Shen Yingying wakes up pinned against a tree by a man gripping her neck with lethal force. Disoriented and terrified, she initially fears her ex-boyfriend has come for revenge, but a flood of foreign memories reveals she has transmigrated into a period novel. She is now Shen Yingying, the wife of the story's great villain, Xie Fangzhu. In the novel, Xie Fangzhu was abused as a child by the original owner's family and forced into a marriage with the original Shen Yingying, who despised him, refused him intimacy, and eventually ran away with a con artist, leaving him broken and vengeful. The original owner ended up insane after Xie Fangzhu broke her legs and locked her away. Terrified of this fate, the new Shen Yingying attempts to de-escalate the situation by feigning weakness and apologizing, hoping to buy time or escape.
Xie Fangzhu, suspicious and volatile, does not believe her initial pleas. He accuses her of planning to elope again and violently drags her back to their home in the mining district. Along the way, neighbors and acquaintances, influenced by Xie Fangzhu's past manipulation of public opinion, urge him to beat her severely, with one woman, Liu Guizhen, attempting to physically assault Shen Yingying. Unexpectedly, Xie Fangzhu protects Shen Yingying from the mob, shielding her from harm and rebuking Liu Guizhen. Inside their home, Xie Fangzhu retrieves a shoulder pole, intending to break her legs as he did in the original plot. Panic-stricken, Shen Yingying makes a desperate gamble: she kisses him. The unexpected intimacy shocks Xie Fangzhu, who is revealed to be surprisingly innocent and inexperienced. His aggression falters, and he is unable to carry out the violence.
Shen Yingying presses her advantage, claiming she only sought to prove her purity and innocence, and that her previous harshness was a misguided attempt to gain his attention. She manipulates the situation further by accusing him of finding her disgusting, turning the tables so that he is forced to comfort her. Xie Fangzhu, confused by her changing behavior and unable to reconcile her actions with his hatred, finds himself unable to maintain his cruel resolve. He yields to her emotional manipulation, and the two consummate their marriage. The next morning, Shen Yingying discovers that the original owner had indeed been chaste, having saved herself for her former fiancé, which complicates the narrative of her promiscuity. She also learns that her so-called best friend, Wu Xiaoxia, had orchestrated the elopement scheme to ruin her marriage and steal Xie Fangzhu for herself. Shen Yingying confronts Wu Xiaoxia, exposing her true motives and asserting dominance. The story follows Shen Yingying's struggle to survive under the roof of a volatile villain while navigating the treacherous social dynamics of the mining district, using emotional manipulation and performance to avoid the tragic fate that befell the original owner.