One day, Shen Chengwu awakens and learns that he's the sickly fake young master in an underdog power fantasy novel. He's ill-tempered and hated by everyone. After the real young master, the protagonist shou, returns, everyone turns against him, throws him out, and leaves him with a tragic ending.
Unfortunately, by the time Shen Chengwu awakens, the plot has already reached its conclusion. The real young master has just been welcomed back into the family, and Shen Chengwu is about to be married off to a loser in a political marriage, setting him on the path to a miserable ending.
Looking back on a life spent battling illness and struggling to hold his own in a wealthy family, Shen Chengwu takes a deep breath, refreshed and invigorated: Wonderful! Now I can peacefully wait for my exit from the story!
The wait for his exit doesn't go smoothly. Supporting characters keep giving him trouble on behalf of the real young master, so Shen Chengwu decides to throw caution to the wind and completely let loose, using his poor health as an excuse.
At the family reunion ceremony, his uncle tells Shen Chengwu to apologize to the real young master. Shen Chengwu sways with every step, then faints delicately before he can even reach him.
The protagonist shou pretends to be friendly. Shen Chengwu eats the food the other man serves him, then immediately has an allergic reaction so severe he can barely breathe, forcing them to call an ambulance.
Someone at school deliberately picks on him. Shen Chengwu gets so worked up that his heartbeat goes haywire, forcing the other person to carry him all the way to the infirmary at a sprint.
At last, everyone understands: You can't touch this fake young master. He... he fakes injuries to extort people!
Gu Jiangliu, the future head of the Gu family, has long heard that his big brother's fiance is a wicked, sickly man who's famous for being all looks and no substance.
The first time he meets Shen Chengwu, the other man is clutching his chest and coughing violently. Gu Jiangliu takes two quiet steps back and frowns. "You're an adult now. You need to learn to take care of yourself."
The second time he sees Shen Chengwu, the other man is lying in a hospital bed, breathing faintly, his features innocent.
Gu Jiangliu: "...If you know you were wrong, you can still turn back. It's not too late."
The third time, the fourth time... Gu Jiangliu asks more and more questions, and talks more and more.
"Why did you forget your monitor again before going out?!"
"You don't like my big brother, so why did you give him a present?"
"Why are you angry again? What did I do wrong?"
In the end, Gu Jiangliu stops asking questions. He simply turns Shen Chengwu into his own fiance.
*In a world where same-sex marriage is legal
A sickly, cold beauty who has to catch his breath every few steps x a cold, domineering CEO who turns into a fussy, jealous mother hen
Notes:
1. Limited perspective, and the sort of wealthy-family setting where emperors use golden hoes.
2. More notes to come.
Theme: Those who have made it out of darkness understand the meaning of light even better