Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten-Chapter 112: Aren’t I Already Yours?
This time, they didn’t take the bus. Since it was Saturday morning, there were plenty of seats available, but by the afternoon, the bus would be packed.
Instead, Lin Zhengran hailed a taxi to take them back to school. While they were waiting, He Qing suddenly asked, “Can we talk about something? I want to give four thousand yuan from my prize money to my mom and grandma. Is that okay?”
Lin Zhengran glanced at her. “Of course. It’s your money—you can spend it however you want.”
He Qing grinned and nodded, then took four thousand yuan from the eight thousand she had left after dinner and tucked it into her pocket. That left her with four thousand remaining.
She handed the rest to Lin Zhengran.
“Here, you take this.”
Standing on the street, Lin Zhengran was puzzled. “Why are you giving it to me?”
He Qing replied as if it was the most natural thing in the world:
“Did you forget? I told you before that I’d give it to you! You’re the one who taught me taekwondo—how else would I have won?”
She reminisced, “Back in middle school, we said that if I won two thousand yuan, I’d give half to my mom, then out of the remaining thousand, I’d give you nine hundred, and Wenwen and I would use the last hundred to buy snacks.”
Thinking about snacks, she swallowed hard before continuing, “But things are different now. I’m your… y-your girlfriend now, right? So I’ll just give it all to you. If I want to buy something later, you can just give me a little allowance.”
Lin Zhengran looked at her helplessly. “So now this money is mine? No way. You earned this through two tough matches—keep it for yourself.”
He Qing didn’t understand. Her clear eyes blinked at him. “What do you mean, ‘mine’ and ‘yours’? Aren’t I already yours? So my money is obviously yours too! And your money… is still yours.”
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She scooted closer and pushed the money toward him again. “Come on, take it! Girls should give their money to their boyfriends. I can’t hold onto money—I’d just spend it all on snacks if I kept it. Hurry and take it.”
She kept poking his hand with the bills, trying to shove them into his palm while giving him an aggrieved look. “If you don’t take it, I won’t be able to sleep tonight. I really can’t be trusted with money.”
Lin Zhengran was amused by her silly logic and didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh.
In the end, he had no choice but to accept it. “Alright, I’ll hold onto it for you. If you ever need it, just ask me, and I’ll give it back.”
Seeing him finally take the money, He Qing beamed. “Okay! Anyway, from now on, you’re in charge at home—you make the decisions.”
He Qing had never even considered the possibility of breaking up. Since last night, when she rested on his shoulder—or maybe even before that—she had already imagined a future where they were married and living together.
She watched as Lin Zhengran tucked the money away and, feeling a little shy, mumbled, “Uh… Lin Zhengran, can you give me a hundred yuan? I want to buy some snacks when we get back to school and celebrate with Wenwen.”
Lin Zhengran took out two hundred and handed it to her. “Then why did you just give me three thousand nine? Besides, what can you buy with just a hundred? Take two hundred.”
But He Qing was stubborn and had her own reasoning.
“That’s totally different! If I kept that money for myself, it’d be like stealing from our home. But if you give it to me, then it’s just me asking my boyfriend for money. Not the same at all!”
She looked at the bills in his hand and took just one. “I won’t spend that much. One hundred is enough. You keep the rest for yourself.”
Then she grinned cheekily. “As long as you’re not spending it on some other girl, I don’t care what you buy! Boys should treat themselves well, too.”
The taxi arrived. He Qing happily tucked the hundred yuan into her pocket, already thinking about what snacks to buy. A hundred yuan could get her a lot.
They got into the cab, and He Qing called her mom to tell her all about her big win.
On the other end, Aunt He was surprised. “You really won? And took first place?”
He Qing, a little embarrassed, smiled. “Mhm! I did! And I even got prize money.”
“There’s prize money, too? How much?”
He Qing lowered her voice, glanced at Lin Zhengran, and said, “Six thousand yuan! But since I won’t be training at the town’s taekwondo center anymore, I spent two thousand treating everyone to a meal. The remaining four thousand—I’ll bring it home for you when I visit during the holidays.”
Aunt He was pleased. “It’s normal to treat everyone, but wow, that’s a lot for a championship prize! You don’t need to give me anything—you earned it, so spend it on yourself.”
He Qing’s cheeks flushed. “It wasn’t that much at first, but they increased it later. Anyway, I don’t want to spend it on myself. I’d rather give it to you and Grandma to buy something nice.”
Aunt He could only sigh at how much her daughter had grown.
Still, she declined. “How about this, Qingqing? I won’t take the money. Just save it, and next time you visit, buy something nice for your grandma. Tell her you used your prize money to get it—she’ll be so happy.”
He Qing hesitated. “Mom, you really don’t want it? Alright then, I’ll use it to buy gifts for you and Grandma.”
The mother and daughter chatted for a while longer before He Qing happily hung up.
She turned to Lin Zhengran and repeated, “Mom said I should just buy them something instead.”
Lin Zhengran nodded.
Since they still had a bit of time before reaching school, He Qing scooted closer, leaned her head on his shoulder, and dozed off for the rest of the ride.
Half an hour later, the taxi pulled up at the school gate.
They got out and walked toward the teaching building. Since they were early, they strolled at a leisurely pace, with He Qing chattering about the tournament.
She was completely at ease—until her small, soft hand accidentally brushed against the back of Lin Zhengran’s.
Her body tensed. She blushed and glanced at him.
The conversation stopped abruptly.
Lin Zhengran kept his gaze forward, but He Qing lowered her head, suddenly aware of something.
The golden sunset cast a warm glow on her face, making her blush even more vivid. Remembering her wish from last night, she hesitated. “Lin Zhengran… about what I said yesterday…”
Before she could finish, she felt something warm wrap around her fingers.
Her eyes widened as she looked down.
Their hands were intertwined.
Lin Zhengran asked, “Does this count as granting your wish?”
Her face turned as red as a ripe fruit. It was so hot she swore steam was rising from her head.
But she didn’t pull away. Instead, her delicate fingers tightened around his as they strolled through campus, hand in hand.
“Mm… it does.”
His hand was so big… and warm… Holding hands felt so nice.
Lin Zhengran’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. “So, are we heading to the supermarket first or looking for Wenwen?”
He Qing flinched and instinctively gripped his hand tighter. Her heart pounded. “L-Let’s find Wenwen first… I want to go shopping with her.”
“Alright.”
When they reached the girls’ dormitory, Lin Zhengran stopped.
“Here you are. Head on up.”
He Qing turned to look at him, reluctant to leave.
Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.
Summoning an unusual burst of courage, she stepped in front of him, took his hand, stood on tiptoe, and grabbed his shoulder.
Then, she lightly kissed the side of his neck.
With a soft, sweet, yet nervous voice, she whispered, “I like you.”
Before he could react, she turned bright red, dashed off, and waved from a distance.
“I’m heading to my dorm! Bye-bye!”
Too flustered to say another word, she ran away without looking back.
