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Ignoring the dust and grass clinging to my body, he pulled me tightly into his arms.

Leaning close to my ear, his voice was weak but soft.

“Live well, brother will always love you.”

I was still in shock when he suddenly pushed me away, leaving me with a firm, resolute back as police sirens blared in the distance along the winding mountain road.

Before he came to find me, my brother had anonymously hired someone to report the case, directing all evidence against me.

Even though I had repeatedly made mistakes, he chose to trust me one more time.

When the prop police car started, I clearly saw the person in the back seat curl up, unable to stop coughing.

The driver hesitated, but he refused to call a stop.

In the final scene, I struggled to get up, filthy and running after the police car.

“Brother, don’t leave!

“I was wrong! It was my fault!

“I’ll never act so arrogantly again! Please come back!”

The police car disappeared from view, and I tripped over a rock, crashing to the ground with my lips split and bleeding.

The director shouted, “Cut.”

The scene was passed, but I couldn’t get up for a long time.

“Lu Guanlan, I was wrong.”

I won’t be so stubborn again.

I won’t deceive myself anymore.

You don’t realize how foolish you are until something like this happens to you.

Don’t die.

Let’s start over.

Tears mixed with blood stained my face as I cried, my image completely ruined.

The crew almost called the real police.

Until Lu Guanlan returned in the crew’s prop car, quickly walking over to me.

He snatched soft tissues from the assistant’s hand and wiped the blood from my lips and chin.

“How did you fall like this? Where else are you hurt?”

I shook my head, but Lu Guanlan still checked me over thoroughly, not reassured.

Apologizing to the director, he asked for leave and stuffed me into the car. “We’re going to the hospital.”

I grabbed his wrist.

“It’s really not necessary, it’s just a small cut, much lighter than your injuries.”

Lu Guanlan froze for a moment, then shut the car door with a cold expression.

He drove himself, and in the quiet car, it was just the two of us.

I sat in the passenger seat, head down, nervously clutching my seatbelt. “Lu Guanlan, I’ve figured out the system’s secret.”

The car jolted as the wheels hit a speed bump.

Lu Guanlan’s gaze darkened. “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to deceive you.”

I shook my head.

“If it were me, I might have taken on the 30-year punishment for you as well.”

Lu Guanlan was stunned, quickly glancing at me. “You mean this?”

“Yeah, what other secret does the system have?”

Lu Guanlan let out a light cough. “None.”

Hearing him cough again, I couldn’t hug him, so I gently patted his back.

Like soothing a little dog. “I’m actually thankful for the system. Without it, I wouldn’t have realized that my so-called love was actually hurting you.

“You were right. All these years, I haven’t been with anyone else, and I never stopped loving you.

“I’ve followed all your filming schedules, and whenever I had time, I’d rush over to see you.”

I turned my head and smiled at him.

“You must have been surprised at how quickly I found you the day the system appeared, right?

“Because I was already near you.”

Lu Guanlan’s hand on the steering wheel trembled slightly. He pulled over to the emergency lane and turned on the hazard lights.

“What… exactly are you trying to say?”

“Guanlan, give me another chance.

“Let’s not let go again.”

Fireworks suddenly exploded in my mind.

【Mission accomplished. Congratulations, Host!】

【Please wear the Honorary Badge: ‘As expected of you,’ ‘You’re quite the sly one,’ ‘666.’】

【All tasks have been completed according to the wish-maker’s thoughts, 100% restored. Remember to give a five-star rating~】

【Have a great life.】

“…”

“…”

The system’s voice left my brain buzzing.

Lu Guanlan’s smile froze, his face breaking into a cold sweat.

“Wish-maker? Their thoughts?

“So all those shameless tasks were because of your desires?”

The hand I had on his back turned into a pinch.

“Lu Guanlan, you’re quite ruthless to yourself. If I hadn’t softened, would you really have just died?”

“Brother, let me explain…”

The system suddenly chimed back in. 【The punishment phase was faked under the Host’s coercion and was never actually executed. The system is quite humane. Please give a fair rating!】

【Also, remember, your partner is an Emperor of Actors~】

“……”

Lu Guanlan’s face turned pale.

He lowered his head in defeat. “I’m sorry.

“I really had no choice. You were so stubborn.

“I’ve already waited ten years. If I had to wait my whole life in vain, I’d go crazy.”

I lowered my eyes and looked at him, staying silent.

Lu Guanlan sighed, giving a self-deprecating smile.

“Maybe I really am crazy. A foolish dream, thinking it would come true.”

He opened the car’s storage compartment and took out an old, weathered box.

Inside was a fully diamond-encrusted men’s watch.

“I bought this watch as promised, but for ten years, I never got to give it to you.

“I’ve taken great care of it, and it still keeps time perfectly.”

Lu Guanlan rubbed the watch’s face and looked up at me.

“Tomorrow is your birthday. Brother, please, don’t throw it away this time, okay?”

His deep-set eyes and long lashes always made him look like a pitiful green tea puppy when he was teary-eyed after making a mistake.

And I can’t resist that look.

I tried to keep a straight face, but the corners of my mouth couldn’t help but curl upward.

“Try it on and see if it fits.”

Lu Guanlan’s eyes lit up. Afraid I’d change my mind, he quickly fastened the buckle with a click.

“It’s waterproof, so don’t take it off.”

The diamond’s light reflected brightly in the sunlight, dazzling like a cloud.

As if bewitched, I grabbed Lu Guanlan’s collar and tilted my head to kiss him.

“Knock knock knock!”

The hood was tapped, and a traffic officer leaned down to look inside.

“Why are you stopped on the emergency lane?

“Car trouble? Need a tow?”

“……”

“No, no, we’re leaving, right away.”

Driving far ahead, Lu Guanlan and I glanced at each other in the rearview mirror and burst into laughter.

I forced my face to remain serious.

“System, what’s the next task?”

Lu Guanlan chuckled softly.

“Find a quiet place and continue.”

(End of the main story)