Shang Shuji and Xuan Zhixia went into the kitchen to cook together, while the live stream viewers continued to comment on their conversation in the main room.
[Tsk, Mr. Shang wouldn’t be serious, would he? Xuan Zhixia is retiring from the entertainment industry?]
[It’s not surprising that he’s leaving the entertainment industry. Xuan Zhixia’s career wasn’t going well before, and even if it does improve in the future, what good is being a celebrity if it can’t compare to marrying into a rich family?]
[Why work hard when you can just grab money?]
[Although there’s no affection between them, Shang Shuji is clearly quite tolerant of Xuan Zhixia. Besides, they’ve only been married a short time; who knows what will happen in the future?]
[Even if they get divorced in the future, the Shangs probably won’t treat Xuan Zhixia unfairly. Even if Xuan Zhixia really leaves with nothing, with his looks, his marital experience, and his background in the entertainment industry, as long as he’s willing to sacrifice his temporary pride, he won’t lack a future…]
[Waaaaah, my love, don’t leave me! If you retire from the entertainment industry, where will I see you?!]
[If you really think that getting married and having a wealthy husband means you can retire comfortably, that’s incredibly foolish. But as someone mentioned earlier, even if Xuan Zhixia did that, he would still have a way out later, unlike ordinary people. Ordinary people should never make that mistake.]
[Speechless. Xuan Zhixia, a celebrity who becomes smug and has warped values after marrying into a wealthy family, deserves to retire from the entertainment industry to clean up the atmosphere!]
[Um…when did Xuan Zhixia ever say something like “I need to retire because I have a husband”? Can you please stop making things up and then launching into a serious critique of Xuan Zhixia?]
[That’s right, it’s obvious even President Shang isn’t sure, he’s just asking.]
[Even if he really retires from the entertainment industry, it doesn’t mean he’ll stop working. There’s more to the world than just the entertainment industry. My wife just doesn’t want to stay here anymore, is that so wrong? … Let’s discuss it, but since it’s speculation, don’t spread it like it’s fact.]
[I understand why President Shang was curious; Xuan Zhixia is just lying around doing nothing so carefree! I love his attitude, sob sob]
[I don’t know why, but I know very little about Xuan Zhixia. This is the first time I’ve seen him in a live stream, but he gives me the feeling that nothing can stump him!]
[Yes! Finally, someone shares my feelings! It sounds exaggerated, but Xuan Zhixia really makes me feel that he’s just physically weak, but mentally incredibly strong!]
[After all, not everyone has the courage to go against CEO Shang…]
[Although President Shang is a man of few words, he treats the two children with equality and respect. However, Qiqi and Shushu seem less relaxed around him than they are around Xuan Zhixia, whom they claim to dislike. Children are very perceptive, and this is enough to show the imposing presence President Shang exudes. Yet, Xuan Zhixia remains quite carefree in his presence… It really makes me think he has a strong mental fortitude!]
[This is hilarious! Mr. Shang clearly can’t cook at all!]
The functional areas of this house are not clearly defined. Perhaps because hot water has to be boiled in the kitchen, a washstand is placed in the kitchen, near the bathroom door, for convenience.
Xuan Zhixia had been sitting in the main room for a while, so he decided to stand for a bit, but standing upright felt uncomfortable. So after entering the kitchen, he surveyed his field of vision and finally chose to stand next to the washstand, leaning back slightly, and lazily gave Shang Shuji his “instructions”.
Shang Shuji, who had never been in a kitchen before, had already completed the tasks of rinsing rice and cooking it in a rice cooker under Xuan Zhixia’s verbal guidance.
Shang Shuji is now holding a kitchen knife, preparing to cut carrots.
Xuan Zhixia looked helplessly at the cutting board in front of Shang Shuji and said softly, “Mr. Shang, you should wash the carrots before cutting them. Putting carrots with mud still on them directly on the cutting board… makes it difficult for us to cooperate on this meal.”
Shang Shuji looked down at the carrot, remained silent for three seconds, then looked up at Xuan Zhixia: “Cut it first and then wash it, is there a problem?”
Xuan Zhixia stared at him with a half-smile.
Shang Shuji considered his own words and realized they sounded a bit stubborn, so he gave Xuan Zhixia a faint smile and said, “Just a reminder, don’t provoke someone when they’re holding a kitchen knife.”
Xuan Zhixia tilted his head: “Because the other party loses their temper when they’re angry and embarrassed? That’s a bit pathetic.”
Shang Shuji: “…”
In the kitchen, Xuan Zhixia and Shang Shuji were barely managing to cook together.
Outside the kitchen, the two children, Shang Jingqi and Shang Jingshu, squatted on the threshold of the main room, still brooding over the matter.
”Didn’t Xuan Zhixia just say that we shouldn’t look for him if we’re hungry?” Shang Jingqi asked.
“And father didn’t scold him… but he’s still cooking now,” Shang Jingshu said.
Shang Jingqi: “But he only moves his mouth, he doesn’t have to lift a finger.”
Shang Jingshu: “Hmph, he doesn’t care if we eat or not, but we don’t need him to care! We’re not Cinderella!”
”That’s right! Even if Dad isn’t home, we still have Grandpa and Grandma. And if Grandpa and Grandma aren’t home, we still have Grandma Chen and the others!”
”We’re not afraid that Xuan Zhixia won’t feed us! And our father won’t die young like Cinderella’s father!”
”Ah…but…before Cinderella’s father died, Cinderella didn’t have a good life under her stepmother either…”
”But, but we’re not Cinderella! You’ve forgotten again!”
The two children looked dejected.
Shang Jingshu suddenly said, “That’s not right. Xuan Zhixia is a bad person, and we’re not on his side. He doesn’t care whether we’re hungry or not, so shouldn’t we feel something’s wrong?”
The last sentence was a bit convoluted, and Shang Jingqi was slow to react for about ten seconds before he suddenly realized, “Yes!”
Then, Shang Jingqi thought for a moment and asked in a low voice, “You said that Xuan Zhixia… we are not Cinderella, so is Xuan Zhixia not Cinderella’s stepmother either?”
Shang Jingshu rested her chin on her hand, looking very worried: “This… let me think… Xuan Zhixia wasn’t particularly nice to us, but he didn’t bully us either… We called him a bad guy and even put salt in his medicine… He found out about us putting salt in his medicine, and that’s why he stopped sending us to school, right?”
Shang Jingqi sat down on the threshold, and the more he listened to Shang Jingshu’s words, the more his face scrunched up.
”I…we…in this case, aren’t we…are we the bad kids?” Shang Jingqi’s mind was on the verge of collapse.
Once the self-reflection reaches this point, things get out of control.
Shang Jingshu changed from squatting to sitting, hugging her knees and saying weakly, “It seems…yes…so Xuan Zhixia isn’t nice to bad kids…”
“But when we talk to him, he talks to us too… He said himself that he’s never been angry with us…” At this point, Shang Jingqi came to a shocking conclusion, “Is Xuan Zhixia… a really good person?”
”But Dad doesn’t like him…”
”But Grandma said we’re just kids, and kids shouldn’t meddle in adults’ business. She told us to get along well with Xuan Zhixia…”
”And… Xuan Zhi Xia doesn’t seem to like Dad either…”
”Weren’t we too mean to Xuan Zhixia? We even called him by his first name…”
”What should I do? Bad children will be taken away by the Bodhisattva and turned into calves. Calves will be beaten, made to work, only eat grass, and eventually be sold to be eaten for meat. I don’t want to become a calf…”
”You…you’re so silly! There are no bodhisattvas in this world!”
”Yes! There is no Santa Claus, and Cinderella and Snow White in fairy tales are not real, but there is a Bodhisattva! The headmistress used to say that the Bodhisattva had appeared to help us!”
”But the headmistress said that when the Bodhisattva manifests, nothing good ever happens! It’s a lie!”
”real!”
”Fake!”
The two children argued for a while about whether or not there was a Bodhisattva, and finally came to a conclusion—regardless of whether or not there is a Bodhisattva, they are bad children, bad children are not good children, and only good children deserve to be praised.
”The teacher said that if you do something wrong, you should apologize, and if you correct your mistake, you’re still a good child!”
With this in mind, Shang Jingqi and Shang Jingshu excitedly went into the kitchen.
The viewers in the live stream were stunned, then marveled at the sight.
[So, when the two kids were talking about putting salt in Xuan Zhixia’s bowl, they meant the medicine bowl? That’s really going too far…]
[I think I finally understand why President Shang adopted these two children. Their logical thinking and personality traits are far superior to those of children their age, and they are both fair-skinned and cute. They must be exceptionally outstanding in the orphanage.]
[Yes, those who have raised children should understand this better. Children under five years old have difficulty developing a clear sense of right and wrong, let alone reflecting on themselves.]
[Moreover, their reflections were logically sound; I feel they understood things better than many adults.]
[Otherwise, how could there be a saying that “the evil of children is the purest evil”?]
[But by the same logic, “a child’s kindness is pure kindness.”]
[You could say the two kids are exceptionally smart, but they have absolutely no idea what a live broadcast really means. What they just said will be heard by countless people…]
[Moreover, with the advanced internet today, high-definition original audio and video can truly be preserved forever.]
[It seems that Qiqi and Shushu’s perception of Xuan Zhixia as a bad person is also related to President Shang’s attitude towards Xuan Zhixia. Qiqi and Shushu clearly like President Shang as their father, but they don’t know how to get closer to him.]
[Even if it was out of fear of disobeying their father, the two children went too far, and it’s clear they knew it was wrong when they did it; they just thought it was to fight off bad people.]
[Qiqi and Shushu have reflected on their actions and now want to apologize and make amends. I don’t think it’s necessary to be too harsh on them. These two children who were adopted from the orphanage have had a tough time too.]
[Um…actually, I feel that Xuan Zhixia probably doesn’t care whether they reflect on their actions or apologize and make amends, just like before he didn’t care that the two children called him a bad person…]
[I also think that stepparents’ love for their stepchildren usually stems from a love for the family, but Xuan Zhixia clearly doesn’t even love Shang Shuji. I guess in his eyes, Qiqi and Shushu are no different from other people’s children.]