The protagonist duo really had the same kind of thinking. Maybe that’s exactly why they were drawn to each other.
Wu Siyuan had just been disgusted by Shi Yuanbai, and then right after, Jiang Jingtong came over trying to bond with him.
Jiang Jingtong was obviously the type of person who didn’t want to let go of anyone. Besides being grateful that Wu Siyuan had helped him successfully pursue Shi Yuanbai, he suddenly began saying all sorts of vague, inexplicable things.
“Sometimes, I don’t know why, but I suddenly think of you.”
“Besides gratitude, it feels like there’s something else.”
“Don’t mind me, just think of me as being confused.”
Who the hell cares? Just hurry up and leave. Running into both of them in one day, Wu Siyuan felt pretty unlucky.
Xiao You later told him that after going on vacation with Shi Yuanbai, Jiang Jingtong came looking for him again. And without any hesitation, he told Xiao You that he and Shi Yuanbai were together now. But if Xiao You didn’t mind, he could still keep following him around. There was one requirement: to not expect an official title or anything.
Wu Siyuan asked, “Didn’t he despise you before? How come he's fine now?"
Xiao You replied, “Maybe he just hasn’t found someone better yet?”
“Well, that’s for you to figure out.” Wu Siyuan said.
Wu Siyuan thought ‘if Jiang Jingtong and Shi Yuanbai really did get married, then their married life would be pretty spectacular.’
Maybe one day, the two of them would go to a hotel with their lovers and run into each other at the check-in desk.
“What are you doing here?”
“What are YOU doing here?”
Wu Siyuan chuckled to himself and quickly shared the fun with his roommates.
He still prioritized his studies though and got an agent to manage his company. This agent was recommended by his father. Actually, Zhang Lianze also had a recommendation, but considering all the factors, Wu Siyuan still chose the one his father recommended.
Business was going smoothly for now, but school life wasn’t.
Being harassed one after the other by the protagonist couple, Wu Siyuan was a little worried he might accidentally spill something.
Rumor had it that Shi Yuanbai’s family was fighting over inheritance. His father had been dismissed by the old chairman, Shi Yuanbai’s grandfather, and lost his position as a general manager. Without the ability to deal with company affairs, like Shi Yuanbai, he would just coast along collecting dividends.
Originally, Shi Yuanbai should have gotten more shares at this time. But now, nothing extra was given.
Because of his father’s situation, Shi Yuanbai realized the truth. His drugging of Shi Yuzhe had been exposed.
No wonder the family’s attitude towards him had changed so much. Even though his parents kept saying they were on his side, in reality, they wouldn’t even sit down to have meals with him anymore.
And now his older brother, Shi Yuzhe, refused to meet with him at all.
If he dared to make trouble, even the small amount of shares he still had might be taken away.
By the end of the semester, Shi Yuanbai was already talking to Jiang Jingtong about a political marriage. He felt it was his only way out. As long as he joined forces with Jiang Jingtong, they would definitely be able to seize the power of the Shi family.
Plus, because of his grandfather’s decision, his parents were now backing him. His father knew the company’s inner workings, and with insiders still loyal to him, they could definitely wrest control away from Shi Yuzhe.
Shi Yuanbai told Jiang Jingtong all about his ambition, and of course Jiang Jingtong was interested.
In fact, Jiang Jingtong had already asked his parents to reach out to Shi Yuzhe. Hearing Shi Yuanbai’s pitch made him even more intrigued.
To him, an alliance with Shi Yuanbai was a good deal.
That’s why, over winter break, they got engaged. The official wedding would wait until after graduation.
Shi Yuanbai still seemed fixated on going abroad, but the one most anxious about their marriage was Wu Siyuan.
In order to stabilize the friendly forces and not act too quickly, Wu Siyuan kept explaining the pros and cons to Chen Xuyao.
Fortunately, Shi Yuzhe also wanted Shi Yuanbai to go through with marrying Jiang Jingtong. He wanted to see what more his good little brother would do.
To make sure they’d marry smoothly within the next six months, Wu Siyuan was practically worrying himself bald.
Before they got together, he was worried about how to push them together.
After they got together, he was worried that Jiang Jingtong’s gross habits would be exposed to Shi Yuanbai, or that Shi Yuanbai’s shady actions would get exposed to Jiang Jingtong. Wu Siyuan felt like he was shedding more hair lately.
And to top it off, both were master fishers. Even after officially dating and getting engaged, they were still fishing around.
Two baited hooks dangled in front of Wu Siyuan, waiting for him to bite.
Shi Yuanbai’s pond had mostly been cleared out, except for that overseas fish. But recently a new fish had swum in.
This new fish wanted to compete directly with Jiang Jingtong. Previously, when Shi Yuanbai and Jiang Jingtong weren’t official yet, this fish had stayed righteously aloof.
But now that they were engaged, his damn competitiveness kicked in.
He only wanted to beat Jiang Jingtong, it didn’t matter in what way.
This fish was Huang Zixuan. Because Jiang Jingtong had always been the perfect other people’s child1, Huang Zixuan hated him. He got used to competing with Jiang Jingtong, as long as he outshone the other, it was enough.
Now, if he could put a green hat2 on Jiang Jingtong, that would be his ultimate win.
In the original plot, Huang Zixuan had also tried to flirt with the original Gu Siyuan. But the protagonist wasn’t interested. When Jiang Jingtong found out, he destroyed the entire Huang family.
But Shi Yuanbai? He was interested.
Rumor had it that Huang Zixuan had already invited Shi Yuanbai out for dinner a few times. Jiang Jingtong was suspicious, so he turned to Wu Siyuan for help.
— You seem pretty close with Yuanbai lately. Do you know who else he’s been eating with?
Wu Siyuan quickly replied. Jiang Jingtong’s info network was impressive, the places where Shi Yuanbai and Huang Zixuan went were very confidential.
Huang Zixuan was cautious. He wouldn’t risk exposure before Jiang Jingtong officially got married.
— Shi-shixiong only comes to me because I’m your CP fan. He wanted my advice on how to make the wedding look good.
Jiang Jingtong didn’t mind that Wu Siyuan dodged the other topic, he was interested in the wedding too.
— Oh? And what advice did you give him?
— Honestly, none. That should be left to professionals. But if possible, the bigger the better. That way, the whole world knows you’re married.
That way, even the system would register how happy the two scumbags were.
— True. Our wedding has to be huge and grand. Did he say who he’s been hanging out with lately?
Wu Siyuan thought for a moment, then typed:
— Eight out of ten sentences from Shi-shixiong mentioned Jiang-shixiong. I really don't know about the rest.
Seeing that, Jiang Jingtong relaxed. Shi Yuanbai and Huang Zixuan used to be quite familiar, which should be normal social interaction.
Wu Siyuan was annoyed. `Damn playboy. If you’re going to fish, at least don’t get caught.`
As the fake CP fan, he had to keep running interference. He organized his words and then sent a message to Shi Yuanbai.
— Shi-shixiong, you and Jiang-shixiong really don’t miss a chance to feed me dog food3, huh.
Shi Yuanbai was confused. Dog food? With Gu Siyuan's abnormal way of thinking, he always thought that Shi Yuanbai was showing off his relationship with Jiang Jingtong. Gu Siyuan would find sugar in plain sentences. But today, he didn't talk to Gu Siyuan at all.
So it must have been Jiang Jingtong who went to Gu Siyuan.
Luckily, Gu Siyuan always told him about Jiang Jingtong’s visits. So Shi Yuanbai never suspected anything between them.
This time, what did Jiang Jingtong want from him?
— What did he come to you for?
— Jiang-shixiong was jealous, wondering if I see you often. Then he worried you might see others too. He’s scared that he’s not good enough.
Shi Yuanbai’s heart skipped. For a moment he thought Jiang Jingtong had discovered something.
He calmed down, reviewed the recent events, and then replied to Gu Siyuan.
— He’s just paranoid.
— Exactly! That’s why I said Jiang-shixiong keeps sending out sugar. He just cares about you too much!
Shi Yuanbai sighed with relief. Good thing Gu Siyuan messaged him. Someone must have tipped Jiang Jingtong off about him and Huang Zixuan. Now he had a plan.
He had to marry Jiang Jingtong to turn things around, so he couldn’t let Jiang Jingtong be suspicious.
He slowed down, reduced contact with Huang Zixuan and others, and spent more time publicly with Jiang Jingtong.
Jiang Jingtong really believed Wu Siyuan’s cover story about how Shi Yuanbai was just stressing about the wedding.
Then he comforted Shi Yuanbai and said happily, “Don’t worry, our wedding will definitely be the biggest and grandest.”
Not just to soothe Shi Yuanbai, but also to reassure their allied families that they wouldn’t collapse.
Shi Yuanbai didn’t know why Jiang Jingtong suddenly said that, but hearing how seriously he took it, he was reassured. He had heard rumors that the Jiang family was on decline recently, but judging from Jiang Jingtong’s tone, it should be a small matter.
Competitors and setbacks were normal in business. For the Jiang family, these were small problems.
Jiang Jingtong kept the company’s troubles tightly under wraps anyway, and generally, no one knew except for his opponents.
Even when Shi Yuanbai's admirers warned him, he didn't believe them at all. And thanks to Wu Siyuan’s maneuvers, those new suitors found out that Jiang Jingtong was really Shi Yuanbai's true love and also began to reduce the frequency of meetings.
Wu Siyuan was convinced that this kind of management method could really brainwash people continuously.
No wonder the marketing accounts in the entertainment circle, post fake news non-stop, and there are still people who believe them. Do it enough, and someone will believe it.
Clearly, the two parties involved, Jiang Jingtong and Shi Yuanbai, didn't feel that they loved each other that much, but to others, they seemed like a perfect and happy couple.
It appeared that the plan to get married after graduation was stable.
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Other people’s child: the idealized child that parents compare their own kids to.
Green hat: symbol of humiliation + being cheated on.
Dog food: being force-fed romance you didn’t ask for.