She's a Passerby, But Can See the Protagonist's Halo-Chapter 60

The long-haired beauty in a white coat, wearing white mid-heel ankle boots, walked with an unusual gait at this moment.

She seemed to want to stride confidently, but her foot wobbled, her heel failing to steady itself, and she nearly toppled sideways.

The handsome man in a black overcoat swiftly steadied her, his deep voice laced with concern: "You should... be more careful."

"My foot isn't injured."

"It's fine."

The gentle beauty seemed slightly annoyed. Once steadied, she had no choice but to walk slowly with the man's support. Every step she took wanted to be bold, but she had to restrain her pace.

The two of them noticed Yan and Zhu Jue, immediately composing themselves before walking away arm in arm as if nothing had happened.

After the two figures, marked with the halo of 【Soul Swap】, left, Yan and Zhu Jue exchanged bewildered glances.

"Zhu Jue, how do you think they ended up like that?" Yan whispered cautiously.

"Remember that TV show we watched as kids?"

Zhu Jue nodded. "The one where the wife and mistress switched bodies."

Though it was their first time seeing the soul-swap phenomenon firsthand, the concept wasn’t entirely unfamiliar, having encountered it in dramas.

While they couldn’t recall the exact title of the show they’d watched as children, some key details remained vivid.

"In that drama, the swap happened after a car accident, and they tried everything from praying to visiting temples," Yan mused, stroking her chin.

However, the current situation involved a man and a woman, unlike the show’s two female leads.

"That man’s face looks vaguely familiar," Zhu Jue remarked.

The area was secluded, making it easy for them to exchange hushed words.

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Yan tilted her head. "Familiar?"

She didn’t recall ever meeting him.

Zhu Jue shook his head slightly. "Not someone we know personally. I think I’ve seen him online—a second-generation heir from Bin City, featured in an interview."

The man and woman who had just passed by were dressed head-to-toe in attire worth no less than seven figures.

The man wore a tailored suit with a wristwatch valued in the millions, while the woman’s intricately designed bracelet was easily worth at least a million.

Boss Tu had mentioned that Fayan Temple remained closed to the public, and given their lavish outfits and presence here, it was clear they were either wealthy or influential.

The couple appeared older than Yan and Zhu Jue, their attire exuding maturity.

After circling the temple grounds, they checked the time—it was already noon.

With an afternoon Dharma assembly scheduled, they hurried back to the dining hall for lunch.

"Eating heavy flavors at school every day, it’ll be nice to try the vegetarian fare here," Yan said, intrigued by the meal ahead.

"If Boss Tu keeps coming here, it must be good," Zhu Jue agreed.

His hand was tucked into the pocket of Yan’s down jacket, the warmth making their clasped hands slightly sweaty.

Upon entering the dining hall, they spotted the same couple again.

Though the man and woman sat across from each other, the expressions they wore were indescribable.

"Mr. Xie, Mrs. Xie, what a coincidence to meet you here."

Yan watched as Boss Tu approached their table with a cupped-fist greeting. The man glanced at him and gave a slight nod.

"Hello."

The beautiful woman across from him shot him a frosty glare. Sensing the tension, Boss Tu wisely refrained from pitching his services and quickly excused himself with a business card.

"Fayan Temple’s vegetarian cuisine is excellent. I won’t disturb you further. My surname is Tu—today, I’m just borrowing the temple’s auspicious grounds to help these youngsters inspect a few ritual artifacts. President Xie, with your vast enterprises, should you ever need feng shui or metaphysical consultations, don’t hesitate to contact me."

His plump frame exuded a genial smile as he turned to wave Yan and Zhu Jue over.

"Yan, Zhu Jue, come help carry some dishes. Today’s special is vegetarian noodles—you’re in for a treat."

Watching Boss Tu’s familiarity with the place, Yan and Zhu Jue shed their down jackets. The dining hall had been renovated and was comfortably warm.

As Yan walked forward, she stole a glance at the Xie couple, who were now examining Boss Tu’s card.

She knew Boss Tu was a feng shui master, but whether he could solve their problem was another matter.

Given how far they’d gone—seeking divine help in these remote mountains—it was hard to say how long their souls had been swapped.

The vegetarian noodles were served in large bowls. Zhu Jue carried two on a wooden tray, while Yan brought over side dishes. Boss Tu balanced a bowl in one hand and a basket of steamed rolls in the other.

The dining hall operated on a self-service basis. By the time the trio returned to their table, they were seated two tables away from the Xie couple—close enough to observe.

The stiff pair didn’t exchange a word, merely staring at each other before standing up in unison, faces cold.

The tall, suited man gestured for the woman to sit back down. "Stay seated. Mind your foot."

Yan pondered—so now, the female soul in the male body (Mrs. Xie) was the one fetching food.

The couple’s dynamic was painfully awkward, their hostile glares betraying a strained relationship.

On a cold winter day, nothing was more comforting than a steaming bowl of noodles.

Hand-pulled wide noodles, paired with fresh greens, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and tofu skin, carried a delicate yet rich flavor. Yan relished the pure wheat aroma and the clean taste of the vegetables, feeling utterly soothed.

Among the side dishes was pickled mushrooms. If the noodles alone weren’t filling enough, there were also fluffy steamed rolls.

"So? Delicious, right?" Boss Tu grinned proudly.

"Delicious," Yan mumbled, her face nearly buried in the bowl as she savored even the broth.

"Next time, I’ll take you somewhere else—the Taoist priests there cook exceptionally well too," Boss Tu said, glancing around before lowering his voice.

Yan and Zhu Jue nodded silently.

After a moment’s thought, Yan decided to return the favor. "Boss Tu, there’s a place we know that serves amazing fried rice."

Though Boss Tu might already be aware of Chu Shen’s restaurant, Yan couldn’t think of any other notable eateries in Bin City to recommend.

Unable to resist, Yan stole another glance at the Xie couple. Though separated by two tables, the distance wasn’t vast—the dining hall wasn’t particularly large.

The pair ate their noodles strand by strand, movements elegant but agonizingly slow—even an alpaca nibbling on dried noodles would’ve been faster.

What’s more, they were now locked in a silent battle over the pickled mushrooms.

Yan watched as the female-souled Mr. Xie picked up a mushroom, only for the male-souled Mrs. Xie to press her chopsticks down, forbidding her own body from eating it. Yet, Mr. Xie stubbornly insisted.

Their chopsticks clashed over the mushroom, the commotion drawing the trio’s attention.

Boss Tu looked baffled. After a moment’s thought, he stood up, disappeared into the kitchen, and returned with another serving of pickled mushrooms, placing it on the couple’s table.

When he returned to the table, he was met with Yan and Zhu Jue's rather complicated gazes.

"What are you looking at? If you two still want to eat, there’s more in the kitchen. No need to fight over it," Boss Tu said.

The three of them finished their meal, cleared the dishes, and took them to the kitchen to wash. At this point, that couple still hadn’t finished eating.

While the couple remained inside, Yan and Zhu Jue quickly seized the opportunity to ask Boss Tu for gossip.

"Who are those people? President Xie? Is he famous?"

From Boss Tu, the two soon got their answers.

The man was named Xie Zhen, the second young master of the prestigious Xie Family in Bin City. The woman was Lan Ruo, the daughter of the slightly less prominent Lan Family, who had been chasing after Xie Zhen since childhood—practically childhood sweethearts, with only a three-year age gap.

Unfortunately, Xie Zhen was a playboy. Originally, the Xie Family inheritance shouldn’t have fallen to him, but after the eldest son died in a car accident, Xie Zhen—who had been indulging in nightlife and scandals with celebrities—was forced to return to the family and marry Lan Ruo.

The sad part was, now that they had been married for five years, their relationship was icy. They had no children, and Xie Zhen’s tabloid scandals with actresses had only decreased slightly.

"Such a cold marriage. What a nightmare." Yan guessed that the couple couldn’t stand the sight of each other. Now that they were stuck in each other’s bodies, they must be utterly miserable.

"I heard the elders of the Xie Family aren’t happy with Lan Ruo, and with President Xie’s indifference, she’s had a hard time," Boss Tu said, his tone sympathetic.

"If they can’t have children, isn’t that the man’s fault? But the Lan Family is a downstream company dependent on the Xie Family, and her younger brother is useless."

"Boss Tu, you know so much. Did you do feng shui for their family?" Yan asked curiously.

Boss Tu rolled his eyes. "If I had, would I have been scrambling to hand them my business card today?"

"The rich and powerful are always full of drama. In our line of work, you have to keep your eyes and ears open. I follow all the socialites, young masters, and second-generation heirs in Bin City’s elite circles. Who just acquired land? Who’s bidding against whom? Who’s developing new projects, building office towers? These are all big contracts!"

Hearing his explanation, Yan and Zhu Jue’s lips twitched—this was a side of the business they’d never considered.

That afternoon, during the Buddhist ceremony, Yan and Zhu Jue finally learned that the main beneficiaries of Fazhansi Temple’s Sunlight Bodhisattva Birthday Ceremony were none other than the Xie couple.

Standing at a distance with Boss Tu, they watched as the ceremony proceeded. The couple’s jewelry was being blessed, but… even after the ceremony ended, Yan could still see the words **[Soul Swap]** floating above their heads, unchanged.

This meant—

Xie Zhen and Lan Ruo were still stuck in each other’s bodies.

As the ceremony concluded, Yan watched the abbot of Fazhansi pass his prayer beads over Xie Zhen and Lan Ruo’s heads, but the couple’s expressions only grew frostier.

Yan silently echoed their thoughts: *"Completely useless."*

Apparently, soul-swapping wasn’t under this particular bodhisattva’s jurisdiction.

She quietly asked Boss Tu how much the ceremony cost. Boss Tu held up a hand signal.

"At least seven figures. Especially since they brought out Fazhansi’s sacred artifacts—they must have donated at least a million."

Yan considered this. Spending a million with zero results—though for them, a million might be like a hundred bucks—still meant they’d arrived hopeful and left bitterly disappointed.

The ceremony was over, but the artifacts still needed some additional rituals. Yan and Zhu Jue didn’t understand the details and were left to their own devices by Boss Tu.

Today, aside from the three of them, the only other people in Fazhansi were the soul-swapped couple.

As fate would have it, while Yan and Zhu Jue passed by a rockery, they overheard a conversation ahead.

A woman’s voice, brimming with irritation: *"Lan Ruo, didn’t you say Fazhansi was effective? This is what you call effective? A million thrown into the water would at least make a splash."*

A man’s voice, calm and collected: *"It was your mother who kept insisting this place was miraculous. If it didn’t work, why blame me instead of the bodhisattva?"*

*"Xie Zhen, you never take responsibility for anything."* The man’s voice sneered.

*"I don’t take responsibility? If I didn’t, would I have married you? Forget that—did you really have to eat mushrooms at lunch? You know I’ve hated them since childhood. You did that on purpose."* The woman’s voice was furious.

*"I like mushrooms. You can’t dictate what I eat."* The man’s tone was lazily defiant.

*"Lan Ruo, you—! Listen, if you dare use my body to eat mushrooms again, don’t blame me if I ‘accidentally’ twist my ankle in your high heels."* The woman threatened.

*"Go ahead, Xie Zhen. If we don’t switch back soon, this will be a long-term problem. If you sprain my ankle, it’s my body—but you’ll be the one feeling the pain."* The man remained unshaken.

*"That so-called ‘master’ who gave us the divination said we’d find the solution here. What solution? Unless it’s that feng shui guy—he didn’t even notice anything unusual about us!"* The woman cursed.

The man sighed, exhaustion creeping into his voice. *"Let’s just keep looking."*

Yan and Zhu Jue retreated as quietly as possible. They hadn’t meant to eavesdrop.

Who knew how long this argument would go on? If this had been ancient times, overhearing such a conversation would’ve been a death sentence. The two tiptoed away, careful not to make a sound.

Zhu Jue whispered in Yan’s ear, *"This Xie Zhen doesn’t seem very bright. No wonder he wasn’t the original heir."*

Yan blinked. *"Right? From the sound of it, they’ve been swapped for a while. If he knows high heels could make him trip, why not switch to flats? Even for appearances, changing shoes in a temple wouldn’t be strange."*

The two exchanged glances and shook their heads, baffled by his logic.

*"Still, ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‍I think Lan Ruo—the one in the man’s body now—might not actually want to switch back,"* Yan murmured.

Based on their argument, Xie Zhen, trapped in the woman’s body, was clearly unstable, while Lan Ruo remained composed.

*"I wonder which ‘master’ they consulted…"*

As they chatted, the two took some exterior shots of the temple’s architecture. Photographing the interior was off-limits, but the outside was fair game.

After packing up the artifacts they’d brought for blessing and bidding farewell to the monks, Yan, Zhu Jue, and Boss Tu carried their things toward the main gate—only to find the swapped couple and an unfamiliar woman blocking the exit.

In subzero temperatures, the young beauty wore a chic Chanel-style suit but with bare legs.

Yan’s eyes widened. She blinked three times, confirming this wasn’t some supernatural "bare-leg illusion" but actual bare legs.

The young woman clutched the arm of the man in the black overcoat, her pink lips pale, eyes brimming with tears.

*"Second Brother Xie, didn’t you promise to divorce Lan Ruo? And now you’re at Fazhansi praying for a child? Is this her idea?"*

*"I know it must be Lan Ruo forcing you, right?"*

Yan, Zhu Jue, Boss Tu: *!*

So this was one of Xie Zhen’s admirers?

Yan and Zhu Jue exchanged odd expressions at the thought of their current soul-swapped predicament, uncertain of what would unfold next.

As the beautiful woman wept like a rain-soaked pear blossom, "Lan Ruo" swiftly removed her own white coat and draped it over the young lady, explaining:

"Yiren, we’re not here to pray for a child."

The young woman, Feng Yiren, initially thought it was Xie Zhen who had taken off his coat and looked up with delight—only to hear Lan Ruo’s voice and realize... the garment draped over her was a classic women’s coat from the luxury brand M.

Feng Yiren froze, her face paling as she lifted her head.

Xie Zhen, clad in a black overcoat over his suit, stood there watching her indifferently, his eyes devoid of any recognition, as if she were a stranger.

Then, Xie Zhen removed his own black coat and draped it over Lan Ruo’s shoulders, his voice icy. "If you’re so eager to give your clothes away, don’t complain when you catch a cold."

"Let’s go." Xie Zhen gripped Lan Ruo’s arm firmly, wrapping an arm around her waist as he pulled her away without so much as a glance at Feng Yiren.

Feng Yiren remained rooted in place. Though Lan Ruo glanced back at her a few times, her beloved "Second Brother Xie" didn’t spare her a single look.

Disbelief flooded her eyes. How could this be? Why was this happening?

"Lan Ruo... What did Lan Ruo do? It must be her!" she muttered through gritted teeth, tearing off the white coat and flinging it aside before storming off.

In the blink of an eye, Yan lunged forward and caught the coat just before it could hit the muddy ground.

"That was close! If you don’t want it, fine, but no need to ruin a perfectly good piece," Yan muttered, relieved.

"That thing costs over a hundred grand," Boss Tu remarked, clicking his tongue.

"Strange... Has Xie Zhen changed his ways? Last month, he was all over that Miss Feng," Boss Tu mused, stroking his chin.

He couldn’t make sense of it. The scene before him didn’t match the juicy gossip he’d painstakingly gathered.

"Boss Tu, shouldn’t we get in the car? We’re still holding this box," Zhu Jue’s cool voice interjected.

The two had been carrying a box the entire time, and when Boss Tu suddenly retracted one hand, the weight fell entirely on Zhu Jue.

"Right, right, let’s go!" The three quickly boarded the car, with Yan cradling the six-figure coat in deep thought.

"Can we still catch up to them?"

The coat must belong to that Miss Lan Ruo. Returning it wouldn’t be easy.

"No chance," Boss Tu said flatly.

"Even if you return it, she probably won’t wear it again—not after it touched someone it shouldn’t have." He glanced back.

"Looks like Lan Ruo’s about your size. Keep it. She won’t come looking for it."

Yan shook her head. "We owe them for letting us join their ritual today. I’ll look up their company address and mail it back."

The current "Lan Ruo" might not care about this coat, but the other "Lan Ruo" might.

The blessed jade bracelets and pendants were still entrusted to Boss Tu for delivery—he had specialized channels for shipping valuables.

By the time Yan and Jue returned to campus after their day in the mountains, Yan stumbled upon trending local headlines from Bin City that evening:

**#Xie Family’s Second Young Master and Wife Spotted Arm-in-Arm at Xie Corp, Denying Marital Strife—Baby on the Way?**

**#Xie’s Mistress Confronts Couple at Doorstep, Ignored—Is Her Dream of Becoming the New Mrs. Xie Over?**