Chapter 8
Raising a Penguin
Li Xiwu thought that since Han Qianye had given her the image of a daughter-in-law who knew nothing, she had to maintain this image well and not let it collapse.
But Han Qianye felt uncomfortable. She was forced to admire the piano skills of the first group’s daughter-in-law. She felt even more uncomfortable when she had to praise her against her will. When she looked at Li Xiwu again, she felt even more annoyed.
–
There were no missions scheduled for the first day of recording. In the afternoon, the two groups of guests only walked around the inn, mainly to familiarize themselves with the environment of Fu Town.
In front, Tao Jing held her mother-in-law, Min Hanrong’s arm. The two of them chatted as they walked, talking about luxury goods and maintenance, as well as the recent fashion show. Behind them, Li Xiwu walked beside Han Qianye, but there was a distance of about a step between them.
Li Xiwu walked quietly while Han Qianye looked ahead expressionlessly. It was strangely quiet between mother and daughter-in-law.
After a while, Han Qianye adjusted her collar microphone. “Huh?”
Li Xiwu looked sideways at Han Qianye. “Hmm?”
—Huh?
—Hmm?
The comments livened up:
[I’ve seen unfamiliar strangers before, but this is the first time I’ve seen an unfamiliar mother and daughter-in-law relationship.]
[What a strange netizen. I don’t have a good relationship with my mother-in-law. When I’m only with her, I’m like a stranger.]
[I’m not interested in Sister Li’s mother-in-law. I’m looking forward to seeing who Sister Li’s husband is. Is anyone as curious as me?]
Han Qianye suddenly spoke because she remembered what Lin Yourong had said. In the program, she tried her best to show that she took good care of her daughter-in-law. She couldn’t embarrass her just for the sake of it, so she took the initiative to talk to Li Xiwu. “Have you been busy with work recently?”
Li Xiwu was not surprised by Han Qianye’s greeting. “It’s okay.”
Han Qianye asked, “Is there anywhere you want to go recently?”
Li Xiwu said, “Those I want to go are too far.”
“Where? I have time. I’ll go with you.” Han Qianye first drew the cake to show her good mother-in-law side.
Li Xiwu knew not to slap the smiler, so she said, “Antarctica.”
Han Qianye said, “To the South Pole to see the aurora?”
“No.” Li Xiwu reached into her pocket and pressed down on the vibrating phone. “I raised a penguin in Antarctica so I’ll check it out every year.”
“When did you raise a penguin in the South Pole?” Han Qianye was obviously shocked and curious.
Li Xiwu thought that Han Qianye was not interested in this topic. Seeing that she was asking, she continued, “The year before last.”
“Why didn’t you call me for such an interesting matter?” Han Qianye’s tone was filled with dissatisfaction. This reaction made Li Xiwu unable to tell if it was her true feelings or if she was deliberately showing it.
She said, “Then I’ll take you this year. Do you want to go?”
“Yes.” Han Qianye thought of the compartment in the cloakroom that was almost full of scarves. “I bought seven or eight scarves from Prada last year and didn’t use them. There are also two brand new LV scarves. When I go to Antarctica, I’ll wrap them around the penguin.”
Li Xiwu was speechless.
[Holy shit. Is this the world of the rich?]
[Seven or eight Prada scarves for Antarctic penguins?]
[The spending patterns of the rich have refreshed my understanding.]
Li Xiwu didn’t know what the comments were talking about. All she knew was that the phone in her pocket was vibrating more and more frequently. She lowered her voice. “I need to take this.”
Han Qianye acted very understanding. “Go ahead. I’ll go chat with that mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.”
Li Xiwu took advantage of Han Qianye going to the front and gestured to the cameraman beside her. The cameraman understood instantly and temporarily moved away from the camera facing Li Xiwu and cut to the sponsors’ advertisement.
[What’s going on? Why is Sister Li missing?]
[Actually, I think the way Li Xiwu and her mother-in-law interact is quite comfortable.]
[If the fourth group is compared to the first group, Min Hanrong is the better mother-in-law.]
[My boyfriend also likes Min Hanrong. When he goes to the toilet, he tells me to pause the show. I’m not allowed to watch the live broadcast alone. I have to wait for him to come back and watch it together.]
[Why are there so many commercials for Group Four? If I’d known, I wouldn’t have squatted in the live broadcast room. I’ll watch them on Friday night when the Wind Platform airs it.]
[I’m leaving too. There are just too many commercials.]
[Go see Xie Wen.]
After leaving the camera, Li Xiwu took out her phone. There were nine missed calls. Pei Jingzhou had four, Ji Weiling had three, and President Qi had two. There were also a dozen unread messages on WeChat.
Ji Weiling: [Miss Li, when are you free to come back?]
Ji Weiling: [Something suddenly went wrong with my new drama and I need you to fix it.]
President Qi: [You really went on a variety show with your in-law?]
Yuanyuan: [Miss Li, Sister Ji said she couldn’t contact you.]
Qiao Qiao: [How was your first day of recording? Did it go well?]
Pei Jingzhou: [Call me back when you see the message.]
After reading the WeChat messages, Li Xiwu began to reply to them one by one. In the past, the first person she would reply to after receiving so many WeChat messages would definitely be Pei Jingzhou. And now, Pei Jingzhou has become her last reply.
After replying to all of them, her phone began to vibrate. It was Pei Jingzhou who called first.
Li Xiwu picked it up. “Mr Pei.”
“You’re there?”
Although he didn’t pay attention to her and wouldn’t watch the live broadcast, there would always be someone around to tell him about her, especially this time’s recording of the in-laws variety show in real time.
“Yes,” Li Xiwu said. “The contract has been signed. I have to pay if I breach the contract.”
Pei Jingzhou’s voice turned cold. “Do you lack this bit of money?”
What kind of words are those? He had given her a card to shop. It was very common to spend hundreds of thousands. But millions? When it came to millions of yuan, she had to pass through Pei Jingzhou. She was also self-conscious. She had food, drinks, and clothes. She had never spent more than a million yuan at a time.
She couldn’t be bothered to talk about money-related topics with the capitalists. “I’ll be recording a show here. If Mr. Pei misses her, watch the live broadcast.” Anyway, she looked like his first love.
Pei Jingzhou’s voice came from the receiver. “Do you mind?”
Li Xiwu raised the corners of her lips. “I’ve always been very clear about my position in Mr. Pei’s heart, and Mr. Pei should know it better than me. Why should I mind?” Her tone was calm, and she was polite enough not to hang up. “Mr. Pei, the commercial break is over. I still have to make an appearance.”
After saying that, she hung up on Pei Jingzhou.
–
Inside the office.
Chen Xin noticed that Mr. Pei’s expression was dark and his heart was in his mouth. He carefully speculated… Did Miss Li make Mr. Pei unhappy? After all, Mr. Pei had only called Miss Li once…
There was a clang.
Pei Jingzhou threw the phone on the table, scaring Chen Xin. It was usually best not to speak in such situations, but who asked him to be Mr. Pei’s assistant? No matter what, he would be criticized!
Chen Xin was about to speak.
Pei Jingzhou simply said, “Stop this variety show for the time being.”