“I took Niu Niu to the set. No need to come over.” She stared ahead and continued, “Don’t you have an important advertisement shoot and live event today?”
Mentioning the ad, Du Ze’s voice on the other end noticeably brightened.
“Sigh, actually, I didn’t even want to take this ad. I just wanted to stay home with Niu Niu and wait for you to come back from work.”
Wang Shilan sneered inwardly. Under the spotlight, Du Ze seemed like the perfect father. His smile toward Niu Niu was warm and gentle, his eyes always full of affection. Every tiny gesture seemed to flow from a place of genuine tenderness. Even when speaking to Niu Niu, his voice was low and soft, his smile as if it could dispel all the darkness in the world. After “Little Feet Big Adventure” aired, especially after the last episode, Du Ze’s popularity had continued to rise. He even received an invitation to be a spokesperson for a well-known children’s brand.
After hanging up, Wang Shilan looked at the needle in her hand, then at the photo of the three of them on her phone screen. Her expression darkened. The little one beside her stirred. Wang Shilan suppressed all her emotions and gently patted Niu Niu’s back with one hand. She watched Niu Niu sleep like that until the IV was finished.
At 9:30 in the morning, Wang Shilan was drowsy, and the IV bag was almost empty. Suddenly, her phone buzzed. She pulled it out and saw it was Hua Zhao. She had sent several videos in a folder. There was also a voice message from Hua Zhao. Wang Shilan opened it, held the phone to her ear, glanced at Niu Niu, who was still sleeping soundly, and then played the message.
“Niu Niu’s mom, please don’t think I’m being nosy. I really like Niu Niu. We’re both women. Even though I don’t have a daughter, I know how hard it is for a woman raising a daughter.”
“I just can’t stand seeing Niu Niu being mistreated.”
“I asked a friend to get the full footage from the first leg of the variety show from the production team (it’s completely legal; the first leg was live-streamed on all platforms). If you think the video is fake too, then there’s nothing else I can do.”
Hua Zhao wasn’t part of the entertainment industry, and she was used to being direct. She sent a long string of voice messages. Wang Shilan listened to every word. This time, she didn’t question Hua Zhao’s credibility.
“Thank you, Qiqi’s aunt. I’ll watch the videos carefully. I’m very grateful.”
Hua Zhao sent a sticker of Pei Qiqi forced to smile, a stiff expression on his face, with a caption saying “You’re welcome.”
Wang Shilan smiled. In her memory, Pei Xu was a cool, handsome little guy. She hadn’t expected such a child to willingly cooperate with his aunt in making stickers. Niu Niu squirmed in her mother’s arms and slowly opened her eyes.
“Mom.” She pushed back her blanket and called out.
Wang Shilan put away her phone, bent down, and kissed her. “Niu Niu, the nanny bought breakfast. Would you like some?”
Niu Niu was taken by the nanny to eat, while Wang Shilan stayed in the hospital room to continue the IV and watch the videos she hadn’t finished. “Little Feet Big Adventure” was known in the industry for its attention to detail. Before filming began, they had coordinated with the artists’ teams. Each family had their own live stream channel, increasing interaction with viewers and giving them options. If it hadn’t been for the Cen family, the second leg would have continued with this format.
The person Hua Zhao had contacted was indeed a photographer friend from the production team, the same one who had recommended them for the show. Because it was internal material, the quality was much better than the live streams, and the angles were more revealing. In these videos, she saw Du Ze’s emotions, which he couldn’t hide fast enough. His impatience with Niu Niu, his expression of irritation. He walked ahead of her, causing her to almost fall as she scrambled to keep up.
Especially after the mud pit game. When Niu Niu came to dinner that evening, she was clearly uncomfortable, but Du Ze didn’t ask a single question. It wasn’t until Su Youli and Lele noticed mud on Niu Niu’s hair that she was taken away by a grandmother. When she reappeared half an hour later, her hair was loose and had been washed. Niu Niu sat with Su Youli and Mi Le, her little hands gently touching her hair, bringing it to her nose to smell, her expression cute and well-behaved.
Now, what else was there for Wang Shilan to understand? A man’s love could be performed and could change. It was only now that she truly understood the weight of that statement. She didn’t know how she’d managed to finish watching all those videos. Du Ze, off-camera, had ordered Niu Niu around and treated her coldly. He had threatened her more than once with scissors if she didn’t behave. One second he was angry, and the next, he’d put on a different face the moment a camera turned on him.
Rage burned in her chest, becoming tangible. Wang Shilan slammed her fist onto the bedside table with a loud bang. Everything on it fell to the floor. A nurse rushed in. The glass cup had shattered; water spilled everywhere. She looked at Wang Shilan in surprise. Before she could ask what was wrong, she saw the short-haired patient press her hand against the IV, yanking the needle out. The nurse was speechless.
“Please calm down! You’ll hurt yourself!”
Wang Shilan had already thrown back the covers, ready to get up, but the nurse’s words stopped her.
She ran her hand through her short hair and said quietly, “Sorry.”
She hadn’t controlled her emotions. The nurse quickly cleaned up the mess and helped her back into bed. At that moment, her phone showed a live stream from the children’s brand that had invited Du Ze as their spokesperson. In the video, Du Ze was wearing casual light-colored clothes, a pair of glasses on his nose that gave him an air of sophistication. The man smiled confidently, sitting beside the host as she praised him.
“It’s truly an honor to have Mr. Du as our global spokesperson. Your image really fits our brand.”
“Mr. Du, what have you been up to lately? Could you share some interesting stories about you and your daughter?”
Du Ze smiled and nodded. “As everyone knows, my daughter Niu Niu and I have been on a variety show called”
The live chat and off-screen voices answered: “Little Feet Big Adventure!”
Du Ze smiled, adjusting his glasses. “It seems everyone has been following our show.”
Since it was a children’s brand, the live stream revolved around Du Ze’s daily interactions with Niu Niu. Viewers also asked if he could talk about other guests on the show, and he answered almost all of them. Netizens thought he was a really good person, responsive to his audience and full of charm. The praise in the comments became more and more exaggerated, until Wang Shilan couldn’t take it anymore. When the nurse came back in, she had already packed her things and was putting on her jacket with one hand.
“Auntie, please take Niu Niu home. Tell her I had to deal with a work emergency. I’ll bring her a gift when I get back tonight.”
The nanny quickly agreed.
“And I’ve called a cleaning service. It’s not for cleaning. I want them to throw out all of Du Ze’s things. No, we didn’t fight. Don’t tell Niu Niu yet. I’ll explain it to her later myself.”
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go queenn.. counting hours for du ze downfall yay