Recaps

Yan Xianjue recalled Lei Xuan’s tragic fate and his eventual comeback with Ji Xi, while Shen Fangli condemned Su Su and Lin Shi’s schemes. Yan Xianjue then questioned whether Boss Lei would retaliate against Lin Shi, leaving Lei Xuan’s next move uncertain.

• Yan Xianjue recalled that Su Su’s fan nearly killed Lei Xuan by setting him on fire, and that Boss Lei’s efforts saved his life.
• Yan Xianjue remembered Su Su publicly apologizing for her fan and asking Lei Xuan to forgive him, while Shen Fangli resented her for it.
• Lei Xuan recovered, joined Ji Xi’s company, and released a sitcom based on his experiences that damaged Su Su’s reputation.
• Lin Shi bought promotional articles to defend Su Su and spread claims that Lei Xuan targeted her because he loved her.
• Yan Xianjue wondered whether Boss Lei, given his devotion to Lei Xuan, would retaliate against Lin Shi.

Yan Xianjue arranged a generous, staged investment for Lei Xuan’s script while Shen Fangli explained how she had retaliated against her second aunt. She revealed that the fortune-telling charlatan involved in Ji the Old Madam’s case was the same one who had read her fortune.

• Shen Fangli ordered pastries for Yan Xianjue, who told Ji Xi to promise Lei Xuan two more seasons and at least thirty million in investment.
• Yan Xianjue asked Shen Fangli what had happened with her second aunt, and Shen Fangli explained that the waiter who attacked her had been arrested but Su Su remained untouched for lack of evidence.
• Shen Fangli said she had spread word among wealthy wives that her second aunt trained young women to pursue married rich men.
• Shen Fangli recalled finding an Eight Characters fortune-reading note in her second aunt’s bag and revealed that the charlatan who read Ji the Old Madam’s fortune was the same master who had read hers.

Shen Fangli told Ji Xi how Fang Qin helped expose the master connected to Ji the Old Madam’s case, and the police arrested him. Ji Xi planned to stay away from school and find Lei Xuan, though Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli teased him about his threatening expression.

• Ji Xi asked whether the police had found the man who had handled Ji the Old Madam’s money, and Shen Fangli agreed to explain what she knew.
• Shen Fangli said Fang Qin had gathered evidence against her second aunt and contacted police officers staking out the house after hearing something suspicious.
• The police arrested the master and discovered that he had become a monk to evade people investigating him.
• Ji Xi suspected his father had been among those investigators and decided to take another day off when the police contacted the Ji Household.
• Ji Xi went to look for Lei Xuan, but Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli joked that he looked like Hannibal, prompting Ji Xi to threaten them in reply.

Shen Fangli returned Yan Xianjue's twenty-odd-million Little Leopard Brooch and learned that it had satellite positioning and a uniquely identifiable diamond. Yan Xianjue joked that it was a pity her second aunt had not stolen it, leaving Shen Fangli baffled by his attitude toward the valuable brooch.

• After Ji Xi left the private room to find Lei Xuan, Shen Fangli and Yan Xianjue discussed how serious he had seemed about his threat.
• Shen Fangli handed Yan Xianjue the Little Leopard Brooch and explained that she had looked up its value and worried about losing it.
• Yan Xianjue said the brooch had satellite positioning and suggested her second aunt could face at least ten years in prison if she stole it.
• Shen Fangli said her mother might help her second aunt claim the brooch was a gift, and Yan Xianjue warned that the Yan Household's lawyers would challenge that.
• Yan Xianjue explained that the brooch was unique and its main diamond had a serial number, while Shen Fangli remained horrified by his casual treatment of it.

Shen Fangli and Yan Xianjue discussed her unlucky streak and the brooch before Ji Xi returned with Lei Xuan. Ji Xi tried to discuss investment with Lei Xuan, who remained oblivious to Ji Xi’s irritation and insisted Yan Xianjue was already investing in him.

• Yan Xianjue explained that he had given Shen Fangli the brooch as a precaution against another kidnapping, and Shen Fangli pointed out that she had never even faced campus extortion.
• Ji Xi called Ji Heng to question him about the bald master and told himself that Ji Heng needed to atone to his mother if he wanted to free Ji the Old Madam.
• Ji Xi found Lei Xuan in a neighboring private room, where Lei Xuan was enthusiastically talking to Boss Lei on the phone.
• Lei Xuan took several minutes to end his call while Ji Xi waited impatiently, then draped an arm over Ji Xi’s shoulder and assumed Ji Xi had come looking for him.
• Ji Xi asked Lei Xuan whether he still wanted investment, and Lei Xuan replied that Yan Xianjue was already planning to invest.

Yan Xianjue and Ji Xi negotiated with Lei Xuan about investing in his script, only to discover that Lei Xuan had little knowledge of production planning. Ji Xi proposed that Lei Xuan focus on writing while Yan Corporation handled operations, and assigned him new script and variety-show responsibilities.

• Lei Xuan told Yan Xianjue that his father had approved the investment and would cover any shortfall, while Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli reacted to his obliviousness.
• After the food arrived, Yan Xianjue threatened to buy Lei Xuan's script outright, but Lei Xuan insisted he would not sell it and accused Yan Xianjue of trying to lower the price.
• Ji Xi explained that Yan Corporation wanted a clear investment plan and proposed that Lei Xuan handle the script while Yan Corporation managed the other operations.
• Ji Xi told Lei Xuan to finish the last two seasons of the script by year’s end and plan a Top Student show and a summer travel variety show for Shen Fangli’s debut.
• Lei Xuan objected that he had never heard of the travel show, and Ji Xi replied that it had just been decided.

At dinner, Ji Xi recruited Lei Xuan to help create a travel variety show, and Yan Xianjue reshaped the plan to put Lei Xuan in charge while assigning him to manage Shen Fangli’s debut. The chapter ended with Lei Xuan and Shen Fangli realizing Yan Xianjue had drawn them into more work.

• Ji Xi proposed a travel variety show, and Lei Xuan complained that preparing it before the Gaokao would leave him less than a month.
• Lei Xuan volunteered to direct the show, and Ji Xi immediately agreed, while Yan Xianjue privately judged Lei Xuan for taking the bait.
• Yan Xianjue made Lei Xuan the director and Ji Xi his deputy, then let Lei Xuan believe he would receive ten million for each stage of the project.
• Yan Xianjue asked Lei Xuan to manage Shen Fangli and help her gain exposure before her debut.
• Yan Xianjue told Lei Xuan to write a one-day script for Shen Fangli, leaving Lei Xuan and Shen Fangli to realize they had become his latest overworked helpers.

Yan Xianjue considered buying the variety show Shen Fangli might appear on, but Lei Xuan and Ji Xi persuaded him that it was too late and not worth changing. After dinner, Yan arranged a nearby apartment for Ji Xi and his mother, while Shen Fangli reflected on Yan’s unusual thoughtfulness.

• Yan Xianjue proposed buying the variety show, but Ji Xi and Lei Xuan argued that filming was too soon and the show was not worth trying to fix.
• Yan Xianjue dropped the idea and told Lei Xuan to write a suitable public persona for Shen Fangli.
• Yan Xianjue accidentally served Shen Fangli a piece of ginger that looked like a chicken wing, and the others laughed as he denied playing a prank.
• Yan Xianjue offered Shen Fangli a ride, then told Ji Xi he had arranged an apartment near Cloud Summit for him to use as a dorm.
• Ji Xi accepted the apartment and left, while Shen Fangli wondered about Yan Xianjue’s detachment and thought he was an exceptionally generous boss.

Yan Xianjue went to find Yao Weiran, a gifted director who had been driven out of the industry and was now selling starch sausages. He revealed that he knew how Yao Weiran’s mentor had stolen his work, leaving Yao Weiran stunned.

• Yan Xianjue asked Uncle Lu for a blank card, wrote down his phone number, and set out to meet a director from the novel.
• Yan Xianjue insisted on stopping at a street stall for a starch sausage despite Uncle Lu’s concerns.
• At the stall, Yan Xianjue noticed Yao Weiran writing in a notebook and helped him light the gas burner.
• Yan Xianjue told Yao Weiran that his hands belonged on a camera rather than a sausage cart.
• Yan Xianjue identified Yao Weiran and explained that his mentor had stolen his work, which the mentor’s son used to build a career while Yao Weiran was blacklisted.

Yan Xianjue offered the blacklisted Yao Weiran a chance to direct a project and urged him not to give up. Yao Weiran accepted Yan’s contact card after learning the assigned screenwriter was Lei Xuan, though he doubted their project could succeed.

• Yan Xianjue noticed Yao Weiran’s trembling hands, reassured him, and waited patiently for him to explain himself.
• Yan told Yao Weiran he had chosen him as a director and asked whether he planned to give up or compromise with the people who had stolen from him.
• Yao Weiran angrily insisted he would not compromise, while Yan argued that money could counter the influence of Yao’s powerful advisor.
• Yan gave Yao Weiran his contact card and revealed that Lei Xuan would write the script, prompting Yao to recognize the notorious senior’s name.
• Yan drove away, and Yao Weiran served a rush of customers at his stall while silently enduring their curiosity.

Yan Xianjue relaxed at home and learned that the Lin Household planned to recognize Lin Rui’s supposed illegitimate child at a banquet. The news shocked him because he believed Lin Rui was medically unable to have children, leaving his parents just as confused by his reaction.

• Yan Xianjue decided to help Yao Weiran before he hit rock bottom and felt pleased with himself for pairing him with Lei Xuan.
• Mr. Yan and Mrs. Yan returned home, shared strawberries with Yan Xianjue, and asked whether he would attend the Lin Household’s banquet.
• Yan Xianjue declined the invitation, and his parents explained that Lin Rui had an illegitimate child whom Old Master Lin planned to recognize.
• Yan Xianjue insisted Lin Rui could not have children, and his parents were stunned by his claim.

Yan Xianjue learned that Lin Lang had sent Lin Shuo to his class and rebuffed Lin Shuo’s attempt to sit near him. Shen Fangli then brought Yan Xianjue physics notes and proposed rote memorization as a way to improve his scores.

• Yan Father recalled that Yan Xianjue’s childhood fever had kept him from traveling on the day Lin Rui was in a traffic accident, and Yan Xianjue asked about Lin Rui’s illegitimate son.
• Yan Mother invited Yan Xianjue to attend the Lin Household’s recognition banquet, and he agreed so he could watch the drama.
• Yan Xianjue recognized the new transfer student Lin Shuo as the illegitimate son from the Lin Household and wondered why he had appeared so early.
• Yan Xianjue refused to let Lin Shuo sit behind him, and the head teacher moved Lin Shuo to the back of the classroom.
• Shen Fangli brought Yan Xianjue her physics notes and told him to memorize problem types, but he said he did not believe rote memorization would work.

Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli saw Lin Shi confront the newly transferred Lin Shuo and learned that the Lin Household was holding a small banquet that night. Lin Shi invited them to attend, promising an entertaining performance.

• Shen Fangli asked Yan Xianjue about transfer student Lin Shuo, and Yan Xianjue thought Lin Lang was using him to provoke Lin Shi.
• Shen Fangli invited Yan Xianjue to play badminton, and Zhou Ye joined them after warning that the outdoor courts were too crowded and hot.
• Zhou Ye asked whether they were going to the Lin Household banquet, and Yan Xianjue said he would attend while Shen Fangli learned about it for the first time.
• Lin Shi told them that his father did not want to acknowledge Old Master Lin and coldly asked whether he should help unplug the old man's life support.
• Lin Shi invited Yan Xianjue, Shen Fangli, and Zhou Ye to the banquet, promising that the night's performance would satisfy them.

Su Su tried to gain Lin Shi's protection by exploiting Lin Shuo's arrival, but Lin Shi saw through her motives. When Lin Shuo objected to Yan Xianjue bringing Shen Fangli to the Lin Household banquet, Yan Xianjue publicly put him in his place, leaving Lin Shi laughing.

• Su Su decided to change her attitude toward Lin Shi after Aunt Fang was arrested and Aunt Fang's son threatened to expose their past unless she paid him.
• Lin Shi saw through Su Su's attempt to get his protection and let Lin Shuo approach him after class, expecting trouble.
• Yan Xianjue asked Shen Fangli whether she wanted to attend the Lin Household banquet, but Lin Shuo objected that it was a Lin Household event.
• Yan Xianjue reminded Lin Shuo that Lin Shi had invited them and that Lin Shuo had no right to interrupt or decide who Yan Xianjue could bring.
• Lin Shuo accused Yan Xianjue of abusing his status, and Yan Xianjue mocked him by telling him to go tell the teacher.
• Lin Shi laughed aloud as the students watched Lin Shuo's humiliation.

At the Lin Household banquet, Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli teased Lin Shuo while Lin Rui reluctantly introduced him as his son. Lin Shi then led Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli to a terrace to show them where Lin Shuo had gone, pointing out his mother below.

• Yan Xianjue learned that Yan Ci was staying at the club and went to the Lin Household with his parents, picking up Shen Fangli along the way.
• Lin Rui greeted the Yan family, and Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli linked arms as Lin Shi brought them to meet Lin Shuo.
• Lin Rui introduced Lin Shuo without calling him his son, then asked Yan Xianjue to overlook any improper behavior at school.
• Lin Shuo left for the inner hall, and Lin Shi offered to show Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli where he had gone.
• Lin Shi led Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli to a second-floor terrace and pointed out his mother downstairs.

Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli discovered that Lin Shi had been listening to a conversation between Mother Lin and Lin Shuo. The recording revealed that Lin Shuo was Lin Shi’s younger brother, secretly born and raised outside the household for his safety, though he believed Lin Rui was his father.

• Yan Xianjue mistakenly thought Mother Lin and Lin Shuo were embracing romantically, and the Yan Household reacted with shock.
• Lin Shi played a recording of Lin Shuo complaining that he had to hide while Lin Shi lived openly in the Lin Household.
• Mother Lin told Lin Shuo that Lin Rui was violent and that she had raised him outside the household to protect him.
• Yan Xianjue realized Lin Shuo believed he was Lin Rui’s son and Lin Shi’s full-blooded younger brother.
• Shen Fangli reconsidered her view of Lin Shi but remembered the students he had bullied, while Yan Xianjue remained troubled.

Lin Shi explained how his mother had secretly borne Lin Shuo and why he had brought Yan Xianjue to overhear their conversation. He asked Yan Xianjue what he thought of his earlier proposal as they prepared to return downstairs.

• Yan Xianjue recalled how Lin Shi's mother had taught Lin Shuo to curry favor with Old Master Lin and thought her treatment of Lin Shi was cruel.
• Yan Yi'an's parents reflected on Lin Rui's fate and marveled that Lin Rui's wife had deceived the Lin Household, while Yan Yi'an reconsidered Lin Shi's earlier claims.
• Lin Shi told Yan Xianjue that Lin Shuo's parentage was widely known and could not be used to threaten him.
• Lin Shi explained that his mother had studied Lin Rui's psychology and used his blind spot to conceal her pregnancy while traveling.
• Yan Xianjue asked why Lin Shi had brought him upstairs, and Lin Shi said he had planned ahead because his mother had prepared for a future without him.
• As they prepared to go downstairs, Lin Shi asked Yan Xianjue what he thought of his earlier proposal.

Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli attended the Lin Household banquet, where guests whispered about Lin Rui’s newly acknowledged son and the family’s scandals. They spotted Lei Xuan filming the gathering and hurried away from him.

• Lin Shi offered Yan Xianjue a glimpse of the Lin Household’s decay as a possible basis for partnership, then stayed behind while Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli went to the banquet.
• Shen Fangli asked whether Lin Shi would attend, and Yan Xianjue suspected Lin Shi had prepared a scheme for the event.
• Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli arrived at the banquet, where guests discussed Lin Rui being forced to acknowledge his illegitimate son by Old Master Lin.
• Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli saw Lin Rui acting coldly toward Lin Shuo as the banquet began.
• Lei Xuan invited Yan Xianjue and Shen Fangli to watch and film the family drama, but they claimed Shen Fangli was hungry and hurried off.

At the Lin Household banquet, Lin Rui reluctantly prepared to acknowledge Lin Shuo, while Lin Lang pressured him to proceed. As Lin Shuo was about to accept the gifts, a paternity test appeared on the screen bearing a name other than Lin Rui’s, leaving both men shocked.

• Yan Xianjue realized Lin Rui was stalling and suspected he was waiting for Old Master Lin to take responsibility for acknowledging Lin Shuo.
• Lin Lang arrived, urged Lin Rui to continue for the Old Master’s sake, and called for a microphone.
• Yan Xianjue warned Yan Yi'an that Lin Shi planned to cause trouble and that the Lin family’s stock might fall, prompting Yan Yi'an to prepare for a possible purchase.
• Lin Rui took the stage and announced gifts for Lin Shuo, including rural properties, his used car, and shares in a failing company.
• A paternity test appeared on the screen with a name other than Lin Rui’s, and Lin Rui turned toward it while Lin Shuo looked frantically at Lin Lang.

At the Lin family’s child-acknowledgement event, a second paternity test revealed that Lin Shuo was Lin Lang’s assistant’s son, not Lin Rui’s. A recording then exposed Lin Rui’s wife’s affair and plans to leave with Lin Shuo after Lin Rui died, leaving Lin Rui reeling.

• Yan Xianjue noticed Lin Shuo staring at Lin Lang and guessed that Lin Shuo looked like him.
• Lin Lang tried to stop the paternity-test results from appearing, but the screen showed that Lin Shuo was the assistant’s son.
• Lin Lang claimed the test could be false and pointed out that the Lin Corporation hospital had conducted it.
• Lin Rui ended the banquet, but a recording of his wife revealed her affair with Li Chenkai and her plan to go abroad with Lin Shuo after Lin Rui’s death.
• Lin Rui staggered in shock, briefly accepted Lin Shuo’s support, and then shoved him away.

Lin Shi denied involvement in the scandal surrounding Lin Shuo and went to confront him at the Lin Household gathering. With the guests recording the exposed evidence, Lin Shi challenged Lin Lang over whether he had arranged the affair and asked Lin Rui to weigh in.

• Old Master Lin demanded to know whether Lin Shi was responsible for the surveillance footage, and Lin Shi denied knowing anything about it.
• Old Master Lin ordered Lin Shi to keep his mother from running away, but Lin Shi left the study without intending to pursue her.
• The Lin Household staff cut power to the giant screen, while guests continued recording the evidence and gossiping about Li Chenkai and Lin Shuo.
• Lin Shi entered the side parlor, questioned Lin Shuo about calling Li Chenkai his uncle, and saw that Lin Shuo remained dazed and unresponsive.
• Lin Lang tried to stop Lin Shi from questioning Lin Shuo, but Lin Shi accused him of arranging the affair and asked Lin Rui what he thought.

Lin Shi exposed a recording and surveillance footage revealing that Lin Rui’s wife and Li Chenkai had conspired to cause the old car accident that left Lin Rui unable to function. Lin Rui collapsed and was taken away in an ambulance, while Lin Shi’s role in arranging the exposure remained clear.

• Lin Rui asked Lin Lang whether the trouble was his doing, and Lin Shi’s bodyguards seized Lin Lang’s assistant for interrogation.
• The backstage screen resumed playing footage of the old highway pileup, accompanied by a recording of Lin Rui’s wife and Li Chenkai discussing their affair and plotting to kill Lin Rui.
• Lin Shuo called out to his mother, prompting the guests to realize he was her child.
• Lin Shi released Lin Shuo and asked Lin Rui what was wrong as the recording revealed the conspirators’ celebration that Lin Rui had been left impotent.
• Lin Rui remembered Lin Shi asking whether he was ready for quick-acting heart rescue pills, then collapsed and was taken to the hospital by ambulance.

At the Lin Household banquet, Lin Shi exposed his growing power and confronted Lin Lang over a forged paternity report, setting up a new struggle within the family. Back home, the Yan family questioned Yan Xianjue about Shen Fangli, but he realized he had forgotten Zhou Ye and noticed Yan Ci was trending again.

• Yan Yi'an found Yan Xianjue searching online about whether angering or scaring someone to death was a crime and stopped him.
• Lin Shi and Lin Lang argued over Lin Lang using Lin Shi's hair to forge Lin Shuo's paternity test, and Lin Shi declared that his forces would remain under his grandfather's limits.
• Yan Xianjue drove Shen Fangli home, where she told him her mother was only taking out her anger over Second Aunt's situation on her.
• The Yan family questioned Yan Xianjue about bringing Shen Fangli to the banquet, and he suddenly realized he had forgotten Zhou Ye.
• Yan Xianjue spotted a new trending search about Yan Ci and tapped it instead of replying to Zhou Ye.

Yan Xianjue and his family learned that Yan Ci was trending after listing three core players for transfer, and they backed his decision despite the backlash. Yan Xianjue then borrowed the Yan Corporation’s PR department and called Ji Xi, telling him to keep working overtime.

• Yan Xianjue and his family opened the trending list and saw Yan Ci at the top after he listed three players for transfer.
• Yan Yi'an asked Yan Ci about the situation, and Yan Ci explained that one player had publicly accused him of tyranny while the others failed the team's ideological and moral evaluations.
• Yan Xianjue defended Yan Ci's decision to sell the players before their value fell further, and Yan Father asked what Yan Ci should do next.
• Yan Xianjue proposed involving the Lin Household in the public relations response and asked Yan Yi'an to lend him the PR department.
• Yan Xianjue called Ji Xi, learned he was still working overtime at the Yan Corporation, and told him not to leave work that day.

Yan Xianjue coordinated an online campaign with Yan Corporation to suppress Yan Ci’s trending topic and damage the Lin Household’s public image. After the campaign helped drive Lin Corporation’s stock to its daily limit down, Yan Xianjue asked Yan Ci whether Lin Rui’s critical condition was real.

• Yan Xianjue told Ji Xi to obtain the night’s video and have Yan Corporation’s PR team use it to push down Yan Ci’s trending topic.
• Yan Xianjue and Yan Ci joked in the group chat about borrowing Yan Ci’s trending topic, while Yan Yi'an left Yan Xianjue to handle the matter as practice.
• Yan Corporation’s special assistant reported that both corporations had fought over trending topics until Yan Xianjue’s critical illness notice gave Yan Corporation the advantage.
• The special assistant said Lin Rui’s reported heart attack had become the top trending topic and Lin Corporation’s stock had closed at the daily limit down.
• After the special assistant left, Yan Xianjue asked Yan Ci whether Lin Rui’s critical condition was real or fake.