The Stand-In Alpha Goes Viral on a Dating Show - Chapter 38

Lu Xin?!

Everyone was stunned. They quickly turned to the far side of the sea, only to see a figure thrashing weakly, arms flailing as her body kept sinking.

Wasn’t she fine just moments ago? How had things suddenly turned so dire?

Was it a seizure, or some unexpected accident?

Whatever crossed their minds, their hearts clenched at the sight. By the time they regained their senses, Chi Wan was already cutting through the waves, swimming toward her with all her strength.

As she swam, Chi Wan felt her nerves drawn tight. In the blur of adrenaline, she thought she smelled blood.

At first she brushed it off as an illusion from stress, but when she surfaced for air, she realized—

It wasn’t an illusion.

She instinctively glanced down at herself and noticed faint smears of blood along her arm. More alarming still, her dress—red to begin with—had a darker stain spreading across the bodice.

She hadn’t noticed earlier because the dress was red. But now, under the seawater, it was clear:

She was bleeding.

But… there was no pain.

Could it be someone else’s blood?

The only person she’d touched before this was An Ran.

Her chest tightened at the thought. She wanted desperately to climb back onto the deck and check on An Ran—but Lu Xin’s situation was just as urgent, and she was only ten meters away.

Chi Wan’s brows knit. She made her choice—save Lu Xin first.

When she reached her, Lu Xin coughed up seawater in great heaving bursts, her limbs flailing involuntarily and making it difficult for Chi Wan to keep them both afloat.

“Don’t move,” Chi Wan said firmly, pressing down on her arm while speaking gently, “Look at me. Open your eyes.”

Dazed, Lu Xin cracked her eyes open. When she saw who it was, her lips quivered and her eyes filled with tears. Suddenly she burst into sobs, weakly pounding Chi Wan’s shoulder as if venting her frustration.

“You— it’s you!”

“Why… why did you take so long!” she cried, hitting Chi Wan twice more before clutching her and wailing.

Chi Wan frowned slightly. Her reaction felt odd, but she chalked it up to post-shock hysteria. Once she calmed Lu Xin enough, she resumed dragging her toward the boat.

The yacht had already started easing closer to meet them halfway.

“They’re safe! They’re both safe!” Xia Meng sobbed in relief as she saw them nearing.

“Chi Wan.”

Lu Xin’s voice trembled, hesitant in her ear.

Chi Wan glanced down. All she could see were the wet strands of Lu Xin’s hair, the crown of her head pressed close. She stayed silent, conserving her strength, waiting for her to speak.

Surrounded only by open sea and the yacht, with the salty wind wrapping around them, Lu Xin felt as if the two of them were clinging to each other for dear life.

And in that fragile moment, something long suppressed broke through the surface.

“Can we… go back to how we used to be?”

The words finally left her lips. Her heart leapt into her throat even as relief washed over her.

But Chi Wan didn’t hesitate for even a second. The moment the question was asked, she shook her head firmly.

“And why would we?”

Lu Xin froze. She had never truly considered that—had always assumed Chi Wan had no choice, no say.

So she really was spoiled all along.

Suddenly, her excitement drained away. Listlessly, she toyed with strands of Chi Wan’s hair, thinking bitterly how cold she was. Then, almost in spite of herself, she leaned close and whispered into her ear:

“You know… I did it on purpose.”

“I pretended to have an accident.”

Her heart pounded wildly. What would Chi Wan think of her now? Would she think she’d gone insane?

Chi Wan did glance at her in surprise—but only once. Then nothing.

Lu Xin stiffened, waiting for words, for anger, for Chi Wan to push her away and leave her to sink. But Chi Wan said nothing. Not a single word.

Had she believed her—or not?

The uncertainty gnawed at her. At first, she really had gone into the water for Chi Wan, but Chi Wan had only had eyes for An Ran, never sparing her a glance.

Her heart had tilted dangerously out of balance.

The thought came then—

If I disappear beneath the water, maybe she’ll look at me.

It had started as nothing more than a reckless impulse. But when her leg cramped, she really did start to sink, drifting like a powerless leaf.

The crew finally hauled her aboard.

When Xia Meng asked what had happened, Lu Xin’s expression grew visibly awkward.

“Just… an accident. Don’t ask, it’s embarrassing.”

Su Yao, watching, immediately suspected otherwise. Especially since Lu Xin had glanced instinctively at Chi Wan as she spoke. Clearly, whatever she was hiding was tied to her.

But Chi Wan acted as though she hadn’t heard a thing. The moment Lu Xin was safe, she distanced herself, expression cool and indifferent.

Had something happened out there in the sea?

The instant she climbed back onto the deck, she ignored the doctor waiting to examine her and rushed toward An Ran’s cabin instead.

But standing too fast left her dizzy, vision swimming. Luckily Qu Huan caught her arm.

“How’s An Ran? She seemed to be bleeding heavily.”

Chi Wan pushed open the door to the onboard medical room. The doctor looked up, momentarily startled at her pale face. When he caught her words, he strode toward her like she was a savior.

“You’re her friend, right? That girl is extremely guarded. She refuses examination, refuses a transfusion—she insists she’ll only accept from someone named Chi Wan.”

The doctor suddenly realized. He smiled. “You must be Chi Wan, then?”

Embarrassed under his knowing gaze, Chi Wan nodded. “That’s me.”

“Good. Then come—talk her into it. She needs blood urgently.”

Chi Wan entered.

An Ran was curled on the bed, knees drawn to her chest, shoes still on. Her body was taut, like a startled bird poised to flee at the slightest wrong move.

“An Ran, you’re hurt. You need a transfusion,” Chi Wan said softly, taking a cautious seat at the far side of the bed, afraid of scaring her further.

Perhaps from blood loss, An Ran’s mind seemed clouded. At the mention of “transfusion,” she jolted and repeated mechanically, “No. I don’t want a transfusion. I want Chi Wan!”

The fragile desperation in her tone made Chi Wan’s chest ache. Without thinking, she clasped An Ran’s hands.

“I’m Chi Wan. Look at me.”

An Ran struggled at first, but Chi Wan held firm until she finally forced her eyes open. After several blurry moments, she recognized her.

“Chi… Chi Wan?”

“Yes, it’s me. Why won’t you let them help?”

Up close, Chi Wan noticed the wound on her waist had been roughly bandaged. Not a doctor’s work—An Ran had done it herself.

“I can’t let him know… that doctor, he’s… the family’s doctor.”

Her voice was too faint, the middle words swallowed. But Chi Wan could guess—An Ran didn’t trust him.

“And… my blood type is rare…”

Her voice faded even further, her lips brushing against Chi Wan’s earlobe, soft breath spilling into her ear, lips grazing the sensitive skin like feather-light kisses.

But Chi Wan had no mind for intimacy. All she felt was the frantic urgency—

What should she do?

They’d have to return to shore.

She re-bandaged the wound. Only then did she clearly see the narrow gash across An Ran’s waist, skin split open as if by a blunt blade.

Was it an accident—or an attack?

Scooping An Ran into her arms, she stormed over to Chu Rou.

“An Ran’s in critical condition. Arrange a speedboat—get us back to shore!”

“There’s a medical team onboard,” Chu Rou began automatically, not wanting to disrupt filming.

But the instant the words left her mouth, Chi Wan’s face turned to stone.

“Director Chu, send us ashore.”

She didn’t elaborate. She wanted to explain about An Ran’s rare blood type, but An Ran had whispered it like a secret, and Chi Wan wouldn’t betray it.

Chu Rou narrowed her eyes, holding Chi Wan’s gaze. Her instincts told her Chi Wan was hiding something. But she couldn’t force it out of her—and with An Ran’s life hanging in the balance, she relented.

The doctor, however, was furious. He had expected Chi Wan to persuade her, not side with her. He was, after all, the Ming family’s personal physician—his skills surpassed most hospital doctors. And yet these two treated him like a quack.

Ungrateful fools.

He cursed silently, but when Miss Ming appeared, he immediately plastered on a smile.

Mingyu, for reasons she couldn’t name, found herself oddly preoccupied with Chi Wan and An Ran. She asked the doctor about them.

“It’s nothing, Miss. Those two aren’t worth your concern. With their vision, they’ll never amount to much.”

Mingyu’s lips curved at that. Somehow, his words pleased her.

When they reached a nearby hospital, Chi Wan stayed with An Ran the entire time.

“Your girlfriend really relies on you. You two must be very close,” a nurse said warmly, her eyes tinged with envy.

It was true—such devotion was rare. They were practically inseparable.

An Ran clung to her constantly; even a step apart made her uneasy. But Chi Wan was endlessly patient, never leaving her side.

Only when An Ran finally drifted to sleep did Chi Wan slip out to buy lunch.

And right then, she locked eyes with several people across the hall.

Her mind hadn’t caught up, but her body reacted instinctively—she turned sharply, avoiding them.

Her pulse pounded.

What was happening?

Had she just run into an enemy?