The wealthy military officer spoils his wife excessively

"Don't be sad, you've done your best," Xue Shaofeng patted her shoulder to comfort her.

She took it, smiling as she wiped her eyes: "I'm not sad at all. Brother Feng, I almost couldn't help but laugh at your ridiculous reasoning on stage."

Xue Shaofeng gazed at her silently, gently placing his large hand on her shoulder: "I'm not joking. No matter the timbre of a song, only by singing it with emotion and heart can you touch the listener. You performed really well."

Suwen was stunned. Xiaojia, who was standing next to her, also said, "Yes, although the pitch was a bit off, I almost cried while singing it."

That was indeed the case. A heated debate ensued within the judging panel.

The two contestants' scores, combined with their live performance scores and popularity scores, miraculously resulted in a tie! Of course, the result could not produce two champions.

In this situation, some judges questioned: the competition is a singing contest, so of course, those with good singing abilities should be selected. Furthermore, a large part of Nie Suwen's popularity stemmed from Xue Shaofeng's influence.

The judges were buzzing with discussion, and the organizers, sensing the situation, turned their attention to Lu Zheng, one of the sponsors.

“I cannot agree with everyone’s misunderstanding of Nie Suwen’s singing ability. Perhaps her score was slightly lower tonight, but she had the highest popularity, didn’t she? I think everyone here who works in this industry understands the importance of popularity for an artist.”

As soon as he spoke, the judges fell silent again.

The commercial break ended quickly, and the camera switched back to the live broadcast. Before that, the emcee had already built up the atmosphere to a climax. Accompanied by rousing drumbeats and flickering lights, Nie Suwen and Yuan Yuquan returned to the stage.

She had changed her clothes; she was now wearing a white lace dress, her long hair tied high on her head with a ribbon, and the beaded lilies adorning the hem of her dress swayed and shone as she walked, reflecting a captivating radiance.

The beam of light lingered between the two, while the emcee kept them in suspense: "Ladies and gentlemen, what I have in my hand now is the list of winners for the first Hinningtar competition. Who... could it be? Nie Suwen? Yuan Yuquan? Tonight's champion will not only receive a cash prize of one million and a Volkswagen, but will also be able to choose any one of three companies to debut with. Isn't that tempting enough? No problem, our sponsor for tonight will also be providing an exclusive mystery prize! What could it be? Let's welcome Mr. Lu Zheng, the honorary director of Huayi Brothers Media Corporation, the sponsor of this competition, to reveal this year's champion!"

The emcee delivered the final sentence with great passion, and then the spotlight shone on the audience. Lu Zheng stood up from the guest seats, dressed in a pristine white suit, looking like a prince who had stepped out of a painting.

He bowed slightly to the camera, still without a smile, and then strolled onto the stage.

Such an outstanding man, even standing on a dazzling stage, cannot conceal his brilliance. On the contrary, the mysterious aura beneath his cool exterior easily captures everyone's attention.

He took the list from the emcee, walked to the microphone, and announced in a deep voice: "Tonight's champion is—"

The voice controller deliberately created suspense, but Lu Zheng didn't let the pause last too long. He read out the three words cleanly and crisply: "Yuan Yuquan".

All the spotlights were on Yuan Yuquan, who dramatically shed tears and turned to embrace the third-place winner. Meanwhile, Su Wen's side was noticeably dimmer and quieter.

The media reporters who had been waiting for a long time pointed their cameras at them. Although Suwen knew that most of the cameras were taken of Yuan Yuquan, some reporters liked to take a different approach and dig out some news by comparing the expressions of the losers. So she could only smile gently and politely.

How ridiculous! The winners are crying, while the losers are laughing.

All around was noisy, but Suwen's heart was unusually quiet.

She tried her best, but still couldn't reach her expected goal, which only shows that her strength is not enough. There is regret, and perhaps she will feel sad after the performance, but at that moment on stage, she was truly calm and composed.

Before the competition, she never dreamed that she could win the runner-up position.

On stage, Lu Zheng continued to announce: "And tonight's runner-up, Ms. Nie Suwen, congratulations."

Su Wen smiled wryly. Losing was losing; there was no point in congratulating the runner-up. As usual, the judges and audience gave her a warm round of applause, and Yuan Yuquan came over and gave her a cheek hug.

Lu Zheng wasn't finished yet: "In my opinion, Ms. Nie Suwen is the most special among all the contestants. Your singing moved me. Although you came in second today, you are number one in my heart. Just before the competition, Huayi Brothers had already agreed with the organizing committee to award the film contract for a major production that the three companies collaborated on in the second half of this year to the contestant with the highest popularity in this competition. I am honored to present this contract to tonight's winner—Ms. Nie Suwen."

There was a moment of silence, followed by even more enthusiastic applause. Everyone stared wide-eyed, reporters snapped photos incessantly, and flashbulbs went off incessantly.

This "surprise" was obviously known to no one beforehand except Lu Zheng himself.

Suwen, who had just been ignored, suddenly became the focus of the entire audience.

The hostesses lined up and went up on stage, their trays containing checks, car keys, and contracts.

Lu Zheng walked up to Yuan Yuquan, said indifferently "Congratulations," and handed her the prize. He didn't even give the reporters time to take photos before moving on to Su Wen.

Suwen instinctively took a step back, looking at him with a complicated expression. She saw him silently take the contract, and as he handed it to her, he gave her a symbolic hug.

His lips brushed against her earlobe unintentionally, and Suwen trembled, clearly hearing him whisper "I'm sorry" in her ear.

He spoke so calmly, yet so sincerely. When Suwen left his embrace and looked at him in surprise, he had already turned around gracefully and walked off the stage.

This man, low-key, aloof, and rarely smiling, stepped onto this eye-catching stage for her sake, willingly standing in front of the reporters' cameras, and then, feeling guilty for not being able to help her achieve her wish of winning first place, he said "I'm sorry."

Suwen suddenly felt that she owed too much, and she was afraid that one day she would not be able to repay it.

At the celebratory banquet, the top three contestants stood side-by-side behind the champagne tower and jointly opened the celebratory champagne. Afterwards, it was time for reporters to ask questions and take photos. The three judges also gained considerable popularity during the competition, standing with the contestants to answer questions and pose for photos.

Unsurprisingly, all the questions revolved around the half-concealed "kissing scene" between Su Wen and Xue Shaofeng that night.

"Brother Feng, was this action planned beforehand? Aren't you afraid of rumors spreading because of such ambiguous behavior?"

"Rumors? This girl is so young, don't write anything like that, her parents will come after me if they see it." Xue Shaofeng dodged the question half-jokingly and half-seriously.

Suwen quickly clarified, "Brother Feng is a good person. He has no airs of a big shot at all. He always takes good care of us. I treat him like my own brother."

As soon as the words left his mouth, a reporter keenly caught the question: "So, Nian Gao, you and Feng Ge are usually very close in private? Did you propose this collaboration or did he? It's very popular in the industry to recognize relatives these days. Would you consider Feng Ge as your elder brother?"

"The more you say, the more mistakes you make." Xue Shaofeng glared at her, and Su Wen immediately knew better than to keep quiet.

She vowed that she would never speak carelessly in front of reporters again.

The party was full of toasts and drinks. Sponsors talked about business and the economy, artists chatted about their recent situations, and the winning contestants and the previously eliminated top ten took photos together. Having finally squeezed out of the crowd of reporters, Suwen didn't want to be sent back in.

The liveliness belongs to others; loneliness is your own.

There was another person who, like her, disliked joining in the fun.

Suwen stopped walking in the rooftop garden outside the venue.

There, leaning against the railing, making a phone call... is Lu Zheng.

As the sponsor's representative, he gave a speech, offered a toast, and left—it all seemed like only a moment ago. Su Wen stared blankly at that tall figure, lost in thought for a long time.

His voice came through the phone intermittently, clear yet slightly deep, just like when he gave his speech, more sensual than the music playing in the room. This man, with his cool yet undeniably charming demeanor, was hers… The thought still felt somewhat unreal.

Confused and disoriented, Nie Suwen shook her head and turned to return to the meeting room. Just then, the cold voice that had been on the phone just moments before rang in her ears: "Leaving already?"

“Uh…” Suwen hesitated for a moment, then turned her head around reluctantly.

"I thought you had something to say to me." Lu Zheng walked up and skillfully put his arm around her waist.

"Someone might see us..." She struggled slightly, but seeing no one around, she stopped being coy. "I have something to say. Um... thank you."

He pulled her close, leaned down to look at her, and asked, "What are you thanking me for?"

At that moment, her heart pounded wildly. This feeling of being out of control made her feel as if the fever and cold symptoms she had forgotten for a long time had suddenly returned. She was dizzy and her words were slurred: "...Thank you for the...consolation prize."

Especially on stage, she spoke so emotionally, saying things like, "Although I came in second today, I am number one in my heart." She was almost losing face.

"It's fine if a newcomer doesn't win first place in a talent show, but next year he'll walk the red carpet and win a big prize." He said this with an air of certainty, as if everyone walks that red carpet.

She giggled, stood on tiptoe, wrapped her arms around his neck, and breathed sweetly on his lips: "You've given me so much, how can I ever repay you?"

Feeling his back stiffen slightly, Suwen boldly offered her lips, lightly licking the corner of his mouth as she asked, "Is this how it is?"

A storm suddenly raged in Lu Zheng's deep black eyes.