Hearing Gao Shang’s unreasonable words, Mu Zhijun’s eyes widened.
”You…you’re being unreasonable! I’m ignoring you!” Mu Zhijun glared at Gao Shang, then clutched the photo of the house and ran back to the finish line, her expression serious with displeasure.
Shang Jingshu nudged Mu Zhijun’s arm and said sweetly, “Sister Junjun, he’s talking nonsense. You’re the best! Why should we let him have it!”
Shang Jingqi nodded: “Sister Junjun runs so fast! You’re number one!”
Meng Xiang, who had also reached the finish line, was still struggling to choose which house to buy. Hearing their conversation, he also said shyly and hesitantly, “Sister Junjun is the best…”
When her younger siblings called her “sister” and praised her for being amazing, Mu Zhijun stopped being angry and smiled happily, revealing her dimples.
Yao Shuyue, who had been lagging behind, finally caught up, panting and tilting her head: “Gao Shang… sitting on the ground crying, shame on him, and bullying his sister. His parents are right, he’s not a good kid!”
Because no one paid attention, his wailing was mostly empty rhetoric, but when he heard them say that, he cried even louder and more genuinely.
”You…you…you bullied me…I want to go home…I don’t want to stay here anymore! I want to go home! I’m going to get my grandparents to beat you up! You’re all bad kids, boohoo…” Gao Shang cried harder and harder.
Not far away, Gao Feng and Shang Bishu looked at their son’s condition and sighed awkwardly to the other parents, “This child is really spoiled by his grandparents. It’s also our fault for not being home often, and when we are home, we can’t bring ourselves to discipline him. We’re really sorry for making everyone laugh. Teacher Mu, Teacher Fang, please don’t mind him. Gao Shang wasn’t targeting your Junjun. He’s just too heartbroken after losing the competition…”
Instead of standing there dumbly and taking the scolding, Mu Zhijun, the daughter, had other children who spoke up for her. So, although Mu Xi and Fang Yuejun were a little angry, they weren’t too upset.
Their upbringing made it difficult for them to argue with a six-year-old child, so rather than being angry at their high-mindedness and unreasonableness, they were more speechless at the way these parents behaved.
Mu Xi and Fang Yueyun’s expressions remained gentle. Fang Yueyun replied, “Our Junjun is fine. You should go and check on Gao Shang. The child fell down, and we don’t know if he’s hurt. Besides, it’s not good for him to keep crying.”
Gao Feng and Shang Bishu then ran towards Gao Shang.
Upon reaching Gao Shang, the couple quickly checked their son’s condition. Then, Gao Feng slapped Gao Shang on the back of the head and scolded, “You’re not hurt, so why are you crying! All you do is cry! Weren’t you so arrogant just now? Get up and apologize to Jun Jun!”
His parents ignored him earlier, but now that they’ve come over, they’re scolding him, which makes Gao Shang cry even harder.
“You’re bad! You’re all bad people! I want to go home! Waaah! Grandpa! Grandma… I want to go home…” Gao Shang cried until his face was red, and he got up from the ground, shoving his parents who were squatting in front of him.
Although the six-year-old boy wasn’t very strong, Gao Feng and Shang Bishu were caught off guard and were pushed backward, falling to the ground.
But Gao Shang had already run away like a whirlwind.
He ran towards the car that had brought them here, as if he thought that this would allow him to get a ride home.
Unfortunately, Gao Shang ran in the direction that Xuan Zhixia and Shang Shuji were standing on.
As Gao Feng and Shang Bishu stood up, they shouted at the top of their lungs, “President Shang! Help! Catch him!”
Shang Shuji did not respond to them.
Xuan Zhixia surveyed the scene with his eyes, then decisively pulled his suitcase aside to avoid being bumped into by Gao Shang, who was rushing forward headlong without a care in the world.
Given Gao Shang’s physique and posture, Xuan Zhixia knew that not only could he not stop him, but he was also very likely to be knocked to the ground. Others might think that he, an adult, was trying to scam him.
As soon as Xuan Zhixia stepped aside, Gao Shang rushed between him and Shang Shuji. Originally, Xuan Zhixia and Shang Shuji were standing about a meter apart, but after Xuan Zhixia moved aside, there was even more space between them. Originally, Gao Shang would have at least bumped into either Xuan Zhixia or Shang Shuji, but now he didn’t touch either of them.
No one stopped him. Shang Shuji, who had just been “asked for help” by Gao Feng and Shang Bishu, did not stop Gao Shang.
The car that Gao Shang and the others had arrived in happened to be nearby. He ran to the car, wailing, and tried to open the door, but it was locked and he couldn’t pull it open. So he continued to wail and bang on the door: “I want to go home… I don’t want to play with you guys anymore!”
Gao Feng and Shang Bishu could only rush over and pull Gao Shang back with a combination of dragging and pulling.
This made Gao Shang feel even more miserable and pitiful. He continued to cry and desperately lay down on the ground. Even the two adults, Gao Feng and Shang Bishu, couldn’t overpower him. In the struggle, Gao Shang’s clothes and pants got on the ground and he became somewhat covered in dirt.
With so many people watching and so many cameras broadcasting live, there was no way to actually beat him up. Gao Feng and Shang Bishu had to switch to a gentler approach, apologizing to Gao Shang that they were wrong, promising to buy him toys and snacks after filming the show, and taking him out to play, etc.
It took five minutes to finally coax Gao Shang into standing up and returning to the crowd.
At this moment, the children who had just participated in the running race had all returned to their parents with photos of the house, craning their necks to look at Gao Shang and his family of three.
Shang Bishu gently coaxed Gao Shang, “The other younger siblings all have photos of their houses. Why don’t you go and get one for Mom and Dad too, okay?”
Gao Shang snorted and then walked back to the whiteboard where the photos were posted.
Shang Bishu then gave the others a wry smile: “Please excuse me, boys this age are indeed a bit difficult to deal with, I’ve taken up everyone’s time.”
Gao Feng and Shang Bishu were both a little dissatisfied. They felt that the other four families on the show were excluding them. There was no one enthusiastic about them, and when something happened, they just watched and at most showed a concerned expression.
Shang Shuji and Xuan Zhixia didn’t even bother with a superficial show of concern. Gao Feng and Shang Bishu felt frustrated when they thought about how they had clearly called for Shang Shuji to help stop the child, but Shang Shuji hadn’t moved at all and acted as if no one else was there.
But to criticize Shang Shuji? Neither of them would dare.
So they turned their disgruntled gaze toward Xuan Zhixia—on the way here, the couple had watched Xuan Zhixia’s family of four live stream and felt that Xuan Zhixia was not liked by Shang Shuji at all.
So when he started using a questioning tone, Gao Feng didn’t hold back at all, and even added a touch of sarcasm: “Teacher Xuan, I know that my son Gao Shang is a bit immature, and it’s normal that you don’t like him. But he’s just a child after all, and we’ve only known each other for less than an hour today. There’s no need to be so cold-hearted, is there?”
”That situation just now was so troublesome and dangerous if the child had run away… I’m not asking you to lend a hand, but you deliberately avoided him, isn’t that a bit much?”
Xuan Zhixia raised an eyebrow slightly.
Because of his frail health and frequent illnesses, Xuan Zhixia, who was experienced in health preservation, rarely got angry. But when someone questioned him with a glare, he didn’t seem angry at all; he just thought he had witnessed a strange sight.
”If I don’t move aside, and he crashes into us, will we both fall to the ground? Do you really think the key issue just now was whether anyone stopped him?” Xuan Zhixia frowned slightly, as if asking how there could be such an unreasonable person.
However, Xuan Zhixia’s tone was not intense, and his reply did not seem sharp enough, which made Shang Jingshu and Shang Jingqi, who were already unhappy, very anxious.
The two children felt that although they didn’t like Xuan Zhixia, he had come out with them, and it wouldn’t be right for others to bully him. Besides… how could Xuan Zhixia, this adult, be so stupid! How could he speak so nicely to a bad person! Even Sister Junjun has a dark face when she’s angry!
Although Xuan Zhixia is also a bad person, he is not a qualified bad person!
As soon as Xuan Zhixia finished speaking, Shang Jingshu retorted unhappily to Gao Feng and Shang Bishu, “Uncle and Aunt, did Gao Feng learn to be unreasonable from you?”
Shang Bishu and Gao Feng’s expressions froze.
Shang Jingqi continued, “You two are the truly noble parents. You’re even healthier than Xuan Zhixia, but neither of you kept a close eye on Gao Shang just now, and you both fell over after being pushed by him…”
“But when it comes to running, Gao Shang was crying while running, so he definitely wasn’t as fast as you guys. But you preferred to spend time yelling at my dad instead of chasing after Gao Shang right away. You only started chasing after him after he had passed my dad and Xuan Zhixia. We all saw that!”
Shang Jingshu said firmly, “Besides, it was you who drove Gao Shang away. You yourselves didn’t do a good job, so why blame Xuan Zhixia… Ah, Uncle Xuan.”
Gao Feng and Shang Bishu were even more embarrassed. They felt genuinely dissatisfied with Shang Jingqi and Shang Jingshu. They wondered if the two children were sick. Didn’t they dislike Xuan Zhixia? Now they were speaking up for him and even calling him by his first name. What were they thinking, sticking up for Xuan Zhixia?
But these two children are Shang Shuji’s children. Even if they are adopted, Shang Shuji acknowledges them. Moreover, they are clearly Shang Shuji’s only two children… Gao Feng and Shang Bishu would never directly confront them.
Just then, Gao Shang returned with the last photo of the house, giving Gao Feng and Shang Bishu a topic to change their situation.
Shang Bishu said in a conciliatory tone, “Oh dear, I’m so sorry, Gao Feng was just anxious and that’s why he was talking incoherently. Zhixia, please don’t take it to heart. It’s perfect timing, our Gao Shang is back too. Shouldn’t we all move on to the next phase now?”
Although I felt the attitude wasn’t good enough, I did hear an apology after all.
Shang Jingqi and Shang Jingshu looked up at Xuan Zhixia without saying a word, but with a proud little expression that said, “Hurry up and praise me and thank me.”
Xuan Zhixia chuckled and said first, “Thank you for speaking up for me, that’s very helpful.”
Then he asked, “But why are you helping me?”
The two children stared wide-eyed.
Shang Jingqi hurriedly said, “It’s not to help you!”
Shang Jingshu nodded emphatically: “You’re too stupid. If we don’t help you, you’ll be bullied by even worse people, which will make us lose face!”
Shang Jingqi: “You can’t even be a bad person properly, yet you want to live in a big house. You’re such a hassle.”
Shang Jingshu handed the photos of the house to Xuan Zhixia, putting on a nonchalant air, and said, “But it’s not difficult, here you go.”
After saying that, the two children moved closer to Shang Shuji, who was not speaking, as if to prove with their actions that they still hated Xuan Zhixia.
However, the two children couldn’t help but whisper and discuss it.
”I think, compared to Gao Shang’s parents, Xuan Zhixia isn’t so bad…”
”But he’s so stupid, he doesn’t talk back when he’s insulted. Are we supposed to protect him?”
”No! We hate him!”
”Okay, then next time he gets bullied, we won’t interfere!”
”Hmm… let’s talk about it next time!”
”good!”
Shang Jingqi and Shang Jingshu thought they were talking about a “little secret” that only they could hear, underestimating the hearing of Shang Shuji and Xuan Zhixia who were right next to them, as well as the cameraman who was specifically filming their family and his camera sensitivity.
Shang Shuji remained aloof and taciturn, offering no comment.
Xuan Zhixia glanced down at the two children for a few seconds, then continued to look lazy.
The viewers in the live stream listened to these conversations and discussed them with great interest.
[When he’s quick-witted, he’s quick-witted; when he’s slow-witted, he’s slow-witted. Hahahaha]
[Is this what they mean by “We can hate him, but others can’t bully him”?]
[Tsk tsk, subconscious reactions don’t lie; they probably always call Xuan Zhixia by his given name.]
[Children calling adults by their first names can be either very affectionate or very distant; viewers in the live stream, please choose one!]
[This is clearly an oversight.]
[Am I the only one who thinks it’s cute that the two kids, while firmly saying they hate Xuan Zhixia, still won the big house Xuan Zhixia wanted, and even stood up for him when Gao Feng and the others blamed him? They’re all just saying one thing but doing another!]
[But in their own perception, they probably genuinely feel that they really dislike Xuan Zhixia, right?]
[Hmm, I don’t know what Xuan Zhixia thinks, but if it were me, I’d probably feel pretty bad. No matter what, his stepson and stepdaughter publicly said they disliked him, that he was troublesome and shameful…]
[Anyway, I really hate Gao Feng and his family of three. The brat and his parents are a whole family of brats. When they’re angry, they pick on the weak. They don’t dare to question Shang Shuji, whom they specifically asked for help. They thought no one liked Xuan Zhixia, but they didn’t expect Xuan Zhixia to talk back. He was calm but his words hit the nail on the head. Qiqi and Shushu felt it wasn’t enough and chimed in.]
[Speaking of which… I’m just curious, I don’t mean to question you, but… isn’t President Shang being a bit too cold?]
[This must be the legendary ruthless, independent, and domineering CEO who doesn’t care about outside opinions~]
The accommodations for the five families in Liangshan Village for the next week were arranged in this way.
The first thatched hut was where six-year-old Mu Zhijun lived with her Yue Opera artist parents.
The second wooden house is home to four-year-old Yao Shuyue and her award-winning mother, Yao Qingqian.
Stone House No. 3 is where the noble family of three last went to retrieve their photos.
House number four is where five-year-old Mengxiang lives with his two temporary fathers.
The brick house at number five, which was slightly better than number four, was where Xuan Zhixia and his three companions lived.
”Children and parents, please take the photos of the houses and walk along this road to find your respective houses to stay in,” the program director said. “Also, each family will need to find their own way to provide three meals a day during their stay in Liangshan Village. The program team has hidden ten red envelopes in each house, and each red envelope contains the living expenses for the next week.”
”Don’t worry about not having anywhere to buy things here. There’s a small shop in the village, but it doesn’t have any signs or directions, so it might be a little hard to find. You’ll have to ask for directions yourself.”
”Regarding buying groceries, the production team has already communicated with the village chief, and the village chief has also communicated with the villagers. You can take your money and find any house with people to buy groceries from. If they are willing to sell, they might even pick the vegetables for you to pick right away, they’ll be very fresh. We hope that all the children and parents can get along harmoniously with the villagers.”
The director’s words didn’t end there; he then assigned tasks.
Next, the guests need to find a house to check in and put their luggage away. Then, the children are responsible for finding the red envelopes containing living expenses hidden in the house, while the parents are responsible for going out to shop. After shopping, they go home to cook lunch.
It’s almost 11 o’clock now, not long before lunchtime.
After each family has finished lunch, they can take their own afternoon nap. At 3 p.m., all families will gather together to continue other activities.
With these tasks assigned, the guests were finally able to set off again.
Xuan Zhixia raised his head slightly, glanced at the already dazzling sun, then lowered his head, silently pulled his suitcase, and followed the brother and sister Shang Jingqi and Shang Jingshu who were urging him on.
”I’m a little sleepy,” Xuan Zhixia thought helplessly.