Fourth Miss Zhao forcefully suppressed her impatience and barely managed to deal with this man named Zhao Sining, her distant cousin, with whom she shared little blood relation. Initially, Fourth Miss Zhao didn’t care much for such distant relatives who could hardly be linked by a straight line, yet this fellow had disappeared without a trace after traveling abroad years ago, and only later was it known that he had been accepted into Zhengying Academy.
Zhengying Academy, one of the Four Great Academies of Anyun Country, is a top-tier academy where countless descendants from noble families scramble to enter but might not succeed, and it is also the sacred destination of many young cultivators from poor families’ dreams.
Taking advantage of school vacation, Zhao Sining returned to Heishi City, which could be considered a triumphant return home, and naturally, his status in the Zhao Family significantly increased.
No one knew what was wrong with the fellow’s head, but he actually took a fancy to Fourth Miss Zhao and immediately took action, launching a fierce pursuit of her.
Deep down, Fourth Miss Zhao actually despised Zhao Sining. Putting aside the distant cousin relationship, just considering the age difference, didn’t he know he was almost twenty years older than she was? A toad lusting after swan meat, and an old toad at that; just thinking about it gave Fourth Miss Zhao goosebumps all over. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel•fire.net
What infuriated her most was his dim-wittedness. She had told him countless times not to call her "Xian’er," yet he could never remember, stupidity that made her anxious.
But despite her distaste and anxiety, under the heavy pressure from the family elders, she had no choice but to feign compliance. Zhengying Academy was a behemoth to the Zhao Family, and having a family member as a disciple of Zhengying Academy was a great honor for the Zhao Family, improving their social standing—a fact those family elders who placed great emphasis on family interests would not easily disregard.
And for Fourth Miss Zhao herself, humbling herself to tentatively date Zhao Sining could be advantageous.
"Don’t be angry, Xian’er. Once this holiday is over and I return to the academy, I’ll pull some strings to get you into Zhengying Academy," Zhao Sining said, like a weird uncle coaxing a little girl with goldfish, continuing with endearing warmth.
"Brother Sining, can I really get into Zhengying Academy?" Fourth Miss Zhao directly filtered out the word "Xian’er" from her ears and asked eagerly.
"Don’t worry. My master-uncle holds a significant position in Zhengying Academy. Just a word from me and your entry there is as good as confirmed," Zhao Sining boasted, thumping his chest.
"Then I thank you, Brother Sining," Fourth Miss Zhao replied with an infinitely gentle smile.
Such smiles, such tenderness—she had revealed them before more than one person and was already adept at it.
Zhao Sining was briefly spellbound, blissfully ignorant that his head was already amidst a vast green pasture.
"By the way, you didn’t tell me who that person was just now?" Zhao Sining asked. Now feeling even closer to the goddess Xian’er of his heart, he was even more curious about Mu Hanyan’s identity.
Their visit to Nanmu Auction today was also because of the Fire Orchid, although they received the news a bit late. Having heard that Che Xiang, who was being pushed into a corner by Yuan Tianbo, had appeared at the Nanmu Auction, they rushed over posthaste, only to find that the bidding war between Mu Hanyan and Yuan Tianbo was already winding down.
Fourth Miss Zhao didn’t want to encounter Mu Hanyan face-to-face and only lingered outside for a while to see the outcome, then left with Zhao Sining ahead of time. Hence, Mu Hanyan didn’t see the two of them behind the crowd.