she was also the student council president and a bona fide young lady.

Her father was a renowned entrepreneur. The Chen Group he led ranked in the top ten of Rongcheng’s corporate hundred.

Her mother was a veteran in the entertainment industry, frequently appearing on screens.

Just looking at her family background, this campus beauty had a perfect starting line.

If she had one flaw, it was probably her excessively withdrawn personality.

She preferred doing everything alone and rarely spoke to others.

That earned her the title of “unapproachable flower on the high ridge.”

But being like that at school was one thing. At home, it was the same—only her parents could manage minimal communication with her.

Desperate to stop her from being so closed off, her parents had tried every method. Nothing worked.

In the end, they found Song Yao.

In the rental girlfriend industry, Song Yao’s performance wasn’t particularly outstanding. But she studied at Rongcheng University, closest to Chen Siyu.

On top of that, she’d worked with Chen Siyu in the student council before. They were acquaintances, giving her a reason to approach directly.

When the order first came in, Song Yao refused.

She genuinely didn’t like Chen Siyu much.

In her words, the girl was an emotionless block of ice—a terminal case of social withdrawal.

Back when they interacted, starting a conversation was nearly impossible.

But upon seeing the 100,000 reward, she changed her mind.

That was 100,000. How could she not be tempted?

From then on, she drew on two and a half years of industry experience, took initiative, and chased after Chen Siyu like a devoted simp.

If she simped hard enough, even a thousand-year-old block of玄冰 could be melted!

Over the nearly six months, she helped with student council work and found excuses to talk to her, whether Chen Siyu responded or not.

For the sake of that 100,000, she maintained unwavering enthusiasm.

Finally, her efforts paid off.

After a full month of relentless simping, Chen Siyu started replying.

Two months later, they could converse fluently.

Now, they were like close besties—inseparable wherever they went, and Chen Siyu could interact normally with others too.

The once unapproachable flower was becoming history over these six months.

And then, their deal ended.

In the Chen family’s eyes, Song Yao was always a low-class hustler doing a shady job like rental girlfriend. How could she qualify to be best friends with their noble daughter?

But that suited her just fine.

She was a rental girlfriend. If not for the 100,000, she wouldn’t have taken the job.

It was thankless work, and she got looked down on.

Let someone else do it. She was done.

Her only regret was no longer being able to tag along with Chen Siyu for free meals at five-star hotels.

‘In my last life, I was a simp for half my existence. I thought becoming a girl in this one would free me from simping. Yet here I am, forced to do it again. At least I’ve finally made it through.’

Song Yao added a small checkmark next to Chen Siyu’s name and blocked all her contact methods.

That’s right—Song Yao wasn’t from this world.

On her original planet, called Blue Star, she was just one of the goddess’s countless simps. In the end, she even died rushing to deliver the first milk tea of autumn to her goddess.

In her final moments, Song Yao had an epiphany. She swore that if the heavens gave her another chance, she’d never simp again.

Then she closed her eyes—and opened them reborn as a girl with the same name, a new university student who’d just entered the rental girlfriend trade.

After rebirth, Song Yao was endlessly grateful and quite satisfied with her new identity. At least she wouldn’t have to simp anymore.

Over these two and a half years, using her past life’s simping experience, she could easily handle clients with minimal effort and earned a perfect record with zero bad reviews.

Just when she thought she’d escaped the simp fate for good, someone waved 100,000 in her face to make her simp again.

The only difference from her past life was that this 100,000 wasn’t a pie in the sky—it was real money.

She admitted Chen Siyu was attractive, generous with money, and now communicated normally. But to keep this moody little princess in a good mood at all times, Song Yao still had to constantly observe and adapt on the fly—exactly like her old simping days.

Ending the deal early, taking the money, and walking away was exactly what she wanted.

Ding-dong!

[Xinbao: My treasure, have you eaten yet?]

She’d just closed her phone when a message popped up.

A client.

[Song Yao: Not yet. I was a little hungry earlier, but seeing Xinbao made me forget all about it.]

[Xinbao: Why?]

[Song Yao: Because you’re so delicious to look at~]

[Xinbao: Ugh! Ignoring you!]

[Song Yao: Then remember to eat on time, Xinbao. Love you~]

After sending a heart emoji, Song Yao reopened the client list.

Yao Xinxin, monthly online girlfriend chat—1,000 per month.

As a professional rental girlfriend, she naturally had more than one client.

This Yao Xinxin was one of her current ones.

Her request was simple: occasional sweet talk to make her feel loved.

In other words, flirt.

For someone with two and a half years of experience, this was child’s play.

Sure, it was only 1,000 a month, but it was easy—just reply with a few cheesy lines now and then.

What Song Yao couldn’t figure out was why all her clients were girls.

In all her time in the industry, she’d never gotten a single male client. Every one was female.

She was heading back to school now to freshen up in the dorm. Later, she had to meet another client.

Of course, another girl.