Chapter 254: Record It

Chapter 254: Chapter 254: Record It

Lai Liang had a bad habit of cursing in Japanese whenever he got angry.

That’s why in his kitchen, everyone else knew at least a few Japanese phrases.

He spoke too fast for the assistant to understand everything completely.

He could only vaguely make out that Lai Liang was cursing both himself and Nan Zhi.

At first, he was cursing himself for being crazy, but then he started attacking that Miss Nan Zhi, calling her a phony who loved to put on a show, a female celebrity who knew nothing yet pretended to be a master chef...

In the assistant’s eyes, Lai Liang’s tirade was, on the contrary, filled with thick jealousy and resentment.

’Could it be because of what happened back then?’

Back then, Lai Liang had planned to make a name for himself through a variety show. He’d even set his sights on Director Zhong Yu’s new documentary, hoping to use the opportunity to expand his influence, hype himself up as the number one Japanese cuisine chef in the country, and then become the first non-Chinese cuisine chef in the "Register of Famous Chefs," making history...

Lai Liang was rubbing his hands together, brimming with ambition.

And what happened? Before his plan was even halfway complete, some female celebrity came out of nowhere and stole all his thunder.

At first, Lai Liang didn’t pay it any mind, thinking it was just a little gimmick for the variety show’s hype.

Until the variety show he was supposed to sign with chose Nan Zhi over him.

Until Director Zhong’s new documentary approached Nan Zhi again and again.

...Lai Liang finally broke.

On the surface, he acted so nonchalant, as if he’d never even heard of Nan Zhi.

But in reality? He hated Nan Zhi’s guts.

Otherwise, he never would have agreed to Chang Mu’s proposal, running out to this remote mountain region he despised to live such a miserable life.

The assistant, who knew the whole story, couldn’t help but feel a flicker of schadenfreude.

He found it ironic that the hypocritical Lai Liang was being showered with praise online, yet felt a sense of satisfaction seeing him hopping mad with rage over Nan Zhi.

But Lai Liang was completely oblivious.

He was completely worked up now. Switching from Japanese back to Chinese, he started cursing the children for being clueless, for not knowing how rare and expensive the sashimi he had personally sliced was. If it weren’t for this opportunity, poor mountain kids like them would never get to eat it in their entire lives!

"...As expected, you can’t feed fine bran to a wild boar. They deserve to eat that greasy, low-class Chinese food. Serves them right they can’t appreciate high-class Japanese cuisine..."

The assistant’s ears burned. He had no choice but to gently remind him to be careful not to be overheard.

Lai Liang paid him no mind, his arrogant posture suggesting he didn’t care even if he was overheard.

In reality, however, he still discreetly lowered his voice.

Which is why Lai Liang didn’t notice—

—that just above a window not far from him, a black phone dangling on a line was being quietly pulled up, retreating from the scene.

On the small, barren slope behind the cafeteria, Qi Pei’er watched with her heart in her throat as the little boy, agile as a monkey, scurried down from the roof in a flash, using a plastic drainpipe for support.

Her phone was held firmly in the little boy’s hand.

But more than her phone, Qi Pei’er was worried about the boy.

She frowned in disapproval and said in a low voice:

"Xiao Hu, I know you wanted to help me, but what you just did was too dangerous. What if you had slipped and fallen off the roof?"

The little boy standing across from Qi Pei’er was named Xiao Hu. He was on good terms with both Nan Yi and Qi Zhang, and in class, he was usually the one looking after the two Cubs. The personality he showed his teachers was that of a steady and sensible child.

But Xiao Hu’s performance just now had completely upended Qi Pei’er’s perception of him—

「It had all started yesterday.」

Qi Pei’er had accidentally overheard that Lai Liang fellow secretly complaining to his assistant. She knew that a guy like him couldn’t say anything decent, and that sooner or later, his bad temper and loose tongue would be his downfall.

But in this day and age, you couldn’t just make accusations with nothing to back them up. It was best to get concrete evidence to completely bury the guy.

To that end, she had specifically gone to find Nan Zhi and told her about it.

Nan Zhi told her not to worry too much about it, saying she already had other plans but needed to take things slowly.

How could Qi Pei’er not be anxious?

The moment she recalled the sight of Nan Zhi’s lonely figure walking away that day, her heart felt like it was being twisted by a knife. She wished she could flay Lai Liang and that Chang Mu alive!

Qi Pei’er was determined to get to the bottom of this!

So, when she heard from Teacher Zhang that Lai Liang and his assistant were in the cafeteria, claiming they needed to prepare for a class and had temporarily kicked everyone else, including the camera crew, out...

Qi Pei’er immediately realized this was a golden opportunity.

Who knew what sort of "nice things" Lai Liang might say when he was alone with his trusted assistant?

She decisively left the others and snuck over.

Who would’ve thought that Lai Liang and his assistant would shut the door so tightly? She could only vaguely hear a few muffled complaints, let alone record them.

After circling the cafeteria, she finally found a window that was cracked open, but it was in too obvious a spot. If she squatted below it, she would definitely be seen.

Just as she was caught in this dilemma, Xiao Hu appeared.

The boy had a dark complexion and a small frame, but his eyes were exceptionally bright and clever.

Qi Pei’er didn’t say a word, but as if he understood her predicament, he immediately offered to help.

Qi Pei’er hadn’t wanted to drag a child into this.

But he just took her phone, scrambled up the plastic drainpipe to the roof in a few quick movements, and was gone before Qi Pei’er had any chance to stop him.

Qi Pei’er was both shocked and terrified. She could only watch Xiao Hu’s movements with bated breath, afraid that he would make one careless mistake and fall from the roof.

But Xiao Hu moved with perfect stability, his agility almost unbelievable.

The cafeteria was a single-story building constructed on its own. Above the window, there was a chimney that happened to conceal Xiao Hu’s figure perfectly.

Then, Xiao Hu took out a roll of fishing line, tied it tightly around the phone, turned on the recording function, and, as if using it as bait, slowly lowered the phone from the edge of the roof until it dangled by the crack in the window.

Watching this scene, Qi Pei’er was impressed to her very core.

But she still couldn’t relax.

It wasn’t until Xiao Hu was safely back on solid ground that Qi Pei’er’s heart finally settled.

Xiao Hu listened obediently and quietly to Qi Pei’er’s scolding, then added:

"Teacher Qi, aren’t we leaving?"

"...Let’s go!"

It wouldn’t be good if they were discovered after going through all that trouble to get this!

Qi Pei’er quickly grabbed Xiao Hu and made a run for it.

Once they reached a safe spot, Qi Pei’er pulled out the video she had just recorded and watched it.

The video was blurry, but the conversation between the two people inside the cafeteria—or more accurately, Lai Liang’s one-man tirade—was perfectly clear.

Far clearer than what Qi Pei’er had heard through the wall!

This was an unexpected delight!

However, when she thought about Lai Liang’s outrageous remarks, she couldn’t feel happy anymore.

"What a piece of work! Forgetting his own roots... Ah, Xiao Hu, I didn’t mean that."

Xiao Hu just shook his head honestly, pretending he didn’t understand.

Qi Pei’er felt a little awkward and said:

"In any case, I’m very grateful to you. Is there anything you want? I’ll do my best to get it for you!"

Xiao Hu’s eyes instantly lit up:

"Teacher Qi, could you get me a guitar?"