Rebirth: Enchantment at the Golden Summit

Chapter 6: Reading the Room

Adit was a man of action. Once he confirmed that Ge Sihan was okay, he took her back to the hotel and began calling his subordinates.

　　When asking relatives, elders, or friends for a favor, one would normally explain the full context of the situation. However, until Ge Sihan had fully recovered and could communicate normally, Adit didn’t want too many people to know about her amnesia—after all, who could say for sure whether she would ever recover? So he only contacted those he could rely on.

　　In the hotel suite. With phones in both the living room and the master bedroom, Adit unbuttoned his suit jacket with one hand, crossed his legs, and sat on the living room sofa to make his calls.

Ge Sihan sat beside him, staring blankly into space.

In Thailand, teaching is a highly respected profession, and most families can’t afford the expense of hiring a private tutor—but none of that was a problem for Adit.

　　Adit gave his subordinate a few brief instructions, outlining his requirements: “Female, reliable, gentle, kind, and patient. Most importantly, this must be settled before I leave for France. I want to interview her myself.”

The only difficulty was finding a female tutor. If he couldn’t find one, he would have to hire a male tutor instead.

　　After hanging up the phone, Adit glanced at the well-behaved Ge Sihan sitting beside him. If he had come to Bangkok alone, he would have either attended to business matters, attended banquets to expand his social circle, or visited elders. But since Ge Sihan couldn’t speak a word of Thai and was a young woman, he couldn’t leave her in the driver’s care.

Ge Sihan sensed Adit’s gaze and turned to meet his eyes.

　　“You’re too well-behaved,” Adit said. Precisely because Ge Sihan didn’t understand a word he was saying, he could speak his mind without reservation: “If you were a bit more troublesome, a bit more fake, I wouldn’t have to worry about your feelings beyond the surface. But you’re too well-behaved—I have to think things through for your sake.”

　　He couldn’t say this to anyone else, because if people knew he liked “well-behaved” girls, he’d have a hard time telling who was truly “well-behaved” from then on.

Ge Si-han’s eyes showed a hint of confusion, but Adit just smiled easily: “Saengkea, bathroom.”

Ge Si-han pointed at herself with four fingers and tapped her chest lightly: “Bathroom?”

　　Did he mean for her to use the restroom?

Adit nodded.

Ge Si-han guessed they might be going out soon, so he wanted her to use the restroom beforehand. She slowly got up from the sofa and walked toward the bathroom in the master bedroom.

By the time she came out, Adit was already ready. He was standing in the middle of the living room, adjusting his cuffs. When he saw her emerge, he took her hand and led her toward the door.

　　In the car, the driver, Uncle Seang, asked respectfully, “Khun Adit, where would you like to go?”

“Let’s see where in Bangkok there are shops that cater to young ladies. Drive us there,” Adit said casually. “We need to buy some new clothes for this little girl.”

　　The next day, they spent the entire day on the train. By the time they returned to Golden Roof, it was already dark. Usa and the servant Ging came to greet them and informed them that Lady Montha was still awake and waiting for him in her room.

Adit nodded. “I’ll take Saengkea to see Grandma now… Oh, right, Usa, I bought some things for Saengkea. When Seang takes them up, you and Ging should see how to arrange them.”

　　Usa glanced at Adit in surprise and replied along with Ging, “Yes.”

After giving his instructions, Adit led Ge Si-han toward the hall. As they climbed the stairs, he said to her, “When you return home from a trip, you must remember to pay your respects to your elders first. You must be respectful and courteous to them. Do you understand?”

　　Ge Sihan, of course, didn’t understand.

　　She was “deaf” (unable to hear).

　　Adit knew she couldn’t hear, but after spending these past three days together, Ge Sihan and Adit had developed a certain rapport. She knew that when Adit told her to “follow my lead” or gave her a subtle nod, he was asking her to mimic his every word and action.

　　Adit led Ge Sihan to the old lady’s door, knocked, and after hearing her permission from inside, they went in together.

The old lady’s room was spacious, but the lighting was somewhat dim. It was sunken-style; entering from the doorway required descending two steps.

Ge Sihan followed Adit inside and saw an elderly woman reclining on the bed.

　　Ah... Ge Sihan realized this was the elderly woman in a wheelchair she had seen in her own room just a few days ago, shortly after arriving in this world.

　　And this elderly woman seemed to dislike her intensely.

　　At this thought, Ge Sihan felt a pang of unease.

　　The old lady reached out her hand: “Lop, you’ve finally returned. You’ve been away from me far too long for the sake of this unlucky girl!”

　　Adit smiled as he pulled Ge Sihan over. He sat on the edge of the bed, leaned forward, and raised his hands to his forehead in a namaste gesture toward the old lady: “Hello, Grandma.” As he stood up, he glanced sideways at Ge Sihan. Ge Sihan understood what he meant and imitated him, raising her hands to her forehead in a bow: “Hello, Grandma.”

　　The old lady’s beaming smile toward Adit vanished instantly, replaced by a dark, disapproving glare directed at Ge Sihan: “What? Is she better now?”

Ge Sihan shifted her feet slightly and lowered her head to avoid the old lady’s gaze.

She didn’t understand the words, but she wasn’t stupid; she felt extremely uncomfortable.

　　Adit explained, “The doctor said it was amnesia caused by a high fever. We just need to have her re-taught, and we’ll make sure she recovers as soon as possible. But until she’s fully recovered, we shouldn’t hold a banquet at the Golden Summit—to avoid any gossip outside.”

The Old Lady was easily distracted and turned to Adit: “Lop, without you here, how could I possibly be in the mood for a banquet!”

　　Adit smiled. “Once I graduate and come back, I won’t leave. I love our country and Grandma.”

Ge Sihan couldn’t understand their conversation. She only knew that Adit had managed to shift the old lady’s attention with just a few words, turning her anger into joy.

Perhaps this handsome young man knew how difficult the old lady could be, which was why he stepped in to “rescue” her.

She lowered her eyes to the floor, letting her mind wander… …Suddenly, she noticed the wheelchair parked nearby. She couldn’t help but think: if the old lady’s room was built with steps like this, wouldn’t it be quite inconvenient for her to get around in a wheelchair on a daily basis?

　　The person taking care of her must have a really hard time.

　　Adit chatted with the old lady for a while. Seeing that she didn’t look well, he bowed to her and took his leave, leading Ge Sihan out.

　　Ge Sihan carefully mimicked his every move. After seeing Usa plead with this young man and witnessing how kindly he treated the old lady, she realized that—at least until she could support herself by working and earning money—she would have to live by reading the expressions of both this young man and the old lady. Of course, it was clear that this young man was the one in charge of the household, so she mainly had to read his expressions…

　　Fortunately, if she made a mistake, the young man might tolerate it out of pity for her, but unfortunately, the old lady would certainly not tolerate it.

　　In this strange land—a place she wasn’t even sure was on Earth—the only person she could rely on… or rather, the only one who might hold her back, was that beautiful young girl named Usa.

　　But that beautiful young girl was struggling herself.

　　Ge Sihan’s eyes welled up; she felt like crying again.