"The patient has been unconscious for two days with a relentless high fever. If she doesn't wake up by tonight, Mrs. Zhou, you may need to prepare for her passing."
"What!" Zhou Ru's face darkened with irritation as she glanced at the girl lying on the bed.
She shook her head, her voice cold and detached. "Then take her to the hospital and have them prepare for the worst-case scenario."
Even if she were to die, it couldn't happen in the Wen family's house—it would be an ill omen.
The doctor didn't argue. As he noticed the IV fluid was nearly depleted, he moved to remove the needle. But the moment his fingers brushed against the girl's hand, he realized her raging fever had abruptly subsided.
Before he could process what had happened, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen, and he was thrown to the ground with a cry of agony.
The girl who had been lying comatose on the bed spoke in a hoarse voice. "Don't touch me."
Both Zhou Ru and the family doctor were stunned.
Ji Chuxing raised her hand to rub her forehead. Her memory lingered on the moment the lab exploded, the forceful blast hurling her into the air. A throbbing pain pulsed through her skull.
Her gaze drifted upward to the ceiling, the scent of antiseptic filling her nostrils. Unfamiliar memories rushed into her mind like a torrent.
"This is the Wen family, not the Ji family. Remember, you're just a guest here. Don't get any delusions. Even though Xinyue and Xiaoyang call you 'sister,' Xinyue is the true heiress of the Wen family. You can't compete with her in anything. If you offend your Uncle Wen, he'll send you back to the countryside."
"Xiaoyang is your younger brother. You should let him have his way. What? He's bullying you? Who taught you to slander someone at such a young age? Xiaoyang is well-behaved and obedient. How could he possibly bully you?"
"Look at your grades—they're terrible. And you want to enter an art competition? I went through so much trouble to bring you back from the countryside. Don't embarrass me in public."
...
Scene after scene of unfamiliar memories, each laced with cutting words, flashed through her mind like a film reel, finally freezing on the image of the girl's desperate eyes as she leapt from a high building.
Memories flooded Ji Chuxing's mind in mere seconds.
She realized that she had been reborn. From being the most perfect creation of a futuristic lab, hailed as a "tech genius" and "medical prodigy," she had been reincarnated into the body of a girl who shared her name and appearance in this world.
Now, she knew the girl's entire fate.
This was an extraordinary turn of events. Ji Chuxing lay dazed on the bed, sensing the remnants of the original owner's emotions.
Zhou Ru hadn't yet processed the fact that her daughter had suddenly woken up. The family doctor, who had been inexplicably thrown to the ground, stood up, his face red with anger as he glared at the girl. "How dare you kick me!"
Indeed, Ji Chuxing had swiftly kicked him in the abdomen, so fast that even Zhou Ru hadn't seen it.
Ji Chuxing remained lying flat, not even bothering to look at him. "I told you not to touch me."
She had wanted to go back to sleep, but it seemed that wasn't an option now. With a swift motion, she pulled the IV needle out of her hand.
Pathetic excuse for medical expertise.
Dr. Sun, the Wen family's personal physician, hailed from a renowned medical family in Nancheng. His social status was high, and even the head of the Wen family, Wen Huayang, treated him with respect. How could he tolerate such insolence from a girl? He sneered, "Typical of a country bumpkin—no manners at all. You're nothing compared to Miss Wen. Do you think just anyone can have me treat them?"
Zhou Ru finally regained her composure. As Wen Huayang's wife and the lady of the Wen household, she always made sure to maintain her image in front of outsiders, regardless of how she behaved with her daughter in private.
She frowned at the girl on the bed. "Xiaoxing, how can you be so rude? Dr. Sun has been treating you for two days. Now that you've finally woken up, instead of thanking him, you're being hostile? Is this how I've taught you to behave?"
She then turned to Dr. Sun, apologizing politely, "I'm sorry, Dr. Sun. Xiaoxing must still be disoriented from just waking up. Please bear with her."
It was an unspoken rule—never offend the doctor.
Zhou Ru's apology only inflated Dr. Sun's ego further. He tilted his chin up and said, "An apology isn't necessary. But frankly, with such a temperament, who knows what trouble she'll bring in the future? For today, I'll let it slide. After all, I'm the Wen family's physician, and I treated her out of respect for you and Mr. Wen."
Zhou Ru continued to be courteous. "Xiaoxing is fortunate to have your care."
Ji Chuxing, still lying on the bed, listened to their exchange before turning to Zhou Ru and asking innocently, "Would you like to have this 'fortune' instead?"
She glanced at Dr. Sun and smirked. "A doctor who sends people to the morgue—how special."
"You!" Dr. Sun, who prided himself as one of Nancheng's top physicians, even respected by high-profile figures, was infuriated by Ji Chuxing's insult. He was about to retort when he noticed that despite her pale, sickly complexion, the girl's icy gaze held an intimidating aura. A strange feeling flickered in his heart, but he quickly dismissed it as overthinking.
He said coldly, "Since Miss Ji doesn't need my services, she's free to find another doctor!"
With that, he grabbed his medical kit and stormed out. He couldn't stand being looked down upon by a little girl. Did she think she was some kind of genius?
Seeing how angry Dr. Sun was, Zhou Ru quickly stood up. "Dr. Sun, Dr. Sun!"
But Dr. Sun was already heading downstairs with his kit. Zhou Ru had no choice but to call out to the housekeeper, "Aunt Wen, please see Dr. Sun out and apologize on my behalf."
When she returned to Ji Chuxing's room, the girl was already up. Hmph! What kind of incompetent doctor couldn't even administer fever-reducing medicine properly!
Zhou Ru frowned. With no outsiders around, she didn't need to put on a kind facade for Ji Chuxing. This daughter was the biggest blemish on her otherwise perfect life.
"What's wrong with you? How could you speak to Dr. Sun like that? How many times have I told you to drop those country habits? This is Nancheng, not the countryside. Didn't anyone teach you manners?"
Ji Chuxing packed her bag, then turned to Zhou Ru, staring at her intently. "I've been without parents since I was little. No one taught me how to be polite to incompetent doctors."
"You!"
Ji Chuxing's father, Jinzhong, had disappeared when she was four and was later declared dead by the police. Zhou Ru, unable to endure the hardships of rural life, had abandoned her child and left soon after.
Jinzhong had been a poor doctor who often spent his own money helping others. After he was declared dead, Zhou Ru wasted no time in leaving.
She soon met Wen Huaming, a wealthy man from Nancheng, and married him, becoming a stepmother to the girl referred to as "Miss Wen" by the family doctor. Now, she and Wen Huaming had a son together, Wen Liyang.
This illness of the original Ji Chuxing was directly linked to Wen Liyang. He had pushed her into the Wen family's swimming pool, causing her to drown and fall into a coma. During the two days she was unconscious, he had snuck into her room and pinched her neck and arms.
It was at this moment that Ji Chuxing had been reborn into this body.
How despicable could someone be? Yet Zhou Ru didn't bother to investigate, simply assuming that the original Ji Chuxing had been foolish enough to play by the pool despite not knowing how to swim, leading to this disaster.
As for the four-year-old Ji Chuxing, she had been left behind in the countryside by Zhou Ru, who saw her as a burden. She had grown up with her grandfather, relying on him for everything. But six months ago, her grandfather had passed away. Worried about his granddaughter being left alone, he had arranged for her to be reunited with her birth mother, Zhou Ru. This inadvertently revealed to Nancheng's elite that Zhou Ru had a daughter from the countryside. For the sake of her reputation, Zhou Ru had no choice but to bring Ji Chuxing to the Wen household, putting on a show of familial care.
If her grandfather knew how Ji Chuxing had been treated in the Wen family these past six months, he would be turning in his grave.
Her grandfather had been the one person in the world who truly loved her.
Although Zhou Ru had left when Ji Chuxing was four, she was still her mother. Ji Chuxing's words were essentially saying she was dead. Zhou Ru was so furious that she raised her hand to slap Ji Chuxing across the face.
"Who taught you to talk like that!"
But before her hand could land, Ji Chuxing caught her wrist. "Don't hit me. This is your last chance."
From now on, she wouldn't give Zhou Ru another opportunity to lay a hand on her. Whether for herself or for the original Ji Chuxing.
Before her death, the original Ji Chuxing's greatest wish had been to never have had such a mother.
Zhou Ru was shocked. The girl, who looked so frail, had the strength to grip her wrist firmly. Ji Chuxing's slender wrist, with its visible veins and bruises, now held Zhou Ru in an embarrassing lock.
"Ji Chuxing, I'm your mother!"
"Mother?" Ji Chuxing scoffed. "Do you deserve that title? Did you raise me for even a single day? Before I was four, it was my father who raised me. After that, it was my grandfather. When did you ever take responsibility?"
It was the truth, but Zhou Ru couldn't stand to hear it. She was livid. "If you dare treat me like this, then don't ever come back to the Wen family! Get out!"
Ji Chuxing's expression remained blank. "Don't worry. Even if you begged me to stay, I wouldn't."
This was never her home, and she had no reason to remain.
Zhou Ru, thrown onto the bed by Ji Chuxing's grip, found her words both infuriating and laughable. Beg her? Why would she ever do that?
A helpless country girl without the Wen family's support—how could she possibly survive in Nancheng?
How naive. She would beg her to come back!