"Wait, what did you just say?" Xia Wei Liang stared blankly at Si Xizi. "His mother… she just left him here alone?"
Si Xizi nodded, his face flushing. "His mother was also an unfortunate soul. She suffered half her life, and finally found a good family, but that family just couldn't tolerate this child."
Xia Wei Liang suddenly laughed, "And then she abandoned him?"
Si Xizi faltered, "Uh…"
"She gave birth to him, raised him, and then because that family didn't like him, she just threw him away? Like trash?"
Xia Wei Liang was reacting a bit too strongly, even Su Yu Xi noticed it.
"Wei Liang…"
He was about to say something when he saw Xiao Yi suddenly pull her into his arms…
Su Yu Xi froze.
Didn't he know they were filming?
What if the production team used this as a gimmick to boost ratings?
He was a film emperor and could afford to not care, but what about Xia Wei Liang? Had he considered that?
What shocked him even more was that Brother Qiao acted as if he saw nothing. The camera panned around, even giving close-ups of tables and chairs, but it never turned towards them!
At that moment, Su Yu Xi finally understood.
Xiao Yi held Xia Wei Liang in his arms, stroking her hair, his hoarse voice faintly audible, "I'm here."
Xia Wei Liang nestled in his embrace, her hands subtly clutching the hem of his clothes.
Su Yu Xi forcefully averted his gaze, gritting his teeth to stop himself from looking again.
Realizing she had lost her composure, Xia Wei Liang quickly pulled away from his embrace, attempting to explain awkwardly, "I just…"
"You don't need to say anything, we all understand," Su Yu Xi said softly, slowly raising his eyes, and offering her a kind smile.
Zhao Cheng's life story reminded her of herself, which was why she had momentarily lost control of her emotions.
He understood everything.
Xia Wei Liang steadied her emotions and continued asking the dazed Si Xizi, "Where does Zhao Cheng live?"
Si Xizi suddenly snapped back to attention, looking at her, then at the man standing calmly behind her. He subtly avoided her gaze, no longer staring at her intently, and said in a small voice, "His house is behind my house, but you won't find him even if you go there."
Xia Wei Liang quickly asked, "Then where should I look for him?"
"After the mountain was sealed, he stopped going up the mountain. He should be by the river fishing right now."
"Fishing? In this cold weather?"
Xia Wei Liang took a deep breath, turned, and left, "I'll go find him first."
Xiao Yi pulled Si Xizi over and motioned for him to lead the way.
"Oh… Oh!"
Si Xizi quickly chased after them, "Sister Liang, wait up, I'll take you! You don't know the way, don't fall into the river!"
The small river, with temperatures below minus ten degrees Celsius, was frozen on both sides, with only the middle section flowing.
Several people split up to search.
Xiao Yi suddenly tugged Xia Wei Liang's arm and pointed forward.
A child was standing in the river, a boy of eleven or twelve, barefoot in the freezing water, bending down to pull in a net.
It was Xia Wei Liang's first time seeing Zhao Cheng, and she would never forget this scene.
"Monkey… Zhao Cheng!"
Si Xizi saw him too and quickly called out to him.
Zhao Cheng merely tilted his head to look in their direction, without any further reaction, and continued fishing.
After pulling in the net, there were only two small fish.
Zhao Cheng was a little dissatisfied, but as it was getting dark, he could only throw them into a plastic bucket and then got ashore.
His little feet were already red and swollen from the cold, but he didn't seem to care. He casually slipped them into shoes that were clearly two sizes too big, the shoes so old and worn that their original color was indistinguishable.
"Zhao Cheng, I'm calling you!"
Si Xizi stopped him and introduced, "They are celebrities from the big city, come to find you to go to school!"
"Go to school? No time!"
Zhao Cheng, carrying his small bucket, walked towards home.
"Hey, I say you…"
Xia Wei Liang stepped forward to pull Si Xizi back and shook her head.
She silently followed Zhao Cheng.
Su Yu Xi was about to follow when Xiao Yi stopped him, saying in a low voice, with a voice on the verge of breaking, "She can."
Su Yu Xi stared at him blankly, wanting to say something, but realizing the camera nearby, he ultimately remained silent.
It was only now that he gradually began to understand why "Courage" had become a national variety show. It was because no one was truly acting; they were all striving to fulfill their responsibilities.
Perhaps it was their earnest and sincere efforts that moved the audience.
Xia Wei Liang walked alongside Zhao Cheng, looking down at his bucket, "Fish soup tonight?"
Such small fish wouldn't be enough to eat, only suitable for soup.
Zhao Cheng tilted his head to look at her. Perhaps it was because she looked pretty, he lazily replied, "My fish soup is delicious, do you want some?"
"Really? That's great! I'm hungry too, thank you!"
She didn't, like others, reject him because he was an orphan or because his family was poor, which made Zhao Cheng very happy.
"This is my home!"
He pushed open the door and gestured for her to come in.
The moment she stepped inside, Xia Wei Liang's expression became a little unnatural. She tried her best not to let him see it, maintaining a smile.
This could hardly be called a home; it was merely a house with a roof added. Su Dan Novel Network
The yard was messy, and the room was dark. Soon after Zhao Cheng entered, a candlelight appeared.
Perhaps seeing that she hadn't come in, he beckoned to her from the doorway, "Come in!"
"Okay!"
Xia Wei Liang smiled and entered. The cameraman, Brother Qiao's apprentice Xiao Shuai, specifically gave the room a close-up.
He couldn't help but marvel internally that if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, it would be hard to believe such poverty still existed today, especially thinking that only one child lived here, his heart ached.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" Xia Wei Liang asked politely.
"No need!" Zhao Cheng patted his chest. "How can a man let a woman do the work? You just wait to eat!"
"Okay." Xia Wei Liang replied with a smile.
She felt an inexplicable fondness for this child, perhaps because in him, she saw another tragic version of herself.
As they finally had a guest at home, Zhao Cheng wanted to cook, but the rice jar was already empty, and there was only the dried noodles that Village Chief Liu had brought last time.
After thinking for a moment, he decided to make fish soup noodles.
Soon, two bowls of noodles were ready.
Each bowl had a small fish, and the aroma was quite pleasant.
Zhao Cheng served a bowl to Xia Wei Liang, then looked up at the cameraman with a difficult expression. Finally, he handed him the bowl in his hand, "You eat, I'm not hungry."
Xiao Shuai was almost in tears.
The camera swung left and right, "No, no, I just finished eating! I'm not hungry, you eat quickly!"
Zhao Cheng no longer stood on ceremony, sitting on a small stool and slurping his noodles.
Xia Wei Liang sat on another small stool, also eating heartily without speaking.
Zhao Cheng would glance at her from time to time, then grin.
After finishing the meal, Xia Wei Liang wanted to help with the dishes, but Zhao Cheng again drove her away, "I can do this myself! You don't need to!"
"Okay."
Xia Wei Liang sat on the small stool, resting her chin on her hands, watching him with a smile.
She discovered that Zhao Cheng was good at housework, and the kitchen was kept spotlessly clean.
Pressing her lips together, she suddenly asked, "Zhao Cheng, why didn't you go with your mother?"
Zhao Cheng lowered his head, his voice muffled, "That family wouldn't let me go. She cried for several days, and I didn't want her to fail to get married."
Her voice trembled slightly, "So, you deliberately caused trouble so your mother would give up on you?"