Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chu Xiyue receives a message that Mrs. Shen and Shen Zhi are heading to the hotel. Shen Hui and Chen Jiayu’s room is directly across from hers.
• She rushes through her morning routine and waits excitedly to witness Mrs. Shen confronting Shen Hui.
• Mrs. Shen arrives furious, believing Shen Hui lied about working overtime. She pounds on the hotel-room door and demands that he open it.
• Shen Hui opens the door, initially angry, but is shocked to see his wife and son. He tries to shut the door, revealing his guilt.
• A young woman’s voice—belonging to Chen Jiayu—comes from inside the room, confirming that Shen Hui spent the night with her.
• Mrs. Shen forces her way into the room with Shen Zhi’s help, loudly accusing Shen Hui of cheating and calling Chen Jiayu a shameless mistress.
• At the same time, the reality-show production crew arrives to wake Chu Xiyue and the other celebrities. They discover Chu watching the confrontation instead of responding to them.
• Chu casually tells the producer that she is “watching the gossip,” prompting the livestream audience to become intensely interested.
• The cameraman shifts the camera toward the confrontation. Although the audio is unclear, viewers assume they are witnessing a wife catching her husband with his mistress and enthusiastically demand that the crew film it.
• The chapter ends just as Mrs. Shen and Shen Zhi force their way into the room, with the cameraman hesitating over whether to record the scene.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue: Displays her strong love of gossip and her playful, shameless personality. Rather than being embarrassed by the hotel scandal, she eagerly watches it and unintentionally turns it into livestream entertainment.
• Mrs. Shen: Becomes openly furious and confrontational after discovering Shen Hui’s affair. Her determination to expose him is shown through her aggressive pounding on the door and physically forcing her way inside.
• Shen Hui: Is immediately revealed to be guilty and panicked. His attempt to hide the woman inside and sudden loss of confidence contrast with his initial irritation.
• Shen Zhi: Supports his mother and helps her break into the room, showing loyalty toward her during the family confrontation.
• Chen Jiayu: Remains inside the room, but her voice confirms her presence with Shen Hui and fuels the misunderstanding—or scandal—surrounding the situation.
• The livestream audience: Quickly shifts from passive viewers to enthusiastic spectators, treating the confrontation as must-see gossip.

Significant Themes

• Gossip as entertainment: The chapter humorously presents scandal as a form of public entertainment, with Chu and the livestream viewers eagerly consuming the confrontation.
• Public exposure and humiliation: Shen Hui’s secret affair is on the verge of being exposed not only to his family but also to a large online audience.
• Dramatic irony: Chu knows—or strongly suspects—the true identities and relationships of the people involved, while the livestream viewers mistakenly interpret the event as an ordinary wife-versus-mistress confrontation.
• Reality television and voyeurism: The production crew’s attempt to film a morning wake-up segment is overtaken by an unexpected real-life scandal, blurring the line between staged entertainment and genuine drama.
• Consequences of deception: Shen Hui’s lie about working overtime collapses immediately when his wife finds him in a hotel room with another woman.

Character Interactions

• Chu Xiyue and Mrs. Shen/Shen Zhi: Chu observes them from across the hall, delighted by their confrontation, while Mrs. Shen and Shen Zhi remain unaware that she and the production crew are watching.
• Mrs. Shen and Shen Hui: Their tense confrontation drives the chapter. Mrs. Shen angrily accuses him of cheating, while Shen Hui tries unsuccessfully to block her entry.
• Mrs. Shen and Chen Jiayu: Though they have not yet directly faced one another by the chapter’s end, Mrs. Shen is preparing to confront the woman she believes is Shen Hui’s mistress.
• Chu Xiyue and the production crew: The crew attempts to wake her, but she ignores them and tells them not to interrupt her gossip-watching.
• Chu Xiyue and the livestream audience: Her enthusiasm draws viewers into the scene, turning her private observation into a shared spectacle.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chu Xiyue and the production crew hear a loud dispute coming from a presidential hotel suite. Pretending she intends to stop a fight, Chu Xiyue eagerly approaches the room to hear the gossip, while the cameraman discreetly follows and records the surrounding reactions and sounds.
• Mrs. Shen and her son, Shen Zhi, burst into the suite intending to catch Shen Hui’s mistress. Instead, they discover that the woman with Shen Hui is Chen Jiayu—Shen Zhi’s wife and Shen Hui’s daughter-in-law.
• Chen Jiayu greets them with shocking calmness despite wearing a bathrobe and having a visible mark on her neck. Mrs. Shen interprets the situation as proof of an affair and attacks her.
• Chen Jiayu fights back, insulting Mrs. Shen and blaming her for failing to keep her husband interested. The two women engage in a violent struggle.
• Shen Zhi confronts his father in disbelief. Before Shen Hui can explain himself, Chen Jiayu manipulates the situation by running to him for protection and complaining about Mrs. Shen’s attack.
• Shen Hui openly declares that he and Chen Jiayu truly love each other. He proposes divorcing Mrs. Shen and having Shen Zhi divorce Chen Jiayu so that he can be with her.
• Horrified and enraged, Shen Zhi punches his father and accuses him of sleeping with his own daughter-in-law. The entire suite erupts into chaos as Shen Zhi attacks Shen Hui, Chen Jiayu attacks Shen Zhi, and Mrs. Shen resumes fighting Chen Jiayu.
• Furniture and belongings are damaged or thrown around, while the livestream captures the fight’s sounds. Viewers are stunned when they realize the alleged mistress is the wife’s daughter-in-law.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue: Reveals a strong appetite for gossip and entertainment. Although she claims she wants to mediate, she mainly observes the scandal with fascination and provides sarcastic commentary.
• Chen Jiayu: Displays shamelessness, aggression, and manipulative confidence. Even after being exposed, she refuses to show guilt, fights Mrs. Shen, and uses her injuries to gain Shen Hui’s sympathy.
• Shen Hui: Is exposed as an unfaithful husband and morally compromised father. His infatuation with Chen Jiayu overwhelms his concern for his wife and son, leading him to openly choose Chen Jiayu.
• Mrs. Shen: Arrives furious and determined to confront her husband’s mistress. Her shock turns into rage when she discovers the mistress is her daughter-in-law, and she responds with physical violence.
• Shen Zhi: Moves from disbelief to fury after discovering both his wife’s affair and his father’s betrayal. He attacks Shen Hui in an emotional attempt to defend his dignity and condemn their relationship.

Significant Themes

• Betrayal and family breakdown: The affair destroys the boundaries between marriage and family, transforming a domestic dispute into a devastating betrayal involving a husband, son, wife, father, and daughter-in-law.
• Hypocrisy and shamelessness: Chen Jiayu and Shen Hui justify their relationship as true love despite its destructive consequences, while Chen Jiayu blames Mrs. Shen for the affair.
• Public spectacle and voyeurism: Chu Xiyue, the crew, and the livestream audience treat the scandal as entertainment. The chapter highlights how private disgrace becomes public gossip through recording and online broadcasting.
• Violence replacing communication: Once the truth is revealed, the characters resort to slapping, punching, and grappling rather than honest discussion, emphasizing the complete collapse of trust and restraint.
• Moral and social scandal: The affair is shocking not only because of infidelity but because Chen Jiayu is Shen Hui’s daughter-in-law, making the betrayal both marital and familial.

Character Interactions

• Chu Xiyue and the production crew: Their curiosity leads them to eavesdrop outside the suite, balancing the appearance of intervention with a desire to witness the scandal.
• Mrs. Shen and Chen Jiayu: They exchange accusations and insults before engaging in a physical fight.
• Chen Jiayu and Shen Hui: Chen Jiayu relies on emotional manipulation, and Shen Hui immediately protects and favors her.
• Shen Hui and Shen Zhi: Shen Zhi condemns his father for betraying the family, eventually attacking him.
• Shen Zhi and Chen Jiayu: Their marital relationship collapses as Shen Zhi confronts her involvement with his father.
• The family as a whole: Their confrontation deteriorates into a chaotic brawl, symbolizing the destruction of the Shen family’s relationships and reputation.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chu Xiyue secretly watches a violent confrontation inside a hotel room while entertaining the livestream audience with vivid commentary.
• Shen Hui, chairman of the powerful Shen Group, is caught in bed with his daughter-in-law, Chen Jiayu, by his wife and son, Shen Zhi.
• The confrontation turns into a chaotic physical fight:
  • Shen Zhi punches his father.
  • Shen Hui fights back with a golf club.
  • The two women attack each other, even using high heels.
  • Shen Hui’s wife eventually helps Shen Zhi overpower him.
• Hotel security and police arrive, separating the family and taking all four people away.
• The incident is accidentally filmed, and livestream viewers identify Shen Hui and Shen Zhi. The scandal quickly becomes a trending topic under the accusation that Shen Hui had an affair with his daughter-in-law.
• Shen Group attempts to suppress the news, but recordings and further revelations spread online.
• Netizens uncover evidence that Shen Hui and Chen Jiayu had been involved for some time, including secret trips, luxury gifts, expensive cars, and jewelry purchased by Shen Hui.
• After their release, the Shen family continues fighting:
  • Shen Hui’s wife returns to her parents’ home.
  • Shen Zhi cuts ties with his father and moves out.
  • Shen Hui and Chen Jiayu openly continue their relationship.
• Eventually, both Shen Hui and Chen Jiayu divorce their spouses and immediately register their marriage.
• Chu Xiyue learns that Chen Jiayu is pregnant with Shen Hui’s child and that Shen Hui has allegedly changed his will, abandoning or disinheriting Shen Zhi in favor of the unborn baby.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue embraces her role as an enthusiastic observer and narrator of scandals. She actively feeds the livestream audience gossip and later shares the latest revelations with the makeup artist.
• Shen Hui is exposed as a hypocritical and reckless man who sacrifices his reputation, marriage, relationship with his son, and possibly half his fortune to be with Chen Jiayu.
• Chen Jiayu shifts from secret mistress to Shen Hui’s official wife. Her pregnancy strengthens her position and appears to influence Shen Hui’s inheritance decisions.
• Shen Zhi changes from the son caught in a family scandal to an openly estranged heir who breaks with his father.
• Shen Hui’s wife loses her marriage and withdraws to her family home after the betrayal.
• The Shen family as a whole collapses publicly and privately, with its internal conflict becoming a source of mass entertainment.

Significant Themes

• Public scandal and voyeurism: Private wrongdoing becomes public spectacle through livestreams, recordings, and trending searches.
• Hypocrisy and appearances: Shen Hui’s image as a respectable, faithful businessman is destroyed by the revelation of his affair.
• The destructive power of gossip: Online audiences amplify the family’s humiliation and uncover additional evidence of the affair.
• Family betrayal and loyalty: Shen Hui’s relationship with his daughter-in-law destroys his marriage and his bond with his son.
• Love versus responsibility: Shen Hui claims, through his actions, to prioritize Chen Jiayu and their unborn child over his existing family and reputation.
• The entertainment value of others’ misfortune: Chu Xiyue and the livestream viewers treat the family’s collapse as exciting gossip.

Character Interactions

• Chu Xiyue interacts with viewers by narrating the fight in real time, turning the violent confrontation into livestream entertainment.
• Shen Zhi and Shen Hui engage in a physical and emotional father-son confrontation.
• Shen Hui’s wife and Chen Jiayu fight over the betrayal, while Shen Hui’s wife later supports Shen Zhi against Shen Hui.
• Shen Group employees identify their chairman and general manager online, intensifying the scandal.
• Chu Xiyue shares the family’s latest secrets with the makeup artist, creating another small circle of gossip around the already-public affair.

Chapter Summary — Page 64

Key Plot Points and Events

• After finishing Chu Xiyue’s makeup, the makeup artist spreads gossip throughout the production team, ensuring that everyone hears about it.
• Episode Five of the variety show is filmed in Fog City, in an internet-famous town. Su Ye misses the recording because of a last-minute engagement, and Jiang Xiayue also takes leave, so the production team invites a male guest, Mo Jiang.
• Mo Jiang introduces himself as a small-company owner, but the system reveals that he is actually Mo Xiang’s childhood companion from the same orphanage.
• Mo Jiang and Mo Xiang have not seen each other for ten years. He has secretly loved her for years and joins the show after learning that she has divorced Ji Peng, hoping to pursue her again.
• Mo Jiang and Mo Xiang warmly reunite. His restrained nervousness contrasts with her surprise and happiness, and Mo Xiang becomes noticeably more cheerful.
• The episode’s challenge requires contestants to form pairs and search an internet-famous town for hidden “treasures.”
• The pairings are:
  • Zhao Xizhou and Li Fan’er
  • Mo Jiang and Mo Xiang
  • Ding Mengfei and Qi Changming
  • Qin Xingshi and Zhang Hongbin
  • Chu Xiyue and Lü Chenyi
• Lü Chenyi continues following Qin Xingshi and Zhang Hongbin, apparently focused on Zhang Hongbin. Chu Xiyue, eager to watch the apparent romantic conflict, urges him to pursue Zhang boldly and rekindle their old relationship.
• Encouraged by Chu Xiyue, Lü Chenyi goes ahead and works intensely, even completing half the task by himself.
• Chu Xiyue interacts with viewers through the livestream and hints that the supposed love triangle is not as straightforward as it appears.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue: Remains observant, mischievous, and highly interested in gossip. Rather than focusing on the competition, she treats the romantic entanglements as entertainment and actively pushes Lü Chenyi toward Zhang Hongbin.
• Mo Jiang: Is revealed to be deeply devoted to Mo Xiang. His composed appearance hides nervousness and long-suppressed feelings, demonstrating that his participation is motivated by love rather than publicity.
• Mo Xiang: Initially appears indifferent but becomes genuinely surprised and delighted by Mo Jiang’s arrival. Their reunion brings out a more cheerful side of her.
• Lü Chenyi: Still appears emotionally attached to Zhang Hongbin. Chu Xiyue’s encouragement gives him confidence, prompting him to approach Zhang and show his determination.
• Qin Xingshi and Zhang Hongbin: Their partnership attracts Lü Chenyi’s attention and appears to form the center of a possible romantic conflict.
• Ding Mengfei: Avoids partnering with Zhang Hongbin or Lü Chenyi because of their earlier humiliation of her, choosing Qi Changming instead.

Significant Themes

• Reunion and unresolved love: Mo Jiang’s return introduces a long-standing romance built on separation, loyalty, and missed opportunities.
• Reality television versus hidden motives: The show appears to be a competition, but several contestants have personal agendas, especially Mo Jiang.
• Gossip and audience entertainment: Chu Xiyue and the livestream audience focus heavily on romantic drama, showing how personal relationships become entertainment on the program.
• Appearances versus reality: The apparent love triangle involving Lü Chenyi, Zhang Hongbin, and Qin Xingshi may be misleading, suggesting that the true relationships are more complicated than they seem.

Character Interactions

• Mo Jiang and Mo Xiang: Reunite warmly after ten years, with Mo Jiang openly complimenting her and Mo Xiang responding with excitement.
• Chu Xiyue and Mo Jiang: Chu Xiyue observes his hidden feelings through the system and recognizes his devotion.
• Chu Xiyue and Lü Chenyi: She teases and encourages him to pursue Zhang Hongbin, treating the situation as a romantic “battlefield.”
• Lü Chenyi, Qin Xingshi, and Zhang Hongbin: Their pairing arrangements create the appearance of rivalry, with Lü Chenyi following Qin and Zhang’s team.
• Chu Xiyue and the livestream audience: She validates viewers’ suspicions that the love triangle is “off,” implying she knows more than she reveals.

Chapter Summary: “Lü and Zhang’s Relationship Exposed”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chu Xiyue comments on the complicated romantic situation involving Qin Xingshi, her ex-husband Lü Chenyi, and her current suitor Zhang Hongbin. Public speculation suggests Lü still loves Qin, Zhang is interested in her, and Qin may favor Zhang—or possibly neither man.
• A microexpression expert supports the gossip, observing that Lü becomes visibly relaxed around Qin while Zhang grows tense and wary whenever Lü approaches, indicating rivalry.
• While following Qin, Lü, and Zhang, Chu Xiyue entertains the livestream audience by discussing their relationship dynamics.
• Viewers ask about the supposedly frightening incident in the haunted house, but Chu refuses to reveal what happened, insisting it is unaired content.
• Chu secretly reveals that Lü and Zhang were once extremely close friends. This surprises viewers and fuels speculation that their friendship ended because of Qin and may be connected to Lü and Qin’s divorce.
• Chu knows the real reason for the divorce but refuses to disclose it because it involves someone else’s privacy.
• Chu becomes separated from the production crew while distracted by gossip. She spends the time eating local snacks and drinking milk tea, unintentionally promoting the small town to viewers.
• After eating too much, Chu leaves her livestream phone outside a public restroom and asks the viewers to watch it for her.
• While Chu is away, viewers suddenly hear an unfamiliar man asking, “Do you really like her that much?” The voice seems familiar, suggesting an important new revelation or confrontation is about to occur.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue: Establishes herself as a playful, gossip-loving commentator who enjoys observing romantic drama but respects private information when necessary. Her carefree food livestream also shows her impulsive and unconcerned personality.
• Qin Xingshi: Remains the center of the romantic triangle, though her true feelings are still unclear. Public opinion increasingly suggests she may prefer Zhang—or may be too focused on work to choose either man.
• Lü Chenyi: His lingering feelings for Qin become more evident through his relaxed expressions around her. His former closeness with Zhang raises questions about the emotional history behind their falling-out and the divorce.
• Zhang Hongbin: Is portrayed as Qin’s current pursuer and Lü’s romantic rival. His physical tension around Lü reveals suspicion, jealousy, or unresolved hostility.
• Livestream viewers: Act as an active gossip community, analyzing body language, recalling old rumors, and reacting enthusiastically to Chu’s revelations.

Significant Themes

• Public scrutiny and gossip: The livestream turns private relationships into entertainment, with viewers eagerly interpreting every gesture and rumor.
• Unresolved love and rivalry: Lü’s remaining feelings, Zhang’s jealousy, and Qin’s uncertain affections create a complicated emotional triangle.
• Privacy versus sensationalism: Chu enjoys gossip but draws a line when the information concerns someone else’s personal secrets.
• The gap between appearances and truth: Viewers speculate about the divorce and the men’s conflict, but the real explanation remains hidden.
• Accidental influence: Chu’s casual livestream of local food unexpectedly attracts attention to the small town.

Character Interactions

• Chu interacts constantly with the livestream audience, encouraging their speculation while teasing them about forbidden information.
• Lü’s relaxed behavior around Qin contrasts with Zhang’s guarded reaction to Lü, visually revealing their romantic rivalry.
• Chu’s revelation about Lü and Zhang’s former friendship changes the viewers’ understanding of their current hostility.
• The chapter ends with an unseen man addressing someone about their feelings for “her,” creating suspense and hinting at a concealed conversation connected to the romantic conflict.

Chapter Summary: “Chu Xiyue Drops Another Bombshell”

Key Plot Points and Events

• During Chu Xiyue’s livestream, Lü Chenyi and Zhang Hongbin enter a secluded restroom and begin arguing, unaware that Chu’s phone is secretly recording them.
• Lü Chenyi accuses Zhang Hongbin of abandoning their past relationship now that he loves Qin Xingshi.
• Zhang reveals the shocking truth: he and Lü Chenyi were former lovers. They had agreed to cut contact after Lü married Qin Xingshi.
• Lü refuses to accept the breakup and begs Zhang to return to him, offering wealth, status, and his love.
• Zhang rejects him firmly, insisting that he now loves Qin Xingshi and will not reconcile.
• In a sudden escalation, Lü forcibly kisses Zhang.
• The livestream audience witnesses the confession and forced kiss, reacting with overwhelming shock as their romantic history is exposed.
• Before viewers can discuss the incident further, the livestream is shut down for violating regulations concerning vulgar or explicit content.

Character Developments

• Lü Chenyi is revealed to be deeply obsessive and unable to let go of Zhang Hongbin. His desperation escalates from pleading to physical coercion, exposing his possessive nature and poor understanding of consent.
• Zhang Hongbin remains emotionally resolute. Although he admits that he was once happy with Lü, he makes clear that their relationship is over and that his feelings now belong to Qin Xingshi.
• Chu Xiyue continues to unintentionally uncover explosive secrets through her livestream. Her amused, detached reaction shows that she views the situation more as absurd gossip than as a serious romantic drama.
• The livestream viewers shift from assuming Lü and Zhang are rivals to realizing they were former lovers. Their growing excitement and shock turn the confrontation into a viral scandal before the broadcast is banned.
• The system provides comic commentary by comparing Lü’s behavior to melodramatic “domineering CEO” romance clichés.

Significant Themes

• The exposure of hidden relationships: A supposedly ordinary confrontation reveals a secret past relationship and overturns public assumptions about the characters.
• Obsession versus genuine love: Lü confuses possession and persistence with affection, while Zhang emphasizes that love cannot be forced or bought.
• Consent and coercion: The forced kiss highlights the danger of romanticized controlling behavior and contrasts fictional “CEO romance” tropes with real-world harassment.
• Public spectacle and voyeurism: Private emotional conflict becomes entertainment for thousands of viewers, demonstrating how livestreaming turns personal scandals into public drama.
• Comedy amid serious conflict: Chu Xiyue’s sarcastic observations and the viewers’ exaggerated reactions create humor even as the scene involves emotional manipulation and sexual misconduct.

Character Interactions

• Lü Chenyi and Zhang Hongbin: Their former romantic relationship is exposed through an emotionally charged argument. Lü begs for another chance, while Zhang rejects him and affirms his love for Qin Xingshi. The confrontation ends with Lü forcibly kissing Zhang.
• Zhang Hongbin and Qin Xingshi: Qin does not appear directly, but Zhang repeatedly invokes his current love for her as the reason he refuses Lü.
• Chu Xiyue and the system: Chu jokes privately with the system about Lü’s repetitive forced-kiss behavior, while the system mocks the melodramatic conventions that seem to influence him.
• The characters and the audience: Although Lü and Zhang do not know they are being filmed, the viewers become accidental witnesses to their hidden past, transforming the private confrontation into a major public revelation.

Chapter 67 Summary

Plot and Major Events

• The livestream is abruptly shut down just as viewers begin to witness the confrontation between Zhang Hongbin and Lü Chenyi. With no conclusion available, netizens move to Weibo and begin spreading recordings and speculation.
• In private, Lü Chenyi kisses Zhang Hongbin and tries to rekindle their former relationship. He becomes jealous after seeing Zhang’s intimacy with Qin Xingshi and insists that Zhang still likes him.
• Zhang rejects Lü Chenyi’s advances and mocks his desperation. Their conversation reveals that Lü once had a sexual relationship with Zhang, though Zhang’s feelings have now shifted toward Qin Xingshi.
• Chu Xiyue overhears the exchange from the women’s restroom, while the system provides amused commentary. She treats the encounter like an over-the-top romance drama and is shocked by the revelation of their past intimacy.
• When footsteps approach, Lü Chenyi immediately distances himself from Zhang and pretends they have no connection. Zhang notices his cowardice, sarcastically fixes his clothes, and leaves.
• Chu Xiyue later exits the restroom and discovers that her phone was left outside. She also learns that the livestream has been taken down.
• Screen recordings quickly circulate online. Netizens expose Lü Chenyi and Zhang Hongbin’s former relationship and begin reconstructing the complicated romantic history among Lü, Zhang, and Qin Xingshi.
• Public opinion turns especially hostile when people conclude that Lü Chenyi, who is gay, deceived Qin Xingshi into marrying him. The hashtag #LüChenyiMarriageFraud# trends, and angry users flood his Weibo account.
• Lü’s agent demands an explanation and threatens to have him shelved. Lü finally checks Weibo, sees the trending topics and leaked video, and turns pale as he realizes the damage to his career.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Lü Chenyi is revealed as emotionally desperate, jealous, and unwilling to accept that Zhang no longer loves him. His behavior changes sharply when outsiders approach, exposing his fear of public discovery and his lack of courage.
• Zhang Hongbin remains firm and resistant to Lü’s advances. His mocking reaction shows that he has emotionally moved on and now favors Qin Xingshi.
• Chu Xiyue acts as an amused observer and commentator. Her curiosity and humorous reactions provide comic relief while she witnesses the explosive secret firsthand.
• Qin Xingshi, though absent from the direct confrontation, becomes central to the scandal. Netizens portray her as having been deceived into marriage by Lü and connect her past with Lü to her current relationship with Zhang.
• Lü’s agent introduces the professional consequences of the scandal, making clear that the exposure threatens Lü’s career and public image.

Significant Themes

• Public exposure and loss of control: A private confrontation becomes a viral scandal once the livestream recording reaches social media.
• The destructive power of online speculation: Netizens quickly transform incomplete evidence into a sweeping narrative about past relationships, divorce, and marriage fraud.
• Deception in relationships: Lü’s marriage to Qin Xingshi is reframed as an act of betrayal, intensifying public outrage.
• Jealousy and inability to let go: Lü’s possessiveness contrasts with Zhang’s emotional detachment.
• The gap between private and public selves: Lü’s intimate confession and cowardly attempt to hide their relationship collide with the unforgiving visibility of celebrity culture.

Chapter Summary: “New Guests Arrive”

Key Plot Points and Events

• A recording of Lü Chenyi and Zhang Hongbin is released, clearly revealing their romantic relationship. Although the footage is blurry, their voices are unmistakable.
• Lü Chenyi panics because the exposure threatens his public image and career. His manager demands an explanation, but Lü denies having any relationship with Zhang and claims Zhang harassed him.
• The manager angrily rejects Lü’s excuse, saying the video clearly shows the opposite, and warns that Lü will be removed from the entertainment industry.
• Zhang confronts Lü after overhearing his denial. He condemns Lü as weak, hypocritical, and irresponsible for hiding behind lies and sacrificing Zhang to protect himself.
• Both men leave the reality show. Zhang’s career is largely unaffected because his modeling circle already knows and accepts his sexuality.
• Lü posts an apology admitting that he deceived someone into marriage and announces his permanent withdrawal from show business. His manager wrote the statement, and Lü’s account is subsequently muted.
• Online discussion turns Chu Xiyue into the center of further speculation. Netizens believe she deliberately exposes scandals and nickname her an “undercover agent” cleaning up the entertainment industry.
• Chu insists that this scandal was genuinely accidental, but her denial does little to change public opinion. She gains a new group of fans who call themselves “Xiyue-melons,” a pun based on enjoying sensational gossip.
• Since the show has lost two male guests, the Director gives Chu résumés for two potential replacements and asks her opinion. He now treats her as an unofficial source of information about troublesome celebrities.

Character Developments

• Lü Chenyi: His fear of social judgment reveals his cowardice and unwillingness to accept responsibility. When pressured, he prioritizes his career over Zhang, but his denial backfires and results in public disgrace, the end of his acting career, and permanent silence on social media.
• Zhang Hongbin: He demonstrates greater self-acceptance and moral confidence than Lü. Since he has never hidden his sexuality or deceived anyone through marriage, he is less affected by the scandal. His confrontation with Lü shows his anger at hypocrisy and betrayal.
• Chu Xiyue: Although she did not intentionally expose this particular scandal, her reputation as a trouble-detecting celebrity grows stronger. She gains fans, becomes associated with uncovering scandals, and is increasingly treated by the production staff as someone capable of identifying problematic guests.
• The Director: Exhausted by repeated scandals, he becomes more cautious and hopes the replacement guests will be uncontroversial. His reliance on Chu reflects how influential her reputation has become.

Significant Themes

• Hypocrisy and responsibility: Lü’s refusal to acknowledge his relationship exposes the damage caused by protecting one’s public image at another person’s expense.
• Authenticity versus concealment: Zhang’s openness contrasts sharply with Lü’s fear and deception, suggesting that honesty provides greater stability than maintaining a false public persona.
• Celebrity culture and public judgment: The chapter shows how quickly scandals can destroy an entertainer’s career, while online audiences turn real people’s private lives into entertainment.
• Reputation and unintended consequences: Chu’s reputation as a scandal exposer expands even when she has done nothing deliberate, demonstrating how public narratives can take on a life of their own.
• Entertainment as spectacle: The show’s repeated scandals attract attention and fans, revealing the contradiction between the industry’s desire for orderly production and the audience’s appetite for drama.

Character Interactions

• Lü and his manager: Their phone call highlights the manager’s anger and Lü’s panic. The manager refuses to defend him after Lü gives an implausible explanation.
• Lü and Zhang: Zhang directly challenges Lü’s cowardice and hypocrisy, ending their interaction with contempt and emotional distance.
• Chu Xiyue and netizens: Though she has no direct contact with them, online users reinterpret her actions and create an exaggerated identity for her as an “undercover agent.”
• Chu Xiyue and the Director: The Director privately asks her to help assess two replacement male guests, showing that he now views her as a useful detector of potential scandals.

Chapter Summary

Plot points and events

• Chu Xiyue examines potential new guests for the dating show with Director Wang.
• She recognizes two photographed candidates as members of WED Boy Band, whose romantic scandal involved both men pursuing the same woman despite her existing relationship. Chu decides not to recommend them because neither is currently single.
• The director then presents two unfamiliar candidates: a screenwriter from a wealthy family and a man partly connected to the entertainment industry. Because Chu has never met them, her Gossip-Eating System cannot reveal anything about them.
• The director quickly contacts the candidates, finalizes their contracts, and brings them onto the show the next morning.
• The new guests are Bai Guangji, an award-winning but shy screenwriter, and Xiao Rui, the young executive president of Dragon Roar Technology.

Character developments

• Chu continues balancing her curiosity and love of gossip with concern for Director Wang, showing that she has a conscience despite her enthusiasm for scandals.
• Director Wang remains anxious about the show’s tendency to attract problematic celebrities and appears relieved that Chu does not know anything questionable about the new candidates.
• Bai Guangji is introduced as modest, introverted, and inexperienced with women. Li Fan’er’s praise embarrasses him, revealing his innocence and shyness.
• Li Fan’er openly admires Bai’s writing, while Zhao Xizhou immediately displays jealousy and possessiveness toward her.
• Xiao Rui is presented as confident, powerful, and intimidating. His intense scrutiny of Chu suggests immediate interest or tension between them.

Character interactions

• Chu and the director discuss the suitability of potential guests, with Chu warning him about the boy-band members’ relationships.
• Li Fan’er enthusiastically compliments Bai Guangji’s award-winning screenplay, creating an apparent romantic spark.
• Zhao Xizhou interrupts their interaction and introduces himself to Bai with poorly concealed hostility, clearly jealous of Li Fan’er’s attention.
• Chu notices and enjoys the implied “Zhoufan” pairing, preferring it over the possible Li Fan’er–Bai Guangji pairing being promoted by viewers.
• Xiao Rui approaches Chu directly, blocking her view and inspecting her boldly. Their first exchange is curt and confrontational: Chu wants him out of the way, while he introduces himself as a major technology executive.

Significant themes

• The chapter emphasizes the contrast between public romance and hidden relationship problems, reinforcing the show’s reliance on gossip and scandal.
• It highlights the difference between appearance and reality: seemingly suitable guests may have complicated private lives, while unfamiliar people remain unreadable to Chu’s system.
• Jealousy, romantic “shipping,” and the entertainment industry’s habit of turning real interactions into spectacle are central, especially through the audience’s reactions to Bai, Li Fan’er, and Zhao Xizhou.
• Xiao Rui’s arrival shifts attention from established pairings to a new potential relationship with Chu, suggesting a developing rivalry or romance.

Chapter Summary

Plot points and events

• Xiao Rui, a wealthy and influential CEO, arrives on the dating show. Viewers immediately speculate about a romance between him and Chu Xiyue, though they remain wary because of Chu’s history of scandals involving men.
• Xiao Rui focuses exclusively on Chu Xiyue, while Zhao Xizhou quietly competes with Bai Guangji by comparing their height, appearance, and physique before inviting Bai inside.
• Chu Xiyue enjoys watching the men interact but is unimpressed by Xiao Rui’s attempts to attract her attention. She bluntly asks him to move because he is blocking her view.
• Xiao Rui introduces himself again and reveals that Chu Xiyue looks familiar to him. He directly asks her to become his partner on the show.
• Instead of answering, Chu asks the system why his name seems familiar. The system discovers that Xiao Rui is the second male lead—and the doomed ex-husband—from the original novel.
• The system explains the original plot: heroine Xu Zhiying was betrayed and killed in her first life after marrying the wrong man, then was reborn and chose to pursue her acting career. In her second life, she becomes a celebrated actress while her former husband is ruined.
• Xiao Rui’s role is more disturbing than Chu initially realized. He married Xu Zhiying because she resembled his unreachable first love, then cheated with Xu’s half-sister when she came to resemble that woman more closely. Many of his past girlfriends were also substitutes for the same unattainable love.
• Chu begins to suspect that Xiao Rui joined the show because she resembles this woman.

Character developments

• Chu Xiyue: Remains blunt, observant, and primarily interested in gossip rather than romance. She is initially puzzled by Xiao Rui’s familiarity, but after learning his history, becomes suspicious of his motives and rejects the idea of being used as a substitute.
• Xiao Rui: Presents himself as confident and wealthy, but his composure falters when Chu ignores him. His attraction to her is revealed to be connected to unresolved obsession with another woman, suggesting possessiveness and emotional manipulation beneath his polished exterior.
• Zhao Xizhou: Displays competitive and vain behavior toward Bai Guangji, trying to establish superiority before welcoming him.
• Xu Zhiying: Though absent from the current events, her tragic past and rebirth form the central backstory that explains Xiao Rui’s character and the novel’s original storyline.
• The system: Helps Chu recover forgotten information about the original novel and uncovers new details about Xiao Rui’s substitute-lover pattern.

Significant themes

• Substitute relationships and objectification: Xiao Rui does not appear to love women as individuals; he seeks physical or emotional resemblance to an unreachable ideal.
• Manipulation and unhealthy obsession: His romantic history suggests that his relationships are driven by fixation rather than genuine affection.
• Fate versus altered storylines: Chu’s presence in the novel’s world allows her to encounter characters before their original plots unfold, potentially changing their destinies.
• Gossip and entertainment culture: The viewers and Chu treat the contestants’ behavior as spectacle, turning a dating show into a source of speculation and drama.
• Female agency: Xu Zhiying’s rebirth centers on reclaiming her career and independence, while Chu’s skepticism shows her unwillingness to be reduced to someone else’s replacement.

Character interactions

• Xiao Rui attempts to establish intimacy with Chu by greeting only her and asking her to become his partner, but Chu responds with indifference and practical irritation.
• Chu watches Zhao Xizhou and Bai Guangji compete, treating their rivalry as entertainment.
• Chu and the system discuss Xiao Rui’s identity and uncover the disturbing reason behind his romantic behavior.
• The chapter ends with Chu questioning whether Xiao Rui came to the show specifically because she resembles his unattainable love.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

The system reveals Xiao Rui’s cruel pattern of manipulating women. He engineers personal and family disasters, then rescues his victims when they are most desperate, making them emotionally dependent on him. Once they fall in love, he abandons them for a new “substitute” resembling his idealized white moonlight. Enraged by the harm he has caused, Chu Xiyue agrees to become Xiao Rui’s partner—not because she is deceived, but because she intends to punish him and ultimately send him to prison.
Afterward, Chu Xiyue uses her influence as the investor’s daughter to alter the show’s team arrangements. She draws a task requiring Xiao Rui to move a huge pile of bricks at a construction site. Although he is reluctant and unaccustomed to manual labor, Xiao Rui accepts after Chu Xiyue challenges his pride and reminds him of the woman she resembles. He begins working while Chu Xiyue relaxes in the shade and watches a drama.

Character developments

Chu Xiyue shifts from merely avoiding Xiao Rui to actively targeting him. Her anger at his abuse of innocent women motivates her to use her social power against him, and she adopts a strategic, vengeful attitude. Xiao Rui is shown to be manipulative, predatory, and dependent on recreating his attachment to his “white moonlight.” His attraction to Chu Xiyue is based largely on her resemblance to that woman, leaving him vulnerable to her influence.

Significant themes

The chapter emphasizes emotional manipulation, power abuse, and the destructive consequences of treating people as substitutes. It also explores revenge and the reversal of power: Chu Xiyue uses the privilege and authority that Xiao Rui normally exploits to make him experience humiliation and hardship. The contrast between his polished status and the physical labor he despises highlights his entitlement.

Character interactions

Xiao Rui proposes that Chu Xiyue become his partner, believing her resemblance to his ideal woman makes her suitable as a substitute. She accepts while concealing her true motives. The system warns her against him, but Chu Xiyue explains her plan to punish him. Later, she coordinates with the Director to pair them and assigns Xiao Rui the brick-moving task. She provokes him by questioning his strength and determination, successfully pressuring him into accepting the challenge while she observes from the shade.

Chapter Summary: “Recognizing the Stand-In”

Key plot points and events

• Chu Xiyue deliberately changes her group’s variety-show assignment from pleasant part-time jobs to brick-moving so Xiao Rui will experience the kind of hardship connected to Xu Xinyi’s father’s accident.
• She plans a larger revenge campaign against Xiao Rui, using the system to investigate the four women whose lives he ruined: Xu Xinyi, Yao Jiajia, Yu Ke, and Pei Siyuan.
• The women’s tragedies are revealed:
  • Xu Xinyi’s father suffered a disastrous accident while moving bricks, leaving the family financially devastated.
  • Yao Jiajia was manipulated because she resembled Xiao Rui’s first love, then framed for stealing company secrets and imprisoned for three years.
  • Yu Ke’s fashion business was destroyed after Xiao Rui tried and failed to control her.
  • Pei Siyuan was set up, causing her family’s bankruptcy and her parents’ deaths; she subsequently lost both legs in an accident while fleeing creditors.
• Chu Xiyue anonymously contacts all four women, claiming to know who caused their suffering. She brings them into a group chat and tells a fabricated story that closely mirrors their experiences.
• Her story describes a manipulative man who ruins a woman’s family, career, and finances after she rejects him, later “rescues” her, and eventually abandons her for another woman who resembles his former love.
• The chapter ends as the four women begin recognizing the common pattern in Xiao Rui’s relationships: he targets women who resemble the girl he once loved and destroys them when they no longer satisfy him.

Character developments

• Chu Xiyue is shown to be strategic, patient, and deeply committed to revenge. Rather than confronting Xiao Rui directly, she gathers his victims and gives them the information needed to reclaim their agency.
• Xiao Rui is exposed as a serial emotional manipulator who deliberately ruins women’s lives, uses financial “救援” to control them, and treats them as substitutes for his first love.
• Xu Xinyi, previously emotionally numb and withdrawn, reacts intensely when she hears that someone knows the truth about her father’s accident. Chu Xiyue’s message sparks the first visible return of hope and anger.
• Yao Jiajia, Yu Ke, and Pei Siyuan each respond to Chu Xiyue’s story through memories of their own suffering, gradually realizing that their experiences were not isolated incidents.
• The four women begin shifting from passive victims to potential collaborators in Xiao Rui’s downfall.

Significant themes

• Retribution and justice: Xiao Rui is forced to endure physical labor while his victims are given the opportunity to seek justice.
• Manipulation and control: His pattern of destroying women, rescuing them, and then discarding them reveals abuse disguised as romance.
• Recognition and solidarity: The women’s shared experiences allow them to identify Xiao Rui’s repeated methods and unite against him.
• Restoring agency: Chu Xiyue does not simply punish Xiao Rui herself; she intends for the women he harmed to learn the truth and design their own revenge.
• The danger of romantic idealization: Xiao Rui’s fixation on his first love turns every subsequent relationship into a comparison, reducing women to stand-ins rather than treating them as individuals.

Character interactions

• Chu Xiyue supervises Xiao Rui’s brick-moving while simultaneously researching and contacting his former victims, contrasting his immediate punishment with her larger plan.
• She communicates anonymously with Xu Xinyi, Yao Jiajia, Yu Ke, and Pei Siyuan, deliberately withholding her identity to keep the focus on their shared enemy.
• The women do not initially speak directly about Xiao Rui, but their reactions to Chu Xiyue’s invented story reveal that each recognizes the same cycle of seduction, sabotage, rescue, and abandonment.
• The group chat becomes the first space where the four victims can collectively compare their experiences and begin recognizing Xiao Rui as the common cause of their tragedies.

• In the group chat, Chu Xiyue reveals that Xiao Rui secretly engineered the tragedies of his former girlfriends: causing a workplace accident, framing one woman for theft, ruining another’s career, and driving a family into bankruptcy. Xu Xinyi, Yao Jiajia, Yu Ke, and Pei Siyuan recognize their own experiences in these accounts and realize the pattern cannot be coincidence. They are devastated by their past relationships and feel powerless against Xiao Rui’s powerful company. Chu Xiyue offers to help them get revenge.
• Meanwhile, Xiao Rui struggles through a brick-moving task on camera. Unused to physical labor, he quickly develops blisters and becomes exhausted. Chu Xiyue deliberately taunts and criticizes him, while viewers speculate about why she is treating him so harshly and wonder whether Xiao Rui has something to hide.
• Xiao Rui suppresses his anger at first, believing he will eventually “reform” Chu Xiyue as he has his other girlfriends. But her relentless mockery pushes him over the edge: he shouts at her, kicks over the bricks, and declares he is done filming, privately vowing to make her pay.
  Character developments and interactions: The women move from shock and grief toward shared recognition and the possibility of action, with Chu Xiyue taking the lead. Xiao Rui’s entitled, controlling nature is exposed through his past schemes and his contempt for labor; Chu Xiyue openly challenges and humiliates him, while he masks his rage until he finally loses control.
  Themes: Abuse of power and manipulation; the lasting harm of coercive relationships; solidarity and revenge; and the contrast between public image and hidden wrongdoing.

Summary of “Xiao Rui’s Downfall”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chu Xiyue confronts Xiao Rui about arranging the construction-site “accident” that injured Xu Haiping and deprived his family of their livelihood.
• Xiao Rui denies knowing anything, but his panic reveals that he recognizes the accusation and fears his past crimes have been exposed.
• While backing away from Chu Xiyue, Xiao Rui trips over scattered bricks and crashes into several heavy panes of tempered glass. The glass collapses onto his legs, causing severe injuries.
• The production crew stops the livestream and rushes to rescue him. Emergency treatment is delayed because the remote location makes it difficult for the ambulance to arrive.
• Chu Xiyue photographs Xiao Rui’s suffering and sends it to the group chat, where Xu Xinyi and Pei Siyuan react with grim satisfaction, viewing his injuries as retribution for the pain he caused them.
• At the scene, Chu Xiyue reminds Xiao Rui of Xu Haiping’s death and Pei Siyuan’s traumatic injuries, emphasizing that their suffering was far worse than his own.
• Xiao Rui realizes that Chu Xiyue knows details about multiple hidden crimes and accuses her of causing his injuries. She denies responsibility, pointing out that the cameras recorded him falling on his own and suggesting that fate—or heaven—has punished him.
• Xiao Rui is taken to the hospital, where doctors diagnose comminuted fractures in both tibias and fibulas, fractured heels, and three broken toes. He will require multiple surgeries.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue becomes increasingly confident and openly confrontational. She uses Xiao Rui’s fear and guilt against him, showing little sympathy for his pain and interpreting the accident as deserved retribution.
• Xiao Rui shifts from arrogance and denial to terror and helplessness. His attempt to conceal his crimes collapses as he realizes that others know the truth, while his physical injuries symbolize the downfall of his power and control.
• Xu Xinyi responds to the photograph with relief and dark satisfaction, but her reaction also leads her to reconnect emotionally with her mother. She invites her mother for a walk and offers comfort after seeing how much grief has aged her.
• Pei Siyuan laughs at Xiao Rui’s injuries while touching her empty pant leg, viewing his suffering as karmic justice for the loss of her own legs.

Significant Themes

• Karma and retribution: Xiao Rui’s injuries mirror the suffering he inflicted on others, reinforcing the idea that wrongdoing eventually returns to the perpetrator.
• Justice versus legal accountability: Although Xiao Rui’s crimes have not yet been formally exposed or punished, his accidental injuries provide an immediate, almost supernatural form of justice.
• Hidden guilt and exposure: Xiao Rui’s frightened reactions show that concealed crimes continue to haunt him and can be revealed unexpectedly.
• Shared trauma and solidarity: The group’s reactions connect the characters through their common history of suffering at Xiao Rui’s hands.
• Family grief and healing: Xu Xinyi’s interaction with her mother shows that revenge does not erase emotional pain, while family support offers a path toward recovery.

Character Interactions

• Chu Xiyue directly challenges Xiao Rui, naming Xu Haiping and confronting him with the consequences of his actions.
• Xiao Rui responds with denial, fear, and eventually accusations against Chu Xiyue.
• Chu Xiyue compares Xiao Rui’s injuries with the far more devastating suffering of Xu Haiping, Xu Xinyi, and Pei Siyuan.
• The group chat links the victims emotionally as they witness Xiao Rui’s downfall.
• Xu Xinyi comforts her aging mother, shifting from private satisfaction over Xiao Rui’s injuries to concern for her family.

Chapter Summary: “Xiao Rui Goes to Prison”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Xiao Rui is injured during a livestreamed dating show, the accident quickly becomes a trending topic. The production team prepares an apology for failing to provide adequate safety measures.
• Before the apology is released, Wu Taotao publishes an exposé about Xiao Rui’s romantic history. Several former girlfriends reveal that Xiao Rui repeatedly dated women who resembled the woman he secretly loved, treating them as substitutes.
• Xu Xinyi, Yao Jiajia, Yu Ke, and Pei Siyuan, along with seven other women, join forces to expose Xiao Rui. Chu Xiyue provides Wu Taotao’s contact information and supports the investigation.
• The evidence and photographs convince netizens that the women genuinely resemble one another. The hashtag #XiaoRuiSubstitute# quickly surpasses the accident-related trend.
• Public opinion shifts dramatically. Rather than sympathizing with Xiao Rui’s injury or blaming the show, viewers condemn him as a manipulative “scumbag.” Many also notice that Chu Xiyue resembles his former girlfriends and speculate that she may have been his next target.
• Netizens compare Xiao Rui’s downfall to He Jinyuan’s earlier scandal, joking that Chu Xiyue somehow exposes dishonest men simply by appearing in their lives.
• After waking from anesthesia, Xiao Rui finds four police officers waiting for him. They inform him that multiple women have reported him and that he is suspected of intentional injury, unfair competition, obstruction of justice, and intentional homicide.
• Xiao Rui denies all wrongdoing and insists that he is a law-abiding citizen. The police confront him with a key piece of evidence: a transfer of 100,000 yuan to Sun Datou three years earlier.
• Sun Datou had been the safety officer at Xu Haiping’s construction site. Following Xu Haiping’s accident, Sun Datou strangely avoided punishment and was promoted, suggesting that Xiao Rui may have been involved in manipulating or concealing the incident.

Character Developments

• Xiao Rui: His public image collapses completely. He is exposed not only as someone who emotionally exploited multiple women but also as a possible participant in serious criminal acts. Even when confronted by police, he remains outwardly composed and refuses to confess.
• The former girlfriends: They move from being individually deceived victims to a united group seeking justice. Their cooperation allows the truth about Xiao Rui’s pattern of behavior to become public.
• Wu Taotao: She acts as the investigative platform through which the women expose Xiao Rui, turning their testimonies and evidence into a widespread public scandal.
• Chu Xiyue: Her earlier hostility toward Xiao Rui is recontextualized. It becomes clear that she may have recognized his intentions or known about his behavior before the public did. She also avoids becoming another victim.
• Sun Datou: Though not directly present, he becomes an important figure in the emerging criminal investigation because of his suspicious connection to Xiao Rui.
• The production team: Initially blamed for Xiao Rui’s injury, the team is largely forgotten once the deeper scandal is exposed.

Significant Themes

• Public exposure and accountability: Xiao Rui’s carefully maintained reputation collapses once victims cooperate and reveal evidence.
• Manipulation and objectification: The former girlfriends were not loved as individuals; they were treated as substitutes for someone else, highlighting the emotional harm caused by deception.
• The gap between public image and reality: Xiao Rui was regarded as a wealthy, desirable “nation’s husband,” but behind that image was a pattern of exploitation and possibly criminal conduct.
• Collective resistance: The women’s decision to work together demonstrates how victims can regain power by sharing information and supporting one another.
• Justice and consequences: The chapter shifts from social condemnation to formal legal action, suggesting that Xiao Rui may face punishment not only for emotional abuse but also for violence, corruption, and a past death or accident.
• Fate and irony: Xiao Rui’s injury initially appears to make him a victim, but the timing of the accident instead leads to the exposure of his crimes and eventual arrest.

Character Interactions

• The former girlfriends and Wu Taotao: They collaborate to publish the exposé and prevent Xiao Rui from deceiving more women.
• Chu Xiyue and Xiao Rui: His aggressive interest in her is reinterpreted as part of his established pattern of pursuing women who resemble his secret love. Chu Xiyue’s sarcasm and rejection now appear deliberate and informed.
• The public and Xiao Rui: Netizens rapidly turn against him, transforming the narrative from sympathy for an injured guest into condemnation of a suspected criminal.
• Police and Xiao Rui: The police confront him with multiple accusations and financial evidence. Xiao Rui maintains a calm façade and denies everything, setting up a legal confrontation.
• Xiao Rui and Sun Datou: Their unexplained financial connection raises suspicions that Xiao Rui arranged or influenced events surrounding Xu Haiping’s construction-site accident.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Police confront Xiao Rui with evidence linking him to:
  • A suspicious payment to Sun Datou after Xu Haiping’s incident.
  • Framing Yao Jiajia and sending her to prison.
  • Targeting Yu Ke’s brand and the Pei family’s company.
  • Hiring the driver who crippled Pei Siyuan.
• Although Xiao Rui refuses to confess, he realizes the evidence is strong enough to secure his conviction.
• While recovering in the hospital, Xiao Rui escapes by jumping from a second-floor balcony, worsening his already broken leg.
• Police pursue him, but he runs into traffic against a red light and is struck by a speeding drunk driver.
• Xiao Rui survives but loses both legs below the knees. The women in the group chat show no sympathy and celebrate his downfall by sending red packets.
• Wu Taotao reposts the traffic-police announcement with a mocking comment, prompting internet users to identify the injured criminal suspect as Xiao Rui.
• Further revelations expose Xiao Rui’s long-term pattern of abusing his power: he harmed women’s relatives and ruined their careers when they rejected him, then pretended to rescue them so they would become dependent on him.
• The public learns that Xiao Rui has been criminally detained.

Character Developments

• Xiao Rui: His arrogance and belief that he can escape justice collapse. He remains unrepentant, attempts a desperate escape, and suffers severe physical consequences. His manipulative behavior is publicly revealed, transforming him from a disgraced man into a confirmed criminal.
• Chu Xiyue: Reacts with surprise and relief to Xiao Rui’s escape attempt and accident, viewing his injuries as deserved retribution. She shares the news with the group, contributing to the public exposure of his crimes.
• Wu Taotao: Deliberately hints online that the injured suspect is Xiao Rui, using sarcasm to condemn him and encouraging public discussion.
• The women in the group: Their collective hostility toward Xiao Rui reflects their awareness of his wrongdoing. Rather than pitying him, they celebrate his punishment and reclaim a sense of justice.

Significant Themes

• Retribution and karma: Xiao Rui’s attempt to flee justice directly leads to his catastrophic accident, reinforcing the idea that wrongdoing eventually brings consequences.
• Abuse of power and manipulation: The chapter exposes how Xiao Rui engineered women’s vulnerability and posed as their savior to control them emotionally.
• Justice versus confession: Even without Xiao Rui admitting guilt, evidence and witness accounts are enough to establish his crimes.
• Public exposure and social judgment: Social media plays a major role in revealing Xiao Rui’s identity and misconduct, allowing victims’ experiences to gain public recognition.
• Collective solidarity: The women’s group supports one another and responds together to Xiao Rui’s downfall, contrasting their unity with his exploitative behavior.

Character Interactions

• Police officers interrogate Xiao Rui and present evidence of his crimes, while he offers an implausible excuse and refuses to cooperate.
• The system informs Chu Xiyue about Xiao Rui’s escape and accident, allowing her to witness his downfall indirectly.
• Chu Xiyue shares the news in the group chat, where the women respond with celebration rather than sympathy.
• Wu Taotao interacts with the online public by reposting the police notice and liking speculation that Xiao Rui was the injured suspect.
• Internet users exchange information that ultimately confirms Xiao Rui’s pattern of coercion and criminal abuse.

Chapter Summary

• Xiao Rui’s downfall: Sea City Police publicly confirm that reports accusing Xiao Rui of plotting to harm Xu and obstructing justice are true. Xiao Rui is arrested and later sentenced to twenty years in prison. Meanwhile, Dragon Roar Technology’s stock crashes, customers and employees abandon the company, competitors exploit its weakness, and the company eventually declares bankruptcy. His fate mirrors the ruin he once inflicted on Yu Ke’s design brand.
• Show continues after Xiao Rui’s removal: While Chu Xiyue is still filming the variety show, the director quickly finds a replacement guest. The new participant, Jia Tianyou, is a handsome senior music student and aspiring singer-songwriter signed to Azure Sea Entertainment. Chu is paired with him, but he appears visibly nervous around her.
• Jia Tianyou’s hidden scandals: Through the gossip system, Chu learns that several of Jia’s successful songs were ghostwritten. He also seduced his male manager—despite being straight—in order to secure his contract with Azure Sea Entertainment, and later continued an intermittent sexual relationship with him. He had also obtained his place on the show by sleeping with the manager. Chu humorously interprets this as sacrificing himself for his career.
• Connection to the boy-band scandal: The system reveals that Jia once shared a dormitory with Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng, the two members of WED Boy Band who are both involved with the same woman, Chi Ying. Duan and Pang were once close friends but later fought fiercely over her. Jia’s delayed graduation and knowledge of their private lives make him one of the few people able to provide more information.
• Chu Xiyue investigates: Excited to share gossip, Chu quietly asks Jia about Duan and Pang’s current relationship and which of them Chi Ying prefers. Jia becomes alarmed because he knows the matter is secret, while Chu immediately recognizes from his reaction that he is involved in the inner circle of knowledge.
• Public exposure and cliffhanger: Although Chu tries to speak privately, her microphone broadcasts the conversation to the livestream. Viewers quickly connect “Captain A” and “Member B” to Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng and realize that Chi Ying is the woman at the center of their conflict, creating a new wave of online speculation.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Xiao Rui loses both his company and freedom, completing his moral and professional downfall.
• Chu Xiyue continues to use her gossip system boldly, combining sharp observation, curiosity, and comic bluntness. Her questions put Jia under pressure and accidentally expose another entertainment-industry secret.
• Jia Tianyou is shown as ambitious but insecure, willing to compromise himself for career advancement. His fear of Chu suggests he suspects she can uncover his secrets.
• Chu and Jia’s interaction shifts from an ordinary show pairing to an interrogation-like exchange, with Chu treating him as a source of gossip and Jia desperately trying to avoid exposure.
• Duan Xu, Pang Gaofeng, and Chi Ying do not appear directly, but their romantic conflict becomes the chapter’s new central mystery.

Significant Themes

• Consequences and poetic justice: Xiao Rui suffers the same kind of destruction he once caused others.
• Corruption and exploitation in the entertainment industry: Career advancement is portrayed as being entangled with ghostwriting, sexual exchanges, favoritism, and hidden deals.
• The power and danger of secrets: Private scandals can rapidly become public through livestreaming and social media.
• Gossip as social power: Chu’s supernatural knowledge gives her influence, but her impulsiveness also causes secrets to spread beyond her control.

Chapter Summary

• Gossip about WED’s love triangle: Chu Xiyue learns from Jia Tianyou that former groupmates Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng have completely fallen out after both pursuing Chi Ying. However, they continue pretending to be close for the sake of their group’s public image. The situation is even more complicated because Chi Ying once liked Zhao Xinyu, another group member, and only dated Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng after Zhao rejected her.
• Jia Tianyou exposes his former friends: Intimidated by Chu Xiyue’s apparent knowledge of everyone’s secrets, Jia Tianyou reveals the scandal despite the group’s facade of brotherhood. Several nearby cast members secretly eavesdrop, while the show’s microphones ensure that viewers hear everything.
• Chu Xiyue’s gossip reputation grows: Chu Xiyue reacts casually and humorously, criticizing Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng for failing to win Chi Ying’s affection. Her comments become a major source of online entertainment, leading to trending topics about the feud and her identity as a “variety-show gossip queen.” Her follower count rises substantially, though she remains more interested in the gossip itself than in her increasing popularity.

Other cast relationships develop on the show

• Ding Mengfei and Qi Changming work harmoniously together, causing former “CP” fans to hope they will reunite, unaware that they were never actually a couple.
• Qin Xingshi continues flirting with the shy, introverted Bai Guangji, who becomes visibly flustered and willingly joins her circle of romantic targets.
• Married couple Su Ye and Jiang Xiayue provide the show’s sweet romantic moments, although their public dynamic differs from their private relationship.
• The aired episode becomes a sensation: The show’s fifth edited episode, released after filming resumed, becomes even more popular because of the complicated relationship among Zhang Hongbin, Lü Chenyi, and Qin Xingshi. Viewers realize that Lü Chenyi’s jealousy was connected not to Qin Xingshi but to his lingering feelings for Zhang Hongbin. They are shocked by the revelation that Lü had deceived Qin into marriage while being gay, while Qin still appeared on the show with Zhang.
• The haunted-house mystery intensifies: The episode highlights Chu Xiyue’s suggestive reaction to Zhang and Lü entering the ghost bride’s room, but the footage does not reveal what happened inside. Her knowing expression makes viewers suspect she witnessed something scandalous, prompting the trending topic #WhatDidChuXiyueSee.
• Chu Xiyue teases viewers during a livestream: Asked to react to the episode, Chu Xiyue claims the room was too dark for her to see anything and hints that Zhang and Lü may have been doing something unsuitable for broadcast. When asked which couple she supports most, she jokingly chooses Li Fan’er and Zhao Xizhou.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Chu Xiyue becomes increasingly established as the show’s sharp-eyed, mischievous observer and chief source of gossip. She casually exposes secrets while maintaining an innocent, humorous attitude.
• Jia Tianyou demonstrates that his loyalty to Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng is weak, dismissing their brotherhood as superficial and quickly sacrificing their secrets to protect himself.
• Duan Xu and Pang Gaofeng’s public brotherhood is revealed as a performance concealing resentment and a romantic rivalry.
• Chi Ying and Zhao Xinyu become central to the newly exposed romantic history, creating a tangled chain of unrequited love and failed relationships.
• Qin Xingshi and Bai Guangji reinforce the show’s flirtatious, comedic dynamic, while Su Ye and Jiang Xiayue represent a more publicly affectionate couple.
• Zhang Hongbin and Lü Chenyi’s past relationship is increasingly exposed through the edited footage, leaving viewers eager for clarification about their private encounter.

Significant Themes

• The contrast between public image and private truth: WED’s forced brotherhood, fake “reunion” expectations, Lü Chenyi’s concealed sexuality, and the differing public/private dynamics of the married couple all show how entertainment figures perform identities for audiences.
• Gossip as entertainment and social power: Secrets drive both the show’s popularity and Chu Xiyue’s rising fame. Viewers enthusiastically consume private scandals while treating real emotional turmoil as spectacle.
• The gap between livestreams and edited television: The aired episode gives viewers a different perspective from the original livestream, allowing them to notice hidden expressions, clues, and relationships.
• Unresolved secrets and voyeurism: The mystery surrounding the haunted-house room keeps audiences engaged, emphasizing how partial information and suggestive behavior can generate even more speculation than a direct revelation.

Chapter Summary

Plot points and events

• The system announces that Li Fan’er and Zhao Xizhou have reconciled, surprising Chu Xiyue, who had been shipping them as a couple.
• Their breakup was caused by a mundane misunderstanding: Zhao Xizhou forgot Li Fan’er’s birthday and accidentally gave her the “death Barbie pink” lipstick she hated. The lipstick had been meant for another person, but the gift bags were mixed up.
• Encouraged by something Chu Xiyue said earlier, Zhao Xizhou finally asks Li Fan’er whether she still loves him. She confronts him about the lipstick, learns the truth, and the two get back together.
• Thrilled that her favored couple has become real, Chu Xiyue enthusiastically promotes the “Zhoufan CP” to her livestream audience.
• As the variety show approaches its final episode, Chu Xiyue receives a call from her former/current agent, Sister Liu.
• Sister Liu demands that Chu Xiyue admit fault and obey the company’s arrangements. In exchange, she promises Chu a female lead role and reveals that a businessman, Boss Wang, wants Chu to have dinner with him. She has already accepted the invitation on Chu’s behalf.
• Sister Liu attempts to pressure Chu further by offering the possibility of an endorsement for Mingcui Jewelry if she attends the dinner.
• Chu recognizes the coercion, refuses to cooperate, tells Sister Liu to attend the dinner herself, and blocks her number.
• Immediately afterward, Director Wang approaches Chu and unexpectedly asks whether she would be interested in investing in a television drama.

Character developments

• Chu Xiyue: Remains carefree and gossip-loving, but shows firm boundaries and independence when confronted by her exploitative agent. Rather than pursuing fame or commercial opportunities at any cost, she rejects the entertainment industry’s manipulative practices.
• Li Fan’er and Zhao Xizhou: Resolve their long-standing misunderstanding through honest communication and reconcile.
• Sister Liu: Is revealed as manipulative and exploitative. She tries to control Chu through career promises and inappropriate social obligations.
• Director Wang: Shifts from simply being the show’s director to potentially involving Chu in a new role as a drama investor.

Significant themes

• Communication versus misunderstanding: A trivial mistake caused a prolonged breakup, but direct conversation finally resolves it.
• The contrast between fiction and reality: Chu expects a dramatic romance misunderstanding but discovers that the real cause is ordinary and almost absurd.
• Personal autonomy and resistance to exploitation: Chu refuses to exchange her dignity or safety for roles, endorsements, or industry advancement.
• Unexpected success and unconventional celebrity: Despite having little ambition and fans interested mainly in gossip, Chu gains nearly two million genuine followers.
• New opportunities: Her refusal to be controlled may lead to a more independent path through investing in television productions.

Character interactions

• Chu interacts with the system about Li Fan’er and Zhao Xizhou’s reconciliation and learns that her own earlier remarks indirectly encouraged them.
• Zhao Xizhou and Li Fan’er have a candid conversation that clears up the lipstick misunderstanding and restores their relationship.
• Chu confronts Sister Liu by refusing her demands and rejecting the dinner arrangement with Boss Wang.
• After Chu ends the call, Director Wang approaches her with a surprising investment proposal, creating a new potential direction for her career.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Director Wang offers Chu Xiyue the chance to invest in the film Eternal Island, explaining that his friend’s project is short five million yuan.
• The system reveals that Eternal Island will become a huge success after the female lead’s rebirth, earning five billion at the box office and winning her a Best Actress award.
• Rather than investing the requested five million, Chu Xiyue confidently invests fifty million, determined to ensure the future hit is made properly.
• The system exposes Director Wang’s tragic professional history: he once co-directed Sons and Daughters of Han with Yang Zhikang, but Yang claimed the film as his own, erased Wang’s contribution, and sabotaged Wang’s later career.
• Chu Xiyue realizes that Yang Zhikang is the same director connected to the female-lead project her agent previously mentioned.
• Meanwhile, the first season finale of the dating show Her Beloved takes place at an expensive couples’ restaurant. Guests are supposed to confess to the person they like and potentially share an elaborate candlelit dinner.
• Chu Xiyue is far more interested in a married couple arguing downstairs than in romance. She asks to leave the finale venue to watch the dispute.
• The director allows her to go, and the livestream splits between the romantic finale upstairs and Chu Xiyue observing the argument downstairs. Most viewers follow Chu Xiyue, showing that gossip is more popular than the dating segment.
• Chu Xiyue settles into a nearby barbecue restaurant to watch the quarrelling couple, while the chapter ends with the camera capturing both her and the argument.

Character Developments

• Chu Xiyue demonstrates her willingness to invest boldly when she knows a project’s future potential. Her decision to provide ten times the requested funding shows confidence, generosity, and strategic thinking.
• Her identity as an enthusiastic gossip-seeker remains central. She repeatedly prioritizes dramatic revelations over romance, earning her reputation as the show’s “Gossip King.”
• Director Wang/Wang Tao is revealed to be a talented but wronged filmmaker whose career was destroyed by betrayal and industry sabotage. Chu Xiyue’s investment may give him an opportunity to regain influence in the film world.
• Yang Zhikang is established as Wang Tao’s former close friend and professional rival, having stolen credit for their shared breakthrough and undermined Wang afterward.
• The livestream audience’s reaction reinforces Chu Xiyue’s unusual appeal: viewers find her curiosity and love of scandal more entertaining than the intended romantic content.

Significant Themes

• Betrayal and stolen recognition: Wang Tao’s downfall highlights the cruelty of professional betrayal and the importance of receiving proper credit.
• Fate and foreknowledge: Chu Xiyue’s system knowledge allows her to recognize Eternal Island as a future success and act before anyone else sees its value.
• Money and opportunity: Her large investment may transform the film’s prospects and potentially restore Wang Tao’s career.
• Gossip versus romance: The chapter humorously contrasts the show’s intended romantic atmosphere with the greater entertainment value of public conflict.
• Reputation and reinvention: Wang Tao has been reduced from a promising filmmaker to a variety-show director, but Chu Xiyue’s intervention suggests the possibility of a comeback.

Character Interactions

• Chu Xiyue and Director Wang: Their friendly exchange shifts from casual familiarity to a formal business relationship when she offers fifty million yuan. She also probes him for gossip after learning about his past.
• Chu Xiyue and the system: The system provides insider knowledge about Eternal Island and Wang Tao’s history, while Chu Xiyue eagerly reacts to every piece of information.
• Wang Tao and Yang Zhikang: Though Yang does not appear directly, their former brotherly partnership and later betrayal form an important background conflict.
• Chu Xiyue and the dating-show director: She repeatedly interrupts the planned finale to request permission to watch the argument, eventually persuading the director to let her leave.
• Chu Xiyue and the audience: Her unconventional behavior causes viewers to abandon the romantic livestream and follow her gossip-focused broadcast instead.