Rebirth: Enchantment at the Golden Summit

Chapter 10: Dome Tong

Ge Si-han might be sensitive to caffeine; shortly after drinking a latte, she felt wide awake and had more energy for class.

Starting in high school, their curriculum was based on a credit system; students had to earn enough credits to advance to the next grade and graduate.

　　Most of the required science and math courses in her freshman year—such as math, biology, physics, and chemistry—were fairly easy for Ge Si-han, but language (Thai), electives, and physical education were exceptionally challenging. To get an easy pass, she chose English as her second language elective—if Chinese had been an option, she would have chosen it without hesitation.

　　For her arts elective, she chose piano, and for physical education, she chose horseback riding and tennis.

　　She had studied piano under Teacher Tasapong for three years and had continued practicing even after starting school. She learned horseback riding at the Golden Roof from Usa and from Uncle Song, the family’s gardener and stablehand—both of these counted as cheating.

As for tennis, she was very interested in this so-called “aristocratic” sport but had never had the chance to learn it before; now that the school offered lessons, she signed up.

　　Not many of her classmates signed up for the tennis elective, so she was always paired with a student named Layne Mahapromyao. Thanks to this, she quickly became acquainted with this cute and lively girl, and they became friends.

　　Mahapromyao is an aristocratic surname, while Sirodom is a household name throughout Thailand, especially in the north.

　　If judged solely by their family names, their friendship might seem well-matched, though Layne might have the upper hand. But in reality… Ge Sihan could only say she was grateful that both Layne and she approached this school friendship with pure hearts, without expecting anything in return.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t even mention it—Layne would surely be disappointed.

　　When Ge Sihan arrived at school and sat down at her desk, Layne was already there, sitting in the row in front of her. Full of energy, she greeted her: “Good morning, Saeng! Why do you look so pale?”

“Pi Chai Lop is back in the country. I stayed up late last night with Pi Usa to welcome him.”

　　Ge Si-han hadn’t kept Adit’s return a secret, because Adit was so famous that news of his imminent return had already spread far and wide. The Golden Summit would likely hold a banquet soon to officially announce his return.

“Oh, really?” Layne perked up. “When will the banquet be held? I’ve never been to the Golden Summit before!”

　　“That depends on Grandma and Pi Chai Lop’s plans. I can’t say for sure.”

　　“Alright, let’s not worry about things that haven’t happened yet… Saeng, do you want to go play tennis with me on Saturday? My brother has a huge tennis court at his sports club. He says the grass is well-maintained and perfect for tennis. If we want to go, he can take us there on Saturday and vouch for us—minors aren’t allowed to enter the club alone.”

　　Although it was just a minor matter of whether or not to go out and have fun, unfortunately, Ge Si-han couldn’t make her own decisions.

In Thailand, elders and guardians hold significant authority. If the Old Lady were still in charge at Golden Summit, she could have politely declined right away; bringing this up with the Old Lady would have been asking for a scolding. But after Adit returned, power within the household had naturally shifted, so she could give it a try.

　　So, after a moment’s thought, Ge Sihan replied cautiously, “Going out on Saturday… You know, I need to ask Pi Chai Lop. Tell me everything you know, Layne—which club is it? Who’s there? And what do they call your brother?”

　　Layne recalled, “The Chiang Mai Royal Club—it’s very famous. Khun Adit must have gone there often when he was in Thailand. As for my brother, his name is Sayer, but I don’t know if he and Khun Adit know each other… Hmm, as for how many people, I’m not sure either. There probably won’t be too many. My family doesn’t allow me to mingle with too many gentlemen yet—we’re still too young.”

　　Ge Sihan jotted down the information and pondered, “I wonder if Pi Chai Lop will agree… If he does, I’d like to bring Usa along too. There’s no one at home to play tennis with me.”

　　Layne announced triumphantly, “That’s why you’re improving so slowly. Saeng, I can already beat you. By the next tennis lesson, I’ll have you beat.”

　　Ge Si-han snorted.

Layne was just that kind of cute, cheerful, and confident girl; Ge Si-han truly enjoyed spending time with her.

After class, Ge Si-han and Usa got into the chauffeur’s car on time and returned to Golden Peak. The estate was quiet. When the maids Bua and Ging came out to greet them, Usa asked them, “Has Grandma woken up from her nap yet? Saengkea and I want to go say hello to her.”

　　This was a daily ritual. Although Ge Si-han was quite reluctant, she still treated it as a routine task.

Ging replied, “Laee is in the room taking care of the old lady.”

‘What about Pi Chai Lop?’ Ge Si-han wanted to ask, but held back.

Usa had told her that Adit didn’t like it when people in the family were too nosy and went snooping around.

　　It would be best if Adit were there when they went to see the old lady; that way, most of her attention would be on Adit, and they could slip away unnoticed.

Ge Si-han and Usa carried their backpacks upstairs. This was a strategy: first, it showed they’d come straight to the old lady as soon as school let out; second, when they were ready to slip away, they could use an excuse like, “We have to go do our homework”… Actually, it wasn’t really an excuse—going back to do homework was indeed the truth.

　　In any case, Ge Si-han was determined to stick to this strategy to the very end.

　　When she and Usa reached the old lady’s door, they saw it was open. The old lady was leaning against the headboard, a blanket draped over her legs. Adit was sitting on the edge of the bed chatting with her, while Laee knelt on the floor with one leg crossed, a head shorter than the rest of them.

　　Usa knocked lightly on the door. When the three people inside turned their gaze toward them, she and Ge Sihan stepped inside together.

The two of them pressed their palms together in a wai, and Usa said, “Good afternoon, Grandma. Good afternoon, Khun Lop.”

　　Adit nodded. “Good afternoon, Usa.”

Grandmother snorted but said nothing.

Ge Si-han then greeted them: “Good afternoon, Grandmother. Good afternoon, Pi Chai Lop.”

“Good afternoon, Saengkea,” Adit replied.

Suddenly, the old lady pointed at Ge Si-han and shouted, “Pi Chai Lop? Who gave you permission to call her that?!”

　　The old lady’s sudden outburst startled Ge Si Han. She stared at her in shock, unsure what was going on.

Adit was taken aback for a moment, but immediately calmed her down with a composed voice: “Of course I told Saengkea to call you that. I am her older brother, aren’t I?”

“Lop, you’ve been paying too much attention to her! Ever since she arrived at the Golden Summit, she’s been causing all sorts of trouble—falling ill, suffering from amnesia… You’ve taken her to see doctors and hired tutors for her… But even so, she hasn’t a shred of good fortune; she’s always getting sick… Hmph, no matter how much Sirodom rice she eats, she’ll never become one of the Sirodom family… Who knows when she’ll die… What right does someone like her have to be your sister?”

　　Laee had already begun crawling backward the moment the Old Lady uttered her first word, retreating out of the room.

　　Listening to the Old Lady’s words, her face remained expressionless.

　　Here we go again. Being berated and cursed at until she’s blue in the face.

　　Being told she has no luck isn’t anything new, but this time there’s a twist—a curse has been added.

　　Ge Si-han caught a glimpse of Laee out of the corner of her eye. Even at a moment like this, she still found herself thinking: she really couldn’t stand Thai etiquette. Servants and commoners were always kneeling and prostrating themselves at the slightest provocation, making even her—who was merely watching from the sidelines—feel uncomfortable.

　　Usa clasped her hand. Ge Si-han, however, tilted her head slightly to meet her gaze and shook her head gently to indicate it was fine.

　　Adit’s expression grew serious, but precisely because of this, he softened his voice: “Saengkea and Usa are both my sisters. That has been true since the very first day they were adopted by the Golden Summit… It is precisely because we have two more girls in the family that there is so much more vitality here. With them by your side, I can rest easy while I study and work outside the home… Over the years, they have done very well and have been very dutiful to you, haven’t they?”

　　The Old Lady said darkly, “They all want me dead… They—Saengkea, Usa… and Phubpleung—they all want me dead…”

Phubpleung…? Ge Si-han furrowed her brow slightly. That unfamiliar name was… the Wenshu Orchid?

The Old Lady’s complaints continued: “Women are all like this… One after another, never satisfied… coveting things they have no right to…”

But Ge Si-han was no longer in the mood to listen. That sense of déjà vu she’d felt the first time she heard Adit’s name swept over her again, until she heard the old lady say, “Dome Tong has never welcomed these women… never welcomed them…”

Yes, Dome Tong… it’s Dome Tong!