Guo Zijie presented evidence that Lord Guo intended to pass the entire family business to Guo Zilu. Moreover, Guo Zijie had no intention of competing for the inheritance. Upon seeing this, Guo Zilu felt guilty and couldn’t believe that everything was true. Unlike his usual self, Guo Zilu remembered how their father viewed him during their childhood, treating him as his own. Upon learning the truth, Guo Zilu regretted everything he had done. It turned out that Lord Guo had discovered that Guo Zilu had poisoned the second wife and knew that Guo Zilu actually intended to poison the butler. He had summoned Guo Zilu alone to reprimand him and even planned to take him to the authorities. Fearing that the situation would escalate, Guo Zilu, in a moment of panic, tried to stop Lord Guo by stabbing him with a knife. When Lord Guo woke up again and saw himself in the courtyard, he chose to return to his room alone to prevent his son from bearing the罪孽 (sin/guilt).
Guo Zilu was filled with remorse upon realizing everything his father had done for him. He admitted his mistakes and revealed the truth, resulting in him being taken away by the authorities. The butler handed over the state ledger to Guo Zijie. Upon reviewing the ledger, Guo Zijie recalled the scenes of his eldest brother fighting over the ledger.
Sun Weiyan went to the bamboo forest to search for the masked person from the future. Cao Xuanxuan approached Guo Zijie, handing him the day’s accounts and official documents to review. At this moment, Guo Zijie couldn’t focus on anything. Cao Xuanxuan knew he wasn’t in the right state of mind and had come specifically to comfort him. To help improve Guo Zijie’s mood, she suggested they go out for a walk to change the environment, continually encouraging him.
While Guo Zijie was at home, a county magistrate’s officer arrived to inform him that Sun Weiyan had been arrested. Upon hearing that Sun Weiyan was taken, Guo Zijie pretended to be indifferent on the surface, not forgiving Sun Weiyan, but he was genuinely worried inside. Upon learning there was danger, he decided to go rescue her. At this time, Cao Xuanxuan and He Chun’er also arrived. After discussing, the three decided to go to the bamboo forest together. Upon arriving, they found Sun Weiyan leaning against a tree by a fire, unconscious and with a very dirty face. It turned out that Sun Weiyan, feeling guilty towards everyone, wanted to capture the mastermind behind everything on her own. However, the mastermind didn’t fall for her trap. Cao Xuanxuan found a doll at the spot where Sun Weiyan had collapsed, recalling that she had seen something similar in modern society.
Mr. Cao deliberately found an excuse to leave alone with He Chun’er, while Sun Weiyan apologized to Guo Zijie. Guo Zijie blamed Sun Weiyan for choosing to seek help from an outsider instead of turning to him, essentially not considering him as a brother. However, despite his words, he was still very worried upon seeing Sun Weiyan unconscious and proactively approached her to check on her.
When the two were alone, Cao Xuanxuan showed the doll she had found to He Chun’er. It turned out that Cao Xuanxuan had already deduced that the mastermind was flaunting to her. However, there were too many things happening around Guo Zijie, and she didn’t want him to worry, so she wanted to face the challenge alone.
When Sun Weiyan woke up, she found herself lying in Guo Zijie’s home. Feeling guilty, she wanted to leave quietly. Guo Zijie returned to the manor and saw that Cao Xuanxuan hadn’t come back yet. He sat in the courtyard, waiting for her to return secretly, and discovered Guo Zijie there. He found an excuse to approach her, revealing that he had also learned about the events and knew that the person involved came from the same place as Cao Xuanxuan. He misunderstood Cao Xuanxuan as wanting to find that person and leave together. Afraid of losing Cao Xuanxuan, Guo Zijie wanted to hold her back and subtly admitted that he liked the current Cao Xuanxuan. He also stated that no matter what decision Cao Xuanxuan made, he would fully support her. Because Cao Xuanxuan was worried that Guo Zijie would be concerned if she left, she proactively admitted that she was now willing to stay for Guo Zijie and not return. Upon hearing this, Guo Zijie took the initiative to kiss Cao Xuanxuan, who did not refuse and even reciprocated, resulting in the two embracing each other.
