Chapter 373

After promoting "The Longest Day in Chang'an" in a strange way, it was time to get to work.

The production team, wisely, didn't give them any heavy labor.

After all, Bai Da looked so lazily lethargic, clearly unwilling to work.

They simply sent them to browse the convenience store, then catch some fish and shrimp in the stream.

It was less like work and more like play.

"What kind of fish are in this river? Any big ones? I'll go get the fishing rod." Bai Liang instantly perked up.

At his reaction, everyone remembered last year's giant fish that topped the trending charts.

Sister Tian Tian had even been slapped by that fish, then turned into a meme that spread across the internet, helping establish her adorable, clueless image—so many people said she was utterly cute~

And that same night, they cooked the fish, avenging her.

Meanwhile, that giant fish attracted a huge crowd of anglers, and now that small lake remains their pilgrimage site.

Normally, the filming location of "Go Fighting!" brings significant attention to the local area.

But Bai Liang's single rod might have generated more economic benefit than the production team itself—no one could say for sure.

Anglers really are willing to spend money!

After all, aside from not catching fish, they can do anything—including boosting local GDP—effortlessly.

Bai Liang still hasn't filmed his fishing rod endorsement deal from last year.

He might go sea fishing later to shoot some footage; Sister Yanzi is helping him find a show to collaborate with for a two-for-one fish deal.

"Our fishing god has returned," He He He He Laoshi smiled, then added regretfully: "But it's just a small stream—nothing but tiny fish and shrimp. Peng Peng probably knows the exact species."

"Maybe there are eels," Peng Yuchang wasn't entirely clueless—he just happened to have ordered this dish.

He had a mental image, so the words came out naturally.

"There are eels in this river?" Bai Liang laughed, giving him a strange look as if to say, "You've got guts," then "sent him on his way."

If you dare say it, I'll play along.

"You don't mean Canadian electric eels, do you? What are you hinting at?"

Peng Yuchang:???

"Bro, please, I'm weak."

"Enough, Peng Peng, the production team won't cut this in—Wang Zhenyu and the others won't dare," He He He He Laoshi said, barely holding back laughter.

Production team: You really know them well!

Today, the "Fishing God" clearly had no luck with big fish—after all, this shallow stream couldn't magically produce giants, no matter how lucky Bai Liang was.

To catch "Gyarados," you need the ocean.

But luckily, everyone's main interest wasn't catching much—rolling up their pants, stepping into the stream, feeling the cool water and playfully splashing each other made the atmosphere joyful and time fly by.

Five people fished for over an hour and caught only two fish the size of a thumb.

Still, it was a gain.

These two fish were caught by Li Xin and Li Yitong; Bai Liang got nothing.

But he didn't come away empty—he found a particularly round, smooth pebble in the stream that left Peng Yuchang staring in awe.

His eyes screamed longing.

Yet Bai Liang, usually so generous, became stingy all of a sudden.

Give it to you? Impossible!

It's like finding a perfectly straight, naturally grown stick—no boy would ever give up such a "treasure."

As for those two fish?

Forget dinner—dogs won't even eat them.

When Bai Liang brought them to the dogs at Mushroom House, the dogs glanced at them, then tugged at his pants, begging him to play.

This year, Mushroom House's dogs were especially numerous—Xiao H and Xiao O, the Shiba Inu couple, had another litter of four puppies.

They were named Wok, Bowl, Chopsticks, and Spoon—very kitchen-themed.

These four puppies were escape artists; they'd been locked in a cage at first, but now they'd all broken out.

Forming the Wang Wang Squad, they launched a "attack" on Bai Liang, trying to overwhelm him with cuteness.

Bai Liang, of course, didn't hold back—he petted each one in turn, giving equal attention to all.

And like magic, he pulled out cookies from his pocket.

Now the Wang Wang Squad completely lost it, becoming full-fledged Capybara minions.

But the girls now felt sympathy for the two tiny fish and unanimously decided to find a tank to keep them.

"Keeping fish? I know how to do that."

The helpful Capybara decided to offer them some guidance.

He claimed he was a Water-type Pokémon Trainer who, as a child, had raised a baby turtle into a Vaporeon.

The girls stared, dumbfounded, sensing something was off.

Still, they offered admiration first: "How do you know everything?"

"Not everything—I have many things I can't do. But my experience raising pets is truly extensive. Kids are like that—they see something cute and want to raise it, and with indulgent parents, they naturally become Pokémon Trainers from childhood."

He "debuted" younger than Ash.

"But you don't seem to raise any pets now~"

Bai Liang smiled: "No choice—children slowly grow into teenagers, and teenagers grow up like the wind."

Along the way, little fish, shrimp, turtles, cats, dogs, hamsters—all fell away, scattered.

Luckily, his father chased after him all along, collecting these "Pokémon," then watching his son depart.

"I like that line," He He He He Laoshi walked over. "How about you take one with you?"

He was talking about pots, pans, bowls, and basins.

The four little Shiba Inus seemed to understand, and one by one stopped making a fuss. They lined up at Bai Liang's feet, looking very ingratiating.

Bai Liang patted each of their heads in turn, playing stand-in captain of the Paw Patrol for a moment.

Even He He He He Laoshi watched with a twinge of envy — these little rascals are never this well-behaved normally!

Did he really run into a Pokémon trainer?

Unfortunately, after Bai Liang stood up he shook his head, indicating he was no longer that water-type Pokémon trainer who could raise a tiny Squirtle into a Wartortle.

He could only get a Cloyster to spray water now.

"Compared to them, us humans are practically long-lived species — I really can't raise them anymore."

At this moment he seemed to recall the look that old man in Journey to the West gave when he saw Sun Wukong.

I am already old and frail, but Great Sage, you are as dashing as ever.

—

Although Bai Liang refused the suggestion of taking a dog with him, he did help build a new, bigger and sturdier dog cage.

When it comes to handicrafts, a certain Mr. Bai is also a little skilled.

Guaranteed this Paw Patrol crew can never break out of prison again!

Let alone these puppies that haven't grown up yet — even their mom and dad wouldn't be able to!

Paw Patrol:???

Bai Liang: "Now, this is your first lesson — don't trust humans so easily. Lucky for you you're domesticated; if this were out in the wild, I'd have to give each of you a big slap to teach you to run away from people on sight."

Paw Patrol: Dogs good, humans bad!

Fortunately, kind-hearted He He He He Laoshi said it wasn't bedtime yet, so everyone could come out and get some fresh air.

The newly liberated dogs didn't hold grudges either, still bouncing and frolicking around Bai Liang.

"Bro, is this why you slapped a lion in Africa?" Peng Yuchang asked innocently.

Bai Liang glanced at him in surprise, thinking to himself how on earth such a question could come out of his mouth.

If he answered, he'd seem just as dumb as him; if he didn't answer, it would be a bit impolite.

"In a place like Africa, lions generally aren't afraid of someone unarmed. If I really wanted to leave it a deep impression, I should've pressed a shotgun right against its ear and fired a shot."

Zhang Zifeng beside them grinned, poked Peng Yuchang, and said, "Bro, I support you going to teach that lion a lesson~"

"No, no, no, I still want to live a few more years — this job I can't do."

Playing with the dogs, teasing Peng Peng, chatting with the Misses... time quickly arrived at evening.

Dinner's ready!

However, Teacher Huang, who had just finished work, was a bit puzzled: "Huh? Where did the slop I used to wash the pot go?"

He He He He Laoshi, about to taste the soup, had already thought up his words of praise in advance.

It would have to start with "Wow!" and end with "Absolutely amazing!"

But at this moment the dogs stole the show first.

He He He He Laoshi hurriedly put down the "soup" and went over to mediate.

"Piao-ge, Piao-ge, calm down!"

Piao, of the pots, pans, bowls, and basins, with an exceptionally wild way of eating instantly became the star of Mushroom House.

Even Bai Liang had to admit that at this moment, he — the biggest star in showbiz — had to concede defeat.

Good lord, He He He He Laoshi is setting him up!

If he brought this thing back to raise, wouldn't that be terrible?

His RV would be turned upside down~

Lucky he didn't agree.

Bai Liang still took good care of the Misses, so he tasted every dish first, to prevent the two of them from accidentally making a pained face.

But today Teacher Huang's cooking was quite steady — not exactly stunning or "absolutely amazing," but the flavor really was pretty good.

No problem, dig in!

"Whoa! Here's one that can eat even more than Peng Peng," Teacher Huang said with a chuckle.

Satisfying!

Last year you barely ate a few bites~ He remembered that all too well.

But at this moment Evil Gardenia jumped in and stabbed Peng Peng: "They both can eat, but why is our Peng Peng's figure getting rounder and rounder?"

That remark made Peng Yuchang, who had been eating ravenously, freeze on the spot. He scratched his head and glanced at his little belly: "Ah, this... yeah, what's going on?"

"Peng Peng doesn't have a girlfriend, right~"

Another stab.

This time it was Evil Little Kitty who struck.

She exchanged a glance with He He He He Laoshi, and their combo attack was complete.

But she clearly wasn't as effortlessly smooth as veteran He He He He Laoshi the "evil" — one sentence and she'd already cranked up the heat.

The adults present exchanged knowing smiles, and even Peng Yuchang was getting a bit red in the face.

Yet Zhang Zifeng actually let out a silly grin too.

Bai Liang: Tch, the little Miss is thinking about romance — probably going to be whisked away by some "yellow-hair"~

Speaking of which, Zhao Jinmai this little girl also seems to be trending that way. A couple days ago when Bai Liang video-called her and helped her with some homework, she actually consulted him about some "relationship issues."

How could this be allowed?

Although Bai Liang was always dragged by girls into the little grove back when he was in school, this is a different matter entirely.

So he immediately snitched to Zhao Jinmai's parents, telling them they absolutely had to put some pressure on this little girl.

"Bro, really keep your figure?" Peng Yuchang secretly pulled Bai Liang aside to ask.

You believe that evil little kitty?

You can't match my intensity.

"I'll send you a fitness plan later, follow it."

"Is it intense?"

"That depends on you—want abs? Lose fat. Want to become a hunk? Gain muscle. But I suggest you do more cardio—you're an entertainer, don't wait until you're thirty or thirty-five to play a pretty boy and then start training your muscle lines."

Peng Yuchang didn't dare respond to that!

He was now jumpy from Bai Liang's antics, feeling like he was hinting at someone again.

But Bai Liang wasn't being intentional—he just said it offhand.

Ding dong~

Luckily, at that moment, Bai Liang's phone on the table rang once.

He was too lazy to look, but Li Xin casually picked it up, read Bai Liang's message, and muttered to himself.

The evil little kitty was too slow—didn't get it.

No one else noticed the move, but He He He He Laoshi saw it clearly—huh! Such a practiced gesture, truly not the least bit reserved.

"Why are you going through his phone? You two should be a bit more careful."

This remark seemed aimed at Li Xin, but it was really a warning to Bai Liang.

Foolish boy, danger is coming!

After all, knowing Bai Liang as he did, if the boy hadn't deleted his chat logs clean, there were definitely "bombs" in there.

After relaying the message to Bai Liang, Li Xin added: "Oh no, I wasn't snooping—He He He He Laoshi, you don't know how lazy this guy is."

"Lazy? He works out constantly—how could he be lazy?"

Li Yitong rolled her eyes and took over: "Working out is one thing, his laziness is another—he'll drag over a rattan chair, sit like an old man, leave his phone beside him, too lazy to look, won't even open his eyes, and makes us read out who's messaging him and what they want—he's great at ordering people around."

"You all know his phone password?!"

"His phone doesn't even have a password," Li Xin complained.

She was right—Bai Liang's phone, computer, and other devices never had passwords set.

Even his bank card password—he'd wanted to save effort and set it to six zeros—but the bank, for security reasons, banned users from setting simple passwords like consecutive or sequential digits.

During setup, the system kept prompting: "Password too simple, please re-enter."

So Bai Liang couldn't cut corners.

And without a password, his phone was completely defenseless.

Anyone could pick it up and browse—especially the girls close to him.

Almost every girl had picked up his phone to look.

Some even liked to "scare" him: "I'm going to check your phone~ Can you tell me the password?"

Bai Liang: No password, go ahead.

But once they discovered his phone had no password, they instantly lost all interest.

Some even suspected he had a second phone or other WeChat accounts.

Bai Liang did have two WeChat accounts, but the other was strictly a work account, filled only with partners or random strangers who'd approached him.

He no longer logged into that account himself—he'd handed it all over to Sister Yanzi.

"Bro, what if you lose your phone?" Zhang Zifeng asked curiously.

Bai Liang was still eating when he paused, then shrugged: "If I lose it, consider it a gift to fans—my payment password is—"

"Hey hey hey!" Li Xin quickly reached out to cover his mouth.

Beside him, Peng Yuchang grinned wickedly: "Bro, I already memorized it~"

"You're not even my fan—I'll send you straight to jail if you transfer."

"Aww, I am! A ten-year fan~"

Teacher Huang chuckled and reminded Peng Yuchang: "He's only been in the industry four years."

While eating snacks and chatting, He He He He Laoshi brought out the white tea again.

Of course, they couldn't openly drink alcohol on the show, so everything was served in opaque enamel mugs.

Naturally, this only happened when "old friends" arrived.

The seal is lifted.

This referred to Li Xin.

She could drink well—not just champagne.

Normally she was just a bit talkative, but after drinking, she became a super chatterbox.

Originally, He He He He Laoshi was driving the table's rhythm—after all, it was a recording.

But after two sips of white tea, Li Xin's mouth went straight into "rap," chattering nonstop, leaving no one untouched.

She was amazing at livening up the drinking table, though her face was noticeably flushed.

She also unconsciously leaned toward Bai Liang, and eventually just leaned right against him.

The recording had reached a good point.

Continuing further would be impolite.

So they announced the end, and everyone washed up and prepared for bed.

Then Li Yitong quietly found Bai Liang: "Are we going back to the hotel?"

"You can't drive after drinking—thousands of roads, safety first; driving without rules—"

"Two tears from loved ones." She answered quickly, then glanced left and right: "I didn't drink—I can drive."

Indeed, while Li Xin was drinking heavily and livening up the table's atmosphere, the "Evil Little Kitty" had been secretly slacking off the whole time.

Several times she picked up her glass, but in truth hadn't taken a single sip.

He He He He Laoshi noticed, but said nothing.

He said he was already starting not to understand what was going on — it was as if *The Wandering Earth 2* were playing right before his eyes.

What a piece of Chinese sci-fi!

"Then Li Xin must be showering by now."

"Xin Xin drank quite a lot today. Her tolerance isn't as good as yours — let her get a good night's sleep."

Wow! Good sisters indeed, thinking so much for each other~

But… it's quite reasonable.

Where did the nickname "Evil Little Kitty" come from?

Back then, Li Yitong had secretly tasted it herself while Meng Jie was busy going back for seconds, unable to resist trying it behind her back.

However, Bai Liang looked at her, a bit speechless: "You think this is a movie? Just run off whenever you feel like it? There are this many people in the production crew."

"I still feel it's not appropriate. Maybe we should just forget it."

Li Yitong's eyes darted: "Didn't you, back on the *Chinese Captain* crew, with Meng Jie and Li Xin also—"

Before she could finish, Bai Liang grabbed her hand: "Come on, let's plan it out!"

What on earth was the "blood oath" these two exchanged with each other?

Should have "pressed for answers" with Chen Yao back when they were still on set.

Just how far do these girls' chats actually go?

Li Yitong: Holy crap, really? I was just talking nonsense!

(End of chapter)