Sun Siyuan offered no comments. He polished off one flatbread in five or six bites, then reached for another.
The sturdy, lively Fu Xiaoxiao saw Sun Siyuan eating so much so quickly and immediately objected.
"That's mine! Don't eat it all!"
Sun Siyuan raised an eyebrow, his hand never stopping. "Who said it was yours?"
"My stepdad's things are mine!"
"Su Huaiming is my friend, too. His things are mine!"
"It's mine!"
"It's not yours!"
No one tried to stop Sun Siyuan and Fu Xiaoxiao. Instead, they took the opportunity to shovel down flatbreads, afraid someone else would beat them to it.
The viewers in the livestream swallowed hard at the sight.
[Ahhhh, it's confirmed! This is a mukbang show, isn't it?]
[That sauce looks so fragrant. Has anyone tried it?]
[I have. I can't describe the exact taste, but it's so delicious you could bite your own tongue off.]
[That sauce might look ordinary, but it's made with so many kinds of mushrooms. Only my hometown could be lavish enough to make a sauce like that.]
[My friend is sick, and he wants to try this mushroom sauce before he dies. Can someone post a link?]
[I'm dying laughing. There isn't enough for the locals, so how could they possibly sell it?]
[Su Huaiming nearly made foot soak tubs sell out in the first episode, and now he's made mushroom sauce a hit. Is he a professional at selling products or something?]
[The three most beautiful words I've ever heard: drop the link.]
After everyone had eaten their fill, they washed up and went to bed. Their first day had passed without incident.
The next day, everyone had to go down to the little village again and work to earn supplies.
Sun Siyuan and Yu Ruicheng were responsible for fetching the tools.
Including the four children, there were nine people in all. Dragging and hauling between them, Sun Siyuan and Yu Ruicheng finally managed to bring the things over.
But when they counted them, they discovered they were one hoe short.
Sun Siyuan didn't want to make another trip, so he turned and said, "You go get it."
With his cool-guy face, Yu Ruicheng said nothing and simply nodded.
Fetching a hoe wasn't particularly strenuous work, so no one present thought much of it or went to help Yu Ruicheng.
Yu Ruicheng returned to the villager's house, but when he reached the entrance, he suddenly stopped. Even standing under the sun, his face was still like ice, utterly cold.
Yu Ruicheng took a step forward, then retreated and paced around the entrance. He faintly heard movement coming from the path beside it. His body went rigid, and he darted behind the earthen wall beside him, pressing his back tightly against it for fear of being spotted.
The viewers in the livestream were baffled.
[What is Yu Ruicheng doing?]
[Why does it feel like he's hiding from someone?]
[I remember now. I think Yu Ruicheng has social anxiety.]
[I'm like that sometimes too. I suddenly lose my nerve at the door and circle around several times without the courage to go in. I imagine things that would never happen and get more and more nervous and scared.]
[Help, that's literally me!]
Yu Ruicheng wasn't always like this, but he had trouble adapting. Coming to a new place and having to meet more strangers had made his social anxiety worse.
The root of the problem, however, was that he imagined too much. His head was full of awkward scenes of meeting people, and he got nervous before he even reached the door, which only made him more afraid.
Yu Ruicheng took a deep breath and strode over with a cold expression on his face.
A woman he didn't know happened to walk over from the side and spotted him.
Yu Ruicheng was tall and broad, with an upright bearing, an imposing presence, and a grim expression. The woman had never seen him in the village before and took him for an outsider. She watched him warily and asked in a less than friendly tone, "Who are you looking for?"
Yu Ruicheng's brain suddenly froze, and he couldn't speak for a moment. He stared blankly at the woman, but she mistook his look for a fierce one.
The woman didn't think she could beat the strong young man, so she looked around for help. "Second Sister-in-law, are you home?"
Only then did Yu Ruicheng realize there had been a misunderstanding. He hurried to explain. "You, you..."
He accidentally bit his tongue, making his expression even more pained, and his unfinished words sounded like a threat.
The woman backed away two steps. If circumstances had allowed it, she probably would have already dashed into the house beside her.
There was movement in the neighboring house, and a plump middle-aged woman came out. She frowned at the scene, keeping a wary eye on Yu Ruicheng.
Yu Ruicheng knew there had been a huge misunderstanding and hurried to clear it up. But as soon as he raised his hand, he saw both women's pupils contract, and they looked frightened enough to grab weapons.
"I, I, I..." The more anxious Yu Ruicheng got, the more his brain turned to mush, making the situation even worse.
Just then, a little kid popped out from behind Yu Ruicheng.
Yu Xuanxuan wasn't shy around strangers at all. He waved at the two women and said in his childish voice, "Hello, Aunties."
At the sight of such a cute, well-mannered child, both women paused, and their wariness eased.
Standing in front of his older brother, Yu Xuanxuan became his social spokesperson. "Aunties, my brother and I are filming a show here."
The two women paused, then their faces lit up with understanding.
They had heard long ago that a production crew would be coming to film here, but they hadn't seen any of them yet. That was why they had taken Yu Ruicheng for an outsider.
The woman he'd first encountered gave a hearty laugh and patted Yu Ruicheng on the shoulder. "Young man, you should have said so sooner! We almost had a misunderstanding. If your little brother hadn't come along, the two of us might have grabbed something and driven you out by now!"
Yu Ruicheng couldn't handle being so close to a stranger, so he could only try to turn up the corners of his mouth in a friendly smile.
The woman: "..." Why does this young man look so fierce?
Yu Xuanxuan noticed and immediately said, "My brother only looks hard to get along with. He's actually really nice. He helps grandmas cross the road! Once he found five yuan and ran to hand it over to a police officer, but he ended up missing an exam."
The two women looked at Yu Ruicheng with complicated expressions, both visibly surprised. They hadn't expected him to do something like that.
Yu Xuanxuan continued spilling his brother's secrets. "My brother is really good at home too. He helps Mom cook and Dad fix the furniture, and he takes care of me. He's the one who coaxes me to sleep every night! He's the best son and big brother in the world!"
Both women felt that appearances could be deceiving. They looked at Yu Ruicheng in amazement, their faces blooming with smiles that turned kindly, as though they were looking at an outstanding child from the neighborhood.
Yu Ruicheng, who had been scrutinized from head to toe: "..."
Chatting with people made Yu Xuanxuan happy, and he grew more and more talkative. "My brother is super good at singing. As his little brother, I'm really talented too! Brother praises me all the time!"
The two women were completely charmed by Yu Xuanxuan and eagerly played along.
"Of course! Anyone can tell just by looking at you that you sing beautifully!"
"Has your brother taught you to sing?"
"He has." Yu Xuanxuan said, "I just learned his signature song. I'll do an impression for you."
The two women immediately cleared a space and applauded to show their anticipation.
Yu Xuanxuan spread his short little legs, bending the front one slightly and bracing the back one straight against the ground. He clenched one hand as if holding a microphone and quickly brought it to his mouth. He raised the other high, then slowly lowered it, sweeping the stray hairs on his forehead back.
Yu Xuanxuan's face was fair, soft, and very cute, but now he deliberately sucked in his cheeks and gazed upward at an angle.
After shaking his front leg, he suddenly tossed his head and began to sing, "Dun dun dun dun dun dun, wild rose, you're a wild rose with thorns~~~"
Most songs children sang were cute children's songs. They had never seen such a swaggering style before.
The two women were stunned. After freezing for a few seconds, they began to applaud.
"Little one, your impression was so accurate!"
"Lovely! That sounded wonderful."
Hearing the word "impression," Yu Ruicheng nearly suffocated.
He had been fairly young when he debuted, right in the middle of adolescence. One moment he was brooding over the changing seasons, and the next he was so full of himself he thought he was number one in the universe. It was only natural that he had tried too hard on his first song, and both his styling and lyrics had been particularly non-mainstream.
Although Yu Ruicheng had never said so outright, he had always avoided the songs he wrote when he first debuted. His fans knew this too and privately called them Yu Ruicheng's dark history.
Yu Ruicheng always wore a cold expression, and no one dared get on his bad side. He hadn't performed this song in three whole years, and he had almost forgotten how embarrassing it had been back then.
But Yu Xuanxuan had done an impression of that part in front of the livestream audience, trying even harder than he had. It was so greasy it could practically drown someone.
Yu Ruicheng: "..."
You really are my own little brother!
After his performance, Yu Xuanxuan asked the two women for their opinion. "Did I sing well?"
"It was lovely! Not only do you have a good voice, but your performance was wonderful too!"
"That's right! Your brother is a star, and you can definitely become one in the future too!"
Yu Xuanxuan's face turned bright red from their praise. He reached up to touch his head and giggled.
He had no trouble chatting with the two women and didn't want to leave. If they hadn't suddenly had something to do, they probably could have chatted until the end of time.
After seeing the women off, Yu Xuanxuan helped his brother finish the task and successfully asked for the hoe. Only then did they return to Su Huaiming and the others.
Yu Ruicheng's mind was full of the embarrassing moment from earlier, and he was completely out of sorts. He huddled in a corner with a cold expression, giving off an air that warned strangers to keep away.
He would probably need a day alone to recover.
Everyone had work to do, so no one went over to talk to him. But after they returned to the wooden house, Ning Lei wanted more to talk about and also wanted to show off his considerate, little-sunshine persona, so he worked up the courage to speak to Yu Ruicheng.
"I really like you. I've listened to every song you've released since your debut." Ning Lei spoke enthusiastically, a look of admiration on his face. "My favorite is the one you sang when you first debuted. I can feel your attitude and your passion for music in it. I set it as my ringtone, so whenever someone calls me, I get to hear it, and it helps me seize every opportunity!"
Yu Ruicheng: "..." H-help!
Ning Lei felt that a singer's first song held special significance and had wanted to move Yu Ruicheng, but he hadn't expected to accidentally hit a sore spot.
Yu Ruicheng wanted to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it. He wanted to be alone and recharge. After hurriedly saying thanks, he immediately stood up and headed inside.
But as soon as he pushed the door open, he saw the four children playing with blocks on the floor. When Yu Xuanxuan saw his brother, he happily waved at him. "Brother, do you want to play with us?"
Yu Ruicheng: "..."
He shut the door in a panic and went to the kitchen instead, only to find Ji Mingzhe cooking inside. Hearing the noise, Ji Mingzhe looked at him in puzzlement.
Yu Ruicheng fled blindly, hurriedly retreating from the kitchen and walking into the living room. There he saw Ning Lei still sitting in the same spot, smiling at him with great enthusiasm.
!!!!!!