Chapter 25
Inside the bathroom, Cheng Tingyan couldn’t refuse Wei Maomao and ended up sharing a little secret with the little chubby bunny.
Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Cheng Rongrong, who was waiting for them, was about to lose her friendly facade.
Heh, even a three-year-old wouldn’t be completely uninterested and unexcited about a gift that was right in front of them, even if they were in a hurry to use the toilet!
That Wei Maomao was doing this on purpose!
Cheng Rongrong couldn’t understand. It was their first meeting, and she hadn’t offended the little chubby child, so why was she always ruining her plans?
But she decided not to dwell on it. After all, she was just a three-year-old kid, there would be time to deal with her later. Cheng Rongrong clenched the gift bag in her hand, watching the two walk into the bedroom hand in hand, sneering inwardly.
“Maomao, for you, a little bunny. Look, it’s white and chubby just like you, so cute!” As they approached, Cheng Rongrong presented the plush toy, smiling sincerely, without revealing any of her resentment.
Where was she chubby? This was called baby fat! Wei Maomao complained silently, politely accepting the bunny and thanking her, then taking out the bracelet as a return gift, without arguing.
After all, no matter how strange Cheng Rongrong seemed, she was just a three-and-a-half-year-old child. As long as her words and actions weren’t intended to hurt Cheng Tingyan, Wei Maomao had no intention of suppressing her.
But at this moment, Wei Maomao silently watched Cheng Rongrong. As expected, after giving the bunny, she didn’t leave, but turned to Cheng Tingyan beside her.
“Sister, this is for you.” Cheng Rongrong took out a crystal ball from the gift bag, a shy smile on her face. “The little princess inside is as beautiful as you.”
Seeing Cheng Tingyan staring at the crystal ball in her hand, looking very surprised, Cheng Rongrong was very satisfied with her brilliant plan and held the gift out further.
Didn’t see that coming, did you? Come on, refuse me, and then I’ll insist. If it breaks during the struggle, it’s its own misfortune.
But Cheng Rongrong didn’t know that Cheng Tingyan’s surprise wasn’t because of her, but because of Wei Maomao, who had accurately predicted this moment.
Cheng Rongrong held the crystal ball, calculating the time, her expression gradually turning aggrieved as she said softly, “Sister, you…”
“Thank you.” Cheng Tingyan snatched the crystal ball and quickly took out a shiny hair clip from her shoulder bag, placing it on Cheng Rongrong’s hand before she could retract it. “You always like these hair accessories.”
Cheng Tingyan’s voice wasn’t gentle, it was even a bit stiff and awkward, but Cheng Rongrong didn’t notice at all. And after Cheng Tingyan finished saying what the little chubby bunny had asked her to say, she paid no more attention to Cheng Rongrong.
At this moment, Cheng Rongrong was truly surprised, surprised by the appearance of this gift, and even more surprised that Cheng Tingyan would say such words to her…
This shiny hair clip wasn’t something Cheng Tingyan would like, Cheng Rongrong knew at a glance that it wasn’t something Cheng Tingyan had taken out of her own belongings on a whim as a substitute. But how could she have prepared a gift for her… The only possibility was that Liu Qiongfang had prepared it for Cheng Tingyan, but Cheng Tingyan didn’t like her, so she never gave it to her, until she received the crystal ball.
Exchanging gifts to avoid owing each other was Cheng Tingyan’s style, but there was another question… How could Cheng Tingyan say “You always like these hair accessories”? That kind of thoughtful and friendly words, Cheng Tingyan wouldn’t bother saying them.
Cheng Rongrong had too many questions. She stared at the hair clip in her hand for a long time, even forgetting to say thank you.
Unbeknownst to Cheng Rongrong, Cheng Tingyan and Wei Maomao exchanged a secret smile.
Everything was as Wei Maomao had predicted. Cheng Tingyan felt both surprised and excited. She couldn’t help but think, how could she have thought Maomao was like the chubby bunny she had raised before? Maomao was so much more amazing! And! Most importantly, the reason the little chubby bunny had asked her to give a return gift was that she didn’t want to hear Cheng Rongrong cry.
Earlier, when Cheng Rongrong was crying on the bed, although the others hadn’t blamed her like her dad and Bai Ayi, Cheng Tingyan still felt very uncomfortable, a kind of suffocating feeling. The current Cheng Tingyan didn’t know that this was a conditioned reflex of pain. But she instinctively realized that she needed to stay away from Cheng Rongrong, further away.
She couldn’t talk to anyone about these feelings, not even her mother. But now she had Maomao… although she wouldn’t tell Maomao about it either, Maomao also didn’t like it when Cheng Rongrong cried. This made Cheng Tingyan feel that she wasn’t so alone when it came to Cheng Rongrong.
Cheng Tingyan felt a little bit of unspoken joy. She secretly glanced at the little chubby bunny beside her, who was squatting on the ground, stuffing the bunny plush into her bunny backpack. Maybe because her arms were short, her whole head was buried inside… It was a bit funny.
But Cheng Tingyan didn’t know that those who laughed at others would eventually be laughed at.
At this moment, Wei Maomao, while stuffing things into her bag, was recalling how Cheng Tingyan had spoken to Cheng Rongrong and couldn’t help but bury her chubby face in her bag and giggle. The six-year-old Yan Yan had some comedic talent, she made a friendly statement sound so stiff and blunt, every word resounding. Wei Maomao had to try hard to keep a straight face.
Cheng Tingyan watched the chubby bunny burrowing in her bag for a while, then started to organize her gifts. She put the gifts from the other children in a bag, then glanced at the crystal ball she had just received. The palm-sized crystal ball was crystal clear, the miniature castle inside, from the steps to the eaves, every detail was exquisitely crafted. In front of the castle, a little princess in a pink dress was smiling happily under the falling snow… It was indeed beautiful, but she didn’t look like her, she looked like Cheng Rongrong.
Who the princess looked like, Cheng Tingyan didn’t really care, she didn’t even consider it a gift. From her childhood, anything related to Cheng Rongrong would become troublesome. If it weren’t for the cuteness of the little chubby bunny’s pleas, she would have left immediately when she knew Cheng Rongrong was going to give her a gift.
Cheng Tingyan put the crystal ball in the bag and left it at home, along with the gifts from the other children. Only the sachet from the little chubby bunny, she was reluctant to hang it outside, but didn’t want to leave it at home either. In the end, she wrapped it in a clean handkerchief again and put it in her shoulder bag to carry with her.
Unlike Wei Maomao’s satisfaction and Cheng Tingyan’s nonchalance, even when the staff urged the children to go out and do their task, Cheng Rongrong couldn’t recover from receiving the gift.
Even after they had all gone out, Cheng Rongrong was still wondering why Cheng Tingyan had prepared bag charms for everyone else, but gave her a hair clip… It seemed strangely thoughtful.
Cheng Tingyan couldn’t be cold on the outside but warm on the inside, addicted to being mistreated, and actually treating her as her real sister, could she?
Cheng Rongrong was stunned by her own thoughts and walked with her head down, thinking the whole way. It wasn’t until she reached the village entrance with the group and saw the dads in the field in the distance, as prompted by the staff, that she regained some of her spirit.
“Babies, look, your dads are working hard in the field for your dinner tonight. The harder the dads work, the more ingredients they’ll get. Come on, babies, cheer for your dads!” The host, who had appeared out of nowhere, stood by the field and waved to the little ones.
Standing beside the host, they could clearly see that the place where the dads were was a wasteland. Now, there were many strange facilities on it, and the dads were running and jumping around on them, looking like they were playing games or exercising…
The muddy ground ahead was difficult to walk on, so the host stopped the children from going further and took out a megaphone, holding it right in front of Wen Dongyu, who was closest to him. “Come on, shout into this, shout loudly, let your dad hear your voice!”
“…” Wen Dongyu looked confused. “What should I shout?”
“Cheer for your dad, shout out what you want to say to him now.” The host encouraged. “Don’t you want to eat more delicious food tonight? It’s not the program team who will provide the ingredients tonight, it all depends on the dads’ efforts now.”
Wen Dongyu understood and took a deep breath. “Daddy! I want to eat roast whole lamb lamb lamb lamb lamb lamb…”
“…” The host silently moved the megaphone away. “Next.”
“I haven’t finished yet!” Wen Dongyu pouted.
“We don’t have roast whole lamb on the ingredient list…” The host quickly pointed the megaphone towards Shen Zilin. “Lin Lin, it’s your turn.”
“Then roast whole pig is also okay…” Wen Dongyu muttered. “Lin Lin’s family has a lot of pigs…”
“Daddy, go! You’re the best!” Shen Zilin finished his turn seriously and glanced at Wen Dongyu. Although the pigsty next to their house was smelly, the pigs were still small.
“Daddy, go!”
Wen Jiangyue was a bit shy and only shouted four words. The first time her voice was too soft, so she repeated it again.
When it was Cheng Tingyan’s turn, it was even shorter, only two words, “Go!”
“Yan Yan…” The host wanted Cheng Tingyan to say a few more words, but just as she opened her mouth, the hand holding the megaphone was pulled down.
“It’s my turn.” Wei Maomao, grabbing the megaphone’s ribbon and pulling it down, said seriously.
“Alright… Maomao, you go.” The host squatted down and pointed the megaphone at Wei Maomao’s mouth. “Maomao is so small, you have to shout loudly.”
Wei Maomao nodded, of course.
“Wei Chengli! Stop working so hard! There’s food waiting for you at home!” Wei Maomao clenched her fists and shouted with all her might.
Maybe because she had put in too much effort, it sounded a bit like a squawking chicken.
The first to laugh were Cheng Tingyan, standing next to Wei Maomao, and Liu Ming, in the staff team not far away.
Most of the other people present didn’t know about the “food waiting at home” joke yet, but the dads who had stopped their activities in the distance knew it very well.
Earlier, after Wei Chengli received the ingredient “ginger” and realized that there was a problem with the lunch he had made, he had pestered the staff to call Liu Ming, making all the dads aware of the good deed he had done at noon, and they had already laughed at him.
Now, hearing Maomao’s heart-wrenching childish voice, they laughed even harder. After all, Wei Chengli had been working hard to gather ingredients like a man possessed, making them feel a bit tired.
“Hahaha, Xiao Wei, you can rest, there’s food at home.” Wen Qiming, the oldest, hammered his legs and pointed at his own flat sack not far away. “Give us old folks a chance.”
“It seems like Maomao can’t be appeased, why don’t you share your ingredients with us?” Shen Jianghe picked off a piece of dried mud from his suit pants and pointed at Wei Chengli’s bulging sack outside the field, laughing. “We’ll make finished dishes for you, maybe you’ll have a chance to redeem yourself.”
The others nodded in agreement.
“Maybe, perhaps, if Maomao sees how hard I’m working…” Wei Chengli, whose fighting spirit had been drained by the little one’s voice, said weakly, “I’ll remember to remove the fishy smell when I cook tonight.”
Wen Xiang patted Wei Chengli’s shoulder sympathetically. “Bro, forget it, don’t test your father-daughter bond anymore. Otherwise, one family will be leaving before the first day of filming is even over.” He had chopped all kinds of meat without removing the fishy smell, mixed it all together, and steamed it. If he dared to give this to Wen Dongyu, Wen Dongyu would dare to put mice in his bed! Ah, daughters were better, they only left some food.
“Hahaha…” The others couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing.
Wei Chengli: “…”
“Daddy! My amazing Daddy! Be careful, don’t get hurt!”
Cheng Rongrong’s voice came from afar.
But the dads, who had already laughed their heads off after hearing Maomao’s shout, were no longer in the mood to notice the “thoughtfulness” in Cheng Rongrong’s words that seemed different from the other children’s. And because of Wei Maomao’s direct address of her father’s name in her “anger,” no one noticed that among the children who had cheered for their dads, only Cheng Tingyan didn’t include “Daddy” in her words.
Cheering for their dads was just a small interlude on the way to the babies’ task. Everyone was quite happy, except for Wei Chengli, who had faced the iron heart of his little bunny.
Especially the viewers in the live broadcast room, who had witnessed how Wei Maomao and Cheng Tingyan were tortured by Wei Chengli’s mush, were endlessly amused.
“Maomao really can’t forget about that bowl of leftover mush, it seems Director Wei won’t be able to reconcile with his precious daughter until he finishes it, hahaha.”
“But Director Wei has been working really hard after getting the ginger and making the phone call. Now, even if you combine all the ingredients the others have gathered, it’s still less than what’s in his sack, right? He really wants to make up for his mistake at noon.”
“Hahaha, make up? Make up with a new bowl of mush? My niece, who’s only a little over two years old, is gnawing on a pork knuckle, how come Director Wei’s baby food recipe is still so bad.”
“That’s right, look at what Director Wei said to CEO Shen, he worked so hard to gather all that stuff, just to make another batch of mush, hahaha, just removing the fishy smell can’t save our little bunny!”
“No wonder Maomao told Wei Chengli to stop working so hard, with the ingredients he has now, if he makes mush, it would be enough for Maomao to drink until the end of the show, hahaha!”
“Other babies are cheering for their dads, only our little bunny wants to rush up and give her dad a big slap, hahaha, her face was red with anger when she was shouting, it seems she’s really hard to appease.”
“Maomao is so pitiful, Yan Yan at least had a few bites of normal food at noon, she’s only had a few mouthfuls of mush since morning, she must be starving, right? The program team is terrible, there’s only ingredients in each house, no snacks, and they’re not allowed to bring any.”
“Go watch Wang Zhizhi’s live broadcast room, he’s already reached the task location after running away from the Cheng family’s house, it’s truly… a baby’s paradise.”
Back at the field, after Cheng Rongrong finished shouting, the children were taken by the staff to the first location for their task, a convenience store between the village entrance and the vast fields.
The sign said “convenience store,” but it was just a detached single-story building with double doors. From the outside, it looked quite new, not like it originally belonged to the village, more like it was specifically set up by the program team.
In her previous life, Wei Maomao hadn’t seen this task location on the show. Maybe it was because Shi Dingshan was still alive this time, so the filming content was a bit different in this part.
Because of the unknown, Wei Maomao was a little nervous when she stepped into the convenience store. But as she saw what was inside, her nervousness instantly turned into… craving.
It was called a convenience store, but there were no shelves inside. Most of the things were placed on long, low tables that even someone of Wei Maomao’s height could easily see and reach.
Teddy bear biscuits, butter wafers, walnut cookies, mung bean cakes, dried strawberries, candied hawthorn, nut bread, chicken leg bread… A dazzling array of snacks filled the low tables. On the round table in the center, there were many kinds of candies, from soft candies, crispy candies, lollipops, to chocolates of various shapes, it was a feast for the eyes.
Against the wall was a row of equally low transparent display cases filled with both Chinese and Western pastries. Wei Maomao glanced over and saw various fruits, puddings, small cream cakes, and even ice cream…
It really was a convenience store, the kind specifically designed to tempt children.
Wei Maomao couldn’t help but walk towards the few large installations in the store, one of which was a huge glass box taller than her, filled with the kind of buttery popcorn sold at movie theaters! Wei Maomao couldn’t resist leaning closer and taking a deep breath, mmm… even through the glass, it was the familiar sweet aroma.
When she first entered the convenience store, Wei Maomao had quickly realized that if this was a task location, then these things were undoubtedly attainable, they just needed to meet certain conditions, without needing their parents to pay. God knows how excited she was when she realized this, it was like a traveler who had been in the desert for a month encountering an oasis…
It was indeed a sad state of affairs. Since her rebirth, not to mention the mush Wei Chengli had been diligently practicing at home, the meals Wei Maomao had been eating were all baby food made by Zhang Shilan or the nanny. Steamed, boiled, or lightly stir-fried with minimal oil, nutritious, and tasted very much like the kind of bland food eaten during weight loss… Seasoned with only a few drops of oil and a few grains of salt. The only things that were somewhat tasty were fruits, or the baby snacks made by Zhang Shilan herself using fruits and vegetables to extract natural pigments, like yogurt melts and teething biscuits, which had a little natural sweetness… Oh, and the few bites of dim sum she had at the teahouse with Shi Dingshan that day.
Overall, the food she had eaten since her rebirth was so bland to Wei Maomao, with her adult soul, that life almost seemed tasteless. After being tortured by Wei Chengli’s cooking, she had hit rock bottom and was now rebounding. And the candy Liu Ming had given her today was like opening Pandora’s Box.
All along, both the nightmares and the psychological burden of starting over had made Wei Maomao crave sweet and fragrant things. If it weren’t for the fact that she couldn’t move chairs and reach the stove, she would have licked the sugar container clean during those days at home.
And now, her chance had come.
As Wei Maomao was drooling over the popcorn in the glass box, she heard Wen Jiangyue asking the staff member a question.
“Sister, is this lollipop twenty yuan each? Can I bring my dad here to buy one later?”
This number couldn’t possibly represent money, right? Wei Maomao turned around and saw that before the staff member could answer, Shen Zilin had stepped forward to stop Wen Jiangyue. “The prices of the things here are not right, don’t buy anything yet.”
Seeing Wen Jiangyue’s confusion, Shen Zilin added, “Last time, my classmate bought me one, the same as this one, only five yuan, twenty yuan can buy four, don’t be cheated by this profiteer!”
“This lollipop…” Originally, Cheng Tingyan didn’t want to talk much to the others, but she couldn’t stand it anymore and looked at the two, saying, “Buying one at a time should be fifty cents, if you buy ten at once, you get one free…”
Wen Jiangyue: ???
Shen Zilin: “…”
“The prices of the things here are indeed not right. Like this small bag of shrimp crackers, it should only cost fifty cents, but it says ten here.” Cheng Tingyan pointed to the teddy bear biscuits next to it. “This one sometimes costs one yuan, sometimes ninety cents, it depends on the number on the back, there’s a date called the expiration date. If you find one in the store with an expiration date close to today’s date, you can ask for a ten-cent discount. This one says fifteen, it’s too expensive.”
“Yan Yan, you’re so amazing!” Wen Dongyu squeezed over. “I have one yuan, can you help me find that… expiration thing? I want to eat teddy bear biscuits too!”
“Weren’t we not allowed to bring money? Where did you get the money, Wen Dongdong?” Shen Zilin said righteously, stepping in front of Wen Dongyu, hoping to distract everyone from the fact that he had spent five yuan on a fifty-cent lollipop.
“I hid a coin in my shoe, hehe.” Wen Dongyu held up the coin in his hand.
“…” Shen Zilin covered his nose and backed away.
“Fifteen yuan to one yuan… That’s too big of a difference.” Cheng Tingyan shook her head. “It definitely won’t work. I’ll take you to buy them after the filming is over. I know a store that often has snacks close to their expiration date, sometimes if the date is really close, you can even get a twenty-cent discount.”
“Yan Yan…”
Cheng Tingyan looked back and saw the little chubby bunny, who had been wandering around the popcorn, now looking at her from two steps away, seemingly unhappy.
“What’s wrong, Maomao? Do you want popcorn?” Cheng Tingyan walked over and stood on tiptoe to look at the popcorn in the glass box.
Ah, it costs a hundred.
“You really want to eat it, don’t you? You’re drooling.” Cheng Tingyan took Wei Maomao’s hand with one hand and expertly took out a clean handkerchief from her shoulder bag with the other, gently wiping the little chubby bunny’s mouth, smiling. “Don’t be sad. You didn’t eat enough of the mush earlier, right? How about I buy you this?”
Wei Maomao was speechless.
Don’t you know the prices?
Where do you get the money?
No, the question should be… How did you switch so seamlessly from being frugal about two cents for expired snacks to wanting to spend a hundred yuan on this for me?
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