Liu Cheng puffed out her chest and said haughtily, “Shen Xi, if you apologise now, I won’t make things difficult for you. In the future, if you need anything from me, I will help you once for the sake of our many years together as classmates.”

Liu Cheng was the epitome of arrogance. In her mind, she could already see Shen Xi bowing her head in apology for what she had done, the thought of which thrilled her. To have the almighty Shen Xi scrape for her forgiveness… It was a dream come true.

Shen Xi could not help but scoff at Liu Cheng’s wishful thinking. With a cold laugh, she slapped Liu Cheng’s hand aside. So strong was her action that it caused Liu Cheng an acute sense of pain.

“What nonsense are you dreaming of in the middle of the day? If you want my apology, you’ll have to wait till your next life before you get one. Get lost! I don’t have the time or patience to deal with you right now. If you don’t, the next hit will be harder than the last.” Shen Xi’s voice was not loud, but it did not have to be; her warning rang loud and clear.

Liu Cheng grimaced, clutching her aching hand as she shot Shen Xi a glare. “Shen Xi, I’ll remember this! I won’t let you off so easily!”

Shen Xi snorted. “Hah! I’ll wait.” With that, Shen Xi spun on her heel and left.

Liu Cheng was about to stop her again to save face but was stopped by Jiang Xue, who watched from the sidelines.

Jiang Xue tried to placate her. “Forget it, forget it. I don’t think Xixi did it on purpose. She’s probably stressed about her future, so she came across harsher than she should. Don’t be angry. I’ll apologise on her behalf.”

“Why are you still talking to that ingrate?” Liu Cheng hissed resentfully.

“She robbed you of your life. You suffered in silence for 18 years. Such a shameless person ought to be despised and cursed. Those of lower birth are born with muddy blood; they’re base and disgusting.”

Liu Chen’s words were full of anger and malice. She directed her roiling hatred at Shen Xi, belittling her as much as possible.

Jiang Xue sighed and said, “Shen Xi is quite pitiful. To go from being the eldest daughter of a wealthy family to a life of poverty… It must be hard on her. Just forget about it.”

Liu Cheng looked at Jiang Xue with a face full of disappointment and said, “Jiang Xue, you’re too kind. With a character like yours, others will bully you. They’ll take advantage of you and your kindness.”

Jiang Xue smiled faintly, responding in kind, “Being at a disadvantage is also a blessing. Alright, alright. Let’s hurry up and get down to business.”

“Alright, I’ll listen to you,” Liu Chen sighed helplessly.

Jiang Xue nodded her head in satisfaction. She had wanted to watch Liu Cheng humiliate Shen Xi, but she did not think that the good-for-nothing Liu Cheng would be outdone by Shen Xi with just a glare and a few words.

However, Jiang Xue had a few important matters to settle. She wanted to find a good art teacher. She had heard that a good teacher had recently arrived at the Six Arts Workshop. She was going to see if this teacher was qualified to teach her.

Her father, Jiang Lun, blamed the incident of Jiang Xue’s car crash on the amusement park employees. Therefore, Xiang Cheng’s family did not know that Jiang Xue had tried to hit someone with his car. Still, the car was too damaged to be fixed and could only be scrapped.

As for the compensation amounting to tens of millions of yuan… It was a small matter to the rich and powerful Jiang family, who resolved the issue with a wave of a hand.

From what she gathered, Jiang Xue learned that the Xiang family was wealthier than hers. With that knowledge, Jiang Xue decided to marry Xiang Cheng and become the young mistress of the illustrious Xiang family.

Unfortunately, Jiang Xue could tell that Xiang Cheng’s mother did not like her much, and his father was rather noncommittal even though he allowed Xiang Cheng to date her.

The Xiang family’s true thoughts of her remained a mystery. The fact that she and Xiang Cheng were still in an ambiguous relationship irked her.

The only person who could help Jiang Xue now was the Xiang family’s easiest to please, Old Master Xiang — Xiang Jun…

Xiang Jun was a connoisseur of the arts and deeply appreciated painting and calligraphy. As long as she could make a few achievements in either or both fields, it would be easy for her to gain Old Master Xiang’s approval. Xiang Tian and his wife would follow soon after since they respected Old Master Xiang’s words.

Thinking of this, Jiang Xue clenched her fists in excitement. She would succeed, no matter what. This time, she would be superior to Shen Xi’s inferior station, and she wanted the life of luxury that would come with being the Xiang family’s young mistress.

Jiang Xue and Liu Cheng followed the directions on the map to the Six Arts Workshop, where the so-called course advisor asked them what they would like to learn.