When it came to accommodation, Chen Liqing had at least acted like a decent human being and hadn't made them build it themselves. Six bamboo houses stood in a clearing, with their names hanging on the doors.
"These will be your houses for the next two weeks. Are you happy with them?" Chen Liqing turned and asked with a smile.
His words were met with silence, followed by scattered applause and listless replies.
The corner of Chen Liqing's mouth twitched. Pretending not to notice their reaction, he continued, "Lunch will be prepared for you shortly. Please treasure this last meal."
"Oh~"
With that, he turned and left. Gu Wancheng and the others found their respective bamboo houses, took their belongings inside, and unpacked.
"Daddy, are we going to go hungry?"
Chaochao asked hesitantly.
Gu Wancheng ruffled his hair a couple of times and said firmly, "Don't worry. Daddy won't let you go hungry."
Then, as though something had occurred to him, he turned toward the camera. The corners of his lips lifted slightly as he said, "Trust me."
He was already good-looking, and the confidence in his eyes made him look dazzling.
[Is Chengcheng talking to us?]
[I don't think so.]
[Then...]
[Does this count as being fed dog food?]
[How could it not?]
[I don't care. Chengcheng is talking to us. He's so sweet. He's worried we'll worry, so he's telling us to trust him.]
[You... all right.]
At Qiming Group, on the top floor of the tallest building in Sheng'an City, Bo Yizhou sat in his office with a livestream playing on his computer for once. If anyone found out, their eyes would pop out.
He watched Gu Wancheng's livestream with a frown. He knew those words from Gu Wancheng had been meant for him.
He thought of that waist he could span with one hand. What if Gu Wancheng came back even thinner after this trip? Before Gu Wancheng had said those words, he had indeed been planning something.
But... looking at the confidence in Gu Wancheng's eyes on the screen, he let it go. He would watch a little longer.
"Xiaolin, we'll have to fend for ourselves from now on. Are you scared?"
Xiaolin shook his head. "No. When Grandpa took me camping before, we found our own food too. Daddy, don't be scared."
"Then Daddy will be counting on you, Xiaolin."
"Mm-hmm." Xiaolin nodded hard. Daddy was counting on him. He would do his best to help Daddy.
[Xiaolin really is an angel baby. Hand-over-mouth.jpg]
[If Xiaolin were my child...]
[Are you dreaming, person above?]
He helped his dad unpack what they had brought, neatly putting away the odds and ends one by one. Rewarded with an approving pat, his eyes shone like stars.
Inside Xu Xiashi's bamboo house, mother and daughter changed clothes and unpacked, then sat on the bed staring at each other. Eventually, Xu Xiashi sighed and spread her hands. "Sweetheart, Mommy is useless. We're going to go hungry."
Mi Tu blinked and said in her little baby voice, "I can help the other uncles and big brothers work. Then they'll give us food. I can support Mommy."
[Oh my God, even a child knows you can't get something for nothing, yet some people don't understand that.]
[Mi Tu is amazing. She's been raised so well.]
Xu Xiashi looked ready to cry, her face full of emotion. "How could Mommy let her sweetheart go work? Don't worry. Mommy will take good care of you."
Mi Tu looked at her suddenly excited mother in bewilderment and nodded.
"Okay. I believe you, Mommy."
"Sweetheart, Mommy loves you so much!" Xu Xiashi gently cupped Mi Tu's face and planted two firm kisses on it.
Unlike their heartwarming moments, once Jian Yue and his brother finished unpacking, they looked at each other and found only disappointment.
Zuozuo pouted and earnestly lectured his older brother. "You can't be like this. You're an adult. You need to think of something. What if I get so hungry I lose weight?"
With that, he pinched the soft flesh on his belly and heaved a sigh.
Jian Yue laughed in exasperation, caught him, and kneaded his cheeks. "You little brat, what do you need all that fat for? I can't cook. Besides, would you eat it if I did?"
Zuozuo, who had been desperately struggling free of his brother's hands, froze. Remembering the dishes his brother had made before, his face contorted, and the future seemed utterly bleak.
"Then what do we do?"
Jian Yue thought for a moment, then said hesitantly, "How about you go beg?"
Zuozuo's eyes widened as he looked at the person who had just uttered those earth-shattering words, bewildered and at a loss.
"You... you're actually telling me to go beg."
[Little beggar Zuozuo, appearing for a limited time.]
[I can't. How could Brother Jian make Zuozuo go beg?]
[Exactly. Brother Jian should go beg instead.]
[So whose house are they planning to beg at?]
[...Wait, what? Does it have to be begging?]
[You all want to see them beg that badly? Are you anti-fans?]
[No, we're Brother Jian's true fans.]
[Yes, exactly.]
The viewer who had raised the question: Is this what true fans are like? I don't understand, but I respect it.
Jian Yue said regretfully, "I can't go. You have an advantage. You can go."
"I'm not going," Zuozuo said huffily.
"Then we're in trouble. We'll go hungry."
At the mention of going hungry, Zuozuo wavered again. "Then if I go beg, what are you going to do?"
[Wait, sweetheart, you're seriously planning to go?]
Jian Yue looked inscrutable. "Me? I'll go scavenging."
Zuozuo nodded with only a vague understanding and asked, "What's scavenging?"
"It's complicated to explain. You wouldn't understand even if I told you more."
"Tell me, tell me."
Jian Yue sighed, looking helpless. "Then to sum it up, I'll go pick through trash."
Huh?
Seeing the amusement in his brother's eyes, Zuozuo realized he had been tricked again. He wanted nothing more than to pounce on and bite this brother who was always teasing him whenever he had nothing better to do.
[Poor Zuozuo got fooled by his brother again. Sideways-grin.jpg]
[Three seconds of silence for Zuozuo.]
[Come on, Zuozuo. Get some sense.]
[Some snacks? What snacks?]
[Nothing. Go play.]
Having just shown such confidence, Gu Wancheng began thinking about what to eat that evening. Perhaps he should take a look around the woods first. It would be great if he could find the seasonings the production team had hidden. The seasonings he had brought had been confiscated.
After thinking for ages without coming to a conclusion, he looked at Chaochao, who was amusing himself nearby. "Chaochao, what should we eat tonight?"
"Huh?" Are you asking me?
The bewilderment in Chaochao's eyes gave him his answer. Never mind. They would eat whatever they found.
"All right, carry on playing."
Before Chaochao could work out what was happening, he was told to carry on playing. Holding the stone in his hand, he hesitated for a few seconds, abandoned his thoughts, and continued his little game.
"Xiaoxiao, do you need my help?" Jiang Yu smiled gently as he watched Xiaoxiao sort through his belongings.
[Our Xiao Yu is so kind.]
[He hasn't even finished unpacking his own things, and he's already thinking about helping someone else.]
[Xiao Yu is amazing. Blushing.jpg]
[I wonder who'll be lucky enough to end up with Xiao Yu.]
[No way. Xiao Yu shines alone!]
Xiaoxiao glanced at him and declined. "No, I can do it myself."
[What's with him? Xiao Yu wanted to help him. Who's he giving that cold look to?]
[Wait, are you people sick in the head?]
"Okay. Well done, Xiaoxiao. You can organize things yourself." Hearing the refusal, Jiang Yu relaxed. He had only been saying it anyway and had been eager for him to refuse.
"Time to eat!"