CH 65

In a room with western architecture, Su Zhan stood in front of a floor-to-ceiling window wearing a suit. His slender body was perfectly set off in the groom’s suit he was wearing. The room that was supposed to be full of joy was eerily quiet at this moment. Except for Su Zhan, there was no one else in the room. The door of the room was closed, blocking all the excitement and laughter coming from the outside world.

Su Zhan looked at the blue sky on the other side of the window without saying a word. In fact, he had been standing there for a long time. No one dared to disturb him. After a while, Su Zhan took out his phone for the nth time and looked at a message, ‘Relax.’

These two words were sent to him by Li Hao last night. Soon he would be marrying Zhu Qianqian just like the ending of the original novel. He was about to finish the plot of Gu Chenfeng. Or to put it more bluntly, he would soon be able to leave here and return to the real world.

But at this moment, Su Zhan didn’t really feel happy at all. Not only was he full of complex emotions, but there were also still many things that he couldn’t figure out and didn’t understand.

Not long after returning from Li Hao’s house, the news that the ‘Business Emperor’ and the daughter of the Zhu family, Zhu Qianqian, were about to get married, exploded like a bomb in the world of Mary Sue. The news ‘shocked the whole world’. All the previous reports and speculations of the Female Lead came to an abrupt halt and were replaced by overwhelming information.

‘The domineering president only favours the unfortunate daughter’, ‘The only favourite of the billionaire’, ‘The golden bachelor, Gu Chenfeng, is the father of the child in Zhu Qianqian’s stomach’, ‘The return of the daughter, the only daughter of the rich and wealthy’… Countless of these overwhelming headlines flooded the news. But generally all of them meant one thing, that Gu Chenfeng ‘loved the daughter of the Zhu family to his bone marrow’ and was willing to be ‘the enemy of the whole world’ for her.

In short, their relationship was a wonderful love that was envied by the whole world. What was even more surprising was that the two of them could be said to have held a wedding in a flash, an incomparably grand wedding of the century at that.

Naturally, Su Zhan was behind those rumours, fanning the flames. 

“You just have to do what you should do.” 

Su Zhan didn’t misunderstand what Li Hao said this time. He even got affirmation from him with a few insinuations.

He’s letting him complete the plot? Why is that?

But this happened to be something completely consistent with Su Zhan’s original purpose. The more Su Zhan thought about it, the more complicated it became. Who was he1? Why does he2 know his3 purpose? What was his4 purpose of doing such a thing? Was he5 the same as himself6? Or was it because of him7 that he8 was trapped in a Mary Sue novel… At this moment, Su Zhan’s head was full of questions.

But after thinking about it carefully, Su Zhan suddenly discovered that the other person was only playing the role of the Second Male with him from the beginning. The kind of infatuated Second Male that loved the Female Lead no less than the Male Lead. But looking at the plot of that person along the way, he didn’t really care about the Female Lead at all. Except for the main plot and the plot that required him to perform, he was almost completely different from the Second Male in the original text.

In other words, his purpose was definitely not the same as his own as he didn’t completely follow the plot. He seemed to have a very clear direction and purpose, not a vague direction like him.

Su Zhan was puzzled by this, but he couldn’t really ask about it. So he had a hard time sleeping these past few days. It would really be the wedding of the century for the Male and Female Leads today, an oath will be read and they would become a happy couple that attracted worldwide attention. They would live together as a happy family of three.

But what happens after that? Can he really return to reality smoothly? So what about that person? Where would he be going…? Whenever he thought about this, Su Zhan would feel a headache forming.

Just at this time, there was a knock on the door. When Su Zhan turned around, he saw the butler standing respectfully at the door, “Young Master, the bride’s side is ready. The Madam is asking if the wedding could start.”

Su Zhan didn’t rush to answer. His eyes fell unconsciously on a book that was laying on the side table. It was a book that didn’t match the decorations in the room. It was picked up by Su Zhan again and again from last night till now, but the book was never opened.

《The Art of Landscaping》was a bit odd, it seemed to have a mysterious aura. Probably because it was sent to him by Li Hao last night. He was specially asked to open it after the wedding.

Su Zhan was also at a loss about this. His self-control ability had always been good as long as he was not facing that person. Su Zhan had always been absolutely confident about his self-control. So he had been refraining from looking at it. But now he was suddenly feeling hesitant. He inexplicably wanted to take a look at it.

“We can get started.” Su Zhan said lightly. There was no joy of being a groom on his face. But it was probably because Gu Chenfeng had always been like that so the butler didn’t think that there was anything wrong with him.

After the butler left, Su Zhan picked up《The Art of Landscaping》once more as he unconsciously repeated the question he had been struggling with for the past two days in his mind. Who was inside Li Hao’s shell? Why did he appear here? If he9 returned to the real world, would he be able to see him10 again?

From the beginning, he cooperated with him to act in every scene. Until now, he still told him to ‘do what you want to do’, ‘I’ll be behind you’… The words of that person echoed in Su Zhan’s mind and he suddenly discovered that that person seemed to be helping him… He’s helping him to leave this world. But what about him? What will happen to him?

Su Zhan felt inexplicably flustered. Why couldn’t he just face it with him? Why must he obey that person’s arrangement so neatly? If he’s really helping him11 silently all the time, then he12 shouldn’t just hide behind him. Su Zhan clearly knew that if he13 wasn’t able to complete the plot smoothly, the results wouldn’t be as simple as just being stuck in this world. It was entirely possible that he would disappear with this world. This was the hint that was given to him from the unknown creature in his mind. To say the least, he was in danger.

Without thinking about it too much, Su Zhan simply opened the book《The Art of Landscaping》. Why should he wait until after the wedding to read what was inside? At that time, the plot would be almost over. It was entirely possible he would complete the plot and leave. But what about him14? Su Zhan couldn’t control it when he thought about this.

But to Su Zhan’s surprise, after opening it, contained inside were just ordinary words from the original book《The Art of Landscaping》. Until he spotted the word ‘Su’ that was circled.

Su Zhan was taken aback for a moment and then his eyes lit up for a moment as he figured out that the book was trying to convey a message. He felt a little anxious but he kept his eyes open in fear of missing a word. Su Zhan turned the book from the first page to the last, until the last circled word finally appeared. Su Zhan trembled lightly as he closed the book.

‘Su Zhan, I love you’

At that moment, Su Zhan’s eyes felt sore, as if he was about to burst into tears.

Su Zhan….That person said Su Zhan… Not Gu Chenfeng, but Su Zhan. Su Zhan had never been so excited as he had felt right now. His whole body fell into a trance-like state as his mind filled with the thoughts of that person knowing who he was. He knows him. Although he had guessed this possibility before, when it was actually verified, the shock that it brought him still made him tremble slightly.

From the moment he came to this Mary Sue world until now, and even while he was laying in that person’s arms, he had never felt this way before as he had always known that he was someone that didn’t belong to this world. Until now, it seemed that he hadn’t found some kind of sense of belonging in this world or a sense of identity. They were not only mutually in love, but they were also in the same position15.

This knowledge brought Su Zhan incomparable joy and had almost made him rush out of the church to find that man without any reason. At this moment, he really just wanted to see that person.

Su Zhan didn’t know how he even got out of the room and how he walked down the carpet placed in the centre of the church with the bride. Like the countless idol dramas that he had filmed, Su Zhan was no stranger to such a scene. But at this moment, Su Zhan’s mind was utterly chaotic.

It was not until he stood in front of the priest and when he could see the happy face of the Female Lead that Su Zhan remembered his own shock when he learnt from the Female Lead that the father of the child in her stomach was actually the doctor that night. But other than that, he couldn’t change his expression. He used Gu Chenfeng’s tone to inform her of today’s wedding, anyways it was just acting for him at this point.

But now, Su Zhan’s mind was just filled with the words ‘Su Zhan, I love you’. When he stood in the holy church with the Female Lead, every step he took seemed to be a satire or insult to that sentence. Suddenly, Su Zhan felt that even if this was just a scene that he was acting in, he really didn’t want to go through with it. This thought became even stronger when Su Zhan looked around every corner of the church and found that he was unable to find the figure of that man.

“Bride Zhu Qianqian, are you willing to marry Gu Chenfeng as his wife? In wealth or in poverty, in sickness or in health, for better or for worse, will you always love him, support him and grow old with him for the rest of your life?” The priest looked solemnly at the happy Female Lead.

Then under the envious eyes of everyone watching or more specifically, the whole world, the Female Lead shed tears of happiness and nodded with a happy smile, “I’m willing.”

The priest turned to Su Zhan, who was expressionless and was even exuding a cold air from the beginning till the end, with a look of relief.

“Groom Gu Chenfeng, are you willing to marry Zhu Qianqian as your wife? In wealth or in poverty, in sickness or in health, for better or for worse, will you always love her, spoil her and grow old with her?”

The groom, however, didn’t move. The scene was silent and everyone’s eyes focused on the groom. Eyes with eager envy and anticipation all focused on him.

However…

“I am unwilling.”

Su Zhan suddenly uttered these three words in an extremely cold voice. He then resolutely turned around under the stunned gaze of everyone watching and walked straight out the door with his back straight, looking quite chic. The Female Lead who was left behind by him had a look of disbelief as she suddenly covered her stomach and squatted down in pain.

At this time, in a certain corner of the magnificent western-styled building, just outside the gate of the church where Su Zhan held his wedding, Fu Yichen’s tall figure leaned against a pillar as he looked up at the perennial blue sky. It seemed like his mind was in the clouds in the sky, but his heart wasn’t as calm as he seemed on the outside.

Although he knew that it was just acting, Fu Yichen still couldn’t help but feel depressed. In the original plot, the Second Male appeared at the wedding to wish the Female Lead a happy life sincerely. But now he really didn’t want to go.

He never would have thought about how it would feel when the person he liked stood in a church to swear marriage vows with another person. Even if he knew it was false, Fu Yichen still felt complicated. He couldn’t even help but think, if they could really meet and fall in love in reality, would they have been able to make it till the end? With Su Zhan’s status and influence in the entertainment circle, could he really be with him?

Fu Yichen really never thought about the pressure from reality. They are two men. At the very least, they would not be accepted by most people in the current society. So in the end, would Su Zhan choose to marry another person and have children even if he doesn’t love them?

At this moment, Fu Yichen was suddenly not so sure.

If his speculations were correct, either Su Zhan would return to reality after the wedding or he would return after the child in the Female Lead’s belly was born and the family of three could live happily. This was based on the speculations Fu Yichen made after looking at Su Zhan’s performance in the previous few worlds, especially his performance in this world to complete the plot and return to reality.

His purpose was completely different from his and the result of him failing to complete his task was death along with the collapse of the Mary Sue world. It was a completely contradictory purpose. This was also the root cause of Fu Yichen’s delay in finding out Su Zhan’s purpose. But now, judging from what he could see, he could only guess like this based on Su Zhan’s various actions.

Since they’re in completely contradictory positions, there must be something wrong with it. At this time, Fu Yichen chose to help Su Zhan. If there were any consequences due to his actions, he was going to bear them himself.

That book《The Art of Landscaping》was prepared by Fu Yichen for Su Zhan, but Fu Yichen wasn’t so sure about when the plot was going to end. Whether it was the ending of the wedding or the birth of a child to complete a family of three. In the original text, their child was already three when they got married.

So he had asked Su Zhan to read《The Art of Landscaping》after the wedding, instead of waiting until the time when the Female Lead’s child was born.

As for Fu Yichen himself, he didn’t try to change anything from the beginning till the end. The wedding between Su Zhan and the Female Lead was single-handedly facilitated by him.

In the end, would it be like what Laji had said? Will he disappear along with the collapse of the Mary Sue world? This was entirely possible, and even very likely to happen. But perhaps it might be like what Fu Yichen speculated.

So Fu Yichen betted on it. This was a gamble that involved his own life, the system and the entire Mary Sue world. However, he had already made plans for Su Zhan. No matter how the plot defined the ending, as long as the wedding ended smoothly, Su Zhan would be able to leave this place.

Taking a deep breath, Fu Yichen couldn’t help but laugh at himself. Maybe this was the last breath of fresh air he could have. After all, from now on, the ending might come at any time.

‘Laji, if you collapse too, will you blame me?’ He knew that the system wasn’t a real person, but they still had been together for so long. Fu Yichen had also informed the system about the consequences. But to Fu Yichen’s surprise, when the system found out that it was for its Male God Su, it agreed with Fu Yichen’s decision.

[Ying, ying, ying, I won’t blame the host. The host is doing it for Male God Zhanzhan. Male god Zhanzhan is the most handsome, no, the host is the most handsome. Ying,ying,ying]

The corners of Fu Yichen’s mouth raised in a funny way. He was going to face death for no reason and yet he was feeling calm and even a bit indifferent. But at this moment, footsteps suddenly sounded in the originally empty space.

Fu Yichen turned back with some doubts and was immediately startled by the man running towards him.

“Li Hao!”

Before Fu Yichen could speak, Su Zhan rushed towards Fu Yichen with a few steps. And before Fu Yichen could react, Su Zhan wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed him.

Not to mention the pain coming from his lips, looking at the agitated Su Zhan, Fu Yichen kissed him back even more impatiently, feeling completely bewildered. What was going on? Wasn’t he getting married?

[Aiya, host, it’s not good. The Female Lead is in danger! Aiya, the Female Lead is dead…] The originally quiet system suddenly screamed.

“Wait, wait,” Fu Yichen hurriedly pulled Su Zhan off him, “What’s going on? Why have you come out?”

“Li Hao, I don’t want to marry her. Even if it’s fake, I still don’t want to.” Su Zhan hugged Fu Yichen excitedly and expressed his meaning eagerly. He was the kind of person that was persistent if he decided on it, “I want to face it with you.”

[Aiya, it’s not good, there’s a big problem, host! The world is about to collapse again. Warning! The Mary Sue is about to die! Aiya! It’s terrible…] The system spat out some garbled words.

“No,” Fu Yichen was also caught off guard, “Calm down.”

He was really caught off guard ah. Su Zhan’s words touched him very much. But the key point was, he had already calculated everything. Why did everything suddenly go out of place and why was the perfectly fine Female Lead just dropped dead?

Fu Yichen simply couldn’t wrap his head around the matter, but he still had to face Su Zhan who was excited and serious. The most ridiculous thing was, the scene in front of him had already started to distort. Fu Yichen opened his mouth in a hurry and said, “Su Zhan!”

The scene started to distort even faster. Fu Yichen only had the time to shout out two words before he was dragged into a dark vortex by an uncontrollable force while hearing the system’s ghostly screams.

[The world is collapsing once more, host!]

[Mary Sue is dead! Mary Sue go die!]

[Collapse, collapse…]

Fu Yichen only felt as if he was trapped in a distorted space. His ears were filled with the system’s ghostly screams. As for the few words that he could faintly hear before falling into darkness, they were a little vague and unintelligible.

[Wei, wei, wei? It’s not right, it’s not right, host. Host, help! What the hell is going on!]

[Ah! It’s too strong! Wake up host! Something is wrong!]

[Host…]

Fu Yichen fully fell unconscious. Truthfully, even if Fu Yichen could clearly hear the system’s ghostly screams, in that state he was definitely unable to guess what was going on with the information that was revealed by Laji. It was even more unexpected for him to discover that he returned to reality under such circumstances. 

FYC

FYC

SZ

FYC

FYC

Su Zhan

FYC

SZ

SZ

FYC

SZ

SZ

SZ

FYC

as in they are experiencing the same thing. They’re both stuck in the MS world