CHAPTER 25: Kneel

Somewhere in the world, someone was enduring the pain of losing their manhood.

Wen Heng knew—but he didn’t intend to imagine it.

He raised a hand and called the Wen family butler, asking him to bring people and check the surveillance footage. Soon, they found the one sneaking around in waiter’s clothes and trying to run—Chen Yijun.

As soon as security grabbed him, Chen Yijun panicked. “W-What are you doing?! Don’t grab me!!”

Chen Yijun had some looks, sure, but the moment things went south, he completely lost his composure. Soon, he was quietly taken to a room upstairs, where he came face-to-face with the eldest young master of the Wen family.

Wen Heng sat quietly on a leather sofa, raising his eyes to calmly examine this so-called “ex-boyfriend” of Gu Sheng’s, his presence pressing down like a solid weight.

“What was your purpose in drugging the drink?” His voice was cool, like cold peppermint.

Chen Yijun stammered, “I-I didn’t mean anything…” The next instruction hadn’t arrived yet. His backers were already in trouble. He hadn’t figured out what to do when Gu Sheng noticed something off with the wine, and now he was caught.

Wen Heng didn’t waste time arguing. He waved a hand and said lightly to the people below, “Take the wine glass and test the ingredients. Then process this man according to the law.”

Chen Yijun instantly panicked. “I—I was just following orders! They said nothing would happen to me—!”

As he spoke, he suddenly saw Gu Sheng entering from outside. Immediately, he turned to her and begged, “Gu Sheng, Gu Sheng, help me! I was just blinded by money! Didn’t you say I was handsome before?!”

Wen Heng: “?”

Gu Sheng: “? Don’t talk nonsense.”

Wen Heng’s gaze turned sharp and cold. “Take him away.”

But Gu Sheng suddenly remembered something and called out, “Hey, wait—”

Wen Heng’s brow furrowed deeply. “You want to plead for him?”

Gu Sheng: “Of course not.”

She walked over and fished out Chen Yijun’s phone. “Unlock it yourself.”

Five minutes later—

The account that had stirred up yesterday’s storm, @ChenYijun, posted a new update:

“I will take legal responsibility for my actions. I sincerely apologize to @GuSheng and @WenHeng. [Image attached]”

To prevent haters from claiming she hacked the account, Gu Sheng even took a front-facing selfie of Chen Yijun looking regretful and in pain and attached it to the post.

Once the Weibo post went out, Echo (Gu Sheng’s fandom) was thrilled. Her team quickly followed up, and the trending clarification was soon in place. The CP fans, who were already excited over the WenSheng joint appearance, were practically over the moon.

[Anyone who jumped on the bandwagon to curse my girl yesterday—come out and apologize!]

[I knew it! If Gu Jie could bag Wen God, how could she ever like that guy?]

[The other team’s fans really are disgusting. Maybe focus more on work and less on drama. Who knows—maybe in 800 years you can catch up to my CP’s popularity. awsl ❤️ Don’t let them affect you, jie! Go crush your career!!]

After everything was handled, Gu Sheng finally waved for them to take Chen Yijun away.

When she turned back, she caught a subtle trace of amusement in Wen Heng’s eyes.

“Used him pretty thoroughly,” he said, tone laced with a hint of praise.

Gu Sheng gave a short laugh. “Of course—though the mastermind behind him still needs to be found.”

It could only be a few suspects… a jealous supporting female lead, or a male one eyeing the family fortune?

Wen Heng paused for a couple seconds, then nodded. “Don’t worry.”

They had… a more convenient way to narrow it down now.

Gu Sheng glanced at him. She didn’t quite get why Wen Heng was so confident.

But when it came to this dog of a man getting things done, she could trust him.

“Shall we go—?”

Gu Sheng looked around. The scandal was cleared. Time to head home and read the script.

Wen Heng nodded. “Let’s go home.”

He walked over, instinctively reaching for her hand—then suddenly remembered something and dropped it again.

This rare punishment… best to let it last a little longer.

—

The next day, a luxury car quietly left the Wen family estate and headed toward the city’s top male health clinic.

The car was speeding.

If you listened closely, you could even hear the shrill screams coming from inside.

Wen Heng had received a message from the butler. Standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows of Huating, he dialed Wen Wan’s number.

It rang three times before someone picked up. A crisp, capable female voice came through: “Ah Heng?”

Wen Wan was a career-driven woman, and despite her little brother having no intention of inheriting the family business—and being handsome enough to bring honor to their ancestors—she was still fairly fond of him.

“Jie, thanks for working so hard.” Wen Heng’s greetings to family were never more than a sentence. He got straight to the point. “When you’re not busy, keep an eye on your husband.”

Wen Wan frowned slightly. “Li Muze? What’s he up to now?”

The two of them, husband and wife in name only, each minded their own business—she ran the Wen family’s external operations, while Li Muze worked internally, handling some of Wen Yuesong’s murkier dealings. Their relationship was cold, and she had never had time for children. All she knew was that Li Muze had attended a recent internal Wen family banquet. After that, she hadn’t heard much from him and had no idea what he was doing.

Wen Heng didn’t say anything specific. He simply said calmly, “I just wanted to give you a heads-up. So if something does happen and it goes to court, it won’t damage your reputation.”

Wen Wan paused, then vaguely picked up on something. “Alright. I’ll pay attention. If anything really happens, don’t worry about me.”

The Wen family carried a natural pride in their bones. Even if Li Muze was her husband, he was still an outsider.

“Got it.”

This level-11 pain relief only lasted fifteen seconds. Ten of those seconds had already been used toggling it on and off during the banquet hall incident, which left just five seconds.

For the past two days, Wen Heng had been carefully avoiding physical contact with Gu Sheng, just to delay triggering the “cutting off descendants” pain until the next wave hit.

Tch.

…

In a high-end apartment, Jin Yueyao looked at Li Muze, feeling stifled and anxious.

He had just come back from the hospital and couldn’t go home, so he was staying with her.

Jin Yueyao’s audition date was right around the corner. She had been hoping Li Muze could help her pull some strings with the investors. She knew the IP drama Tracing Back had Wen family capital behind it, but she didn’t know who exactly the investor was. Who would’ve thought Li Muze would end up like this?

—Lying on the bed, clutching his crotch in unbearable pain.

She couldn’t help but worry a little. Li Muze hadn’t been particularly impressive in that department to begin with, and now? What if there was permanent damage?

Then how were they supposed to have kids?!

Li Muze felt like he truly couldn’t take it anymore.

For several days straight, the pain in his balls wouldn’t go away. It felt like someone had slashed him with a knife—constant, intense agony!

But when he went to the hospital, the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong. They only hinted that it might be a psychological issue.

If this kept up, Li Muze was sure he’d never get it up again in this lifetime!

—Unacceptable. He hadn’t had a son yet!

Jin Yueyao was also a first-tier celebrity, usually swamped with work. Staying with him for two whole days was already going above and beyond. She couldn’t focus on her script, her mind was a mess, and she had no idea what had gone wrong with her sugar daddy.

But just when Li Muze felt like he was about to pass out—

The pain suddenly stopped!

He sat there in a daze for a long time before realizing that his little brother really was fine again.

Everything was like it had never happened. The excruciating pain felt like a bad hallucination.

Li Muze took a moment to process it, then suddenly grabbed Jin Yueyao and pulled her toward the bed.

He needed to test the equipment.

Jin Yueyao assumed he’d recovered and tried her best to play along. “Ugh, you’re so annoying, ahhh~”

One hour later.

Nothing had started.

Jin Yueyao awkwardly got out of bed. “Maybe… we should take a break?”

…

Meanwhile, at Huating Yue Residence.

They had just finished rehearsing a very important scene. Wen Heng stood frozen, staring at Gu Sheng’s face just inches away from his, not realizing her fingertip had brushed his side.

Ding—15-second countdown complete. Pain relief successful.

Wen Heng snapped back to reality.

In that moment, he had really believed the person before him was the character in the script. Gu Sheng’s eyes held too much life.

Gu Sheng pulled back from her acting stance and sank into the sofa with satisfaction.

—Acting was so much fun. She loved it.

Then, she also heard the system prompt:

“Congratulations, Host. Pain relief successful √ Random reward unlocked: [Fair Outcome].”

Gu Sheng raised an eyebrow slightly.

According to the original character’s arc in the novel, she was supposed to end up hated by the entire internet—mocked, cursed, and spat on. The path she was on now was one the original character had never taken. Even so, the system’s random reward reminded her how tough the road ahead would be.

—But Gu Sheng wasn’t afraid.

If you wanted to be a top-tier actress, there was no avoiding the bloodshed. The higher you stood, the stronger the wind. Especially for a newcomer trying to land a hit IP role like this—it was only natural to be met with doubt.

But just like the system’s reward—fairness—that was enough.

The rest, she would prove with strength.

She was already looking forward to the audition.

The CP system cheered, waving virtual flags: “Let’s goooo! My CP will definitely be the male and female leads!”

This time, Gu Sheng didn’t talk back—since they were the leads in the show.

“Thanks, I guess.”

–

Finally, audition day arrived.

The location was in the production company’s building. The casting director, producer, and screenwriter would all be there to assess the actors. They had also invited investors, but whether they attended depended on their own schedules.

Wen Heng, being the one who had proposed an audition-based selection, would also be present for the male lead’s auditions. Though no one really dared compete with a film emperor. What very few knew was that Wen Heng was also one of the major investors—he’d be participating in actor selection from that angle as well.

Gu Sheng knew. She knew Wen Heng was a key investor, but she never once asked him for help.

She believed in her own ability.

And Wen Heng never offered—because he didn’t need to. He could guarantee it.

Strength earns fairness.

That day, The Four Laws of Happiness also sent a crew to film a special behind-the-scenes segment. Coincidentally, four of the eight people from the four couples were taking part in the audition event, so episode four wouldn’t be recorded this week—something the production team had already discussed with all the respective agencies.

Variety show fans, who had been eagerly waiting, rushed to watch as soon as they saw a special was airing.

—“What’s the Happiness Squad up to today?”

The production team captured Yu Shanbei muttering his lines while hugging a script, Song Qingzhi trying to give off starlet vibes in big sunglasses, and finally Gu Sheng, stepping down from her nanny van with a calm, breezy air.

She and Wen Heng didn’t arrive together—to avoid suspicion, and to avoid unnecessary trouble.

The director, speaking on behalf of the audience, approached for an interview: “Teacher Gu, can you share with our YuzuTV viewers what secret mission the Happiness Squad is on today?”

Gu Sheng smiled in greeting, then answered openly, “I’m here for an audition.”

Up until now, Gu Sheng’s audition for Traceback was only a piece of insider news among industry competitors. This was the first time it became public, instantly setting off a wave of online discussion.

Douban’s Gossip Group 8 dug up a main thread from three days ago:

[Tea] Two CP ladies from a hot variety show are competing for the same female lead role, alongside last year’s breakout post-90s starlet.

1L: Might as well name names lol—GS and SQZ are the two CP ladies, the starlet is JYY. The script’s for the big IP Traceback.

3L: So Gu Sheng’s doing this just to act with her husband?

10L: Waiting for the results lmao

11L: To be blunt, waiting for the train wreck lol. Song Qingzhi is at least second-tier, her fans don’t even see Gu Sheng as competition.

Chang Yan accompanied Gu Sheng inside, where they bumped into Jin Yueyao face-to-face.

She looked in good spirits—success was her confidence. Wherever she went, she carried herself like a top-tier actress.

When Jin Yueyao saw Gu Sheng, she glanced behind her but didn’t see Wen Heng. A smile reached her eyes as she greeted Chang Yan, “Brother Chang, Wen senior isn’t here?”

They were all students from X Film Academy, formally trained. This “senior” was deliberately said for Gu Sheng to hear—a reminder that, as a “three-no” rookie (no agency, no background, no notable work), she’d better know her place.

Of course, Chang Yan understood perfectly. He responded coolly, “Brother Wen is in a meeting.”

Jin Yueyao nodded with a smile. Wen Heng was known in the industry for being strict and self-disciplined. It seemed he truly didn’t plan on using his lead role to help his wife out, like bringing her to meet Director Feng Yan and the production team.

This only made Jin Yueyao even less concerned about Gu Sheng. She didn’t even acknowledge her, smiling as she walked right past.

Gu Sheng had seen this kind of person countless times in the industry. She remained composed. In contrast, Chang Yan patted her shoulder and comforted her, “It’s alright, Sheng Sheng. Just do your best! Try out a few different roles—with your looks and skill, maybe you can land the second female lead.”

Gu Sheng smiled: “Sure.”

Chang Yan had no idea that their Wen-ge used her as a scene partner every day—he’d never even rehearsed with the supporting roles.

But Gu Sheng had come fully prepared. She had the script memorized backwards and forwards. No matter the role, no matter the scene, she was ready.

Before the auditions started, all the actors waited together in a large lounge.

Someone like Song Qingzhi, who was always scheming, had her manager take her to cozy up to the director, hoping for some kind of advantage.

Someone like Yu Shanbei, a bit of a simpleton, was pacing around anxiously. When he saw Gu Sheng, it was like spotting a long-lost relative—

“Sheng-jie! Jie! Good luck!” Yu Shanbei wailed, “We’re both total newbies. If we can just get a role, this trip won’t be a waste!”

Gu Sheng smiled kindly. “Thanks. Let’s both do our best.”

Soon, the auditions for the female actors began.

Jin Yueyao was the first to go in. Song Qingzhi was so nervous she didn’t even have time to mess with Gu Sheng. When Jin Yueyao came out all smiles, Song Qingzhi’s anxiety was practically written all over her face.

Jin Yueyao patted her on the shoulder, glanced meaningfully at Gu Sheng, and said with a smile, “It’s fine, just do your best. Your level decides your role.”

Gu Sheng heard the subtle jab and remained calm.

It was true—with the system ensuring fairness, your level puts you where you belong.