Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary — Page 41

Key Plot Points and Events

• Koukou becomes distracted while drinking milk and tries to play, but Xu Han scolds him and makes him finish. Afterward, she puts him to bed under a quilt made by Grandma Qiao.
• Xu Han goes outside to deal with Tan Xin, who is visiting with her brother, Tan Yue. Tan Xin tries to play with Yellow Immortal, but the cat escapes to the roof and ignores her.
• Tan Xin repeatedly steers the conversation toward Koukou, clearly trying to discover the identity of his father. Xu Han recognizes her intentions and attempts to redirect her.
• Xu Han invites the visitors to pick vegetables. Tan Xin eagerly joins her, while Tan Yue remains occupied with his phone.
• In the garden, Tan Xin admires Xu Han’s rural lifestyle and beautiful produce. When she asks whether Xu Han’s husband helps with the farm, Xu Han invents a tragic story: her husband cheated during her pregnancy, causing their separation.
• Tan Xin is embarrassed and stops questioning her. Xu Han privately congratulates herself for successfully avoiding the subject of Koukou’s father.
• Gu Yanqing unexpectedly arrives at Xu Han’s home with Yuan Yuan, following Tan Yue’s SUV. His arrival creates an awkward gathering involving Xu Han, Tan Xin, Tan Yue, Yuan Yuan, and Gu Siqiao.
• Gu Yanqing has come to escape the unwanted visitors and pressures associated with his wealthy family during the year-end season. He also hopes Yuan Yuan’s affection for Xu Han will help him grow closer to her.
• Tan Xin is shocked by Gu Yanqing’s arrival. Her suspicions intensify because Koukou resembles him and because of the earlier news report about a baby-related incident. She begins to wonder whether Gu Yanqing has secretly fathered a child.

Character Development

• Xu Han shows resourcefulness and quick thinking. She successfully deflects Tan Xin’s probing questions by inventing a painful marital history, though she performs the story so convincingly that it nearly appears genuine.
• Koukou demonstrates growing understanding of human speech and obedience, suggesting that his intelligence and awareness are developing.
• Tan Xin is portrayed as sociable, curious, and increasingly suspicious. Her interest in Koukou is not casual; she is actively investigating his relationship to Gu Yanqing.
• Gu Yanqing reveals that he is annoyed by the social demands surrounding his family’s status. His decision to visit Xu Han also shows that he is deliberately seeking opportunities to become closer to her.
• Yellow Immortal remains aloof and independent, avoiding Tan Xin’s attempts to play with him.

Significant Themes

• Secrecy and suspicion: Xu Han continues hiding Koukou’s true parentage, while Tan Xin gathers clues suggesting a connection between Koukou and Gu Yanqing.
• Improvisation and self-protection: Xu Han uses a fabricated story about marital betrayal to protect her secret and control the conversation.
• Rural simplicity versus urban wealth: Tan Xin romanticizes Xu Han’s farming life, while Gu Yanqing’s arrival highlights his wealthy, socially burdensome background.
• Family and hidden relationships: Koukou’s resemblance to Gu Yanqing and Gu Yanqing’s interest in Xu Han hint at an undisclosed family connection.
• Social awkwardness and romantic tension: The unexpected arrival of Gu Yanqing turns a relatively controlled visit into a potentially explosive encounter.

Character Interactions

• Xu Han disciplines and cares for Koukou, displaying a maternal but practical relationship with him.
• Tan Xin tries to befriend Yellow Immortal and later chats with Xu Han while secretly probing into her family situation.
• Xu Han and Tan Xin exchange polite conversation, but Xu Han internally resists Tan Xin and carefully manages her questions.
• Xu Han and Tan Yue interact through the vegetable-picking arrangement; Tan Yue is quiet and businesslike, while Xu Han tries to keep him and Tan Xin occupied.
• Gu Yanqing’s arrival catches Tan Xin off guard and threatens to expose the connection she suspects between him and Koukou.
• The chapter ends with Tan Xin staring at Gu Yanqing, increasingly convinced that he may be Koukou’s father.

Chapter Summary: Fooling the Little Male Lead

Key Plot Points and Events

• Tan Xin, who has renewed feelings for Gu Yanqing, becomes uneasy about the resemblance between Gu Yanqing and Yuan Yuan. Though she trusts Gu Yanqing’s character, she wants to learn the truth about the child’s parentage.
• Instead of questioning Gu Yanqing directly, Tan Yue suggests asking Yuan Yuan’s mother, Qiao Wanqing. The siblings visit Xu Han’s home under the excuse of buying vegetables.
• Qiao Wanqing’s explanation that her husband cheated during her pregnancy reassures Tan Xin that Gu Yanqing is unlikely to be Yuan Yuan’s irresponsible father.
• Gu Yanqing arrives and immediately reacts coldly to the Tan siblings. Tan Yue provokes him, and the two exchange sarcastic remarks and accusations about each other’s character.
• Xu Han withdraws to wash vegetables, deliberately avoiding the tense confrontation. Gu Yanqing sends Yuan Yuan with her.
• While washing cherry radishes, Xu Han gives Yuan Yuan a cucumber. The child enjoys it and becomes curious about Yellow Immortal, the household weasel.
• Xu Han jokingly tells Yuan Yuan that Yellow Immortal can grant wishes. Yuan Yuan earnestly wishes for his parents to stop fighting, avoid divorce, take him home, and give him a younger sibling.

Character Developments

• Tan Xin: Her old feelings for Gu Yanqing are returning, and she reveals a possessive side. However, she remains cautious and does not want to anger him.
• Tan Yue: He acts protectively toward his sister and openly challenges Gu Yanqing, creating immediate hostility between them.
• Gu Yanqing: He remains cold and guarded, especially around the Tan siblings. His sharp responses suggest deep distrust of Tan Yue.
• Xu Han: She continues viewing events with detached, humorous awareness of the novel’s plot. Despite knowing Yuan Yuan is the male lead, she genuinely likes him because of his innocence and good manners.
• Yuan Yuan: His innocent wish reveals how deeply affected he is by his parents’ conflict and his separation from them.
• Qiao Wanqing: Her account of marital betrayal indirectly clears Gu Yanqing of Tan Xin’s suspicions.

Significant Themes

• Misunderstanding and suspicion: Tan Xin’s uncertainty about Yuan Yuan’s identity drives the chapter’s opening conflict.
• Pride and rivalry: Tan Yue and Gu Yanqing’s verbal battle reflects their mutual distrust and competitive personalities.
• Childhood innocence amid family dysfunction: Yuan Yuan remains sweet and well-behaved despite his parents’ troubled marriage.
• Fate versus changed circumstances: Xu Han recalls the original novel’s tragic setup for Yuan Yuan but recognizes that her presence may alter his expected miserable future.
• Maternal affection: Xu Han’s growing fondness for Yuan Yuan shows how her new role as a mother has changed her emotional perspective.

Character Interactions

• Tan Xin and Tan Yue discuss how to uncover the truth about Yuan Yuan.
• Tan Yue and Gu Yanqing trade mocking remarks, nearly escalating into a confrontation.
• Xu Han avoids the adults’ conflict while caring for Yuan Yuan.
• Xu Han explains cherry radishes and gives Yuan Yuan a cucumber, strengthening their warm, playful bond.
• Yuan Yuan interacts with Yellow Immortal and expresses his heartfelt hope for family reconciliation.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Xu Han recalls Yuan Yuan’s tragic childhood: his parents neglected him, leaving him in a nanny’s care, where he suffered abuse and poor treatment until age three.
• Gu Yanqing discovers the abuse, reprimands Yuan Yuan’s parents, and eventually takes Yuan Yuan in after realizing they will not change. When they divorce and Yuan Yuan’s father remarries, Gu Yanqing adopts Yuan Yuan and raises him as his heir.
• Despite his painful upbringing, Yuan Yuan still wishes for his parents to reconcile, revealing his continued longing for parental love.
• Xu Han comforts him by promising that “Yellow Immortal” will help fulfill his wish. Yuan Yuan then wishes for Gu Yanqing to find a beautiful, gentle wife who will give him a cute younger brother.
• Gu Yanqing overhears the conversation and humorously plays along, affirming that Yellow Immortal is effective.
• Gu Yanqing helps Xu Han carry vegetables intended for Tan Yue and advises her to charge him more. He also checks whether Tan Yue and the others caused trouble for Xu Han or Koukou.
• Xu Han probes Gu Yanqing about his conversation with Miss Tan, hoping for dramatic conflict, but he reveals that the meeting was uneventful.

Character developments

• Yuan Yuan: His history explains his frailty and emotional attachment to his neglectful parents. His wishes show both his innocence and his strong desire for a loving, complete family.
• Gu Yanqing: He is established as Yuan Yuan’s true protector and parental figure. His teasing cooperation with Xu Han and his practical concern for her safety reveal a warmer, more attentive side.
• Xu Han: She becomes emotionally sympathetic toward Yuan Yuan and implicitly imagines giving him a happy family. Her interactions with Gu Yanqing remain playful and increasingly suggest mutual awareness, though she tries to hide her curiosity and embarrassment.

Significant themes

• Found family and parental love: Gu Yanqing’s care is contrasted with Yuan Yuan’s biological parents’ neglect.
• Childhood trauma and longing: Even abused children may continue craving affection from their parents.
• Healing through care: Xu Han and Gu Yanqing offer Yuan Yuan emotional warmth and stability.
• Romantic and comic tension: Yuan Yuan’s innocent wish for Gu Yanqing to marry someone like Xu Han indirectly highlights the possibility of their relationship.

Character interactions

• Xu Han reassures Yuan Yuan and indulges his wishes, while internally criticizing his parents and questioning his idealization of them.
• Gu Yanqing overhears Xu Han and Yuan Yuan, humorously validates the weasel’s supposed powers, and shares a knowing look with Xu Han.
• Gu Yanqing helps Xu Han with her vegetables, banters with her about pricing, and discreetly checks on her safety.
• Xu Han tries to uncover conflict between Gu Yanqing and Miss Tan, but her probing nearly exposes her knowledge of the original novel.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Gu Yanqing hints that he and Xu Han may be a “perfect match,” but Xu Han dismisses him and tells him to leave.
• Koukou wakes up, interrupting the awkward exchange. Xu Han changes him and lets him play freely, while Gu Yanqing watches.
• Koukou enthusiastically babbles “bababa” when he sees Gu Yanqing. Gu Yanqing happily interprets this as Koukou calling him “Daddy,” though Xu Han insists it is merely a baby’s natural syllable repetition.
• Since Gu Yanqing, the Tan siblings, and Grandma Qiao remain for lunch, Xu Han prepares duck blood vermicelli soup for everyone. Although the meal is delicious, the guests eat with complicated emotions.
• Tan Xin privately questions Xu Han about Koukou and her relationship with Gu Yanqing. Xu Han clarifies that she and Gu Yanqing were not married and divorced; their only current connection is that they share a child.
• Tan Xin leaves disappointed after Gu Yanqing ignores her while playing with Koukou.
• After the Tan siblings depart, Tan Yue apologizes to Xu Han for betraying her trust by helping Gu Yanqing. He offers his assistance if she ever needs anything, despite not understanding her circumstances.

Character Developments

• Xu Han: Remains guarded and determined to preserve her peaceful life. She avoids Gu Yanqing’s romantic implications and deliberately gives Tan Xin a blunt, minimal explanation of their relationship. She also worries about disrupting the original story’s plot and tries to steer events back toward their expected course.
• Gu Yanqing: Becomes increasingly interested in Xu Han and delighted by Koukou’s apparent attachment to him. His happiness at possibly being called “Daddy” reveals his emotional investment in the child and his desire for a closer family connection.
• Koukou: Shows normal developmental growth, including playing with his feet and experimenting with sounds. His enthusiastic reaction to Gu Yanqing strengthens Gu Yanqing’s belief that they share a father-son bond.
• Tan Xin: Directly confronts Xu Han about her relationship with Gu Yanqing, but leaves discouraged when Gu Yanqing gives her no attention.
• Tan Yue: Recognizes that using Xu Han for Gu Yanqing’s benefit was unfair and apologizes, showing some loyalty and concern toward Xu Han.

Significant Themes

• Unwanted romantic pressure: Xu Han resists Gu Yanqing’s attempts to move closer to her, emphasizing the tension between his growing feelings and her desire for distance.
• Family and emotional bonds: Gu Yanqing’s joy over Koukou’s babbling suggests his developing attachment to the child and his longing for recognition as a father.
• Maintaining the original plot: Xu Han remains conscious that she has entered a fictional story and fears that changing the established relationships may cause unforeseen consequences.
• Trust and betrayal: Tan Yue acknowledges that he compromised his friendship with Xu Han by helping Gu Yanqing, while his apology begins to repair that trust.
• Misunderstood relationships: Outsiders assume Xu Han and Gu Yanqing are romantically involved because of Koukou’s resemblance to him, while Xu Han insists that their connection is only co-parenting.

Character Interactions

• Xu Han rebuffs Gu Yanqing’s teasing and romantic suggestion.
• Gu Yanqing eagerly holds Koukou, interpreting the baby’s “bababa” as a possible first call of “Daddy.”
• Xu Han and Tan Xin have a direct but restrained conversation about Koukou and Gu Yanqing.
• Tan Xin’s attempts to gain Gu Yanqing’s attention fail as he focuses entirely on Koukou.
• Tan Yue apologizes to Xu Han and offers future support, creating a more respectful understanding between them.

Chapter Summary

Plot Points and Events

• The Tan siblings leave after the day’s uncomfortable visit, with Tan Yue politely wishing Xu Han a happy New Year.
• Back in the yard, Xu Han finds Gu Yanqing feeding Koukou carrot-and-fish puree while Grandma Qiao cleans up vegetable leaves for the chickens and geese.
• Xu Han reflects humorously on the animals: the chickens have begun laying natural eggs, while the aggressive geese remain locked up, and she considers slaughtering the worst-behaved one for New Year’s.
• Yuan Yuan helps distract Koukou so Gu Yanqing can feed him. Xu Han initially wonders why Gu Yanqing and Yuan Yuan have not left, but Gu Yanqing reveals that he recently moved his office to C City and will remain there during the vacation.
• Xu Han notices that Gu Yanqing is unexpectedly patient and skilled with children, softening her previous impression of him as an aloof, spoiled heir.
• Gu Yanqing warns Xu Han to keep her distance from Tan Yue, claiming he will not harm her. Xu Han defends Tan Yue, pointing out that he helped her find a profitable use for her vegetables.
• Gu Yanqing becomes competitive and insists that she consult him about business in the future. Although he admits Tan Yue may be more experienced in small-business dealings, he promises to help Xu Han find a path to prosperity.
• Xu Han teasingly accepts him as her “teacher,” looking forward to his guidance.

Character Developments

• Xu Han: Continues trying to increase the favorability of the book’s characters now that they keep appearing in her life. She remains wary of Tan Yue but acknowledges his business ability. She also becomes more aware of Gu Yanqing’s gentler, domestic side and deliberately teases him.
• Gu Yanqing: Reveals patience, tenderness, and competence as a father figure while feeding Koukou. His concern for Xu Han becomes more obvious through his warning about Tan Yue and his offer to help her financially and commercially. His jealousy and competitiveness surface when Xu Han praises Tan Yue.
• Tan Yue: Though absent for most of the chapter, he is characterized as clever and commercially minded, but potentially calculating and willing to sacrifice friendships for his interests.
• Yuan Yuan and Koukou: Yuan Yuan acts as a playful helper during feeding, while Koukou remains easily distracted and dependent on the adults around him.

Significant Themes

• Trust and divided loyalties: Xu Han struggles to judge whether Tan Yue is genuinely helpful or merely self-interested, while Gu Yanqing urges her to trust him instead.
• Hidden sides of people: Gu Yanqing’s gentle behavior with children contrasts sharply with his usual intimidating image.
• Competition and jealousy: Gu Yanqing’s reaction to Xu Han’s praise of Tan Yue hints at romantic rivalry and a desire to prove his value.
• Building a new life: Xu Han’s gardens, livestock, and business opportunities symbolize her gradual establishment of an independent and prosperous life within the world of the book.
• Perception and narrative bias: Xu Han questions the book’s portrayal of characters, recognizing that its “villains” may simply be presented from the male lead’s perspective.

Character Interactions

• Gu Yanqing patiently feeds Koukou by using Yuan Yuan’s teasing to distract him from the disliked carrot puree.
• Xu Han observes and reassesses Gu Yanqing’s relationship with the children.
• Gu Yanqing warns Xu Han about Tan Yue, while Xu Han counters by praising Tan Yue’s business insight.
• Their disagreement develops into playful competition, ending with Xu Han jokingly accepting Gu Yanqing as her business mentor.

Chapter Summary: “Getting Sick (Sweet)”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Koukou eats only a small amount of carrot-and-fish purée but has eaten enough, so Xu Han lets him play on his soft crawling mat.
• Koukou crawls toward toys and laughs happily, showing his growing mobility and cheerful personality.
• Xu Han notices how well Koukou and Yuan Yuan’s son get along, despite knowing that the original story eventually turns the two boys into enemies. She blames the author’s plot for their future conflict.
• The farmhouse restaurant successfully adopts Xu Han’s produce-selling method, causing its fresh vegetables and fruit to sell well and increasing Xu Han’s profits.
• Xu Han negotiates firmly with Boss Cai, demanding a price forty percent above market value. When Boss Cai tries to pressure her into lowering the price, Xu Han withholds the next delivery to prove that she has the stronger bargaining position.
• Boss Cai ultimately accepts the higher price in exchange for exclusive rights to resell Xu Han’s fresh vegetables and fruit in town. Xu Han agrees but deliberately excludes her dried fruit and vegetable snacks from the arrangement.
• With the restaurant as a reliable outlet, Xu Han will waste far less of her homegrown produce. However, delivery becomes difficult because of winter weather, the restaurant’s distance, limited transportation in the village, and inflated holiday truck fees.
• To avoid losing most of her profits to a driver, Xu Han delivers the produce herself by electric scooter, making separate trips for durable goods and perishables.
• After only one day of this exhausting schedule, Xu Han develops a cold. Worried about taking medicine while breastfeeding, she plans to visit a clinic in town for advice.
• Grandma Qiao helps harvest and pack the vegetables and worries about Xu Han’s worsening condition. Xu Han insists on continuing for the time being but admits they should eventually buy a tricycle.
• Despite feeling ill and sweating with fever, Xu Han completes two delivery trips and asks Grandma Qiao to help with the remaining work while she rests.

Character Developments

• Xu Han: Demonstrates growing confidence and business savvy by refusing to be exploited by Boss Cai and using her unique produce supply as leverage. She remains practical and hardworking, but her willingness to overextend herself reveals her strong sense of responsibility and concern for the family’s finances.
• Koukou: Shows physical and emotional development as he learns to crawl, eagerly follows toys, and laughs proudly at his progress.
• Boss Cai: Initially attempts to negotiate aggressively, but recognizes Xu Han’s advantage and accepts her terms. Their relationship becomes a more formal business partnership.
• Grandma Qiao: Acts as a caring and supportive elder, helping Xu Han with the harvest and expressing concern over her health.
• Yuan Yuan’s son and Koukou: Their affectionate interaction contrasts with the hostile relationship they are destined to have in the original storyline.

Significant Themes

• Business independence and negotiation: Xu Han refuses to undervalue her rare produce and successfully establishes more favorable terms with Boss Cai.
• Hard work versus self-care: Xu Han’s determination to maximize profits leads her to ignore her physical limits, resulting in illness.
• Family care and support: Grandma Qiao’s assistance and concern highlight the importance of family solidarity.
• Fate versus personal relationships: The boys’ innocent friendship conflicts with the future rivalry dictated by the original novel, emphasizing the tension between natural affection and predetermined plot events.
• Resourcefulness: Xu Han adapts to transportation problems, winter conditions, and market demands by organizing deliveries around battery life and product durability.

Chapter Summary

Plot and Events

• Xu Han, weakened by a cold and exhaustion, struggles to pack vegetables for delivery with Grandma Qiao. Though she insists she is fine, her poor condition is obvious.
• Gu Yanqing unexpectedly arrives at the village with Yuan Yuan. He notices Xu Han’s symptoms, checks her forehead, and insists she go to the hospital instead of delivering vegetables alone.
• Xu Han refuses to stop working, so Gu Yanqing silently helps her pack the cabbages. He also advises her to hire assistance rather than overwork herself.
• Yellow Immortal alerts Xu Han and Grandma Qiao that Koukou has awakened. Xu Han returns home, washes up, changes clothes, and wears a mask to avoid infecting the baby.
• Koukou initially fails to recognize his heavily bundled mother, but quickly responds happily when he hears her voice. After feeding and changing him, Xu Han brings him outside.
• Koukou becomes especially excited upon hearing Gu Yanqing’s voice and eagerly reaches for him. Gu Yanqing takes the child and reveals that he has already loaded the vegetables into his car. He orders Xu Han to change clothes so they can go to town together and see a doctor.

Character Development

• Xu Han: Demonstrates her strong sense of responsibility and determination to provide for Koukou, even while ill. However, her exhaustion and willingness to accept Gu Yanqing’s help show that she is reaching her limits. She is also cautious and caring as a mother, taking precautions to protect Koukou from her cold.
• Gu Yanqing: Shows growing concern for Xu Han and becomes more directly involved in her life. Though outwardly stern and cold, he helps with the labor, worries about her health, and takes practical steps to ensure she receives medical attention.
• Koukou: Displays a strong emotional recognition of both Xu Han and Gu Yanqing. His instinctive happiness at hearing Gu Yanqing suggests a deep bond with his father.
• Grandma Qiao and Yellow Immortal: Continue supporting Xu Han and helping care for Koukou. Yellow Immortal’s unusual ability to alert them when Koukou wakes makes him an important part of the household.

Themes

• Family responsibility and sacrifice: Xu Han continues working despite illness because she feels responsible for the household and Koukou.
• Care expressed through actions: Gu Yanqing’s concern is communicated less through tenderness than through practical help, such as packing vegetables, loading them into his car, and taking Xu Han to the doctor.
• Growing familial bonds: Koukou’s joyful reactions to Gu Yanqing reinforce the emerging father-son relationship.
• The limits of self-reliance: Xu Han’s refusal to rest contrasts with Gu Yanqing’s insistence that she accept help, suggesting that she cannot continue carrying every burden alone.

Character Interactions

• Grandma Qiao gently urges Xu Han to rest while taking over the harder work.
• Gu Yanqing checks Xu Han for a fever, criticizes her for continuing to work, and helps her despite her awkward attempts to refuse.
• Yuan Yuan assists Xu Han by carrying cabbages.
• Xu Han lovingly cares for Koukou and reassures him when he fails to recognize her behind her mask.
• Gu Yanqing and Koukou share a warm, playful interaction, highlighting their natural connection.
• The chapter ends with Gu Yanqing taking charge of the situation and arranging for Xu Han to receive medical care.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Xu Han, suffering from a cold, worries that Gu Yanqing’s luxury car will attract unwanted attention while delivering vegetables. She suggests postponing deliveries and asks him to buy cold medicine.
• Gu Yanqing insists on helping. He offers to take Xu Han, Koukou, and Grandma Qiao to town, learn the delivery route, and handle deliveries for the next few days. When Xu Han objects to his extravagant Bentley, he reveals that he has switched to a Mercedes-Benz—still far too luxurious for vegetable deliveries.
• The group visits a clinic, where Xu Han is diagnosed with an ordinary cold and given medicine. They then go to a hotel to eat before making the deliveries.
• At the hotel, the manager rudely rejects Xu Han, remembering her previous unsuccessful attempt to sell them vegetables. Gu Yanqing firmly confronts the hotel staff and leads everyone away, refusing to tolerate their treatment of her.
• They instead eat at the farmhouse restaurant that buys Xu Han’s vegetables. Boss Cai offers them a token one-percent discount and makes a series of assumptions about the group’s relationships and children.

Character developments

• Xu Han remains practical and cautious, especially about gossip, public attention, and the possibility of Gu Yanqing’s involvement affecting her reputation. Despite her objections, she gradually accepts his help.
• Gu Yanqing becomes increasingly protective and assertive toward Xu Han. His domineering response to the hotel’s rude behavior impresses her, and she privately enjoys his “CEO-like” authority.
• Grandma Qiao continues helping care for Koukou and accompanies the group.
• Koukou remains wary of unfamiliar people and refuses to be held even by Gu Yanqing, despite their biological relationship.
• Boss Cai reveals her stingy but socially perceptive nature, attempting to flatter customers according to local customs.

Significant themes

• Romantic tension and growing intimacy: Gu Yanqing’s willingness to care for Xu Han and defend her strengthens their bond, while Xu Han begins to appreciate his protectiveness.
• Class and social perception: His luxury cars contrast sharply with Xu Han’s rural vegetable business, creating comic concerns about gossip and unwanted publicity.
• Protective male lead / empowerment: Gu Yanqing refuses to let Xu Han be disrespected, demonstrating his influence and concern.
• Rural customs and assumptions: Boss Cai’s comments reflect local son-preference beliefs and the tendency to make assumptions about family relationships.

Character interactions

• Xu Han repeatedly protests Gu Yanqing’s extravagant car and his involvement in deliveries, but he overrules her objections.
• Gu Yanqing takes charge of Xu Han’s care, accompanies her to the clinic, and confronts the hotel manager on her behalf.
• Xu Han is amused and secretly pleased by Gu Yanqing’s forceful defense of her.
• Boss Cai mistakenly interprets Xu Han, Gu Yanqing, Grandma Qiao, and Koukou as a family, leading to awkward assumptions about their marriage and children.

Chapter Summary

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• During dinner at a farmhouse restaurant, Boss Cai mistakenly assumes Xu Han is pregnant because of her cold symptoms, nausea, and craving for sour food. Xu Han repeatedly explains that she is only ill, while Gu Yanqing secretly finds the misunderstanding amusing.
• The meal is enjoyable, and Yuan Yuan praises the food and Xu Han’s homegrown vegetables. Xu Han promises to send him some vegetables, partly to repay Gu Yanqing for helping her.
• The vegetables Xu Han brought are unloaded at the restaurant. Later, Koukou becomes sleepy and insists on being carried by Xu Han.
• Because the area has only one decent hotel and Gu Yanqing does not want to stay in a poor inn, he plans to drive more than two hours back to C City. Xu Han reluctantly invites him to stay at her home for the night.
• After returning, Xu Han arranges for a village truck driver to deliver vegetables over the next few days. She reflects on how much she enjoys earning money herself and watching her savings grow.
• The next morning, a heavy frost arrives as Grandma Qiao predicted. Xu Han prepares a hearty breakfast featuring stir-fried frost-sweetened mustard greens, pickled radish, eggs, porridge, and special food for Koukou and Yellow Immortal.
• Xu Han quickly recovers from her cold after taking medicine, bathing, and sleeping well, though her throat remains sore.

2. Character Developments

• Xu Han remains practical, self-reliant, and uncomfortable with owing others favors. She repays Gu Yanqing’s assistance by offering Yuan Yuan vegetables and arranging her own delivery system for selling produce.
• She also reveals a strong attachment to financial independence, taking genuine pride in earning and saving money.
• Gu Yanqing shows a playful side by silently enjoying Boss Cai’s pregnancy misunderstanding. His softened expression while watching Xu Han care for Koukou also hints at growing warmth and affection toward her and the child.
• Yuan Yuan becomes increasingly fond of Xu Han, praising her cooking and vegetables and admiring her abilities.
• Koukou displays his dependence and affection for Xu Han by insisting that she carry him when he is tired.
• Boss Cai provides comic relief through her enthusiastic but completely mistaken assumptions about Xu Han’s pregnancy and family situation.

3. Significant Themes

• Self-reliance and financial independence: Xu Han values earning money through her own work and feels proud of building her income.
• Domestic warmth and family bonds: The shared meal, home cooking, childcare, and Xu Han’s care for both children create a cozy family atmosphere.
• Misunderstandings and romantic tension: Boss Cai’s assumptions expose the ambiguous relationship between Xu Han and Gu Yanqing, while Gu Yanqing’s amusement and attentive behavior suggest unspoken feelings.
• Rural life and seasonal abundance: The frost transforms the mustard greens, emphasizing the connection between weather, farming, and food.
• Reciprocity: Xu Han dislikes being indebted and seeks to repay Gu Yanqing’s help through vegetables and hospitality.

4. Character Interactions

• Boss Cai embarrasses Xu Han by loudly interpreting her cold symptoms as early pregnancy signs; Gu Yanqing avoids correcting her and privately enjoys the situation.
• Yuan Yuan praises Xu Han’s food and vegetables, and she responds affectionately by promising him some produce.
• Xu Han tenderly carries sleepy Koukou, while Gu Yanqing helps by opening the car door and watches them with a softened gaze.
• Xu Han invites Gu Yanqing to stay at her home after realizing he would otherwise make a long nighttime drive.
• At breakfast, Xu Han carefully prepares different foods according to each family member’s preferences, reinforcing her nurturing role.

Chapter Summary

• Morning at Grandma Qiao’s house: Xu Han feeds baby Koukou steamed egg custard in the warm kitchen while Yuan Yuan wakes up and greets Grandma Qiao, Auntie Qiao, and Koukou. Yuan Yuan admits the darkness of the countryside made sleeping unfamiliar, though he insists he was not afraid.
• Koukou’s growing independence: Watching Yuan Yuan eat by himself inspires Koukou to want to feed himself. With a clean wooden spoon, he attempts to scoop up his egg custard, amusing everyone despite being unable to manage the bowl properly. Xu Han is delighted by this new milestone, while Yuan Yuan perceptively explains that Koukou is imitating him.
• Family bonding: Gu Yanqing joins breakfast after washing up. Koukou eagerly reaches for him, and Gu Yanqing happily holds and feeds him. His affectionate interaction with the baby highlights his enthusiasm as a father and his close relationship with both children.
• Xu Han’s work: After eating, Xu Han goes to the vegetable garden to harvest produce for the farmhouse restaurant. She plans to deliver both the morning and evening vegetables at once to save on transportation costs. She takes pride and pleasure in the abundant vegetables, viewing them as the result of her and Grandma Qiao’s hard work.
• Discussion of filming the farm: Gu Yanqing suggests that Xu Han’s lush vegetable garden could attract attention if filmed online. Xu Han considers the possibility of becoming a countryside-content influencer but decides against it because she lacks time, would need to learn filming and editing, and might attract unwanted scrutiny. She concludes that quietly growing vegetables and becoming prosperous suits her better.

Character Development

• Koukou reaches an important developmental stage by showing interest in feeding himself and imitating an older child.
• Yuan Yuan demonstrates confidence, politeness, and attentiveness, especially in understanding Koukou’s intentions before the adults do.
• Gu Yanqing continues to show warmth and affection as a father, eagerly responding to Koukou’s desire to be held and fed.
• Xu Han remains practical and hardworking, balancing childcare, farming, and business while resisting the distractions and risks of online fame.

Themes

• Family intimacy and everyday growth: Ordinary breakfast interactions become meaningful moments of affection and developmental progress.
• Children learning by imitation: Koukou’s desire for independence is sparked by watching Yuan Yuan.
• Rural life and labor: The chapter emphasizes the warmth, simplicity, and hardships of village living, as well as the satisfaction of cultivating food.
• Practical ambition over fame: Xu Han values stable prosperity and genuine work more than uncertain popularity as an influencer.

Chapter Summary: “Vegetarian Restaurant” (Revised)

Key plot points and events

• Gu Yanqing offers to finance Xu Han if she wants to make videos, promising to manage filming, production, promotion, and marketing. Xu Han immediately refuses because her previous experience with publicity and leaked information left her distrustful and disgusted.
• Gu Yanqing reveals that Koukou is asleep with Yuan Yuan and says he will return home that afternoon. Xu Han responds by offering to prepare vegetables for him and Yuan Yuan to take with them. Her eagerness for him to leave irritates him, and he retreats to the courtyard.
• After Gu Yanqing and the others depart, Xu Han harvests almost all the vegetables from her two gardens and sells them to the farmhouse restaurant during the pre-New Year tourist rush. Despite fears that frost might ruin the crops, the cold weather makes many vegetables sweeter by converting starches into sugars.
• The vegetables sell extremely well, with customers buying them not only to eat at the restaurant but also to take home. When business slows near the twenty-eighth day of the lunar month, Boss Cai pays Xu Han her final bill: 17,081 yuan.
• Delighted by her unexpected earnings, Xu Han decides to celebrate her first New Year in the village properly. She buys New Year goods and new clothes for the household, including Yellow Immortal, though she does not find anything suitable for herself and chooses not to buy something merely for tradition’s sake.
• At home, she gives Koukou a noisy roly-poly toy. She also discovers that Aunt Zhu has sent the family several bags of oranges in return for Xu Han’s previous gifts of vegetables.
• Xu Han mischievously feeds Koukou a sour orange after warning him that it may be unpleasant. Koukou reacts comically but stubbornly swallows it and continues smiling at her.

Character development

• Xu Han becomes more financially independent and confident as her vegetable business earns nearly twenty thousand yuan in a short period. She remains practical and cautious about publicity, money, and appearances, but she is also increasingly comfortable enjoying domestic happiness and playing the role of a mischievous mother.
• Gu Yanqing shows signs of emotional attachment and wounded pride. His anger at Xu Han’s obvious desire for him to leave suggests that he wants her company and approval, even though he does not openly express those feelings.
• Koukou is portrayed as trusting, playful, and resilient. He eagerly experiments with the new toy and even endures the sour orange without losing his good humor.
• Aunt Zhu and Boss Cai reflect Xu Han’s growing social connections: Aunt Zhu reciprocates her generosity, while Boss Cai treats her honestly and supports her small business.

Significant themes

• Independence and self-reliance: Xu Han’s successful harvest proves she can support herself rather than depend on Gu Yanqing’s wealth.
• The rewards of honest work: Her carefully cultivated vegetables bring unexpected prosperity and demonstrate the value of patience and practical effort.
• Home and community: Exchanges with Boss Cai, Aunt Zhu, and the Qiao family show Xu Han becoming integrated into village life.
• Family affection and playful intimacy: The New Year preparations and Xu Han’s teasing of Koukou emphasize warmth, comfort, and ordinary domestic joy.
• Emotional tension and unspoken feelings: Gu Yanqing’s irritation reveals a growing but poorly communicated attachment to Xu Han, while her matter-of-fact attitude keeps emotional distance between them.

Important character interactions

• Gu Yanqing offers Xu Han financial backing; she rejects it, leading to awkward tension when he realizes she wants him to leave.
• Xu Han works with Boss Cai to sell the garden’s produce, ultimately receiving a substantial payment.
• Aunt Zhu reciprocates Xu Han’s generosity by sending oranges.
• Xu Han and Koukou share a playful mother-son moment involving the roly-poly toy and the deliberately sour orange, highlighting their affectionate and humorous relationship.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xu Han plays with Koukou, then mischievously dresses Yellow Immortal, her intelligent blue rooster, in a pink baby dress despite his resistance. She photographs his humiliated expression and posts it online; the image later becomes a popular reaction meme.
• Xu Han’s second aunt, Zhong Xiumei, and second uncle, Lin Xinhua, visit near the end of the lunar year. They bring local gifts, including winter bamboo shoots, a leg of lamb, and homemade red yeast rice wine.
• Xu Han prepares a generous meal using the gifts and vegetables grown on her farm: lamb stewed with radishes, stir-fried bamboo shoots with pork belly, and Chinese mustard greens.
• The family eats together and discusses Xu Han’s increasingly successful vegetable business. She explains that she sells produce through local farmhouses to tourists.
• Because demand has grown, Xu Han plans to rent more land, buy a tricycle for deliveries, and hire someone to help harvest and transport vegetables.
• Her relatives describe their difficult work situation. They do exhausting, low-paid odd jobs at the Matchmaker Temple construction site, while having spent much of their lives raising three children through college.

Character Developments

• Xu Han continues balancing motherhood, farming, business, and household responsibilities. Her plans to hire help and purchase a delivery vehicle show her practical determination and growing ambition.
• Koukou is shown as a cared-for and increasingly integrated part of the household. Xu Han prepares special food for him, while the family naturally includes him in the meal.
• Yellow Immortal displays intelligence and personality through his fierce resistance to being dressed up, though he becomes a source of humor for Xu Han and, later, online audiences.
• Lin Xinhua and Zhong Xiumei are portrayed as hardworking, modest relatives who have endured financial hardship while successfully supporting their three children through college.
• Grandma Qiao remains somewhat reserved but participates in family conversation and welcomes Xu Han’s maternal relatives despite her strained relationship with Xu Han’s mother.

Significant Themes

• Family and kinship: The visit emphasizes rural family customs, mutual support, and affection expressed through food and practical gifts rather than money.
• Hard work and self-reliance: Xu Han’s farming enterprise and her relatives’ labor reflect the effort required to build a stable life.
• Rural entrepreneurship: Xu Han’s business is expanding from a small household operation into a more organized enterprise requiring land, transportation, and employees.
• Domestic warmth and food: Preparing and sharing homegrown food creates a sense of community and highlights the value of rural life.
• Humor and online culture: Yellow Immortal’s embarrassing photo provides comic relief and shows how ordinary household events can become internet entertainment.

Character Interactions

• Xu Han affectionately teases Yellow Immortal and playfully treats him like a child.
• Xu Han cares for Koukou during the meal, feeding him mashed radish and lamb broth.
• Lin Xinhua and Zhong Xiumei praise Xu Han’s cooking and vegetables while expressing concern about the workload she and Grandma Qiao face.
• Xu Han reassures them that sales are going well and explains her plans for expanding and easing the business.
• Lin Xinhua offers to help if needed, demonstrating family support.
• The relatives joke about their lack of savings and the unrealistic cost of opening a restaurant near the Matchmaker Temple.
• Grandma Qiao joins the conversation about the temple project, while Xu Han respectfully praises her aunt and uncle for educating their three children.

Chapter Summary: “New Year”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lin Xinhua suggests that Xu Han open a restaurant near the Matchmaker Temple, where increasing tourism could bring customers. Xu Han initially rejects the idea because the location is remote, competition would be strong, and she lacks a clear advantage.
• When Zhong Xiumei jokingly mentions opening a vegetable shop, Xu Han realizes that a vegetarian restaurant could be a better opportunity. Visitors to the temple might be interested in fasting or eating vegetarian food as part of their worship.
• Xu Han plans to use her family’s exceptionally fresh vegetables to create distinctive vegetarian dishes. She also considers selling dried fruits and vegetables to restaurant customers, giving her additional products and a built-in sales channel.
• She asks her second uncle to investigate rental prices for a well-located plot near the temple. Since it is New Year, he agrees to look into it after the holiday.
• On New Year’s Eve, most of Xu Han’s vegetables have been sold, leaving her with a substantial profit and some time to relax.
• Xu Han bathes and dresses Koukou in a warm bear-themed outfit, takes photos with him, and plays affectionately with him.
• Grandma Qiao gives Koukou a red envelope and wishes him good health and obedience in the coming year.

Character Developments

• Xu Han shifts from rejecting the restaurant idea to recognizing a business opportunity that matches her resources and strengths. Her plan demonstrates her practical thinking, entrepreneurial instincts, and awareness of consumer behavior.
• She also appears as a loving and playful mother, carefully caring for Koukou, dressing him warmly, taking photos, and teasing him affectionately.
• Koukou is becoming more responsive and physically capable. He understands praise, imitates words and gestures, laughs readily, can stand while holding someone’s hands, and displays a mischievous, energetic personality.
• Lin Xinhua continues to act as a supportive relative who notices business opportunities and offers practical connections.
• Zhong Xiumei provides a humorous but useful comment that helps Xu Han arrive at her vegetarian-restaurant idea.
• Grandma Qiao expresses traditional family affection by giving Koukou a red envelope and offering New Year blessings.

Significant Themes

• Entrepreneurship and adaptability: Xu Han evaluates risks carefully but remains open to new ideas when she discovers a niche suited to her advantages.
• Turning resources into value: Her high-quality vegetables can become restaurant dishes and preserved foods, allowing her to earn more by processing products rather than selling raw produce.
• Family warmth and domestic happiness: The New Year scenes emphasize affection, playfulness, and close bonds between Xu Han, Koukou, and Grandma Qiao.
• Tradition and renewal: New Year customs—including firecrackers, new clothes, red envelopes, and blessings—create a sense of continuity while Xu Han prepares for a new business venture.
• Motherhood and child growth: Koukou’s increasing understanding, strength, and mischievousness highlight his development and Xu Han’s attentive care.

Character Interactions

• Lin Xinhua encourages Xu Han to pursue a restaurant and offers to help her obtain affordable land.
• Zhong Xiumei teases Lin Xinhua for pushing Xu Han toward unnecessary expenses, but her suggestion indirectly inspires Xu Han’s vegetarian-restaurant concept.
• Xu Han and Koukou share a playful, affectionate exchange involving photos, teasing, kisses, tummy rubs, and laughter.
• Grandma Qiao joins them by dressing Koukou’s New Year celebration with a red envelope and blessings, reinforcing the family’s loving atmosphere.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xu Han learns that Grandma Qiao has hung a traditional blessing pouch to protect Koukou. Though Xu Han is an atheist, she is willing to participate in local customs and agrees to visit the temple during the first lunar month.
• She and Grandma Qiao prepare an abundant New Year’s Eve meal featuring chicken, duck, fish, meat, and roast goose. After dinner, Xu Han nurses Koukou and reflects on her former life and family in the modern world.
• Xu Han thinks about her parents, her older brother, and the possibility that her family may be comforted by her brother’s new relationship. She also looks forward to expanding her vegetable business and developing her vegetarian restaurant after the holiday.
• Aunt Li visits with homemade tangyuan but mainly comes to propose a match: her thirty-two-year-old nephew, who owns a home and plans to buy a car. Xu Han firmly rejects the idea of dating or marrying, explaining that she wants to focus on Koukou and her work for the next several years.
• Frustrated by the village’s constant matchmaking, Xu Han posts a humorous complaint on Moments about being pressured to marry despite being divorced and having a child.
• At night, she takes Koukou outside to watch the village fireworks while she participates in New Year red-packet exchanges through group chats. The chapter ends when she receives a WeChat message from Gu Yanqing.

Character Developments

• Xu Han remains independent and practical. She accepts local traditions without abandoning her own beliefs and clearly prioritizes motherhood, financial independence, and business ambitions over romance.
• Her reflections reveal lingering homesickness and uncertainty about her original-world identity, though she comforts herself by imagining that her family is managing well.
• Xu Han’s response to Aunt Li demonstrates firm boundaries and confidence. She refuses to allow social pressure to dictate her future.
• Koukou is shown as an affectionate, lively child who enjoys nursing and watching fireworks.
• Grandma Qiao and Xu Han share a caring domestic relationship, though their generational differences leave Xu Han feeling somewhat lonely.
• Aunt Li acts as a well-meaning but intrusive matchmaker, persistently encouraging Xu Han to meet her nephew.

Significant Themes

• Tradition versus personal belief: Xu Han joins in New Year customs despite being an atheist, showing that cultural participation and personal faith can coexist.
• Motherhood and responsibility: Koukou’s needs shape Xu Han’s choices, particularly her refusal to pursue a relationship while he is still young.
• Independence and social pressure: The matchmaking conversation highlights expectations placed on divorced women and single mothers, while Xu Han asserts control over her own life.
• Homesickness and displacement: Xu Han continues to think about her original family and the strange isolation of living in a world that is not her own.
• Hope and ambition: Her plans to expand farming and open a successful vegetarian restaurant give her confidence and a sense of direction.
• Community and celebration: Food, fireworks, temple customs, tangyuan, and red packets create a festive atmosphere and connect Xu Han to village life.

Character Interactions

• Xu Han and Grandma Qiao work together preparing the New Year’s meal and discuss traditional blessings and temple visits.
• Xu Han cares for and nurses Koukou, later sharing the fireworks with him in the courtyard.
• Aunt Li brings tangyuan as a New Year’s gift, praises Koukou, and attempts to arrange Xu Han’s marriage. Xu Han politely but decisively refuses.
• Xu Han communicates indirectly with her broader social circle through Moments and group-chat red packets.
• The final message from Gu Yanqing introduces a likely new interaction and creates a cliffhanger for the next chapter.

Chapter Summary: “Competing in Wealth (Bug Fix)”

Key Plot Points and Events

• On New Year’s Day, Gu Yanqing unexpectedly sends Xu Han 50,000 yuan through WeChat as Koukou’s New Year gift. He also tells her not to “settle” when choosing a partner, implying concern that a future stepfather might mistreat Koukou.
• Xu Han interprets Gu Yanqing’s warning as concern for their son rather than romantic interest. She replies that she will find someone who genuinely treats Koukou like his own child, which irritates Gu Yanqing.
• Xu Han rents a large plot of farmland near her home for only 200 yuan per year. The land will make transporting vegetables easier, especially if she opens a vegetarian restaurant.
• Since running a restaurant would leave her unable to manage the farm, Xu Han considers asking her honest and dependable second uncle and aunt to help grow, package, and deliver vegetables. She decides she may reveal her secret to them after the New Year.
• By the third day of the New Year, Koukou has been slightly ill, vomiting after drinking milk and appearing listless. Although the doctor finds nothing serious, Xu Han encourages him to drink more water.
• While Xu Han spends time outside with Koukou and Yellow Immortal, an unfamiliar young woman arrives with a man. The man introduces himself as Li Lianhua’s nephew—the blind date Xu Han had already rejected.
• Xu Han becomes upset that the pair have come to her home uninvited and demands to know what they mean by ignoring her refusal.

Character Developments

• Xu Han: Continues prioritizing Koukou’s welfare and future. She demonstrates practical ambition by expanding her farming plans and considering a vegetarian restaurant. She also becomes more assertive, directly confronting the unwanted blind date.
• Gu Yanqing: Shows concern for Koukou and Xu Han’s dating choices through his gift and warning. His irritation at Xu Han’s reply suggests jealousy or possessiveness, though he does not openly acknowledge romantic feelings.
• Koukou: Remains adorable and mischievous despite being unwell, pretending to drink water and relying on his cuteness to avoid drinking more.
• Yellow Immortal: Reveals his affectionate side toward Xu Han and Koukou, contrasting with his aloofness around outsiders.
• Xu Han’s second uncle and aunt: Though absent, they are established as trustworthy potential helpers in Xu Han’s business plans.
• Li Lianhua’s nephew: Appears confident and interested in meeting Xu Han, but his arrival disregards her prior refusal.

Significant Themes

• Parental responsibility: Xu Han and Gu Yanqing both focus on ensuring Koukou is protected and treated well.
• Romantic tension and jealousy: Gu Yanqing’s warning and irritation hint at deeper feelings, while Xu Han remains unaware or unconvinced.
• Self-reliance and entrepreneurship: Xu Han continues building an independent livelihood through farming and plans for a restaurant.
• Family and trust: Xu Han considers involving dependable relatives in her secret and business, emphasizing the importance of trusted relationships.
• Boundaries and consent: The blind date’s unexpected arrival highlights Xu Han’s right to refuse and her frustration when others disregard her decision.
• Domestic happiness: Xu Han’s peaceful time with Koukou and Yellow Immortal reflects her contentment with her unconventional family life.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• A man and his sister visit Xu Han under the guise of a casual stroll, but it is clearly a matchmaking attempt. They bring gifts and insist that the man would be a suitable partner, despite Xu Han’s obvious refusal.
• The visitors turn their attention to Koukou, with the man boldly suggesting that he could become the child’s father.
• Gu Yanqing unexpectedly arrives with Yuan Yuan and immediately challenges the man’s claim. His intimidating presence makes the visitors uncomfortable.
• The man boasts about his income and family’s financial situation, explaining that he sells pork and could provide a comfortable life for Xu Han.
• Gu Yanqing sarcastically counters by claiming that Koukou drinks extraordinarily expensive imported formula, implying that the man’s income is insufficient. Unable to compete with Gu Yanqing’s wealth and confidence, the visitors leave embarrassed.
• Afterward, Gu Yanqing remains visibly irritated that someone would consider becoming Koukou’s stepfather. Xu Han teases him by saying that, if she were to choose someone, she should find a wealthy “big shot” like him.
• Gu Yanqing is secretly pleased by her remark. He has brought formula for Koukou because Xu Han’s milk supply has decreased after her illness.
• Koukou recognizes the formula and eagerly reaches for it, while Gu Yanqing tries to care for him. When Xu Han leaves briefly, Koukou becomes upset with impatience for his bottle.

Character developments

• Xu Han remains independent, blunt, and unwilling to accept unwanted matchmaking or gifts. However, she finds Gu Yanqing’s jealous behavior amusing and begins teasing him more openly.
• Gu Yanqing displays strong jealousy and protectiveness toward Xu Han and Koukou. His cold confrontation with the suitor reveals how possessive he feels about his son’s place in Xu Han’s life. His actions also show increasing concern and involvement in Koukou’s daily care.
• Koukou is portrayed as sick but alert and affectionate toward Gu Yanqing. His familiarity with formula and eagerness to drink it emphasize his dependence on adult care.
• Yuan Yuan warmly greets Xu Han and imitates Gu Yanqing by calling the visiting man a “bad guy,” showing his closeness to the adults around him.
• The visiting brother and sister are presented as pushy and shameless, attempting to force a romantic opportunity despite Xu Han’s lack of interest.

Significant themes

• Jealousy and possessiveness: Gu Yanqing reacts intensely to the possibility of another man becoming Koukou’s father, revealing his feelings for Xu Han.
• Family and parental roles: The conflict centers on who has the right to occupy a fatherly position in Koukou’s life, with Gu Yanqing clearly asserting himself.
• Humor through exaggerated wealth: Gu Yanqing’s fabricated claim about extremely expensive formula turns the confrontation into comedy while allowing him to defeat the suitor socially.
• Growing romantic tension: Xu Han’s teasing and Gu Yanqing’s pleased reaction suggest that their relationship is becoming more emotionally intimate, even though neither openly acknowledges it.
• Care expressed through actions: Gu Yanqing’s gift of formula and willingness to look after Koukou demonstrate affection more effectively than words.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Gu Yanqing tries to feed Koukou formula but makes it dangerously hot because he does not know Xu Han’s usual preparation method.
• Koukou becomes increasingly upset while waiting for the milk, ignoring both Gu Yanqing’s attempts to comfort him and Yuan Yuan’s toy.
• Xu Han quickly cools and remakes the formula. Once given the bottle, Koukou drinks eagerly while Gu Yanqing holds him and wipes away his tears.
• Xu Han notices that Koukou drinks much more than usual despite recently feeling unwell. She suspects the imported formula Gu Yanqing purchased tastes better.
• Aunt Li visits to apologize for accidentally disturbing Qiao Wanqing. Qiao Wanqing reassures her that she is not angry.
• Tang Yueyue arrives after fleeing the pressure of her mother’s constant matchmaking and blind dates. Her arrival, along with Gu Yanqing and Yuan Yuan, makes the previously quiet household lively.
• Because the mountain weather is cold, Tang Yueyue warms herself by the stove and is startled to discover Yellow Immortal sleeping beside it.
• Qiao Wanqing jokingly tells Tang Yueyue to ask Yellow Immortal for help finding a husband. Tang Yueyue instead makes a suggestive wish about her “dream guy,” prompting Qiao Wanqing to shut her down.
• Tang Yueyue privately questions Qiao Wanqing about whether she and Gu Yanqing are secretly involved. Qiao denies it and explains that Gu Yanqing is probably visiting because of Koukou.
• Qiao reveals that Koukou is Gu Yanqing’s nephew but is expected to become his son in the future, surprising Tang Yueyue. The chapter ends with Qiao’s private knowledge of the novel’s plot being hinted at.

Character Developments

• Gu Yanqing: Shows tenderness and concern toward Koukou but also reveals his inexperience as a father figure. His guilt over mishandling the formula emphasizes how seriously he takes caring for the child.
• Koukou: Displays his impatient, milk-obsessed temperament. Despite being upset, he quickly returns to his cheerful nature once fed.
• Xu Han: Demonstrates practical caregiving knowledge and remains calm while resolving the formula problem. She also becomes curious about Gu Yanqing’s apparent ability to improve Koukou’s appetite.
• Tang Yueyue: Is introduced as outspoken, playful, and frustrated by family pressure to marry. Her teasing personality contrasts with the more restrained household members.
• Qiao Wanqing: Acts as a reassuring host and uses humor to handle Tang Yueyue’s questions. Her knowledge of the story’s future gives her unusual confidence about Gu Yanqing and Koukou’s relationship.
• Yellow Immortal: Remains a mysterious but humorous presence, treated as a possible matchmaking spirit.

Significant Themes

• Parental care and learning: Gu Yanqing’s mistake shows that affection alone does not make someone experienced, but his willingness to comfort Koukou reflects genuine emotional investment.
• Family and belonging: The interactions suggest that Gu Yanqing is gradually becoming more involved in Koukou’s life, foreshadowing the child’s future place in his family.
• Domestic warmth: The stove, hot tea, shared meals, and crowded house create a cozy contrast to the cold mountain weather.
• Humor and romance: Tang Yueyue’s jokes and matchmaking comments add comic relief while drawing attention to possible romantic relationships.
• Foreknowledge and fate: Qiao Wanqing’s awareness of the novel’s plot allows her to anticipate future developments, especially Gu Yanqing’s eventual relationship to Koukou.

Character Interactions

• Gu Yanqing and Koukou share a tender father-son-like moment as Gu comforts him and wipes away his tears.
• Xu Han helps Gu Yanqing care for Koukou, highlighting her practical role and his dependence on her experience.
• Yuan Yuan tries unsuccessfully to distract Koukou with a toy.
• Tang Yueyue exchanges playful banter with Qiao Wanqing and immediately probes the nature of Qiao and Gu Yanqing’s relationship.
• Qiao Wanqing and Tang Yueyue’s conversation establishes their close friendship and Tang’s curiosity about Gu Yanqing’s family situation.

Chapter 58 Summary

• Qiao Wanqing and Tang Yueyue discuss Yuan Yuan: Qiao hints that Yuan Yuan will become important in the future but cannot reveal that he is a fictional character. Tang Yueyue wildly speculates that Yuan Yuan might be Gu Yanqing’s illegitimate son. Qiao quickly corrects her, explaining that he is Gu Yanqing’s nephew, though the circumstances are complicated.
• Gu Yanqing expands his involvement in Qiao’s life: Rather than staying at Qiao’s home or returning to the city, Gu Yanqing becomes a major shareholder in the local hotel. He also arranges for the hotel to purchase vegetables from Qiao’s family starting that year. Tang Yueyue jokes that his behavior resembles a domineering-romance novel CEO using money to remain close to the woman he likes.
• Qiao’s changing attitude toward Gu Yanqing: Qiao admits she no longer understands their relationship. Although she originally wanted to avoid him, his repeated appearances and assistance have gradually worn down her resistance. Their interactions are now comfortable and relatively natural, especially when he visits for meals or to see Koukou. She decides to stop resisting and let the relationship develop on its own, while jokingly imagining a future in which her businesses succeed and she becomes the mother of a wealthy heir.
• Dongyang Village’s vegetarian ceremony: The following day is the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, when the villagers hold a vegetarian ancestral-worship ceremony to pray for family blessings and longevity. Local custom requires everyone to avoid meat in the morning and at noon.
• Qiao tests her vegetarian cooking: Because she plans to open a vegetarian restaurant, Qiao uses the occasion to prepare a full vegetarian meal and gauge whether Gu Yanqing, Yuan Yuan, and Tang Yueyue—who are accustomed to privileged lifestyles and considered picky eaters—will enjoy it. She gathers vegetables from the fields and visits the busy New Year market to buy mushrooms and tofu.
• Tang Yueyue enjoys rural life and Qiao’s food: Tang sleeps late because Qiao’s home has exceptionally comfortable cotton bedding and mugwort-filled pillows. Upon waking, she samples Qiao’s freshly fried spring rolls, filled with carrots, mung bean sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, cabbage, and bamboo shoots. Despite containing no meat, the crisp and flavorful spring rolls impress her greatly. Tang recalls that Qiao’s home-cooked meals from the previous day were equally delicious, making her understand why Qiao enjoys living in the countryside.

Character Development and Interactions

• Qiao Wanqing: Becomes increasingly accepting of Gu Yanqing’s presence and begins thinking more seriously about her future restaurant and food business.
• Gu Yanqing: Demonstrates his wealth and determination to remain connected to Qiao by investing in the local hotel and supporting her vegetable business.
• Tang Yueyue: Remains playful and prone to gossip, but becomes genuinely impressed by village life and Qiao’s cooking.
• Qiao and Tang: Their close friendship is shown through teasing, speculation, and Tang’s relaxed willingness to treat Qiao’s home as her own.
• Qiao and Gu Yanqing: Their formerly tense relationship is gradually becoming familiar and emotionally ambiguous.

Significant Themes

• Romance and gradual emotional change: Qiao’s resistance to Gu Yanqing slowly softens through repeated contact and practical support.
• Wealth and influence: Gu Yanqing’s investment shows how money allows him to reshape local circumstances and stay close to Qiao.
• Rural life versus privilege: Tang’s enthusiasm for the countryside challenges her expectations about village living.
• Food, tradition, and entrepreneurship: The vegetarian ceremony provides Qiao with an opportunity to combine local customs with her ambition to open a vegetarian restaurant.
• Humor and novel-like self-awareness: The chapter repeatedly jokes about romance-novel tropes, including the domineering CEO and the hidden identity of future-important characters.

Chapter Summary: “Meishan”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Qiao Wanqing prepares freshly fried spring rolls for Tang Yueyue, Gu Yanqing, Yuan Yuan, and the children. Tang Yueyue jokes about overeating and teases Qiao Wanqing about her cooking.
• Tang Yueyue witnesses Gu Yanqing calmly cleaning Koukou after the baby soils himself, amusingly challenging Gu’s image as an aloof, untouchable “beauty on a lofty peak.” Qiao Wanqing reflects that Gu is deeply caring toward children, especially his own son.
• Qiao Wanqing hosts an elaborate all-vegetarian feast, including grilled vegetables, a spicy vegetable dry pot, and a broth pot. The meal is flavorful and well received by everyone.
• Inspired by the success of her food, Qiao Wanqing suggests opening a vegetarian restaurant near the Matchmaker Temple on West Mountain. The others encourage her, and Gu Yanqing agrees that it could become a worthwhile long-term business.
• Qiao Wanqing decides to inspect possible land with her second uncle the following day. Although funding and construction remain challenges, she believes taking the first step is necessary.
• Gu Yanqing offers to accompany her, and Tang Yueyue and Yuan Yuan also decide to join. Since the plum blossoms on Meishan are still blooming, the group plans to combine the land inspection with a relaxing outing.
• On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, the weather is cool and mild after light rain. Grandma Qiao stays home because her joints hurt in southerly weather.
• Qiao Wanqing initially plans to leave Koukou behind because he has only recently recovered and would be difficult to carry. However, Koukou cries when everyone prepares to leave, and Qiao Wanqing cannot bear to disappoint him. She brings him along, relying on the group to take turns carrying him.

Character Development

• Qiao Wanqing continues developing her entrepreneurial ambitions. She moves from simply imagining a vegetarian restaurant to taking concrete steps toward finding land and planning the business.
• She also displays her nurturing side when Koukou cries, quickly softening and changing her plans to include him.
• Gu Yanqing is shown as gentle, responsible, and hands-on as a father. His willingness to clean Koukou without complaint contrasts with his normally distant public image.
• Gu also begins taking a more active interest in Qiao Wanqing’s plans by offering practical support and advice.
• Tang Yueyue remains energetic, outspoken, and humorous. She enthusiastically praises Qiao Wanqing’s cooking and encourages her restaurant ambitions.
• Yuan Yuan openly enjoys the meal and eagerly joins the planned outing, showing his attachment to Qiao Wanqing and the group.
• Koukou has recovered from his illness and displays strong attachment to Qiao Wanqing, crying when he thinks he is being left behind.

Significant Themes

• Family and caregiving: Gu Yanqing’s patient care of Koukou and Qiao Wanqing’s decision to bring him along emphasize that parenting involves practical, messy responsibilities as well as affection.
• Entrepreneurship and courage: Qiao Wanqing recognizes the financial and logistical difficulties of opening a restaurant but chooses to act rather than remain trapped by fear or uncertainty.
• Food as connection: The vegetarian feast brings the characters together and strengthens their sense of warmth, comfort, and community.
• Contrasting public image and private character: Gu Yanqing appears aloof to outsiders but is affectionate and dependable with children and those close to him.
• Togetherness and leisure: The planned trip to Meishan combines business with relaxation, allowing the characters to spend time together outside their usual routines.

Character Interactions

• Tang Yueyue playfully mocks Qiao Wanqing’s self-praise and Gu Yanqing’s refined image.
• Qiao Wanqing and Gu Yanqing discuss the feasibility of the vegetarian restaurant, with Gu offering practical encouragement.
• Tang Yueyue and Yuan Yuan enthusiastically support Qiao Wanqing’s plan and join the excursion.
• Qiao Wanqing’s affectionate response to Koukou’s tears reveals her growing emotional bond with him.
• The group’s decision to travel together shows their increasingly close, family-like dynamic.

Chapter Summary

• Visit to the Matchmaker Temple: Yellow Immortal joins what was originally meant to be a small outing, turning it into a larger group trip. Everyone travels in Gu Yanqing’s car to the newly constructed Temple of the Moonlit Matchmaker, entering through a back gate with the help of Gu Yanqing’s Second Uncle, who has the keys.
• Temple’s scale and attractions: The group is impressed by the temple’s size and elaborate design. Its grounds include a Three Lives Stone, Marriage Tree, incense burner, Yue Lao Shrine, Sun-Watching Terrace, and Immortal Magpie Bridges. Though not yet officially open, the site is nearly complete.
• Restaurant business opportunity: Second Uncle explains that several people considered opening restaurants nearby but withdrew because the government requires a five-year lease with rent paid upfront. The investor would also need to construct the restaurant, possibly pave roads, and cover significant startup costs. Despite the risks and uncertain tourist numbers, Qiao Wanqing remains enthusiastic about opening a restaurant there.
• Gu Yanqing’s changing perception: Gu Yanqing initially recognizes that Qiao Wanqing is acting impulsively, but he has researched the temple’s history and believes its former reputation, combined with future government promotion and accessibility from the city, could make it a successful weekend destination. He is visibly attentive to Qiao, prompting Tang Yueyue to tease him for constantly watching her.
• Qiao and Yuan Yuan’s interaction: While touring the unfinished grounds, Qiao Wanqing holds Yuan Yuan’s hand to keep him from falling. Yuan Yuan willingly accepts, amusingly fulfilling Qiao’s imagined “supporting female character” milestone of holding the male lead’s hand. She notices his unusually cold hands and learns from Gu Yanqing that Yuan Yuan has a weak constitution. Qiao reassures him that he will become healthy as he grows up and encourages him to eat nourishing food.
• Choosing a restaurant location: The group examines two possible sites: one on Front Mountain, near the main tourist stairway, and one on the back mountain, beside the road used by cars. Qiao and Tang Yueyue favor Front Mountain because it receives more visible foot traffic and offers the temple’s most prominent location.
• Gu Yanqing’s practical advice: Gu Yanqing disagrees, pointing out that visitors will likely eat after praying. Front Mountain tourists must descend nearly a thousand steps, while drivers must return to their cars. The back mountain provides easier access for people leaving the temple on foot and may therefore attract more customers. His input introduces a more strategic, customer-oriented perspective into the restaurant planning.

Key Themes

• Entrepreneurship and risk: Opening the restaurant requires substantial investment, courage, and foresight despite uncertain returns.
• Practical judgment versus enthusiasm: Qiao Wanqing is driven by excitement and instinct, while Gu Yanqing evaluates logistics and customer behavior.
• Growing romantic attention: Gu Yanqing’s concern and frequent glances toward Qiao, along with Tang Yueyue’s teasing, suggest developing affection.
• Hidden significance and future potential: The temple’s former popularity and upcoming promotion hint that Qiao’s seemingly impulsive decision may ultimately prove successful.