Mr. Zhou Doesn’t Want to Work Hard Anymore!

If you can’t live longer than others…

The few people who went to pick lotus roots came back by the time it was getting dark. Each of them were sopping wet, and after being exposed to the sun all afternoon, they smelled of sweat.

They all took a bath and changed their clothes one after another. Seeing that the kitchen was still busy, they came over to help Lu Ji and Zhou Chenxi finish cooking.

Ren Qian and Zhuang Jingle were in a small group right by each other, paddling along in the water. On the other side, Shao Yunyi took the initiative to help them wash the freshly picked lotus roots as well.

Luo Xinghe was in a dilemma. Since he said he couldn’t cook, he went up to help with a hidden fear of exposure, and since the kitchen preparation work was almost done, he could only sit next to Ren Qian and the others.

They were busy until 8 o’clock in the evening, when the table of dishes was finally ready.

Unexpectedly, the program team invited the local villagers over to have dinner with them.

Fearing that Zhou Chenxi and Lu Ji did not have enough dishes, the villagers each prepared a special dish from home to put together on the table for them, and started eating together noisily.

Shao Yunyi was a straight-forward character. She stood up with her wine glass and laughed loudly, “Welcome folks, If we had known before, Mr. Lu and Chenxi would not have to work so hard. The two of them have been tossing in the kitchen for so long. In that time, it turns out our fellow-townspeople had already prepared a legendary banquet!”

Everyone laughed heartily.

The villagers were also very enthusiastic. They all stood up, thanking Lu Ji and Zhou Chenxi for their hospitality, “The chef’s have worked hard.”

Zhou Chenxi hadn’t ever been the focus before, he was momentarily overwhelmed by the favor, and stood up hurriedly, “It’s all thanks to everyone, not only our dishes, but the dishes you all cooked are also delicious!”

Everyone was very happy and brightly had a drink.

Only Luo Xinghe sat in the corner, frowning.

On both sides of him were farmers in coarse cloth.

Although it had been rated as a UNESCO site, in fact, the local villagers had not even reached the point of a prosperous life. Other than receiving sightseers and earning extra money during the tourist season, most of the time they were toiling their lives away in the soil only to be self-sufficient through the farmwork.

As a result, the villagers all looked aged. It was no wonder, how can they not look aged if they’re in the sun all day?

In addition, the clothes they were wearing were crumpled, and the whole person seemed to be unclean even after bathing, making people not want to get close at all.

Luo Xinghe didn’t even want to eat with them, no matter how polite they were, and even thought they always used the public chopsticks on the table very carefully.

As time passed, Luo Xinghe forgot that he grew up in a peasant family in reality. Later, he left the countryside and went to Hengdian to work as a drifter. Even later, he was spotted by a major director and acted as a supporting role in a movie. After that he never returned to the countryside.

Luo Xinghe believed that he won Ren Qian’s favor in the lotus pond today, despite being robbed of the limelight by Ren Qian and Shao Yunyi several times in front of the camera.

After all, one of them was a popular actor and the other was a popular flower. In addition, Ren Qian and Shao Yunyi both have casual personalities, so he estimated that the lotus root picking footage would mostly contain the two of them.

In this kind of situation, Luo Xinghe was inferior in being able to please people. He knew that his only two superior advantages were his good luck and good looks.

However, variety shows do not need vases*, but interesting souls. 

*someone who is just pretty to look at

Luo Xinghe, who is used to being the protagonist and was used to being praised, had forgotten what it was like to humble himself in order to make others laugh. Even the deputy director quietly reminded him when he returned from the lotus pond, to let go, and said not to “be so uptight”.

Luo Xinghe was a person who was good at planning and calculating his gains and losses, but this time he regretted it deeply.

He shouldn’t have come on this show.

Fortunately, however, there was a character he could attack here, a supporting role who would always be his cover, and so there was still room for recovery.

After dinner, the villagers dispersed one after another, Luo Xinghe took the initiative to stand up to clean, planning to show off in front of Lu Ji.

“Let me clean.” Luo Xinghe said, “Mr. Lu has worked hard today, you can leave the washing up to me.”

“Yeah, yeah!” Shao Yunyi didn’t hear what was wrong with his words, and stood up, “Let’s wash, let’s wash! Mr. Lu and Xiao* Zhou, you two can go rest.” 

*term of endearment

Ren Qian looked at Luo Xinghe in a way that was free from worries, and stood up to work, “Xinghe, I will help you ah. Yun Yi, you have worked hard today. We have washed so many lotus roots alone, let us do the dishes.”

Shao Yunyi said: “Well then, Jing Le and I will send the villagers out together.”

After speaking, she hurriedly caught up with Zhuang Jingle, who was out with the fellow villagers.

Unexpectedly, he was so aggressively robbed of work. Zhou Chenxi had nothing to do, wandering in the kitchen for a while, then decided not to approach Luo Xinghe, so he quietly moved the lounge chair in the inn to outside the courtyard for a while.

It was rare to be so idle. The moon was waning, and the sky in the town was particularly beautiful, as if he could see the dazzling Milky Way when he looked up, Zhou Chenxi stretched out his hand, as if all the stars could be easily grasped by him.

“It’s good to be alive!” Zhou Chenxi couldn’t help sighing.

“Are there any chicken soup testimonials to be published?” Lu Ji moved a chair and sat next to him.

*feel good inspiring words lol

“No, I was just sighing.” Zhou Chenxi rested his head in his hands and swayed his thin legs, “After all, everyone is a good young person in society who has to pay five social insurances and one housing fund on time. If they can’t live longer than others wouldn’t it be a big waste of retirement money?”

Lu Ji: “…” Thank you, I’ve been poisoned.

Zhou Chenxi also felt that he might be too poisonous, and turned around to look at the kitchen.

Ren Qian was chatting with Luo Xinghe, they seemed to get along well, laughing from time to time. Their budding good impressions seemed to be in a state of germinating. Zhou Chenxi couldn’t help but ask, “Why didn’t you stay in the kitchen?”

Lu Ji looked at him strangely, “Why would I stay there?”

“Be proactive,” Zhou Chenxi felt that he was really seeing something bland and was worried. “If you aren’t proactive, how can you win the love of your sweetheart?”

Lu Ji was thoughtful, and felt that the person in front of him was suggesting something. 

Lu Ji was really too passive, Zhou Chenxi thought to himself. The progress bar of Ren Qian’s favor with Luo Xinghe was soaring, yet Lu Ji was still in the mood to chat with himself and watch the stars. 

He had already seen Luo Xinghe winking at Lu Ji.

And he saw the gossip on Weibo saying that Shao Yunyi and Lu Ji, the childhood sweethearts, didn’t even seem to be familiar with each other outside of formal greetings. 

What was going on with this Lu Ji?

Zhou Chenxi was very concerned. 

Do all handsome overbearing presidents have the special characteristics of parenting orphans?

No wonder his elder brother never found a girlfriend.

What a pity!

For the time being, he couldn’t experience the pleasure of watching and buying stocks up close*. Zhou Chenxi thought about it and felt a bit regretful. 

*watching and seeing who actually becomes the final CP

He involuntarily swayed his feet again and sighed.

–

The author has something to say: Xiao Zhou probably means that if someone wants to live a good life, then they must put a green dot on their head.* 

*internet slang for basically keeping one eye open and one eye closed in order to live a smooth life.