Zhao Xuan changed into his pajamas, climbed into bed, and opened the note.
This one wasn't handwritten — it was printed, which meant the sender had a lot more prep time than for the last letter.
The note explained that the conflict between Wan Chujun and Zhao stemmed from a misunderstanding.
Apparently, early in freshman year, Wan had stayed at school for a while — technically just for midday rest, not overnight.
But near the end of that year, she suddenly stopped staying on campus and bought a place near the school instead.
School rules didn't allow leaving campus at noon, so she'd pulled family connections to make an exception. That's when the class first learned about her background.
According to the letter, Wan's cold attitude toward Zhao was tied to that incident.
Zhao couldn't yet connect the dots between the two letters in a useful way, and he wasn't ready to fully trust the contents.
The sender could only be Bai Lvdi or Ling Yunfang. Bai was well-informed, but Ling was Wan's closest friend — impossible to say who knew more. Most importantly, the sender chose to remain anonymous and didn't dump all the info at once, which meant their motives weren't pure.
Then Zhao realized even their homeroom teacher, Lu Wenyin, was a possibility — no one knew exactly when she'd arrived at the hotel. It was unlikely a teacher would pull this kind of stunt, but the other two didn't necessarily have a clear motive either.
Mulling over it half-consciously, Zhao drifted off to sleep.
He'd always needed less sleep, maybe because his Stamina and Energy stats were above average. When he woke, it was just past 6 AM.
After a quick wash-up and getting dressed, he headed to the restaurant for breakfast. The sky was already bright, but most others were probably still asleep.
When he pushed open his door, he ran straight into Wan Chujun passing by. An awkward silence fell.
Just as he was about to say something to break the tension, she turned and walked straight back into her room without a word.
"Damn, little bitch," Zhao cursed inwardly. Even the most easygoing person would get pissed after repeated cold treatment, no matter the "misunderstanding." And with his personality now shaped by his experiences, he had little patience or warmth for women playing games.
At the restaurant, he grabbed some light food and a glass of milk, then sat at a window corner to eat and scroll through news on his phone.
Top story: The Rio Olympics are opening in a month. Local news had other updates — like the ongoing string of missing women cases. No progress so far, and yesterday another female college student was reported missing.
Suddenly, a plate was gently placed beside him. He looked up — it was Bai Lvdi.
Today she wore a tight, half-buttoned T-shirt that showcased her killer figure. Her 32F bust was pushed up high; only the bottom button of the three was fastened, leaving plenty exposed. Her blonde hair was tied in a bun, adding a touch of classic elegance to her naturally seductive vibe — though the dye job looked out of place.
She had on a deep blue knee-length skirt, showing just a sliver of bare calf, white socks, and white sneakers. Swimming was on the agenda, but she'd dressed to grab Zhao's attention.
Because she'd already been friendly to him on the way back from the reunion, Zhao didn't feel hostile, but he didn't initiate conversation either.
Noticing Zhao's gaze lingering on her chest, Bai didn't get angry or shy — she subtly arched her back, making her assets even more prominent, then sat across from him. She'd dressed like this precisely to lure his attention.
She was glad she'd spotted Zhao shopping days earlier — that let her smooth things over before he revealed his car to the world. At the same time, she was irritated she'd never noticed this high-level rich second-gen hiding in plain sight.
Zhao was still cold, but the groundwork she'd laid meant she wasn't starting from zero.
She hadn't clearly seen the woman with Zhao that day at the mall, but from their interaction, the woman's attitude was affectionate yet deferential — not a girlfriend, more like a kept mistress.
She wasn't delusional enough to think she could replace the "main woman," but rich guys often kept multiple women. There might be room for her. From the reunion, she'd realized Ye Peiqi's gentle, sweet persona could be a huge weapon against Zhao, so she'd slipped that note into his room last night.
Ye's disguise was flawless, but Bai had insider info and enough dirt to ruin her. Spreading it in stages helped Bai build closeness with Zhao without seeming too obvious. If she dumped everything at once, Zhao might guess it was her — and dismiss it, hurting her standing. Now, with at least three possible senders, the risk was lower.
Zhao figured she just picked a table where she knew someone, since the dining room was filling up. But soon he felt something brushing his pant leg under the table. Looking down, he saw Bai casually rubbing his calf with her shoe.
If this had been the old Zhao, he'd have pulled his leg away and kept eating — and never gotten this kind of treatment from a woman like Bai. But now, half a veteran, he got the message.
He clamped his legs around her ankle. Bai made a token struggle, then stayed still, giving him a sultry look before lowering her head to eat.
No words were exchanged, but both knew where they stood. For Bai, his move meant there was still a chance. For Zhao, it meant she wanted something — and it was obvious what.
He checked her stats:
[Bai Lvdi – Female
Young Adult
Healthy
Strength: 7
Agility: 11
Stamina: 9
Energy: 13
Focus: 11
Friendliness: 40
Obedience: 40]
To him, Bai was similar to Lin Jingjing — except with a hotter body. Since she was going to college, she couldn't be confined, and as a "free-range" woman, she didn't have traits that intrigued him enough for conquest. She was a plaything, but not worth heavy investment as a private pet.
Bai read his indifferent look loud and clear. Beauty was scarce, but rich guys weren't short on beauties. Looks were just the entry ticket — to rise higher, she'd need unique value, or at best, she'd stay a long-term paid companion.
Remembering how she'd treated Zhao before, Bai bit her lip, hesitated a few seconds, then made her decision.
Breakfast ended around 6:30. The guys had agreed to hang loosely in the morning and go diving in the afternoon. Zhao planned to head back, soak up the sun on his ocean-view balcony.
"Yunfang's probably still asleep — going back might wake her. Wanna go outside and get some sun?" Bai asked as Zhao stood, cutting straight to the chase.
Zhao didn't buy the excuse about not disturbing her roommate. He was curious to see what this schemer would try next. He nodded and walked out; Bai quickly grabbed her bag and followed.
At the elevator, two women stepped out — Zhao recognized them as two of the three from the elevator the night before.
Bai assumed Zhao was eyeing the other woman's prominent chest and smirked inwardly — her own assets were just as impressive. If Zhao liked big boobs, that was great news; neither that woman nor Ye Peiqi could compete, especially Ye, who was practically flat. Plus, Bai had brought "secret weapons" for this trip.
Ready for action, Bai smoothly kept the convo going. Academics weren't her strength, but her social circle was wide — she knew class gossip and even teacher drama. Knowing Zhao had been intrigued by the note, she steered the chat toward classmate gossip, leading to Ye Peiqi and Wan Chujun.
Instead of hitting the main point, she started with Ye's "boyfriend" — Luo Changhao — not knowing he'd already handed Ye over to Zhao.
Admittedly, Ye wasn't a top-tier schemer, but she was great at chat. Knowing Zhao's icy relationship with Wan, Bai didn't bring it up directly. While talking about Ye, she dropped Wan's name a few times, prompting Zhao to probe about his own feud with Wan.
"Wan lived at school for a while freshman year, then stopped resting there at noon for some reason — it's because of you. After that, her attitude toward you turned awful, and a few of us close to her were affected too," Bai said mysteriously, repeating the content of last night's second note, while also spinning it to excuse her past behavior.
Zhao studied Bai's expression — it didn't look fake. She genuinely seemed unaware of the note from last night.