Thirsty?

"I told you, don't be so close to her."

Lady Catherine looked at her daughter with a mixture of disappointment and frustration, pulling her aside and speaking in a low voice.

Xu Xiqin looked wronged. "But you're the one who left us alone together."

Catherine was at a loss for words, gave her oblivious daughter a helpless glare, and changed the subject. "Shen Shouli from the Shen family came today as well. I heard he also signed up for Moye Military Academy. Did you see him?"

Shen Shouli was someone she had gone to great lengths to invite.

Xu Chengbi had once been a subordinate of the old master of the Shen family. The old master, now sixty and in his prime, held the rank of general firmly, and was also the principal of Longyuan Military Academy. Shen Shouli's father held an important position in politics as well—the Shen family was someone even Prince Norton had to curry favor with.

If the people living in the central area of the Capital Star were all born in Rome, then Shen Shouli was born at the very pinnacle of the Roman palace.

Even setting aside his family background, his psychic power level was rated S+, marking him as someone destined to shine in the Military Department.

If Xu Xiqin could get to know him better—even if not romantically—it would greatly benefit her future in the military.

Lady Catherine had thought it all through, but unfortunately her daughter was far too carefree.

"Who knows where he went? It's not like I put a tracker on him," Xu Xiqin said, a bit puzzled by the question.

Catherine glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then discreetly flicked her daughter's forehead before pulling her along to continue their social rounds.

---

If you're going to do something bad, it might be wise to hide your sneaky expression first—your success rate would be higher.

Xu Lingqu stood by the small fountain in the garden, her gaze fixed on the two ice-blue ornamental fish in the pond, but her consciousness was acutely aware of the two people "plotting" behind her.

She had never seen them before, didn't know them, but if Lady Catherine had invited them, they must be from wealthy or influential families.

At this point, the two young gentlemen had apparently decided on how to mess with Xu Lingqu, who seemed oblivious to their existence. They hadn't even made a move yet, but they were already grinning with mischief.

Xu Lingqu sighed helplessly, continuing to stand there with an air of calm. A subtle gust of wind brushed behind her, and she casually shifted aside, perfectly dodging the hand that was about to push her into the fountain.

The push, unable to retract, combined with the irresistible pull of gravity, sent the man tumbling headfirst into the fountain.

"Splash!" The water splashed up, wetting the hem of Xu Lingqu's dress.

The other one, who had been scheming behind the scenes but hadn't made a move, seemed shocked by the turn of events and hurried over to check on his companion.

Xu Lingqu turned gracefully, and as the second man leaned over the fountain edge trying to fish his friend out, she lifted her foot and sent him in as well, reuniting the pair.

The other man also plunged into the fountain in a comical pose.

"Ah," Xu Lingqu said calmly, turning to look at the two drenched figures in the fountain. "Are you two very thirsty?"

The commotion of the two "diving" into the fountain was considerable, and the household robots stationed in the garden immediately sounded an alarm, drawing the partygoers from the backyard banquet.

By the time Lady Catherine led the crowd over, hitching up her skirts, the two had just crawled out of the fountain, wringing out their clothes in a sorry state.

"What's going on here?" Xu Xiqin, eager for gossip, was the first to speak, identifying the two. "Lawrence and Jones, what are you two up to? Trying to steal our fish?"

The cousins Lawrence and Jones were the notorious good-for-nothings of the Wella family. Birds of a feather, they were most often found speeding their hovercrafts down the main streets of the Capital, swaggering in and out of the red-light district, and had even beaten up a wealthy merchant's son for no reason other than they didn't like the look of him.

Xu Xiqin immediately walked over to Xu Lingqu, who was standing nearby, and asked with concern, "Are you okay!"

Looking at the scene, it seemed that Xu Lingqu had been alone with those two bastards—who knew if they had tried to bully her.

"I'm fine. I just thought the two gentlemen must be thirsty. I've never seen such a method of hydration before, so I was a bit surprised," Xu Lingqu said sarcastically.

Jones, with his green-dyed hair, shot her a vicious glare.

Originally, he and Lawrence had stopped by with the intention of bullying this "adopted daughter" of the general's family, who was clearly not favored. They figured that even if they pushed her into the fountain, Lady Catherine wouldn't defend her.

But unexpectedly, this woman seemed to have eyes in the back of her head, detecting Lawrence's move and making him fall into the fountain himself, and then kicking Jones, who had come to rescue him, in as well.

"That's not fair, Miss Xu. You clearly kicked me in," Jones said, his face dark. He wasn't about to let this slide.

"I kicked you?" Xu Lingqu smiled. "Got any proof?"

Xu Xiqin was furious, pointing at Jones's nose and cursing, "You're the ones causing trouble at our house, and you still want to frame my sister?"

She called her "sister" quite naturally, but her actions were anything but ladylike. Lady Catherine, standing nearby, felt another pang of unease.

The Xu mansion's garden had no surveillance cameras, so it was impossible to verify one way or the other.

Jones, who had done many bad deeds but never faced consequences, found himself for the first time on the losing end, being scolded and cursed at. He was about to explode with fury, but Lawrence beside him was as dumb as a log and wouldn't open his mouth, leaving him fighting alone.

Suddenly, from the shady path beside the fountain, a figure emerged.

The man wore a light brown trench coat, his figure tall and straight, with ink-black hair and light brown pupils that sparkled. He was almost too handsome—his features combined into an immediately striking beauty that hit you the moment you looked.

As soon as Jones saw him, he instinctively shrank back for a second, then, as if seeing a savior, he shouted, "Shen Shouli! You must have seen it! Your psychic power level is S+, you must have seen this woman kick me!"

Shen Shouli? Xu Lingqu was a bit puzzled, and she turned to Xu Xiqin, who looked surprised and pouted, mumbling, "Every time he shows up, it's like some big celebrity arriving. So annoying."

Seeing Xu Lingqu's confusion, Xu Xiqin briefly explained Shen Shouli's impressive background.

Xu Lingqu nodded thoughtfully. With an S+ psychic power level, he indeed might have seen her kick Jones.

But so what? He hadn't initiated the attack—no way he could have only seen her kick and not seen Lawrence's attempt to push her first, right?

As for Shen Shouli—well, although his name meant "observe propriety," his family background and looks were all things worth showing off. He certainly wasn't going to be the well-mannered young master his grandfather hoped for.

But having been raised by General Shen himself, he hadn't turned into a wastrel, nor had he done anything outrageous to tarnish his name. At most, he was a bit spoiled and indifferent to those who didn't interest him. Moreover, he looked down on those dissolute idlers.

That's why people like Jones usually treated him like a mouse seeing a cat. This time, however, Jones genuinely saw him as a savior.

"You saw it, didn't you?" Jones looked at him with anticipation.

Shen Shouli's amber-like eyes glanced at him, then fell upon Xu Lingqu standing nearby.

Xu Lingqu didn't avoid his gaze; she calmly looked back.

Their eyes met in the air. Shen Shouli withdrew his gaze and let out a cold snort. "I didn't see anything." With that, he nodded to Lady Catherine and left.

Jones wore an expression of utter disbelief. He shakily raised his wet sleeve as if to point at Shen Shouli in accusation, but lacked the guts, and finally lowered his hand on his own.

Lawrence beside him was so frightened he looked like he wanted to crouch down with his hands over his head.

The farce had gone on long enough. The incident was clear, and there was a witness. Lady Catherine frowned and spoke, "Madam Wella, if you and Mr. Wella are incapable of educating the young people of your family, I don't mind teaching them a lesson myself."

With a slight wave of her hand, two guards had already taken control of the still-dripping Jones and Lawrence.

Her words were heavy, calling out the entire Wella family. The color drained from Madam Wella's face on the spot, and she repeatedly apologized to Lady Catherine, "Lady Catherine, we have been too lenient in our discipline... please..."

"Have them handed over to the police. I heard Chief Wen has been looking for them lately." With a cold expression, Lady Catherine was the epitome of an icy beauty, her authority making everyone present hold their breath in fear.

Xu Xiqin whispered gleefully in Xu Lingqu's ear, "Mother has always hated those two punks. And they dared to bully you in our own home—she'll definitely make sure they regret it."

She must really hate those two, then, Xu Lingqu thought silently.

In the end, the banquet meant to introduce Xu Lingqu to society concluded with the guards escorting two interstellar thugs off to have tea with the police.

Xu Lingqu returned to her room, where she found Gina installing a large device with the help of a service robot.

"Miss Lingqu," Gina said, introducing the device to the curious Xu Lingqu, "this is an activation and psychic power testing device given to Master Youwen by a friend in the military."