Kade leaned in towards Ella, "With her throwing such vague statements, the entire crowd is looking at you like you have killed a man."
Ella’s lips twitched. This is ’sweet and caring’ Esther for you.
"I thought you were already the best white lotus in town. But then, I met your sister. Don’t take it to heart but she is better..."
Esther froze as she noticed their complete disregard for her.
At a little distance, Kade’s fangirls watched him whispering things so ’intimately’ in Ella’s ears and bit their handkerchiefs. Standing in front of them was Jasmine who had tears welling up in her eyes by this point.
"How could you avoid Esther at this point?" A calm voice sounded from behind. Violet came to support Esther, "She has been because of your decisions and yet, you show no remorse..."
"For my decisions?" Ella turned to Esther, "Essie, what did I do to make you cry ?"
Esther shook her head slowly, "Sis, it’s not your fault. You just got impulsive back then. I will go with you and beg Professor Jenny to let you off this time..."
The moment she spoke up, the place erupted in discussions.
"I doubt begging would help at this point..."
"Esther Yu is such a kind sister... Too bad her kindness is placed upon the wrong person..."
"Look at the grades this time..."
As the discussions continued, late comers like Kade and Ella finally got the gist of the whole matter.
This time, the class topper was no longer Ruby. Nor was she in the top 5. Instead, the person who took over that place was Jasmine.
On the other hand, Ella who was supposed to top the exams this time, did not have her name in the entire scoreboard.
And that suggested one thing—
"You failed so terribly, sis... If not for the bet, we would somehow manage to convince them to give you another chance," Esther cried harder.
Escaping from Violet’s grip, Esther dove forward dramatically, reaching Ella for a hug. But in the next moment, she landed on air and staggered a few steps forward.
She would’ve hit the ground if not for Violet, who caught her just in time.
Esther sharply turned to Ella who has inched a few steps to the side just a moment ago.
"Ah, my head is spinning, my steps are faltering..." Ella held her forehead and gave Kade a vicious look.
Kade, who was looking for some popcorn to enjoy the show, reluctantly reached out to support her.
Kade’s fangirls nearly lashed out.
At this moment, amidst the chaos, a sharp voice sliced through the air. "What are you crowding over here for?"
At a little distance.
Professor Grimwood stood under the shade of a tree, hidden from the plain sight. A helpless look painted his face as two old men stood behind him, constantly bickering.
"Weren’t you here to see your eldest grandson’s girlfriend? It seems like your younger grandson is quite engaged too," Chairman Caine stroked his chin.
From their angle, there seemed to be no distance between Ella and Kade as they whispered into each other’s ears.
Old Master King stroked his beard as he watched the scene, a thoughtful look crossing his face.
"Father, that’s not true," Professor Grimwood turned to Chairman Caine, "Kade and Ella are classmates and on normal days, they don’t get along well with each other."
"Ella? Ella Yu?" Chairman Caine looked at his son, "Is this the student who has been causing chaos lately?"
"Father, that’s not it... She is innocent in this whole affair."
"That’s for me to judge," Chairman Caine turned to his friend, "Old King, what are you thinking?"
Old Master King ignored him and looked at Professor Grimwood, "Is what you said true?"
Professor Grimwood reflected upon what he might be referring to before he nodded once, "Kade and Ella are indeed classmates."
A thoughtful expression crossed the old man’s eyes, "Interesting."
"What is interesting?" Chairman Caine couldn’t decipher the old man’s thought trail for a moment, "Aren’t you looking for Adrian’s girlfriend anymore?"
Old Master King stroked his beard and smiled, "This little abode of yours seems interesting. We can enjoy the show first."
"Hmm, makes sense..." Chairman Caine froze for a moment before he blasted, "What are you referring to as a little abode, old man?!" His Imperial University is one of the most prestigious and renowned universities throughout the world.
"What are you crowding over here for?"
The crowd of students quietened down as Jenny entered the place.
Esther’s gaze briefly met Jenny’s before the latter looked away and turned to Ella.
Ella smiled, ’’Good morning, professor."
"What trouble are you causing again?" Jenny frowned.
Ella stepped forward, "I just reached here. What trouble can I possibly cause? However, Professor, I was told that my results are missing from here," she pointed a hand towards the rows of boards.
Jenny sighed, "Ella, you have been my student for so long. Regardless of your mistakes, I would take this chance to teach you one thing as your Professor..."
"Ella, some people are just not cut out for academics. And that’s not a flaw, just reality. So you should take this life lesson and after going out from here, you should do something that you are inclined to do instead of making wrong choices, wasting yours and others’ time."
"Professor, I still don’t understand," Ella looked into her eyes.
"I do not want to embarrass a young girl like you," Jenny frowned a little.
Ella’s gaze trailed through the crowd who were scorning and mocking her visibly, "Embarrassement is the last thing that bothers me at this moment. As a diligent student, I have put endless efforts into preparing for my exams. I appeared in them and wrote my answers but today, I am being told that my result is not here..."
There was a hint of anger in Ella’s gaze.
Ella took another step forward towards Jenny.
Jenny froze for a moment. The girl still did not look as remarkable as she did years ago.
However in that moment, Jenny could see a sharpness in her features. And an unmistakable aura that could be suppressed by her plain black sweatshirt.
"Today, it is me. Tomorrow, it could be another student whose result was not displayed. When they approach you, would you utter such vague motivational words and dismiss them?"
Whispers rose in the crowd as some people started voicing out their thoughts.