Chapter 105 — The Three Brothers

Mu Ran shot Mu Lang a sidelong glance, a cold light flashing in her eyes.

“Heh, you know, little Ran, the three of us really like you…”

“Oh?”

Gu Beicheng turned his head, sending a glare even colder and sharper than Mu Ran’s in Mu Lang’s direction.

Mu Lang’s heart skipped a beat; he nearly slid off the sofa out of fright. Hastily, he shook his head, casting a pleading look at his two elder brothers for help.

Mu Jingrong and Mu Jingcheng exchanged a meaningful shrug. The second brother scrolled idly through his phone, while the eldest stared straight ahead, entirely ignoring Mu Lang’s silent plea.

“Brothers are like birds on the same branch; when disaster strikes, they each fly their own way!”

Mu Lang gritted his teeth, pulling a strained smile. He waved at Mu Ran and shook his head toward Gu Beicheng.

“What I mean is, little Ran is an exceptional person. All three of us brothers feel it’s fate we’ve met; you see, having a few more big brothers can only be a good thing, right, Beicheng?”

As his words fell, Mu Jingcheng and Mu Jingrong both nodded sincerely at Mu Ran and Gu Beicheng.

Gu Beicheng’s face remained stern. “You’d better not have any ulterior motives, or else…”

The three brothers shook their heads in unison. The second son of the Qin family was warning enough—they wouldn’t dare.

They simply thought that Mu Ran reminded them of their mother.

It wasn’t that they had any Oedipal complex; it was because they had a sister they’d never met.

But that sister had died in infancy…

“You don’t like the girl from the Qin family?” Mu Ran’s brilliant smile softened her distant demeanor; she understood these three men meant no harm—at least they were better than Qin Yu, the second Qin son.

Eldest brother Mu Jingcheng was righteous and principled; though once a university professor, a past struggle with dissociative episodes had stripped him of his former scholarly grace.

Second brother Mu Jingrong, refined and meticulous, was known as the cold flower of the entertainment industry—gentle and easy to talk to.

Third brother Mu Lang was a passionate romantic, deeply loyal, with a dual persona: aloof and unattainable in public, but a joker in private.

The three brothers didn’t look much alike. However, Mu Jingrong’s features bore a striking resemblance to Mu Ran’s.

“The Qin family’s girl? Qin Ranran?” Mu Jingrong scoffed. Whether that girl was really the Qin family’s daughter was still questionable.

Not only was her origin unclear, but she also fell ill as soon as she was brought home?

“That girl looks naive and silly, but in truth, she’s quite shrewd.”

Just moments earlier, Mu Jingrong had briefly interacted with Qin Ranran, and his instincts told him she was not the real third Miss Qin.

But this Mu Ran…

“No, I don’t like her. She doesn’t appear to have leukemia, but I can’t tell exactly what’s wrong with her physically,” Mu Lang interjected. Years of medical studies had made him familiar with leukemia patients.

Qin Ranran’s physical state and complexion were nothing like those of a leukemia patient.

And Qin Yu’s behavior was simply nauseating.

The three brothers felt indifferent toward the Qin family.

Mu Ran heard the sincerity in the brothers’ voices.

Could she really become their little sister?

All these years, she’d lived in the Mu family, yet no one had ever treated her as kin.

Not long ago, Mu Yuewei had told her outright she wasn’t one of them—so what did that make her?

Could she be the real Qin Ranran?

Was she supposed to fight with that girl for the title of the Qin family’s third daughter?

She would not.

She most certainly would not.

Qin Yu was unworthy of being her family.

“Ranran?”

Gu Beicheng softly called to the woman radiating cold light.

He sensed the chill around her—she was angry, furious.

“Sweetheart, no one is forcing you. I’ll always be by your side. I am your family.”

Gu Beicheng stretched out his long arm, pulling her into his embrace, his large hand gently cradling her head against his chest.

“Bei Bei, I…”

Mu Ran looked up, gazing into the eyes of the man who cherished her so dearly.

She couldn’t explain the inexplicable bond she felt with the three Mu brothers—whether it was kinship or friendship.

But it was certainly not romance.

Thousands of unsaid words gathered in her eyes.

She wrapped her arms tightly around the man’s waist. “Do you understand me, Bei Bei?”

“Am I being too greedy?”

She now had love.

And yet, she longed for family.

“No, you deserve everything others have, and even what they do not.”

Gu Beicheng lowered his head, his thin lips brushing her nose.

Then, he straightened her up and addressed the three brothers across from them, his tone resolute: “Big brother, second brother, third brother.”

The three Mu brothers: “!!!”

Mu Ran and Gu Beicheng sat on the sofa, their eyes meeting those of the three men, all frozen in shock.

Slap—

“Second brother, why did you hit me!” Mu Lang clutched his cheek, muttering resentfully about always being bullied for being the youngest.

“Second, that’s not right. You never hit someone in the face,” Mu Jingcheng disapproved, then reached over and pinched Mu Lang’s thigh.

“Ah—Big brother, why did you pinch me!”

Mu Jingcheng and Mu Jingrong exchanged a smile. “It’s real.”

At last, they finally had a sister of their own.

“She belongs to me,” Gu Beicheng’s voice cut in cold as ice.

The three men exchanged knowing smiles. “Of course, brother-in-law. Don’t worry, the three of us will never let little Ran down. When you two get married, our family will give her a splendid dowry!”

Gu Beicheng shot Mu Lang a glare, huffing coldly. His face was stern, but a smile tugged at his lips.

He never imagined that one day, he would call Mu Lang “third brother.”

Ding—

Ding—

The notification sounds from Weibo.

Both Mu Ran and Mu Jingrong, being in the entertainment industry, were particularly sensitive to trending alerts.

“Little Ran, Beicheng, you two have been exposed…”

Clutching her phone, Mu Ran glanced up and replied, “I saw it, second brother.”

Mu Jingrong’s frown softened, warmth blooming in his heart.

At last, in this life, he could hear a sister call him second brother.

He thought back to that year, when a frail little girl had been carried away by the nurse, and he felt even more determined to spoil Mu Ran together with his brothers.

“What’s been exposed?” Mu Jingcheng and Mu Lang pulled out their phones and opened Weibo.

“Photos of you two? Oh, and rather intimate ones. But the headline is not good at all.”

#Mu Ran climbs the ranks, sells herself to the Chengxing president#

“Beicheng? What’s your secretary posting on Weibo?”

Mu Jingrong clicked on the second trending topic: #Chengxing Group President’s Secretary Xue Xiaowan#

Xue Xiaowan had reposted the rumor about Mu Ran and commented: [I am Xue Xiaowan, secretary to the president of Chengxing Group. Every word of this exposé is true.]

Mu Ran’s lips curled into a mocking smile. She parted her lips slightly and uttered, “Overestimating herself.”

She tapped her phone and made a call. “It’s me. Investigate her. Check every business connected to her, find their weaknesses. Don’t call me until they’re bankrupt.”

She exuded the aura of a queen—commanding, decisive.

All five men stared at her in awe.

They hadn’t expected Mu Ran to be so powerful—or so ruthless.

“Little Ran, I’ll help you.”

“Yes—big brother, second brother, and I will all help you.”

Gu Beicheng gripped her hand tightly. “Ranran, this is something I should handle.”

His cold eyes were filled with murderous intent. Since Xue Xiaowan dared to do this, she could no longer count on his grandfather’s favor.

“Bei Bei, it’s not necessary. With my brothers here, I can handle this myself. That woman is targeting me.”

Shortly after, SY Pictures began trending.

Everyone now knew Mu Ran was the president of SY Pictures.

But she was also rumored to be the lover of Chengxing’s president, Gu Beicheng.

Online, thousands denounced Mu Ran, claiming she’d slept her way to the top.

They said SY Pictures was just a worthless company built on a man’s support.

In an instant, Mu Ran and SY Pictures faced a storm of public scrutiny.

Yet, sitting with everyone, Mu Ran’s face remained calm, composed, her very aura one of leisure and poise.

Moments later, an official statement from SY Pictures: SY Pictures has no connection whatsoever with Gu Beicheng or Chengxing Group. SY Pictures was founded single-handedly by Mu Ran.

An official statement from Chengxing Group: Gu Beicheng and Mu Ran are in a romantic relationship, not a sordid affair.

Both companies declared the exposé and Xue Xiaowan’s statements as slander.

Meanwhile, guests in the cruise ship’s banquet hall buzzed with gossip. Most refused to believe that an unknown, low-tier celebrity like Mu Ran could have started her own company.

“Little Ran, maybe we should explain things. The guests and our own artists are all anxious,” An Lan hurried over, speaking nervously to the woman at Gu Beicheng’s side.

“No rush. I’ll deal with Xue Xiaowan first.”

Mu Ran gripped her phone, a faint smile always on her lips.

“Alright, I’ll go handle things outside for now.”

An Lan gave her a worried glance, then shot a “take care of her” look at Gu Beicheng before leaving.

For Gu Beicheng, this incident hardly mattered.

As the president of a conglomerate, it was inevitable that the media would stir up stories whenever a woman appeared at his side.

Society was quite tolerant of a wealthy CEO like Gu Beicheng.

But for someone like Mu Ran, an obscure actress who had only just begun to win public favor, it was different.

If she were labeled “the CEO’s lover,” her reputation would be irreparably damaged.

All her previous efforts would be for nothing.

Besides, the public didn’t know that Gu Beicheng was actually Cheng Beigu, the actor from the variety show.

Mu Ran had just confessed her relationship with Cheng Beigu on the show.

Now, someone had photographed her embracing Chengxing’s president, Gu Beicheng.

It was no wonder her fans and the audience would find it hard to accept.

“Little Ran…”

Mu Jingrong was worried, intending to enlist his PR team to help her.

But Mu Ran did not want anyone’s help—not even Gu Beicheng’s.

She would resolve this herself.