Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten-Chapter 19: The Truth

In the classroom, the honest and earnest class monitor was dutifully sweeping the floor.

Following Lin Zhengran's instructions, Jiang Xueli walked to her desk, tears streaming down her face as she choked back sobs. This startled the monitor, who hesitated for a moment before choosing to move aside.

Jiang Xueli lay on her desk, sobbing for a while. Seeing that the monitor remained focused on her cleaning and ignored her completely, she wiped her tears and sneaked a glance toward the door, where Lin Zhengran was hiding. Her expression said: "The monitor isn't paying attention to me!"

Lin Zhengran clicked his tongue, signaling with his eyes: "You're so clueless. Don’t just cry—add some words and make it more dramatic. The worse it sounds, the better!"

Jiang Xueli nodded. Moments later, she suddenly wailed loudly, “I’m sorry... Class... Class Monitor, I’m so sorry!”

The class monitor, startled upon hearing her name, froze mid-sweep and looked at Jiang Xueli with a conflicted expression.

Jiang Xueli continued to sob pitifully, “Everyone says I stole your stuff, but I really didn’t! Boohoo~ I don’t know what’s going on. I... I’m planning to drop out of school. I won’t go to school anymore, and without school, I won’t be able to find a job. I’ll have to scavenge for garbage on the streets to survive.”

From outside the door, Lin Zhengran: “....”

Though a bit over the top, it was certainly vivid.

Jiang Xueli sobbed on, “I’ll have to eat rotten apples that others throw away, moldy tomatoes, and... and... even my mom won’t want me anymore.”

“Jiang... Jiang Xueli, are you saying you’re dropping out of school?” The young class monitor, unable to bear such a pitiful tale, felt this was entirely too tragic. “Don’t cry anymore, okay? Here, wipe your tears first.”

Jiang Xueli hadn’t expected the monitor to comfort her and cried even harder, “Boohoo, Class Monitor~ I know you don’t believe me, but I really didn’t steal your phone.”

The monitor put her broom aside and approached Jiang Xueli. Seeing her tear-streaked face, she was moved and at a loss for words. “I believe you. I do.”

Jiang Xueli sniffled, staring at the monitor with wide, teary eyes. Her voice, broken by sobs, was shaky and hesitant. “Rea... Really? You really believe me? But why would you believe me? Wasn’t the phone found in my desk?”

The monitor frowned, her expression betraying that she was on the verge of spilling something. Sensing the opportunity, Jiang Xueli quickly grabbed her arm.

“Class Monitor, do you know something? Please, just tell me! I promise I won’t tell anyone it was you. Please.”

Under the weight of her conscience, the class monitor decided to come clean. She set down the broom and checked to make sure no one else was nearby. Lin Zhengran took the chance to scurry off somewhere else.

Fortunately, it was P.E. class, and everyone was out on the field, so there was little chance anyone would return to the classroom.

The monitor handed Jiang Xueli two tissues to wipe her tears and began, “I’ll tell you everything I know. Honestly, this whole thing seems strange to me too. That day, I accidentally brought my phone to school. At noon, I didn’t have it with me anymore because Jiang Lin borrowed it. She said she needed to call her mom and took my phone.”

The monitor continued, “Then, that afternoon, Jiang Lin told me my phone had been stolen. The next day, it was found in your desk. But it’s all so weird because I remember clearly that I gave her the phone in the cafeteria at lunch. I kept it on me before then because I was worried about losing it. When I asked her for it in the afternoon, she said it had been stolen. But you didn’t even go to the cafeteria that day;you stayed back to clean the classroom.”

Jiang Xueli nodded, “Exactly! Because I didn’t go to the cafeteria, everyone said I must’ve stolen your phone while cleaning.”

The monitor sat beside her. “You see? Doesn’t this all feel fishy? I even suspect someone set you up on purpose...”

Hearing this, Jiang Xueli felt everything suddenly fall into place. Lin Zhengran, listening outside, had heard the whole exchange as well.

After P.E. class, Jiang Xueli and Lin Zhengran skipped lunch in the cafeteria. Instead, they sat on the steps by the rooftop door, munching on bread. The rooftop was locked, so they couldn’t go up.

Watching Lin Zhengran chew his bread, Jiang Xueli remarked, “So, it must’ve been Jiang Lin and her group. I told the teacher about them playing with their phones the other day, so they must’ve held a grudge and framed me.”

Lin Zhengran looked ahead thoughtfully. “That seems likely. But why would your desk partner accuse you? So far, this doesn’t seem to involve her.”

Jiang Xueli suddenly recalled something and took small bites of her bread, her face turning red. “Actually, if I think about it, I can come up with a reason why she might frame me.”

“Oh?”

Jiang Xueli looked awkward and muttered, “Can’t you tell?!” Seeing Lin Zhengran’s blank expression, she added, “She likes you! Haven’t you noticed how unhappy she looks whenever people joke about us being a couple? And she keeps sneaking glances at you...”

“Huh? How do you know she’s sneaking glances at me?”

Jiang Xueli rolled her eyes. “Because I sit next to her!”

“So? I don’t know who my deskmate looks at every day.”

Blushing, she retorted, “That’s because you’re not normal!”

In truth, Jiang Xueli sometimes sneaked glances at Lin Zhengran herself, which is how she noticed her desk mate doing the same. But she kept this thought to herself.

She huffed, took another bite of bread, and muttered, “Forget it. Explaining this to a blockhead like you is pointless. Besides, it’s just a guess. I can’t be sure she’d accuse me over something like that.”

Lin Zhengran stared ahead. “Doesn’t matter. You’ve been sticking with me these past few days, and it’s clear you’re in a better mood. The ones who framed you are bound to get nervous. Let’s tail them quietly over the next few days. We’ll hear something eventually.”

“Okay.”

Jiang Xueli handed him the last packet of pickled vegetables, pretending not to care. “Here, you can have the last one. I don’t like them.”

Lin Zhengran was puzzled. “You don’t like them, but you ate two packs?”

Her face turned red as she snapped back, embarrassed, “Mind your own business! Don’t think I’m being nice to you, okay?! It’s not what you think.”

“Oh, I wasn’t thinking that at all.”

Grinding her teeth, Jiang Xueli clenched her fists. “Idiot! Big idiot! If you keep this up, no girl will marry you when you grow up!”

“And as if any guy would marry you, always shouting and stomping like that.”

“You!” She was too frustrated to continue, mumbling to herself, “Fine, then we’ll just end up together.”

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“What?”

Jiang Xueli wanted to bury herself in the ground. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. Covering her ears in a panic, she stammered, “I said nothing!”

A few days later, Lin Zhengran and Jiang Xueli secretly followed the group with a recorder. Sure enough, a week later, they overheard their conversation and obtained the crucial evidence needed to clear her name. The truth was finally revealed that very day.