Before Love, Become Yourself

Lina becomes the first scholarship student admitted to Saint Toria Academy. Board member Ms. Sterling agrees to sponsor her, and Lina moves into the Sterling household, where she grows close to Ms. Sterling's son, Chase. At school, Lina starts taking on classmates' problems for a fee, sorting out their troubles one by one and collecting payment each time. The arrangement earns her a reputation, and her classmates come to back her up when trouble arises. A second scholarship student, Celine, arrives at the academy. Celine considers her own grades superior to everyone else's, but she loses to Lina on an exam. She accuses Lina of caring only about money and having no principles, even as she herself takes up a position trailing after Song Zhiyu, a wealthy young master at the school, running his errands and staying in his favor.