Chapter 6

Gu Yunshuang had become increasingly smeared with scandal, turning into a widely known figure in every household—a starlet notorious for the most controversies yet lacking any solid work to support herself.

People often say that any kind of fame is still fame, and indeed, Gu Yunshuang’s notoriety made him a top-tier celebrity in the entertainment industry for a time.

But when the negative exposure goes too far, it leads to utter ruin.

At this point, Gu Yunshuang had reached his limit of infamy, just one step away from complete obscurity.

If he wanted to avoid total downfall, it was time to start a public rehabilitation.

But Sister Hua waited and waited, yet the company took no action.

Until netizens uncovered Gu Yunshuang’s remarkably unusual attitude toward the recently rising and highly respected Taoist master, Xue Tinghe, causing him to be blasted on trending topics again.

Soon, New Wave Entertainment launched a supernatural reality show titled “Adventures with Childhood Sweethearts,” ostensibly to rehabilitate Gu Yunshuang’s image.

Sister Hua’s heart sank completely.

Who had ever heard of a “rehabilitation” that was publicly announced to the entire world before it even began?

This was clearly a sign that New Wave Entertainment wanted Gu Yunshuang to sink even deeper, deliberately stirring resentment against him!

Sister Hua even suspected that, knowing Gu Yunshuang’s contract was nearing expiration, New Wave Entertainment intended to squeeze out every last ounce of profit from him to promote Xue Tinghe.

“New Wave shamelessly claims they’re rehabilitating Yunshuang by hiring a model who supposedly resembles Xue Tinghe to play Yunshuang’s childhood sweetheart. But with that model’s acting skills, it’s unbearable to watch. They want to clear Yunshuang’s name? At best, they’re just making things worse!”

Sister Hua grew angrier and angrier, slamming the coffee table loudly as if she wanted to smash someone’s head.

Qi Yue, who knew more than Sister Hua, confirmed New Wave Entertainment’s plan—but the focus wasn’t on Xue Tinghe. Instead, they were promoting another newcomer from New Wave: Jiang Mingshuang.

Jiang Mingshuang’s background was complicated. Not only was he Xue Tinghe’s childhood playmate, but he was also the sole heir of Jiang Honghui, the largest shareholder of New Wave Entertainment—the scion of the Jiang family.

In the storylines Qi Yue had seen, Jiang Mingshuang concealed his noble family background to enter the entertainment industry, crafting an image of a hard-working, positive, and pure-hearted “happy little sunshine,” a refreshing contrast to the overexposed rich second- and third-generation celebrities dominating the scene. This persona won many fans. On the show, his cold and taciturn nature was contrasted with Gu Yunshuang, who was portrayed as a depraved villain relying on wealthy backers.

Moreover, New Wave had inserted a fake “childhood sweetheart” into the mix—a detestable troublemaker who stirred up scandal under the guise of doing what was best for Gu Yunshuang. This character was a deceitful gay man who engaged in a fraudulent marriage, and New Wave was waiting for this to be exposed, aiming to cement Gu Yunshuang’s image as the secondary male antagonist.

But New Wave underestimated Gu Yunshuang.

Gu Yunshuang was desperate for money—so much so that he agreed to a harsh contract with New Wave, allowing them to manipulate him without complaint. He swallowed every grievance silently. But his childhood sweetheart was a boundary he would never allow to be crossed.

New Wave’s approach not only smeared Gu Yunshuang’s reputation but also defamed his childhood sweetheart. This was absolutely intolerable to him.

Thus, just a few days after the variety show began filming—and before the fake childhood sweetheart’s true nature was exposed—Gu Yunshuang tore up his contract with New Wave Entertainment, openly clashing with them and initiating a lawsuit. He even released recorded phone conversations proving that the fake sweetheart was planted by New Wave.

New Wave immediately played the victim card and, afraid of further exposure, stopped allowing the fake sweetheart to show up. They turned the tables, accusing Gu Yunshuang of ingratitude and betrayal, claiming he had already found a new agency and was stabbing his former one in the back to curry favor.

At this point, Jiang Mingshuang’s identity as the Jiang family heir was revealed. New Wave heavily promoted his image as a lovelorn, independent rich second-generation star who defied his family’s arranged marriage and pursued his dreams in the entertainment world solely on his own merit.

On the show, he endured countless humiliations at the hands of Gu Yunshuang but bore it all silently, gaining immense sympathy and a rapidly growing fanbase. In contrast, Gu Yunshuang was vilified even more harshly.

The lawsuit with New Wave also went poorly. Despite Gu Yunshuang and Sister Hua gathering abundant evidence, the Jiang family’s backing made the legal battle unexpectedly difficult. The lawyer Sister Hua hired was intimidated and forced to withdraw.

They thought defeat was inevitable—until a highly reputable veteran lawyer suddenly stepped in to assist Gu Yunshuang, helping him break free from New Wave Entertainment and secure substantial compensation. New Wave was even forced to issue a public apology online.

Qi Yue knew the veteran lawyer was an old acquaintance of Elder Qi, who had once saved his life. The lawyer had attended Elder Qi’s funeral and had met Gu Yunshuang, who had always stood by him.

Recognizing Gu Yunshuang, the lawyer intervened out of respect for Elder Qi and Qi Yue.

Afterward, Gu Yunshuang’s fortunes began to turn. He and Sister Hua signed with a new entertainment company that genuinely cultivated him and worked to restore his image. Before he was forced into any scandalous publicity, a film he had proactively signed on to shoot was finally released. It became a sensation domestically and won awards abroad.

Gu Yunshuang even received a prestigious Best Newcomer award overseas.

People finally realized that his acting was not as poor as they had assumed; on the contrary, it was strikingly brilliant.

From then on, Gu Yunshuang was no longer engulfed in universal online hatred, and his career began to flourish.

What troubled him, however, was being constantly dragged into the messy affairs involving Xue Tinghe and Jiang Mingshuang.

Just as things were looking up, a catastrophic breach tore open the seal of the Ghost Gate.

Countless malevolent spirits flooded into the human world, wreaking havoc. The existence of ghosts and monsters was no longer a secret, and many people fell victim to these creatures daily. With survival itself under threat, who still cared about the entertainment industry?

The Taoist masters of the Taoist community emerged as new rising stars, with Xue Tinghe packaged as the brightest among them.

When Xue Tinghe barely survived and successfully restored the seal, peace returned to the human realm. But by then, the existence of the Ghost Gate’s seal was public knowledge, and more and more people demanded justice.

Those who had lost family and friends in the disaster, those maimed and disabled for life, those left with nothing—all harboring bitter resentment—vehemently demanded the culprit who broke the seal be found.

Xue Tinghe sought to protect that person, so someone thoughtfully pushed forward Gu Yunshuang—the man Xue Tinghe loathed—to take the fall.

Only then did the public learn that Gu Yunshuang really had a childhood sweetheart—a genius Taoist master named Qi Yue, who had sealed the Ghost Gate.

Qi Yue’s seal was not something anyone could break easily—unless there was a mole among humans who knew how.

Many began to speculate and doubt: if their relationship was so close, how could Qi Yue not have told Gu Yunshuang about the seal? How could Gu Yunshuang not have tried to break it to search for whatever remnants of Qi Yue’s soul might remain, or even to resurrect him?

Therefore, only Gu Yunshuang could have known how to break the seal, and only he had motive to do so.

Ironically, Qi Yue’s heroic deed of sealing the Ghost Gate only became known because Gu Yunshuang was made to take the blame.

At first, to avoid panic, the public was kept in the dark about the occult and the Ghost Gate, so Qi Yue’s achievements remained unpublicized.

Later, as the invasion of monsters became known and Xue Tinghe was hailed as the most promising savior, no one dared mention anything related to the Qi family—until Gu Yunshuang was needed as a scapegoat.

That was when the truth about Qi Yue was allowed to be revealed.

Initially, no one believed an ordinary person like Gu Yunshuang could have broken the seal. But as the Taoist Association uncovered mounting evidence against him and witnesses came forward, Gu Yunshuang found himself unable to defend himself.

Countless voices called for this “scourge” to be brought to justice, to appease the countless souls wrongfully devoured by the monsters.

In the end, Gu Yunshuang was utterly disgraced. Clutching a childhood photo of them, he leapt despairingly from a tall building.

Qi Yue knew the final straw that broke Gu Yunshuang was not the defamation or taking the blame, but the devastating news of his own death.

At that time, Gu Yunshuang’s family and Sister Hua had perished in the calamity, leaving him alone.

Finding Qi Yue had been his only reason to live—but the Taoist Association informed him that his childhood sweetheart had long since died, sacrificing himself to seal the Ghost Gate, with his soul scattered and no chance of reincarnation. How could Gu Yunshuang not be crushed?

Before sacrificing himself to seal the Ghost Gate, Qi Yue repeatedly urged the Taoist Association’s president and elders to care for Gu Yunshuang and his family, as Gu Yunshuang was his only remaining kin.

He hoped that the family of a martyr would receive protection and care, especially Gu Yunshuang, whom he worried about most. They must never let Gu Yunshuang learn the truth; otherwise, even if his soul was scattered, he would become a vengeful spirit.

During the monster invasion, the Gu family, as relatives of a martyr, should have been among the first to evacuate. But Xue Tinghe, to ensure the Jiang family could leave first, had the Taoist Association give the Gu family’s spot to the Jiang family.

The Taoist Association agreed to please Xue Tinghe.

The Jiang family was spoiled and reluctant to leave, dragging their feet while packing luxury items. By the time the Taoist Association returned to pick up the Gu family, it was too late—monsters had already arrived, slaughtering them all.

That was how they “looked after” him!

Moreover, the substantial compensation promised by the Taoist Association was only partially delivered at first, with no follow-up.

The money was left carelessly on Gu Yunshuang’s path as if he were to pick it up by chance—a gesture lacking any sincerity.

Gu Yunshuang and his parents promptly handed the money to the police station, where it still lay unclaimed, adding to their frustration.

Had that compensation reached Gu Yunshuang and his parents successfully, he would never have been forced to sign such a harsh contract with New Wave Entertainment or been so easily manipulated by them.

Qi Yue’s eyes lowered, hiding the dense darkness swirling within. He struggled to suppress the urge to storm the Taoist Association and wreak havoc. Calmly, he promised, “Don’t worry, Sister Hua. As long as I’m here, I won’t let them bully Yunshuang.”

Sister Hua was not yet fully convinced; to be honest, she wasn’t very reassured. But Qi Yue was the genuine childhood sweetheart, and his affection and care for Gu Yunshuang were genuine. That was far better than letting New Wave force in a scheming impostor.

Yet Gu Yunshuang was less enthusiastic.

“Brother, I know you’ve never liked the spotlight since we were kids. There’s no need for you to trouble yourself on my behalf. I’ve already contacted Fatty, and he’s agreed to help me participate in the show.”

Fatty was their classmate from kindergarten through middle school. Back then, seeing how handsome and aloof Gu Yunshuang and Qi Yue were, he arrogantly wanted them as his underlings—until Qi Yue taught him a lesson. Since then, Fatty became their loyal sidekick.

But Qi Yue knew some people wouldn’t let Fatty pass smoothly. In the end, under New Wave’s coercion, Gu Yunshuang had no choice but to accept their shoddy fake.

“I’m back now—what does Fatty have to do with me? I’ve already decided I’m not leaving anymore; I’ll stay by your side as your assistant. You want me to avoid the camera? Impossible. What, you still don’t like me?”

Gu Yunshuang’s eyes curved into joyful crescents.

“I don’t mind. As long as you don’t mind me.”

Qi Yue smiled tenderly.

“You’re so good, I wouldn’t mind anyone but you.”

They exchanged a warm, silent look, their faces glowing with happiness.

Sister Hua felt the air grow thicker than honey, her stomach swelling with warmth.