Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• After discovering Wang Zhuangyuan’s men had been tailing him, Wu Chen called Wang and curtly told him to stop. Wu Chen understood that Wang was not a direct threat: he was likely investigating Wu Chen in hopes of building a connection to Li Ruota’s family and gaining an edge over Donghai’s other underworld bosses.
• The chapter explains how Wang rose from a brilliant student who went to prison at eighteen to one of Donghai’s four leading underworld figures. His early relationship with Li Ruota helped him catch up with older rivals Zhao Guai, Yan Jiu, and Yuan Erbao.
• Li Ruota deliberately maintains a balance among the four bosses rather than allowing any one of them to dominate. After a suspicious explosion at one of Yan Jiu’s businesses heightened tensions, Li summoned the factions and warned them against starting trouble.
• The next morning, Wang waits outside Wu Chen’s building to apologize. Wu reassures him that he has not told Li Ruota, then takes him to a modest breakfast shop.
• Wang gives an implausible explanation that he was secretly protecting Wu as Li Ruota’s brother-in-law. Wu appears unconvinced but does not confront him.
• A news report shows Hu Xiaowei being dragged into the street and beaten after a gang fight on Fuyuan Road. Wu recognizes him.
• As breakfast ends, Li Ruobing calls Wu, angry and urgent, and orders him to come to her company because something has happened.

Character developments

• Wu Chen remains calm and perceptive. He recognizes Wang’s real motives, controls the encounter without escalating it, and shows confidence by assuring Wang he has not reported the surveillance.
• Wang Zhuangyuan is revealed as both an ambitious strategist and a careful operator. Despite his power, he is deeply anxious about angering Li Ruota or offending Li Ruobing, and he tries to ingratiate himself with Wu.
• Li Ruota is presented as a powerful, calculating broker who values stability and balance over helping Wang seize control.
• Li Ruobing appears only by phone, but her anger and urgency signal a new problem at the company.

Significant themes

• Power and balance: Li Ruota keeps rival factions in check, recognizing that unchecked dominance would invite danger and official scrutiny.
• Ambition and social mobility: Wang’s rise from gifted student to underworld boss illustrates how hardship redirected his intelligence toward power and survival.
• Respect, fear, and leverage: Wang’s behavior reflects how connections to the Li family—especially Li Ruobing—can matter more than status within the underworld.
• Appearances versus motives: Wang’s “protection” story masks his desire to get close to Wu, while Wu sees through it and chooses not to expose him.

Character interactions

• Wu’s blunt phone call puts Wang on edge; the following morning, Wu’s reassurance eases his fear.
• Over breakfast, Wang attempts to establish rapport through an excuse, polite conversation, and shared nostalgia, while Wu stays measured and lets him talk.
• When Li Ruobing calls, Wang respectfully starts to leave, but Wu signals that he can remain—showing Wu’s control over the conversation and his lack of concern about Wang hearing the call.

Key events

• Wu Chen leaves Wang Zhuangyuan after accepting the new Lamborghini Aventador Wang had bought as a gift. Wu Chen recognizes that Wang had arranged it in advance to build a relationship, and respects his nerve and ambition.
• At Illusion Fashion, Wu Chen finds Li Ruobing shaken by news that her secret spokesperson, rising star Deng Xunya, has been injured in a car accident and will be unable to attend the product launch.
• Wu Chen deduces that Ding Ruilong arranged the accident to sabotage Li’s launch, following his failed attempt to steal the company’s product information. Li confirms her suspicions and admits Ding has repeatedly obstructed her.
• Li asks Wu Chen for damaging information on Ding. Wu says he has it but refuses to hand it over, warning that the powerful Ding and Li families would protect Ding—and might force Li into marriage if she acted rashly. Li recognizes that she cannot attack him directly without violating the rules of her family’s Bet.
• With the launch only fourteen days away, Li struggles to find a replacement spokesperson. Wu offers to secure anyone she wants, even Tao Manying, an acclaimed actress currently filming in Thailand. Li doubts him, especially since Tao already has a cosmetics endorsement.
• Wu proposes a bet: he will bring Tao to Li’s office the next morning to sign a deal. If he fails, he will pay Li 20 million yuan; if he succeeds, Li must pay him 20 million for his services. He also asks her not to get jealous if he becomes involved with another woman. Irritated but doubtful, Li accepts.
• Wu leaves and calls Wang Zhuangyuan, asking him to gather his people. Wang readily agrees, pleased that Wu has begun addressing him familiarly.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen demonstrates perceptiveness about both Wang’s calculated gift and Ding’s sabotage. He is confident enough to promise an apparently impossible solution, while cautioning Li against an impulsive confrontation. His flirtatious wager suggests he is thinking beyond business and is testing Li’s response.
• Li Ruobing shifts from anger and shock to wary restraint after Wu explains the political risks. Though she remains skeptical of his claims, her urgent need for a spokesperson leads her to accept the bet.
• Wang Zhuangyuan continues trying to earn Wu’s trust through generosity and immediate cooperation; Wu recognizes his motives but accepts his support.

Significant themes

• Power and constrained agency: Li’s business decisions are shaped by family alliances and the rules of the Bet, leaving her unable to retaliate freely.
• Manipulation and sabotage: Ding targets people around Li and her company when he cannot defeat her directly.
• Calculated trust and ambition: Wang’s gift and Wu’s negotiations show relationships being built through strategic gestures, while Wu’s bold promises challenge the limits of what seems possible.
• Personal and professional entanglement: Wu’s proposed business deal doubles as a personal gambit, while Li insists their relationship is only pretend.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen recruits Wang Zhuangyuan’s men to an internet café and has them join a private server of the old game Legendary City Lord. Wang assumes the unusual request must be a test of his loyalty.
• Wu Chen creates the guild Server-Dominating King, equips its members by spending millions of yuan, and uses the group’s gaming skill and coordination to dominate the server.
• For the early city siege, Wu Chen’s guild battles the rival Dragon Slaughter of the World. After holding the advantage for over half an hour, Wu Chen abruptly orders his players to drop their equipment and quit, leaving the rival guild confused and effectively handing it the fight.
• The rival guild leader, Dragon Subduer Without Regret, pleads with Wu Chen to stay and finish the contest, even offering to reimburse his costs. Wu Chen says he must leave because a female company spokesperson was injured and needs replacing.
• Dragon Subduer boasts that he can arrange any female celebrity—including Tao Manying. Wu Chen recognizes the opening he was looking for and stops typing, pleased.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen is shown as deliberate and strategic: he recruits a large, disciplined team, spends freely with someone else’s money, and uses the game to draw out a wealthy, influential opponent. His abrupt withdrawal is less about the match than about prompting the rival to reveal his connections.
• Wang Zhuangyuan follows Wu Chen’s request without question. He misreads the gaming event as a loyalty test, then motivates the players with a cash reward and leaves Wu Chen to direct them.
• Li Ruobing transfers Wu Chen ten million yuan without pressing him for an explanation, illustrating her unusual trust in him despite their complicated relationship.
• Dragon Subduer Without Regret, a wealthy patron behind actress Tao Manying, moves from anger and suspicion to eager bargaining. He wants a worthy opponent and tries to keep Wu Chen playing by offering money and influence.
• Wu Chen and the rival leader build rapport through their in-game messages, but Wu Chen’s polite skepticism encourages the man to boast about his celebrity connections.

Significant themes

• Power, money, and influence: The private-server contest is driven by expensive upgrades, while the rival’s real-world wealth and entertainment-industry connections become more important than the game.
• Strategy and control: Wu Chen’s strongest advantage is not simply spending money, but organizing a reliable team and manipulating the situation to achieve a larger goal.
• Trust and obedience: Wang and the recruited players comply with Wu Chen’s directions, while Li Ruobing gives him substantial funds on trust.
• Gaming as social leverage: What begins as an eccentric game session becomes a means for Wu Chen to make contact with someone powerful and potentially solve a real-world problem.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen and Xianglong Wuhui, rivals in an old online game, discuss Tao Manying. Wu Chen says his “woman” urgently needs her as a spokesperson; Xianglong, who has supported Tao’s career for nearly ten years, agrees to help.
• Xianglong proposes meeting in East Sea and temporarily shutting down their private game server until the dispute is settled. Wu Chen accepts, then dismisses the large group of players who had helped him.
• Wu Chen travels to Qingyuan Tea House, where he meets Xianglong—whose real identity is Lei Cheng, a wealthy executive and member of the powerful Lei family.
• Lei is surprised that Wu Chen is much younger than expected. Wu Chen acts as though their meeting is a remarkable coincidence, encouraging the sense that they are somehow connected.
• After tea and small talk, Wu Chen abruptly asks whether Lei is being so cautious because he fears his brother will kill him.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen is calculating and confident. He has anticipated that Xianglong would agree to meet, and he deliberately shapes their conversation to make the encounter feel fated. His final question shows he knows—or suspects—more about Lei’s family circumstances than Lei expected.
• Lei Cheng / Xianglong Wuhui appears unkempt and self-deprecating, but is wealthy, influential, quick-tempered, and accustomed to acting decisively. He treats Wu Chen warmly at first, pouring him tea, but becomes alert when Wu Chen mentions his brother.
• Their relationship shifts from online rivals to potential allies, with Wu Chen’s knowledge and insinuations immediately complicating the meeting.
• Tao Manying does not appear, but her career and dependence on Lei are central to the arrangement: Lei can help secure her as a spokesperson.

Significant themes

• Fate versus calculation: Wu Chen presents the meeting as destiny, though he has carefully engineered the circumstances.
• Power and dependence: Lei’s financial support has made Tao famous, illustrating how influence can build—and potentially destroy—a career.
• Appearances versus reality: Lei looks like an ordinary, careless middle-aged man but wields substantial wealth and corporate power; Wu Chen’s youth likewise conceals his strategic ability.
• Family power and danger: Wu Chen’s question hints at serious conflict within the Lei family, turning a businesslike meeting toward a possible personal threat.

Key plot points and events

• Lei Cheng becomes suspicious when Wu Chen hints that he knows about the danger posed by Lei’s brother. Wu Chen denies having a powerful family, saying his family runs a modest noodle shop, but Lei remains determined to investigate him.
• Wu Chen explains that a company spokesperson was deliberately hit by a car, derailing the launch of a new cosmetics product. Lei offers to use his entertainment-industry connections to find a replacement.
• Lei realizes Wu Chen is involved with Li Ruobing, the Li family’s formidable eldest granddaughter. He is astonished when Wu Chen casually challenges her to a high-stakes bet: the loser must kneel and apologize.
• Wu Chen describes the conflict behind the bet. Ruobing worries that Ding Ruilong, a dangerous man who has long harassed her and obstructed her career, will retaliate against Wu Chen. Wu Chen refuses to stay out of the conflict.
• They agreed Wu Chen would take charge of Ruobing’s upcoming product launch. If it succeeds despite Ding’s interference, Wu Chen wins; if he cannot resolve the problems, Ruobing wins, and Wu Chen will follow her wishes and keep out of danger.
• Wu Chen says he has already uncovered a company traitor who had secretly been working for Ding. Lei, moved by Wu Chen’s resolve and concern for Ruobing, promises to find the best possible spokesperson. He begins calling Tao Manying.

Character developments

• Wu Chen presents himself as calm and self-assured, but his account reveals that he is deeply protective of Ruobing and willing to risk himself to defend her. He is also strategically vague about his background.
• Lei Cheng shifts from suspicion to admiration. Wu Chen’s courage and loyalty win him over, and he commits to helping with the launch.
• Li Ruobing, though mostly present through a phone call and Wu Chen’s account, is shown as decisive, fiercely independent, and protective of Wu Chen. Her willingness to stake the launch on him reflects both her concern and her respect for his ability.
• Ding Ruilong is established as the principal threat: possessive, vindictive, and willing to use intimidation and violence.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and courage: Wu Chen rejects the idea of hiding while another man threatens the woman he loves.
• Protection versus independence: Ruobing wants to shield Wu Chen, while Wu Chen insists on facing the danger as her partner.
• Trust and hidden identities: Lei tries to uncover Wu Chen’s background, while Wu Chen carefully controls what he reveals.
• Power and coercion: Ding’s attempts to control Ruobing and sabotage her work contrast with Wu Chen’s and Lei’s efforts to help her succeed.

Character interactions

• Lei questions Wu Chen about his origins and the company crisis, then offers practical help through his entertainment contacts.
• Wu Chen’s blunt phone exchange with Ruobing surprises Lei and reveals the couple’s unusual ease and trust with one another.
• Wu Chen recounts his argument and wager with Ruobing; Lei responds enthusiastically, identifying with his refusal to back down.
• The chapter ends with Lei acting on his promise, calling Tao Manying as a potential spokesperson.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen observes Lei Cheng speaking affectionately with Tao Manying, a famous actress who has been his lover and protégé for ten years. Lei Cheng persuades her to return from Thailand and endorse Brilliant Colors, Wu Chen’s partner Li Ruobing’s cosmetics company. He is willing to pay the roughly 30-million-yuan contract penalty himself.
• Wu Chen knows Lei Cheng’s hidden history: ten years earlier, a car crash killed three people, including Lei Cheng’s wife, and left him gravely injured. Wu Chen believes Lei Cheng’s older brother, Lei You, arranged it to eliminate a rival for control of Hongfa Industries. Since then, Lei Cheng has concealed his intelligence and ambition behind a crude, indulgent persona while quietly building influential connections.
• Lei Cheng’s willingness to help is not merely a favor. He wants to cultivate Wu Chen as a powerful ally, partly because he assumes Wu Chen has influential backing through Li Ruobing.
• Wu Chen warns Lei Cheng that endorsing for Brilliant Colors will entangle him in the conflict between the Li and Ding families and could make Ding Ruilong his enemy. He offers Lei Cheng the chance to withdraw.
• Lei Cheng refuses, insisting Tao Manying will sign and declaring that he is not afraid of Ding Ruilong. Wu Chen then sends him a phone number, saying its owner can reveal the truth about the crash. Lei Cheng is stunned.

Character developments and interactions

• Lei Cheng is revealed as far more calculating than his shabby, reckless act suggests. His apparent anger at Wu Chen’s warning masks a deliberate choice to take a risk and strengthen a potentially valuable alliance.
• Wu Chen uses his knowledge of Lei Cheng’s past to understand his motives, but he also acts transparently about the danger, giving Lei Cheng a genuine choice. He rewards Lei Cheng’s commitment with information that could help him confront the people behind the crash.
• Tao Manying and Lei Cheng share a close, affectionate relationship. Her return and costly endorsement demonstrate the depth of Lei Cheng’s devotion and his influence over her career.
• The men move quickly from a transactional meeting to calling each other “brother.” Their toast and Wu Chen’s warning deepen their bond, while the phone number creates a new, potentially life-changing connection between them.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus reality: Lei Cheng’s slovenly image is a deliberate disguise for a patient, capable survivor.
• Power, inheritance, and family betrayal: The crash grew out of a corporate succession struggle, with ambition and family loyalty in conflict.
• Trust and alliance-building: Lei Cheng cultivates relationships strategically, while Wu Chen tests his sincerity and makes the risks explicit.
• Endurance and revenge: Lei Cheng has spent a decade waiting for an opportunity to learn the truth and strike back.

Key plot points and events

• Lei Cheng realizes Wu Chen knows far more about his family than he had assumed. Wu Chen explains that he is giving Lei a phone number in return for Lei’s help earlier that day.
• Wu Chen warns that the number belongs to a man using a false identity, advises Lei to investigate discreetly, and cautions him not to call the number and alert the suspect.
• Lei’s subordinate quickly identifies the man from a photograph: Xiong Shengjun, a former Hongfa security official whom Lei suspects of causing the car crash that killed his wife ten years earlier.
• The discovery sends Lei back through the history of the crash and his fruitless investigation. Xiong had vanished after leaving the company, and several suspicious clues had once made Lei believe he was the masked truck driver.
• Grateful and furious, Lei vows that Wu Chen can count on him and rushes off to pursue the lead. Wu Chen remains behind and calls Li Ruobing.

Character developments and interactions

• Lei Cheng moves from suspicion to trust and gratitude. He now sees Wu Chen as a powerful, unusually well-informed ally, and the photograph revives his determination to uncover the truth and avenge his wife.
• Wu Chen presents his help as repayment for Lei’s favor, while carefully withholding how he knows so much. He also deliberately encourages Lei to imagine that he belongs to a vast, secretive organization, though Wu’s family is ordinary.
• The two men build a brotherly bond: Lei calls Wu his “little brother” and promises to help him without hesitation. Their conversation also touches on Wu’s connection to Li Ruobing and his encounter with Lu Guangnian.
• Wu recognizes that two influential men have called him “brother” within two days, an amusing sign of how quickly his relationships are expanding.

Significant themes

• Fate and providence: Wu’s claim that the men were “fated” to meet gains meaning when his information gives Lei a long-awaited lead.
• Justice and vengeance: The suspected murder of Lei’s wife has haunted him for a decade; identifying Xiong may finally give him a path toward answers.
• Trust, loyalty, and indebtedness: Wu frames his help as repaying Lei, while Lei responds with a sweeping promise of loyalty.
• Mystery and misdirection: Wu’s concealed knowledge and deliberately mysterious persona shape Lei’s growing belief that Wu has powerful backing.

Chapter summary

Key plot points and events

• After helping resolve Li Ruobing’s company crisis, Wu Chen decides to explain what happened and have her transfer the remaining twenty million. She refuses his call, then texts that she is in a meeting. Wu Chen suspects she is upset because he used the ten million she gave him to play games—but is pleased that his actions have left her confused.
• Wu Chen calls Wang Zhuangyuan to find out how Li Ruotai learned he was at an internet café. Wang explains that Zhao Guai, wary of Wang’s sudden activity, reported it to Li Ruotai. Wu Chen concludes that nobody intended to undermine him.
• Driving home, Wu Chen considers how his connections may rise in influence. He expects Lei Cheng, whom he has just helped, to challenge his brother Lei You and eventually take over the family business.
• At a traffic light, Wu Chen spots the convoy of Su Ruiwen, East Sea’s richest man. Its principal car carries Su Qingying, his heiress daughter. Wu Chen recognizes her from his thousand years of repeating the same day and recalls their past encounters.
• Wu Chen sends Su Qingying a text identifying her by an obscure online username, “When Will the Moon Be Clear,” and complimenting her appearance. She is alarmed: the username belongs to an anonymous forum account where she once disclosed deeply private feelings. She replies, “Who are you?”

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen remains confident and strategic. He treats Li Ruobing’s frustration as useful, anticipates Lei Cheng’s rise, and seizes the chance encounter with Su Qingying to make contact. His memories suggest he knows her much more intimately than she knows him.
• Li Ruobing is apparently displeased with Wu Chen and avoids his call, though she remains occupied with the company emergency.
• Su Qingying, publicly known as a composed, capable heiress, is privately shaken by Wu Chen’s apparent knowledge of her secret online identity. She hides her distress from Tang Deyang but quickly contacts Wu Chen for an explanation.
• Wang Zhuangyuan clarifies the chain of information that led to Li Ruotai hearing about Wu Chen.
• Tang Deyang, Su Qingying’s trusted family associate, encourages her to handle the upcoming press event well and reminds her of the responsibility she will inherit. Their warm, familiar exchange shows their closeness.

Significant themes

• Knowledge and power: Wu Chen’s unusual memories and access to hidden information let him influence others and gain leverage.
• Public image versus private self: Su Qingying’s polished public persona contrasts with her vulnerable inner life.
• Influence and ambition: The chapter maps the city’s business hierarchy and foreshadows Lei Cheng’s potential ascent.
• Chance and control: Wu Chen calls his meeting with Su Qingying a coincidence, yet immediately turns it into an opportunity.

Plot points and events

• While driving, Wu Chen messages Su Qingying to reassure her that he will not expose her secret. She continues pressing him about his identity, how he got her number, and a cryptic phrase, but he deliberately stays silent to leave her uneasy. He expects her to investigate him and eventually request a meeting.
• Wu Chen calls Li Ruotai to find out how he learned that Wu Chen was playing games. Li Ruotai says Zhao Guai alerted him after hearing that Wang Zhuangyuan had mobilized people; this matches Wang Zhuangyuan’s account.
• Li Ruotai invites Wu Chen to his villa in the East Sea Splendor community. They tour the residence and talk before Li Ruotai reveals why he called: he intends to give Wu Chen the villa, valued at about 100 million yuan, as thanks for helping him the previous day.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen carefully tailors his approach to each person. He uses silence and reassurance to unsettle and intrigue Su Qingying, while subtly letting Li Ruotai know that he is aware of being investigated. He also recognizes that his connection to Li Ruotai currently depends too heavily on Li Ruobing.
• Su Qingying is alarmed and curious about Wu Chen, rapidly sending questions even after he tells her not to reply.
• Li Ruotai treats Wu Chen warmly as his brother-in-law and seems eager to show him the villa. His substantial gift signals gratitude and perhaps an effort to strengthen their relationship.
• Wu Chen says he will not smoke because Li Ruobing dislikes the smell, invoking her supposed pregnancy. Li Ruotai accepts this, reflecting their easy, familiar rapport and the closeness Wu Chen wants him to believe he shares with his sister.

Significant themes

• Trust and independent relationships: Wu Chen believes ties formed through another person are fragile; he wants Li Ruotai to respect him in his own right, not merely as Li Ruobing’s partner.
• Control through information: Wu Chen uses selective disclosure, silence, and apparent awareness of others’ actions to shape how they see him.
• Different approaches to different people: He prefers a challenging, gradual pursuit with Su Qingying, while building credibility with Li Ruotai through familiarity and confidence.
• Gratitude and status: Li Ruotai’s offer of an exceptionally valuable home turns his thanks into a major gesture, setting up a new phase in their relationship.

Plot points and events

• Wu Chen accepts Li Ruotai’s offer of a lavish East Sea villa, worth about 100 million yuan. Li Ruotai explains that Wu Chen saved him from serious financial and legal danger, and had also won 130 million yuan from Shen Guangnian at the casino. He frames the villa as both repayment and an early wedding gift for Wu Chen and Li Ruobing.
• Li Ruotai has the villa transferred into Wu Chen’s name, paying all associated fees. Wu Chen moves in that day and exercises in the home gym, reflecting on how much he has gained despite doing little to earn money.
• The next morning, Li Ruobing convenes her executives to find a replacement spokesperson for Brilliant Colors’ product launch, which is only thirteen days away. The original spokesperson’s sudden car accident has created a crisis, while Ding Ruilong is suspected of obstructing the search.
• A heavily disguised visitor arrives at the company: celebrity Tao Manying. She says she has an appointment with Li Ruobing, but reception cannot find a record. After revealing her identity, she prompts the receptionist to call Li Ruobing directly.
• During the tense meeting, Li Ruobing is scolding executives for failing to find a suitable spokesperson. She abruptly rises when the receptionist tells her who has arrived, ending the chapter on a cliffhanger.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen accepts the villa despite recognizing that gifts create obligations. He understands that refusing would make Li Ruotai uneasy, and he is comfortable appearing to value material things.
• Li Ruotai shows gratitude and practical foresight. He wants to repay Wu Chen while avoiding a large cash transfer that could later draw scrutiny or implicate Wu Chen and Li Ruobing. He also uses the villa to help Wu Chen establish a respectable home before marriage.
• Li Ruobing is under intense business pressure and responds by driving her executives hard. Her hostility toward Ding Ruilong remains strong; his apparent refusal to engage only makes her angrier.
• Tao Manying is cautious and eager to cooperate, having been warned by her godfather to treat Li Ruobing with respect. Her unexpected arrival raises questions about how she was contacted and why the visit was not officially recorded.
• The receptionist first follows procedure, then takes a risk by calling Li Ruobing directly because Tao Manying’s presence seems too important to delay.

Significant themes

• Gratitude and repayment: Li Ruotai insists that Wu Chen’s help deserves substantial compensation.
• Trust, appearances, and obligation: Wu Chen accepts the gift partly because seeming to want nothing could make others suspect hidden motives.
• Power and pressure in business: Li Ruobing’s meeting shows how a looming launch crisis tests leadership and teamwork.
• Unexpected connections: Tao Manying’s arrival suggests that powerful personal networks may be influencing the company’s search.

Key plot points and events

• Li Ruobing learns that actress Tao Manying has arrived at Illusion Fashion without warning. She suspects Wu Chen arranged the visit and abruptly ends a meeting to greet her.
• Tao impresses Li Ruobing with her courtesy and agrees to endorse Illusion Fashion. She accepts a much lower fee than her fame would warrant, cooperates with the company’s schedule, and signs the contract that morning.
• Tao explains that she came at the request of her godfather, Lei Cheng, who was contacted by Wu Chen. Lei Cheng and Wu Chen appear to be close, though Li Ruobing knew nothing about their connection.
• After Tao leaves, Li Ruobing calls Wu Chen to demand an explanation. He claims he is busy, and she hears a woman’s suggestive voice in the background, ending the chapter on a cliffhanger.

Character developments

• Li Ruobing remains disciplined and businesslike, prioritizing the endorsement despite her curiosity and suspicion about Wu Chen. She is also determined to discover whether he misled her about knowing Tao—and whether that could let her avoid the humiliating forfeit in their bet.
• Tao Manying comes across as modest, perceptive, and eager to repay Lei Cheng’s support. Meeting Li Ruobing leaves her feeling overshadowed by Li’s confidence and presence, despite her own beauty and fame.
• Wu Chen remains offstage but exerts considerable influence: he apparently arranged Tao’s visit through Lei Cheng, while giving Li Ruobing little explanation. His oddly breathless call and the woman’s voice raise new questions.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus presence: Tao recognizes that Li Ruobing’s power lies not merely in beauty but in composure, authority, and character.
• Business and personal entanglements: A corporate deal is enabled by personal connections, complicating Li Ruobing’s desire to keep the company’s interests separate from her relationship with Wu Chen.
• Trust, secrecy, and control: Li Ruobing’s uncertainty over Wu Chen’s actions—and their bet—drives her attempts to uncover the truth.

Character interactions

• Li Ruobing and Tao exchange compliments before shifting into a smooth, unusually favorable endorsement negotiation.
• Tao mistakes Wu Chen for Li Ruobing’s husband; Li clarifies that they are dating and says marriage is likely.
• Tao’s account of Lei Cheng’s involvement deepens Li Ruobing’s suspicion that Wu Chen has concealed important connections.
• Li Ruobing’s final call to Wu Chen turns from a demand for answers into alarm when she hears the woman in the background.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen receives a massage at Li Ruotai’s Crown Entertainment Club while teasing Li Ruobing over the phone. She hears a woman’s voice and assumes he is with someone sexually, becoming unexpectedly jealous.
• Li Ruotai later tells Wu Chen that Li Ruobing is waiting to see him. At her office, she confronts him about the massage and insists she was only concerned he might catch a disease.
• Wu Chen asks whether she signed the endorsement contract and whether she knows Lei Cheng. He says they are friends but refuses to explain when or how they met.
• Wu Chen then demands that Li Ruobing honor their wager by kneeling and apologizing. She offers increasing sums of money to avoid it, but Wu Chen refuses to change the terms. Determined to keep her word, she removes her heels and prepares to kneel.
• Li Ruobing receives a call from Li Ruotai: the Su family of Golden Estate Group is using its connections to investigate Wu Chen. Li Ruotai is investigating them in return.
• Learning that Wu Chen had only been at the club for a massage, Li Ruobing realizes he deliberately misled her. She nevertheless kneels, apologizes, and immediately resumes her usual matter-of-fact manner, inviting him to lunch and telling him about the investigation.

Character developments

• Wu Chen remains playful and inscrutable. He uses the misunderstanding to tease Li Ruobing, then insists she honor their agreement, but ultimately appears more interested in testing her resolve than humiliating her.
• Li Ruobing reveals unexpected jealousy and growing personal interest in Wu Chen. She is embarrassed by the wager, but her fierce pride and commitment to her word lead her to follow through despite trying to buy her way out.
• Li Ruotai acts as a practical ally and messenger, alerting his sister and Wu Chen’s circle to the Su family’s investigation.

Significant themes

• Keeping one’s word: Li Ruobing’s willingness to honor an uncomfortable wager defines her character.
• Pride and power: The wager forces her to yield to Wu Chen, while her upright posture and dignified apology preserve her sense of self.
• Jealousy and misinterpretation: Li Ruobing’s reaction exposes feelings she denies, while Wu Chen knowingly exploits the misunderstanding.
• Secrecy and intrigue: Wu Chen withholds information about his connections, and the Su family’s investigation introduces a new threat.

Character interactions

• Wu Chen and Li Ruobing trade teasing, suspicion, and challenges; their banter masks an emerging attraction and a struggle over control.
• Li Ruobing’s call with Li Ruotai clears up the massage misunderstanding and reveals the Su family’s actions.
• Li Ruotai supports both siblings by arranging Wu Chen’s massage and promptly reporting the investigation.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen realizes the Su Family member investigating his background is Su Qingying, whom he startled with a text the previous day. He expects her to look deeper into his identity and connections.
• Li Ruobing asks who is investigating him, but Wu Chen refuses to say and warns her not to interfere.
• As they prepare to go to a new Italian restaurant, Li Ruobing adjusts Wu Chen’s collar to help them look like a convincing couple.
• Wu Chen needles her about having recently lost their bet and kneeling to apologize. Their teasing turns into a sharp, flirtatious argument: Li Ruobing challenges his claim that he knows women more beautiful and richer than she is, and he counters that she is not his type.
• When Li Ruobing brings up Su Qingying, Wu Chen says she is not his woman “yet” and proposes another bet. Despite having just lost one, Li Ruobing accepts.
• The chapter then recounts Su Qingying’s background: she is the only daughter of Jinfu Group’s wealthy founder, Su Ruiwen, and was raised under strict expectations. Exceptionally accomplished but closely supervised, she has never dated.
• Two years earlier, the Su Family tried to arrange a marriage for her. Their requirements—including that the prospective husband be capable, come from a wealthy family, and marry into the Su Family—made finding a match nearly impossible. Su Qingying remains unmarried.

Character developments

• Wu Chen shows confidence and deliberate skill in provoking people. He keeps his dealings with Su Qingying private and appears convinced he can win her over.
• Li Ruobing is unusually rattled by Wu Chen’s teasing, though she maintains her composure and continues to spar with him. Her recent defeat has not made her distrust his abilities; instead, she accepts his new wager.
• Su Qingying is characterized through her history as privileged, disciplined, and highly capable, but also deprived of ordinary independence and romantic experience. Her family’s marriage plans reveal the pressure surrounding her future.

Significant themes

• Power and persuasion: Wu Chen uses words as strategically as he uses information and connections.
• Pride, rivalry, and attraction: Wu Chen and Li Ruobing’s antagonistic banter suggests a growing personal tension beneath their fake relationship.
• Family control versus individual choice: Su Qingying’s upbringing and marriage prospects show how her family’s ambitions constrain her personal life.
• Status and tradition: The Su Family’s demand for a live-in son-in-law exposes the social costs and pride attached to family lineage.

Character interactions

• Wu Chen refuses to tell Li Ruobing who is investigating him, establishing a boundary even as they act like a couple.
• Li Ruobing fixes Wu Chen’s collar, then trades taunts with him about their bet, his romantic history, and Su Qingying.
• Wu Chen turns Li Ruobing’s mention of Su Qingying into a bold claim and a fresh wager; Li Ruobing accepts despite the risk.

Key plot points and events

• Li Ruobing insists it is impossible for Wu Chen to win a bet by making Su Qingying his lifelong partner. She believes the Su Family would reject him, Su Qingying would obey her family, and Wu Chen would never marry into another family.
• Wu Chen accepts the challenge: he says he can make Su Qingying his woman within three days. If he loses, he must kneel and apologize; if Li Ruobing loses, she agrees to be intimate with him a hundred times on his terms.
• They go to lunch together, maintaining the appearance of a couple. Li Ruobing pays Wu Chen twenty million yuan for his work on a contract and asks him to stop calling her “Boss Li.”
• Li Ruobing reveals that she has discreetly sent people to protect Wu Chen’s family from possible threats by Ding Ruilong. Wu Chen appreciates the gesture and asks about the details.
• A loud middle-aged man arrives with his mistress and disturbs the restaurant. When Li Ruobing asks them to quiet down, the man apologizes after recognizing her, but his leering makes his motives clear. His mistress becomes jealous and insults Li Ruobing.
• Li Ruobing rises to confront the woman, but Wu Chen stops her and secretly messages the man’s powerful wife with the location, anticipating trouble.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Ruobing remains confident and competitive, but her actions also show growing care for Wu Chen: she protects his family and is comfortable with small signs of intimacy, such as sharing a straw.
• Wu Chen stays composed and strategic. He accepts Li Ruobing’s help while quietly turning the restaurant disturbance into an opportunity to involve the middle-aged man’s wife.
• Their relationship is still presented as a cover, yet their relaxed closeness and private conversations make their performance convincing.
• The middle-aged man’s attempt to appear charming and respectable contrasts with his infidelity and lecherous behavior. His mistress’s jealousy escalates the scene.

Significant themes

• Control and confidence: Li Ruobing trusts her judgment about the Su Family and Wu Chen, while Wu Chen’s certainty suggests he knows more than he reveals.
• Trust and protection: Li Ruobing takes responsibility for safeguarding Wu Chen’s family, showing that their relationship involves more than appearances.
• Strategic manipulation: Wu Chen uses his knowledge of people and connections to influence events without drawing attention to himself.
• Public image versus private conduct: The man’s polished apologies mask selfish behavior, while Wu Chen and Li Ruobing’s staged romance conceals genuine cooperation.

Key plot points and events

• Li Ruobing is enraged by a rude woman and her companion, but Wu Chen stops him from reacting openly. Instead, Wu Chen provokes the man indirectly by discussing the contempt often directed at men who marry into their wives’ families.
• The man angrily confronts them, and Wu Chen pointedly asks whether he is a matrilocal husband. The exchange humiliates him in front of the restaurant.
• A convoy arrives carrying Zhan Xiumei, a powerful Donghai businesswoman. Li Ruobing realizes the man is Wang Weijun—Zhan’s much younger husband, whom Wu Chen has apparently summoned with an anonymous message after discovering his affair.
• Wang’s companion challenges Zhan and is slapped, then removed by bodyguards. Wang kneels and pleads, but Zhan strikes and beats him for cheating before ordering her bodyguards to take him away.
• Zhan calls the number that sent the tip. Wu Chen’s phone rings, revealing that he arranged the confrontation.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen remains calm and calculating. He prevents Li Ruobing from causing a scene, then engineers a public confrontation that delivers retaliation without exposing his plan until the end.
• Li Ruobing reveals strong views about dignity and independence: he accepts marriage into a wife’s family as a personal choice but condemns surrendering one’s self-respect for money or status. He follows Wu Chen’s lead despite his anger.
• Wang Weijun shifts from boastful and insulting to frightened and submissive when Zhan arrives. His affair and dependence on his wife’s family are exposed.
• Zhan Xiumei is introduced as an influential, commanding figure. Though she once blamed the women involved in her husband’s affairs, she now directs her anger at Wang, whom she sees as responsible.
• The farming-outfit woman goes from taunting Li Ruobing to challenging Zhan, then is swiftly overpowered and removed. Wang’s attempt to distance himself from her further exposes his cowardice.

Significant themes

• Dignity and self-respect: The discussion weighs personal choice against sacrificing one’s dignity for wealth or status.
• Revenge and justice: Wu Chen uses provocation and timing to make Wang’s own behavior trigger his humiliation and punishment.
• Power and status: Wang acts superior when he believes he is safe, but becomes helpless before Zhan’s wealth, influence, and authority.
• Public image versus reality: The restaurant’s spectators witness the collapse of Wang’s confident persona, while Zhan acts decisively despite the public setting.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen and Li Ruobing encounter Zhan Xiumei at a restaurant after Wu Chen has alerted her that her husband, Wang Weijun, is cheating.
• Wu Chen explains that Wang and his mistress insulted Li and him, prompting Li to confront them. He presents the incident as an act of loyalty to Zhan, rather than a response to their noise.
• Zhan realizes Wu Chen’s account has spared her a potentially dangerous conflict with Li and the powerful Li family. She is grateful and takes Wang back to apologize.
• Zhan makes Wang kneel, slap himself, and beg Li’s forgiveness. Li accepts the apology but is uncomfortable with the public humiliation.
• Zhan invites Li and Wu Chen to lunch, using the meal to repair any awkwardness and strengthen her relationship with them. They talk for more than three hours.
• Afterward, Li walks with Wu Chen to clear her head. Wu Chen receives a call from Su Qingying, who says they need to meet.

Character developments and interactions

• Wu Chen shows remarkable skill at manipulating a tense situation: he reframes events so Zhan feels indebted to him and Li, while preventing Zhan from resenting them.
• Li Ruobing recognizes that Wu Chen lied and understands how effectively he used everyone involved. His talent unsettles her, even as her fascination with him grows. She privately asks whether he always “plays people” this way.
• Zhan Xiumei shifts smoothly from polished social host to angry, domineering spouse and back again. Though her private behavior is harsh, she remains keen to preserve her ties with Li and Wu.
• Wang Weijun is exposed as an unfaithful, insulting husband and is forced to abase himself publicly. Li disapproves of the spectacle, despite accepting the apology.
• Wu and Li maintain an outwardly affectionate, intimate manner while privately discussing his unsettling influence.

Significant themes

• Manipulation and social intelligence: Wu turns a potentially damaging incident into a favor and a stronger alliance.
• Power and reputation: The characters’ actions are shaped by family influence, public image, and the risks of appearing weak.
• Public versus private behavior: Zhan’s charming social mask contrasts sharply with her cruelty toward Wang.
• Control and intimacy: Li is drawn to Wu but wary of how completely he can read and shape people.

Key plot points and events

• Su Qingying calls Wu Chen the day after learning he knows her secret. Though he promises not to reveal it, she insists on meeting face-to-face and sets a meeting for the next morning at Tangsha Private Club.
• Li Ruobing overhears part of the call and probes Wu Chen about the female caller and her secret. Tipsy and unusually direct, she admits he fits her idea of a partner, then kisses him beneath the trees. Wu Chen returns the kiss but jokes that he accepted because she “threw herself” at him. Li Ruobing is irritated and takes him back to the company.
• Wu Chen spends the evening exercising and meets Su Qingying at the club the next morning. He uses his extensive familiarity with the exclusive venue—gained during his repeated time resets—to find his way around.
• At the golf course, Su Qingying asks how Wu Chen learned her secret and offers money, explaining that its exposure could destroy her reputation, harm her prospects of taking over the company, and endanger her ill father. Wu Chen denies seeking payment and says he will keep quiet.
• Su Qingying remains unconvinced. Wu Chen jokes that she could have brought more bodyguards to silence him, then steps behind her and takes hold of her arms and golf club to demonstrate how to swing. The chapter ends with her startled protest.

Character developments

• Wu Chen remains playful and self-assured, using humor to deflect serious questions. His unusual knowledge and experience from a thousand years of resets give him confidence in both social and practical situations.
• Li Ruobing shows growing attraction and curiosity, becoming more emotionally open while tipsy. Yet Wu Chen’s teasing leaves her frustrated and unsure of his feelings.
• Su Qingying appears composed but is deeply anxious about the consequences of her secret becoming public. She tries to regain control by offering money and seeking assurances, but Wu Chen’s behavior unsettles her.

Character interactions

• Wu Chen and Li Ruobing share an intimate kiss, followed by playful, provocative banter that exposes the tension between her interest and his evasiveness.
• Wu Chen and Su Qingying negotiate around her secret: she seeks a concrete guarantee, while he insists he is not blackmailing her. Their exchange shifts abruptly from guarded conversation to close physical contact when he demonstrates the golf swing.

Significant themes

• Secrecy, trust, and leverage: Su Qingying fears the power Wu Chen holds over her, while he insists that his knowledge is not a threat.
• Romantic ambiguity and power play: Li Ruobing’s direct affection contrasts with Wu Chen’s teasing refusal to clarify his feelings.
• The burden of status: Su Qingying’s family position and succession prospects make a private secret potentially consequential for her family and career.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen teaches Su Qingying golf by standing behind her, guiding her swing, and using their mutual secrets to persuade her to cooperate. Su Qingying worries about being seen with him, while Wu Chen points out that Li Ruobing would be furious if she learned he had embraced another woman.
• He explains that golf can relieve frustration when played with proper technique, then demonstrates powerful drives. Su Qingying’s first solo shot goes only a little over 100 meters, but with his guidance she eventually hits nearly 400 meters—far beyond her previous best.
• Wu Chen’s coaching is deliberately provocative and harsh: he repeatedly adjusts Su Qingying’s posture, scolds her, and slaps her backside. Though embarrassed, she continues following his instructions and becomes focused on learning.
• Su Qingying’s bodyguards call her mother to report that she is with an unfamiliar young man, apparently waiting for him, and that he has embraced and slapped her while “teaching” her golf. Her mother tells them to stay put and says she will come herself.
• After roughly half an hour, Wu Chen notices the call and warns Su Qingying that her mother is on her way. He proposes that they escape together before she arrives.

Character developments

• Wu Chen is confident, perceptive, and controlling. He uses the threat of mutual exposure to make Su Qingying feel safer, then turns the encounter into a prolonged golf lesson. His experience from repeating the same day for a thousand years informs his belief that giving someone leverage can create trust.
• Su Qingying begins anxious and restrained, unused to close contact with men. She gradually accepts Wu Chen’s guidance, becomes absorbed in practicing, and pushes back when he calls her hopeless, insisting she is neither incompetent nor stupid. Despite her composure, she remains nervous about her mother’s reaction.
• The bodyguards are initially startled by Wu Chen’s behavior and unsure how to interpret Su Qingying’s apparent cooperation. They ultimately report the situation to her mother, setting up the coming confrontation.

Significant themes

• Trust, leverage, and secrecy: Wu Chen treats mutual compromising information as a practical way to reduce suspicion and prevent betrayal.
• Control and vulnerability: Wu Chen directs both the conversation and Su Qingying’s movements, while she balances embarrassment, caution, and a growing willingness to follow his lead.
• Discipline and emotional release: The golf lesson contrasts brute-force frustration with technique, rhythm, and controlled effort.
• Appearance versus reality: The bodyguards’ report makes the scene sound scandalous, while Wu Chen frames it as coaching—and deliberately exploits that ambiguity.

Character interactions

• Wu Chen uses teasing, warnings, physical guidance, and stern coaching to manage Su Qingying’s anxiety and keep her engaged.
• Su Qingying responds with suspicion and embarrassment but also curiosity and determination, gradually trusting his instruction without fully understanding his motives.
• The bodyguards observe from a distance, then inform Su Qingying’s mother, whose imminent arrival forces Wu Chen and Su Qingying to decide whether to flee.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Wu Chen urges Su Qingying to stop living solely to meet her family’s expectations. When he says he can leave without her, she grabs his clothes and decides to go with him.
• Rather than letting Su Qingying quietly dismiss her bodyguards, Wu Chen insists she face the choice directly. He takes her hand, and they run from the golf course. They escape in a sightseeing cart, reach Wu Chen’s Lamborghini, and drive away as the bodyguards give chase.
• One bodyguard calls Su Qingying’s mother to report that “the young miss ran off with that guy.” Her mother then phones Su Qingying and angrily demands that she return.
• Wu Chen slows the car and opens the window so Su Qingying can answer. Her mother scolds her for leaving with a man and calls her behavior shameful. Su Qingying finally asserts that she is a person, not her mother’s puppet, then throws her phone out of the car.
• As they drive, Su Qingying explains the pressure she has endured throughout her life: she was expected to be exceptional, flawless, beautiful, and constantly better than before. She says Wu Chen understands her and may be her only chance to change.
• Suddenly, Su Qingying asks Wu Chen to stop. She points out that he is Li Ruobing’s boyfriend and may fear her learning about the job competition. Then she unfastens her seat belt, embraces him, and kisses him.

Character developments

• Su Qingying makes her first major act of open defiance. Initially frightened of her family’s reaction, she chooses to run, rejects her mother’s control, and begins speaking honestly about the loneliness and pressure behind her polished public image. Her decision to kiss Wu Chen suggests her rebellion is escalating quickly.
• Wu Chen acts as both instigator and support: he challenges Su Qingying to make her own choice, helps her escape, and leaves the final decision about confronting her mother to her. He also recognizes that her sudden boldness comes from years of suppressed impulses.
• Su Qingying’s mother is revealed as deeply controlling and traditional. She treats her daughter’s independence as disgraceful and responds to the escape with anger and disappointment.

Significant themes

• Personal autonomy versus family control: Su Qingying has been shaped by her family’s expectations and begins reclaiming the right to choose for herself.
• The burden of perfection: Her outward success conceals fear, isolation, and the pressure to remain flawless.
• Repression and rebellion: Years of restraint make Su Qingying’s first act of defiance feel exhilarating—and potentially extreme.
• Honesty and self-expression: Wu Chen encourages her to acknowledge what she wants rather than continue performing the role others have assigned her.

Character interactions

• Wu Chen challenges Su Qingying’s obedience and offers her the choice to leave with him; she ultimately takes his hand and runs.
• Su Qingying’s mother confronts her by phone, while Su Qingying answers back for the first time and rejects the role of a puppet.
• In the car, Su Qingying confides in Wu Chen about her upbringing and loneliness. Their intimacy shifts sharply at the end when she kisses him, invoking his connection to Li Ruobing and the job competition.

Key plot points and events

• Under mounting emotional strain, Su Qingying repeatedly initiates a forceful kiss with Wu Chen. He pushes her away, then slaps and pinches her; she responds not with anger but with visible excitement.
• Wu Chen knows Su’s concealed sexual preference: she is an M, someone who enjoys pain and being given certain kinds of commands. The chapter traces how she discovered this years earlier and secretly explored it while hiding it from her controlling family.
• Two years ago, Su wrote a lengthy, anonymous forum post describing her unhappiness, her mother’s control, and her wish to fall in love, experience pain, and rebel. The post attracted unwanted attention and could damage her carefully maintained public image.
• Wu Chen found the post and related evidence while investigating Su during his reincarnation cycles. After his recent message alarmed her, he uses this knowledge to draw out her hidden desires.
• After scolding her and telling her to fasten her seat belt, Wu Chen asks where she wants to go. Su leaves the decision to him, and he takes her toward his family’s old house, choosing it over his registered home to avoid an unexpected visit from the Su family.

Character development

• Su Qingying breaks from her polished, obedient persona. Her public image has long felt like a burden, and her impulsive behavior reveals both her desire for release and her need to be treated as a person rather than an ideal.
• Wu Chen demonstrates how closely he has studied Su and how he uses that knowledge to influence her. He frames the encounter as a way for her to release pressure, though he also directs the situation toward his own home.

Character interactions

• Su repeatedly kisses Wu Chen and embraces him; he stops her, reprimands her, and gives her commands that she willingly follows.
• Their exchange reveals a dynamic in which Su welcomes specific discipline and direction, while Wu distinguishes that from the controlling restrictions imposed by her mother.
• Wu’s knowledge of Su’s forum post gives him unusual leverage and shapes their growing private connection.

Significant themes

• The burden of perfection: A single perceived flaw can threaten the reputation of someone held to an impossibly high standard.
• Suppressed identity and release: Su’s hidden preference reflects years of constraint and her search for a private outlet.
• Privacy, shame, and vulnerability: Her old post is both an honest confession and a source of fear because it could expose her to public judgment.
• Control and agency: Su seeks experiences she chooses, in contrast to the unwanted control her family exerts over her.