CHAPTER 352: CHAPTER 352: MIAOMIAO: YES, I’M PRETENDING TO UNDERSTAND

At noon, everyone had a simple meal of dry food and continued the Mountain Patrol. The afternoon passed without any incidents, and they all breathed a sigh of relief as they hurried down the mountain to find that Gongtong tree from before.

When they arrived, the expert was still treating the tree.

The guests didn’t understand the principles behind each step, so they wisely stood far away.

Tuanzi, however, was bold, sidling up with her hands in her pockets and even dared to talk to the expert.

The expert already knew it was a little girl who discovered the problem with the tree and was friendly, offering some explanations.

It was all professional jargon, and Tuanzi didn’t really understand.

However, with the camera directly on her, looking clueless would surely invite laughter, right?

So, with her hands in her pockets and her serious face, she nodded earnestly as if she understood.

The live chat was exploding with real and fake science, and when they saw her serious little expression, they couldn’t help but laugh.

[I bet a hundred bucks that Miaomiao definitely didn’t understand!]

[I’m raising the stakes! If she’s feeling guilty, she won’t make eye contact, but if she’s pretending to understand, she’ll certainly look intently at people while actually daydreaming.]

[Wow, you guys observe so closely.]

[If you don’t understand, just don’t pretend to know. So young and already so prideful, how did her family teach her?]

[Who hasn’t pretended to know something sometimes? Adults do it too, mind your own business!]

[Don’t pay attention to those faultfinders. It’s normal to encounter such comments once Miaomiao becomes popular. Some people only gain a sense of achievement by criticizing those who are better than them.]

With that comment, the faultfinders exploded in anger and started bickering with each other.

Many experienced viewers immediately reported and blocked them or simply turned off the live chat.

Tuanzi didn’t know that her little expression had been seen through.

As she pretended to understand but couldn’t withstand the expert’s enthusiasm, she quietly slipped away.

A few kids immediately surrounded her, chirping with questions.

"Miaomiao, did you understand? What are they doing now?"

"What’s that sticky stuff?"

"Can this tree be saved?"

Tuanzi stammered without a clear answer and quickly hung her head, "Sorry, I didn’t understand, I was faking it."

Zhou Xiangshang patted her shoulder and laughed, "It’s okay, we didn’t understand either. You were brave to go up and ask, that’s already amazing."

She was a bit shy and didn’t dare to ask.

Wu Yu gave a thumbs up, thought for a moment, and added a few words, "Very impressive, respect."

Yang Heng cooperatively clapped.

Even Wen Jing turned her head to look in another direction, coolly saying, "Isn’t it normal not to understand? When we grow up, we will understand."

[Ah, I feel so ashamed. I didn’t understand either, sorry to disappoint you, Wen Jing. But when you grow up, you can study hard and understand it.]

[Adult who doesn’t understand +1]

[These kids are really so adorable, I’m totally smitten]

[Creepy uncles and aunts, go away]

Once she successfully extricated herself, Tuanzi snuggled up to Gu Cheng, looking full of lingering fear.

"Sigh," she sighed, "I’ll never pretend to understand again, it’s so tiring."

Gu Cheng chuckled softly and patted her little head.

"If you don’t understand, just ask. No one will laugh at you."

"That’s not true, there are people who would laugh."

Tuanzi recalled past incidents when she went out with her mentor.

"Miaomiao was laughed at before, those people are really hateful!"

Gu Cheng responded naturally, "Yes, those who mock you are hateful, so you shouldn’t pay attention to them. Others who don’t laugh at you might even seriously explain things to you. So in the future, when you encounter similar situations, you can speak up boldly."

"Mmm mmm!"

Tuanzi nodded like a little chick pecking at rice, and before long, she went up to ask questions again, ultimately getting a response from the expert.

"There’s an 80% chance it can survive, but it needs to be observed for a week."

"Ah, but by then we won’t be here," Tuanzi said, troubled, rubbing her face.

Forester Li didn’t think it was a big deal.

"When this Gongtong survives, we’ll contact the show’s crew and also send you photos and videos."

He was very grateful to Tuanzi.

This mountain is really big, the foresters are few, and the patrol routes change constantly. In his past experience, it might have been three days before he walked this path again and discovered the tree’s problem.

By then, whether the tree could be saved would be hard to say. Moreover, suspicious individuals might have already fled, waiting for the tree to die completely before coming forward to openly buy it or ask someone to acquire it for them.

With the forester’s assurance, the audience felt relieved too.

They were also pretty curious about the outcome, and quite afraid that the locals and the show would just cover it up.

[This production crew is really good, they tell the audience about everything and strive for a certain level of transparency.]

[Yeah, and I really like the atmosphere here. Every time they do a Mountain Patrol, it almost feels like I’m patrolling the mountain too.]

[Come on, wasn’t there no follow-up on the previous wolf and cub incident? Wasn’t it just a publicity stunt?]

[Exactly, how long has it been since the wolf and cub incident? Who poached them? Who transported them? Neither the authorities nor the show has given an explanation. Aren’t they just trying to cover it up?]

[Uh, where did this hater come from? Wasn’t the wolf and cub incident explained clearly? According to the local Forest Police’s investigation, they had been staying on that mountain for over three days; the poachers and transporters had long left the city. It’s a difficult investigation and is still ongoing, capturing them is uncertain.]

[Why bother explaining so much to the haters? They won’t listen.]

[Right, do you think these haters are just ’Unstoppable’ fans who stir things up? Just now, a loyal viewer of ’Unstoppable’ revealed that this show’s crew doesn’t do their job and only attacks other shows, causing ’Unstoppable’ to drop in quality.]

[Where, where? Where’s the gossip?]

[Mongoose poking its head out.jpg]

[Here’s the link, no need to thank me.]

Still, nobody knows if these people are real haters or hired trolls. However, after ’Unstoppable’ viewers expressed their discontent, the number of troublemakers in ’Mountain Patrol Journey’ decreased significantly.

Even so, some still caused trouble, jumping around like fleas, but the increasingly experienced audience no longer paid attention to them.

When Tuanzi and her group descended the mountain, staff and nearby villagers immediately came up to them.

The village chief looked full of guilt. "It’s my failing to supervise the people of our village properly, letting them do such things for a little money!"

The village chief explained that after receiving orders from above, he immediately organized villagers to start investigating. Once they learned the specific timeframe—just last night when the tree got into trouble—the investigation sped up.

The village had a few loafers, idle daily, still living off their parents in their thirties. Occasionally, they’d steal small things, and since most villagers were of the same surname, they turned a blind eye and let it slide. Who knew they would actually help as guides for a few thousand yuan from an out-of-town timber merchant.

The village chief felt both ashamed and angry.

Tuanzi had already been angry, but now she was calm.

"In the past, they might have gotten away with petty theft, but this time it’s different. Who knows, they might have even helped with the cutting. That is a national first-class protected plant, and they will definitely be jailed for it."