Chapter 5

Sitting in the hospital lobby, Yan You's heart pounded wildly. After receiving the message, she had opened her phone to examine its contents.

The original owner's name was Yan You. The photo album contained pictures of her, and after careful comparison, Yan You realized the person in the photos looked almost exactly like her.

But the rooms and scenery in the pictures were completely unfamiliar.

Could it be... Could she have transmigrated into the body of that unfortunate soul who was pushed off the cliff by Wen Zhiyu?

Yan You's emotions remained turbulent for a long time. She lay on her side in the chair until the sky began to show a fish-belly white, but she couldn't fall asleep.

All night, she pondered how to return to Year 2622.

The day she transmigrated, she had been in the library and then taken a bus to the newspaper office.

A bus? A library?

Which one was the necessary medium?

Now it seemed the bus hadn't been invented yet, so the library was likely the key.

Yan You racked her brain, but she could only remember flipping through a few books in the library. One of them seemed to be Wen Zhiyu's autobiography, written after her imprisonment. She hadn't read it closely before Yan Huiwen's phone call summoned her away.

After getting five hundred thousand yuan from Wen Zhiyu, her first stop had to be the library.

By the time she'd figured it all out, the sky was already bright.

The automatic doors of the hospital's outpatient lobby slid open on time, and a bustling crowd of patients and their families surged in like a tide, instantly filling the previously quiet hall.

Yan You instinctively shifted to make room.

The suit she'd worn to the wedding yesterday, which had already been ill-fitting, was now crumpled and wrinkled from the night's events.

She turned left out of the hospital and found a breakfast stall at the street corner. After buying fried dough sticks and soy milk, she remembered she'd rushed to the hospital last night and hadn't packed properly. She popped into the convenience store next to the stall to buy a toothbrush and toothpaste.

Yan You walked with a plastic bag in one hand and a fried dough stick in her mouth.

When she reached the giant billboard at the hospital's corner, she froze.

It was Wen Zhiyu.

A twenty-meter-tall Wen Zhiyu, towering over the entire street.

She was endorsing a top-tier jewelry brand, her face still cool and aloof, her downcast eyes full of pride, and a luxury bracelet on her wrist.

The image radiated a godlike arrogance, as if nothing in the world could catch her eye.

Yet, this once-gleaming billboard had yellowed edges from prolonged exposure to the sun and rain, its surface neglected and unmaintained.

The three workers were nearing the end of their dismantling work. The painted canvas in the upper right corner sagged dejectedly, its tearing sound piercing the early morning air and obscuring half of Wen Zhiyu's face.

As the ropes loosened, the figure in the painting began to twist, fold, and collapse, finally transforming into a massive, yellowed scrap of canvas that crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Before the workers could even clear the area, hurried pedestrians, focused on their commute, stepped expressionlessly across the expensive "face."

Yan You paused amidst the swirling dust. After finishing her last bite of youtiao, she calmly walked around the discarded canvas, carrying her toiletries bag into the hospital.

Reaching Wen Zhiyu's hospital room, she peered through the window and saw Yan Huiwen standing by the bedside, her lips moving as if speaking to Wen Zhiyu.

Yan You knocked twice on the door, then pushed it open and greeted them. She placed the plastic bag containing breakfast and a toothbrush on the table. Both women froze at the sight of her.

Wen Zhiyu was propped up on soft pillows, her complexion not pale from recent illness, but rather rosy and radiant.

She stared at Yan You, a flicker of disbelief in her eyes, followed by barely concealed loathing. "You're still here?"

Yan You raised an eyebrow, a hint of confusion in her voice. "Leave? Big star, we haven't settled our bill yet. You're not going back on your word, are you?"

Yan Huiwen, standing nearby, caught the keywords with her sharp eyes and interjected, "What money?"

Yan You: "The appearance fee for the wedding—five hundred thousand. We agreed to settle up after the ceremony."

Yan Huiwen, guessing the reason, her eyes flashed. "Miss Yan, you know Zhiyu hasn't had work lately. Public relations, medical expenses—we're stretched thin everywhere. Five hundred thousand is a lot to pull out at once. How about this: once the payment for the Permanent Contract announcement comes through, I'll pay you immediately. What do you say?"

Wen Zhiyu frowned. She instantly saw through Yan Huiwen's tactic: using the money to keep Yan You on a tight leash, forcing her cooperation with the upcoming variety show recordings.

She loathed this kind of underhanded manipulation. Shaking her head gently at Yan Huiwen, she said, "No need. I have the money."

Yan You stood in the center of the room, her gaze shifting between Yan Huiwen's calculating glint and Wen Zhiyu's weary stubbornness.

The air grew awkwardly silent until even Yan Huiwen's thick-skinned face flushed with embarrassment and anger. Only then did Yan You curve her lips into a faint, indifferent smile.

"Then write me a check." A smile curved her lips as she separated a youtiao and a soy milk from the plastic bag. She pulled over a chair and sat opposite Wen Zhiyu, her eyes twinkling. "As for the variety show, we should probably get the script ironed out early. After all, my acting skills aren't exactly stellar."

The words hung in the air, leaving Yan Huiwen and Wen Zhiyu momentarily stunned.

"You've agreed?" Wen Zhiyu leaned forward slightly, her expression a mix of eagerness to return to the stage and resentment over their unauthorized temporary mark from the previous day. She was torn between these conflicting emotions.

Unaware of the tension, Yan You nodded her agreement. Her decision wasn't driven by any particular desire to help, but rather by the simple fact that she had nowhere else to go. Staying with Yan Huiwen felt safer, and she'd need a lot of money to get back to Year 2622 anyway.

Wen Zhiyu's eyes flickered. This was her last resort. Without a word, she leaned back against the bed.

"Thank you, Miss Yan," Yan Huiwen said.

"You're welcome. We both get what we need."

Yan You thought that if she participated in the variety show and helped Wen Zhiyu regain her popularity, it might benefit Yan Huiwen as well.

Yan You remembered her grandmother once telling her that in the years before her birth, when Yan Huiwen was still unmarried, she fell ill and incurred significant medical expenses.

During that difficult time, Yan Huiwen worked tirelessly, caring for her grandmother while also working.

This was four years before Yan You's birth and one year before Yan Huiwen met her Alpha mother, Xu Fan. It was highly likely that her grandmother, Yan Jinglan, fell ill during this period.

This made it understandable why Yan Huiwen was so eager to have Wen Zhiyu join her on the variety show Permanent Contract.

Wen Zhiyu readily wrote a check, but Yan You felt awkward about how to interact with this big star.

Before she could dwell on this, Yan Huiwen answered a phone call. After hanging up, she urged them to return home immediately to discuss joining Permanent Contract.

Someone had contacted Yan Huiwen, revealing that Director Zhu was secretly scouting for new guests. Although it was unclear whether this was related to Wen Zhiyu, Yan Huiwen felt compelled to investigate for her own peace of mind.

With that, Yan Huiwen drove Wen Zhiyu and Yan You back to Wen Zhiyu's downtown apartment before hurrying away.

Yan You looked around the room. The space was approximately 200 square meters, with what seemed to be another floor above the staircase. A treadmill stood beneath the floor-to-ceiling window facing the river, with no clothes draped over it, suggesting Wen Zhiyu worked out frequently.

Several discarded outfits were piled on the sofa, and two empty wine bottles sat on the table, clear evidence that Wen Zhiyu had been drowning her sorrows in alcohol after her career setbacks.

Yan You shifted her position and pulled another piece of clothing from beneath her. To her surprise, it was a purple bra. Her face flushed crimson, and she hastily stuffed it back into the pile of clothes before Wen Zhiyu could notice.

The two sat on the sofa, staring at each other, both remembering last night's events: Wen Zhiyu leaning against Yan You's chest as pheromones were injected into her.

"Last night..."

"Last night..."

They spoke at the same time, then fell silent.

Finally, Yan You broke the silence. "You don't need to thank me for last night. It was a matter of life and death; helping was only right."

Wen Zhiyu seemed dazed, clearly having intended to say something entirely different. She bit her lower lip and closed her eyes slightly.

Yan You had stayed to help her, and Wen Zhiyu knew this was true. But given her personality, she couldn't stand being taken advantage of and having to swallow her pride.

"How dare you say there's no need for thanks?" Wen Zhiyu snapped, her eyelids trembling slightly.

Yan You looked puzzled. "What?"

"Stop playing dumb. If you just wanted to help, you should have... you should have just injected the pheromones quickly, not..." Wen Zhiyu's face grew redder as she spoke.

Yan You sat there, her face unblushing and her heart steady, which only made Wen Zhiyu more furious.

She gritted her teeth, closed her eyes, and snapped, "You shouldn't have been kissing and hugging. You saved me, but you also took advantage of me. You should apologize to me, not expect me to thank you."

Yan You, who had been looking utterly bewildered, finally understood what Wen Zhiyu was referring to. Her face flushed crimson all the way to her neck. "That's what the teacher taught us in biology class," she stammered.

At that moment, she suddenly remembered that the teacher had been teaching about normal couple relationships involving Omegas. But Wen Zhiyu was different—their relationship was no different from that of strangers.

In the urgent situation, her dawdling and unnecessary movements had indeed been excessive.

Realizing the fault was hers, Yan You blushed and bowed deeply to Wen Zhiyu. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thoughtful enough."

"Be more careful next time. I won't hold it against you this time." Considering their future collaboration, Wen Zhiyu smoothed her skirt and stood up. After taking a few steps, she let out a low hum. "What kind of sex education class would teach such nonsense? It's sheer fabrication. How shameless."

Yan You wanted to argue, but then she suddenly remembered Jinghe City twenty years ago. Perhaps there really wasn't any sex education class back then.

Back in her room, Wen Zhiyu had just sat down when her phone vibrated.

She opened the message from the orphanage:

Miss Wen, it's time to settle the monthly supplies and funds for the orphanage. When would be a convenient time for you to make the transfer?

She didn't hesitate and quickly transferred the money. After finishing, she glanced at her bank balance. The amount was enough for her to live comfortably for the rest of her life, but it wasn't enough to do more.

She leaned back against the chair, her gaze somewhat vacant.

If that long-lost father hadn't suddenly appeared and turned her life upside down, she wouldn't have ended up in this situation. Now, even the orphanage she'd been supporting for years was on the verge of closing.

She didn't know if the job Yan Huiwen had helped her secure would actually come through, nor could she tell if Yan You, who was outside, could help her weather this crisis.

A tangle of worries clogged her chest. She sighed softly, pulled open a drawer, and took out a bottle of wine, placing it on the table.

Yan You scratched behind her ear and awkwardly settled back onto the sofa.

They were supposed to discuss the variety show, but they hadn't interacted much all day. Wen Zhiyu was resting in her room, while Yan You lay on the sofa, using her phone to look up information about this era.

Midway through the afternoon, someone named Han Jiaye called, urgently telling her to come to the Origin Gland Research Institute immediately. Someone was trying to acquire it.

If she didn't pay the suppliers before midnight tonight, she'd sell the debt-ridden institute outright.

Yan You mumbled an agreement, and after hanging up, a chill ran down her spine. She remembered the clothes she was wearing when she first arrived—they didn't seem to be hers either. Could she really have transmigrated into Yan You's body? If so, where had the original Yan You gone?

The Origin Gland Research Institute, which would later be valued at 700 million yuan, was a pioneer in the gland medical industry. She absolutely couldn't let Han Jiaye sell it off so casually; the original Yan You would go mad when she returned.

Moreover, that institute would later benefit many Omegas.

Until she figured everything out, she decided it was best to continue doing what the original Yan You was supposed to do. After all, what if a single misstep ruined her future without her, Yan You,?

By the time she had thought it through, the clock had already struck nine. The only wealthy person around was the large Buddha statue in the room.

Yan You hurriedly stood up and knocked on Wen Zhiyu's door.

"Big star, can you help me with something?"

Wen Zhiyu opened the door wearing a bathrobe and a thick black mask on her face.

She hadn't gotten over what happened yesterday, and seeing Yan You immediately reminded her of last night's unpleasant experience. She was too embarrassed to bring up the variety show, so she was just waiting for Yan Huiwen to return.

Yan You arrived before Yan Huiwen, who was still expected.

Seeing the pale skin of Wen Zhiyu's chest revealed through the half-open robe, Yan You swallowed hard and turned her gaze to the door.