Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"Seriously, is this how you 'accompany' someone? Are you sure she’s not here to piss people off?"

"Hahahaha, no comparison, no harm—Wen Zhi is just OP!"

"Just split into three teams and leave Wen Zhi and Mu Mu out. The producers are just messing with us."

The three parents stayed silent, clearly unwilling to show "unity and friendship" with a sick person.

Xiao Xiao, in her pink hat, looked around and immediately spotted Mu Mu, running over to grab his hand. "I—I want to team up with Mu Mu! He’s awesome—he knows tons of words!"

Mu Mu turned red and squirmed away.

Lin Jiyao rolled his eyes: What does knowing words have to do with harvesting wheat?

Liang Sensen wasn’t one to back down either, rushing over to grab Mu Mu’s other hand. "I—I also want to team up with Mu Mu! He knows martial arts!"

Liu Yiru didn’t know whether to laugh or cry: What does martial arts have to do with harvesting wheat?

Wen Xiaowen, seeing both of them clinging to Mu Mu, immediately got upset. Back home, he was always the star of the show—Xiao Xiao and Sensen should be fighting to team up with *him*!

Since they weren’t taking the initiative, he couldn’t just say it outright. Instead, he marched up to Mu Mu, arms crossed, and declared, "I’m teaming up with Mu Mu too! I want to compete with him in harvesting!"

Wen Bingchun was speechless: Wouldn’t it be better to compete if they were on *different* teams? This kid’s got noodles for brains.

The kids bickered loudly over who got to team up with Mu Mu, while the three parents’ expressions twisted as they tried to figure out how to discreetly pull their own clueless kid back.

Mu Mu, fed up with the racket, snapped, "Stop arguing! Whoever my mom wants to team up with, I’ll choose!"

The kids lit up and immediately turned to look at Wen Zhi.

Mu Mu walked over to her and asked in a sweet voice, "Mom, who do you want to team up with?"

Liu Yiru, Wen Bingchun, and Lin Jiyao all shuddered, their eyes darting around to avoid meeting her gaze.

Wen Zhi: "..." They weren’t even trying to hide it—whoever got picked might actually try to fight her.

She cleared her throat. "How about this—the three of you play rock-paper-scissors. Best two out of three gets to team up with us."

The kids lit up and immediately formed a circle to play. The parents held their breath, praying their own child wouldn’t win.

"LOL, do these kids get what’s at stake?"

"LOL, with every round, Lin Jiyao loses a bit more of his composure. Wen Zhi’s wrecking his cool-guy image."

"Wen Bingchun looked like a deer in headlights—she’s terrified her chubby little one will defeat the other kids."

"At least Liu Yiru has veteran award-winning actress vibes."

The moment they said that, Liu Yiru suddenly covered her face.

Liang Sensen cheered, bouncing around as he waved at Liu Yiru. "Mom, I did it! I get to team up with Mu Mu!"

He ran over to tug at her, looking up with excitement. "Mom, we can team up with Mu Mu’s group now!"

Liu Yiru patted his head and smiled. "Way to go, Sensen!" Her smile warmed up a little.

After praising her son, she turned to Wen Zhi and said, "Hope you’re okay with porridge tonight."

Wen Zhi shrugged: "Whatever, as long as we get food."

Director Fang clapped his hands, motioning for the two teams to line up while three villagers began demonstrating how to harvest wheat.

"Like this, use a sickle to cut, then place the wheat on the open ground and thresh it with a stick."

Liu Yiru asked, "No harvesting machine?"

Director Fang: "We have one, but to let the kids experience the joy of a wheat harvest, we decided to use the most traditional method. You guys excited?"

The children chased each other along the field ridges, even Mu Mu joining in the running. Their laughter echoed across the fields—they hadn’t even heard Director Fang’s question.

No doubt about it—they were having a blast.

Liu Yiru sighed. Looked like they were stuck with porridge for dinner.

After the villagers finished demonstrating, the two teams of guests got to work.

The adults harvested the wheat, while the children carried the bundles to the open cement ground. Before starting, Wen Bingchun turned to Lin Jiyao and said, "I’ve never done this before, so I’ll be slow. Ji Yao, cut me some slack."

Lin Jiyao: "Who isn’t doing this for the first time? Equal rights, equal work—you take that side, I’ll take this one."

Wen Bingchun gritted her teeth: *Ugh, this guy’s impossible.*

"Lin Jiyao is too much! Zero gentlemanly manners!"

"LMAO, why should he be chivalrous toward Wen Bingchun if it’s about equality?"

"Hahaha, with Ji Yao’s looks, if he were chivalrous, he’d have been taken long ago! Isn’t ‘hardcore straight guy’ his nickname for a reason?"

"Has anyone noticed Wen Bingchun always tries to get close to Lin Jiyao? Liu Yiru and Wen Zhi never do that."

"Well, duh! Liu Yiru and Wen Zhi are moms, while Wen Bingchun and Lin Jiyao are the older sister and brother—isn’t it normal for them to stick together?"

"Yeah right! Just another one trying to latch onto my brother for a CP hype!"

The comment section was on fire as sunlight spilled over the wheat fields, setting the fields aglow.

A large group of elderly villagers approached from afar along the field ridges. The crew noticed and alerted Director Fang.

Director Fang snapped under his breath, "Didn’t we tell the village head to clear the area for filming?"

The assistant replied sheepishly, "We did. No clue what’s going on."

As the group of elderly villagers drew closer, even the kids paused to stare.

The group looked aggressive, brandishing hoes like they meant business. When they got close, they halted and scanned the area. Spotting Wen Zhi, the leader suddenly shouted, "There she is! Get her!"

Wen Zhi was startled but finally recognized the leader—the old villager who had driven them into the village yesterday and played chess with her.

What was he doing with so many people now?

She’d just won a few games and won back the snacks she’d given him—was that worth rolling deep over?

The others present clearly thinking the same thing as Wen Zhi.

*Did this old man stay salty all night and come back for round two?*

*Is he really that sore of a loser?*

A group of old villagers approached with tools in hand, and the show's staff immediately stepped forward to block them. Director Fang moved ahead with an apologetic smile, "Easy now, folks—let’s talk this through. What's going on here?" If anything happened to the guests, not only would the show be ruined, but he’d be screwed.

The lead old villager barked, "Butt out! We're here for her—step back."

Wen Zhi glanced at the IV drip and then at her own hand with the needle, wondering if calling the police would make it in time.

"Damn, are these villagers really here for revenge? Over some damn chess games?"

"With Wen Zhi's physique, she'd get creamed."

"What kind of terrible location did the crew pick? Sure, the scenery's nice, but this is terrifying."

"Ahhh, call the police now!"

"Like cops could get here in time! That remote mountain village—by the time they get here, it'll be too late."

Lin Jiyao frowned, walking over with a sickle in hand, his voice cold. "What do you want? Can't you see she's sick?"

The old villager glared at him, displeased. "Young man, we ain’t blind—of course we see. You step back too."

Lin Jiyao stood his ground, glaring back at the group.

Wen Xiaowen tried to step forward but was yanked back by Wen Bingchun.

Mu Mu immediately dropped the wheat in his hands and rushed in front of Wen Zhi, his chubby little face stern, dark eyes locked onto the group of old men. He stretched out his arms protectively, fierce like a feral cub. "Don’t you dare hit my mom!"

The group of old men burst into laughter. The leader dug out some lychees from his pocket and handed them over, chuckling. "This one’s got guts. Little one, go play somewhere else. Who said we're here to hit anyone? We're here to play chess with your mom!"

"Yeah, Liu Datou said your mom's a real chess shark, better than all of us. Ain’t no way we’re swallowing that!"

"Exactly! We brought a dozen ringers today. Heard you're only filming for five days, so we figured we'd come challenge her while we've got time."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Wen Zhi was dumbstruck. "If it's just chess, why bring tools to scare people?"

Liu Datou scratched his head with a guilty grin and explained, "We just came straight from work, that's all."

He quickly signaled for everyone to put down their tools. A wooden table was unfolded, stools set up, and a beat-up chessboard placed in front of Wen Zhi. "We’ll wipe the board with you!"

Wen Zhi looked at them, then at the crew, raising her hand. "Look, I’m sick here, and we're still filming."

Director Fang's earpiece suddenly crackled, followed by an excited voice from a crew member. "Director Fang, the live viewership is blowing up—through the roof!"

Director Fang's eyes lit up instantly, and he hurriedly said to Wen Zhi, "No problem—when in Rome, do as the Romans do. Your stomach ain’t your hands. Just play a few rounds with the folks."

Liu Datou was overjoyed, loudly praising Director Fang as a good man. He pulled up a stool and sat across from Wen Zhi, setting up the board himself. "Best two out of three?" he asked cheerfully.

Wen Zhi hesitated. "Our team hasn’t finished harvesting the wheat yet. I'm not in the mood."

Liu Datou grinned. "Take one game off us, we’ll do half your field. Win three, we'll finish the whole thing."

Wen Bingchun protested, "That’s cheating and you know it!"

Liu Datou shot her a glare, annoyed. "You wanna step up, little missy? If you’re so good, you play. We’ll still help harvest!"

Wen Bingchun immediately fell silent.

"LMAO, grandpa’s throwing shade!"

"Out of all of them, only Wen Zhi knows chess. Who’d have thought Wen the Deadweight would clean house at chess?"

"Hey you, don't call our Sister Zhi useless. Sister Zhi is mighty and will shut them up with her skills!"

"I bet a pack of spicy noodles that Wen Zhi probably just got lucky before. A dozen masters? No way she's beating them all."

"Are you stupid upstairs? Chess isn't a game of chance—what kind of luck are you talking about?"

Wen Zhi chuckled shamelessly and said, "Each win gets me one favor or item. Nothing outrageous—all things you can do or have. We'll return them when we leave."

Liu Datou and the twenty-something chess enthusiasts behind him scoffed, "Win first, then talk."

Wen Zhi sat up, sweeping her long hair back, her delicate features bathed in golden sunlight. Gone was her earlier laziness—now she was absolutely glowing.

She placed a chess piece firmly on the board, narrowed her eyes. "Let's begin!"

Her aura of confidence made everyone present turn their heads in awe.

Author's Note:

This novel will be becoming a paid story tomorrow (with a giveaway set up). Hope all dear readers continue to support me—your support is my biggest motivation for writing.

Humbly requesting favorites for "When a Naughty Kid Meets a Naughty Stepmom."

In 1982, 18-year-old Shen Yu was married off by her father to Xu Mingcheng, a city businessman, as his wife.

On their wedding night, Xu Mingcheng removed her bridal veil and gently negotiated with her, "I know you didn’t want to marry me. You’re the kindest, most proper girl in the area—it’s unfair for you to be matched with a businessman like me. From now on, I’ll give you the money I earn, and you just take care of my son for me. If you don’t want to call me 'husband,' treat me like a brother. If you ever find someone you love, I’ll provide the dowry."

Shen Yu nodded meekly, "Mm, you can leave without worries."

Xu Mingcheng confidently left his 7-year-old son with his new wife and went off to do business.

A month later, when he returned home, a shoe smacked him in the face the moment he opened the door—his "gentle and virtuous" wife was chasing their son around the house.

Xu Mingcheng: Must be seeing things.

Three months later, when he came back, the "naughty son" secretly asked if he’d brought a gift for his little wife—otherwise, she’d be upset.

Half a year later, his little wife crawled out of bed in the middle of the night and whispered timidly, "Brother, I think that college student next door is nice. The dowry can just be the plot of land behind the house."

Xu Mingcheng, who never smoked, smoked through half the night. The next morning, he called his son over and asked, "Kid, do you want a little brother or sister?"

His son replied, "Mom says one naughty kid is enough."

Xu Mingcheng: "..."

----

Shen Yu, an office worker, worked around the clock until she went bald—yet still couldn’t afford 10 square meters in a first-tier city.

After dying from overwork, she woke up in the 1980s and instantly got a spacious flat with a courtyard in what would become a first-tier city.

On her wedding night, she had a dream: her husband she got stuck with was the future richest man in Jiangcheng, while the original occupant of this body slaved away raising her stepson, never earning his recognition, only to die young from exhaustion.

She got none of the fortune—just the stepson’s birth mother taking her place.

Upon waking, Shen Yu decided to take it easy:

If the stepson was naughty, she'd out-naughty him. Raising kids? She'd get better with practice.

The money her husband sent back? She'd spend it freely. Hard work? Not a chance.

But when she'd saved enough money and skills to leave, her husband she got stuck with brought her before his friends and introduced her: "Here, this is your sister-in-law."

The naughty stepson bragged to his classmates in front of her: "Isn't she beautiful?"