Chapter 123
The show boosted tourism in the ancient village. Villagers opened homestays and restaurants, and various local specialties sold like hotcakes, their lives improving year after year.
In the blink of an eye, they all grew up.
Their moms and dads were all doing well, living happily and lovingly.
Shi Dingshan was still alive, Shi Hongxiao didn’t become a gambling addict.
Shen Zilin and Wen Dongyu didn’t become Cheng Rongrong’s left and right hands, Wang Zhizhi learned to love himself and didn’t become a brother obsessed with vying for love, and Wen Jiangyue remained a confident academic overachiever.
Cheng Tingyan was happy, her brow free from worry, her eyes clear of resentment.
Mmm… Yan Yan even washed a big tomato for her, coated it with thick sugar frosting, one bite, and it was incredibly sweet and sour.
Sweet and sour… munch, munch…
Wei Chengli turned to look at the two little ones sleeping soundly in the back seat, he watched as his little chubby dumpling, who was probably dreaming about something, smacked her lips… and without warning, impolitely drooled onto Yan Yan’s clothes.
The angle, the position, the contact area… It was hard not to recall.
Hehe, toothpaste, hehehe…
The big fool was him, it was him!
Shi Hongxiao, diligently filming Wei Maomao in the passenger seat, glanced at Wei Chengli from the corner of his eye. He saw the dad, showing no intention of defending his daughter, just watching with a smile, he even took out two cherry tomatoes from his bag and ate them.
Well… Okay…
Shi Hongxiao sighed silently. A good child, she even helped to discover the issue with Shi Dingshan’s expired medicine, and he was actually repaying kindness with ingratitude… Filming her bed-wetting incident wasn’t enough, now he was capturing her drooling.
Who would have thought?
He truly felt a surge of guilt.
Who would have thought? The viewers in the live broadcast room also never expected it.
“Hahaha, CEO Mao truly, she’s so cute even when she’s sleeping?”
“I’m starting to doubt my own intelligence, yesterday morning, and those other mornings when Yan Yan came out to wash her pajamas, I actually believed it was toothpaste! Hahaha, help!”
“Don’t even talk about doubting yourself, hahaha, look at Director Wei’s reaction on camera, he was also dumbfounded when he saw it. After all, he was the one who seriously taught Maomao and Yan Yan how to brush their teeth! Who would have thought that Yan Yan would lie to protect Maomao!”
“As expected of the Yan Yan who took Maomao’s wet sheets out to wash that night, she’s truly so thoughtful! If it wasn’t for Liu Ming and Xiao Shi discovering it, she would probably have said she was the one who wet the bed!”
“Have you noticed? Yan Yan’s OCD(Obsessive–compulsive disorder) only disappears when she’s with CEO Mao! Truly, CEO Mao is the cutest little bunny in the world!”
“Hahaha, Director Wei! Why aren’t you wiping Maomao’s mouth! Isn’t she your most beloved baby! You’re just watching! And you’re even eating cherry tomatoes!”
“Director Wei: ‘I just want to see if it’ll turn into toothpaste after it dries~~’”
“I can’t even watch anymore, when CEO Mao wakes up and sees that Director Wei didn’t lend a helping hand, she’ll probably be so angry that she’ll jump on him, hahaha!”
…
She didn’t jump on him, because as soon as Wei Chengli noticed the little chubby dumpling rubbing her eyes, as if she was about to wake up, he immediately turned back around and even closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep.
After all, watching was precious, but his face was even more precious.
As soon as Wei Maomao stirred, Cheng Tingyan next to her also woke up.
The viewers in the live broadcast room watched as Cheng Tingyan opened her eyes, first glanced at Wei Maomao, then looked down at her clothes, then… stared at the camera in silence.
In the next second, she took out her handkerchief and started wiping…
Cheng Tingyan’s actions were so practiced that it made their hearts ache.
Wei Maomao: “… “ How could this happen! She had also slept in the car on their way here, and she didn’t drool!
Just as Cheng Tingyan finished wiping the little chubby bunny’s mouth, struggling to wipe it dry without hurting her because she didn’t have any water, Wei Chengli turned around.
Wei Chengli tried to look surprised. “Ha, got some toothpaste on you?”
Wei Maomao narrowed her eyes, that “ha” sounded a bit off.
Cheng Tingyan didn’t dare to answer, she just quickly finished wiping the little chubby bunny, then turned slightly, using the handkerchief to cover the mark on her clothes.
Her hand tightly clutching the handkerchief, her lips pursed, her face a bit pale…
Wei Chengli’s teasing words died in his throat.
Heaven pitied her, a little girl, covered in his child’s drool, and he even had to expose her previous white lie… It was too cruel!
Wei Chengli, looking at Cheng Tingyan, who had turned her head away, avoiding his gaze, her nervousness and restraint evident, mentally slapped himself.
“Water.” Wei Maomao said concisely, extending her chubby paw towards Wei Chengli.
Wei Chengli silently handed her a bottle of mineral water.
Wei Maomao took the water, leaned forward, and used her chubby paw to push Wei Chengli’s face back to the front.
She took the handkerchief from Cheng Tingyan, wet it, and while wiping her clothes, whispered an apology, “Sorry, Yan Yan.”
“No…” Cheng Tingyan said, glancing at the camera above from the corner of her eye, she said regretfully, “I shouldn’t have fallen asleep.” She should have known! She shouldn’t have slept, she should have kept watching! Now everyone knew that the little chubby bunny wet the bed and drooled… Her little chubby bunny was truly pitiful!
“No, I shouldn’t have fallen asleep.” Wei Maomao said, taking the blame back from Cheng Tingyan.
“No, it’s me…” Cheng Tingyan said, thinking about the little chubby bunny’s pitiful state, her eyes were about to well up.
“No…”
…
“No! It’s me! It’s my fault, I shouldn’t…” Wei Chengli, unable to listen to their back-and-forth blame game anymore, turned around and said, “I shouldn’t have sat in the front, I should have sat in the back with you, then neither of you would have fallen asleep!”
Cheng Tingyan: “… “
Wei Maomao: “… “
There was no need for that.
Reality shows, the key was “reality.”
Anyway, she wouldn’t be in front of the camera in the future, and after ten years, the tenants wouldn’t know what the face behind the landlord’s WeChat account looked like, hehehe… Wei Maomao could only comfort herself this way.
Self-consolation, it was effective, but only to a certain extent.
Wei Maomao’s low spirits didn’t improve until they arrived at the next location, Shudian Film and Television City, the place where they would be staying.
In her previous life, for the fourth stop at Shudian Film and Television City, the program team stayed at a hotel, one room per family.
This life, for the third stop at Shudian Film and Television City, they were staying at a villa, all the guests in one villa. The first floor was the kitchen, living room, and common areas. The children stayed on the third floor, one room for girls, one room for boys. The dads stayed on the second floor, two dads per room.
Whether the accommodation was better or worse, any change was a good thing. If there was one change, there could be two, three, even more.
The first arrangement upon arrival was already different from her previous life, it did improve Wei Maomao’s mood.
The room on the third floor was quite spacious, with four single beds lined up and a private bathroom.
“Good evening, babies. We encountered some traffic today, we’re over an hour later than expected. So let’s quickly go through the procedures and have dinner.” Yang Ning, who had finally left the previous convenience store and hadn’t started working at this one yet, said with a smile, acting as the host. “This villa is our new home. This time, we don’t have to choose rooms, just beds. There are four single beds here, the order for choosing beds is based on the scores you gave your new parents. You graded your new parents twice, once when you were playing the role of your ideal parents, and once when you were imitating your dads, the total score of the two… The first place is… our Little Maomao! So, Little Maomao, do you want to choose this forest bed? Or this pink bubble bed? Or the blue ocean? Or the white dandelion?”
Wei Maomao thought for a moment, she didn’t choose immediately, but looked up innocently and asked, “Sister Yangyang, can I ask, among the four of us, who are the second and third place?”
Yang Ning: “… “ Why not just ask for the ranking, little one?
But, sigh, that bun face truly, that chubby bun face truly, so cute!
“Second place is Cheng Rongrong, third place is Wen Jiangyue, and fourth place is Cheng Tingyan.” Yang Ning said, stroking the little chubby baby’s hair, she wasn’t going to fight her inner urge, it was just a matter of delaying the suspense for two minutes.
“Then let the second place choose first.” Wei Maomao said kindly.
With Cheng Rongrong’s usual troublemaking, it was better to let her have her way, to avoid any drama.
Cheng Rongrong politely declined a couple of times, but seeing Wei Maomao’s insistence, she sneered inwardly and sat down on the pink bubble bed.
“I like pink, Older sister likes green, right? Sister Wen seems to have several blue dresses, the program team seems to have prepared the beds based on our favorite colors~~” Cheng Rongrong said, with just the right amount of joy on her face.
Wei Maomao: “… “ Only you have a mouth.
“I think Yan Yan likes white.” Wen Jiangyue said with a smile, finishing the water in her bottle, she stepped forward before Wei Maomao, who was pouting next to her, could speak, and winked at Cheng Tingyan. “What do you think, Yan Yan?”
“White.” Cheng Tingyan said quickly, understanding Wen Jiangyue’s intention.
“Then it’s Maomao’s turn to choose. Maomao, what color bed do you want?” Yang Ning asked, trying to maintain her smile, she tried not to think about the frequent discussions in the staff group chat about the sisters’ conflict and the rivalry between the chubby bunnies.
“Blue.” Wei Maomao glanced at Wen Jiangyue and walked to the blue bed.
“It’s my turn? I choose green.” Wen Jiangyue, who was already standing by the door, took a small step and stood next to the green bed. Then she watched as Cheng Tingyan, with a smile, quickly ran to Wei Maomao’s side.
Cheng Rongrong: “… “ Whatever, they were already sleeping in the same room, did it really matter which bed was next to which? What was there to be happy about?
Of course, she had to show some resentment towards Wen Jiangyue and a hint of sadness and loneliness when she lowered her head.
The sister who was completely ignored, she was truly pitiful…
Wei Maomao, standing right next to her, saw Cheng Rongrong’s changing expressions clearly.
She just… couldn’t understand.
So this was Cheng Rongrong’s true nature? Even though Jin Youliang wasn’t in charge of the script this time, and no one was trying to create a “stepping stone” plot, she was still immersed in that role. Clearly disliking it, but pretending to like it, pretending to be sad.
What did the Cheng family teach her… There was no throne to fight for, was it really necessary at three and a half years old?
Tsk…
Wei Maomao, as she thought about it, rubbed her arm, which had goosebumps.
“Are you cold?” Cheng Tingyan asked immediately, noticing Wei Maomao’s small action.
“No.” Wei Maomao shook her head, holding Cheng Tingyan’s hand. “Yan Yan, let’s go and see the next room.”
She didn’t want to be in the same space as the terrifying Cheng Rongrong for now.
Pulling Cheng Tingyan to the door, Wei Maomao turned to Wen Jiangyue. “Yueyue, want to come with us?”
“Let’s go.” Wen Jiangyue said, closing her suitcase, she stood up, hesitated, then looked at Cheng Rongrong. “Rongrong, coming?”
Cheng Rongrong looked up with a wronged expression, glancing at Cheng Tingyan resentfully.
“… “ Wen Jiangyue decisively gave up, she quickly opened the door wider, walked out first, and turned to urge them, “Rongrong is not coming, hurry up.”
Cheng Rongrong: “… “ Was her aggrieved expression not obvious enough?
Wei Maomao wasn’t as considerate as Wen Jiangyue, she pulled Cheng Tingyan and rushed out.
Speaking of which, without Jin Youliang’s script, was Cheng Rongrong’s acting not as good as in her previous life? Didn’t she realize that after so many days at the previous location, Cheng Feiying’s favoritism was already obvious, and after trying to sabotage Yan Yan so many times, failing so many times, would the viewers still think Yan Yan should love and accompany her like a real older sister? Did everyone have Stockholm syndrome?
Tsk… Wei Maomao, reaching the other end of the corridor, already standing at the door of the boys’ room, thought about it and couldn’t help but rub her arm again.
“Is it cold here too?” Cheng Tingyan asked softly, touching the little chubby bunny’s warm arm, confused.
“Boss!” Wen Dongyu, looking up and seeing the three of them at the door, jumped off the bed, rushed over like a cannonball, diverting Cheng Tingyan’s attention.
“Xixi… You’re choking Xixi!” Cheng Tingyan said, quickly stepping forward to stop Wen Dongyu, she even pushed him back two steps.
Wen Dongyu turned around and saw, ah, he ran too fast, he hadn’t untied the rope he was holding the pig with, the pig was stuck between the stool and the bed, no wonder he felt his wrist tighten.
“You even brought Xixi to this location?” Wei Maomao asked, surprised.
“Of course! I’m going to take Xixi to the water park! To play laser tag with Zhizhi! To visit the night market with Boss!” Wen Dongyu said, squatting down, gently stroking the pig’s neck, he started counting on his fingers, then looked up and asked, “You guys left so quickly yesterday, I didn’t have a chance to ask, where did you tell the program team you wanted to go?”
“Amusement park.” Wen Jiangyue said, her eyes sparkling. “I’ve wanted to go for a long time, I wonder if we’ll get to go this time!”
“Zoo.” Cheng Tingyan said, then added after a pause, “Cheng Rongrong wants to go to a place where she can learn to dance.”
Wei Maomao exchanged a glance with Cheng Tingyan and said, “Mine is a place for making wishes.”
“A place for making wishes?” Shen Zilin asked, putting down the last two cups, he had just arrived and heard Wei Maomao’s words, he was surprised. “You’re wishing to go to a place for making wishes?”
“Actually…” Wei Maomao wanted to explain that this unintentional nesting doll situation wasn’t her original intention.
But Shen Zilin, his eyes shining, interrupted her. “Amazing! Why didn’t I think of that! The places we choose, we’ll all go together. So the place Maomao chooses, we can also go. Doesn’t that mean we can all make another wish? What a loss! Why didn’t we know each other earlier? If we had, we would have all made this wish. No, there should be some variation, like you can go to a wishing pool, I can go to a wishing mountain, Yan Yan can go to a wishing tree, Yueyue can go to a wishing temple, Dongdong can go to… Mmm, somewhere random. Then we can turn one wish per person into six!”
“Boss… Why do they all have specific places, and I’m just ‘somewhere random’?” Wen Dongyu protested, raising his hand.
“… “ Shen Zilin, unable to think of any more wishing places, said coldly, “Because I’m the boss.”
Wen Dongyu said obediently, “… Okay, Boss!”
“The program team won’t let us make so many wishes. We won’t have time to go to so many places.” Wang Zhizhi said calmly, standing up from where he was organizing his suitcase. “But with just Maomao’s one wishing place, we can have one more… probably.”
“Maomao, are you really not considering borrowing money from me now?” Shen Zilin asked, unable to hold back anymore.
Such a capable employee! How could she be out there on her own! Every minute she was away pained him!
“Mmm?” Wei Maomao, stunned by the question, shook her head. “I don’t need it now.”
“Shen Zilin, you really want Maomao to borrow money from you, why don’t you make that your wish when you go to the wishing place?” Wen Jiangyue said with a chuckle.
Shen Zilin’s eyes lit up. “Yueyue is right! Why didn’t I think of that?”
Wei Maomao: “… “ She could repay the loan on the spot if they forced her to borrow, their wishes were truly wasted!
But… as long as one wasn’t wasted, it was fine.
Just like they had secretly planned last night, when it was Yan Yan’s turn to make a wish, she would tell them everything. Naturally, secretly, like a whispered prayer…
Wei Maomao turned to look at Cheng Tingyan, meeting her smiling eyes.
Everything would be fine, it would!
Wei Maomao tightened her grip on the slender fingers, which had warmed up in her hand.
In the villa next door, one of the rooms on the third floor was set up as the monitoring room, with a whole wall of monitoring screens.
Qin Sichao, munching on watermelon, said to Shi Dingshan next to him, asking for credit, “How is it? It’s good to collaborate with me for this location, right? All the guests staying in one villa, isn’t it more interesting than having each family in a separate room at a hotel!”
“Yes, yes, yes, I know you, Director Qin, are amazing, you even secured these few villas in the corner for us. This villa area is close to Shudian, I had people inquire before, there were villas available, but they were either by the road or in the middle, not very good for controlling the environment, not as good as these few. We just need to put up a rope and we can cordon off this corner with the villas we booked, it’s also convenient for the staff and guests to move around. Good, very good, here’s another slice of watermelon for you!” Shi Dingshan said, satisfied with the accommodation, he generously pushed a large slice of watermelon towards Qin Sichao.
“Heh, it’s just average.” Qin Sichao said modestly, then continued, “I was gone for two days, you’re also amazing. Several families on the verge of breakdown, you managed to turn them around. Having the babies play the role of their dads, it’s truly a brilliant move.”
“Turn them around?” Shi Dingshan asked, wiping the watermelon juice from the corner of his mouth with a tissue, he looked at the babies and dads having dinner together on the first floor of the villa next door on the monitoring screens and shook his head, chuckling. “It’s hard to say. Some things have become habits over the years, a moment of reflection doesn’t guarantee future actions. This is just a variety show after all.”
That’s true… Qin Sichao said, taking a bite of his watermelon, silently.
The silence spread.
In the villa next door, as the dinner atmosphere was reaching its peak, the host, holding the task cards for tomorrow, approached them timidly.
“A new day, new activities, the first baby’s wish to be fulfilled is…” The host said, creating a bit of suspense.
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