After the Soul Swap Between Love Rival AO - Chapter 37

That day, Song Qiuchi found herself sleepless for the first time in ages.

Looking back, it had already been eight years since she first met Cheng Luanxin. In all those years, it had never crossed her mind that she would one day develop feelings for Cheng Luanxin.

Their first meeting was on the opening day of high school. Students were seated according to their student numbers, and as numbers 03 and 04, Song Qiuchi and Cheng Luanxin were placed in the front row, their names pasted on the corners of their desks.

When Song Qiuchi first saw the name “Cheng Luanxin,” she imagined someone ethereal, like a divine phoenix perched atop a lofty peak, and she was quite looking forward to meeting her new desk mate.

But just before the class bell rang, Cheng Luanxin arrived—late. Far from the lofty flower she had envisioned, Cheng Luanxin was short, with naturally light hair that made her look malnourished. She wore a garishly colorful hoodie, carried a bright pink backpack, and sported pink-framed glasses. The overall impression was one of tacky trendiness, like an elementary school kid who had accidentally wandered into a high school campus.

Song Qiuchi couldn’t help but scoot away slightly in disdain.

After a few days of interaction, Cheng Luanxin completely overturned Song Qiuchi’s expectations. She had never imagined someone so small could talk so much and so incessantly, striking up conversations with anyone and everyone.

What surprised Song Qiuchi the most was how many people were willing to chat with her—even Du Zhiruo occasionally smiled in her direction. In Song Qiuchi’s mind, Du Zhiruo was someone who seemed above worldly concerns, making it hard to imagine her befriending someone as tacky and unrefined as Cheng Luanxin.

The surprises kept coming. Mingxin Private High was an elite school with a less-than-stellar social climate, complete with its own hierarchy of snobbery. Given Cheng Luanxin’s family background, she should have been at the very bottom of that hierarchy, and many people made no effort to hide their disdain for her.

But when the results of the first monthly exam came out, Cheng Luanxin had scored first in the class and ranked among the top three in the entire grade.

This was something Song Qiuchi had never anticipated. As her desk mate, she knew Cheng Luanxin picked up new material quickly, but she never expected her to perform so well. After all, Cheng Luanxin rarely reviewed, spending every evening study session eating, playing, or sleeping. It was hard to fathom how her study efficiency could be so high.

This ignited a competitive fire in Song Qiuchi. In her previous school, she had always been the top student. Being surpassed by someone as seemingly unreliable as Cheng Luanxin felt like a personal slight.

And so began their three years of rivalry—both overt and covert.

Thinking about it now, she had always kept a close eye on Cheng Luanxin’s movements.

But that was still a far cry from liking her, wasn’t it?!

Song Qiuchi tossed and turned in frustration.

Liking Cheng Luanxin was just too absurd.

Shouldn’t she have been drawn to Du Zhiruo? How could swapping souls lead to such a dramatic shift in her feelings?

Swapping souls…

A thought struck Song Qiuchi. She leaped out of bed and hurried to the bathroom.

Staring at her reflection in the mirror—or rather, Cheng Luanxin’s face—she tried to see if she felt any flutter of attraction.

Cheng Luanxin had a delicate, heart-shaped face with a hint of lingering baby fat, a smattering of freckles across her nose the kind trendy girls flaunted, and plump, glossy lips.

She was undeniably cute, but as for that heart-fluttering sensation… it just wasn’t there.

Song Qiuchi attempted a few cute expressions and struck several poses, only to feel a bit cringeworthy. If Cheng Luanxin had pulled these antics in front of her, she’d have wanted to kick her out immediately.

Pausing for a moment, Song Qiuchi reached for the buttons on her pajamas.

If she wanted to know whether she had feelings for someone, physical desire was surely the litmus test.

Before she could undo the first button, Cheng Luanxin’s coy demeanor flashed through her mind: “Song Qiuchi, don’t tell me you often sneak peeks at my body?”

…Never mind.

The idea of “appreciating” someone’s body was just too perverted.

Taking a deep breath, Song Qiuchi straightened her clothes and climbed back into bed.

She’d made it through eight years like this—what was the rush now?

Whether it was genuine affection or not would require further observation.

The next day was their pet café outing.

As usual, the two set out early in the morning.

Live comments:

Daily doses of “ChiXinAnXu” (Qiuchi and Luanxin’s ship name), I’m so happy!

Went to the pet café last night—it was great! The coffee was strong too, kept me up all night for free.

Saw on the pet café’s official blog that they’ve added corn snakes and ball pythons. Are Qiuchi and Luanbao afraid of snakes?

Once in the car, Song Qiuchi began observing Cheng Luanxin.

Oblivious, Cheng Luanxin was happily tapping away at her phone, completing her daily in-game tasks. She had just saved up enough for a ten-draw.

She took gacha pulls very seriously, muttering a string of incantation-like words before solemnly tapping the screen.

The screen shimmered with light—only to reveal a common blue glow. Ten cards popped up, all duplicates of ones she already owned. No new pulls.

Deflated, Cheng Luanxin let out a long sigh and slumped back into her seat.

Song Qiuchi asked, “Not doing another pull?”

Cheng Luanxin blinked. “You were watching me play?”

Song Qiuchi averted her gaze. “Not really. I just noticed you didn’t get the card you wanted.”

Cheng Luanxin nodded. “Yeah, I saved up gems for ages just for this, and still crashed and burned.”

Song Qiuchi tilted her head. “Why not spend money for another try?”

Cheng Luanxin’s eyes widened. “That’s wasteful! I’m very disciplined—only spending on games once a month. Once the budget’s gone, no more. It’s my principle.”

Song Qiuchi nodded approvingly. It seemed Cheng Luanxin did have some virtues—frugality, discipline, principles.

Then Cheng Luanxin added, “I mean, I play over a dozen games. If I splurged on all of them, my salary wouldn’t last a week. I’d be broke and sleeping on the streets. Two months ago, I couldn’t even pay the water bill and almost got evicted…”

Song Qiuchi: “…”

Never mind. She took it back. This person had no discipline or principles whatsoever.

The pet café was a large establishment spanning four floors. A coffee purchase on the first floor granted unlimited playtime, with additional fees only for feeding the animals.

After a quick sanitization and shoe-cover change, the two entered the café.

The first floor was a standard cat café, bustling with lazy felines and dotted with workspaces. Many patrons genuinely enjoyed the laid-back work environment.

Cheng Luanxin bought some cat food cans, intending to feed the cats. The cats were all quite clever too; seeing the small spoon in Cheng Luanxin’s hand, they immediately crowded around, begging for food.

Cheng Luanxin had never been surrounded by so many little kittens before and couldn’t stop smiling with joy. “Babies, don’t fight, take your time. There’s enough for everyone.”

Song Qiuchi continued her evaluation from the sidelines. Cheng Luanxin wasn’t too bad—at least she had a heart full of compassion.

Live Comments:

“Does anyone else feel like Luanxin is acting a bit odd today? Like a senior official on an incognito inspection?”

“So it’s not just me who feels that way?! I thought it was just my imagination.”

“You’re not alone! Cheng Luanxin gives off major ‘motherly’ vibes.”

Soon, one of Cheng Luanxin’s cat food cans was emptied. She returned to Song Qiuchi’s side and sighed, “Kittens are so adorable. After the show wraps up, I want to adopt one. I’ve got my eye on that black-and-white British Shorthair—it’s so well-behaved. I just want to hug it and smother it with kisses!”

Song Qiuchi remarked, “I’m afraid once you see other pets, you’ll change your mind again.”

Cheng Luanxin disagreed, “How could that be? My love for cats is unwavering!”

Song Qiuchi remained skeptical.

Sure enough, when they entered the neighboring glass room—a rabbit paradise—Cheng Luanxin rushed forward again, buying a large bundle of hay and nearly feeding every single rabbit in sight.

Song Qiuchi wasn’t particularly fond of rabbits. Though they looked soft and cute, she found them somewhat unintelligent. Plus, being hindgut fermenters, they tended to eat and defecate simultaneously, which wasn’t the most hygienic.

But Cheng Luanxin didn’t mind at all. She cuddled the rabbits affectionately and even helped the staff clean up after them, soon working up a sweat.

Song Qiuchi watched quietly from the side, imagining that if she and Cheng Luanxin were ever together in the future, having a few cats or dogs at home might not be so bad.

Once Cheng Luanxin had her fill, she returned to Song Qiuchi and admitted, “You were right. Now I want a rabbit too—their little ears are so cute! I thought all rabbits had long ears, but there are so many different breeds.”

Song Qiuchi refused outright, “No, you can’t. They’ll make the house dirty, and cleaning up will be a hassle.”

Cheng Luanxin looked puzzled. “I don’t mind cleaning. It’s not your problem, so why are you so worked up?”

Song Qiuchi froze, only then realizing that, subconsciously, she had already started thinking of Cheng Luanxin as a future partner.

Her cheeks flushed slightly. “Fine, do whatever you want.”