"Oh my god! What a hottie! Who is that guy? He looks like a movie star! He’s absolutely gorgeous!"

"And he’s so rich! Look at that car! I’ve only ever seen one in TV dramas! I can’t believe I’m actually seeing one in person!"

"Who’s that handsome guy here to see? Who could be lucky enough to meet a prince like that?"

Willow Hale carefully straightened her hair and clothes, a smug look spreading across her face. "His name is Justin Hale. You’ve heard of the Hale Family of Aethelgard, right? He’s one of the family’s heirs! Worth hundreds of millions! Someone so far above you all is probably someone you’ll never get to meet in your entire lives!"

Everyone was far too curious about the handsome man before them, so they all chose to ignore Willow Hale’s arrogance. Nothing was more important than the hot guy!

"Willow, you know him? Don’t tell me that handsome guy came all this way just for you?"

"Oh my god! You’re so lucky! I’m your best friend, you have to introduce me later!"

"What are you talking about! Willow, *I’m* your best friend! You can’t forget about me! You have to give me a grand introduction later!"

Willow Hale frowned. "Introduce you? Mr. Hale came here specifically to pick me up! He’s a young master from a wealthy family. What kind of women hasn’t he seen? With the way you all look, you shouldn’t even dream of climbing that social ladder!"

After mocking the crowd, Willow Hale deliberately walked elegantly toward Justin Hale and even waved. "Mr. Hale, I’m over here." 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Willow Hale’s call drew everyone’s attention, and it also indirectly answered their question. So, the handsome guy was here to pick up Willow Hale!

Seraphina Sterling let out a deep breath. ’So he’s here for Willow Hale. Good, good.’ But even so, Seraphina still felt a little uneasy. She had a bad feeling in her gut and unconsciously quickened her pace.

Summer and Mindy Linton followed her.

Everyone’s attention was on Justin Hale and Willow Hale. Gossip is human nature, after all. When a gentle, handsome, and rich man appeared before them, how could such a striking sight not draw everyone’s focus? When they saw he was there for Willow Hale, their eyes gleamed with envy, jealousy, and hate!

"Mr. Hale, if you needed something, you could have just gone to my house. There was no need to go to all this trouble and come all the way to school to pick me up." As she spoke, Willow Hale blushed and shyly lowered her head.

Justin Hale’s brow furrowed. Listening to the growing gasps from the crowd and watching the approaching figure in the distance, he said bluntly, "I’m not here to pick you up!"

In an instant, Willow Hale’s face turned an even deeper shade of red. But this time, it wasn’t from shyness—it was from embarrassment! Mr. Hale wasn’t here to pick her up!

"Wow, I’ve really seen it all today! I’ve never seen someone so full of themselves!"

"She’s really trying to flatter herself! She must think she’s the most beautiful and popular girl in the world, so of course, a man that handsome must be here for her! It couldn’t possibly be anyone else!"

"There’s a saying that’s just so true: a tree without bark is sure to die, but a person without shame is invincible!"

...

The girls Willow Hale had just mocked immediately threw her insults right back at her, holding nothing back!

With taunts echoing in her ears, the embarrassed red on Willow Hale’s face drained away, leaving it as pale as paper. To be humiliated like this in front of the entire school! ’How can I ever show my face here again?’

Seraphina Sterling’s intuition had been spot on. Just as she had expected, right as she was about to leave the school grounds, Justin Hale walked up to her under the watchful eyes of the crowd. A gentle smile graced his handsome face. "Miss Sterling, I was wondering if I might have the honor of inviting you to lunch?"

"So he was looking for Seraphina Sterling!"

"Oh my god! Seraphina Sterling is so lucky! What’s her relationship with that man?"

"Who knows! But judging by this whole display, he must be her boyfriend, right? Why else would he make such a huge scene? And inviting her to lunch! My god! This is a plot straight out of a TV drama! Seraphina Sterling has all the luck!"

...

"Sorry, I already have plans with my friends!" Feeling the tingling stares from all around, Seraphina Sterling wanted to strangle Justin Hale!

’What the hell, why did she refuse? WHY DID SHE REFUSE? If you don’t want to go, you could give the opportunity to me!’ At that moment, this was what everyone was thinking.

Willow Hale, however, glared fiercely at Seraphina Sterling. ’She’s only saying that to humiliate me! I couldn’t wait to throw myself at him, but Seraphina rejected him without a second thought! With such a stark contrast, everyone will look down on me even more!’

If Seraphina Sterling knew what Willow Hale was thinking at that moment, she would have certainly said, ’You really think too highly of yourself. I have no reason to do something so pointless just for your sake!’

Justin Hale glanced at Summer and Mindy Linton. "I’m sure these two lovely ladies wouldn’t want to interrupt my date with Seraphina, right?"

’Date?’ Seraphina Sterling stared at him in astonishment. ’Date my ass!’ "I don’t recall making any plans with Mr. Hale!"

"I just invited you." Justin Hale smiled gently, exuding the air of a perfect gentleman. Summer and Mindy Linton immediately surrendered.

"Seraphina, since you have plans, we won’t bother you. We’ll hang out next time!" Summer tugged on Mindy Linton’s sleeve. Mindy finally caught on. "Yeah, Seraphina, we’ve got plenty of time."

Seeing her two friends desert her in a heartbeat, Seraphina Sterling frowned at Justin Hale, who was flaunting his victory. ’That handsome face of his really is useful, especially for fooling naive, innocent girls!’

Having finally won a round against Seraphina Sterling, Justin Hale lowered his voice, a hint of triumphant amusement in his gentle tone. "If you don’t want the crowd here to get any bigger, you’d better get in the car." As he spoke, he opened the car door for her like a true gentleman.

Standing here really wasn’t a wise choice. With no other option, Seraphina Sterling got into the car. Besides, she had some questions for Justin Hale, too.