Chapter Summaries

Over drinks, Cheng Huan shared the long list of things she wanted to do after growing up under her strict father, and the group planned to go bungee jumping. Wang Xiaoliang forbade Wei Zijin from going because he feared the danger, leaving the gathering awkward before Cheng Huan changed the subject to appearing on Wei Zijin’s interviews.

• Cheng Huan listed her wishes, including dyeing her hair, getting drunk with friends, finding close girlfriends, dating, and bungee jumping, and explained that her strict father had restricted her since middle school.
• Luo Bisheng suggested that he and Cheng Huan go bungee jumping together, and Cheng Huan proposed that the group go during the university’s open day next month.
• Wang Xiaoliang remembered the Book of Fate’s warning about dangerous amusements and insisted that he and Wei Zijin would not go bungee jumping.
• Wei Zijin agreed to stay back, while Cheng Huan glared at Wang Xiaoliang and then asked whether she and Tian Jiayi could appear on Wei Zijin’s interviews.
• Tian Jiayi teased Cheng Huan about being able to talk all day, and Wei Zijin said Cheng Huan’s college bucket list would make good interview material.

On the drive home, Wei Zijin told Wang Xiaoliang that Tian Jiayi seemed attracted to him and warned him about other women, drawing on Li Lanxiang’s family history. The conversation ended with Wei Zijin asking Wang Xiaoliang to honestly say whether he liked Tian Jiayi, and he denied it.

• Wang Xiaoliang noticed Wei Zijin acting unusually cheerful and asked what was wrong.
• Wei Zijin said Tian Jiayi liked him and described how Tian Jiayi had kept glancing at him during dinner.
• Wei Zijin vowed to cut off potential rivals and shared the warning Li Lanxiang had learned from her mother’s experience with her unfaithful father.
• Wei Zijin told Wang Xiaoliang that Li Lanxiang had praised his calligraphy as captivating and advised him not to show it off to too many women.
• Wei Zijin asked whether Wang Xiaoliang liked Tian Jiayi, and he said he did not.

Wang Xiaoliang celebrated his rising income as Zhou Qiang and Huang Xueli praised his success adding fruit to their business. Zhou revealed he had opened Hongbin Little Tower’s second branch alone, then explained why Huang’s political judgment would help keep their expanding business within the authorities’ boundaries.

• Wang Xiaoliang’s monthly income exceeded forty thousand yuan, and Zhou Qiang raised his base salary by three thousand yuan because of his fruit proposal.
• At Old Sichuan, Zhou Qiang and Huang Xueli praised Wang Xiaoliang’s work and celebrated his success.
• Zhou Qiang said he had signed a lease and paid six months’ rent for Hongbin Little Tower’s second branch, but would open it alone to repay a favor.
• Huang Xueli offered to invest in a future shop, but Zhou Qiang insisted they should keep working together and said Huang’s political intelligence would help guide the business.
• Huang Xueli explained that businesses operate under government oversight, and Wang Xiaoliang realized the team needed Huang to help them avoid crossing a red line.

Wang Xiaoliang was entrusted with full responsibility for the supermarket as Zhou Qiang and Huang Xueli prepared for a second store. On his birthday, Wei Zijin took him to the BMW dealership and revealed she had bought him a car as a present and part of her dowry.

• Zhou Qiang told Wang Xiaoliang he would take over all the supermarket work Manager Kong had handled, including its finances, and that he would receive her share.
• Wang Xiaoliang woke on April 11 to Wei Zijin wishing him a happy birthday and calling him "hubby" for the first time.
• Wei Zijin took Wang Xiaoliang out for longevity noodles, following his mother's birthday tradition, then brought him to an auto mall.
• Wei Zijin led Wang Xiaoliang through luxury-car showrooms and, at the BMW dealership, revealed a new white BMW as his birthday present and part of her dowry.

On his birthday, Wang Xiaoliang and Wei Zijin completed the purchase of a BMW, which Wei Zijin had saved up to afford as a down payment. After Wang Xiaoliang helped her learn to drive, the couple headed to their celebratory meal with Wei Zijin at the wheel.

• Wang Xiaoliang accepted the BMW's paperwork, learned its basic controls, and drove it around the dealership.
• Wei Zijin explained how she had negotiated the price and saved enough for the down payment, saying she wanted to give Wang Xiaoliang a better life.
• Wang Xiaoliang reassured Wei Zijin, agreed to pay the remaining registration tax, and suggested they exchange bank cards.
• Wang Xiaoliang took Wei Zijin to a quiet road, where she learned to drive and practiced for three hours.
• Wei Zijin drove them toward the restaurant while Wang Xiaoliang encouraged her.

Wang Xiaoliang learned that Li Lanxiang was pregnant and agreed to keep the news secret from Brother Qiang. After struggling with the cost and worry of driving his new BMW, he decided to take his old Wuling Miracle Vehicle to work instead.

• Wei Zijin answered Li Lanxiang's call and learned that Lanxiang was pregnant.
• Li Lanxiang warned Wang Xiaoliang not to tell Brother Qiang because she wanted to surprise him.
• Wang Xiaoliang drove his new BMW toward Jiang University but parked at a paid lot rather than risk leaving it in the crowded residential community.
• Wang Xiaoliang considered having Li Le take over purchasing so he could spend less time managing the store.
• After paying forty-two yuan to park and worrying all day about his BMW, Wang Xiaoliang told Wei Zijin he would drive his Wuling Miracle Vehicle to work next week.

Wang Xiaoliang watched Li Le attract a crowd with his fruit-cutting performance, then handled Li Xiaoman’s request for Wei Zijin to host his May 10 wedding. After checking her schedule and rate, Wang Xiaoliang agreed on a classmate price, and Li Xiaoman asked her to sing as well.

• Li Le dazzled the crowd outside Store Three with his fruit-cutting tricks and earned the nickname “Black Horse Prince.”
• Li Xiaoman told Wang Xiaoliang he was getting married on May 10 and asked him to have Wei Zijin host the wedding.
• Liu Xinyu warned Wang Xiaoliang not to let Wei Zijin work for free and said she should charge at least a fair fee.
• Wei Zijin confirmed she had a May 10 opening ceremony in the morning but could host afterward, with a minimum rate of three thousand.
• Wang Xiaoliang offered Li Xiaoman a classmate rate of four thousand, and Li Xiaoman agreed before asking Wei Zijin to sing a song too.

Wang Xiaoliang and Wei Zijin skipped the May Day family visit because Zijin had work, then attended the rehearsal dinner for Wang Xiaoliang’s cousin Li Xiaoman’s wedding. Li Xiaoman bragged about his fortunate marriage until Wang Xiaoliang revealed that Zijin had given him a BMW 5 Series as her dowry.

• Zhao Xiuqin told Wang Xiaoliang to stay with Wei Zijin and focus on work, then urged him to learn to cook and take good care of her.
• Wang Xiaoliang picked up Wei Zijin and took her to Li Xiaoman’s wedding rehearsal, where wedding planner Dong Hao praised Zijin and asked for her work contact information.
• At dinner, Li Xiaoman and his childhood friends discussed his home, car, pregnant fiancée Chu Qian, and a character divination that had supposedly led him to her.
• Wang Xiaoliang reflected that Qishan’s earlier readings had been accurate, including predictions involving Fang Dongxu, He Runya, Xiao Weijin, and Li Lanxiang.
• When Li Xiaoman offered them a ride, Wang Xiaoliang said Zijin had given him a car and used the key to reveal a white BMW 5 Series.

Wang Xiaoliang rushed home after Wei Zijin urgently summoned him and learned that her director had replaced her as the host of her popular show with Xie Hui. Unable to think of a way to fight the station’s decision, he called Zhou Qiang and said they were coming over for help.

• Huang Xueli, Zhou Qiang, and Wang Xiaoliang began celebrating their recent good fortune over drinks.
• Wei Zijin called Wang Xiaoliang and urgently ordered him to come home, so he raced back to her.
• Wei Zijin explained that her colleagues had ganged up on her and that her director had criticized her work and named Xie Hui as the show’s new host.
• Wang Xiaoliang realized the station intended to keep Wei Zijin as producer while gradually replacing her, and he grew furious.
• Wang Xiaoliang called Zhou Qiang and said he and Wei Zijin were coming over for help.

After Xie Hui took over Wei Zijin’s show, Wei Zijin refused to quit and considered competing with her for the audience. Huang Xueli warned that Xie Hui had an expert advising her, leaving Wei Zijin and Wang Xiaoliang uncertain about the contest ahead.

• Wei Zijin recounted how Xie Hui took over her show, and Wang Xiaoliang asked Zhou Qiang and Huang Xueli for advice.
• Huang Xueli suggested Wei Zijin quit, while Zhou Qiang offered to fund a media company and give her forty percent ownership; Wei Zijin declined both options.
• Wei Zijin said she would stay at the station, and Wang Xiaoliang asked his friends to help her find better terms.
• Huang Xueli proposed a head-to-head contest with Xie Hui based on video performance, with Wei Zijin staying if she won or leaving without penalty if she lost.
• Wei Zijin agreed to compete, but Huang Xueli warned that Xie Hui had superior resources and an expert advising her.

Wang Xiaoliang supported Wei Zijin as she confronted the TV Station director over her show and Xie Hui’s promotion. Wei Zijin secured a fair competition and flexible working hours, then decided to ask Zhao Nan to come out of retirement.

• Wang Xiaoliang coached Wei Zijin to demand a comparison of their shows’ numbers and threaten to resign if the station refused.
• Wei Zijin told Wang Xiaoliang that the director had berated her and threatened legal action, but she stood firm and challenged the station to face her publicly.
• Wang Xiaoliang met Wei Zijin for lunch and reassured her when she wondered whether being honest had made her easy to exploit.
• The director called Wei Zijin back for a meeting, where she and Xie Hui agreed to compete over three videos, with posting frequency based on the results.
• Wei Zijin secured flexible working hours and signed competition and breach-of-contract agreements with the meeting attendees.
• Wei Zijin credited Wang Xiaoliang and his friends for helping her, then decided to ask Zhao Nan to come out of retirement.

Wei Zijin welcomed Zhao Nan to Jiangcheng to help film a video, while Wang Xiaoliang worried about his uncles’ investment money. Later, he spotted Li Le walking hand in hand with a girl whose hand bore a distinctive black rose tattoo.

• Wei Zijin invited Zhao Nan to Jiangcheng, and Zhao Nan arrived eager to help with the video shoot.
• Zhao Nan drove Wang Xiaoliang and Wei Zijin from the airport and shared her views on marriage, inspiring Wei Zijin to plan to record her words for the video.
• Zhao Nan revealed that her family was receiving twenty thousand yuan in monthly interest on money entrusted to Wang Xiaoliang’s uncle, and Wang Xiaoliang worried that the principal might still be at risk.
• After welcoming Zhao Nan, Wang Xiaoliang checked his supermarket and then drove across the university campus.
• Wang Xiaoliang saw Li Le holding hands with a girl and recognized a black rose tattoo on the back of her hand.

Wang Xiaoliang tried to warn Li Le that dating a college student could be risky, but learned Li Le viewed their relationship as casual and already knew plenty about sex and romance. Their conversation ended with Li Le explaining what he had seen on long-haul trips with his cousin and insisting he had never visited roadside prostitutes.

• Wang Xiaoliang picked Li Le up near the women's dormitory and asked whether stocking more fruit would interfere with his dating.
• Wang Xiaoliang warned Li Le that dating the college student could be dangerous, but Li Le laughed and said they were just fooling around.
• Li Le showed Wang Xiaoliang explicit photos and said the girl had agreed to sleep with him when the opportunity came.
• Li Le asked why men cried in public after breakups, and Wang Xiaoliang explained that they had genuinely fallen in love.
• Li Le told Wang Xiaoliang that he had seen roadside prostitutes during trips with his cousin, but said he had never gone to them.

Wang Xiaoliang watched Wei Zijin’s newly posted interview with Zhao Nan, who explained why she had left nursing after a young patient died. The interview was still unfolding as Zhao Nan began describing how she eventually coped and why she did not transfer.

• Wang Xiaoliang found Wei Zijin anxiously waiting for him to check the analytics on her newly posted videos.
• Wang Xiaoliang opened Little Wei Interviews and watched Wei Zijin’s interview with Zhao Nan before Xie Hui’s competing video.
• Zhao Nan introduced herself as a 28-year-old nursing graduate who was unemployed and living at home despite having found hospital work after graduation.
• Zhao Nan described becoming attached to a seven-year-old leukemia patient who died during resuscitation, leaving her overwhelmed with grief.
• Wei Zijin asked whether Zhao Nan had left nursing because she could not face death and why she had not transferred; Zhao Nan said transferring was difficult for a newcomer and that she later began to cope.

Wang Xiaoliang watched Wei Zijin interview Zhao Nan about leaving nursing, losing money to a professional-organizer training and franchise scheme, and eventually being able to stop working after her family received demolition compensation. The chapter ended with Zhao Nan explaining that her family had kept most of the 2.2 million yuan compensation in the bank.

• Wei Zijin explained that Zhao Nan resigned from the hospital after it blamed her for a medical incident, and Wang Xiaoliang noted the similarity to Wei Zijin's experience.
• Zhao Nan said she left nursing because she feared working at unscrupulous medical facilities could lead to accusations of medical fraud.
• Zhao Nan described paying for professional-organizer training and a franchise, then failing to find clients and losing nearly 50,000 yuan.
• Zhao Nan recounted how her father learned about her failed business attempt and joked that it had pushed their family back into poverty.
• Zhao Nan said her family's old apartment was demolished, bringing them 2.2 million yuan in compensation; they bought a Golf, traveled to Yunnan, and saved the remaining money.

Wang Xiaoliang watched Wei Zijin interview Zhao Nan about living off her parents, her views on work and marriage, and her hopes for the future. The interview ended with Zhao Nan naming three dreams, leaving Wang Xiaoliang newly captivated by his cousin.

• Wei Zijin asked Zhao Nan how she supported herself, and Zhao Nan explained that she used her mother's pension while her father still worked and that her family had planned her safety net.
• Zhao Nan described her free time and said her friends envied her lifestyle, though one friend felt she was not as lucky as Zhao Nan.
• Zhao Nan said she wanted to marry for love, recalled a failed long-distance relationship and numerous unsuccessful blind dates, and refused to settle for a partner.
• Wei Zijin asked how Zhao Nan would manage when her parents were gone and whether public criticism frightened her; Zhao Nan said she expected to live well and defended spending her inheritance while her parents were alive.
• Wei Zijin asked about Zhao Nan's dream, and Zhao Nan wished to do work she loved, find a loving family-minded husband, and travel the world alone in her red car.

Wang Xiaoliang and Wei Zijin watched their video about Zhao Nan go viral, but their excitement turned to fury when Xie Hui posted a near-exact copy of Wei Zijin’s interview with Liang Yanni. Wei Zijin realized the confidentiality agreement and the station’s ownership of the footage left her with little room to fight back.

• Wang Xiaoliang saw Wei Zijin’s video draw fast-growing shares and a fierce argument in the comments over Zhao Nan’s choices and the host’s values.
• Wei Zijin told Wang Xiaoliang to check Xie Hui’s video instead of focusing on their numbers.
• Wang Xiaoliang recognized that Xie Hui had copied Wei Zijin’s interview with Liang Yanni, including its questions and pauses.
• Wei Zijin found the final shot showed an incoming call from Wang Xiaoliang and angrily questioned why the others had broken their promise.
• Wei Zijin stopped Wang Xiaoliang from calling for a lawyer, explaining that the agreement and the TV station’s ownership of the footage left them without a viable case.

Wei Zijin and Wang Xiaoliang celebrated her video’s huge lead over Xie Hui’s plagiarized copy, but they remained troubled by the station’s unfairness. As Wang Xiaoliang struggled to sleep, he read the twenty-eighth art of changing fate and realized it might offer a way forward.

• Wei Zijin and Wang Xiaoliang saw her video reach 570,000 views while Xie Hui’s copy had barely passed 12,000, and fans praised Wei Zijin while noticing Xie Hui’s imitation.
• Wang Xiaoliang advised Wei Zijin not to respond to fans asking whether Xie Hui was her apprentice, and Wei Zijin confirmed the station had no more usable footage of hers.
• Wei Zijin decided to ask station management to exclude the Director from reviewing her next two competition videos and to have all future editing done outside the station.
• Wei Zijin told Wang Xiaoliang she intended to finish the competition and win before leaving the station when her contract expired, and he reassured her that she would always have their home and his support.
• After helping Li Le restock their sold-out fruit business, Wang Xiaoliang failed to sleep and reread the twenty-eighth art of changing fate, realizing its advice might show him a way out.

Wang Xiaoliang helped Wei Zijin see that her own assumptions were limiting her video work and urged her to repeat successful interviews, starting with Zeng Haiyan. Wei Zijin embraced the idea, leaving them ready to pursue the competition with a new strategy.

• Wang Xiaoliang called Wei Zijin at the TV Station and persuaded her to come home so he could share an idea.
• Wang Xiaoliang asked Wei Zijin to identify the restrictions holding back her videos, including her reluctance to plagiarize.
• Wang Xiaoliang explained that Wei Zijin could repeat her own successful ideas, using a supermarket branch as an example of copying a proven model.
• Wei Zijin named Sister Nan's, Haiyan's, and Nono's videos as her top performers, and Wang Xiaoliang proposed filming Zeng Haiyan again.
• Wang Xiaoliang encouraged Wei Zijin to revisit popular subjects and test topics she had assumed were off-limits, and Wei Zijin praised his idea before they headed to the bridal chamber.

Wei Zijin arranged to film another episode about Zeng Haiyan’s busy shop and worried about accepting Zeng Haiyan’s payment. Wang Xiaoliang urged her to accept it and reconsider how she treated her crew, then carried her off toward the bedroom.

• Wei Zijin called Zeng Haiyan and asked to film another episode about her shop within a week, and Zeng Haiyan eagerly agreed.
• After the call, Wang Xiaoliang teased Wei Zijin, but Zeng Haiyan called back and offered the crew two-thousand-yuan red envelopes and Wei Zijin an additional five thousand yuan.
• Wei Zijin hesitated to accept the money, but Wang Xiaoliang said it was fair compensation for the traffic and commercial value she brought.
• Wang Xiaoliang pointed out that Wei Zijin’s crew also worked on her successful videos and might have felt overlooked, prompting her to reconsider how she treated them.
• Wang Xiaoliang scooped Wei Zijin over his shoulder and carried her toward the bedroom while she playfully protested.