Yue Bai snapped the protective case shut over her tablet and rose to her feet, stepping out of the classroom.
To the left outside the door, He Shichun stood leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. Hearing the footsteps, she tilted her head halfway around to glance over.
“You’re out fast,” He Shichun said coolly, a faint curve touching her striking features.
To Yue Bai, though, that smile looked more like mockery—blatant, piercing sarcasm.
“How come it’s you?” Yue Bai’s brows knitted tightly together. Her buoyant mood evaporated the instant she laid eyes on He Shichun. Not in the mood for chit-chat, she spun on her heel to head back inside.
Unhurried, He Shichun called after her. “Didn’t Sang Wan ever teach you any manners? You can’t even greet your senior sister?”
Yue Bai whipped her head around in irritation. Ever since she’d learned what this woman had done to Sang Wan, she’d fantasized about time-traveling back to the scene and decking her one.
“Senior sister? You think you’re worthy?” Yue Bai shot back sarcastically.
He Shichun arched a brow, mildly taken aback. In her memory, the two times she’d encountered Yue Bai, the girl had always seemed gentle and harmless—meekly calling her “senior sister” each time.
But now…
Just like Sang Wan. Masters of disguise, the both of them.
Seeing the reaction, He Shichun dropped the games. Tilting her head, she said, “Come with me.”
Yue Bai didn’t budge.
“Don’t you want to know about Sang Wan?” He Shichun’s lips curved triumphantly. She refused to believe name-dropping Sang Wan wouldn’t reel this girl in.
Yue Bai hesitated.
“Judging by your attitude, you’ve heard about what happened back then. Aren’t you worried I might have a certain video on hand—one I really shouldn’t?” He Shichun flashed the USB drive in her grip, her smile turning bolder. She eyed the underclassman before her with the confidence of victory.
Nothing impressive.
…
Fifteen minutes remained until self-study ended. Sang Wan gauged the time, wrapped her freshly made candied hawthorns in glutinous rice paper, snatched her electric scooter keys, and set off to pick up her girl.
Outside the classroom door, Sang Wan kept the skewer hidden behind her back, eager to surprise Yue Bai the moment she emerged.
Students began trickling out of the room. Sang Wan edged closer to the doorway, positioning herself where Yue Bai couldn’t miss her.
Two minutes passed. Nearly everyone had gone, but still no sign of Yue Bai. Frowning in puzzlement, Sang Wan peered inside.
The vast tiered classroom stood nearly empty, save for the League Branch Secretary—the last to leave—who was powering down the computer on the podium as the projector screen rose with a mechanical whir.
“Classmate,” Sang Wan called, rapping twice on the doorframe to announce her presence. “Do you know where Yue Bai went?”
She and Yue Bai had planned for Sang Wan to pick her up tonight. There was no reason Yue Bai would leave on her own. The teacher must have held her back for something.
That was why Sang Wan hadn’t just called right away.
“Senior Sister Sang?” Wang Yi replied politely. Then she added, “Yue Bai got called away by a senior sister.”
“Called away by a senior sister?” Sang Wan echoed, perplexed. Suddenly, a thought struck her. “Do you know which one?”
Startled by the sharp edge in Sang Wan’s voice, Wang Yi thought back carefully. “Someone named something-chun, I think. I saw her on the college forum.”
“He Shichun?” Sang Wan supplied the full name.
“Yes, that’s it!” Wang Yi smacked her palm in realization.
He Shichun had been an outstanding student in the Art College the previous year, so Wang Yi had some vague recollection of her.
“Senior sister…” Wang Yi started to say more, but Sang Wan was already striding away.
Wang Yi blinked at the suddenly empty doorway, shaking her head. Why was Senior Sister Sang in such a panic?
Sang Wan ground her teeth together, her jaw clenched so hard it ached. The candied hawthorns had slipped from her hand unnoticed. As she hurried down the teaching building’s stairs, she pulled out her phone and dialed Yue Bai.
The line rang and rang with no answer.
“Damn it,” Sang Wan muttered, swiping across the screen.
Little Bai. The name echoed frantically in her mind, anxiety and dread flooding her chest.
She never should have brought Yue Bai to that gathering. Never should have let He Shichun learn of her existence.
The events of that summer vacation were still vivid; Sang Wan dreaded He Shichun repeating them with Yue Bai.
No. Little Bai couldn’t come to harm. Sang Wan’s breaths came in sharp gasps as she redialed several times in the span of a few short minutes.
She sprinted all the way to the school gate, staring blankly at the towering walls flanking the entrance. She had no idea where He Shichun might have taken her.
Dazed, she stood there in the biting wind for nearly ten minutes before Zhou Qingyan, Wen Mo, and Hua Yun came rushing up.
“Sang Wan.” Zhou Qingyan was still catching her breath from the hurried trek. “Are you sure Little Bai was taken by He Shichun?”
Sang Wan lifted her head, her gaze clouded with bewilderment. The woman who was normally unflappably calm now sounded utterly distraught. Her nails dug deep into her palms, carving four bloody crescents; her hands had gone bloodless and pale from the strain.
“Someone from Yue Bai’s class said He Shichun came looking for Little Bai,” Sang Wan said, her lips quivering. “I should have gone to wait for her sooner. I never imagined He Shichun would go after her. I didn’t prepare at all.”
“She’s the type to do something that vile. Little Bai’s so innocent—how could I not have seen this coming?” Sang Wan trembled harder, guilt and remorse twisting like knives in her chest.
A wave of nausea hit her; she clapped a hand over her mouth, fighting back the dry heaves roiling in her stomach.
“It’s fine. Don’t overthink it—Little Bai will be okay,” Wen Mo soothed, rubbing Sang Wan’s back to calm her. “He Shichun’s family isn’t from A City. She couldn’t have taken Little Bai far. She’s got to be nearby, probably at A University. We check the local hotels, and we’ll track her down.”
“Wen Mo’s right,” Zhou Qingyan chimed in from behind. “I’ve already got people looking into it. Won’t be long before we hear something.”
Sang Wan squeezed her eyes shut, clawing back a shred of composure. She couldn’t afford to fall apart now. She had to focus on finding Yue Bai.
“I’ve reached out to some contacts too. We’ll find Little Bai soon.” She wasn’t sure if she was reassuring herself or the others.
The tension in her palms eased slightly.
The group lingered at the gate, awaiting word as the minutes dragged on. Just as Sang Wan’s hard-won calm began to fray, Zhou Qingyan’s phone buzzed.
Sang Wan whipped her head toward it, eyes pleading. Zhou Qingyan glanced at the caller ID, gave her a quick thumbs-up, and answered, hitting the speaker button.
“Miss Zhou,” came the voice promptly. “We’ve got her. Room 508 at XX Hotel.”
Sang Wan’s mind went blank with a deafening roar…
On pure instinct, she bolted toward the hotel.
XX Hotel sat in the commercial strip right by A University—a straight shot of less than a kilometer.
“Sang Wan.” Wen Mo shot Hua Yun a look. The young man surged forward to intercept her.
“Hang on, don’t rush,” Hua Yun urged.
Infinite sorrow gleamed in Sang Wan’s eyes as she gazed at him, hollow and haunted.
Caught in that stare, Hua Yun’s grip slackened without thinking. In the year-plus he’d known Sang Wan, he’d never seen such raw devastation on her face.
“Sang Wan…” He trailed off, at a loss for words.
“Sang Wan, my people have He Shichun under control,” Zhou Qingyan said, hurrying up to her. “They say the room only has He Shichun in it—no sign of any other girl. Take a breath; we’ll sort this out first. At the very least, Little Bai’s safe right now.” She tapped the phone screen, where He Shichun’s muffled shouts still leaked through the open line.
Wen Mo spotted a tandem shared bicycle nearby. She jerked her head at Sang Wan, signaling her to climb on.
In Sang Wan’s current state, Wen Mo didn’t trust her to go alone—or to ride solo, for that matter.
People in a panic often did foolish things.
Sang Wan swept a grave look over the trio clustered around her and nodded, lips pressed thin.
“Let’s move,” Wen Mo said.
The bike rolled forward at a steady clip.
“Wen Mo… could you go faster?” Sang Wan ventured, her voice quivering.
Wen Mo caught the tremor. “Yeah.”
Three minutes later, they pulled up outside XX Hotel. Sang Wan swung her long legs off the rear seat and made straight for the elevator.
Wen Mo braked, propped the kickstand, and followed.
The elevator climbed floor by floor. Sang Wan fixed on the leaping digits.
Faster. Please, faster. Her heart hammered wildly.
With a ding, it halted on the fifth floor. Sang Wan jogged out—no need to check the wall-mounted room directory.
Two men in black suits stood guard by a door at the far inner end of the corridor. Spotting Wen Mo behind Sang Wan, they gave the pair a curt nod.
They were Zhou Qingyan’s men, of course they recognized Wen Mo.
The door to Room 508 hung wide open, He Shichun pinned inside.
Curious neighbors cracked their doors for a peek, sensed the tension, and slammed them shut again—unwilling to get involved.
The hotel manager hovered to one side, sweat beading on his forehead as he murmured anxiously to someone.
Without a second’s pause, Sang Wan strode through the doorway.
He Shichun sat fuming on the sofa, shooting daggers at the man and woman blocking her path. “This is trespassing. Believe me, I can call the cops right now.”
“Miss He, we mean no harm. We just want to find the person you took away.” The woman adopted a strictly businesslike tone.
“What person? If someone’s missing, why come looking here? Get out—now. Leave my room.” He Shichun rose to her feet, displeased, and kicked the table in front of her with force.
The wooden table scraped harshly against the floor, producing a spine-chilling screech.
She was already in a foul mood from an earlier confrontation that day, and now, late at night, these people had barged forcefully into her hotel room.
“He Shichun.” Sang Wan had already positioned herself in front of He Shichun. She tilted her head toward the two others in the room, who shook their heads at her to indicate they hadn’t found the person in question. “Where did you take Little Bai?”
He Shichun froze for a moment. Gazing at Sang Wan, who stood before her radiating menace, she suddenly felt a thrill of excitement. Her blood boiled and surged with a strange, intoxicating sense of triumph.
Even Sang Wan had moments like this.
Unable to suppress her glee, He Shichun lounged back against the sofa with feigned nonchalance. She crossed her legs leisurely and folded her hands over her abdomen. A smile laced her voice as it filled the room. “Little Bai? You mean Junior Sister Yue? Where would I take her? And even if I did, where could I possibly go with her?”
