Chapter 24: The Breakfast Scramble

At 7:30 in the morning, many villagers in the quiet mountain village were already out working in the fields, while most of the five celebrity families from the city had yet to wake up.

The film crew usually rose earlier than the celebrity guests. Chen Min, having finished his morning routine, arrived at the residence of Xiao Siqi and his son to deliver the mission card and begin the day’s work. Finding the bedroom door still closed, he felt this was perfectly normal.

"Siqi, are you up? May I come in?" Chen Min knocked on the door and asked loudly. The doors in this dilapidated house didn't even have locks and would swing open with a push, but Chen Min still felt it necessary to call out before entering someone's bedroom.

"Not yet. It's fine, come on in," came Xiao Siqi's muffled voice from inside.

Chen Min led the camera crew inside and handed the mission card to Xiao Siqi, who was still lying in bed. Seeing only Xiao Siqi in bed, he asked curiously, "Where's Bayi?"

Xiao Siqi sat up, took the card, and rubbed his eyes. Hearing the question, he glanced toward the inside of the bed and, finding Xiao Yao indeed gone, replied casually, "Probably out exercising."

"Exercising this early?" Chen Min asked, surprised.

"He's a practitioner of martial arts; he’s very strict with himself," Xiao Siqi said, his eyes now open. He glanced at the watch on his wrist and smiled. "It's 7:30. He should be back soon; he won't miss the program’s schedule."

Xiao Siqi shook his head to clear the sleepiness, then picked up the mission card and read, "Please gather at the village threshing floor at 8:00 AM to participate in the breakfast battle." He looked at Chen Min with a bitter expression. "We have to fight for breakfast too?"

Just as Chen Min was about to speak, Xiao Yao jogged in. Although he wasn't drenched in sweat or panting, it was clear from his appearance that he had been sweating; it was evident he had put in a significant workout.

"Dad, a mission card already? What’s the task?" Xiao Yao asked upon seeing the card in his father's hand.

"The threshing floor breakfast battle."

"Oh, what time is the gathering?"

"Eight o'clock."

"What time is it now?"

"Seven-thirty."

"Plenty of time. I’m going to take a shower. Dad, you should get up and wash up too."

After this brief exchange, Xiao Yao headed off to shower.

Since they were filming on location, Xiao Siqi slept in a T-shirt and knee-length shorts to avoid the hassle of pajamas, so there was no risk of exposure. Even with the camera crew in the room, he could simply pull back the sheet and get out of bed.

"Where does Bayi go for his morning exercise?" Chen Min asked again. Xiao Yao had left to bathe, and the crew couldn't follow him, so they had to stick with Xiao Siqi, who was just brushing his teeth and washing his face.

"I’m not sure, but it shouldn't be too far. He’s quite safety-conscious," Xiao Siqi said as he took his toothbrush and cup to the kitchen to fetch water.

"What kind of exercise does he do? Running? The roads in this village are all dirt; they aren't great for running, easy to twist an ankle," Chen Min added.

"Martial arts practice, I suppose. He’s studied martial arts. He’s been practicing a set of forms for nearly two years now without much interruption," Xiao Siqi said as he walked back out with the water. "Then he probably practices his vocal warm-ups, too—I taught him those. As for whether he learned anything new while staying with his grandfather for the past six months, I don't know. Usually, I'm still asleep when he does his morning routine, so I haven't seen it myself. I’m just guessing."

"We're only here for two days; we should be heading back this evening. Could we film his morning exercise during the next shoot?" Chen Min felt this would be a major highlight. It was rare to see a child so young and self-disciplined.

"I don't mind, but you'll have to get his consent. If he agrees, I have no problem with it," Xiao Siqi said indifferently.

"By the way, Bayi said he was going to shower, but you just woke up—do you have hot water? Did Bayi even manage to boil hot water this morning?" Chen Min, noticing Xiao Siqi using cold water to wash, suddenly thought of this. The weather was fine for washing one's face with cold water, but for a shower? It was still early, and the temperature hadn't risen yet.

"Oh, he always takes cold showers after his morning exercise. He’s in great health—he's a martial artist, after all," Xiao Siqi laughed.

Once Xiao Siqi finished tidying up, Xiao Yao returned from his shower, now changed into fresh clothes.

The father and son were not late; they arrived at the threshing floor before 8:00 AM. The families of Lin Shaohua and Zhou Lixing had not yet arrived.

By 8:00, all five families were present, though their conditions were lackluster. The adults were doing alright, but Zhou Zhihao was still half-asleep; he had been carried over by his father, Zhou Lixing, and was still dozing on his shoulder. Lin Qisan and Sun Tingting were both still yawning and rubbing their eyes, clearly not fully awake. Only Zhao Rui and Xiao Yao were completely alert.

"Siqi, why are you washing the boy's hair so early in the morning? Aren't you afraid he'll catch a cold?" Zhao Tao asked, noticing Xiao Yao's hair was still damp, his tone tinged with a hint of reproach.

"I still feel like I haven't woken up yet, let alone have the energy to wash his hair for him at the crack of dawn," Xiao Siqi smiled. "He went out for his morning exercise, came back drenched in sweat, and took a shower himself."

"Did you film it?" Zhao Tao asked Chen Min, assuming it was an arrangement by the production team for the sake of the show.

"No, we didn't even know Bayi had a habit of morning exercise," Chen Min shook his head with a smile. "By the time we arrived, he had already finished his workout."

Zhao Tao nodded and whispered to his son, "Stone, didn't you want to challenge Bayi to a martial arts duel? Dad suspects you might not be able to beat him, even though you're older."

"Hmph!" Zhao Rui snorted in defiance but didn't say anything, secretly resolving to have a match with Xiao Yao.

"Alright, since everyone is here, let me introduce how this morning's breakfast will be distributed," Chen Lei began once the group was assembled. "We have prepared five breakfasts for you today. Some are luxurious and abundant, while others are very simple—or rather, meager. We are going to hold a competition. The winner gets priority choice, the runner-up chooses second from the remainder, and as for the last place... well, I’m sorry, but you might be left with the meager breakfast."

Chen Lei’s words finally stirred everyone, and they began to look forward to the competition.

"The rules are simple," Chen Lei continued. "It's a race. The participants are the fathers, but the children won't just be watching. Every father must carry his child throughout the entire race. We start here, and the finish line is at the village ancestral hall. Whoever crosses the threshold first is the winner."

"Ah!" A collective groan of dismay rose from the fathers. The children, stimulated by the news, finally woke up completely and grew excited.

"Village Chief!" Zhao Tao raised his hand. "Do we have to carry them? Can we give them a piggyback ride?" He felt Zhao Rui was quite big and difficult to carry in his arms; a piggyback seemed more reliable.

"That's allowed," Chen Lei nodded. "You can have them hanging on you, too. As long as no part of the child's body touches the ground during the process, it’s fine."

"We're done for!" Xiao Siqi wailed. "I hope the meager breakfast isn't too meager."

Zhao Tao laughed and teased him, "Do you have to be like this? I'm the oldest, and my kid is the oldest and heaviest, and I'm not acting like this. I think Bayi is fine—he's not like my Stone, who's built like a tank. You don't have to be so dramatic."

"Brother Tao, don't let Bayi's balanced build fool you. In his own words, he’s 'thin in clothes but muscular without them.' His muscles are solid. Besides, with my physique, how can I compete with you?" Xiao Siqi said with a bitter smile.

"Don't talk to me about physique," Zhou Lixing chimed in, complaining as well. "Whose child can compare to our Haohao? As Bayi said, he's a total little fatty."

"You sports guys, shut up!" several fathers shouted in unison.

"Is it really okay for you all to be so disparaging toward your own sons? You're going to break their hearts!" Sun Zhihao said with a grin.

"Go away, everyone can see your daughter is the lightest. Go show off elsewhere," the group turned to attack Sun Zhihao instead.

"Alright, get ready," Chen Lei said, pulling a whistle from somewhere to stop the chatter, and shouted.

The five fathers immediately tensed up and prepared. By unspoken agreement, everyone chose to carry their children on their backs.

"Tweet!" With the blast of the whistle, the fathers bolted like wild horses released from their tethers. However, after about a hundred meters, they slowed down to a jog to conserve energy.

Zhou Lixing, the athlete, lived up to his profession, taking the lead from the start and maintaining the front position for most of the race. Zhao Tao was second, Sun Zhihao third, Lin Shaohua fourth, and Xiao Siqi trailed in last. Looking at their current pace, it seemed unlikely that anyone would be overtaken, and the race would likely end in this order.

But then, an accident occurred. The route from the threshing floor to the ancestral hall had been walked once the day before when they collected lunch, so everyone knew the path. However, halfway through, Sun Zhihao suddenly veered onto a small side path. Lin Shaohua, following behind, naively thought Sun Zhihao had taken the wrong turn and kindly shouted a warning, while Zhao Tao continued along the original path.

Xiao Siqi had originally intended to follow Lin Shaohua, but Xiao Yao, noticing something was off, whispered in his father's ear, "Dad, follow Uncle Sun. He’s taking a shortcut."

Xiao Siqi trusted Xiao Yao implicitly, so he immediately turned to follow Sun Zhihao onto the side path.

In the end, Sun Zhihao finished first, Zhou Lixing second, Zhao Tao third, Xiao Siqi fourth, and Lin Shaohua last. Sun Zhihao had indeed taken a shortcut, and since his speed was similar to that of Zhou Lixing and Zhao Tao, he successfully surged into first place. Although Xiao Siqi had followed the shortcut, his poor speed and stamina meant he couldn't overtake Zhou Lixing and Zhao Tao, who had run the longer route, but he managed to finish ahead of Lin Shaohua, so the detour wasn't entirely in vain.

"Alright, the results are in," Chen Lei announced loudly. "By taking a shortcut, Sun Zhihao successfully staged a comeback to take the championship. He lives up to his reputation as the 'God of Calculation.' Zhou Lixing is second, and Zhao Tao is third."

He then shook his head, looking at Xiao Siqi. "Xiao Siqi, you followed Sun Zhihao on the shortcut and still couldn't beat Lixing and Brother Zhao, who went the long way? Your stamina is truly terrible."

Xiao Siqi shook his head with a bitter smile.

Chen Lei then turned to Lin Shaohua and said with emphasis, "But! What I can't figure out is what happened to you, Lin Shaohua. It’s one thing to not see Lixing and Brother Zhao ahead, but you were literally behind Teacher Sun. When you saw him take the small path, you actually shouted at him that he was going the wrong way. Does the 'God of Calculation' not know the way? Let me interview you: what are your thoughts and feelings right now?"

Lin Shaohua slapped his forehead in frustration and gloomily self-deprecated, "What can I say? Intelligence is a hard-to-overcome flaw!"