Searle’s gaze was cold and piercing. The sharpness of his tone made the other man’s expression even more somber.
“Yes, Sir!”
The aide excused himself and headed straight to Country K’s headquarters in the city. He knew that it wouldn’t be easy to acquire the information he needed in such a short amount of time.
…
When Yao Tangarrived at school the next day, bothYan WeiandLi Ruowere nowhere in sight.
Instead, Yang Nianwas present.
He had left the school yesterday after receiving an urgent phone call, and therefore had no idea what had transpired among his classmates.
Yan Wei elected not to tell him anything, either.
During the first two periods in the morning, Yang Nianhad the vague sense that something was not right. He kept staring at the empty seats of the two girls, looking puzzled.
Yan Wei’s things had been removed from her desk caddy, and so were Li Ruo’s.
It clued them in that they weren’t simply absent for the day.
It was very likely that they wouldn’t be coming at all in the future.
Could something have happened after he left the campus yesterday?
......
Curious, Yang Nianasked the students seated in front of him. “Hey, do you have any idea whyYan WeiandLi Ruodidn’t come to school today?”
These classmates were also exchange students like himself. They gaped at him, unsure of what to say. They seem to deliberate between themselves before telling him everything.
“Yesterday, Yao Tanghad more test papers brought over fromInternational Middle School.Yan Weiwas pissed and made a bet over it. In the end, she lost and had to leave the class as a consequence. Not only that, but they also forced her to make a spectacle of herself in front of the cafeteria.”
The speaker’s expression soured then, and he appeared unable to continue talking.
In truth, most people didn’t know about the matters of the Yan family, but it wasn’t much of a secret among those within their social circle.
In the past, Yan Yuwas considered the golden boy and the treasure of the Yan family, whileYan Weiwas the illegitimate daughter.
Yan Wei was nowhere near as intelligent nor as outstanding as Yan Yu and couldn’t even begin to compare to him in terms of background. She could only rely on the head of the Yan family’s favor to keep her status as the Second Young Lady.
If the man had not cheated on his wife while she was pregnant, Yan Weiwouldn’t even be in this world.
With that said, those who did know of this valued their lives enough to know not to speak of the affair. After all, the Yan family’s power and influence still domineered high society.
More importantly, Yan Wei had a foul and formidable personality that matched her true identity. They didn’t want to risk incurring her wrath by being careless with their words.
Perhaps the worst part of it all was the fact that Yan Yuhad been in an accident a few years ago that had deprived him of his talents and his smarts. He had to leave school as a result, and his absence had only solidifiedYan Wei’s position in the family.
Needless to say, Yan Weihad never been humiliated before yesterday.
People pandered to her wherever she went, afraid of the weight of her family name. She had always brandished her identity as the young lady of the Yan family and used it to get whatever she wanted and look down on her peers.
And yet, yesterday, she had to yell out the truth that she was an illegitimate daughter to the entire school. She certainly wouldn’t forget the incident for the rest of her life.
The exchange students frowned at each other, not knowing how to tell this to Yang Nian.
“What did she say?” he pressed. It was obvious that his patience was running thin.
The other two took one look at his face and finally whispered, “She had to admit that she was nothing more than an illegitimate daughter.”
Yang Nian’s expression immediately darkened. “And the people of No. 1 High Schoolforced her to say these things?”
“Well, to be exact, it was Yao TangandQin Jing.” The speaker looked around and made sure no one was listening before he continued, his voice hushed, “I’m really starting to wonder who thatQin Jingis. She has been living inCity Aall this time, yet she actually knows aboutYan Wei’s background…”
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He caught himself at the last minute and drifted off, terrified of saying the unspeakable out loud.
Yang Nian narrowed his eyes.
“All of you must remember not to provoke these students in the future. I warned you long ago, haven’t I? Watch yourselves around the people of No. 1 High School. You never did take my words to heart.”
The other exchange student looked at him skeptically, but he wisely chose to keep his mouth shut.