Chapter 25: Jiang Qianqian, the Half-Sugar Ordinary Person

The half-hour deadline for giving the silent treatment was almost up. Jiang Qianqian glanced at the small digital alarm clock on her desk every now and then.

Twenty-seven minutes.
Twenty-eight minutes.
Twenty-eight minutes and twelve seconds... Oh, how every second feels like a year!

Jiang Qianqian had something she wanted to say to Li Xingming just a moment ago, but if she couldn't even hold out for half an hour, it would be quite pathetic.

The girls at school liked to call her names like "the desperate pursuer" or "a total pushover." Jiang Qianqian didn't care about being insulted at all; on the contrary, she felt a secret, smug satisfaction in having a childhood sweetheart who was a hidden treasure, even if the rest of the world didn't know it.

The problem was that Li Xingming completely failed to grasp her feminine charm. When she sat on his lap, he barely reacted, which bruised her ego slightly. That was why she wanted to find some balance in other areas.

For instance, if she could manage to ignore Li Xingming, who sat right next to her, for a full half-hour when she was in a mood, it would prove that she was still quite reserved and not entirely his captive.

Reserved behavior like that was best in small, occasional doses.

According to statistics from the University of Johnnie Walker, "being reserved" is the primary factor leading to the defeat of childhood sweethearts...

Thirty minutes!

Jiang Qianqian stopped her pen, turned her head abruptly, and locked eyes with Li Xingming, who was watching her with a beaming smile.

A blush of shyness stained the girl's cheeks. She knew she had been played by Ah Ming again. Sigh, what else could she do? She could only clench her small fist and give him a soft, powerless punch or two.

"Let's head straight home after class. You seem a bit tired. I'll massage your head when we get home. Maybe you'll sleep well if I do? You'll be full of energy tomorrow. If I remember correctly, the whole grade has 'Introduction to Magic Spirits' tomorrow..."

"I'll leave it all to Ah Ming."

And so, Li Xingming left the Arts Building early to warm up the car.

Maple Sugar City was located in a geographic zone between the north and south, where the winters were quite cold. Fortunately, because Maple Sugar Heavy Industries had built many factories locally, their surplus thermal energy was provided to all city residents at an extremely low cost.

The classrooms at City No. 1 High School were well-heated and comfortable.

The garage, however, was not.

Li Xingming warmed up the car, waited for Jiang Qianqian to get in, and the old, worn-out engine roared as it pulled the vehicle out of the underground parking.

*Ding~* A notification sound from Li Xingming's phone cut through the roar of the engine.

Even though modern family cars come with central touchscreens and intelligent systems, Li Xingming had installed a phone mount on the air vent in the middle of the dashboard.

There was no particular reason for it; he just liked having his phone right in front of his eyes, and occasionally, he could pretend to be a ride-share driver to experience life.

[Sheng-Sheng-Bu-Xi: [Map Location Sharing: National Science High School Electronic Study Room]]
[Sheng-Sheng-Bu-Xi: Thesis submitted. Should pass review within three days.]
[Sheng-Sheng-Bu-Xi: Who is Robert?]

"So, who is Robert? Sheng-Sheng keeps asking you that question," Jiang Qianqian said, confused.

"I've just realized that I don't like this air vent phone mount as much anymore. It lets the girl sitting in the passenger seat spy on my phone at zero cost."

"I wasn't spying! I was looking openly." Jiang Qianqian took Li Xingming's phone down. "Do you want me to reply for you?"

"Help me hit the voice button; I'll tell her."

"Hmm... alright."

"I'll log on when I get home. We'll play a best-of-five. If you win, I'll tell you who Robert is."

[Sheng-Sheng-Bu-Xi: Okay.]
[Sheng-Sheng-Bu-Xi: I'm going to crush you. [Yongchu Tafei_Never had such a wonderful start]]

"Oh my, we're still on the way home, and you've already made plans to play games with Sheng-Sheng? As expected, the new team member gets special treatment."

"Haha, is that so?" Li Xingming chuckled. "Why do I hear a hint of jealousy in someone's voice?"

"I am not."

"Do you want to set another half-hour of ignoring me?"

"I'm not that petty! I, I... Hmph, go play with her when we get home then. I'll go take a shower by myself."

"How about I help you with that shower?"

"..."

Jiang Qianqian couldn't help but imagine the scene, and she was instantly too shy to say another word.

In fact, there had been a few times when they were younger that Li Xingming had helped her bathe, but as she got older, Jiang Qianqian quietly put an end to that activity; it was too easy to get flustered and lose control of the surging emotions she felt for him.

She could play dumb, but even the most innocent girl knows that once puberty hits, you shouldn't just expose your body in front of your childhood sweetheart.

Can't be too reckless.

"Three days for a review, that's incredibly fast," Li Xingming remarked. "Now we have an industry insider from the academic world on our team. It’ll be convenient for publishing papers, earning extra money, or whatever else comes up."

"Is the review fast because of... Ye Sheng's parents?" Jiang Qianqian recalled the information she had seen on the National Science High School's gossip board.

"Right. The academic circle values connections and lineage. Of course, Sheng-Sheng's own ability is solid too—tough and reliable!"

"...Ah Ming."

"Yeah?"

"Do boys generally think that, uh, tall girls have more style?"

"Depends on the person. For your type, being a bit shorter is better."

"Why is that?" Jiang Qianqian asked, trying to keep the corners of her mouth from turning upward.

"Because you look silly and cute. If you were tall, it would be weirdly jarring. Being 'half-sweet' like you are now is just right."

"...You jerk! If you weren't driving, I'd pinch you."

"You can save your strength and pinch me after I park."

The distance between City No. 1 High School and the apartment complex where they rented was not far—about a seven or eight-minute walk—but because it was winter, they just drove. It was also convenient if they wanted to go somewhere else after school.

Once Li Xingming parked the car downstairs, Jiang Qianqian didn't want to pinch him anymore. She threw herself into his arms, wriggling around and making nonsensical noises.

"?"

"You called me weird, so now I'm a fool," Jiang Qianqian made a silly face. "I'm not moving."

"Then I'll carry you upstairs."

"Hehe~"

Li Xingming carried her upstairs, settled her on the sofa, went into the study to turn on the console, and started a match—or rather, three—with Ye Sheng.

Though it was supposed to be a best-of-five, it ended cleanly at three-to-zero. Li Xingming didn't go easy on her today.

Combat intuition is a metaphysical thing. Ye Sheng played many games, but her actual experience with adventure was likely quite shallow.

"Done. Come on, let's study," Li Xingming moved a chair into Jiang Qianqian's bedroom.

"That was fast!"

"Well, if I kept playing games with Sheng-Sheng, someone here didn't seem to have their heart in studying at all."

"..."

The embarrassment of being seen through was quickly melted away by Li Xingming's gentle gaze.

She rubbed her little face against his arm.

"Ah Ming is the best."

Meanwhile, in the distant capital, Ye Sheng took off her VR headset.

Darn it, she lost again.

In her feeling of loss, she had a faint, strange sensation that she couldn't quite put into words.

It felt as if she had forgotten something important, yet she couldn't remember what it was for the life of her...