March, afternoon, café.
Sunlight spilled across the wooden table, casting a soft, warm glow.
Yu Wan stood behind the counter, washing coffee cups.
Under running water, her fingers looked pale and slender.
When she lowered her eyes, her lashes cast faint shadows on her cheeks.
A black apron tied her slender waist, and even the simplest white T-shirt and jeans gave her a cool, refined beauty.
At that moment, her phone on the side suddenly rang. The caller ID read: Mom.
Yu Wan paused, then slowly answered.
“Mom.”
“Xiao Wan, are you coming home this weekend?” her mother’s voice came through brightly. “Your Uncle Gu made your favorite braised fish! Oh, and your brother will be back too this week. You two haven’t seen each other in a long time. Come back and have a meal together!”
The “brother” her mother referred to was her stepbrother, Gu Chiyuan.
Five years ago, Yu Wan’s mother remarried, marrying Gu Chiyuan’s very wealthy father.
Although both were remarried, their relationship was excellent. Uncle Gu also treated Yu Wan as his own daughter.
After the marriage, Uncle Gu’s business grew rapidly, and Hongtai Group became world-renowned.
Her stepbrother, Gu Chiyuan, six years older than Yu Wan, was calm and mature. He had already taken full control of Hongtai Group and was always buried in work, rarely seen at home.
This time, it was a rare return.
“…No, I have plans this weekend,” Yu Wan said. “I’ll come back next weekend.”
“All right, you really have no taste for such good fish…” her mother muttered before hanging up.
Listening to the busy tone, Yu Wan’s gaze drifted.
One night before university started, she had a very long dream.
In that dream, she was the villainous second female lead in a campus sweet romance novel.
Her stepbrother, Gu Chiyuan, was the deeply devoted second male lead, hopelessly in love with the heroine, Su Nanzhi.
In the novel, Yu Wan was greedy, superficial, and sharp-tongued. In university, she even became an actress, joining productions through financial backing and barely attending classes.
On top of that, she fell in love with Gu Chiyuan.
Because she loved Gu Chiyuan, she came to hate Su Nanzhi.
So in the story, Yu Wan, relying on the Gu family’s power and money, constantly targeted Su Nanzhi, setting traps at every turn.
In the end, she not only made her mother suffer humiliation in the wealthy family but also caused conflict between father and son in the Gu family. Uncle Gu suffered a stroke and became bedridden.
She and her mother were kicked out by Gu Chiyuan.
Later, her biological father was exposed as a criminal and imprisoned, destroying her career completely.
Her mother died from depression, and she herself fell into poverty, becoming a woman drifting from one man’s arms to another. In the end, she was stabbed to death on the street by an obsessed fan driven by twisted love and hate.
After waking from the dream, Yu Wan sat at her bedside the entire night.
As dawn light crept in through the window, she made three decisions:
First, cut all ties with Gu Chiyuan in the Gu family.
Second, avoid the heroine Su Nanzhi at university.
Third, study hard and become independent. If she couldn’t even pass a political review, she shouldn’t even think about becoming a celebrity.
To avoid attracting Su Nanzhi’s attention, Yu Wan lived like a shadow at university.
She did not live in dorms and rarely went home.
She rented an apartment far from school and worked part-time even farther away.
In her second year, she even transferred from the Finance Department to Business Administration, putting even more distance between herself and the heroine.
To completely escape the plot, Yu Wan began preparing early for postgraduate studies in the south. She pushed her GPA to the limit and poured all her energy outside work into studying.
Now, she has already received an offer for postgraduate admission from a university in Shanghai. In September, she would leave the capital and move to Shanghai for her studies.
Su Nanzhi was already in the second semester of her senior year. The official storyline had not yet begun, with only half a year left.
As long as she endured six more months, she would be gone by the time the plot started.
No matter how intense the entanglements between Gu Chiyuan and the heroine became, it would never touch her again.
The wind chime at the door moved, and the glass door was pushed open.
Several girls walked in.
“Welcome—” Yu Wan had barely finished speaking when she saw one of them clearly and immediately crouched down in panic.
Why was Su Nanzhi here?!
The café was in the south of the city, while A University was in the north. Students rarely came here.
The counter blocked Yu Wan’s figure.
Excited voices of the girls drifted over intermittently.
“Nanzhi, you really got an offer from Hongtai? That’s amazing!”
“Exactly, that’s Hongtai Group! Once you’re converted after graduation, you’ll be a financial elite!”
Hongtai Group had recently risen rapidly as a leading investment bank.
In a declining global economy, Hongtai’s rise made it the top choice for finance students.
Yu Wan rummaged through the counter and finally found a mask.
After putting it on, she finally relaxed and stood up again.
By the window seat, Su Nanzhi sat among several girls in a simple white cotton dress, smiling shyly.
“It’s nothing, I just got lucky…”
After confirming her face was covered, Yu Wan picked up the order pad and walked over.
“What would you like to order?” Her voice sounded muffled through the mask.
“I’ll have an iced cocoa. What about you all?” Su Nanzhi did not notice the masked clerk at all. “Today’s on me!”
The girls cheered.
“By the way, if Nanzhi joins Hongtai, will you get to meet President Gu?” one girl asked excitedly.
“Oh my god! Working with such a handsome boss would be amazing!”
Under everyone’s envious gaze, Su Nanzhi’s smile deepened.
“The interviewers said President Gu might personally take interns.”
President Gu, Gu Chiyuan.
Yu Wan shivered and silently turned back to the counter to make coffee.
Three and a half years.
She had deliberately avoided any situation where she might be alone with Gu Chiyuan. Occasionally seeing him in financial news, she would immediately swipe away.
She was afraid she might develop even the slightest romantic feelings for him.
So far, it has worked remarkably well.
To Yu Wan, Gu Chiyuan was nothing more than a landmine beyond the identity of a stepbrother.
The kind that could explode at any moment.
Just then, Yu Wan suddenly heard an abrupt voice.
【System, are you sure it’s her?】
A young man’s voice, careless and playful.
Yu Wan froze, thinking she had hallucinated.
But then a second voice sounded.
This one was mechanical, like AI synthesis.
【Host, based on the original synopsis, “the poorest and most beautiful girl at A University” is the heroine. I scanned all female students at A University. Yu Wan has the highest combined score for poverty and beauty. She must be the heroine!】
The ice tongs in Yu Wan’s hand trembled, and a cube of ice fell into the cup with a crisp sound.
She suppressed her shock and turned toward the source of the voice.
In the corner of the café sat a young man.
He wore a brown trendy baseball jacket and a cap pulled low, revealing only a sharp jawline and a faintly curved smile.
A glass of iced Americano sat in front of him.
An hour ago, he had entered the café, ordered his drink, and sat silently in the corner ever since.
His right hand rested on the table, index finger tapping lazily, as if lost in thought.
Yet in Yu Wan’s ears, his inner voice was deafening.
【Are you sure she’s my destined partner?】
【Host, I am absolutely certain! You, Li Yi, are the male lead of this novel. She, Yu Wan, is the female lead. You are meant to be together!】
Yu Wan: …
What?