I'm Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten

Chapter 141: Chapter 131: A Long-Awaited Date

During the taxi ride, Jiang Xueli sat stiffly, her face flushed as she stared out the window.

She was clearly very nervous about their first date.

Her small hands were clasped together tightly.

Although this was their first date, it was far from the first time Lin Zhengran had hung out with her alone since they were kids.

He glanced over at the nervous girl. ’Has it been so long since we hung out alone that she’s this tense?’ he wondered.

The taxi didn’t go all the way downtown, as it was too far. Instead, it stopped at a large shopping mall on the outskirts of the city.

The place was usually bustling with plenty of amenities. And since it was still the National Day holiday—even if it was the last day—crowds of people and couples were still streaming in and out of the mall’s entrance.

It was very lively.

Lin Zhengran asked Jiang Xueli what she wanted for breakfast.

Jiang Xueli clasped her hands behind her back, spotted a nearby fast-food place, and suggested after a moment’s thought, ”Burgers?”

”Let’s go.”

The two of them headed to the burger joint. As they reached the entrance, Jiang Xueli took the initiative. ”I’ll order!”

Lin Zhengran didn’t object.

But just as he tried to see what she was ordering, Jiang Xueli frantically pushed him by the back. ”Go find a seat! You don’t need to watch. Go on, go sit and rest!”

”You don’t need me to carry the food?”

”Nope, nope! I’ll call you if I can’t carry it all! Hurry and find a spot, or there won’t be any left.”

Once Lin Zhengran was gone, Jiang Xueli quietly asked the cashier, ”Excuse me, do you have any... couple’s combos?”

The young woman at the counter nodded. ”We do. We recently introduced two new couple’s combos. You can take a look.”

”Okay, let me see.”

The cashier slid a menu flyer across the counter toward her and pointed to the section for couple’s combos.

”These two are the new ones.”

Jiang Xueli saw that the first combo came with two burgers, two chicken wraps, two Cokes, and a choice of a side.

’What kind of couple’s combo is this?’ she thought.

’Isn’t this just a combo for two?’

’Does slapping a heart-shaped picture on it make it a couple’s combo?’

’Don’t they get *why* people order a couple’s combo?!’

Just as she finished her internal rant, the cashier added, ”Oh, and the first combo comes with a free heart-shaped toy.”

Her small canines peeked out as she spoke, decisively rejecting the offer. ”I’ll keep looking.”

’Do they really think I’m a kid?!’

The second combo, however, had four burgers, six chicken wraps, one large ”couple’s drink,” and four sides. Its most distinctive feature was the straw—it was one of those trendy types you see online, with two separate mouthpieces that merged into a single straw at the bottom.

Jiang Xueli was tempted the moment she saw it, but the second combo was more than twice as expensive as the first...

’I guess I’m just too naive,’ she thought. ’It’s not that this burger joint is bad at business—they’re *too* good.’

’Damn capitalists!’

”Does the second combo come with anything free?”

”Nope!” the cashier said with a smile that showed off two rows of perfectly straight teeth.

”But they’re both called couple’s combos, right? The cheap one comes with a freebie, but the expensive one doesn’t?”

”Because fewer people buy the cheap one, we include the toy to encourage sales. Otherwise, no one would buy it.”

Jiang Xueli was at a loss for words. But the thought of that straw made her cheeks flush slightly. ”I’ll take the second combo, then.”

”Alright, one moment, please.”

A few moments later, Lin Zhengran saw Jiang Xueli approaching with a tray piled high with breakfast...

It was loaded with chicken wraps, burgers, all sorts of sides, and a single large drink.

Lin Zhengran was floored. ”Did you skip dinner last night or something?”

”Huh?” Jiang Xueli replied. ”I did eat.”

Lin Zhengran recalled that she had messaged him last night; she had indeed eaten.

”Then why’d you order so much? Can we even finish all this for breakfast?”

She was a terrible liar—the moment she tried, her face would turn an awkward shade of red. She set the tray on the table, feigning ignorance.

”I... I didn’t realize it came with so much food! I just saw it was a combo and ordered it without looking too closely. It’s fine! It won’t be wasted. I’ll just eat more.”

She had deliberately removed the two-in-one couple’s straw before bringing the tray over. She felt that leaving it in the drink would make her intentions a little too obvious.

”Um, Zhengran... I only realized after I paid that there’s... something wrong with the straw. It looks like they gave me one of those couple’s straws... so if you want some of the drink...”

From the moment Lin Zhengran saw her trying to hide it, he knew what was going on.

He replied nonchalantly, deciding to tease her, ”I’m not thirsty. You can have it.”

”Huh?!”

Those words horrified Jiang Xueli.

’Then what was the point of buying such a huge drink and this massive combo?!’

But even so, Jiang Xueli said, ”O...Okay. I’ll just drink it myself, then.”

She stuck the couple’s straw—the one that merged at the bottom but had two separate spouts at the top—into the cup. Then, all alone, she started sadly gulping the drink, GLUG GLUG, before unwrapping a burger and taking a few bites, looking utterly dejected.

Lin Zhengran unwrapped a chicken wrap and took a few bites himself. ”Actually, I’m suddenly a little thirsty,” he said with a helpless sigh. ”Let me have a few sips.”

”Thirsty?” The moment she heard that, the listless Jiang Xueli instantly perked up, practically glowing. She put down her burger and excitedly offered him the drink with both hands.

”Here, drink up! You use the other end.”

Lin Zhengran took it and took two long sips.

Jiang Xueli watched intently, her eyes fixed on the movement of his Adam’s apple as he drank.

’They weren’t using the same mouthpiece, but it was all coming from the same straw...’