Chapter 43: Five Million—Stay Away from Gu Yang
Qi Ming’s face was splashed full of wine. The liquid dripped down in steady trails, and the smile frozen on his face stiffened completely.
Cheng Zishi looked at the man in front of him and revealed an awkward yet still polite smile.
What he had always wanted to do—he’d done it.
Not only that, he had gone above and beyond.
It was over. His acting career might very well end here.
Would he be blacklisted?
But the moment he recalled Gu Yang’s inner thoughts just now, the hand holding the wine glass began to tremble.
No.
He absolutely refused to service some old man—
Gu Yuhui watched the farce with a half-smile, signaling the nearby attendant who had been happily spectating to bring over a towel.
Qi Ming wiped his face. He wasn’t someone who angered easily, and this was clearly unintentional.
He looked toward his “mascot,” intending to let the matter pass once the other party apologized.
However, under his gaze, Cheng Zishi slowly retreated several steps.
Qi Ming: ?
Are you serious with that backward movement?
The atmosphere became even more awkward. Before Cheng Zishi could fully process everything, Gu Yang’s inner voice started up again.
[Of course Cheng Zishi wouldn’t agree to something like that. When he was called into the room and saw Qi Ming wrapped in nothing but a bath towel, he grabbed a red wine bottle during the struggle and smashed it over his head, completely tearing things apart.]
[Cheng Zishi is signed under Tianchen Entertainment, which belongs to the Lu family. Even if he offended Qi Ming, it wouldn’t have been impossible to salvage—but Lu Ran dislikes Cheng Zishi. He directly used this as an excuse to blacklist him, trading resources with Qi Ming for other artists under the company.]
Hearing this, Cheng Zishi let out a cold laugh.
Lu Ran, you bastard.
He swept his gaze around. The Lu family representative today was Lu Zheng; Lu Ran wasn’t present.
Perfect.
Their class had only these four people here today.
He Ming’an wouldn’t gossip. Qi Lecheng barely spoke, and besides, Qi Ming was his father…
Cheng Zishi’s expression darkened further.
Right. Qi Ming even had a son the same age as him—how could he have so little moral bottom line?
He didn’t even dare look at Qi Lecheng now.
Qi Ming, watching Cheng Zishi’s alternating sneers and dark expressions, finally let his own face fall.
Fine. So it wasn’t accidental after all.
He asked him to toast and he dared to throw a tantrum? Had he given him too much face recently?
At that moment, the agent who had been waiting outside hurried in, bowing and apologizing profusely.
“Director Qi, I’m truly sorry. Zishi just finished filming overnight. The kid is sincere—he bought a plane ticket and flew back immediately after wrapping up. He might not be in the best condition.”
As he spoke, he pressed Cheng Zishi’s head down into a forced apology.
With that smooth combo, Qi Ming finally had a way to step down. He snorted, though his earlier enthusiasm was gone.
“If his condition is so poor, there’s no need for him to stay. Go back.”
Watching Qi Ming leave without looking back, the agent could only swallow his remaining words. He sighed wearily.
“Cheng Zishi, I looked away for one second and you caused trouble again?”
“Do you even know who you offended? Director Qi was already planning his next film, and there was a role reserved for you. Now it’s all over.”
Seeing no trace of crisis awareness on Cheng Zishi’s face, the agent continued desperately:
“Forget this film—if he holds a grudge, you might have no future at all. What if he blacklists you completely?”
“That’d be great…” Cheng Zishi muttered slowly.
“Good that you know—wait? What did you just say?”
“Yeah, it might actually be a good thing,” Gu Yang added coolly from the side.
The agent turned, shocked, about to snap—until he recognized him as the young master of the Gu family. He forcibly swallowed his words.
They still had business collaborations with Gu family companies. Cannot offend. Cannot offend.
But he couldn’t help muttering internally.
What kind of cold remark is that? Aren’t you classmates? Can’t you hope for something better for him?
Cheng Zishi shoved away his overly worried agent and cast a complicated look at Gu Yang.
“You…”
He stopped mid-sentence. There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but none could be spoken aloud. Asking would expose too much.
He had always been someone who spoke bluntly. This situation nearly suffocated him.
Gu Yang lifted his eyes, looking Cheng Zishi up and down.
Cheng Zishi frowned. He hated being scrutinized like merchandise.
The agent’s heart climbed to his throat. He knew his artist’s temperament well—if even the boss’s son annoyed him, he’d curse on the spot.
But before Cheng Zishi could explode, Gu Yang spoke again.
“Be careful of Qi Ming. He’s fine with men too.”
The agent stared at Gu Yang in shock.
Cheng Zishi’s eyes widened.
He had always thought Gu Yang was just a self-centered young master who didn’t care about anyone. Even after knowing He Ming’an for years, he never seemed particularly concerned.
And yet now he was giving him a warning.
Strangely, Cheng Zishi felt… flattered.
“Mm, I know…” he answered reflexively, then realized that statement didn’t reveal anything.
The agent’s shocked gaze shifted to Cheng Zishi.
He’d always believed his artist had zero awareness of how the industry worked. He’d even publicly snapped at entertainment reporters before, leading to waves of smear articles.
Turns out he was too aware.
Gu Yang glanced at him oddly.
[You know and you’re still not leaving? Don’t tell me you can accept it?]
[Then why would it escalate like that?]
[Did they clash positions?]
Gu Yang gossiped internally. Cheng Zishi heard every word, his face darkening again.
This topic wasn’t dying anytime soon.
Couldn’t he just be straight?
Not far away, Qi Ming watched with displeasure. He’d already told them to leave—why were they still here?
But remembering someone stood beside him, he adjusted his expression and turned back to Gu Yuhui.
“A small actor being immature—sorry you had to see that.”
He shifted the topic to Gu Yang.
“I haven’t seen that child in years. Last time he was still in middle school.”
“From a professional perspective, I guarantee that face would look excellent on camera. Have you asked him about what I proposed? Let him try filming a movie with me—whether he likes it or not can come later. Consider it life experience.”
Gu Yuhui only smiled faintly.
Qi Ming had mentioned this proposal several times. It wasn’t mere politeness; he genuinely thought Gu Yang suitable.
But Gu Yuhui opposed it from the start.
Qi Ming was an artist by profession, yet more calculating than any businessman. His private life was chaotic, constantly reaching into his cast.
That was fine for him personally.
But not Gu Yang.
That child had been protected too well. In that regard, he was like a blank sheet of paper. Who knew what color he’d be stained with?
So Gu Yuhui had never even mentioned it to him.
Qi Ming continued enthusiastically.
He praised Gu Yang’s beauty, those gray eyes, the rebellious yet gloomy temperament.
He had even imagined a script.
A boy raised in an unhealthy family environment, suppressing his personality. After escaping, he meets all sorts of people. His personality is constantly reshaped—until he ultimately walks toward self-destruction.
The smile gradually vanished from Gu Yuhui’s face. His dark gaze shifted to Gu Yang, who was speaking with the young actor.
So similar. Truly similar.
From brows to lips—especially when he lifted his eyes to smile. Proper, delicate. The image overlapped with someone in his memory.
But Gu Yang’s nose bridge was tall and sharply structured, clearly masculine from any angle.
That trait was inherited from his father’s side.
The surrounding voices blurred as Gu Yuhui’s thoughts drifted far away.
He remembered that first meeting.
His older brother, who had been studying abroad for less than half a year, suddenly returned with a woman and announced she was his fiancée. They would be getting married.
Gu Yuhui had been indifferent—almost relieved.
In families like theirs, marriage was essentially an alliance of interests, especially when multiple heirs existed.
Unlike his free-spirited, art-loving older brother, he was steady. After graduation he immediately entered the corporation, carrying the elders’ expectations.
Inheritance was nearly certain, but his brother was still the eldest son. Nothing had been formally decided.
Now, that problem would resolve itself.
So he was the only one in the chaotic Gu household who wholeheartedly supported the marriage.
His brother had laughed casually, saying he was informing them, not asking permission—just worried the old men with weak hearts might end up hospitalized if he showed up after marriage holding a child.
During a probing visit, Gu Yuhui saw the woman who had turned his brother upside down and thrown the Gu family into chaos.
He had always suppressed his desires for ambition’s sake.
But feelings sometimes arrived without reason or logic.
He had neither the possibility nor the right to interfere.
Yet one drunken night at a private club, he encountered a woman somewhat resembling her.
For once, he allowed himself recklessness.
Then, on the eve of the wedding, his brother died in an accident.
The moment Gu Yuhui received the news, he called that woman and ended things without hesitation.
…And then he walked, step by step, toward the bride who was trying on her white wedding gown, completely unaware.
—
Gu Qingxu’s memory of his mother was blurry.
She was never home, always dressed flamboyantly, staying out until late.
When he grew older, he once asked why she didn’t work yet had money.
She smiled and patted his head, saying his father was generous—whether during dating or breaking up, he paid handsomely.
He never believed her.
Until one day, a solemn man in a black suit visited.
The man wore a small white daisy pinned to his chest.
At some point, the man suddenly raised his voice:
“Don’t laugh. When you smile, you don’t look like her at all!”
After he left, his mother kissed Gu Qingxu and laughed.
“From now on, good days are coming. You’ll live like a wealthy young master, and I’ll get a large settlement fee. Win-win.”
The day she sent him away, she left without looking back.
He didn’t cry.
At the mansion, servants bowed and called him “Young Master.”
He asked how many children his father had.
“Only you.”
He relaxed—missing the stiffness in the butler’s tone.
Later, at dinner, steak and creamy soup were served.
The maid explained it was because “Young Master hasn’t had an appetite lately.”
Young master?
Footsteps echoed from upstairs.
Another boy descended—around his age. Gray eyes. Quiet as a doll in a display case.
The butler greeted him the same way.
That boy sat opposite him and ate elegantly, eyelashes lowering when he looked down.
Even though Gu Qingxu stared openly, the boy never gave him a single glance.
Afterward, the butler explained:
“That was President Gu’s late elder brother’s child. Technically your cousin.”
In that instant, the shadow in Gu Qingxu’s heart lifted.
From that dinner onward, he officially lived in the Gu family.
Two children. The gray-eyed boy was the eldest young master.
He became the second.
Gu Qingxu had strong territorial instincts.
Gu Yuhui only had him as a son. Everything in the Gu family would eventually be his.
He never hid his control or dominance, gradually marking every inch of the Gu household as his own.
—
Song Yinxing was told someone was looking for him. When he looked up, he saw Gu Qingxu standing outside.
His expression was cold.
He had known Gu Qingxu would seek him sooner or later—just not this fast. It was only Monday.
Outside, they faced each other.
Gu Qingxu stood relaxed, one hand in his pocket, the other resting against the railing.
Though he had summoned him, he didn’t speak first. He simply examined Song Yinxing from head to toe.
Song Yinxing disliked the scrutiny.
“What do you want?”
Gu Qingxu had been waiting for that.
“What do I want? Why don’t you guess?”
Song Yinxing recalled something Nie Ying once said in a past life.
Gu Qingxu was taken back to the family halfway through his life. No one even knew who his birth mother was. Probably not presentable enough to marry into the Gu family, despite the vacant Mrs. Gu position.
Yet he put on quite the young master act.
“Song Yinxing.” Gu Qingxu finally spoke, magnanimously. “I looked into you. You got in as the city’s top scorer. I admit you have ability.”
“Since you worked so hard to study here, there’s no need for crooked thoughts. Otherwise, the loss may outweigh the gain.”
“After all, not just anyone can climb into the Gu family.”
Song Yinxing remained expressionless.
Words alone might not suffice.
So Gu Qingxu delivered the final line.
“I’ll give you five million. From now on, stay away from Gu Yang. Don’t see him again.”
