A widower's entertainment

Chapter 404 [The Child] (Please Subscribe)
Xinghua Hutong, Beijing.

The domestic film industry is currently quite hot, and there's also a fire burning in Lin Youcheng's courtyard house, but this fire is because of educating his children.

"Zhao Le, if you're not going to eat, why did you secretly throw away the food?"

Lin Youcheng was surprised that Lin Zhaole would throw away the food. This waste of food surprised Lin Youcheng, who said, "Do you know that's a waste of food?"

Clearly, Lin Zhaole knew that something was wrong, otherwise he wouldn't have secretly poured it away.

The other children naturally couldn't speak up for Lin Zhaole at this point, because they also knew that what they were doing was wrong.

Lin Zhaoxi, who rarely comes home for dinner on weekends, was surprised that her younger brother, Lin Zhaole, would waste food. Although the family is well-off now, Lin Zhaoxi has experienced hardship and knows what it's like for several siblings to share a bowl of steamed egg custard. She also knows that when the family was really struggling, it was her uncle's money that helped them through the crisis. Because of these experiences, Lin Zhaoxi understands how precious their current happy life is and how good the conditions her father has created for them are, which makes her cherish it even more.

However, after Lin Zhaole was born, his father also started writing articles to earn money, and his life got better and better. It is clear that apart from not having a mother, Lin Zhaole did not suffer any hardship in life.

Lin Zhaoxi also knew that her father, Lin Youcheng, should give Lin Zhaole a good talking-to at this time. Wasting food was very wrong, and even if her father didn't say anything, she, as the older sister, would definitely teach Lin Zhaole a lesson.

"Let's go, let Dad talk to him."

Lin Zhaoxi told the others to leave and stop watching.

Lin Zhaole lowered his head, clearly knowing he had done something wrong, and said softly, "I ate snacks and didn't want to eat, so I threw away the food."

"I'm sorry, Dad, I was wrong."

Lin Youcheng naturally understood the reason: it was because living conditions had improved, so Lin Zhaole naturally wouldn't care about this bowl of rice anymore.

Xie Shuhua naturally wouldn't interrupt at this point. In her opinion, although this was a small matter, Lin Zhaole did indeed need to be taught a lesson.

Lin Youcheng looked at Lin Zhaole. It could be said that he had raised Lin Zhaole by himself since he was a baby. He had taken care of him since he was born, which had been very difficult for him. Lin Zhaole would cry at night from time to time, and Lin Youcheng had to keep coaxing this little darling to sleep.

It can be said that over the years, although he has treated everyone equally, he has spent the most energy on Lin Zhaole. There is no other way but to take care of Lin Zhaole, who is the youngest and needs his care the most.

Seeing Lin Zhaole wasting food like this, especially back in the 1990s, Lin Youcheng naturally felt that this was very wrong. His expression was stern as he said, "You are not allowed to eat any snacks for a month. Your meals at home will be all by yourself. This week will be a time for you to reflect on the bitterness of the past and appreciate the sweetness of the present!"

"You also need to write a 400-word self-criticism. If the self-criticism does not clearly recognize the mistakes, you will have to rewrite it."

Lin Youcheng naturally wouldn't physically punish the child; he would only focus on educating him.

Lin Zhaole naturally had no objections and obediently went to write his self-criticism with his head down.

Seeing Lin Youcheng being punished like this, Xie Shuhua couldn't help but laugh and say, "Looking at how stern you are, I thought you were going to punish him severely."

“It must have been tough for him to not eat snacks for a month. If he keeps eating snacks, I’m worried his face will get rounder and rounder.”

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua couldn't help but smile. She glanced at Lin Zhaole's back and said, "He's fine. This mistake can be corrected. What are you planning to make for him to eat separately for the next month?"

Lin Youcheng thought for a moment and then said, "Let him suffer for a few days. Before, when his older siblings shared a bowl of steamed egg custard, I would make him a bowl of steamed egg custard with some vegetables? Or I could just let him eat pickled vegetables and steamed buns?"

"Haha, Youcheng, I don't think you can do it."

It's obvious that Xie Shuhua knows Lin Youcheng loves his child, and even if he says that, he'll probably still let Lin Zhaole eat with them later.

Upon hearing Xie Shuhua's words, Lin Youcheng said, "We'll see how he performs then!"

Clearly, Lin Zhaole's waste of food is a serious problem at home, as evidenced by the fact that he cooked a separate meal for himself at dinner time.

Since Song Ma is not currently at the courtyard house, and no other nanny has been hired, the meals are being prepared by Xie Shuhua and Lin Youcheng. In addition, steamed egg custard and a bowl of vegetables have been prepared for Lin Zhaole.

Speaking of which, we have to thank my elder brother Lin Youcai. Since he runs a restaurant, Lin Youcheng doesn't need to buy many of the dishes himself; they are all delivered directly to us.

Because Lin Zhaoxi has to go to school and rarely comes home on weekends, the meals are naturally very plentiful, although the meals at home are usually quite good.

In Lin Zhaoxi's view, wasting food is wrong in the first place. So when he saw Lin Zhaole sitting alone on the other side of the table, eating steamed egg custard and a small bowl of vegetables, he was not moved. After all, when they were young, they rarely ate steamed egg custard.

Lin Zhaole looked at the chicken leg and meat dishes on the table with envy, but clearly did not pick up any food.

Lin Zhaohuan and Lin Zhaoman seemed to feel sorry for Lin Zhaole, and secretly put a piece of meat in Lin Zhaole's rice bowl when Lin Youcheng went to get rice and wasn't paying attention.

Lin Zhaole naturally and quickly stuffed the meat into his mouth.

Xie Shuhua and Lin Zhaoxi saw it, but naturally they didn't say anything. Lin Youcheng also noticed Lin Zhaohuan and Lin Zhaoman's little actions, but he didn't expose them and pretended not to see them. In fact, Lin Youcheng deliberately extended the time he was away from the dinner table, giving the others more time to secretly take care of his younger brother.

Over the next few days, Lin Youcheng turned a blind eye to the situation at the dinner table. As for snacks, Lin Zhaole didn't have any pocket money, and Lin Youcheng didn't know whether his older brothers and sisters had treated him to snacks, so he naturally didn't care too much.

Lin Zhaole knew that wasting food was wrong, and he wrote his 400-word self-criticism very carefully, except for two typos. Lin Youcheng made Lin Zhaole write all the typos ten times, and the matter was over. At least Lin Zhaole dared not waste food again.

Of course, it is obvious that Lin Zhaole, the youngest child in the family, also knows that his father, Lin Youcheng, will be strict when he makes mistakes. At least in his opinion, not eating snacks for a month and having to cook for him separately is very hard for him, since there is the temptation of the dishes his older brothers and sisters are eating right next to him.

Xie Shuhua looked at Lin Youcheng and said with a smile, "As expected, you're still soft-hearted!"

In less than a week, Lin Youcheng took the initiative to put a chicken leg on Lin Zhaole's plate, which naturally made Lin Zhaole eat it with great joy.

Lin Youcheng said with a smile, "Now that the conditions are better, we naturally don't want their hearts to change as well."

Upon hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua immediately replied, "They are all good children, very sensible."

“I know that it is precisely because they are all good children that I do not want them to change in some ways just because their circumstances have improved. The education of these children is also very important.”

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua smiled and said, "You've done a great job educating her. She's as outstanding as Xi'er; she'll definitely become a doctor in the future."

When Xie Shuhua mentioned Lin Zhaoxi, Lin Youcheng shook his head and said, "Xi'er wasn't raised by me. She's been sensible and obedient since she was little, and she studied very hard. She used to help me take care of my younger siblings. She has always been excellent."

Xie Shuhua nodded in agreement and said, "The others are also very excellent. Zhao Mei is about to take the high school entrance exam, and her academic performance is also very good. It seems that she should be able to get into a good high school."

Lin Youcheng nodded. He wasn't worried about Lin Zhaomei's grades. Even if she couldn't get into Yenching University Affiliated High School, there was still a good high school waiting for her. Even if she failed the exam, there was still Xinghua Middle School. Lin Youcheng wasn't too worried about Lin Zhaomei's academic performance.

The other children also had good grades and didn't require much attention from their father, Lin Youcheng.

"I don't need to worry about their grades. Zhaoqing will take the college entrance exam next year. He has extra points for sports, so even if he doesn't get into a university, he should be able to get into a junior college."

Xie Shuhua nodded. She knew about the children's academic performance and said, "The children's grades are all very good."

Although given the current financial situation of Lin Youcheng's family, even if his children don't do well in school and don't get into good universities, their future lives won't be bad, as a father, he naturally hopes that his children can do better and better, and even if they don't, he hopes they won't go astray.

Therefore, it is necessary to tell children right from wrong when they are young. For example, Lin Zhaole wasted food. No matter how good the conditions are, food should not be wasted.

Life went on as usual, and soon it was time for Lin Zhaomei to take the high school entrance exam. Lin Youcheng didn't pay much attention to the people who asked him to write scripts. He was even worried that their visits would affect Lin Zhaomei's studies at home. So he went to the courtyard house next door to receive these people who came to visit.

Lin Youcheng didn't agree to everything, only saying that he was still writing the story and would talk about it after the script was finished.

Regarding television scripts that television production companies are interested in, Lin Youcheng stated that he will collaborate with them after they are written. He does not plan to accept any commissioned scripts, nor does he intend to write any adaptations of other authors' novels.

Lin Zhaomei took the high school entrance exam and did very well. She felt she had done quite well and said confidently, "Dad, you have to buy me a DV camcorder."

Lin Youcheng naturally wouldn't refuse. He wasn't short of money, so he could buy it for Lin Zhaomei. The reason he didn't buy it in advance was because he didn't want to distract Lin Zhaomei during the period before the high school entrance exam. In fact, He Bian had already bought Lin Zhaomei a handheld DV recorder.

In Lin Youcheng's view, such a DV camcorder is quite good. Just like the camera that Lin Zhaomei uses to take pictures of her family from time to time, this one can also be used to record some video footage of her family. Such video footage may not seem like much now, but when you look back at it a long, long time later, it may become a treasure trove of memories.

"Zhaomei, would you like to join the film crew and learn from the director?"

Actually, Lin Zhaomei has acted in film crews since she was a child, and more than once. She has been exposed to film shooting, but at that time she was still an actress and a child. Now that the high school entrance exam is over and there is a long summer vacation, Lin Youcheng thinks that if Lin Zhaomei wants to learn film shooting, he can let Lin Zhaomei go to the film crew of Zhang Guoshi or Jiang Wen to learn. Of course, this requires him, the father, to make arrangements and to be in charge. After all, it is not appropriate for a child to go to the film crew on a whim.

Besides these two directors, there's also the Beijing Television Art Center, which makes things even more convenient. Lin Youcheng has collaborated with the Beijing Television Art Center on several TV series, so if his daughter is interested and wants to watch the shows on set, there won't be any problem.

Lin Zhaomei was naturally delighted to hear Lin Youcheng's words. Holding the DV recorder in her hand, she asked, "Is it okay?"

Lin Youcheng smiled and nodded. He had actually mentioned this to Zheng Xiaolong before, and Zheng Xiaolong naturally had no objections. He just told Lin Zhaomei to go directly over.

Lin Youcheng thought there was no need for Lin Zhaoxi to suffer in Zhang Guoshi's film crew. After all, Zhang Guoshi was going to film "To Live" in the countryside, and Lin Zhaomei would definitely have to go with him. It would be more convenient to stay in Beijing. Besides, it was just a hobby, and he didn't really intend to learn anything.

Lin Youcheng was simply taking his daughter to visit the film set during the summer vacation. Of course, Lin Zhaomei, being a former actress, was not unfamiliar with film sets.

Xie Shuhua had no objection to Lin Youcheng sending Lin Zhaomei to the film crew to learn, since it was in Beijing anyway, and she also knew that Lin Zhaomei had said before that she wanted to be a director. She smiled and said, "It seems that she is really interested in making movies. I've seen her taking that DV camera around and filming lately."

Lin Youcheng smiled and said, "It's good that she and Xi'er know what they want to do in the future."

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua couldn't help but nod in agreement. It was certainly a very good thing that the child had his own ideals.

It was at this moment that Xie Shuhua said, "I hope our children will also know what they want to do in the future."

Lin Youcheng didn't understand Xie Shuhua's meaning. Then he saw Xie Shuhua touching her belly and said, "Youcheng, I'm pregnant."

pregnant?

Upon hearing this, Lin Youcheng was startled and immediately realized what was happening, staring wide-eyed at Xie Shuhua.

I have another child?!
(End of this chapter)