Zhang Meng hadn’t believed it at all—he’d treated it like a joke. The rumor was just too damn ridiculous. These days, even web novels couldn’t come up with something this stupid.
Shen Yuan took his phone, the smile completely gone from his face, and read the post carefully. Zhang Meng laughed for a bit longer, then abruptly stopped, sensing that something was off.
When Shen Yuan finished reading, he handed the phone back, looked at Zhang Meng, and suddenly asked, “Do you discriminate against people with intersex conditions?”
Zhang Meng froze. His whole body stiffened. He stared at Shen Yuan in disbelief, barely daring to breathe, shaking his head frantically as if afraid of setting him off. “N-no. No, I don’t.”
Shen Yuan said calmly, almost breezily, “That rumor isn’t wrong. There’s nothing I can’t admit. I’m married. I have a child. If there’s a chance later, I’ll introduce my husband and kid to you.”
Zhang Meng was completely stunned by the sheer volume of information dumped on him all at once. Shen Yuan’s tone was so casual—like he was talking about the weather—that for a split second Zhang Meng wondered if he was the one being ignorant and overreacting.
Then he snapped back to reality.
No. This was still very much not normal.
Feeling deeply moved that Shen Yuan trusted him enough to say this, Zhang Meng straightened up and said solemnly, “You trust me this much—I swear I’ll keep it a secret!”
Shen Yuan paused, then smiled faintly. “It’s fine. You don’t have to.”
After that smile, he fell silent. His brows knit slightly, as if he were turning something over in his mind. A fleeting trace of cold malice flashed through his eyes—gone in an instant, but chilling while it lasted.
It was brief. Whatever calculation he’d been making, he quickly came back to himself, lifted his head, and said, “Let’s just include this in the interview.”
Zhang Meng blanked. “Huh???”
After finishing work, Shen Yuan went home. Qiao Hailou was on the living room rug with Little Peanut, the two of them happily building LEGO together. When he heard Shen Yuan come in, Qiao Hailou immediately looked up, hesitating, clearly unsure how to begin.
They’d been together long enough that Shen Yuan could tell at a glance what he wanted to say. “You want to talk about the online rumor exposing my privacy, right?”
Qiao Hailou froze. “You already know?!”
Then he got angry. “Who told you?!”
Shen Yuan smiled. “I figured it out myself. It’s everywhere online—how could I not know? That’s why I came straight home to complain to my dear Uncle Qiao.”
Qiao Hailou saw that he was still smiling—though the smile was dark enough it practically radiated menace—and said, “I’ve already had people looking into who submitted the tip. I also had them take down the posts.”
“No need to investigate,” Shen Yuan said. “There are only a handful of people who know about my situation—you can count them on two hands. Uncle and Xiao Lin wouldn’t do this. Your family has no motive. That only leaves my uncle’s family.”
Qiao Hailou frowned. “But your uncle never told anyone before. What does he gain by saying it now? Just to piss us off?”
Shen Yuan shook his head. “He wouldn’t say it himself. But others could hear it from him. The timing is too perfect. The only person who both hates me and might know my secret is my cousin.”
He curled his lip. “No need to delete the rumors. Let them stay.”
A month earlier.
After Shen Yuan left, Yang Xiaojuan went back to the bedroom and gossiped with Ye Qingsheng. “Your cousin’s spouse is actually a man.”
Ye Qingsheng finally reacted. “What? What do you mean?”
Yang Xiaojuan said excitedly, “A man came to pick him up earlier. He introduced him as his husband. First time I’ve ever seen a married gay couple in real life.”
Ye Qingsheng immediately made a disgusted face. “Don’t say that, it’s gross. Gay sex is just sticking it up someone’s ass, isn’t it? Disgusting. Who knew Shen Yuan was that nasty—I never noticed before.”
He’d suddenly found something he could look down on Shen Yuan for, and it even made him feel a little smug. So what if Shen Yuan was better than him at everything else? Shen Yuan was a gay guy who’d never have descendants! What was the point of all that money and success?
Yang Xiaojuan felt uncomfortable. She didn’t exactly support homosexuality, but she didn’t feel the need to go out of her way to hate on people either—and she honestly thought Shen Yuan seemed like a decent person. She added, “I actually know his husband.”
Ye Qingsheng asked, “Who? How do you know him?”
“He knows me, I don’t know him,” she said. “He’s that super-famous ‘Little Peanut’ dad online. Some CEO on the Forbes list. Used to be in jewelry, I think. Last name Qiao.”
Ye Qingsheng casually looked him up. Qiao Hailou even had a Wikipedia page. When he saw the estimated net worth, jealousy flooded him. “Shen Yuan’s always been like this—total scumbag. Whoever’s rich, he latches onto. Back then he clung to his rich stepdad’s family and wouldn’t even acknowledge his real dad. Money over blood. Now he’s doing it again—selling himself to a rich man, even a rich man. No shame at all.”
Yang Xiaojuan didn’t respond.
She didn’t want to talk to him anymore. For the first time, she seriously began to waver about marrying this man.
Later that night, Ye Qingsheng overheard his parents talking.
“Xiao Yuan said he’ll transfer the hundred thousand in a couple days. Studying abroad isn’t easy, and he’s raising a child too.”
Ye Qingsheng frowned. A child?
“He really isn’t close to us—only telling me now. Sigh. Tomorrow I’ll buy a couple silver bracelets and some local specialties and mail them to him. At least it’s a gesture.”
“Back then Xueyao talked about taking him for surgery. I don’t know if he ever did it. I just didn’t expect he could actually give birth.”
“At least there’s an heir.”
That line—he could actually give birth—hit Ye Qingsheng like a grenade.
Shen Yuan could have children?
From that moment on, he felt like he was holding a live explosive, unsure whether it would blow up or turn out to be a dud.
He suppressed his revulsion and dug up everything he could online about Shen Yuan and Qiao Hailou. The more he looked, the more things lined up—the child really did resemble both of them. All the strange details from childhood suddenly made sense.
At first, he just kept it to himself, enjoying the secret sense of superiority.
Until his parents finally scraped together enough money to buy him an apartment.
When he went house-hunting with Yang Xiaojuan, they argued—and she broke up with him.
“I never realized you were this kind of person,” she said coldly. “I can’t live like this. Buy your place and marry someone else.”
Furious, he snapped back, “What kind of person am I? What does this have to do with Shen Yuan? You saw him once and now you look down on me? You think someone like you could ever measure up to him? And he doesn’t even like women!”
She didn’t even want to argue. “Yes. After meeting him, I started despising you. Look in the mirror—your jealousy is ugly. You call him disgusting? I think he’s a hundred, a thousand times better than you. I never expected you to be rich and powerful, but you have no ambition at all. All you do is complain and blame others. I put up with you for so long, hoping you’d change. You never did. Shen Yuan never wronged you—he even lent you money to buy a house. You don’t even thank him, and you talk behind his back. Being gay isn’t illegal. Was it necessary to be that cruel? I’m scared just thinking about spending my life with you. Let’s end it.”
She moved out, changed her number, cut him off completely.
Ye Qingsheng transferred all that hatred onto Shen Yuan. He hated him so much his teeth ached. Ever since childhood, Shen Yuan had brought him nothing but bad luck.
One sleepless night, scrolling his phone, he saw a marketing account offering cash for insider tips—at a very high price.
Every old and new grievance surged up at once.
If Shen Yuan was going to ruin his life, then he’d make sure Shen Yuan didn’t get to live peacefully either.
The initial rumor didn’t gain much traction—it was simply too bizarre. But the account soon gathered enough circumstantial proof to convince itself it was real. They contacted Shen Yuan and Qiao Hailou, demanding money. Pay up, or they’d release more details.
The response from the Qiao–Shen couple was simple: We have money. We’re just not giving it to you. If you dare, keep posting.
The account wasn’t intimidated. They’d done this countless times. They even obtained photos of Shen Yuan, Qiao Hailou, and their child together. If extortion didn’t work, clicks and traffic would still pay.
They announced that at 10 a.m. the next day, they’d expose Shen Yuan’s family in full.
No money came.
So they posted.
The reaction was much bigger this time. At the very least, it confirmed that Shen Yuan and Qiao Hailou were indeed a married gay couple. With Qiao Hailou’s recent online popularity, the post went viral, and more people began to believe it.
Then, at 2 p.m., Shen Yuan posted a signed statement—in both Chinese and English—across all his domestic and international platforms.
Along with a photo of his marriage certificate.
He admitted everything, openly and without hesitation.