ATLAS TRANSLATES

The staff who were fiddling with the equipment were also very surprised. They looked at each other in disbelief.

Ren Wanxuan had already left the classroom, leaving behind a bunch of people.

As the only descendant of the Ren family, she was extremely willful in front of Ren Qian, throwing tantrums at the slightest dissatisfaction. Naturally, she wouldn’t restrain herself here either.

“Ms. Ren?” The principal was taken aback. With a momentary lapse in attention, Ren Wanxuan had already left.

He called out to her twice, but not only did he fail to stop Ren Wanxuan, she walked even faster instead.

“Principal, what should we do now?” The photographer closed the equipment cover somewhat awkwardly and looked towards the principal.

Chen Zhu stood up from his seat. He glanced at Zhang Shize and said coldly, “If you don’t understand, don’t talk nonsense.”

Then he nodded at the principal, “I’ll go take a look at her.”

After Chen Zhu left, the principal looked at Zhang Shize with an indescribable expression. “Can’t you stop provoking her with that mouth of yours?”

“I can’t even speak the truth?” Zhang Shize rubbed his nose.

The contradictions between Class 8 and the ordinary classes were not just over a day or two.

Because of the incident with the sword, he hadn’t played basketball with the class monitor of Class 8 recently.

“Alright, I’ll handle this matter. You two cooperate with the photographer.” The principal took one last look at Zhang Shize and shook his head helplessly. “It’s fine, I’ll go communicate with her.”

The principal was also aware of the contradictions between Class 8 and the ordinary classes.

He had Teacher Li take charge of Class 8 in hopes of resolving the contradictions between Class 8 and the other classes. It had some effect, but not much.

The cultural tourism promotion in Xiangcheng this time was very important. They couldn’t do without anyone, not even Ren Wanxuan.

In an instant, three people had left. Zhang Shize looked at Bailian.

“You two,” the photographer quickly spoke up to break the awkward atmosphere, “let’s go downstairs and take some photos of the school’s millennium monument!”

**

On this side.

The Ren family car was parked at the school gate. Ren Wanxuan ignored Chen Zhu’s and the principal’s words and got directly into the car. “Go to the teacher’s house.”

Ren Wanxuan’s teacher was Teacher Chou. The driver also knew.

Teacher Chou lived in the city tower area of Xiangcheng, a bit remote, but a standalone house.

When she arrived, Teacher Chou was meeting with people from the Cultural Tourism Bureau.

“This is Wanxuan, as you all know, she’s a student I took on in my later years,” Teacher Chou was around 60 years old, with white hair. He smiled at the people from the Cultural Tourism Bureau, “Very talented.”

The bureau chief had just been transferred over and didn’t know much about the Ren family.

He had also never heard of Ren Wanxuan before, nor heard of her in the major calligraphy competitions. He just perfunctorily praised her a bit.

Finally, the topic turned to Teacher Chou’s grandson again. “As expected, heroes come from the youth. Baoqing is also very young, yet already nominated for the Lanting Prize. Is he going for the Lanting Prize again this year?”

The Lanting Prize is held once every three years. Baoqing Chou had already been nominated six years ago.

At that time, it caused a huge sensation in the calligraphy world.

Many were guessing whether Baoqing Chou would participate again this year.

“That depends on him.” Teacher Chou just smiled. The pride on his face was very obvious.

Ren Wanxuan watched as the topic was turned to Baoqing Chou after just a sentence or two.

She stood beside her teacher, head lowered, but the smile at the corner of her mouth twisted for an instant.

After everyone left, Teacher Chou finally looked at Ren Wanxuan, put down his teacup. His expression was calm, but his eyes were extremely sharp. “I heard from your grandfather that your calligraphy has improved recently. Come write me a couple characters and let me take a look.”

The two went to the study. Ren Wanxuan picked up a wolf hair brush.

She carefully and earnestly wrote down the character “yong”.

The brushwork was exquisite. One could see she did have some skill, especially since she was a girl with naturally weaker wrist strength.

In calligraphy, she was indeed a genius.

“Teacher, can I participate in the Lanting Prize this year?” Ren Wanxuan put down her brush and asked.

Teacher Chou stared at the character “yong” she had written.

He shook his head. “You’re still too young. When your senior apprentice brother was your age, his brushwork was much more stable than yours. Wait a little longer.”

“Okay.” Ren Wanxuan lowered her head, looking quite obedient.

She dared to be willful in front of Ren Qian, and at school.

But she didn’t dare in front of Teacher Chou. When the teacher couldn’t see, her eyes turned sinister.

Senior apprentice brother, it was senior apprentice brother again…

“Weren’t you at school today?” Teacher Chou reached out and took a book for copying. He smiled and asked about her day.

Ren Wanxuan pursed her lips, and told him half of what happened.

“What style does that girl study?” Teacher Chou was surprised. There were already few females in the calligraphy world, and Ren Wanxuan was a rare talented female he had seen.

He didn’t expect there to be another one at No. 1 Middle School in Xiangcheng.

“Guange style.” Ren Wanxuan spoke up.

Guange style? When Teacher Chou heard that, he didn’t ask further.

Seeing that Teacher Chou had a meeting to attend to, Ren Wanxuan took out her phone and sent a message to someone—

?Senior apprentice brother, Teacher doesn’t agree to recommend my work this year. Is he really that afraid I’ll take your record as the youngest Lanting Prize nominee??

The reply came slowly: ?You’re still too young, not enough yet.?

—?But you were nominated at 18 too!?

Ren Wanxuan pursed her lips.

Her skill was clearly comparable to Baoqing Chou’s, but Baoqing Chou was renowned in the industry all because he had been nominated at 18, aggressively promoted by his team.

Teacher Chou had taken the initiative to recommend Baoqing Chou to compete when he was 18, yet kept dragging his feet when it came to her.

Waiting again meant waiting until three years later.

She took out her phone and sent a message to Ren Qian—

?The teacher refuses to recommend my work this year. He’s that afraid of me breaking senior apprentice brother’s record as the youngest Lanting Prize nominee??

**

On Bailian’s side.

She was expressionlessly cooperating with the photographer.

“Student, give me some expression!” The photographer aimed the lens at Bailian, feeling exasperated. “At least give me a little expression! The only surviving brushwork of Bai Xiangjun in Xiangcheng is behind you! How can you be so expressionless?”

Zhang Shize stood to the side, wishing he could go up for Bailian.

“Sis,” Zhang Shize couldn’t stand it either. He pointed at the characters carved into the stone and said, “You feel no emotion looking at these words? These were carved with her last spear on the stone during her final battle. How can you be so indifferent?!”

Bailian glanced coldly at Zhang Shize—

?Try yelling at me again??

Zhang Shize: “…”

He silently looked at the photographer, shrugging. Meaning there was nothing he could do.

A photography assistant walked over and slowly moved to Bailian’s side. She softly explained to her, “This is the only writing she left for the Bai family army before her death. Imagine it, the final battle, she told General Chen Ye to lead the young warriors to retreat, leaving only the aging elites to die together with her. Just imagine that feeling…”

Bailian turned her head to look at the row of characters on the stone slab a few steps away, over a person tall.

She knew this stone.

But this was also the first time Bailian had looked at it since coming to school. The person-tall stone, weathered by history, the characters carved by a spear had been deepened by people. Only one phrase remained—

“Drink to heart’s content and fight to the death, charge alone into the netherworld!”

The characters were carved deeply into the stone, the style wild and unconstrained. Each character danced like a phoenix. At a glance, one only felt a surge of killer aura, displaying the phrase’s wild heroism to great effect. In the sunlight, it was as if it could burst forth at any moment.

Bailian tilted her head to look at the row of words for the first time.

The dazzling sunlight. The girl tilted her head silently looking at the giant wet characters reflecting the cold glint. Her slender figure could vaguely be seen.

She was also wearing a simple white robe, hair held in place by a wooden hairpin.

In that moment, it was as if she had traversed a thousand years of time, stepping through the mists of history from years ago, crossing countless dangers and obstacles to arrive at this magnificent scene today.

“That’s it!” The assistant quickly looked to the photographer.

The photographer had already seized the opportunity and snapped this scene. “It really worked! This setting is too good!”

Just this one scene could be used as the main promotional video, no editing required at all.

“You two are very good,” the photographer looked repeatedly at the scene he had captured, then looked up with a smile in his eyes, “You really know how to work the camera.”

With their looks, the two could make it big in the entertainment industry.

Especially this girl, her emotional expression just now was simply perfect.

After finishing the shoot, Bailian and Zhang Shize left the school.

It was Saturday today. There were still many people at the milk tea shop.

When the two had just left, Yang Lin was also leaving the milk tea shop. The scars on the back of her hand were almost invisible now.

“Hi,” Zhang Shize greeted Yang Lin.

Yang Lin glanced at him but didn’t say anything.

Zhang Shize was used to it.

Bailian withdrew her gaze from Yang Lin. The three walked forward together. Zhang Shize’s home was just up ahead, while Bailian was going to the bus stop. Yang Lin went into the florist at Zhang Shize’s place, took a lily, and left money on the counter.

Yang Lin lived in an apartment building.

She climbed up the long, dark stairs, which were littered with dirty garbage. Even in this weather, flies were buzzing about.

Her home was on the fourth floor.

There were over a dozen households on just the first floor of the apartment building. Her home was to the left of the stairs on the fourth floor. As Yang Lin reached the fourth floor, an old lady opened her door on the right and said softly, “I just saw your dad come back.”

Yang Lin nodded. Her jet-black eyes were calm.

The old lady sighed and handed a steamed bun to Yang Lin. “He doesn’t seem too drunk today. Ah, it’ll be better once you grow up.”

Yang Lin shook her head. She didn’t take the bun.

Nor did she say anything, just taking out her house keys and quietly unlocking the door.

She had heard this sentence to the point of numbness. How old did she have to be to count as grown up?

She had started looking forward to growing up since she was 5.

Now she was already 18. Did that count as grown up?

She didn’t know.

As soon as she opened the door, she heard the loud sound of the television. The small living room was filled with cigarette smoke.

The unwashed middle-aged man who hadn’t bathed in days sat on the sofa. There were fried chicken and several cans on the table, chicken bones scattered all over the worn-out sofa.

He must have won some money.

Seeing Yang Lin, he immediately struggled to get up, his slightly long hair matted together. Mumbling, he took out some loose change, “Xiao Lin, dad’s sorry. I drank too much the other day. Have you eaten…?”

Yang Lin ignored him, until she saw that the lock to her room had been pried open.

She froze, then rushed over and forcefully shut the door to her room, locking it.

She crawled under her bed and took out a locked metal box.

The lock was undamaged.

She breathed a sigh of relief, then sat down on the ground, breathing heavily.

After quite a while, she took out the wages issued today from her schoolbag pocket, neatly placing it into the metal box.

Only then did she slowly tidy up her room, and took out the vibrant, lush lily to place in a plastic bottle on the windowsill.

Yang Lin sat on the bed, quietly looking at that lily.

The supple petals were as pure as snow, elegant white, the only bright spot in the entire room.

She looked at it for a good while before slowly taking out the green medicated cream from her schoolbag, applying it to the bruises on her arms, legs, and waist.

The brown paste slowly dissolved into the purple and blue skin.

Faint stinging pain.

**

At the same time.

A car slowly drove into Xiangcheng.

Ji Mulan looked expressionlessly at the unchanging streets, listless.

“I heard this place is developing its tourism industry.” The man smiled at Ji Mulan. He was here to investigate the possibility of opening a hotel here.

Hearing this, Ji Mulan sat up straight.

She looked at the man. His information had always been accurate.

If he said so, the possibility of Xiangcheng’s tourism industry taking off reached 80%.

Xiangcheng’s largest hotel was located in the city center, a 26-story building. “When do I get to meet your father and daughter? We’ll have to live together eventually.”

He pressed the elevator button and asked, turning his head.

“My father can forget it, he definitely won’t see me,” Ji Mulan said lightly. When it came to Bailian, she paused for a moment. “She’s also had it hard these past two years. I hope she knows to work hard this time.”

“Don’t put too much pressure on the child.” The elevator door opened and the man walked in, pressing the floor number.

Ji Mulan’s makeup was meticulous, every movement elegant.

Even over forty, her charm did not diminish. She attracted many glances along the way.

Hearing the man speak, she tugged at the corner of her lips but did not respond.

His son was outstanding, so he could naturally say something like this lightly. If their positions were switched, he might not be as calm as her.

After leaving the elevator, Ji Mulan calmly dialed a number.

**

Bailian was still at the library.

When she received Ji Shaojun’s call, she was working on a biology test paper.

Biology was much simpler than physics. Even Ji Heng could solve a few questions from the high school test papers.

“A’Meng,” on the phone, Ji Shaojun had just finished teaching a child. Holding a drawing board, he frowned, “Do you know your mother is back?”

“She called me yesterday.” Bailian spoke up.

“Mm,” Ji Shaojun nodded. “Come meet her with me later. If you have anything to say, say it properly.”

“Oh,” Bailian slowly replied. After hanging up, she casually leaned back in her chair and flicked Ji He’s forehead, “I’m going out for dinner later, so go home first?”

Ji He covered his head and looked at Bailian with eyes wide open. “I’ll wait for you.”

Bailian: “…” Okay.

She waited until Ming Donghua hurried over from Heishui Street before leaving for Wanhe Tower.

Wanhe Tower.

Ji Shaojun didn’t go in first. He sat on the steps outside, smoking while waiting for Bailian.

Brows furrowed.

“Uncle.” Seeing him, Bailian raised an eyebrow after a while. “Why aren’t you going in?”

Ji Shaojun stubbed out his cigarette. He looked at Bailian, hesitating over whether to speak.

When he didn’t speak, Bailian just stood in front of him, studying her vocabulary while waiting for him, not rushing him.

“There’s something I need to tell you first, brace yourself,” Ji Shaojun looked at Bailian. After quite a while, he patted his sleeves and stood up. He considered his words for a bit before speaking, “Your mother brought a man over.”

Bailian was somewhat surprised. After about ten seconds, she understood what Ji Shaojun meant and lazily smiled. “How nice.”

This was modern times. Women could divorce freely, free from worldly constraints.

Bailian was happy for her.

Ji Shaojun had hesitated for so long just because he was afraid Bailian would feel sad.

Her father had brought back an illegitimate child, and now her mother was going to remarry.

He had imagined ten thousand possible reactions from Bailian, but the one he never imagined was this reaction.

“Alright, you’ve really grown up,” he sighed and patted Bailian’s shoulder, lowering his eyes. “Let’s go in together.”

Inside the private room.

Ji Mulan sat side by side with a man.

“Relax,” the man smiled and reassured Ji Mulan. “I’ve already arranged everything. It will all be fine.”

According to Ji Mulan’s request, he had found a school for her daughter.

But…the man was actually a little worried. He didn’t actually recommend that Ji Mulan’s daughter go to that school.

The international schools mostly had students who had studied there from young and directly progressed upwards. The competitive pressure was enormous, but from what Ji Mulan said, her daughter wasn’t that outstanding academically.

The pressure to get into this school would be too great, the gap too large. It would be very easy to become discouraged.

Just as he was thinking this, the waiter’s voice sounded from the door, followed by it opening.

It should be her daughter’s arrival.

Ji Mulan and the man both looked up towards the door.