It was the middle of winter, and Gu Yingjie was only seven years old when his aunt brought him to the formidable gates of the Gu Household. She made him standalone outside, pressing a small, folded note into his freezing hand before she vanished.
The brutal winter wind whipped across Gu Yingjie's exposed face, the cold so intense it felt as though he was being cut by corn's leaves. He shivered in his sparse clothing, a fragile, solitary figure against the stone walls.
A moment later, an old man walked out the door and saw the boy. The sight of Gu Yingjie—so small and frail in the overwhelming cold—struck the old man deeply. The young child instantly reminded him of his own youngest child, a memory that softened his stern features.
The old man approached slowly. "Child," he asked, his voice low with concern, "who are you?"
Gu Yingjie looked at the old man, his small face streaked with sudden tears. "My relative said she took me to my father's place," he replied, his voice shaking. "She left me here."
Gu Jian's gaze was fixed on the boy's distress. "What's your name?"
"Gu Yingjie," the child replied.
Gu Jian's eyebrows lifted slightly at the matching surname. "Is your last name Gu?" Gu Yingjie nodded, and the old man gently took the folded piece of paper from the boy's frozen hand.
The note was short, sharp, and addressed Gu Tingfang.
Gu Jian folded the hateful note, his gaze sweeping over the angry script: "You bastard Gu Tingfang, here is your product. My sister has raised him for seven years; now it is your turn to raise him."
The patriarch ignored the insult, his expression softening as he looked down at the shivering boy. Gu Jian smiled, a profound sadness in his eyes. "You look just like my youngest child when my child was still alive."
Gu Yingjie sniffled, his tears still flowing. "Who are you?"
Gu Jian smiled warmly, kneeling slightly to wipe away the boy's tears. "Call me ye ye," he instructed gently. "My sweet grandson, you look just like your uncle when he was your age." He held the child's tiny, freezing hand, and together, Gu Jian and the newly accepted Gu Yingjie walked across the threshold and into the heart of the Gu Manor.
The moment Gu Yingjie crossed the threshold, his destiny as an outsider was sealed.
He was raised directly under the protective, possessive gaze of his grandfather, Gu Jian, who shielded him from the inevitable condemnation of the family. Gu Yingjie became the patriarch's favorite—an "apple in their eyes"—due entirely to his haunting resemblance to a deceased, beloved uncle. This undeserved, immediate favor was both a salvation and a curse. While Gu Jian's personal guards ensured Gu Yingjie wanted for nothing, this extravagant care instantly ignited a vicious jealousy in the legitimate children of the house.
His own father, unable to defy the powerful Gu Jian, could only acquiesce silently. But the siblings saw not a brother, but an enemy, an illegitimate usurper who dared to steal the affection and attention that was rightfully theirs. In the cold halls of the Gu Manor, Gu Yingjie found supreme protection, but he was utterly alone, constantly enveloped in a simmering hostility that would soon turn violent.
Despite being the object of his grandfather's devotion, Gu Yingjie was deeply unpopular within the Gu Household. His father, Gu Tingfang, who maintained two wives and a host of legitimate children, surprisingly displayed the most profound affection for his illegitimate son. It was this intense, public favor that became Gu Yingjie's curse: his father openly declared him the next heir to the leadership seat while Gu Yingjie was still a young boy.
This proclamation, coupled with the fact that he was the sole focus of his grandfather Gu Jian's love, made him a lightning rod for resentment. The jealousy of his siblings and the household staff was so pervasive that Gu Yingjie's living condition inside the Gu Manor became akin to a prison.
Nevertheless, he was meticulously prepared for his cruel destiny. Under the joint direction of Gu Jian and Gu Tingfu, he was given the most formidable training taught by the best teachers, he excelled in literacy and was rigorously instructed in the family's secret martial arts skills, destined to inherit a position that the entire household coveted.
One quiet evening, Gu Yingjie sat in the backyard, thoughtfully moving a piece across the chessboard opposite his grandfather. "Grandfather," he asked, breaking the silence, "my father mentioned something about choosing personal guards."
Gu Jian moved his own piece with a decisive click. "It is the tradition of the Gu Family. Your guards, Yingjie, are your shield. They are meant to protect you from enemy attacks and, if necessary, will die in your place."
Gu Yingjie frowned, looking away from the board. "Grandfather, I don't want to force them to die in my place."
Gu Jian chuckled, a dry sound devoid of sentiment. "Those guards, they have sold their lives to us. They live to listen to our commands." He gestured toward the aging, silent sentinel standing nearby. "Look at him. He has been with me since I was ten years old. We grew old together."
"How do I know who to choose?" Gu Yingjie persisted, seeking practical guidance.
Gu Jian's smile returned, carrying a hint of cold wisdom. "When you look into the eyes of this person, you will see the determination—the unyielding resolve—in their gaze. That is the kind of guard you would choose," he advised the little boy. "Always remember, one good guard is enough to last a lifetime."
Those were the happiest three years of Gu Yingjie's life inside the Gu Household, a brief, sheltered era that ended abruptly when his grandfather, Gu Jian, died of old age.
The grandfather's will immediately plunged Gu Yingjie into a perilous storm. Gu Jian had left his grandson everything he owned, including his most loyal subordinates and assets. Stripped of his sole protector and elevated to untouchable wealth, Gu Yingjie's siblings immediately intensified their cruelty, their jealousy now unbound. They openly and constantly hurled insults at him, their preferred epithet the cold, painful phrase: "bastard child."
Gu Yingjie became a child of contradictions: immense wealth and property, but a profound lack of friendship. This isolation continued until the day of the slave auction, when he saw a little boy among the condemned. The boy stood shackled at his hands and feet, yet his eyes were not those of a victim but were full of unyielding determination.
Remembering his grandfather's final advice—look for the determination—Gu Yingjie found his shield and his destiny. This singular moment, this gaze of mutual recognition, was the reason he decided to choose Zhu Mingyang as his personal guard.
The years that followed were spent in ceaseless motion. From morning to dawn, they trained together, mastering the martial arts required of the Gu Household. In that shared crucible of effort and exhaustion, they became aware of themselves—and of each other. Gu Yingjie disregarded the strict tenets of the Gu Family; he did not treat Zhu Mingyang as a mere guard or private slave, but as his equal. They were inseparable.
Innocently, agonizingly, they allowed their bound to grow, unaware that while they were strengthening their connection, hostile siblings and external enemies were already sitting, plotting their complete demise.
Gu Xiaowen and Gu Gouliang were cloistered in the eldest son's bedroom, the heavy door shut against the household. Gu Xiaowen turned to his brother, his eyes burning with resentment.
"Gouliang, we must act decisively against that bastard," he seethed. "I am the eldest son of the family! I should be the heir, but somehow that bastard child managed to ensnare the attention of both grandfather and father."
Gu Gouliang nodded, his expression dark with cold calculation. "We missed the first opportunity to eliminate him, but now the old man is gone, and the path is clear. We can try again to kill him." He drew a sharp breath. "If we fail to kill him, then our resolve must be absolute: we will drive him out of the Gu Residence and ensure he never returns."
"What exactly are you trying to do?" Gu Xiaowen demanded, eager for a concrete plan.
Gu Gouliang offered a thin, calculated smile. "I have made some preparations." He leaned forward conspiratorially. "Da ge, to take him down, we must first take out Zhu Mingyang." He paused to let the truth sink in. "That bastard treats Zhu Mingyang as a brother, not like a servant. His loyalty is absolute."
Gu Xiaowen's frown deepened in agreement. "Zhu Mingyang has proven his loyalty time and again," he conceded bitterly. "A person like him should not have a guard like that—especially not for that bastard child."
"Zhu Mingyang is indeed a talented and loyal guard," Gu Gouliang conceded, taking a slow, deliberate sip of tea. "Do you remember that time when we lied to the bastard, claiming the guard life in the Gu's house was inhumane?" He smiled, the memory satisfyingly cruel. "The bastard drove Zhu Mingyang away, yet the dog returned three days later."
Gu Xiaowen's face hardened. "I remember. Zhu Mingyang's actions that day told me everything: except for that bastard, he will not be loyal to anyone. Not even father."
"What you mean is," Gu Gouliang said, leaning in, his voice dangerously low, "that Gu Yingjie could order Zhu Mingyang to kill father, and Zhu Mingyang would do it without hesitation."
"Exactly," Gu Xiaowen confirmed, a knot of fear and fury tightening in his chest.
A sudden, sharp knock on the door severed the dangerous thread of their conversation.
"Who is it?" Gu Xiaowen demanded sharply.
"Master Gouliang," a guard's voice replied from the hall. "Everything is ready. We are just waiting for you."
Gu Gouliang pushed his chair back, walked to the door, and flung it open. His personal guard stood waiting. "Attack without mercy," Gu Gouliang commanded, his voice cold and final. "And don't let anyone see your face."