Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten-Chapter 280: Going Home

On the morning of her birthday, while still sleeping, Little He Qing’s mom unexpectedly called around eleven o’clock, asking when she would be coming back.

At that moment, Little He Qing was still sleeping soundly in Lin Zhengran’s arms.

Awakened by the ringing phone, her groggy mind instantly cleared up quite a bit when she heard her mom’s question. She said, “I... I'll come back tomorrow, okay?”

Lin Zhengran also woke up. The two of them exchanged a sleepy glance and smiled at each other.

But then Aunt He said, “Didn't you say you were coming back today? Mom thought you’d be home today.”

Little He Qing twirled a strand of hair around her finger, feeling guilty. “That was my original plan, but... there’s been a slight change.”

“A special situation? What special situation? Qingqing, from your voice, are you still not up yet? Do you know what time it is?”

“Huh? Emmm, hehe.”

Realizing something, Aunt He’s tone grew serious. “Qingqing? Where are you right now? Are you at your Brother Zhengran’s house? Did you stay over at his place?”

Little He Qing blushed and got nervous, even waving her hands frantically. “No, no! I'm just sleeping in at a hotel by myself! Lin Zhengran and I just finished traveling together. I got tired and have been catching up on sleep! I didn't stay at his house!”

“Really?”

“Really! How could I lie to you, Mom? I don’t lie!”

After she said that, she caught Lin Zhengran giving her a meaningful look, making her face burn even redder from embarrassment.

Aunt He didn’t press further. Though it might not necessarily be that kind of thing, she knew her daughter had grown up. Besides, it wasn’t exactly a new thing that her daughter had liked Lin Zhengran for a long, long time.

“Mom believes you. If you’re free today, why not come back? It’s your birthday today. I bought a cake for you. Also, your grandma hurt her back yesterday. Mom hopes you can come back and help take care of her for a couple of days.”

Hearing that her grandma got hurt, Little He Qing became anxious. “Grandma got hurt? What happened? Is it serious?”

“It's nothing too major, but she needs help getting to the restroom and stuff. Mom still has to work, so we need someone to watch over her during the day.”

Little He Qing looked at Lin Zhengran with a reluctant expression. “In that case... alright, I’ll get up, pack my things, and take the bus this afternoon.”

“Okay. You should be able to arrive tonight, right?”

“I should, but it might be pretty late.”

“That’s fine. Mom will come pick you up at the station.”

“Alright. Thanks, Mom. I’m hanging up now so I can pack.”

After hanging up, Little He Qing sat there, her hair loose around her shoulders, face filled with worry and reluctance. She looked at Lin Zhengran and said in a soft, aggrieved voice, “Lin Zhengran, my grandma got hurt. I don't want to leave, but I have to go check on her.”

“Mm, then get up and pack. I'll take you to the station.”

Hearing that, tears welled up in Little He Qing’s eyes. She pouted and hugged Lin Zhengran tightly. “I don’t want to be apart from you.”

Lin Zhengran gently patted her head. “We’ll see each other again once school starts. If you really miss me, we can video call.”

Little He Qing sniffled. “Okay... then... you’d better not flirt around while I’m gone.”

Lin Zhengran chuckled. “Got it.”

“Wuwuwu, I don’t wanna go…”

Even though she was reluctant, Little He Qing still got dressed, putting back on the short skirt and T-shirt she had worn when she arrived.

She sat on the edge of the bed, biting a hair tie as she pulled her thick, long hair into a ponytail.

After putting on her shoes, she kept turning her head to look at Lin Zhengran.

Lin Zhengran was already used to her aggrieved look—she always looked like this whenever she had to do something she didn’t want to but had no choice.

“Alright, be happy when you get home. I was planning to prepare some medicine for you this afternoon, but since you’re leaving, I’ll just mail it to you.”

Little He Qing nodded pitifully and leaned against Lin Zhengran’s shoulder.

Dragging her suitcase along, they arrived at the station. Little He Qing kept waving her little hand. “I’m leaving now! I’ll miss you!”

“Mm.”

“Lin Zhengran, I’m really going!”

“Mm.”

“I really, really…”

Lin Zhengran hugged her again and patted her back. “Alright, go ahead. Call me anytime if anything comes up.”

“Mm.”

After boarding the high-speed train home, Lin Zhengran stood there watching as the train started moving, while Little He Qing leaned against the train window, waving at him from inside.

She kept waving until the train completely pulled away. Only then did Lin Zhengran turn and leave the station.

But soon, his phone rang—it was Little He Qing calling.

Lin Zhengran picked up. “What is it? Did you forget something?”

“No… I just miss you. I wanted to hear your voice.”

“We’ve only been apart for less than a minute.”

After chatting briefly, they hung up, and Lin Zhengran finally headed home.

Meanwhile, on the train, Little He Qing stared out the window in a daze.

It wasn’t hard to guess what she was thinking about.

By nearly midnight that night.

At the southern bus station, Aunt He was waiting for her daughter.

Little He Qing got off the bus, dragging her suitcase. The moment she saw her mom, she ran over. “Mom! I'm home!”

Seeing her daughter's mixed expression of happiness and sadness, Aunt He teased, “What? You’re not happy to see Mom?”

Little He Qing blinked. “No! I'm happy!” She forced a smile. “Hehe, Mom, let’s go home and check on Grandma!”

The mother and daughter drove home.

On the way, Aunt He asked her daughter how the trip was.

Little He Qing couldn’t stop talking, telling her all about the fun things they did and the beautiful mountain scenery.

She kept chatting excitedly while Aunt He drove and listened.

In truth, Aunt He wasn’t so much curious about the trip itself;she just wanted to confirm something—every time her daughter went out with Lin Zhengran, she came back radiantly happy. And that was exactly the case again. Her daughter's happiness, excitement, and even her body language were too obvious to miss.

After the failure of her own marriage, Aunt He had initially been indifferent about her daughter’s feelings for Lin Zhengran. She truly hadn't thought her daughter would like the same boy for so many years.

But as more than a decade passed, Aunt He gradually came to believe: maybe love really does exist.

Her daughter's deep affection was already visible to the naked eye.

When they got home, they went to check on Grandma. Thankfully, it wasn’t too serious, but injuries for elderly people always healed slowly.

The next day around noon—

Little He Qing received a package from Lin Zhengran.

Inside were two pitch-black pills, one big and one small. No brand, no fancy packaging, just two pieces of tinfoil wrapping.

Totally unbranded.

But there was a handwritten note from Lin Zhengran: “The bigger one is for Grandma, the smaller one is for Mom. I adjusted them based on their ages, so don’t mix them up.”

There was even a postscript: “Even if you do mix them up, it’s no big deal. Worst case, the effect won’t be as targeted, but it'll still be way better than anything you can buy out there.”

Holding the package, Little He Qing thought: Wow, Lin Zhengran really knows how to make medicine?!

And he even made them look like chocolate malt balls! Lin Zhengran really was amazing!

But seriously—could she really mess up and give the wrong person the wrong pill?

She snapped a photo of the package and quickly sent it to Lin Zhengran.

"Got it! I’ll give them to Grandma and Mom as soon as I get home!"