By the time Thursday afternoon rolled around, it felt like a kettle at full boil, the classroom steamed with voices.
“Uwah! So loud!” Little Loli lifted her head, swaying like a reed in autumn wind.
Everyone buzzed about tomorrow’s trip, like sparrows chattering along a sunlit eave.
“I’m bringing my 3DS tomorrow—how about some MHX together?” His grin flashed like a blade catching light.
“Oh, perfect! I’m stuck on the Hub’s high-rank quests—let’s clear them over the next few days.” Their excitement fluttered like pennants in a fair breeze.
The noise swelled, a tide slapping the shore. Little Loli, dragged from sleep, swept a slightly annoyed gaze across the room like a cat flicking its tail.
“Xiaoxue, you’re awake?” A beautiful face popped right into view, blocking everything like a fan snapped open.
“Whoa! Nana, don’t lean in like that, you scared me!” Her heartbeat jumped like a startled deer between trees.
It was Joanna, of course. “Leave all the trip gear to me! Xiaoxue, you don’t need to worry at all.” Her confidence sat steady, like a lantern on a calm night.
“Then I’ll leave it to you, Nana~” Relief unfurled in her chest like warm tea, and a smile bloomed on the golden-haired girl’s face, soft as honey in sun.
“Xiaoxue, why don’t you sleep over at my place tonight?” At that smile, Joanna’s thoughts wandered into not-so-clean alleys like fog slipping under a door.
“No! Absolutely not!” The memory of being tricked into Joanna’s place pricked her skin like cold rain; Xiao Qianxue shivered from head to toe.
The season leaned toward autumn; a cool edge rode the breeze like a falling leaf. Joanna saw the golden-haired girl shiver and mistook it for a chill.
“Here, Xiaoxue, take my jacket.” She shrugged off her black school uniform in one swift motion, draping it over Little Loli’s shoulders like a raven wing.
“Ah… I wasn’t… thanks.” Her voice warmed, like hands over a brazier.
She knew why Joanna had covered her and didn’t bother to explain, letting the coat sit like a soft shield.
But when she looked up, Joanna’s proud curves strained under the white shirt, bright as full moons behind thin clouds.
“Damn it.” Joanna’s chest was practically a B+, while after that bead’s “upgrade” hers had only just started to take shape, like buds before spring.
“Hey, Xiaoxue, what are you staring at?” Joanna felt the whole class’s gaze on her like sunshine, but the one beside her stung like a needle.
“N-no, nothing!” Her eyes skittered away like minnows in a stream.
They kept bickering and laughing until the homeroom teacher’s words cut through like a bell: “Tomorrow, gather at school at nine a.m.”
One by one, the students poured out with faces lit by excitement, like lanterns set afloat on water.
“See you tomorrow, Xiaoxue!”
“Mm, see you tomorrow.” Their voices trailed like kites on a clear sky.
Joanna slipped into the Bentley like a swan into a lake, and the driver gave Xiao Qianxue a warm nod, bright as morning sun.
“Hm-hm~” Little Loli hummed, slid into her own ride, and headed home as usual, the city rolling past like a slow river.
At the door, she heard her parents buzzing about her midterm grades, voices bright as firecrackers in winter.
“Dear, who’d have thought Xiaoxue’s grades would get this good—around thirtieth in the whole school!” Her mother’s excitement pierced the door like a bell note.
“Mom, please, keep it down…” She pushed the door with a sigh, only for her small body to be scooped up like a chick.
“Daughter, you’re getting amazing. Back in primary school you didn’t care about studying at all.” Her father’s eyes shone like stars after rain.
“Hey, hey! You brute of a dad, put me down!” She bapped him with soft fists, like buns thumping a drum.
Her feet touched the floor and she backed to the wall, covering her chest like guarding a treasure box.
“So scary… I’m getting last place next time!” Her golden eyes wobbled with panic, like candles flickering in a draft, while her parents’ eyes blazed with pride.
“It’s fine. This time Dad’s taking you to Disneyland in LA.” He thumped his chest, solid as a drum. “We’ll go as soon as you’re on break!”
“Oh. Sounds nice.” The golden-haired girl sounded distant, like rain tapping far-off eaves, as she lifted her bag and slipped into her room.
“This kid is so odd. At her age, Disneyland should be pure joy.” He stared at the closed door, puzzled as a man reading mist.
“Oh, right—tomorrow they’re going camping at Xiushan near B City,” he said, the thought landing like a sparrow on a branch.
“Ah, that’s it.” Her mother nodded, memory clearing like clouds parting. “No wonder she isn’t excited. Xiaoxue must be looking forward to tomorrow’s trip.”
“She’s a middle-school girl—does camping really suit her? What if something dangerous happens?” His worry curled like smoke.
“There’ll be teachers. What danger could there be? Let her childhood run free for once.” Her mother’s words were warm, like a shawl in evening wind. He shrugged, letting it rest like a stone set down.
In her room, Little Loli laid things out like a tiny arsenal on a tabletop battlefield. “Sun hat, sunscreen, bug spray…”
“So annoying. I’ll just bring a few. Nana will cover the rest anyway.” She dropped them into a pink suitcase, neat as folded clouds, then turned to pick clothes and underwear, cheeks pink as dawn.
Even before, Xiao Qianxue had never gone hiking with classmates or friends; status always stood like a wall, and rich heirs didn’t exactly go camping.
So this time, her anticipation glowed in her chest like a lantern at dusk.
— — —
“Those people—we’ve lost contact for a long time.” The man in a suit stood before the middle-aged man like a shadow before a lamp.
“Useless trash. I should’ve crippled him last time.” The middle-aged man leaned forward, fingers interlaced like iron bars. “No contact at all?”
“No. It’s like they vanished into air.” The man in black bowed, spine a straight blade.
“Fine, they were dead weight anyway.” The middle-aged man rose and turned to the window, where the sky lay flat as steel. “Go on. What else?”
“That girl’s class is heading to Xiushan near B City for camping. The place goes half a day without seeing a soul, so maybe…” He didn’t finish; the intent hung like a drawn bow.
“Sounds like a chance. But that class has the deputy mayor’s son, right?” The middle-aged man frowned, thought pooling like ink.
“According to intel, Ouyang Xiangyang isn’t going.”
“Good. Then do it. Have your people take a few tools, disguise as robbers, and get it done.” He slapped the table; the sound cracked like thunder.
“Understood, sir. We’ll handle it.”
“And remember—no killing, and avoid hurting anyone if you can, or it’ll be hard to clean up here. Do the rest like real bandits.”
“Understood.” The answer snapped like a salute, and the door closed like a lid.
Early next morning, Little Loli slipped into the Bentley waiting at the community gate, like a fish into calm water.
The driver hoisted her pink suitcase into the trunk, its sheen bright as a peach blossom.
“Hi, Xiaoxue—” Joanna launched and pounced, pinning the golden-haired girl in uniform and black stockings like a playful tiger cub.
“Not today. Don’t start.” Little Loli pushed her bestie off and sat up, cheeks flushing like apples.
“Didn’t you used to refuse the school uniform?” Joanna’s curiosity tilted like a sparrow’s head.
“Just felt like wearing it. No big deal.” Her tone drifted light, like a leaf on stream.
“Then let’s hurry to school.” The car slid into traffic, smooth as a brushstroke across white paper.
