Wang Li was surrounded by everyone as soon as she entered the courtyard. Seeing that she was young and beautiful, they all asked about her relationship with Instructor Peng.
Wang Li was generous and knew that she couldn't afford to offend any of these young masters. She deliberately acted gently and quickly became popular with everyone.
Not only had she been to college and could help everyone with homework they couldn't figure out, but she could also help Peng Fei clean up. Most importantly, she could cook.
At lunch, she made several dishes with variety, and her cooking skills were even better than Peng Fei's. Everyone praised her cooking and liked her very much.
"Since you have nothing to do on vacation, come over more often."
Peng Fei was too fierce. With her around, everyone could eat well and drink well without having to deal with Peng Fei. It was perfect.
Wang Li didn't expect to be so popular. She had come to someone's house uninvited, but instead of being rejected, she was asked to come every day, which gave her a great sense of accomplishment.
Seeing that she was getting along well with everyone, Peng Fei didn't interfere and just focused on his own work.
After lunch, Peng Fei washed the dishes and once again reminded everyone not to cause trouble. They could play on their phones for two hours, and he would be back soon.
A man and a woman left the villa.
As soon as they left, everyone started chattering.
"I thought the Peng guy wanted to climb into the Zhan family and become a son-in-law, but he actually has a girlfriend as a backup. He's really something. Guess where they went?"
Everyone chuckled. They knew with their toes what a man and a woman who hadn't seen each other for days would be doing when they went out.
Wang Li introduced Peng Fei to a gig, performing at a mall opening in the middle of winter. She was dressed thinly, standing on stage for people to admire.
But he was willing to do anything as long as he could make money.
Life went on like this, and soon it was the end of the year when Chen Jiaojiao came again.
This was her first visit to check on the children after sending them.
The homework was done, and they were all in good spirits. It seemed Peng Fei was good at managing them, and Chen Jiaojiao was very satisfied.
Tomorrow was New Year's Eve, and the children were supposed to go home. Peng Fei's job was also finished.
Chen Jiaojiao paid him his salary. Including the previous twenty thousand, it was fifty thousand in total, and she gave him another thirty thousand.
"Keep my contact information. If I need you again during winter or summer breaks, I'll contact you. Young man, you have a lot of potential in this area. Have you considered opening a class?"
Peng Fei couldn't afford to.
The thirty thousand in his hands was just a formality. He would return it to Wang Li in a turn.
He was uneducated, couldn't get professional certificates, and couldn't afford to rent a place in a good location.
"We'll see. Thank you, Miss Chen."
Chen Jiaojiao asked where he lived and offered to have the driver give him a ride.
Peng Fei carried a bag with his only two sets of clothes and stood in the courtyard, looking in the direction of Zhan Jingchun's residence.
He really wanted to say goodbye to her, but…
And so, he left without a sound.
Chen Jiaojiao had the driver take all the children back and then went to the next door with Xiang Siyuan.
The nanny called Zhan Jingchun downstairs, and she finally knew that everything was over and she would never see Peng Fei again.
It was good. This was the ending that belonged to them.
On New Year's Eve, Zhan Jingchun returned to the Zhan family.
All the children of the Zhan family were back. Three generations were together, more than twenty people, making it very lively.
Zhan Jingchun played with her nephew and niece, chatted with her brother and sister-in-law, and played cards with everyone. Her heart gradually calmed down and felt secure.
As the year turned, her past with Teacher Peng would be buried deep in her memory forever, never to be unearthed again.
Her life went smoothly, but Peng Fei was not so lucky.
Without the factory job and having left the Chen family, he didn't even have a place to live.
He had earned over 2,000 yuan from commercial performances in the past few days. The round number was sent home, and he only had a little over 400 yuan in change.
He was reluctant to stay in a good hotel and went to a small inn next to the train station.
Even so, a room cost over 60 yuan.
He stayed there anxiously while contacting his agent, hoping to finalize his work for the next year as soon as possible.
His agent was on vacation out of town and told him that the show had already aired. Although it had only been two episodes, the outcome was almost predictable.
There were too many talent shows now, and their show had no big stars or gimmicks, so it was reasonably obscure. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to get good work next year.
However, he was currently in contact with a new reality show, and he would let Peng Fei try it if there was any progress.
Peng Fei had no requirements for the type of show. His only concern was whether he could make money.
And so, he waited anxiously for three more days. His agent returned from out of town and invited him to dinner.
He told him that he had secured a spot for him.
It was less about securing a spot for him and more about the show being too unappealing in its concept, guests, and background, so no one was willing to participate.
To break out from the numerous reality shows, current program directors were racking their brains.
They chose a farming theme and asked management companies to recommend young idols to participate.
Moreover, the show was very time-consuming, lasting for half a year from spring to summer.
Originally, they had planned to invite two well-known male stars from the entertainment industry to anchor the show, but they couldn't reach an agreement in the end, so the opportunity fell to these newcomers who wanted to make a name for themselves but had no way to do so.
The agent had originally placed great expectations on Peng Fei, hoping he would become famous by participating in a modeling competition.
But there were too many people who wanted to enter the entertainment industry, and most of them became famous by luck. Peng Fei lacked camera presence, variety show sense, and entertainment spirit. From the episodes that had aired, he had already realized that he seemed completely unsuited for this line of work.
The agent wanted to make money from him. Seeing that it wasn't working out, he quickly lost enthusiasm.
But Peng Fei didn't want to give up. The agent wanted to give it one last shot and managed to secure this farming show.
"I think it's quite suitable for your background. The other participants are young masters who grew up in pampered city life and don't even know the difference between grains. How can they farm? They're just there to get attention."
"But you're different. Not only can you earn money, but you can also show off your professional skills and get some attention in front of the camera. It's a win-win-win. Don't refuse, it's really suitable for you."
"Even if you don't make a lot of money in these six months, at least you can prove that you've tried, and you won't have any regrets if you give up later. What do you think?"
Peng Fei thought about it and felt that his agent was right.
He had no idea what he could do now. Other than working in a factory or finding part-time jobs to earn a little money, he had no other options.
Since he had one foot in the entertainment industry, he might as well try one more time. If it didn't work out, he would go back to earning small amounts of money, accepting his fate.
He agreed with his agent, and they signed the contract on the spot.
The show offered a salary of three thousand yuan per episode, and the agent gave Peng Fei two thousand.
With a total of 48 episodes, he could earn nearly 100,000 yuan in six months.
Although he couldn't use his phone or contact the outside world during the recording of the show,
it was still much better than farming at home. He would be content for now.