Chapter 16: Was It Deliberately Ruined?

So it was me—or rather, who I was before I transmigrated—who arranged for Qin Haiyu to participate in "I Am a Singer"? That’s just ridiculous! Our daughter was still so little, and with no nanny or maid, the two of us raising a child was already exhausting. Yet I actually paid to have my wife join a TV show?

At first, Yu Zhile couldn’t make sense of it, but after thinking it over, he found it just barely understandable. Maybe he thought Qin Haiyu was too tired from looking after the child, or perhaps, after her pregnancy, she was yearning for the stage and for singing again. So, to let her enjoy the stage she’d missed for so long, to give her a chance to relax, he spent money to persuade the production team to invite her as a challenger for the next episode.

Yes, that must have been the idea. Otherwise, he truly couldn’t come up with a better reason.

Yu Zhile felt a bit embarrassed. After brushing his teeth and washing his face, he took care of the child and let Qin Haiyu catch up on some sleep.

Finally, at midday, they managed to find some time to rest properly. When the baby was asleep, it was usually for at least two or three hours—a perfect opportunity for them to nap, and also for Yu Zhile to help Qin Haiyu perfect her rendition of “Little Happiness.”

Since he had gone through all this trouble—spending money to get the show to invite his wife—it wasn’t right to break the agreement. The only option was for Qin Haiyu to continue on to the second round of the challenger competition next week.

Although Qin Haiyu longed to return to the stage and to sing, she hadn’t planned to join "I Am a Singer." After all, if she did, her husband would be left alone to care for the baby, which was far too much for him. But now that her husband had set down his pen and decided to stop writing novels, she felt she couldn’t let him down by refusing the opportunity he'd arranged for her.

The first time she failed the challenge, she had intentionally not sung well. Her plan had been to muddle through a couple of rounds, then fail and return home to take care of the baby. That way, she wouldn’t disappoint her husband who had paid for her chance to sing on stage, and she’d have a reason—her skills weren’t up to par—to go home to her family. It was a perfect solution.

But now, thinking of how her husband had gone to such lengths to make her happy, to see her return to the stage and sing again—not only paying the production team but also giving up writing his novels, and even composing such a beautiful, moving song for her—she knew that if she didn’t give her best performance, she’d have no face to return home to her husband and child.

So, Qin Haiyu practiced “Little Happiness” with utmost dedication.

And so, the two of them balanced caring for their child with loving displays of affection and song practice, swiftly ushering in another Saturday.

At eight that evening, the episode of "I Am a Singer" featuring Qin Haiyu’s challenge aired.

This was a local TV station, and it was precisely because it was local that Qin Haiyu had agreed, albeit reluctantly, to participate. If it had been in another city, a single recording session would have taken an entire day, which she absolutely wouldn’t have accepted.

Yu Zhile watched the television intently. After the host’s entrance, the singers drew lots and took the stage in order. The competition rules for this show were almost identical to those of "I Am a Singer," which Yu Zhile had watched before—even the title differed only by the last character.

Of course, the biggest difference was that he didn’t know a single host or singer. He realized he’d have to spend some time getting to know the celebrities of this world; everything in this field was different now, and he’d need to catch up if he wanted to fit in.

Soon, the drawing ended, and the order of performances was announced. As the challenger, Qin Haiyu would take the stage last. Such was the privilege of the challenger, and also the part that made the other singers most nervous and pressured. After all, in this show, the final performer always seemed to get a bump in votes.

“The baby’s asleep,” Qin Haiyu whispered. Yu Zhile turned his head and saw her lowering her top—just in time to miss the tender maternal sight she presented. The little one, once again, had fallen asleep nursing, and Yu Zhile felt another pang of envy.

Qin Haiyu carried the baby to the bedroom, settled her into the crib, tiptoed out, and sat close to Yu Zhile, linking her arm through his. In a gentle voice, she said, “Honey, tonight I’ll make you another nourishing soup.”

...No, please, not again.

After drinking that last pot of soup, he’d spent the whole night enduring, only to fall asleep from exhaustion before he’d even had the chance to touch her! Now the little rascal was asleep again, but when she woke, she’d monopolize her mother through the night. Would they ever get a chance to be affectionate again? It seemed unlikely.

Still, Yu Zhile nodded expectantly, and the two of them sat together watching "I Am a Singer," chatting eagerly as they did.

“Mr. Fan Di’s singing is still impressive! Honey, guess what place his song got in the voting?” Qin Haiyu asked.

“Well,” Yu Zhile replied, “he’s showing off a bit too much, deliberately flaunting his high notes. Many singers and even some in the audience think hitting those notes is amazing, but it depends on the song’s style. If it’s rock, I appreciate that raw high note, but for a folk song, deliberately altering it just to show off doesn’t make him seem more skilled—in fact, it makes the performance less interesting. If the audience and judges aren’t biased, and if the other singers perform normally, his votes should be at the bottom.”

No sooner had Yu Zhile finished his analysis than Qin Haiyu looked at him with adoration and exclaimed, “Wow! Honey, you’re amazing! If it weren’t for me, Mr. Fan Di really would have come in last! He only got 51 votes more than I did!”

Yu Zhile stared at her in disbelief. After Fan Di’s performance, the vote count showed 421 votes, meaning Qin Haiyu had received just 370.

He teased, “Darling, out of a total of 800 votes, you didn’t even get half! Just how badly did you sing?”

Qin Haiyu stuck out her tongue and confessed, “Honey, if I told you I did it on purpose, would you be mad at me?”

Yu Zhile was briefly stunned. “On purpose? What do you mean?”

Unable to meet his gaze, Qin Haiyu replied timidly, “I didn’t want to waste all your effort arranging for me to join the show, but I also didn’t want to advance and waste time competing. So I intentionally messed up my performance. That way, after failing the challenge, I could come home and take care of you and the baby in peace...”

Hearing this, Yu Zhile felt a sudden surge of emotion.

This was Qin Haiyu—gentle, considerate, and understanding.

With a wife like this, he truly had no defense against her warmth.