Chapter 203

Digging up the gold nugget was considered a major accomplishment, akin to tossing a pebble into a calm lake, causing a small ripple before returning to tranquility.

The family resumed their usual activities as if nothing had happened.

Following the conclusion of the college entrance examination in 1978, it was time for Han Cheng’s graduate school interviews. Han Cheng lived up to expectations and officially entered the interview with good results, ranking first in the country.

In an era where graduating from high school was considered a high level of education, and with education having been interrupted for ten years, the number of people eligible to take the graduate entrance examination was limited. There were only over sixty thousand qualified candidates nationwide, and only slightly over ten thousand could proceed to the interview stage. Han Cheng, the top student in the written test, was in high demand, with numerous prestigious universities vying to recruit him.

Han Cheng’s professor, who had always been impressed with him, became even more enthusiastic. He personally approached the university authorities to offer Han Cheng a generous offer to demonstrate sincerity and prevent other schools from poaching him.

In reality, the professor’s concerns were unnecessary. As long as Su Xiaoxiao was studying at Peking University, Han Cheng would never leave, regardless of how attractive the offers from other schools were.

Su Xiaoxiao and the kids had started their summer vacation a few days ago. They had already planned their itinerary, intending to visit their Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle, who were living in Shanghai, first, then return to Sujia Village to see Grandpa Su and Grandma Li Yufeng, and finally bring Xiao Bao, Da Bao, and the Yao Bao to the capital to earn some extra income.

They had to prepare extra drafts for the serialized story in the newspaper. One could say that during the summer vacation, the kids were busier than when they were in school.

The two little twins are not idle either. Ya Li’s film crew needed two child actors, preferably aged four or five, who were not only beautiful and adorable but also needed to be sensitive to the camera, clever, and not afraid of the stage or strangers. In short, they needed to evoke the desire in people to take them home just by looking at them.

The demanding director had interviewed hundreds of children but was still dissatisfied, always feeling that something was lacking—this one was too thin, that one too short, this one too dark, that one’s eyes were not lively enough… In short, nothing seemed to meet his expectations.

The director’s worries delayed the shooting schedule.

Ya Li was initially clueless about the situation. After some inquiries, she found out the reason. She wondered if the description of the child actors by the director matched Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan from their families. Could it be that he had seen Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan and then looked for children who resembled them?

Ya Li remained calm and went back to tell Su Xiaoxiao about this matter. Since it was summer vacation and the two kids were idle at home, she asked if Su Xiaoxiao minded letting Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan guest-star in a few scenes of the drama series. It would be like playing around while earning some pocket money.

Su Xiaoxiao had no objections. With Ya Li watching the twins, she knows that they’re safe, and it would be a good opportunity for Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan to broaden their horizons and experience a different life.

“Xiao Roubao should be fine, but I’m not sure about Xiao Tangyuan. Let’s ask them first. If they want to go, you can take them with you,” Su Xiaoxiao said.

Ya Li said, “If I say that the crew has delicious food, Xiao Roubao will definitely come with me. Xiao Tangyuan may not agree, so let’s first ask the children.”

As soon as Ya Li asked the kids, Xiao Roubao directly asked, “Is it fun on the set? Can I appear on TV in the future? Will they provide meals? Is the food delicious? Can I have meat? Can I eat dishes I’ve never eaten before?”

The more Su Xiaoxiao listened, the more familiar the words sounded. It seemed like the deceiving words she said to Han Cheng years ago. Xiao Roubao was like an upgraded version of herself; it was quite embarrassing.

Ya Li chuckled touched the little brat’s head and said, “Not only can you appear on TV, but you can also be on the big screen in movie theaters. Trust me, our director has gone crazy looking for actors. If you catch his eye, you can have whatever food you want.”

Xiao Roubao grinned, “Really? Then I want to eat lots and lots of ice cream! Can I?”

This summer, ice cream surpassed chocolate, ranking first on Xiao Roubao’s list of favorite foods.

Su Xiaoxiao interrupted his dream and said, “No, you can’t. Mom said you can only have one per day. If you don’t listen, Mom will stop giving you your pocket money in the future, and you won’t be allowed to have any.”

Xiao Roubao puffed up his cheeks and looked pitifully at his mother, then at Ya Li. He began to act coquettishly and said, “Aunt Ya Li…”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “It’s no use calling your Aun Ya Li. Mom’s decision is final.”

Ya Li suppressed a smile and shrugged. “We all have to listen to your mother. Having lots of ice cream might not be okay, but you can have one chocolate-flavored ice cream.”

Xiao Roubao reluctantly agreed. ‘Well, chocolate-flavored ice cream was delicious enough. Mom is not fierce, but I don’t know why everyone listens to her; even Dad would listen to her. They don’t listen to me; forget it, when I grow as tall as Dad, I will eat ice cream for every meal until I’m full! ’

In reality, even when Xiao Roubao grew into a big dumpling, he wouldn’t eat ice cream for every meal.

Although Xiao Tangyuan was no longer shy, she still didn’t like crowded places. She didn’t really want to go, but Xiao Roubao pitifully begged her, saying if she didn’t go, he wouldn’t get to eat chocolate-flavored ice cream.

Zhuzi agreed to accompany her, so she reluctantly consented.

Fantuan approached Xiao Roubao, circling around him, and examining him from left to right. Despite pinching his chubby little chin for a while, he couldn’t see any resemblance to a TV star in him. Child actors on TV were usually thin and tall, which was considered visually appealing. Xiao Tangyuan, on the other hand, always looked adorable, regardless. But Xiao Roubao was undoubtedly a chubby little fellow. Since he started jogging with them, he has become even more solid.

“Aunt Ya Li, there’s no problem with our family’s Xiao Tangyuan, but it seems like I’ve never seen a little actor like Xiao Roubao on TV before. Can he even get selected? What if your director picks Xiao Tangyuan but not Xiao Roubao? He’ll be upset, won’t he?” Fantuan voiced his concern.

Xiao Roubao angrily swatted away his big brother’s hand. “I won’t cry! How could you say that, big brother? I’m awesome. If Uncle Director doesn’t choose me, it’s because he has bad eyesight!”

Fantuan tousled his hair. “Oh, so our little meatball knows what bad eyesight is? Then you better perform well and make sure the director picks you. Don’t embarrass us.”

Xiao Roubao hmphed. “I won’t embarrass anyone. Aunt Ya Li, you can trust me. I’m the lovable Xiao Roubao. Uncle Director will definitely like me.” He clenched his fists, his chubby cheeks puffing up.

Ya Li particularly liked Xiao Roubao. He was indeed the type of child the director mentioned: charming and charismatic. So everyone enjoyed teasing him. “Alright, Aunt Ya Li will be watching your performance.”

Xiao Roubao nodded vigorously. “Yeah!”

……

Finally, all five cubs followed Ya Li to the production team.

Zhuzi went along to help Ya Li look after the younger ones, especially since Xiao Tangyuan was shy and needed his company.

Fantuan was curious to see what the film set looked like since everyone else was going. Xiao Doubao naturally couldn’t be left behind. In the end, Ya Li had no choice but to take the group of cubs back to the film set.

As soon as Ya Li stepped onto the set, she heard the director shouting angrily, “Absolutely useless! With so many children in the country, I refuse to believe there isn’t one who meets the requirements. No, this won’t do. Keep searching! Keep looking until you find the right one!”

The assistant was on the verge of tears. “Director Chen, I’ve reached out to everyone I know, begged, and pleaded. I’ve truly done my best.”

It’s not uncommon for the director to get angry, and all the staff present trembled and dared not breathe.

At that moment, Ya Li entered with a string of children. “Director Chen, I’ve brought the kids for you to see. Can you tell if they fit your vision?”

Director Chen turned to look at Ya Li, thinking she was joking, as she stood beside two handsome young men about her height. He was about to explode in anger, but then he noticed one of the young men carrying a pretty little girl on his back. The girl had two high ponytails and was blinking her curious, beautiful eyes at him.

Director Chen couldn’t believe his luck. His heart raced with excitement, and his hands were trembling. With a start, he stood up from his chair. Then he saw two more boys walking out behind the handsome young man. One of them looked about seven or eight years old, equally delicate and beautiful. He was holding the hand of another particularly spirited boy, about five or six years old—this chubby little boy with rosy lips and white teeth, exceptionally handsome, was looking at him curiously with his beautiful big eyes. His appearance was incredibly endearing; no one could resist such a child. He was practically born for “audience appeal.” Director Chen exclaimed once more, “Yes!” These were the children he had been looking for!

Director Chen couldn’t sit still anymore and ran all the way to squat in front of Xiao Roubao. His hands were trembling, but he didn’t dare touch Xiao Roubao for fear of scaring him. He tried to keep his voice soft and asked him, “Child, what’s your name? How old are you this year?”

Director Chen was filled with hope. It would be great if the child could speak. Even if he couldn’t and was mute, they could still dub his voice later. Children with such audience appeal were incredibly rare to find.

To his surprise, Xiao Roubao wasn’t shy at all. He raised his head slightly and crisply asked back, “Are you the director, Uncle?”

Not only did he speak clearly, but his voice was also so pleasant! Director Chen felt like he wanted to spin in place with joy!

He nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes, I’m the director.”

Xiao Roubao blinked at him, not forgetting that he had to perform well to satisfy the director in order to eat delicious chocolate ice cream. Xiao Roubao flashed his eight adorable baby teeth in a smile, imitating the way his Uncle Gu and his mom greeted each other the first time they met, extending his chubby hand politely. “Hello, Uncle Director, nice to meet you. My name is Han Chen, and my nickname is Xiao Roubao. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Seeing the director still standing frozen in place without shaking his hand, Xiao Roubao reluctantly withdrew his little hand and bowed politely to Director Chen.

Xiao Roubao thought to himself, “I’ve done well this time, right? I deserve a chocolate ice cream now, right?”

Chen Dao was completely dumbfounded, and when he regained his senses, he immediately burst into laughter. This child exceeded his expectations; he found a treasure! Director Chen asked Ya Li, “Did you teach him this?”

Ya Li shook her head. “No, our children have always been spontaneous. There is no need for teaching.” She reminded him, “Director Chen, you haven’t shaken hands with Xiao Roubao yet.”

“Oh, oh.” Director Chen smiled like a forty-year-old child, grabbing Xiao Roubao’s little paw and lightly shaking it twice. “Hello Xiao Roubao, my surname is Chen. You can call me Uncle Chen.”

Xiao Roubao was happy and looked very satisfied with Uncle Chen. He asked him, “Uncle Chen, can I have my chocolate ice cream now?”

Chen Dao was confused again and said, “Qiao, chocolate, ice cream? What does that mean?”

Xiao Roubao’s face instantly collapsed after listening to his words.