Chapter 1003: Etiquette Class
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Xia Yu took over and lowered her eyes. Her fingers that were swollen from her illness gently stroked against the delicate fabric. Her voice was a little weak when she said, “Very pretty, Sister, you are so good.” Then she raised her head to look at Pei Ziheng who was standing beside Xia Ling. “And thank you… Brother Pei.”
She could differentiate very clearly who was the master of the gold.
If not for Pei Ziheng supporting their livelihood and paying for her hospital treatments, she would still just be a pitiful creature degenerating in the orphanage struggling strenuously on the brink of death.
Pei Ziheng’s voice was warm. “You don’t have to thank me. Your sister asked me to buy it for you.”
Xia Yu smiled weakly and whispered softly, “Brother Pei is so good to Sister.” Many emotions churned in her heart. She felt envious and discontented. They had already left the orphanage, but why was everyone only centered on her sister? What was so good about her?! She dropped her gaze and stared at the dress in her hands. The delicate yellow goose color did not complement her skin color at all, only making her whole person seem dull and ugly. It was entirely disharmonious.
How stupid was her sister to think that she would like this dress?!
Did she not know that she was still sick? To dress in this way to visit her, and even gift her such a beautiful dress, was it because she knew that she wouldn’t have an opportunity to wear it, so she came on purpose to laugh at her and provoke her?!
Xia Yu’s heart was filled with grievances. The hand that was hidden under the blanket clenched itself into tight fists unconsciously.
Xia Ling did not sense any of this. She chatted with Xia Yu for a while before leaving with Pei Ziheng.
On the car ride back, she was a little tired and yawned a few times.
Pei Ziheng said warmly, “Lean on my shoulder and sleep. I’ll wake you when we reach home.”
After all, she had only been adopted by him yesterday, so she was a little shy. She said softly, “I’m not sleepy.” She leaned onto his shoulder in embarrassment. However, the smooth drive on the Rolls-Royce was just too comfortable. Unknowingly, she was even more sleepy. Her head leaned onto his solid shoulders slowly and without control.
Not wanting to wake her up, Pei Ziheng adjusted his posture slightly to allow her to sleep more comfortably.
At first, she had been a little awkward, but once she slept on and fell into a deep sleep, she forgot where she was headed. She stretched out her elbow and hugged onto his arm, rubbing onto it with her cheeks comfortably. After a while, she extended her other elbow and hugged onto him tightly with her two arms like a koala hugging a tree trunk.
He looked down at her.
She was sleeping so comfortably on his shoulder. Her sleeping posture was different from all the prestigious ladies he had been so used to seeing—her petal-like lips were slightly open and her sparkling saliva was staining his exquisite shirt.
His expression was gentle as he reached out and wiped away her saliva lightly without thinking it was dirty.
She slept for a while and woke up to see him wiping her saliva. She jumped in shock and her face turned a deep red in embarrassment. “I, I, I didn’t drool on purpose.” She stammered, letting go of him and apologizing.
He smiled slightly. “It doesn’t matter.” He retracted his hand, yet his heart felt a hint of regret. The soft beautiful sensation of her petal-like lips was still on his fingertips, but sadly, she had already woken up.
She looked at the small watermark of saliva she had left on his shoulder and blushed even redder.
She scolded herself internally for being so reckless. What if she made him unhappy? Her two hands stirred the corners of his shirt in anxiety and she said, “Should I help you wash it?”
He raised his eyebrows. “Can you?”
She shook her head honestly.
He burst out laughing. “Why would you ask if you can’t?” His voice was filled with affection for her.
She blushed again and whispered in retaliation, “I, I can learn. I can’t just take from you without repaying you.” He was too good to her, so good that she was almost shedding tears of gratitude. She was unable to return the favor, so she desperately wanted to be able to do something to repay him.
Pei Ziheng laughed again. This silly girl really thought that helping him wash his clothes could repay him for everything he had done for them sisters? Even the material cost of his shirt would not be repaid with the labor of her washing his clothes. He glanced at her softly. “I’ve said before that I will bring you up to be the most famous artiste in the world. If you wish to repay me, then work hard and try to achieve this goal.”
She nodded fiercely. Since this was his expectation for her, she would surely accomplish it.
However…
“What should I do?” She glanced at him and asked anxiously.
Pei Ziheng glanced at the drool on his shoulder before saying, “I will arrange for you to learn etiquette with the other girls in the family. You will learn how to possess a beautiful bearing and become an elegant girl. After you have learned all that, I will arrange for you to learn the temperament of an artiste as well as the importance of the style of conversation.”
She was still disregarded by him.
Her face turned red again and she stared at the watermark of her drool with some sadness.
He noticed her looking and said, “Of course, that is your disposition in front of others. You don’t have to be so restrained when it is just the two of us. Just like this…” He pointed to the imprint on his shoulder. “It doesn’t matter.”
The tiny sadness vanished like smoke in thin air.
She glanced at him gratefully and felt that this majestic Brother Pei looked so amicable.
Indeed, Pei Ziheng contacted all the teachers in the family and had the maids send her to the lessons. All the ladies of the Pei family studied etiquette together. The classroom was built in a serene environment inside the family interior. When Xia Ling walked in, the ladies were already gathered in twos and threes.
They were either standing or sitting, chatting with their companions or enjoying the scenery alone.
Everyone turned around uniformly when Xia Ling entered, all sizing her up.
So beautiful—that was the ladies of the Pei family’s first impression of her.
The second impression was that she was really old-fashioned—so old-fashioned she was rustic. Which tiny workshop actually manufactured such a shoddy dress? It was brightly colored and had pearl beads and patchwork lace that shone so much it was almost blinding.
“Who is this?” Already, one of the ladies was covering her mouth and laughing lightly with the girl beside her. “Her outfit is just too magical. Does she really think she’s a princess?”
Her companion laughed too. “Where did you buy this dress, it’s so ugly.”
This dress was the dress that Xia Ling had bought with Pei Ziheng. She liked it very much. When she had been trying it on in the store, all the store assistants had complimented her. She had placed it aside for a few days and had been reluctant to wear it, wanting to save it for the lesson to wear it for the first time. She had wanted to leave a good impression on the teachers and the other girls.
In the end, it turned out to be counterproductive.
Xia Ling stood uncomfortably at the door of the classroom. She could not understand why these bunch of girls did not like the dress that so many people had complimented her on before. She looked at them carefully and realized that the majority of them were wearing very elegant and refined colors of white and grey… the style of the dresses was simple and did not have any colorful decorations. They were unlike the dress on her body which had all sorts of sequin pearls and dried flower laces all piled up on her body.