The Fashion Rookie and The Mysterious Gentleman

Shan Xiaoxi is a young woman living in the East Fourth Ring District of City No. 13 on the Hongyue Continent. She works as an intern at the Miracle Gallery in the Third Ring while residing at the Grass Welfare Home, a facility she shares with Vincent, a painter who lost his memory six years prior. The city is divided by deep abysses separating the wealthy inner rings from the impoverished outer rings, and life is governed by the dangerous Crimson Moon, whose radiation causes mutations known as Deformities. Shan Xiaoxi is a transmigrator with memories of a peaceful past life, which she relies on to navigate this harsh world. She and Vincent share a close bond, with Vincent serving as a mentor and friend who inspires her art.

On the final day of her internship, Shan Xiaoxi expects to be promoted to a full-time employee due to her impressive sales record of over six million. However, the gallery manager informs her that she has been rejected in favor of Jiang Yiyi, a new intern with significantly lower sales but stronger connections to wealthy clients in the inner rings. Devastated by the loss of her job and the realization that her social circle prevents her from advancing, Shan Xiaoxi returns to the Fourth Ring. There, she discovers the aftermath of a Deformity attack in the grocery district, where Vincent has been killed. The creature, which had attacked during the day, was shot and killed by Night Watchers from the mysterious Bureau 404.

Three days later, police officer Steven notifies Shan Xiaoxi that Vincent’s original identity has been revealed: he was Li Zheming, a man from a wealthy family in the Third Ring who had lost his memory after a second injury. Despite his privileged background, Li Zheming chose to live in the Fourth Ring and left a will bequeathing all his assets to Shan Xiaoxi. His relatives, represented by an older and a younger man, arrive to claim the inheritance but are confronted with the will. They threaten to drag the matter through the courts for years, knowing Shan Xiaoxi cannot afford the legal battle or enter the Third Ring to contest it.

Charlie, an aid center worker and the will’s executor, advises Shan Xiaoxi to negotiate. He reveals that Vincent had anticipated this conflict and promised Charlie twenty percent of the inheritance for his help. Shan Xiaoxi entrusts the negotiations to Charlie, whose bottom line is to secure Vincent’s paintings. The relatives, wanting only the valuable factory shares, offer five hundred thousand credits for them. Shan Xiaoxi accepts the deal, receiving the cash while retaining the paintings and a worthless property in the Third Ring. The relatives refuse to attend Vincent’s funeral, highlighting their indifference.

After Vincent’s funeral, where his ashes are scattered into the Fallen River, Shan Xiaoxi encounters Mu Zimian, a Night Watcher who had previously offered her a handkerchief while she was grieving. She questions him about the day attack, but he reveals limited information, noting that the Deformity was an anomaly. Determined to move forward, Shan Xiaoxi seeks out Lin Ting, the proprietress of the Patra Eatery and a figure from her past. Lin Ting offers her a way to cross the Fallen River at night using Patra Bone Wine, which temporarily boosts resistance to Crimson Moon radiation. Shan Xiaoxi drinks the wine and ventures into the dangerous night, aiming to travel to the Second Ring to find her brother, who has been out of contact for two years, and to seek justice for Vincent’s death.