Being a Salted Fish to Make Miracles in an Abusive Story

Yu Xiang, a devoted single woman in her original world, finds herself abruptly transported into the body of a cannon fodder supporting character in a cheesy CEO romance novel titled Trapped by the Cold CEO’s Relentless Love. A mechanical entity calling itself Xiaoyuan explains that Yu Xiang’s original soul is destined for death in her home world, forcing her to comply with the plot to survive. The character she now inhabits is destined to suffer endlessly, taking the blame for the heroine’s misfortunes before eventually turning villainous and being killed by the male lead. However, Yu Xiang’s arrival coincides with a critical early scene where she wakes up in the bed of Chu Lihan, the novel’s primary antagonist and the older brother of the male lead. Chu Lihan, a cold and ruthless heir, had also been drugged by the heroine’s scheming sister, who intended for Yu Xiang to be humiliated. Instead of panicking or attempting seduction as the original character would have, Yu Xiang treats the situation with detached pragmatism. She acknowledges the drug’s effects, secures the engagement that the plot demands to protect Chu Lihan’s reputation, and then calmly leaves the hotel early the next morning to avoid the waiting paparazzi.

This deviation from the script immediately destabilizes the narrative. The system, Xiaoyuan, struggles to maintain control as Yu Xiang refuses to play the role of the desperate, love-struck victim. When she encounters Ling Chenyuan, the illegitimate son and eventual male lead, at a corporate event, she subverts the expected trope of a clumsy confession. Rather than groveling, she mocks his aloofness and delivers a sharp insult disguised as slang, leaving Ling Chenyuan confused and irritated. Her interactions with Chu Lihan further complicate matters; when he confronts her about her relationship with his brother, she proposes marriage not out of affection or fear, but as a strategic transaction. She points out that they have already slept together, a fact that shocks both Chu Lihan and the system, as the original plot had them marry before any physical intimacy occurred.

The story’s trajectory shifts dramatically as Yu Xiang navigates high-society events with a complete disregard for the emotional drama the novel typically generates. At the Jin family wedding banquet, she wanders away from the main plot to swat mosquitoes, inadvertently crossing paths with both Chu Lihan and Ling Chenyuan. She casually borrows a handkerchief from Chu Lihan only to wipe away a dead bug and discard it, displaying a level of indifference that baffles the villain. When Ling Chenyuan attempts to provoke her, she responds with sarcastic compliments that undermine his brooding persona. Her actions confuse the other characters, who cannot reconcile her beauty and boldness with her apparent lack of ambition or emotional investment.

As the narrative progresses, Yu Xiang is set up on a blind date with He Yunzhuo, a hacker and secondary male lead who is secretly allied with the heroine’s sister. This development further derails the original storyline, which did not include such a romantic entanglement for the cannon fodder. Yu Xiang remains unfazed, viewing the entire situation as a series of logistical problems to be managed rather than a romantic tragedy. She continues to challenge the system’s expectations, questioning the logic of the plot and the nature of her punishment for breaking character. The story moves toward a point where the rigid structures of the novel are crumbling under Yu Xiang’s unpredictable behavior, forcing the characters around her to adapt to a reality that no longer follows the author’s original design.