Professor GU Dotes on His Wife Infinitely, Popular in the 1980s Research Compound

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Novel Info

Author:
茶多多
Status:Ongoing

Summary

Yan Zhao, the daughter of a landlord family, lost her parents at age eight and was taken in by her aunt. She was betrothed as a child bride to Gu Yu, the aunt's younger son, who was only five years old at the time. After her aunt and other family members passed away, Yan Zhao was left in the care of Gu Yu's elder brother, Gu Cheng, and Gu Yu's two sons. Gu Cheng manipulated Yan Zhao with sweet words, convincing her to stay in the village, endure village gossip, and divorce Gu Yu, who was studying in the capital. Yan Zhao believed his promises and worked tirelessly as a servant for the Gu family, only to be betrayed. Gu Cheng and his lover, Li Ling, used Yan Zhao to extract monthly subsidies from Gu Yu. Once the subsidies ceased, Li Ling revealed Yan Zhao's true value had expired, and Yan Zhao was drowned in a water vat by Li Ling.

Yan Zhao awakens reborn to the past, before Gu Cheng had fully ensnared her. She realizes the moment Gu Cheng and Li Ling begin their affair, having overheard them plotting to continue using her for Gu Yu's money. Instead of reacting with the meekness she displayed in her previous life, Yan Zhao executes a calculated revenge. She sets fire to the Gu family home, creating a chaotic scene that forces the villagers to break down the door. The fire reveals Gu Cheng and Li Ling together in an illicit embrace, exposing their affair to the entire village. The scandal destroys Li Ling's reputation and forces the Li family to demand marriage and compensation from Gu Cheng, who is left with a ruined home and a shamed new wife.

Yan Zhao feigns ignorance and kindness, manipulating Li Ling into trusting her while secretly planning her escape. She discovers Gu Cheng has been hoarding over three thousand yuan of Gu Yu's subsidies in a hidden jar. Taking the money, Yan Zhao leaves the village early one morning, heading for the capital to find her nominal husband, Gu Yu. She arrives in the bustling city, exhausted and disheveled, where she is nearly mugged by a thief until Gu Yu intervenes. He recognizes her, takes her to his university dormitory, and provides her with food, a bath, and a place to stay, treating her with a quiet protectiveness that contrasts sharply with Gu Cheng's cruelty.

In the capital, Yan Zhao attempts to return the stolen money to Gu Yu, believing she is merely a burden. Gu Yu, however, refuses to accept it, stating the money was meant for her. When a waiter at a restaurant insults Yan Zhao's rustic appearance, Gu Yu violently defends her honor, declaring her his wife to the shock of onlookers. He establishes a domestic routine for her in his dorm, partitioning the room and ensuring she is cared for. Their relationship begins to shift from distant relatives to something more intimate, with Gu Yu showing visible protectiveness and emotional restraint. However, the arrival of Liu Manqing, a wealthy classmate and Gu Yu's apparent romantic interest, introduces a new complication. Yan Zhao, insecure about her status and appearance, lies to Liu Manqing, claiming to be Gu Yu's sister to avoid conflict. The story concludes with Yan Zhao navigating her new life in the capital, caught between her growing bond with Gu Yu and the lingering shadows of her past trauma.

Novel Items

Gu Yu's subsidy

Money

Money sent by Gu Yu from the capital university for family support. Yan Zhao was entrusted with safekeeping it. Gu Cheng and Li Ling's entire scheme revolved around controlling this subsidy. Once Gu Yu stopped sending money, Li Ling revealed Yan Zhao had no more use to them.

The fire

Event

A fire destroyed the family's previous home and all their possessions, including their money. This event left the family in dire financial straits, unable to afford food or hospital treatment.

Thirty yuan

Materials

Money borrowed from the team by the Gu family to take Zhang Shufen to the county hospital for treatment after her paralysis.

Five Yuan

Item

Money Shi Meijiao paid to the woman for the basin to collect the dog's blood.

Three yuan

Item

The amount the calligraphy shop owner paid the middle-aged man for a painting during the secret transaction Li Luo witnessed, which inspired her business plan.

Dry Straw Rope

Item

A flammable material that Yan Zhao used to start the fire. She stuffed glowing embers into the dry straw rope, which quickly caught flame and spread to the firewood, deliberately destroying the Gu family home.

Latest Release

Date	Group	Release
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c11
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c10
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c9
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c8
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c7
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c6
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c5
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c4
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c3
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c2
2026-08-11	shanghai fantasy	c1

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Popular reviews

InnocentFox Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ November 28,2025

There's a theme running through these chapters that I can't stop thinking about: literacy as identity, and the act of reading as something almost subversive. Yan Zhao comes from a landlord's family — in the context of this story's historical setting, that's not just poor, that's dangerous. Being literate is a liability. So she hides it. She pretends. She keeps her head down and works hard and says nothing. The first time someone catches her reading isn't a romantic moment — it's an act of exposure. Gu Yu sees something she thought was invisible and he doesn't punish her for it. He just says "Can't you read?" as if it's the most natural thing in the world. And then he gives her a book. That book is such a loaded object. It's worn, frayed at the edges — not a precious artifact but a lived-in thing. He opens it for her. He turns the page when she gets lost. In a story where a woman's silence has been her survival strategy, Gu Yu is handing her something that lets her speak without using words. The novel becomes a symbol of the inner life she's been forced to suppress, and his gentle guidance through it is the first time someone treats that inner life as valuable rather than dangerous. The teacher calling Yan Zhao his wife is another layer of this. In a society where her background makes her unworthy, where her clothes mark her as an outsider, where she feels she doesn't belong in a bright tidy classroom — Gu Yu and his teacher are insisting on a different truth. She belongs. Not despite her past, but as the person she is now. The repeated motif of being led by the hand — literally and metaphorically — traces a path from invisibility to recognition. What's the story really about beneath all this? I think it's about who gets to define you, and what happens when someone refuses to let the world's definition be the final word.

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SupremeIQ Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ April 15,2026

There's this one image that won't leave my head. Yan Zhao sitting in the first row by the window, sunlight slanting across the desk, Gu Yu leaning over to turn a page for her. The classroom is full of people — students whispering, staring, taking notes — but the narrative narrows down to this small pocket of light and paper between them. It's cinematic in the quietest way possible. The author does something really interesting with the classroom setting. On the surface it's just a university lab — equipment, assignments, a demonstration — but it becomes this arena where every social dynamic plays out. The hallway before they enter is its own kind of stage: Yan Zhao walking slowly, noticing every gaze, every whisper, feeling the weight of being someone who doesn't belong. The text says her back stiffened bit by bit. That's not just nervousness — that's a person who has spent her whole life feeling like an intruder in spaces that weren't built for her. And then there's the novel itself. A worn book with frayed edges, something Gu Yu pulls from a bag she hadn't even noticed. It's such a perfect prop — it's not a textbook, it's not academic at all. It's a bridge. He sees her discomfort and hands her something that speaks to the part of her she keeps hidden, the part that can read but has never had the chance to read for pleasure. The sound of pages turning described as soft, the way she freezes when he reaches over to turn one for her — these details make the scene feel alive in a way that has nothing to do with plot and everything to do with atmosphere. The teacher's house invitation at the end also adds this layer of domestic worldbuilding. It's not just campus anymore — there's a home, a wife waiting, home-cooked dishes. The world is expanding around these two people and Yan Zhao is terrified of every new room she's being led into.

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CAESAR20I1s Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ June 9,2025

Let me just say this upfront: the pacing in these chapters is absolutely ruthless in the best way. Chapter 6 starts with a revelation — Gu Yu catching Yan Zhao reading — and never lets up. It's one tension after another, each one building on the last like someone slowly tightening a screw. First it's the personal revelation (she can read), then the physical proximity (holding hands), then the social pressure (walking through the hallway with all those stares), then the classroom scene where she feels completely out of place, then the quiet intimacy of the novel, then the teacher introduction where everything becomes official. That's six major beats in one chapter and none of them feel rushed. The author knows exactly when to slow down — like that moment in the hallway where Gu Yu just waits for Yan Zhao to speak, giving her space to find her own words — and when to accelerate. Chapter 7 opens right after and immediately ramps the stakes up to eleven with Liu Manqing's entrance. The confrontation is short, sharp, and devastating. Two chapters to go from a quiet moment of discovery to a public declaration that shatters someone's delusion. That's efficient storytelling. What I loved most was how the chapter endings work. Chapter 6 ends with Gu Yu saying "Come with me" and Yan Zhao following, not realizing until she sees the teacher where they're actually going. That little delay between intention and realization creates this perfect pocket of suspense. Chapter 7 cuts off right at the moment Liu Manqing's world collapses — "How could you do this to me?" and then it stops. I need the next chapter immediately. The author is clearly a person who understands that the best way to keep someone reading is to make them feel the ache of not knowing.

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VainKiller Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ September 27,2025

I need to talk about the dialogue in these chapters because it's absolutely perfect. Every line feels like it was chosen with surgical precision. Let me start with Gu Yu's most devastating line: 'You need to think what I think, that's what matters.' That's not just a romantic line—that's a power move wrapped in tenderness. He's literally telling her to stop second-guessing herself and start seeing herself through his eyes. And Yan Zhao's response? 'I... I believe you, I really don't not believe you.' The double negative! The stuttering! The way she can barely form a complete sentence because her heart is pounding so hard—this is dialogue that feels alive, that feels like a real person trying to process something overwhelming. And then there's the plump girl's dialogue, which is equally well-crafted. 'I thought Brother Gu Yu's partner would be much prettier. Her skin is so rough, and what is she even wearing?' The condescension is so casual, so matter-of-fact, that it cuts deeper than any insult could. It's not shouted; it's observed. Like Yan Zhao's appearance is just a factual problem. But my absolute favorite exchange is the dumpling scene. 'I saw you couldn't finish it, but I was a bit hungry, so I helped you finish it. It's just right—no waste.' This is Gu Yu at his most Gu Yu—finding an excuse for tenderness, wrapping intimacy in practicality. And Yan Zhao's internal reaction—relief that he was 'genuinely hungry' because otherwise she wouldn't have been able to finish—this is the kind of dialogue-subtext that makes a story unforgettable.

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Night_Walker001 Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ December 12,2025

Gu Yu's dialogue is basically one word: sparse, deliberate, devastating. Take the bed scene. Yan Zhao is about to make a bed on the floor and he stops her with: "We are husband and wife." Three words. Not "don't sleep on the floor." Not "let me help you." Just... the fact, stated like a law of nature. And the text says "The words fell heavily." They did. Because he's not just telling her where to sleep — he's claiming her, publicly, in front of the bed that's barely big enough for one person. Which is why she freezes. Which is why the next line — "Sleep on the bed. The floor is cold." — lands as both practical and tender. His dialogue with Chen Li earlier is also telling. When Chen Li mentions Liu Manqing will find out, Gu Yu doesn't even pause. "What does that have to do with me?" That's not dismissive — that's absolute. Liu Manqing's feelings are irrelevant to him. His wife is here. End of story. And Yan Zhao's voice? She barely speaks. "Mm." "Alright, go ahead." "I'm Gu Yu's sister." Her words are minimal, but the narration around them is so rich that her silence speaks louder than dialogue ever could. The author trusts us to read between her lines. That's confidence.

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BidenthebobomEG Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ April 24,2026

The atmosphere in these chapters is so deliberately crafted it's almost cinematic. Let me start with the very first image we get of Yan Zhao in the dorm: "Yan Zhao sat obediently on the chair, the damp ends of her hair dripping tiny beads of water onto her shoulders. The dim yellow light fell on her profile, making her appear soft and quiet." Dim yellow light. Damp hair. Shoulders. That's it. Three details and I can SEE her. She looks fragile but contained, like something wrapped in cloth. Then the washroom scene — completely different energy. Rows of faucets, the sound of running water, students brushing teeth, the hallway full of people. Yan Zhao feels every gaze. "Curious, inquisitive, scrutinizing. Some lingered for a moment, others were completely unabashed." And Gu Yu's response is so quiet but so significant: he shifts half a step in front of her. Blocks most of the gazes. Doesn't say a word about it. The contrast between the private dorm (intimate, dim, charged) and the public washroom (loud, bright, exposing) mirrors their whole situation. In private, they're husband and wife sharing a bed. In public, she's invisible unless someone looks too long. The author never explains this theme outright — it just lives in the spaces between scenes.

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