Chapter 61 - Planting Trees
The director was now regretting it, regretting it. If he had known that the guest Lu Hao wanted to recommend was Li Zhao then he wouldn’t have changed even if 10 Xu Bei was given to him. Ah, he should look on the bright side. Perhaps Li Zhao’s performance wouldn’t be so good in the next issue.
After comforting himself, the director stood up. “Please inform Xu Bei to hurry and go to do the shooting. Don’t think he can’t follow the rules just because there is the support of Zijia.”
There were all insiders who had friends. It wasn’t good for anyone to tear at him. He was a well-known producer and director. It wasn’t necessary for him to look after a new person. In the past, he tolerated Xu Bei for the sake of Zijia Entertainment but once he saw Li Zhao’s wonderful performance in Seclusion Mountain Forest, tolerance became complaints.
Love was the show created by him. For this show, he drank until there was a hole in his stomach and acted like a turtle inside its sh.e.l.l in front of the leaders of the TV station. He made the show successfully so how could he want it to decline in the second season?
***
Xu Bei watched Seclusion Mountain Forest. The villa that Li Zhao stayed in caused a lot of discussions so he also wanted to show off his villa. However, the program group ignored his proposal and kept pushing him to shoot.
In his memory, a program like Seclusion Mountain Forest didn’t exist. Why did it become so hot after Li Zhao took part in it?
He just had to open an online media platform and he would see videos of Li Zhao from the show. Netizens kept boasting about how cute or upright he was, attracting many pa.s.sersby.
The streets, bus stations, subway stations and shopping malls were covered with posters of Li Zhao’s Cangshi endors.e.m.e.nt. If he opened a TV station casually, Li Zhao’s advertis.e.m.e.nts would pop up.
Cangshi’s advertis.e.m.e.nts also appeared on the opening screens of a variety of social software and even newspapers. It could be see how much they valued Li Zhao as their spokesperson.
If Yan Ting wasn’t the big boss of Cangshi, Xu Bei would’ve suspected that the big boss liked Li Zhao and was willing to spend so much energy pushing him.
Everyone in the world could do such a thing but only Yan Ting was impossible. How could a person who had no awe for life know how to like a person?
Still, Xu Bei clearly stole the opportunities belonging to Li Zhao. Why was this person so popular in the end? All his efforts were like a joke in front of Li Zhao’s popularity. He wasn’t willing.
***
On the wide highway, there were few vehicles. Li Zhao looked at the yellow land outside the car window and hummed a song called Loess’ High Slopes so that the staff members were jealous.
“Zhao Zhao, we’re almost there.” A staff member handed the task card to Li Zhao. “Today at noon, you need to go to the villagers’ houses to borrow ingredients and cook lunch for yourself.”
“I’m not going for a meal??” Li Zhao had some regrets.
The staff member replied, “No.”
He was afraid that Li Zhao would eat too much and eat all the food in the villagers’ houses.
“I know, you won’t treat me kindly.” Li Zhao took out his phone, took a few photos of Loess Plateau and after getting off the vehicle, he would find an opportunity to send it to Ting Ting.
“As a black-hearted program group, being kind to the guest is being cruel to themselves.” The vehicle stopped and the staff member smiled. “Let’s start our trip to the Loess Plateau.”
Li Zhao put on his hat and dragged his suitcase out of the car. After seeing the yaodong, he issued a surprised cry. “Will the guests live in a cave at night?”
The staff squinted at Li Zhao. They arranged for the guests to live in a yaodong in order to make them suffer, not to make them happy.
“I’ve never lived in a yaodong. I’m finally able to have fun this time. It is great. Li Zhao quickened his pace and ran to the village.
The camera followed him. Li Zhao was really a small monster. He carried such a big box yet he could run so quickly. Please remember that he was a fresh, popular artist! Shouldn’t he maintain some of the dignity of an idol?
The guests had come to a place called Wahong Village. The climate here wasn’t as good as Qingxi Village. The temperature difference between night and day was large and the ultraviolet rays were strong. Before coming, Da Ke kept reminding him not to forget sun protection.
The village was different from the yellow sand expected by the guests. Although it was still early spring, they could see a bit of greenery on the mountain. Li Zhao entered the village and saw Zhang Kui holding a small bag of rice in his hand, nothing else.
“Zhao Zhao.” Seeing Li Zhao, Zhang Kui came over at almost a flying speed. “You haven’t eaten either?”
Li Zhao nodded silently.
“Then we’ll cook together.” Zhang Kui was even more enthusiastic. “First, go to the village to gather ingredients and then cook together.”
Li Zhao had some doubts about the term k2018;together.’
Facing Zhang Kui’s pitiful eyes, he could only sigh. “Let’s go.”
Zhang Kui followed closely while giving fancy praises to Li Zhao. It really wasn’t easy to eat a meal.
They walked to the door of a house and Li Zhao was ready to knock on the door when Zhang Kui pulled him. “Don’t go here. I just knocked on the door but before I could finish my words, the aunt closed the door in my face.
“Try again.” Li Zhao pointed at the house. “The house is so well-built that there must be extra ingredients.”
Zhang Kui thought that this was the case but the other person might not necessarily give it. The big iron gate opened with a creak. It was the woman who had shut the door in Zhang Kui’s face just now. The woman’s sombre expression didn’t look very good. Zhang Kui was frightened by the woman’s face and took a step back, hiding behind Li Zhao.
“Excuse me, excuse me.” Li Zhao showed a big smile to the woman.
“What’s the matter?” The woman stared at Li Zhao with a tense expression.
“Big sister, it is like this. We came to your village and wanted to cook lunch but we don’t have any ingredients. If you have any extra ingredients then can you please give us some?” He added a few words. “t doesn’t matter if you don’t have any. I wish you a happy life and we won’t disturb you.”
The woman saw that Li Zhao and Zhang Kui were ready to leave and her lips moved. She hesitantly said, “Wait, you come with me.”
Zhang Kui, “???”
She agreed?!
“Thank you.” Li Zhao smiled and his eyes lit up.
The woman glanced at the camera behind them before opening the gate slightly and leading them inside. The yard was clean and several moonflowers were planted in the corner, blooming with beautiful flowers. The yard was extremely quiet like no one else was living in the house.
The woman took them into the house, opened the old refrigerator and took out all the meat and vegetables in it. “Take these.”
“It is too much, too much. If you give it all to us then what will you eat?” Li Zhao and Zhang Kui pushed the valuable chicken and fish back.
“If you don’t eat them, they will only go bad.” The woman stopped them and returned the ingredients.
“You want to go far away?” Li Zhao found that most of the furniture in the house was covered with dust-proof fabric.
“Yes.” The woman nodded as she watched Li Zhao, missing another person through him. “I’m going to get my child back.”
“Your child?” Zhang Kui was full of confusion. Why was she looking for her child?
Li Zhao thought of something as he saw the woman’s tired face. “Your child, where did he go?”
“I don’t know. He was only five years old when he was stolen.” The woman’s eyes were numb and tired, she had no tears left. “He is timid. I fear that he will be scared all these years without my company.”
Zhang Kui was speechless and didn’t know what to say. The program team hadn’t expected such a change and the cameraman hesitated over where to turn off the camera.
“Continue recording.” The director’s voice came from the headphones he was wearing.
“You will find him.” Li Zhao gazed at the woman seriously. “If you look forward to him coming home then he will surely wait for you, wait for you to bring him home.”
“Really?” The woman had hope in her eyes as she grabbed Li Zhao’s wrist tightly, as if looking for a reason to persist. “He is really still safe?”
“Really.” Li Zhao told her. “A child who is loved by his mother must be a lucky child.”
“Thank you, thank you…” Tears filled the woman’s dried-up tears.
The program team’s staff entered and asked the woman for information on her child. After the staff communicated with the woman, Li Zhao and Zhang Kui discovered that her child had been taken in the yard. Since then, she had been unwilling to open the gate for strangers and was even hostile to the arrival of strangers.
Li Zhao was different from other strangers because Li Zhao was around the same age her child would be. When Li Zhao smiled, she almost thought that her child had been found. However, she knew very well that Li Zhao wasn’t her child. Her child had a mole on his nose. Li Zhao’s face was white and clean and his eyes were like stars.
Leaving the house, Li Zhao carried the large bag of ingredients the woman gave him with a complicated mood.
“Be happy. Her chances of getting back her child will become even greater with the help of the show.” Zhang Kui noticed that Li Zhao was in a bad mood and comforted him. “Your face is so long that men, women and children and eat it.’
“It is probably a good pick.” Li Zhao touched his face. “Ordinary people envy this type of thing.”
“Uncle and auntie must be a beautiful man and woman, or else they wouldn’t be able to give birth to such a good-looking child.”
Li Zhao smiled.
Zhang Kui saw this as default agreement and touched his stomach, shouting that he was hungry. Once they reached the place where they were cooking, they saw a dusty earthenware stove, a large iron pot that hadn’t been washed and a pile of firewood that wasn’t chopped. Fortunately, there was a pressure well next to it and they didn’t need to carry water.
“The program group must’ve worked hard to find this shabby place.” Li Zhao picked up the broom that the show had prepared and started sweeping the floor.
“How do you know?”
“Several years ago, the state started to build new rural areas and allocated funds to renovate old houses and demolish and rebuild dangerous houses.” Li Zhao swept away the thick ash on the stove. “Villagers have long been unable to live in such a house.”
Zhang Kui choked back his anger. “They are a group of spicy chicken (trash), not people.”
“Go and get water.” Li Zhao found a clean bucket that the crew had prepared. “Wait for me to wash the pot before cooking.”
Zhang Kui walked to the edge of the well before turning to ask the cameraman. “How do I use this well?”
The cameraman smiled without saying a word.
“Zhao Zhao!” The cameraman couldn’t be relied on and Zhang Kui pleaded to Li Zhao for help. “How do I fetch water from this well?”
Li Zhao turned to stare at him. “Forget it, you sweep the floor and leave the rough work of getting the water to me.”
Li Zhao went to the wall and pressed down. He found he was able to acquire water normally and after filling a bucket of water, Li Zhao started to cut wood. After cutting one piece of wood, he would say ‘a black-hearted program isn’t a person’, causing the cameraman to take a few steps back.
They put together a meal with much difficulty and didn’t talk while desperately eating. The two people ate the pot full of rice and Li Zhao smiled. “In fact, I usually eat very little. I’m just too hungry today.”
“Yes, so am I.” Zhang Kui touched his bulging stomach and laughed with Li Zhao. No matter how much they eat, the image of a fairy man who grew up drinking dew couldn’t fall.
They made the bed and cleaned the house before Li Zhao and Zhang Kui sat under the eaves, finally having a leisurely half day. Unfortunately, this comfort didn’t last long as the program team gave them a mission card.
“Planting trees?”
Zhang Kui opened his mouth. “Are we going to plant trees?”
“It is the duty of every young man to contribute to the greenery of our motherland.” Li Zhao looked at the words on the mission card. Was the theme of this episode about environmental protection?
“There are three criteria for the number of trees to be planted. As long as you answer enough questions within the set time, you can reduce the amount of trees.”
“This is simple. As a student, I was always responsible for my cla.s.s’ IQ.” Zhang Kui hit his chest. “You can ask. If I can’t answer then I will lose.”
“The first question. Is a crab sh.e.l.l dry garbage or wet garbage?”
Zhang Kui was silent for three seconds before turning to see Li Zhao. He gave up.
Li Zhao wasn’t sure. “Wet garbage?”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure… right?”
“The second question. One morning, Xiao Bao, who likes to stay up late, woke up to find his hair was gone. Why?”
Zhang Kui replied, “Because staying up late is harmful to health?”
“The answer is wrong.”
Out of 10 questions, Li Zhao and Zhang Kui only correctly answered six, five of which were Li Zhao’s answers.
“You are in charge of IQ?” Li Zhao’s expression was complicated. “Brother Zhang, are you the only student in your cla.s.s?”
Zhang Kui said, “I suspect you are personally attacking me.”
“No.”
“You are.”
“Two guests, the results of the other teams have come out. Congratulations, you took third place and it is a good result.”
Out of the three teams, they finished third. Was this something to be proud about?
“It doesn’t matter if we answer the question correctly or not because we like the feeling of planting trees.” Li Zhao raised his hoe with a smile. “Brother Zhang, don’t you think so?”
“Right, right.” Zhang Kui nodded. “How n.o.ble and great is it to plant hair for Mother Earth?”
The two people went to the place where they needed to plant trees. They looked at the vast mountain in front of them and both shut up. The camera was aimed at their faces and zoomed in on their expression with no dead end.
“Hahahahaha.” Li Zhao laughed a few times. “Baldness is a big problem worldwide, right? Ha, ha, ha.”
This laughter was filled with helplessness and a pitiful feeling.
The author has something to say:
Baby Zhao Zhao: I am the invincible Superman of the universe.
Half an hour later, Baby Zhao Zhao: Actually, outside the universe there is an infinite amount of s.p.a.ce, right?
Baby Ting Ting: Zhao Zhao is right.