After Swapping Souls with My Rival Alpha - Chapter 15

This was the third time, Chi Mu thought, the third time she had entered Nie Yijun’s body. This time, she was far more composed and even felt a little relaxed—not having to face Chi Xi helped.

And,

Sitting across from her was a stunning Omega.

She wasn’t in a lab coat but a long white dress, her hair cascading down gracefully. She looked incredibly gentle and refined.

Chi Mu narrowed her eyes. Could this person be Nie Yijun’s girlfriend?

“Shall we have dinner together tonight?” the Omega asked, her voice soft and sweet.

“Sure.” Chi Mu answered without hesitation. She had planned to go out for a drink tonight anyway and maybe invite a pretty Omega along—but Chi Xi had beaten her to it. Still, changing bodies had its perks.

Chi Mu used Nie Yijun’s phone to send herself a message:

• Who is this Omega to you? What’s her name? Oh, and don’t tell Chi Xi too much. If she asks anything, just pretend you didn’t hear it.

A moment later, Nie Yijun’s reply came through:

• Lu Nianyun, the dean’s daughter. She just graduated, and I’m supposed to look after her. Don’t worry about it.

Ah, so she was a “well-connected” type.

No matter—Chi Mu had no problem talking to anyone as long as they were attractive. She quickly shrugged off the lab coat. “Let’s go, grab a drink!”

Of course, she couldn’t ignore such a gorgeous Omega. That just wasn’t Chi Mu.

“What’s on your mind?” Chi Xi asked, looking at ‘Chi Mu.’

Nie Yijun flipped through her “work plan” and said thoughtfully, “I know nothing about jewelry design. I’ve never even touched it.”

“I know,” Chi Xi said. “Team Leader Han is great—she has the skills and the patience. I arranged for her to guide you because I knew you wouldn’t have the endurance otherwise. As long as you’re willing to work with her seriously, I trust that someone who got into medical school like you won’t mess things up.”

Nie Yijun turned to her. “Crossing into another field is like climbing a mountain. I can’t promise anything in design.”

Chi Xi raised an eyebrow. Just a moment ago, Chi Mu had been sulking, uncomfortable even talking about work. Now, in this body, she was calmly negotiating with her.

“That’s fine. I don’t expect you to actually design anything. Just approach it with the right attitude and work seriously.”

For Nie Yijun, that wasn’t difficult. Without hesitation, she agreed. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Chi Xi was taken aback. Since when had Chi Mu been so agreeable?

“Yes,” Nie Yijun reaffirmed. “I’ll work seriously.”

Chi Xi nodded. “I hope you’re not just saying that. Don’t quit after two days.”

She crossed her arms and leaned back in the chair, still puzzled by whatever Chi Mu was planning.

The car stopped in the courtyard. The ‘Chi Mu’ in the passenger seat got out, opened the rear door, and said, “Be careful.”

Chi Xi paused, scanning her up and down. Something about Chi Mu was strange.

Even stranger, at the dinner table, when their father asked about Chi Mu’s performance today, Chi Xi spoke honestly: “Slept all day.”

Father Chi Zhe’s face darkened immediately. Even Nie Yijun didn’t expect Chi Mu to take work so casually.

“If this keeps up,” Chi Zhe said, “I’ll take away your car and your bank card.”

“That won’t happen again,” Nie Yijun replied.

Chi Xi watched her. After speaking, ‘Chi Mu’ ate seriously, her expression neutral, refreshingly sincere.

After dinner, Chi Mu headed back to her room. Chi Xi called after her, “Wait.”

Nie Yijun stopped by the stairs and turned. “Yes?”

Chi Xi walked over slowly on her prosthetic, stopping in front of her. “I thought about it just now. Since you have no foundation in jewelry, it might be tough for you in the design department. How about I move you to another department?”

Nie Yijun didn’t answer immediately. A department change didn’t really matter to her—she knew nothing about jewelry—but for hot-tempered Chi Mu, caution was warranted.

“I’ll think about it,” she said, giving a safe, non-committal answer.

“Then take your time,” Chi Xi said. “Decide and let me know.”

Nie Yijun nodded and went upstairs. After a few steps, she glanced back at Chi Xi. Chi Xi stood below, smiling faintly. Nie Yijun returned the smile.

Nie Yijun had never figured out the relationship between Chi Mu and Chi Xi. They were twins, so they should be close—but judging by Chi Mu’s attitude, their relationship seemed distant.

When Nie Yijun first met Chi Xi, Chi Xi had said to her, “Chi Mu, you deserve to be this lousy,” proving the two weren’t on good terms.

Today, though, Chi Xi seemed surprisingly decent.

Nie Yijun went back to her room and called her own phone.

“Hello,” Chi Mu answered. “We’ll talk later—what’s up?”

The background was noisy, filled with chatter.

“Where are you?”

“Later!” Chi Mu shouted and hung up.

“Who’s that?” Lu Nianyun, sitting nearby, asked. “You seem really mad.”

“Someone who can’t read the room,” Chi Mu said, resting one hand on the sofa behind Lu Nianyun and clinking her glass against hers. “Continuing from earlier—do you still dance?”

Lu Nianyun sipped her wine and smiled. “Just a hobby. My father wanted me to study medicine. You know how busy med school is, Doctor Nie, so I had to put my hobby aside in college.”

“What a shame,” Chi Mu said, finishing her drink and setting the glass down. “I wonder if I’m lucky enough to watch you dance sometime?”

“You want to see?” Lu Nianyun tilted her glass toward her. “I didn’t expect the highly praised Doctor Nie to enjoy watching things like this.”

“What, what kind of person do you think I am?”

“Even before I graduated, my father was always talking about you at home,” Lu Nianyun said. “One of the top ten students in Oxford University’s medical school—and the only Asian among them. Before you even graduated, my father personally went to Oxford to recruit you to the Central Affiliated Hospital. Once you joined, you published two consecutive SCI papers.”

Lu Nianyun leaned slightly closer to Chi Mu. Her long hair brushed lightly against Chi Mu’s face, carrying a faint, subtle fragrance—and an undetectable, almost neutral pheromone that Chi Mu could sense but not identify.

Damn this nose.

“Such an impressive Doctor Nie,” Lu Nianyun chuckled softly. “I didn’t expect you to be this interesting too. You want to see me dance? No problem—I’ll show you.”

She rose and walked a few steps onto the stage, consulting briefly with the singer playing guitar. The singer nodded, swapped out the current song, and began a new one.

Lu Nianyun moved gracefully with the music, performing a delicate folk dance. Her white dress tonight added an extra layer of charm to her movements.

Chi Mu curled her lips slightly, poured herself a drink, and watched. Lu Nianyun’s dance was as gentle as she was—completely different from Zhao Tongtong. Zhao Tongtong was a professional dancer, speaking softly in daily life but exuding absolute confidence when she danced.

Lu Nianyun was clearly at an amateur level, yet even as a hobby.

Chi Mu tilted her head back and downed her drink.

Beauty, dance, and wine—these three together could make Chi Mu feel utterly intoxicated. She continued drinking until past eleven o’clock, only stopping when Lu Nianyun’s father called repeatedly, urging her to head home.

Lu Nianyun got into a taxi and waved. “Please take care of me in the future, Doctor Nie.”

Chi Mu smiled and nodded. “Of course.”

Taking a taxi back to Nie Yijun’s apartment complex, Chi Mu walked under the moonlight, her steps matching the shadows cast by the streetlights, humming softly to herself.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

Bang, bang!

In high spirits, Chi Mu quickened her pace, only to see a tall figure standing near the building’s entrance. She raised an eyebrow—it looked just like herself.

“Skipping my big bed to come here? Missing your little apartment?” Chi Mu said with a smile as she approached.

Nie Yijun inhaled lightly. “Out drinking?”

“Yeah,” Chi Mu replied as she unlocked the door. “With your hospital director’s daughter. Pretty impressive, seems like she really admires you. Better hold onto her—at twenty-nine, you should be dating an Omega.”

Nie Yijun followed her inside. “Don’t overthink it. She and I are just colleagues. The director asked me to guide her through her year-long internship.”

“You’re so dense,” Chi Mu muttered, stepping into the elevator and glancing at her. “Aren’t there plenty of senior doctors more experienced than you? Why would the director pick you to mentor his daughter?”

Nie Yijun thought seriously. “The director said Lu Nianyun and I are about the same age, so we’d have more in common.”

Chi Mu almost laughed out loud, slapping her hands and spreading them. “See? That’s obvious! Why would you need common topics for work? This isn’t a matchmaking event!”

Nie Yijun looked at her. “You’re saying the director set me up?”

The elevator dinged. Chi Mu stepped out, shrugging. “Yep, Dr. Nie. A beautiful Omega who admires you—and the director’s daughter, no less. Not a bad deal. Future daughter-in-law material right here.”

Chi Mu opened the apartment door. Nie Yijun followed, habitually opening the shoe cabinet for slippers. “These are just your guesses. Let’s not talk about that. I came to tell you two things.”

She stood straight, facing Chi Mu.

Chi Mu looked at the shoes in her hand. “So, you’re staying the night?”

Nie Yijun paused, then put her shoes back on and handed the slippers to Chi Mu. “I want to see if I can come back.”

“Later,” Chi Mu said, slipping into the slippers. “First, you help me cover work for a few days.”

She really didn’t want to face Chi Xi—too constraining. Let Nie Yijun take on those days for her, and besides, Lu Nianyun seemed pleasant; Chi Mu wanted to use Nie Yijun’s identity to interact with her more.

Nie Yijun poured herself a glass of water. “Looks like we can’t fully switch back.”

Chi Mu sat on the sofa, thinking seriously. “The first time we switched back, it was only a day and a half. This time, two and a half days. Seems irregular.”

Nie Yijun walked over with her glass. “A patient vomited on my white coat today.”

“Ah?” Chi Mu stared.

“Even though it was on the coat, my pants aren’t clean either,” Nie Yijun said.

“Damn it!” Chi Mu rolled her eyes. “Why didn’t you just say you didn’t want me on your sofa!”

With a quick slide, Chi Mu sat on the floor while Nie Yijun took the sofa.

“Why are you sitting there?”

“I showered before coming,” Nie Yijun replied, taking a sip.

Chi Mu gave her a deadpan look.

“First thing: I have surgery the day after tomorrow. We must switch back by tomorrow at the latest,” Nie Yijun said. “Second thing: Chi Xi said she wants to transfer you to a different department. I’m not sure, I told her to consider.”

Before she could finish, a dark shadow lunged at her. Chi Mu braced Nie Yijun’s neck with her arms, glaring. “I told you—don’t listen to whatever Chi Xi says!”