CHAPTER 28: MY LITTLE STAR

Huaijin didn’t deny it. "A little," she murmured.

He smiled gently. "That’s normal. But you’ll be fine. Everyone likes you, Huaijin."

She hesitated. ’Not everyone,’ she thought quietly.

’Not the ones who were born to shine. Not the ones who made my life a joke in the story I once read.’

Still, she said nothing. She didn’t want to worry him.

Besides, more than being nervous, Huaijin was afraid of feeling bored. No one could say what she might do if she felt bored in a classroom full of chicks!

When the car finally pulled up in front of the kindergarten, Huaijin felt her heart sink. The school looked exactly as she remembered, large, colorful, cheerful.

There were flowers by the gate and murals painted with smiling suns and animals. Children were streaming in with their parents, laughter echoing in the air.

But all she could think was how many of these children would one day become people with stories powerful enough to crush her own.

Her father parked the car and got out, then came around to open the door for her. She hesitated before stepping out, clutching his sleeve tightly.

"Come on," he coaxed softly. "You’ll make new friends. And when class is over, I’ll be right here waiting, okay?"

"You promise?"

"I promise."

He crouched down to adjust her collar, his movements slow and patient. "Now go on. Be brave, my little star."

Huaijin blinked, her heart tightening. ’My shining star.’

That’s what he used to call her before she died in her past life. Hearing it again made her throat ache with emotion.

She nodded, mustering up a tiny smile. "Okay. I’ll go."

She turned and walked toward the gates, each step feeling heavier than the last.

Her small figure, with the sunlight spilling across her hair, looked both delicate and determined.

Yuanfeng stood there watching her go, his heart filled with both pride and a faint ache he couldn’t quite name.

When she reached the gate, she turned around one last time and waved. He waved back, smiling widely, though there was something unreadable in his gaze, a depth of intelligence and mystery that no ordinary researcher should have had.

He stayed there until she disappeared into the school grounds.

Inside the kindergarten, chaos reigned as always. Children ran about, teachers tried to herd them into lines, and chatter filled the air. Huaijin felt dizzy from the noise.

It wasn’t that she disliked children. But after living an entire adult life before being reborn, it was hard to blend into the carefree energy of the little ones around her.

As she followed the teacher toward her classroom, a familiar voice caught her attention.

"Hey, that’s the new student, right?"

"She’s pretty."

"Her eyes are weird, though. Is she the same age as us?"

Huaijin stiffened. She didn’t turn around, but she recognized one of those voices instantly. Of course. The world wasn’t going to let her rest so easily.

In her past life, those children would grow up to become the "main characters" of the story she’d once read; each of them was destined for greatness, wealth, and fame. And she... had merely been an extra who existed to fill the background.

But this time, she refused to let that happen.

When the teacher introduced her to the class, she bowed politely and said in a soft, clear voice, "Hello, everyone. I’m Chi Huaijin."

The room buzzed with whispers.

A boy in the front row tilted his head curiously. He had dark, intelligent eyes and an air of quiet confidence far beyond his years.

Beside him sat a girl with twin pigtails, smiling sweetly, though there was something calculating behind her expression.

These were names Huaijin remembered all too well, children who would grow up into key figures in the story, both allies and enemies, people whose choices had shaped the tragic fate of her past self.

Her small hands clenched into fists behind her back.

’This time,’ she vowed silently, ’I’ll make sure things go differently. To hell with main character’s aura! If I want to protect my father, I can’t keep running from fate. I have to rewrite it myself.’

The teacher directed her to an empty seat near the window. As she sat down, she felt the sunlight spill across her desk, warm and comforting. Her heart steadied.

Maybe, just maybe, this time, she could truly start anew.

When lunchtime arrived, the playground was filled with noise and movement. Children ran across the grass, laughing, chasing each other, trading snacks.

Huaijin sat quietly under a tree, her lunchbox neatly placed on her lap. Inside were the sandwiches and fruit her father had prepared for her that morning, arranged in the shape of a smiling bunny.

She smiled faintly, touched.

But before she could take a bite, a small shadow fell across her.

"You’re sitting here alone?" a voice asked.

She looked up to see the same boy from class, the one with dark eyes and an unnerving calmness.

"I like quiet places," she replied politely.

He tilted his head. "You’re different from the other kids."

"Is that bad?"

He shook his head. "No. I think it’s interesting."

He sat down beside her without asking permission, opening his own lunchbox. The girl with pigtails, not far behind, called his name, her tone playful.

"Brother, don’t talk to strangers!"

He ignored her, taking a bite of his sandwich. "What’s wrong with that?"

The girl pouted, then turned her gaze to Huaijin with an assessing look that made Huaijin’s stomach twist in déjà vu.

’These two... they’re already showing signs of their future selves,’ she thought grimly.

She smiled faintly anyway, pretending to be calm. "I’m not a stranger. I’m Chi Huaijin."

"Chi?" The boy’s brows furrowed. "That’s the same surname as the big company my father talks about sometimes."

Huaijin froze.

The Chi Corporation.

It was the name her grandfather had mentioned just a few days ago at breakfast. And now, this boy, this child in front of her, was already connected to that world.