Chapter 518: Chapter 28: Where the Heart Resides
As the night deepened, the lights inside Calypso Hall were blazing, illuminating the dark earth through the glass windows and projecting the enormous stained-glass portraits onto the lawn, slightly distorted. Qin Qianbai, her back to the glow, walked past a series of luxury cars that didn’t belong to her, her slender figure heading towards the deserted darkness on foot, appearing somewhat lonely.
Perhaps because school had not yet started, not a single person could be seen on the campus at night. Fortunately, she remembered the way she had come; she could return the same way and hail a cab to her home.
Qin Qianbai walked quietly for a while until she reached the main road of the campus, lit by streetlamps. It was an incline, with Calypso Hall on a side road above the slope, and at the end of the main road lay the teaching buildings. The students of this school had to climb daily from the bottom to the top, as if scaling a mountain range.
Below a streetlamp was a shiny silver car. A young man with brown hair stood troubled by his vehicle.
Qin Qianbai found it strange. The only access between the hall and this spot was the route she had just walked. Perhaps Aorus had used a secret passage, or else he had relocated his position through superpower.
“Miss Qin, I promised you could leave at any time… but what I meant was that I would drive you home. In Ustus, no man would stand by and watch a lady walk to the next block on foot, no matter how strong she is,” Aorus said, his voice edged with uncertainty.
Qin Qianbai stopped in her tracks and stated matter-of-factly,
“You seem very considerate.”
Aorus detected a hint of hostility from her words. Feigning ignorance, he prepared to open his car door, “In my homeland, this is basic courtesy for a gentleman. Perhaps I—”
“Miss Creyah is fond of you.” Qin Qianbai coldly interrupted him, abrupt as a knife slicing through a knot.
Aorus apparently hadn’t expected her to suddenly mention this. He seemed slightly embarrassed, “…I apologize, but that is a private matter between us.”
Qin Qianbai continued on, completely disregarding his reaction,
“Her adoration for you is plainly obvious, even to someone who has just met you like myself. Only a man as hopelessly inept and dull as those in old tales could remain unaware of her feelings after spending so much time together.
You are far from foolish, Aorus Otimis. You understand what lies in the hearts of others, and you know the thoughts of everyone around you. Yet tonight’s performance surprised me greatly.”
Aorus instantly understood the source of the hostility. This child clearly had never attended such occasions; she was a complete novice! He explained gently, with a barely concealed smile,
“I think you’ve misunderstood, Miss Qin. This was a welcome party; we all need a little artifice to stir the emotions. It wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment act, but a performance carefully planned in advance, agreed upon by both Creyah and me.”
Qin Qianbai’s gaze grew even colder,
“You shared an ignoble past in front of a crowd, divulging her story to so many. Indeed, you once offered her support, but that should not have been disclosed to outsiders. How mortified would that make a person? Your generosity is brought into the light, but where does that leave her dignity?
Miss Creyah agreed to this because of her affection and admiration for you; she is willing to cast aside her own dignity for your sake. But if you truly cared about her feelings, you wouldn’t have staged such a performance.”
The young man with brown hair leaned against his car, explaining with a teacher-like tone, “I believe this is a matter of cultural differences. We don’t mind sharing personal details with one another. There are no strangers in our organization. Everyone talks about their past so that we can understand each other as brothers and sisters and work together seamlessly.”
Qin Qianbai recalled someone’s words. She repeated them in the exact same tone,
“Entering another’s heart requires the proper credentials.” She added on her own accord, “If you lose the basic distance, how can you maintain respect for each other? There’s something else I don’t understand and wish you could clarify. Why did the man I met yesterday apologize to me?”
Aorus spread his hands wide, “To apologize for their rudeness.”
“When were they ever rude? Wasn’t the mistake mine for acting hastily?” Qin Qianbai pressed, “They were expecting you, their leader, to vent their frustration, yet you asked them to apologize to me, merely to win me over. Even a brute as crude and obtuse as Wing of Death knows to save face for his brothers, yet you, an elite of noble birth, show not the slightest concern for your subordinates.”
Aorus’s expression turned serious, his eyebrows furrowing as he spoke with a near cautionary tone, “You are twisting everything into a negative light, which could be the result of the environment. In truth…”
Qin Qianbai shook her head regretfully, a complex look in her eyes,
“If you truly cared about the thoughts of your subordinates, you would have set me aside and conversed with those being neglected.” The girl said, “But in your eyes, I, someone you’ve just met, seem more important than them. Aorus Otimis, you certainly have an eye for talent. Yet you see only people’s skills but care not for their hearts. Your grand speeches are pure nonsense.”
Seeming confused, Aorus asked, “I don’t think I have—”
Qin Qianbai couldn’t hold back any longer, “In martial arts, we know the importance of cultivating the mind over skill. Yet in education, you do the exact opposite, isn’t that strange? Fancy tricks are ultimately insignificant details, while imparting knowledge and instruction is the essence. I’ve observed everyone in the hall; one in three are younger than me. Such youths with underdeveloped minds and unclear logic, not even knowing how to behave properly, how can they talk of grand ambitions and ideals? Your words lead them to conceit, corrupting the youth.”