Pei Qiuxu instantly felt her legs stiffen in place, too frightened to move. She silently cursed herself for being so useless, her hands still moving. Just as she was about to open the private room door—
A hand behind her slammed the door shut. The bright light of the corridor streamed in through the gap, only to be mercilessly cut off.
Pei Qiuxu felt a breath fall on the back of her neck. Cold sweat poured down instantly, and the fine hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.
A soft chuckle sounded. Pei Qiuxu flinched like a startled bird, her slender legs trembling as she asked, ”What’s wrong?”
Her voice was very small, and if one listened closely, it carried a hint of forced composure, choked and trembling.
“Your bag.” Huo Yu handed the pale teal crocodile-leather bag to Pei Qiuxu.
Pei Qiuxu turned around. The man’s fingers were well-defined, his knuckles distinct. He was tall, and his hands were large, with veins protruding from the back of his hand and long, slender fingers—though his knuckles bore thick calluses.
She kept her head down, afraid to look at the man before her, but couldn’t help sneaking a glance upward from the corner of her eye.
The private room was dimly lit. He stood there with his head slightly lowered, loose strands of hair falling over his sharp brow bone. His features were cold and severe, his facial lines clean and crisp, his nose bridge high and straight. His dark eyes were like a freshly sharpened blade, glinting with a faint, chilling light.
Under Pei Qiuxu’s somewhat terrified gaze, Huo Yu gave a faint smile, revealing teeth slightly sharper than most people’s.
Pei Qiuxu’s eyes immediately reddened. Frightened, she hastily took the bag, turned around, and bolted—like a silly rabbit scared out of its wits.
Huo Yu watched her figure disappear before slowly raising his fingers to his nose and inhaling gently. A ravenous, burning thirst surged up within him, and he lowered his eyes to hide the darkness in their depths.
He sat down on the leather sofa and tapped his index finger on the table. The bodyguard outside came in.
“Look into her.” He narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, then casually pointed east. “Tell the old man his daughter-in-law has been found.”
The bodyguard was briefly astonished, then quickly returned to his cold expression. “Sir, then what about the medicine in your body?”
Huo Yu frowned, waved a hand, and turned toward the bathroom.
The bodyguard understood, nodded, and left—knowing this meant he intended to endure it himself.
Meanwhile, Pei Qiuxu had not left the Royal Club. She stared at the faintly bloodstained bite mark on the side of her fair neck in the mirror.
After treating it simply and tidying up her appearance, she hurried off toward Zhong Sinian’s private room.
She had been gone from the room for over an hour.
She hoped Zhong Sinian and the others wouldn’t be too angry. Pei Qiuxu felt anxious and uneasy.
But by the time she arrived, the private room was already empty.
She picked up her phone—no messages.
She stopped a waiter. “Where did the people from this room go?”
“They left over an hour ago,” the waiter replied politely. “They also took a waitress with them.”
Pei Qiuxu’s heart jolted. The whole group had left together, taking that girl with them.
It seemed that girl hadn’t escaped their clutches after all. Pei Qiuxu frowned.
But she could barely look after herself now—she had no time to worry about anyone else, and she had no idea whether Zhong Sinian and the others were angry.
I’ll just call him later, Pei Qiuxu thought, then phoned her family’s driver to come pick her up.
The house was brightly lit. Father Pei and Mother Pei sat on the sofa with solemn expressions, only relaxing when they saw Pei Qiuxu.
Having spent so long in upper-class circles, they naturally knew what kind of people the heirs of the Four Great Conglomerates were—all glitter on the outside, rot beneath.
So ever since their daughter decided to honor the marriage contract with the Zhong family, Father Pei and Mother Pei had been wracked with guilt and anxiety.
After comforting her parents, Pei Qiuxu returned to her bedroom. She lay on her back on the bed, staring up at the ring-shaped crystal chandelier, and let out a sigh.
Did she regret it? Not really. After all, she had always known that from the moment she was born, she was a rose raised tenderly in a greenhouse—exposed to wind and rain, to the elements, she would die.
The chill on her back hadn’t fully faded yet. Remembering the bloody scene in the private room, Pei Qiuxu still shuddered.
She quickly shook her head and pushed the thought away.
The most important thing right now was Zhong Sinian!
Although their engagement had been settled, they weren’t married yet, which meant it wasn’t the final moment. Her goal was the position of the Zhong family’s young madam.
After a moment’s thought, she picked up her phone and called Zhong Sinian. It was answered before the second ring.
The other end was noisy, and faintly, she could hear a girl’s soft moans.
“Sinian, are you home?” Pei Qiuxu sat up, holding the phone with both hands, her voice a little awkward.
The sounds on the other end paused, then a crisp voice spoke, followed immediately by a girl’s suddenly louder sobbing.
Zhong Sinian gave an “mm.” Hearing his voice, Pei Qiuxu nodded quickly. “Get some rest early. You have school tomorrow.”
Only after the other party hung up did Pei Qiuxu let out a long breath.
She slept dreamlessly through the night.
In September, Huoerdun Noble Academy in Moqing City welcomed the start of a new school year.
It was one of the top noble schools in the country. Only two kinds of people could enter this academy: those from powerful, wealthy aristocratic families, and special-admission students selected from ordinary schools to maintain balance.
A special-admission spot at Huoerdun Noble Academy was something many people scrambled for. After all, becoming a special-admission student there meant a very high chance of going straight into a conglomerate after graduation.
Moreover, during their years of study, the annual bonuses and benefits a special-admission student received amounted to a fortune most people couldn’t earn in a lifetime.
The most eye-catching figures at this academy were, naturally, the Four Great Conglomerates.
It was said that when Qin Muyao, Zhong Sinian, Ji Hantian, and Gu Chusheng first enrolled, they donated an entire new campus to the academy.
And the academy’s scholarships and benefits were all funded by the four great families.
They were the people standing at the very top of the academy’s food chain—the ones the entire school was crazy about.
Pei Qiuxu had only just transferred to this school, arranged through the Zhong family.
Huoerdun Noble Academy was famous throughout the country, so of course Pei Qiuxu had heard of it.
Naturally, she felt a little nervous on her first visit.
She had come in the Zhong family’s car this time, sitting beside Zhong Sinian, her hand unconsciously clutching her dark blue plaid pleated skirt.
Zhong Sinian glanced at her casually, his gaze lingering for a moment on her fair, tender legs, then shifted to the gauze stuck to the side of her neck. “You’re injured?”
Pei Qiuxu hurriedly covered her neck, her bright eyes blinking, feeling somewhat guilty—the bite mark that man had left yesterday was still printed on the side of her neck.
This morning it had actually looked somewhat bruised, and since it couldn’t be covered up, in the end she could only cover it with gauze.
“N-nothing… I just accidentally bumped into something.” Pei Qiuxu touched the gauze on her neck, her voice a little nervous.