“Alright, I’ll have Assistant Chen handle it shortly.” Hearing Gu Chen’s words, Li Tingqin felt somewhat relieved. It was a big step for Xiao Gu to proactively bring up his financial issues, especially compared to his previous reluctance to admit to picking wild vegetables to make ends meet.

As for the work issue, Li Tingqin frowned again…

Despite watching the clips of Gu Chen for a total of less than four minutes, including the 1 minute 58 seconds and 1 minute 57 seconds edits, his understanding of Gu Chen remained limited.

Because he never saw his face, after watching the clips, although he had a deeper curiosity and appreciation for Gu Chen as a person, his impression of Gu Chen was still that of an introverted and socially anxious person, who had talent and ability but no opportunity to use them.

Li Tingqin knew that Gu Chen had studied finance at a certain domestic university. After graduating, he had not worked before being married into the Gu family. The Gu family had not intended for him to take over the family business. They had even sent him away to a boarding school from an early age without ever showing concern about his situation.

Even worse, if the Gu family had cared about him even a little, when he failed to gain admission to a prestigious domestic university, they would have found a way to send him abroad for further studies, which is a common path for elite education among ordinary family members.

Out of respect for privacy, Gu Chen did not allow anyone to check his specific academic records during his university years. However, based solely on the two pages of notes that his secretary had given him that morning, it was clear that Gu Chen’s talent in his field far exceeded what was shown. Even without revealing his face in the clips, his intelligence shone through. However, in the financial world, a prestigious educational background was highly valued, and Gu Chen had been hindered.

It was common for younger generations of the Li and Gu families to take over a small company after graduation to gain experience. Giving Gu Chen the CFO position in a subsidiary today was something he deserved. However, Li Tingqin had forgotten that Xiao Gu had talent but had been buried for a long time due to the long-term neglect of the Gu and Qi families, which prevented him from participating in any family business affairs, turning him into a socially anxious person who did not want to show his face.

Things needed to proceed slowly after all…

Thinking this through, Li Tingqin suggested, “It’s okay if you don’t want to work for now. How about pursuing a master’s degree instead? Which school do you like? I can write you a recommendation letter.”

Gu Chen replied hesitantly, “…”

Essentially, why must humans always work?

Gu Chen said, “That’s not necessary, thank you Mr. Li. I prefer to study on my own.”

“Alright.”

For the first time, Li Tingqin realized how severe Gu Chen’s social anxiety had become. Was he unwilling even to attend school? It seemed those two pages of notes were the result of his self-study efforts. In that case, let him continue learning at his own pace. For now, even if he didn’t show his face, it was good that he was willing to participate in programs and interact with people. Li Tingqin didn’t lack the pocket money he gave Gu Chen.

Thinking about the request from the two professors, Gu Chen added, “By the way, Mr. Li, there are some talented individuals I could recommend to you…” He was already retired, but there were still many people who needed work, and it was time to make room for them.

Li Tingqin responded, “Just tell me, Gu. I’ll make arrangements.”

It was probably one of Gu’s friends who had asked him for a job, and it was a simple thing to organize for the Li family.

Gu Chen suggested, “Quite a few people, maybe the HR department can coordinate to see who meets the requirements.”

He remembered that the Li family had several biological laboratories, and their environmental work was always at the forefront. The two professors were industry leaders, so helping them connect with a job fair would be mutually beneficial.

Li Tingqin was puzzled: “?”

….

After ending the conversation with Li Tingqin, Gu Chen felt a sense of relief, as it was quite awkward for him to ask for money like this for the first time.

But instantly, he received a text message: “Income transfer to your account ending in xxxx: 5,000,000.00 yuan, balance 5,286,428.89 yuan.”

Gu Chen: “…?”

He had casually asked for money to change the subject and establish his image, but why had his pocket money suddenly multiplied several times over? Was this… a bit of inflation?

Gu Chen messaged Li Tingqin on WeChat: “Mr. Li, there’s really no need for this much.”

Normally in dramas, when someone offers a check saying “leave my son,” even a check for 5 million is considered generous. To give a bystander pocket money equivalent to a monthly standard of 5 million was way over the top.

Li Tingqin quickly replied: “Xiao Gu, buying a sports car for the kids at home easily costs several million. You are my partner, no need to be so polite.”

Gu Chen: “…”

Having finished his calls early in the morning, Gu Chen wrapped up his livestream work earlier than yesterday. To avoid any strange occurrences, he returned to the villa promptly and headed to his room to lie down.

However, as he reached the second-floor common area, Shen Yuan, who was playing games on the sofa, called out to him: “Mr. Gu, I need to use the bathroom. Could you finish this game for me?”

Gu Chen remembered Shen Yuan as Lin Yisu’s husband, a recently retired professional player. He casually asked, “Where’s Teacher Lin?”

Shen Yuan replied, “Right now, it’s her time for exercising.”

Gu Chen nodded in understanding at the actress’s body management comment, and took Shen Yuan’s phone, saying, “Go ahead.”

Looking at the game character on the phone, it seemed to be a jungle position, but the score was “0-5-3”? Wasn’t he supposed to be a professional player?

Gu Chen patiently sat down and spent ten minutes helping Shen Yuan finish the game. He waited a while, and finally, Shen Yuan returned.

Shen Yuan took back his phone and looked at the scoreboard showing “11-5-6,” astonished, “Huh? We actually won? How did this happen?”

He had substituted as jungle today and had a disastrous game. He had just gone on Weibo to say it wasn’t him playing, and then suddenly “0-5-3” turned into “11-5-6”?

Well, this definitely wasn’t his own performance. Mr. Gu was indeed a puzzle… he even knows how to play games? This is beyond belief.

Shen Yuan glanced at everyone’s IDs again. Okay, he had bumped into several colleagues in this match.

“Hmm,” Gu Chen said calmly, “your teammates were pretty good, they never gave up.”

Shen Yuan thought to himself that as a professional player, he couldn’t tell who was good or not? Mr. Gu, your attitude is so casual, aren’t you going to act a bit?

Gu Chen added, “Alright, Xiao Yuan, I’m heading in. I won’t keep you company anymore.”

Well, spending just ten minutes on half a game wouldn’t delay him from going back to his room to lie down.

Meanwhile, Du Ruiqing also received a reply from that Mr. Zhong: “I’ve asked friends from the Li family. None of them have heard of any Li family member marrying a man surnamed Gu. The second young master, who’s the main heir, just returned from studying abroad. Could Gu Chen be falsely claiming association with the Li family? I know your type well; you love crafting personas for variety shows.”

But Du Ruiqing wasn’t naive either. Every time he targeted Gu Chen proactively, he failed. Unfamiliar with the Li family matters, he didn’t want to expose Gu Chen’s identity, so he replied: “Exposing falsehoods like this needs someone of your influence in the industry to be believable. I’m just a small voice; if I speak up, people will just think I’m stirring trouble for no reason.”

Mr. Zhong replied: “Aren’t you just stirring trouble for no reason? Why did you invite him to participate in the variety show before? To mock him? How foolish. Now you want to drag me into this? Let’s see how things unfold.”

Du Ruiqing gritted his teeth, unsure whom he hated more in that moment. Even if he resented Mr. Zhong, he wasn’t someone Du Ruiqing dared to offend like he did with Gu Chen. He could only reply: “Then, Mr. Zhong, what situation would be appropriate? I see his momentum is growing stronger, gaining more fans and nearly trending.”

Mr. Zhong responded: “Are you jealous over just one trending topic? Don’t worry, the fiercer they hype, the harder they fall. There’s always a backlash to extreme popularity.”

….

Once today’s livestream ended, before the edited highlights were even released, fans of Lu Qingyue were as excited as if it were New Year’s Day. After all, Lu has already established himself as highly skilled in dance, and now with his newfound talent in composing, the quality of his music pieces also delights his fans. How could they not be amazed?

They eagerly rushed to watch the replay of the livestream, attempting to unravel today’s unresolved mysteries.

【Still not right… Did anyone see someone heading towards the greenhouse around the time Lu was practicing piano?】

【Headache. Why isn’t there a camera near the greenhouse?】

【Argh, who is lying?】

【Watching the footage from each camera’s perspective feels like the police scrutinizing surveillance to catch a suspect, second by second…】

Once the edited highlights were released, discussion threads analyzing Gu Chen’s followers resurfaced.

Of course, first and foremost was the confusion over the duration: 【??? The first episode was 1 minute 58 seconds, the second episode’s first day was 1 minute 57 seconds. I thought today would be the second day and it would be 1 minute 56 seconds…】

【It turns out I was wrong. This time it didn’t decrease by seconds but by minutes??? It could even directly become 57 seconds??? Who would watch that?】

【I thought it would be shorter, but I couldn’t have imagined it would be this short?】

【So, how much shorter will it be tomorrow? Will it go directly to 0 seconds? Oh no, minus 3 seconds.】

【Well, that’s normal. Today I just made two phone calls and read a bit, there wasn’t much to edit anyway.】

Although it was only a short 57 seconds, yesterday’s analyst still maintained a sharp level: 【I won’t mention Mr. Gu’s other mysterious points today, let’s talk about today’s unsolved mystery. I’ll tell you the answer directly: it’s Mr. Gu.】

【Firstly, Lu’s fans watching the replay there actually got the direction wrong. The method is simple; I saw Lu comparing handwriting there, and not a single person matched. I understood it directly! You know, Mr. Gu is someone who has mastered “The Enigma Tower Monument,” “The Stone Gate Ode,” and “The Song of the Pine Wind Pavilion!” He’s adept in regular script, clerical script, and cursive script; would he not even be able to casually write those different fonts of yours? Those who don’t understand should hurry up and review 1 minute and 58 seconds~】

【Wow! Awesome! Looking at 1 minute and 58 seconds, there is no wasted film at all now.】

【I never thought the first issue could be laid out here?】

【So, with Lu asking around here, Mr. Gu, isn’t he lying?】

【Wait a minute, I just realized, Mr. Gu is actually the only one who wasn’t asked by Lu if the song was his. Lu just asked to see the handwriting, then completely ignored Mr. Gu. Since he wasn’t asked, how could Mr. Gu answer whether it was his or not?】

【Wow, the logic is spot on. So, there’s actually no one lying here… I realize I initially overlooked Mr. Gu.】

【1 minute and 58 seconds, not a single wasted second +1, truly always new】

【But… Mr. Gu alone has so many talents, and he can compose music too. Isn’t that a bit unbelievable?】

【Mr. Gu must have received that kind of elite education from a wealthy family, so it’s not surprising he can play the piano too. But I do feel he’s becoming more and more mysterious…】

【Hahaha, Lu picking Mr. Gu for “extra classes” is really not a wrong choice, fixing both finance and music. Just not fixing love?】

【Hahaha, I’m a fan of Lu’s career, I never imagined he had a talent for composing too. Happy~】

【Where hasn’t love been patched up yet? Mr. Gu and President Li arranged a drone performance for him and Xiaoyu, making the CP fans ecstatic. Isn’t this also patching up their love? Xiaolu is truly a life winner with both love and career flourishing.】

Fans of Lu Qingyue were rejoicing, completely forgetting about the daily voting for the remedial classes organized by the program team. After all, once the initial selections were made, few paid attention to this aspect, so the pairings didn’t change much.

However, Mu Yunting debuted around the same time as Lu Qingyue and had a similar public image, which caused a bit of rivalry between their fans, as the saying goes, ‘rivals in love’.

In Mu Yunting’s fan group, fans were discussing: 【How about we all vote for Mr. Gu today and send Brother Ting to the remedial classes too?】

【I think it’s a good idea! Hahaha, let’s send Brother Ting to see if this remedial class really won’t hurt him!】

【Come on, let’s stir things up! Does the Lu family think they’re safe now?】

So the next day, when the program team announced changes in guest pairings, fans of Lu Qingyue and Yu Xingzhou were baffled. How did they suddenly lose their positions?

Mu Yunting’s fans exclaimed, 【You’ve both had your turn in this remedial class for a day, now it’s our Ting Brother’s turn!】

【Hurry up, Ting Ge! Study hard! Don’t let us down after we spent so many votes to send you to the remedial class!】