Chapter 25: When I grow up, I’ll sell fried rice to support you

Chapter 25: Chapter 25: When I grow up, I’ll sell fried rice to support you

Nan Zhi pushed the door open and went back inside. In the darkness, she saw a pair of eyes, bright as a cat’s, staring unblinkingly at her.

She flipped on the light.

"Why aren’t you asleep? Are you hungry?"

Ever since she’d witnessed Nan Yi’s intense fixation on food, Nan Zhi was always looking for a chance to feed him.

Nan Yi hesitated for two seconds before shaking his head.

"I’m not hungry."

He paused, then added,

"I heard you talking."

Nan Zhi remained calm and composed. She tilted her head.

"Oh? Don’t worry, it was nothing important."

Nan Yi pressed his lips together tightly.

It was a habit of his—he’d purse his lips whenever he was upset.

Seeing this, Nan Zhi had no choice but to explain gently,

"It’s really nothing. See? I’m not bothered by it at all."

Nan Yi lifted his stubborn, dark eyes, his voice rising slightly.

"I’m not a little kid! Stop lying to me!"

He couldn’t understand what that person had been saying, but he could sense the gravity in their tone.

So he knew something huge must have happened tonight!

"Pfft."

Nan Zhi couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing, amused by Nan Yi.

Nan Yi’s eyes widened in astonishment, a hint of annoyance in them.

"I-I’m being serious!"

His cheeks puffed out slightly in anger.

’He seems to be eating well these past two days,’ Nan Zhi thought. ’His thin, sunken cheeks are starting to fill out.’

Nan Zhi gave his soft cheek a pleased pinch, letting go just before Nan Yi could get angry and pull away.

"I’m not lying to you. I truly don’t care what those people say about me. They’re strangers, so why should I waste my time and energy on them?"

After all the storms she’d weathered, a few insults were nothing more than a mild annoyance.

Nan Yi watched her for a long time. Only after confirming that Nan Zhi genuinely didn’t care did he quietly let out a sigh of relief.

He huffed.

"If worst comes to worst, we’ll just quit the show and go back to our fried rice stall! When I grow up, I’ll be the one making the fried rice!"

"Then what will I do?"

"You can be in charge of taking the money!"

Nan Yi lifted his chin proudly, as if bestowing a great honor upon her.

Nan Zhi’s heart melted with warmth and sweetness, but she put on a troubled expression.

"Taking money sounds a little tiring."

Nan Yi fell for it. He thought about it carefully and realized she had a point.

"Then... then I’ll make the fried rice and take the money, and you can just sit down?"

"That works for me."

Nan Zhi desperately suppressed the urge to double over with laughter as she got up and walked to the kitchen.

Nan Yi instinctively called out to stop her.

"Where... are you going?"

"To make a late-night snack for you. A reward for my precious Yiyi, who’s going to be the future breadwinner of this family," Nan Zhi said with a raised eyebrow.

The words of refusal were on the tip of Nan Yi’s tongue, but in the end, he couldn’t resist the temptation of a late-night snack.

He nimbly slid off the small bed.

"I’ll help you!"

As far as Nan Zhi was concerned, the key to a late-night snack was simplicity.

She rummaged through the fridge and found some leftover chicken broth from the buns she’d made earlier. She took it out and put it on the stove to boil.

As luck would have it, she had bought some excellent handmade wonton wrappers from the market that day—they were as thin as paper.

She minced fresh meat and seasoned it for the filling, wrapped it into longan-sized wontons, and dropped them into the boiling chicken broth.

Once they were cooked, she served them sprinkled with chopped scallions, dried shrimp, and a dash of sesame oil.

The flavor was so exquisite you’d want to swallow your own tongue!

It was the perfect late-night snack for a cool, early spring evening.

Even Nan Zhi, who wasn’t fond of eating late, had half a small bowl herself.

Nan Yi was even more impressive.

The boy who had just claimed he wasn’t hungry ate two full little bowls.

And even that wasn’t enough. He drank every last drop of the broth and was eyeing a third bowl.

Nan Zhi had to put her hand on his belly. Feeling it was slightly taut, she told him he couldn’t have any more.

Only then did Nan Yi lick his lips regretfully.

He didn’t argue. He just followed Nan Zhi’s instructions, hopped off his stool, and went to wash up again.

Nan Zhi smiled with satisfaction as she cleaned up the dishes, thinking to herself—

’One day, Nan Yi will be completely free of this pathological urge to hoard any food he can get his hands on!’

-

After festering overnight, the negative publicity didn’t die down. By the next day, it had only intensified.

Even with some livestream viewers and customers speaking up to explain, screen recordings of the stream were prohibited due to copyright issues.

Without any evidence to back them up, their explanations seemed feeble and unconvincing.

Besides...

Netizens only ever believe what they want to believe.

Finally, when the production team announced that the official broadcast of *Cub Observation Diary* would air that night, people went into a frenzy, as if they had finally cornered their villain!

[See? It was all a marketing ploy by the show!]

[They’re all villains! The production team is just as scummy!]

[Fu Chao probably got screwed over. I heard he only joined the show as a favor to a friend. Who knew he was just there to be someone else’s stepping stone?]

[I really want to know what sugar daddy Nan Zhi has backing her to make the production team kiss her ass like this! The day they filmed the pilot, Nan Zhi even smashed a camera and threw a huge tantrum on set!]

[I’m so sick of people like Nan Zhi. Why don’t you just crawl back into your gilded cage and be some rich guy’s pet instead of coming out here to plague the audience?]

[Someone just dropped a scoop, said Nan Zhi’s kid is actually her illegitimate child with some big shot...]

...

In the midst of this firestorm, at 7:30 PM, *Cub Observation Diary* officially premiered!

The show was broadcast simultaneously on J TV Station and the S Video Platform. Despite their different target audiences, the premiere drew massive attention on both.

The last variety show that aired on J TV Station had poor ratings, putting the network executives under immense pressure. Their hopes were high for this new program.

Fortunately, *Cub Observation Diary* did not disappoint. Fueled by the controversy, its ratings surpassed the previous show’s peak within just half an hour of its premiere!

The numbers on the S Video Platform were even more impressive. As a streaming service geared toward a younger demographic that overlapped with the current netizens, it was flooded with viewers the moment the show went live.

Riding this wave of attention, the show’s popularity skyrocketed, quickly breaking this year’s record for a variety show’s first-day hype.

However...

Despite these great numbers, more than half of the viewers had tuned in for the sole purpose of passing judgment on Nan Zhi.

The broadcast combined the pilot and the first episode, so the show opened in the studio.

As their introductory VCRs played, the guests made their entrances one by one.

Soon, it was Nan Zhi’s turn.

A cool white spotlight hit the stage entrance, outlining a slender, aloof figure.

At that moment, a question mark popped into everyone’s mind—

’Who is that... Nan Zhi?’

She had just taken off her makeup...

She had just changed her style of clothes...

Her posture and expression were just more restrained...

So why did she seem like a completely different person, as if she’d been reborn?

And from there, the entire tone of the show shifted dramatically!

The audience watched Nan Zhi and Nan Yi handle their interview with an air of casual indifference.

They watched the mother and son draw the worst lot, yet remain calm and composed.

They watched them living in a shantytown, yet improving their surroundings with their own two hands.

They watched them push a food cart to the night market to sell fried rice, as ordinary as anyone else.

...