South City, Baiying Academy, the most luxurious aristocratic high school in South City, is located on the western side of the city. It is named after the large expanses of white marble used for its exterior walls.
Its campus covers about 120,000 square meters. Behind the school gate stand two towering white stone pillars, which are Baiying’s iconic structures. At the very top, each pillar is inlaid with two bands of gold trim that catch the eye, appearing both solemn and noble.
Any student of Baiying Academy, as long as they appear outside the school in the school uniform, will usually be regarded with respect by passersby. After all, not all students here have top grades, but their families must have enough spare money to afford Baiying Academy’s hefty tuition.
And today is once again one of Baiying Academy’s twice-yearly opening days—
“Hey, look!”
Two first-year girls who had just entered the campus turned to glance at the pink-purple luxury car at the school gate, whispering to each other—
“That pink-purple car, isn’t that Su Wanli’s ride?”
“…Huh? Su Wanli? Who’s Su Wanli?”
“Oh come on, you don’t know Su Wanli? Even though we’re only first-years, you’re a little too out of touch! She’s the only daughter of the number one family in South City, the Sujia, and the legendary First Delinquent of Baiying!”
“First Delinquent of Baiying!”
“That’s right. I heard that the school’s Broadcast mentions minor warnings about her every five days, and major warnings every ten days. Her number of infractions is dozens of times higher than the person in second place!”
Seeing that no one had gotten out of the car yet, the more well-informed girl leaned close to her friend’s ear and whispered—
“Actually, with Su Wanli’s behavior, if she weren’t the only daughter of the Fen Family, and if the Sujia hadn’t invested an entire Teaching Building for Baiying, she would’ve been expelled not long after last year’s term started.”
“Wow, an entire Teaching Building, so rich…”
“See? You’d better remember Su Wanli’s face while you can. If you run into her, walk the other way. Don’t ever make her mad, or you’ll be in for it!”
“Okay!”
The two of them quietly slipped over to a bulletin board nearby, watching as the flashy sports car slowly rolled to a stop. A driver in a black suit got out from the front seat and respectfully opened the door.
“She’s coming out!”
The two girls couldn’t help but poke their heads out, wanting to get a better look at this legendary Miss Su.
A head of gorgeous, radiant light brown hair was tied neatly at the back of her head. Her tall and upright figure revealed her noble status, and on her back was a stylish but not gaudy white canvas backpack, currently featuring the trendiest distressed look…
The girl with light brown hair stepped elegantly out of the luxury car, then gave the driver a slight bow in thanks.
“…Is that Su Wanli? She’s so pretty, and looks so polite! I feel like she must be a good person…”
The well-informed girl just bit her thumb silently—
“No, that can’t be right. The Su Wanli I remember has black hair, and she’s not this tall. Her gaze should be fiercer, more arrogant…”
“So it’s not Su Wanli? Then who is it? Maybe a friend coming to school with her?”
“That’s even less likely! Su Wanli’s so aloof and stubborn, she looks down on everyone. She’d never bring anyone with her in her car!”
“…Um, don’t you know a little too much about Su Wanli?”
“Nonsense! There are only a handful of people this high-profile in the whole school. Who wouldn’t pay attention to her? Besides, not long ago, the Bai Family even…”
Maybe their discussion was too loud, or maybe their staring was too obvious, but the beautiful girl who had just gotten out of the car suddenly looked in their direction.
“Oh no, oh no! Let’s get out of here…”
The two girls hurriedly pushed each other, quickly leaving the school gate and running toward their class.
Meng Wange waved lightly to the driver behind her, then stood still at the school gate. She glanced at the surrounding crowd, who occasionally whispered a few words, and let out a helpless sigh.
Indeed, thinking about it, just riding this car to the school gate was bound to attract attention.
Even here at Baiying Academy, Su Wanli was the most unique existence. Getting out of her car was sure to lead to this kind of outcome.
Whether out of respect for Su Wanli or unfamiliarity with herself, the students in the same school uniform as her all stood at a distance, eyeing her with curiosity.
So, is this Su Wanli’s intention? To make me the center of attention on the very first day?
Meng Wange looked up at the clock hanging on the Teaching Building.
—7:49. There were still eleven minutes until class. Still early.
Ignoring the students’ stares, Meng Wange quietly stood by the massive stone pillar at the Baiying Academy gate, looking back down the road she’d come from, hoping to spot the eldest daughter of the Sujia.
The surrounding crowd began whispering again.
“What’s she doing?”
“No idea, but she’s really pretty. Maybe I should go make friends with her…”
“Don’t be silly. She got out of Su Wanli’s car. You definitely don’t want to get involved with someone like that!”
…Heh, looks like my research wasn’t completely wrong.
At least, Su Wanli’s reputation out there is just as terrible as ever. That’s good—it’ll help keep others away from me.
Besides, aside from myself, no one knows what the real Su Wanli is like. That’s good…
…Is it really good?
For a moment, Meng Wange wasn’t sure whether she hoped Su Wanli would have a good or bad reputation at school.
The discussions around her rose and fell, never stopping. Standing here waiting really was a bit conspicuous.
After thinking for a moment, Meng Wange took a few steps into the campus and sat down at a long table by the fountain in front of the Teaching Building. She pulled out a study booklet from her backpack and started flipping through it casually.
This way, she could both watch the school gate and shield herself a bit from those curious stares.
Yet even so, a portion of people still passed by the fountain, some openly, some sneaking glances at her.
…It seems Su Wanli is even more eye-catching at this school than I’d imagined.
Meng Wange sighed softly and began reviewing the study material she’d missed over the past two days.
Students are never very patient—curiosity comes quickly and goes just as fast. As long as she didn’t do anything to attract attention, they would soon turn their focus elsewhere.
Sure enough, after just two or three pages, most of the onlookers had left, leaving only a handful, their gazes hard to read—whether out of kindness or malice.
Three on the left, two on the right, and one sitting directly in front of her on the bench.
As she flipped through her book, Meng Wange quietly memorized some of their features.
At last, the clock above the Teaching Building showed 7:57. Only a few students rushing to avoid being late hurried to their classrooms, and the few who had been watching her finally left as well.
Meng Wange put her book back in her bag, stood up, and returned to the white pillar at the school gate, gazing down the road she’d come from.
…Su Wanli, are you really not planning to come to school?
Meng Wange frowned slightly, just as she was about to step out of the campus gate.
At that moment, a chorus of surprised shouts came from up the road.
“Oh my god, look, is that Su…”
“Huh? You must be seeing things. How could Su…”
Meng Wange’s lips curled up slightly as she looked in the direction of the voices.
A petite, black-haired girl with an expressionless face, wearing an orange-yellow helmet, gripped the handlebars of an electric scooter. The buzzing roar of the engine echoed as she navigated between the luxury cars toward the school gate.
She silently parked at the gate, hung her helmet on the handlebars, and stomped the scooter’s kickstand down with a fierce motion.
Having waited a long time, Meng Wange walked up with a smile, gently took the girl’s backpack, then gave a graceful bow and said softly—
“Miss Su, you’re here.”
“Hmph.”
Seeing Meng Wange’s face, the black-haired girl clicked her tongue impatiently and pushed her scooter into the campus.
“It’s already this late, and you’re still standing at the school gate? Trying to be a statue?”
Meng Wange smiled and said—
“Of course, I was waiting to go to school with you.”
“…You… If you’re late, that’s your problem. Figure it out yourself.”
“After all, I’m a transfer student. If I get lost for a bit, the teacher will understand. But aren’t we going to keep riding? Time’s running out.”
“There’s a giant sign at the gate that says no riding inside the campus. Are you blind or just dumb?”
“I see. As expected of Miss Su. Let’s walk a bit faster—we should still make it in time…”
Behind them, the students who had witnessed the scene stood frozen. No one knew who started it, but soon everyone was pulling out their phones to take pictures of the two girls ahead.