On Monday.
Xu Si got up punctually at nine o'clock. She sat in front of the vanity mirror, applied light makeup, and made a point of using the brownish-red, French-imported lipstick Pei Zhen had bought for her. She then put on a custom-made long winter dress and long, dangling earrings. The ensemble was both appropriate and beautiful. At eighteen, her skin was radiant and glowing. After a final check to ensure everything was perfect, she opened her door and went downstairs.
Butler Ge came over with a tray, smiling broadly. "Miss, you look very pretty today."
Xu Si picked up the bitter coffee and took a sip without changing her expression. She looked down, stroking the hem of her dress. "It's this dress that's pretty. The students at Imperial Noble Private Academy have high standards. If I dress nicely, it'll reflect well on Pei Zhen. When I was studying, there was a classmate from a less wealthy family who got in through special admission due to her excellent grades. She was ridiculed for a while because of her parents' attire, but later, through hard work, the school sponsored her to study abroad."
It was a matter of professional ethics. Butler Ge couldn't comment on his miss's schoolmate's story, so he took a small mirror and held it in front of Xu Si, squinting his eyes. "Miss, it's not the clothes; it's you who is beautiful."
Xu Si smiled. After drinking half of her coffee, she said with a laugh, "You don't need to drive me today. I'll take the car myself. My father's sports car is still here, right? Have the driver bring it to the front door."
Hong Kong Island's midwinter lacked the blazing sun, making warm attire quite suitable for going out. The entrance to Imperial Noble Private Academy was a grand display of ostentation, a stark contrast to the throngs of people in shopping malls. Here, it was a blatant congregation of luxury cars—simple and crude in its display.
Even so, when Xu Si tilted her head and stepped out of the eye-catching, red Ferrari supercar with its double doors, many people still cast astonished gazes her way.
"Isn't that Xu Si, the orphan girl from the Xu Family?"
"Yes, Xu Sheng ordered that car last year. It's the only one of its kind in Hong Kong Island. It's not that there aren't families wealthier than hers, but her family still managed to secure it."
Hearing these comments, Xu Si didn't spare them a glance. She walked into the school, heading straight for the banyan tree near the teaching building as if she knew the place well.
She wasn't late; in fact, she was the earliest to arrive. Teachers were still preparing in the classrooms, and many students had been let out for free activities or to greet their family members.
Many people stood on the familiar skywalk-style corridor. Thanks to her clear line of sight, Xu Si, just as before, could spot the youth waiting at the edge with a single glance.
He stood there so quietly, exuding an air of detachment and a somewhat inscrutable dark aura. His pale gray eyes, no matter how gentle they might seem, felt icy cold—an unshakeable iciness about him. Yet, his classmates still waved and greeted him, as if his mere presence was enough for everyone to like and be drawn to him.
The sun cast a soft golden glow on his profile as he rested one hand casually on the railing.
Xu Si's peach blossom eyes curved slightly. She shifted her gaze an inch, and the hint of a smile on her lips faded.
In her line of sight, a group of students who clearly looked like troublemakers swaggered towards the youth, their expressions fierce and menacing. The red-haired leader was thrusting a bottle of soda—so cold it emitted white vapor in the winter air—towards Pei Zhen's chest.
Drinking icy soda in such cold weather?
Perhaps her gaze was too intense. The youth's narrow eyes flickered for a moment, and he noticed Xu Si. His warm eyes instantly brightened with delight, a smile nearly spilling from his lips.
He didn't take the soda bottle.
He mouthed to her, his words inaudible from that distance: "Stay right there, don't move. I'll come find you."
His figure flickered, and he quickly moved from his spot on the corridor.
Xu Si understood. Her expression shifted subtly, and she blinked, waiting for him to walk over to her. Only when he was right in front of her did she ask, "Azhen, was that person who handed you the soda your classmate? What's his name?"
"He's not in my class. His name is Chen Shihua."
"Chen Shihua..." The name sounded familiar. Xu Si frowned slightly, remembering the boy's injured ear from that day. "He's the one who bullied you that day."
Pei Zhen nodded, choosing not to lie.
"So, he wasn't trying to share the soda just now? He was trying to freeze you with it?"
Xu Si's temper flared. She pressed her bag into the boy's hands. "I'm going to have a chat with him. The nerve of him, daring to bully you again and again!"