Chapter 239

Li Zhibai had originally wanted to help, but after breaking a bowl, he realized the fact that "in the kitchen, him not helping is the biggest help." He cleaned up the shards and dragged Qin Zhi away with him.

"Don't just stand there like a fool, are you in detention?"

Qin Zhi was dragged away by Li Zhibai.

Others watching this scene all laughed.

Qin Zhi was still struggling: "I can help a little."

Li Zhibai: "What help can you provide?"

Qin Zhi thought for a long time and couldn't think of anything.

Li Zhibai: "A person should have self-awareness. Since you know you don't have that ability, don't add to people's troubles."

Qin Zhi clearly wanted to refute Li Zhibai, but didn't know how. He opened his mouth, wanting to speak but stopping, and got stuck.

Li Zhenzhen and Chen Biqiu were eating boxed lunches, watching the screen.

The two of them occupied a table, eating and chatting.

"The interaction between Li Zhibai and Qin Zhi is also quite interesting." Li Zhenzhen said. "Li Zhibai is indeed very suitable for variety shows; his reactions and effects are a cut above the others."

Chen Biqiu said: "What did you expect? There's a reason why he's popular. Can you find a second person like him in the industry?"

Li Zhenzhen thought for a moment and shook her head. "It's true. Those richer than him aren't as uninhibited; those more uninhibited don't have his air of arrogance; those more popular don't have his feeling of being carefree and unconstrained."

Chen Biqiu: "Every show needs someone like this."

"Yeah."

"What about Meng Li? Still no reply?"

"No." Li Zhenzhen shook her head. "Anyway, I've said what I needed to say. If she comes back, of course I welcome her. If she doesn't, then let's find someone else. I actually feel now that it's better for her not to be here than to be here. Without her, everyone's atmosphere is much more harmonious. I really hate filming content about fighting."

Chen Biqiu smiled. "No matter what the content is, as long as it happens naturally, we are responsible for recording it. Don't project your own likes and dislikes."

"Yo, Meng Li is back!" someone suddenly said.

Others immediately looked at the screen.

Li Zhenzhen was also looking, and then found Meng Li walking in at the entrance camera.

"Is Meng Li coming back to continue recording?" Meng Li's PD asked in surprise.

"It looks like it." Li Zhenzhen smiled slightly. "It seems she chose to stay after all."

Chen Biqiu said: "If she had just left like that, she would be truly stupid."

"Staying, her situation won't be easy either."

"That's not necessarily true. This little girl's acting skills are excellent. As long as she isn't embarrassed, the ones who are embarrassed will be others." Chen Biqiu said.

As long as you aren't embarrassed, the ones who are embarrassed are others.

Many people know this principle, but not everyone can use it well.

Principles are like that; knowing them doesn't mean you can truly do them.

However, this was no problem at all for Meng Li.

At least in the eyes of Lu Yan He and the others, Meng Li had no problem at all. When Meng Li came in, everyone hadn't noticed yet; it was Li Zhibai, who was sitting on the sofa playing games with Qin Zhi, who saw her first.

After Li Zhibai saw her, he hesitated for about a second, and before he had figured out what he wanted to do, he saw Meng Li suddenly walking toward him.

At this moment, many thoughts flashed through Li Zhibai's mind, guessing what Meng Li was coming over for.

What he didn't expect at all was that Meng Li walked up to him, actually revealed a smile, and said: "Li Zhibai, let's make up."

At this moment, Qin Zhi suddenly came back to his senses, looking at the suddenly appearing Meng Li in astonishment, and then at Li Zhibai.

His face was filled with all kinds of emotions like incredulity and disbelief.

Qin Zhi himself wasn't a person with very exaggerated expressions; most of the time, he was expressionless.

Therefore, when these emotions appeared on his face, the impact on everyone was even greater.

Li Zhibai had already reacted.

He raised the corners of his mouth, smiled, then stood up, nodded, and said: "No problem, it was just a small matter anyway."

Meng Li sighed. "I've been too tired these past few days, my mood was bad, and I was ready to explode at any moment. Sorry."

Li Zhibai: "My temper isn't good either, it's fine."

The two of them, under the filming of dozens of cameras, made up without any warning.

Everyone on the scene was trying hard to control their expressions.

At this moment, what was being tested wasn't the acting skills of Li Zhibai and Meng Li, but the acting skills of everyone else.

For Lu Yan He and Yan Liang, this was especially true.

Lu Yan He didn't believe at all that Li Zhibai and Meng Li had truly made up.

However, Lu Yan He couldn't figure out what had happened to make someone like Li Zhibai suddenly start being willing to act.

Based on Lu Yan He's understanding of Li Zhibai, Lu Yan He thought Li Zhibai would rather not record this show than compromise with Meng Li.

Could it be that Zhou Ping'an coerced and lured him?

Impossible.

Li Zhibai was someone who didn't buy Zhou Ping'an's act at all.

Lu Yan He was completely baffled, but since the show was currently filming, he couldn't rush up to Li Zhibai and ask what was going on.

He and Yan Liang looked at each other, and both could only bite the bullet and continue recording.

Zhou Ping'an's work wasn't over yet.

After solving the matter with Li Zhibai, Zhou Ping'an drove all the way to the airport to pick up Ma Zhiyuan, who had just returned.

Ma Zhiyuan had an assistant and a driver, but Zhou Ping'an still came; he had a very important task that he had to discuss with Ma Zhiyuan in person.

Night shrouded the wilderness.

Zhou Ping'an checked the time; Ma Zhiyuan wouldn't land for another twenty minutes, so he sat in the car and waited.

Vice Ma Zong's call suddenly came through.

"Hello, Ma Zong?" Zhou Ping'an answered the phone immediately, while also feeling surprised in his heart, wondering why Vice Ma Zong was calling so late.

Vice Ma Zong said: "I heard that Li Zhibai got into a fight with Meng Li while recording the show today?"

"Oh, you heard about that? I just finished handling this matter." Zhou Ping'an muttered in his heart, wondering why Vice Ma Zong was so well-informed and had heard about it so quickly. He explained, "The matter has already been resolved. It was just a small conflict between the two of them before. Li Zhibai was originally threatening to quit the show, but I just managed to pacify him."

Vice Ma Zong said: "Keep a close eye on Li Zhibai's side, don't let him suffer any losses."

"Don't worry, Ma Zong, I understand." Zhou Ping'an said. "I won't let anyone make him suffer."

Zhou Ping'an thought Vice Ma Zong was just calling to show concern for Li Zhibai.

He couldn't help but mutter in his heart that having a super-rich background meant enjoying better treatment; when had Vice Ma Zong ever cared about whether other artists suffered losses?

Vice Ma Zong suddenly changed the subject and said: "Chen Ziyan also went over today, you know that, right?"

"I know. She heard that this matter involved Lu Yan He and affected him, and she was afraid Lu Yan He would suffer a loss, so she insisted on following along."

"You, you're not well-informed, kept in the dark, and you still don't know the situation." Vice Ma Zong's words made Zhou Ping'an frown in confusion.

Zhou Ping'an asked: "Ma Zong, what news did I miss?"

"Chen Ziyan went to give the production team a sponsorship. Lu Yan He got an endorsement; the brand is very generous, the endorsement fee is generous, and they are willing to stand up for Lu Yan He. Hearing that Lu Yan He was recording a show, they went to sponsor it." Vice Ma Zong chuckled. "Speaking of which, Chen Ziyan is capable. With this sponsorship sent over, hasn't Lu Yan He become the golden boy of the production team?"

Zhou Ping'an showed a look of surprise. "What?"

Vice Ma Zong: "Stunned, aren't you? Don't look at Li Zhibai as the most popular artist on the whole show right now; Lu Yan He might just overtake him later. The money has been delivered; will the production team still edit Lu Yan He into a negative image? What they would be offending isn't Lu Yan He, but their god of wealth."

Zhou Ping'an suddenly realized why Vice Ma Zong had made this call tonight.

"Ma Zong, should we contact Li Zhibai's parents? See if they want to follow suit and do an insertion?"

"Why look for his parents? Doesn't Li Zhibai have endorsement brands willing to do this?" Vice Ma Zong said. "He's so popular right now, you don't even need to think about it. Why do you need to make a big fuss to find his parents? It's not like there's no one else to foot the bill."

Zhou Ping'an: "Yes, yes, yes, I understand."

"Whether it's Li Zhibai or Lu Yan He, they are both artists of our company, but I weigh very clearly who is an outsider and who is one of our own, and you shouldn't take it lightly." Vice Ma Zong said. "Although the other party is just a nineteen-year-old kid, standing behind him is Chen Ziyan. She easily, without any effort, gave Lu Yan He a golden body in the production team, and you haven't heard any news at all. I don't know what you're busy with."

Zhou Ping'an was speechless, wanting to vomit blood.

What was he busy with?

He worked from early morning to late night every day, managing artists, handling business, discussing cooperation, negotiating projects, meeting platforms, watching the news—what didn't he manage?

You just sit in the office every day, never having to manage these things on the front line, standing and talking without back pain!

"I will definitely improve." Zhou Ping'an said to the phone with a forced smile.

House of Youth.

Everyone ate dinner together, washed the dishes, and sat in the living room playing games.

Playing games is one of the easiest ways to get everyone familiar with each other.

Peng Zhixing said: "Shall we play Turtle Soup first?"

"Sure." Xiao Yun's eyes lit up, and she said immediately.

Lu Yan He was a bit confused and asked: "What is Turtle Soup?"

"A very simple game." Xiao Yun was very active in explaining it to everyone. "Simply put, it's giving everyone a riddle, and we guess the answer based on the riddle. We can keep asking questions, and the host can only answer 'yes' or 'no,' and then we find the answer to the riddle based on these clues."

After Lu Yan He finished listening, he was a bit enlightened. "Oh, okay, but I've never played it, I guess I'll play it very badly."

"You scored over 600 in the college entrance exam, you have high intelligence, how could you play it badly?" Song Lin Xin said immediately. "You'll know once you play it."

Peng Zhixing took out his phone and said: "Then I'll set the question. I'll be the host, and you guys guess."

"Okay." Everyone nodded.

At this time, even Meng Li had an attitude of earnestly participating.

Peng Zhixing searched on his phone and read out the first question: "I am a kindergarten teacher. A little boy in my kindergarten is five years old this year, but one day he told me his mother is only four years old. I found it very strange, so I followed him to his house for a home visit. The scene I saw after arriving at his house stunned me."

Lu Yan He looked blank. "Ah? What does that mean?"

"You need to solve the riddle; what is the truth of this matter?" Peng Zhixing said. "You can ask questions, but they can only be yes-or-no questions, and I can only answer 'yes' or 'no,' or 'irrelevant to the topic.'"

Xiao Yun was the first to raise her hand actively and asked: "Is the kindergarten a real kindergarten?"

"Yes." Peng Zhixing nodded.

Song Lin Xin asked: "Is the mother the little boy's real mother?"

"No." Peng Zhixing shook his head.

"Then could it be a stepmother?" Song Lin Xin was stunned. "Is the mother the little boy's stepmother?"

Peng Zhixing hesitated for a moment and said: "Yes or no, irrelevant to the question."

Several people fell into deep thought.

Xiao Yun immediately followed up on Song Lin Xin's question and asked: "Does the little boy have any mental illness?"

"No." Peng Zhixing continued to shake his head.

Li Zhibai frowned and asked: "Did you really not make a mistake in this question? Since the little boy has no mental illness, how could he think his mother is only four years old? Wait, does he have a misunderstanding about the concept of age?"

Peng Zhixing hissed and said: "No, but I'll give a small hint: ask this question from another angle, it's very critical."

Li Zhibai looked blank.

Yan Liang looked at Peng Zhixing in confusion and said: "The question about whether there is a misunderstanding about the concept of age—the answer is no, which means the little boy isn't unclear about how age works. Then he said his mother is only four years old—is it because his mother is really four years old? Definitely not."

He suddenly paused. "His mother is only four years old—does 'four years old' not refer to age?"

"Yes, it doesn't refer to age." Peng Zhixing laughed.

"Ah? Then what does it refer to?" Xiao Yun was stunned.

Almost everyone looked blank and confused.

Just now Song Lin Xin asked his mother

A somewhat horrifying thought suddenly appeared in Lu Yan He's mind, and he asked: "Does 'four years old' mean the little boy has only known his mother for four years?"

Peng Zhixing nodded: "Yes."

Lu Yan He looked at Peng Zhixing in shock. "Was his mother abducted or bought by his father?"

Peng Zhixing nodded again: "Yes."

"Ah—" Song Lin Xin and Xiao Yun screamed at the same time and hugged each other. A look of fear appeared on Xiao Yun's face. "This is too scary!"

"So we've guessed the answer?" Lu Yan He asked.

Peng Zhixing shook his head: "There are still several parts of the riddle not guessed."

Yan Liang said: "The scene I saw at home that stunned me—does it mean seeing the little boy's mother locked at home with iron chains?"

The horror on Song Lin Xin and Xiao Yun's faces intensified.

Peng Zhixing nodded. "Yes, but it's incomplete."

Qin Zhi: "Does the reason for being stunned also include the little boy's father preparing to kidnap the teacher? I am a woman, the kindergarten teacher, and he was preparing to kidnap me, right?"

Peng Zhixing nodded. "Yes, but it's still incomplete."

A group of people looked at each other.

Meng Li sat in the corner without saying a word, and the two girls hugged each other, their faces pale.

They looked like they were truly frightened.

"Let me remind you again: every sentence and every piece of information in the riddle is useful." Peng Zhixing said.

Lu Yan He heard Peng Zhixing's words and recalled the riddle again.

——I am a kindergarten teacher. A little boy in my kindergarten is five years old this year, but one day he told me his mother is only four years old. I found it very strange, so I followed him to his house for a home visit. The scene I saw after arriving at his house stunned me.

Kindergarten teacher, four-year-old mother, I went for a home visit, stunned... all this information has been cracked; there is no uncracked information left.

Wait—

——A little boy in my kindergarten is five years old this year.

Lu Yan He paused, a chill running through his whole body, and he asked: "Is the little boy really five years old?"

Peng Zhixing revealed a knowing smile. "No."

Lu Yan He felt restless now.

"Is the little boy a dwarf? He is actually an adult. He and his father are not in a real father-son relationship, but a cooperative relationship to kidnap women, right?" Lu Yan He asked.