878: Chapter 873 Appearing on TV

The old man was so excited his beard was trembling. He rushed over in three steps, which felt like two, and if Shen Yan hadn't stopped him, he probably would have knelt directly before Shen An.

This was Professor Gu from the Language Department at Jinghai University, a towering figure in the field. He was usually extremely arrogant; countless high-ranking officials and nobles who wanted to send their children to study under him were often scolded and sent away.

"Old Master Gu, what's wrong? Have some water and take it slow."

Shen Yan put Youyou down and signaled for Grandma Liu to pour tea.

"Water? How can I possibly drink water!"

Professor Gu clutched Shen Yan's sleeve, his hand pointing at Shen An trembling.

"This child is a monster... No, a genius! An unparalleled genius!"

"Last week, I was reading a foreign newspaper in the park, and this child walked by and casually corrected a translation error I made regarding Sumerian cuneiform."

"At first, I thought it was some adult's prank, but after talking with him, I realized his sensitivity to language is simply terrifying!"

As Professor Gu spoke, his eyes turned red.

"Mr. Shen, please give this child to me! My old bones don't have many years left, but I will definitely teach him everything I have learned in my lifetime!"

"Just ten years... No, eight years! He can become a top global linguist!"

Shen Yan looked at the old professor who was so agitated he seemed close to a cerebral hemorrhage, then looked at his son, who appeared calm as if listening to nonsense.

Shen An yawned, clearly uninterested in becoming a linguist.

"I want to study computers."

Shen An's sudden remark was like pouring a bucket of cold water on Professor Gu.

"Study computers! That's just a tool! Language is the soul of human civilization!"

Professor Gu jumped up anxiously, completely disregarding his image.

If the students of Jinghai University saw this scene, their jaws would probably drop to the floor.

Shen Yan rubbed his temples with a slight headache.

This was already the third wave this month.

First, it was the Mathematics Department, then the Physics Department, and now even someone dealing with ancient languages had shown up.

Shen An's talent was like a sharp awl in a pocket—impossible to hide.

"Old Master Gu, the child is still young, only a little over three. I want him to have a complete childhood."

Shen Yan politely refused, but his tone allowed for no argument.

"Childhood? A genius like this belongs to all of humanity! Letting him sing nursery rhymes in kindergarten is a crime! It's a terrible waste of talent!"

Professor Gu was heartbroken, and it was only after Shen Yan placated him kindly, even promising to donate a library, that he finally left.

After seeing Professor Gu out, Shen Yan returned to the living room and saw Liu Hui leaning against the staircase railing, looking worried.

"Husband, this can't go on."

Liu Hui walked over and looked at her son with heartache.

"It's spreading widely outside now, saying our family has produced a child prodigy. Many media outlets want to interview him."

"I'm afraid Anan will be under too much pressure, and besides... being too high-profile isn't a good thing."

Shen Yan pulled his wife into his arms, inhaling the faint scent of her shower gel.

"Don't worry, as long as I'm here, no one can disturb him."

As his voice fell, the phone on the coffee table vibrated once.

It wasn't a system notification, but a WeChat message.

The sender was Wu Ya, currently the Director of Public Relations at Shenyan Group.

"Boss, look at this."

Attached below was a link with a sensational headline: 'Jinghai Child Prodigy Suspected of Faking It? A Certain Wealthy Family Uses Any Means Necessary to Pave the Way for Their Son!'

Shen Yan clicked the link, which led to a video.

In the video, a little girl wearing a pink princess dress and delicate makeup was being interviewed.

Shen Yan had a slight impression of this girl; her name was Tong Jiajia, stage name 'Tang Tang.' She had been very popular online for the past two years, touted as the 'Nation's Daughter,' and she had debuted with the persona of a child prodigy.

It was rumored that she could recite three hundred Tang poems by age three and solve Olympic math problems by five.

In the video, the reporter asked her what she thought of the recently popular 'Shen Family Prodigy.'

The little girl named Tang Tang, despite wearing a sweet smile, had an expression in her eyes that held a shrewdness and sharpness unbefitting her age.

"I think little friends should be honest."

She made a heart shape toward the camera, her voice sweet to the point of giving people goosebumps.

"Anyone can recite things, but if it's for hype, that's the adults' fault; the children are innocent."

"I heard that little brother is only a little over three? When I was three, I was still playing with Barbie dolls. How could he possibly know so much?"

"If I have the chance, I would really like to invite little brother onto my show to play. We can play games together, and then everyone will know if it's real."

Under the video, the comment section had exploded.

Tang Tang's fans were controlling the narrative, cursing the Shen family for using their child to grab attention, and some even started doxxing Shen Yan's identity.

However, because Shenlan Group had done such a good job with confidentiality, coupled with the shielding effect of the 'Ghost' protocol, they could only find out he was a wealthy businessman; his specific background was impossible to trace.

Shen Yan looked at the screen, his expression unchanged, even looking slightly amused.

An ant waving its feelers at an elephant—the elephant usually couldn't be bothered to respond.

But if that ant tried to climb onto the elephant's trunk to take a bite, that was a different story.

"Why is that child speaking so sarcastically?"

Liu Hui also leaned over to take a look, frowning.

"Such manipulation at such a young age. How did the adults raise her?"

"It's the entertainment industry, a den of fame and fortune."

Shen Yan casually closed the video, not taking it to heart.

It wasn't until the next day that a gilded invitation was sent directly to the front desk of Shenyan Group.

It was for a parent-child educational variety show called 'Super Baby.'

The producer's name listed was Li Hua.

Shen Yan had the system check; this Li Hua was Tong Jiajia's biological mother and her agent, notorious in the industry for her ruthless tactics. She would do anything to push her daughter to the top.

The invitation's wording was beautiful, claiming to invite various genius children for friendly exchange and to explore the potential of human infants.

But the provocative tone could be smelled even through the paper.

If they refused to go, it would confirm the rumors of 'faking it' and 'being guilty.'

If they went, it would be a meticulously designed trap.

Shen Yan toyed with the invitation, his fingertips tapping lightly on the desk.

He originally did not want to pay attention to such a low-level provocation.

His time was precious, worth tens of millions per minute; he had no time to play house with the mother of a fading child star.

"Daddy, what is this?"

Youyou was picked up from school and brought to the office. She saw the colorful invitation on the desk and curiously picked it up.

"Someone wants to invite little brother to be on television."

Shen Yan leaned back in his executive chair, looking at his daughter, who had grown quite a bit taller.

"On television? Can I go too?"

Youyou's eyes lit up. After all, she was a child and naturally curious about appearing on TV.

"You want to go?"

"Yes! I want everyone to see that my little brother is the smartest!"

Youyou clenched her little fist, looking like a fierce protector of her younger brother.