Chapter 42

Qiao Huan watched helplessly as Zhuo Yang picked up a potted plant and examined it for ages before finally putting it down.

Clearly, he wasn't looking for Constantine, but something else.

Qiao Huan grew even more puzzled. He moved out of sight of the hidden cameras and sent Qiao Tang another message.

But this time, Qiao Tang didn't reply for a long while.

"Mr. Qiao~ May I ask if you're done looking?"

Seeing that Qiao Huan had stood motionless in the shadows for a while, Xiao Feng came over to remind him.

"Just about." Qiao Huan put his watch away.

"You and Mr. Zhuo really are meticulous," Xiao Feng said, his eyes full of admiration. "I thought you two were all sweeping gestures before, but I didn't expect you to be so careful beneath that rough exterior."

"What?" Qiao Huan's head had already been full of question marks, and now a few more had appeared.

He... careful beneath a rough exterior?

"You spotted Constantine but didn't say anything, so he could feel a sense of accomplishment while playing too. And there's no need to even mention Mr. Zhuo. While he was looking for Constantine, he also checked the house for safety hazards. Clearly, he doesn't want another accident like the one where Constantine fell into the water."

Xiao Feng leaned closer and raised an eyebrow. "We've seen how hard you two have worked. On behalf of the Production Team, I'd like to thank you. We'll definitely edit your footage nicely when the time comes. Finger hearts~"

Qiao Huan: ...

Finger hearts, my big fat watermelon.

Accompanied by Xiao Feng, Qiao Huan had no choice but to head back to the study where Constantine was hiding.

There was a sound as soon as he entered. Constantine's calves trembled, clearly with nervous anticipation.

Qiao Huan deliberately kept him in suspense a little longer, quickly looking around the room. Only after finding nothing unusual did he step forward and pat him.

"Ding Ding, I found you," Qiao Huan said, using as soothing a tone as he could.

Constantine could no longer contain himself. He sprang to his feet. "Wow, you looked for ages!"

Seeing how happy Constantine was, Qiao Huan finally understood what Xiao Feng had meant earlier.

No matter how old someone was, being "respected" made them happy.

Xiao Feng, however, was sinking into a tiny bit of despair.

This child had been respected in a pitch-dark little room for over twenty minutes. How was he still not sleepy?

Qiao Huan was somewhat surprised too. "You still don't want to sleep?"

Constantine thought about it. "Nope~"

Xiao Feng leaned close and whispered, "This child sleeps very little, and quite a lot really did happen tonight..."

"I know." Qiao Huan nodded. "Thank you all for your hard work."

"It's nothing, it's nothing. We deserved it—no, it's our job." Xiao Feng, who was rarely comforted by celebrities, instantly thought even more highly of Qiao Huan. "You've worked hard too."

Over on the other side, the female assistant director also came over and asked, "Should we give him some milk and sing him a lullaby or something?"

Getting children to sleep was an age-old problem for all parents. To be honest, there was simply no solution.

Qiao Huan thought for a moment, then picked Constantine up. "Do you want to go see the stars?"

Constantine's eyes widened. "Yes!"

"Then shall we go to the attic?"

The attic was the only place he hadn't searched.

Unexpectedly, Constantine hesitated for a moment.

But he agreed all the same, giving a subdued "Mm."

Watching Qiao Huan carry the child upstairs, Xiao Feng let out another sigh.

This guy wasn't just good-natured; he really had plenty of energy too...

The attic.

Qiao Huan had barely pushed the door open when the sight before him gave him a start.

This was no attic. It was practically a small storeroom.

He hadn't expected such a small room to be piled so full of artwork.

Everywhere he looked were paintings by famous artists, but they were covered only with old rags and hadn't been properly preserved.

Judging by their sizes, Qiao Huan concluded that these were the paintings that had been moved up from downstairs.

So Fan Hui hadn't sold all the paintings in the house?

Clearly, no one had been in the attic for a long time. Not only was it dusty everywhere, even the light wouldn't turn on.

Only a skylight let in faint strands of starlight.

It was rather pleasant.

Qiao Huan was considering where to settle down with Constantine when he heard footsteps behind him.

Zhuo Yang had come up.

Zhuo Yang waved the clean blanket and juice in his hands and asked with a smile, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming up here? Director Xiao Feng had to tell me."

Qiao Huan replied, "Weren't you tired during the day? I can put him to sleep."

He could look around without Constantine seeing, but avoiding Zhuo Yang would be difficult.

"No need to be so polite. We're brothers."

Zhuo Yang showed no intention of going to bed first. Instead, he spread out the blanket and put Constantine in the middle.

Qiao Huan saw that Zhuo Yang's large frame barely had room to stretch out in the cramped attic, yet he still wanted to keep him company. For a moment, Qiao Huan couldn't quite say what complicated emotions welled up inside him.

In fact, Zhuo Yang had another reason for coming up to the attic besides keeping Qiao Huan company.

He had also noticed Fan Hui's key at dinner. The cherry pattern on it was one the old captain's daughter often used.

But Constantine had suddenly had an episode afterward, and Zhuo Yang had been so concerned about the child that he hadn't paid attention to where the key went.

Fan Hui had the old captain's daughter's key, and Zhuo Yang felt that had to mean something.

After all, the monk might run away, but the temple couldn't. Surely there would be some traces in the house?

While Qiao Huan was bringing Constantine upstairs, he had taken the opportunity to check the half of the house Qiao Huan had searched, but found nothing. That was why he had come to the attic.

Qiao Huan handed Zhuo Yang the juice. "You must be tired today, right?"

Hurry up and go to sleep.

"I'm really not tired." Zhuo Yang smiled. "What about you?"

Brother, aren't you sleepy?

Although Zhuo Yang had always planned to recruit Qiao Huan as a subordinate, and genuinely thought he was a good person, Qiao Huan had been spending all his time with Ye Yiwei lately.

Ye Yiwei... Zhuo Yang had reservations about that guy.

He was cold and obsessed with cleanliness, not the sort of brother Zhuo Yang liked in the first place.

Besides, on the night before they went to Huixin Welfare Institute, he had seen Ye Yiwei come out of Instructor Tao Zhenting's quarters.

Afterward, he had also seen Tao Zhenting whispering with the newly arrived trash director Ling Ji at Azure Dragon Base.

Zhuo Yang found it very hard not to connect these people and suspect they were colluding in private.

And after that, Ye Yiwei had kept taking Qiao Huan to see Tao Zhenting.

But he believed Qiao Huan wouldn't be assimilated.

Yes, he believed in Qiao Huan.

If he had been investigating undercover on his own, he might already have told Qiao Huan the truth.

But this was the old captain's business, after all. Before telling Qiao Huan and getting his help, he needed the old captain's permission.

He wanted to ask the old captain as soon as possible. He had to hurry and snatch Qiao Huan away from that dangerous kid Ye Yiwei.

But I have to get Qiao Huan to sleep before I can make contact...

Qiao Huan saw Zhuo Yang blinking rapidly and had no idea what he was thinking about.

Recalling his strange behavior searching the house today, Qiao Huan wasn't sure whether he really had been checking for dangers. He couldn't help asking, "Brother Zhuo, do you like children?"

Zhuo Yang said, "Huh?"

He looked at Constantine, who was gazing at the stars through the skylight, and thought for a moment. "They're all right."

"Then tell Ding Ding a story," Qiao Huan said.

"..."

Why did he feel like A-Huan had so many tricks up his sleeve?

"What should I tell him?" Zhuo Yang looked helpless.

Qiao Huan pointed to the only painting hanging in the attic. "Make one up based on that?"

The painting showed a child looking up at the starry sky.

It matched exactly what Constantine was doing now.

What was more, Qiao Huan had noticed it as soon as he came in. It was the only painting hanging up, and it didn't look like the work of a famous artist. It stood out like a sore thumb.

He had originally asked Zhuo Yang to tell a story to reinforce his gentle persona, while also thinking a story would make him sleepy.

But Zhuo Yang's reaction when he looked at the painting confirmed it for Qiao Huan: Zhuo Yang was definitely looking for something in this house, not merely checking for dangers.

After thinking for a long time, Zhuo Yang told a story about training at a martial arts school, being punished with a great deal of practice, and finally throwing punches under the stars while crying.

Well, the story itself had no real highlights, and combined with his subwoofer-like voice, it was especially hypnotic.

It was Zhuo Yang's first time telling a story too. Qiao Huan had looked sleepy all along, so surely this would put him to sleep?

Hurry up and be a salted fish, so I can go look at that painting!

Listening in front of the monitor, Xiao Feng was nearly asleep himself. He could only stay sitting upright thanks to his excellent professional conduct.

To his surprise, Qiao Huan actually looked more alert than before.

Zhuo Yang's story itself was actually pretty boring, but Qiao Huan had listened.

Everyone in their line of work had been through times like that.

All alone, with only the starry sky for company.

"What about you?" Zhuo Yang was momentarily at a loss for words at Qiao Huan's reaction. "Do you... have a story?"

His inner monologue: A-Huan, what happened to your salted-fish persona?!

After hearing the question, Qiao Huan laughed silently for a moment.

He had far too many stories.

So he carefully selected the most memorable boring experience from his store of stories.

A story about staying up late with his father to watch a cicada molt.

That night had been especially long, just like this story.

And in the end, his father had left because something came up, and the cicada had been really ugly when it emerged.

By the time Xiao Feng finished listening, he could barely keep his eyes open.

These two grown men are in the attic looking at the stars! How can their heads be full of such boring, lonely stories in a sentimental setting like this?!

But when he saw Zhuo Yang's reaction, he was dumbfounded.

Zhuo Yang's eyes had turned red.

He automatically put himself in the place of the cicada about to molt. He understood all too well the pain of wanting a breakthrough but being unable to make progress, with no family by his side.

The two brothers looked at each other in the dark.

Zhuo Yang yawned to ease the awkwardness, but how could Qiao Huan fail to see what his reddened eyes meant? Not only had he not found the story boring, he had been moved by it.

The two men, who had tried to hypnotize each other only to both be moved: ...

A suspicion silently spread through both their minds: Could I be this gifted at storytelling?

Then.

The two looked at Constantine and instantly flew into a rage.

They could make such boring stories so interesting, so how had this child fallen asleep?!

The stories might have been boring, but they were educational!

Unwilling to accept it, Zhuo Yang poked Constantine's little belly.

"Are you asleep? You aren't, right? Did you just close your eyes because you were so absorbed in listening?"

Constantine, jolted awake: "?"

He had already started dreaming!

In his dream, two old monks had been droning on and on in his ears.

Zhuo Yang was still caught up in his emotions. "Ding Ding, our stories were wonderful, weren't they? I'll tell you another one!"

Tears filled Constantine's eyes. "Uncle Zhuo, is this your punishment for me because I wouldn't go to sleep?"

The two men, who had no idea whatsoever how good they were at storytelling: ?

How could this be a punishment?!

Next door, Xiao Feng finally understood the pair's true purpose.

So they had told stories to get the child to sleep earlier!

How thoughtful!

But when he turned around, he saw that all the staff behind him had tears streaming down their faces.

"Boo-hoo, what working stiff isn't lonely? Their stories hit too close to home!"

Xiao Feng: Oof.

Am I the one who doesn't fit in?

*

Early morning, in the attic.

After telling more than a dozen stories, the two men's mouths and throats were dry. Seeing how increasingly alert the other was, they both wondered whether they really were so gifted at storytelling.

Constantine, meanwhile, slept in a terrible position. His head rested on Zhuo Yang's leg, while his feet stretched into Qiao Huan's arms.

So neither of them had dared to move, and they had sat there all night.

They had taken the opportunity to get a good look at the painting. It looked like a child had painted it, but there was nothing strange about it otherwise.

Seeing the scene in the morning light, Xiao Feng quickly took a screenshot.

This would be the cover for the variety show!

After a quick wash, the two had to leave the house and take Constantine along to attend today's event.

The citywide elementary school sports meet.

The sports meet was being held in the city's large square, though it was really just an open space. The surrounding farmland was only eighty or a hundred paces away.

But even that couldn't dampen the enthusiasm of the city's children. Events like this were rare, after all. Without the Production Team's funding, there might not have been one for years. Hundreds of lively elementary schoolers had gathered here, and as far as the eye could see, there was a sea of little black-haired heads.

Plenty of equipment had been set up in the square, and the children who had arrived early were already competing.

The events fell into two categories. One was traditional, with things like running and the long jump; the other was more innovative, mostly involving parents, such as mini cross-country races, Frisbee and three-legged races.

The Production Team hadn't made things difficult for Constantine. They had only signed him up for the sprint and long jump in the eight-year-old group, two of the simplest, least troublesome events.

Constantine had agreed before, but today he just kept his head down and refused to take part.

The child psychologist hired by the Production Team was there too. Qiao Huan and Zhuo Yang consulted the expert, but there was no way to reach a judgment just yet.

The proceedings had ground to a halt again.

Qiao Huan spotted a popcorn vendor nearby and decided to buy some for Constantine, hoping the sweets would soothe his mood.

But Qiao Huan had barely taken two steps when a noisy shout came from behind.

"What the fuck are you doing?" a man yelled. "You hurt my son!"

Zhuo Yang shook off the hand the man had placed on his shoulder. "What are you looking at? Your little fatty clearly stepped on our kid's foot."

Qiao Huan hurried back to see what was happening.

The man was in his thirties and had the face of a scoundrel. This really wasn't Qiao Huan judging him by his looks. It was mainly because his clothes left patches of skin exposed here and there, he was shuffling around in his shoes, and he had a cigarette dangling from his mouth in a place packed with children. He really did make a terrible first impression.

Constantine looked utterly confused and glanced timidly at Zhuo Yang.

Not only was the man's child plump and sturdy, he also wore an arrogant expression. He and his father might as well have been cast from the same mold.

While the two sides were facing off, the child suddenly pinched Constantine's cheek.

Zhuo Yang immediately picked Constantine up and took half a step back, glaring at the man. "Can't you control your own kid?"

The man spat. "Ah, I was wondering who it was. So it's the Little Monster of Platinum Coast."

The child chimed in, "Little Monster!"

Qiao Huan stepped in front of Ding Ding and Zhuo Yang and said coldly, "Looking for trouble?"

The man's acting was even worse than Constantine's when he played dead. He was obviously here to pick a fight.

The man promptly flopped onto the ground. "Ow! So you think being a star makes you a big shot? You brought a kid here to beat people up!"

In an instant, countless people gathered around.

Only then did Qiao Huan notice someone behind the man, filming with a phone.

"Friend, don't stoop to their level," a woman said, approaching and speaking in Qiao Huan's ear. "He's our local... internet celebrity. He doesn't farm, just loafs around the streets picking fights all day."

When the man saw the woman come forward, he put on an even livelier performance.

"Big Monster's Mom has come looking for the Little Monster. It's people like you who have ruined the feng shui around here!"

The woman wore her hair in a neat ponytail, and judging by her clothes, she was a referee.

A referee? Qiao Huan pondered that for a moment.

"Bullshit!" The woman was shaking with anger. "What feng shui have we ruined? You're the one who won't farm properly. A professor from University B taught you how to raise crayfish alongside rice to make money, and you wouldn't do that either. All you do is drag a bunch of people around livestreaming this and that every day. You want to talk about ruining feng shui? Pah! You're the ones ruining the atmosphere around here!"

Qiao Huan immediately thought of the elderly people from yesterday.

Early that morning, Qiao Huan had taken some time to look it up and found that City B really was encouraging crayfish farming. A professor from University B had even personally taken students from house to house to promote it, but the results had been meager.

Clearly, people like the man in front of them were one reason why.

"This won't do you any good. None of us are famous, so we can't bring you much attention." Qiao Huan pointed at Xiao Feng and the film crew in the distance, getting straight to the point. "And we're filming the whole time too. Everything you do is being recorded."

But before Qiao Huan could finish, the man suddenly sprang up, grabbed his phone and shoved it right in Constantine's face:

"Come on, come on, let me show the family the little monster from our rich neighborhood..."

Smack—

Zhuo Yang couldn't hold back any longer. He knocked the man's phone straight out of his hand and pointed a finger at the scoundrel's nose.

"Stay the fuck away from me."

Zhuo Yang was especially terrifying when he was angry. Even Qiao Huan thought so.

In a moment, the whole scene went quiet.

But the scoundrel gave a sickly smile, baring a mouthful of yellow teeth.

"Who are you trying to scare, young man?" He stripped off his shirt. "A minor entertainer like you can fight? Those muscles are just for show, but you actually dare hit a working man?"

He was certain Zhuo Yang wouldn't dare lay a hand on him here.

Zhuo Yang was so angry that his muscles trembled all over.

His muscles were just for show? In less than three seconds, this man would be crying and begging him for mercy!

But when he looked to the side, Qiao Huan was lazily playing on a phone. His heart went cold in an instant.

It really was like a scoundrel meeting a soldier: even if you were in the right, there was no reasoning it out.

Looking triumphant, the man turned to his "camera assistant." "That lady just said I don't farm. Family, take a look. My back's black as can be. That's a farmer's skin! Look how soft and fair her skin is, and look at these two little entertainers beside her. They're the ones who don't farm! They're bullying people!"

After that spiel, he saw everyone glaring angrily at him, but he still wasn't satisfied. He added, "Family, people in the entertainment industry these days are just awful! They came here and built a Platinum Coast, and who knows how much they've enjoyed themselves? Now they've come to film a show, putting on an act. What do they know about how hard us farmers have it?"

Everyone there was watching the show. For a while, no one spoke up to stop him.

Every village had a few scoundrels like this. People were used to them.

But as time passed, their attention gradually shifted from the ** on the verge of exploding to the person beside him, who seemed removed from the whole situation.

They couldn't say why, but they just felt this person... was holding back a big move.

"Nothing to say, huh?" The scoundrel snorted twice. "Pampered little brat."

"Oh, perfect." Qiao Huan looked up at just the right moment. "I was worried you wouldn't bring that up. Since the elementary school sports meet is today, why don't we compete at farm work?"

The man froze and looked at Qiao Huan, who had seemed unconcerned all this time. "What are you saying, youngster?"

Then he looked to the crowd for support. "This little star says he can do farm work? That's killing me!"

Low chuckles rippled through the crowd, but they weren't laughing at Qiao Huan. They were laughing at the man, who was acting like a jumping clown.

The more cowardly the dog, the louder it barked.

Qiao Huan looked at the man with a gaze even colder than the one directed at Constantine yesterday, but the corners of Qiao Huan's lips curved upward.

"I just contacted an Uncle from the next village. The young crayfish in their fields got loose. Why don't we have the kids and adults compete together to see who can catch the most? We can give the old folks a hand while we're at it."

"What?" The man immediately lost his nerve.

"Excuse me, you're one of the referees for this competition, aren't you?" Qiao Huan looked at the woman, whose face was still tinged with anger.

The woman nodded, understanding Qiao Huan's meaning. "Yes, I can approve this event on behalf of the organizing committee."

"Great!" Qiao Huan called out to the crowd. "Everyone's welcome to sign up too. Two adults and one child per team. Come have some fun!"

Most of the onlookers were farmers, and the mention of this event instantly perked them up.

Things like three-legged races might be popular overseas, but they weren't very down-to-earth. They could even make a competition out of working in the fields, and helping their fellow farmers was fitting anyway. It sounded pretty interesting too!

"That's a good one!"

"Catching crayfish? Sounds fun! I'm good at that!"

The response from the crowd was enthusiastic.

Qiao Huan raised an eyebrow at the scoundrel. "Surely you're not going to sit this one out, Mr. Farmer?"

The scoundrel puffed out his chest. "Hah! Like I'd be... scared of a bunch of brats who can't even tell one grain from another!"

The little fatty waved his fist too. "I'm really good at it!"

"You're free to livestream it. We'll livestream it too." Qiao Huan turned to Xiao Feng. "We won't need lighting or anything like that either. The sun is the best stage light. Is that all right?"

Xiao Feng said, "Yes, yes, yes, yes!"

He had already been worried that filming the show was turning out dull. He hadn't expected Qiao Huan to be able to act as both a guest and a planner!

And so, led by Qiao Huan and the woman referee, more than a dozen teams of adults and children set off in a mighty procession toward the old man's fields.

Seeing this, Qiao Huan breathed a sigh of relief.

It would slap the scoundrel in the face, help the old and frail uncles and aunties with their work, and let Qiao Huan get close to the referee. This flash of quick thinking had killed three birds with one stone. Not bad.

The only worry was...

Qiao Huan walked over to Zhuo Yang, who was holding Constantine. "Brother Zhuo, take Ding Ding home first. I'll just ask Yiwei to bring his child over to save the day."

Zhuo Yang was also worried about Ding Ding's state after being called a "little monster," and nodded anxiously. "Okay."

But just after they reached the village and saw the uncles and aunties bustling about in the fields, Constantine suddenly spoke.

"Uncle... can we take part too?"

Zhuo Yang and Qiao Huan were naturally delighted.

The psychologist beside them took the opportunity to make a note. "This is perfect. I can see how Ding Ding behaves in a group activity, so I can make an assessment!"

But Constantine added another sentence that left all three of them deep in thought.

"This time... I don't want to just watch again."

"Again"?

What did he mean?

But before Qiao Huan and Zhuo Yang had time to think carefully about what he meant, they suddenly heard an old man in the distance waving a towel and shouting—

"Hey! Apple Boy is here with the boxed meals!"

The two of them: ?

There were so many mysteries that, for a moment, they didn't know where to start unraveling them.