When Mu Ran woke up, she could already smell the aroma of food. Taking off her sunglasses, Mu Ran looked around and called out, "Xiao Jin."
"Auntie, I'm here!"
This morning, the child looked like a little fairy, but now he appeared as disheveled as a child abandoned by a wealthy family and left to wander.
Though he couldn't hide his noble demeanor.
But he was dirty!
"What happened to you...?" Mu Ran's mind was still in a daze: "Played with fire?"
"No, I cooked. It's just that I'm not very skilled at starting a fire and almost burned myself. Look, I made a dish of stir-fried cabbage, scrambled eggs, and also steamed ribs." Chu Xijin led her to the kitchen to see.
He learned the cooking skills by asking the people in the village, who enthusiastically taught him.
Whether it was starting a fire or chopping and stir-frying vegetables, including the cooking time, the villagers eagerly shared their knowledge with him.
"You cooked?" Mu Ran lifted her wrist and checked the time.
Oh, wow.
It was two in the afternoon.
No wonder she slept so well.
"Yes, I cooked. Auntie, try and see how it is," Chu Xijin handed her a pair of chopsticks to try first.
Mu Ran gave him a deep look.
Then tasted a bite.
The cabbage was crisp, with a hint of sweetness. Mu Ran gave him a thumbs up: "Super delicious. I never liked this vegetable before, but now I find it really tasty!"
"Really?"
"Of course!" Mu Ran raised an eyebrow, "Why would I lie to you?"
"True."
Her aunt usually couldn't be bothered to lie.
Mu Ran watched him serve the dishes and also followed suit, feeling slightly relieved yet incredulous that she was eating food cooked by a five-year-old child.
Although she wasn't exactly a moral person, it was a bit pitiful that while she was snoring away, the child had to find ingredients and figure out how to cook by himself.
Helpless, she could only lie to cheer him up.
[At least Mu Ran has a bit of a conscience!]
[Haha, such timing in waking up, right when the young prince finishes cooking, impressive!]
[Ugh, I really hope Xiao Jin's mom and dad take him back soon. He shouldn't be with this aunt, she's so lazy!]
...
While Mu Ran was eating.
She was feeling somewhat guilty.
Mu Dixin, who took time to secretly watch his sister's variety show, was almost infuriated. It was live-streamed, and the whole nation could see what she was doing. Couldn't she at least pretend a bit?
At least help a little while someone else was cooking.
But she just slept there.
Mu Dixin was really at his wit's end; this is the result of raising a child loosely.
Their whole family has high emotional intelligence, except for Mu Ran, who pays no heed to occasion while doing and saying things.
She does whatever she wants.
She's never been wronged since she was young; no one has ever made her suffer.
This stubborn mule-like personality led to one of her works being aborted.
She refused to agree to having the investor add people, saying it would ruin her work.
She also disliked the investor's mistress.
After repeated requests, she harshly criticized the guy!
The investor had strong connections behind him and directly took her down.
Mu Ran not only doesn't regret it but has become even more high-profile.
The online criticism against her has only intensified.
When Mu Ran was shooting that Republic-era tragedy with such a bold theme, he was against her entering the entertainment industry.
Her personality is too strong.
It's easy to suffer in the entertainment circle.
But she didn't care; she wanted to be a director. The two had a big fight, and she moved out, with no contact for three years.
She was heartless like no other.
This time, he thought that participating in the variety show with kids she liked would make her restrain herself a bit.
But the greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment.
Now there are three trending black tags about her.
Many marketing accounts don't watch the live stream; they have people specifically watching and then editing clips for the marketing accounts to repost, with slightly different captions.
But many cut out the beginning and end, leading many who didn't watch the stream to think of Mu Ran as a morally bankrupt person.
Mu Dixin wanted to intervene many times.
But when he spent money on marketing accounts and Mu Ran found out, the two had a massive argument again.
This ungrateful sister just said: "I don't need your fake kindness. I know how to live my own life, and I can bear the consequences of my actions. Don't use spending a bit of money as a reason to make me obey your orders, get lost!"
As her brother.
Feeling sorry for his sister.
Being scolded like that, Mu Dixin swore never to bother her again and to buy marketing accounts to clean her image.
His hairline would recede five centimeters!
Mu Dixin gritted his teeth and called his wife, Feng Qikuo: "Did you watch Xiao Ran's variety show?"
"Yes, it's quite interesting. I found that child really cares about his aunt and is so sensible. Also, this group of kids didn't make a fuss, it's quite soothing to watch. I think my investment this time was spot on." Feng Qikuo was very pleased with her investment judgment.
"Xiao Ran is trending again..."
"Oh, Xiao Ran is just born to trend. Others spend so much money to trend; she trends in minutes, don't worry so much. Now is the time for shooting the show. Good or bad, as long as it's not illegal or unruly, popularity is key!"
Feng Qikuo would never pay to clean Mu Ran's image.
That would really be a waste of money.
If you throw money into the water, you can at least hear a splash.
Cleaning Mu Ran's image wouldn't even make a sound.
"Today, she didn't do anything particularly overboard. Many people didn't even watch the live stream but scolded her like that!" Mu Dixin rubbed his forehead, irritated and worried.
"Xiao Ran is used to it, she's very strong-minded and doesn't care about the online gossip at all. She's talented, among the young directors in the industry, she's the most gifted, the most famous, and also the most hopeful in leading domestic films back on track. In the entertainment circle, she's heavily criticized, but her works have never been bashed. Didn't you notice that the film that just got released hasn't had its ratings affected by the negative news about her?"
Feng Qikuo thinks she's really amazing.
Logically speaking, disliking a director would mean not watching her work, but Mu Ran is different. Even if many people dislike her, they still watch her work.
"Let me check the box office now, after just a few days of release, it's over three hundred million. It's a black comedy, mind you."
"Forget it, I can't reason with you."
"You can spend your own money. Stop thinking about using my company's resources!" Feng Qikuo laughed.
"Never mind..."
"Hahaha, it doesn't matter. Even if your hairline recedes five centimeters, I'll still like you," Feng Qikuo laughed heartily.
"I'm off to work. You should also take care, drink less."
"Okay."
Mu Dixin hung up the phone and checked the time; there was still a while before the meeting started.
He decided to personally go online to fight the negativity!
His Weibo alt account's profile picture was of Mu Ran wearing sunglasses, with a few words above it: "Fanatic Fan 2!"