123: barbecue--

With a long hiss of air pressure,

the car door popped open, and a polished black leather shoe was the first to land,

crunching onto the frost-covered brick surface.

Principal Jiang Changfeng's normally dignified face instantly bloomed like a flower,

his waist naturally dipping three degrees lower.

A middle-aged man wearing an executive jacket stepped down; his hairline was slightly high, and he carried a heavy air of official authority.

"That is Vice Minister Zheng Songxue from the Art Division of the Provincial Department of Education."

Standing behind and to the side of the student group, Fei Yuncheng lowered his voice,

providing real-time commentary to the 'volunteers' beside him at a rapid-fire pace.

"He oversees the provincial art education assessments and holds the power of life and death over the 'Provincial Art Demonstration School' titles.

His word carries a lot of weight regarding whether our school can be rated as one."

Standing at the end of the line, Lin Que watched as Minister Zheng merely nodded slightly,

reaching out for a brief handshake with Principal Jiang Changfeng, his condescending official poise handled just right.

Immediately after, the middle door of the Coaster behind them slid open slowly.

This time, the atmosphere was much more lively.

The first person out was a woman in her fifties,

wrapped in an extremely vibrant Bohemian-style large shawl,

her hair permed into exaggerated small curls, with a pair of tortoiseshell-colored round-frame glasses perched on her nose.

"Professor Yu Yan from the Jinling Academy of Arts. You could say she's an authority in the piano department."

Fei Yuncheng continued his broadcast.

"She has a bit of a strange temper, but her professional level is extremely high.

If you are responsible for guiding her later, talk less and do more."

As soon as Yu Yan got off the bus, she took a deep breath,

exaggeratedly scanning the surrounding buildings as if searching for some artistic inspiration.

Subsequently, five or six more people trickled off the bus.

There were accompanying reporters carrying cameras and young secretaries clutching briefcases.

For every person who stepped down, Principal Jiang Changfeng would step forward to shake hands and exchange pleasantries,

the angle of his bow undergoing micrometer-level adjustments based on the other person's status.

Until the very end.

At the door of the Coaster, there was a momentary pause.

The student group, which had been whispering, suddenly went silent,

as if someone had squeezed their throats.

A slender hand gripped the door handle,

and then, a figure lightly leaped down the steps.

There was no bulky down jacket, nor any dull, dark tones.

She wore an exquisitely tailored cream-colored cashmere coat that ended just past her knees,

with a thin matching belt at the waist outlining the figure of a young girl coming into her own.

A light gray tasseled scarf was wrapped around her neck,

half-covering her chin and revealing only a palm-sized, delicate face.

Her makeup was extremely light, with almost no trace of foundation visible,

only a touch of rosy bean-paste red on her lips to brighten her complexion.

A few stray strands of hair fell by her ears, brushed gently against her cheeks by the wind.

What made everyone gasp was her legs.

In this minus-three-degree weather,

she was actually wearing only a pair of black loafers, revealing ankles and calves with smooth lines,

her skin so fair that the faint blue veins on her instep were visible.

Bare legs!?

While everyone else was frozen like huddled quails, this genius girl from Jinling

used a nearly cruel beauty to interpret what was meant by an "artist's frost-resistant cultivation."

"Hiss—"

Lin Que clearly heard Liu Hui in front of him suck in a breath of cold air and whisper:

"Bare-leg artifacts? No, this looks too real... I feel cold just looking at her!"

Lin Que shrank into his collar,

watching the girl who still maintained a swan-like elegance in the cold wind, and couldn't help but want to laugh.

Others didn't know, but he knew all too well.

This "Fugitive Beethoven" was someone who paid extreme attention to health preservation, with goji berries permanently soaking in her thermos.

While she looked beautiful and freezing right now, those so-called "bare legs"

were definitely the top-tier simulated fleece stockings on the market,

otherwise known as the "Bare-leg artifact" Pro Max version.

After Ye Xi stood still, she didn't rush to move,

but politely waited for the accompanying personnel behind her.

A proper smile hung on her face, a smile that didn't reach her eyes,

yet one that no one could find fault with—it was both gentle and distant,

as if she truly were that 'flower on a high peak' living in posters and textbooks.

"Student Ye Xi, it's been a long journey for you."

The smile on Principal Jiang Changfeng's face was as kind as that of an old father.

Ye Xi bowed slightly, her voice crisp and pleasant, like pearls falling onto a jade plate:

"Principal Jiang is too kind. It is also my honor to come to Jiangcheng No. 1 High School for this exchange."

This line delivery, this expression management.

Lin Que gave her a mental thumbs-up.

If he hadn't seen the "I want to eat grilled kidneys" emojis she had sent before, he might have actually believed it.

"Come, come, let me introduce everyone."

Seeing that the big shots had finished most of their pleasantries, Fei Yuncheng quickly stepped forward and pointed to the student group behind him.

"These are the outstanding volunteers selected by our school, responsible for today's guidance and reception work."

Minister Zheng Songxue's gaze swept over the group in their red and white uniforms, and he nodded slightly:

"Good spirit."

"Good morning, students."

Ye Xi also turned around, her gaze moving slowly along the line.

When her eyes swept past the end of the line, there was an extremely subtle pause.

Lin Que pulled his chin out of his collar a bit and looked back at her calmly.

Their eyes met in the air for a tenth of a second.

Ye Xi's expression didn't change at all,

remaining that picture of dignified elegance; she didn't even twitch an eyebrow.

But Lin Que clearly saw her finger, hidden in her sleeve, give a slight hook.

That was a secret signal only they understood.

"Minister Zheng, the wind is strong outside, let's head inside first."

Principal Jiang Changfeng spoke up at the right time.

"The heating is already on in the Yiyuan Building. We can look around as we walk."

The crowd began to move.

As the student representative, Student Union Chairman Li Ze led the way at the front with his head held high,

his posture suggesting he wished he could carve the words "I am outstanding" onto his forehead.

Liu Hui's palms were sweating with excitement as she followed closely on the flank of the group.

Lin Que deliberately lagged a few steps behind,

mixing in with several staff members carrying equipment.

As he passed by Ye Xi, a faint scent drifted over.

It wasn't a cloying perfume scent, but a cold, woody fragrance,

yet it was incongruously mixed with a little bit of... the sweet and sour smell of dried tangerine peel candy?

Lin Que raised an eyebrow.

This girl must have snuck some tangerine peel candy from the hotel front desk while on the bus.

At the moment they brushed past each other, Ye Xi looked straight ahead,

her pace never faltering, but her lips moved extremely quickly.

The wind was loud, and the surroundings were noisy.

No sound came out.

But Lin Que clearly saw the mouth movement; it was two words:

"Bar—be—cue—".

Immediately after, she followed the principal past as if nothing had happened,

leaving Lin Que with only an exquisitely elegant view of her back and a lingering trace of mischief in the air...