Chapter 2: Childhood Bonds

A soft, panicked voice came from the girls’ restroom.

Little Heqing flushed the toilet and looked at her wet sleeve, which had gotten splashed in her hurry.

She rushed to the sink, wanting to wash it clean with water.

Just then, the bell rang for the end of class. A small boy passed by the sink and saw her washing and sniffing her sleeve. After a moment of confusion, he curiously asked, “What are you doing? Did you pee on your wrist?!”

Caught off guard, Little Heqing blushed and kept her head down, not saying a word as she scrubbed faster.

The boy suddenly grinned mischievously and shouted loudly, “Come quick, everyone! Look at this! This girl peed on her clothes and is washing them right now!”

His yell drew a crowd of curious kids.

Heqing was so scared that she burst into tears, her eyes blurry as she dared not turn around.

In the classroom, Lin Zheng Ran heard the shouting too.

And at the same time, the system’s voice appeared.

[You had just parted from Fairy He when you heard sounds of a scuffle in the distance, as if she was being bullied by villains. Saving her might earn you a treasure as thanks, but not saving her is also an option—after all, the path of cultivation is dangerous, and every decision needs careful thought.]

Lin Zheng Ran stepped out of the classroom and saw Heqing surrounded by the crowd, hiding there and wiping away tears in distress.

Without hesitation, he pushed through the crowd to the center and barked, “Who was shouting just now? What’s your problem? Show yourself!”

As soon as the kids saw it was Lin Zheng Ran, no one dared to speak up.

After all, he was notorious in kindergarten as a tough guy who never played with anyone, ignored people, and always spoke harshly—everyone was afraid of him.

Though because he was handsome, some little girls secretly thought he had personality.

With that shout, no one said a word.

Little Heqing wiped her tears sadly, standing there and staring at Lin Zheng Ran.

Lin Zheng Ran walked up to her and said, “Why are you crying? Can’t you just yell back at them? All you do is cry!”

Little Heqing was gentle and quiet, never one to argue or fight back, and a lot of kids picked on her for fun.

As her childhood neighbor who sometimes ate at her house, Lin Zheng Ran occasionally stepped in to defend her.

“Waa…”

“Stop crying! If you don’t, I’m walking away for good!”

Little Heqing held back her sobs, her eyes red and wet as she stood there sniffling.

Lin Zheng Ran asked, “Who bullied you? Point them out to me.”

Little Heqing kept her head down and stayed silent.

Lin Zheng Ran pulled at her cheek with a frustrated look.

“Are you going to tell me or not?!”

It didn’t really hurt, but Little Heqing still whimpered pitifully until she glanced at the boy.

Lin Zheng Ran turned and saw the small boy trembling, his face pale.

Lin Zheng Ran’s eyes widened as he demanded, “Did you bully Heqing?! I told you to come out earlier—why didn’t you? Let’s go see the teacher right now, and if she doesn’t care, we’ll take this outside and fight!”

As he spoke, he started toward the boy, but before he could finish, the boy burst into tears and whispered, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it.”

Lin Zheng Ran grabbed his clothes—kids were easy to scare.

“Whispering like that? No one’s going to hear you! You were shouting loud before, weren’t you? Say it again! Apologize to Heqing!”

“I’m sorry, Heqing! I’m really sorry! Please forgive me!” The boy, terrified by Lin Zheng Ran’s intensity, wailed loudly.

Satisfied that he’d made his point, Lin Zheng Ran turned and left the crowd without a second glance.

Little Heqing watched Lin Zheng Ran’s back as she wiped her red, tear-streaked face and hurried after him. Along the way, she overheard the other girls whispering.

The girls around them were buzzing, “Lin Zheng Ran is so cool,” “Yeah, he’s got such personality.”

Little Heqing bit her lip and stayed close behind Lin Zheng Ran.

[By choosing to save the fairy, she feels deeply grateful to you. After that encounter, seeing your impressive skills, she’s even thinking about joining you on adventures in this dangerous world—whether to go alone or with a companion is a key choice for your future.]

Choose? What’s there to choose? I’m only five—how am I supposed to adventure? Does that mean I don’t have to come to class tomorrow?!

The next two periods were playtime, and the kids from Class Three were out in the kindergarten yard, messing around.

Lin Zheng Ran sat by the slide, with Little Heqing standing nearby, head down, not speaking, not sitting, not leaving—like she’d done something wrong.

Lin Zheng Ran sighed in frustration.

He wasn’t usually that harsh in his past life, but Heqing was just so timid and slow, always getting picked on without fighting back and barely saying a word—it made it hard to talk to her nicely.

“Why are you standing in front of me? You’re blocking my sun.”

Little Heqing said “Oh” and quickly stepped aside.

Lin Zheng Ran added, “Now you’re blocking the wind.”

“Ah?” Little Heqing panicked. “Then where should I stand?”

“Can’t you sit down?!”

“But everywhere except next to you is dirt.”

“Then sit on the dirt.”

“Okay.” Heqing started to sit.

“Okay, you big dummy! Sit next to me!”

Startled, Little Heqing saw he was agreeing and carefully sat beside Lin Zheng Ran.

She tucked her legs together, clasped her hands, hesitated, then shyly said, “Th-thank you for saving me earlier. How can I repay you?”

“Do you have any snacks left?”

Little Heqing shook her head quickly. “Not on me, but I have some at home in my room—candy and stuff.”

She used her hands to show the size of a box, about as big as two of her small hands. “It’s packed full, thousands of pieces.”

Lin Zheng Ran thought to himself that she had no idea about numbers—probably just a storage box or something!

“All for me?”

Little Heqing nodded like a bobblehead. “Yes, all for you. Do you want anything else?”

[The fairy’s reward is quite generous—she’s offering you an entire box of sect pills, and from her tone, it seems she has another extremely important treasure. Will you claim it or let it go for now?]

Hearing the system’s prompt, Lin Zheng Ran asked curiously, “What else do you have?”

Little Heqing said reluctantly, “I have a big chocolate bar at home. My dad bought it for my birthday, and I keep it carefully under my wardrobe—I never eat it.”

Seeing her expression, Lin Zheng Ran asked if he could see it, and Little Heqing nodded.

She promised to bring it over that evening for him to look at.

Soon, the kindergarten bell rang for dismissal, and the pretty teacher organized the kids from Class Three to line up and head out the gate.

“Everyone, stay in line and don’t run off! You’ll be home soon!”

Lin Zheng Ran stood at the back of the line, spotting his parents waving at him outside the school gate.

After a month in this new life, Lin Zheng Ran had a good grasp of his situation.

His dad, Lin Kai—nicknamed the handsome one—was a steady-looking civil servant in town, well-liked and with a strong say at home.

His mom, Lin Xiao Li, worked at a nail salon, a bit silly and sweet, but earned more than his dad. She came up with his dad’s nickname from watching cartoons.

The family didn’t have much saved, but they were all healthy and happy eaters. A couple of years ago, they bought a cheap car for getting around.

Though this was the result of a failed crossing-over.

But Lin Zheng Ran had just one thought—that curse from some online site’s orphanage finally broke!

With this perfect family and his future hacks on the system, a happy life was basically waving at him!