Chapter 132
“Sister Mingming! Tell Dad! I really needed to poop when I fell!”
“… She really did, I just checked her for external injuries and was about to examine her more closely, but she struggled and ran towards the toilet, even saying…”
“I said, ‘I don’t want to poop on you!’ Dad, look! My poop was that urgent! Right, Sister Mingming!”
“… Yes, she did say that.”
“Didn’t I immediately poop as soon as I sat down! Didn’t I poop a lot! Sister Mingming, you have to tell my dad!”
“… Yes, she went as soon as she sat down, plop, plop, plop, it sounded like quite a lot.”
“Dad, look! I’m telling the truth! If I had known the floor was slippery, I wouldn’t have gone in! My poop almost fell out, there were so many people outside, they would be so scared if they saw my poop fall out!”
…
Wei Chengli’s hand, holding the water bottle, trembled slightly, what was he looking at…
It was scary for many people outside to see, but it wasn’t scary for him to hear?
He was just following the trend, testing the limits of the little dirty dumpling’s intelligence, how come he was being treated like this?
Did she have to describe it in such detail? He could even imagine the poop falling into the water.
Although he was her dad… was this really necessary…
And…
Wei Chengli looked at the little dirty dumpling, her back straight with pride after getting her witness, so righteous in her words, could she at least remove the chubby paws covering Yan Yan’s ears!
What!
Love for Yan Yan, poop for Dad, was that it!
Looking at the little dirty dumpling, one hand covering Yan Yan’s ears, the other gesturing for Liu Ming to describe the pooping scene in even more detail, Wei Chengli clutched his chest, exasperated.
With Wei Maomao’s persistence and Liu Ming’s efforts, the scene was recreated, the misunderstanding cleared with a forceful mental attack.
What else could Wei Chengli say? He could only say thank you.
Although the little chubby dumpling wasn’t smart enough to notice something was wrong before the incident, and she didn’t love Yan Yan enough to shield her from harm, but Wei Chengli still felt… a bit guilty.
He had thought the Cheng family was a bit shady before, now it seemed it wasn’t just shady, it was toxic!
Of course, Yan Yan was innocent, but… in a film, the first to be eliminated was often not the protagonist targeted by the villain, but the people around the protagonist, the so-called cannon fodder.
Wei Chengli looked at the silly little dumpling, who was still urging Yan Yan to go and shower, carefree, he didn’t want his precious baby to be the cannon fodder!
But…
Wei Chengli looked at the thin little girl, shaking her head, pushing his dirty baby into the bathroom, he couldn’t bring himself to do such a heartless thing, sending her back to the Cheng family.
Liu Ming was also scared by the earlier incident, even though Wei Maomao tried to convince her that there were no bad people here, and nothing unexpected would happen, she still insisted on going into the bathroom with her.
While the dirty dumpling was showering, the staff helped to bring in their luggage, and Wen Xiang also came to pack his things and move to another room arranged by the program team.
Finally, after the clean little chubby dumpling came out, Liu Ming took Yan Yan in, Wei Chengli finally had a chance to be alone with his baby, to grab her and have a proper talk.
“Baby, think about it with your smart little brain, if Cheng Rongrong truly did those things today, isn’t she scary? Isn’t the Cheng family scary?” Wei Chengli whispered into the baby’s ear as he blow-dried her hair with the lowest setting. “You didn’t even do anything, you just fell. Do you still dare to help Yan Yan leave the Cheng family?”
“Dad!” Wei Maomao said, pushing away the hairdryer, she turned to Wei Chengli, her chubby face full of shock. “The Cheng family is so scary, you want to let Yan Yan stay there?”
“Don’t talk about me, talk about you…” Wei Chengli said, turning her messy head back and continuing to blow-dry her hair. “What are your thoughts?”
“I!” Wei Maomao was about to blurt out that she wanted to get Yan Yan out as soon as possible. But she swallowed her words.
Which parent would want their child to risk their safety for a stranger they just met a few days ago…
Wei Maomao, judging from Wei Chengli’s earlier behavior, he probably didn’t want it either.
“Dad, Uncle Cheng is so mean, Cheng Rongrong is so mean, Yan Yan is so pitiful.” Wei Maomao said weakly, leaning against him. “Let’s take Yan Yan away, to a place without Cheng Rongrong. No Uncle Cheng, no Cheng Rongrong, no slippery floor, no falling. You’re the best, Dad~~ You’re the best dad~~ You wouldn’t let Yan Yan stay in that scary place, right?”
As long as they stayed away from the bad people, there wouldn’t be any danger, Wei Maomao hoped Wei Chengli would understand that the threat didn’t come from Cheng Tingyan.
The soft, chubby little dumpling, leaning against his leg, Wei Chengli chuckled.
“What does it matter if I’m good or not? You’ve already decided what to do, haven’t you?” Wei Chengli saw through her, this kind of deliberate flattery only appeared when this little rascal wanted something, especially when it concerned Cheng Tingyan.
“Aww, we need Dad, we can’t do it without an adult.” Wei Maomao said, switching to her cute and coquettish mode.
She was starting to worry that Wei Chengli would be scared and take her away from this variety show early.
The other families might be concerned about the penalty for breaking the contract, but their family had just experienced this incident, and Wei Chengli had a good relationship with Shi Dingshan. If Wei Chengli truly wanted to leave, he might be able to.
That wouldn’t do!
The fragrant, soft, chubby little dumpling tilted her head, hugged his leg, and called him “Dad” sweetly… She kept feeding him sweet nothings.
Initially, Wei Chengli could still watch the little rascal’s performance calmly, his mind remembering that she wasn’t being affectionate because she loved him, but because she wanted to protect Yan Yan.
But…
Who could stay indifferent to a cute and coquettish little dumpling?
It was like stepping into a pet store and seeing a small animal in a transparent enclosure, bouncing around, scratching at the door, rationally, he knew it wasn’t love at first sight, but he couldn’t help but be charmed by its cuteness.
When the bathroom door opened, and Liu Ming came out with a clean Cheng Tingyan, Wei Chengli realized that he had fallen into the three-year-old menace’s cute trap… He finally had a chance to be alone with his baby, but they didn’t even exchange two proper sentences, he spent the entire time being fed sweet nothings.
Oh, and he also dried a head of hair…
Seeing that both of them had been washed by Liu Ming, Wei Chengli finally swallowed his worries and anxieties.
Whatever, she wouldn’t sneak over and hurt someone in the middle of the night after what just happened today, right?
He needed some time to think it over.
After washing the two little ones, Liu Ming mopped the bathroom and the floor outside until it was completely dry, she even dried their slippers, then waited for Wei Chengli, who had gone to another room to use the bathroom, to come back, before finally leaving.
Finally, only the three of them were left in the room, Wei Chengli looked at the two little ones, huddled together in one bed, like little quails under the blanket, he let out a long sigh. “Sleep well, don’t worry, I’m right outside. If anything happens, just shout, I’ll come in.”
After saying that, Wei Chengli glanced at the little rascal, who didn’t even bother to cling to him, he hummed inwardly and left.
Speaking of Wei Chengli outside…
After closing the door for the two little ones, Wei Chengli went to his… room for tonight.
A camp bed, an electric fan, Wei Chengli looked around the corridor, which was 1.5 meters wide and over ten meters long, it was… quite airy.
This way, even if someone came to attack in the middle of the night, they would have to get past him first!
Wei Chengli turned off the corridor light and lay down on the camp bed by the little ones’ bedroom door, feeling relieved.
So the question was, what exactly happened today?
Judging from Shi Dingshan and Liu Ming’s attitude, it seemed they agreed with his little chubby dumpling’s suspicions. If it was Cheng Rongrong, why would she do such a thing? Hating Yan Yan, wanting to hurt her, couldn’t she do it at home? With their family’s level of favoritism, if she hurt Yan Yan at home, no one would even stand up for her, right? Why do it now?
Even though the cameras in the room would be turned off, it was still a live broadcast, even if she used Yueyue as a scapegoat, with several little babies living together and staff members coming and going, it was much riskier than doing it at home.
She didn’t do it when she had better conditions before, and now she created the conditions to do it… Why? Whether it was Cheng Rongrong’s own idea or someone behind her instigating it, why were they so impatient?
Either she suddenly hated Yan Yan so much that she couldn’t wait a few more days to act,
Or there was something that forced her to act against Yan Yan immediately… What would they gain from Yan Yan being injured?
To risk doing such a thing, she must be either crazy or have an ulterior motive, right?
Did she want to extort money from the program team?
Was a healthy Yan Yan in their way?
Or… did they discover his little chubby dumpling’s plan and want to make Yan Yan leave the show early, preventing her from using external forces to leave the Cheng family?
Wei Chengli thought for a while, his limited imagination couldn’t come up with more possibilities, he felt the last two were more likely.
Just as Wei Chengli was trying to rack his brain further, he suddenly heard soft footsteps coming from the stairs.
It seemed… someone was coming up from downstairs?
Wei Chengli had specifically asked when he went to the next room to use the bathroom, Cheng Feiying and Cheng Rongrong were staying in a newly cleaned room on the first floor.
These footsteps seemed to be coming from downstairs, Wei Chengli, startled, sat up abruptly from the camp bed.
Click.
Click.
Two sounds of switches being pressed, the corridor light turned on for a second, then off again.
The sudden burst of light made Wei Chengli’s eyes hurt, then he heard Shi Dingshan’s voice in the distance. “Why did you turn off my light?”
Wei Chengli: “… “ Who turned off whose light!
The corridor light switches, one was at the top of the stairs, the other was near the balcony on the second floor, where Wei Chengli was, they both pressed the switch almost simultaneously, it was impossible to tell who pressed it the second time.
Shi Dingshan wasn’t here to argue about this, he walked over in the darkness, patted Wei Chengli’s shoulder, pointed at the balcony door not far away, and whispered, “Let’s talk over there?”
“I have to guard the door.” Wei Chengli said, patting the bed next to him. “Want to sit?”
Shi Dingshan glanced at the other closed doors on the second floor, he didn’t sit down, but pushed Wei Chengli instead. “Get up, let’s move the bed against the door, if someone tries to open it, we’ll hear the noise from the balcony.”
Wei Chengli thought about it, he didn’t object this time.
Soon, they moved the camp bed against the door and went to the balcony.
“There were many things going on before, I didn’t have a chance to talk to you properly, so I came over now.” Shi Dingshan said, getting straight to the point. “Everyone was surprised by today’s incident. But I guarantee that nothing like this will happen again in the next few days. I’ve arranged for a few staff members to keep a close eye on Cheng Feiying and Cheng Rongrong, even when we’re not filming, they won’t have a chance to do anything. And for Maomao, Yan Yan, and the other little babies, I’ve also arranged for people to look after them, whether they’re outside or inside, there will always be someone watching over them. Something like today, it will never happen again, don’t worry.”
“For the next few days, can you avoid having Cheng Rongrong and Maomao… mmm, and Yan Yan do tasks together? The staff can watch, but they can’t be that close, right… If something unexpected happens, they might not be able to react in time.” Wei Chengli said, he was close to Shi Dingshan, so he didn’t bother with formalities, he just stated his request directly.
Shi Dingshan sighed. “I can only say I’ll try my best to arrange it. If it’s a group task for the babies, then they definitely won’t be in the same group. But if it’s an activity for all the babies, it’s impossible to completely isolate Cheng Rongrong… I think, whether it’s Cheng Feiying or Cheng Rongrong, they wouldn’t risk their own reputation to harm Cheng Tingyan, right? During the tasks, there are so many cameras and staff members, it’s practically full coverage, they wouldn’t do anything bad then. It’s not like a life-or-death feud that needs immediate revenge, they wouldn’t risk everything on this show.”
“That’s what I don’t understand… If it’s her, or them, they could have done it at home, behind closed doors, no one would even know. Why take the risk now?” Wei Chengli asked, echoing Shi Dingshan’s words, then shared his suspicions.
But because the little chubby dumpling insisted on keeping it a secret, Wei Chengli changed “They want to prevent Yan Yan from getting external help to leave the Cheng family” to “Yan Yan has become more assertive on the show, she doesn’t seem as easy to control, maybe they want to injure her and have her leave the show early.”
Even with the changed wording, this was still the most likely scenario in Wei Chengli’s mind.
However, Shi Dingshan had a different thought.
When Shi Dingshan heard Wei Chengli’s earlier words, “People always have motives for doing bad things, right? Could it be that a healthy Yan Yan is in their way? Would they gain more benefits without Yan Yan?”, he was shocked.
He had also discussed it with Qin Sichao earlier, but they were focused on the conflicts and grudges in a blended family… They didn’t even consider this possibility.
But if they thought about it from this angle, it was… even more terrifying!
“Wait, I need to make a phone call.” Shi Dingshan said, taking out his phone.
Three minutes later, Qin Sichao, panting, appeared on the balcony.
“Hello, Director Wei, we meet again.” Qin Sichao said with a friendly smile, extending his hand.
“… Hello.” Wei Chengli shook his hand and said hesitantly, “Hello, you look very familiar, have we met before?”
“Qin Sichao.” Shi Dingshan said, glancing at Wei Chengli. “Didn’t I introduce him to you before?”
Wei Chengli was startled by the name “Qin Sichao,” wait… Was it Qin Sichao, Director Qin? The famous…
“Are you dumbstruck?” Shi Dingshan asked, gently nudging the seemingly petrified Wei Chengli. “Didn’t you say you love Director Qin’s films? You could talk about them so eloquently, and now you don’t even recognize him in person?”
“… “ Wei Chengli was trying to find the resemblance between the chubby middle-aged man in front of him and the photos he had seen before, he was startled by Shi Dingshan’s question, he blurted out, “He’s much fatter than in the photos…”
Wei Chengli’s rationality made him swallow the last word.
It didn’t matter if he didn’t finish the sentence, the other two could fill in the blanks.
Shi Dingshan, who had been tormented by this troublesome matter all night, burst out laughing.
Qin Sichao’s outstretched hand froze.
“Director Wei, Director Shi said he wanted you to make more friends on this show, have you made any?” Qin Sichao asked, offering a friendly response.
Wei Chengli, whose social life had been cut off by the little chubby dumpling from day one: “… “
Before the ally turned into an “enemy,” Shi Dingshan chuckled, interrupting their “friendly” exchange.
Once they mentioned the serious matter, the previous jokes became irrelevant.
“The fact that I’m interested in Yan Yan, many staff members on my team know about it. After all, it’s not a secret, it was a staff member who recommended Yan Yan’s profile. The fact that I, Xiao Jiang, and Xiao Ni are here, almost the entire team knows.” Qin Sichao said honestly, answering Shi Dingshan’s question.
“When signing the contract for this variety show, including the later supplementary agreement for the live broadcast, we would confirm the guests’ recent work schedules. The live broadcast agreement was only signed two weeks ago, right? At that time, we hadn’t heard about any other projects the Cheng family was involved in.” Shi Dingshan said, looking at Qin Sichao. “Within such a short time frame, it’s only you.”
“Seriously? I just had the thought, I haven’t even contacted their family…” Qin Sichao said, still finding it hard to believe. “And besides, I’m making a film, I’m interested in Yan Yan. It’s not like I’m looking for a sacrifice… Would I just take anyone with the Cheng family’s blood? If Yan Yan is injured, would I have to use their Cheng Rongrong? Not to mention anything else, her age isn’t even right, I would have to wait a few more years to film, right?”
Shi Dingshan thought about it. “What you’re saying does make sense. But it’s hard to say with bad people’s logic, maybe they think you’re like a chicken leg, as long as Yan Yan can’t have it, it’ll end up in Cheng Rongrong’s bowl.”
“They’re delusional!” Qin Sichao said, then paused. “Who did you just say was like a chicken leg?”
“What do you think, Director Wei? I think it’s a leak from Director Qin’s side that made the Cheng family do something stupid. Otherwise, why would they be so eager to do this on a live broadcast variety show, just for these few days?” Shi Dingshan asked, looking at his potential ally.
Honestly, Wei Chengli was a bit confused.
The chubby Qin Sichao, the chosen Yan Yan, his suspicion actually had some basis now, so many unexpected things, he didn’t know which one to be surprised about first.
“The problem is, even if there was a leak from Director Qin’s side, even if their logic is that if Yan Yan is out of the picture, Cheng Rongrong will have a chance.” Wei Chengli said hesitantly, looking at the two. “But how did Cheng Rongrong and the others know? Our variety show, we confiscated their phones, they have no contact with the outside world, right?”
“That’s true for the other families, but it’s hard to say for theirs.” Qin Sichao said, taking out his phone, he showed Wei Chengli the missing information before Shi Dingshan could.
The bought vegetables, the outsider caught, Cheng Feiying, being lectured by Director Shi, roaring at his wife on the phone…
Wei Chengli rubbed his forehead, he had truly seen it all today.
After the two huddled together and watched the video, Shi Dingshan took out a password box from his bag and handed it to Wei Chengli. “Speaking of which, I’ll give you this first. The cameras in the babies’ rooms weren’t on at night, and the cameramen also stopped filming after they returned from the night market. But when Maomao fell, you dads were doing your individual interviews. When Su Li called you, the live broadcast wasn’t turned off immediately, the viewers outside still knew that Maomao fell. Of course, she was fine later, we also explained it on the live broadcast. But your wife… she also saw the live broadcast, she contacted our staff earlier, and the staff also talked to the doctor. But I think…” Shi Dingshan said, under the moonlight, shaking the small password box in his hand. “She probably wants to talk to you. We should have asked Maomao to say a few words too… But children, it’s not good if they accidentally reveal something in front of the other babies or during the live broadcast. You just talk to your wife on behalf of Maomao, I’ll wait inside, after you’re done, take…”
“Wait for what, let them have a proper chat, it was a big scare. Anyway, we’re not live broadcasting now, you can return it to me in the morning.” Qin Sichao said, pulling Shi Dingshan.
“… Okay, I’ll have someone come and get it before we start filming in the morning. You make the call on the balcony, it’s best not to let the other guests see, okay?” Shi Dingshan said, after giving his instructions, he looked at Qin Sichao. “Why are you suddenly so nice?” He was just mocking him for having no friends, and now he was being friendly?
“Hehe, I’m a nice person.” Qin Sichao said, pushing Shi Dingshan away.
Shi Dingshan: “… “ Who would believe that?
Anyway, they came, left the phone, and took away their doubts.
One felt he had comforted Wei Chengli, the other had established a friendly relationship with the guardian of the child he wanted to add to his film. Both of them were… quite satisfied.
As for Wei Chengli…
In the cool night breeze, the two-hour phone call swept away all his fatigue from the day.
Sitting back on the camp bed, Wei Chengli was still wide awake.
His phone, a good thing.
Wei Chengli, hiding under the blanket, started to… browse the online comments about the variety show these past few days.
He shouldn’t have browsed, because after browsing…
The sky… was bright.
Seeing Cheng Tingyan again, Wei Chengli’s heart ached.
It wasn’t the kind of jealousy he felt these past few days because of the little dumpling’s favoritism, it was a genuine heartache.
It had to be said, there were hidden talents among the common people.
These past few days, in places Wei Chengli couldn’t see, Yan Yan, sharing the unappetizing mush, Yan Yan, digging tirelessly under the scorching sun for Maomao’s watermelon, Yan Yan, always following Maomao, taking care of her… Yan Yan, being treated with passive-aggression and sarcasm by Cheng Rongrong, Yan Yan, being scolded by Cheng Feiying, Yan Yan, her voice always filled with sadness when talking about her family… The various clips and comments made him laugh until his stomach hurt, and also made his eyes well up several times.
But… this heartache and touch were quickly ended by a certain little rascal.
“Yan Yan, have you brushed your teeth?”
“Mmm.”
“Really? Let me see your teeth.”
“Ah… Mmm? Maomao! Your candy!”
“Hehe! This is truly the last one, I don’t have any more. Eat it quickly.”
Early in the morning, Wei Chengli, who hadn’t slept all night, had just greeted the two little ones when he was blinded by their excessive sweetness.
Candy! Who didn’t have any!
Wei Chengli took out the uneaten candy Shen Jianghe gave him from his pocket yesterday and stuffed it into his mouth.
Hmph, sweet, sticky, just average!!!
“Yan Yan, do you think this candy is delicious?”
“Delicious… Will you eat it next time?”
“Hehe, do you know why it’s delicious?”
“Because Maomao gave it to me!”
“… No, it’s because I put it under the air conditioner last night, it didn’t melt, it’s cold and crispy!”
…
???
Wei Chengli felt that the candy in his mouth, which was melting and sticky, not crispy at all, wasn’t sweet anymore!
Hmph!
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