Chapter 85
Preparations for the Christmas Ball were proceeding in an orderly fashion. The auditorium gradually took on the atmosphere of a Greek ball, which made Zhuang Chi, who had personally participated in the decorations, feel quite emotional.
The process was remarkably smooth, almost as if to make up for all her previous misfortunes. She encountered absolutely no difficulties or unreasonable situations. If there was anything worth mentioning, it would be her costume for playing King Pygmalion—to be honest, it wasn't very reasonable.
At the strong insistence of the other members of the Presidium, Zhuang Chi did not participate in the costume design. The clothes she eventually received were, putting aside how flashy they were, clearly expensive at a glance, making her hesitate to even hold them, wondering if she should really wear them.
“It’s custom-made!” Ling Jing tilted her head back smugly and pulled Zhuang Chi toward a nearby empty classroom. “Quick, quick, go change and let’s see!”
...She was so enthusiastic that Zhuang Chi couldn't refuse. She had to go change. The fabric was so complex it was hard to understand, and she fumbled with it for a long time before clumsily getting it on. Finally, she was stumped by a long strip of cloth that nearly dragged on the floor. Holding it, she opened the door and raised it questioningly, “What is this?”
“It’s a cape!” Ling Jing cheerfully snatched the cloth and threw it over her back. “See! It’s warm, right! This way you won’t be cold at the ball!”
When she finally stood in front of the mirror, Zhuang Chi silently stared at her reflection for a long while before slowly speaking, “...This is cosplay for some anime character, isn't it.”
It was gorgeous and solemn, with a main color scheme of white and gold, and the cape was large enough to almost envelop her entire body. She looked like a noble royal character from some manga, but not at all like Pygmalion from Greek mythology. However, the other members of the Presidium reacted with great enthusiasm, clamoring things like, “You look the part, Zhuang Chi!”, “It’s fine, the opening needs to be a bit grand, it’s very pretty, very pretty,” and “It’s better than actually wearing traditional Greek attire, that would be so cold.” Among them, Lou Che looked her over a few times and muttered, “It’s a pity the crown hasn’t arrived yet…”
They even had a crown custom-made! Zhuang Chi felt like a dress-up doll. She wasn't particularly angry, just smiled wryly along with them. Just then, Olivia chimed in, “Why not use mine? I can bring it over tomorrow.”
Zhuang Chi’s heart tightened. She turned to look at Olivia, whose blue eyes held a sincere smile as she quietly met her gaze.
After that day, Zhuang Chi and Olivia’s relationship hadn’t changed—at least, that’s how it appeared on the surface. This was, of course, thanks to Olivia. Zhuang Chi had already prepared herself to never be able to speak to Olivia again, but Olivia acted remarkably composed, still maintaining a normal, friendly distance, as if she truly meant it when she had said “don’t worry.”
Although Zhuang Chi knew it probably wasn't that simple, she went along with Olivia’s wishes, properly staying in the position of a friend and offering her a gentle smile.
“Ahem, let’s not,” Lou Che glanced between the two of them, coughed dryly, and said seriously, “Yours is the real deal. It would be terrible if it got damaged, it could become a diplomatic issue… So let’s just use the fake one, we can make it in time—”
“—right?” As he spoke, his tone shifted, becoming somewhat timid as he looked across the room, as if afraid of startling someone. It was a normal confirmation, but his voice was soft. “...Gu Ximian?”
Zhuang Chi paused, then followed his gaze to Gu Ximian. She saw that the other person was also looking at her, her gaze clear and cool, her arms crossed loosely over her chest.
“We can make it in time,” Gu Ximian replied, her eyes still fixed on Zhuang Chi, not moving away. “It’ll be ready the day after tomorrow at the latest, don’t worry.”
...What was going on, was Gu Ximian in charge of ordering the crown? Zhuang Chi felt that participating in such things wasn't Gu Ximian's style, but now the facts were right in front of her. She imagined Gu Ximian earnestly ordering a crown for her that had absolutely nothing to do with a Greek king, and found it adorable. She couldn't help but smile. “So you had a hand in this too.”
“Can’t I?”
Gu Ximian stood up as she spoke, walked over to her, and began to straighten her cape, sighing, “Did Ling Jing tie this for you? It’s all wrinkled.”
Zhuang Chi cooperatively lifted her head to make it easier for Gu Ximian to adjust it, thinking that Gu Ximian didn't seem to be acting strangely at all. Things had been very peaceful lately.
Although they never managed to have a clear talk about what happened on the day of the treatment—partly because Zhuang Chi herself was too afraid to delve into it—Gu Ximian’s every action pointed to an unspoken answer. The more she thought about it, the more anxious she became. Now was not the time to confess her secret to Gu Ximian, and she still didn't know if the Notebook was watching. This prevented Zhuang Chi from being completely happy about anything she heard, as if a sword of Damocles was hanging over her head, ready to fall at any moment.
Whether it should be called fortunate or not, Gu Ximian also seemed unwilling to talk more about that day. She continued to interact with her as usual, not bringing up anything that Zhuang Chi would find difficult to handle.
“How is it, do you like it?”
Hearing this question out of the blue, Zhuang Chi almost thought Gu Ximian had heard her thoughts. It was only when she saw Gu Ximian’s indicative gaze that she realized, “...Ah, you mean the clothes?”
“Yes.” Gu Ximian tilted her head, not understanding, and said in a warm voice, “Is there anything you want to change? There’s still time in the next two days.”
...If she had to say, there were indeed quite a few things, but… Zhuang Chi looked at the clothes on her body, then recalled how happily the other members had discussed them a few days ago. In the end, she shook her head and smiled, “No changes. It’s a rare piece of clothing, it’s very nice.”
Gu Ximian didn’t look very surprised. She just gave her a helpless look, then smiled along and said softly, “You’re so easygoing, people will take advantage of you.”
Zhuang Chi didn’t understand what she meant, but Gu Ximian’s next sentence moved on. “The Christmas Ball, it’s really something to look forward to.”
That was true. It was the first major event Zhuang Chi was participating in since entering St. Blaisedon. A Christmas Ball without the dramatic conflicts of the original novel was indeed something to look forward to.
“Yeah.” Zhuang Chi squinted her eyes happily. “I just hope everything goes smoothly.”
Gu Ximian smiled silently and said in a low voice, “...Yes. As long as it goes smoothly.”
The day of the Christmas Ball.
“...Wow.”
Zhuang Chi hid in a small room next to the auditorium stage, peeking out for a long time. She finally chose a word very carefully to describe it: “Everyone’s… uh, creativity, is really strong.”
“Haha,” Ling Jing also squeezed in beside her, watching with great interest, and hit the nail on the head, “Just say ‘everyone’s in bizarre costumes,’ wouldn’t that be easier?”
...That phrase sounded a bit impolite, but in terms of its literal meaning, it was quite objective.
With not much time left before the ball started, most of the students attending had already arrived. The scene was a dazzling array of costumes. People were dressed as all sorts of things, and some looked as if they had ascended to the level of performance art. Even Zhuang Chi’s own overly grand costume seemed like no big deal here. No wonder An Chen, Lou Che, and the other experienced ones had dressed her up like this.
Zhuang Chi looked away, half amused and half exasperated, and turned to Ling Jing. This person, however, was dressed quite normally in a proper, luxurious gown, a bit like what she had worn to Gu Ximian’s family ball, but the skirt wasn't as exaggeratedly large. When she wasn't smiling, she looked like a haughty noble lady again. Zhuang Chi looked at her and asked curiously, “What are you supposed to be? The sculpture Pygmalion made?”
“No.” Ling Jing shook her head and gave her a friendly smile. “I’m playing ‘Pygmalion’s older sister’.”
“…”
Zhuang Chi was choked up for a long while, not knowing what to say. She felt both taken advantage of and utterly baffled. “...Since when did Pygmalion have a sister?”
“You can’t say that. Kings in Greek mythology had lots of children, how do you know Pygmalion didn’t have a sister?” Ling Jing argued plausibly, dashingly flicking her long hair and humming smugly, “Besides, I am indeed a year older than you. You should call me sister anyway, don’t be shy, Zhuang Chi.”
Wow. If she hadn’t said that, Zhuang Chi would have really forgotten that point. Ling Jing was actually older than her.
That being said, Zhuang Chi stared at Ling Jing silently for a long moment, feeling that calling Ling Jing ‘sister’ would be far too strange and absolutely impossible. So she flatly refused, “...Your role-playing is your business. I won’t play along.”
“Stingy!” Ling Jing huffed and punched her shoulder. Even with her movements restricted by the gown, her strength was still just as great, making Zhuang Chi let out a muffled grunt. “I chose this role to help you out! To save you from being cornered by people asking you to dance.”
Unexpectedly, there was such a serious consideration behind it. Zhuang Chi’s eyes widened in disbelief as Ling Jing sighed with feigned gravity, “Looking at you, you’re completely unprepared. Don’t worry, leave it to your sister! I’ll just tell people our parents don’t want you to date.”
...All of a sudden, it went from Greek mythology to a modern urban drama. Zhuang Chi was amused and said half-jokingly, “Then I’ll be counting on you.” She checked the time; there were less than ten minutes left. She had been a little nervous, but the banter with Ling Jing had eased her up considerably. However, it was still just the two of them here. Zhuang Chi looked outside and asked, “Where are the others?”
“Oh, Lou Che and Olivia are greeting guests at the door. As for An Chen… ah, there he is.” Ling Jing pointed outside and said casually, “Looks like he’s catching someone.”
Zhuang Chi followed her gaze, confused, and saw An Chen pinning someone to the ground from afar. The commotion was quite large, and his powerful voice carried over, “Stop talking nonsense! First of all, David wasn’t sculpted by Pygmalion, and even if you were playing David, you can’t be naked!”
...It seemed he was maintaining order in the auditorium.
Zhuang Chi closed her eyes, unable to watch, and asked, “What is he supposed to be? He also looks like he’s dressed as a nobleman.”
“I asked him earlier. He said he’s playing the king of the country next to Pygmalion’s,” Ling Jing answered matter-of-factly. “And his main purpose for attending the ball this time is to steal the statue of Galatea.”
He even has a character setting. And was it really okay to say that directly to her, Pygmalion?
Zhuang Chi didn’t know what to say and averted her gaze. She subconsciously adjusted the crown on her head and looked around the auditorium again, her eyes sweeping across the venue. Ling Jing looked at her and thoughtfully added, “Didn’t Gu Ximian tell us before? She’ll be a little late.”
“...I know.”
But she had still subconsciously searched for her figure in the crowd. Being found out, Zhuang Chi felt a little embarrassed, but Ling Jing was completely oblivious, still remarking, “I have to say, this crown Gu Ximian brought is really good-looking. If I’d known, I would have asked her to get me a similar one, then we’d look even more like sisters…”
Putting other things aside, it was indeed beautiful. The silver crown was exquisite, crafted in the shape of several intertwined flower branches, creating the effect of a floral crown.
Zhuang Chi carefully touched the crown again. She quite liked it herself, but she felt that continuing this topic with Ling Jing would inevitably lead back to Gu Ximian, so she changed the subject. “Is it almost time for me to go on stage?”
“Yeah, almost. We’ll dim the lights when you go up,” Ling Jing patted her shoulder. “Just do what we did in rehearsal. Don’t be nervous, it’s just one line.”
True. Zhuang Chi’s opening task wasn’t difficult. After the curtain rose, she only had one line, with some acting at most, but it wasn't a scene that required superb acting skills.
Zhuang Chi stood in the middle of the stage, looking at the sand table-like map of the school. It was made like Lego blocks, a scaled-down, three-dimensional model of St. Blaisedon laid out before her. Only the spot for the school gate was empty. Zhuang Chi looked down. It was a testament to their long work, exquisitely made. Looking down at this familiar place gave her a momentary daze, as if she were really high above St. Blaisedon, looking down on the school she had created.
At that moment, the stage curtain opened. Zhuang Chi looked down from the stage. The entire auditorium was now dark except for the spotlight on her. Below, she could only see scattered points of light, probably from the students’ phones. There were also some dim floor lights, just enough to see the path to the door, but nothing more. It was dark and still and heavy, and everyone gradually quieted down. Zhuang Chi could feel everyone’s gaze converging on her.
Zhuang Chi retracted her gaze. The moment the curtain opened, she became “Pygmalion.” She lowered her head and, under everyone’s watch, solemnly placed the small plaque in her hand, with “St. Blaisedon” written on it, onto the school map model’s gate. With a small click, it fit perfectly, making it complete.
She had done it once during rehearsal, but doing it a second time still evoked a strange feeling, like she was building a world. Zhuang Chi composed herself, looked up at the audience again, recalled her line in her mind, and half-raised her hand to her chest, as if in a humble and pious prayer.
“...Please listen to my prayer,” she began in a low voice, her voice amplified by the mic clipped to her collar, echoing throughout the auditorium, reverberating from the high dome. “Oh, God, please—”
As she spoke these words, the auditorium’s previously ajar door was suddenly pushed open. At that moment, everyone had their backs to the door, so no one noticed, except for Zhuang Chi, who was standing on the stage.
She saw Gu Ximian walk in. She was wearing an off-the-shoulder long dress, with a main color scheme of white and gold. It made her look as translucent as the moon, as if she were glowing in the night.
Gu Ximian stopped at the entrance, looking at her from afar. The way she held her skirt was elegant and moving, so beautiful it was almost unreal.
And even from so far away, Zhuang Chi noticed the ornament on her head. It was a dazzling silver crown, shaped like intertwined flower branches to form a floral crown, exquisite and light.
Zhuang Chi only needed one glance to see its complete form in her mind, because in that moment she understood that it was the same style as the crown she was currently wearing.
Her throat felt a little dry. Zhuang Chi stared at Gu Ximian for a long time, only coming back to her senses when the first person in the audience made a small, questioning sound. She slowly finished the second half of her line.
“...Please let the creation I love… come to life.”
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