Huang Ling received Gu Ye’s message and quickly replied, "I’m working on it. I’ve lined up some top-tier acting coaches for you, but their schedules are tight."
Even if you’re willing to pay for lessons, it still depends on whether the teacher takes a liking to you.
Of course, Huang Ling fully supported her artist’s ambition to improve his acting skills.
After all, what happens when his looks fade with age?
Getting older doesn’t automatically make someone a skilled actor.
So, while he’s young, he needs to put in the work.
The entertainment industry never runs short of handsome faces or fresh talent.
"Alright, I’ll leave it to you, Huang Jie," Gu Ye said. He was well aware of the criticism online, especially about his acting.
Well, mostly about his acting—at least no one could fault his looks.
He knew his shortcomings and was actively trying to improve, but these things took time.
Meanwhile, Gu Xuan looked around and asked, "Where’s Sister Mo? Have you seen her?"
Gu Ye glanced up. "Why are you looking for her?"
Gu Xuan rummaged through his backpack. "I have a gift for her."
Just then, Jiang Mo came downstairs.
"Sister Mo, come here! I have something for you!" Gu Xuan waved excitedly.
Jiang Mo was curious. "What is it?"
"Ta-da! Look, I picked out a necklace for you," Gu Xuan said, pulling out a gift box. "I, Gu Xuan, know how to return a favor. You’ve helped me with so many assignments—I can’t let you work for free."
Jiang Mo opened the box to find a gold necklace inside. "When did you buy this? It’s too expensive. I can’t accept it."
Gu Xuan grinned. "After school. I asked Uncle Driver to take me to the mall. He said flowers are overrated—gold is what girls really love. A gold necklace is always a safe bet."
"I chose this butterfly design because it’s so princess-like and pretty. The moment I saw it, I knew it was perfect for you."
Aren’t I clever?
Gu Ye watched in amazement. This kid was already a smooth talker, charming his way into people’s hearts with gifts?
"Your kindness is sweet, but I really can’t take this," Jiang Mo said, trying to slip the box back into Gu Xuan’s backpack.
Gu Xuan clutched his bag protectively. "No way! Once I give a gift, I never take it back."
"Sister, it’s not even that expensive. My big brother earns this much in the blink of an eye."
The commotion caught Su Yunjin’s attention. After learning about the gift, she took a glance and said, "Just accept it. You’re tutoring him, after all. A gold necklace is nothing—he should be thanking you."
"Honestly, his homework gives me a headache."
With that, Jiang Mo couldn’t refuse any longer.
She had to admit, the butterfly pendant was quite pretty.
Gu Ye watched Jiang Mo’s smile and wondered if he’d been giving the wrong gifts all along.
Last time, he’d offered her a bag, but she turned it down.
Wasn’t it true that "a bag fixes everything"?
After dinner, Jiang Mo cornered Gu Xuan for a study session.
Bound by their earlier agreement, Gu Xuan reluctantly sat at the desk.
"Sister Mo, since we’ve known each other for so long, go easy on me, okay?" he pleaded.
"It’s just tutoring. It won’t be that bad," Jiang Mo reassured him, pulling up a chair and setting down her own study materials. "See? Even I have to keep learning."
"Knowledge has no limits."
Gu Xuan squinted at the book cover. "What’s this? ‘Nursing: From Beginner to Expert’? You have to study even when you’re grown up? Sister Mo, that’s rough."
Jiang Mo: "…Never mind mine. Take out your workbook first."
"Fine," Gu Xuan grumbled, dragging out his homework.
Jiang Mo flipped through the pages, scanning quickly before locking eyes with Gu Xuan.
Now she understood why Su Yunjin dreaded his homework.
This kid’s academic performance was… not great.
"Alright, let’s go over this together," Jiang Mo said, forcing a smile.
Gu Xuan hunched his shoulders. Why did her smile seem so terrifying?
As they battled through the lesson, Gu Ye finished his game.
Checking the time, he realized Jiang Mo had been tutoring for over an hour. Surely, they were done by now.
He grabbed a plate of fruit and headed to the study, only to find the atmosphere tense.
What happened? Did their friendship just sink?
Holding the plate, Gu Ye hesitated at the door. Should he step in or not?
Gu Xuan spotted him like a lifeline. "Second Brother! Let me help you with the plate!"
"Sister Mo, have some fruit first."
Jiang Mo clutched her hair, her eyes glazed over.
Now she understood why parents and older siblings dreaded tutoring.
It was pure suffering—a deep, soul-crushing ordeal.
"Wow, you look exhausted," Gu Ye teased, leaning in with a playful grin.
Jiang Mo thought he looked like a goofy husky right now.
"What do you think?" she retorted, popping a ruby grape into her mouth.
She stood and stretched. "That’s enough for today."
Gu Xuan perked up instantly. "Yes! Sister Mo, you should go rest."
Time for some gaming.
Jiang Mo saw right through him but let it slide, gathering her study materials and leaving.
Gu Ye followed her. "I have some free time tomorrow. Want to go out?"
"Second Young Master, I have work to do," Jiang Mo said without turning back. "I’m cleaning First Young Master’s place tomorrow."
"You’re going to my brother’s place?" Gu Ye mused. "Perfect. I’ve never seen his new house. What time are you leaving? I’ll tag along."
Jiang Mo sighed inwardly. What’s so interesting about a house?
The next morning, Jiang Mo watered the potted plants in the yard.
Gu Ye sipped his coffee. "Don’t take your scooter later. We’ll drive to my brother’s place."
Once again, Jiang Mo found herself in his flashy sports car.
At the gated community, they were stopped by security.
Gu Ye pulled out his phone and called Gu Xun.
Gu Xun was silent for a moment. "Why are you coming to my place?"
"I’m here for a tour. Brother, you’re so stingy—you didn’t even tell me your place was done. Jiang Mo’s already been here."
On the way, Gu Ye had learned that Jiang Mo had visited before—and even had a meal there.
Jiang Mo corrected, "…I was working when I came last time."
Gu Xun sighed and called the concierge to let them in. "Don’t wreck the place."
"I’m not a husky. Why would I wreck anything?" Gu Ye snapped before hanging up.
Inside, Gu Ye wandered around, stopping by the floor-to-ceiling windows.
"The decor is exactly my brother’s style," he remarked.
Jiang Mo asked curiously, "What’s your brother’s personality like?"
Gu Ye raised an eyebrow. "The cold and distant type. Like a human air conditioner—get too close, and you’ll freeze."
"That’s not true. Young Master Gu is actually quite approachable," Jiang Mo thought. If he weren’t, she wouldn’t have been able to freeload meals off him multiple times.
"You’re different," Gu Ye said, rummaging through the storage cabinet before opening the fridge, which was stocked only with mineral water.
"How does my brother even survive with no food in the house?"
Jiang Mo ignored him, shooing him onto the sofa as she got to work.
The apartment was generally tidy, though some areas had gathered dust and needed reorganizing.
She threw herself into a thorough cleaning session.
Thankfully, modern cleaning tools made the job much easier.
By the time she finished, two hours had passed.
Meanwhile, Gu Ye had been lounging on the sofa, watching TV—an old drama, Jiang Mo noticed.
"What, is the TV in your villa not good enough? Or is the sofa there not comfy? Why come here to watch this?" Jiang Mo couldn’t understand it.
"And now you’re on a nostalgia trip, watching decade-old shows?"
Gu Ye sat up. "I’m not just watching—I’m studying the acting techniques of the veterans. You done? Let’s grab lunch."
"Sure," Jiang Mo agreed without hesitation. "This time, it’s my treat."
She picked a Sichuan hotpot place, and Gu Ye had no objections.
They chose a corner table and dug in happily.
Gu Ye brought up their high school classmates. "The class monitor mentioned a reunion next month. You going?"
"Next month? Probably not."
Most of their high school peers had drifted apart after graduation.
The ones she was close to still kept in touch and met up regularly.
She scooped some shrimp paste into Gu Ye’s bowl with a strainer and asked, "What about you?"
Gu Ye paused. "I’m swamped. Doubt I’ll make it."
"Ah yes, the universe’s biggest superstar, too busy for mere mortals," Jiang Mo teased. "If you showed up, you’d probably blow the place up."
"Make way for the megastar!"
Gu Ye’s eye twitched. "…"
Jiang Mo thoroughly enjoyed the meal. Seeing the waitstaff overwhelmed, she went to the front counter to grab drinks from the fridge.
That’s when she bumped into someone unexpected.
"Jiang Mo?" The man sounded unsure.
She closed the fridge door and turned to see Zhou Qian.
His face lit up with recognition. "It really is you! I knew I wasn’t mistaken."
"Excuse me, you’re blocking the way," Jiang Mo said curtly, wanting nothing to do with him.
Zhou Qian—her "eight-hour boyfriend" from college.
Even her roommates knew about that infamous chapter.
Li Wan'er had scoffed at the time, "Eight hours doesn’t even qualify him as an ex. Calling him that would be doing the scumbag a favor."
Looking back, Jiang Mo was convinced she’d temporarily lost her mind to ever agree to it.
It was one of her few regrets.
Back in her junior year, she’d met Zhou Qian through a campus club. They’d known each other for about a year.
He’d always seemed polite, friendly, and well-mannered—no smoking or bad habits.
After a club event one day, he’d asked her to stay behind, saying he had something to discuss.
She’d assumed it was club-related.
Instead, he’d blindsided her with a confession.
Jiang Mo hadn’t accepted immediately, caught off guard.
Zhou Qian had said, "No rush. Think it over and let me know."
Back in her dorm, she’d weighed it carefully. Based on their interactions, he seemed decent enough.
She wasn’t obsessed with looks, but she had standards—and Zhou Qian was passably attractive.
Verdict: Worth a shot.
So she’d texted her acceptance. In hindsight, it was a moment of insanity—a reckless, impulsive decision.
Even then, she hadn’t felt particularly excited or giddy.
Later, she’d realize what real attraction felt like.
Zhou Qian had been thrilled and invited her to dinner that evening.
Afterward, he’d suggested going to karaoke.
Jiang Mo had refused. "I need to get back before curfew."
Zhou Qian had shrugged. "If it’s too late, we can just stay out. Lots of students rent places off-campus. The school doesn’t care."
The suggestion had rubbed her the wrong way. "You do that. I’m heading back."
"I’ll walk you. I just meant if we got stuck, we could stay out," he’d backtracked.
That night, after washing up, Jiang Mo discovered her name dragged through the mud on the campus gossip board—thanks to Li Wan'er’s alert.
Another girl had accused her of stealing Zhou Qian away, complete with photos and chat logs as proof.
Jiang Mo had been stunned. She’d fired back on the board with her own evidence, exposing Zhou Qian as the real villain.
The student body quickly realized she was the victim.
"I never thought you’d be like this," Jiang Mo had berated him before blocking him everywhere.
Zhou Qian had tried apologizing twice, but after graduating, he’d vanished—until now.
She’d later heard the other girl had taken him back.
Jiang Mo couldn’t fathom it. Her roommates shared her bewilderment.
Zhang Qingqing had said, "Some people’s logic is beyond us normal folks."
Li Wan'er had added, "Let them be miserable together."
And now, of all places, they’d crossed paths in a hotpot joint.
"I heard you couldn’t find a job and became a housemaid," Zhou Qian said. "At your age, you can’t do that forever. You need a real career. My company’s hiring—I could refer you."
"Refer me?" Jiang Mo snorted. "What, as CEO?"
Zhou Qian adjusted his glasses. "I’m serious. The job market’s tough, and competition’s fierce. I could put in a good word."
"No thanks. I’m happy with my ‘housemaid’ gig," Jiang Mo said. She’d never hidden her job from friends, so it wasn’t surprising someone had told him.
