Chapter 150: Like Him in Your Own Name

She sat straight, her gaze exceptionally resolute.

Opposite her, Chu Tianli wore a rare, relieved smile on his face.

Meeting her father’s smiling eyes, Chu Lingshuang suddenly realized that everything just now had merely been a test set by her father.

Lowering her gaze, a faint, ambiguous smile bloomed at the corners of her lips. "Dad, is this what you wanted to say?"

Chu Tianli nodded gently, his eyes sparkling with gratified emotion as he said, "Lingshuang, you've grown up."

Seeing that his daughter finally had someone she liked, and that this person happened to be the son of his sworn brother of life and death, he felt deeply satisfied as a father.

But...

"Lingshuang."

Chu Tianli shifted his tone and slowly continued, "Although you like Xiaofeng, you still need to approach matters of the heart a bit more gently."

Chu Lingshuang did not quite understand these words; doubt lingered in the depths of her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"In a relationship, no matter which side it is, being overly aggressive is never good. Love is about equality and reciprocity."

Chu Tianli's gaze grew profound, as if he were recounting experiences from his past.

"No!"

Chu Lingshuang shook her head stubbornly, rejecting Chu Tianli's words without a moment's hesitation. With stubborn and unyielding force, she declared, "If I like something, I must possess it!"

"Dad, didn't you say it yourself before? Whatever I set my heart on, even if I have to risk my life, I will seize it!"

As she spoke, an even more intense possessiveness welled up in the depths of her eyes.

It was as if she viewed Lin Feng as a treasured object, wanting to strip him away and hide him entirely.

Her claws and fangs were now fully bared, her uninhibited aggression dialed up to the maximum, like a beast bathed in blood...

This scene was projected clearly into Chu Tianli's eyes. He sighed, took a deep look at his daughter, and said softly, "Lingshuang, if you do this, you will only push him further and further away from you."

"No one likes being forced."

"No!"

Chu Lingshuang shook her head stubbornly. "I will give him everything I can. Whatever he wants, even if it's the whole world, I will fight for it with my life. Even if it takes my entire lifetime, I will make him love me!"

Her eyes were bloodshot, her reason clearly having vanished completely.

Chu Tianli saw it all too clearly.

His daughter didn't just like Lin Feng—she had clearly fallen hopelessly in love with him!

While he was quite satisfied with this, if he allowed his tyrannical and ruthless daughter to act this way, the end result would likely only drive the boy Lin Feng further away.

That was a scenario Chu Tianli was unwilling to witness.

In other matters, he never interfered with how Chu Lingshuang handled things; after all, harsh methods were indeed necessary for many things, but not in matters of the heart.

Two people who do not love each other, even if forced together, will only have a wretched ending.

If one knows from the very beginning that the outcome of a matter is bound to rot, who would still care about the process?

No matter how turbulent and passionate it might be, when faced with a disastrous ending, no one would ever feel the inclination to immerse themselves in it!

It seemed he would have to intervene in this affair of the heart!

Chu Tianli took a deep breath and slowly asked, "Do you trust your father?"

"Of course."

Almost without a second thought, Chu Lingshuang gave her reply. To be honest, after all these years, the only person she could unconditionally trust was her family.

Faced with Chu Lingshuang's answer, Chu Tianli's eyes visibly reddened.

His daughter had never bared her soul to him so directly before. Indeed, Xiaofeng had appeared at just the right time; if not for Xiaofeng's presence, he feared he would have had to wait much longer for this moment.

Chu Tianli cleared his throat and said with a solemn expression, "Then can you promise your father one thing?"

"Go ahead."

"Put aside all the power you hold, and like him in your own name..."

At this point, fearing that Chu Lingshuang would refute him, Chu Tianli quickly added, "Give it a try, see what the outcome is. Dad also appreciates Xiaofeng; I won't lead you astray."

These words sank into Chu Lingshuang's heart, and she fell silent.

Put aside the power she possessed?

Did her father mean her identity as the eldest daughter of the Chu family?!

She did not quite understand, and looked at Chu Tianli with puzzlement.

Chu Tianli explained, "Don't use those manipulative methods to force him. Like him openly and above board, and let go and pursue him!"

"Like this?"

Chu Lingshuang's eyes flickered with suspicion.

"Yes!" Chu Tianli nodded, speaking with profound earnestness. "You must make him feel your respect. During this time, his perception of you will slowly change."

Respect...

It was a word she had never even considered.

She had tried for so long to keep Lin Feng by her side, but no matter what she did, the look in his eyes when he gazed at her was never the one she wanted.

Because of this, Chu Lingshuang occasionally felt a twinge of pain, but more than that, she felt profound confusion.

She did not know what method to use to find the feeling she desired.

Perhaps the approach her father suggested was worth a try.

She bit her lip tightly, remained silent for a long moment, and then nodded heavily. "Alright, I promise you..."

...

Emerging from the study, Chu Lingshuang ran into Lin Feng coming toward her. She gave him a deep look, for the first time refraining from any aggressive behavior.

She simply walked past his side, her hands clenched tightly at her sides trembling slightly.

Having been notified by a servant, Lin Feng had just stepped out of the elevator when he encountered Chu Lingshuang. Expecting her to pull another one of her unhinged stunts, he was surprised to find her brushing past him so quietly.

Lin Feng frowned slightly. In that brief moment of astonishment, a trace of uncontrollable loss quietly rippled through his heart.

The moment that sensation appeared, a look of disbelief crossed his face!

No way?!

What was he feeling disappointed about?

Wasn't this the exact ending he wanted—to become like strangers passing in the night?!

He hadn't even found his true self yet; under such circumstances, what qualification did he have to like anyone else?!

Besides, that person was a lunatic.

No, no, no, how could he possibly like a lunatic!

It must be an illusion. He would never forget the inhuman tortures she had inflicted upon him!

Don't go getting fond of someone so easily, kid...

Standing still right in front of the study door, he clutched his chest, subconsciously reminding himself with a faint, wry smile.

In this world, no one is truly indispensable to anyone else.

Everything was merely an exchange of interests, wasn't it?

Don't be too foolish.

Being too foolish would only lead to an even more tragic fate.

Love is unreliable, and sincere affection is the most worthless thing of all!

His eyes darkened. He raised a hand to rest on the doorknob, closed his eyes, and took a sharp, deep breath. When he opened them again, his gaze was clear and serene. Exerting force with his hand, he pushed open the heavy doors of the study.

"Xiaofeng is here?"

Inside the room, Chu Tianli's voice sounded. He smiled and beckoned to Lin Feng, "Come, come, come, sit over here!"

"Thank you, Uncle Chu."

Lin Feng thanked Chu Tianli with utmost composure, walking over to the sofa with a hint of cautious stiffness, his expression grave.

Chu Tianli smiled and waved a hand, and a servant stepped forward to pour a cup of tea for Lin Feng.

Afterward, he dismissed her with a single sentence: "You may step outside."

The servant who had poured the tea nodded and left, closing the study door behind her...