When Xie Shimian arrived at the tutoring classroom, the floor was covered in blood.
“The smell of blood is overwhelming, what happened here?”
Ke Rong asked the teacher in disbelief, “Is this a tutoring center or a battlefield?”
The maid who had driven them there curled her lip. “It must be Hua Zhi’s doing. She’s been acting arrogant and unruly for ages, all because Miss Xie favors her. She deserves to be punished properly.”
Xie Shimian snapped, “Enough. Shut your mouth.”
The maid persisted, “This matter must be reported to Madam and the Master.”
Xie Shimian turned to her. “You come here.”
“Yes, Miss.”
“Starting today, you’re dismissed.”
The maid was stunned. “Miss, th-th-this isn’t proper procedure! What have I done wrong?”
“Hua Zhi is part of the Xie family. Who are you to speak ill of her?” Xie Shimian knew the servants in the household had always looked down on Hua Zhi. “Ke Rong, settle her wages and have her escorted out.”
Xie Shimian’s gaze shifted to the teacher. “This is a serious matter. I don’t want anyone discussing it. Understood?”
The teacher nodded hastily. “Understood, absolutely understood.”
Xie Shimian glanced out the window before turning back. “Give me an estimate for the damages. I’ll pay triple.”
A flicker of delight crossed the teacher’s face. “Of course, thank you, Miss.”
“That puddle on the floor isn’t blood,” Ke Rong suddenly interjected. “The brown liquid smells like the black tea latte Miss made this morning.”
Amid the spilled coffee were a few crushed cookie fragments, trampled underfoot.
“My God, Miss made these before dawn with her own hands. Hua Zhi is really… too much.”
Xie Shimian calmly averted her gaze. “Take me to Hua Zhi.”
It was just a pot of coffee and some cookies. In this interstellar era where nutrient solutions were the norm, homemade cookies were unheard of for most, a rare delicacy.
To Xie Shimian, they were just something she’d casually whipped up from memory.
A hidden part of her heart stung.
Fine. If Hua Zhi didn’t like them, she wouldn’t make them again.
In a shabby break room.
Zhong Sha glared at Hua Zhi with a mix of hatred and fear.
Hua Zhi stared blankly at the empty thermos.
Not a single drop of coffee remained.
In her nearly eighteen years of life, she had never imagined those bitter beans could be consumed even the lowest of commoners wouldn’t eat such things.
Yet in her benefactor’s hands, they had been transformed into something miraculous.
Secretly, she wondered if she, too, was like a coffee bean.
Now, there was nothing left.
“How long do you think Xie Shimian can protect you?” Zhong Sha sneered, her voice shrill with manic laughter. “She’s already poisoned and on the verge of death. Once she’s gone, do you really think the Xie family will keep you around?”
Hua Zhi stiffened, grabbing Zhong Sha by the collar. “What did you say? Say it again!”
“You don’t know Xie Shimian’s pheromones are on the verge of collapse? How important pheromones are to an Alpha, need I explain?”
“The Xie family has long been a thorn in the side of every noble house. They’re too powerful so powerful even the Emperor fears them. Xie Shimian’s father is already a Duke, with no higher title left to bestow. What’s next? A royal title? A place in the line of succession?”
Deliberate car accidents, collusion between the Global AI and space pirates, endless meetings for the Xie couple…
The entire Empire was on the brink of turmoil.
Hua Zhi tightened her grip and slammed Zhong Sha’s head against the wall.
“Get lost, sister will be fine.”
She would find out what poison Xie Shimian had been given.
In this era of advanced prenatal testing and pheromone medical technology, if a fetus had pheromone defects, immediate intervention or termination would follow. Since Xie Shimian had been born safely, it must have meant she was healthy at birth.
A chill ran through Hua Zhi’s heart.
She would never let her savior come to harm.
Her savior had once said that holding her while sleeping would ease the headaches.
Perhaps her pheromones could help.
Click.
The door opened.
The icy air outside swept over Hua Zhi, making her shiver.
Her green-checkered cheongsam was soaked in blood, its original color unrecognizable.
Xie Shimian’s gaze swept over her indifferently. “Hua Zhi, come here.”
With her were Zhong Sha’s family or more accurately, the members of the family that had adopted her.
Zhong Xiling flicked her long hair. “This idiot only knows how to cause trouble outside. So damn annoying.”
Xie Shimian’s fingers, clad in half-gloves, picked up a bloodstained dagger from the ground.
“Is this the weapon?”
Zhong Xiling, the pampered young lady of her family, had always looked down on Zhong Sha’s spineless demeanor.
“Alright, alright, as long as she’s not dead. Just drag her to the hospital. Did you really have to call me over for something this trivial?”
Xie Shimian: “Zhong Sha is still your family’s adopted daughter. Don’t you care?”
Zhong Xiling rolled her eyes. “Oh, Miss Xie, adopted daughters like her are a dime a dozen. If it weren’t for charity and a good reputation, your family wouldn’t have adopted Hua Zhi either, right?”
Hua Zhi, standing in front of the crowd, watched as Zhong Sha was dragged away roughly, her eyes filled with resentment and self-mockery.
The chill in Hua Zhi’s heart deepened. “Sister…”
When she had seen the coffee and cookies shattered on the ground, she had lost control.
Those were made by her savior’s own hands… She had never eaten a meal cooked by her mother in her life. Everything Xie Shimian gave her was a first in her existence.
The kitten let out a frightened whimper, too afraid to step forward and embrace Xie Shimian.
She was too dirty, her savior loved cleanliness the most.
Tears as large as beans fell from the kitten’s eyes.
Xie Shimian spoke. “No.”
Zhong Xiling: “Hm?”
Xie Shimian: “I didn’t adopt Hua Zhi for a good reputation. She’s an exceptional child.”
Zhong Xiling shrugged. “Fine, everyone in the Capital Star knows you’ve recently acquired a treasure. From the surveillance footage, it looks like my idiot was the one running her mouth. Once she’s out of the hospital, do whatever you want with her.”
“No need.”
Xie Shimian hadn’t watched the footage and didn’t care about its contents.
She tossed the dagger into a bag and lifted her gaze. “What are you standing there for? Let’s go.”
Under the gloating stares of others, Hua Zhi followed Xie Shimian from a distance.
She noticed there was no warmth in Xie Shimian’s eyes when looking at her.
Hua Zhi quickened her steps. “Sister, I didn’t mean to stab her with the knife.”
“Sister! Miss, Please slow down!”
Xie Shimian stopped and wiped the blood off her half-glove with a handkerchief.
“Mm, I understand.”
She didn’t care about the truth. Xie Shimian’s emotions were complicated today’s events were both expected and unexpected.
Who knew? One day in the future, she might end up with a bloody hole in her body, just like Zhong Sha.
Zhong Sha had angered the big boss with her sharp tongue, would she later say the wrong thing again and bring about her own demise?
Xie Shimian knew the optimal solution was to kill Hua Zhi to strike first and eliminate the threat. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it.
Zhizhi was at the best age, she should have endless choices for her future.
Perhaps Xie Shimian was too fond of that face. She thought she could keep the girl by her side and teach her properly, at least nurturing some affection in Hua Zhi so that years later, when the time came to strike, she might hesitate for a few seconds.
Hua Zhi hugged the empty thermos, dazed and despondent.
The kitten was so anxious she could cry.
She wasn’t afraid of Xie Shimian scolding or hitting her she was only afraid of her silence.
Suddenly, Hua Zhi barged into the classroom before it had even been cleaned up.
Xie Shimian snapped, “Hua Zhi!”
Inside the classroom, Hua Zhi knelt in a pool of blood, carefully picking up the shattered fragments of cookies with her fingers.
The butter cookies were no longer crisp, now smeared with dust from the floor. Hua Zhi gently placed them on a pristine white handkerchief.
Fortunately, a few pieces hadn’t been stained by the blood on the ground.
Tearfully, she gathered the crumbs from the floor. She might be kicked out of the house now her savior would never make them for her again…
Sniff…