Chapter 204

Xiao Roubao looked up at Ya Li with a pitiful expression.

Ya Li patted Xiao Roubao’s head and explained: “Our child loves to eat the most. I told Xiao Roubao that if the Uncle Director likes him, he will treat him to delicious chocolate ice cream, so that’s why he came.”

Director Chen immediately understood why Xiao Roubao was so chubby. He called over his assistant and said, “Chocolate ice cream; hurry and arrange it.”

Nowadays, compared to later generations, ice cream is an extremely precious food, and whether one can buy it depends on fate, let alone choosing a flavor.

Although it’s not easy to find, the assistant is more willing to find chocolate ice cream compared to finding a child actor who would satisfy the director.

Only then did Xiao Roubao smile contentedly, squinting his eyes in happiness.

The more Director Chen looked at Xiao Roubao, the more satisfied he became. This child was really too adorable. Director Chen had to control himself from picking Xiao Roubao up and giving him a couple of kisses, afraid of scaring him away.

After calming Xiao Roubao down and composing himself, Director Chen looked at the other children.

From Xiao Doubao to Fantuan, then to Zhuzi, and finally to the Xiao Tangyuan on Zhuzi’s back, Director Chen looked at each of them and became increasingly pleased. Could it be that the most charming children in the whole country were all in Ya Li’s family? No wonder he couldn’t find a single one that matched his preferences elsewhere.

“Ya Li, are all these children yours? Don’t you only have one son?” Director Chen asked.

Ya Li took Zhuzi’s arm and said, “This is my son, and the other four are children from my best friend’s family. I watched them grow up, and they are no different from my own children.”

Director Chen nodded. “Good children, all good children,” he said, looking at Xiao Tangyuan and gently asking, “Little girl, what’s your name? What do you like to eat?”

Xiao Tangyuan, unafraid of strangers, crisply answered, “My name is Xiao Tangyuan, and I like to eat tangyuan.”

“Tangyuan, huh? Good name, and you like to eat tangyuan. Good, good, good.” Director Chen then pointed to someone and said, “You, go quickly and buy tangyuan, both sweet and savory.”

The film set had been under gloomy clouds for a long time, and today, it was rare for Director Chen to be in a good mood. Everyone felt greatly relieved, and they moved with extra speed.

The storyline required two child actors to play twins from a patriotic noble family. This was a prestigious family with a hundred-year history of serving the country and its people. During the resistance period, they used their private airline to transport supplies for the Eighth Route Army. Every generation of the family produced outstanding children who were both exemplary and dedicated to the cause. Naturally, such a family was blessed, and in the youngest generation, they had a pair of enviable twins who were loved by everyone. Not only were they adorable, but they were also patriotic little members of the Eighth Route Army, helping the army in many ways and gaining everyone’s affection.

These two child actors were essentially the charm of the entire film, and the director took them very seriously. Since the beginning of the production planning, he has been looking for suitable child actors.

Initially, Director Chen wanted to find real twins, but twins were extremely rare in any era. Even in the 21st century, even finding any twins at all was difficult, so naturally, he couldn’t find any in this era (the 1970s). He then broadened the criteria to look for two children of similar age. However, people still had a prejudice against actors, viewing them as “entertainers,” and unless a family was struggling to put food on the table, they were reluctant to send their children to a film crew. Moreover, in those days, just having enough to eat and wear was a luxury, so a truly prestigious family wouldn’t send their children to a film crew. Where could he find well-fed and chubby children? Director Chen had even visited several kindergartens but still hadn’t found any children who matched his vision.

Therefore, when Director Chen saw the appearance of Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan, it was not an exaggeration to describe them as “long drought meets timely rain.”

Chen Dao asked Ya Li again, “How many years are these two children different? But it doesn’t matter. They are siblings, and their eyebrows and eyes look similar. It’s not unreasonable to say they are twins. It’s reasonable to say that boys grow faster.”

Director Chen asked Ya Li, “How many years apart are these two kids? But it doesn’t matter. They look alike, and as siblings, it wouldn’t be too far-fetched to call them twins. It’s reasonable to say that boys grow faster.”

Director Chen was already imagining what the two children would look like in costume, and he was thoroughly pleased with the vision.

Fantuan wanted to tease the rather carefree director, so he asked him back, “How many years apart do you think they are? Guess how old I am?”

Director Chen looked at Fantuan. The young man had a smart and handsome appearance, both heroic and upright. He looked particularly clever and likable. Even with his eyes, which know how to read people and have judged countless people, Director Chen couldn’t find any flaws in these children.

Director Chen looked at Fantuan’s figure and pointed to Zhuzi, saying, “You’re the same age as him, thirteen years old?” He then pointed to Xiao Doubao and said, “He should be eight years old.”

Pointing at Xiao Roubao again, he said, “Xiao Roubao is six years old.”

Looking at Xiao Tangyuan again, he said, “Xiao Tangyuan is four years old.”

Xiao Roubao puffed up his cheeks angrily and said, “You’re the one who’s six years old! Your eyesight is bad! I’m clearly only four! My big brother is only eleven! Brother Zhuzi isn’t even twelve yet!”

Fantuan touched Xiao Roubao’s head and said, “Xiao Roubao, if you eat so much again, you will be three years older than Xiao Tangyuan in the future.”

Ya Li smiled and said, “Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan are twins. They’ll be five years old in a month, so when I heard about your casting criteria, I thought you were looking specifically for children like ours.”

Director Chen was stunned, his eyes comically widening in disbelief. “You—you said they are twins?” Xiao Roubao looked like he was a year or two older than Xiao Tangyuan.

Zhuzi put Xiao Tangyuan down and asked her to stand with Xiao Roubao. Well, they indeed didn’t look much like twins.

“When they were born, they looked quite similar, but as they grew up, they didn’t look much like each other,” Zhuzi said.

Xiao Roubao grew more and more like Han Cheng, while Xiao Tangyuan increasingly resembled Su Xiaoxiao. However, it was clear from their features that the four children were siblings, all carrying traces of Han Cheng.

Director Chen jumped up in joy and said, “Heaven’s help! Good, good, so good! How about you guys? Are you interested in playing little Eighth Route Army members?”

Xiao Doubao immediately shook his head and said, “Not interested.” His mother had taught him to express his thoughts accurately and to learn to say no to things he didn’t want to do, so Xiao Doubao bravely voiced his opinion.

Zhuzi also shook his head and said, “I’m not interested either.”

Ya Li intervened to smooth things over: “The older brothers are just worried about their younger siblings, so they came along to check things out.”

Fantuan, rubbing his chin, said, “If it’s fun, I can give it a try.”

Although Director Chen felt it was a pity, he did not force the matter. Only the roles of these two child actors were irreplaceable and particularly difficult to find. The requirements for other actors could be more flexible. To be honest, letting these children be extras might even be too eye-catching because their appearances are outstanding. Extras that looked too striking might steal the scene, so even if they were willing, they would have to be made to look plain and unattractive.

When Fantuan saw the tattered clothes and the dirt-smeared faces of the other little Eighth Route Army members, he immediately expressed his disinterest.

Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan, on the other hand, were playing roles that matched their real-life personas. They had no issue blending into their characters when they changed into their costumes. The clothes fit them perfectly as if they were tailor-made for the two. 

Their faces were clean and tidy. Xiao Tangyuan naturally looked like a little princess with two small buns; she became even more adorable and looked good no matter what she wore. Xiao Roubao, with his slicked-back hair, exuded confidence and righteousness, walking with a cold demeanor, like a real little noble young master.

There are no scenes for them today. The main focus is to see the makeup effect and take a walk to try out the scene.

Director Chen was amazed to discover that Xiao Roubao had a natural talent for acting. He had a strong desire to perform, learned lines quickly and accurately, and although he hadn’t fully learned to read, he could remember his lines perfectly after hearing them once. He even remembered his blocking, emotions, and breath marks without any errors, demonstrating a strong sense of camera presence. One take was enough without any need for retakes. Director Chen felt like he had found a treasure. If Xiao Roubao entered the industry, he would undoubtedly be a rare talent, a naturally gifted actor who could memorize lines so easily.

Xiao Tangyuan was relatively shy, which matched the character of the shy little princess she was playing. She didn’t have much interest in acting, but she was a very bright girl who learned quickly and could beautifully complete her tasks.

In short, both of these children have made Director Chen very worry-free and satisfied. The younger ones are so smart; how could the older ones be inferior? He wondered how this family raised their children. Ya Li was already an actor, which Director Chen had chosen very carefully and was highly satisfied with. After working with her, he found her not only highly professional but also extremely dedicated and low-key, never causing any trouble. After this experience, he was even more pleased with her.

The kids spent the entire afternoon on the set. Ya Li had scenes to shoot in the evening and couldn’t take them back herself, so Director Chen had his assistant drive them home in the crew’s car.

The kids had a great time on their half-day tour of the set. Thanks to Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan, all the children got to enjoy chocolate ice cream and mung bean paste tangyuan today.

When they got home, they were surprised to find a visitor. Their family rarely had guests, so Fantuan thought it might be Gu Zhanwang. However, upon entering, he realized it wasn’t him.

“Uncle Yang, why are you here?” Fantuan exclaimed in surprise. It was Yang Lin!

The thing is, today is actually the day of Han Cheng’s postgraduate interview, and he didn’t expect to encounter Yang Lin in the exam room.

Han Cheng learned that Yang Lin and his family had returned to Shanghai after leaving Sujia Village. The two elders returned to the university to teach, but Yang Lin did not return to the laboratory to continue his scientific research. Instead, he worked as a contemporary teacher at a high school in Shanghai while preparing for graduate school exams at home. Unexpectedly, they met at the exam site of Capital University.

“Fantuan, is that you? You’ve grown so tall!” 

Yang Lin almost didn’t recognize Fantuan, who had grown nearly as tall as him in just two years. How could this child have grown so much at the age of eleven?

Yang Lin looked at each child. How had they grown so fast? It seemed like they had grown up in the blink of an eye.

“Fantuan, Doubao, you should call him Uncle,” Han Cheng said.

After the Yang Lin family was rehabilitated, Han Cheng and Su Xiaoxiao told the cubs that they also planned to take them to visit Shanghai. However, at that time, the twins were still too young, and Han Cheng didn’t want to leave Su Xiaoxiao alone at home with the kids. So, they postponed the visit until this summer.

Han Cheng had taken leave from the laboratory, and this summer they planned to visit Shanghai first and then return to Sujia Village. It would be a trip to visit the elders and also a vacation. They hadn’t expected to meet Yang Lin before they even set out.

Fantuan later found out that the teacher who had been teaching Da Bao and Xiao Bao how to read and recognize characters in the back of his grandmother’s yard was actually his biological mother’s family. He had indirectly saved his uncle once, which was a surprising revelation that took him a long time to process.

It seemed that the families of the two grandmothers were destined to cross paths—an unforeseen connection.

Fantuan pulled over Xiao Doubao, and the two brothers shouted in unison, “Uncle.”

The other three cubs also shouted, “Uncle!”

Yang Lin nodded repeatedly. “Good, good, all good kids. Oh, your grandpa and grandma asked me to bring some things for you.”

Yang Lin opened the package he brought and took out the things prepared by the two elders one by one.

Like Li Yufeng, the two elders prepare five portions equally when preparing things for Su Xiaoxiao’s children.

“Fantuan and Zhuzi’s clothes may be a bit small; we didn’t expect you to grow so fast. Xiao Doubao’s clothes are barely wearable, and Xiao Roubao’s clothes may also be a bit small.” In fact, the elders had bought a size larger, but it still turned out to be small.

The cubs were very happy to receive their new clothes and thanked their uncle in unison, especially Xiao Tangyuan, who wore a very beautiful princess dress.

Zhuzi blinked and said, “Do I have it too?”

Yang Lin replied, “Everyone does.”

Zhuzi was particularly happy. What made him happiest was being treated as part of Fantuan’s family. He reached out and said, “Thank you, Uncle. It’s okay if it’s a little small; it will be cooler to wear.”

Su Xiaoxiao also said, “It’s no problem. When we get back to Sujia Village, my mother can make some minor adjustments. We were planning to go to Shanghai in a few days to see you all, and then return to Sujia Village. Since you’re here, it’s perfect. We can go together.”

Yang Lin said, “I have some matters to attend to here, so I’ll be staying a few more days. I might not be able to leave immediately.”

Su Xiaoxiao responded, “We’re not leaving right away either. We’ll probably be here for about a week or so.”

Han Cheng had just finished his interview, and the twins had accepted roles that required them to be on set for several days. The three older kids also needed to finish their serial submissions for the newspaper. Their schedule was packed and well planned out.

Yang Lin nodded. “That works. I’ll take care of my business first, and if our schedule matches, we can go together.”