Roasted over the fire I won't eat, I won't eat anymore, don't hit me

“Xiaoyu, when your Brother Cheng came back before, did he bring you anything or say anything to you?”

Chen Youliang was holding a chicken leg as he squatted in front of a little girl whose eyes looked a little… “wise.”

And to be clear, “wise” here wasn’t a complimentary adjective. It was meant in the literal, physical sense—the kind where one eye stood guard while the other patrolled elsewhere. It was also a congenital deformity.

It was the sort of thing that could be corrected with surgery later in life. In theory, the orphanage could have afforded the operation.

After all, most donations from wealthy people were supposed to go toward treating congenital or acquired disabilities. If there was enough money, anything could be treated.

In a certain sense, there was only one disease in this world: poverty.

Naturally, every cent meant for treatment had gone straight into the pockets of Chen Youliang and his family. Otherwise, how could an entire family afford a BMW on the meager savings from working odd jobs?

How could they afford private schools? How could they use money to buy their way into college?

The cold, miraculous Pokémon had been transformed into warm numbers, burning themselves to illuminate Director Chen, all so they could enjoy one hot meal and cry out, “We can never repay the director’s kindness!”

The girl named Xiaoyu shook her head. “Director, I don’t know. But I want that chicken leg…”

Chen Youliang: “…”

You little—

If you don’t know, then you don’t know. Why are you still asking for a chicken leg? I think you’re trying to get sent off to clean the toilets!

Normally, Chen Youliang’s lackeys would already have sprung into action. The thick-faced middle-aged woman would have started cursing, because bad people naturally couldn’t let Chen Youliang be the one to play the villain…

But now…

The middle-aged woman had never been this kind in her entire life. Her eyes had never been this clear, either. Just like Chen Youliang, she held a chicken leg in one hand and a five-yuan bill in the other as she questioned the children about Ye Cheng.

Unlike Chen Youliang, her side was going smoothly. Although the children at the orphanage were somewhat worried that they might be scolded after accepting a chicken leg or some money—

That had happened before…

But because of the image of a “good director” Chen Youliang had cultivated over the years, most of the children at the orphanage were still willing to play along and answer his questions.

Like right now…

“Of course you can. Even if you don’t know anything, you’ll still get a chicken leg. Go on, Xiaoyu. Go play somewhere else. If you hear anything about your Brother Cheng, remember to tell the director, okay?” Chen Youliang’s eyes were gentle as he patted her head and handed over the chicken leg.

“Okay, okay… I understand, Director!”

The little girl named Xiaoyu was absolutely thrilled. Her entire attention was focused on the fragrant braised chicken leg in Chen Youliang’s hand, and she nodded so quickly her head nearly fell off.

After receiving the chicken leg, she ran off to the side and began gnawing on it. Behind her, quite a few envious gazes watched, belonging to the children of the orphanage who were lining up to answer questions and receive their own chicken legs.

A very strange phenomenon…

No one wanted the money.

Because the great King of Pokémon, Brother Cheng, had said that any money given to you was fake. Even if it was real, the old bastard would probably take it away anyway. But anything that made it into your stomach was real. Once you ate it, it was gone for good…

Ye Cheng’s teachings had been remarkably effective. Everyone had taken them to heart. Although they knew they could buy delicious food outside with the money, there was one condition: they had to be able to get out, and the money had to actually be given to them.

It was given to you, but not completely.

The five yuan was yours, sure. Director Chen merely had the right to use your five yuan twenty-four hours a day. You still possessed ownership of it—but not the right to use it.

Talk about a nasty little loophole, huh, buddy?

Chen Youliang: “…”

The corner of Chen Youliang’s eyelid twitched as he watched every single Pokémon choose the chicken leg. He could tell at a glance that this was another one of Ye Cheng’s lessons.

Eventually, he simply put the five-yuan bills away and held a chicken leg in each hand. One answer, one chicken leg. Before long, a long line had formed in front of him.

There were several hundred people in the orphanage, so Chen Youliang alone was far too slow. The others began taking action as well.

While helping with the questioning, some people were specifically assigned to record the children’s illnesses and physical disabilities, making it easier to arrange treatment later…

“Bang!”

“The chicken leg… I’m sorry…”

The little girl who had just received a chicken leg from Chen Youliang was so happy that she hadn’t noticed what was in front of her. She slammed straight into the young miss.

The chicken leg flew out of her hand, struck the young miss’s pale-blue clothes, bounced away, and rolled across the floor.

The girl named Xiaoyu staggered twice. Her first reaction was to feel sorry for her chicken leg. She hurriedly picked it up, wiped it off, and prepared to eat it later. Then, as if remembering something, she lowered her head and quietly apologized.

Dongfang Zhixia raised an eyebrow and prepared to step in.

She knew that this particular problem child had an extremely severe case of mysophobia—worse than anyone else’s. She also had a bizarre temper and hated being touched by others. Something like this was more than likely going to make her explode.

“Shen Qinghan, don’t be too hard on a child—”

“It’s fine,” Shen Qinghan said.

Dongfang Zhixia: “Huh?”

Huh???

Dongfang Zhixia froze when she heard that answer, a huge question mark practically appearing above her head. Then, as if she had thought of something, her expression shifted several times. In the end, she narrowed her eyes.

What deep scheming.

Dongfang Zhixia watched from the side as Shen Qinghan took action once again, snatched the chicken leg from the girl’s hand, and threw it into the trash can.

Dongfang Zhixia: “…”

All right. Still you.

The little girl named Xiaoyu, whose eyes looked especially “wise,” froze. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she looked pitiful enough to cry. But in the end, she didn’t make a sound and forced the tears back.

The director had told them never to cry in front of rich people, and never to make them unhappy. Otherwise, they would go hungry afterward…

Dongfang Zhixia frowned. She couldn’t bear to watch anymore. “Shen Qinghan, you—”

“It’s dirty. Go get another one,” Shen Qinghan said, pointing toward the large metal basin nearby, which was filled with fragrant braised chicken legs.

Dongfang Zhixia: “???”

What kind of logic was that?

Dongfang Zhixia opened and closed her mouth. She felt as though she had swallowed a fly and wanted to say something, but…

Was this right?

No, this definitely wasn’t right.

Since when had this problem child gained the ability to think normally?

For some inexplicable reason, a sense of crisis rose in Dongfang Zhixia’s heart. Shen Qinghan being a problem child had always been her greatest advantage. What was she supposed to do now that the girl had suddenly become intelligent?

“No need. I can just wash it…” The little girl named Xiaoyu shook her head. Her eyes were red, and she sniffed twice before preparing to retrieve the discarded chicken leg from the trash can, wash it, and continue eating.

Shen Qinghan furrowed her brow. She seemed to have thought of something.

At that moment, Niu Fen, who had been lying in wait nearby for just such an opportunity, seized his chance and rushed out!

What a perfect opportunity!!!

The young mistress wasn’t good with words. This was his chance to show what he could do!!!

This was it—the opportunity he’d been waiting for!!!

Niu Fen charged out at lightning speed, turning into a human battering ram as he forced his way through the crowd. He grabbed the little girl who had just pulled a chicken leg out of the trash can.

“Sweetie, you can’t eat that. It’ll make you sick—it’s covered in bacteria.” Niu Fen’s voice was gentle, and he put on a confident, kindly smile, already imagining how he would win the girl over.

Young Master, did you see that? This is what you call… Hey, hey, hey!!!

Niu Fen watched as the little girl kept trying to stuff the chicken leg into her mouth. He shuddered in fright, his eyes going wide, and hurriedly snatched the chicken leg from her hand.

“I told you, you can’t eat that! It’ll make you sick and upset your stomach.”

Niu Fen seemed to think of something. “There are plenty more over there. Just go get another one.”

This time, the little girl finally stopped insisting. In a timid voice, she said, “I can’t. The chicken legs were portioned out according to the number of people. If I take an extra one, someone else won’t get any…”

Niu Fen: “???”

So that was what she was worried about?

Wait a minute, weren’t you supposed to be not very smart?

Niu Fen had been watching from the sidelines for quite a while, and he had noticed that the children in this orphanage all shared a common problem… Their intelligence was generally below average. They weren’t exactly mentally disabled, but they were certainly less capable than ordinary people.

He never expected this girl to say something like that.

Niu Fen hadn’t expected it, and neither had Dongfang Zhixia or Shen Qinghan. None of them had imagined that the reason she refused to get another chicken leg was because of this.

They had thought she simply lacked basic safety awareness. But no—it was only because if she ate an extra one, someone else would have one less.

Once again, a cruel truth had been laid bare: resources were distributed unfairly!

The orphanage had enough resources, but after distribution, there somehow wasn’t enough to go around. As for why… Well, that was a tough one to guess. Surely it wasn’t because the great Director Chen had taken extra portions for himself, right?

Chen Youliang, who was still holding a chicken leg and asking where Ye Cheng was, suddenly felt a chill run down his back. When he heard what the little girl had just said, his heart gave a jolt.

It was obvious that everyone’s attention had turned toward him!

Whenever you feel pressured, just take a look at Chen Youliang…

Please, have mercy on me, you little ancestors! If I tell you to eat, then eat. If I tell you to take one, then take one. Why are you insisting on being so considerate at a time like this? Aren’t you trying to drive me into the grave?

Chen Youliang was practically on the verge of tears. He hurriedly grabbed two chicken legs, rushed over, and held them out to the girl.

“It’s not like that, Xiaoyu. The director bought plenty of chicken legs—there’s enough for everyone. Go ahead, eat, eat. There’s plenty…”

Only after Chen Youliang repeatedly urged her did Xiaoyu happily take one of the chicken legs and go eat it off to the side. Chen Youliang had originally intended to give her several more, but Xiaoyu stubbornly refused. Her excuse was still the same as before.

Chen Youliang: “…”

For fuck’s sake… Don’t do this to me!

“Director Chen, is the orphanage’s financial situation really that bad? The children can’t even get enough to eat?” Niu Fen’s voice was somewhat somber, and he stared intently at Chen Youliang.

Chen Youliang was sweating bullets. He had just opened his mouth to offer a few words in his defense when a loud cry for mercy suddenly came from nearby.

“I’m not eating! I’m not eating anymore! Please don’t hit me!”

The voice was young and filled with anguish.

Chen Youliang: “???”