VHBF – Chapter 70 Movie King Daddy (Part 29)

By the third day, Xie Liu and his son couldn’t hold out any longer. They were the first to raise the white flag and surrender, hauling their bags to seek refuge with Emperor Zhu’s daughter and father, who lived in a large villa.

The two of them hadn’t slept well a single night over the past few days, their bodies covered in mosquito bites, eyes dark and bruised. That was bad enough, but the heat was nearly giving them heatstroke. The show crew didn’t even contribute a single fan—how inhumane!

They were short on cash too. Going out in the scorching heat to earn living expenses, they barely made anything and nearly suffered heatstroke. They couldn’t even afford to buy a popsicle to cool off—how could they spend money on breakfast and dinner after that?

Early on the third morning, the father and son dragged themselves out of bed with messy hair, exchanged a glance, and let out a despairing shout that nearly scared the crew to death.

After that, they quickly got up to wash and get ready, clutching the last of their money to buy a few breakfasts, and cheerfully trotted toward the large villa.

Before Xie Liu and his son could even speak, Yinyin clapped her hands in delight: the villa was self-built and very spacious, with several rooms spread over the second and third floors. It could easily accommodate more people.

Yinyin loved a lively atmosphere. With Xie An’an and Uncle Xie moving in, plus a young boy to play with, she could even watch cartoons together—how wonderful!

Xie Liu and his son moved in quickly, drawing the attention of the other “dad” contestants.

“Last night he was barely alive, and his words made no sense. Did he take some stimulant this morning?”

Xie Liu wasn’t crazy or foolish. With his bags in hand, he moved into the large villa. Now, they finally had a spacious place with air conditioning to live in!

The other three “dad” contestants were curious. They weren’t staying in the secretive courtyard anymore—where were they going? They quietly followed behind with their children to see what was happening.

Xie Liu noticed them trailing and smirked, doing nothing to stop them. There would be plenty of opportunities for them to make fools of themselves!

The three celebrity dads stared, eyes wide, as Xie Liu and his son swaggered into the villa before them. They’d been here three days and had no idea this large villa even existed?

They glanced at each other. Yang Li rubbed his chin and muttered, “Did the director give Xie Liu a backdoor?”

All three thought the same thing. How else could Xie Liu have moved into the large villa?

Fuming, they turned to the camera crew, asking how Xie Liu could have gotten special treatment. That miserable courtyard had nearly driven them crazy—they were eating poorly and sleeping poorly. They’d never suffered like this in their lives.

The crew shook their heads. Internally, everyone knew this was the place where Emperor Zhu and his daughter lived. Zhu had given it up and Xie Liu had shamelessly insisted on moving in to enjoy it for two days.

“What does shaking your head mean? You’re either refusing to answer or there’s some secret you can’t reveal?”

One cameraman hesitated, not wanting to make the guests doubt the show’s fairness. He said, “No backdoor was used.”

That was all he could say—anything more would ruin the show. They were just mobile cameras, background props.

Mo Qi, the eldest and steadier of the dads, kindly asked if they could borrow a phone. Their phones had been confiscated, so they had to borrow from the crew.

They could borrow a phone. When they dialed the director, Zhang Daxi had already been watching the feed backstage, a smile never leaving his face. Clearing his throat, he answered.

After some unknown discussion, Zhang Daxi didn’t get angry, smiling as he said, “I didn’t give Xie Liu any backdoor. That big house isn’t even ours.”

“You’re asking me? How would I know? This is a reality show—if you encounter difficulties or have questions, you’ll have to investigate for yourselves.”

He hung up with a smile, refusing to reveal anything.

Just like Xie Liu, the director wanted to see how the other guests would react if they knew this was where Emperor Zhu and his daughter lived. Watching them live like royalty while they struggled with barely enough to get by—would they lose composure? That was prime content and needed to be filmed carefully.

Mo Qi glanced at his darkened phone screen and shook his head at his two fellow struggling dads. “The director isn’t saying.”

“Hmph, if the villa isn’t the show’s, whose is it? How did Xie Liu move in?”

They hadn’t planned to enter someone else’s house, but curiosity and subtle resentment got the better of them. The three dads exchanged glances and stepped toward the villa.

The other three children had already lost their patience. The pampered kids weren’t used to such harsh conditions these past few days. At home, they could eat whatever they wanted, watch TV, have snacks, enjoy the air conditioning—but now, nothing was available.

Over the past two days, the kids had repeatedly said they wanted to go home, not film the show anymore, never film a show again in their lives. What’s so great about TV anyway? It’s too hard.

Now, seeing the dads enter the big house, they hurried to follow. They looked at the large villa with longing in their eyes. Such a nice house, just like home—it must have air conditioning and a TV!

Xie Liu stood by the window, arms crossed, eyes smug. He hadn’t even had time to put away his things in the villa yet—he just stood there, watching. He wanted to see exactly when these people would step inside.

He wanted to be the first to witness their jaw-dropping, stunned expressions. Who cares about watching TV—this kind of good stuff had to be seen in person!

Yinyin and Xie An’an were sharing snacks, taking a piece each, not understanding the adults’ subtle arguments and not caring.

Zhu Ji, meanwhile, was tinkering with a computer. He had made a deal with the owner of a mobile and computer store, taking several laptops that couldn’t be repaired to fix at once.

Later, the owner learned that this was a celebrity filming a show and happily let him take all the laptops away. It felt prestigious—his small shop would now get exposure on TV thanks to the big star!

Neither the grown-ups nor the little ones paid attention to Xie Liu’s mischievous antics. He stood there watching with glee. When he saw them about to enter, he quickly went to the sofa, sitting like a master, even crossing his legs and deciding to turn on the central air conditioning.

Zhu Ji: “……”

Yinyin scratched his chin and said to Xie An’an, “Brother An’an, your dad is getting stranger and stranger.”

Xie An’an didn’t want to bother with his dad. His dad had been acting silly for a long time. He wasn’t going to imitate him—he was a smart kid!

The three dads stepped inside, greeted by a blast of cool air, and couldn’t help but take a deep, contented breath. On such a hot day, it felt amazing.

Xie Liu’s lazy voice came from the doorway: “Why are you still standing there? We’re all brothers—don’t be shy. Come in and have a seat.”

He acted fully like the host, smug as ever. Then he went to the kitchen, grabbed a few drinks from the fridge, and brought them out. “Drink up. Hey, didn’t that long walk tire you out?”

The three dads: “……”

Their mouths twitched as they took the cold drinks and sat on the spacious sofa. Looking around, they saw the “Movie Emperor” Zhu fiddling with his computer, while two little kids sat on the soft carpet, eating snacks and playing with toys…

Their eyes widened. They almost spit out the drinks they had just taken.

Yang Li: “Teacher Zhu is… here too?”

Zhu Ji didn’t answer, nor did he bother. Knowing Xie Liu as he did, this was exactly the spot where Xie Liu would show off.

Sure enough, the next second, Xie Liu’s cheeky voice rang out: “Why can’t Brother Zhu be here? This house is lent to me and An’an by Brother Zhu. Without him, without Xiao Yinyin, where would we live?”

This guy was living in the big house without even calling him Teacher Zhu—he went straight to “Brother Zhu.”

“And we’ve got air conditioning, drinks… you know, Brother Zhu and Xiao Yinyin have been eating so well—big fish, big meat, fruits, snacks—you name it. Jealous yet?”

Xie Liu beamed with pride. Anyone who didn’t know better might think he was talking about himself. Back when he had to accept this fact, it had taken a whole meal to process, after which his entire mindset collapsed.

Xie An’an quietly looked up at his dad, thinking that he really had been stirred up by Uncle Zhu—he still hadn’t recovered, acting a little jittery these past two days.

Xie Liu, satisfied, watched the “brotherhood trio” with jaws dropping in shock. He even subtly gestured for the cameraman to zoom in for close-ups, especially on their big mouths and nostrils, to see—they were even sillier than him!

After a long while, the three dads still hadn’t recovered. Zhu Ji, who supposedly had no house, had moved into a big villa in just one day. How did he manage that?

Zhu Ji smiled without saying a word. Thanks to his daughter, Yinyin raised his little chubby hand: “It’s Daddy’s achievement. Daddy drives, Daddy sells vegetables—Daddy’s the best.”

Everyone: “……”

The three dads wandered out of the villa like they were in a daze, faces blank.

Their three kids had abandoned them, firmly staying at Uncle Zhu’s house to play with Xiao Yinyin.

Air conditioning, snacks, toys—who wouldn’t want to stay? Only a fool would leave!

The three dads: “……”

What kind of children were these? Abandoning their fathers at a critical moment to chase a life of luxury! Didn’t they know wealth shouldn’t corrupt them? They’d need proper education when they returned.

In post-production, as the three dads walked away, mournful and dejected music was added. Each of their heads even had rain clouds photoshopped above them. It was so pathetic that online viewers laughed until their stomachs hurt, making all sorts of memes.

“Fake father-child bond,” “Break up! I’m going back to my little shack, you stay in your big villa,” and the like—netizens called them the “messed-up daddy trio.”

Xie Liu, the brother-teasing guy, wasn’t spared either. He ruined the image of the once-solid actor, and fans had to pick up the pieces of their broken hearts. In the end, they accepted that their idol was, in fact, a cheeky fool.

Fans frantically urged the production team to “fix” things—don’t ruin the poor emperor again! They also constantly tagged Xie Liu, telling him not to corrupt Xie An’an and to stay away from their idol’s son.

Xie Liu: “……” That’s my son!

Meanwhile, the three dads felt a bit uneasy. Zhu Ji really got lucky, didn’t he? Just yesterday he had no place to live, and now he had a big villa.

Selling vegetables got him a big house? Well, they’d be happy too!

Mo Qi, keeping an eye out, had asked around. Xiao Yinyin said the grandparents, the owners of the house, would come tomorrow to pick vegetables to sell, and she was excited to help them sell!

The three dads mumbled to each other and decided to get up early the next day to stake their claim. They wanted a big house too! Selling vegetables? Fine. Selling smiles? That works too!