Chapter 25: The Daily Bickering of Elementary School…

It was someone she knew, but seeing her here was still somewhat unexpected.

Xia Mi La took the coffee and gave her a smile. “Sister Xiuzhi.”

Li Xiuzhi, formerly an SA at a luxury boutique. She had been brutally beaten by Bai You Na for failing to reserve the dress Bai You Na wanted. However, she kept the video of the beating and handed it over to Xia Mi La.

After providing the video, Li Xiuzhi intended to resign. At the time, she hadn’t figured out her next steps, so Xia Mi La gave her a generous sum of money as compensation.

“Miss Mira.” Li Xiuzhi also smiled at her, explaining softly in a respectful tone, “It was the chairman’s idea for me to start here as an assistant.”

Back when she had offended Bai You Na, she had been utterly terrified, but now her state and emotions had stabilized considerably.

Of course, now that she was by the grandmother’s side, even if Bai You Na wanted to cause trouble again, she might not have the nerve.

But the grandmother placing Li Xiuzhi here certainly wasn’t just out of kindness and benevolence.

This person she was likely being prepared for her own use.

Li Xiuzhi understood this when she saw Xia Mi La.

“Miss Mira.” She expressed her loyalty sincerely to Xia Mi La, “You can assign me any task in the future.”

Xia Mi La looked at her, curling the corners of her lips. “Alright.”

Li Xiuzhi delivered the coffee and didn’t disturb further. Xia Mi La continued reviewing documents alone, and the morning passed quickly just like that.

Lunch was also with her grandmother.

“What did you look at this morning?” Xia Shuzhen asked her.

“I reviewed the overseas development project with Han Lin from the year before last,” Xia Mi La replied.

Xia Shuzhen, as if checking homework, then asked about some details, and Xia Mi La answered fluently.

This proved that she hadn’t slacked off all morning she had indeed seriously reviewed the materials, could understand them, and had formed some of her own insights.

The two chatted a bit about work and also some daily trivialities.

Xia Mi La mentioned she was going to a party in the evening, and Xia Shuzhen had no objections.

Socializing was also very important.

“How are things at school?” Xia Shuzhen also asked this.

With the grandmother’s powerful intelligence network, probably nothing could be hidden from her, but Xia Mi La just casually replied, “Fine.”

Some things had happened, but they weren’t major issues beyond control.

However, since the topic came up, Xia Mi La directly brought it up: “Grandmother, I want to break off the engagement with Jin He.”

Sure enough, Xia Shuzhen wasn’t the least bit surprised by such words; she didn’t even bat an eyelid. “Have you thought it through clearly?” she reminded. “Once this matter is brought up, there’s no room for regret.”

She disliked any emotional flip-flopping and was a bit uneasy about her granddaughter’s love-struck tendencies.

“Yes.” But Xia Mi La’s tone was very firm. “I’ve thought it through clearly, Grandmother.”

*

After lunch, Xia Mi La spent a bit more time reviewing reports and documents before leaving.

She had agreed on a time with Jin Can, and Jin Can came directly to the Xia Hong headquarters to pick her up.

By the time the car arrived, Xia Mi La was already waiting downstairs.

She was dressed quite casually today denim jeans, sneakers, a black knitted T-shirt, her long hair left down in soft, large waves, with only one side pinned with a Miu Miu hair clip.

Jin Can got out of the car to meet her. “Have you been waiting long?”

He wasn’t late; in fact, he arrived a few minutes early.

Xia Mi La smiled and shook her head. “No, I was free so I came down early. Just got here.”

The two got into the car, had dinner together, and then rode to the party venue.

Today’s party was held at the host’s private villa.

They arrived neither early nor late. Though punctual, most guests had already arrived by the time they entered.

No one seemed particularly surprised to see them arrive together.

Though only a week had passed since the semester began, everyone already understood the two shared a close bond.

This wasn’t superficial camaraderie it was the kind where Jin Can would shield Xia Mi La and throw punches at Jin He if needed.

Thus, despite being twins, the relationship between Jin He and Jin Can appeared rather strained.

On the living room sofa, Zhao Taihe sat centrally, his expression unreadable as he briefly studied Jin Can before breaking into a smile toward Xia Mi La.

“Mira,” he beckoned her, “come here.”

Xia Mi La walked over to him.

Those nearby instinctively cleared two seats.

She sat beside Zhao Taihe, glanced around, then pointed at Jin Can with a light laugh. “Need introductions?”

“Not necessary,” the group chuckled in unison. “We already know him Acan.”

Several people around Zhao Taihe, including Zhao Taihe himself, wore White Tiger Badges on their clothes.

Jin Can recognized them too. Most had been present during his school hazing, yet now they wore amiable expressions.

“Where did you come from?” Zhao Taihe leaned closer to Xia Mi La. “Why are you dressed so casually? I offered to pick you up, but you refused…”

A hint of complaint tinged his tone.

As if questioning why he wasn’t allowed to fetch her, but Jin Can was.

Xia Mi La explained with a smile, “Acan and I had already arranged it. He’s new, after all.”

Newcomers integrate better with guidance.

This aligned perfectly with Xia Mi La’s consistently gentle and kind nature.

“Right, newcomer,” Zhao Taihe echoed the term, then instructed those around him, “Make sure Acan enjoys himself. Treat him well.”

Xia Mi La shot him a sidelong glance, sensing ulterior motives.

Zhao Taihe grinned cheekily and leaned in again. “Have you eaten dinner? What would you like? I’ll have them prepare something.”

Xia Mi La shook her head.

Meanwhile, two lackeys, following Zhao Taihe’s orders, began introducing or perhaps showing off to Jin Can.

“How about those two girls dancing up front? What’s your type? A girl group will perform later they’re quite popular lately… Or if you prefer boy groups, that works too.”

They snickered suggestively.

“I don’t follow celebrities,” Jin Can stated. “Not interested.”

Someone snorted derisively.

No one invited celebrities for fandom it was purely for showing off.

Though this kid held Han Lin’s status and packed a punch, he still came off somewhat rustic.

“Let’s have some drinks then,” they conceded, still showing respect given his Han Lin status and Xia Mi La’s endorsement. “What do you like to drink?”

“Anything works,” Liang Dongxun, the party host, chimed in. “My house has every kind. Classic vineyards and vintages name it, we have it.Naturally, this too was a display of show-off.

But Xia Mila also knew that Liang Dongxun’s family business was related to alcohol they were indeed major collectors of liquor. Even someone like Jin He’s father, who loved drinking, might not have as extensive a collection as the Liang family.

No one at the scene brought up the buzzkill topic of minors not being allowed to drink… having a few sips occasionally wouldn’t hurt.

Even Jin Can wasn’t a teetotaler who never touched alcohol.

But his next words were somewhat laughable.

“I’ve only had Jinro,” Jin Can said.

“What?” Several people around him couldn’t help but laugh after hearing him clearly.

“Jinro? What’s that?” they asked, feigning ignorance.

It was a common soju found everywhere on the streets, a Korean liquor even foreigners knew about of course, they were aware of it.

It’s just that such cheap soju wouldn’t appear at a party like today’s.

There was originally nothing about Jin Can’s identity that others could criticize, but his unusual experiences made it easy for people to feel superior.

“Haha, only ever had Jinro…”

“What’s going on with Jin He,” Liang Dongxun also said with a laugh, “why hasn’t he shown you more of the world?”

Jin Can paid no mind to their teasing and joking. He remained leaning back on the sofa, his posture natural and relaxed.

It was just a bottle of alcohol. He didn’t think people who drank red wine were necessarily any nobler than those who drank Jinro.

At this moment, Xia Mila spoke up too.

“Then let’s have Jinro,” she said.

“What?” Everyone didn’t quite catch it.

“We’ll drink Jinro,” Xia Mila repeated seriously. “Bring some Jinro over.” She looked at Liang Dongxun. “You have all kinds of alcohol, right? What, you don’t have the national liquor?”

Liang Dongxun didn’t expect to be caught so quickly. He forced a dry laugh: “Ahem, of course I have it. I’ll have someone bring it right away.”

If it wasn’t at home, he could just have it delivered. Fortunately, this stuff was available everywhere convenience stores had it, and it could be delivered in minutes. It wasn’t anything rare.

A minor incident, nothing serious. A few minutes later, Jin He arrived too.

He brought Cui Zhe and several other members of the Azure Dragon Hall.

As soon as he entered, he saw Xia Mila sitting beside Zhao Taihe, with Jin Can next to her.

His gaze swept over the two of them before landing on Zhao Taihe, and he started picking faults: “Is this the standard?”

He was referring to today’s party.

This was their usual opening banter always looking down on people and things associated with the other.

Zhao Taihe looked at him and smiled.

For him, Jin He had far too many weaknesses now.

“Why didn’t you bring the sponsored student?” he then asked. “Do you also know she’s not qualified enough?”

“It’s you who aren’t qualified to see her,” Jin He said.

Elementary school-level bickering as usual.

Xia Mila shook her head and withdrew her gaze, glancing at Jin Can: “A bit boring, isn’t it?”

“No,” Jin Can replied. “It’s quite interesting.”

Xia Mila curved the corners of her mouth slightly.

“A He,” Liang Dongxun greeted. “Have a seat.”

Their relationship was one of undercurrents superficially civil, but constantly churning beneath the surface.

Jin He glanced at Xia Mila once more before sitting down nearby.

Soon after, the idols Liang Dongxun had mentioned earlier arrived. With their singing and dancing performances, the venue instantly became even livelier.

The soju hadn’t arrived yet. Liang Dongxun sat down beside Jin Can and recommended red wine to him and Xia Mi La. Both guests followed the host’s lead and politely drank a few glasses out of respect.

Liang Dongxun then asked her: “Why didn’t Xu Lian Yi come today?”

Everyone knew Xu Lian Yi and Xia Mi La were very close – the two were practically inseparable.

“She’s been a bit busy these past couple days,” Xia Mi La replied.

Everyone chatted idly while drinking, playing some drinking games.

After playing for a while, Xia Mi La stood up, intending to go to the restroom.

The moment she left, the vacant seat was immediately taken over by someone else.

A popular female idol sat down beside Zhao Taihe, leaning close to him while acting coy: “Brother, have a drink with me, won’t you?”

Everyone knew Zhao Taihe was the easiest young master to hook – he rarely refused pretty girls, was generous with his spending, and most importantly, he was extremely handsome himself, making him quite the ideal dating partner.

But today, even after raising his glass, Zhao Taihe seemed to remember something and put it back down on the coffee table.

The corner of his mouth lifted in a regretful smile: “Brother doesn’t feel like drinking right now.”

Saying this, he stood up and also headed in the direction of the restroom.

———————–

Author’s note: No update tomorrow~ yare yare~ [please understand]