Chapter 12

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Upon hearing Lin Yi's explanation, the lifeguard felt somewhat regretful, and his gaze toward Lin Yi grew even more earnest. He seemed eager to pocket the little Lin Yi and take him home! Lin Yi felt uncomfortable under his resentful stare and suggested, “Using stones to catch fish is difficult, but hunting rabbits is much easier. Practice more; skill comes with experience.” The young Lin Yi’s innocent words fell, and the two tall lifeguards stared at him in unison. Lin Yi blinked: “Did I say something wrong?” Could it be that hunting rabbits was forbidden in this world? Lin Yi had no memory of such knowledge. “So, it’s not allowed to hunt rabbits?” Lin Yi was delicate and precious-looking, especially with his clear, large, round eyes—who wouldn’t say he was sweet and harmless at first glance? Yet, this very child calmly spoke of hunting rabbits. To the lifeguards, little Lin Yi was as cute as a bunny. One lifeguard looked troubled: “It’s not that, just that hunting wild rabbits isn’t allowed.” Lin Yi was baffled—if not wild rabbits, then farm rabbits? Modern people were strange in some ways! Suddenly, shouts rang out: “You all get out of here!” “Stop filming!” “Our village doesn’t welcome bad people like you!” “Get out of our village!” “Big brother, it’s that kid—so young yet cruelly killing fish. Who knows what else he might do?” A noisy commotion approached from afar. At first, the crowd couldn’t make out the dispute, but soon everyone heard the angry shouts clearly. The director noticed the situation and sent someone to negotiate. But the group of men was unreasonable and charged straight onto the filming site, knocking over many things along the way. Lin Yi heard their voices first and, after coming ashore while others still watched in confusion, waved to beckon a child. The child hesitated at first and pointed to his nose as if to say, “Me?” When Lin Yi nodded, the child happily ran over. Other nearby children were a little envious. That was the new big brother their leader had recognized—even though the leader was young, he was formidable! Being acknowledged by the leader’s big brother meant future promotions in rank. The other children could only watch silently; they dared not cause trouble since their leader’s hits hurt a lot, and now that he had a new big brother, they were even more powerless. Lin Yi, unaware that he had become Xu Duoruo’s big brother, said to the child, “Help me give Xu Duoruo a message…” Xu Duoruo was the orchard owner’s daughter who had tried to intercept Lin Yi in the orchard but was stunned by his perfect apple-catching. The child immediately patted his chest confidently: “Don’t worry, Big Brother, I’ll definitely complete the task.” Big brother? What a strange title! Lin Yi paid no heed to the detail and returned to the crew’s crowd, where Nora was watching him with bright eyes. Lin Yi made a “shush” gesture, and Nora immediately understood. Meanwhile, the livestream chat was bustling. “What’s going on? Those aggressive people seem to be villagers from the fishing village?” “They’re even smashing filming equipment; what’s the disagreement here?” “No way. The crew came to film, one side provides the location, the other promotes it. This should be official cooperation. Even if there’s a disagreement, they wouldn’t behave like this—it would ruin the local image.” “I heard it—they’re unhappy about Lin Yi cruelly smashing fish with stones.” “Lin Yi finally messed up! A child posing as a prodigy, what a joke.” “Cruelly smashing fish? Are those fishermen refusing to eat or trade fish? One stone hitting a fish is cruelty? What about the fish killed in the market?”

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“I’m stunned. They even call this cruelty to small animals?” “The kid himself said if he can’t hit fish, he’ll use stones to hit rabbits. Who knows if he’s smashed stray cats too?” “Have you been on Lin Yi’s back, watching him smash stray cats? Stop making up rumors!” The online argument escalated as did the commotion on site. The other two groups of children had already returned ashore. Xie Yu, He Tong, and Xi Lan, born into wealthy families and accustomed to the entertainment industry’s complexities, immediately saw that these people were deliberately targeting Lin Yi. But who had a grudge against a child so young? Why resort to such despicable methods? Even if the matter was clarified, Lin Yi’s reputation would be affected, and future filming might be jeopardized. Jiang Xuan pretended to be angry but secretly felt delighted. Yang Xing had done well! The bigger the scandal, the better! Hopefully, Lin Yi and Zhong Qi would be kicked out of the crew. But Jiang Xuan’s joy was short-lived as the director stepped in. The security personnel hired by the crew quickly controlled the rowdy villagers. The director asked, “How did you know our crew was cruel to fish?” The repercussions were far greater than Jiang Xuan expected. Because it was a live broadcast, the ‘cruelty to fish’ incident quickly trended online. The crew contributed some heat, but more came from rival shows, long waiting in the shadows. Recently, due to Lin Yi, the show had repeatedly trended, breaking viewership records for similar programs. Those rivals were now seething with envy. They wouldn’t miss this chance. Villagers muttered, “We saw it live.” The director calmly had chairs brought over: “Then tell me, who cruelly treated the fish?” About a dozen villagers under control suddenly hesitated and began whispering among themselves. In front of so many people and cameras, they quietly debated: “No one said who it was.” “I heard it was a kid, so I shouted ‘That kid cruelly killed fish!’” “A kid? How could a child do that?” “I’m sure it was a kid, no doubt!” The short-haired leader grabbed those speaking: “Which kid?” But no one knew. They had only overheard gossip. One had a sudden idea: “Why not just pick one randomly? It’s all mudslinging—sling it at whoever.” These villagers were local ruffians with few skills and simple minds. Those nearby quickly agreed: “Boss, Wu Er makes sense.” The leader scratched his head, having no better option, and said, “It was a child.” The director snorted, “Isn’t that obvious? The ones catching fish are all kids.” The leader: … “Wang Datou, take your nonsense elsewhere. This isn’t your playground,” said an old local man. A woman spat, “You gangsters—always stealing and thieving—when have you ever grown a heart of gold?” Some local villagers were at the filming site. At first unaware, they hadn’t spoken because it was their own village. Now hearing the ruffians constantly mention ‘cruelty to fish’ and ‘abuse,’ it made them nearly sick. Oh, catching a few fish is cruelty? Then what about those who have fished for generations—should they go to hell eighteen layers deep? After the locals finished scolding, the director slowly said, “I won’t make this difficult. Tell me, which child?” The director was confident that even if the villagers randomly pointed fingers, they wouldn’t accuse Lin Yi. The short-haired gang whispered among themselves again.

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If not for the cameras, Jiang Xuan would have rolled his eyes to the sky. What kind of people had Yang Xing hired? Expecting these fools to do a job—was Yang Xing’s head kicked by a donkey? The chat stopped their bickering at the sheer stupidity of these people. “People are numb; they bought blackmail offline now?” “So ‘mindless black’ means black haters have no brains? Got it.” “Nonsense, who says black haters have no brains? We’re not like these fools!” “Ha, you’re not that smart either. Reported.” “+3 reports.” The director glanced at his watch: “Done discussing?” One of the ruffians called back, “Wait a bit more.” Director: … “Boss, I think it’s that cool little girl.” “Nonsense, a little girl wouldn’t dare kill fish.” “Xu Hei’s daughter Ruo Ruo dares!” “That girl? She’s a tomboy. Stop changing the subject!” “Let’s just pick a tall boy, can’t go wrong.” “I think we should listen to the boss. He must know who it is, right?” The short-haired man nodded reluctantly, scanning among six children. Mian Mian clung to Xi Lan’s leg, clutching her pants nervously. Yang Xing looked lazy and indifferent. Qin Siyuan’s cold gaze carried nobility. Ian watched them curiously. Nora frowned, unhappy. Only Lin Yi smiled purely and innocently. The short-haired man stopped his gaze on Lin Yi, frowning. Damn, even a ruffian thought this was too much—how could these children be cruel to fish? Especially the last child—probably scared to tears if an ant crawled on his hand. Forget it, just pick one randomly; it won’t be the boy who just smiled at me. “It’s that one—the wet little boy,” said the short-haired man. Everyone’s eyes turned to Ian. The only one soaked was Ian, who hadn’t changed out of his costume after the incident. Xi Lan had wrapped her daughter in a towel. Jiang Xuan’s face darkened: “What nonsense are you talking about? It’s clearly—” “Wang Datou! I’ve given you face, haven’t I? You still dare cause trouble on TV? You think embarrassing yourself in the village isn’t enough, now you want to embarrass yourself in front of the whole country?” “Director Li, Wang Datou and his group were paid off. This has nothing to do with our village! Come over and clarify this!” Lin Yi saw Xu Duoruo and the messenger boy in the crowd. Xu Duoruo gave him an “OK” sign with a bright smile. Qin Siyuan followed Lin Yi’s gaze and also saw the little girl in the crowd—the orchard owner’s daughter? Lin Yi had asked her to help find witnesses? He seemed even calmer and smarter than he appeared.