Even the Heavenly King Himself Couldn't Help!

How popular was Xiao Cui Talks back then?

Just ask your grandparents!

Its sharp, sensitive topics had always been beloved by the public, and host Xiao Cui had even become the embodiment of justice in countless ordinary people's hearts.

So the moment Xie Chen opened his mouth and announced that the topic was "Who Will Protect the Rights and Interests of Left-Behind Villagers?"

The elderly villagers and the village chief immediately related to it, gazing tearfully at the "host." They had long hoped someone would speak up for them and air their grievances.

"Since reform and opening up, urbanization has progressed rapidly. Large numbers of young and middle-aged rural residents have gone to the cities for work, leaving elderly empty-nesters behind in the countryside. They generally lack happiness, feel lonely and helpless, and their health has steadily deteriorated, making their physical condition deeply worrying..."

"The issue of elderly rural empty-nesters has become a social problem that cannot be ignored, one serious enough to require help from all of society. Yet even so, there are still people bullying others in the countryside?!"

Using the large ladle in his hand as a microphone, Xie Chen strode over to the village chief and solemnly held it out to him, then signaled the cameraman with his eyes to get a close-up.

Though the scene had originally been rather ridiculous, the village chief could not laugh at all. He barely held himself together, but a few seconds later, tears streamed down his aged face. "Kid, speaking of this, the old folks in our village can barely survive anymore!"

"Please tell us the details." Xie Chen nodded, as though encouraging the village chief.

The village chief immediately wiped away his tears and turned his aged, honest face toward the camera. "The economy ain't doing well. The children who go to the city to work can't earn much either. They still have to raise their own kids, pay social security, and cover rent, lodging, transportation, and all sorts of other expenses."

He paused and sighed. "As the village chief of Bright Village, and as a father myself, I can't hold them back and let city people call us bloodsuckers. So I mobilized everyone to start green farming, hoping to earn a little more and ease the children's burden, but..."

"But the upstream village has seized the water source. For every batch of seeds we sell, we have to give them half the profits before they'll agree to release the water."

"We can barely make a living ourselves!"

The village chief spoke simply and sincerely, choking up several times and moving the livestream viewers to tears.

[This old man is far too kind. He's completely different from the rural people I've seen in TV dramas. They work to support themselves and don't burden their children, so why should they still be bullied?!]

[Are those the thugs Xie Chen was confronting just now? Has the village cracked down on organized crime?! Was the government's work thorough enough? Did anyone neglect their duties or abuse their power?! Shouldn't this be investigated strictly?!]

[This isn't the evil old society—the Qing Dynasty has been dead for ages! Take up the weapon of the law and defend your rights! I'm a lawyer and can provide free legal aid. If you need help, make sure to contact me!]

"Look at them—such hardworking, honest villagers, yet they have to suffer like this!"

Seeing that the atmosphere had been built up sufficiently, Xie Chen took back the "microphone" and turned to another teary-eyed villager. "Ma'am, has Biaozi from the neighboring village ever bullied you?"

The old woman clutched her chest emotionally. "Of course he has! He made me so angry that I had a heart attack that time. I didn't even dare tell my son in the city!"

Xie Chen abruptly stood and faced the camera. "Time is limited, so the program must come to a temporary end. We will continue following up on Bright Village's situation with criminal and evil forces."

"This is Xiao Xie Talks. Dear viewers, see you next episode."

The chicken in the pot should have been about ready.

That's enough for today.

With that thought, Xie Chen packed up his things and left.

Director Li, standing before the monitor, was speechless. Did that count as a talent performance?

If it did, Xie Chen had seemingly only moved his lips.

If it didn't, the villagers were crying their eyes out.

Fuck, ever since Xie Chen joined the show, he could no longer tell what the rules were!

Thinking this, Director Li subconsciously turned toward Huo Wenye. "Wenye, what do you think..."

Before he could finish, Huo Wenye gave a slight nod and said sparingly, "Very good."

Director Li was speechless. Damn it, was Xie Chen your relative or something?

By the stove, the village chief watched Xie Chen skillfully stir the pot with the large ladle and asked suspiciously, "Kid, are you sure that program just now will work?"

"When I step in, you can rest easy." Xie Chen licked his lips and patted his chest.

Looking at the remarkably handsome young man before him, the village chief inexplicably felt an overwhelming sense of trust, as though there was nothing Xie Chen could not do.

If he could truly solve the water problem, that would be wonderful.

He would work like an ox or a horse to repay this kindness.

Tonight's attempt had gone badly, and Biaozi felt thoroughly stifled. When he returned, he drank with several close friends.

Sitting on the edge of the heated brick bed, he tossed a peanut into his mouth, downed over half a cup of baijiu, and slammed the table. "Damn it, you think filming some variety show makes you something special?! You're starting to rebel against heaven?!"

"I want to see how Bright Village is supposed to farm once their water source is cut off!"

The brother beside him was drunk too. He had wanted to echo a few words, but suddenly remembered Xie Chen's fierce appearance and said cautiously, "Brother Biaozi, how about we wait until that group leaves before we..."

Before he could finish, Biaozi smacked him on the head. "You coward! What the hell are you afraid of?! If we don't teach them a lesson, Bright Village will be climbing all over us!"

"Tomorrow, we cut off their water!"

Meanwhile, several topics on Weibo's trending searches were steadily climbing, and many official accounts were reposting them.

#EvilForcesInBrightVillage#

#WhoWillDealWithTheWaterSourceProblem#

#HowCanLeftBehindElderlySurviveIfYouCutOffTheirLivelihood#

Having traveled through so many entertainment industry worlds, Xie Chen naturally knew how to let public opinion ferment and hand the matter over to the public for judgment.

Once the buzz rose to a certain level,

Even the Heavenly King himself could not save them!