Lucius slammed on the brakes, the sports car skidding a little further. Scarlett, pale with fear, hoped this would be the end of it. But Lucius wasn't done. He shifted into reverse, backed up ten meters, then gunned the car forward again.
Scarlett was stunned into silence. She could only watch, wide-eyed.
Another loud crash echoed as the Urus' front collided with the already-damaged tail of the sports car. Scarlett pressed herself hard against the passenger seat, wishing she could turn back time twenty minutes, back to before she'd gotten into this car.
Lucius seemed to have lost his mind, but the owner of the Ferrari was even worse, reversing and flooring the gas pedal to challenge Lucius head-on. The engines of the two cars roared like wild beasts, tires screeching against the asphalt.
Sitting in the car, with the alarm blaring, each sound felt like a needle piercing Scarlett's nerves. Finally, she couldn't bear it anymore and turned to Lucius, "Mr. Zhou, cool it, your son's waiting for you at home!"
Lucius remained expressionless, which was even more terrifying. Scarlett started to believe Mia's warnings about dealing with this man. It wasn't about reading his mood—it was about risking her life."
"Hold on tight," Lucius suddenly commanded.
Scarlett hesitated, then quickly grabbed the overhead handle.
Lucius let off the gas, and the car was immediately forced backward. He quickly turned the steering wheel, and Scarlett felt her right arm slam against the car door. The car jerked away from the pressure and, without a word, Lucius stepped on the gas again, leaving the sports car in the dust within seconds.
Scarlett nervously checked the rear-view mirror. The red sports car was no longer in pursuit. She glanced at the man in the driver's seat, who seemed as calm and composed as ever. It was as if what had just happened was not a serious, intentional traffic accident, but a minor hiccup.
Once the car was back on the right path and cruising steadily, Scarlett retracted her white-knuckled right hand, trying to relax her left hand that was crumpling the documents. She bent down to pick up the dropped file bag, silently smoothing out the wrinkles and continued reading as if nothing had happened.
After a while, a deep male voice beside her said, "The tissues are in the glove box."
Hearing Lucius's voice, Scarlett's just-calmed heartbeat suddenly quickened. Without showing any emotion, she opened the glove box, pulled out a tissue, discreetly wiped the cold sweat from her palms, and said casually, "Thank you."
"Nothing to say?" Lucius asked.
"How's Jack's math foundation?" Scarlett asked. "I haven't had a chance to ask you during our meetings."
Lucius, though maintaining his usual expression, quickly flashed a look of surprise. "You're tougher than you look. You didn't cry or scream to get out of the car."
Scarlett gave a faint smile, "Why would I cry?"
Lucius didn't speak again after that. They rode in silence until they arrived at a mansion nestled halfway up a hill. Scarlett had taught several wealthy students during her time when she was in Night City. However, Night City was the heart of the empire, and even the most influential lived in historic courtyard houses, large flats by artificial lakes, or the limited villas beyond the fifth ring.
Now that she was at the Zhou residence, Scarlett finally understood true wealth.. The Zhou family's garage alone had more than ten spots, a line of doors as far as the eye could see. No wonder Lucius would treat a car worth over four million as a bumper car.
Parking the car in the yard, a servant came to greet them. Scarlett followed Lucius into the villa, where a silver-haired yet upright elderly man was waiting at the door. He greeted Lucius first, then nodded to Scarlett, "Hello, my name is Ethan Chan, I'm the butler here."
Scarlett responded politely, "Hello, I'm Scarlett Li."
Lucius slipped off his shoes and headed inside while the butler looked after Scarlett, "Everyone at home calls me Uncle Chan, you can do the same if you don't mind. The young master's room is upstairs."
Scarlett parted ways with Lucius in the vast villa, and she followed Uncle Chan to a room on the second floor. He knocked on the door, "The tutor is here."
There was no response from inside, so Uncle Chan opened the door for Scarlett, making a welcoming gesture, "He's probably still sleeping. If you need anything, just let us know."
Scarlett nodded and stepped inside.
The room was large. Entering, there was a living room with floor-to-ceiling windows all covered with curtains, making the light dim. Walking on the carpet in her soft sheep skin slippers, it was silent. There were doors on either side. As she hesitated, she heard a male voice, "Second on the right."
Scarlett arrived at the door of the room and said aloud, "Hello, I'm the new tutor."
After a moment, a voice from within said, "Come in."
Scarlett pushed the door and entered. The room was even darker, and she could hardly see anything. She was about to speak when she heard the door close behind her. She reached for the handle, but it wouldn't open.
Without the faint light from outside, the room was incredibly dark. Scarlett took out her phone and turned on the flashlight. Her light revealed a pair of reflective glassy eyes, and she was face-to-face with them for three seconds before realizing that behind those eyes was a nearly two-meter-long body, a greenish-gray, grainy, armor-like skin. It was an iguana, a green iguana, a large, pet-friendly lizard, and most importantly, herbivorous.
Suddenly, she felt a slight touch above her head. She quickly looked up, shining her phone light. The 'other party' was startled and retracted a few inches. It was a golden python, thicker than her leg, coiled around an artificial vine rack above, just poking its head out to observe.
Scarlett looked at it, only a half-arm's length away.
Scarlett withdrew her gaze from the tiring upward position and surveyed the room with her phone. The enclosed room of about forty square meters housed more than twenty cold-blooded animals of at least five different types, big and small, colorful, and green. It was a scene that would make anyone, man or woman, shudder.
But Scarlett was only slightly surprised at first, then calmly moved around the room. After making her third round, she stopped in front of a heated box, gazing unwaveringly at a certain spot. Inside the box was a vibrant green snake, but what she was looking at wasn't the snake, it was the hidden camera in the corner, not easily noticed.
Facing the camera, Scarlett greeted with a pleasant smile, "Hello, Jack, I'm Scarlett Li, your new tutor."