Xia Weiliang looked back to see Xiao Yi holding a bowl, his clear gaze revealing no emotion.
"Teacher Xiao, please wait a moment~"
She smiled extremely respectfully, trotted forward, took the bowl with both hands, and walked backward into the kitchen, showing as much filial piety as possible.
Everyone pretended not to see.
What romantic undercurrents, what cloying scent of love, they knew nothing about!
When Xia Weiliang respectfully handed half a bowl of porridge to Xiao Yi, she secretly glared at him: a warning, don't get smug!
He said "Thank you," and as he took the bowl, his fingers lightly tickled her hand.
"..."
Xia Weiliang's face, inexplicably, turned red again.
Soon, Lang Yue received a call from Tianmei. She had landed with her boyfriend and his mother and was on their way.
Director Huang stood up and instructed, "Alright, let's start."
Xia Weiliang quickly said to Xiao Yi, "Stay here and don't show yourself casually."
He wasn't here to participate in the program, so it was best he didn't appear on camera.
Xiao Yi nodded, "Okay."
Xia Weiliang grabbed the breakfast and was about to head to Qu Guanxiang's house. As she stepped out, she saw the little black cat watching her from a distance.
She went back inside to get a sausage, tore open the packaging, and placed it aside, waiting for it to come and eat on its own.
The little black cat was wary of her and only dared to come and eat after she had walked a considerable distance away. It would eat a few bites and then look up at her.
Xia Weiliang pushed open the door and found her master had already woken up. She could see he had changed into clean clothes, and his dark face looked uneasy.
"Master, please have breakfast first."
He glanced at Xia Weiliang and sighed helplessly, "I can't eat."
"This meal is like the ribs of the oil-paper umbrella you make. Without it, the umbrella will fall apart. Who will come to see it, who will choose it?"
She walked over, pulled Uncle Qu to the seat, and sat him down, "Listen to me, eat your meal properly, and leave everything else to me later."
Uncle Qu looked at her suspiciously, "You?"
Although the girl was quite pretty, she was probably no different from those internet celebrities doing live streams, and could help him promote it, right?
Seeing her sincerity, Uncle Qu couldn't bear to refuse her kindness and forced himself to drink a little more than half a bowl of porridge.
Soon, Xiao Shuai pushed the door open, followed by Qiao Shu and others.
Su Yuxi also entered and said warmly, "Uncle, we're officially starting today. Please don't worry, we won't be filming your family matters, only a day in your life as a successor."
"But..."
Uncle Qu was in no mood for this now.
Xia Weiliang came to him, squatted down, and looked up at him, "Master, you've been making oil-paper umbrellas for half your life. Don't you want to capture it on film and pass it down to the world?"
Uncle Qu fell silent.
"You must do it for the world to see, and also for the family of Tianmei's boyfriend! True artists have no distinction of social status. What you show is the real you!"
Although she had only known him for two days, Xia Weiliang had a general understanding of her master. He was persistent and upright. While he loved his daughter, he could not tolerate any pretense or deception; that would cause him more pain than anything.
After hearing her words, Uncle Qu was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly slapped his thigh, "Fine! Let's do it!"
Xia Weiliang smiled, "Director Huang! Let's start!"
"Alright!"
Director Huang immediately began to set up the venue, and all the staff were in position.
As for the guests, they all followed Uncle Qu to learn. As the last disciple, Xia Weiliang was firmly seated in the center.
Xiao Shuai could finally film something meaningful, and his excitement was indescribable.
"Making an umbrella involves more than a dozen processes. First, we make the ribs, then we thread them, then we tension the frame, then we paste the paper, make the spring, apply oil for waterproofing, and finally color it..."
Uncle Qu taught everyone diligently, listing each process like a treasured memory.
The guests learned seriously, especially Xia Weiliang, who had an extraordinary talent for handicraft. Uncle Qu nodded repeatedly, growing more fond of this apprentice.
When Lang Yue arrived with Tianmei, boyfriend Xiao Zheng, and Xiao Zheng's mother, Mrs. Zheng, they saw such a scene.
There were about four or five cameras set up in the courtyard, with over twenty staff members sitting opposite, filling the courtyard. Uncle Qu, under the cameras, was guiding six handsome men and beautiful women in learning to make oil-paper umbrellas, teaching them in an orderly fashion.
"My goodness, isn't that Xia Weiliang?"
Mrs. Zheng recognized Xia Weiliang at a glance. She had been too popular recently, and Mrs. Zheng was a loyal viewer of "Courage," so she recognized the other guests as well.
"Yes, yes, it's her!" Xiao Zheng was a fan of Xia Weiliang's looks. Seeing his goddess sitting there, he could hardly believe his eyes and exclaimed, "Tian Tian, is that your uncle? I didn't expect him to be so amazing! To have so many celebrities come to your house to learn oil-paper umbrella making from him!"
Tianmei was also stunned. She hadn't had any expectations initially, and had even thought on the way that if Xiao Zheng showed even the slightest hint of disdain, she would break up with him immediately!
But she didn't know how her father managed to invite so many celebrities to support her!
Looking at Lang Yue, her expression was calm. She probably knew all about it beforehand, but why hadn't she told her earlier?
The three of them didn't dare to disturb the filming and only watched from the doorway. Mrs. Zheng was too excited and secretly took a short video, which she shared on WeChat Moments.
In an instant, it received countless likes!
Since she had learned how to use WeChat, she had never received so many likes!
The comments below were also full of amazement: "My god! Sister, where are you? Is this a TV drama being filmed?"
"Third sister, look closely, these are all guests from 'Courage'! I'm following it religiously! By the way, sister, how did you get in?"
"Auntie!! Xia Weiliang! I want her autographed photo!!"
"OMG, Auntie! Tell Anya, I love her!"
"I never thought my sister-in-law was so capable, with such broad connections! You can watch popular variety shows being filmed up close like this? Impressive! Should we invite you and Da Lei for tea sometime? I'm quite interested in the project we discussed last time."
Mrs. Zheng was truly ecstatic, so busy replying to comments that she couldn't keep up.
"Reply to Second Sister: Oh my, I'm not that capable~ I'm just visiting my son's girlfriend's house for a few days, who knew her father was filming a program? So many celebrities, and they all look familiar to me~"
"Reply to Brother Zhao: You flatter me, my connections are nothing compared to yours! It's just my son's girlfriend, her father is a veteran artist, and celebrities are visiting their home for a program. Does Brother Zhao have any favorite celebrities? I can help you get an autographed photo later!"
Brother Zhao replied quickly: "My daughter particularly likes Xia Weiliang. Seeing your video, she's been screaming in my ear, and it's driving me crazy~"
"Reply to Brother Zhao: Xia Weiliang, is it? Please tell my niece, and I'll go get her an autographed photo later!"
After this exchange, Mrs. Zheng was overjoyed.
Brother Zhao was a business contact her husband had been dealing with for a long time, but the other party had been hesitant to sign the contract, and hadn't even given them a chance to meet in private!
Now, this had solved a major problem for her husband! She felt like she was floating, and the more she looked at her prospective daughter-in-law, the more she liked her, even starting to see a bit of a fortune-bringing aura about her.