Gu Qichi had absolutely no interest in seeing Gu Yuning, nor did he understand why Gu Yuning was throwing a tantrum to see him.

But he thought for a moment, and gave a light chuckle, the mockery in his eyes unconcealed.

Gu Yuan’an was currently half-mad and imprisoned in a mental hospital. He had never cared about Gu Chengtian and Geng Tingxun, but he had once heard Bai Heng mention them while reporting to Bo Yu.

The two sons this couple had held in the palm of their hands were now ruined—one in a mental hospital, the other in jail. They couldn’t get the former out no matter how hard they tried to borrow money, and the latter was the culprit who caused their downfall and was stuck in that kind of place. Naturally, Gu Chengtian and Geng Tingxun couldn’t possibly waste any more thought on him.

With the family company bankrupt, they could only rely on begging for a living. They had even tried to go to the Bo Consortium building a few times to argue with Bo Yu, only to be straightforwardly tossed out by the security guards.

It was a very sorry state.

Gu Qichi narrowed his eyes against the light, a burning pain at the bottom of his eyes.

It had been so long since he had any connection with the Gu family that the sickening feeling, like maggots attached to bone, seemed almost forgotten. His fingers curled, and he raised a hand to shield his eyes, his palm forming an open circle, loosely grasping that ball of light.

He tossed his phone onto the bed. A’Ci, resting in her cat bed, seemed to sense something. She looked up at Gu Qichi, blinked a few times, jumped onto the bed, gave an obedient “meow,” and rested her head on Gu Qichi’s knee.

She was carefully comforting Gu Qichi.

Gu Qichi stroked her head, his expression unreadable, and suddenly spoke, “A’Ci, do you know, when I found you, it was the lowest point of my life.”

Not knowing if the silver-shaded cat understood, he continued speaking to himself, “I don’t know what kind of grudge Gu Yuning and I had. From the moment I returned to the Gu family, he always held immense hostility towards me, right up until I was 22…”

“I died in that fire, many, many times,” his voice turned a bit raspy here. “I had nothing back then, and I didn’t even know what you would do after I was gone. But with Sister Wen Xi around, you probably wouldn’t have become a stray cat again…”

A pink cat tongue stuck out. A’Ci, as if understanding what he was saying, licked his hand. The whole cat wriggled into Gu Qichi’s embrace, her tail curling around his forearm.

“Meow~” A’Ci called out to him, “Meow meow meow~”

Gu Qichi looked down at her and smiled lightly. “A’Ci, I’m 23 years old now.”

“Gu Yuning is also turning 23 soon…” He paused subtly, his gaze piercing far away in that instant, carrying a sense of blank confusion. “But this time, the one who will die will be him…”

A’Ci clung to him, just rubbing against him, making no further sound.

Bo Yu had flown to Country A for business these past two days, so he was the only one home recently.

Gu Qichi didn’t eat. He held A’Ci in the silently spreading darkness of the enclosed space, remaining quiet for a long time, before eventually burying himself in the quilt and falling asleep.

…

Gu Yuning used to be considered a second-tier young actor in the entertainment industry, one of the few with explosive traffic, numerous fans, and strong combat effectiveness. He was once known as the “rat poison” of domestic entertainment; whoever messed with him got unlucky.

When Gu Qichi was subjected to massive cyberbullying back then, it was inextricably linked to the guidance of Gu Yuning’s fans and anti-fans.

But in just this short year, the status and lives of the two had experienced an earth-shattering reversal, as if deliberately altered by someone.

However, everyone felt that the current Gu Qichi and Gu Yuning were finally in the forms they were originally meant to be.

The gears of fate had been secretly altered by someone, but they would always continue to turn until they returned to their original state.

Gu Yuning’s trending search topic was still hanging on the front page, bypassing the entertainment list entirely and firmly occupying the number one spot in the social news section.

His fan super topic and fan club had been directly banned by the state, and now with this kind of news exploding, it inevitably made people sigh.

Luo Qianqian was surfing Weibo and her attention was drawn to it immediately. But before she could start reading, her phone suddenly rang; she had received an instruction.

Luo Qianqian bit her lip, her brow furrowing in deep hesitation. After pondering for a long time, she finally decided to discuss it with Wen Xi first.

“Sister Wen Xi, the company wants us to contact the big fans to get involved, guide the public opinion, and re-expose the relevant information about Teacher Gu being slandered and humiliated by the Gu family before. They also want us to contact a few media outlets to hype up this incident with Gu Yuning even more, so it’ll be easier for the company to secure resources for Teacher Gu in the future…”

The more she spoke, the softer her voice became. As soon as she finished speaking, she held her breath, waiting for Wen Xi’s answer.

The company probably knew Wen Xi wouldn’t agree, which was why they wanted to bypass her and have Luo Qianqian contact the big fans directly.

Wen Xi didn’t make a sound. She silently looked at the trending search topic, which was extremely lively inside.

[I can’t figure it out]: Who is Gu Yuning? Is he that idiot who deliberately framed Gu Qichi before?

[A bit scared]: So, Gu Yuning really did so many heinous things. Gu Qichi having a brother like him is truly eight lifetimes of bad luck.

[Still by Gu Qichi’s side]: Please, don’t put gold on Gu Yuning’s face. He’s just a wild pheasant occupying a magpie’s nest, absolutely no comparison to our little phoenix [Soybean Smile]

[we will small]: He’s the idiot who deliberately harmed Gu Qichi before. The feng shui turns, the heavens have a good reincarnation cycle. A person like Gu Yuning deserves to die [Naughty] [Naughty]

[Watching flowers bloom and wither]: What’s the tea? Am I on a 2G network again [Crying] Who are Gu Yuning and Gu Qichi, and what happened to Gu Yuning [Crying] Can some kind soul educate me [Crying]

[Disturbing the flying willow catkins]: [Video Link] Gu Yuning committed the crimes of intentional injury, picking quarrels and provoking trouble, organizing prostitution… decided to execute the death penalty…

[Disturbing the flying willow catkins]: [Link to Gu Qichi Studio Statement]

Seeing that the studio’s post was about to be pushed to the top again, Wen Xi’s heart skipped a heavy beat.

She thought of the words Bo Yu had come to ask her before Gu Qichi’s birthday—

“Did you know he suffered from depression?”

“Gu Qichi even has severe post-traumatic stress disorder…”

Wen Xi was completely stunned at the time. She didn’t hear anything clearly, only remembering Bo Yu telling her to absolutely never bring up anything related to the Gu family or Gu Yuning in front of Gu Qichi again, because Gu Yuning was the most likely trigger for Gu Qichi’s symptoms.

Luo Qianqian was still waiting for her answer. Seeing her eyes looking somewhat empty and dazed, she couldn’t help but call out, “Sister Wen.”

Wen Xi abruptly snapped back to reality, her eyes a bit red. She tightly gripped the phone in her hand and said hoarsely, “Do not contact the big fans, and do not spread the injuries he suffered before again.”

“Qianqian, we cannot let Xiao Chi’s wounds be torn open again and again. He doesn’t need to endure this. He just needs to be a good Gu Qichi, just be a happy Gu Qichi.”

Luo Qianqian didn’t quite understand what Wen Xi meant, but the next second, Wen Xi took a deep breath and stood up, “Go contact the staff at Weibo. We need to lower this trending search today.”

Luo Qianqian hurriedly agreed.

…

Gu Qichi had another dream.

The person in the dream wasn’t tall. He wore a faded, washed-out T-shirt and ran forward with all his might.

All around was a swamp-like darkness, baring its fangs and claws, clamoring to devour.

Only in front of that person was a ball of blinding light.

Gu Qichi involuntarily ran with him, wanting to catch up to him, but couldn’t no matter what.

That darkness materialized, the suffocating pain and loneliness tangling up thread by thread, just like the time he was locked in that body.

Endless darkness, eternal silence unable to speak, the stiffness of being unable to move. In an instant, it felt as if he was about to be trapped again. The undercurrents beneath his feet surged, transforming into countless threads dragging him downward.

Gu Qichi struggled, wanting to dodge, but could only sink deeper and deeper.

The darkness was about to submerge him, the spreading mire blocking his nose and mouth, leaving only his eyes barely able to see. The white light before him grew weaker and weaker, and a dizzying bewilderment appeared before his eyes.

Was he going to be…

trapped again?

He thought aimlessly.

But clearly, everything had changed…

That faint white light suddenly brightened, blindingly dazzling and burning Gu Qichi’s eyes. A hand reached out and grabbed his.

The painful suffocation dissipated, replaced by an indescribable sense of freedom and relief.

“Gu Qichi, open your eyes,” that person said.

Gu Qichi’s eyelashes fluttered. Beneath that dazzling white light, he saw the person he had been chasing all along—

His features became clear inch by inch in his eyes, immature yet firm.

It was the nine-year-old Gu Qichi.

[Gu Qichi] stared into his eyes, a very shallow smile rippling on his lips. “Gu Qichi, you look really good.”

His hand held Gu Qichi’s hand, a very small lump, easily enveloped entirely within Gu Qichi’s palm. Gu Qichi stared at his face, a bit dazed.

[Gu Qichi] looked at him and sighed somewhat helplessly:

“You can’t keep running away, Gu Qichi. You clearly already guessed it.”

“So, wake up.”

“Wake up and confirm what you have always doubted.”

As this immature child’s voice vanished, Gu Qichi woke up with a start.

A’Ci was still lying beside him. The silver-shaded cat was nestled right on his left side, close enough to clearly hear his heartbeat.

The light outside the window was bright. The warm winter sun always gave people a fuzzy feeling, as if radiating vigorous vitality.

Gu Qichi checked the time; the hour hand had already ticked past nine o’clock.

He shook his dizzy head, pondering that bizarre dream. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he got up to get ready.

He indeed needed to go see Gu Yuning.

The day he went to see Gu Yuning happened to be the broadcast date of the TV version of I Will Always Accompany You to the End. Bo Yu had a 4 PM flight and planned to come back and watch it with him.

Both were quite looking forward to the broadcast of this episode.

Gu Qichi had booked a morning appointment. He had never been here before. The corridors here were very deep, and the light filtering in through the narrow windows was faint, as if trying to swallow everything to the end.

After walking a long distance, through a very thick glass window, he saw an exceptionally wretched figure.

The person’s previously dyed, colorful hair had been entirely shaved off into a buzz cut. His eyes were cloudy, and he stared fixedly at him through this thick glass window.

Gu Qichi looked over and found that his entire being emanated an ashen, gloomy aura. The skin above his brow bone was somewhat dirty, and a deep wound that nearly reached the bone almost extended to the outer corner of his lower eye, the dark red scab showing a bloody hue. Even his body exhibited a highly unnatural stiffness.

He slowly reached out a hand, like a doll that had been cut into pieces and pieced back together, tremblingly grasping the receiver in front of him.

“This is it. You have 30 minutes of visiting time. Say whatever you want to say. Next time you come will be a month from now.” The prison guard brought him in front of Gu Yuning. His tone was kind, yet he warned Gu Qichi with a hint of vigilance, “He’s been clamoring to see you for the past few months, and he’s always doing some self-harming behaviors. If you don’t want to stay with him too long, you can leave early. After all, his mental state is extremely unstable right now, and he might frighten you.”

Gu Qichi sat down and gave the prison guard a faint nod. “Thank you.”

Only when the figure walked far away did Gu Qichi withdraw his gaze, paying absolutely no mind to the hoarse, dry, almost mad clamor coming from the receiver on the other end.

He waited until Gu Yuning had talked to himself for a long time, his voice almost hoarse from shouting, before Gu Qichi slowly picked up the receiver.

He lifted his upper eyelids, his eyes cold and sharp, sizing up Gu Yuning as if looking at a piece of garbage. The expression on his face remained very faint throughout, showing neither disgust nor hatred. It was as if Gu Yuning was truly a piece of garbage that deserved contempt.

“I heard you wanted to see me?” Gu Qichi didn’t hold the receiver very close, just keeping it at a moderate distance.

Gu Yuning’s hunched upper body stiffly straightened. He laughed uncontrollably, the corners of his mouth stretching wide, possessing an eerie terror.

“Aren’t you just here to see me like this? Gu Qichi, you just want to see me defeated. That would make you happy, wouldn’t it?! Someone like you, destined to be happy from the very beginning, how could you possibly understand how hard it was for me? You deliberately wanted me dead, you malicious bitch.”

He spoke these words madly. Gu Qichi frowned imperceptibly and impatiently interrupted him, “If you just wanted me to come here and listen to you go crazy, I will leave immediately.”

On the other end of the receiver, Gu Yuning glared fiercely at him, his chest heaving rapidly twice. The cloudy sound of his breathing reached his ears through the static, and Gu Qichi moved the receiver a little further away.

Gu Yuning almost erupted. He abruptly stood up, the chair beneath him scraping across the floor with a sharp, ear-piercing screech. Before he could do anything, he was restrained by the prison guards rushing up from behind him, his arms pinned behind his back and pressed against the cold marble counter.

Perhaps these past few months of prison life had cultivated good habits in him; Gu Yuning didn’t dare to resist. But losing so much face in front of Gu Qichi made his face flush with anger, his whole body trembling.

That venomous gaze almost materialized into knives stabbing into Gu Qichi’s body.

The prison guard behind him forcefully pulled his hands back further and unceremoniously warned him, “Behave.”

Only then did Gu Yuning dare not move again.

Gu Qichi just looked down at him condescendingly and gave a very contemptuous smile.

He actually didn’t understand at all where this massive malice Gu Yuning held towards him came from.

Only after the prison guard repeatedly confirmed that he wouldn’t dare to provoke any more trouble did he let him go again.

Gu Yuning picked up the receiver again. This time, Gu Qichi noticed that his hands were covered in wounds of all sizes, new overlapping the old.

“You arranged the people in the prison, didn’t you? Gu Qichi, you’re not as kind as described at all. You just want me dead. I wasn’t supposed to be like this. I was supposed to embark on a path to success. I was supposed to be liked by everyone. I was also supposed to take over the Gu family…”

“Who gave you the confidence to think about these things?” Gu Qichi cast him a cold glance and lightly interrupted him. “Gu Yuning, you are engaging in wishful thinking.”

“Also, I didn’t do anything in the prison. You falling into this state is entirely your own doing.”

He didn’t rule out the possibility that Bo Yu had specifically found people to “take care” of him, but Gu Qichi didn’t think this was excessive. He was never a kind person to begin with. Gu Yuning deserved his punishment. He had hurt so many people, ruthlessly trampling on the lives and dignity of so many, ravaging them wantonly. What was so innocent about him?

He wasn’t surprised at all that Gu Yuning was sentenced to death.

Perhaps Gu Qichi’s tone was too cold, or perhaps Gu Qichi’s eyes were too mocking. Gu Yuning, as if stimulated by him, violently tightened his grip on the receiver and shook his head frantically.

His fingers dug fiercely into the edge of the wall, the blood from between his fingers scraping onto it—it was truly terrifying.

“Impossible, how could I fail? I clearly knew everything, I clearly controlled the whole situation.”

“I should have been the victor in this book.”

Gu Qichi’s heart gave a very subtle skip, then abruptly contracted.

He couldn’t help but think of the dream he had last night. His originally calm eyes instantly became sharp and piercing.

“Gu Yuning, what do you know? What book are you talking about?” For the first time, Gu Qichi held the receiver so close, his tone frighteningly cold. “Tell me, when you were nine years old, why did you know you weren’t Gu Chengtian’s biological child, and why were you able to find Zhou Yuan?”

This was the answer that Bo Yu’s subordinates couldn’t force out of him even at the brink of death. Gu Yuning was covered in bruises at the time, yet he gritted his teeth tightly and refused to reveal a single bit.

When his consciousness was chaotic, he only muddle-headedly spat out a few words, only mentioning words like “book,” “protagonist,” and “victory.” The subordinates couldn’t understand or figure it out, only thinking it was the nonsensical babbling of Gu Yuning being tortured too miserably and losing his mind.

But this didn’t mean Gu Qichi didn’t understand. An extremely absurd, unbelievable thought suddenly popped into his head.

His heart beat heavily, the vibrating thrumming almost piercing his eardrums and nerve endings. He only felt his brain rapidly flush with blood in an instant, his five fingers digging fiercely into his palms, leaving a few very deep marks.

On the other side of the glass window, Gu Yuning’s eyeballs were a dark red, the capillaries inside looking as if they were about to burst, spreading out in terrifying veins.

He laughed sinisterly, his voice hoarse and dry, like an evil spirit crawling out of hell:

“Gu Qichi, you didn’t expect this, did you? I am indeed the invader who plundered your beautiful life.”

“I am a transmigrator.”