A Warm and Cute Strike (GL) - Chapter 30

Being suddenly targeted by the lens, Xiang Nan couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious. After all, he was still wearing a bathrobe; he had only just gotten out of bed and come down to investigate the commotion downstairs.

“Not yet.” Fortunately, this wasn’t his first time facing a camera. He adjusted quickly.

“Shall we go wake them up together?” Xie Sha suggested.

The production team had previously communicated the basic process to Xiang Nan. From this moment on, the show had officially begun.

Seeing the glint in Xie Sha’s eyes and her enthusiastic expression, Xiang Nan paused briefly. He adjusted his glasses. “Mhm. Let’s head up then.”

Having said that, he turned and climbed the stairs.

Xie Sha wanted to follow closely, but as the protagonists of the show were Xiang Nan’s family, she—as a behind-the-scenes staff member—couldn’t appear on camera. She stayed a step behind, following the cameraman up to the second floor along with another editor.

The young editor beside Xie Sha was named Su Ji. Her role was somewhat similar to a script supervisor on a film set—recording the content of the shoot to facilitate post-production editing.

Xie Sha’s eyes sparkled as she followed Xiang Nan. Her excitement reached its peak the moment he knocked on the master bedroom door and Ye Feifei appeared before them.

That’s right—Xie Sha was a “fangirl” of Ye Feifei. Ever since she learned that the Xiang father and daughter were on the guest list, she had used every trick in the book, pulling strings and using backdoors, just to be assigned to this group. All for the sake of getting close to her goddess!

Though she would only see her during the pickup at the start of each episode, for a fan like her, this was pure bliss. Moreover, she would be among the first to see the goddess’s precious daughter and document the entire journey. Was there a luckier job in the world?

If the program weren’t still in the confidential stage, she would have bragged in the fan groups long ago. She resolved to take a photo with her goddess later and show it off once the show aired!

“Good morning!” Ye Feifei walked out of the master bedroom with poise, offering Xie Sha and the others a warm, bright smile.

She had already changed into casual home clothes and wore a pair of glasses. Unlike her sexy and glamorous public image, her attire at home was simple and effortless yet still fashionable, giving her the aura of a friendly “big sister next door.”

“Sister Feifei, good morning!”

A flush rose to Xie Sha’s face. She felt her goddess was so approachable; the real person looked even more beautiful than on TV. With her sharp eyes, she noticed Ye Feifei was completely makeup-free, yet her skin was so delicate it lacked even a single flaw.

She immediately looked down and noted this in her records, thinking that during post-production, the editors must include this segment. As both a field director and one of the editors, her professional ability was trusted, and the editing team was usually willing to listen to her advice.

Hmph. When the show airs, I’ll let those professional anti-fans who claim Ye Feifei had plastic surgery see that my goddess is a 100% natural beauty!

“Go wake up Nuannuan. I’ll go change first,” Xiang Nan said in a low voice, reaching out to tuck a few stray hairs behind Feifei’s ear.

“Mhm.” Feifei lowered her head slightly, appearing a bit shy.

Caught off guard by this “dog food” (public display of affection), Xie Sha—who had previously felt a bit annoyed with Xiang Nan—now felt that this couple was actually… kind of sweet?

The cameraman loyally recorded the scene. After all, the production team intended to ride the wave of this couple’s popularity; such excellent material had to be preserved.

And so, led by Ye Feifei, the crew headed toward the end of the hallway while Xiang Nan returned to the room to change into his travel clothes.

In the quiet room, a tiny, snow-white foot stepped onto a stool by the bed. Its owner, wearing a pink nightgown, was carefully climbing down.

Nuannuan had woken up early. Knowing she was leaving today, she had been too excited to sleep last night. Hearing the faint sound of a car engine downstairs just now, she didn’t linger and got straight out of bed.

Once her feet hit the floor and she shuffled into her slippers, she ran to the bedside.

Another girl was still sleeping there. Having had her cast removed a few days ago, she could finally sleep on her side. Half of the girl’s face was buried in the soft pillow, and several strands of her jet-black hair had fallen across her cheek, only partially revealing her porcelain-pale skin.

“Sister Xuening—” Nuannuan called out in a tiny voice.

Qin Xuening hummed softly and lifted her head from the pillow. Finding her vision blocked, she reached out her slender hand to brush her hair away, revealing eyes misty with sleep—she had actually woken up the moment the little one started climbing down.

She was a light sleeper to begin with. Because the little one had insomnia last night, she hadn’t slept well either, spending the whole night coaxing her to sleep. She was currently very tired.

Nuannuan stared at her without blinking, thinking the big sister looked absolutely beautiful right now, which made her very happy.

“Sister Xuening, good morning!” She gave a silly grin.

The little girl’s smile was so adorable that Xuening couldn’t help but reach out and gently pinch her cheek. Nuannuan let her pinch away, not annoyed at all, but rather smiling even more goofily.

Just then, the sound of voices came from the hallway outside.

Nuannuan glanced at the door, guessing it was the people her daddy said were coming to pick her up. She bit her lip, turned back, and said to Xuening with regret:

“Sister Xuening, go back to sleep. I have to go out now. Daddy said we’ll be back the day after tomorrow. It’ll be very fast!”

“Mhm.” Xuening also heard the commotion outside.

Nuannuan looked at her, and the thought of not being able to see her sister for so long made her feel very sad.

At that moment, outside the floor-to-ceiling window, the sun finally pierced through the clouds, casting the first ray of morning light into the room. Standing by the bed in the backlight, the little girl suddenly stood on her tiptoes, leaned over, and planted a kiss on the forehead of the girl on the bed.

The scene was so warm and beautiful that time seemed to slow down.

But it was only an illusion. The girl’s morning kiss was just a fleeting touch. She straightened up, tucked the girl on the bed in, and then ran toward the door on her short legs.

Qin Xuening dazed, covered her forehead. The melody of “Für Elise” echoed in her ears once more. She watched the small figure run away, her misty eyes following the little angel into the sunlight until she was far away.

Ye Feifei reached Xuening’s bedroom. Just as she was about to knock, the handle turned and the door opened a crack. Then, they saw a pair of a little girl’s eyes peering out curiously.

Cameraman Lin Hai reacted quickly, training his lens on the gap. Then, an exquisitely carved little girl appeared in his shot.

She wore a cute pink nightgown, looking like a little princess straight out of a fairy tale. Her refined features and flawless skin made one want to give her a squeeze just to see if she was real.

The little girl wasn’t shy at all. She offered them a brilliant, sweet smile like a little sun. At first sight, she melted the hearts of every “uncle” and “auntie” present.

As the cameraman observing through the lens, the impact on Lin Hai was undoubtedly the greatest. He quickly adjusted the focus for a close-up.

“Are you little Nuannuan?” Xie Sha bent down, asking in a gentle tone for fear of scaring her.

Nuannuan nodded gently and then said sweetly, “Mhm. Good morning, Sister.”

That single sentence left Xie Sha frozen on the spot. If there were a tool to measure it, her favorability toward the girl would have skyrocketed instantly from an already high baseline.

How can there be such a well-behaved child? She had mentally prepared herself to be called “Auntie,” but the girl called her “Sister”! She wanted nothing more than to hug her and lift her high!

“Nuannuan is so good!” If she previously only loved the girl because she was Ye Feifei’s daughter, now she was truly a fan of this “moe” child herself!

However, just as the praise left her mouth, the girl placed a finger to her lips. “Sister Xuening is still sleeping. We can’t talk loudly, or it will wake her up.”

Sister Xuening? Xie Sha was taken aback. Who was Sister Xuening? Didn’t the goddess and Xiang Nan only have one child?

Xie Sha looked at Ye Feifei, but she saw only a smiling face that seemed not to notice her confusion and offered no explanation. This only piqued Xie Sha’s curiosity even more.

Nuannuan stepped out of the room, turned around, and quietly closed the door. Ye Feifei then picked her daughter up and walked back toward the master bedroom.

Following a step behind, Xie Sha thought for a moment and had the other cameraman, Li Yue, take a shot of the closed bedroom door. She felt this would be useful material. For example, adding a subtitle: The mysterious Sister Xuening?

By the time Feifei reached the stairs, Xiang Nan had just emerged from the bedroom. Xie Sha, having caught up, suppressed her guilt to fulfill the chief director’s orders: she had Feifei hand the daughter over to her husband.

After all, this show was “Daddy, Where Are We Going?”—not “Mommy, Where Are We Going?”

Xiang Nan carried his daughter downstairs. After accompanying her to wash up on the first floor, the two sat down to eat the breakfast Auntie Lin had prepared. Ye Feifei stayed off-camera, sitting on the sofa watching her husband and daughter with a gentle smile.

Nuannuan held a croissant, taking tiny bites. Her expression was focused, and her movements held a sense of devotion, as if she were performing a sacred task. Though the bites were small, she ate quite fast. Watching her eat with such relish, several staff members couldn’t help but swallow their saliva.

Nuannuan’s cheeks were puffed out. Noticing Lin Hai’s lens was constantly pointed at her, she tilted her head in confusion.

“Uncle, do you want to eat?” She reached into the basket, grabbed a croissant, and held it out toward Lin Hai.

In Lin Hai’s lens, the scene of the girl offering him bread was perfectly lit, capturing her innocence and pure kindness. Lin Hai stared through the camera, mesmerized, and forgot to answer.

Seeing him ignore her, Nuannuan looked at her father across the table, puzzled. “Daddy, Uncle is ignoring me…”

“Uncle Lin is working,” Xiang Nan said warmly. “You can’t eat during work hours, or the Director Grandpa will scold you.”

“Is the Director Grandpa very mean?” Nuannuan’s eyes widened.

“Of course. Not every director is as gentle as Daddy,” Xiang Nan said shamelessly, feeding a piece of sausage to his daughter.

“Uncle is so pitiful, having nothing to eat.” Nuannuan looked at Lin Hai with a face full of sympathy, as if seeing her past self.

“No, no, we already had breakfast in the car,” Su Ji, who was recording beside them, shook her head quickly. She was suppressing a laugh, curious to see Director Zhou’s face when he saw this footage.

“Is Uncle full then?” Nuannuan was still very concerned about the cameraman’s well-being.

“I’m full, I’m full,” Lin Hai finally snapped out of his focus. “Thank you for your concern.”

“Mhm! That’s good!” Nuannuan gave him a radiant smile.

Looking at the girl’s sweet smile, Lin Hai couldn’t help but marvel: How can there be such a lovely little angel in the world?