Chapter 9, Page 9: Fishy: The fried chicken must have been made by the Chicken King. ...
The poster shoot took place in a neighboring city, about a two-hour drive away, so the grandmother and grandson who were rushing to the shoot had to get up before dawn.
Xiao Lin arrived early that morning, bringing a glass of iced Americano to reduce swelling and refresh the mind, as was Yan Xingli's habit.
Although he went to bed early last night, Yan Xingli was still too sleepy to keep his eyes open. He sat there for a while to wake up before getting up to knock on the guest room door.
"Fish, we should head out."
The door wasn't locked; it opened with a push.
Yan Xingli turned on the lights.
The bright, daylight-like light illuminated the two little ones snuggled together on the bed, revealing everything.
Yan Xingli asked in surprise, "Xiao Hua, you're sleeping too?"
"Is your battery dead?"
Xiao Hua tiptoed out of bed, took out an apron from her belly, tied it on, straightened her hat, and strolled past him.
"Thank you for your concern. Actually, I don't need to be charged. Please remember that I am not a low-level robot that does manual labor."
"Finally, being with my fish is my most important responsibility, no matter what."
Since it doesn't need charging, wouldn't that be like getting free labor?
Yan Xingli perked up: "Do you also have an emotion crystal on you?"
Xiao Hua ignored him and went to the kitchen to busy herself with her little round hands. Yan Xingli walked to the bedside, bent down, and pulled out Qi Youyu from a bed full of all kinds of dolls.
Yu Yu has been pestering her uncle to sleep with her for the past two days. Yan Xingli is not used to it and is also afraid that his bad sleeping posture might accidentally hurt the child, so he bought a bunch of plush toys.
With these toys, Yu Yu indeed stopped bothering him.
The child's round head was facing Yan Xingli, with a giant panda doll under his face, its drool wetting the doll's dark circles.
Yan Xingli pinched Yu Yu's chubby face and shook it: "Great scientist, wake up."
"..."
Yan Xingli: "Xiaohua is stewing fish soup. If you don't get up soon, I'll release the fish back into the water."
The password was entered correctly.
The child suddenly opened his eyes, his dark pupils still somewhat dazed. A tuft of hair on his head twitched twice. His soft and cuddly appearance blended perfectly with the other toys.
"Uncle, don't release it, put it in my mouth."
Yan Xingli manually closed Qi Youyu's wide-open mouth: "Small mouth, but big mouth. You even put a whole fish in your mouth. Can you even fit it in?"
"Get up and wash up." He was in a playful mood and patted down the unruly tuft of hair. "You promised to come to work with me today, don't go back on your word."
Qi Youyu obediently sat up, blinked twice, and stretched out her two hands from under the covers.
"Uncle, hug me."
Yan Xingli naturally pulled her out of bed, helped her put on the clothes she was going to wear that day, and took the child out.
Walking into the living room, Xiaolin snapped out of her daze, stood up, pointed at Xiaohua, and asked:
"Brother Xing, where did you buy this robot? It's amazing! It can cook and even chat with me."
God knows the shock he felt when he saw a tiny robot that looked just like Doraemon float past him, and then watched it grow from a tiny little thing into a huge giant.
Yan Xingli: "I didn't buy it. My sister ordered the robot from abroad. She wasn't satisfied with it when it arrived, so she gave it to me."
"It must be very expensive, right?"
"Yes, it's not cheap."
Xiao Lin thought about it and realized that with his salary of a few thousand yuan, it would conservatively take him thirty or forty years to save up enough to buy one.
Ten minutes later, Xiaohua served breakfast enough for two adults and one child, which was both nutritious and met the requirements of Yan Xingli's strict body management.
As the three ate their meal, Xiaohua brought out the cat food and dog food, then cleaned the litter box, the cat villa, and the cat tree, doing everything in an orderly manner.
Xiaolin became increasingly envious. "They could probably work as caregivers for the elderly. It's so good to be rich."
*
Fans who knew the schedule in advance had already been waiting at the entrance of the building.
The black van slowly came to a stop. Yan Xingli quietly pulled back the curtain and glanced at the dense crowd. He felt a sense of pressure upon seeing the crowd.
May there be no haters.
It's okay if you have haters, just please don't throw rotten eggs at him!
He turned to Qi Youyu and gave her a heads-up: "Yuyu, your uncle will carry you out of the car later. Don't be afraid, don't look up. No matter what happens, your uncle will be there for you."
Qi Youyu stared at him with her big, dark eyes, without saying a word, making Yan Xingli feel intimidated.
"Uncle, are you scared?" the child asked.
"...I'm not afraid."
Qi Youyu beckoned to him, signaling him to bend down.
"What?" Yan Xingli asked warily, afraid that she would hit him on the head again.
This child has small fists, but he's surprisingly strong.
The child in the car seat kicked her short legs, urging him to bend down, otherwise she would break free.
Yan Xingli had no choice but to cover his head and bend over.
This time, it wasn't Yu Yu's little fist landing on his head; instead, the child's soft, chubby face was pressed against his cheek, and the sweet scent of milk enveloped him completely.
Qi Youyu gently stroked and patted his shoulder with her warm little hand, coaxing him softly, "Uncle, don't be afraid, I'll protect you, I'm a tough guy."
Everyone in the car couldn't help but laugh when they heard the child's words.
Yan Xingli chuckled, "No matter how awesome you are, you're still just a little bull."
Despite his words, Yan Xingli was genuinely moved by her. He unbuckled his seatbelt, unbuttoned his coat, and pulled Yu Yu into his arms before buttoning it back up, leaving only her head peeking out, completely wrapped up.
With a baby in his arms, he looks every bit the stay-at-home dad.
Yan Xingli carried Qi Youyu out of the car.
This was his first public appearance since it was revealed that he scored only 30 points on the English section of the college entrance examination. Many fans came to the scene, and enthusiastic screams filled the air. Gifts and letters poured in like a river.
Yan Xingli usually tries to collect all the mail, but today she was in a hurry and had her child with her, so it wasn't convenient for her to stay.
The director and other staff have arrived, and the filming of the other groups of guests also needs to be completed today, so time is very tight.
Those in the industry all knew that the guest originally scheduled for Yan Xingli had backed out, and some people were amused by his absence, so no one came up to greet him.
Yan Xingli was happy to have some free time, so he took Qi Youyu directly to the dressing room.
Grandfather and granddaughter went to change their clothes. Considering that they might have to take Yu Yu with them often in the future, Yan Xingli specially hired two female assistants to take care of Yu Yu.
Accompanied by her female assistant, Qi Youyu changed her clothes and went back to the dressing room to find her uncle.
Upon entering, they found an extra person in the dressing room; Director Zheng Xiaofeng was sitting on the sofa chatting with Yan Xingli.
Yan Xingli has appeared on many variety shows and knows almost all the directors of variety shows, big and small.
He had met Zheng Xiaofeng at a dinner party before; their relationship was neither close nor distant.
"uncle."
"Yes, you're back."
Yan Xingli lifted Qi Youyu onto his lap, her soft little body pressed against his chest like a giant hot water bottle.
The moment Zheng Xiaofeng saw Qi Youyu, he was immediately captivated. The child was very pleasing to the eye; he had seen many good-looking children due to his profession.
But Qi Youyu was the first person he could tell at a glance was very popular with the audience.
Zheng Xiaofeng nodded in satisfaction.
"Xiao Xing, this child is your little guest! You have such good taste! He looks like a little lucky charm."
Yan Xingli smiled and nodded proudly: "My niece."
Zheng Xiaofeng: "No wonder we look alike."
"Yuyu, greet him." Yan Xingli gently squeezed the child's hand. "This is Uncle Zheng."
Upon receiving the reminder, Qi Youyu slid off her uncle's lap, stood up straight, and said, "Hello, Uncle, my name is Yuyu."
"This is a gift to thank you for visiting my uncle."
The child opened his palm, revealing a piece of candy with a pretty wrapper featuring a cartoon character he had never seen before.
Zheng Xiaofeng smiled and accepted it: "Did your uncle teach you how to give gifts?"
“No,” Qi Youyu said crisply, “My uncle is very poor, he doesn’t have that much money, these are candies I made myself.”
It's rare to see a three-and-a-half-year-old child who can speak so fluently and clearly.
Zheng Xiaofeng thought of his youngest daughter, who was almost six years old and still spoke haltingly, which was truly worrying.
He put the candy in his pocket and said with a hint of regret, "Thank you for your kindness, but I have diabetes and can't eat it. However, I have a daughter, so I can take it home for her to eat."
Qi Youyu took out another piece of candy from her sleeve.
"Then give this candy to your little sister."
"Xiaohua told me everything, Uncle Zheng, don't be afraid, even sick people can eat the candy I make."
Yan Xingli's brow twitched slightly, and he silently searched around.
Zheng Xiaofeng didn't delve into who Xiaohua was. His assistant informed him that another group of guests had arrived, and after a brief chat, they left.
After changing clothes, I still need to do makeup and styling.
The makeup artist braided two small braids for Qi Youyu, put a knitted strawberry headscarf on her, and paired it with her Mori Girl style dress, making her look like Little Red Riding Hood from a fairy tale.
First, shoot individual posters, then shoot group posters.
The fish-shaped makeup was done quickly, and Xiaolin and her female assistant led them to the photo studio for the shoot.
Yu Yu has excellent expressiveness; she grasped the feeling the photographer wanted very quickly, and the poster shoot went extremely smoothly.
After finishing their filming, the grandfather and grandson returned to their car to rest. Yan Xingli pinched the bridge of his nose wearily, about to fall asleep.
"Really? My God, that's incredible."
The chattering voices reached Yan Xingli's ears. He glanced at Qi Youyu, who was already asleep beside him, and frowned as he spoke in a low voice.
What are you looking at?
Female assistant Tang Ying: "News!"
Realizing who was asking the question, Tang Ying broke out in a cold sweat and quickly lowered her voice, weakly saying:
"Sorry, boss, we'll stop here."
Realizing he hadn't eaten lunch yet, Yan Xingli forced himself to stay alert: "It's nothing, what news are you talking about?"
The two female assistants exchanged a glance, and Tang Ying asked cautiously, "It's the number one trending topic on Weibo, it seems like aliens have appeared in our country."
Yan Xingli's heart tightened, and he was instantly wide awake: "Are aliens coming to Earth to capture people?"
"No, no."
Tang Ying clicked on the news video: "Yesterday, a natural gas explosion occurred in a self-built house in a rural area. The house was completely destroyed, but no one died."
Yan Xingli: "???"
“Really!” Tang Ying said with great seriousness, “She was completely unharmed, not a scratch. When the explosion happened, the daughter of that family was sleeping in the house. When she woke up, she found herself lying in the rubble.”
"It can't be real." Yan Xingli's first reaction was disbelief. "Or maybe he was saved by aliens."
"Boss, you even know that!"
Tang Ying excitedly said, "Later, the experts visited the girl's home and gave her a full-body examination. They found that it was the bracelet on her wrist that saved her."
"Look, look!"
The bracelet in the picture is plain and unremarkable.
Experts conducted an experiment with the bracelet and found that as soon as it senses danger, a transparent protective shield will pop out instantly.
This protective shield is impervious to burns and smashes, and its hardness even surpasses that of steel. Most strangely, it also possesses a certain degree of toughness, allowing it to change shape according to different dangers.
The material of the protective shield does not belong to any species on Earth, and experts have yet to be able to detect its composition.
Tang Ying chuckled, "That girl said it was given to her by a little girl, and that the other girl was wearing strange clothes. Now many people suspect that it was an alien secretly visiting Earth, trying to attract the government's attention and discuss a major cooperation on human survival!"
Unfortunately, the mall's surveillance system malfunctioned that day, and the mysterious child who gave out the bracelet could not be found.
Yan Xingli frowned slightly, pinching his chin as he pondered.
Could it be yet another little alien coming back to find its ancestors?
Yan Xingli wasn't interested in the news, and after resting for a while, he woke up Yu Yu.
Yan Xingli was preparing to take the children out for a seafood feast, but Yu Yu was deeply attracted by the KFC advertisement.
"Uncle, I want to eat this."
Yan Xingli swallowed hard; he wanted to eat too.
The grandfather and grandson hit it off immediately and ordered KFC delivery to the hotel for a delicious meal.
The crispy fried chicken amazed Yu Yu. She couldn't believe there was chicken that tasted better than fish. She must have been eating the King of Chicken.
And there's the Coke that dances in her mouth.
She likes them all!
Yu Yu wiped her greasy little mouth: "Uncle, can I eat fried chicken and drink cola every day?"
"You've fallen for rice balls again?"
Qi Youyu: "I like rice balls and fried chicken. Just like Ya Ya and I are good friends, it's not surprising at all."
"But you wouldn't eat your best friend."
Yan Xingli teased her, "And you not only like rice balls, but also bread, cakes, and yogurt. Your stomach is so small, how can it hold so much food?"
The cold water poured on the fish made it look miserable.
She took a bite of fried chicken, pondered deeply, and said sadly, "I really hope I can grow up quickly."
"When I grow up, my belly will grow big too."
People are small, and so are their troubles.
Yan Xingli laughed and said, "Then I'll wait until you're a little older to eat it. I'll buy you a giant fried chicken then."
Yu Yu lowered her head: "That will take a long time."
Yan Xingli lifted Yu Yu's chin and wiped her greasy mouth clean: "You'll definitely be a little bigger next week than you are now."
A single word awakened the child from his dream.
"Yes, I grow a little bit every day."
The next day, the child asked the same question again, and Yan Xingli knew she was craving it.
"Don't you have a chef right here? Making fried chicken isn't difficult at all, Xiaohua can definitely do it."
"Xiaohua is very good."
"But it won't do it for me."
Yan Xingli was surprised: "It can disobey you sometimes?"
Qi Youyu pouted, her face showing melancholy: "Xiaohua said fried chicken and cola are unhealthy."
She was filled with deep regret. She shouldn't have made Xiaohua's personality a gentle older sister; she should have made her a child like herself.
This way, she can not only eat a lot of fried chicken, but also raise a lot of chicken kings.
A note from the author:
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