In the end, Bai Lu went to school on time after all. That tyrant Shen Qing had specifically come upstairs after breakfast to remind her at her door—if she dawdled, she really would print out her exam scores and mail them to Zhou Ying.
Bai Lu had never imagined her academic performance could become leverage for Shen Qing to use against her. In her social circle, who cared about grades after becoming an adult? Everyone just coasted through campus to get a decent-looking diploma. Yet here she was, being blackmailed by exactly that. The thought of her pitiful scores landing in front of Zhou Ying made her want to die.
She sat in the very back row of the lecture hall, irritation written all over her face. It was obvious she was in a foul mood, so no one dared approach her.
In her own circle, Bai Lu was a vase-like Rich Second Generation, but in front of ordinary people, she was an unattainable flower on a high peak. When she had transferred from the art school to this class last year, countless girls had wanted to be her friend, and plenty of handsome guys had wanted to pursue her. But it didn’t take long for everyone to realize this beauty was somewhat unusual. She didn’t live on campus, barely attended class, and every time she came to school, a private chauffeur dropped her off and picked her up. Her outfits, from head to toe, totaled well over six figures.
The gap was too vast. Gradually, few dared to ignore the economic disparity and try to get close to her. The only ones in class she was relatively familiar with were the few who usually did her homework and answered roll call for her. The Eldest Miss was generous with her money, so those people eagerly flocked to do her bidding.
The first class in the morning was Economics. The lecturer was a middle-aged man who, as usual, started by calling roll.
“Bai Lu.”
Her name was the very first one called.
Bai Lu froze for a moment, then snapped out of it and called out, “Here.”
But the teacher didn’t move on to the next name. Instead, he scanned the entire class, his gaze finally settling on her face to confirm before checking her name off the list.
The second class was Statistics. Again, the teacher started roll call with Bai Lu’s name first, and again, he looked at her to confirm before marking her present.
When Bai Lu realized what was happening, her face went dark. She clutched her handbag, holding it in again and again, nearly coughing up blood in frustration.
“No way, Shen Qing is that powerful?” Bai Lu’s good friend Zhao Fei’er exclaimed in surprise.
Bai Lu sneered. “Her whole family is full of big shots in the education world. These little tricks are nothing to her. Of course she’s the one messing with me—otherwise, why would every single class call my name first?”
Zhao Fei’er thought back to the two afternoon classes she had idly accompanied her to. Sure enough, every class had called Bai Lu’s name first. One teacher had even picked her to answer a question. If anyone still believed there wasn’t something fishy going on, who would believe them?
“Alright, my little Lulu, I really didn’t expect that in your battle of wits with her, you’d end up tripped up by academics. Pfft, and she’s going to send your transcript to Zhou Ying? She sure found a unique angle, hahaha…” Zhao Fei’er tried to comfort her but couldn’t control the grin spreading ear to ear. She was clearly reveling in her misfortune.
“You’re laughing at me!” Bai Lu smacked her in frustration. “Zhao Fei’er, are we friends or not? Hurry up and think of a way to get back at her for me!”
“Alright, alright, I’m thinking, I’m thinking.” Zhao Fei’er finally managed to stop laughing and asked, “What do you want to do? Want to humiliate her and scare her a bit, or have someone beat her up?”
“Beat her up?” Bai Lu blinked, then quickly waved her hands. “It’s not that serious…”
“Oh, I see. You just want to scare her,” Zhao Fei’er nodded.
“Right, just scare her a bit.” Bai Lu rapped her knuckles on the desk, and a wicked idea came to her in a flash. “Fei’er, how about I put some snakes in her bed?”
Bai Lu spoke with rising enthusiasm, but Zhao Fei’er looked uncertain. “Snakes? I’m terrified of snakes. I’m definitely not going with you to get snakes. Besides, isn’t that scarier than having someone beat her up?”
Bai Lu clicked her tongue. “It’s not like we’re using real snakes. It’s just to scare her. We’ll go to the mall later and buy some toy snakes, frogs, mice—the more realistic, the better.”
Zhao Fei’er had the same temperament as Bai Lu; they were kindred spirits who became best friends precisely because they got along so well. Pulling pranks like this was practically routine for them. So as soon as she heard they’d be fake, she relaxed and instantly grew just as excited. “Great idea! Let’s go, let’s go, let’s buy them now!”
Bai Lu dragged Zhao Fei’er on a shopping spree through the mall, picking and choosing until they had a big bag full.
The house was quiet when they got back. Bai Lu specifically asked the housekeeper if Shen Qing was home. Aunt Wang shook her head. After that, she watched the girl sneakily go and open the door to Shen Qing’s room.
Bai Lu pulled back the covers and dumped the contents of the bag out in a rush—all premium-priced, highly realistic soft-bodied critters. The moment they landed on the bed, their bouncing movements were almost indistinguishable from the real thing.
Bai Lu herself broke out in goosebumps first. Fighting back her chills, she stepped back two paces and looked at the bed covered in these bizarre “works of art.” She hesitated internally for two seconds, but in the end, her desire for revenge overcame her conscience. Resolutely, she pulled the covers back into place, carefully disguising them to look just as neat as when the housekeeper had tidied up.
The moment she came out, she found Aunt Wang standing at the door, staring at her.
Bai Lu was already feeling guilty, and this nearly scared her legs out from under her. Clutching her chest, she complained, “What are you doing? You scared me to death!”
Aunt Wang glanced at the tightly shut door and quietly asked her, “Lulu, what did you hide in her room?”
Because Bai Lu and Shen Qing didn’t get along, the household staff almost never referred to Shen Qing as “Madam” in front of Bai Lu.
Bai Lu hid the shopping bag behind her back, crumpling it into a ball in her palm, and brushed her off. “N-Nothing… anyway, just don’t worry about it. Pretend you didn’t see anything.”
Aunt Wang looked deeply skeptical. She clearly didn’t believe her. Thinking about Bai Lu’s usual behavior, she felt a bit uneasy and still offered a word of warning. “Lulu, even though your brother has passed and Shen Qing doesn’t really have any ties to the Bai Family anymore, still… you can’t go too far. Your father’s health hasn’t been good lately either. The family can’t afford any more fights.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, I know,” Bai Lu cut off Aunt Wang’s nagging, pushing and pulling her away, and didn’t forget to add, “Just pretend you didn’t see it. Don’t tell her, got it?”
Lu Zhi had gone back to the Shen Family home during the day, buying some things for her father and mother. Though the elderly couple lacked for nothing, as a daughter, one had to be thoughtful.
These small matters didn’t take much effort. For her, maintaining familial bonds with her parents was simply the natural thing to do while occupying this body.
Lu Zhi also revealed a bit about the Bai Family’s situation. Her parents were somewhat surprised by the news but didn’t advise her to distance herself from the Bai Family. Instead, they urged her not to abandon her moral obligations just because Bai Hao had passed. At the very end, they cautioned her to be careful in her actions and not to get mired too deep.
Bai Lu sat in the living room playing games while waiting. She hadn’t expected the person who’d been coming home early these past few days to return so late tonight—nearly ten o’clock. Through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows of the living room, she saw the black sedan pull into the courtyard. She hurriedly shifted her posture, making her eyes look utterly absorbed in the tablet in her hands.
Lu Zhi glanced at Bai Lu as she entered. Bai Lu acted as if she couldn’t see her.
Lu Zhi didn’t initiate conversation either. She took off her coat and set it aside on her own. Underneath, she was dressed casually—a simple white T-shirt and loose-fitting blue jeans.
Bai Lu listened intently to the other’s movements. Changed into slippers. Entered the tea room. Took a glass. Poured purified water. Then turned and headed toward the staircase.
“Why are you back so late today?” Bai Lu suddenly put down her phone and asked.
Lu Zhi didn’t stop walking, continuing toward the second floor. Her voice was cool and clear. “Did you need something?”
Bai Lu curled her lip behind her, but her body had already risen reflexively, following after her as if it were the most natural thing. “I was just asking.”
Then she opened another topic. “I was in class all day today. Did the teachers in my class all report to you?”
Lu Zhi stopped outside her bedroom door and turned her head to look at Bai Lu, who had followed her to the top of the stairs. She didn’t deny it. “That’s right.”
Even though Bai Lu knew this was a fact, hearing the other admit it so openly still nearly made her lose her composure.
Bai Lu took a deep breath, then exaggeratedly stuck out a thumbs-up. “You’re really something!” she said sarcastically.
“Mm, thank you.” Lu Zhi took it in stride.
Bai Lu was choked up to the point of almost breaking character. Fortunately, the other had smoothly opened the bedroom door. She had originally planned to use this chance to go inside and watch the other’s horrified expression firsthand. But she hadn’t expected Lu Zhi to simply brace the door lightly with two fingers and look at her. “Anything else?”
“N-No. Nothing.”
“Well then,” Lu Zhi looked her up and down, then added, “Good night.”
Bai Lu watched as the door gently closed before her eyes. She stood frozen for two seconds, then threw a flurry of punches at the empty air. After finishing her combo, she still pressed her ear to the door, wanting to hear what was going on inside. But whether the soundproofing was particularly good or the other simply hadn’t discovered anything, not a single sound came from within.
After lingering a few minutes, she returned to her own room. While chatting with Zhao Fei’er, she waited for Shen Qing to come storming in and confront her. But even by midnight, she hadn’t heard a peep. In between, she even went out to secretly eavesdrop in the hallway, but the door remained tightly shut, as if nothing had happened at all.
Bai Lu took a shower, her heart itching with anxiety, and sat on her bed with her hair still wet to vent to Zhao Fei’er.
But before Zhao Fei’er could even say two words of comfort, she heard a rhythmic knocking on the door.
“Ha, here it comes.” Bai Lu jumped up, hastily hanging up the phone. “Can’t talk now. Gotta see if she’s been scared to tears, haha.”
Bai Lu shuffled over in her slippers, a triumphant look on her face. She paused briefly in front of the door, slightly arranging an innocent expression.
“Who is it? Can’t a person slee—AHHH—”
A jade-green snake head, two mung-bean-sized eyes fixed on her in a death stare, tongue flicking, fangs bared—it came straight for her face.
Bai Lu had absolutely no mental preparation. She shrieked, soul nearly scared clean out of her body.
Lu Zhi held the slippery snake body pinched between two fingers. Soft, rubbery texture, cold to the touch—the full visceral sensation of a cold-blooded creature.
“Yours?” Without the slightest psychological barrier, Lu Zhi held the snake and brought it closer. Her voice was calm as she watched the girl’s face pale and retreat backward.
“N-No, it’s not mine. Don’t come any closer! Get it away!” Bai Lu still wasn’t planning to admit it so quickly, but seeing the snake head practically touching her face, even knowing it was fake—the experience of scaring someone else versus having someone shove it in your face were two completely different things. She scrambled back in a panic.
Lu Zhi smoothly walked inside and closed the door with a click.
The words “silence the witness” instantly shot through Bai Lu’s mind.
“W-What are you doing?”
“Just returning things to their rightful owner.” Lu Zhi spoke calmly, tossing the fake snake toward Bai Lu’s feet. With her other hand, she held a small basket containing scorpions, spiders, and mice, which she also poured out in a clattering rush.
“AHHH—AHHH—”
Bai Lu had never imagined Lu Zhi would throw those things at her. She watched helplessly as the pile of bugs, rodents, snakes, and insects scattered around her feet, all kinds of slippery and fuzzy sensations landing on her bare insteps. She jumped three feet in the air, terrified, and two streams of tears burst forth instantly.
Lu Zhi walked over slowly, watching the brat cry with particularly ruthless detachment.
Cornered by the pile of realistic toys, without even a place to set her feet down, the girl whimpered, too scared to move. And ahead of her, Lu Zhi walked over with a completely expressionless face. Bai Lu thought she was about to get physical and waved her hands frantically. “Shen Qing! Don’t come any closer…”
Lu Zhi kicked aside the gray-furred mouse that was less than three centimeters from Bai Lu’s toes. The little thing even let out a simulated squeak as it hit the floor. Bai Lu’s legs turned to jelly, and she collapsed dejectedly into a crouch.
Lu Zhi looked at the girl huddled into a tiny ball on the floor. After a long moment, she crouched down as well, extended two fingers, and lifted the girl’s chin, tilting it upward.
Bai Lu stared at her in terror. Those sparkling eyes held two misty pools of tears, hanging on the verge of falling from her lashes. Her small, delicate nose flared lightly with fear. Her face was like a flower beaded with rain. Her hair, still undried from her shower, clung messily to her cheeks—black hair against white skin.
So beautiful it made one want to ravage her.
Lu Zhi rubbed the girl’s chin with her fingertip—exquisitely smooth to the touch.
“Dare again?” Lu Zhi asked her softly.
Bai Lu stared wide-eyed, as if looking at a devil. Her voice trembled. “I-I won’t… I won’t dare anymore…”
