Mu Ze

Biodata

Background / History

Previous Life and Rebirth

In the original novel known to Xie Yuan, Mu Ze was a briefly mentioned corporate president who died in an accident, after which his assets passed to Gu Yanzhou. He had neither participated in the dating show nor interacted with its protagonists 3 19 39.

Mu Ze later reveals that he remembers this future himself. After dying in a car accident, his soul witnessed Gu Yanzhou take over Mu Group and saw his grieving parents’ health deteriorate. He returned to life on the day Su Wanyue struck Xie Yuan with her car. He then went to Nan City and joined the dating show to investigate the people who would gain his company and prevent them from becoming powerful 74.

Dating Show and Courtship

Initially interested in Xie Yuan because he was someone who should no longer have existed, Mu Ze became genuinely attracted to him after spending time together. His first direct request to date was misunderstood: Xie Yuan agreed while assuming Mu Ze meant their existing trial relationship for the show. Mu Ze nevertheless continued expressing his interest openly, identifying Xie Yuan as the first person he had ever been attracted to 7 15 20.

Their relationship developed through shared meals, domestic care, and sleeping together. Xie Yuan found Mu Ze’s scent unusually comforting and could fall asleep in his arms. Meanwhile, each privately resolved to protect the other from the fate he remembered or had read about 19 20 22 39.

During the show, Mu Ze also accompanied Xie Yuan on a funeral-shop assignment, began learning paper-effigy work from Old Yuan, and tutored children during a group task 27 41 47.

Meeting the Xie Family

When the show ended, Xie Yuan admitted that he could not sleep without Mu Ze and asked him to use the intimate name “A-Wu.” Mu Ze offered to accompany him home, then quietly enlisted Assistant Zhang to prepare gifts for the family visit 60 61.

Xie Ran questioned his background and initially restricted their physical intimacy and sleeping arrangements. After seeing Xie Yuan’s healing injuries, Mu Ze urged him to get a medical examination; both underwent checkups and received reassuring results 62 66 68 69.

Mu Ze eventually disclosed his rebirth and his reasons for joining the show. Xie Yuan, in turn, explained that Gu Yanzhou and Su Wanyue were protagonists in a book he had read. Mu Ze accepted this revelation without rejecting either Xie Yuan or the possibility that he himself was a fictional character 74 75.

Marriage and Relocation Plans

Before his leave ended, Mu Ze and Xie Yuan obtained their marriage certificate. Because Xie Yuan wanted to remain near his siblings, Mu Ze planned to move Mu Group’s headquarters from Hai City to Nan City. When Xie Ran questioned whether his father would permit it, Mu Ze explained that his parents had already transferred most of the company’s shares to him 89.

Mu Ze returned to Hai City to work on the relocation, maintaining contact through messages and video calls. He stayed on a call to help Xie Yuan fall asleep and worked late to shorten their separation. Xie Yuan agreed to his accelerated schedule only on the condition that he eat regularly and return home to sleep before midnight 96 99 101.

Protecting the Family and Ending

As threats against the Xie family escalated, Mu Ze shared information from his previous life, including Feng Leyao’s search for Xie Ran after her disappearance. He and Xie Ran began taking five bodyguards when going out. After an incident involving armed attackers, he acknowledged that Xie Yuan would still act to protect his sister, but asked him to be more careful 136 138.

Mu Ze also proposed cooperating with the authorities over Xie Yuan’s injury-treatment ointment, receiving permission to handle the formula-sharing arrangements 152.

At the end of the main story, Mu Ze accompanied Xie Yuan to meet Su Wanyue and Gu Yanzhou, whose dreams suggested awareness of another version of events. He and Xie Yuan later returned as special guests on the second season of Heartbeat Means Action, reuniting with Tan Yaya and Zhang Jue and greeting the audience hand in hand 181.

Appearance

• Face and bearing: Fair skin, refined features, and a gentle, cultured appearance 7.
• Build: Tall and muscular, with developed pectoral and abdominal muscles; he exercises regularly 30 69 99.
• Visible reactions: His ears, face, and neck redden easily when Xie Yuan flusters him 19 36.
• Clothing: According to Mu Xiao, he wears the same clothes for years; much of his couture clothing consists of gifts from business partners 110.
• Distinctive scent: Xie Yuan perceives him as exceptionally sweet-smelling, with the scent intensifying during strong emotions, particularly happiness. Xie Yuan attributes this to his ability to distinguish people’s character through scent—not to perfume worn by Mu Ze 15 61.

Personality

Mu Ze’s mild manners conceal a calculating and stubborn side. He initially presents himself as an ordinary office worker, answers provocations with polite sarcasm, and refuses to let other guests treat his labor or food as something they are entitled to. His sister describes him as petty and exceptionally stingy, recalling that he retaliated for her taking his pocket money by tricking her out of six months of hers 9 10 24 26 110.

With Xie Yuan, he becomes attentive, easily flustered, and openly affectionate. Small gestures of praise or reciprocation delight him, while he frequently conceals his excitement behind his usual composed expression. Despite his attraction, he initially worries about moving too quickly and explicitly promises not to overstep before Xie Yuan understands intimacy 19 30 36 71.

His devotion also carries possessiveness and insecurity. He admits jealousy, fears that Xie Yuan might stop loving him, and seeks reassurance about their future. Nevertheless, he respects Xie Yuan’s wish to stay near his family and recognizes that he cannot simply prevent him from taking risks for his siblings 61 88 89 138 163.

Abilities & Skills

Corporate Management and Investment

Mu Ze runs Mu Group and holds two doctorates 62.

• Ownership: His parents transferred most of Mu Group’s shares to him before his marriage 89.
• Investment: Invests in The Emperor’s Scheme, contributing slightly more than Xie Yuan 73.
• Business planning: Works on relocating the headquarters to Nan City and identifies potential official cooperation for Xie Yuan’s medicinal ointment 89 101 152.

Memory and Previous-Life Knowledge

Mu Ze retains memories of his earlier life and can use them to recognize threats and changed outcomes 74 75 136.

• Recall: Memorizes a dating-show obstacle course after looking at it a few times 85.
• Strategic information: Knows how Gu Yanzhou benefited after his death and remembers Feng Leyao’s actions following Xie Ran’s disappearance 74 136.
• Limit: His rebirth occurred on the day of Xie Yuan’s car accident; he could not return early enough to prevent it 74.

Cooking and Domestic Care

Mu Ze is skilled at cooking, laundry, organizing belongings, and caring for Xie Yuan 7 19 30.

• Prepares cold noodles, millet porridge, and fresh watermelon juice 7 9 24.
• Sorts Xie Yuan’s clothes, underwear, shoes, and socks into their proper places 19.
• Dries Xie Yuan’s hair, prepares drinks, and watches over him after nightmares 19 22 71.
• His presence helps Xie Yuan sleep; during their separation, he provides company over video instead 22 61 99.

Tutoring and Practical Learning

• Tutoring: Helps children with their homework during the show’s family-themed task 47.
• Handicrafts: Begins learning paper-effigy construction from Old Yuan after Xie Yuan recommends him as good with his hands 27.
• Fitness: Exercises regularly and completes Xie Yuan’s demanding exercise routine on his first attempt, although it leaves him exhausted 69.

Relationships

• Xie Yuan / A-Wu — Husband, first love, and first kiss. Mu Ze makes an explicit exception to his usual stinginess for him, declaring that all his money belongs to A-Wu 74 75 89.
• Xie Ran — Sister-in-law. Initially scrutinizes him and imposes boundaries; Mu Ze addresses her as “Sis” and seeks her acceptance 62 66 71.
• Mu Xiao — Younger sister, five years his junior. Frequently exposes his stinginess and jealousy, while he reprimands her for abandoning her company and becoming overly familiar with Xie Yuan 62 110 116 117.
• Mu Ying — Father. Leaves the headquarters-relocation decision to Mu Ze, who tries to recruit him to help with company work 96.
• Shen Shuyao — Mother. Accepts Mu Ze’s request to postpone a visit so Xie Yuan can rest and reassures him that she is not a “wicked mother-in-law” 99.
• Assistant Zhang — Assistant and driver. Handles family-visit gifts and other personal arrangements; loses a month’s bonus after reporting Mu Ze’s marriage to his parents without permission 61 90 96.
• Gu Yanzhou — Adversary who took over Mu Group after Mu Ze’s previous death. Preventing that outcome originally motivates Mu Ze’s participation in the dating show 74.
• Old Yuan — Funeral-shop proprietor who supervises his introduction to paper-effigy work 27.
• Tan Yaya and Zhang Jue — Fellow dating-show guests with whom he socializes and later reunites for the second season 21 36 181.

Notable Quotes

“A confession would be too hasty. Teacher Xie deserves better.” 15

“As long as you're here, A-Wu, I don't care even if I'm a fictional character.” 75

“I'm confident I'll always love you, but I can't guarantee you'll always love me, A-Wu.” 88