Chapter 59 A Sky Full of Stars
The journey from Hong Kong to London takes 14 hours.
On her way to the city center, when Ho Pui-yu saw the classical European-style buildings lining the street, she suddenly had the illusion that she was still in Hong Kong.
But the relatively wide street view quickly brought me back to reality.
She's already arrived in the UK, so why is she still thinking about Hong Kong?
Moreover, no two cities in the world are exactly alike.
He Peiru didn't think any further and asked the Chinese driver arranged by Jiang Yici, "How much longer until we get to the apartment?"
The driver replied, "We'll be there in half an hour."
She decided to stop thinking about it and began to close her eyes and rest.
After much deliberation, He Peiru finally chose an apartment located in the city center for her residence in the UK.
In addition to convenient transportation, you can also have someone prepare similar furnishings and supplies to Tongshan Mansion in advance so that they can check in directly upon arrival.
Whether it's a villa or a townhouse, routine maintenance is inevitable. Even though He Peiru doesn't need to worry about these things, she doesn't like that feeling.
So I simply ruled out those two options.
Half an hour later, the street view outside the window transformed into a distinctively British underground parking lot, and the driver stopped in a parking space near the elevator.
The driver and Sophia quickly unloaded the luggage from the car. As He Peiru went upstairs full of anticipation, she received a call from Jiang Yici: "Aru, have you arrived at the apartment yet?"
She replied, "We're almost there; we just got into the elevator."
“Okay, if there’s anything you and Sophia can’t handle, be sure to contact us.” Before she could respond, Jiang Yici continued, “We’ve arranged two drivers for you to take turns. I’ll send you their contact information and shift schedule later.”
"Thank you, Uncle. Let me see if there's anything I'm missing."
Before even entering the apartment, she could only offer simple answers.
After giving a few more brief instructions, Jiang Yici hung up the phone.
The apartment uses a combination lock, which He Peiru had set up on her phone beforehand, allowing her to move freely to the corresponding floor.
She pushed open the somewhat heavy door, and the decorating style that came into view was similar to that of the Mountain Mansion. The electrical appliances and daily necessities inside were all complete, and they were mostly brands that she was familiar with and used.
After a quick look around, I found that even in the UK, everything around me was still impeccable.
They didn't give her a single chance to worry about anything.
It seems that adapting to life in a foreign country is much easier than He Peiru had imagined.
And perhaps because she was already used to Hong Kong's long rainy season, the city's continuous rainy weather seemed like nothing special to her.
Moreover, if she wants to go out, a driver will be on standby, directly avoiding any potential trouble.
Sophia didn't let her guard down just because she wasn't in Hong Kong. As soon as she entered, she quickly started organizing the luggage she had brought. I didn't need to ask her anything; I already knew her habits of arranging her clothes.
She was certain that Sophia would take good care of her as always.
This was He Peiru's first trip abroad in over twenty years. To be on the safe side, she gave herself time to adjust her schedule and get familiar with the area around her apartment.
Moreover, the most convenient thing is that she doesn't have many language barriers, so she naturally lives a much more comfortable life.
In just a few days, He Peiru got to know many new classmates through different channels.
The start of the school year was fast approaching.
The familiar teaching methods and interesting courses made He Peiru even more curious about everything around her, and she just wanted to integrate into local life as quickly as possible.
So, in her spare time, she thought that since she had come to a new environment, on the one hand, being far away from Hong Kong, the name of the Chiang family not only reduced the constraints on her, but also brought more convenience; on the other hand, it was like a brand new beginning.
She wants to do whatever she wants.
For example, as long as she is willing to accept the invitation, there will be a constant stream of different types of activities waiting for her to participate in, and even three months in advance to accommodate her schedule.
However, she doesn't intend to accept all offers; she needs to carefully select any activity.
Before she could even worry about these things, Jiang Yici took over without warning, asking Li Jiale to help her choose and explaining in detail the reasons for accepting and rejecting.
With all these things overlapping, and already having enough time to study, and with every day fully scheduled, He Peiru naturally had no time to think about anything related to Gu Zhaoqian.
So it can be considered a good thing.
Gu Zhaoqian seems to have gradually faded out of her life.
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The first dinner He Peiru attended in the UK was hosted by a local Chinese family surnamed Wu.
The head of this family used to live in Hong Kong and had close ties with the Chiang family, even meeting Chiang Yi-yen as a child. However, after the family moved to London, they gradually drifted apart from the Chiang family.
They would only contact the Wu family to reminisce when someone from the Chiang family went to England.
Therefore, after learning that He Peiru had come to England, the Wu family immediately invited her to the dinner party hosted by the Wu family, which was the closest one to them.
Unable to refuse the other party's earnest invitation, and having learned about these matters, He Peiru naturally agreed to participate.
For her, such banquets are always welcome.
After making her decision, she no longer acted like a headless fly, but immediately asked Jiang Yici what to do next.
Jiang Yici quickly made arrangements for her. Just like in Hong Kong, someone would deliver dresses to her door for her to choose from.
However, this time at the banquet, she was not accompanied by any familiar figures, which meant that no matter what happened, she would have to solve it on her own.
The thought of this inevitably made her nervous.
He Pei instinctively picked up her phone and told her two sisters about her feelings.
Their responses were all unexpected by He Peiru.
Fang Xiaoxin: [What's there to be nervous about? Since Gu Zhaoqian isn't contacting you anymore, you should go and meet some handsome guys!]
Feng Shiqi: [I agree with Xin Xin! As long as you know enough people, you'll eventually meet the right person.]
Seeing them teasing each other like that, He Peiru instantly felt much more relaxed.
Moreover, the more flustered you are, the more likely you are to make mistakes.
The banquet was held on this day.
The stylist arrived at the apartment early with dozens of gowns, presumably having researched He Peiru beforehand, and choosing styles that were quite suitable for her.
He Peiru selected one by one and finally chose a low-key little black dress.
The upper part features an off-the-shoulder design with a matching bow on the side, while the lower part hangs naturally at a moderate length, with a white mesh trim around the hem.
Her hair was styled with curls, and paired with a light and natural makeup look, it was simple yet not monotonous or old-fashioned.
After everything was ready, He Peiru saw that it was almost time, so she instructed the driver to prepare to depart for the Wu family's manor.
Since it's a manor, just by looking at the area it occupies, you can tell that it's located some distance from the city center.
This is a good opportunity for her to take a short rest.
As the scenery outside the window continued to change until it turned into a wide area, the car quickly came to a stop near the gate.
Many vehicles were already parked around, and guests attending the banquet gradually got out of their cars and walked towards the entrance.
He Peiru did not rush to get out of the car, but remained inside to observe the situation.
At that moment, she noticed a middle-aged man with a Chinese face walking towards them, and he looked as if he had been waiting for a long time.
After confirming that the other party's target was indeed her, He Peiru seized the opportunity to get off the bus.
Before she could ask the other party's purpose, she heard the other party introduce himself: "Hello, Miss He, I am the head butler of the Wu family. My surname is Liu. You can call me Butler Liu."
It seems that despite living in the UK and in a different environment, they still maintain their Cantonese language habits.
She immediately felt a sense of warmth and familiarity.
He Peiru followed Butler Liu's directions into the manor, and then heard him continue, "Our master is entertaining other guests and instructed me to come and pick you up first. I will take you to the banquet hall now."
"Okay, thank you for your help."
She was filled with curiosity about the manor. She quickly looked around and noticed that it was clearly divided into different areas. The vast manor looked magnificent.
This is something that can be seen very rarely in Hong Kong.
Butler Liu noticed her gaze and immediately told him, "Our master said that if you are interested in this place, you can come back to visit anytime."
"That's too kind of you... I'll definitely come again if I have the chance in the future."
Although she was indeed full of curiosity, it was her first time visiting the place, so she still had to be polite.
After walking through a long corridor, two waiters in suits stood in front of a heavy door.
Upon seeing them approach, he immediately opened the door.
Without even needing Butler Liu's introduction, He Peiru knew from the sight of the person surrounded by everyone in the center of the banquet hall that he was the current head of the Wu family.
The other person quickly noticed her appearance and stepped out from the crowd. His warm demeanor made her feel much more at ease, and he said kindly, "You must be Aru? You look a lot like your mother."
He Peiru had imagined what the other person would say as soon as they saw her handwriting, but she never expected it to be this.
She quickly nodded and replied, "Hello, Uncle Wu, I'm Aru."
By this time, more and more guests were present, and Uncle Wu could only exchange simple greetings with her. However, he did not forget to call over a girl who looked to be about the same age as her and introduce her, saying, "This is my daughter, Cherry Ng."
"You two attend the same school, so you can look out for each other."
"Hello."
Cherry's eyes looked bright and sparkling. He Peiru exchanged contact information with her without hesitation, which was also a way to expand her network.
Uncle Wu continued to entertain the guests, and Cherry, as a member of the host family, naturally handled them with ease.
She also thoughtfully considered that He Peiru had come to this unfamiliar environment alone, and while greeting the people who came up to her, she also dutifully introduced who these people were to He Peiru.
And without exception, all of Cherry's friends showed her kindness.
Even though the other person may have just been being polite, this gesture still filled her with anticipation for the future.
He Peiru ultimately enjoyed the dinner quite a bit.
After leaving the banquet hall, she noticed that the ground was wet, indicating that it had rained recently.
The vastness and silence of the suburbs made her involuntarily look up at the sky.
What comes into view is a sky full of stars.
I immediately felt a deeper sense of relief, a feeling I hadn't experienced in a long time.
Even in Repulse Bay, you might not see this many stars, so this is quite a rare sight.
She walked towards where the car was parked, realizing that even if she were alone, she could handle these things with ease.
Thinking that there would be many more firsts like this in the future, she suddenly felt much more confident.
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