Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The next morning, Lin Yi was still asleep when he was awakened by the sound of an urgent phone call.

He frowned without opening his eyes and fumbled for his phone in the dark.

Once he found it, he realized something and finally opened his eyes to look at Huo Mianmian beside him.

At that moment, Huo Mianmian was still sleeping, but his thick eyelashes fluttered slightly, as if he was about to wake up due to the ringing.

Seeing this, Lin Yi quickly covered Huo Mianmian's ears with his hand and then silenced his phone.

When he saw that Huo Mianmian had fallen back into a deep sleep, Lin Yi got up with his phone and went to the bathroom to answer it.

He closed the bathroom door and checked the caller ID.

It was Mother Lin.

Lin Yi immediately clicked his tongue. What trouble was she causing so early in the morning?

But since he had inherited the original body, he couldn't simply cut ties with the family. Reluctantly, he answered the call.

Before he could speak, Mother Lin said unhappily, "Why did it take you so long to answer?"

Lin Yi sneered, "It’s only seven twenty. I want to ask why you’re disturbing my sleep so early."

Mother Lin, a middle-aged woman who no longer enjoyed sleeping in, was quite displeased with Lin Yi's behavior: "What do you do all day besides sleep?"

If it were the original Lin Yi, he might have listened to her scolding with shame, but Lin Yi wasn’t patient enough for that. He retorted, "Are you that idle? Calling me early in the morning just to say this?"

Usually, when Lin Jie didn’t have classes, he would sleep until noon, and Mother Lin never complained. Instead, she doted on him, making sure he slept well.

Mother Lin seemed to remember the real reason for her call and stopped criticizing Lin Yi for sleeping in. She said, "Quickly pay the property management fees for your house; they’ve already come to collect. Also, pay the water and electricity bills for this quarter while you’re at it."

Lin Yi was reminded that the original owner had bought a house.

However, it was a small one, barely sixty square meters, which he had saved up for to have a place of his own.

Mother Lin had once complained about the size of the house, but when she moved in with Lin Jie, she didn’t hesitate.

Her reason was that Lin Jie needed a quiet place to study, as the dorms were too noisy.

The original Lin Yi, being soft-hearted, gave up his house after a few words from Mother Lin.

Mother Lin and Lin Jie lived there for over a year, not only taking over the house but also expecting the original owner to pay all the bills.

Lin Yi, already in a bad mood from being woken up, nearly laughed at such unreasonable demands: "Isn’t it you living there now? Why should I pay the property management fees?"

And paying the water, electricity, and gas bills too—Mother Lin really had some nerve.

Mother Lin heard Lin Yi refuse and immediately snapped, "It’s your house. If you don’t pay, who will?"

Lin Yi mocked, "You know it’s my house? But didn’t you kick me out and move in with Lin Jie?"

Mother Lin became even angrier, "What do you mean? Can’t I and your brother stay in your house for a while? You’re becoming more and more cold-blooded and selfish!"

Lin Yi sneered. This was a classic case of shifting blame.

Unfortunately, Lin Yi never backed down from such people. He said bluntly, "I’m telling you now, it’s my house, and I won’t allow you to live there anymore. Move out immediately!"

Mother Lin’s voice rose sharply, "What did you say?!"

Lin Yi didn’t repeat himself. He continued, "By the time I finish filming this show, I’ll check. If you’re still living there, don’t blame me for being ruthless."

Mother Lin couldn’t bear this and cursed, "You ungrateful brat! I carried you for ten months and gave birth to you, and now you dare treat me like this. Do you think..."

Lin Yi didn’t bother listening and hung up the call, silencing his phone.

The world instantly became quiet again.

Despite the argument, Lin Yi felt no emotional turmoil. He yawned lazily and returned to bed for a nap.

It was only seven-thirty; what young person would get up at seven-thirty if they didn’t have to?

When Lin Yi returned to bed, Huo Mianmian moved closer to him.

Looking at the sweet, sleeping figure, Lin Yi felt even better and contentedly hugged Huo Mianmian back to sleep.

When he woke up again, it was past nine in the morning.

Huo Mianmian had already gotten up, leaving Lin Yi alone.

Lin Yi checked the time on his phone and noticed that Mother Lin had called him numerous times afterward, but he had silenced his phone and missed them all.

Lin Yi didn’t return the calls. He got up, washed up, and went downstairs.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Mother Lin held her phone, cursing loudly.

She was in her fifties, and since her family wasn’t wealthy, she hadn’t taken good care of herself. Her skin was loose and full of wrinkles.

When she got angry, her face looked even older.

Lin Jie, who had stayed up late the night before, came out of his room wearing slippers and a face full of acne.

His clothes were haphazardly thrown on, giving him a rebellious air.

Yet, Mother Lin thought this was the kind of spirit a boy should have, unlike her elder son, who was too soft and never complained even when kicked around.

It's just that her eldest son has completely changed recently and is no longer under her control.

Thinking of this, Lin Mother became angry and said to Lin Jie, "Your brother has been acting strange lately. I asked him to pay some property management fees, and he even talked back to me."

Her eldest son used to obediently hand over money to support the family's living expenses.

Now that he has stopped contributing, they have lost a significant source of income.

Their family does run a small factory, but it has been operating at a loss for a long time.

Upon hearing this, Lin Jie was also upset, and his acne seemed to flare up even more: "I never thought my useless brother would change his ways one day!"

At the mention of Lin Yi, he remembered the incident with the sports car, which made him even angrier.

That was a Ferrari, which should have belonged to him, but Lin Yi drove it away instead.

After a few seconds of contemplation, Lin Mother said, "We can't let him get away with this; otherwise, he won't know his place."

Lin Jie leaned closer to his mother, "Mom, do you have any good ideas?"

Lin Mother pondered and said, "I don't have any ideas, but your cousin He Nian definitely will..."

Lin Yi had no idea what was about to happen.

After going downstairs, he saw Huo Mianmian sitting on the sofa eating a bag of chips.

Today, Huo Mianmian was wearing a gray bear costume with two big, round bear ears on the hat.

With the hat on, only his adorable little face was visible.

He sat there quietly, munching on the chips, looking like a cute little bear eating.

"Ah, ah, which zoo's little bear escaped?"

"Mianmian looks so well-fed, his face is as round as a small rice ball."

"Another day of wanting to steal the baby!"

Seeing Huo Mianmian seriously eating chips, Lin Yi suddenly felt like playing with the child.

He sat next to Huo Mianmian and said, "Mianmian, shall we play a game?"

Hearing that he could play a game with Little Dad, Huo Mianmian's eyes lit up, and he nodded, "Okay!"

As he nodded, the bear ears on his hat wiggled, making people want to pet him!

Lin Yi reached out and tugged on the bear ears on Huo Mianmian's head, then pinched his soft little cheeks.

Huo Mianmian didn't resist when his face was pinched; he just let Lin Yi do it and smiled sweetly, his dimples showing happiness, like a little kitten cuddling with its owner.

"Ah, ah, let go of Mianmian and let me do it!!"

"I really want to know how Mianmian's face feels!"

"I'm not sure who to envy right now!!"

After pinching Huo Mianmian's cheeks a few times, Lin Yi said, "The rules of the game are simple. We'll play rock-paper-scissors, and whoever wins gets to eat a chip."

Huo Mianmian nodded in agreement.

And he placed the bag of chips between them.

Lin Yi smiled, "Alright, let's start the first round."

The first round began.

Lin Yi chose scissors, and Huo Mianmian chose paper.

Lin Yi won.

Lin Yi smiled, "I won, so I get to eat a chip!"

Huo Mianmian nodded in acknowledgment and personally took a chip from the bag and fed it to Lin Yi.

Lin Yi didn't need to move at all; he just waited for the little one to feed him.

Satisfied, he bit into the chip Huo Mianmian offered and said, "Good, let's go to the second round."

In the second round.

Lin Yi chose scissors again, and Huo Mianmian chose rock.

This time, Huo Mianmian won.

Huo Mianmian's eyes brightened.

Huh? He won!

It's his turn to eat a chip!

But then, Lin Yi slowly said, "The rule for this round is that whoever loses gets to eat a chip."

Huo Mianmian tilted his head and blinked twice.

Whoever loses eats?

Then it's Little Dad's turn to eat!

Thinking this, he picked up another chip and fed it to Lin Yi.

Soon, the third round began.

This time, Lin Yi threw paper, while Huo Mianmian threw rock.

Huo Mianmian lost.

Huo Mianmian smiled slightly, thinking that whoever lost had to eat, so it should be his turn to eat now?

But Lin Yi said with a smile, "The rule this time is that the winner eats."

Huo Mianmian: "..."

Huh?

Why does something feel off?

Although there was some confusion in his bright, dark eyes, he obediently picked up a chip and fed it to Lin Yi.

"Hahaha, Lin Yi, won't your conscience hurt?"

"Don't bully our little Mianmian!!"

"Lin Yi having fun with the kid is too much fun!!"

Meanwhile, a piece of negative news about Lin Yi was rapidly spreading online.

The whistleblower claimed that an L-surname artist who recently appeared on a certain parenting variety show was an ungrateful wretch. His parents had raised him through hardships, but once he became successful, he ignored their well-being, refusing even to provide living expenses. He didn’t even visit his father when he fell ill...

Although the post did not name names, it was as good as naming him outright.

Netizens, always eager for drama, immediately identified the person as Lin Yi.

Moreover, the incident seemed to be fueled by someone behind the scenes, escalating at an alarming rate. Various marketing accounts reposted and commented, criticizing harshly.

Netizens were outraged.

"What kind of person is this? Once he got successful, he abandoned his family?"

"How low can human nature go?"

"The key point is that his father has been hospitalized for days, and he hasn’t even visited once? Not even a phone call?"

"He’s busy enjoying himself on the show; how could he remember his aging parents?"

"Why beat around the bush? I’ll say it: Lin Yi, Lin Yi, Lin Yi!!!!!!!"

"Scum like Lin Yi should get out of the entertainment industry! And he’s bringing a cute kid along; isn’t he afraid of corrupting the child?"

"Protest Lin Yi!"

"Lin Yi, get out of the parenting show!!"

The situation escalated, eventually reaching the top of the trending topics, even causing a stir.

In no time, the entire internet was condemning Lin Yi.

Unaware of this, Lin Yi was happily playing with Huo Mianmian.

At this moment, a staff member from the production team found him and informed him about the incident.

Given the significant impact of the situation, a solution needed to be found immediately, or it would affect Lin Yi's participation in the show.

After hearing the staff member, Lin Yi finally picked up his phone and checked the matter online.

After a brief glance, he couldn’t help but laugh.

The whistleblower wrote a hundred words to defame him, yet there were seven or eight typos in those hundred words?

Lin Yi lazily leaned against the wall and clicked his tongue.

If they were going to defame him, at least write it properly, even checking for typos?

He almost wanted to personally guide the whistleblower on how to write such things.

Guaranteed to be eloquent and heartfelt!