After Marrying the Villain with Seven Personalities [Transmigration into a Book]) - Chapter 58

Who are you?” Xu Linqiu asked toward the door, her brow furrowing slightly. Usually, she could remain calm in even the most chaotic situations, but for some reason—perhaps because the emotional resonance of the story she had just read still lingered—she found herself feeling inexplicably irritable.

“Oh, I forgot to mention! Miss Xu might not know yet, but the DNA results for your parents and my daughter just came back. It’s been proven they are biological relatives. It seems the daughters of our two families were swapped at birth. We heard that Sister Shushu was hospitalized, so we came to pay a visit.”

One of the women, dressed plainly and looking quite gaunt, explained with a forced smile.

Despite claiming to be visiting a patient, the family of five arrived empty-handed. Only one young woman, dressed in trendy clothes, stood there holding a selfie stick high in the air, pointing her phone camera directly at Xu Linqiu’s hospital bed.

“Look, everyone! I wasn’t lying, was I? My sister, Yu Shu, is indeed the youngest daughter of the Xu family. They were swapped at birth. Look, look! This is Xu Linqiu, the one who recently became famous for marrying into a wealthy family. No wonder she was so determined to leave the entertainment industry back then. Look at this hospital bed—it’s like a five-star hotel room!”

“Just a moment ago, there were so many patients sleeping in the hallway outside,” she added, cupping her hand around her mouth to stage-whisper to her audience.

Standing right in front of them, Shi Ji heard every word. Her face turned cold with speechlessness. These were indeed the most troublesome characters from the original novel—the very source of the protagonist’s nightmares.

Unexpectedly, the phone was suddenly thrust into her face. The woman giggled and introduced her to the viewers: “Look, it’s President Shi! I really didn’t expect to see the heir of Shi Entertainment here. Isn’t she supposed to be approachable? She looks so cold to me, like she wants to kill me with her eyes. I’m so scared!”

As the woman tried to lean in closer, Shi Ji grabbed the selfie stick, shoved it back, and sneered.

“I’ll go wherever the hell I want. It’s none of your damn business.”

Beside her, Yi Chenlan’s expression grew even colder as she grabbed the door handle, preparing to shut them out.

Xu Linqiu simply watched the group, seemingly processing the information she had just received.

How could they have been swapped? Yu Shu and Xu Judong?

At this moment, the scene felt hauntingly familiar, as if the events described in the novel had suddenly manifested in reality. How could the timing be this coincidental?

Yi Yanbai, unable to move, sat with her back to the door, turning slightly to look over.

Two men instantly braced themselves against the closing door. Both were dressed flashily; the younger one, with dyed yellow hair, smirked. “We’re all family. What’s wrong with us visiting? You’re actually turning guests away?”

He craned his neck forward. The woman cooperatively moved the phone closer, and he shouted into the microphone: “My, my! Rich people really do look down on us poor folk. Are you afraid we’ll get your floor dirty?”

“Please keep your voices down. The patients are resting,” a passing nurse reminded them from the hallway.

The two men continued to hold the door open by force. The old matriarch was the first to try to push her way in, followed by the young woman aiming to film a close-up of the bed. Suddenly, a figure moved to block her. The woman swung her selfie stick, intending to show her viewers these “snobbish rich people” who wouldn’t even allow a hospital visit. However, she swung with too much force; the phone flew off the mount and struck Yi Chenlan directly in the forehead.

Having been hit hard, Yi Chenlan narrowed her sharp eyes. Her head swam for a moment, and she collapsed.

“Qingqing!”

Xu Linqiu’s panicked voice joined the gasps in the room. She scrambled to the edge of the bed, trying to get down.

“Get the hell out of here!” Shi Ji, being the closest, caught Yi Chenlan just in time. She barked a curse at the intruders before helping Yi Chenlan toward the sofa.

The culprit merely offered a flippant, “Oops, sorry~”

“Oh, it wasn’t on purpose. Young people shouldn’t be so fragile,” the old woman remarked, straightening her back and leading her family into the room like she was on an imperial inspection, nosing around at everything.

When Yi Chenlan first regained consciousness, that was the sentence she heard. She opened her eyes to see the sun setting outside the window, the light a bit piercing.

As she adjusted, she realized she was in a completely foreign environment. She had clearly been in her study just moments ago; it seemed she had suffered an episode just from reading a single line of text. Now, she appeared to be in a hospital ward.

Before Shi Ji could express surprise at how quickly she had woken up, more voices drifted over.

“They say seeing is believing. I thought our Shushu was beautiful enough, but I didn’t expect her biological sister to be even prettier. Tsk, tsk.”

In a matter of seconds, the group had cornered Xu Linqiu, who had already stepped off the bed.

Xu Linqiu’s skin was pale and cool. Her oversized hospital gown sleeves were rolled up, revealing bandages on her arm. Her brow was knit in anger, but surrounded by them, she looked fragile and vulnerable.

The yellow-haired man at the front narrowed his eyes and took two steps forward.

“Family! I’ve seen Elites of All Circles! Look, it’s the real Xu Linqiu in the flesh. She’s gorgeous. Hurry up and subscribe, keep those gifts coming!”

The woman held the phone so close the lens was almost touching Xu Linqiu’s face.

The next second, a figure rushed forward. With a swift sweep of her hand, she knocked the phone to the floor. The force didn’t look massive, but the phone shattered instantly.

The crisp sound of breaking glass echoed through the room.

Yi Chenlan shielded Xu Linqiu behind her. She pulled a pen and a checkbook from her blazer pocket, glanced indifferently at the broken phone, and briskly wrote down a series of numbers.

“It looks like a Yiop phone. I’m not sure which model, so I’ll pay you the maximum price: 5,000.”

“As for the injury to my head…” She flicked the check at the stunned woman. Her cold gaze swept over the group, her eyes as stagnant and chilling as a frozen pond. She whipped out her phone and dialed a number.

The group on the other side seemed paralyzed by her aura, hardly daring to breathe. The call was answered quickly, and her voice was icy:

“Xu Xu, come to the First Hospital immediately. I’ve been assaulted. Bring Lawyer Lin with you. They have wasted my time and caused me mental distress—more importantly, they frightened my wife. I intend to press charges.”

“Also, get some security guards from downstairs, or bring your own. The room number is…”

“Inpatient Building Two, Third Floor, Surgical Ward 59,” Shi Ji chimed in, raising her voice.

“Understood, President.”

As Yi Chenlan put her phone away, the intruders began to panic. The old woman instantly forced a smile. “Oh, President Yi, this is all a misunderstanding… How can you call it an assault? The girl is just young and impulsive; she hit you by accident…”

“Heh.” Shi Ji had discreetly started a livestream on her own phone. No one noticed as she walked over to the shattered phone and spitefully ground it under her shoe several times. Seeing the woman’s face turn as black as a pot’s bottom, Shi Ji smirked and stood aside to watch the show.

The livestream quickly hit the trending page, with comments and shares skyrocketing.

Damn! These people are insane! They’ll do anything for views. I went to that woman’s stream to call her out and got muted. Her phone got smashed? Good! So disrespectful!

What the hell? Were Yu Shu and Xu Judong really swapped? Then my Shushu is too pitiful, being bled dry by this family for years when she should have been the Xu family princess!

Judong is pitiful too, having to deal with a family like this.

Ugh, why is our Linqiu in the hospital?

Is this for real? I don’t believe it! Someone clarify this!

Kick them out with a broom already!

Holy crap, how did they dare? They actually hit President Yi? Do they have any idea how much an hour of her time is worth?

Yi Chenlan ignored them entirely. She turned to check on Xu Linqiu, only to have the old woman suddenly collapse. Her son caught her just in time, supporting her as he pointed an angry finger at Yi Chenlan.

“How could you provoke an elder until she faints? It was just an accidental bump! If my mother has a stroke or a heart attack, can you take responsibility?”

“No way! You have to give us an explanation today!”

“That’s right!” The two younger ones suddenly burst into tears. “Oh, Grandma! You can’t leave us like this!”

Shi Ji rolled her eyes elegantly and caught their performance with a 360-degree pan of her camera.

Yi Chenlan treated them as mere background noise. When she looked at Xu Linqiu, the light in her eyes changed instantly. She didn’t even dare to touch her at first, asking softly, “How did this happen?”

“It’s nothing major…” In that instant, Xu Linqiu knew this was the “original” Qingqing. She stared at the faint bruise on the woman’s forehead, which stood out sharply against her porcelain skin. She asked softly, “What about you? Does it hurt?”

Yi Chenlan’s gaze softened. “It doesn’t hurt.”

Xu Linqiu reached out to cup her face, her thumb gently brushing the skin before she let go to wrap her arms around Yi Chenlan’s waist. She buried her face against the other woman’s, closing her eyes. “I missed you so much.”

“I missed you too…”

The surrounding clamor was muffled by this moment of tenderness. Shi Ji almost laughed out loud. The group of people who had been throwing a tantrum froze, staring in shock at the two women embracing.

“???”

No one likes being completely ignored. The intruders’ expressions were unsightly, but at that moment, a deep voice came from the doorway.

“What’s going on here?”

Xu Xinping entered, followed by Fang Fengyu, Yu Shu, and a clearly reluctant Xu Judong.

The cornered family suddenly looked as if they had found their saviors. The old woman slowly opened her eyes and reached out toward them. “Oh, heavens…”

Her son straightened her up and helped her toward Xu Xinping, speaking in a familiar tone:

“Brother! I’m so sorry we came without your permission. We heard Shushu’s sister was in the hospital and wanted to visit the child. We didn’t expect these kids to treat us like criminals. They just smashed my daughter’s phone, and the old lady was so terrified she fainted. Thankfully she’s okay now; she just woke up.”

“Linqiu.” Xu Xinping glanced at him before turning to Xu Linqiu. “What happened?”

“Oh~” Xu Linqiu released Yi Chenlan as he spoke. Supported by her, she offered a polite smile. Her sickly beauty made her look particularly striking. “They just rushed in here claiming Shushu and my sister were swapped. I didn’t believe them, so they got agitated and forced their way in. Qingqing was afraid I’d be startled, so she went to stop them…”

“Look.” She stopped smiling and looked at Yi Chenlan with heartache, using her finger to smooth the slight frown on the other woman’s brow. “These people are too reckless. Her forehead is bruised from being hit. Then that elderly lady suddenly collapsed on her own. I suspect she’s trying to frame us for a fake injury, don’t you think?”

“Mom, Dad… do you believe me, or do you believe them?” she asked, her gaze innocent.

“This…” Xu Xinping looked at the injury on Yi Chenlan’s forehead. Wasn’t the answer obvious? He would have to be a fool to believe strangers over his own daughter.

“Brother, how about this? My daughter’s phone is broken and the old lady is in this state. Neither side did it on purpose, so why don’t we just call it even…”

“Actually, our Qingqing already gave her a check to pay for the phone,” Xu Linqiu interrupted.

“Boss.”

There was a knock at the door. Everyone turned to see two men in formal suits accompanied by several men in black—a display of power that made the Yu family tremble.