Chapter Summaries

Su Qiao left the Pei estate with Du Jingzhou after refusing to return to Pei Yulou, and Du Jingzhou took her to see Su Man before the funeral. Pei Yulou broke down over her departure while Madam Pei tried to comfort him.

• Du Jingzhou asked Su Qiao to leave with him and explained that Su Man's funeral was scheduled for the next day.
• Su Qiao agreed to go, though she dreaded seeing the body that had been kept on ice.
• Su Qiao told Pei Yulou that she would not change her decision, then left the estate with Du Jingzhou.
• Pei Yulou cried and asked his family why Su Qiao had chosen Du Jingzhou over him.
• Madam Pei comforted Pei Yulou and blamed Su Qiao for rejecting him.

After Su Man left, Pei Yulou blamed Shen Biwei and begged his mother to help bring Su Man back. His brother tried to make him accept that they were unsuitable, but Pei Yulou ran off insisting he still had a chance.

• Pei Yulou blamed Shen Biwei for driving Su Man away and clung to Madam Pei, pleading for her help.
• Pei Zhuoyun told Pei Yulou that Su Man was strong and mature, and that they would not be happy together.
• Pei Yulou rejected his brother’s advice and rushed out, insisting he could still win Su Man back, even if she married.
• Pei Zhuoyun told Madam Pei that Su Man was more suited to the Pei Family than Shen Biwei and praised her intelligence and composure.

After Su Man left the Pei family banquet with Du Jingzhou, Pei Zhuoyun accepted that she had chosen Du Jingzhou, while the Pei family discussed the danger of the situation. On the ride home, Du Jingzhou revealed that Su Qiao and Su Man were twins and that Su Man’s adoptive father had been a eunuch, leaving Su Qiao to consider the complications of their discovery.

• Madam Pei worried that Pei Zhuoyun had fallen for Su Man, and he admitted she was captivating but said he would not pursue her because she had chosen Du Jingzhou.
• Father Pei learned that Su Man was believed to be the sister of Su Qiao and ordered Pei Zhuoyun to bring his younger brother home, even by force.
• Su Qiao asked Du Jingzhou how he knew she and Su Man were sisters, and he said he had guessed.
• Du Jingzhou revealed that Su Man’s adoptive father was a eunuch and that Su Zhongyun and Wu Fenglan had twin daughters who were separated when one was five.
• Su Qiao realized she and Su Man were twins and concluded that the discovery would cause trouble.

Su Qiao told Du Jingzhou why she and her younger sister wanted nothing to do with their parents and explained why the Shen Family still suspected her sister knew their secrets. She hinted that she had a way to deal with the Shen Family, then returned to Du Mansion for the funeral and found its men avoiding her.

• Su Qiao told Du Jingzhou that Su Pinhan and Wu Fenglan had tried to hand her sister over to Shen Shuting and that Su Pinhan and Shen Shuting had previously tried to harm her.
• Su Qiao explained that her sister had seen President Shen speaking with a Japanese man after they came out of the Secret Chamber, though she had heard nothing clearly.
• Du Jingzhou condemned Shen Jianhao for doing business with the Japanese, and Su Qiao said she had a way to deal with the Shen Family.
• Du Jingzhou suspended filming for the funeral and brought Su Qiao back to Du Mansion the next morning.
• The men at Du Mansion greeted Su Qiao, then hurried away from her until Du Jingzhou ordered them to speak with her; they claimed they were too busy with the funeral.

Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou attended a funeral procession for the woman publicly believed to be Su Qiao’s younger sister, while bystanders discussed Su Man’s rising fame and Shen Biwei’s rumored schemes. The system warned Su Qiao that the Pei and Shen families planned a marriage alliance and revealed a chance to investigate Shen Jianhao’s meeting with a disguised R national and people from the Northern J Faction.

• Du Jingzhou led Su Qiao past the temporary mourning hall, and she refused to look at the body before they left for the burial.
• Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou followed the funeral procession from Du Mansion to a cemetery on the outskirts of the city.
• Bystanders discussed Su Man’s success and accused Shen Biwei of stealing her man and targeting her career.
• Su Qiao asked Du Jingzhou whether he had spread the rumors, and he pretended the suona music was too loud to hear her.
• The system told Su Qiao that the Pei and Shen families were preparing a marriage alliance and that Shen Jianhao would meet a disguised R national and people from the Northern J Faction at noon.

After the funeral, Su Qiao arranged to plant confidential letters in Shen Jianhao’s briefcase and sent Pei Zhuoyun a note, then watched the fallout with Du Jingzhou. As Du questioned her background and warned her about the danger, their conversation turned flirtatious.

• Su Qiao had Du Jingzhou hire two thieves to plant the letters in Shen Jianhao’s briefcase and deliver a note to Pei Zhuoyun.
• After receiving the note, Pei Zhuoyun ordered his subordinate to bring Captain He and additional people from the Police Station.
• Du Jingzhou asked Su Qiao if she had taken the confidential letters from the Pei Family, and she said she had gone there to take revenge on the Shen Family.
• Du Jingzhou worried that Su Qiao might be working for someone, but she denied it and reassured him that she was simply taking revenge.
• Du Jingzhou pulled Su Qiao onto his lap and said he had taken the bait after she had seduced him with her eyes.

Su Qiao watched the Police Station raid a restaurant room while Du Jingzhou tried to get her attention. The two men meeting Shen Jianhao were arrested, and interrogation revealed that one was from R Country and the other belonged to a northern faction.

• Su Qiao warned Du Jingzhou not to act recklessly, then turned his attention toward the Police Station across the street.
• Captain He entered Shen Jianhao’s private room and ordered the two suspected fugitives arrested despite Shen Jianhao’s objections.
• The Police Station took the two men, along with a luggage case and a black briefcase.
• Shen Jianhao went home and tried to reassure himself that his briefcase contained nothing incriminating.
• Pei Zhuoyun watched the interrogation as Captain He’s team identified one man as being from R Country and the other as belonging to a northern faction.

Pei Zhuoyun investigated shipments connected to the Shen Family after his men found two mysterious letters, while Su Qiao dealt with Su Pinhan confronting her over Su Biwei. Du Jingzhou took Su Qiao to Lido to cheer her up, insisting she stay close to him.

• Pei Zhuoyun ordered his men to investigate what the Shen Family had been shipping north from the docks.
• Su Pinhan confronted Su Qiao and demanded that she apologize publicly to Su Biwei.
• Su Qiao ordered two men to warn Su Pinhan, telling them not to break his arms or legs.
• Su Qiao rejected the idea of acknowledging her biased parents and shameless older brother, Su Pinhan.
• Du Jingzhou took Su Qiao to Lido and told her to stay by his side and not look at other people.

Su Qiao went with Du Jingzhou to Lido, where he left her at a sofa while he went upstairs. Jiang Aiyun and Pei Zhuoyun arrived, and Jiang Aiyun taunted Su Qiao about Du Jingzhou losing interest in her.

• Su Qiao agreed that Du Jingzhou had learned his lesson after she disciplined him.
• Su Qiao dressed in clothes Du Jingzhou had chosen and went with him to Lido.
• Du Jingzhou told Su Qiao to stay put while he went upstairs to get something.
• Jiang Aiyun and Pei Zhuoyun found Su Qiao at Lido and sat with her.
• Jiang Aiyun jealously showed off her jewelry and mocked Su Qiao, suggesting Du Jingzhou was tired of her.

Su Qiao and Pei Zhuoyun spoke at a lounge until Du Jingzhou returned and made it clear that she was his wife and that they would marry soon. He openly declared his devotion to Su Qiao and warned Pei Zhuoyun against trying to take her from him.

• Su Qiao remarked on Pei Zhuoyun's taste, and he denied knowing Jiang Aiyun well.
• Pei Zhuoyun asked Su Qiao what wine she liked, but Du Jingzhou arrived with her favorite red wine.
• Du Jingzhou sat beside Su Qiao, called her his wife, and told Pei Zhuoyun they would marry soon.
• Du Jingzhou poured Su Qiao half a glass of wine and declared that he would fight anyone who tried to take her from him.
• Du Jingzhou teased Su Qiao by saying he had not looked at any other woman, while 444 recognized that he was showing off in front of Pei Zhuoyun.

Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou went to a dance hall, where he struggled to dance and carried her home after she got tipsy. At home, Su Qiao drunkenly offered to take responsibility for him as he carried her toward the shower.

• Pei Zhuoyun left after watching Du Jingzhou and Su Qiao act affectionate, and Jiang Aiyun failed to catch up with him.
• Du Jingzhou suggested dancing, and Su Qiao led him onto the dance floor despite his lack of experience.
• After Du Jingzhou repeatedly stepped on her feet, he carried Su Qiao out and took her home.
• Su Qiao fell asleep in the car, then asked Du Jingzhou to carry her to the shower when they got home.
• Su Qiao drunkenly teased Du Jingzhou that she would take responsibility for him, while 444 realized she was drunk.

Su Qiao agreed to marry Du Jingzhou after filming, then faced her biological parents when they came to warn her against him. A system alert revealed that the Su family had sent them to recruit her as an inside agent.

• Su Qiao woke beside Du Jingzhou and agreed that she would marry him after finishing the drama, though they disagreed over who would marry whom.
• Su Qiao told Director Yu she would come to filming that afternoon.
• Su Zhongyun and Wu Fenglan arrived, but Su Qiao denied they were her parents and demanded to know why they had come.
• Su Zhongyun and Wu Fenglan warned Su Qiao that Du Jingzhou had killed her younger sister and urged her not to trust him.
• The system told Su Qiao that the Su family had sent her parents to recruit her as an inside agent and pass them information.

Su Qiao exposed the elderly couple’s attempt to drive her away from Du Jingzhou and revealed that Shen Jianhao had killed their daughter. She learned the Shen Family was targeting Du Jingzhou and insisted that Shen Jianhao be arrested for certain.

• Su Qiao challenged Wu Fenglan and Su Zhongyun after they urged her to distance herself from Du Jingzhou, then said she could leave Haishi instead.
• Du Jingzhou came out and threatened to wipe out the couple’s family if Su Qiao left him, then warned them to keep their son away from his wife.
• Su Qiao told the couple that Shen Jianhao had killed their daughter after she witnessed his secret meeting three years earlier, and that Du Jingzhou had once saved her.
• After the couple fled, Su Qiao told Du Jingzhou that the Shen Family was targeting him.
• Du Jingzhou said An Jin was helping obtain Shen Jianhao’s northern shipment list for Pei Zhuoyun’s people, and Su Qiao demanded certainty that Shen Jianhao would be arrested.

Su Qiao learned how the Shen Family had destroyed Du Jingzhou’s family and agreed to take revenge on Shen Jianhao. The couple planned to use Pei Zhuoyun to kill him and discussed a cruel punishment for his younger son.

• Su Qiao proposed using Pei Zhuoyun to kill Shen Jianhao at the Police Station, and Du Jingzhou agreed that it could set the two families against each other.
• Du Jingzhou told Su Qiao that Shen Jianhao’s men had robbed and murdered his father and uncle, then killed their accomplices and taken the family’s wealth.
• Du Jingzhou explained that his grandfather died from rage, his mother fell ill and died, and his brother was beaten to death while begging for food.
• Su Qiao said they should kill Shen Jianhao and proposed arranging for his younger son to be with women who had diseases.
• Du Jingzhou reassured Su Qiao that he did not think she was cruel and told her she looked beautiful.

Du Jingzhou teased Su Qiao about their bed scene and revealed that he had already arranged to deal with the man who had harmed her. Su Qiao learned that the Su couple had been driven out of the Shen Family and that Su Pinhan had fled, while Shen Shuting’s illness threw the Shen household into turmoil.

• Du Jingzhou told Su Qiao he had arranged everything to deal with the man who had crossed her boundaries, then teased her about their upcoming bed scene.
• Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou changed clothes, ate, and went to the film set together.
• 444 told Su Qiao that Shen Biwei had driven Su Zhongyun and his wife out of the Shen Family and that Su Pinhan had fled with the remaining valuables after Du Jingzhou’s men pursued him for repayment.
• Madam Shen discovered that Shen Shuting had festering sores and feared he would die without treatment.
• Shen Shuting begged his parents to save him, while Shen Jianhao blamed him for his reckless behavior and shouted at Madam Shen.

After Shen Jianhao’s illicit shipments were exposed, he died in prison and the Shen Family’s territory fell into chaos. Pei Yulou secretly freed Shen Biwei and sent her north, but she left still hating him.

• Madam Shen begged Shen Jianhao to save Shen Xiao Ting, and Shen Jianhao ordered a doctor to treat him and move him to the servants’ quarters.
• Pei Zhuoyun uncovered Shen Jianhao’s illegal shipments with Du Jingzhou’s help, and the Police Station surrounded the Shen Family.
• Du Jingzhou arranged for Shen Jianhao to be killed in prison, then annexed part of the Shen Family’s territory.
• Shen Biwei shot Pei Zhuoyun in an assassination attempt, but Pei Zhuoyun captured her.
• Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou spent their days together while Pei Yulou secretly released Shen Biwei and bought her a ticket north.
• Shen Biwei accused Pei Yulou of rejecting her for a woman who did not care about him.

Pei Yulou admitted that his feelings for Su Man had become an obsession, while Shen Biwei returned home after pretending to leave by boat. She found her family’s home abandoned and learned that her mother had fled, leaving her to find a way to save her younger brother and keep the house.

• Pei Yulou told Shen Biwei that he regretted getting involved with her because he had fallen deeply for Su Man.
• Shen Biwei boarded the boat, then secretly slipped off and returned home.
• Shen Biwei found the house empty except for her younger brother, Shen Shuting, who told her their mother had fled with the family’s valuables.
• Shen Shuting told Shen Biwei that the family owed a large debt and that creditors planned to seize the house and sell her if they were not paid within a month.
• Shen Biwei promised to find money and protect the house, then hurriedly ran back inside after reaching the door.

Shen Shuting injected Shen Biwei with his infected blood, insisting they should die together. Su Qiao arrived with Du Jingzhou and announced that the Shen house now belonged to her, then taunted the siblings and offered to take them to the hospital.

• Shen Biwei hid under a bed when people from the Police Station arrived, and Shen Shuting injected her with his blood.
• Shen Shuting blamed Shen Biwei and their absent mother, saying he would not face death alone.
• Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou appeared in the doorway, surprising the Shen siblings.
• Su Qiao said the Shen house was hers now and planned to turn it into a two-story Art Gallery.
• Su Qiao mocked the siblings about their illness, offered to send them to the hospital, and asked Shen Shuting whether he wanted her to bring back the women he liked.

Su Qiao confronted Shen Shuting and Shen Biwei at the ruined Shen Family residence, then learned Su Pinhan had been injured and ordered him sent back to his parents without treatment. In the car, she agreed to marry Du Jingzhou at a wedding held alongside the film premiere, then asked what he planned to do as turmoil approached.

• Shen Shuting accused Su Qiao of causing his condition, and she admitted she had acted for revenge over her sister’s death.
• Shen Biwei asked whether Su Qiao had caused the Su Family’s downfall, and Su Qiao condemned her family’s past.
• An Jin told Du Jingzhou that Su Pinhan had broken a leg while fleeing debt collectors, and Su Qiao ordered him returned to his parents without treatment.
• Du Jingzhou asked when he and Su Qiao would marry, and they agreed to hold the wedding alongside the film premiere the day after tomorrow.
• Su Qiao asked Du Jingzhou what he planned to do as the world seemed likely to descend into chaos within two or three years.

Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou chose to avoid the coming war by building a self-sufficient community on a remote island, then returned to the outside world after peace came. They settled near a port with two adopted children and remained devoted to each other in old age.

• Su Qiao rejected going abroad to hide and proposed that she and Du Jingzhou establish their own kingdom on an uninhabited island.
• Du Jingzhou agreed, and they planned to bring supplies and recruit people with skills needed to build and sustain the settlement.
• Over two years, Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou prepared the island with houses, crops, livestock, poultry, and machines, then moved there with about a thousand people.
• More than ten years later, they gradually resumed contact with the peaceful outside world, while some of their people chose to remain on the island.
• Su Qiao and Du Jingzhou settled near a port, adopted two orphaned children, and continued living together in old age.