After explaining the "fake painting," Gu Ran glanced at the barrage in her livestream room filled with comments like "So cheap," "So it was fake," "The imitation looks so real," and "Ranran, which shop did you buy it from? I want to buy one too." She hastily ended the broadcast.
She turned off the livestream camera and looked back at the painting "Little Moon Hill" hanging behind her.
It wasn't a Van Gogh, Monet, or Mona Lisa that everyone knows. She hadn't studied art and didn't recognize it when she got it. Today, it was probably spotted by a knowledgeable fan in the livestream.
That moment just now was utterly nerve-wracking. If she hadn't been quick-witted, she wouldn't have known how to handle the situation today.
Damn it!
Gu Ran quickly ran over and carefully took the painting down from the wall hook.
She placed the painting down cautiously, then frantically searched on Taobao with her phone to see if there was a similar item.
However, precisely because "Little Moon Hill" wasn't a Van Gogh, Monet, or Mona Lisa, Gu Ran searched everywhere, trying all sorts of keywords, but couldn't find a single replica.
Gu Ran saw that many people had already sent her private messages: "Ranran, why can't I find it on Taobao?" "Ranran, can you share your purchase link?" "Really only ninety-nine with free shipping? Ranran, I want to buy the same one too."
Ninety-nine with free shipping for the same item...
Gu Ran felt her blood pressure spike. She racked her brains for an idea, even considering creating a fake sales link herself.
But it was a bit too late to apply to set up a shop and create a link now.
And if she actually sold any, where would she get so many imitation fakes?
Gu Ran thought for a long time, her head almost aching from the effort, and finally posted a response in her streamer updates:
"I've taken the painting down. My manager just reminded me that buying fake paintings is not a good practice. I'm very sorry for setting a bad example. We should learn to respect the original work of artists; it's the result of their hard work. The Taobao seller has also taken down the related item, so I won't share the link here. Thank you, everyone."
Seeing Gu Ran's response, the fans who couldn't find the same item all nodded, somewhat understandingly.
So that's how it is.
Wow, our Ranran is so great for immediately admitting her mistake and respecting artistic intellectual property rights!
Gu Ran saw the comments where fans started praising her again, showering her with over-the-top compliments.
Thank goodness the painting was expensive enough—so expensive that almost no one would suspect her of calling a genuine piece fake, that she had really hung a painting worth forty-three million behind her.
She finally breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at that "Little Moon Hill."
...
On the other end, Ji Shiyu watched the entire scene: Gu Ran hanging the painting as her livestream background, someone sharp-eyed recognizing it, and then Gu Ran's frantic, quick thinking as she cleverly claimed the painting was fake.
Now the livestream had ended, and Gu Ran had even posted a streamer update, proactively admitting her mistake of buying a fake painting and encouraging everyone to respect intellectual property.
Then Ji Shiyu received a call.
"What do you mean by this?" Gu Ran's angry voice came through the receiver as soon as the call connected. "Are you trying to get me killed? Having such an expensive painting in my background—what would people think if they saw it?"
Ji Shiyu opened the satin box containing the bracelet, listening to Gu Ran's furious questioning on the other end of the line.
He hadn't expected Gu Ran to hang the painting directly as her livestream background either.
He paused, then asked, "Why did you say it was fake?"
Gu Ran let out an exasperated laugh. "If I didn't say it was fake, could I afford the real thing? Wouldn't people think there's some shady money-for-beauty transaction between a female streamer and a mysterious tycoon?"
Ji Shiyu sounded rather helpless. "Sorry."
Gu Ran: "I want your people to come take this painting away by tomorrow."
Ji Shiyu looked at the bracelet in the box that Gu Ran had returned to him and replied, "Okay."
This response actually made Gu Ran on the other end pause for a moment.
She seemed surprised he agreed so readily.
Finally, she added stiffly, "Be quick about it."
The next day, Gu Ran waited at home all day for Ji Shiyu's people to come pick up the painting.
At noon, there was a knock on the door. The person to retrieve the painting had arrived.
Gu Ran opened the door and found the scene outside didn't match what she had imagined.
She had imagined a group of black-suited, sunglasses-wearing bodyguards arriving to take it away in a safe box, loading it into a modified armored car. The reality, however, was Ji Shiyu standing alone outside her door.
Gu Ran craned her neck to look behind Ji Shiyu but found no one else.
Ji Shiyu asked, "Looking for something?"
Gu Ran glanced at him. "Nothing."
She noticed Ji Shiyu was carrying something in his hand again today.
Gu Ran went inside to get the painting. Ji Shiyu placed what he was carrying on the dining table, then laid out the items one by one, opening the containers.
Gu Ran came out of the room carrying the painting and suddenly caught a whiff of an enticing aroma.
She glanced at the dining table. It was covered with steaming hot dishes.
Gu Ran recognized the dishes at a glance. They were all made by the chefs at Nancheng Mansion, and every single one was something she used to love eating.
Ji Shiyu set out the chopsticks and said, "Time to eat."
Gu Ran hadn't expected what Ji Shiyu was carrying today to be lunch. She frowned. "Why did you bring this again? I ordered takeout."
Ji Shiyu knew Gu Ran didn't like cooking much. Every time he had come over, she had opened the door thinking he was a delivery person. "Don't eat so much takeout. It's not good for your health."
"None of your business," Gu Ran muttered, then shoved the painting into Ji Shiyu's hands. "Take it."
Ji Shiyu looked at the oil painting Gu Ran had stuffed into a large canvas tote bag and didn't refuse this time.
"Then I'll leave first," he said. "I have to go back to work this afternoon."
Today, Ji Shiyu didn't wait for Gu Ran to kick him out; he left on his own initiative.
Gu Ran watched Ji Shiyu close the door behind him, then looked back at the array of dishes on the table, momentarily stunned.
She wanted to throw it all away, but her upbringing taught her not to waste food. The food itself hadn't done anything wrong.
Gu Ran ran to the balcony, intending to call Ji Shiyu back to take this away too, only to see him driving away in his car.
Gu Ran inhaled the aroma now filling her entire apartment and started mentally sticking pins into a voodoo doll of Ji Shiyu.
...
Gu Ran bought a real "paint-by-numbers" kit from Taobao, genuinely priced at ninety-nine with free shipping. She spent three evenings live-streaming herself coloring it, then finally hung it on the background wall behind her.
Gu Ran looked up at her new masterpiece, hands on her hips.
It was a bit ugly, but at least her mind was at ease.
After changing the painting, she took a photo and posted it in her streamer updates.
Fans looked at the photo on the wall, the disastrous result of Gu Ran's three nights of painting:
[Wahhh Ranran, I still think the previous one looked better.]
[Yeah, yeah, the previous one had a kind of expensive, high-end feel to it. It didn't look like a ninety-nine-with-free-shipping item at all. It was really worth it.]
[It's a shame it's been taken down.]
[Respecting intellectual property is good, but that painter has already passed away. Can't we make an exception?]
[I have a few fake paintings from street stalls hanging at my home too. I don't think it's a big deal.]
After posting the update and seeing the comments below, Gu Ran shook her head.
Of course it had a high-end feel and didn't look like ninety-nine with free shipping.
Forty-three million Hong Kong dollars.
But this was something she couldn't say, and Gu Ran had already prepared her reasoning. So, she replied in the comment section: ["It's totally fine for everyone to hang imitation paintings at home, of course."]
["It's just that the livestream room is commercial in nature, so it's not allowed there."]
The fans could only nod in understanding. Then, Gu Ran noticed someone else asking her below: ["What about that painting you did before, Ranran? How do you plan to handle it? Could you sell it to me for a higher price? My mom loved it so much, would 500 RMB work?"]
["I want it too, I'll offer 800."]
["I'll offer 1,000."]
The comment section inexplicably started an auction, and it even got quite heated, with the highest bid reaching 4,300 RMB, asking if she could resell it.
Gu Ran: "..."
She chose to ignore this bidding game. Scrolling through her friends' feed, she noticed both Ding Ze and the Cat's Paw VP had shared an article from an official public account.
She clicked in. It was posted by the official Sina Weibo public account, lavishing very official praise on Sina Weibo's commercial progress and great breakthroughs this quarter, which were inseparable from the CEO's brilliant decisions. The end mentioned that Cat's Paw Live was on the list of projects Sina Weibo would vigorously develop in the future.
No wonder both the VP and Ding Ze shared this piece of good news on their feeds.
Gu Ran thought for a moment and still gave both of them a like.
Then she received a phone call.
Ji Shiyu was standing downstairs at the main entrance: "Ranran, open the door."
Gu Ran pulled a long face at the video intercom by the door: "I won't open it."
"Don't bring me any more food, I don't want it."
The chefs at Nancheng Residence were indeed excellent, but she wasn't that easily tempted. Eating once or twice to avoid wasting food was one thing, but she wouldn't let herself be controlled by mere cravings.
Ji Shiyu chuckled over the phone.
He coaxed her patiently: "Today it's spicy crayfish. Just give it a try, okay?"
"Consider it me begging you."
Gu Ran: "..."
