Gu Family Residence.
Gu Yan's Room.
Once again, Gu Yan lay on his bed, wrapped up like a giant rice dumpling.
Though he had already explained that he was faking his illness this time, to play along with their son's act, Gu Tianming and Su Murong had still prepared a full set of medical treatments to keep up appearances.
On the bed.
"Huh? Why isn't Qingqiu answering her phone?"
"Could she still be asleep?"
Gu Yan hesitated, puzzled. He rolled over, his mind racing.
Before he left the forbidden zone, Xiao Leng had already taken control of Qingqiu's body and departed.
He had even called Leng Ling'er beforehand, and she confirmed that Leng Qingqiu was at home.
So here was the question—
Gu Yan felt conflicted.
How was he supposed to explain to Qingqiu how she got back home once she woke up?
Wait, no—why should he be the one to explain?
Shouldn't Xiao Leng be the one to handle that?
He rolled over again, a flicker of doubt in his eyes.
If Qingqiu found out that Xiao Leng could take over while she was unconscious... what would she do?
After all, even with Leng Ling'er, Qingqiu had never voluntarily revealed Xiao Leng's existence.
And beyond that—what if Xiao Leng betrayed him and told Qingqiu about their collaboration first?
Just as Gu Yan was lost in thought, his phone rang again.
His body jolted before his brain could react, and he answered the call instinctively.
Soon, Leng Qingqiu's familiar voice came through.
"Gu... Gu Yan, are you okay?"
Leng Family Residence.
Leng Qingqiu sat on the sofa in her study, twirling a strand of her hair nervously as she spoke.
Her expression was uneasy—she already knew Xiao Leng could emerge from her body now.
So... she wanted to know if the two of them had done anything strange in the forbidden zone.
Hearing that familiar voice, Gu Yan held his breath.
Thump! Thump!
Perfect—his "Pure Love Heart" (or "Pure Heart" for short) was activated!
This was definitely Qingqiu!
And her usual composure was gone, replaced by a hint of tension...
Gu Yan seemed to realize something.
He took a deep breath.
Time to figure out how to talk his way out of this.
His tone became casual. "Qingqiu~ What kind of question is that? Didn’t you protect me just fine afterward?"
"Though I did get knocked out by an enemy by accident. When I woke up, I was already home."
Then, with just the right amount of confusion, he added, "Qingqiu... did you bring me back?"
After speaking, his heart pounded wildly.
He was gambling—betting that Qingqiu might have already noticed Xiao Leng could take over.
Betting that Xiao Leng, with her mischievous second personality, would have said something to make Qingqiu suspicious.
And betting that, given Qingqiu's current personality, she wouldn’t let him know about Xiao Leng's existence.
So!!
Gu Yan was betting that what Qingqiu wanted to confirm most right now was—
If that were the case, then she would naturally follow his lead in the conversation!
And he could completely absolve himself of any suspicion, shifting all responsibility onto Xiao Leng!
Even if Qingqiu wanted to settle accounts, she’d only go after Xiao Leng!
Hearing this, Leng Qingqiu finally let out a breath of relief.
Phew~ Good.
From the sound of it, Xiao Leng hadn’t done anything inappropriate to Gu Yan while controlling her body.
Otherwise, given Gu Yan’s usual smugness, he would’ve already brought it up by now.
So everything was fine.
But...
Just as she was about to speak, she hesitated.
Gu Yan was sharp—based on how he usually acted around her...
Would he really not have noticed that Xiao Leng wasn’t her?
Her mind raced.
Had "she" really been protecting Gu Yan? Maybe.
But if Gu Yan realized the "Leng Qingqiu" protecting him wasn’t the real one, then he’d also know that the unconscious Leng Qingqiu wouldn’t remember what the awake "Leng Qingqiu" had done.
In other words...
Gu Yan might have realized back then that Xiao Leng wasn’t her!
So now, in this call, he was trying to confirm who he was really talking to.
If she just went along with his words, would he think she was Xiao Leng?
And if he realized she was lying, would he be disappointed in her?
If that happened...
Leng Qingqiu clenched her fists slightly.
So...
She decided to gamble too.
She’d bet that Gu Yan had seen through Xiao Leng.
Bet that he already knew about her second personality.
And bet... that even if he knew, he wouldn’t distance himself from her.
After an internal struggle, she spoke softly, "Gu Yan."
"Huh?"
Gu Yan held his breath, waiting to see if his gamble had paid off.
But Leng Qingqiu’s next words stunned him.
In a voice tinged with complexity, she said, "I’m sorry... I lied to you."
"Actually... I have more than one personality."
???
Silence.
The air itself seemed to freeze.
After a moment of shock, Gu Yan’s voice trembled slightly.
"Wha—?"
Wait, Qingqiu, why did you just... confess outright!?
......
......
Gu Family Tech Intelligence Corporation—a Fortune 500 company under the Gu Group, specializing in brain-computer interface technology.
Top floor.
CEO’s office.
A woman stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, a glass of fine red wine in hand, her sharp gaze sweeping over the bustling city below.
Her posture was impeccable, her tailored suit accentuating her professionalism and precision.
This woman was the head of Gu Family Tech Intelligence, known as the "Second Madam Gu"—
Gu Yunrou!!!
Just then—
Click.
The door opened gently.
"President Gu, this is the invitation Madam Gu sent over."
Zhang Qian, Gu Yunrou’s round-faced personal secretary, respectfully handed over an elegant invitation.
Gu Yunrou turned away from the view, casually setting her wine glass aside as she took the invitation.
She skimmed through it—then tossed it onto the desk.
"Heh."
A haughty laugh escaped her lips.
"The annual gala."
"This year will be my useless little brother’s last chance, won’t it?"
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sharp clicks of her red heels echoed as she strode to her desk and picked up a photo frame.
Inside was a picture of a disgruntled Gu Yan, his head being playfully pushed down by her.
A smirk curled at her lips as she gazed at it.
"How wonderful it’ll be to see you again, dear little brother~~"
"I wonder if you’re still simping after that Shen Family’s young miss?"
"If you are... I’d love to see that pathetic, enraged look on your face at the gala again~~"
Assistant Zhang Qian reported in a hushed voice, "President Gu, it seems Young Master Gu Yan is in a relationship again. This time, it's with the eldest daughter of the Leng Family."
"The whole of Jianghai City is buzzing about it. Rumor has it they've even reached the stage of meeting each other's parents to discuss marriage."
The moment these words were spoken—
Crack!
A photo frame shattered.
Gu Yunrou turned her head stiffly, her eyes wide with disbelief. "You said... who?"
"Uh... it's the Leng Family's eldest daughter, Leng Qingqiu."
Hiss—!
Gu Yunrou's eye twitched.
Thud, thud, thud!
She grabbed the broken photo frame and bolted for the door in a frenzy. "Prepare the jet—I'm heading to Jianghai immediately!"
"Huh?!"
Zhang Qian was stunned.
What had gotten into the CEO?
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
