“…A dinner party?”
Su Wanli’s gaze turned cold as she stared indifferently at Meng Wange.
Even though it was an unfamiliar word, Su Wanli knew exactly what she should say and do at this moment—as a noble and icy villainess.
“Oh? I see. So that’s what this is about.”
Su Wanli sneered and shrugged at Meng Wange.
“But what does that have to do with you?”
Meng Wange didn’t respond right away.
Instead, she bent down, unzipped her backpack, and pulled out a neatly folded piece of paper, handing it to Su Wanli.
‘Hmm? What’s this…’
Su Wanli took it casually and unfolded it on the desk.
‘Hmm, 150, 145, 150… and what’s this—math and Chinese?’
‘It was… a report card?’
Meng Wange calmly added, “This is my Gaokao score report from last year. Of course, I didn’t know the answers in advance. Your father, Uncle Su, had it professionally graded by certified teachers.”
‘So impressive… Isn’t that basically full marks?’
Even though Su Wanli was thinking that in her heart, she didn’t show a trace of it on her face.
Instead, she kept her composure, crumpled the paper into a ball, and tossed it toward Meng Wange.
“Hah. And? Are you showing off?”
Meng Wange shook her head with a gentle smile.
She caught the crumpled ball with ease, set it aside casually, then stood up and walked over to Su Wanli’s side.
“Of course not. This is just proof. Uncle Su said that as long as your scores place you somewhere in the middle of the class during the entrance test, he’ll let you attend the dinner party with him.”
To avoid making Su Wanli feel looked down upon, Meng Wange knelt down—bending her right leg and lightly placing her left knee on the floor.
In Su Wanli’s stunned gaze, Meng Wange lifted her head.
Her soft amber eyes met Su Wanli’s as she adopted a posture that looked unmistakably like a proposal.
She placed her left hand on her chest and extended her right hand to Su Wanli.
“Miss Su, if you’re willing to trust me and let me stay by your side, I promise—you will attend that dinner party.”
‘This… this scene… this situation…!’
‘I… I do…’
Before Su Wanli could respond with her instinctive, emotionally charged answer, the system’s voice cut in first.
[Oh? I see. So this is what she came here for…]
The flat, emotionless electronic voice shattered her illusion of being proposed to by a beautiful girl.
Completely unaware of Su Wanli’s disappointment, the system continued droning on—
[Apologies, Host. This was supposed to happen after school started. I didn’t expect Meng Wange to bring it up on the very first day. That dinner party you mentioned—]
‘…System.’
[…Hmm?]
‘Before you continue recapping everything—can you scream first? Just once. Pretend I just slapped you.’
[Okay… ah.]
The soft sound of “ah” came out flat and lifeless, not even bothering to add a hint of emotion or tone.
The system continued explaining to Su Wanli—
[The so-called banquet actually refers to a gathering four days from now, hosted by the Bai family, the second most powerful household in the southern city. Many influential figures from the business and political worlds will be invited, and Su Heng, head of the Su family, will be among the guests.]
‘A banquet hosted by the Bai family?’
[Correct. Not only will the head of the Bai family be present, but their only son and heir, Bai Hewei, will also attend. Su Wanli was desperate to attend this event solely because of him, and even had a huge argument with Su Heng over it.]
Before the system could share more details, Su Wanli had already conjured up a whole melodrama in her mind.
‘Ah, I see. So it’s a classic case of chasing love, huh? Looks like this Bai Hewei guy is the one this “villainess” Su Wanli has feelings for. Maybe they even had some kind of childhood engagement or something…’
‘To impress him, the proud villainess threatens her own father to force her way into the banquet. Maybe she even says she’ll jump off the stairs if he doesn’t agree. Then, after finally managing to sneak in, she gets completely overshadowed by Meng Wange in front of everyone—loses her composure, embarrasses herself, while the heroine shines even brighter by contrast…’
‘Sigh. As dramatic as it sounds, it really does fit the typical villainess arc. I’ve already gotten used to it.’
Just as she was getting carried away with her imagination, the system interrupted her train of thought.
[Apologies, Host. While your assumptions are common, they are not accurate.]
[Bai Hewei is indeed an elegant and refined young heir. However, the Bai and Su families operate in overlapping business territories and have been fierce competitors for years. Naturally, there was never any engagement or secret affection between them.]
[As the sole heirs of their respective families, Su Wanli and Bai Hewei have always kept their distance. Bai Hewei dutifully plays the role of a gentleman, while Su Wanli does whatever she pleases, acting more like a countryside bully.]
‘…Why does that feel like a subtle insult?’
[This system lacks any such function. While the two families appear cordial on the surface, their relationship remained tense until one month ago.]
‘One month ago?’
[Yes. One month ago, Bai Hewei suddenly announced in public that he had long admired Su Wanli and wanted to pursue her. The announcement caused a stir throughout the school.]
‘Oh? I bet it did. Who gave him the right to casually lay hands on the Su family’s only daughter? I imagine he got a solid beating afterward, huh?’
[…No. Instead, rumors started spreading at school that Su Wanli must have learned some kind of hypnotism spell and used it to curse Bai Hewei. Otherwise, why else would he fall for a notorious bully like her?]
Just hearing that made her fists clench with rage.
[Although Su Wanli has always had a terrible reputation, she’s never had any romantic scandals. After the announcement, her first reaction was to confront Bai Hewei directly. But he avoided her at every turn. She couldn’t find him anywhere—except at the upcoming banquet.]
[As the Bai family’s only heir, Bai Hewei will definitely attend and stay for a while. Su Wanli is determined to be there too, to confront him and make him explain everything—once and for all, in front of everyone, to end the rumors.]
So that’s how it is…
Su Wanli frowned slightly.
‘But then why wouldn’t Su Heng let her go? Why would a father argue with his daughter over this?’
‘Was it just because he didn’t care about her at all—because all his attention had shifted to Meng Wange?’
[No. It’s simply because many influential people will be present at the banquet. Su Heng is afraid Su Wanli might do something foolish and embarrass herself, making it obvious that the Su family has no capable successor. That could hurt their reputation and future business opportunities.]
“…”
So that’s why he called Meng Wange to the Su family at a time like this.
If Meng Wange can somehow whip Su Wanli into shape—teach her to appear poised, graceful, and competent—then perhaps she wouldn’t make a fool of herself at the banquet.
And if Su Wanli fails? Then she simply won’t be allowed to attend at all.
Su Wanli silently clenched her fists.
‘Well played, Su Heng. So you’ve even started calculating your own daughter into your schemes.’
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