Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• During the horror-movie audition, Xiao Yuan is pressured to perform frightened screams. His increasingly embarrassed reactions entertain everyone in the room, especially Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye.
• Shi Jihan discovers that teasing Xiao Yuan earns him “Malice Points,” and he becomes delighted by the idea of Xiao Yuan as a new source of points. Zhou Jingcheng also joins in, counting Xiao Yuan’s screams and encouraging him to perform one more time.
• After the audition, Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng leave together through the emergency stairwell. Shi Jihan tries to show off by jumping down several steps at once, falls, and accidentally kicks Xiao Yuan through the seventh-floor emergency exit into a crowded hallway.
• Xiao Yuan is overwhelmed by the attention and embarrassment, earning Shi Jihan a large number of Malice Points. Other employees misinterpret the incident, joking that Xiao Yuan is wiping the floor with his backside.
• Zhou Jingcheng checks both men for injuries, then carries Shi Jihan to the hospital after noticing his fall has caused pain. Shi Jihan protests because the bridal carry damages his “tough” image, but he secretly enjoys the attention and becomes embarrassed when onlookers appear to be romantically shipping them.
• At the hospital, Shi Jihan is found to have no serious injury, though his tailbone hurts for several days. He uses the injury as an excuse to remain in bed and be cared for.
• When the cast list is finalized, Shi Jihan is shocked to learn that Xiao Yuan has been selected as the male lead. Shi Zhongye jokes that the role seems specially designed for Xiao Yuan because of Shi Jihan’s relationship with Zhou Jingcheng.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan: Reveals a mischievous, competitive, and teasing side. He enjoys exploiting Xiao Yuan’s social anxiety for Malice Points, but becomes genuinely guilty after accidentally injuring and humiliating him. He also shows clear dependence on Zhou Jingcheng’s care while stubbornly maintaining a “tough” persona.
• Zhou Jingcheng: Becomes increasingly attentive and physically affectionate toward Shi Jihan. He willingly takes the stairs to spend more time with him, checks his injuries, carries him to the hospital, and sees through his bravado. His teasing suggests growing intimacy and familiarity.
• Xiao Yuan: Is portrayed as extremely socially anxious and easily overwhelmed by public attention, despite his professionalism and willingness to perform. His embarrassment intensifies throughout the chapter, particularly after being screamed at, counted, kicked, and publicly mocked.
• Shi Zhongye: Acts as an amused instigator during the audition and later comments skeptically on Xiao Yuan’s casting. He enjoys watching the chaos but remains observant of the relationship between Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng.
• Zero-Zero-Zero: Continues offering humorous commentary and tracking Shi Jihan’s Malice Points, treating the characters’ mishaps like a successful “combo attack.”

Significant Themes

• Comedy through embarrassment: The chapter repeatedly turns social awkwardness, physical mishaps, and public humiliation into sources of humor.
• Performance versus genuine emotion: Xiao Yuan performs fear professionally, while Shi Jihan performs toughness and indifference despite being hurt and embarrassed.
• Growing intimacy: Zhou Jingcheng’s protective behavior and Shi Jihan’s comfortable dependence on him reveal their increasingly close relationship.
• Consequences of teasing: Shi Jihan initially treats Xiao Yuan’s discomfort as entertainment, but his guilt after the stairway accident shows that his mischief is tempered by concern.
• Public perception and gossip: Onlookers immediately interpret Zhou Jingcheng carrying Shi Jihan as romantic, highlighting how their closeness is visible to others even when Shi Jihan denies it.

Important Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan, Zhou Jingcheng, and Shi Zhongye collectively pressure Xiao Yuan to complete his audition screams, creating a humiliating but comedic group dynamic.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng compete playfully on the stairs, leading to Shi Jihan’s fall and Xiao Yuan’s accidental injury.
• Zhou Jingcheng shifts from teasing Shi Jihan to taking responsibility for him, carrying him to the hospital and exposing the contrast between Shi Jihan’s bravado and his actual vulnerability.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng’s physical closeness in the elevator embarrasses Shi Jihan, while Zhou Jingcheng teasingly points out that Shi Jihan previously enjoyed watching others be embarrassed.
• The chapter ends with Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye reacting to Xiao Yuan’s unexpected selection as the male lead, setting up further conflict and comic interaction.

Chapter 43 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Main System assigns Shi Jihan a task to smear Xiao Yuan’s image, rewarding him with Malice Points.
• Shi Jihan searches for scandals involving Xiao Yuan and discovers the history between Xiao Yuan and his second brother, director Shi Zhongye.
• Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye met at university while studying acting and directing. Shi Zhongye’s first film succeeded partly because Xiao Yuan supported him, but the two later had a major creative disagreement and parted on bad terms.
• Shi Jihan decides to exploit their youthful photographs and past relationship, framing it as a dramatic “first love” scandal.
• He posts an anonymous teaser online claiming to have exposed a celebrity’s secret first love, causing netizens and Xiao Yuan’s fans to wait anxiously for proof.
• After spending the morning editing, Shi Jihan uploads a bizarre ten-minute video set to melodramatic and aggressive music.
• The video exaggerates Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye’s youthful appearances and transforms their supposed romance into absurd slapstick combat, portraying them as passionately “loving and killing each other.”
• The video ends with a genuine-looking university photograph of the two and a sentimental caption praising their “beautiful love.”
• Instead of damaging Xiao Yuan’s reputation in a conventional way, the video causes widespread psychological distress and becomes a spectacular online joke. Viewers condemn Shi Jihan’s bizarre “ship content” and beg for their lost sanity.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan reveals his mischievous, vindictive, and highly creative side. He approaches the smear task with complete enthusiasm, treating it as an artistic project rather than a simple attack.
• His editing skill and obsessive dedication are emphasized: he works all morning without eating and produces an elaborate, chaotic video.
• Xiao Yuan is indirectly characterized through old records and fan comments as withdrawn, emotionally stable, spiritually inclined, and deeply private after leaving the entertainment industry.
• Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan’s past is clarified. Their relationship began as close university friends and creative partners, but artistic conflict destroyed their friendship.
• Zero-Zero-Zero supports Shi Jihan enthusiastically, provides information, and humorously flatters him while recognizing that the video may cause Xiao Yuan to withdraw even further.

Significant Themes

• Intent versus outcome: Shi Jihan intends to smear Xiao Yuan, but his absurd video mainly creates comedy and nostalgia rather than genuine scandal.
• The unreliability of online gossip: Netizens eagerly speculate about Xiao Yuan’s past, but the eventual “evidence” is so exaggerated that it becomes parody.
• Public image and celebrity memory: The video resurrects Xiao Yuan’s embarrassing early-career appearance and reminds fans of his youthful history.
• Friendship, artistic conflict, and emotional interpretation: Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye’s real history is complicated, yet Shi Jihan reshapes it into an overblown romance narrative.
• Absurdity and creative chaos: The chapter relies on exaggerated editing, surreal imagery, and internet reactions to turn a malicious assignment into farce.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan consults Zero-Zero-Zero while researching Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye’s history; Zero-Zero-Zero acts as both assistant and amused observer.
• The original bond between Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye is presented through their university partnership, mutual support, and eventual creative dispute.
• Shi Jihan interacts indirectly with netizens by teasing the anonymous post and delaying the video’s release, increasing their anticipation.
• The viewers’ reactions—especially Fake Scoop’s horror and the fans’ collective outrage—form the chapter’s main comedic response to Shi Jihan’s attack.

Chapter 63 Summary

• Shi Jihan’s prank succeeds: Shi Jihan watches the interview between his second brother, Shi Zhongye, and Xiao Yuan while eating extremely spicy fried rice noodles. He has created an embarrassing “Love Until Death” compilation using Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye’s old footage, edited to make them appear like an overly dramatic former couple. The video earns him enough Malice Points to complete his task of ruining Xiao Yuan’s image.
• The livestream is derailed: Viewers flood the interview comments with references to the video, forcing the host to play it. Xiao Yuan is horrified when the compilation shows his old hairstyle, awkward poses, and melodramatic lines. He tries to hide, shut his eyes, and even wishes to suffocate from embarrassment. Shi Zhongye initially laughs uncontrollably and mocks him, but the video soon turns its attention to Shi Zhongye as well.
• Shi Zhongye becomes embarrassed and enraged: Shi Jihan has edited enormous, unflattering shots of Shi Zhongye into the video. Xiao Yuan finally laughs at him, provoking Shi Zhongye’s irritation. Shi Zhongye loudly demands to know who made the video and enters one of his exaggerated “berserk” states. Despite the chaos, he openly admits that he dated Xiao Yuan because of Xiao Yuan’s attractive face, then forces Xiao Yuan to look at the humiliating footage. Xiao Yuan begs him to change the channel.
• Their old relationship is exposed comically: The video and comments suggest that Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye were once first loves, shocking viewers because their personalities seem completely incompatible. Rather than denying it, Shi Zhongye casually acknowledges the relationship, while Xiao Yuan reacts with extreme shame and desperation. Their hostile teasing reveals a familiar, long-standing bond beneath their embarrassment.
• Shi Jihan accidentally interrupts a meeting: After arriving at Zhou Jingcheng’s company for lunch, Shi Jihan enthusiastically bursts into Room 307 expecting to surprise Zhou Jingcheng. Instead, he walks into a large business meeting and becomes the center of attention. Embarrassed, he awkwardly retreats and offers to wait in Zhou’s office.
• Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Jihan’s interaction: Zhou Jingcheng calmly ends the meeting and sends the staff away, amused that Shi Jihan has promoted him from “Little Zhou” to “Little President Zhou.” He checks whether Shi Jihan’s injuries have healed, teasing him about the painful incident. Their exchange shows Zhou’s familiarity with Shi Jihan’s temperament and his ability to defuse him through carefully timed changes of subject.
• Cliffhanger: Before Zhou and Shi Jihan can leave, Xiao Yuan’s manager arrives in a panic. He reports that Xiao Yuan is attempting to “kill himself with chocolate,” apparently using a chocolate item as a substitute for a weapon. Zhou is shocked, believing Xiao Yuan’s mental state had already stabilized, and rushes to find out what happened.

Character Developments and Themes

• Shi Jihan is mischievous, shameless, and highly committed to completing his tasks, but his antics also reveal his playful closeness with both his brother and Zhou Jingcheng.
• Xiao Yuan remains dignified in public but is easily overwhelmed by humiliation, especially when confronted with his embarrassing past. His dramatic reactions provide much of the chapter’s comedy.
• Shi Zhongye is hot-tempered and theatrical, yet openly protective and familiar with Xiao Yuan. His teasing suggests their former relationship has evolved into a comfortable, combative friendship.
• Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Jihan continue to develop an intimate, teasing dynamic based on familiarity and mutual concern.
• The chapter emphasizes public image versus private embarrassment, the destructive power of fan-created narratives, and humor as a way of expressing affection and old emotional connections.

Chapter 44 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Jihan learn that Xiao Yuan is supposedly attempting suicide because of a humiliating CP video. His methods are absurdly harmless: using sharp chocolate, contaminated food, and eventually potato chips.
• Xiao Yuan stages a dramatic “jump” from a low height, but Shi Zhongye catches him by his sweatshirt and drags him back inside to eat.
• During lunch, Zhou Jingcheng discusses Shi Zhongye’s difficulty finding investors for his transition into commercial comedy films. Zhou advises him to reduce the budget if necessary.
• The meal becomes chaotic and comedic. Shi Jihan focuses entirely on eating while Zhou keeps filling his bowl. Shi Zhongye teases him about gaining weight, prompting jokes about pregnancy and food.
• Xiao Yuan continues pretending to seek ways to die, comparing vermicelli and potato chips to suicide weapons. Shi Jihan misguidedly offers him bitter melon juice as a “poison.”
• Xiao Yuan finally admits that life is preferable, revealing that he has not even seen the CP video supposedly causing his despair.
• Shi Zhongye angrily vows to track down the video’s uploader and mentions hiring “Detective Old Wang,” which terrifies Shi Jihan because of his own hidden concerns about the situation.
• Shi Jihan accidentally spits cherry-tomato juice onto Zhou Jingcheng’s shirt. He follows Zhou to his office while Shi Zhongye awkwardly tries—and fails—to spend more time with him.
• On the way, Shi Jihan and the system happily plan future meals. At Universe, Shi Jihan acts like an inspecting leader and praises Zhou’s management, only for Zhou to jokingly—or strategically—say he deserves a reward once he acquires Shi Corporation.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan remains food-obsessed, impulsive, and oblivious to the serious implications surrounding the CP video. His pity for Xiao Yuan is sincere but expressed through wildly inappropriate suggestions. He also shows growing comfort and familiarity with Zhou Jingcheng and Universe.
• Xiao Yuan performs exaggerated despair over the CP video but repeatedly reveals an instinct for survival. His “suicide attempts” are so harmless and theatrical that they become comic performances rather than genuine danger.
• Zhou Jingcheng continues to indulge Shi Jihan, feeding him and calmly handling his accidents. At the same time, he demonstrates practical business judgment and openly maintains his ambition to acquire Shi Corporation.
• Shi Zhongye is frustrated by his film’s lack of funding and becomes aggressive toward the CP-video uploader. His teasing of Shi Jihan masks a growing, awkward desire to connect with his younger brother.
• Zero-Zero-Zero begins suspecting that the plot is diverging from the original novel, particularly because Xiao Yuan’s supposed suicide arc is unfolding differently.

Significant Themes

• Comedy through misunderstanding: Nearly every serious situation is distorted by Shi Jihan’s literal, food-centered perspective.
• The gap between appearance and reality: Xiao Yuan looks devastated but is not genuinely suicidal, while Shi Jihan appears foolish yet inadvertently influences everyone around him.
• Family and emotional awkwardness: Shi Zhongye’s hostility and teasing conceal his uncertainty about how to approach Shi Jihan as a brother.
• Plot deviation and self-awareness: The system recognizes that events no longer match the original storyline, suggesting the characters’ actions are reshaping the narrative.
• Food as affection and social bonding: Meals, shared dishes, and feeding others function as expressions of care, even when disguised as teasing or manipulation.

Character Interactions

• Zhou and Shi Jihan work together to stop Xiao Yuan, though Zhou contributes chaotic suggestions rather than sincere comfort.
• Shi Zhongye physically restrains Xiao Yuan and mocks his fake suicide attempts, while Xiao Yuan responds with deadpan seriousness.
• Zhou and Shi Zhongye discuss the film project as Shi Jihan eats and receives constant attention from Zhou.
• Shi Jihan complains to Zhou about Shi Zhongye calling him fat, forcing Shi Zhongye to retreat and flatter him.
• Shi Jihan offers Xiao Yuan bitter melon juice as poison, unintentionally pushing him toward reaffirming his desire to live.
• Shi Zhongye’s attempt to talk privately with Shi Jihan fails when Shi Jihan follows Zhou instead, highlighting their continued emotional distance.
• The chapter ends with Zhou jokingly revealing his ambition to acquire Shi Corporation, while Shi Jihan remains unaware of the implication.

Chapter 45 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• In Zhou Jingcheng’s CEO office, Shi Jihan notices the unused lounge and teases Zhou about it. Zhou begins changing clothes, and the situation becomes increasingly flirtatious.
• Shi Jihan openly admires Zhou’s physique, though he tries to hide his embarrassment behind insults and bravado.
• Zhou unexpectedly invites Shi Jihan to touch him, claiming that a good body should be shared. Shi initially panics and insists on maintaining “social distance,” but eventually pokes Zhou’s chest.
• Both men become visibly flustered. Zhou hurriedly changes clothes and buttons his shirt completely, while Shi struggles to recover from the intimate encounter.
• As they leave the office, Secretary Sun overhears Zhou telling Shi not to walk too quickly and completely misinterprets the situation as evidence of an improper relationship. Zhou chastises him and privately berates himself for behaving so impulsively.
• Old President Zhou is waiting in the office and notices his son’s red ears, but Zhou excuses them by claiming the sun caused the redness.
• Meanwhile, the movie investment falls through, leaving Shi Zhongye’s production team severely short of money. To reduce costs, they avoid hiring famous actors and instead cast inexpensive newcomers.
• Shi Jihan discovers that Zhou Zeyang has been cast. Zhou proudly describes himself as a professional actor, despite his résumé’s absurdly exaggerated praise for his role in President Shi’s High School White Moonlight.
• Shi Jihan spends the day relaxing, eating takeout, and playing video games while Shi Zhongye works relentlessly. When Shi Zhongye returns, he assigns Shi Jihan a new task, much to Shi Bochuan’s alarm.

Character Development

• Shi Jihan: His attraction to Zhou becomes increasingly obvious, despite his constant denial. He is easily flustered by Zhou’s advances and secretly enjoys the physical contact, while still using sarcasm and insults to protect his pride.
• Zhou Jingcheng: Normally composed and controlled, he becomes unusually bold and impulsive around Shi Jihan. His teasing invitation reveals growing confidence—or desperation—in pursuing intimacy, but afterward he is embarrassed by his own behavior.
• Shi Zhongye: Demonstrates practical leadership by rapidly reorganizing the film project after losing its investment. He remains hardworking and responsible, contrasting sharply with Shi Jihan’s carefree attitude.
• Zhou Zeyang: Continues to present himself as a serious professional despite his questionable acting abilities and comically inflated résumé.
• Secretary Sun: Acts as an amused observer of Zhou and Shi Jihan’s relationship, though his imagination causes him to misunderstand their conversation dramatically.

Significant Themes

• Mutual attraction and denial: Both Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng are clearly attracted to each other, but Shi especially refuses to acknowledge his feelings.
• Flirtation and vulnerability: Zhou’s normally restrained personality breaks down in intimate moments, while Shi’s bluster masks nervousness and genuine interest.
• Appearance versus reality: The men’s words often contradict their behavior—Shi claims not to care while secretly staring and touching, and Zhou pretends calm despite being deeply flustered.
• Comedy through misunderstanding: Secretary Sun’s interpretation of Zhou’s innocent comment highlights the chapter’s use of suggestive dialogue and mistaken assumptions for humor.
• Resourcefulness under pressure: The failed investment forces Shi Zhongye’s team to economize and rely on inexperienced actors, setting up potential difficulties for the film.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng: Their teasing escalates into physical intimacy, with Zhou deliberately provoking Shi and Shi revealing his attraction through his reactions.
• Zhou Jingcheng and Secretary Sun: Secretary Sun criticizes Zhou’s apparent lack of propriety, but Zhou dismisses him and threatens him with extra work.
• Zhou Jingcheng and Old President Zhou: Old President Zhou notices his son’s unusual embarrassment, while Zhou attempts—and fails—to explain away his red ears.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Zeyang: Shi questions Zhou’s casting, but Zhou confidently defends his professional credentials.
• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye: Their contrasting lifestyles create comic tension: Shi Jihan relaxes while Shi Zhongye struggles with the film, ultimately forcing Shi Jihan to contribute.

Chapter 46 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Zhongye, irritated that everyone else seems happy while he is overworked, assigns his younger brother Shi Jihan the task of recruiting stagehands for the film crew. He gives him deliberately cheap recruitment standards and a budget of 150,000, secretly hoping to disrupt production.
• The system rewards Shi Jihan with 15 Malice Points for tampering with recruitment.
• Shi Jihan consults his anonymous work contact, Zhou Zeyang, for recruitment advice. While messaging, he also learns about Zhou Jingcheng’s workout habits and becomes determined to improve his own physique so he can compete with him.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Zeyang devise a scheme to recruit twenty college students who primarily want internship certificates rather than wages.
• The recruits enter the crew’s group chat under bizarre usernames such as “Sexy Mama Cockroach” and “Sucking a Pacifier While Ordering Male Models.” Their strange behavior alarms Shi Zhongye, who realizes his production may be overwhelmed by twenty people with personalities resembling Shi Jihan’s.
• Shi Zhongye angrily confronts the assistant director and Zhou Jingcheng for approving the recruits. They explain that the applicants were accepted because their demands were extremely cheap.
• Zhou Jingcheng repeatedly changes his profile picture to provocative gym selfies, deliberately irritating Shi Zhongye. Their argument escalates when Shi Zhongye mistakenly assumes that Shi Jihan and Secretary Sun are romantically involved because of their matching alternate-account usernames.
• The next morning, Shi Zhongye questions Shi Jihan about the recruits. Upon learning that many only want internship stamps and do not require pay, he changes his attitude completely, celebrating them as energetic and valuable future contributors.
• Shi Jihan reveals that he promised the recruits the highest stagehand wage, suggesting that the project’s budget will still be spent despite the apparent savings.

Character Developments

• Shi Zhongye: Initially acts spitefully and tries to inconvenience others, but his priorities immediately shift when he sees a chance to save money. His exhaustion and anxiety over the film’s future are contrasted with his ruthless enthusiasm for budget efficiency.
• Shi Jihan: Embraces his role as a troublemaker and manipulator. He enjoys exploiting the recruitment process while also becoming competitive and self-conscious about Zhou Jingcheng’s physique.
• Zhou Jingcheng: Shows a playful, provocative side through his gym selfies and teasing messages. He remains calm and unbothered by Shi Zhongye’s outrage, even deliberately cutting him off with a “Get lost” profile image.
• Zhou Zeyang: Becomes Shi Jihan’s accomplice, quickly collaborating on the plan to recruit cheap college labor.
• Shi Bochuan: Demonstrates his understanding of the family dynamic by pitying Shi Zhongye and warning him to endure the trouble passed down from one younger brother to another.

Significant Themes

• Familial chaos and mutual retaliation: The brothers continually pass troublesome responsibilities onto one another, creating a cycle of revenge disguised as work delegation.
• Workplace absurdity: Recruitment, corporate messaging, and film production are treated with exaggerated comedic seriousness, while bizarre usernames and unserious employees threaten to derail everything.
• Money and exploitation: The crew seeks to minimize costs by recruiting students willing to work for internship certificates, while Shi Jihan’s promise of high wages hints that the budget may be manipulated in another direction.
• Competitive attraction and vanity: Shi Jihan’s reaction to Zhou Jingcheng’s physique reveals a mixture of jealousy, attraction, and determination to prove himself.
• Reversal of expectations: What appears to be a disastrous recruitment outcome becomes appealing to Shi Zhongye once he realizes the workers may be nearly free.

Character Interactions

• Shi Zhongye assigns Shi Jihan the recruitment task, unknowingly enabling him to sabotage the crew.
• Shi Bochuan sympathizes with Shi Zhongye while recognizing that his problems are simply being transferred between brothers.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Zeyang cooperate as “partners in crime,” designing the unconventional recruitment strategy.
• Shi Jihan and the anonymous Workmate exchange information, with Shi Jihan extracting both recruitment advice and Zhou Jingcheng’s workout plan.
• Shi Zhongye and Zhou Jingcheng bicker over the recruits and Zhou’s provocative selfies, revealing their antagonistic but familiar relationship.
• Shi Zhongye confronts Shi Jihan about the strange recruits, only to become enthusiastic when he discovers the financial benefits of their arrangement.

Page 67 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan spends the entire hiring budget intended for thirty workers and a stage manager, leaving nothing. His second brother, Shi Zhongye, is furious, but Jihan is delighted because he has effectively profited from his “money tree.”
• The production is scheduled to begin filming on September 15. Xiao Yuan is confirmed as the lead actor, meaning Shi Jihan’s attempt to remove him from the project has failed. Jihan and the system console themselves by blaming “fate.”
• On the first day, the cast and crew visit a temple for traditional opening-day prayers and blessings.
• Zhou Jingcheng draws the worst possible fortune stick. Rather than accept it, he removes all the bad fortunes, redraws, and gets the best fortune. He proudly declares that this proves “man conquers fate,” while Shi Zhongye calls it turning misfortune into good fortune.
• The group then travels to the filming location. Shi Jihan repeatedly steals seats from Shi Zhongye, while Zhou Jingcheng and Xiao Yuan compete to ride in the same car. The cramped arrangement causes Zhou Jingcheng to be shoved against the door.
• The newly hired student stagehand accidentally spills water all over Zhou Jingcheng’s pants and then, after driving off again, drenches his shirt as well. Shi Zhongye laughs uncontrollably at Zhou Jingcheng’s misfortune.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan remains shameless, mischievous, and financially opportunistic. He treats spending the production budget as a personal victory and continues trying to manipulate events so Xiao Yuan will leave the production.
• Shi Zhongye is increasingly exasperated by Jihan’s behavior, especially after losing both money and his preferred seat. Despite his anger, he remains responsible for organizing the crew and production.
• Zhou Jingcheng shows his usual pride, quick thinking, and unwillingness to accept defeat. His manipulation of the fortune sticks reveals his tendency to bend circumstances while pretending the result is destiny. He also appears increasingly affected by Shi Jihan’s attention.
• Xiao Yuan is socially awkward but persistent. He tries to stay close to Shi Jihan and competes with Zhou Jingcheng for proximity, while maintaining an innocent, slow-paced demeanor.
• Zero-Zero-Zero continues to support Shi Jihan’s schemes and shares his excitement over signs that “fate” may drive Xiao Yuan out of the production.

Significant Themes

• Fate versus human agency: The fortune-stick incident humorously contrasts genuine fate with Zhou Jingcheng’s deliberate manipulation. The characters reinterpret every outcome to support their preferred narrative.
• Comedy through humiliation and chaos: Budget theft, bad fortunes, cramped seating, and repeated water spills create escalating comic disasters.
• Romantic rivalry and mistaken interpretations: Shi Jihan fails to understand Zhou Jingcheng’s subtle attempts to attract his attention, while Xiao Yuan openly seeks closeness in his own odd way.
• Self-justification: Shi Jihan and the system convince themselves that the failed plan was not their fault, demonstrating how the characters rationalize their mistakes.

Character Interactions

• Shi Zhongye angrily confronts Shi Jihan over the missing budget, while Jihan enjoys provoking him.
• Shi Jihan jokes with Xiao Yuan about religion and scientific “crossbreeding,” leading to Xiao Yuan’s strange food-related flirtation.
• Zhou Jingcheng subtly exposes his collarbone after noticing Shi Jihan watching him, but Shi Jihan only complains that he did not reveal enough.
• Shi Jihan and the system celebrate Zhou Jingcheng’s initial bad fortune as proof that fate supports their plan.
• Shi Zhongye, Zhou Jingcheng, Xiao Yuan, and Shi Jihan compete over car seats, resulting in all three men being squeezed into the back seat.
• The car’s water mishap becomes a source of shared comedy, with Shi Zhongye laughing at Zhou Jingcheng while Zhou Jingcheng stoically endures the humiliation.

Chapter 47 Summary

Plot Points and Events

• Zhou Jingcheng, Shi Zhongye, and Xiao Yuan are unable to drive after a chaotic incident leaves Zhou and Shi Zhongye soaked. Shi Jihan takes over despite having only recently obtained his license.
• Shi Jihan drives recklessly, hitting three speed bumps and splashing the water from Shi Zhongye’s bottle all over him. Xiao Yuan unsuccessfully tries to catch the water with his hoodie, only causing it to spill back onto Shi Zhongye.
• Zhou Jingcheng retaliates by pouring the remaining water over Shi Zhongye, turning the car ride into a series of playful attacks and arguments.
• The bespectacled assistant reports the disaster in the production crew’s logistics group chat, but everyone responds by celebrating the chaos rather than helping him.
• Shi Jihan admits he may have forgotten to release the handbrake, causing everyone in the car to panic—though he immediately reveals that it was already released.
• At the filming location, the soaked passengers pretend they received spa or hydrotherapy treatments. Shi Jihan jokingly claims that Shi Zhongye enjoys splashing around, while Zhou introduces Shi Zhongye as his “external hard mouth.”
• Zhou pretends to be cold and possibly feverish in an attempt to make Shi Jihan care for him. Shi Jihan instead jokes that Zhou’s fever can be tested by asking for his bank-card PIN. Zhou nearly reveals it before Shi Jihan covers his mouth and privately asks for the remaining digits.
• The group discovers that the filming location is a remote, unfinished residential development surrounded by demolition sites, rural homes, and construction equipment.
• Shi Zhongye explains that the crew will stay in abandoned farmhouses nearby, presenting the rough accommodation as a cost-saving “farmhouse resort.”

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan displays impressive calm and shamelessness despite his dangerous driving and repeated mistakes. His mischievous humor makes him a major source of chaos, but he remains playful and confident.
• Shi Zhongye becomes the main victim of the car ride, repeatedly soaked and frustrated. His anger is exaggerated for comedic effect, revealing a familiar, informal dynamic with his younger brother.
• Zhou Jingcheng shifts from enjoying Shi Zhongye’s misfortune to actively retaliating against him. He also reveals a more playful and flirtatious side when he tries to attract Shi Jihan’s concern.
• Xiao Yuan continues to act in an eccentric, well-meaning but ineffective manner, such as attempting to use his hoodie as a water filter.
• The bespectacled assistant is increasingly overwhelmed by the production crew’s incompetence and chaos, though he develops admiration for Shi Jihan’s seemingly unshakable composure.
• Shi Zhongye also demonstrates his frugal producer mentality by defending the crew’s impoverished filming arrangements as a responsible way to save money.

Significant Themes

• Comedic chaos and found-family camaraderie: The characters’ constant teasing, mutual retaliation, and exaggerated reactions show a close-knit group comfortable with disorder.
• Incompetence as entertainment: Driving mistakes, poor planning, and unsafe conditions become sources of humor rather than serious conflict.
• Flirtation disguised as joking: Zhou’s staged illness and repeated glances at Shi Jihan suggest romantic interest, while Shi Jihan responds with teasing instead of direct tenderness.
• Resourcefulness and sacrifice: The remote filming location and farmhouse lodging highlight the production’s limited budget and willingness to endure hardship for the project.
• Workplace “wolf-pack” culture: The crew celebrates boldness, troublemaking, and enthusiasm, treating reckless mishaps as signs of energy and team spirit.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye’s sibling relationship is defined by bickering, practical jokes, and exaggerated threats, with Shi Zhongye acting as the exasperated older brother.
• Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Jihan share increasingly obvious playful tension. Zhou seeks physical attention under the guise of being cold, while Shi Jihan deliberately undercuts the romantic moment with jokes about bank details.
• Zhou and Shi Zhongye engage in mutual revenge, with Zhou weaponizing the water bottle after laughing at Shi Zhongye’s misfortune.
• Xiao Yuan’s attempts to help only worsen situations, making him an accidental comic foil.
• The broader production crew reinforces the chapter’s chaotic atmosphere by encouraging mishaps rather than solving them.

Chapter 48 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan worries that reconnecting with his third brother, Shi Zhongye, will lead to conflict, but instead of being difficult, he enthusiastically suggests eating the chickens, fishing in the reservoir, and roasting sweet potatoes. Xiao Yuan is especially interested in fishing.
• A passerby’s temple video featuring Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Jihan becomes popular online. Fans recognize them as the “Wu Bai couple,” while others realize that Shi Jihan is present for the opening of Shi Zhongye’s film, Superpowered Neighborhood Committee.
• Universe’s public-relations department confirms that Shi Jihan is the mysterious screenwriter “Teacher AAA.” Netizens are shocked but excited, expecting the film to contain the same absurd humor as his previous works.
• Encouraged by the attention, Shi Jihan revises the script to make it even more ridiculous. He changes a scene involving a burst water pipe into one where protagonist Lin An uses the indoor waterfall to cook instant noodles, then produces a flood of chaotic ideas.
• That night, the quiet countryside reminds Shi Jihan of his grandparents and his previous life. With 000’s encouragement, he dreams of returning to them, rebuilding their house, and hearing them praise him again.
• The next morning, the crew is awakened by roosters. Shi Jihan reacts dramatically to the early wake-up and complains about rural life.
• Zhou Zeyang greets him with a forceful slap on the back, prompting Shi Jihan to plan revenge. Mistaking Xiao Yuan for Zhou Jingcheng near the bridge, Shi Jihan slaps him instead.
• Zhou Jingcheng witnesses the mistake and laughs, earning Shi Jihan’s resentment. He offers an even more exaggerated saying about being slapped by Heaven, and he and Shi Jihan begin trading elaborate compliments.
• Shi Zhongye interrupts the banter, drags everyone to breakfast, and forces the crew to prepare for filming.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan is shown as food-loving, mischievous, creatively unrestrained, and incapable of resisting an opportunity for revenge. His absurd script revisions reveal both his comic instincts and his mistaken belief that making the film more chaotic will prevent it from becoming popular.
• His emotional vulnerability emerges when the countryside evokes memories of his grandparents. Beneath his joking behavior, he deeply longs for family affection and hopes to provide for them.
• Shi Zhongye acts as a practical, controlling older brother who keeps the group on schedule, but he also accommodates Shi Jihan’s eccentricity.
• Zhou Jingcheng becomes more openly playful and sarcastic, laughing at Shi Jihan and engaging in competitive verbal flattery.
• Xiao Yuan is repeatedly caught in Shi Jihan’s chaos. His confusion and helplessness after being slapped make him a comic victim, while his desire to complain suggests growing familiarity with the group.
• Zhou Zeyang maintains a boisterous, physically affectionate relationship with Shi Jihan, though his enthusiasm accidentally causes Shi Jihan’s revenge scheme.

Significant Themes

• Absurdity as creativity: Shi Jihan transforms an ordinary film script into increasingly illogical comedy, suggesting that his unconventional thinking is his greatest artistic strength.
• Family and nostalgia: The rural setting reconnects Shi Jihan with memories of his grandparents and reveals his wish to repay their love and care.
• Found-family camaraderie: The cast’s teasing, physical jokes, and chaotic conversations show them becoming a close-knit group despite their constant disruptions.
• Public image and unexpected popularity: Shi Jihan assumes that his bizarre writing will make the film fail, but online reactions instead show that audiences are drawn to his distinctive style.
• Comedy through misunderstanding: Shi Jihan’s mistaken identity slap, Zhou Jingcheng’s laughter, and the exaggerated exchanges of praise all reinforce the chapter’s playful, farcical tone.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye argue over rural food and activities, with Zhongye trying to impose practicality while Jihan enthusiastically plans meals and entertainment.
• Shi Jihan and 000 share a tender moment when 000 comforts him about his grandparents; Jihan responds by hugging it like a body pillow.
• Zhou Zeyang’s energetic greeting leads Shi Jihan to seek revenge on his brother, only for Xiao Yuan to become the unintended target.
• Xiao Yuan confronts Shi Jihan about the slap, while Shi Jihan offers an absurd justification involving Heaven assigning him a great responsibility.
• Zhou Jingcheng mocks the situation, then bonds with Shi Jihan through mutual sarcasm and exaggerated compliments.
• Shi Zhongye ultimately ends the social chaos by ordering everyone to eat and begin filming.

Chapter 49 Summary

Plot and Major Events

• Shi Zhongye holds a production meeting and announces that the crew must raise its standards. Shi Jihan repeatedly disrupts the meeting with jokes, comments about skipping work, and a spontaneous hot-pot proposal, earning Malice Points and enraging his brother.
• The crew discovers that Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye are brothers. Despite the production’s questionable professionalism, the cast decides to continue filming for the time being.
• Filming begins with the male lead, Lin An, a socially anxious shut-in and freelance illustrator who lives in the neighborhood despite knowing it will be demolished. When construction damages his water pipe, his apartment floods.
• The script calls for Auntie Li to visit and help Lin An, introducing him to the warmth of his neighbors. Instead, the actors improvise wildly:
  • Auntie Li uses the burst pipe to wash vegetables.
  • Uncle Wang fills his teapot with the water and drinks it.
  • Another neighbor arrives with shampoo and conditioner to wash his hair.
  • Lin An collects the water to prepare instant noodles.
  • The neighbors turn the disaster into an impromptu hot-pot gathering.
• Shi Zhongye is horrified that the scene has deviated completely from his script, while Shi Jihan quietly attempts to escape responsibility.
• Shi Zhongye chases Shi Jihan around the set. The Zhou brothers help catch him, lifting him off the ground by his arms and mocking him. Shi Zhongye laughs at the spectacle before scolding his brother.
• When the assistant director asks whether filming should continue, investor Zhou Jingcheng orders them to follow the “new script”—the improvised version. He confidently claims that his investment instincts never fail, though the system ominously warns that the production is still endangering Dianjia Bro’s career path.

Character Development

• Shi Jihan: Continues acting as the production’s mischievous troublemaker. He uses humor and deliberate disruption to earn Malice Points, avoids responsibility when the scene goes wrong, and displays a childish but energetic relationship with Shi Zhongye.
• Shi Zhongye: Tries to maintain authority and artistic control but repeatedly loses command of both his brother and the cast. His frustration is balanced by genuine amusement and a willingness to keep filming despite the chaos.
• Lin An/Xiao Yuan: Xiao Yuan initially portrays Lin An as stunned and socially withdrawn. He adapts to the cast’s improvisation by silently joining the absurd situation, collecting water for instant noodles and helping preserve the comedic flow.
• Auntie Li and the neighbors: Their personalities emerge through shameless opportunism. Rather than offering conventional assistance, they exploit the broken pipe for free water, food preparation, tea, and bathing.
• The Zhou brothers: They function as comic foils, teasing Shi Jihan and participating in the chaotic atmosphere. Zhou Jingcheng also asserts his authority as the investor by approving the improvised direction.
• Zhou Jingcheng: His confidence and “investment instincts” make him willing to endorse the unpredictable new version of the scene, despite the system’s warning.

Themes

• Improvisation versus artistic control: The carefully written script collapses as the actors’ spontaneous behavior creates a funnier and more natural scene.
• Absurd communal warmth: Lin An’s first experience of neighborhood kindness is presented through intrusive, shameless, and highly practical neighbors rather than sentimental behavior.
• Family conflict and affection: Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye constantly fight, but their exaggerated arguments and mutual amusement reveal a familiar sibling bond.
• Chaotic production and unintended success: The crew’s incompetence and lack of discipline may be precisely what gives the production its unique comedic charm.
• Career-risk comedy: The system’s warning suggests that the production’s success is dangerous for Dianjia Bro’s intended career trajectory.

Important Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan repeatedly provokes Shi Zhongye during the meeting, prompting his brother to drag him away.
• The cast bonds over their shared willingness to skip work and eat hot pot.
• Auntie Li, Uncle Wang, and the neighbors invade Lin An’s apartment, transforming his plumbing disaster into a communal resource.
• Shi Zhongye tries to restore the scripted scene, but the actors—including Xiao Yuan—continue improvising.
• The Zhou brothers rescue and mock Shi Jihan while Shi Zhongye laughs and reprimands him.
• Zhou Jingcheng overrules Shi Zhongye and orders the crew to continue with the improvised scene, formally validating the production’s chaotic new direction.

Chapter 50 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhou Jingcheng reassures Shi Jihan that the film will succeed, while Shi Jihan continues revising scripts and preventing the actors from preparing scenes in advance.
• Shi Zhongye directs a chaotic scene involving a burst water pipe. Instead of a simple neighborly rescue, the apartment becomes a crowded “water park,” with residents collecting water, washing, and treating the leak like a tourist attraction.
• Lin An’s attempt to roast instant noodles with a lighter ends in disaster and produces a deliberately terrible “cold noodles” joke. Shi Zhongye is horrified by the humor, earning Malice Points.
• The demolition crew arrives, only to find that the residents refuse to leave and are enjoying the “natural spa.” Xiao Yuan is drenched by the neighbor and regrets accepting the role.
• Exhausted from repeatedly filming the chaotic sequence, Shi Zhongye mentally toughens himself and adopts the persona of “Shi Zhongshu: Reborn Plus Enhanced Edition,” believing he has developed maximum emotional defense.
• When lunch is announced, the hungry student stagehands stampede for the boxed meals, consuming supplies at an alarming rate. Shi Zhongye begins worrying that the production budget will not last.
• Shi Jihan secretly approves of the food shortage because it supports his larger plan to expand the use of cheap student labor into costumes, makeup, and set design. He hopes to reduce production costs further, though Zero-Zero-Zero warns that Shi Zhongye may object.
• Zhou Jingcheng reveals that Xiao Yuan’s agent has proposed advertisements featuring Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan. The lucrative deal could solve half the film’s financial problems.
• Although Shi Zhongye initially seems unlikely to accept such a commercial opportunity, he agrees because of the substantial payment. A mission is issued to Shi Jihan: make the advertisements produce the opposite of their intended promotional effect.
• The first luxury off-road vehicle advertisement presents Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan as serious, rugged, high-end figures. Netizens find the commercial strangely formal and inconsistent with the Shi family’s usual image.
• An anonymous editing master then creates a parody using an electric scooter and hot-pot ingredients, transforming the serious commercial into absurd food-delivery propaganda. The parody becomes popular with netizens, who declare that it has the “right flavor.”
• Shi Zhongye sees the parody and struggles to contain his anger. He performs an elaborate “anger-relief exercise,” involving hopping, flapping his arms like a chicken, and waving them like a traffic director.
• Everyone is stunned, while Xiao Yuan hides in embarrassment. Shi Jihan earns a large number of Malice Points from his brother’s humiliation.
• Shi Jihan begins editing the remaining advertisements himself, now fully embracing the opportunity to sabotage their promotional impact.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan continues using absurdity and covert manipulation to earn Malice Points and cut the film’s costs. He becomes increasingly ambitious, hoping to influence not only stagehands but also costumes, makeup, and set design.
• Shi Zhongye develops greater resilience after repeatedly enduring bizarre scenes and humiliating jokes. However, his self-proclaimed emotional defenses are tested when the parody advertisement exposes him to public ridicule.
• Zhou Jingcheng remains calm, practical, and financially focused. He supports the production and becomes someone Shi Jihan considers easier to manipulate than Shi Zhongye.
• Xiao Yuan is repeatedly dragged into humiliating situations, from being soaked on set to starring in a ridiculous parody advertisement. Though embarrassed, his living conditions improve after Shi Zhongye helps him obtain a luxury apartment.
• Zero-Zero-Zero continues encouraging Shi Jihan’s schemes while humorously underestimating their effect on Shi Zhongye.

Significant Themes

• Comedy through escalating absurdity: Ordinary situations, such as a leaking apartment or a car advertisement, spiral into increasingly ridiculous spectacles.
• Art versus commercial survival: The production must balance creative work with financial pressures, leading the characters to accept advertisements and exploit every possible cost-saving measure.
• Public image and parody: The serious luxury advertisement is transformed by online editing into a wildly inappropriate but more popular version, showing how audiences reinterpret media.
• Emotional resilience and humiliation: Shi Zhongye attempts to become immune to embarrassment, but his exaggerated coping mechanisms become another source of comedy.
• Manipulation and hidden intentions: Shi Jihan outwardly supports the film while secretly engineering failures, chaos, and embarrassing situations to gain Malice Points.

Character Interactions

• Zhou Jingcheng encourages Shi Jihan but later helps close his mouth after witnessing Shi Zhongye’s bizarre exercise, suggesting that Shi Jihan may need professional help.
• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye exchange sarcastic remarks over the disastrous noodle joke and the parody advertisement.
• Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Zhongye discuss the lucrative advertising proposal, with Zhou bluntly pointing out that the public already “ships” Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan.
• Shi Jihan conspires with Zero-Zero-Zero to manipulate the production and sabotage the advertisements.
• Xiao Yuan becomes the unwilling partner in Shi Zhongye’s commercials and the target of repeated comedic humiliation, while Shi Zhongye’s reactions provide Shi Jihan with additional Malice Points.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan’s elegant high-end watch commercial—built around opposing images of time moving forward and backward—is released and impresses viewers.
• Shi Jihan retaliates by creating an absurd fan-edit parody. Using his own motion-capture footage and digitally enlarging his head onto Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan’s bodies, he turns the commercial into slapstick comedy:
  • Shi Zhongye runs toward a shrinking store in a suit, Crocs, and a children’s watch while invoking “KFC Crazy Thursday.”
  • Xiao Yuan is crushed and transformed through a crowded subway commute into seaweed, a biscuit, and chewing gum before using the watch to turn back time.
• The parody becomes another viral sensation. Netizens praise the bizarre editing, revisit the family’s older videos, and joke that the Shi family should star in a variety show.
• The watch company and marketing department initially fear the parody will damage sales, but backend data rises sharply. The campaign succeeds through its unconventional publicity, and Shi Jihan receives 18 Malice Points for completing the task “The Reverse Effect of Advertising Promotion.”
• Angry at the mysterious “editing master,” Shi Zhongye begins investigating to uncover their identity, suspecting someone close to him because the editor had access to an old college photo of him and Xiao Yuan. He also continues threatening to deal with Detective Old Wang.
• Shi Jihan catches a cold—or believes he may have—and searches for medicine. After Zhou Zeyang cannot help, he goes to Zhou Jingcheng’s room.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan continues using malicious creativity and outrageous editing to undermine his family’s promotional projects, but his sabotage repeatedly produces even greater publicity and commercial success.
• Shi Zhongye becomes increasingly frustrated and determined to expose the editor. His anger grows so intense that even his usual calming exercise fails.
• Zhou Jingcheng shows increasing affection and physical familiarity toward Shi Jihan. He instinctively pets and scratches him like a small animal, checks his temperature, and flirtatiously invites Shi Jihan to “take advantage” of him.
• Shi Jihan is visibly flustered by Zhou Jingcheng’s advances but responds with playful aggression. Though he initially pretends to be annoyed, he returns to pinch and pull Zhou’s cheeks before fleeing, revealing growing mutual intimacy.
• Zero-Zero-Zero observes that Zhou Jingcheng’s behavior fits the typical confident male-lead archetype and teases Shi Jihan about their developing relationship.

Significant Themes

• Unexpected success through failure and absurdity: What appears to be disastrous advertising becomes highly effective because audiences enjoy its humor and originality.
• The power of internet virality: Memes, fan edits, and repeated public engagement transform a parody into free promotion and strengthen the family’s public presence.
• Comedic inversion: The refined commercial’s theme of luxury and the passage of time is deliberately reversed into ridiculous everyday struggles and impossible visual gags.
• Romantic tension and vulnerability: Physical teasing, embarrassment, and instinctive affection reveal a developing attraction between Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng.
• Public image versus private relationships: The family’s chaotic online reputation contrasts with the increasingly tender, flirtatious interactions taking place behind the scenes.

Character Interactions

• Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan: Their polished commercial partnership is humorously dismantled by Shi Jihan’s parody, while netizens continue treating them as a popular pairing.
• Shi Zhongye and the public: He becomes enraged by the internet’s repeated jokes and viral comments, especially suggestions that the Shi family should make a variety show.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Zeyang: Shi Jihan asks for cold medicine, but Zhou Zeyang dismisses the request, claiming he relies only on “righteous energy” to recover.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng: Their exchange shifts from a simple request for medicine into flirtation and physical intimacy. Zhou touches Shi Jihan’s hair, chin, and forehead, while Shi Jihan accuses him of taking advantage of him before teasingly retaliating by pulling his cheeks. Zhou is left delighted despite the pain, interpreting Shi Jihan’s visit as evidence that he matters to him.

Chapter 51 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhou Jingcheng arrives at the set already irritated after an unpleasant encounter involving Xiaohan and cold medicine. He refuses to hear any “ghost stories” and projects an intensely hostile mood.
• Shi Zhongye tells Xiao Yuan that he has traced the person who edited the bizarre videos. The suspected IP address appears to be located near the filming area, so he plans to investigate and catch the culprit.
• The cast films a comedic scene involving Auntie Li, who falsely predicts sunny weather, and Uncle Wang, whose poor eyesight causes him to mistake people chasing Auntie Li for bizarre “technology.” Cheng Yangguang then tries—and fails—to recruit Auntie Li and a cat into his fitness group.
• Shi Zhongye notices a discarded package containing the same pink children’s watch seen in the videos. The package is addressed to Room A02 and the recipient is “AAA Detective Old Wang.”
• Shi Zhongye realizes that Detective Old Wang—the video editor—is actually Shi Jihan, the only person living in Room A02. He chases Shi Jihan through the village.
• Shi Jihan uses the system’s “Screw You” item and then purchases “Your Legs Are Under My Control” to escape. His legs run at extraordinary speed, leaving Shi Zhongye behind, though his uncontrolled body posture becomes increasingly ridiculous and dangerous.

Character Developments

• Zhou Jingcheng becomes increasingly brooding and resentful, apparently upset by events involving Shi Jihan. His hostility is so obvious that even Shi Jihan worries he may have been too rough with him previously.
• Shi Zhongye remains impulsive, dramatic, and competitive. His confidence in solving the video mystery turns into outrage when he discovers that his own younger brother is responsible.
• Shi Jihan is revealed to be the mysterious “Detective Old Wang” behind the edited videos. He panics when exposed and relies on the system’s questionable mission items to escape.
• Xiao Yuan continues to support Shi Zhongye, even helping him search through the trash, while quietly enduring the absurdity of the situation.
• Zhou Zeyang serves as an amused observer, reacting internally to the strange script and the chaos surrounding the cast.
• Zero-Zero-Zero, Shi Jihan’s system, continues offering absurdly expensive and often inconvenient solutions while remaining oblivious to Shi Jihan’s distrust.

Significant Themes

• Comedic exposure and consequences: Shi Jihan’s secret activities finally catch up with him through a small physical clue—the pink watch and its delivery package.
• Sibling rivalry: The chase highlights the exaggerated competitiveness and mock hostility between Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye.
• Absurdity and improvisation: The chapter repeatedly turns ordinary situations—medicine, filming, fitness, and garbage disposal—into bizarre comedic events.
• Unreliable technology and systems: The IP investigation, the strange video editing, and the system’s dubious powers all create confusion rather than reliable solutions.
• Loss of control: Shi Jihan escapes using supernatural assistance, but the system controls his legs so completely that his body can barely keep up.

Character Interactions

• Zhou Jingcheng responds sarcastically to Zhou Zeyang and deliberately ignores his questions, while Zhou Zeyang tries to understand his sudden bad mood.
• Shi Zhongye attempts to confide in or investigate alongside Xiao Yuan, who supports him even when his methods become ridiculous.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng share an awkward, tense dynamic, with Shi Jihan worrying about Zhou Jingcheng’s resentment.
• Cheng Yangguang comically pressures Auntie Li—and later a cat—to join his fitness group, while both reject his enthusiasm.
• Shi Zhongye discovers Shi Jihan’s identity as Detective Old Wang and pursues him furiously across the village. Shi Jihan uses the system to outrun him, even taunting him and bidding him farewell as he escapes.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan’s newly activated skill causes his legs to run uncontrollably. He charges into a cornfield, trips, and is left exhausted and unable to stand.
• His second brother, Shi Zhongye, catches up with him. Although Shi Zhongye originally intended to confront or punish him, Shi Jihan clings to his leg and begs to be taken home.
• A farmer misinterprets the brothers’ tangled position as an intimate encounter. The misunderstanding devastates Shi Zhongye’s reputation and generates a large number of Malice Points for Shi Jihan.
• Videos of the brothers’ bizarre chase are uploaded online and become popular. Netizens laugh at Shi Jihan’s chaotic running and learn that he edited embarrassing “CP” videos of Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan, giving Shi Zhongye another reason to resent him.
• A forum post catalogues the many people Shi Jihan has supposedly harmed or embarrassed. By the time he returns to the courtyard, he is viewed by nearly everyone as a troublemaker and public enemy.
• During dinner, Shi Jihan sulks over his misfortunes while greedily eating fries. Zhou Jingcheng cheers him up by creating an improvised birthday-like ceremony with a hamburger, candle, ketchup, and the final fry.
• Zhou Jingcheng informs Shi Zhongye that suitable investment for the production has likely been found, so Shi Zhongye will not need to perform outside the production for money.
• The production team’s buyer is resigning. Seeing an opportunity to infiltrate the team, Shi Jihan receives a system mission to bribe the replacement buyer and sabotage efficiency.
• Rather than spend money on bribery, Shi Jihan asks to take over the buyer’s position himself. He considers asking Zhou Jingcheng but becomes embarrassed by memories of their earlier intimate interactions. Instead, he decides to use his insider contact, “Workmate,” to undermine the project from within.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan remains mischievous, shameless, and highly resourceful, but he is also physically vulnerable and easily embarrassed. His instinct is always to turn disasters into opportunities for more mischief.
• Shi Zhongye shifts from anger and revenge to exhausted resignation. The public misunderstanding and Shi Jihan’s clinginess nearly push him to violence, but he ultimately recognizes that dealing with his younger brother is an unavoidable burden.
• Zhou Jingcheng demonstrates a gentler, indulgent side by comforting Shi Jihan with the playful hamburger ceremony. He also acts as a capable producer handling investors and staffing.
• Zero-Zero-Zero is delighted by the chaos Shi Jihan creates and frames his growing collection of enemies as the “empire” of a villainous cannon fodder character.
• The surrounding cast increasingly treats Shi Jihan as a proven source of trouble, while online audiences become more fascinated by his unpredictable behavior.

Significant Themes

• Comedy through misunderstanding: The farmer’s mistaken interpretation of the brothers’ physical struggle turns an ordinary rescue into a humiliating scandal.
• Consequences of mischief: Shi Jihan’s habit of editing and manipulating others’ situations finally creates widespread resentment and public ridicule.
• Family conflict and affection: The brothers insult, threaten, and physically bicker with each other, yet Shi Jihan instinctively relies on Shi Zhongye, revealing underlying familial attachment.
• Reputation and public image: Passersby’s videos and online discussions transform a private incident into entertainment, showing how quickly celebrity scandals spread.
• Self-sabotage and opportunism: Shi Jihan seeks to infiltrate the production team and sabotage its operations, even though he is connected to people who might benefit from its success.
• Unexpected tenderness: Zhou Jingcheng’s small gesture with the hamburger and candle reveals emotional intimacy beneath the chapter’s chaos.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye’s hostile but dependent brotherly relationship dominates the chapter. Their argument becomes physical comedy, especially when Shi Jihan refuses to release Shi Zhongye’s pants.
• The farmer’s misunderstanding causes both brothers to feel mutually humiliated and contaminated by the rumor.
• Netizens turn the incident into a viral spectacle and connect Shi Jihan’s behavior to his earlier schemes involving Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan.
• At dinner, the courtyard residents silently judge Shi Jihan, while Zhou Zeyang and Zhou Jingcheng provide comic contrast over the fries.
• Zhou Jingcheng comforts Shi Jihan, then discusses production business with Shi Zhongye, prompting Shi Jihan to plot his own entry into the team’s management.

Chapter 52 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan urgently contacts Workmate for help after learning that Zhou Jingcheng may lose his position as the production crew’s purchasing manager.
• He asks Workmate to arrange a promotion for himself instead, claiming he wants to “share” Zhou Jingcheng’s burden. Shi Jihan secretly intends to take over the role and cause chaos for the production crew.
• Zhou Jingcheng, misunderstanding Shi Jihan’s motives, believes Shi is concerned about his workload and wants him to take a vacation. He becomes increasingly hopeful about their relationship, even imagining marriage and a shared room for Pizza.
• Zhou Jingcheng goes to the set to investigate what the “new purchasing manager” is doing.
• Shi Jihan immediately disrupts Shi Zhongye’s carefully planned night shoot by encouraging the actors to improvise and follow his altered interpretation of the script.
• The scene depicts residents resisting a forced eviction after the electricity is cut. Lin An, whose character is on the verge of suicide, is interrupted when his eccentric neighbors burst in with lights and drag him to the Neighborhood Committee.
• The production crew smoothly follows Shi Jihan’s changes, transforming the dramatic scene into a chaotic but entertaining sequence involving improvised “superpowers,” a phone flashlight, a stationary bike used to generate electricity, and a mahjong game.
• Shi Zhongye realizes that the production crew is functioning perfectly without his control and suspects he has been sidelined.
• Shi Jihan proudly claims credit for discovering the actors’ talents and continues provoking his second brother.
• The scene ends with Lin An being pulled into helping generate electricity, while his discarded fruit knife is mistaken for a tool to peel an apple, completely defusing the suicide plot.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan: Demonstrates strategic manipulation by using Workmate to obtain the purchasing position, though his plan is disguised as concern for Zhou Jingcheng. On set, he confidently imposes his chaotic creative vision and discovers that the actors perform well when allowed to improvise. He remains shamelessly self-congratulatory and enjoys irritating Shi Zhongye.
• Zhou Jingcheng: Reveals how deeply he has fallen for Shi Jihan. He interprets Shi’s business request as romantic concern, imagines marriage and domestic life, and is briefly puzzled when Shi Jihan mentions “destroying the production crew.”
• Shi Zhongye: Becomes increasingly frustrated and powerless as Shi Jihan hijacks the production. He eventually recognizes that the cast and crew are more comfortable and effective under Shi Jihan’s direction, leaving him feeling displaced.
• Lin An: Begins the scene trapped in depression and contemplating suicide, but is forcibly drawn into the energetic, absurd community around him. His despair is interrupted by the neighbors’ support and comic chaos.
• The supporting cast: The eccentric residents become more engaged and expressive, embracing their roles and improvising enthusiastically.

Significant Themes

• Miscommunication and romantic misunderstanding: Shi Jihan’s practical manipulation is interpreted by Zhou Jingcheng as genuine emotional concern, deepening Zhou’s romantic hopes.
• Chaos versus control: Shi Zhongye’s strict planning is overwhelmed by Shi Jihan’s improvisational approach, which unexpectedly produces a more lively and cohesive performance.
• Community and mutual support: The neighbors’ ridiculous rescue operation prevents Lin An from carrying out his scripted suicide, suggesting that companionship and collective action can pull people out of despair.
• The blending of fiction and reality: The actors’ improvised behavior changes the scene’s meaning, turning a bleak scripted tragedy into a comic demonstration of resilience.
• Self-confidence and shamelessness: Shi Jihan’s exaggerated self-praise contrasts with Shi Zhongye’s frustration and highlights his growing confidence in his own influence.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Workmate/Zhou Jingcheng exchange flirtatious “dear” messages, though they understand the conversation very differently.
• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye clash over control of the production, with Shi Jihan deliberately provoking and humiliating his brother.
• Zhou Jingcheng observes Shi Jihan’s actions from a distance, trying to reconcile them with his belief that Shi cares about him.
• The residents support Lin An through loud, absurd teamwork: Cheng Yangguang rescues him with a powerful light, Brother Zhao and the others restore electricity, and Auntie Li continues playing mahjong amid the chaos.
• Lin An’s attempted suicide is repeatedly interrupted by the neighbors’ enthusiasm, turning a potentially tragic moment into an accidental communal rescue.

Chapter 53 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The power returns after half an hour, prompting everyone to cheer for Auntie Li. Meanwhile, the Demolition Crew has spent the entire night waiting outside the residential complex for the residents to give in.
• Instead of fleeing, the residents spend the night playing mahjong at the neighborhood committee office. The discovery infuriates and confuses the demolition captain, earning Shi Jihan another batch of Malice Points through the system.
• Zhou Jingcheng gives Shi Jihan a new work badge naming him Chief Screenwriter and Lifestyle Producer. Delighted by his newfound authority, Shi Jihan immediately alters the production budget:
  • Raises the food budget to fifty percent.
  • Cuts Shi Zhongye’s salary to one percent.
  • Reduces spending on costumes, makeup, and props.
• Shi Zhongye confronts Zhou Jingcheng about allowing Shi Jihan to sabotage the production. Zhou defends Shi Jihan’s methods, arguing that his schemes consistently produce positive results, including successful advertising campaigns and the reunion of Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan as a working pair.
• The next day, Shi Jihan implements his changes. The production’s costumes, makeup, and props are dramatically altered, to Xiao Yuan’s horror.
• Xiao Yuan is forced to wear ridiculous clothing for a scene involving an online job interview. He appears in a black suit but reveals pink Patrick Star pajama shorts when asked to stand and turn around.
• Xiao Yuan accidentally turns the scene into an extended ballet-like spin, generating large amounts of Malice Points. The interviewer, after recovering from his confusion, hires him—but Xiao Yuan immediately declares that he will not take the job.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan embraces his new position with enthusiasm and uses his authority according to his malicious, self-serving persona. Although his decisions appear destructive, they are framed as efficient cost-cutting and continue to produce entertaining results.
• Zhou Jingcheng demonstrates complete trust in Shi Jihan. He recognizes that Shi Jihan’s troublemaking often benefits the production and privately finds his mischievous behavior endearing.
• Shi Zhongye becomes increasingly exasperated by his brother’s schemes but is forced to admit that Shi Jihan’s interference has repeatedly helped him professionally. His embarrassment also reveals his complicated relationship and unresolved attraction toward Xiao Yuan.
• Xiao Yuan proves remarkably resilient under humiliating circumstances. Despite his embarrassment and reluctance, he commits fully to the improvised performance, accidentally creating a successful comedic scene. His final refusal to accept the job shows his continued discomfort with the situation.
• Xiao Yuan’s manager is horrified by how “energetic” and unpredictable her artist has become, especially after witnessing his pajama-clad ballet performance.
• Auntie Li maintains her modest, low-profile attitude despite being praised for restoring the power.

Significant Themes

• Chaos producing success: Shi Jihan’s seemingly malicious schemes repeatedly create beneficial or entertaining outcomes.
• Authority and self-interest: Given formal power, Shi Jihan prioritizes food and personal revenge—especially by slashing his brother’s salary—while still claiming to be managing responsibly.
• Performance and humiliation: The chapter uses absurd performances, costumes, and misunderstandings to show how characters are pushed into embarrassing situations that unexpectedly advance the production.
• Hidden affection and relationships: Zhou Jingcheng’s indulgent attitude toward Shi Jihan reveals his affection, while the teasing discussion of Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan exposes romantic tension beneath their claims of incompatibility.
• Malice as entertainment and reward: The system turns other characters’ frustration and embarrassment into measurable gains, encouraging Shi Jihan to continue provoking them.

Character Interactions

• Zhou Jingcheng gently gives Shi Jihan his new badge and supports his decisions, while Shi Jihan eagerly exercises his authority.
• Shi Zhongye argues with Zhou over the budget cuts, but Zhou counters by reminding him of the benefits Shi Jihan’s schemes have brought him.
• Zhou embarrasses Shi Zhongye by openly referencing his intimate complaints about Xiao Yuan.
• Shi Jihan forces Xiao Yuan into an outrageous costume and threatens to have Shi Zhongye help remove it, causing Xiao Yuan to seize the clothes in panic.
• Xiao Yuan’s manager watches the disastrous interview scene with Zhou Jingcheng and Shi Zhongye, while Xiao Yuan’s accidental spinning performance leaves everyone—including the interviewer—stunned.

Chapter 54 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan completes his cost- and quality-cutting mission by deliberately giving Xiao Yuan an absurd outfit: a fitted suit jacket paired with Patrick Star shorts and a matching shirt. Xiao Yuan is mortified and hides behind Shi Zhongye.
• The crew’s increased catering budget makes the student stagehands extremely loyal to Shi Jihan, though their internship work has become ridiculous under his “expert” guidance.
• Their continuity notebooks contain physics calculations, statistical graphs, and literary reflections rather than essential production records such as shot numbers, costume details, and props. Shi Zhongye is emotionally devastated and briefly considers becoming a monk.
• Shi Jihan continues reducing expenses by replacing paid extras with chickens from the courtyard, giving them names such as Shi Chicken Roast, Shi Chicken Stew, and Shi Chicken Fry.
• The chapter’s major filming sequence begins: the Demolition Crew launches a nighttime raid on an apartment complex, using plastic bags as disguises and smashing the exterior wall.
• The chickens unexpectedly become actors in the scene. Their frightened reactions—including crowing, flapping, kicking, and laying eggs while fleeing—create chaotic but unintentionally convincing footage.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan grows increasingly confident and mischievous in his role as the crew’s de facto production manager. He takes pride in sabotaging the film’s quality while pretending to feel guilty about deceiving Zhou Jingcheng.
• Shi Zhongye becomes more frustrated as his authority and creative influence are repeatedly undermined. He relies on Xiao Yuan for emotional comfort and feels trapped between his brother’s antics and Zhou Jingcheng’s financial expectations.
• Xiao Yuan is portrayed as extremely socially anxious and humiliated by the ridiculous costume. He uses Shi Zhongye as a source of comfort and protection.
• Zhou Jingcheng remains an amused observer of the chaos, maintaining his domineering CEO persona while refusing Shi Jihan’s offer of cheap novelty pajamas.
• The student stagehands become devoted to Shi Jihan because of the improved food budget, despite the increasingly useless and eccentric nature of their work.
• The chickens are humorously elevated from livestock to “actors,” with Shi Jihan evaluating them based on their imagined culinary value and performance potential.

Significant Themes

• Deliberate low-budget filmmaking: The chapter satirizes cost-cutting production methods by showing Shi Jihan replacing proper costumes, extras, records, and effects with cheap clothing, students, and chickens.
• Subversion of professional roles: Shi Jihan increasingly performs the director’s and production manager’s duties, leaving Shi Zhongye sidelined and powerless.
• Absurdity and inversion: Academic students apply serious scientific and literary analysis to trivial filmmaking details, while animals are used as cast members.
• Friendship and emotional support amid chaos: Xiao Yuan and Shi Zhongye comfort one another as fellow victims of Shi Jihan’s schemes.
• False conscience and self-justification: Shi Jihan claims to feel guilty about deceiving Zhou Jingcheng, but immediately continues sabotaging the production, making his remorse comic and insincere.

Character Interactions

• Shi Zhongye sympathizes with Xiao Yuan’s embarrassment, while Xiao Yuan leans on him for comfort. Their interaction establishes them as fellow sufferers under Shi Jihan’s control.
• Zhou Jingcheng mocks their public embrace, and Shi Jihan joins in, turning the situation into a spectacle.
• Shi Jihan repeatedly pressures Zhou Jingcheng to wear the cheap pajamas, but the CEO firmly refuses.
• The students enthusiastically praise Shi Jihan’s guidance and catering decisions, while Shi Zhongye silently suffers through their disastrous continuity notes.
• Shi Zhongye asks Xiao Yuan for emotional support after reading the notebooks; Xiao Yuan responds by suggesting that he become a monk.
• During the nighttime shoot, Shi Zhongye tries to reclaim his authority with the megaphone, but Shi Jihan continues making jokes and directing the production. The scene then devolves into chaos when the frightened chickens react dramatically to the demolition raid.

Chapter 55 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• During a nighttime filming session, Shi Jihan uses chickens as substitute actors to create dramatic “alarm” scenes. Shi Chicken Stir-Fry loudly alerts the entire neighborhood, while Shi Chicken Roast pretends to be dead.
• The Demolition Crew realizes the chickens were deliberately locked up as bait, but their attempt to demolish the wall is interrupted when the apartment residents awaken and activate the cultivation formation’s alarm.
• Lin An appears behind the Demolition Crew captain, frightening him so badly that he seemingly shatters and has to reassemble himself. The captain retreats but threatens to return the next morning.
• At the neighborhood entrance, the committee director declares that Lin An possesses a mental-defense superpower because he drove the captain away. He invites Lin An to join the Superpowered Neighborhood Committee and asks him to choose a codename.
• Lin An sarcastically says “Your mom,” which the director interprets literally, officially introducing him as the committee’s newest member, Lin Your-Mom.
• After filming, Shi Jihan notices Zhou Jingcheng waiting for him. Feeling guilty for replacing the original extras with chickens, he buys Zhou a scarf as an apology, though he struggles greatly with the expense.
• Zhou invites Shi Jihan home for late-night oden. Shi Jihan immediately abandons his guilt and rushes back to eat.
• Shi Jihan convinces Zero-Zero-Zero to submit a report to the Main System claiming that he has improved the production crew’s cost efficiency. The system rewards him with Malice Points and issues a stage task involving further cost reduction and efficiency improvements.
• He obtains Lin An’s comic manuscript by helping a child with her homework, earning another reward. However, Shi Jihan cannot solve the homework himself and outsources it to Zhou Jingcheng.
• Zhou gives absurd answers to the questions, including “diabetes” for a candy-counting problem, leading the child to conclude that neither adult is especially intelligent. Shi Jihan defensively explains that Zhou has “something wrong with his brain,” prompting Zhou to jokingly threaten to hold his breath until Shi admits he is smart.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan continues to display creativity, shamelessness, and a talent for exploiting situations for rewards. He also shows a begrudging conscience, feeling guilty about using chickens in place of the original actors and purchasing a more expensive scarf for Zhou despite his obsession with saving money.
• Lin An gains an official identity within the neighborhood’s superhero organization, though his sarcastic attitude results in the humiliating codename “Lin Your-Mom.”
• Zhou Jingcheng remains patient and caring, waiting for Shi Jihan, preparing food for him, and helping with the child’s homework. His deadpan, nonsensical answers reveal his playful side.
• Zero-Zero-Zero acts as Shi Jihan’s observer and critic, repeatedly pointing out the contradictions between Shi’s supposed guilt and his actual behavior.
• The Demolition Crew captain becomes increasingly frustrated and frightened by the residents and Lin An, transforming from an aggressor into a comically defeated nuisance.

Significant Themes

• Absurdity and parody: Superpowers, demolition battles, chickens, and neighborhood activism are treated with exaggerated seriousness for comic effect.
• Cost-cutting and opportunism: Shi Jihan turns nearly every interaction into a way to reduce production costs or earn Malice Points.
• Guilt versus selfishness: Shi Jihan recognizes when he has hurt or inconvenienced others, but his guilt is quickly overtaken by food, rewards, or financial concerns.
• Community resistance: The neighborhood residents unite against the Demolition Crew, turning ordinary residents and chickens into an improvised superhero defense force.
• Affection expressed through comedy: Zhou’s waiting, cooking, and willingness to help contrast with Shi Jihan’s awkward attempts to apologize and show care.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Shi Zhongye argue humorously over whether the chickens’ acting is convincing.
• The Demolition Crew clashes with the residents, Shi Chicken Stir-Fry, and Lin An, whose sudden appearance terrifies the captain.
• The neighborhood director recruits Lin An and enthusiastically assigns him his unwanted codename.
• Shi Jihan teases Xiao Yuan with the same “Your-Mom” joke, earning more Malice Points.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng share a domestic, affectionate exchange over the scarf, late-night food, and homework.
• Shi Jihan, Zhou, and the child create a comic tutoring scene in which Zhou’s ridiculous answers expose the chaotic intelligence of both adults.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan teases Zhou Jingcheng about suppressing his anger, then shamelessly flatters him by claiming his 707 exam score proves he is more brilliant than Einstein, Newton, and Edison. Zhou is pleased despite recognizing the absurdity.
• Shi Jihan and Zhou return to the film set, where a flock of aggressive geese has invaded, stolen food, and attacked the crew. The two flee alongside the stagehands.
• During the chaotic chase, Shi Jihan slips. Zhou catches him, but Shi Jihan’s oversized wooden spoon flies through the air and strikes Shi Zhongshu Tu on the head.
• Shi Zhongye attempts to manage the disorganized production, revealing that the film lacks proper continuity records. Shi Jihan impresses everyone by accurately recalling detailed positions, costumes, and props from an earlier scene.
• Shi Zhongye assigns Shi Jihan the enormous task of reconstructing tens of thousands of words of continuity logs, trapping him in a small room to work.
• With Zero-Zero-Zero’s help, Shi Jihan begins copying the records, but his laptop keyboard eventually breaks.
• He borrows Zhou Jingcheng’s laptop. Zhou gives it to him without hesitation, demonstrating complete trust.
• Shi Jihan feels guilty about exploiting Zhou’s trust and resolves to repay him with a scarf, viewing it as a symbolic apology.
• Zhou becomes particularly satisfied upon learning that he was the first person Shi Jihan asked to borrow a laptop from. Later, Zhou even feels less irritated by Zhou Zeyang, partly because he believes he has received special treatment.
• Shi Jihan struggles to work on Zhou’s laptop because endless corporate messages keep appearing, giving him a clearer sense of how demanding Zhou’s CEO responsibilities are.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan: Remains mischievous, greedy, and irreverent, but shows increasing awareness of his own selfish behavior. His guilt over Zhou’s trust suggests growing concern for Zhou’s feelings. He also reveals an exceptional memory and observational ability.
• Zhou Jingcheng: Continues to enjoy Shi Jihan’s teasing and appears increasingly invested in being treated as special. His unquestioning trust and satisfaction at being Shi Jihan’s first choice reveal his growing attachment.
• Shi Zhongye: Acts as a harsh but practical director and older brother. He exploits Shi Jihan’s talents for the production while openly treating him as a source of labor.
• Zero-Zero-Three: Supports Shi Jihan by preparing the continuity records but also mocks him, emphasizing that his current suffering is deserved.
• The assistant director and crew: Initially overwhelmed by the chaotic production, they quickly recognize Shi Jihan’s usefulness once he demonstrates his memory.

Significant Themes

• Trust and guilt: Zhou’s unquestioning willingness to lend his laptop makes Shi Jihan confront how much he has taken advantage of Zhou.
• Affection expressed through small privileges: Zhou’s concern about being the first person Shi Jihan asked for help reveals how emotionally meaningful minor signs of preference have become.
• Chaos versus competence: The set is comically disorganized, yet Shi Jihan’s remarkable memory provides an unexpected form of stability.
• Workplace absurdity and exploitation: The crew’s lack of records and Shi Jihan’s crushing workload satirize dysfunctional production environments.
• Food and greed as comedy: Shi Jihan’s hunger repeatedly drives the humor, from defending lunch boxes against geese to using an enormous spoon.

Character Interactions

• Shi Jihan and Zhou Jingcheng exchange exaggerated praise, mock accusations, and playful teasing, displaying their increasingly comfortable dynamic.
• Zhou protects Shi Jihan when he slips, while Shi Jihan unintentionally injures Shi Zhongshu Tu with the flying spoon.
• Shi Zhongye turns Shi Jihan’s useful memory into compulsory labor, forcing him to create continuity logs.
• Shi Jihan and Zero-Zero-Three banter throughout the work, with the system both assisting and ridiculing him.
• Zhou’s trust affects Shi Jihan emotionally, while Zhou’s jealousy and satisfaction over being chosen first reveal his growing attachment to Shi Jihan.

Chapter 56 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Shi Jihan discovers that Zhou Jingcheng’s computer is still logged into three WeChat accounts. While trying to log out, he accidentally opens chats revealing that Zhou’s “small account” is actually the account connected to Shi Jihan’s embarrassing past scheme involving fake photos, AAA Detective Old Wang, Pizza, and Workmate.
• Secretary Sun contacts Zhou’s accounts, causing Shi Jihan to panic. In his confusion, Shi accidentally video-calls Secretary Sun for two seconds, leaving a record that cannot be erased from Zhou’s side.
• Zhou realizes that Shi has discovered the accounts and immediately goes to check on him. Shi locks himself in his room behind a sign forbidding Zhou and others from entering, desperately trying to avoid the confrontation.
• To return Zhou’s laptop without facing him directly, Shi disguises himself in a black plastic bag with eyeholes and presents the computer like an offering. Zhou accepts the ridiculous disguise but forces Shi to acknowledge the real issue: Shi’s discovery of his accounts and his previous deception.
• Shi attempts to distract Zhou by offering him an honorary position in the Shi Group. Zhou rejects the offer, making clear that the title is not what matters. He instead focuses on Shi personally, pinching and gently twisting his cheek through the plastic bag.
• Afterward, Shi becomes unusually quiet and industrious, spending his time revising the script and completing shooting logs. Shi Zhongye suspects he is secretly planning something, though Xiao Yuan points out that script revision may no longer count as mischief.

Character Developments

• Shi Jihan: His usual confidence collapses into extreme embarrassment and avoidance once he realizes Zhou knows about his fake dating photo and online deception. He uses increasingly absurd methods—hiding, pretending to be an AI assistant, and wearing a plastic bag—to evade direct communication. However, Zhou’s physical affection leaves him flustered and reflective, suggesting he is beginning to recognize the emotional significance of their interactions.
• Zhou Jingcheng: He remains calm, observant, and amused by Shi’s antics. Rather than punishing or exposing him, Zhou approaches him directly and gently presses him to confront the real issue. His cheek-pinching shows growing intimacy and affection, even though he cannot yet explain his feelings clearly.
• Zero-Zero-Zero: The system continues mocking Shi and providing embarrassing reminders of his past actions. Its teasing intensifies Shi’s panic, but it also acts as a humorous commentary on his emotional denial.
• Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan: Their brief exchange highlights how Shi Jihan’s behavior appears suspicious even when he is doing something productive. Xiao Yuan provides a more practical perspective on the situation.

Significant Themes

• Embarrassment and avoidance: Shi’s elaborate attempts to hide illustrate his inability to face the consequences of his actions or speak honestly with Zhou.
• Identity and hidden selves: Zhou’s multiple accounts expose the gap between public identities and private behavior, while Shi’s disguises literalize his desire to conceal himself.
• Growing intimacy: Despite the comedic situation, Zhou’s concern and physical affection reveal increasing emotional closeness between the two.
• Communication versus deflection: Shi repeatedly changes the subject or offers material compensation, while Zhou insists that the emotional issue—not money, titles, or practical benefits—is what matters.
• Comedy as emotional cover: The absurd humor masks genuine tension and romantic uncertainty between the characters.

Character Interactions

• Shi and Zero-Zero-Zero share a frantic, sarcastic exchange as they process the discovery of Zhou’s accounts.
• Shi accidentally creates an awkward work interaction with Secretary Sun through the two-second video call.
• Zhou and Shi have a tense but playful confrontation at the bedroom door and later in Zhou’s room. Zhou teases Shi, confiscates his phone, challenges his evasions, and touches his cheek, leaving Shi confused and emotionally affected.
• Shi Zhongye and Xiao Yuan discuss Shi Jihan’s suspiciously quiet behavior, providing a humorous outside perspective on his recent change.