After a whole morning and half an afternoon of effort,
with Li Mengyao painstakingly coaching her,
Lin Qianqian's baking skills had improved considerably.
She could finally make a proper batch of cookies.
Her success rate still wasn't very high, with only a fifty percent chance of getting them right.
But that was already a huge improvement.
Besides, she only had to try a few more times to get a successful batch.
It was a huge improvement.
"I finally managed to teach you. That was not easy!" At that moment, Li Mengyao wanted nothing more than to throw her head back and air her grievances to the heavens.
She had never thought making treats could be so difficult.
Several times, she had almost told Lin Qianqian to just let her make them for her.
Fortunately,
she had finally managed to teach Lin Qianqian!
She was a genius!
"Mengyao, thank you." Lin Qianqian was very grateful.
"What's there to thank me for? But I really want to know, who are you making these treats for?" Li Mengyao looked curious.
"I told you, there's no one. I just wanted to learn to make treats for myself." Lin Qianqian firmly denied it.
Her conscience was clear.
But if Li Mengyao found out she had learned to bake for Zhou Fan, who knew what a fuss she would make?
It was better to deny it from the start.
"Don't even try to fool me."
"I'm your best friend. Do you really think you can fool me?"
"I can tell just by looking at your face. Your eyes always dart around when you lie. You can't hide that from me," Li Mengyao said.
"They do not..."
"See? Your eyes are darting around again."
It was an unconscious habit.
Some people could force themselves to control it, but others couldn't.
Lin Qianqian was one of those who couldn't.
"You wanted to make treats for someone else. That's why you learned to bake."
"And you keep refusing to tell me, which means it definitely isn't a girl. Otherwise, you wouldn't need to keep it a secret."
"So you're making treats for a boy!" Li Mengyao felt incredibly clever.
It was as if Sherlock Holmes had possessed her!
Lin Qianqian said, "..."
Sometimes, she really did admire Li Mengyao's intelligence.
"Since you don't want to tell me, you two clearly aren't dating yet."
"And you're actually taking the initiative to learn to bake, Qianqian. Who could possibly make you change this much?" Li Mengyao was growing more curious by the second.
"Think whatever you want." Lin Qianqian no longer had the energy to argue.
"Xixi, don't tell me you're the one pursuing him?"
"If even someone as pretty as you can't win him over, that boy is either playing hard to get or blind."
"Xixi, you need to remember your worth. Don't turn into some desperate doormat," Li Mengyao said solemnly.
The Campus Belle of Tianhai No. 1 High School was pursuing a boy, and she couldn't even win him over.
No one would believe it if word got out.
"Of course, I can be your strategist. If you run into any problems, you can ask me for advice anytime."
Lin Qianqian said, "..."
This girl was so dramatic.
"All right, thanks for teaching me to bake today. But I have something to do, so I'll need to go out in a bit."
"I get it!" Li Mengyao understood at once.
"Don't worry, I definitely won't get in your way. You've learned to make treats today, so you'll be able to give that boy a nice surprise."
Lin Qianqian said, "..."
She was exhausted.
She didn't want to explain.
That evening,
Zhou Fan had just returned from outside
when he saw a familiar figure standing by his front door.
Lin Qianqian!
She had come again today!
However, Lin Qianqian was tucked away in a corner by Zhou Fan's entrance. Unless someone had also come to see Zhou Fan, they would have a hard time spotting her.
She had deliberately hidden there.
If someone saw her coming to see Zhou Fan alone, there was no telling what gossip it might spark.
Although Lin Qianqian knew there was nothing between her and Zhou Fan,
dealing with rumors and gossip would still be a nuisance.
"You're here."
Zhou Fan came up behind her. His sudden words startled Lin Qianqian, making her visibly flinch.
When she turned and saw Zhou Fan, a trace of resentment flashed in her eyes, as though she were blaming him for frightening her.
"Mm... I told you yesterday that I'd come back today to ask you for more pointers."
Zhou Fan had thought she was joking yesterday.
He hadn't expected her to actually come.
"Come on in, then."
Zhou Fan opened the door and led her inside.
He noticed that Lin Qianqian was holding a treat box identical to yesterday's.
It reminded him of those blackened treats from yesterday, and he couldn't help getting goosebumps.
The Campus Belle's treats... were a little terrifying.
"What do you want to practice today?" Zhou Fan asked.
"Let's practice Taijutsu. Didn't you say yesterday that my Taijutsu was terrible?" Lin Qianqian said.
Of course, she wasn't about to admit that.
She simply needed a legitimate reason to ask Zhou Fan for pointers, and this was the best one.
"Sure. Let's get ready."
The two went out to the yard and began warming up.
"Since we're practicing Taijutsu, neither of us should use any skills today. We'll spar using Taijutsu alone," Zhou Fan said.
"Okay." Lin Qianqian nodded.
Although she wasn't good at Taijutsu,
an S-rank superpower also enhanced basic physical fitness.
An S-rank superpower user's physical enhancements extended to every aspect of their body.
"Here I come!"
Zhou Fan struck first, charging forward barehanded.
Lin Qianqian immediately fought back.
The two engaged in a fierce Taijutsu bout.
In truth, Zhou Fan was already holding back considerably.
Even without any other skills, using only Taijutsu,
he was far stronger than Lin Qianqian!
Speed, reflexes, strength-he surpassed her in every way.
But to make this an effective training session, he deliberately restrained himself.
Otherwise, Lin Qianqian wouldn't have lasted more than a few exchanges against him.
Several times, his fist nearly struck Lin Qianqian, only for him to forcibly pull the blow at the last moment.
Ah.
He was just too kind.
During their sparring,
Lin Qianqian could clearly feel the pressure Zhou Fan put on her.
His attacks were so precise and swift that several times, she thought she was about to be hit.
In the end, Zhou Fan stopped of his own accord.
When it came to Taijutsu, Lin Qianqian admitted she was no match for Zhou Fan.
Half an hour later,
their sparring session ended.
Zhou Fan was breathing a little heavily and had worked up a light sweat.
By contrast, Lin Qianqian was panting, drenched in sweat, her cheeks flushed.
Sweat had soaked her clothes, making them cling to her body and outline her graceful curves.
Her stamina was far worse than Zhou Fan's.
Sparring for half an hour with Taijutsu alone, without using any other skills, had taken quite a toll on her.
"Your Taijutsu improved today. It's much better than yesterday. Keep it up," Zhou Fan encouraged her.
Yesterday, he had still suspected Lin Qianqian had some ulterior motive.
Today, however, he believed she genuinely wanted his guidance in training.
At the very least, he could tell she had taken the past half hour of training seriously.
Toward the end, she had even gotten a little worked up...
Of course, even a worked-up Lin Qianqian was no match for him.
"Mm."
"These are the cookies I made today." Lin Qianqian took out the treat box.
Zhou Fan's heart gave a tremor.
Those things... weren't fit to eat!
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