Chapter 261: A Few Strapping Young Men

All these years, from childhood to now…

Miss Jiang had never once tried to speak in a cutesy, high-pitched voice.

But today.

For the sake of the School Sports Meet.

Miss Jiang decided to throw caution to the wind.

With light steps, she made her way to the dark, forbidden zone at the back of the classroom.

She stopped beside Chen Mi.

A sly smile curled at the corner of her lips.

“Chen Mi~”

She had barely called his name.

The boy, who had just been joking and chatting with his friends, jolted like he’d been electrocuted.

He turned around in disbelief.

“J-J-Jiang the Great…”

“What are your orders…?”

Well, well.

Out there, they call her a siren.

In here, she’s the king, huh?

Miss Jiang’s eyes flickered as she swept a glance over the group of grinning boys nearby.

“I’m still short a few strapping young men.”

“Any volunteers?”

Strapping… young men…?

Chen Mi, Zhu Shengjie, and the rest of the boys exchanged looks.

But they weren’t fools.

With just a moment’s thought, they figured out what Jiang the Enchantress meant.

Being the closest, Chen Mi naturally took the lead in responding.

“Class Monitor, you know… my body…”

“Kidneys acting up, right? Got it, got it.”

She immediately turned her gaze to Chen Mi’s deskmate, a tall and burly boy.

“I… I… Class Monitor, I’ve never run 3000 meters before…”

“First time, no experience, huh?”

Then Miss Jiang turned to a third student.

Only to get a similar excuse.

This made her start to doubt herself a little.

Was it really this hard to reel someone in?

Why had she been so easy to hook in her past life?

She let her thoughts wander for a moment.

Then, taking in the current scene, it suddenly clicked.

Miss Jiang put away her pen and paper, crossed her arms, and said with a bright smile,

“Alright then.”

“Whoever fills in the remaining events for the sports meet…”

“I’ll treat them to soda.”

The moment she finished speaking,

Chen Mi raised his head, eyes wide.

“Your Majesty! Do you mean it?!”

“A gentleman’s word is his bond, not even four horses can… chase it back…”

Before Miss Jiang could finish the saying, Zhu Shengjie had already jumped out of his seat and sprinted toward the sports committee.

As he ran, he shouted,

“Sports rep! Save me a spot for shot put!!”

Seeing this, the other boys cursed Zhu Shengjie for being a sneaky bastard, then rushed toward the sports rep as well.

In just a few seconds,

The dark, forbidden zone in the back two rows of the classroom was completely empty.

Miss Jiang watched this scene, a twitch forming on her forehead.

However,

As the boys quickly filled in the remaining events,

Chen Mi, who was writing his name under the 3000-meter race, suddenly looked up at Jiang the Enchantress, who stood before him with arms crossed.

He made a small request.

“Your Majesty, can we make a deal?”

“Hmm? Go ahead.”

“Well… it’s just… when we’re running…”

Seeing him hesitate, Miss Jiang raised an eyebrow.

“Spit it out!”

“Ahem…” Chen Mi cleared his throat and continued,

“It’s just… when we’re running… could Your Majesty cheer us on…?”

At those words,

Miss Jiang narrowed her eyes, her gaze unreadable as she scanned the group of boys in front of her.

Every one of them that met her eyes

Couldn’t hold her gaze for more than two seconds.

Seeing this,

Miss Jiang’s lips curled into a smile.

“Just cheering, huh? Is that enough?”

“How about this.”

“Whoever places in the top three, I, Jiang, will personally deliver their soda to them.”

In an instant,

The classroom erupted with wails and howls.

…

Truth be told, Miss Jiang could more or less understand what these boys were thinking.

After all, she’d been a teenager once too.

She knew that during puberty, it was normal for boys to harbor little crushes on the pretty girls around them.

It was just part of growing up.

She got it.

And as long as they didn’t make it obvious,

She wouldn’t distance herself from her classmates.

She might even joke around a bit, as long as it was harmless.

But if anyone made their feelings too clear…

Then sorry, no mercy.

——————

At noon,

After lunch,

The Sister Group gathered once again under the Phoenix Tree.

But just as they were discussing the events they’d signed up for in the sports meet,

Miss Jiang’s phone suddenly rang.

She glanced around,

Making sure no one was paying attention,

Then answered the call amid the girls’ curious stares.

“Yeah, I’m on lunch break. What’s up?”

“Huh? Seriously?”

“It’s only twelve-thirty. Don’t they take naps?”

“Alright, I’ll come over in a bit.”

After hanging up,

She spoke in a regretful tone,

“My beloved consorts.”

“This king has urgent matters to attend to and cannot stay to enjoy your company.”

“It is this king’s oversight, and so I…”

But before she could finish,

Her consorts had already driven her away from under the Phoenix Tree.

As Jiang walked off, grumbling under her breath,

A chorus of bell-like laughter rang out beneath the tree.

After a while,

Once things had quieted down, Sun Qian sighed.

“I don’t know why…”

“But every time I see Jiang Jiang acting all smug, I just can’t help wanting to mess with her.”

“Same here!” Luo Shanshan immediately chimed in.

And with that…

She and Sun Qian shared a high-five with perfect coordination.

Watching this, Zhu Hui and Qi Wen couldn’t help but smile.

But just as the girls were chatting and laughing together, a young man with a strange smile on his face suddenly approached them.

He grinned at the group and said,

“Hello, ladies.”

“I’m Luo Chengming from Class 14, Grade 11.”

“Mind if I make some new friends?”

…

At that moment, Miss Jiang had no idea someone was sneaking into her turf.

She had just rushed to the base of the Tianwei Building, and at a glance, she spotted her cousin—dressed like some street punk—standing outside the building, smoking a cigarette and pacing around.

Seeing this, Miss Jiang strode over quickly.

She gave Tian Wenhao a firm slap on the back.

“Cousin,” she said, “what are you doing standing out here?”

“Where’s the leader?”

“In his daughter’s office,” Tian Wenhao replied, still puffing on his cigarette.

His words made Miss Jiang frown.

“Cousin, I forgot to ask on the phone earlier,” she said. “Did the leader come alone, or did he bring others with him?”

When Jiang Ning saw Tian Wenhao raise a single finger, indicating “one,” her heart skipped a beat.

To be honest, if this were an official inspection, she could still handle it with a professional attitude.

But a private visit like this?

That was a whole different story.

Could it be that Li Mingwei had stirred up trouble again at home?

Or worse…

Had their secret engagement been discovered?

If it was the former, she could still respond with some backbone.

But if it was the latter…

“Cousin, do you know if there’s a place nearby that sells premium tea?” she asked. “Or even a bank would do…”

Tian Wenhao’s face instantly darkened. He quickly reached out to cover Miss Jiang’s mouth.

“Oh my dear sister!”

“Everyone in the building knows the leader is here. Are you trying to get yourself killed saying stuff like that?!”

“Oh, oh, right…” Miss Jiang immediately realized her mistake. She scratched her head with an awkward smile.

“Sorry… I forgot…”

Just then, the elevator arrived at the floor of Golden Mantis Company.

As they stepped out, the receptionist waved at them.

Miss Jiang hurried over.

“Miss Jiang Ning, Mr. Tian, Mr. Li is waiting for you in the office.”

The office?

“What about… him?”

“Of course he’s there too.”

At that moment, Miss Jiang’s courage faltered again.

After all, she had come empty-handed.

No matter how she looked at it, it felt wrong.

Just as she was hesitating, something caught her eye.

A lightbulb went off in her head.

Got it!

(End of chapter)