Chapter 24

“Who said that?” Jing Ling responded calmly. “What I told you before was ‘in the war against Chi You, ninety percent of the divine beasts perished,’ which means that ten percent are still alive…”

Ye Chen leaped up from the heated brick bed. “Why didn’t you remind me of this earlier?!”

Jing Ling innocently replied, “Is it too late to remind you now?”

“Of course it’s too late!” Ye Chen complained in rapid succession. “If you had told me earlier where those divine beasts were, I could have sold my spiritual vegetables and radishes there! The quality was so good, but I sold them cheap before, and I lost out!”

Jing Ling remained silent for a moment, looking even more innocent. “…I didn’t know where they were.”

Ye Chen skeptically asked, “You didn’t know?”

Jing Ling replied, “Didn’t I tell you before? After the spiritual veins in the realm were destroyed, I slept for decades. It was only when the new century began and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth revived that I barely regained some ability to act… Decades have passed, how could I know where the surviving divine beasts from that war are? We didn’t have smartphones back then.”

Ye Chen felt disheartened. “So, there’s no way to find them.”

“It’s not so absolute.” Jing Ling pondered for a moment and said, “Divine beasts, more or less, have abilities that ordinary people don’t possess. Therefore, throughout history, divine beasts living in the mortal world under the guise of ordinary people, apart from those reclusive and solitary ones, are one after another, all social elites.”

“…There are too many social elites.” Ye Chen rolled his eyes.

Jing Ling hesitantly suggested, “You could open an online store and sell your products nationwide. If any surviving divine beasts happen to buy them and find them extraordinary, they should come to you voluntarily. And these divine beasts might have connections with each other…”

“Sigh… understood.” Ye Chen replied with a sense of resignation.

In the end, it still came down to making money from ordinary people first. As for whether he could do business with divine beasts, it mainly depended on fate.

…Could there be some divine beasts mingling in the entertainment industry? Ye Chen pondered. The human forms of those divine beast babies were all exquisitely beautiful, and while one being beautiful might be a coincidence, if all five babies were beautiful— even Hundun Cub was eye-catching when it had features— then it could be considered a pattern.

If divine beast infants were beautiful in human form, they probably wouldn’t look much different as adults. Given how lucrative the entertainment industry was, it wasn’t impossible for a few surviving divine beasts to pretend to be ordinary people and mingle in the entertainment industry for a living. And Ye Chen might have the chance to come into contact with some big shots in the industry…

If there really were divine beasts in the entertainment industry, how could they be found? Ye Chen came up with a few ideas, but none of them were very efficient. So he temporarily dispelled his unrealistic hopes, rubbed his ears which were slightly itchy from the cold, opened the Taobao app, and searched for the keyword “windproof hat,” only to be completely drawn in by the listing for “Northeastern Dogskin Hat Lei Feng Hat Old Man Warm Hat.”

Although this Lei Feng hat had a somewhat old-fashioned style, he didn’t need to worry about aesthetics while farming in the Mountain and Sea Realm where no one could see him. In terms of warmth, the Lei Feng hat could outperform regular knitted hats, and it also matched well with his military coat.

The hat wasn’t expensive, priced at thirty-five yuan with free shipping. According to the store’s description, there were three ways to wear it: during the coldest times, the straps under both sides of the ear protectors could be tied together to cover the ears and chin; when it wasn’t too cold, the ear protectors could naturally hang down, fluttering in the wind, giving off a free-spirited vibe; and when there was no need to block the wind at all, the ear protectors could be flipped up from both sides to the top of the head, simple and neat.

Ye Chen picked one with a black leather design that had a red five-star rating, giving off a retro vibe with a hint of swagger.

After buying the Lei Feng hat, Ye Chen took a screenshot of the order, covering the delivery address, and sent it to Gu Qiu, attempting to claim reimbursement.

Gu Qiu replied instantly: “What are you doing?”

Although tone couldn’t be discerned through text, Ye Chen inexplicably felt a sense of wariness in Gu Qiu’s words!

Ye Chen started with a wave of flattery, as a sign of respect: “Qiu Ge, I just saw your moments photos. Have you lost weight these past few days? Your facial contours are even sharper now. Qiu Ge, if you don’t personally participate in filming, there would be nothing for us male actors to do.”

Gu Qiu remained calm, having vaguely understood Ye Chen’s style recently. He didn’t easily buy into flattery, but cautiously replied with a question mark: “?”

Ye Chen: “Can I get reimbursement for this hat?”

It was a desperate move!

Gu Qiu: “…”

Ye Chen immediately seized onto his agent’s weakness: “It’s too cold in the mountain valley, and the crew doesn’t provide hats. I think this can be considered a work-related expense.”

Gu Qiu couldn’t hold back: “Are you going to stroll around wearing that in public?!”

Ye Chen: “I won’t go to the streets, just around the village… Can it be reimbursed?”

Gu Qiu instantly sent an eighty-eight yuan red packet to shut Ye Chen up, to prevent him from saying more nonsensical things that might make his blood boil: “Fine, fine, I’ll reimburse you, but if someone takes a photo of you wearing this thing, we’ll both die together.”

Ye Chen sighed softly, “Why so harsh? People already say I’m like the young daughter-in-law of the Shen family, ranking number one in the hot searches, but I don’t see you getting so worked up…”

Gu Qiu: “What’s there to get worked up about? It’s obviously a joke. It saves me from spending money to buy you a hot search.”

Ye Chen’s eyes lit up, “Then… Can I cash in the money saved from buying trending topics? Even half is fine. You can consider the hot search as something you bought for me.”

Gu Qiu: “Shut up, I have a headache.”

Ye Chen: “Qiu Ge, how about one-third off?”

Gu Qiu threw another eighty-eight yuan red packet: “Just shut up if there’s nothing important.”

Ye Chen obediently kept his mouth shut, quietly making a fortune.

After a while, Gu Qiu, who had been adamant about not letting Ye Chen speak, suddenly called him, his excitement evident in his thick hometown accent. “Xiao Gao said you seem to have gone to help fellow villagers with farming?! Isn’t the courtyard enough for you to cultivate? What are you planting in the dead of winter?”

Ye Chen felt unjustly accused, like a June snowfall in summer. “…It’s not true! Xiao Gao is talking nonsense!”

That’s my own field, not the villagers’!

Gu Qiu, feeling certain that Xiao Gao wasn’t making things up, gritted his teeth in frustration. “Damn it… Next time you go on set, I’m going to follow you the whole time. Let’s see if you can pull off any more tricks…”

“Oh, by the way, Qiu Ge,” Ye Chen changed the subject, “could you help me get some more endorsements or advertising contracts?”

When it came to business matters, Gu Qiu let out a heavy sigh. “I have a few contacts here, and I’m currently negotiating for you. But for these endorsements, we either don’t take them, or we only accept those with a certain level of sophistication…”

Ye Chen tentatively asked, “Can you get me deals with clothing brands?”

He had already worn through all the designer clothes he had at home, and it wasn’t good for a celebrity to keep wearing the same outfits. Besides, with commercial collaborations, sponsors would often provide clothes.

Gu Qiu sensed there was more to Ye Chen’s request, so he replied cautiously, “There aren’t any suitable clothing brand deals available at the moment.”

With Ye Chen’s current level of fame, top-tier brands wouldn’t collaborate with him yet. In such circumstances, Gu Qiu preferred to wait rather than have Ye Chen associated with random brands that could lower his brand positioning.

Ye Chen pressed on, “What about everyday items? Food endorsements would also be fine.”

Gu Qiu fell into silence. “…”

Ye Chen, sounding like an old hand, continued, “Anyway, I hope you can arrange something practical, because I’m a down-to-earth artist and I don’t like frivolous things…”

Concerned about his own cardiovascular health, Gu Qiu didn’t hesitate to end the call without another word.

Seeing that the divine beast cubs were also rested enough, Ye Chen hoisted his shovel and gave a shout, and the divine beast cubs immediately got ready.

Ye Chen had anticipated that clothing for the divine beast cubs would be a big issue, so while he still had some money, he had bought a lot of children’s clothes from the wholesale market. Nearly half of the several thousand yuan he spent went toward buying clothes for the cubs.

Anyway, not having to buy children’s clothes is very good… gratifyingly thought the impoverished father.

…

With the help of the divine beast cubs, Ye Chen managed to complete the task of planting ten thousand Winter Velvet Grass in just five days, while still juggling his filming commitments.

After completing the task, Jing Ling promptly sent two notifications. One was a reminder of receiving the task reward of Wo Shui, and the other was a notification of Fenghuang Cub awakening, urging Ye Chen to attend to it immediately.

“Where is the Wo Shui?” Ye Chen plunged the shovel into the snow and looked around, wearing his brand new Lei Feng hat.

The Winter Velvet Grass he and Qiongqi Cub planted together had already sprouted in batches. The first batch planted five days ago had stems that were already ten centimeters tall, each one lush and slender with pale flower buds dangling from the grass tips, presenting a verdant scene devoid of any winter traces. However, the Winter Velvet Grass planted by Pulu, Hou, and Hundun Cubs had just sprouted tender yellow shoots, a clear indication of the influence of the Shennong bloodline.

Ye Chen scanned the area but didn’t spot any traces of Wo Shui.

“I have the ability to manifest Wo Shui,” Jing Ling explained, “You can choose a location to place Wo Shui in the overview of the Mountain and Sea Realm on the mobile app… But for now, you should go take care of Fenghuang Cub.”

“Alright,” Ye Chen replied, rubbing his hands with delight—having learned from the experience with Hundun Cub, he already knew the attributes of Fenghuang Cub. Covered entirely by controllable temperature flames, Fenghuang Cub served as an effective heater, comparable to a row of radiators. With no heating in the courtyard during the harsh winter, the hens in the barn had been laying one egg less per day on average, and even the chicks’ growth seemed to have slowed down. Ye Chen had been debating whether to invest heavily in restoring home heating when Fenghuang Cub woke up just in time.

Ye Chen entered the separate space of the east wing room and sure enough, saw a fluffy little heater standing on the ground… Fenghuang Cub.

Fenghuang Cub was covered in feathers that burned perpetually, its round body chubby like a fully inflated water balloon. Its two stick-like legs stood arrogantly, and the small, sagging belly flesh couldn’t find a comfortable position. It strained to lift its tiny head to its highest point, its half-opened black bean eyes revealing a hint of arrogance, while the three strands of radiant flames on its head curled up energetically.

“Hello, I’m Ye Chen, the current master of the Mountain and Sea Realm…” Ye Chen squatted in front of Fenghuang Cub and introduced himself, but the chick tilted its head slightly, its tender beak closed tightly, its eyelids drooping as it glanced at Ye Chen sideways, as if assessing whether the mortal in front of it was worthy of its care. After Ye Chen finished speaking, Fenghuang Cub remained silent, lazily flapping its wings to shake off a few sparks to indicate that it understood.

Ye Chen stared at Fenghuang Cub for a moment, and suddenly, a familiar face flashed in his mind.

This fat bird… why does it look so much like my Shen Ge?

Ye Chen suppressed a smile. “I’ll call you Huang Huang, alright? Feng Feng sounds a bit awkward.”

Moreover, even the homonym Feng Feng is similar to Shen Mofeng^[1]凤/風 – Feng can be either of these two characters. And Fenghuang(Phoenix) is 凤凰…

Fenghuang Cub lightly opened its tender beak, its gaze cold and elegant. “Jiumi, Jiumi.”

Alright, mortal.

“Huang Huang, let me tell you about the current situation.” Ye Chen adopted the tone of a weary father, subtly pouring out his grievances to Fenghuang Cub, “Including you, there are currently six divine beast children living with me. I have to take care of your lives, make ends meet, and repair the spiritual veins of the Mountain and Sea Realm, which is very busy and tiring. So sometimes, I need the children’s help with some tasks…”

Fenghuang Cub puffed up its thick chest feathers proudly and said, “Jiumi Jiumi?”

Do you, a mere mortal, have a favor to ask of me?

Ye Chen lifted the chubby ball of fluff, placed it in his palm, and walked out of the separate space of the east wing room, greeting it along with the other five divine beast babies waiting in the courtyard. Fenghuang Cub maintained a haughty posture throughout, looking down on the other five creatures below.

Qiongqi Cub raised an eyebrow. “Did you sleep without a pillow? Can’t lower your head?”

Fenghuang Cub’s eyes narrowed, glaring at Qiongqi Cub, and scolded in a childish tone, “Jiumi!”

Shuzi^[2]Shuzi – an ancient (sophisticated) curse word used by superiors to their subordinates. It’s a demeaning way to refer to someone. Originally it refers to a servant boy. The modern term would … Continue reading you dare thus!

Military Strategist Rabbit Head, unfazed by the situation, softly explained, “Avian divine beasts all have bad tempers. When the San Zu Wu^[3]San Zu Wu – Three-Legged Golden crow that lives in the sun. The sanzuwu in a disc represents the sun and is also one of the Twelve Ornaments that is used in the decoration of formal imperial … Continue reading wakes up, they might peck at each other every day… By the way, I don’t think I’ve seen San Zu Wu in the East Wing room. Have you guys seen it? Maybe it hasn’t transformed into a baby yet?”

The other divine beast babies shook their heads. “We haven’t seen San Zu Wu.”

“Jiumi, Jiumi?” Who does the San Zu Wu think it is, being pecked by Fenghuang Cub? Fenghuang Cub raised its head abruptly, attempting to express disdain with vigorous body language, but due to excessive force, lost its balance and fell backward onto Ye Chen’s palm, its feathers askew.

Why is this chubby bird so silly? Wasn’t Shen Mo like this when he was young, hahaha… Ye Chen thought irreverently, carrying Fenghuang Cub into the urgently needed heated west wing room.

Inside the west wing room, the sound of chickens filled the air. Forty chicks purchased in batches over the past few days and a hundred chicks crowded on the sunlit ground, resembling a thick carpet, with twenty larger chickens guarding the perimeter.

Seeing the zookeeper enter, the chickens clamored for food.

The rooster crowed loudly, “Cook-a-doodle—”

The hen clucked, “Cluck cluck cluck—”

“Jiu… Jiumi?” Fenghuang Cub’s eyes narrowed again, realizing that this matter was definitely not simple!

Ye Chen gently placed Fenghuang Cub, with its darting black eyes, onto the ground of the west wing room and gently coaxed, “The friends I just greeted with you are also divine beasts cubs. They are all well-behaved and understand that they need to help Gege with some household chores within their capabilities. Hou Hou even helps me clean up after these chickens’ feces. So…”

Ye Chen’s gaze was kind, deliberately imitating the soft tone of a child, attempting to establish a closer relationship with Fenghuang Cub. “Our Huang Huang, are you willing to be a good little friend too? Is Gege right? Look at these chickens, they’re very cold and need warmth…”

“Jiumi, Jiumi!” Fenghuang Cub shook its head vigorously, causing sparks to fly, indicating its absolute refusal to be a good little friend!

Ye Chen: “…”

Is Fenghuang Cub so difficult to deal with?

After a moment of oppressive silence, Ye Chen lowered his voice and threatened the little Fenghuang Cub, “Don’t you want to eat chicken and eggs? Let me tell you, our family is actually very poor… If these more than one hundred chickens aren’t well cared for, we’ll have to eat cabbage and potatoes three times a day.”

The picky Fenghuang Cub flapped its wings in frustration, flew out crookedly for a distance, then crashed back into the chicken coop because its wings were too tender and its flesh too plump. “Jiumi ya!”

Help!

“You behave yourself, and tonight, big brother will make chestnut stewed chicken.” After scolding, Ye Chen tossed out some sweet dates, then picked up the slightly scalding Fenghuang Cub and placed it among the trembling little chicks. Sensing the heat source, the chickens crowded around the little Fenghuang Cub, who was furious and pecking wildly left and right. “Jiu jiu! Jiumi!”

Common chicken dare thus! Stay away from Huang Huang ya!

Ye Chen threatened, “If you peck them to death, big brother won’t be able to give you any chestnut stewed chicken to eat. By then, while the other children eat chicken, you’ll have to watch from the sidelines…”

Fenghuang Cub froze for a moment, tears filling its black bean eyes in an instant. Then, it blinked, and two strings of small fireballs fell down with a splash. “Jiu jiu jiu jiu jiu!”

How can the master of the Mountain and Sea Realm be so poor!

Forced by Ye Chen’s coercion, Fenghuang Cub stayed in the chicken coop as a heater, feeling utterly hopeless. Just a few minutes ago, the proud little fluffball was crying uncontrollably, and the ground was covered in flames.

Feeling guilty for making the chubby bird, strangely resembling Shen Ge, cry, Ye Chen felt a twinge of regret, but when he thought about the soaring electricity bills, his conscience disappeared instantly…

It had been a week since the crew moved to the outdoor set. The conditions in the village were harsh, and meat was scarce. Although Ye Chen had cooked delicious meals for Shen Mo these past few days, they were all vegetarian. A couple of days ago, the production team went door-to-door to buy chickens with cash, but the villagers weren’t so particular about their cooking, and while Ye Chen could stomach the chicken stew with mushrooms that came out of the pot, Young Master Shen found it too tough and barely touched it.

So tonight, Ye Chen planned to kill a spiritual chicken and treat his Shen Ge to some meat.

Wrapped in a warm military coat, Ye Chen bowed respectfully in front of the statue of Guan Gong^[4]Guan Gong/Guan Yu/ Guan Er Yi( Lord Guan the Second) – a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Guan Yu’s life was … Continue reading left behind by the former owner of the courtyard—so poor that even the returned Guan Er Ye was borrowed—then picked up a kitchen knife, full of killing intent, and spent ten minutes in the chicken coop… Negotiating with the two chickens to be slaughtered, they got along so well that they were almost ready to become sworn brothers in the Peach Garden^[5]The Oath of the Peach Garden is a fictional event in the 14th century Chinese historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. “When saying the names Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, … Continue reading.

“Cock-a-doodle-doo—” “Cock-a-doodle—”

“…Ai, good lei ^[6]Sentence-final particle carrying a note of approval, goodbye Chicken, goodbye.” Ten minutes later, Ye Chen raised the kitchen knife, waved politely and nodded, soon after he turned around and closed the door of the west wing room, returning to the courtyard.

…Although the spiritual chicken was delicious, it was too obedient. Ye Chen had never killed anything in his life except flies and mosquitoes. Asked to kill such an obedient chicken, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

The divine beast babies who had been watching the whole time: “…”

Ye Chen chuckled awkwardly, “Hehe, well…”

“Gege, let me handle the killing.” Qiongqi Cub transformed back into its original form and howled skyward with a fierce momentum, forcefully pushing open the door to the West Wing Room. With one swipe, it knocked down the rooster and immediately grabbed its neck, shaking its head and dragging the rooster, which was a circle larger than itself, into the courtyard. While tearing a big wound to let the rooster bleed, it emitted a tender low growl from its throat.

Even though Qiongqi was on the side of mortals during the battle, it had always been listed among the Four Perils since ancient times because it was indeed quite ferocious and bloodthirsty.

While Qiongqi Cub was soloing with the rooster, Hou Cub was cheering on the side, leading other cubs to clap their hands in unison. The cubs clapped their chubby hands and chanted in unison, “Qiongqi Qiongqi! Extremely ferocious!^[7]*Qióng qí qióng qí! Qióng xiōng è jí. – ji and qi have the same character and pronunciation”

Ye Chen was puzzled, “Isn’t it supposed to be ‘fiendish^[8]*Qióng xiōng jí è. The cubs switched the last two characters for it to rhyme.’?”

Hou Cub replied, “But it rhymes! Qiongqi Qiongqi! Extremely ferocious!”

Qiongqi Cub didn’t seem to mind that “extremely ferocious” wasn’t a compliment. It proudly shook its fur and bit another rooster to death.

Blood flowed in the courtyard of the quadrangle courtyard. Qiongqi Cub transformed back into its harmless toddler form, raised its chin proudly at the two chicken corpses, and said calmly, “Gege, they’re all done.”

“Good, good…” Boss Ye picked up the two bodies, feeling as if he were in a gangster movie for a moment. He couldn’t help but get into character, and with a cold voice, he ordered, “Clean up the blood on the ground.”

Even more convincing!

Members of the criminal gang used children’s basins to fetch water and wash away the bloodstains in the courtyard, destroying the evidence.

In the West Wing Room, Fenghuang Cub peeked outside through the crack in the door, “…Jiu.”

…Huang Huang often felt out of place with you guys because it wasn’t stupid.

…

Later that evening, when Shen Mofeng knocked on the door of the farmhouse courtyard, he saw Ye Chen sitting on a small stool, wrapped up tightly, using boiling water to scald the chicken and plucking its feathers.

“Shen Ge, look!” Ye Chen plucked a handful of feathers, pinched the half-naked chicken by the neck, and shook it, his eyes shining brightly. “A freshly killed chicken! I’ll make chestnut stewed chicken for you tonight. The chicken I stew will definitely not be tough!”

In other words, no matter how it’s stewed, the meat of a spiritual chicken is hard to toughen.

“…Hmm.” Shen Mofeng stepped through the chicken feathers on the ground and stood next to Ye Chen, silently watching.

Ye Chen, wrapped in a military coat, didn’t look tacky or old-fashioned at all. His skin was translucently white, and only his face was exposed, framed by large areas of pine green on his body, which inexplicably reminded people of a lotus floating on a deep pool.

Suddenly, this little lotus turned its head, deftly plucking chicken feathers, and cheerfully said, “I’m done. I’ll bring it to you. You can go rest.”

“I didn’t come here to wait for food.” Shen Mofeng raised the script in his hand. “In the past few days of filming, I summarized the problems you’ve encountered… Tonight, I’ll practice tomorrow’s scenes with you to address these issues.”

This was one-on-one targeted guidance from the Film Emperor. Ye Chen was overjoyed, and two dimples appeared on his cheeks as he hurriedly said, “Thank you, Shen Ge!”

“I’m sacrificing my rest time to give you a small class…” Shen Mofeng smiled and squatted down beside Ye Chen. “Call me Teacher Shen.”

Ye Chen obediently said, “Teacher Shen.”

Shen Mofeng was tickled by this obedient teenage voice, and that tickle flowed into his brain along with his blood, making him unable to resist pushing further. He suppressed his urge and softly asked, “Is Teacher Shen good?”

“Good.” Ye Chen was young, and it was common for older actors to tease him occasionally, so he didn’t think anything was inappropriate.

Shen Mofeng gently bit his lip and smiled, “After Teacher Shen finishes the lesson, there will be a test. Are you afraid?”

If he was afraid, he could beg Teacher Shen with a softer tone… Teacher Shen might go easy on him.

If he wasn’t afraid, failing the test from Teacher Shen would result in punishment. He would have to stand in the corner and might even get a spanking…

Shen Mofeng pondered a few subtle hints in his mind and carefully chose his words before speaking, intending to stop after hinting at it, not teasing too excessively, fearing that his little friend would be embarrassed to death.

His little friend seemed contradictory: on one hand, he couldn’t wait to make things official with him, going to his room every night to shower; on the other hand, he would feel uneasy and awkward at the slightest mention of being teased as a “little wife” by fans.

However, having acted for so many years, Shen Mofeng had analyzed countless roles and scripts. He had the ability to interpret the deep-seated psychology beneath Ye Chen’s contradictory facade.

The act of borrowing the bathroom to take a shower seemed overly proactive, but in fact, it was perfectly in line with his friend’s innocent and shy personality.

Because…

As the saying goes: Ye Chen’s heart is known to all.

This means that everyone knows Ye Chen loves Shen Mofeng to death, and Shen Mofeng can even understand Ye Chen’s little scheming without thinking too much. But throughout the entire process of teasing Shen Mofeng in the bathroom, all Ye Chen actually did was “borrow the bathroom,” leaving all the decision-making power to Shen Mofeng. Even if he succeeded in making a move, it was good, but if he didn’t, there would be no loss, because in the end, he was just borrowing a bathroom, and he was actually very innocent.

It’s like a flower by the roadside. This little flower is plucked, smelled, put in a pocket, or even eaten by passersby. These are all choices made by passersby, and the flower is just innocently and quietly blooming.

If we take a step back and look at Ye Chen’s behavior over the past two months from a macro perspective, Shen Mofeng will see the two paths laid out by Ye Chen.

One is the conservative path—trying to get close in every possible way, pushing the relationship forward with restraint and patience, allowing feelings to gradually warm up. This conventional path is difficult to walk, perhaps even impassable. If fate does not allow it, the two of them will only be ordinary friends who occasionally act together, and nothing more.

The other is the radical path—trying a kiss when the atmosphere is good, or playing tricks like borrowing the bathroom… Walking on this path, if they are lucky one day, their relationship will instantly turn from fellow actors to lovers, reaching the peak in one step.

Ye Chen was simply walking on both of these paths at the same time. After all, he didn’t have much time, only these three months of shooting together in the film. So, even if his personality was reserved, he had to reluctantly try the second path.

… A shy and cunning child.

Actually, Shen Mofeng leaned more towards the first path. He was willing to try walking with Ye Chen on the first path, getting to know each other more, spending more time together, and also waiting for his little friend to grow up a bit more. This way, the feelings simmered slowly like a low flame, not wasting the loneliness and waiting of so many years.

Ye Chen, completely focused on plucking chicken feathers, had no idea that Shen Mofeng had already written a complete character biography for him in his mind!

And the most crucial part wasn’t writing the character biography…

The most crucial part was that the character biography Shen Mofeng wrote was vastly different from the one Ye Chen had written himself!

Or rather, they were basically two different characters!

…

Speaking of whether Ye Chen was afraid of Shen Teacher’s exam, after several times when Shen Mofeng had finished teaching Ye Chen acting, he would actually have Ye Chen immerse himself in a role to see if the flaws pointed out had improved. Ye Chen was used to Shen Mofeng’s process and shook his head straightforwardly, “I’m not afraid of exams, you can test me.”

With that, he tossed the naked chicken, cleaned of its feathers, into the basin with a loud clang.

Shen Mofeng’s heart skipped a beat, and there was a momentary confusion in the logical chain in his mind. He closed his eyes and asked, “Is there anything I can help with?”

“Cooking?” Ye Chen shook his head vigorously, very polite. “No, no need.”

But Shen Mofeng was unwilling. Following Ye Chen into the kitchen, he saw chestnuts boiling in the pot and said, “I’ll peel the chestnuts.”

“You don’t need to,” Ye Chen firmly refused, trying to reject Shen’s offer. He scooped up two pounds of chestnuts bought from a villager, rinsed them in cold water to prevent burning his hands, and then poured them into a small basin. “I can do it myself. You sit down and rest.”

“Are you my nanny?” Shen Mofeng chuckled lightly. “I said I’ll peel them.” With that, he took the small basin from Ye Chen’s hand, almost grabbing it with a sense of urgency.

“No, I’m just afraid you’ll hurt your hands.” Ye Chen didn’t dare to let Young Master Shen do the work. He reached out to grab the basin of chestnuts back, but Shen Mofeng raised an eyebrow and, half jokingly, half teasingly, said, “You’re not a housekeeper, then are you Shen’s little wife?”

“Even, even less!” Ye Chen was sensitive to this term, stuttering for a moment.

But Shen Mofeng didn’t let him off. He chuckled softly and said, “Times have changed. Don’t spoil your man too much. If it’s time to cook, let him cook.”

Ye Chen was almost choked by these words and immediately stopped being polite, quickly fetching a stool. “Then… you sit here and peel them. If you get tired, just leave them there.”

Shen Mofeng smiled with his eyebrows and picked up the script, sitting on the small stool to peel chestnuts. Ye Chen, on the other hand, gutted the chicken and cleaned out the residual blood from the cavity. After finishing with the chicken, Ye Chen began chopping it with the butcher’s knife he had borrowed from a villager, thinking that this knife was really handy. He would look around later to see if there were any available for less than fifty yuan. 

Ye Chen had only chopped a few times when, not even finishing a chicken leg, the young master Shen, who was determined to show off his skills in the kitchen today, leaned over and commanded, “Give me the knife, I’ll chop.”

“No, no, this definitely won’t work!” Ye Chen vigorously shook his head. “You definitely haven’t cut anything before. Don’t cut your hand…”

Shen Mofeng gave him a cold look. “Kid, who do you think you’re looking down on?”

Ye Chen was surprised. “Have you ever cut vegetables?”

“… No,” Shen Mofeng glared at him.

Ye Chen: “…”

Shen Mofeng impatiently clicked his tongue and pinched Ye Chen’s slender arm under the military coat. “With your…”

Even though he was a man, being questioned by the same gender about his strength made Ye Chen unable to speak out in anger. His cheeks puffed up, resembling a pufferfish.

What’s wrong with being skinny! I may be skinny, but I have muscles! I wield a hoe and work in the fields every day, don’t you think I have the strength to do it?!

Shen Mofeng saw Ye Chen’s annoyed expression and chuckled softly, swallowing back the latter part of the sentence that would hurt his pride. Then, he reached down and pinched Ye Chen’s left wrist with two fingers, pressing Ye Chen’s hand against his own well-built bicep.

Three seconds later, feeling that his strength would be overwhelmed, Ye Chen reluctantly handed over the butcher’s knife, muttering like a virtuous wife, “Make sure you chop carefully, don’t cut yourself…”

“I know.” Shen Mofeng, with great interest, twisted a few fingers of Ye Chen’s left hand that he had just held, and with his other hand, he gripped the butcher’s knife.

The fire in the stove was burning vigorously, and the chopped spiritual chicken meat and chestnuts in the big iron pot made a bubbling sound, blending the rich aroma of meat with the sweet scent of chestnuts in the air. Ye Chen carefully added seasoning to the pot while Shen Mofeng held chopsticks, stirring a basin of batter vigorously, breaking up the lumps.

Half of the batter was made of cornmeal, half of white flour, with some other ingredients thrown in. The ready-made farmhouse iron pot was right in front of them. Ye Chen planned to use the hot pot wall later to bake a circle of cornmeal pancakes. After they were done, they could dip them in the chicken stew, which was simply too delicious to describe.

So, when Xiao He found Shen Mofeng in the kitchen, what he saw was this scene of rural life with men farming and weaving…

…F*ck, did I fall into some parallel universe? Xiao He looked at Shen Mofeng sitting on a small stool next to Ye Chen, stirring batter, with a look of disbelief.

Is this still my Big Young Master Shen, who doesn’t even dip his fingers in spring water?

Is this still my Big Young Master Shen, who does whatever he wants, limitless in his actions?

Is this still my Big Young Master Shen, who doesn’t even know how to turn on an electric kettle?

Straight guy Xiao He couldn’t understand.

“Is the batter stirred well, Shen Ge?” Ye Chen estimated that he could start making the pancakes, so he turned his head and asked.

Xiao He looked at Ye Chen, who was ordering Shen Mofeng around to work, with a gaze that seemed to say, “You’re dead, you’re out of the circle”: “…”

Wow, is this kid getting conceited just because he cooked a few times for Young Master Shen? I have no problem with you, kid, but being arrogant in front of your Shen Ge can easily ruin your acting career. There have been precedents…

Unexpectedly, Shen Mofeng, in a very good mood, raised both hands and handed the batter to Ye Chen, saying in a gentle voice, “It’s done.”

Xiao He: “…”

At this moment, Shen Mofeng became aware of Xiao He’s presence.

Shen Mofeng: “Is there something you need?”

“No,” Xiao He recovered and shook his head, “I just couldn’t find you anywhere, so I came to take a look.” Pausing for a moment, Xiao He suddenly remembered the recent online teasing of Shen Mofeng bullying the newcomer Ye Chen by some fans. With a sudden inspiration, he suggested, “Hey Shen Ge, how about I take a photo of you guys like this? You cooking together is quite cute, I think the fans would love it…”

In front of Ye Chen, Xiao He didn’t feel comfortable mentioning those fans teasing Shen Mofeng, but Shen Mofeng posting a photo of himself helping Ye Chen in the kitchen could serve as a clarification against the bullying accusations.

“Sure,” Shen Mofeng readily agreed, looking at Xiao He and said, “Let me borrow your clothes.”

Xiao He was wearing the same military coat as Ye Chen, which Shen Mofeng found ugly, so he put on his own jacket.

Xiao He quickly took off the military coat, and Shen Mofeng put it on, then took the bowl of batter from Ye Chen’s hands.

While Ye Chen scooped the batter to make pancakes, Shen Mofeng held the bowl, and the two of them stood in front of the stove wearing identical military coats.

Xiao He took several group photos from different angles and looked down at them, quite satisfied. “Not bad, not bad, the atmosphere is very warm…”

Of course it’s warm, Shen Mofeng smirked. With such a cute little wife…

It’s definitely warm, Ye Chen thought to himself. With a *benevolent father, filial son^[9]Love between parents and children, how could it not be warm?

The author has something to say:

Ye Qiongqiong’s account book today:

Today’s income: 176 yuan in red envelopes + 1 free heating (Fenghuang Cub: ? Jiuli a mi!)

Today’s expenses: two roosters, chestnuts 5 yuan/catty * 2 catties = 10 yuan, Lei Feng hat 35 yuan/each * 1 = 35 yuan

Balance: 827.5 + 176 – 35 – 10 = 958.5 yuan

Shen Mofeng’s account book today:

– Chen Chen looks so good in military coats.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability +10

Current favorability: 50/500, three stars.

– Chen Chen made chestnut stew for me, his little hands are so tender, he plucked feathers for me and chopped chicken bones.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability +20

Current favorability: 70/500, three stars.

– Chen Chen pampers me, takes care of me, doesn’t let me do chores, and even won’t let me peel chestnuts.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability +10

Current favorability: 80/500, three stars.

– Letting me call him Teacher Shen, and he calls it so obediently and softly.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability +10

Current favorability: 90/500, three stars.

Readers are very concerned about the issue of heating in the northern winter chicken coop, which has been properly resolved! ╰(*°▽°*)╯

(Reader: ? I wasn’t really concerned, you know.)

PS: Personally, I think Shen Mofeng is the craziest in the self-made passionate group. Although he falls in love slower than the previous three young men, and currently his flirting is relatively subtle, his craziness has a lot of details in it! He can analyze wildly, but in the end, he doesn’t understand anything, hahaha…

I smoke, drink, and have a wild haircut, let Shen Mofeng wildly analyze, forcibly pull the favorability bar to 1500, let Qiongqiong wear loose and faded underwear, let the Phoenix Baby be a heater in the chicken coop, but I know I’m a good author, I’m not a devil…

TN:

P.S. The outfit described here is the one Chen Chen has on in the cover of the novel!