Concealment

Inside the home of Lu Mingyuan.

Watching the familiar, gluttonous look on the young girl Jing Yue, Lu Mingyuan retorted, "You little glutton, all you ever think about is food."

Jing Yue didn't mind at all.

To her, delicious food was the most important thing in the world.

Lu Mingyuan continued, "If I had known you two were coming, I would have prepared in advance."

As he spoke, Lu Mingyuan gestured toward the bamboo tray stacked with pancakes nearby, as well as the basin of prepared dough next to it.

Running over to the pancake tray, Jing Yue was pleasantly surprised to hear that Lu Mingyuan had prepared food for her and her sister all along. She felt that recognizing this brother was worth it, and it hadn't been in vain that she had called him brother for all these years.

Just then, Jing Yue suddenly felt that something was off. She looked at the pancakes and the dough basin before her, calculating silently in her heart, "Wait, this isn't right, Brother Mingyuan! You can only make about six or seven pancakes in total with this; it's not enough for us to eat."

Jing Yue estimated everyone's appetite, and this was indeed insufficient. She remembered that last time they each ate three, so why did it... look like it was just enough for two people this time?

Wait, two people...

"I say, Brother Mingyuan, you didn't just prepare this for yourself and my sister, did you? There's nothing for me?"

Jing Yue wore an expression of disbelief. Then, recalling the usual style of this Brother Mingyuan of hers, she became certain of it in her heart. Immediately after, Jing Yue feigned sadness and complained, "You really treat me like an outsider. It turns out you two are a family, and I'm the only outsider. You're all bullying me."

Seeing that she was on the verge of tears, Lu Mingyuan hurriedly explained, "It's just that you don't come over often, so I didn't expect it. How about this—I'll mix some more dough in a moment, and we'll stir-fry two more dishes. How's that? Don't worry, I won't let you go hungry."

Hearing Lu Mingyuan's explanation, Jing Yue rested her chin on her hand and pondered for a moment. "Fine. Then this young lady will magnanimously forgive you."

Jing Yue didn't dwell on the matter any further; after all, she knew she really didn't come over that often.

At this moment, Lu Mingyuan glanced at Jing Zhi nearby. Since arriving, she had been silently sitting there tending the fire, unlike her sister Jing Yue, who was looking for food.

Seeing this, Lu Mingyuan said to Jing Yue, "Look at your sister; she knows to help with chores as soon as she arrives. Unlike you, who only cares about eating. Go to the courtyard and pick some vegetables; we'll stir-fry them in a bit."

"Are my sister and I the same? I'm here as a guest, and my sister is here as the lady of the house—there's a huge difference. A guest should only be responsible for eating, yet you want me to work?"

Despite saying this, Jing Yue still picked up a basket and obediently left the kitchen to go pick vegetables.

After the young girl went out, only Lu Mingyuan and Jing Zhi remained in the kitchen.

One was tending the fire, and the other was cooking pancakes. It was a picture of marital harmony.

However, saying they were a married couple wouldn't be wrong.

Their fathers had been comrades-in-arms with a close relationship, and they had arranged a betrothal for the two of them when they were children.

Lu Mingyuan and Jing Zhi could be considered childhood sweethearts, having spent a happy childhood together.

As they grew up, they developed feelings for each other and were mutually attracted. Furthermore, Jing Zhi's parents did not oppose their relationship, so their bond remained unbroken, and they visited each other frequently. Now, they were only a step away from officially confirming their relationship.

After her sister left, Jing Zhi asked somewhat casually, "Mingyuan, how was your awakening last night? Did it go smoothly?"

"It went well, don't worry. It was just an awakening; nothing could go wrong."

"Oh! That's good! That's good!" Jing Zhi finally felt relieved.

Although she had never heard of an awakening going wrong, she was still worried, which was why she had come over early this morning.

To be honest, if it hadn't been so late when Lu Mingyuan finished his awakening yesterday, making it inappropriate, Jing Zhi would have wanted to come over last night.

At this moment, hearing Lu Mingyuan confirm that nothing had gone wrong, Jing Zhi's tense mood finally relaxed completely.

After a moment of silence, Jing Zhi asked curiously, "Have you decided what divine ability you want to create? I heard you're planning to join the Agricultural School."

"I have a rough idea, but nothing is set in stone yet."

For some reason, Lu Mingyuan did not confess to Jing Zhi the fact that he had already created a divine ability. Yet, when he said that, his expression remained completely normal, without revealing the slightest anomaly—it was hard to tell how long he had been practicing this.

"As long as you have an idea, that's good!"

Jing Zhi clearly didn't know that he was hiding things from her; she assumed her beloved truly hadn't created a divine ability yet and only had a rough plan.

Then again, it was true; most people couldn't determine their goal that quickly. And there was also the matter of Qi Luck Points. That wasn't easy to resolve.

One had to know that when Lu Mingyuan created a divine ability that could be called the most cost-effective, it had cost two thousand Qi Luck Points. He had saved for so many years, from childhood until now—not counting the nearly one thousand Earth Luck—and his Qi Luck Points were just barely enough.

As for others, they generally didn't have as many saved up as Lu Mingyuan when they first awakened. So, if they wanted to create a relatively average divine ability, they would have to wait another two or three years.

"Then Mingyuan, take your time thinking, don't rush. Creating a divine ability is a lifelong matter; you must not be hasty."

"Don't worry, you know what kind of person I am."

"That's true! You've always been thoughtful and have your own plans." Jing Zhi nodded slightly.

After saying this, Jing Zhi was silent for a moment. She pondered in her heart before gathering the courage to say, "Mingyuan, if you don't have enough Qi Luck Points when the time comes, just tell me. I still have my dowry. If that's still not enough, I'll ask my father; he dotes on me, he will definitely give it."

Suddenly, Lu Mingyuan's hand flipping the pancake paused slightly, then returned to normal.

At that moment, he felt a strong urge to confess to her—to tell her the truth that he had already created a divine ability. However, in an instant, Lu Mingyuan suppressed this urge and buried the matter deep in his heart.

The fewer people who knew about the "Mathematics: Chicken and Rabbit in a Cage" divine ability, the better. It was best if only he, Lu Mingyuan, knew. In fact, he had already decided this when he chose to use the name "Anonymous".

Confessing to her now might harm her, and it might harm himself as well. After all, Lu Mingyuan was preparing to use that identity to do something big—something monumental. Therefore, he truly could not expose that he was that "Anonymous," or else he might be gone within a few days.

At this moment, Lu Mingyuan looked at the girl in the white dress tending the fire and made a silent decision: in this lifetime, as long as she did not fail him, he, Lu Mingyuan, would not fail her.

Although he had thought through so much, it had all happened in an instant. Just as Jing Zhi finished speaking about the dowry, Lu Mingyuan replied, "Then it's a deal. I'm counting on your dowry. Don't regret it later, or I'll be in a miserable state."

"I won't! How about I bring it to you today?"

"No need, no need! If it really becomes necessary by then, I'll have to go talk to your parents in person anyway, and take the opportunity to settle things between us."

"Us? Settle what?"

Hearing this, Jing Zhi looked at Lu Mingyuan with a puzzled expression, as if she truly didn't know.

"You don't know? Then forget it, let's not settle anything."

Seeing that familiar expression on her face, Lu Mingyuan knew exactly what she was thinking, and he couldn't help but tease her.

"You dare! If you say we're settling it, then we're settling it. How can you just give up halfway?"

As she spoke, Jing Zhi raised the fire poker in her hand and waved it threateningly. The white smoke on the poker curled and spiraled in the air, as if trying to intimidate Lu Mingyuan.

Seeing this, Lu Mingyuan quickly blocked Jing Zhi, "Slow down, don't get ash in the pancake. If you dirty it, that piece is yours; I certainly don't want it, and Yue'er probably won't want it either."

"If it's mine, it's mine. Who's afraid of whom? It's not like I haven't eaten it before."

Though she said that, Jing Zhi still lowered the fire poker and let Lu Mingyuan off the hook.

However, Lu Mingyuan wouldn't let it go, "A-Zhi, I've told you before, girls should be ladylike, ladylike, you know? Don't be so boisterous all day, chasing people around with a stick. It doesn't look good."

"Pfft! Isn't it because you provoked me? In everyone else's eyes, I'm a gentle and kind girl."

Jing Zhi rolled her eyes; she knew Lu Mingyuan didn't care about any of that at all.

Lu Mingyuan smiled. He truly didn't care whether she was ladylike or not. As long as the girl before him kept only him, Lu Mingyuan, in her heart, that was enough. As for everything else, as long as she was normal, he had no further requirements.