Chapter 12: The Young Fighter’s Challenge

After layers of careful observation, they discovered that Little Heqing had only one enemy she couldn’t defeat.

It was a chubby kid named Xiao Long.

This chubby kid had a round, plump face and was unusually tall. Though he started Taekwondo this year, he relied on his natural advantages to overpower all the veterans.

With her small arms and legs, Little Heqing naturally couldn’t beat him.

Lin Zheng Ran asked if she had ever sparred with Xiao Long before. Little Heqing nodded, “We fought twice. The first time, he slammed me to the ground in one go and left me dazed.”

“And the second time?”

“The second time, he did the same—slammed me down in one move and left me dazed again.”

Lin Zheng Ran felt a bit embarrassed. “So, do you think you can beat him?”

“I can’t.” Little Heqing answered honestly, but it earned her a flick on the head.

Little Heqing clutched her head.

Lin Zheng Ran asked again, “Let me ask you one more time—do you think you can beat him?!”

Little Heqing looked like she’d done something wrong and nodded while covering her head, “I can beat him.”

“Great!” Lin Zheng Ran grinned. “See, you’re confident in yourself! For kids fighting, size is secondary—it’s all about mental toughness. As long as you don’t fear him, even if you get hit, keep that tough and scary expression on your face, and he’ll be intimidated by a little girl like you.”

Little Heqing didn’t understand a word he was saying. What was mental toughness? And what did intimidate mean? She’d never learned that in school.

But she nodded anyway, “Okay!”

“So, for our final month of focused training, we’ll concentrate on just one thing—building your mental strength! Once that’s solid, as long as you dominate in spirit, you can practice the physical moves casually. He won’t stand a chance against you.”

Lin Zheng Ran stared at Little Heqing, looking every bit the coach. “Come on, show me a scary or intimidating expression.”

Little Heqing looked confused and ended up cutely baring her teeth.

Lin Zheng Ran helplessly tugged at her cheeks. “What are you doing?! Are you showing off your white teeth? Stop acting cute!”

Little Heqing shut her eyes in grievance. “I’m not acting cute. I just don’t know how.”

He sighed, “Fine, with your personality, who would be scared of you? Just copy me. I’ll teach you to frown first, then make a cold face, and finally, glare sideways at people.”

After Lin Zheng Ran demonstrated, Little Heqing tried to mimic him with a baffled look. It didn’t go smoothly, but with his hands-on adjustments, her expression settled into something somewhat intimidating.

On the street, Little Heqing frowned intensely at the distance, grinding her teeth, looking even more adorably silly than before.

Lin Zheng Ran grimaced like he’d swallowed a bug, but he knew they’d have to take it slow. Under the setting sun, he pointed to the road ahead. “Now, run three laps around this street with me! Keep that expression steady the whole time. Go!”

With that, he dashed off.

Little Heqing hurried after him. “Lin Zheng Ran, wait for me! You’re running too fast—I can’t keep up!”

“I’m waiting right here! Pick up the pace! And remember your expression—why aren’t you baring your teeth anymore? Hold it!”

Lin Zheng Ran’s intense training wasn’t overly hard, but for Little Heqing, it was much tougher than before.

For the first time, she realized how exhausting it was to act tough or angry. She couldn’t help wondering how tiring it must be for adults who always wore that stern face.

Time flew, and they reached the latter half of the month.

Today was a rest day, so Little Heqing went with her mom to the supermarket.

Holding her mom’s hand, they arrived at the big mall, and Little Heqing suddenly remembered something. She scampered over to an expensive dessert counter.

She pressed against the glass case, gazing at the back where a chocolate dessert shaped like a white swan sat.

The dessert wasn’t large—about the size of Little Heqing’s two palms—but it was pricey, costing several hundred yuan.

The shop assistant, a pretty young woman, had seen Heqing before. “Hey there, kiddo, back to look at the desserts again?”

Little Heqing hummed in agreement and pointed with a childish voice. “Sis, is that chocolate still available? Please save it for me. I want to buy it by the end of the month.”

The young woman bent down with a smile. “Don’t worry, I’ve been saving it for you. But”—she pointed toward Aunt He in the distance—”is that your mom over there shopping? Why not ask her to buy it now? I can even give you a discount!”

Little Heqing shook her head, eyes fixed on the swan dessert. “It’s not for Mom to buy. I’m in a competition, and if I win, our coach said I can pick any gift under five hundred yuan. I want this one.”

“Oh?” The young woman asked curiously. “What kind of competition? You sound so confident about winning.”

“Taekwondo! And I am confident!”

The young woman laughed and stepped out to pat Little Heqing’s head. “You’re such a cute little thing. Don’t worry, I’ll keep this dessert safe until the end of the month. It’s delicious—I promise you won’t be disappointed!”

Little Heqing shyly said, “Thank you, sis,” but then she glanced back at the dessert and thought of someone. “It’s not just for me. I’m giving it to someone else. He really likes chocolate.”

Heqing figured Lin Zheng Ran would love this gift, which was another big reason she had to win the championship.

Aunt He finished shopping and called out, “Qing Qing, do you want a dessert?”

Little Heqing shook her head at her mom’s voice. “No, I don’t! Just looking.”

She said goodbye to the young woman and ran to her mom’s side, taking her hand again.

Aunt He asked, “What dessert were you looking at? You always stop by. Are you sure you don’t want to buy it?”

Little Heqing shook her head vigorously. “Really, no. Let’s go home, Mom. I need to find Lin Zheng Ran.”

Little Heqing knew this was her prize. If she begged her mom to buy it another way, it would lose its meaning, and the dessert wouldn’t taste as good. She couldn’t give something like that to Lin Zheng Ran—it might make him mad.

The counter assistant waved goodbye to Little Heqing from afar, but as soon as she returned to the counter,

a new customer pointed at the white swan and asked, “That one looks nice—how much?”

The assistant smiled. “Sorry, that’s not for sale. It’s the last one this month, and it’s already reserved. Check back next month—we’ll have a fresh batch.”

The customer sighed, “Alright, then I’ll take this one instead!” She pointed to another dessert.

“Sure, I’ll pack it for you.” The assistant glanced toward where Little Heqing had disappeared, then turned to get the box.

Another week and a half passed, and the end of the month arrived.

In the Taekwondo dojo today, the competitors were buzzing with excitement. It was just a small in-house event, but the prizes had everyone fired up.

Some of the participants were especially thrilled.

Little Heqing changed into her crisp white Taekwondo uniform in the back and took a deep breath in front of the mirror.

Stepping out of the changing room, she spotted Lin Zheng Ran in the audience seats, arms crossed. Their eyes met.

For once, Lin Zheng Ran gave her a thumbs-up.

Little Heqing’s face turned bright red as she nodded vigorously. Today, she had to win—for him.