After the Soul Swap Between Love Rival AO - Chapter 27

Song Qiuchi frowned. “I’m deeply in love with you? Are you sure it’s not Buddha punishing me?”

Cheng Luanxin’s face fell. “Not a single word you say pleases me.”

Song Qiuchi reached out a hand. “What happened? Get up first.”

Reluctantly, Cheng Luanxin stood up, dusted herself off, and briefly explained the situation.

Song Qiuchi sighed in exasperation. “Only you could mess up a simple wish like this.”

Cheng Luanxin pouted. “Well, I already messed up. What do you suggest I do now?”

Song Qiuchi teased, “What can you do? If Buddha’s in a good mood, he’ll bless us with good health. If he’s not, you’ll just have to love me desperately.”

Cheng Luanxin’s jaw dropped in shock.

Live Comments:

“These two flirting is killing me HAHAHA.”

“Are you guys really this superstitious? LOL.”

“Praying to Buddha that I’m in a bad mood and want to see Qiu Chi and Luan Xin love each other to death!”

“Rose ×1”

“How silly.” Song Qiu Chi gave her a helpless glance, then suddenly narrowed her eyes and leaned in to scrutinize her face closely.

Cheng Luan Xin squirmed under the intense gaze. “W-what, have you already fallen for me?”

Song Qiu Chi: “Did you put on sunscreen before going out today? Why do you have a rash?”

Cheng Luan Xin froze. “No, I didn’t. I thought the sun hat would be enough. Another layer of sunscreen would feel too heavy.”

Song Qiu Chi: “…”

“You really have a knack for making your own decisions,” Song Qiu Chi sighed, pulling out a parasol from her bag. “That sun hat is so small—there are always spots it can’t cover. Now you’ve got another allergic reaction. Use this.”

Cheng Luan Xin stared at her dumbly. “You’re holding it for me?”

Song Qiu Chi made as if to shove the parasol into her hands. “You can hold it yourself if you prefer.”

Cheng Luan Xin quickly ducked under the parasol, clinging to Song Qiu Chi’s arm with an ingratiating grin. “You hold it, you hold it! Hehehe, why are you being so nice to me today?”

Song Qiu Chi thought to herself, Because you’re about to get sunburned to a crisp, and I can’t afford not to be nice to you. She let Cheng Luan Xin cling to her arm and said flatly, “Let’s go.”

Cheng Luan Xin didn’t forget to call out to Du Zhi Ruo. “Come on, Zhi Ruo!”

Du Zhi Ruo, who had been quietly watching their interaction, smiled faintly. “Alright, I’m coming.”

Live Comments:

Aww, the subtle affection between Chi and Xin is so sweet?!

Luan Xin really dotes on Qiu Chi! Wasn’t that parasol specifically brought for her?

Honestly… if I were Du Zhi Ruo, I’d feel a little awkward

Right? This makes me believe that in a trio, one is always the third wheel. Sigh.

The three of them continued their trek. The hardest part of the journey had already been conquered at Fuyan Grand Canyon, and the remaining stone steps were relatively wider and smoother. As long as they persevered, victory was assured.

Around 3:40 PM, they arrived at Chengyang Hotel. Lin Zhiyun and Zhuang Mingchu had already checked in earlier and were resting in their room.

The hotel staff informed them that Lin Zhiyun and Zhuang Mingchu had taken the last standard room, leaving only a king-size bed room available.

The staff hadn’t anticipated a group of three, which inevitably meant someone would have to split off. She tactfully explained the situation and asked, “How would you three like to arrange this?”

The trio exchanged glances, momentarily stumped.

Cheng Luan Xin: “Wait, how is this fair? We’re not even the same gender—how can we share a king-size bed? Are there really no single rooms left?”

Staff: “We’re out of options. All other room types are fully booked. Only the king-size bed is left. You’ll have to work it out among yourselves.”

Seeing Cheng Luan Xin’s dilemma, Du Zhi Ruo volunteered, “Then I’ll bow out. The audience would definitely prefer to see the subtle interactions between Chi and Xin.”

“That’s not fair, you—” Before Cheng Luan Xin could finish, Song Qiu Chi tugged at her. “Who do you plan to pair up with?”

Du Zhi Ruo tilted her head. “There are ten people in our program group. Besides me, there’s bound to be another odd one out. I’ll wait and see.”

Cheng Luanxin still felt uneasy: “That feels so awkward… We came up here together after all…”

Du Zhiruo smiled: “What’s there to be awkward about? You two go rest in your room first. I’ll just sit here and wait for a bit, then come find you to hang out tonight.”

Cheng Luanxin waved reluctantly: “Alright then, it’s settled! See you tonight, we’ll be waiting!”

Finally free from the trailing cameras, the two regained their freedom.

As soon as they entered the room, Cheng Luanxin threw herself onto the double bed, sprawling on her back: “Lying down is the best! I never want to climb another mountain again!”

Song Qiuchi patted her thigh: “Get up. The sheets aren’t on yet, it’s dirty.”

Cheng Luanxin rolled over, unwilling to leave the bed: “Let me rest a bit first. And stop touching me.”

Song Qiuchi retorted: “As if I want to touch you? Get up, or I’ll tuck you in with the bedcover.”

Cheng Luanxin imagined herself being wrapped up in the bedcover and found it hilarious, unable to suppress a giggle.

Song Qiuchi sighed: “Is it really that funny?”

“Totally funny.” Cheng Luanxin stretched out her hands. “Then pull me up.”

Song Qiuchi glanced at her, took both hands, and hauled her up from the bed.

They made the bed together, fitting the sheets and duvet cover smoothly before collapsing onto the bed in unison.

The room was quiet except for their gradually steady breathing.

Just as sleep was about to claim Song Qiuchi’s thoughts, she faintly heard Cheng Luanxin giggling to herself.

Song Qiuchi turned her head: “What are you thinking about?”

Cheng Luanxin replied: “Just reminiscing about today’s trip. It was exhausting, but really fun. How could I not have noticed it was a matchmaking wall? So silly.”

She turned toward Song Qiuchi, meeting her eyes: “When I was little, I envied my classmates who got to travel during holidays. Whenever they talked about where they went, I’d imagine what those places looked like. But seeing them in person is way more amazing. Today was really great. The only regret is…”

“What is it?” Song Qiuchi asked.

“Of course it’s that my grandma isn’t here! Actually, at Xushan Temple, I wanted to write ‘Wishing good health to Madam Cheng Wenxiu.’ Good thing I didn’t—might’ve gotten myself a grandpa, hahaha…”

“Oh.”

“Look at you, being such a downer again!” Cheng Luanxin nudged Song Qiuchi. “What did you think I was going to say?”

“I thought…” Song Qiuchi paused, then honestly admitted: “I thought you’d say you regretted not rooming with Du Zhiruo.”

“Huh? That? It’s not a big deal.” Cheng Luanxin scratched her head. “Honestly, being with you is really comfortable. If I were with Zhiruo, I’d have to maintain my image and watch her mood—definitely not as relaxed as with you.”

Song Qiuchi teased: “So with me, you don’t need to maintain your image or care about my feelings?”

Cheng Luanxin waved it off: “We’re partners in crime. Who are we kidding? Let’s just make do.”

Song Qiuchi found this perfectly in line with Cheng Luanxin’s logic and chuckled: “Let’s rest for a bit.”

Exhausted from the day’s travels, they woke up to find it was already past six.

Luckily, the gathering time was at seven, so they hadn’t missed it. After a quick freshening up, they headed downstairs to meet the others in the lobby.

Anna summarized the day’s activities and announced the current rankings of the guests based on the rose tokens they had earned.

The event was only halfway through, and many romance observers hadn’t cast their votes yet, but Cheng Luanxin already had 53 votes.

Then came the daily routine—the Romantic Chat Room. Today’s theme was travel, and the guests took turns drawing travel-related questions to answer.

As the recording wrapped up, the sky gradually darkened.

Thinking about waking up early the next day to watch the sunrise, Cheng Luanxin was about to head back to the dormitory with Song Qiuchi when Du Zhiruo called out to her.

Walking up to Cheng Luanxin, Du Zhiruo smiled and said, “Qiuchi, since we finally have the chance to travel together, why don’t we go out for a walk?”

Hearing the invitation, Cheng Luanxin perked up and tugged at Song Qiuchi’s sleeve. “Great! Let’s go, Luanxin! Zhiruo’s asking us out—”

“Um…” Du Zhiruo interrupted somewhat awkwardly, “I was actually hoping to go with just you. Is that okay?”

“Huh?” Cheng Luanxin froze, her grip on Song Qiuchi loosening unconsciously. “Just the two of us?”

“Yes, just us. Unless… you’re not free?”

“I…” Cheng Luanxin instinctively glanced at Song Qiuchi’s expression.

“She’s free,” Song Qiuchi answered for her. “Go ahead. Just don’t stay out too late.”

The two of them walked one after the other to the nearby stargazing platform. It was a serene and open space, offering a sweeping view of the starry sky—a perfect spot for a date or a quiet moment.

They sat down on the ground.

Du Zhiruo spoke softly, “It’s been so long since we’ve just sat together like this.”

Cheng Luanxin felt the same. Though they had seen each other often since the show started, moments of quiet companionship like this were rare.

“Do you remember? Our high school rooftop had a stargazing platform just like this. We sneaked up there to hang out all the time.”

Of course, Cheng Luanxin remembered. She had been the one to discover that rooftop. After scouting it out a few times and confirming no one was keeping watch, she had frequently invited Du Zhiruo to stargaze with her, sometimes even bringing snacks.

But she hadn’t expected that Du Zhiruo had also gone up there with Song Qiuchi.

“I really miss those times eating snacks with you on the rooftop. You used to love that braised food from the shop near the school. Back then, I thought it was a bit too salty and wasn’t a fan, but after graduation, I never found braised food that tasted as good again.”

Cheng Luanxin paused, sensing something odd. She knew exactly which shop Du Zhiruo was talking about—she had bought from there often in high school. But would Song Qiuchi really enjoy something so salty and greasy?

Du Zhiruo continued, “And that one time, we were eating on the rooftop when suddenly there was thunder and lightning. We packed up in a hurry and ran downstairs, only to bump into the teacher on duty locking the windows. We almost got locked out. After that, the rooftop was always kept locked.”

As she spoke, she watched Cheng Luanxin’s expression closely, as if eager to see her reaction.

Meanwhile, Cheng Luanxin’s eyes slowly widened.

Even if she were the most oblivious person, she could tell—these were all memories between her and Du Zhiruo, with no connection to Song Qiuchi whatsoever.

From the shift in Cheng Luanxin’s expression, Du Zhiruo gradually became certain: inside Song Qiuchi’s body was Cheng Luanxin’s soul.

Facing Cheng Luanxin’s stunned look, Du Zhiruo slowly smiled.

“Luanxin, long time no see.”