I Died Once—Now I’m the Villain’s Babysitter

I tell you, Ning Shixue, you are going on this parenting show whether you like it or not!

What did you promise me back then?
His agent was fuming with rage.
I have already sorted everything out with the company, filming starts the day after tomorrow, and now you want to back out of the contract? In your dreams!

Ning Shixue’s eyelashes fluttered, and he opened his eyes.

His entire body felt scalding hot, his heart slowly settling after a violent tremor, and his back was drenched in cold sweat.

Lifting his head, he realized he was in an unfamiliar, opulent room.
The crystal chandelier overhead was dazzling and looked immensely valuable, and the bedding beneath him was so soft he couldn’t help but sink into it.

What was going on?

Ning Shixue was utterly bewildered.
Hadn’t he failed his mission in the escape-and-kill game and died already?

Still think you’re the Young Master of the Ning family?
The man before him spoke with a tone dripping with contempt, sneering coldly.
You think marrying into the Xie family means you’ve climbed onto their lofty branch?

???

This guy must be out of his mind.

Ning Shixue couldn’t understand a word he was saying.
Every bone in his body ached, and he frowned impatiently.
‘What are you yelling about? What is this all about?’

The agent, Lu Li, looked up in disbelief.

What new madness was Ning Shixue on now?
He actually dared to talk back to him?!

I am your agent, am I not allowed to speak to you?
His temper flared instantly.
Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about the variety show.
It’s all written clearly in black and white in the contract!

Ning Shixue leaned back against the headboard.
Before he could speak, a flood of unfamiliar memories forcefully poured into his mind.

So, he had transmigrated into a book.

This was a cliché, dog-blooded novel set in the entertainment industry, full of scum and misery.

The scum gong, Xie Hanzhou, was the third young master of the Yan City Xie family.
With a prestigious background and good looks, he had skyrocketed to fame after just one acting debut and was lavished with attention both inside and outside the industry.

As for the original host, he was just a lovesick cannon fodder.

The original host was also named Ning Shixue.
The Xie and Ning families were old friends.
He had been frail and sickly since childhood, with a face so exquisitely beautiful it inspired pity at a glance.
Raised in the lap of luxury by the Ning family, he had nonetheless fallen hopelessly, deeply in love with the scum gong.

After discovering that the scum gong was keeping the protagonist shou, Ji Qing, he began targeting Ji Qing at every turn.
He used his financial backing to muscle into productions and steal roles from the protagonist shou, and bought black material to frame him.

He even actively crawled into the scum gong’s bed.

Only to be kicked right back off.

And yet, he only loved him more.

After all, the scum gong only kicked him, not anyone else—this must surely be because he loved him!

The Ning family had been thoroughly humiliated and finally reached their limit.
They decided to marry off this troublesome little ancestor in a political marriage.
The marriage partner was Xie Zhaozhou, the scum gong’s second elder brother and the story’s gloomy, cruel, and tyrannical antagonist.

Who also came with a three-and-a-half-year-old child.

Not only was he marrying an old man, but he also had to become a stepfather.

It was practically a deliberate insult!

The original host completely turned to the dark side and began courting death non-stop.

He hired someone to drug the scum gong, arranged for the protagonist shou to catch them in an affair, and to get back at the antagonist, publicly abused the child on the parenting show…
Predictably, his reputation was utterly ruined.

In the end, his leg was crushed by the scum gong, and then the antagonist tied him up in a sack, threw him into the sea, where he was torn apart by a school of sharks, dying without a whole corpse.

An exceptionally miserable end.

“…”

Perhaps he should just die now and be done with it.

Now he understood why his eyelids felt so hot and his whole body ached as if he’d been beaten up.

It was the scum gong’s birthday last night.
The original host had stubbornly followed him to a bar, wanting to celebrate.
His health was poor to begin with, and he was already running a fever.
The scum gong offhandedly told him to go jump into the sea.
If he dared, he would let him be his boyfriend.

The original host actually went.

The result, as one might expect.

The scum gong, of course, wasn’t serious.
In the end, the original host could only drag his soaking wet body home, running a high fever all night.

At the time, someone couldn’t bear it and tried to stop him, but he obstinately said, ‘I am willing to do anything for Brother Hanzhou!’

Ning Shixue: “…”

Marvelous.
Your reward is to go dig for wild vegetables.

Why aren’t you saying anything?
Lu Li, receiving no response from Ning Shixue, completely lost his patience.
What exactly do you want to…

But before he could finish his tirade, he unexpectedly met Ning Shixue’s raised gaze and the words got choked back in his throat.

Ning Shixue’s complexion held an unusually cool pallor.
He had a pair of perfectly shaped peach blossom eyes with thick, long eyelashes and slightly deep-set sockets.
He had probably cried last night, as the tails of his eyes were still damp and red, yet they exuded a natural, striking cold beauty.

All that anger, obstinacy, resentment, and hysteria seemed to recede from him in that moment like a tide.

Leaving only a breathtakingly beautiful and icy coldness.

The parenting show?
I’m not going.
Ning Shixue’s voice was a little hoarse, sounding particularly lazy and infuriating.
If you’re so eager to get famous, why don’t you go yourself?
Why come to me?

In the original novel, the protagonist shou also participated in this parenting show.

The original host became a complete foil, tangled in black scandals, a tool to highlight the protagonist shou’s universally appealing charm.

He’d be insane to go looking for trouble like that.

In the original story, the original host had also refused.
He cried the whole way home last night, consumed by hatred, and simply didn’t want to see the protagonist shou again.
As soon as he got home, he sent Lu Li a message.

After sending it, he fell into a feverish coma.
Lu Li couldn’t reach him, which is why he rushed over to the Xie residence.

So that’s why he ended up going after all.
So this is how Lu Li had talked him into it.

Lu Li was taken aback for a moment, thinking he had misheard.
When it sank in, his swarthy face flushed red with anger.

If I could go myself, would I even need you?!

But with Ning Shixue suddenly turning cold, he couldn’t quite figure out what he was thinking anymore.

Xiao Ning, how about this,
he was forced to soften his tone.
If you go, Brother Lu will get you a role in Xie Hanzhou’s film production.
Didn’t you want to act alongside him?

Ning Shixue lifted his dark, profound eyes.

Lu Li’s heart leaped with hope, thinking there was a chance.

Then he heard Ning Shixue say slowly, “…Xie Hanzhou? No thanks.”

Huh?
Lu Li was stunned.
Why not?

Ning Shixue told the truth.
‘He’s not worthy of me.’

Lu Li: “…”

Ning Shixue seemed to have gone completely mad.
Lu Li had no choice but to play his trump card.
Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
If you don’t go this time, you’ll have to pay the company eight million in penalty fees for breach of contract.
Can you afford that?

Ning Shixue paused.

He had forgotten about that.

Although the Ning family couldn’t compare to the vast commercial scale of the Xie Group, they were still considered prominent in Yan City.
Even if he had been completely cast off by the Ning family, the original host shouldn’t have been short on money.

Unfortunately, he was a simp.
Knowing the scum gong liked racing cars, he spent every last penny he had on a birthday gift for him.
Now he only had a few hundred yuan to his name.

“…”

His fist hardened.

Ning Shixue didn’t refuse again.
Lu Li didn’t dare provoke him further, afraid he’d change his mind, and hurriedly left the Xie residence.

After the man left, Ning Shixue, feeling the clothes soaked through with sweat on his body, wanted to take a shower.

But as soon as he got up, he heard a series of pattering footsteps outside the bedroom, and then the half-closed door was pushed open by a little chubby hand.

Ning Shixue was momentarily stunned.

Before him stood a little boy who looked to be about three or four years old at most.
With red lips, white teeth, and features as pretty as a porcelain doll, his soft, fair cheeks puffed out slightly as he breathed, his whole body plump and soft.

The little boy completely ignored Ning Shixue.
He had been chasing a small rubber ball that had rolled over, but hadn’t caught up.
The little ball rolled forward and bumped against Ning Shixue’s shin.

Ning Shixue glanced up.
If he wasn’t mistaken, this should be the antagonist’s child, his stepson, Xie Yaoyao.

Ball ball give to me!
Xie Yaoyao was wearing a little blue overalls.
He raised a finger to point at Ning Shixue, revealing a plump, lotus-root-like arm, and issued a fierce command in his milky voice.

Although his voice was too soft to carry much threat.

The old butler who looked after Xie Yaoyao hurriedly chased after him, followed by several servants, all looking tense.

The old butler wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, crouched down, and hugged Xie Yaoyao.
Be good, Little Young Master, didn’t we agree to play downstairs?
Why did you come upstairs again?

Xie Yaoyao struggled vigorously, his soft little body wriggling about, still puffing out his cheeks and glaring at Ning Shixue.

Aside from Xie Zhaozhou, no one could manage him.

Ning Shixue didn’t move.

He was still running a fever, his complexion paler than ever, a sickly flush coloring his cheeks, his eyelids a drunken red, traces of moisture glinting in his eyes.
When he lowered his gaze, he appeared fragile and pitiful.

His shirt was loose, the collar open, revealing pale, slender collarbones.
He looked ready to collapse at any moment.

The old butler, however, felt his heart pound with trepidation.

Everyone in Yan City’s upper-class circles knew of the Ning family’s youngest young master, notorious for being spoiled and tyrannical.
Even though the Ning family had completely washed their hands of him, he still acted as he pleased.

He was terrified Xie Yaoyao would anger Ning Shixue.

But Ning Shixue’s health was extremely poor, and he was equally afraid Xie Yaoyao might upset him into a serious state.

Young Master Ning…
the old butler began, his voice trembling.

Xie Yaoyao’s mouth was already puckered into a pout when Ning Shixue finally picked up the little ball.

But he didn’t hand it to Xie Yaoyao.
Instead, holding it, he asked in a hoarse, unhurried voice, “On what grounds?”

?

Xie Yaoyao’s little face was full of confusion.
If it were any other servant at home, they would surely be hugging and coaxing him by now.

And then give him the ball.

Mine!
Xie Yao encountered someone even more unreasonable than himself for the first time.
His chubby little face puffed up like a steamed bun.
He stood on tiptoe, reaching out with his little hands, trying to snatch the ball from Ning Shixue.

Ning Shixue dodged, raising an eyebrow as he looked down at him.
I could give it to you.
But how can you prove it’s yours?
It’s in my hands right now.
I could just as easily say it’s mine.

Xie Yaoyao was dumbfounded.

He didn’t even have a kindergarten diploma yet, and now he was thoroughly baffled.
He couldn’t think of a way to prove it at all.
He took it for granted that everything in the house was his.
How could this bad stepfather have anything?

You bullying me,
he huffed and puffed for a long time, unable to out-argue Ning Shixue.
His face flushed with the effort, and he pursed his lips in grievance.
His eyes rapidly welled up with two pools of tears, his voice taking on a tearful, sticky nasal tone.
I gonna tell Big Daddy, make him give you divolce!

Ning Shixue perked up upon hearing this.
There was such a good thing?

Who wanted to get mixed up in all the messy business between the main couple and the antagonist?
He wished he could leave right now.
But an arranged marriage among wealthy families wasn’t something he could just walk away from.

Fine, go find your big daddy right now,
Ning Shixue said, his eyes filled with encouragement.
If he agrees, I’ll give it back to you.

I… I…
Xie Yaoyao stamped his foot in anger, letting out a loud huff.
I not going!

He didn’t want to let this bad stepfather get his way!

As if that wasn’t enough to vent his anger, he wriggled his little bottom out of the old butler’s arms, jumped to the floor, lay down, and started crying and making a scene, throwing a tantrum and rolling around, almost kicking Ning Shixue again in the process.
You not my daddy!
Not allowed stay in my house!

A textbook tantrum-throwing brat.

Ning Shixue: “…” Exhausted.
Let the world end.

Xie Yaoyao’s cries grew louder and louder.
The servants couldn’t calm him down, anxiously fluttering around him in disarray.

But Ning Shixue watched him for a moment from beneath lowered lashes, then still didn’t intervene.
He even started playing with the little rubber ball.

The rhythm of the little ball bouncing on the floor almost perfectly matched Xie Yaoyao’s sobs.
With each of Xie Yaoyao’s whimpers, the ball would thump down once.

Rising and falling, with cadence and rhythm.

It was hard to believe it wasn’t deliberate.

The old butler: “…”

The servants: “…”

The old butler gave Ning Shixue an indescribable look.
He felt that Young Master Ning was somehow different from usual today.

As he cried, Xie Yaoyao also suddenly felt something wasn’t quite right.
Tears streamed down his fair, tender cheeks.
He lifted a little hand to scratch his head, unable to figure out exactly what was off.

But he inexplicably didn’t feel like crying anymore, as if sensing silent ridicule.

With a nimble wiggle of his little bottom, he flipped over onto his stomach.
His eyelashes were still stuck together with tears as he stared longingly at the little rubber ball in Ning Shixue’s hand.

Ball ball, so want to play.

His brand new, pretty little ball from yesterday.

Want to play?
Ning Shixue asked, as if seeing through his thoughts, the corner of his mouth quirking up.

Xie Yaoyao pouted.
Of course.

Then what should you say?
Ning Shixue asked unhurriedly.

Though he was a brat, Xie Yaoyao was clever.

To get the ball, he had no choice but to climb up on his own, pat the dust off his little bottom, walk over to Ning Shixue, place his little hands on Ning Shixue’s knee, look up obediently, and ask, “Little Dad, can I play with the ball ball?”

He was so clever!
As soon as Ning Shixue agreed, he would use the ball ball to hit the bad stepdad!

He had even stretched out his sinful little hands.

Wanting to take the ball.

Xie Yaoyao’s face was far too deceptive.
When he was being good, he looked just like a little angel.
Especially those large, bright, beautiful eyes—no one could resist them.

Except for Ning Shixue.

Ning Shixue looked at his soft little hands, gave a gentle smile that suddenly brought vivid life to his pale, beautiful face, then spoke like a whispering demon.
No.

Did I say I would give it to you?

Then he turned and tossed the little ball to the old butler.

Xie Yaoyao: “…”

Xie Yaoyao: ???

Ball ball, gone.

Xie Yaoyao stared at his empty little hands, so aggrieved he nearly cried again.

Hateful, bad stepdad!
Only knows how to bully him!