Chapter Eighteen: Is This Madwoman Going to Quarrel with Him in Public?

So, what the audience saw was Su Wan-ning leaving the children in the car and turning away, vanishing from sight.

[What’s wrong with this woman? I was just praising her, and now she leaves such young children alone in a car. There are other passengers nearby—what if someone tries to hurt the kids?]

[Why worry so much? The camera crew is all around. What could possibly happen?]

[As a mother myself, I could never leave children that young in a car.]

Off-camera, Su Wan-ning quietly walked to the well, steadying the elderly man and taking the rope from his hand.

“Let me help you fetch some water. You can rest here for a bit.”

“Oh, thank you, young lady. You’re so kind!”

Su Wan-ning replied with a smile and deftly began drawing water.

All of this was observed by the director, Wang Zan, who chose not to have the camera film it. Instead, he quietly issued a command.

“Have the van leave; just say time’s up.”

The very next moment, someone closed the van door, and the driver called out from inside, “We’re leaving on schedule!”

With a kick of the accelerator, the van roared off, raising a cloud of dust.

Su Wan-ning turned in shock, realizing not only had the children been taken away, but there wasn’t a single cameraman filming her.

What the hell!

Under normal circumstances, if an incident like this occurred and the children were taken away first, there should have been a split shot filming her reaction. Yet now, not a single cameraman came her way.

Petty tricks.

Su Wan-ning rolled her eyes, turned back to finish drawing water for the old man, and only then returned to the village entrance by the roadside.

“Director, what’s going on?” she asked.

Chen Rui shrugged. “The van left on schedule. You’ll have to wait for the next one.”

“Could I trouble you for a phone, then? I’d like to call the cameraman over there.”

At this moment, the camera focused on Su Wan-ning, with no mention of her act of kindness at the well. Su Wan-ning didn’t defend herself, simply dialed the number.

“Mama!”

Perhaps the children had already been prepped by the director’s team, as Nian-nian’s voice rang out from the other end.

Su Wan-ning smiled gently, her tone soft. “Nian-nian, Sui-sui, don’t be afraid. Mama missed the van, but I’ll catch the next one and come to you soon, alright?”

Meanwhile, Vincent saw through the director’s scheme and angrily confronted Wang Zan.

“What’s going on? Why were the kids taken away alone?”

Vincent held his phone, the live chat already filled with outraged comments.

Wang Zan feigned innocence, shrugging. “The cameraman didn’t keep up. Besides, this is good for Su Wan-ning’s popularity. Look at how the viewer numbers have shot up!”

Damn it...

Vincent opened his mouth, nearly cursing outright, but swallowed the words when he caught Su Wan-ning’s gaze from in front of the camera.

Su Wan-ning shook her head slightly, signaling him not to clash with the directors. Even so, she could clearly hear her daughter’s voice trembling with tears.

Her heart melted, but inwardly, she was furious with the director’s group.

She had checked the time earlier and knew the van wasn’t supposed to leave yet. All of this was orchestrated by the production team—cheap tricks meant to never see the light of day!

“Nian-nian, you’ll see Mama very soon. Let’s not let these bad uncles get to us. I’ll take you to play over there.”

Before Su Wan-ning could reply, Sui-sui took his sister’s hand and led her away, his young face full of determination.

The live comments erupted with admiration.

[I always wished I had a big brother like that—handsome, responsible, and protective.]

[Mama, is it too late to have a big brother now?]

[I’m so envious. My brother only ever used me as a human shield when we were kids.]

[How wonderful—what a little genius, knows how to distract his sister.]

Su Wan-ning knew her son was dependable, and with the camera crew following, she comforted the children a bit more before hanging up.

Because of the delay, she was the last to arrive at the mountain lodge. By the time she got out of the car, all the guests and camera crew were already assembled.

A few steps away, seeing Su Wan-ning approach, Yin Shanshan lowered her head to gently pat her son.

“Yang-yang, look, Auntie is here now. No need to worry.”

Standing nearby, Feng Rui nearly burst out laughing at that. Since when did Yang-yang ever worry about anything?

No wonder she was a film queen—she could kill with a smile.

[She held everyone up and made the whole group wait. Su Wan-ning really has some nerve.]

[It’s only the first few days, and she’s already acting like a diva. Even Yin Shanshan has to wait for her.]

[Don’t be so harsh. Maybe she really had something important to do. It’s not such a big deal.]

[+1, I think she’s pretty good with the kids, honestly.]

Oblivious to the storm raging in the live chat, Su Wan-ning waited as the production team handed out the day’s assignments.

Today, each family group was to go out and work to earn their living expenses.

The tasks were set by the production team. The assistant director, Chen Rui, stopped in front of Su Wan-ning, handed her a card, and, with his back to the camera, smiled slyly.

“Your group will go to the temple and help the monks clean the courtyard.”

Su Wan-ning raised an eyebrow and shot him a sharp look, causing Chen Rui to instinctively take a step back.

Was this crazy woman actually going to argue with him in front of the camera?