Zhou Tangsi

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zhou Tangsi (周堂斯)
Alias(es)	President Zhou 29
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Zhou family; Zhou Corporation 101
Occupation/Role	Company president; original novel’s protagonist gong, or male lead/top 1 20
Status	Relieved of his duties; later quietly disappears after the Zhou family is bankrupted. His subsequent whereabouts are unknown 195 245
First Appearance	Mentioned in Chapter 1; first appears in person in Chapter 9 1 9

Background / History

Zhou Tangsi grew up under the care of his grandmother, Old Madam Zhou. Her favoritism gave him a protected position within the Zhou family: while he remained her cherished grandson, other family members did not dare challenge him 71 101.

The original Shen Lian sincerely loved Zhou and once helped him to bed after he became drunk at an industry gathering. Zheng Ge witnessed this care but took advantage of Zhou’s mistaken belief that Zheng had brought him upstairs. After spending the night with Zheng, Zhou became attached to him and told Shen to keep his distance 183.

Zhou subsequently used Shen’s devotion as a tool in his jealousy-driven relationship with Zheng. A call from Zhou could bring Shen running, provoke Zheng, and restart their cycle of pursuit and reconciliation. Shen’s involvement also made him a public scapegoat and contributed to the destruction of his career 1 7 36.

Role in the Original Novel

• Zhou and Zheng Ge were the canonical central couple; the original Shen Lian served as short-lived cannon fodder 1 3.
• Chu Yilan was positioned as Zheng’s unsuccessful admirer and a source of conflict that strengthened the protagonists’ romance 1.
• Zheng was originally supposed to win Old Madam Zhou’s acceptance by saving her. This event does not occur along the altered storyline 91.
• Zhou’s expected business victory was to absorb Hengtai and make Zhou Corporation Qu City’s largest industry leader. Instead, Hengtai eventually absorbs Zhou Corporation 188 243.

Appearance

Zhou is handsome, with refined features and an elegant, bright appearance. His looks are described as striking enough to stand out even in the entertainment industry 20.

• Facial features: Less sharply defined or aggressive than Chu Yilan’s 20.
• Clothing: Appears in tailored suits, including a black suit during his confrontation with Shen 9 35.
• Bearing: Initially projects the cultivated confidence of a wealthy heir; anger exposes a much harsher demeanor 9 35 66.

Personality

Zhou takes other people’s devotion for granted. Shen’s former obedience never moved him emotionally, but it made him feel untouchable. When Shen becomes indifferent, Zhou initially interprets the rejection as a “playing-hard-to-get” tactic rather than accepting that his influence is gone 35.

His entitlement readily becomes aggression. He threatens Shen’s life over Zheng, attempts to grab Shen by the throat, and promises to destroy his career. Public humiliation likewise strips away his cultured restraint: after Chu knocks him down and steps on his face, Zhou attacks in a rage despite being outmatched 20 35 66.

Zhou is loyal to the grandmother who raised him, but his competing commitments to family standing and Zheng increasingly exhaust him. He eventually abandons Zheng to improve his prospects in the family succession struggle. His later regret over Shen is genuine, yet remains mixed with possessiveness and a desire to recover the devotion he lost 71 75 180 189.

Abilities & Skills

Business and Social Influence

Zhou’s position gives him access to business circles, entertainment-industry contacts, and private security 35 64 101.

• Uses contacts to seek Shen’s removal from Silent Words, but the investors and Director Dai Tong refuse 35 36.
• His influence prompts a venue manager to seek accommodation for Zheng’s birthday party 64.
• Cannot secure Zheng a place on Poseidon’s Arrival, whose guest list is already full 75.
• Fails to obtain Xu Jingge’s support for Zhou Corporation and loses credibility after several unsuccessful business decisions 101 199.

Physical Fighting

Zhou can throw forceful punches, but his documented fights expose clear limits 66.

• Attacks Chu Yilan with considerable strength after being humiliated 66.
• Loses composure while Chu calmly evades him and exploits an opening 66.
• Loses a separate group fight against the Chen family’s young master and bodyguards after arriving with insufficient protection 91.

Equipment / Items

• Pagani: The car from which he emerges when meeting Zheng after a variety-show shoot 9.
• Bodyguards: Accompany him during confrontations, though Feng Yueshan’s men prevent them from intervening against Chu 65 66.

Relationships

• Shen Lian — Former devoted admirer whom Zhou exploited and mistreated. The transmigrated Shen rejects him completely; Zhou’s eventual discovery of the original Shen’s kindness earns him neither reconciliation nor forgiveness 7 36 183 189 190.
• Zheng Ge — Former lover and canonical partner. Their relationship relies partly on jealousy involving Shen and Chu, deteriorates under family pressure, and ends when Zhou seeks a more advantageous match 1 36 71 180.
• Old Madam Zhou — Grandmother who raised and favored him. Her opposition to Zheng and repeated disappointment in Zhou lead her to consider Zhou Tangru as an alternative successor, although she remains reluctant to abandon Tangsi entirely 71 101 188.
• Zhou Tangru — Younger paternal half-brother and succession rival. Tangsi despises him and insults his mother; Tangru ultimately takes control of the family’s affairs and bankrupts the Zhou family 180 190 199 245.
• An Jing — Girlfriend in name, pursued after his breakup with Zheng to strengthen his position through Linchen Technology. She grows contemptuous of him and becomes involved with Tangru; that relationship later becomes genuine 180 181 184 199.
• Chu Yilan — Business competitor and personal adversary. Zhou mistakes Chu’s former concessions around Zheng for weakness, only to be decisively beaten when Chu refuses to yield 34 66.
• Xu Jingge — Rejects Zhou’s claimed entitlement to a development partnership and declares his loyalty to Chu. He openly prefers dealing with Zhou’s succession rival 101.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Loss of Control over Shen Lian

After the soul exchange, Shen openly repudiates his former attachment to Zhou. At a celebrity banquet, Zhou still assumes Shen intends to interfere with his relationship and warns Zheng that he will kill Shen if he causes trouble 7 20.

Zhou later visits Shen on the Silent Words set to demand an explanation for his refusal of Zheng’s dinner invitation. Shen reminds him of their agreement to stop contacting each other and rejects his authority. Zhou’s attempted physical intimidation fails, as does his subsequent effort to remove Shen from the production. Chu increases the production’s funding to ensure Shen remains protected 35 36.

Birthday Fight and Family Backlash

At Zheng’s birthday gathering, Zhou moves against Shen, but Chu intercepts him with a kick. Zhou’s retaliatory attack ends with Chu forcing him to his knees; Feng intervenes before the fight causes more serious injury 65 66.

Hospitalized afterward, Zhou prevents his grandmother from attacking Zheng but becomes irritated rather than sympathetic toward Zheng’s tears. Their earlier jealousy routine no longer works because Shen has stopped answering Zhou’s calls and Chu has blocked Zheng 36 71.

Succession Pressure

Old Madam Zhou pressures Zhou into blind dates. Zheng interrupts one meeting with the Chen family’s young master, triggering a fight and a public scandal. Rumors that Zhou Corporation is nearing bankruptcy follow, but these are presented as gossip rather than established fact 91.

Zhou then fails to obtain a development partnership from Xu Jingge. Meanwhile, his grandmother begins considering a capable illegitimate grandson as a successor. By the time Zhou Tangru becomes his strongest rival, Zhou has broken up with Zheng and begun dating An Jing, yet still cannot secure the family’s backing 101 180.

Belated Recognition of Shen’s Devotion

At Feng Chunsheng’s birthday banquet, Zhou tells Shen that he repeatedly dreams of Shen’s death. These dreams also suggest that Shen—not Zheng—cared for him after their first meeting. Shen confirms the latter fact but refuses Zhou’s attempts to excuse or reinterpret their history 189.

When Zhou grabs him, Shen throws off his arm and pins him against a wall. Zhou understands Shen’s statement that his former admirer is “dead” as the end of that love, rather than recognizing its literal significance 189 190.

Days later, Zhou is beaten after drinking, thrown into a trash bin, robbed, and left a laughingstock in his social circle. Chu and his friends are responsible for the beating 190.

Professional and Family Downfall

Following the exposure of Zheng’s misconduct, Zhou Corporation issues a statement temporarily relieving Zhou of his duties. The scandal and his failed decisions leave him without the credibility needed to retain family power 195 199.

After Old Madam Zhou suffers a disabling stroke, she transfers real authority to Tangru. Tangru sells his shares to Chu with the intention of dismantling the Zhou family’s legacy rather than preserving it. Hengtai subsequently absorbs Zhou Corporation, the Zhou family is bankrupted, and Tangsi quietly disappears 199 243 245.

Notable Quotes

“Don't give Shen Lian a chance to get near you. If he causes trouble for you again, I'll kill him.” 20

“Shen Lian, if you can keep filming this show or stay in this industry, I'll take your surname.” 35

“Zheng Ge, she's the grandmother who raised me.” 71