Chapter 57.2
Editor: Jodi
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Shen Ci quickly received a WeChat message from Brother Zhang. It was short and casual: “It’s been handled.”
He replied with an emoji of a cat holding a glow stick: “Brother Zhang is too amazing!”
Soon after, Brother Zhang sent him several 50-second voice messages in a row. Shen Ci sighed in resignation, then started playing them one by one.
There was no progress bar, no pause button—who even invented voice messages? What an evil thing!
Brother Zhang rambled on for a while, however most of it was just him advising Shen Ci to stay focused, be patient, and not lose his temper or act spoiled.
Oh, and also to tell him that he’d also have to return to the village one last time tomorrow night.
The director contacted the village chief, and since Shen Ci had previously donated the entire 3 million yuan he received from the live-stream tips to the village, the villagers, who had grown attached to Shen Ci for his sweet demeanor and helpful attitude during their daily trips up the mountain to pick fruit, didn’t want him to leave without a proper farewell, so they decided to throw a send-off banquet for him.
Min Shoubei glanced at him. “Has it been sorted?”
“Yes, yes. Can I go back the day after tomorrow? The village is hosting a banquet tomorrow night.”
“No problem. Now get to studying. Start with this 2009 film, A Hundred Pacts with the Devil. Pay close attention to how the male lead’s brother is portrayed.”
“Got it….”
The room’s lights were dimmed remotely, then Min Shoubei turned on the projector, casting the movie onto the white screen.
The room fell into darkness, with the shifting brightness of the film illuminating the space intermittently before fading back into shadow.
Lu Xiao, who had been sitting beside Shen Ci since he was on the phone earlier reviewing certain electronic documents, was now watching the movie quietly, his attention fully on the film at this point.
Shen Ci, a bit surprised, turned his head to glance at him. Why wasn’t he resting this late at night?
The flickering light occasionally outlined Lu Xiao’s sharp nose and reflected in his eyes, making him look deeply absorbed in the movie.
And seeing how focused Lu Xiao was, Shen Ci, who was supposed to be studying, felt a little guilty for being distracted, and so returned his gaze to the screen hurriedly.
However a warm hand suddenly covered his hand that was resting on his lap. The palm pressed gently, kneading his hand softly, sending a faint current up through his bloodstream.
Shen Ci’s breath hitched, his ears warming as he bit his lip, pretending to be engrossed in the film.
His father was sitting right next to him, yet Lu Xiao dared to hold his hand under the cover of darkness.
It felt like a pair of teenagers who were dating secretly, sneaking affectionate moments behind their teachers’ and parents’ backs. The same rebellious, forbidden thrill from the night before washed over Shen Ci, making his heart beat a little faster.
“What are you still hanging around for?” Min Shoubei caught Shen Ci sneaking glances at Lu Xiao and scolded him coldly.
Lu Xiao continued rubbing Shen Ci’s soft palm, drawing teasing, ambiguous circles with his fingers. He chuckled quietly, “I’ll leave in a bit.”
Neither the father nor son could figure out why Lu Xiao insisted on staying.
Until, five minutes later, when Shen Ci’s head lolled to the side, landing on Lu Xiao’s shoulder as he fell asleep.
Min Shoubei: “….”
Lu Xiao smiled at him politely. “Mr. Min, he’s too tired today. I’m taking him back to rest?”
This guy had obviously predicted that Shen Ci would doze off and stayed just to “pick him up”.
With Shen Ci already asleep, Min Shoubei couldn’t very well wake him up to force him to keep watching, so he could only allow Lu Xiao take him away begrudgingly.
Lu Xiao scooped Shen Ci up in his arms carefully, carrying him bridal-style with slow, steady steps back to Shen Ci’s room. His movements so practiced that it was as if he’d done it a hundred of times before.
Min Shoubei remained expressionless as he watched Shen Ci’s dangling feet sway gently with Lu Xiao’s steps, however an unspoken softness flickered deep down in his eyes.
He was really just like his mother, both little lazy piglets who loved to sleep.
The next day, Shen Ci was kept cooped up in the hotel all day by Min Shoubei, immersed in intensive study and observation. And not only did he teach him himself, he also called in a few friends to help out.
Of course, his friends weren’t ordinary people—they were award-winning actors and actresses, seasoned veterans of the industry. Shen Ci sat nervously, feeling completely unworthy of their guidance.
In addition to watching classic film clips, Min Shoubei would also occasionally pull up scenes from Shen Ci’s past work for comparison. It was like public humiliation on full display! A flood of critiques and suggestions poured into Shen Ci’s ears so much that he thought his head would explode.
At this point, he seriously started doubting what Min Song had said. If he really liked pretty vases, then why was he going to such lengths to torment him like this?
He wanted to cry, however he knew how valuable this opportunity was and so could only grit his teeth and push through, accepting the advice from the big names remotely.
By evening, as the agreed time to head to the village approached, Shen Ci instantly regained his energy and dashed out excitedly to find Lu Xiao.
Both Min Shoubei and Lu Xiao were going with him for the overnight stay. Lu Xiao had even arranged for premium ingredients to be flown in ahead of time, so Shen Ci could enjoy a feast to his heart’s content.
By the time the minibus bounced its way to the village, dusk had already fallen.
“Xiao Ci! We’ve been waiting so long that even the flowers have wilted!”
Wei Shuo greeted Shen Ci, throwing an arm around his shoulders. “Hehe, you’re guaranteed to have a blast tonight!”
Shen Ci beamed brightly and, noticing the cameras rolling, mimed shooting hearts at them with his hands playfully. The editing team would add special effects later.
The cameraman, hit by both Shen Ci’s good looks and his cute gesture, clutched his chest, then kept the camera focused on him tightly.
Seven to eight large tables had been set up outdoors in the same spot as the last celebration. After greeting everyone, Shen Ci headed to the bustling temporary kitchen.
The chef Lu Xiao had sent over was running the show tonight. Several other entertainers were also helping out alongside the villagers, and they all looked up to greet Shen Ci with warm smiles.
“How come Xiao Ci is looking even more handsome after not seeing him for a day?”
Jiang Shu, who was washing vegetables, giggled sweetly at Shen Ci, her eyes filled with tenderness.
The other artists: “?”
She usually either ignored people coldly or made snide remarks. Now she was acting like this? It was enough to give everyone goosebumps.
Shen Ci chuckled awkwardly. “Uh, not really…”
Then he escaped to the head chef’s side for refuge quickly. After observing for a bit, he volunteered to make a dish for everyone to try.
Since it was a farewell banquet, he wanted to add a touch of ceremony to the occasion.
“Does the little young master even know how to chop vegetables?” The chubby chef teased with a grin.
Shen Ci lifted his chin confidently. “Of course!”
The chef chuckled, then handed him a knife and a cutting board piled with mushrooms. “Alright, then make some cream of mushroom soup. It’s simple enough.”
Cutting mushrooms? Easy!
Shen Ci steadied the mushroom with his left hand, gripping the knife in his right. Then he brought it down for his first cut—and it came out crooked.
He tried slicing a few more pieces, but each one turned out uneven, some thick, some thin, all awkwardly misshapen.
Shen Ci: ?
This wasn’t quite what he had imagined!
“There’s something wrong with this knife.” He said with certainty. Because there was no other explanation for why others could cut perfectly uniform slices while his were so messy.
The chef stifled a laugh and quickly came to his little young master’s rescue: “Chopping them into small pieces works just as well.”
Shen Ci perked up at that, then started hacking away with the knife, reducing the mushrooms to bits enthusiastically and finishing the task perfectly.
Then under the chef’s guidance, he moved on to slicing onions, sautéing, and adding milk…….