The small room was filled with a lively crowd, though the kids were tiny enough that it didn't feel cramped.
As expected, the little ones were quite fascinated by their guest—Shin-chan's "uncle."
"Excuse me, where do you go to school?"
The only girl in the group, Nene, sat upright with a seriousness far beyond her years, notebook in hand as if conducting an interview.
So formal, huh?
Lin Zhi couldn't help but smile at the sight. He casually replied, "I attend a private comprehensive high school in Usamimachi."
"Private… comprehensive high school?"
Nene blinked, clearly struggling to grasp what that meant. It was probably too advanced for someone her age.
But surprisingly, the runny-nosed, blank-faced kid who always looked dazed slowly raised his hand. His expression barely changed as he spoke in a calm, flat tone.
"I know… Private Comprehensive High is one of the top schools in Chiba. It has one of the highest academic ratings, and every year lots of its students get into Tokyo University."
"Not just that."
Another boy—the one who always tried to look cool—looked at Lin Zhi with admiration and added, "Private Comprehensive High also has an international division for students preparing to study abroad. Every year, many of them go overseas. It's actually one of the schools I'm considering for my future. It even has a junior high section attached to it, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
Kids these days are seriously impressive, Lin Zhi thought, genuinely surprised.
"Uncle, you must've gone to school in Akita before, right? If you got into Private Comprehensive High, your grades must be amazing!"
Kazama leaned forward, eager and curious.
Uncle…? The word stung a little. He was barely a high schooler himself, yet here he was being called an uncle by a bunch of kindergarteners. Still, technically, by their standards, it wasn't wrong.
Lin Zhi sighed inwardly, forcing a small smile. "I did all right."
"All right? What do you mean by all right?"
Nene leaned in, pen poised over her notebook, determined to get the full story.
"Hmm… I guess you could say… perfect scores in every subject."
The room went silent.
Crunch, crunch.
Shin-chan, sprawled lazily on the tatami mat with one hand propping up his head and the other feeding himself rice crackers, noticed the sudden quiet behind him.
"Huh? What happened?"
"All… all subjects… perfect scores?!"
Kazama's eyes widened in shock. His pupils trembled, and a second later he was practically trembling with excitement. This—this was exactly the ideal he aspired to!
"Amazing! That's incredible!"
Masao's jaw dropped in awe.
"So handsome and smart… what a catch,"
Nene muttered as she scribbled furiously in her notebook, clearly smitten.
"Duh."
Bo simply stared blankly as usual.
"Huh? That's really amazing?"
Shin-chan twisted around mid-sprawl, blinking in confusion.
"Of course it's amazing!"
Kazama looked like he was about to explode. He stood up and exclaimed, "If Uncle keeps up those grades in high school, he could totally get into Tokyo University one day!"
"Wow! That's awesome!"
Shin-chan jumped to his feet, his face full of exaggerated surprise.
Kazama sighed in relief—finally, Shin-chan seemed to understand what a big deal it was.
"But… what's a Tokyo University? Is it something you can eat?"
Everyone: "…"
"Shin-chan!"
Kazama nearly lost it, glaring at him furiously. This was blasphemy! Tokyo University was his dream! And this idiot—this idiot—was making a joke out of it!
"Alright, alright, Kazama, Shin-chan, stop fighting,"
Nene stepped in, gently pulling Kazama back while Lin Zhi watched the scene with amusement.
Honestly, these friends of Shin-chan's were kind of incredible. The amount of patience they must have had to deal with him daily was admirable.
"I've finished writing the new script. Let's play house!"
Nene's eyes sparkled as she announced it.
Playing house, huh? Lin Zhi thought. Guess that's a universal game for kids everywhere.
"Shin-chan's uncle, can you play the dad?"
Nene turned to him sweetly.
"Of course."
Lin Zhi nodded with a smile. It was just a children's game, after all—should be fun enough.
But the moment he agreed, he noticed something strange: behind Nene, Shin-chan and the others were frantically shaking their heads, eyes wide in alarm, faces pale as ghosts.
What's that about?
Before he could make sense of it, Nene turned around with a sunny smile.
"Then I'll be the mom, Kazama will play the dentist, and Shin-chan will be the kid…"
"Uh—Nene!"
Kazama suddenly stood up like a man facing his doom.
Nene didn't even blink, her smile unwavering as she fixed him with a bright, piercing gaze.
"Yes, Kazama?"
Gulp.
He swallowed hard, trembling. "I—I need to go to the bathroom."
Before anyone could respond, he bolted toward the hallway, his legs visibly shaking.
"And the rest of you?"
Nene turned her sweet smile on the others. "Do you need to use the bathroom too?"
The kids all shook their heads violently.
"Great! Then let me tell you about the script, Shin-chan's uncle."
Wow, Lin Zhi thought, eyes lighting up. They even have scripts now? Kids today really take this seriously.
He leaned forward, genuinely curious.
Meanwhile, Shin-chan and his friends exchanged pained, sympathetic glances. Poor guy. He had no idea what he'd just walked into.
That evening—
"Thanks for coming over to play!"
"Yeah! See you all again soon!"
Misae waved goodbye to the kids, then turned back toward the living room. There she found Lin Zhi sitting motionless, staring blankly into space.
"Lin Zhi, are you okay?" she asked, concerned.
"Huh? Oh—yeah, I'm fine,"
he mumbled, snapping out of it, still looking a little dazed.
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T/N:
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