Chapter 377: Supervision - Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten

Chapter 377: Supervision A sudden silence fell upon them. Jiang Xue Li felt awkward in the tense quiet. Lin Zhengran: "..." Jiang Xue Li: "..." Her hands, which had been running through her twin ponytails, slowed until they stopped completely. "Say something, Zhengran," she mumbled. Lin Zhengran: "..." Jiang Xue Li, cheeks puffed and small fists clenched, suddenly shouted in embarrassment, "Say something, Zhengran! It's awkward when I say something and you just stay silent!" Lin Zhengran gave a forced smile, baring his teeth. Jiang Xue Li was taken aback by his expression; if she weren't on the bed, she would have taken a few steps back. "What kind of expression is that... is this how you look at a weirdo?!" Lin Zhengran questioned, "My dear Lili, do you really believe that? Don't you think Fang Meng's idea is a bit ridiculous?" "Yes, it does seem a bit ridiculous," she deflated, "but I don't have any better ideas other than this. I've tried many methods, and they were all useless. Are you unwilling to help me break the bad streak, Zhengran?" As she spoke, Jiang Xue Li suddenly felt aggrieved. A young woman in love is prone to emotional swings; her big, cute eyes imploringly looked at Lin Zhengran. "You're such a dummy, always bullying me." Seeing her like this made Lin Zhengran inexplicably want to laugh. He reached out to gently play with her ponytails. Jiang Xue Li turned her head with a little huff. Lin Zhengran indulged her, "I didn't say I was unwilling. Alright, I'll try it with you." She instantly brightened up, though her pride kept her from showing it too much. She asked with a suppressed smile, "Really? You'd really do something so childish with me?" Lin Zhengran leaned back against the headboard. "What choice do I have? I'm your boyfriend, and I like you. Besides, calling it childish is just fine—I’ve done plenty of childish things since I was young." After all, Lin Zhengran had the mindset of someone who had traversed through his twenty-seven or twenty-eight years, engaged in such childish antics throughout. Lili's heart raced hearing how much he liked her. "What if it doesn't work?" she asked. "We'll find out after we try." "But didn't you just say it’s ridiculous..." she trailed off. Lin Zhengran impatiently remarked, "Are we doing this or not?!" Startled, Jiang Xue Li jumped slightly and immediately responded, "Yes! I'll get the chocolate right now! Why are you so fierce, like you’re about to eat someone?" Without even getting out of bed, she reached over to the nearby shelf and grabbed the chocolate. Apparently, she had bought it earlier, Lin Zhengran noted. Jiang Xue Li then set down her guitar and slowly crawled towards Lin Zhengran on the bed. In front of him, she sat like a duck, tearing open the chocolate wrapper. The sweet, dark chocolate emerged from the package. Jiang Xue Li asked, "How much do you think we should eat? A little bit should be enough, right?" Lin Zhengran mused, "If we're going this far, we might as well go all the way. I'll chew the whole piece; you eat it all." Jiang Xue Li blushed, "I’ll eat it all?" "Why not? But it's a big piece, so we’ll need several bites." "Okay," she agreed. Just then, Lin Zhengran came up with an idea, reaching to touch her thigh. Jiang Xue Li was startled, reacting like a startled kitten, "Zhengran, what are you doing? Why put your hand on my thigh?" "Just as I thought," his eyes were meaningful. "What do you mean, just as you thought?" "That your thoughts are anything but pure." "Nonsense!" she immediately retorted. "How are my thoughts impure?" "Then why all the tension? Why such a big reaction when I touched your leg? Are we a new couple that hasn't even held hands? How many times have we already slept together? Why so tense all of a sudden now?" Exposed, Jiang Xue Li's face turned as red as a kettle. Lin Zhengran whispered, "Do you want it?" She bit her lip and turned slightly away. His hand remained in place. She furrowed her brow tightly. Lin Zhengran reminded, "We are at home—Wen Wen, He Qing, and Jing Shi are all here. They might discover us." Jiang Xue Li used the chocolate in her hand to shield her face, "You idiot, can you move your hand off my leg? I wasn’t planning on doing anything sneaky, I was just..." Lin Zhengran withdrew his hand. When he did, she wasn't pleased. With a mix of embarrassment and annoyance, Jiang Xue Li gave him a look, "I tell you to remove it, and you actually do." He tapped her head, teasingly, "What’s wrong with you? Didn't you ask me to?" With a little pain, she covered her head and replied, "I didn’t have any intention to sneak around. With only a month left until the competition, I can't always be distracted during practice sessions with you. I might worry eating chocolate will get me excited, so maybe you should supervise." "So, after all that, you were thinking of sneaking around?" he unveiled the truth. Eyes squeezed shut, she refuted, "I said I wasn’t! I just want to break this streak!" "Enough quarreling, I get it. You want me to help break the streak and supervise your excitement so we can practice guitar this afternoon, right?" Jiang Xue Li blushed and nodded, "Yes, that's about it. I want to focus on music today, not on sneaking away." "Okay, then let’s do this. Hand me the chocolate; I'll chew it first." Jiang Xue Li broke off a third of the chocolate and offered it to Lin Zhengran, "Here, you eat a third first." He took it and placed it in his mouth. Chewing it to bits quickly, Lili's chocolate turned out pretty soft. With a nutty core, it tasted quite good. He gestured to indicate he was ready to begin. Jiang Xue Li, tentatively, leaned forward, supporting herself with both hands, lips slowly nearing his. Their eyes locked as they got closer and closer. Until eventually, their lips met gently. Lin Zhengran wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. It made the process more comfortable. She obediently shuffled forward. Her mouth opened to consume the chocolate already fractured in his. The kiss made her fingers curl slightly. Her breath grew warmer. The hand not holding the chocolate instinctively reached for his shirt. But Lin Zhengran caught it, pausing them, "No sneaky thoughts—weren’t you the one who wanted supervision?" Her watery eyes were filled with embarrassment, but she nodded. She licked the chocolate off her lips. "The first piece is down. Two more to go—I think we should just eat them together; it's easier than I thought..." "Sure." Jiang Xue Li placed the larger chunk of chocolate near his mouth, and he took it in. Chewing. He signaled again. But by this time, she was barely holding on; the chocolate made the atmosphere more intense than a regular kiss. Her strength almost waned. But she leaned forward again, meeting his chocolate-flavored lips. Her other hand almost immediately tried to reach under his shirt, but he caught it again. This time she didn’t pretend, "Zhengran, don’t hold my hand." "Weren’t you the one who asked for supervision? To break the streak?" Her eyes opened slightly, filled with a watery gleam, "I changed my mind. Lock the door; I can't practice this afternoon—I’m already..." Lin Zhengran sighed, "You really are silly. Say you’re a dummy and I'll lock the door." "I'm a dummy... Lili's a dummy, hurry up and lock it..." He reached for the study room door and clicked it shut; Jiang Xue Li immediately snaked her hands under his shirt, feeling the muscles along his abdomen. She pushed Lin Zhengran onto the bed. "Zhengran... your lips taste so sweet..." (End of Chapter)