The Heiress's Game

Gu Yunjin saw the post in the tea room of Suiyuan Garden.

She read it from beginning to end, and when she got to the part where the reporter wrote about Gu Mingyue's "stiff smile" and "sarcastic remarks," the corners of her mouth curved slightly, and then she couldn't help but laugh out loud.

She laughed several times before stopping. Li Chunjing, who was sitting opposite her, was checking the schedule of a publicity campaign when she heard the laughter and looked up.

"What did Miss Gu see?"

"See for yourself." Gu Yunjin pushed the tablet over.

Li Chunjing took it, flipped through a couple of pages, raised an eyebrow, and then smiled.

She shook her head: "Haicheng Star News is still the same as always, with headlines that get uglier and uglier."

"If she had simply said 'I'm happy for Chen Cui' when the reporter asked her questions, the matter would have been over."

She insisted on being quick-witted, saying things like "I have no obligation to judge people who use my name for publicity"—isn't that like handing someone a knife to cut you?

The gossip media in Da Hai City are all known for their outspokenness and sharp tongues; they can smell blood faster than sharks.

She wouldn't have handed them knives if she hadn't, let alone the fact that she personally handed them a double-edged one.

As Gu Yunjin listened, she slowly traced a circle with her finger along the rim of the teacup.

The gossip media in Dahai City have been like this since she can remember—back when her mother, Su Wanning, was in the Gu family, the headlines in those tabloids were a hundred times worse than they are now.

"Jade Girl Star Marries into a Wealthy Family"

She remembers every single one of them: "An actress marries into a wealthy family, and the old lady of the Gu family is so angry that she is hospitalized."

"Speaking of sharp tongues," Gu Yunjin suddenly spoke, her tone as indifferent as if discussing the weather, "do you remember how they wrote about my dad and Julie?"

Li Chunjing was taken aback, then her expression subtly changed.

Of course she remembered. Julie, Gu Zhenxing's youngest confidante, an internationally renowned Chinese painter, was the same age as Gu Yunjin.

When their relationship was first exposed, Haicheng Star News devoted two full pages to the story.

The cover title is "A Glimpse of the Gu Family Manor: Sixty-Year-Old Gu's Golden House Welcomes a New Beauty," and the subtitle is even more striking—"A 26-year-old female painter, born in the same year and month as the second daughter of the Gu family, their friendship unexpectedly blossoms into a May-December romance."

That issue of the magazine reportedly sold out and was reprinted twice.

"It's amazing they even came up with that idea. When my dad saw that issue of the magazine, his face turned green."

"Mr. Gu...you're not angry?" Li Chunjing asked tentatively.

"Him?" Gu Yunjin let out a very soft laugh from her nose.

"Would an elephant care what kind of formation the ants arranged at its feet?" He saw the headline, snorted, threw the magazine on the coffee table, and then went to his meetings and played ball.

In his eyes, the circulation of "Haicheng Star News" was no different from a flyer handed out on the street—he couldn't even be bothered to look at it.

Li Chunjing nodded thoughtfully. Indeed. A businessman of Gu Zhenxing's caliber has such deep roots that a few gossip reports cannot shake him.

The reason he let it go was not because he couldn't manage it, but because it wasn't worth managing.

However, those gossip media outlets themselves are very clear about where to draw the line—no matter how offensive the headlines are, the main text never crosses the real red line.

Gu Yunjin picked up her teacup and took a sip, her tone calm.

"That's how gossip media are. They don't make a living off gossip; they make a living with their sharp tongues and outspokenness. The more you argue with them, the more energetic they become."

If you sue them, they could write up every single conversation in court and turn it into a serialized story. So truly intelligent people don't mess with them—unfortunately, Gu Mingyue doesn't understand this.

The topic then circled back to Gu Mingyue.

Li Chunjing put down the schedule in her hand, thought for a moment and said, "Gu Mingyue's response this time was indeed a miscalculation. Chen Cui put on such a humble posture in the interview, expressing gratitude and calling her a guiding light, clearly giving her a way out."

If she's smart, she can just back down gracefully, even if it's just saying, "I was very moved by the interview"—and that would be the end of it.

But she refused; she insisted on giving the reporters the cold shoulder.

Now, the whole internet is comparing her interviews with Chen Cui's, saying one has high emotional intelligence and the other has low emotional intelligence.

One is grateful, the other is sarcastic. She's painstakingly cultivated her socialite image for so many years; who knows how many fans she'll lose in this sudden turn of events.

Gu Yunjin put down her teacup, interlaced her fingers on her knees,

"She has never been one to back down since she was a child. Back home, my father spoiled her, the servants fawned over her, and Mrs. Bei doted on her. She was always the one who had to give way to others, and she was never the one to give others a way out."

Asking her to handle the tricky questions from gossip media is like asking someone who has only ever driven straight to take a reverse parking test—crashing is inevitable.

She paused for a moment, then turned her gaze from the pomegranate tree outside the window to Li Chunjing's face.

"And don't you think that the more she acts like this, the more stable things become for Chen Cui?"

Every time she publicly lashes out, she's adding fuel to the fire of Chen Cui's "inspirational comeback" story.

Chen Cui said she used to be strict, and the audience was initially skeptical—now she can even show her displeasure in front of reporters.

The audience will only think, "Oh, so she's even worse in private." Her downfall was that she couldn't hide it.

Looking at Gu Yunjin, Li Chunjing suddenly realized that this boss's thoughts were much deeper than she had imagined.

When she chose Chen Cui, did she already foresee this day?

Gu Mingyue's personality, Gu Mingyue's reaction when facing this kind of public pressure—were all these variables already factored into her strategy from the very beginning?

"She should learn from Julie," Gu Yunjin suddenly said, her tone as casual as if it were just a casual remark.

"She never gets into arguments with the media. Last time she was photographed out with my dad, reporters kept asking her three questions, and she just smiled the whole time, finally saying only, 'The weather is really nice today.'"

The next day, the media headlines were all praising her—"Angelina Jolie responds calmly to relationship rumors," "Showing her talent," "Gu Zhenxing's taste has finally improved."

"Miss Julie certainly has a great attitude." That was all Li Chunjing said in the end.

"Alright," Gu Yunjin stood up, put the tablet back into her bag, and said, "Have President Nan keep an eye on the aftermath. Gu Mingyue suffered a loss this time, so she'll probably make another move."

The more anxious she is now, the more likely she is to make a mistake. We don't need to do anything; just wait for her to make a mistake.

"clear."