Chapter 425 – The Movie Emperor’s Beloved Neighbor – Does Your Foot Hurt? (08)
“Fine. For Brother Liang’s sake, I won’t argue with her,” Yi Haoguang said. He wasn’t a bad person by nature—he was just used to everything going his way and didn’t easily admit his mistakes.
“Alright, I gathered some firewood and traded it with the production team for a pot and some bowls and chopsticks. Later we can boil some hot water and eat instant noodles.”
As entertainers, foods like instant noodles—considered lacking in nutrition—were usually off-limits. They weren’t even allowed to eat snacks.
Yi Haoguang hadn’t seen snacks or instant noodles in a long time. The moment he heard that, his eyes lit up.
“Brother Liang, I want the braised beef flavor.”
“Alright.”
To Ke Liangong, Yi Haoguang still had a childlike temperament and was easy to coax.
While they were eating, Li Manpei also wanted the braised beef flavor. But there was only one pack of that flavor, and since Ke Liangong had already promised it to Yi Haoguang, he wasn’t going to go back on his word.
Under Gu Xinrong’s murderous glare, Yi Haoguang slurped his noodles happily. He felt incredibly satisfied—this flavor was delicious. When he got back, he planned to secretly stock up on a whole box behind his manager’s back.
Li Manpei tugged at Gu Xinrong’s sleeve. “Brother Rong, it’s fine. It’s my fault for making Brother Guang angry. Let him have it.”
Her soft, gentle voice made Yi Haoguang pause mid-bite. The anger he had just suppressed flared up again.
Listen to that tone, that attitude—like he had done something terrible to her, as if she were the one making a sacrifice.
Gu Xinrong said to Li Manpei, “You’re just too kind. Not everyone has manners.” He shot Yi Haoguang a cold snort.
Yi Haoguang slammed his chopsticks down, anger surging as he prepared to stand up and lash out. Suddenly, a hand reached out from beside him and grabbed him, successfully stopping him.
“How careless of you—you even dropped your chopsticks. Go wash them,” Ke Liangong said gently, his voice like warm spring water, instantly dousing Yi Haoguang’s rising temper.
Remembering what Ke Liangong had told him—“a future Best Actor needs to be magnanimous”—Yi Haoguang deflated and sat back down. Soon, a pair of chopsticks, still cool with water, was handed to him.
“They’re clean now.”
Ke Liangong smiled faintly. Yi “Little Princess” Haoguang looked utterly aggrieved.
“Brother Liang…”
“Hm? Not enough to eat? Want another bowl? I remember you need to maintain your figure, but since we’re surviving in the wild, you need enough energy. It’s fine to eat a bit more—but food is precious, so don’t waste it.”
“No, I’ve had enough. Thank you, Brother Liang.” Yi Haoguang buried his face in his bowl, eating his noodles, not letting anyone see the emotion on his face.
The viewers watching this side of the livestream spammed [666,] thrilled that someone could finally keep the “little princess” in check.
Some fans also found Li Manpei extremely annoying. What kind of person is she? She was clearly the one who did something wrong—what’s the big deal about being criticized a little? Yet she acted all aggrieved and even got Gu Xinrong to stand up for her.
Fine, you could say both sides were at fault—Yi Haoguang did make a few unnecessary remarks at first. But later, when they were eating, Yi Haoguang was quietly minding his own business, just eating his noodles. Then she started acting up again. If not for Actor Liang stepping in to smooth things over, they might have actually gotten into a fight.
And there’s no way Yi Haoguang could beat Gu Xinrong, who has a martial arts background and a much bigger build. If Yi Haoguang ever left the show, wouldn’t the whole team just stop opposing her and simply dote on her?
…
[“Actor Liang is really so gentle. He’s probably the only one who can keep our Haoguang’s temper in check.”]
[“Haoguang looks like he’s blushing—ahhh, a once-in-a-millennium sight!”]
[“Good thing Brother Liang is on Haoguang’s side, otherwise who knows how wronged he’d feel.”]
[“Am I the only one who thinks Li Manpei is fake and manipulative? “Sweet top student,” my foot. Compared to Bai Tang next door, that’s what a real top student looks like.”]
[“Wait, really? Bai Tang is a top student?”]
[“Seriously! Go check it out—you’ll see. Even my mom told me to learn from him. Imagine watching a variety show and still getting compared to someone else’s kid… I’m crying…”]
…
The casual viewers in the livestream, half-skeptical, switched over to the adjacent split-screen stream. The moment they entered, the comment section was in complete chaos—people wailing dramatically and shouting about wanting to [“have Bai Tang’s babies.”]
The casual viewers: Did we enter the wrong livestream?!
…
By the campfire, Liu Lingfan sat beside Bai Tang with a look of admiration. She stared intently at the chicken roasting and dripping with oil, her nose filled with the rich aroma. It only made her feel even hungrier.
“Tang Tang is amazing…” Liu Lingfan reached out, but the boy pulled her hand back.
“It’s not ready yet—wait a bit longer.”
“But it smells so good! Tang Tang, you’re incredible. You even managed to catch the domestic chickens released by the production team.”
Bai Tang smiled shyly. “It’s not me—it’s Qiu’er and Xiao A who are amazing.”
Liu Lingfan immediately grabbed Qiu’er and started petting him vigorously. “Yes, yes, Qiu’er is super nice!”
“Woof—!” Xiao A, save me! Qiu’er’s face was squished out of shape as he sent out a silent cry for help.
“Woof woof…” Let go of my Qiu’er.
Xiao A barked around Liu Lingfan’s feet, but ended up being picked up and cuddled along with Qiu’er.
“Alright, alright—no one gets left out. Big sis loves you all,” Liu Lingfan said, completely smitten with the two dogs. With them around, they could avoid danger and wouldn’t have to worry about food either.
Qiu’er wore a completely lifeless expression. I got pet by the female lead… it’s over, there’s no love left…
Xiao A, whose fur was longer, drew most of Liu Lingfan’s attention. He struggled his way over to Qiu’er, climbed on top of him, then lay down, shielding him with his body.
“Woof~” Qiu’er, don’t be scared. She can’t reach you.
“Woof woof woof~” Xiao A is the best.
Puppies were already adorable to begin with, and Liu Lingfan’s sudden enthusiastic petting made the animal-loving viewers in the livestream completely melt.
Waaah, we want to pet the puppies too…
…
Bai Tang placed the roasted chicken over the fire, stood up, dusted off his hands, and ran toward Heng Xingjian, who was setting up a tent not far away.
“The roast chicken’s almost ready—A Jian, come quick!”
Everyone’s backpack had the same capacity, so they could only carry limited supplies. Aside from water, they could only fit two tents in that space.
Heng Xingjian was in the middle of setting up the second tent. Pitching a tent was physical work, and he couldn’t bear to let Bai Tang do it.
Smiling, he tried to shoo Bai Tang back. “This will be done soon. If you’re hungry, Tang Tang, go ahead and eat first—no need to wait for me.”
Large tents were already difficult to set up. Even for a grown man like Heng Xingjian, his arms felt sore after putting one up.
“Xiao Fan is watching over there. I’ll help you.”
The boy ran over with quick steps and stood opposite him. “A Jian, pull here—let’s spread the tent out.”
Working together, with a bang, the tent popped open. All that was left was to secure the ropes.
Because it was a large tent, the stakes used to secure it were quite long. Bai Tang noticed that more than half of a stake was still sticking out of the ground. Always putting safety first, he started overthinking—what if it rained? What if strong winds came? Would the tent get blown away?
With that in mind, he grabbed a stone and tried to hammer the stake further into the ground, not realizing it didn’t need to be driven in all the way.
At this point, the stakes were already firmly secured by Heng Xingjian—there was no risk of the tent collapsing. But Bai Tang didn’t understand that.
…
On camera, the boy pursed his lips, holding a stone as he knocked repeatedly at the ground.
Since it was dark and he was far away, the viewers couldn’t tell what Bai Tang was doing. The cameraman, as expected, carried the camera over. Before he even got close, he saw the boy suddenly jump up in place, grumbling:
“Go in already, hurry up! I’m warning you—don’t push your luck…”
The cameraman moved closer and pointed the lens at the ground by Bai Tang’s feet.
Turns out Bai Tang couldn’t drive the stake in and was throwing a little tantrum, stubbornly squaring off against this unyielding tent stake.
Watching the boy’s childlike, indignant expression—his lips pouted high—the fans were thoroughly amused.
…
[“Is that you, three-year-old Tang Tang…”]
[“The way Tang Tang is stomping around—doesn’t it look like a kid throwing a tantrum when they can’t get what they want at the store?”]
[“Jian Jian, come take your Tang Tang away…”]
[“Tang Tang is too cute! If Best Actor Heng won’t pick him up, I will!”]
[“Let’s go—let’s pick up some “Tang”!”] (“Tang” is a pun on his name and “candy”)
Although Bai Tang looked small, he was actually quite strong. With his abilities, compared to others, he could be considered someone who hid his true strength well.
Just as everyone was laughing and waiting for Bai Tang to tear up and complain that his “jio” (foot) hurt, a miracle happened—the tent stake, which normally required a hammer to drive in, was pressed straight into the ground by Bai Tang’s bare foot.
The stake sank in, the ground became level, and Bai Tang felt satisfied. He clapped his hands, then smiled at the camera.
“The weather in the mountains changes a lot—this way we won’t have to worry about wind or rain in the middle of the night~”
…
[“666…”] (Chinese slang for “awesome”)
[“I don’t even know how to describe Tang Tang anymore—childishly adorable.”]
[“I just want to know the psychological trauma area of the Best Actor Heng tomorrow when he takes the tent down…”]
…
After stepping on one stake, Bai Tang had no idea his actions had earned him another wave of fans. He only thought that there was more than one stake to deal with, so he trotted over to Heng Xingjian and lifted his foot, aiming at another half-exposed stake, ready to step on it.
Heng Xingjian: “!!!”
“Tang Tang, what are you doing?!”
The boy’s action nearly scared him to death. The stakes were sharp—if he stepped on one, the stake might be fine, but his foot would definitely get hurt.
At the critical moment, the man bent down, slipped his arm behind the boy’s knees, and lifted him up in one swift motion—spinning him around midair.
The boy’s soft hair fluttered as he spun, and his expression froze in confusion at Heng Xingjian’s sudden action.
…
[“Hahaha, Tang Tang’s confused face is so cute.”]
[“Bai Tang: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?”]
[“Best Actor Heng: That scared me to death.”]
…
The viewers spun countless little imagined scenarios from their expressions, and without realizing it, became fans of the pair as a CP (couple).
Heng Xingjian was still shaken. Looking down at Bai Tang, who was still wearing a dazed expression, he wanted to scold him for his dangerous behavior—but when the words reached his lips, he couldn’t bring himself to say them.
“What were you trying to do, Tang Tang? The stake is sharp—you can’t step on it with your foot.”
The boy looked wronged. His fair little face flushed slightly from the fright. “You’re scolding me… but I stepped on it like that just now too, and nothing happened…”
Heng Xingjian froze when he heard that. He did it just now too? That wouldn’t do.
He carried Bai Tang to the side and set him down, then held his slender ankle and took off his shoe.
His fair, smooth foot was exposed to the slightly cool air. His five small toes curled slightly as the boy shyly tried to pull back—but Heng Xingjian held him firmly, leaving him no way to escape.
“A Jian, I’m really fine~”
At this moment, Bai Tang’s mind was filled with all kinds of inappropriate memories of his own lover from the past. A mix of shyness and alluring charm spread across his face. Luckily, Heng Xingjian was blocking him—otherwise, the camera would have captured his expression clearly.
Heng Xingjian took a deep breath, calming the boy’s shy, slightly trembling state. “It’s good that you’re alright.”
He lowered Bai Tang’s foot and gently helped him put his shoe back on. “You can’t step on tent stakes with your foot. If you need to drive them in, you have to use a hammer, understand?”
Even Heng Xingjian himself couldn’t explain why that accidental first meeting had made him care so much about the boy. But once his heart was moved, it was moved. He wasn’t a coward—he had the ability to protect the boy under his wings.
Author’s Note:
It’s here, it’s here—the update is here! The “Picking Candy” (JianTang) CP is back online again.