Why did she have to apologize to Liang Zhiwei too?
“What did I do wrong?”
She hadn’t done anything!
She just got injured earlier, and Gu Zhaoye was helping her with the medicine. How could that be her fault?
At the end of the day, it was because Gu Zhaoye loved her too much, right?
But Gu Zhaoping’s gaze seemed to see right through her, calm and unwavering.
Thinking about the strange things tied to her role as the “replacement female lead,” Ruan Nian felt a chill down her spine, her heart sinking.
Had she noticed something about the system?
Wait, Ruan Nian suddenly remembered—hadn’t the system punished her last time?
It forced her to leave the show’s filming.
So how was she here now?
That punishment couldn’t have been so ineffective, could it?
What had she been doing after leaving the production?
“You really don’t know what you did to wrong Liang Zhiwei?”
Gu Zhaoping asked calmly, her tone flat.
Ruan Nian bit her lip.
Of course, she couldn’t admit anything.
Sure, if she thought about it, she had caused Liang Zhiwei some harm over the years, but that was all the system’s doing.
The actual dirty work was done by Sister Li.
Ruan Nian was clean.
If she didn’t say anything, what could Gu Zhaoping do to her?
Gu Zhaoping and Gu Zhaoye were siblings; their fights were family matters.
But she was an outsider—would Gu Zhaoping dare lay a hand on her?
Ruan Nian was certain Gu Zhaoping wouldn’t dare.
She stubbornly kept her head down, neck stiff, not saying a word.
“I gave you a chance,”
Gu Zhaoping said lightly, turning away.
Ruan Nian froze, unsure what she meant.
What next?
At that moment, Gu Zhaoye, gritting his teeth, struggled to get up from the snow, limping forward a few steps.
He glanced back at the growing crowd, clutching his blood-streaked face from the slap, unwilling to stay a second longer, and strode away.
Ruan Nian looked at him, too flustered to think about anything else, and hurriedly followed.
Gu Zhaosi, seeing them flee, immediately moved to stop them, but Gu Zhaoping spoke up: “No need to stop them.”
Gu Zhaosi halted, watching them disappear into the distance, turning back with a hint of regret, shaking his head.
Today, they had finally slapped that pretentious jerk and his crazy girlfriend in the face, and he’d wanted to see a few more episodes of this drama.
But his sister was already done playing, such a pity.
Gu Zhaosi had just turned around when Gu Zhaoping suddenly asked him,
“By the way…you said you know these people?”
The chaos earlier had kept Gu Zhaoping too occupied to address this young man.
Now she finally had the chance to ask.
Gu Zhaosi froze.
Wait, what did she mean?
He didn’t quite get it, scratching his head before cautiously asking,
“I… shouldn’t know them?”
Was his sister telling him to cut ties with Gu Zhaoye and Shen Yifeng?
Gu Zhaosi shivered, recalling her earlier mention of an “ex-fiancé,” his mind racing.
Wait, was his sister planning to call off the engagement?
It seemed very likely!
He’d been away from home too long and hadn’t realized how badass his sister had become!
So cool!!
Gu Zhaoping frowned at him.
This guy was weird.
He seemed sharp when he was cursing earlier, not like someone with a mental issue, so why was he acting so familiar with her?
Gu Zhaoping stopped looking at him, her brows suddenly relaxing as if she’d caught onto something crucial.
The face of the man in front of her began to blur, like it was being stretched into threads by the surrounding space.
Bits of key information from past memories started piecing together, reappearing before her eyes.
Fang Yining had said,
“You have a younger brother who’s classmates with Chu Yanze, studying abroad.”
Chu Yanze’s school seemed to be nearby.
In the original story, Gu Zhaoye and Gu Zhaoping had a younger brother named…
Gu Zhaosi.
But he didn’t appear much in the plot, and his role was…what was it again?
His part was so minor that even Gu Zhaoping had no clear memory of it.
Gu Zhaosi stared at his sister, his gaze full of probing, only to see a hand reaching toward him.
He jolted, almost dodging.
She wasn’t going to slap him too, was she?
He hadn’t done anything!
But to his surprise, the hand went straight to his bangs.
Gu Zhaosi froze, staring at her in confusion, not daring to move, only blinking twice.
Gu Zhaoping forcefully pushed his hair back, revealing his full forehead and eyes.
Now she could see more clearly—he did look a bit like her.
Gu Zhaoping grabbed his face without hesitation, turning it left and right.
Gu Zhaosi, utterly bewildered, let his sister examine him, clueless about what was going on.
Gu Zhaoping glanced at the others—neither Shen Yifeng nor Chu Yanze seemed to find this man’s presence odd.
Logically, if he were just a random helpful tourist, he wouldn’t stick around and get involved in all this.
It couldn’t be that coincidental, could it?
Gu Zhaoping fell silent for a long time, recalling the moment on the mountain when this man saw her lift her snow goggles, his face lighting up as if he’d seen a deity, before he lunged to hug her leg and cried out
“Sis.”
…No way.
Am I actually your sister?
Gu Zhaosi, lips puckered from her grip, head tilted to the side, didn’t dare turn back.
He cautiously glanced at Gu Zhaoping with a flattering look, asking in confusion,
“W-What’s wrong with me?”
Gu Zhaoping stayed quiet for a moment before suddenly calling out,
“Gu Zhaosi?”
Gu Zhaosi: “Huh?!”
Gu Zhaoping saw, for the first time, such a vivid, almost emoji-like expression on someone’s face.
She fell silent, silent for a long time.
It’s really you.
This is really a misunderstanding.
She let go of his face and said,
“It’s nothing.”
Gu Zhaosi, momentarily stunned, felt as if he’d been granted amnesty.
Did this mean his sister had decided to acknowledge him?
No longer rejecting him?
It seemed his earlier performance had paid off!
Forgiven at last, Gu Zhaosi was thrilled.
He rushed forward, wrapping Gu Zhaoping in a tight hug.
“Sis! It’s all my fault! Please forgive me!”
Gu Zhaoping: “!”
She flinched, caught off guard by someone daring to charge at her and throw themselves into her arms like that.
Thinking of his earlier behavior, she closed her eyes briefly, feeling both exasperated and headache-inducing.
Was this brother some kind of oversized dog?
Clueless and overly clingy.
Unaware that his sister’s hand was clenched into a fist behind her back, Gu Zhaosi continued excitedly,
“I thought you wouldn’t even acknowledge me! My fault, my fault, all my fault for not reaching out these past few years!”
Gu Zhaosi finally let go, grabbing Gu Zhaoping’s shoulders with joy.
“Sis, how are you so good at skiing?!”
He looked her up and down, as if searching for signs of some mutation.
“If you’d told me you were this good, I’d have learned skiing from you! Why bother with coaches? Those coaches aren’t even worth one of your hairs!”
“Sis, do you love extreme sports? I had no idea before. My bad, my bad, I didn’t know my own sister’s interests. What kind of brother am I?”
Gu Zhaoping calmly watched his ecstatic face.
She remembered now—
Gu Zhaosi’s role in the original story seemed to be…a naive fool who tried to challenge Gu Zhaoye for power later on.
He was ruthlessly outmaneuvered by Gu Zhaoye, used as a stepping stone, and his shares ended up in Gu Zhaoye’s hands, giving Gu Zhaoye full control of the Gu family.
This guy seemed clear-eyed but utterly foolish.
Gu Zhaoping glanced up at him, picturing a giant number above his head with a health bar: 3% equity.
Looking at him again, she closed her eyes briefly.
Her expression softened slightly.
“How many years has it been since you came home?” she asked, resting her hand on the “equity’s” shoulder.
The “equity” was overwhelmed with flattery and quickly replied,
“I’ll come back this year, I swear! I’m graduating soon, aren’t I?”
He limped along beside her as they headed toward the helicopter.
Only then did he pause and ask,
“Oh, by the way, Sis, is this plane your boyfriend’s? Can I come back with you guys?”
The crowd hadn’t dispersed yet, having been silently captivated watching Gu Zhaoping deal with Gu Zhaoye, only to now witness the siblings catching up.
Shen Yifeng, in particular, hadn’t found a chance to slip away earlier.
Hearing Gu Zhaosi’s bold remark, his pupils shrank, his brows twitched, and he quickly turned to look at them!
Theodore, sitting in the helicopter, froze for a moment.
This…was really Gu Zhaoping’s brother?
And she just accepted it like that?
Gu Zhaosi?
He pondered for a moment, vaguely recalling something, but hadn’t expected such a coincidence.
Noticing the attention on him, Theodore chuckled.
He looked at Gu Zhaosi, finding his personality amusing—at least far more reassuring than his own overly ambitious brother, Valentine.
He almost wished he had a brother like this.
Meeting Gu Zhaosi’s gaze, he said,
“It’s my plane. You’re welcome to join.”
But he didn’t deny the “boyfriend” comment first.
That was subtle—too subtle.
Shen Yifeng’s arm veins bulged as he stared at them, unblinking.
It was as if he could hear the production crew whispering in his ears, like an illusion.
Did Gu Zhaoping just mention an ex-fiancé?
Does that mean she and Shen Yifeng were involved?
So Gu Zhaoping had a fiancé, but is she calling off the engagement?
What’s their relationship now?
Why did Gu Zhaoye call him to help with the rescue?
Is he some big shot?
And who’s this guy with Gu Zhaoping now?
None of these whispers were real—just his own imagination—but they poured into his ears like boiling water, making Shen Yifeng feel as if he were submerged in it.
The helicopter he’d sent was meant to rescue Gu Zhaoping, but it hadn’t been of any use.
Gu Zhaoping had her own rescue certification—she was the one saving others, not the one needing saving.
What made it even more humiliating was that there was another man by her side, who had already prepared a helicopter and mobilized it faster than him.
And even now, that man hadn’t denied the ambiguous “boyfriend” comment.
Shen Yifeng couldn’t hold back anymore.
He took a step forward, grinding his teeth, his mouth moving faster than his brain.
“Do you know about the young master of the Laroche family? He’s pursuing Gu Zhaoping, and they’re already quite close—”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Shen Yifeng fell silent, realizing how impulsive he’d been.
Gu Zhaoping suddenly turned to look at him.
Shen Yifeng felt a chill run through him, freezing in place.
To say something like that in public—wouldn’t it make everyone look at him like a freak?
He, her ex-fiancé, asking another man in front of her about yet another man’s existence?
It was utterly humiliating.
What was he even so hung up about…?
But to his surprise, the man in the helicopter paused, then looked up at him.
The man had deep blue eyes, sharp brow bones, and a chiseled face—an undeniable kind of handsomeness.
Shen Yifeng stared at him, suddenly pausing, feeling like he’d seen those familiar, ambition-filled eyes somewhere before.
But what shocked him even more was the man’s response.
The man nodded slightly and said,
“I know.”
Earnestly.
Shen Yifeng’s pupils contracted sharply, all expression draining from his face.
This man didn’t shy away from Gu Zhaoping, didn’t seem embarrassed, or feel the need to hide anything.
Instead, with an almost arrogant confidence, he looked down at Shen Yifeng, his expression carrying a maddening mix of gentlemanly courtesy and calm indifference.
With a faint, unclear smile and cold, steady eyes, he said,
“So what?”