While the adults waited at home for the little one, the highly ambitious and hardworking little one had no intention of returning just yet. All he wanted was to make money.
By the time the evening glow painted the sky and the ground began to cool, the little one finally packed his backpack.
He hopped into his small car and set off home with a putt-putt-putt.
His little car had undergone another modification.
He had begged his uncle to remove the two rear seats, making more room for his collection of “treasures”.
“Qin Xun, how much money did we make today?”
“Thirty-two yuan and seventy cents.”
“That’s so much!”
Feng Yuan gripped the steering wheel, his chubby little face flushed with excitement.
As they passed by a shop, Feng Yuan pulled over.
He made a request to Qin Xun: “Qin Xun, Yuan Yuan wants to buy something for Dad, Big Dad, Grandpa, and Grandma.”
“Okay.”
Qin Xun knew the little one’s nature well.
So, he divided the money into two portions and gave one to Feng Yuan.
Clutching the money, Feng Yuan dashed into the shop with quick, determined steps.
He picked out what he thought were the most delicious ice pops for his dad, big dad, grandpa, and grandma.
Ice pops were quite expensive these days. The flavor he liked cost three yuan each.
Two daddies, plus grandpa and grandma, himself, and Qin Xun…
Feng Yuan pulled out the calculator from his pocket and tapped away.
A few seconds later.
After calculating the total, Feng Yuan quietly put one ice pop back.
Six ice pops would cost eighteen yuan.
When Qin Xun gave him the money, he had said his share was sixteen yuan.
Eight is bigger than six.
He didn’t have enough money.
“Little one, why did you put one back?”
“Yuan Yuan doesn’t have enough money.”
Feng Yuan tilted his little face up, looking at the kind shop owner, and placed all his money on the glass counter.
He explained, “Yuan Yuan wants to buy for two daddies, grandpa, grandma, Qin Xun… and Yuan Yuan wants one, too.”
Listening to him count his family members, the shop owner’s eyes sparkled with growing warmth.
“What a filial little child! This one’s on me.”
“Since you’re buying so many, I can give you a discount.”
The owner offered an extra one for free and only charged him fifteen yuan.
But Feng Yuan still handed over all sixteen yuan.
The little toddler, now holding the bag of ice pops, bowed to the owner.
“Thank you! Wishing you great prosperity in your business!”
“Good! With your kind words, Uncle is sure to prosper.”
The shop owner couldn’t help but adore the filial and sweet-talking little one.
His admiration didn’t stop there. He shared the shop’s surveillance footage with his daughter.
“Look at this little kid. He’s so young and already knows how to be filial to his family. And you, you rebellious girl, won’t rest until you’ve driven your old dad crazy!”
The owner shared the video, hoping to awaken his rebellious daughter’s sense of filial duty.
But his daughter wasn’t having any of it.
“Stop comparing me to other people’s kids! If you’re so impressed, why don’t you make him your son instead!”
The owner’s daughter, just sixteen and deep in her rebellious phase, was showing signs of puppy love. Lately, father and daughter had been arguing frequently, so upon seeing the video, without even looking closely at the child, she immediately snapped back at her dad.
As the two launched into another argument, Feng Yuan, already driving away in his car, had no idea he had sparked yet another family dispute.
Eager to get the ice pops home quickly, he kept his foot on the gas pedal the whole way without letting up.
Half an hour later.
Feng Yuan wiped the sweat from his little face and drove his toy car into the living room.
“Dad!”
“Grandpa!”
“Grandma!”
As soon as he got out of the car, Feng Yuan, holding a bag of ice pops, called out cheerfully, “Yuan Yuan is back!”
Feng Yuan first handed Qin Xun his ice pop.
He then carried the rest of the ice pops in the plastic bag to distribute to the others.
Soon, his dad, grandpa, and grandma all came out.
Feng Yuan handed out the ice pops one by one.
As he was distributing them, he glanced down and realized the bag was empty.
“Ah!”
The little one was baffled. “Where’s Yuan Yuan’s ice pop?”
The shopkeeper had given an extra one, so Yuan Yuan was supposed to have one, too.
“Are you talking about this one I’m eating?”
Yu Yi, standing to the right of Li Sheng, was nibbling on the ice pop he had just unwrapped.
Feng Yuan: “…”
Feng Yuan opened his mouth. “Godfather! When did you get here?”
It was only now that Feng Yuan noticed his godfather had arrived.
Seeing his godfather, he forgot all about the ice pop.
He threw his whole little body at his godfather. “Hug!”
It had been days since he last saw his godfather!
Yu Yi, still holding the ice pop in his mouth, picked up the little one who was asking for a hug.
“Hmph.”
He held the child with one arm while continuing to eat the ice pop with his other hand.
Feng Yuan stared longingly at the ice pop in his godfather’s hand, swallowing hard.
“Yuan Yuan, can Godfather eat this ice pop?”
“Of course! Godfather can have it. Yuan Yuan won’t eat it.”
Feng Yuan generously gave up his ice pop to his godfather.
Though he offered it readily, his eyes remained fixed on the ice pop.
Watching as Yu Yi took a few bites and finished more than half of it, the little one couldn’t hold back any longer and spoke hesitantly.
“Godfather, can Yuan Yuan have a bite? Just a tiny bite.”
Yu Yi: “…”
Yu Yi remained silent.
Feng Yuan looked at his silent godfather and decided that silence meant consent!
He immediately opened his mouth wide and took a big bite.
Though he had promised to take only a small bite, he ended up taking a large one.
But since his mouth was small, even a big bite didn’t take off much.
Seeing how happy he was, with his eyes curved into crescents after getting a taste, Yu Yi couldn’t help but tease him.
“Hey, Yuan Yuan.”
Yu Yi deliberately picked a fight. “Did Godfather say you could eat it?”
Feng Yuan, already savoring the treat in his mouth, replied in a sweet, muffled voice, “Yuan Yuan can spit it out for you.”
Spit-out things were dirty, and Dad had said they shouldn’t be eaten.
Thinking he had outsmarted his godfather, Feng Yuan couldn’t hide the smug look on his chubby little face.
Yu Yi finished the last bit of the ice pop in his hand and then held his open palm in front of Feng Yuan’s mouth.
“Alright, spit it out then.”
Feng Yuan: “!”
Feng Yuan stared wide-eyed at his godfather, who wasn’t playing by the rules.
He quickly covered his mouth with his chubby little hands and hurriedly swallowed the ice pop in his mouth.
After finishing it, he opened his mouth wide to show his godfather.
“Ah.”
There was no ice pop left in his mouth!
Yu Yi pinched his chubby little cheeks, almost as if to vent his frustration.
“You little stinker.”
The little stinker had no idea why he was being called that. But he finally realized his godfather was just picking on him for no reason!
“Godfather is mean!”
The little stinker, whose chubby cheeks were being vigorously rubbed by his godfather, broke free from his grasp and ran to his grandpa for protection.
Of course, besides seeking protection, he also wanted a bite of his grandpa’s ice pop.
The adults had all unwrapped their ice pops and were eating them while telling Feng Yuan to stand properly in front of the sofa.
“Yuan Yuan.”
Feng Qi sat on the sofa, leisurely nibbling on an ice pop as he delivered the news to Feng Yuan: “You and Xiao Xun can’t go collect scrap anymore. You should start a business or switch to something else.”
Feng Yuan: “!”
Feng Yuan: “Why!”
Feng Yuan never expected that at the peak of his career, instead of facing business setbacks, he would be met with opposition from his own family.
The little one’s face was filled with shock and disbelief.
“Dad isn’t joking with you.”
Feng Qi had actually been wanting to put a stop to his scrap business for a while now.
It wasn’t that he looked down on this kind of work, but rather that the little one was now busier with it than when he had simply been picking up scrap.
None of the adults in the family worked as hard or kept such long hours as Feng Yuan did.
Over the past week, he had noticed that his son seemed to have lost a little weight and gotten a bit darker.
The little one was naturally fair-skinned. Even though he had tanned a bit, he was still much fairer than other children.
It was only when compared to Feng Qi that one could notice his arms were a little darker.
Feng Qi didn’t want him to continue exhausting himself like this.
“I can give you a bit more pocket money. But you can’t keep doing the scrap collection business.”
Feng Yuan shook his head.
Hearing his dad tell him to quit, his lips began to tremble.
Then, Li Sheng chimed in.
As soon as Li Sheng spoke up, Feng Yuan couldn’t hold back any longer.
With reddened eyes, the little one protested, “Yuan Yuan wants to keep collecting scrap!”
“No.”
“Yuan Yuan is going to cry!”
Seeing how resolute his dads were, Feng Yuan completely broke down.
His small body collapsed onto the floor, tears streaming down his grubby little face.
“Just collect scrap, just collect scrap!”
“Yuan Yuan wants to collect scrap!”
The little one rolled around on the floor. When his chubby little body rolled near his dad, his dad gently nudged him away.
Feng Yuan: “!”
Feng Yuan: “Wahhh, Dad is mean!”
Feeling that all the adults were being mean, Feng Yuan lay on the floor, crying and declaring that he would never get up again.
As the saying goes, grandparents dote on their grandchildren.
Seeing their little grandson so pitiful, Li Heng and Frida couldn’t sit still any longer.
Frida stepped forward and picked up the rolling little grandson.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry.”
“Grandma agrees.”
Frida wasn’t aware of the online situation. Although she wasn’t entirely in favor of Feng Yuan’s business, she believed that as long as the little one was healthy and happy, that was all that mattered.
Li Heng also spoke up, “Since he likes it, don’t stop him.”
With Li Heng’s input, Feng Qi had no choice but to explain the detailed reasons to him.
First, the little one was working too hard at this.
Second, the online bullying had escalated into doxxing.
Many netizens were frantically digging up Feng Yuan’s personal information, as well as that of their entire family.
In this situation, the adults weren’t really afraid.
Even if they were attacked online, in reality, they would be fine.
What they feared was that the situation would escalate and eventually affect Feng Yuan.
Feng Qi’s reasoning was sound.
Li Heng frowned, looking at the logical Feng Qi and then at Feng Yuan, who was crying in his grandma’s arms.
For a moment, he was also at a loss.
Just as he was struggling with the dilemma, Yu Yi, the most internet-savvy person present, offered a solution.
“Clarify it.”
“Let Yuan Yuan clarify it himself.”
“Having him record a short clarification video would be more effective than thousands of our words.”
“A short video?”
Feng Qi didn’t quite understand this: “How do we do that?”
“Go ask Little Deer. He’s the one who does this kind of work.”
Little Deer usually made videos and livestreamed.
When it came to this industry, he was quite knowledgeable.
Little Deer also lived in the city.
After everyone agreed on Yu Yi’s suggestion, he immediately called Little Deer.
After explaining over the phone about having Feng Yuan clarify the situation, he thought about driving to pick Little Deer up himself.
But Little Deer didn’t want to trouble him.
“Just send me the address. I’ll come over on my own.”
“Alright, I’ll send the address to your WeChat.”
Yu Yi thought he meant taking a taxi, which would save time.
But unexpectedly, over an hour later, Little Deer arrived at the door on an electric bike.
As soon as he arrived, he asked if there was a place to charge it.
The battery on his little e-bike wasn’t very good. On the last stretch of the journey, the bike ran out of power.
Luckily, the e-bike had pedals, so he pedaled the rest of the way.
Yu Yi looked at the electric bike, then at Little Deer’s flushed face.
He was speechless for a moment.
“Well, come on in. I’ll charge your e-bike for you.”
Yu Yi coughed and invited him inside to cool off.
Little Deer hung his helmet on the handlebars, then led Tao Zhi, whom he had brought along, into the house.
Feng Qi glanced at Tao Zhi and asked Little Deer, “Why didn’t you let him give you a ride?”
Little Deer smiled. “Tao Zhi doesn’t know how to ride an electric bike.”
“Besides, Tao Zhi is popular now. He makes quite a bit from each livestream.”
In the world of mukbang streaming, Tao Zhi’s looks and appetite were in a league of their own.
Little Deer had always known he would become famous.
Now, seeing Tao Zhi truly blow up, Little Deer was overjoyed.
The group went inside to talk.
As soon as they entered, Tao Zhi looked at Feng Yuan.
Their eyes met. Feng Yuan blinked before leading Tao Zhi to the refrigerator.
“Go ahead. Eat.”
Feng Yuan generously told Tao Zhi to help himself.
Tao Zhi didn’t hold back and started devouring the food in the fridge right in front of him.
He even ate some of the raw items.
Feng Yuan watched in amazement.
“Won’t you get a tummy ache?”
Feng Yuan reached out a small hand, wanting to touch Tao Zhi’s stomach, but couldn’t reach.
Seeing this, Tao Zhi picked him up.
It had been a while since the two had seen each other. Tao Zhi uncontrollably sniffed Feng Yuan’s scent.
Still plump and delicious.
What a shame he couldn’t eat him.
Just as Tao Zhi was about to nibble on Feng Yuan’s chubby cheek, a round orange came flying at him.
It was Feng Qi warning him: “Control yourself.”
If this glutton dared to hurt his son, he would not let it slide.
Tao Zhi caught the orange with one hand and, without peeling it, took a big bite.
Feng Yuan: “…”
Feng Yuan asked curiously, “Can you eat orange peels, too?”
Tao Zhi replied without changing his expression, “Yes, you can.”
Feng Yuan: “Yuan Yuan wants to try.”
After Feng Yuan said he wanted to try, Tao Zhi held the remaining half of the orange to his mouth.
Feng Yuan took a big bite of the peel.
The next second.
The little one’s face scrunched up from the sourness.
“Bleh, bleh, bleh! It’s so sour!”
The orange peel was both sour and bitter, distorting Feng Yuan’s chubby face.
Seeing his contorted expression, Tao Zhi’s lips curled into a slight smile.
“It’s not sour.”
With that, Tao Zhi stuffed the remaining half of the orange—the part Feng Yuan had bitten—into his own mouth.
He ate without changing his expression. Feng Yuan watched in wide-eyed admiration.
While the two of them were eating, Little Deer, sitting on the sofa, had already discussed with the others how to clarify the situation.
“Yuan Yuan can address the scrap-collecting matter in my livestream. But I think it’s better not to post the video on my account alone.”
“He can create his own account.”
“After he posts the video on his account, he can come to my livestream and talk about it.”
“This way, with both approaches, it should work out.”
“Alright.”
The family agreed with Little Deer’s suggestion.
Then, they called over Feng Yuan, who was still eating with Tao Zhi.
“Yuan Yuan, come here.”
“If you want to keep your scrap business, you’ll have to put in the effort yourself now.”
Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152