Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten-Chapter 277: Cake

They drove into the city, first stopping to return the rented SUV.

After this two-day trip, Lin Zhengran felt that buying a car for university would definitely be worth it. Even if he wouldn’t use it much himself, it’d be nice to take the girls out to play now and then.

After returning the car, Lin Zhengran held Little He Qing’s hand and brought her to an upscale cake shop.

Understanding as always, Little He Qing knew that cakes could be hard to get last minute—especially late in the evening.

So she spoke first: “Lin Zhengran, just get something simple for the cake. Even a small one is fine.”

Lin Zhengran looked ahead. “That casual?”

Little He Qing let out a soft hum, sneaking a peek at their clasped hands. The warmth made her heart flutter. “Mm, as long as you’re with me tonight, that’s enough. Cake is just a formality—it’s not that important.”

Lin Zhengran glanced sideways at her. “Is that so? Well, I actually already ordered it in advance.”

“Huh?”

He pulled her into the cake shop, where a staff member immediately came up to greet them. “Welcome! Are you picking up an order or browsing?” ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

“Picking up. My surname’s Lin—I called three days ago.”

The staff quickly reacted. “Ah, Mr. Lin! Yes, your cake has been prepared and is ready. I’ll bring it right out. Please wait just a moment.”

Little He Qing hadn’t expected Lin Zhengran to have ordered it ahead of time. She looked around the shop’s elegant interior in quiet awe.

Soon, the staff returned with a fairly large cake.

While she couldn’t see what the actual cake looked like, just from the pink wrapping and the quality of the ribbon, He Qing could already tell it wasn’t cheap.

Lin Zhengran thanked them and walked out with the cake.

Once outside, Little He Qing finally dared to ask quietly: “How much was the cake? A few hundred yuan?”

“Three to four thousand.”

“Wait—what?! Three to four thousand?” She was stunned. “That’s so expensive!”

“What’s expensive about it? You only have one birthday a year, and this one’s special—it’s your eighteenth. Besides, it’s not like we’re short on money. We can’t just hoard it and not spend it.”

Little He Qing felt that he made sense, but her heart still ached a bit. She hadn’t fully adjusted to Lin Zhengran’s identity as a company owner. To her, it still felt like too much for a student to spend.

“That’s true, but I still feel like spending that much on me is such a waste.”

She said that last part very softly—but it was from the heart. “Wouldn’t it be better if you used it to buy yourself a nice outfit instead?”

Lin Zhengran smiled. Wenwen was right—He Qing really was the frugal type, perfectly suited to manage the household’s shopping and arrangements in the future.

“You’re exaggerating. We can afford both clothes and cake. Didn’t I already show you how much money we have?”

“I saw it, but emmm…” She still looked heartbroken over the spending.

They arrived at a city hotel, where Lin Zhengran booked a room.

The couple’s double bed was clean, cozy, and romantic. Even the curtains and bedding were all in red tones.

Originally, Lin Zhengran had planned to take Little He Qing out for dinner. But she wasn’t interested.

She said they’d already had plenty of fun back in Lin Mountain, and she didn’t want to queue for food again in the city.

Ordering takeout in the hotel was more than good enough.

Lin Zhengran agreed and picked two higher-end takeout meals.

Crab roe noodles were delivered.

Sitting on the sofa, Little He Qing opened the takeout box and gasped at the rich, golden crab meat. “It smells so good! There’s so much crab roe!”

Lin Zhengran said, “I’ve ordered from this place before. The flavor’s great—try it.”

“Mm, I’ll try!”

She unwrapped the disposable chopsticks, but instead of digging in, she looked at Lin Zhengran first.

“The head of the household eats first.”

Lin Zhengran was used to it and took a bite first. Only then did Little He Qing happily pick up a bite from her own bowl and savor it slowly.

The noodles wrapped in crab roe were bursting with rich flavor.

The foodie in He Qing practically had pink bubbles floating around her.

“It’s so good! I’ve never had anything like this!”

Lin Zhengran also slurped his noodles. Seeing her so eager, he pushed the extra crab meat into the center. “If it’s not enough, we’ll order more. If you like it, we can get it anytime.”

Little He Qing smiled shyly. “I can’t eat that much. Lin Zhengran, you eat more—it’s really delicious!”

They happily slurped down their noodles. After dinner, they rested together on the sofa.

She placed her hand over her slightly rounded tummy, totally satisfied. “I’m so full.”

Her head had already grown used to leaning on Lin Zhengran’s shoulder.

Their eyes met. Little He Qing smiled shyly at him.

At the Bedside

Lin Zhengran leaned back against the headboard.

Little He Qing straddled his lap.

Their lips slowly moved closer—until they kissed.

But Lin Zhengran knew not to jump into anything right after eating. At least thirty minutes should pass. So after kissing for a bit, he stopped. “Are we heading home tomorrow or the day after?”

With her cheeks still flushed from the kiss, Little He Qing lowered her gaze slightly. “I don’t know. Honestly… I don’t really want to go back. I want to live with you…”

She stared at Lin Zhengran. “Why do we always have to be apart? Off and on like this…”

“It’s only like ten days apart. We’ll see each other again when we go register for college, right?”

“It’s not ‘only’ ten days… That’s a lot. When I’m here, even if we don’t meet every day, I know I can see you anytime. But the moment I go back home, I miss you so much and can’t see you. Phone calls don’t help at all—I miss you so much I can’t even sleep at night.”

After the excitement of the past few days, Little He Qing was even more reluctant to face the coming separation.

Even if it was only temporary,

it made her feel really down.

Her jade-like fingers fiddled with Lin Zhengran’s collar—more like playing than fixing it. Her hand wandered back and forth at his neckline.

“Anyway… I just don’t want to go back.”

“In that case, I’ll stay with you tomorrow, and we’ll go home the day after. Your mom’s probably called a few times already, hasn’t she?”

“Yeah, Mom’s called a few times. It’s not like I don’t want to see her or Grandma… but I want to see you more.”

That made Lin Zhengran laugh—and Little He Qing smiled in embarrassment too.

“Am I acting like a rebellious teenager?”

“You’re past the age for that. Oh, right—how’s your grandma’s health these past couple years?”

“She’s been pretty good! Ever since Mom and I moved back when I was little, Mom said Grandma got a lot more energetic. But…”

“But?”

Little He Qing hugged Lin Zhengran, soaking up his warmth.

“It’s nothing really… just that Grandma’s getting old, and she has all these little issues with her health. But none of them are really treatable.”

Lin Zhengran figured he could help with alchemy. “I’ll make you two pills tomorrow—one for your mom and one for Grandma. They’ll help boost their health.”

Little He Qing didn’t quite understand. “Pills? Like supplements?”

“No, I’ll make them myself. I know medicine. Just take them like I say once they’re done.”

She was amazed. “Wow, you really can do everything. Okay—I’ll listen.”

They both laughed. Then Little He Qing suddenly blushed deeply.

“Lin Zhengran… I want to sleep with you tonight. I want you to bully me… Can you bully me a lot tonight?”