“Moreover, Liang Sheng, you’re so good to me. If you were a guy, I’d definitely want to marry you.” This time, Zhen Zhu delivered the line without a hint of blush, her words sounding as if someone had hacked her account. “Who knows? I might even fall head over heels for you instead!”
“Cough cough cough!!” Liang Sheng erupted into a fit of wild coughing, tears streaming from her eyes as she choked. “You—you kid! How can you say such shameless things? Two—two girls, how could they possibly get married!”
Though it wasn’t what she truly believed deep down, the words had tumbled out in a blind panic anyway.
“Huh?” Zhen Zhu tilted her adorable little head. “No way~ Who said that? Didn’t you just show me that manga about two girls falling in love? Why are you going back on it now?”
Oh god! This kid—how could she blurt out anything that came to mind? The red broth from the oden in Liang Sheng’s hand nearly sloshed over the edge from all her shaking.
“N-No, th-that was just dating!” Right then, Liang Sheng floundered in panic, like a cornered rabbit pressed by a little loli who was almost twenty centimeters shorter than her. “Besides! You and me—we—we could never…!”
Zhen Zhu eyed the hopelessly outdated old hag across from her with utter bewilderment. “What’s wrong, old hag? You’re sweating buckets. Too spicy for you?”
“Cough cough cough.” Liang Sheng clapped a hand over her mouth and awkwardly turned her head away.
Really, why was she overreacting like this? The other girl was just a loose-tongued little loli—a mentally childish little friend, a little brat, nothing more.
Straightening her collar with forced composure, Liang Sheng plastered on a fake smile for the little loli. “Big sis was just joking around~ Don’t mind me, okay~?”
“Old hag, are you embarrassed or something?” Zhen Zhu leaned right up to Liang Sheng, the little loli suddenly flipping the script from passive to aggressive.
Liang Sheng flinched back on instinct. But then she caught herself—no way, she couldn’t lose on momentum! After all, she was a thirty-something old… pfft pfft, a thirty-something beautiful young… pfft pfft, no no no—a vibrant seventeen-year-old beauty!
“What?” Liang Sheng mustered her usual cheeky grin and leaned in toward Zhen Zhu. “After big sis spent the whole day playing with you, are you trying to thank me? Gonna give big sis a little kiss?”
Now it was Zhen Zhu’s turn to flush red.
Liang Sheng smirked inwardly. Heh heh heh—teasing people was still her specialty!
“Mm~” This time, Zhen Zhu didn’t pull back. Instead, she inched even closer.
“Hm?” A flicker of unease stirred in Liang Sheng’s chest.
“Mwah~”
A soft little peck landed gently on Liang Sheng’s right cheek.
Eh? Liang Sheng froze, hand flying to her face as she stared blankly into the distance, stunned like a wooden statue.
Zhen Zhu’s face burned crimson as she clamped both hands over her mouth. Mm! This old hag’s cheek was so soft and fragrant! Really, cough cough—what was she thinking? Her mind went completely blank. She had no idea what had possessed her to lean in and plant that kiss on Liang Sheng.
“Ol-Old hag!”
Zhen Zhu broke the silence first, her sharp little tiger teeth peeking out.
“I-I guess that counts as giving you my first kiss, right!” She glared at Liang Sheng, looking every bit the aggrieved little wife who’d been taken advantage of.
“Ah?” Liang Sheng blinked in confusion, then finally snapped out of it. Mortified yet amused by the little loli’s words, she burst into laughter. “Hahaha! No way, Little Friend Zhen Zhu~ You’re already fourteen! Don’t tell me you still don’t know—a real first kiss is mouth-to-mouth?”
“You—you old hag! So you wanted me to kiss your mouth!” Zhen Zhu bristled like an angry kitten, stumbling back and clutching her mouth protectively.
Hey hey, that wasn’t the attitude when you kissed my cheek! Liang Sheng shot her a glare in return. “What’s that supposed to mean? I never said that—don’t get the wrong idea! I was just reminding you. We’re pure as can be; nothing happened!”
“Oh! Good!”
For some reason, as she said it, a strange flicker crossed Zhen Zhu’s face.
Zhen Zhu couldn’t quite pin down the odd feeling bubbling up inside her right then, or where it had even come from. Logically, she should be thrilled her first kiss hadn’t been given away—it was about her purity, after all! Her first kiss ought to go to someone she loved, like her Brother Su Ze.
Brother Su Ze…? For the first time, a thread of hesitation tugged at Zhen Zhu’s heart. Suddenly… she didn’t want to give her first kiss to Brother Su Ze anymore. Why was that? She clearly liked him so much…
“Zhen Zhu? Zhen Zhu?!” Liang Sheng watched the little loli zone out for over a minute, growing genuinely worried. This kid’s behavior had been so weird lately—was she possessed or something?
“Huh?” Zhen Zhu jolted back to reality, stammering a reply. “Wh-what’s up?”
The silly child thought Liang Sheng had seen right through her little secret!
“Nothing. You okay?” Liang Sheng voiced her concern.
Zhen Zhu ducked her head. “Y-yeah. Fine.”
“Your good son is calling~” Liang Sheng’s phone blared to life at full volume, drawing stares from everyone around.
Cough cough. Liang Sheng fumbled awkwardly to answer it.
It was Teacher Dong Yue.
“Hello? Teacher~”
“Thanks for everything,” Dong Yue said from the other end. “Liang Sheng, I’m at your front door right now, but no one’s home. Where did you take Zhen Zhu?”
“Ah!” Liang Sheng shot to her feet, grabbing the little loli’s hand beside her and shooting her a look to hurry up and stand. “We’re at the mall. I didn’t want Zhen Zhu bored stiff at home, so I brought her out for a bit of fun. We’re heading back right now.”
This time, Zhen Zhu squeezed Liang Sheng’s hand in return and whispered, “Do I really have to go back already?”
“What’s wrong? We’ve been out playing all this time, and you’re still not satisfied?”
Zhen Zhu shook her head. “It’s not that. It’s just… uh…” She trailed off, suddenly at a loss for words.
Liang Sheng waited expectantly for her to continue.
“We’ll talk later.” Zhen Zhu let out a heavy sigh, playing the part of a tiny adult.
“Alright then.” Liang Sheng didn’t dwell on it. She took the little loli’s hand and flagged down a taxi, sliding inside.
The little loli stayed quiet the whole ride, barely moving or saying a word.
But as they neared the neighborhood, Zhen Zhu finally spoke up.
“Old hag, come here. I need to tell you something.” She beckoned Liang Sheng over.
“Hm?” Liang Sheng leaned in a touch.
Zhen Zhu frowned in annoyance. “Come on! Get a little closer already—you’re so timid!”
“Oh…” Liang Sheng scooted in just a bit more.
