Sichuan City,
in front of Hansan KTV.
Gu Yan looked up at the magnificent KTV club towering before him.
A scene from the original novel flashed in his mind.
It was the plot where the author first introduced Su Wan'er's younger brother, Su Tian.
The story went like this: Yan Ling'er and his friends had arranged to sing at Hansan KTV after school.
But when they arrived, they discovered that the friend who had invited them—her sister—was being forced to drink by Su Tian.
Furious, Yan Ling'er and his group immediately clashed with Su Tian.
The fight only ended when the police arrived.
Although Su Wan'er knew her brother's nature, she didn't want him to suffer any consequences. So, she went to the police station and bailed him out.
A few days later, Su Tian was found dead at home—his face brutally peeled off.
The memory faded.
Gu Yan took a deep breath.He didn't knewn it before, but after recalling the later plot, he finally understood how Yan Ling'er's tragic ending came about.
Because of Su Tian's death, Su Wan'er had been on the verge of collapse.
At that time, the protagonist of the original novel, Lin Xiao, happened to appear and stayed by Su Wan'er's side.
After learning about her ordeal, Lin Xiao was furious. He vowed to find the murderer and avenge Su Wan'er.
Su Tian's death was most likely caused by Yan Qingqiu, though Gu Yan had no idea what method she had used.
Later, Yan Ling'er met his end because Su Wan'er placed the blame for her brother's death on him.To avenge his friend, Lin Xiao chose to kill Yan Ling'er.
No wonder the author of the original novel had written a special arc about Yan Ling'er and Su Tian.
It was meant to push Yan Qingqiu's transformation into darkness even further.
But since Gu Yan was here now, he couldn't allow this tragedy to happen.
Fortunately, he already had a way to keep things under his control.
With that thought, he glanced at Lao Gao beside him and said, "Let's go, Lao Gao."
"Okay, Young Master."
Lao Gao then waved to the people behind him.
The next second—
Dozens of men in black stepped out of luxury cars and followed Gu Yan into Hansan KTV.
Inside a private room.
"As expected of you, Brother Tian. Even the daughter of Hansan's boss has to come sing with you!"
"Haha, it's all thanks to you, Brother Tian."
Several men and women flattered the young man sitting in the main seat.
Xiaowei stood aside, looking at the rebellious youth on the sofa with a bitter smile.
The young man was thin, his face already hollowed out by alcohol and indulgence.
In his arms, he held a girl who looked like an older version of Xiaowei, her face tense and full of resistance.
The girl frowned at his embrace. The unpleasant smell of Chinese medicine on him made her nearly vomit.
She turned pleadingly toward the bar owner:
"Dad…"
Seeing his daughter's desperate eyes, the boss felt helpless. He didn't dare offend Su Tian because of his background.
He could only force an awkward smile.
"Weiwei, be obedient. Just let Brother Tian hold you for a while. It'll be over soon."
He prayed nothing worse would happen.
Hearing that, Xiaowei's expression turned ugly. She gritted her teeth and tried to pull free:
"Let me go! I want to leave!"
She hadn't expected her father would actually hand her over to a guest.
So what if his identity was powerful? She couldn't endure this!
"Hm?"
Su Tian frowned at the girl's resistance and glared at the boss.
"Boss, is this the service attitude of your girls?"
At his words, Su Tian's friends joined in, hugging the women in their arms and scolding loudly:
"Xiaowan! What's with that attitude? Hurry and apologize to Brother Tian!"
"Do you know who Brother Tian is? If you offend him, your Hansan will never rise in Sichuan City!"
"That's right! We came here to give you face today, don't waste the opportunity!"
The boss was furious inside, but he could only grit his teeth and bow.
"I'm sorry! So sorry! She doesn't know how to serve properly. How about I bring another girl instead?"
Su Tian grinned. "No need. She's fine."
The boss's face turned deathly pale as he looked apologetically at his daughter.
Then, one of Su Tian's female companions sneered at Xiaowei:
"Xiaowan, why are you so stupid? Serve this gentleman properly and you'll have everything you want!"
"Do you know who Brother Tian is? He's the brother-in-law of the eldest son of the Gu family!"
At those words, the boss's face turned ashen. His eyes went dull, filled with despair as he watched his daughter in Su Tian's arms.
If Su Tian was truly connected to the Gu family, then opposing him would doom their entire family.
Xiaowan froze.
The brother-in-law of the eldest son of the Gu family?
In the whole country, who else could that be but Young Master Gu Yan himself?
She had never seen Gu Yan, but she had heard of his status in the Imperial City.
Su Tian smirked:
"Did you hear me? I am Gu Yan's brother-in-law. If you make me happy today, then I can give you whatever you want."
Su Tian enjoyed the flattery from those around him. After all, he was nothing more than an idle wastrel in society.
He had seen Gu Yan once when he went to the Imperial City with his family to attend an event. There, he caught sight of Gu Yan, and his sister even took a photo with Gu Yan's father.
Later, when Su Tian got into a conflict with someone, he claimed to be Gu Yan's brother-in-law. To prove it, he showed them the photo of his sister with Gu Yan's father, in which they looked quite close. That incident saved him, and from then on, he used this claim for his own benefit.
Whenever he was at a disadvantage, he would declare that he was Gu Yan's brother-in-law. Some people believed him, some did not—but no one was willing to take the risk of offending him.
Thus, he often used Gu Yan's name to commit shady deeds. Of course, he never imagined that Gu Yan would ever learn about this. After all, Gu Yan was thousands of kilometers away in the Imperial City, and Su Tian never openly bragged about it in public.
Moreover, whenever he was short on money, he would exploit Gu Yan's name to build connections. The other party, eager to please, would sometimes give him hundreds of thousands, or even millions.
It was more than enough for him to live carefreely for days.
Hearing this, Xiaowei's face went deathly pale. She stopped struggling.
After all, who in the country dared provoke the Gu family?
Seeing her compliance, the others began cheering again:
"Brother Tian is mighty!"
"Brother Tian is domineering!"
"Even if Young Master Gu came himself, he'd have to call Brother Tian respectfully!"
"Yeah, I heard the Gu family's Young Master is just a lapdog of Brother Tian and his sister!"
Su Tian beamed at their words, waving his hand with mock modesty.
"Don't say that. Otherwise, how will Young Master Gu keep his dignity?"
"Let's do this—"
He raised his wine glass. His friends immediately followed suit.
"I'm very happy today! Tonight's expenses are on me!"
"Brother Tian is mighty!"
"Brother Tian is domineering!"
"Brother Tian, you're the best!"
A bunch of friends shouted flatteringly.
Before Su Tian and his group could react, they were all forcibly pinned to the ground by the men in black.One of them turned off the sound system, and the entire room instantly fell into a suffocating silence.
Su Tian and his friends were forced to kneel, surrounded by a tight circle of black-clad bodyguards.Su Tian was in complete panic. He didn't expect Gu Yan's name to be useless this time.
What's going on? Why is this happening? In the past, whenever I ran into trouble, all I had to do was mention Gu Yan's name, and everything would be resolved…
"Master, it has been handled."Lao Gao bowed respectfully toward the door.
"Mm."
A calm voice responded from outside, followed by steady footsteps.
Su Tian froze. That voice… it sounded familiar. He looked up—and his eyes widened.
The man walking in was someone he couldn't mistake even in death.
"G-Gu… Gu Yan!!!"
His expression instantly turned hideous. He felt as if he had been caught red-handed and knew he was in serious trouble.
Gu Yan entered with a calm expression. He casually glanced at the people pressed to the floor, then fixed his gaze on Su Tian and walked forward.
And then, before anyone could react—
Bang!!
"Pfft!!!"
Gu Yan kicked Su Tian squarely in the face with his leather boots.
The entire room erupted in gasps.
Su Tian howled in pain, staring at Gu Yan in disbelief.His friends, however, were even more shocked.
Why? Why would he dare to hit Brother Tian?! Isn't he afraid Gu Yan will find out?!
But the moment Gu Yan heard those words, his eyes flashed with a chilling light. The coldness alone made Su Tian's heart sink.
His tone was indifferent, yet terrifying:"Will you pay… or go to jail?"
Su Tian stammered in panic, "W-what do you mean?"
Gu Yan's voice remained calm:"What I mean is—your good days are over, Su Tian."
He gestured with his hand, and a subordinate immediately brought over a folder.
Thud.
Gu Yan dropped it in front of Su Tian."This document records the money you extorted using my name. A total of 23.48 million.
"If you can't pay it back, you'll be charged with defamation and fraud. That alone will be enough to send you to prison for life.
"You've been doing whatever you wanted using my name. Every crime you committed during this time—each one is enough to bury you in prison forever.
"So—pay up, or go to jail."
Su Tian was stunned. His mind went blank.
"I… I don't have money…" he whispered weakly.
"Then you go to jail."
Gu Yan nodded lightly and stood up to leave.
"Wait! Wait! Master Gu! Master Gu!"Su Tian scrambled in fear. "My sister—my sister has money! I'll have her pay it back!"
Gu Yan smirked inwardly, but his face remained calm."Fine. But first—you'll repeat everything you've done in my name. Right now."
The moment Su Tian heard this, his heart nearly stopped. He wanted to cry but had no tears. Still, he had no choice but to obey.
Gu Yan silently counted in his head, matching each confession against the list he had already read on his way to KTV. To his surprise, Su Tian truly confessed everything like an obedient child.
Just as Gu Yan thought the list was complete, Su Tian hesitated—then added weakly:"And lastly… I spread the rumor that Young Master Gu Yan is gay…"
Then he dropped to his knees, his face uglier than crying, and stammered, "I'm sorry…"
Gu Yan's eyes darkened. So it was him?! Because of that rumor, I even had a pointless fight with my father…
His anger flared, but he quickly suppressed it. His voice turned cold and commanding:"Have Su Wan'er send the money within three days. Otherwise—you'll rot in prison for the rest of your life."
Su Tian thought he understood, though in reality, he misunderstood entirely. Still, fear consumed him.So this is the kind of people great families produce… terrifying. No—I can't lose this life of mine. I must make my sister be with Gu Yan as soon as possible.
He nodded frantically. "Yes! Yes! I'll definitely have my sister come find you, Master Gu!"
Gu Yan waved his hand. The bodyguards immediately released Su Tian and the others.But though freed, all their arrogance was gone, replaced only with trembling fear.
Gu Yan's aura was overwhelming.
At that moment, Gu Yan noticed the boss of Hansan KTV. The man immediately dropped to his knees, forehead pressed to the floor at Gu Yan's feet. Tears streamed down his face as he choked out,
"Thank you, Master Gu… thank you so much!"
Seeing their father kneeling with tears in his eyes, Xiao Wan and Xiao Wei finally felt a weight lift off their hearts. Until now, they had thought their father was willing to sell them for profit. But seeing this, they realized he had never abandoned them.
"Master, that's the boss of this KTV," Lao Gao reminded softly.
"Mm."
Gu Yan understood why he was kneeling. He nodded lightly and said,"Take good care of your daughters."
"Yes, Master Gu."
Xiao Wei huddled in the corner, shivering. Everyone else had been pressed to the ground, but she alone was untouched. She looked at Gu Yan with a mixture of fear and awe.
So this is the legendary eldest son of the Gu family? He's terrifying… but also incredible…
Just then, Gu Yan's eyes met hers. Xiao Wei's body trembled violently, and she quickly lowered her head.
She must be Yan Ling'er's friend—the one whose sister was forced to drink.
Gu Yan thought silently, but said nothing more. He turned around and walked out of the room.
"Lao Gao, handle the rest."
"Yes, Master." Lao Gao nodded, then asked, "Where are you going next, Master?"
Gu Yan waved his hand, his back to them as his calm voice trailed away:"Make lunch for Qingqiu."
Lao Gao: "…"