Chapter 118: Old Qin Suffers from Insomnia (Requesting Monthly Votes)

There was a glimmer of light in Xiang Li’s eyes.

In this moment, she gave up on concealing her true feelings. Although the song was incomplete—a frustrating, truncated version—she didn’t find it off-putting. On the contrary, she loved it.

"Is this what a 'Southern Girl' is?" She found the lyrics beautifully dreamy.

Xiang Li was not a singer, nor was she professionally trained in music; she was an actress. Much like Teacher He, her judgment of a song’s quality relied entirely on intuition. If it sounded good and felt right, it was a good song; if the audience couldn't grasp it, it was a bad one. The audience judged based on preference. They didn't care about complex technicalities or whether something was "sophisticated" or not; they only knew if it sounded pleasant to their ears.

Xiang Li thought this song was beautiful. Heart to heart, she admitted that even as a mere fragment, it had truly struck a chord with her.

"Teacher Jiabei, you sing so well!"

Teacher He walked over, standing close to Xiang Li, and let out a sigh, pulling an exaggerated look of indignation. "Jiabei, you’ve broken my heart."

"I’ll definitely finish it next time. Next time for sure," Li He promised with conviction.

Next time for sure.

Xie Shun put down his spatula and walked over, his eyes narrowing as he glared at Li He. "Jiabei, it’s truly a miracle you’ve made it this far in life."

Really. Xie Shun was genuinely impressed; it was no small feat that someone like him hadn't been beaten to death yet. He hadn't spent much time with Jiabei—not even five full days—yet in that short span, he had already felt the urge to throttle him more than once. He was just too infuriating. Jiabei had a unique talent for getting under people's skin, and the worst part was that you couldn't even find a legitimate fault to pick at. It was simply absurd.

Aware of the gravity of the situation, Li He quietly retreated a few steps, putting some distance between himself, Xie Shun, and Teacher He. He didn't need to worry about the shameless Xie Shun, and Xiang Li’s gentle demeanor didn't suggest she was the type to resort to violence. Poor Jiang You was automatically ignored.

"Teacher Xie Shun, the fish is about to burn." Li He sniffed the air, his expression shifting. "Turn off the heat! The fire is too strong; if it burns, it won’t taste good."

As soon as these words left his mouth, everyone’s faces turned livid. They stared at Li He, who was busy pulling out firewood, with pure malice. What kind of person was he? Everyone was suffering from the frustration of the song, and yet the culprit was over there worrying about whether the fish was burning. Was that the point? Shouldn't they be trying to persuade him to write the second half of the song?

Xie Shun said nothing as he plated the fish—a plate bought at the cost of fifty ears of corn. That heartless Jiabei. He watched as Li He naturally picked up chopsticks, scooped rice, and even sat at the table, inviting Xiang Li to be at ease and treat it like home. Xie Shun felt like throwing in the towel. Who was the guest here, and why did it feel like *he* was the one hosting?

"Know your place!" he wanted to shout. You’re the planner, the production staff! According to the usual dynamic of this show, the guests and the production team were supposed to be at odds. Why were you, the show's planner, acting more like a guest than the guests themselves?

Li He ate with great relish. Xie Shun really did have a knack for cooking—it wasn't just talk, the food was genuinely delicious. Li He polished off two bowls of rice and nearly a quarter of the large sea bass provided by the production crew. Everyone else had lost their appetite, especially seeing the culprit eating so heartily. It made them feel even worse. The world was gray; there was no love left in humanity.

After dinner, Xie Shun "enthusiastically" ushered Li He out of the Mushroom House. At the parting, Li He didn't forget to butter up the veteran. "Teacher Xie Shun, your braised sea bass was truly delicious. May I come to your home sometime to discuss music?"

Xie Shun’s hand froze on the door, and he slammed it shut immediately. *You want to discuss music? I’m too embarrassed to call you out, you despicable...* Xie Shun stormed back into the house, fuming.

"Teacher Xie Shun is so warmhearted, even inviting me to his house for a meal." Li He took a detour to the post-production editing suite. He knew they would be editing the footage of his performance at this hour.

Inside the house, Teacher He returned from washing up and sat on the edge of the bed. He looked at Xie Shun and asked, "Teacher Xie Shun, do you really think Jiabei hasn't written the rest of 'Southern Girl' yet?"

Why were they so inclined to believe him? Before Xie Shun could answer, He Luo chimed in first, "If Jiabei had finished it, there would be no reason to hide it. We already have the songs for the show; performing it wouldn't have any negative impact." He was determined to protect his best friend's persona, making everyone believe the song simply wasn't finished, rather than him being deliberately annoying. Convinced he held the "secret to happiness," he was excited, feeling like the only sober person in a world of drunks. *Once the show ends and I get to hear the full version at home, I'll be even more excited...* He Luo felt he had finally grasped his best friend's joy. He understood Old Li’s happiness.

He then forwarded the video link that Director Wu Guang had shared with him to He Xi'er.

*‘Xi Xi has enabled friend verification. You are not yet his/her friend. Please send a friend verification request first...’*

*‘Send friend verification request.’*

He Luo stared at the large red exclamation mark before the video link and sank into deep thought. The script wasn't supposed to go like this. He Xi'er had deleted him, likely out of fear that he would send her the truncated version of the song.

"How were you so sure that Old Li would sing this episode?" He Luo was confused. How had He Xi'er guessed it?

This wasn't scientific! Unwilling to give up, He Luo forwarded it to his good friend Jiang Qi. Staring at the red exclamation mark again, He Luo began to question his entire existence. Both of them had deleted him.

*Damn it...* No sense of sportsmanship.

Witnessing the whole ordeal, Teacher He gave Jiang Qi and He Xi'er a thumbs up. How truly prescient of them. He patted young He Luo on the shoulder. "This won't do. When sharing with good friends, you can't be so selective. You must be fair and treat everyone equally."

Then, He Luo watched as Teacher He, in his effort to treat all his friends equally, posted the video to his Moments.

*Truly fair, damn it.*

"I’ve learned my lesson."

Xie Shun lay in bed, staring at the tree rings on the wooden ceiling, lost in thought. "Let’s bring earplugs next episode!" he suddenly sat up.

"That wouldn't be very nice," Jiang You said, not wanting to treat his idol that way—his idol sang beautifully, aside from the fact that the songs were never complete.

He Luo said nonchalantly, "I’m not coming next episode anyway, so the singing won't affect me."

"Shut up!" Teacher He said crossly. "The 'truncated version' trend started with you. If we really want to get down to it, you’re the forefather of this whole mess."

He Luo had no way to argue. *The baby is hurting inside, but the baby cannot speak.*

Xie Shun sat there, sighing softly. "I just checked—Jiabei has sung four songs, and not a single one was finished." From the half-sung "Friends" while drinking, to the "You Can't Hit Me" directed at Ding Zhong, to "Ordinary Road" and "Southern Girl"—the latter still fresh from being butchered. It was terrifying!

"Earplugs next time," Teacher He stated firmly. It was too frightening; four songs, all four truncated.

*Since everyone else is wearing them, I suppose I will too...* Jiang You’s heart, refusing to betray his idol, finally compromised.

He Luo silently observed the plans of the three permanent guests, memorizing them. He planned to use this information as a bargaining chip to trade for the full version of "Southern Girl."

"I really am too smart."

At the same time, Old Qin was once again jolted awake from his sleep by Li He.