The little treasures, armed with their parents' shopping lists, set off.
The screen immediately split into two sections: a smaller one showing the parents' reactions and a larger one broadcasting the children's outing live.
Before they left, Ye Jingxing, looking resigned, instructed, "Nuannuan, just buy whatever you want! It's just this little bit of money anyway. Your dad would be happy even if you gave him a cup of plain water."
"Fourth Uncle, one must have hope," Nuannuan said, looking at him encouragingly.
"Yes, but Fourth Uncle has lost all hope now. Go on!" Ye Jingxing waved his hand weakly at Nuannuan.
Ye Jinghuai, standing beside them, had been frowning. Suddenly, he turned to the director. "Can I go along? I won't interfere, I'm just a little worried."
"Mr. Ye, please don't worry. The children will be accompanied by two staff members, and they will be safe."
Ye Jinghuai still looked uneasy, his brow furrowed.
"Do you think the children will follow your instructions?" the director immediately tried to divert Ye Jinghuai's concern with a new topic.
"I think Fang Lei will be the first to grab a toy," Fang Zhongwen stated with certainty.
"As for Xingxing, he really likes candy. I think he'll also follow his own preferences."
"My daughter is very obedient, she should follow what I wrote," Chen Yi said, confident in Zheng Jiajia.
"Xinyue has her own ideas, so I can't say for sure," Li Yueyao hesitated.
"Nuannuan won't disappoint us," Ye Jinghuai also chimed in.
"Second brother, we don't have money! Even if Nuannuan wants to buy something, it's useless!" Ye Jingxing had already given up.
Nuannuan and her group arrived at the largest supermarket in S County, which had a decent variety of goods.
"Nuannuan sister, where are you going?" Fang Lei, the oldest, asked with a feigned air of maturity.
"I want to buy food," Nuannuan replied with a naive expression.
"Brother Lei, I don't know where to go?" Zhuo Wenxing, being introverted, preferred to follow Fang Lei.
"Then you guys follow me!" Fang Lei patted his chest.
A string of little sprouts followed Fang Zhongwen as they weaved through the aisles and arrived at the toy section.
"Brother, did you make a mistake? There's nothing Nuannuan wants here?"
"I'll buy what I want first," Fang Lei said, reaching out directly and picking up a toy car.
Zhuo Wenxing also picked up a "fishing cat" toy. Zheng Jiajia, remembering her mother's words, didn't move. Li Xinyue saw a beautiful doll and took one as well.
"I told you he would go for the toys," Fang Zhongwen said with a smug expression.
"Xingxing usually likes playing with that toy at home," Zhuo Fan said helplessly.
"He's a child who is easily influenced by others and usually lacks his own opinions."
"My Fang Lei has too much of his own opinion," Fang Zhongwen said with a helpless expression.
Meanwhile, Nuannuan was getting impatient with accompanying the other children aimlessly.
"I'm going to buy vegetables and fruits. You guys take your time choosing," Nuannuan said and headed straight for the fresh food section, with the director's assistant pushing a shopping cart behind her.
"Sister, Nuannuan wants grapes. Daddy likes eating grapes the most. Can you get me a bunch?" Nuannuan looked expectantly at the staff member following her.
"Yes, yes," the director's assistant was instantly charmed.
"And peaches, Fourth Uncle likes peaches~" Her little hand pointed to the juicy peaches nearby. The assistant put a few peaches into the cart for her.
"Thank you, sister~"
"Auntie, Nuannuan wants to buy meat." Nuannuan stood on tiptoe and called out to the supermarket employee behind the counter.
"How much?" The employee, seeing such a small child buying groceries, wanted to tease her.
"This much!" She gestured with her small hand.
"Here you go." After weighing it, the employee placed it directly into the small cart.
"Thank you, auntie~" Nuannuan left, content.
"And shrimp, Nuannuan's favorite shrimp."
In the screen, Nuannuan was shopping with precise targets, and everyone found it incredible.
"Nuannuan is so smart! Jingxing, you didn't say anything!" Fang Zhongwen exclaimed in amazement.
"Of course, my Nuannuan is not only smart but also filial. She knows what I like to eat," Ye Jingxing said proudly.
Thinking of Nuannuan remembering he liked peaches made him happy.
"What are you so proud of? She's my daughter," Ye Jinghuai punctured his smugness.
"Exactly. Even if she chose the right things, she still has to be able to buy them!" Zhuo Fan, unable to stand Ye Jingxing's smugness, delivered a precise blow.
"Pfft~ Brother, is this what they call 'joy turning into sorrow'? You were still immersed in your niece's filial piety and thoughtfulness, and then you got hit with a series of blows."
"Regardless, Nuannuan is indeed amazing. Other children are still buying snacks and toys, having long forgotten their parents' instructions."
"Zheng Jiajia is also very good. She took the list and asked the supermarket staff to get everything for her. It's a pity that Chen Yi's little money can't afford these things."
"Has Chen Yi never shopped herself! With only over a hundred yuan, look at what she wrote! Red wine, tea, none of which she can afford right now."
Chen Yi also regretted it. When writing the list, she had only thought about entertaining friends well. It was only after her child left that she remembered she only had a little over a hundred yuan.
Soon, it was time to check out. The first few children had significantly exceeded their budgets. In the end, after deleting items, they had lost what the adults wanted, leaving only the toys and snacks they liked.
Zheng Jiajia had not made any wrong choices, but the items Chen Yi had written were too expensive. In the end, the cashier had to pick out a few items for her that didn't exceed the budget.
Finally, it was Nuannuan's turn. Nuannuan had bought a lot of vegetables, meat, fruits, milk, and imported drinks.
"Little one, it's a total of 588 yuan. Did you also exceed the budget?" the cashier asked Nuannuan with a smile.
"No, sister. Nuannuan has money,"
Saying that, her small hand reached into her backpack. The director felt his blood pressure rise every time she reached for her backpack.
"Sister, use this," she handed over a card.
"Oh my god! Is that a black card? Is it the black card I'm thinking of?"
"If the camera quality isn't bad, then yes."
"Oh my goodness! In my lifetime, I'll get to see someone use this card. I could only look at pictures online before."
"Question: What's it like to have a rich dad?"
"Upstairs, this isn't just any rich person."
"I want a dad who can give me a black card."
"Same here."
"Brother! You gave Nuannuan your card?" Ye Jingxing found it unbelievable.
He only had a supplementary card for this card, but he could tell that Nuannuan held the primary one.
"I was in a hurry to leave, so I gave her mine first. What's so strange about that?" Ye Jinghuai replied calmly.
"Aren't you afraid she'll lose it?"
"If it's lost, I'll just report it lost. Don't worry, Nuannuan is much more reliable than you. And I'll take it back when we get home. From now on, she'll only have a supplementary card," Ye Jinghuai said expressionlessly, as if discussing a trivial matter.
Everyone around was astonished. Chen Yi, on the other hand, was filled with jealousy. Even she didn't have a black card, and now a three-year-old girl possessed and used one.
The cashier, her hands trembling, took Nuannuan's card. She couldn't believe that in her lifetime, she would personally handle a black card and even swipe it.
"Does the child have a password?"
"No."
"Alright, welcome back next time."
"Thank you, sister."
The items were carried by the staff, and the children boarded the cars for the return journey.
Upon arriving at the small courtyard, the parents came out to greet them.
"Daddy~ Am I good?" Nuannuan clung to Ye Jinghuai, not even glancing at Ye Jingxing, who was watching expectantly.
"Very good!" Ye Jinghuai looked at his treasure with a smile.
"Hehe, Nuannuan, you're amazing." Ye Jingxing gave Nuannuan a thumbs-up. He hadn't expected her to be so good at hiding money; he had already given up.
"Nuannuan is the best!" She shook her little head proudly.
"Director, do we even need to compare?" Fang Zhongwen looked dejectedly at the toys and snacks in Fang Lei's bag.
"Of course, the guests are still here!" The director had given up on this episode, but he was determined not to let Nuannuan hide so much money next time.
"We surrender!" Zhuo Fan said, wiping his face in exasperation.
"This time, it's a scored event. The five guests will score together, and there will be rankings."
"Then I'll strive not to be last," Fang Zhongwen clenched his fist secretly.