Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten

Not long after, Jiang Qian and Fang Meng walked out of the storeroom. The three girls found themselves face-to-face with Jiang Qian and Fang Meng at such close proximity for the first time.

The five girls examined each other.

A silent clash of sixth senses between girls.

In the distance, the Class 3 monitor called out, “Hey, don’t wander off! We’re starting the fitness test simulation! Everyone, gather up!”

Lin Zhengran said, “Your class is about to start testing. I’ll go with you.”

The three girls nodded in unison.

Lin Zhengran turned back to Jiang Qian and Fang Meng. “We’re done with class, right? I’ll go with them.”

Jiang Qian slowly shook her head. “Yeah, the teacher already dismissed us. We’re free to do whatever.”

Lin Zhengran smiled and walked off with the three girls to watch their fitness test.

Unlike that time outside the piano room in their first year, this time, Jiang Qian and Fang Meng watched Lin Zhengran’s back as he walked away with those three.

Jiang Qian’s emotions grew even more complicated.

Even Fang Meng felt a ripple in her heart.

Jiang Qian stared at the girl with the ponytail and asked, “Is Lin Zhengran’s girlfriend that sweet-looking girl? I think her name is He Qing.”

Fang Meng shook her head. “I don’t know anymore. That girl with the twin ponytails, Jiang Xueli, seems to have a special relationship with him too. And then there’s Han Wenwen… she and Lin Zhengran don’t seem like just normal friends either.”

Jiang Qian’s fingers tightened slightly, her eyes locked on Lin Zhengran.

She didn’t say anything.

During Class 3’s fitness test, the students from Class 1, who were free to do as they pleased, gathered around to watch.

Lin Zhengran sat on the green grass, with Han Wenwen and He Qing sitting beside him, enjoying the sight of Jiang Xueli performing the standing long jump under the sun.

He Qing hugged her knees and muttered unhappily, “Lili and I were planning to talk to you alone during PE class, but now we lost a whole period and have to do this test. We don’t have time anymore.”

Han Wenwen wrapped her arm around He Qing’s. “And not only that, but now Jiang Qian is in the mix too. Things just got more complicated.”

Both of them stared at Lin Zhengran.

Even Jiang Xueli, preparing for her jump, threw a jealous glance his way.

Lin Zhengran said, “It’s not that complicated. It’s just a few things to talk about. If we can’t do it now, we’ll find another time. I’m with you guys all the time anyway. Oh, right, in two months, after the college entrance exam, do you three want to go on a trip?”

Hearing this, Jiang Xueli completely botched her jump.

He Qing and Han Wenwen’s eyes widened in excitement.

At the same time, they exclaimed, “A trip?!”

Jiang Xueli hurried over after recording her score. “Wait, did I hear that right, Zhengran? A trip?! You’re talking about a trip?”

Lin Zhengran nodded. “Ever since our second year, you three have been busy with your own things while studying hard. Even though I helped out, you still had a lot on your plates. We never really had a chance to go out and have fun together. Once we graduate, the pressure will be gone. So, I thought we should take a trip and relax.”

The three of them cheered, “Yes! We want to go! Where?”

Lin Zhengran pulled out his phone and showed them three options. “Grasslands, deep mountains, or the seaside—pick one.”

Han Wenwen raised her hand. “Deep mountains!”

Jiang Xueli, sitting beside Lin Zhengran, said, “I want to go to the seaside!”

He Qing spoke softly, “I want to see the grasslands.”

The three had different opinions.

Han Wenwen argued, “The mountains are great! There are mushrooms, little animals, and even foxes! Plus, there are hot springs.”

He Qing said, “Grasslands are nice too. There are sheep, cows, and little bunnies.”

Jiang Xueli playfully added, “At the seaside, we can catch turtles and jellyfish! There are sea rabbits, sea sheep, sea cows, and seahorses!”

Han Wenwen frowned in confusion. “Sea sheep? What kind of creature is that? Sounds kind of evil.”

Jiang Xueli huffed, “A sea sheep is a sea sheep! A big sea sheep! Don’t you want to see the vast ocean?”

Han Wenwen was still puzzled.

He Qing realized what was going on and explained, “Wenwen, Lili’s making a pun. ‘Haiyang’ (ocean) sounds like ‘sea sheep’ in Chinese.”

Han Wenwen finally understood. “Oh! I thought it was an actual animal.”

The three girls laughed together.

After a short discussion, they all turned to Lin Zhengran—ultimately, he had the final say.

Lin Zhengran suggested, “Someone go get me a piece of paper. Let’s draw lots. Whoever picks the marked one decides where we go. And don’t worry—wherever we don’t go this time, I’ll take you there when we’re in college.”

The three were surprised. “We’re going to all three places?”

Lin Zhengran nodded. “Yeah, since you all want different places, we’ll just go to all of them, one after the other.”

He Qing beamed. “I’ll go get the paper! Wait here.”

She ran off to get some paper from the class committee, tore it into three pieces, and Lin Zhengran marked one with a horizontal line.

He crumpled them into balls and mixed them up.

Each girl grabbed one.

Han Wenwen opened hers and her fox-like eyes widened. “I got it! We’re going to the mountains!”

Lin Zhengran grinned. “Alright, since Han Wenwen won the draw, after the college entrance exams, we’re heading to the mountains for hot springs!”

That evening, the city’s lights glowed brightly.

Jiang Qian and Fang Meng got out of the car in front of a two-story villa.

Seeing the Rolls-Royce parked in the courtyard, they immediately knew who had returned.

Fang Meng stood behind Jiang Qian. “The Eldest Miss is back?”

A driver polishing the car greeted them politely. “Second Miss, you’re back. And Miss Meng too? I heard you took a leave of absence.”

Fang Meng glanced at Jiang Qian.

She had told everyone she was on leave? But hadn’t she actually resigned?

Fang Meng smiled. “I had something to take care of, but now I’m back.”

The two of them entered the villa.

In the first-floor living room, Jiang Jingshi was lounging on the sofa.

She was dressed in pajamas and slippers, her long hair draped over her shoulders—clearly fresh out of the shower.

She was calmly eating a bowl of instant noodles.

Seeing Fang Meng return, Jiang Jingshi smiled and said gently, “Xiao Meng, you’re back? Looks like you two made up. That was fast.”

Fang Meng smiled and nodded. “Good evening, Eldest Miss.”

Jiang Qian walked past her sister. “You don’t seem as busy these days. You’re home a lot more.”

Jiang Jingshi twirled her noodles with a fork. “The college entrance exams are coming up. There’s not much for me to do. I have to wait until you’re done before I can move forward with anything.”

Jiang Qian headed upstairs, glancing at her sister. “What does our college entrance exam have to do with you?”

Jiang Jingshi smiled, eating another bite of noodles. “It has a lot to do with me.”

If you don’t finish your exams, he won’t have time to come to the company.

Near her room, Jiang Qian suddenly remembered something her sister had said during her fight with Fang Meng. “By the way, who have you been spending time with lately?”

No response.

She looked back downstairs—Jiang Jingshi had already taken her noodles and gone to her room.

As if she had just been waiting to see if Jiang Qian and Fang Meng had made up.

Fang Meng commented, “The Eldest Miss just went back to her room.”

Jiang Qian frowned, then asked, “Xiao Meng, do you think my sister has changed over the past year?”

Fang Meng was puzzled. “Changed?”

“You haven’t noticed how much more often she eats instant noodles?”

Fang Meng hadn’t expected that. But she nodded. “That’s true. She used to have them once a month, but now she eats them two or three times a week. But it’s not a big deal, right? Instant noodles are one of her guilty pleasures.”

Jiang Qian entered her room. “Yeah, it’s nothing… But now I kind of want some too. You in?”

“I’ll go make two bowls.”