Chapter Summaries

Xiao Yao confronted one of the men who had kidnapped and killed his family, hoping to learn where his brother Xiao Xi was. As armed men surrounded him and the kidnapper demanded a trade route in exchange for Xiao Xi, Shen Yunzhi arrived and offered to take the kidnapper’s money instead.

• Xiao Yao remembered escaping the warehouse as a teenager while his parents and younger brother Xiao Xi stayed behind, only to learn that they had died before he returned with the police.
• After seeing a bloodstained jacket from that time, Xiao Yao called Chen Lin and went to meet the middle-aged kidnapper at an unfinished building.
• The kidnapper revealed that armed men surrounded Xiao Yao and offered to let him see Xiao Xi in exchange for the trade route in Country X.
• Shen Yunzhi reached the tenth floor, leaned on Xiao Yao for support, and told the kidnapper to bring all his money to her instead of insulting her friend with a 1.5-billion project.

Shen Yunzhi disrupted the kidnappers’ attack with bags of feces while Xiao Yao’s men arrived. As a kidnapper taunted Xiao Yao about his family’s deaths, Xiao Yao began to lose control, and Shen Yunzhi spotted a sniper across the way.

• Shen Yunzhi followed Xiao Yao to the negotiation site, and he pushed her behind him as the middle-aged kidnapper threatened them.
• After a thug reported that the lookouts had gone silent, Xiao Yao shot the middle-aged man in the shoulder.
• Shen Yunzhi threw bags of feces at the armed thugs, buying time for Xiao Yao’s people to arrive.
• Chen Lin led Xiao Yao’s men into the fight, and Xiao Yao pulled Shen Yunzhi into cover.
• The middle-aged kidnapper taunted Xiao Yao about abandoning his family, provoking him as Shen Yunzhi tried to hold him back.
• Shen Yunzhi spotted a glint from a sniper scope in the unfinished building opposite.

Shen Yunzhi saved Xiao Yao from a sniper’s shot, then tried to rein in his anger after the middle-aged captive provoked him with rumors about Xiao Xi. She slapped Xiao Yao on the system’s advice, only to discover too late that it had also suggested comforting him with hugs and kisses.

• Shen Yunzhi tackled Xiao Yao out of the sniper’s line of fire, and the bullet struck the spot where he had been about to step.
• Xiao Yao shoved Shen Yunzhi into cover and ordered her to stay put, while she vented her anger by beating a wounded henchman with a steel rod.
• Xiao Yao’s men captured the middle-aged man, who taunted Xiao Yao with claims about Xiao Xi and the events of the past.
• Xiao Yao chambered a round without responding, and the Smart Assistant warned Shen Yunzhi that his corruption level was fluctuating severely.
• Shen Yunzhi slapped Xiao Yao and told him to calm down, then saw the system’s delayed suggestion to comfort him with hugs and kisses.

Shen Yunzhi’s two slaps stabilized Xiao Yao’s corruption level, but they led to a furious argument between the two. Xiao Yao sent Chen Lin to escort Shen Yunzhi back to the banquet, where Chen Lin asked how she had met Xiao Yao.

• The Smart Assistant confirmed that Shen Yunzhi had completed her mission and that Xiao Yao’s corruption level was stable.
• Xiao Yao confronted Shen Yunzhi about slapping him, and they traded angry insults over her decision to save him.
• After Shen Yunzhi walked away, Xiao Yao told Chen Lin to take her back safely.
• Chen Lin caught up with Shen Yunzhi and drove her back to the banquet.
• On the way, Chen Lin asked Shen Yunzhi how she had met Xiao Yao.

Chen Lin told Shen Yunzhi about Xiao Yao’s traumatic past and tried to explain his harsh behavior as concern for her. Shen Yunzhi discovered Xiao Yao’s affection had inexplicably risen to 60%, while Xiao Yao remained behind to interrogate the surviving kidnappers and wondered who would comfort him.

• Chen Lin recounted how Xiao Yao’s family was murdered, his relatives had him confined in a psychiatric hospital, and he later reclaimed power despite his untreated PTSD.
• Chen Lin said Xiao Yao’s anger during the kidnapping showed he was sincere about wanting to get along with Shen Yunzhi, and she accepted that he had a conscience.
• Shen Yunzhi checked her system panel and saw that Xiao Yao’s affection had jumped from 20% to 60%.
• Chen Lin returned to Xiao Yao, warned two underlings to stop gossiping about him and Shen Yunzhi, and asked what to do with the surviving kidnappers.
• Xiao Yao ordered his men to extract information from the lackeys and keep the kidnapper boss alive, then asked Chen Lin whether he had dropped Shen Yunzhi off.
• Chen Lin urged Xiao Yao to treat Shen Yunzhi more gently, and Xiao Yao asked who would be gentle with him.

Xiao Yao stayed in S City to lure the hidden mastermind behind his family’s tragedy into lowering their guard, while Chen Lin teased him about Shen Yunzhi. After Chen Lin found Xiao Xi’s old jacket, Shen Yunzhi received a message from Xiao Yao at Ji Nanxian’s father’s banquet and chose not to reply.

• Xiao Yao told Chen Lin to spread the word that he was staying in S City to focus on the entertainment industry, and Chen Lin joked that he should also say he wanted to keep Shen Yunzhi company.
• Chen Lin recalled his long friendship with Xiao Yao and how they had joined forces after Xiao Xi died and Xiao Yao was confined.
• An underling brought Chen Lin the jacket Xiao Xi had worn when tragedy struck, stirring memories of Xiao Xi and their childhood.
• At Ji Nanxian's father's banquet, Shen Yunzhi received Xiao Yao's message asking if she had arrived, but she did not reply.

Shen Yunzhi returned to Ji Yueshan’s birthday banquet intending to face the Jiang family and reconsider her engagement, while Xiao Yao rushed after her despite claiming he would not coax her. After changing into an evening gown, Shen Yunzhi confronted Ji Nanxian about keeping Jiang Yunli at his side, leaving their engagement unresolved.

• Xiao Yao paid Shen Yunzhi for replies, learned she was back at the banquet, and bristled when she called Ji Nanxian her fiancé.
• Xiao Yao left his men’s work to Chen Lin and drove toward the banquet, prompting Chen Lin to laugh that he had run off to find Shen Yunzhi again.
• An Zhizhi helped Shen Yunzhi enter the hotel and arranged an aqua-blue evening gown for her after she arrived in scruffy clothes.
• Ji Nanxian approached Shen Yunzhi and said he would take her to meet his parents, calling her his fiancée while Jiang Yunli stood beside him.
• Shen Yunzhi told Ji Nanxian to give Jiang Yunli a proper place by his side instead of acting like a fool.

Shen Yunzhi rejected Ji Nanxian’s excuses for refusing to give Jiang Yunli a proper place in his life, then faced Jiang Yunli alone. Jiang Yunli revealed how the Jiang Family had concealed Shen Yunzhi’s identity and defended her own choices, but Shen Yunzhi dismissed her self-pity.

• Ji Nanxian blamed family expectations for his inability to make Shen Yunzhi his wife, and Shen Yunzhi mocked him for being useless.
• Shen Yunzhi refused Ji Nanxian’s offer to exchange WeChat contacts and left, while Jiang Yunli sent Ji Nanxian and An Zhizhi away to speak with her alone.
• Jiang Yunli told Shen Yunzhi that Jiang Zhen and Xie Mingzhen had known about the adoption mistake and had chosen not to bring Shen Yunzhi back because they were ashamed of her.
• Shen Yunzhi agreed that the Jiang Family cared more about appearances than their daughter, frustrating Jiang Yunli’s attempt to provoke her.
• Jiang Yunli admitted she had pursued Ji Nanxian and tried to please the Jiang Family to preserve her status, then described her efforts and depression as sacrifices.
• Shen Yunzhi questioned Jiang Yunli’s claims and told her that she knew how easy she had had it.

Shen Yunzhi confronted Jiang Yunli about blaming others for her own choices, then left her with a sarcastic farewell. After Jiang Yunli’s friends promised to exclude Shen Yunzhi, Chen Lin overheard them and decided to rally his Capital City connections to support her.

• Shen Yunzhi challenged Jiang Yunli’s claims that she had been forced into her actions and pointed out how she had harmed the original Shen Yunzhi.
• Jiang Yunli defended her ambition and argued that everyone fought for a higher position, while Shen Yunzhi mocked her reasoning and called Ji Nanxian an idiot.
• Shen Yunzhi left after wishing Jiang Yunli’s schemes would never backfire.
• Jiang Yunli’s friends assumed Shen Yunzhi had insulted her and offered to make sure no one in S City would include Shen Yunzhi.
• Chen Lin overheard the friends threatening to ostracize Shen Yunzhi and opened his Capital City group chat to seek help for her.

Chen Lin heard Jiang Yunli and her friends slander Shen Yunzhi, then An Zhizhi exposed Jiang Yunli’s lies and confronted the group. An Zhizhi left them humiliated by reminding one man that his father was seeking her family’s help with a project.

• Chen Lin joined the group chat and asked Jiang Yunli what Shen Yunzhi had said to anger her friends.
• Jiang Yunli falsely claimed Shen Yunzhi had told her to leave Ji Nanxian alone and return to Caoli County.
• An Zhizhi overheard the gossip, accused Jiang Yunli of provoking Shen Yunzhi, and said Jiang Yunli had claimed things that belonged to Shen Yunzhi as her own.
• An Zhizhi insulted Jiang Yunli’s friends and defended Shen Yunzhi against the group’s ostracism.
• When a man challenged An Zhizhi, she recognized his surname as Wang and revealed that his father had asked her to introduce him to her father for a family project.

An Zhizhi confronted Jiang Yunli’s allies and left them facing the consequences of spreading rumors about Shen Yunzhi. Chen Lin warned them that a friend of his liked Shen Yunzhi, then shared her photo in his group chat, where Xiao Yao removed a member who volunteered to be her fiancé.

• An Zhizhi rebuked a man who had insulted Shen Yunzhi and said she would tell his father why she had changed her mind about helping him.
• An Zhizhi mistook Chen Lin for one of Jiang Yunli’s supporters, threatened him, and left to tell Shen Yunzhi about her actions.
• Chen Lin told Jiang Yunli and the others that a buddy of his liked Shen Yunzhi and warned them to watch themselves.
• Wang Yi accused Jiang Yunli of using her friends as pawns, then stormed off as others began distancing themselves from her.
• Chen Lin shared a photo of Shen Yunzhi in his group chat and explained that she had been ostracized in S City and mistreated by her family and fiancé.
• After a group member offered to be Shen Yunzhi’s fiancé, Xiao Yao removed him from the chat.

Xiao Yao removed a man who offered to be Shen Yunzhi’s fiancé from the group chat and deflected guests’ attempts to discuss business and matchmaking. Shen Yunzhi told Jiang Chi she no longer had feelings for Ji Nanxian, and Jiang Chi revealed that Jiang Yunli had claimed a diary found at Shen Yunzhi’s old home as her own.

• Xiao Yao removed the man who offered to be Shen Yunzhi’s fiancé from the group chat, then told Chen Lin his finger had slipped.
• Xiao Yao denied liking Shen Yunzhi and fended off guests who tried to talk business and introduce him to a potential date.
• Jiang Chi told Shen Yunzhi that the Ji Family was waiting for her to cut the cake with them.
• Shen Yunzhi told Jiang Chi that she no longer had feelings for Ji Nanxian.
• Jiang Chi told Shen Yunzhi that Jiang Yunli had found a diary at Shen Yunzhi’s old home in Caoli County and claimed it as hers.

Shen Yunzhi discovered that Jiang Yunli had lied about the diary and worked with Jiang Chi to expose her. At Ji Nanxian’s birthday celebration, just as the Ji Family publicly affirmed Shen Yunzhi as his future wife, she announced that she had come to break off their engagement.

• Shen Yunzhi identified the diary as her original body's, while Jiang Chi learned that Tang Jianing had matched its handwriting to hers and sent him the evidence against Jiang Yunli.
• Jiang Chi explained that Jiang Yunli had not been abused in Caoli County and had used a false claim of depression to win the Jiang couple’s sympathy.
• Shen Yunzhi whispered a plan to Jiang Chi, and he enthusiastically led her toward the birthday cake ceremony.
• Ji Yueshan declared that Shen Yunzhi and Ji Nanxian would marry within a year or two, publicly acknowledging her as the Ji Family’s future daughter-in-law.
• Shen Yunzhi rejected the cake-cutting invitation and announced that she had come to discuss breaking off the engagement.

Shen Yunzhi publicly called off her engagement to Ji Nanxian, prompting the Ji family to deny his relationship with Jiang Yunli and uphold Shen Yunzhi as his fiancée. Jiang Yunli confronted her family and Ji Nanxian over their rejection, and Jiang Zhen slapped her in front of everyone.

• Shen Yunzhi announced that she wanted to end her engagement to Ji Nanxian and said she was willing to let Jiang Yunli and Ji Nanxian be together.
• Jiang Zhen threatened Shen Yunzhi, while Jiang Chi pointed out that Ji Nanxian had introduced Jiang Yunli as his girlfriend.
• Ji Yueshan claimed Ji Nanxian saw Jiang Yunli only as a younger sister, and Ji Nanxian called their relationship rumors.
• Jiang Yunli felt humiliated by the families' rejection and accused Shen Yunzhi of pretending to be kind.
• Jiang Yunli demanded to know whether Jiang Zhen had ever felt fatherly affection for her and confronted Ji Nanxian about his promises.
• Jiang Zhen slapped Jiang Yunli as she began to reveal more in front of the guests.

At Ji Yueshan’s birthday banquet, Shen Yunzhi rejected the engagement, while Xie Mingzhen tried to secure it for Jiang Yunli and Jiang Zhen’s slap sparked a public scene. Shen Yunzhi later gave Ji Yueshan a handwritten Lotus Sutra, and viewers noticed its handwriting resembled Jiang Yunli’s diary.

• Jiang Zhen slapped Jiang Yunli, and Xie Mingzhen shielded her before proposing that the engagement go to her instead of Shen Yunzhi.
• Jiang Zhen shut down the argument, while livestream viewers criticized the Jiang Family and sympathized with Shen Yunzhi.
• Xie Mingzhen promised Jiang Yunli she would help her get the engagement, but Jiang Yunli ran off after seeing the Ji Family welcome Shen Yunzhi.
• Shen Yunzhi gave Ji Yueshan a handwritten copy of the Lotus Sutra, which he praised and showed to the guests.
• Viewers who had seen All Villains recognized that the scripture’s handwriting resembled the handwriting in Jiang Yunli’s diary.

Netizens discovered that the diary Jiang Yunli had claimed as her own actually belonged to Shen Yunzhi, and they questioned Jiang Yunli’s abuse and depression claims as scrutiny fell on her therapist. At Ji Yueshan’s birthday banquet, Xie Mingzhen pressed him to replace Shen Yunzhi with Jiang Yunli as Ji Nanxian’s bride, but Ji Yueshan rejected the request and challenged Xie over Jiang Yunli’s pursuit of her daughter’s fiancé.

• Netizens compared the diary’s handwriting with clips from the All Villains livestream and concluded that it belonged to Shen Yunzhi, prompting them to accuse Jiang Yunli of appropriating her story.
• Netizens questioned Jiang Yunli’s claims of abuse and severe depression, then found that her therapist’s certification had expired and that he had treated only her for three years.
• Tang Jianing arranged for law enforcement officers to inspect the therapist’s practice after the therapist and practice failed to respond to the allegations.
• At the birthday banquet, Xie Mingzhen asked Ji Yueshan to replace Shen Yunzhi with Jiang Yunli as Ji Nanxian’s bride, citing the couple’s relationship and Jiang Yunli’s emotional state.
• Ji Yueshan refused to change the bride and told Xie Mingzhen that Jiang Yunli had pursued Ji Nanxian after he was already engaged to Shen Yunzhi.

Ji Yueshan convinced Xie Mingzhen that Jiang Yunli’s affair with Ji Nanxian would make her unwelcome in the Ji family, but Shen Yunzhi and Jiang Chi confronted Xie Mingzhen over her favoritism. The banquet was thrown into alarm when Jiang Yunli was reported to be threatening to jump, while Jiang Yunli, unaware of the scandal online, decided to force Ji Yueshan to accept her.

• Ji Yueshan told Xie Mingzhen that Jiang Yunli would face hostility from Ji Nanxian’s mother and urged her to consider Shen Yunzhi’s wishes.
• Jiang Chi brought Shen Yunzhi to Xie Mingzhen, and Shen Yunzhi challenged her for having pushed the engagement on her and then failed to defend her relationship with Ji Nanxian.
• Jiang Chi criticized Xie Mingzhen for trying to arrange Jiang Yunli’s marriage to Ji Nanxian after Shen Yunzhi gave him up, and Xie Mingzhen defended her unequal attention by citing Jiang Yunli’s depression.
• A waiter told Xie Mingzhen that Jiang Yunli was having a depressive episode and threatening to jump, so Xie Mingzhen hurried to her.
• Jiang Yunli received a recording of Xie Mingzhen and Ji Yueshan’s conversation and decided to force Ji Yueshan to agree to her marriage plan.

Jiang Yunli threatened to jump from the hotel rooftop, while Jiang Zhen learned that she had faked her depression and grew furious with her. The chapter ended with Xie Mingzhen and the guests trying to persuade Jiang Yunli to come down.

• Jiang Yunli climbed over the rooftop railing, and guests called for help as Xie Mingzhen rushed to the scene.
• Jiang Zhen’s business partners told him that Jiang Yunli had faked her depression, but a server interrupted before he could question them further.
• Jiang Zhen ordered his secretarial office to investigate Jiang Yunli’s history and received evidence that she had paid a doctor and therapist to help sustain her lie.
• Jiang Zhen became convinced that Jiang Yunli was now using a suicide threat to pressure the family and headed to the rooftop in anger.
• Xie Mingzhen and the guests pleaded with Jiang Yunli to come down as she sobbed that she had lost everything.

Jiang Yunli threatened to jump from the rooftop until Ji Yueshan agreed to let her marry Ji Nanxian, but Jiang Zhen arrived furious just as she regained her footing. The chapter left Jiang Yunli sensing that something was wrong.

• Shen Yunzhi’s system assessed Jiang Yunli as unlikely to jump, and Jiang Chi said she had used similar threats before to get what she wanted.
• Xie Mingzhen pleaded with Jiang Yunli to come down, while Shen Yunzhi and Jiang Chi discussed Xie Mingzhen’s favoritism and the family assets.
• Ji Nanxian tried to reassure Jiang Yunli, and Xie Mingzhen threatened to jump herself unless Ji Yueshan honored the marriage agreement.
• Jiang Yunli let go of the railing, and Ji Yueshan agreed to let her marry Ji Nanxian rather than Shen Yunzhi.
• Jiang Zhen arrived, pulled Xie Mingzhen away, and stared coldly at Jiang Yunli, who sensed trouble.

At the banquet, Jiang Yunli’s fake depression was exposed as she tried to force the Ji Family to accept her engagement, and the guests’ attitude toward her abruptly changed. After the farce ended, Xie Mingzhen read the investigation Jiang Chi had sent and learned that Jiang Yunli had also lied about being abused and about taking Shen Yunzhi’s place.

• Jiang Zhen revealed that Jiang Yunli’s attending physician had been arrested for issuing fake medical certificates, exposing her claimed depression as a lie.
• Zheng Xiulan accused Jiang Yunli of using the fake illness to manipulate Ji Nanxian and declared that he would never marry her.
• Jiang Yunli was left stunned and was rescued from the rooftop by firefighters before leaving the banquet.
• Zheng Xiulan took Ji Nanxian home before he could confront Jiang Yunli, while Jiang Zhen dealt with the fallout from the banquet.
• Jiang Chi sent Xie Mingzhen the Secretary Office’s findings, which showed Jiang Yunli had fabricated her abuse story and depression, and had also lied about taking Shen Yunzhi’s place.