Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten-Chapter 168: College Applications

After breakfast, Lin Zhengran headed for the door and turned to Fang Meng. “I have to go out for a bit. Are you heading home, or…?”

Fang Meng continued wiping the table. “I’ll leave after I finish cleaning up.”

“I already wiped that,” he reminded her.

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“I can make it cleaner,” she replied, not stopping.

Seeing no point in arguing, Zhengran left the house. His plan for the morning was to get a haircut and then tutor Han Wenwen and Jiang Xueli.

With college entrance exams approaching, he wasn’t worried in the slightest. But both Jiang Xueli and Han Wenwen had side careers, which meant their studies were bound to suffer.

Luckily, with Zhengran’s help, they were still ranking near the top of their class. Getting into a good university wouldn’t be a problem for them.

As he stepped out of the building and reached the residential complex entrance, he was surprised to see Jiang Xueli and Han Wenwen waiting for him.

One stood with her hands behind her back, glancing around idly. The other had her head tilted down, scrolling through her phone, occasionally smiling as she exchanged messages.

Zhengran raised an eyebrow. “What are you two doing here?”

Both girls turned to him and took a few steps forward.

Jiang Xueli hadn’t changed much in the past two years. At least in terms of looks and figure, Zhengran didn’t see much of a difference.

But since she had been filming videos and performing on stage more often, her presence had improved significantly.

And among the three girls, she had the slimmest legs—which somehow kept getting more and more shapely. A very… peculiar development.

"Zhengran, we’ve been waiting for you forever," Jiang Xueli said.

She recalled the night after her first haircut at Zhengshi Music, a memory she still cherished. Even though it had been a long time, it remained vivid in her mind.

“You mentioned last night that you were getting a haircut today, right? So I thought... well, back then, you also went with me when I got mine,” she said, her cheeks turning slightly red. “So this time, I should accompany you.”

Zhengran frowned. He barely remembered that. “That was ages ago. Must’ve been back in our first year, right?”

Jiang Xueli pouted. “Yeah, but who cares how long ago it was? I’m your girlfriend. Do I need a reason to go with you?”

"...Fair point."

She turned her head to the side smugly.

Han Wenwen, who had been listening in, smiled on the surface, but deep down, her fox instincts were itching to fight.

The moment Jiang Xueli said “girlfriend”, Han Wenwen’s jealousy flared up.

If women were made of water, then Han Wenwen was made of pure vinegar.

Zhengran turned to her. “So what about you? Same reason?”

Han Wenwen gave a sweet smile. “Oh, but I’m not Lin Zhengran’s girlfriend. I’m just someone he’s been tutoring recently, so I figured I’d tag along for the haircut.”

As if she’d let him be alone with Jiang Xueli.

This was Zhengran’s rest day—a rare weekend when he wasn’t obligated to accompany anyone. No way was she going to give Jiang Xueli a free pass to have him all to herself.

Jiang Xueli glanced at Han Wenwen and couldn’t help but tease.

“Han Wenwen, you know… you don’t actually have to come. Sleeping in sounds like a great way to spend your morning. It’s not like you need to monitor Lin Zhengran like you did back in middle school. I mean… He Qing and I are already his, so…”

If Han Wenwen wasn’t here, then during the haircut, she could cling to Zhengran’s arm, whisper sweet nothings, maybe even sneak in a hug or a kiss if the mood was right.

But with her here? None of that would be possible.

Han Wenwen, looking as innocent as ever, waved her hand dismissively.

“Oh, I’m not monitoring anything. Not at all.”

Jiang Xueli sweatdropped. Yeah right.

She was sure He Qing had sent Han Wenwen here to keep her from getting too close to Zhengran.

Especially since He Qing wasn’t around this weekend…

Zhengran, the leader of this chaotic trio, shook his head. “Alright, alright. Since you’re both here, let’s just go together. Then we’ll head to your place, Lily, so I can tutor you two.”

“Okay.” Both girls answered in perfect sync.

—

The haircut and tutoring session were more uneventful than usual.

With a triangle formation, things were naturally more stable—and less eventful.

Even so, some things still happened.

While Jiang Xueli was studying, she would tap her foot lightly against Zhengran’s leg, acting all tough before cutely pouting afterward.

Han Wenwen, on the other hand, seized every opportunity—the moment Jiang Xueli left for the bathroom, she would hug Zhengran and steal a quick moment of affection.

By the afternoon, the three of them took a taxi back to school.

That’s when they noticed something… odd.

Inside the taxi, someone was already sitting in the front seat.

The person wore a mask and a hat, making them look like a random rideshare passenger.

At first, the trio didn’t think much of it.

But midway through the ride, Han Wenwen’s fox-like nose twitched.

She recognized the scent.

“Wait a second… The person in the front seat… Isn’t that Fang Meng?”

She narrowed her eyes.

“The one who’s Jiang Qian’s best friend?”

Fang Meng, startled, removed her mask and turned around. “How did you know it was me?”

The three of them blinked in surprise.

It really was her.

Han Wenwen smiled slyly. “I smelled you.”

Fang Meng blinked. “You... smelled me?”

Han Wenwen giggled. “Every girl has a unique scent.”

Fang Meng still didn’t get it.

Zhengran, on the other hand, was more curious. “What are you doing here?”

Fang Meng glanced at him, then turned her eyes back to the road ahead.

“I just happened to take the same car. Total coincidence.”

Zhengran: “…”

Somehow, he didn’t believe that.

Especially since he recognized the driver—one of the Jiang family's chauffeurs.

Out of nowhere, Fang Meng added, “Also, I’m not Jiang Qian’s best friend. I’m just her assistant.”

Jiang Xueli, who didn’t know much about Fang Meng, found this surprising. “Assistant? But you two seem close. It feels like you’re more than just that.”

Fang Meng answered calmly, “No. That’s all there is to it.”

“…Oh. Alright then.”

Han Wenwen, however, wasn’t convinced.

Something about this whole situation felt off.

Her sharp fox instincts started working overtime.

Fang Meng wasn’t from this town.

If she was, Han Wenwen would have met her long ago.

So why was she here?

“Fang Meng, does your family live in this town?”

“No,” Fang Meng replied smoothly. “I came here this morning to meet a friend. Just a coincidence that I ran into you.”

“…A friend?”

“Yeah. A male friend.”

Han Wenwen’s ears twitched.

“…You have a boyfriend?”

Fang Meng clarified immediately. “I said male friend.”

Han Wenwen smirked. “Drop the word ‘male,’ and it changes the meaning entirely.”

She stopped talking after that.

But in her sharp fox brain, she was making connections.

She slowly turned her head to look at Zhengran.

…Could it be?

Was her "male friend" actually… Zhengran?

Zhengran, noticing her staring, raised an eyebrow.

“…Why are you looking at me?”

Han Wenwen’s smile widened. “Oh, nothing…”

I’ll find out later.

If Fang Meng was his type, then she needed to be on guard.

She still remembered when Zhengran had a maximum of seven girlfriends in his past life.

And until he reached that number, any pretty girl was a potential threat.

Fang Meng, sitting in the front seat, felt a cold sweat drip down her forehead.

Why does this girl feel… strangely dangerous?