Back to Three Years Old: Crushing Scumbags on a Parenting Reality Show 163

Chapter 163

What goes around comes around, even for film set visits.

Shi Dingshan, carrying a bag of baozi(yeast-leavened filled bun), strolled towards the set where Qin Sichao was diligently working, he almost tripped over someone.

“What are you squatting here for? You scared me.” Shi Dingshan said, patting his chest, looking at Wei Chengli, who was squatting like he was setting up an ambush, he threw a baozi at him angrily. “I’ve already gone through so much, and now I’m going to die at your hands? That would be too unfair!”

Wei Chengli, embarrassed, caught the baozi and shifted to the side. “I wasn’t paying attention, I’ll move.”

“Didn’t Lao Qin start filming early this morning? What? Delayed? Why the long face?” Shi Dingshan asked, looking at Wei Chengli’s slightly red eyes, he tiptoed, trying to see what was going on inside through the layers of staff.

“They’ve already started filming. It’s Maomao and Yan Yan’s first day of school today, I’m checking on them.” Wei Chengli said, showing Shi Dingshan his phone. “I couldn’t go and send Maomao off to school, I feel terrible.”

“Oh, right, it’s September 1st today.” Shi Dingshan said, squatting down next to him, leaning closer. “Let me see, how are they doing?”

“Yan Yan is doing fine, everything went smoothly. Our one… We couldn’t wake her up at all, she was carried to the kindergarten entrance like a little piglet, Yan Yan’s grandma had to wake her up in the end.” Wei Chengli said, flipping to a video he just received, he showed it to Shi Dingshan.

In the photo, the little chubby dumpling, her eyes still sleepy, was yawning and rubbing her butt, her steps towards the kindergarten reluctant and sluggish.

“Tsk, our Maomao is truly playing herself these days.” Shi Dingshan clicked his tongue.

“Director Qin is truly… I was worried Maomao was too young for the role, but after knowing it was a lazy little rascal who didn’t want to practice dancing and always tried to skip class, I knew it wouldn’t be a problem.” Wei Chengli said with a wry smile.

“Lao Qin loves casting child actors who are similar to the characters.” Shi Dingshan said, glancing at Wei Chengli, he didn’t mention that Maomao’s role was specifically created by Qin Sichao for her on a whim.

Speaking of which, Shi Dingshan couldn’t help but recall Qin Sichao’s words that night, when Yan Yan and Maomao finished filming and left, they were drinking and chatting.

“It’s a good thing that while you were filming that variety show, I, charmed by Maomao’s cuteness, came up with a scene for her and even added it to the film. Truly, good things happen to good people, the early bird gets the worm! If it weren’t for Maomao, the last scene wouldn’t have turned out so well.”

“No, it’s not just the last scene. It’s strange, after the custody transfer, shouldn’t Yan Yan be happier and more relaxed? But I feel like… she’s more burdened. How should I put it, her resilience has increased several times, but that innocent joy is mostly gone. I can’t even tell if this change is good or bad, after all, the character of the young female lead requires resilience for most of the time, she’s more fitting for the role now. But those few scenes with her genuine smile, that hopeful, sunny smile, they’re also very important!”

“Thankfully, there was Maomao, otherwise, I wouldn’t know how to bring out that natural joy in Yan Yan. And I’m also very clever, for the last scene, the one where she runs towards the distance, hehe, I placed Maomao in the distance, where the camera couldn’t see her, but Yan Yan could! The result was even better than I imagined. Mmm, as expected of me!”

“Maomao is good, Maomao is wonderful, Maomao is amazing! We’ll give our most adorable Little Maomao double the red envelopes for New Year!”

Qin Sichao was very talkative after a few drinks, most of his words were spent praising his own brilliance in casting Maomao.

Although he was tired of hearing his self-praise, Shi Dingshan, who had witnessed the entire filming process, had to acknowledge Qin Sichao’s good eye and wit.

Yan Yan, not to mention, at such a young age, she perfectly portrayed the young female lead, enduring all kinds of hardships, her heart still filled with hope.

As for Maomao… a child pampered by her family, unwilling to suffer and truly didn’t need to suffer, relying on her mischievousness to successfully escape dance practice… she was naturally adorable. A delicate, soft, and chubby little baby, even playing a slightly negative role, a lazy student, she wasn’t annoying at all, they even felt that… Ah, making such a cute little one suffer through dance practice was truly cruel, she should just go home, be pampered, and inherit the family business!

Initially, her character was meant to be a foil to the young, hardworking female lead, but in the end, she did become a foil. But not to the female lead’s hard work, but to the female lead’s forced hard work. How should he put it, although it deviated slightly from the original intention, looking back, Yan Yan’s character seemed even more moving because of the contrast.

What was lost on one hand was gained on the other; life was truly unpredictable.

Thinking of this, Shi Dingshan patted Wei Chengli’s shoulder with a sigh. “You’re truly amazing. When you first came, Yan Yan was very reluctant to let Maomao play the role of a lazy student, thankfully, you managed to convince her. Otherwise, Lao Qin would have suffered a great loss.” Not just a supporting role, even the protagonist would have been less impactful.

“I just asked her why she didn’t want Maomao to play that role.” Wei Chengli said, he happened to see the photo his wife sent him earlier, of Yan Yan, looking energetic, entering the school gate, he couldn’t help but sigh. “Yan Yan, she’s truly… She was actually afraid that Maomao, at such a young age, taking on an unlikeable role for her first project, would be disliked and criticized. She even said Maomao was still young, and she herself was only six, to be able to think so far ahead… I almost wanted to take my baby and go home. And it wasn’t even me who convinced Yan Yan… it was Maomao herself… Sigh, that pouncing, hugging, and acting cute routine, you can imagine, who could resist it? Yan Yan definitely couldn’t.”

“Tsk, I thought you three discussed it in the room, and then Yan Yan was fine when she came out, all thanks to your effort. It turns out you were just a spare…” Shi Dingshan said, humming.

“Exactly… Mmm? What do you mean by ‘still’?” Wei Chengli asked, glaring at him, dissatisfied.

“Hahaha, I mean, you were a spare on the variety show, and you’re still a spare now.” Shi Dingshan said with a straight face, then he chuckled and sighed. “Yan Yan truly… her thoughts are much more complex than other children her age. She’s only six… It’s all because of the Cheng family! It’s a pity that Jin Youliang took all the blame in the end, I always felt that if we investigated further, it would definitely lead back to the Cheng family.”

Wei Chengli also sighed. “There’s nothing we can do, the people Director Qin hired found out so much, but they missed Jin Youliang’s two illegitimate children. By the time they found out, they had already left the country, whether Jin Youliang was willing or not, he couldn’t implicate them anymore. But speaking of which, I truly think with Cheng Feiying’s personality, punching someone in the face is something he would do, but making the floor slippery like that, it doesn’t seem like him.”

“Whether it was someone from the Cheng family or not, it’s good that the custody is settled. Yan Yan is away from them now, out of sight, out of mind, it’ll always be better. And her grandma is here now, at least there’s someone to take care of them.” Shi Dingshan said, then hummed. “As for Jin Youliang, let him take the blame for now. Their plan against Yan Yan didn’t succeed, it’s at most questioning, he won’t be arrested. But all those other things he did, Lao Qin and I have all the evidence, he’ll definitely go to jail. That Lü Liwei from the air-raid shelter incident, he used to do shady things with Jin Youliang, three to five years is just the starting point. As for Jin Youliang, I never thought that besides embezzling money, he also used his position for sexual favors, this time, he’ll have to stay inside for a while and reflect.”

“It’s truly infuriating, Jin Youliang leaking your information to those marketing accounts, it almost… Truly, some bad deeds are truly bad, but in the end, it’s just a fine, it’s so frustrating. It’s a good thing he has so many other crimes, otherwise…” Wei Chengli said, also getting angry.

“Fame and fortune corrupt people, and people’s hearts are unpredictable.” Shi Dingshan said, looking up at the clouds, then suddenly changed the subject. “Bring Maomao and Yan Yan to my place sometime. The homemade popsicles at Chongnan Park still taste the same, rich and milky, the little ones will definitely love them. We can also fly kites, they’ve expanded the area, there’s plenty of space to run around.”

…

Wei Maomao didn’t know if it was fun to run around in Chongnan Park, but the kindergarten playground was… quite fun to run around in.

“Maomao… It’s only 4:20.” Teacher Hu said, she had watched the little one run to the window three times in twenty minutes. “First graders finish school at 4:30. That’s still ten minutes away. Sit down and wait, I’ll call you when it’s time, okay? Look, you’re all sweaty.”

“I’m just looking, it’s the first day of school, maybe the teacher next door is happy and will let them out early.” Wei Maomao said, her face pressed against the window, staring at the elementary school across the playground.

Teacher Hu: “…“ Yeah, right, first day of school, a new semester begins, which teacher would be happy?

“Teacher Hu, don’t worry about Maomao, can you help me see why this isn’t crispy anymore? It’s soft, is it dead? Please save it!” A little girl in a floral dress, tears in her eyes, grabbed Teacher Hu’s leg, holding up her…

Teacher Hu looked down at the egg pancake in the little girl’s greasy hand, her lips twitching slightly.

How could she not worry about Maomao? Maomao, single-handedly, had made their class’s resource consumption skyrocket on the first day of school! If she didn’t do something, their class would go bankrupt by mid-semester!

“Xiuxiu, egg pancakes become soft when they’re cold, it’s not dead, it’s just cold.” Teacher Hu said patiently, she took Xiuxiu’s hand and led her to the table, helping her wrap the egg pancake back in the oilpaper. “It’ll be crispy again after you reheat it.”

“Reheat it in a pan, otherwise it won’t be crispy.” Wei Maomao added, without even turning her head.

Teacher Hu: “…“ Thank you! The afternoon snack, originally intended for the children to make and eat themselves, warm and crispy, had now turned into takeout because of you… And this was only the first day of school!

Just as Teacher Hu’s inner monologue began, she saw Little Maomao rush over from the window.

“Teacher Hu! Turn on the stove!”

The little one said seriously, her face solemn, Teacher Hu, instinctively following their agreement, turned on the small electric stove.

A soft, yellow egg pancake was slapped onto the stove, flipped, flipped again.

“Bye, Teacher Hu!”

Wei Maomao said, running off, her childish voice trailing behind her.

The little ancestor was finally gone, Teacher Hu, exasperated and amused, turned off the stove.

A furry little head nudged her.

“Teacher Hu, this, heat it up, crispy!” Lu Xiuxiu said firmly, patting Teacher Hu’s hand. “Teacher Hu, let’s use this to save the pancake!”

Teacher Hu: “…“ Why don’t you save me first?

Kindergarten ended at 4 PM, first grade at 4:30 PM.

Cheng Tingyan thought she could take the bus back, but both Zhang Shilan and Wei Maomao immediately rejected her suggestion.

Because of Wei Maomao’s insistence, Zhang Shilan agreed to pick them up at 4:30.

Cheng Tingyan had planned to go to the kindergarten and pick up Maomao, then wait at the school gate together. But before she even reached the gate, she saw a little chubby bunny running towards her.

“Why did you leave the kindergarten?!” Cheng Tingyan asked anxiously, running towards her, she grabbed her. “Didn’t you promise Auntie Zhang you would wait inside?”

“It’s just a few steps.” Wei Maomao mumbled.

“A few steps! You left the kindergarten, there are so many bad people outside, they could snatch you away in two steps!” Cheng Tingyan said, exasperated, she looked at the kindergarten. “Isn’t there a teacher at the gate? How did you come out without a parent?”

“I just sneaked…” Wei Maomao said weakly, but the warmth in her hand gave her an idea to distract Cheng Tingyan, she held up the oilpaper bag. “Yan Yan, egg pancake, I made it, just reheated it, eat it quickly!”

Cheng Tingyan: “…“ What to do, she wanted to lecture this little chubby bunny, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it!

It was the first day of school; Zhang Shilan had already driven over. But there were many parents picking up their children, she had to park further away and walk to the school gate.

At 4:35 PM, Zhang Shilan saw Cheng Tingyan, munching on an egg pancake, at the crowded elementary school gate, and… Wei Maomao, who shouldn’t be outside the kindergarten!

Zhang Shilan raised her hand, ready to spank the little rascal’s butt, but in the next second, an oilpaper bag was stuffed into her hand.

“Mommy, you’re here so early, I would have reheated one for you too if I had known. I made it, egg pancake!”

A sweet, childish voice, innocent and oblivious.

Zhang Shilan: “…“ Should she still spank her?

Next… next time?

Zhang Shilan, holding the egg pancake her three-year-old baby had made for her, her first attempt at cooking, her heart filled with so much love, she couldn’t bring herself to throw it away and spank the thoughtful little baby.

Amidst the aroma of egg pancakes, Zhang Shilan and Cheng Tingyan, both holding the food made with love, exchanged a glance.

Okay, confirmed, they both wanted to spank the bunny, but couldn’t.

Although she couldn’t bring herself to spank her, Zhang Shilan still lectured the little rascal all the way home, repeatedly getting her promises to behave, only letting her off the hook when they arrived.

Hmph, Yan Yan didn’t spank her, she wouldn’t either, she would leave this task to Wei Chengli when he came back~~~

Speaking of Wei Chengli, after a long day, he had finally recovered from the sadness of not being able to send his little baby to school and focused on learning from Qin Sichao on set. But at around 5 PM, a photo made his eyes well up again.

Why!

Why did the four people upstairs and downstairs all get to eat the egg pancakes made by his little rascal, but he didn’t!

She could have made one and frozen it for him!

He wasn’t convinced！ He was going to protest!