Chapter 17

“Sister, let me do it…”

“Ah!”

Zina tried to take the cup from Yixuan’s hand. Hearing Zina’s words, Yixuan was startled, and the cup, no longer under control, dropped and shattered, spilling water everywhere.

“Oh, sorry, sorry, sister!”

“It’s okay, no worries…” Yixuan quickly responded to Zina’s apology. Her right hand, which had been holding the cup, was now reddened from the scald.

“Yi… Yixuan, are you alright…?”

“I’m fine, just lie back down.” Yixuan was about to step forward but then hurriedly stepped back.

Cai Erman and Mingzi looked at each other, then each turned their heads away. Yixuan, cradling her hand, found another cup, filled it with water, and handed it to Zina. Zina propped up Ye Chen, blew on the surface of the water in the cup to cool it, and then handed it to him to drink. Meanwhile, Ye Chen’s eyes were fixed on Yixuan.

“They’re here! They’re all here!…” There were already hundreds of reporters crowding the gate of Shengze College, seemingly just waiting for Liu Zixu’s arrival. Upon seeing her car, they all surged forward, more eager than the personal bodyguards during the Qing Dynasty!

“Xie Wan, I’m at the gate now, come out and meet me,” Liu Zixu instructed Mr. Xing to stop the car about fifty meters from the gate and then called her personal bodyguard, Xie Wan.

“Miss, these reporters seem to know about yesterday’s incident, and beyond that, they seem to have a grasp of your itinerary as well,” Mr. Xing turned to Liu Zixu and commented.

“Hmph! Just a trivial trick,” Liu Zixu scoffed, seemingly guessing something.

The reporters had their flashlights on even in broad daylight! Do you think the car driven by the Madam President of Shengze College is that bad? Do you think turning on the flash will let you see the person inside?

The reporters encircled the car, while Liu Zixu sat inside, calm and composed, as if she was immersed in reading sage books and oblivious to the outside world.

Suddenly, a retractable gate on top of Shengze College rotated like a windmill, lifting a few people five meters into the air. They jumped down one by one, and the gate retracted. Everything at Shengze College, from every blade of grass to every door, seemed to operate with this kind of “ingenious design.” It’s surprising they haven’t turned it into an amusement park or a Disneyland.

“Everyone, get out of the way!” The person who jumped from the retractable gate commanded with a voice resonant enough to stir the air for miles. The journalists were stunned by the commanding sound.

Turning around, they saw an elegant and cool woman standing confidently, dressed in a green tank top with a white cotton short-sleeve shirt over it and black leather shorts. She wore aviator-style onepiece sunglasses with a stylish logo that added a gentle touch with its gradient from light brown to a softer tone, highlighting her features with its nose pad design. Her command to “get out of the way!” made people willingly step aside. Extreme! Truly extreme! Elegance and coolness blended seamlessly in her presence, creating a perfect combination.

Behind her, four men in black suits flanked her, two on each side. Silent and expressionless, they were typical of the kind used for support.

“It’s Xie Wan, Xie Wan is here, Miss,” Mr. Xing said to Liu Zixu, looking through the car window at Xie Wan.

As Xie Wan continued forward, journalists followed her closely with their cameras. A reporter broadcasting live narrated, “Good afternoon, viewers. It’s one o’clock, and we’re at the gate of Shengze Mainstream Language and Literature College. Shengze College experienced a mass brawl incident yesterday, and investigations are underway. Madam President Liu Zixu, who just returned from Greece, is now at the gate. Our camera is currently focused on her bodyguard, Xie Wan, well-known as the champion of the 2008 National Women’s Sanda Competition…”

“Excuse me, please let us through, stop filming…” While the reporter was still on air, the people behind Xie Wan quickly reached out to cover the cameras, nearly knocking the reporter to the ground.

“Hey! Are you kidding me!…” Just as the reporter in the red vest was about to lash out at those pushing her, Liu Zixu had already stepped out of the car. The reporter, no longer angry, hurriedly approached Liu Zixu with the microphone in hand.

“Miss, please move aside!…” Xie Wan, supporting Liu Zixu, struggled to make their way through the crowd. When they were still about ten meters from the school gate, Xie Wan suddenly shouted, “Human ladder!” Four men in black suits, standing hand in hand, spaced over a meter apart, formed a staggered human ladder. It was hard to imagine, but Xie Wan, with her right hand around Liu Zixu’s waist, leapt from the ground, her feet swapping places on the human ladder formed by the men in black suits, her body still soaring a good distance off the ground. By the time the reporters looked again, the two had already jumped over the school gate and disappeared without a trace.

“Quick, to the data center.” Once past the gate, a small four-wheeled vehicle was already waiting inside, resembling an open-top police patrol car. The “retractable gate,” which had spun like a windmill’s blades, turned out to be Shengze College’s emergency motorized folding fan gate, part of the road surface itself. With a press of a button, it would rise, and the “No Vehicle Entry” sign stood erect at the base of the unfolded gate-a marvel of engineering. This also showed that from the day it was built, Shengze College was prepared for anything but peace!

“My goodness! Isn’t that Madam President? My, look at her legs, wow…” The crooked-faced security guard, spotting Liu Zixu, couldn’t help but exclaim as he leaned out the window, followed by the other five guards who, attracted like iron filings to a magnet, squeezed their heads into one window, their eyes gleaming with lascivious light!

“What are you looking at!” Xie Wan scolded sharply, causing the five heads to quickly duck below the window’s visibility. It seems even rats have their moments of facing the cat.

“Momma mia, who is that? Isn’t that Xie Wan?” the crooked-faced security guard said, leaning back against the wall in fear.

“Boss, it’s Xie Wan, that female demon. How could she appear here?” said a guard, too fat to be any fatter.

“Damn it, we’re decent security guards! Are we afraid of her, a mere personal bodyguard?… No way, she is the personal bodyguard of Madam President.” Just as the crooked-faced security guard thought to stand up, he hesitated, his eyes widening and sweat beads rolling down as he adjusted his green cap in frustration.

“Miss, why are we heading to the data center?” Xie Wan asked as she and Liu Zixu settled into the vehicle.

“Liu Zixu’s expression remained unchanged, but her mind was racing. ‘Xie Wan, quickly notify all departments in our college. Anyone involved in stock trading should come to the data center, including students,’ she instructed. Though Xie Wan was perplexed, she didn’t linger and swiftly got out of the car.

‘Xiao Shi, what’s the status of the stocks now?’ Liu Zixu hurriedly inquired upon entering the data center.

Xiao Shi replied, ‘I’m not sure what’s happening, but someone has just purchased the two million shares we dumped for over $80 million, which equates to about 600 million RMB!’

‘Two million shares bought? That’s strange…’ Liu Zixu said, sitting down in a chair with a puzzled look.

‘Madam, the fact that two million shares were bought in such a short time means that whoever bought them likely knows about the situation at our college. This person must be here in Hailing. Since we’re listed in the US, the buyer must have access to a large amount of USD or quickly exchanged RMB for USD,’ Xiao Shi thoughtfully analyzed. Liu Zixu, suddenly realizing something, said, ‘I understand. I’ll go to the banks right away to find out who’s behind this.’

‘Madam, our stock has surged by 4% now. Given the current circumstances, it seems like it will continue to rise,’ Xiao Shi commented, her tone turning somewhat puzzled.

‘It’s expected that the sudden large purchase of shares would drive the price up, but who is this person, and why are they doing it?’ Liu Zixu wondered aloud, sounding quite puzzled.

‘Miss! I brought everyone you requested!’ Xie Wan announced, standing at the data center entrance with a large group ready for instructions.

‘It’s fine, you can all leave now,’ Liu Zixu said. The people outside were taken aback by her words, standing in disbelief for a moment before slowly dispersing.”

The data center mentioned by Liu Zixu is located on the first floor of the Zone D teaching building at Shengze College. This data center isn’t set up for student computer studies but serves as the meeting place for Shengze’s shareholders, making it off-limits to unauthorized personnel. Even Liu Zixu only visits once or twice a month. This data center is undoubtedly the heart of Shengze!

Xiao Shi, 28 years old, is a director of Shengze and also the chief financial officer. Among all the shareholders, Liu Zixu trusts Xiao Shi the most. Xiao Shi is usually responsible for overseeing the data center. Five meters to the left of the data center is the Shengze Security Department. Although it’s called a security department, in reality, their sole responsibility seems to be safeguarding the data center. It’s said that members of the security department rarely show themselves, leading many to suspect that the Shengze Security Department is merely an empty room.

“Xie Wan, come with me for a bit.”

“Alright, Miss.”

Liu Zixu and Xie Wan walked down the corridor, their high heels clicking loudly against the floor. The sunlight reflected off Xie Wan’s glasses and onto the white walls, causing Liu Zixu to squint uncomfortably. She thought to herself, “What’s going on today? My eyes keep acting up.”

“Young master, you wouldn’t believe it. Her team is too good. The reporter couldn’t get a single word from her before her team whisked her away into the college,” a man with a phone in hand reported to his superior from across the street from Shengze’s north gate, sitting in a black Buick.

“So, Shengze College’s gate is open?”

“No, her team used some kind of acrobatic skill to get her inside.”

“Acrobatics? You must be joking! What era do you think this is? Acrobatics? You must be watching too many movies!” The person on the other end of the call hung up, clearly dismissing what he considered nonsense. It seems the person on the line was probably someone who stayed indoors a lot and didn’t follow entertainment news, so he wouldn’t know who Liu Zixu’s bodyguard, Xie Wan, was.

“Mr. Xing, take the car to the west gate. I’ll be there shortly.”

“Understood, Miss.”

Mr. Xing started the car and drove away from the north gate, with only a few reporters following. These reporters were quite aware that Shengze College usually kept only its north gate open, with other gates used mainly during holiday periods for student access. Often, “outsmarting” someone is just exploiting their habitual thinking.

“Where do you think you’re going!” A man in the black Buick shouted as he saw Liu Zixu’s Lexus pulling away and quickly followed.

Mr. Xing didn’t drive fast, and several reporters were right behind his car. Leading the charge was the female reporter in a red top, refusing to give up until she got her answers.

“Beep! Beep!” Mr. Xing heard Liu Zixu honk twice. As Liu Zixu got into her car, the reporter in red hurriedly approached, panting, and asked, “Excuse me, Madam, can you tell us how the mass brawl incident at Shengze College occurred? Were any students injured?”