After Swapping Souls with My Rival Alpha - Chapter 5

Nie Yijun hesitated for a moment. She knew nothing about Chi Mu’s life—was it really okay to just follow Chi Mu’s mother home like this?

She looked at Chi Mu, whose expression was just as lost. Clearly, she had no idea what to do next either.

Nie Yijun made up her mind in just three seconds. She bent down and got into the car. She had to go with them. She couldn’t let Chi Mu handle this alone. In their current situation, going solo was absolutely not an option—she needed Chi Mu’s cooperation.

Of course, she knew Chi Mu didn’t have the best impression of her. If she said this out loud, Chi Mu would definitely reject her outright. She would wait.

The car door shut. Chi Mu’s mother sat beside Nie Yijun—and then Nie Yijun suddenly felt her right ear being pulled.

She instinctively reached up to swat the hand away, but stopped when she saw Chi Mu’s mother’s face.

“Fighting?” Shi Ya twisted “Chi Mu’s” ear. “You had the nerve to start a fight and get yourself beaten half to death—and now I have to pick you up at the police station?”

Shi Ya had surprising strength. Nie Yijun’s ear burned hot and red. She kept her head down and didn’t resist. Since she had no idea how Chi Mu normally interacted with her family, she decided silence was safest.

What surprised Nie Yijun was how calm and composed Chi Mu’s mom had been at the police station—but now that they were in the car, she’d done a complete 180.

“Trying to drive me to an early grave?” Shi Ya grew even angrier at her silence and started smacking her arm instead. “Can’t you do something useful for once? What are you even wearing?!”

She tugged at Nie Yijun’s top. “Exposing your stomach like this—aren’t you cold?”

Shi Ya’s chest rose and fell in fury. She jabbed her finger at Nie Yijun’s forehead. “You’re 29! Are you planning to make me worry about you until I’m 90? Just wait until your father gets home—let’s see what you say then!”

Nie Yijun said nothing. She had no idea how to respond.

“Say something!” Shi Ya fumed. “Aren’t you usually full of things to say? Why are you playing mute now?”

“…I’m sorry,” Nie Yijun finally muttered.

“What good is ‘sorry’ to me? Say it to that Alpha you beat up! I can tell just by thinking about it—you definitely picked the fight!”

True.

Nie Yijun silently agreed. If Chi Mu hadn’t picked a fight, none of this would’ve happened.

“Okay,” Nie Yijun said. “I’ll apologize.”

Shi Ya turned away, calming down a little, then looked back at her. “How bad are your injuries? Are you in pain? You deserve it anyway—maybe now you’ll learn a lesson. Lao Han, take us to the hospital.”

“No need,” Nie Yijun said. “It’s nothing internal, just superficial wounds. I’ll put on some ointment, it’ll be fine.”

Shi Ya shot her a sideways look. “Oh? Studied medicine for a few years and now you think you’re a doctor? If you were so great, why didn’t you go into a hospital after graduation? Who was the one who cried to me about wasting all their years in university and not knowing a thing about medicine?”

“…Hmm?” Nie Yijun lifted her gaze, confused by Shi Ya’s words.

She didn’t know much else, but she clearly remembered that back in school, the only one who could compete with her for the top spot—was Chi Mu.

How could Chi Mu have “wasted her years”?

“No hospital? Then back home!” Shi Ya barked. “You’re grounded—reflect on your actions!”

Chi Mu watched her family’s car drive off without her. Mouth agape, she stood frozen for a long moment.

“Nie Yijun!” she waved her hands at the empty air. “You really think you are me now?!”

Now what? Where was she supposed to go?

All she wanted was a hot shower, a nap, and something to treat her wounds.

Nie Yijun’s pockets only had two White Rabbit candies—nothing else!

Chi Mu hailed a cab to retrieve her car from the Green Rhyme first. Once she had the car, she could at least check into a hotel.

At the club entrance, the valet looked troubled. “You’re asking for… the keys to the red Rolls-Royce with plate 333?”

“Yes,” Chi Mu clutched her sore waist. “Hurry.”

“But that’s not your car. I can’t just hand over the keys unless the owner gives permission. Otherwise, I’m the one in trouble.”

“I am…” Chi Mu paused, then changed her tone. “I’m Chi Mu’s friend. Just give me the keys.”

“Maybe… call her?” The valet suggested. “Even better—FaceTime her. If she says it’s okay, I’ll hand it over.”

FaceTime? Call?! How could she do that when she didn’t even have Nie Yijun’s contact info?

Chi Mu’s frustration from the night before boiled up again. And worst of all, it hurt every time she got angry—her ribs throbbed.

Defeated by the pain, she left the club and walked into the nearest hospital. After an exam, the doctor said, “Superficial wounds. Just apply ointment at home.”

“Superficial?!” Chi Mu was in disbelief. “It hurts like hell!”

“They really are superficial,” the doctor said. “If you had internal injuries, you wouldn’t be walking around.”

“No way, my ribs feel broken!”

The doctor lifted her shirt and gently pressed her ribs.

“Ow ow ow!!” Chi Mu shrieked. “Be gentle, it’s killing me!”

“Not broken,” the doctor said. “You just have a low pain threshold—more sensitive than average.”

“Oh…” Chi Mu grimaced.

“In layman’s terms—you’re just afraid of pain,” the doctor added with a smirk.

“…Ha.” Chi Mu rolled her eyes. She knew she was a wimp when it came to pain!

She left the hospital with a bag of meds and a new problem: where the hell was she supposed to go?

This couldn’t go on. Nie Yijun had already taken over her life—she needed to invade Nie Yijun’s world too!

She didn’t know where Nie Yijun lived—but she did know where she worked.

A taxi dropped her at the hospital gate. Chi Mu dragged her tired body toward the entrance. As she passed the guard booth, the security officer greeted her.

“Doctor Nie—you’re here. Um… your face…”

“Got scratched by a dog,” Chi Mu muttered.

She walked a few steps, then turned back. “Where’s my office?”

“Huh? I’m just security, I wouldn’t know that,” the guard laughed. “No idea where your office is.”

“Which building is it in?”

“The west wing.” He pointed.

Chi Mu headed over. The building was large and tall. She stepped into the lobby, and every passing nurse greeted her.

“Doctor Nie.”

Then, each one paused to stare at her face. “Doctor Nie, what happened to your face?”

Chi Mu gave them a sidelong glance and couldn’t help raising an eyebrow—wow, these nurses were really cute.

“You,” she pointed at the prettiest Omega, glanced at her name tag. “Youli. Come here.”

Youli looked stunned. “Me? You’re… calling me?”

“Yes.”

Overjoyed and flustered, Youli walked over. “What is it, Doctor Nie?”

“Help me apply this,” Chi Mu waved the bag of ointment. “In my office.”

“O-okay…” Youli covered her mouth and headed for the elevator. Chi Mu followed right behind.

Nie Yijun’s office was on the fourth floor—a textbook physician’s office, complete with a nameplate on the desk:

[Attending Physician: Nie Yijun]

Chi Mu hadn’t touched any medical knowledge since undergrad, but her circle was full of med students—she knew how tough it was to move up in this field.

At 29, many of her classmates were still struggling post-graduation, some still in school. Meanwhile, Nie Yijun was already an attending physician—a doctor who could independently diagnose patients and perform surgeries.

Chi Mu slumped into the chair and flicked her finger at the nameplate. “Having the person I hate live a better life than me… no one knows that pain better than I do.”

No wonder everyone had been kissing up to her last night.

The young nurse nervously stepped closer. “Doctor Nie, I’ll apply the ointment now.”

“Okay,” Chi Mu hooked a stool toward her with her foot. “Sit.”

Youli hesitated, then slowly sat down.

Chi Mu leaned in and smiled softly. “I’m a little sensitive to pain, so… be gentle, okay?”

That smile made Youli freeze. She swallowed nervously. Doctor Nie was acting very strange today.

“Don’t be nervous,” Chi Mu coaxed her like a true Alpha. “I won’t bite. Just be gentle.”

Youli carefully applied the ointment while Chi Mu kept watching her. She looked young and was so tense she seemed to be holding her breath.

Youli’s hands were light, but it still stung a bit. Still, Chi Mu refused to show weakness in front of an Omega.

“Nice,” she said. “Doesn’t hurt at all.”

When Youli finished with her face, Chi Mu leaned back, lifted her shirt, and exposed her ribs. “Still gotta do the sides.”

“Ah…” Youli turned bright red at the sudden movement.

“Do you get this shy with every patient?” Chi Mu chuckled. “Just pretend I’m one of them.”

Youli kept her head down as she applied the ointment, then asked hesitantly, “Doctor Nie… are you feeling okay today?”

“Not really,” Chi Mu replied. “This’ll hurt for a few days, won’t it?”

Youli pursed her lips—that’s not what she meant.

She finished up and said timidly, “I’ll get back to work.”

“Okay,” Chi Mu smiled at her and pointed under her eyes. “Your dark circles are pretty bad—get some rest.”

Youli left in a dazed panic, heart pounding. Doctor Nie was way too intense today.

Chi Mu, now freshly medicated, leaned back in her chair. The ointment felt cool and soothing. She was exhausted. This entire absurd situation was finally starting to feel real—and terrifying.

She jolted upright.

No. She couldn’t sleep. She refused to keep living as Nie Yijun.

And she definitely couldn’t let Nie Yijun mess up her life either.

Chi Mu started rummaging through the desk. In the left drawer, she found a box of business cards:

[Central Hospital AO Surgery Dept. – Attending Physician, Nie Yijun]

She dialed the number on the card.

Just as the line started ringing, there was a knock at the door—and before she could even answer, it opened.

A man in a white coat stood at the door—an Alpha, maybe pushing 40.

“Doctor Nie,” he said, “How’s the prep going for this afternoon’s meeting?”

The call went unanswered as Chi Mu set the phone down. His tone—something about it made her skin crawl.

Wait… Meeting?

What meeting?!