Chapter 16: Like Me

Jin Bei met those eyes and was forced to retreat repeatedly; he swallowed, and just at this moment, a knock sounded at the door.

"Knock, knock, knock..."

"Brother?"

"Brother, are you inside?"

Ling Wu looked toward the door and said, "Come in."

The door opened, and Jin Yunchu first greeted Ling Wu: "Big Brother, what are you two chatting about? I knocked for a long time and no one answered."

"Was the food tonight delicious? Father knew you were coming back, Big Brother, so he specifically asked the new chef to make it."

Speaking of this, the expressions of the two in the room were somewhat strange.

Only then did Jin Yunchu notice the shattered plate on the floor, and she chided, "How did it break? It must have been Brother being clumsy... Big Brother, don't blame him, I'll call the servants in to clean it up right away."

After she finished speaking, she glanced at Jin Bei, and the latter followed his sister out as if relieved of a burden.

Ling Wu did not stop them.

Not long after, the servants came to clean the room.

Ling Wu was standing in the hallway when he happened to run into Steward He, who said pleasantly, "Eldest Young Master, the Family Head is looking for you."

The door to the study was knocked upon.

Jin Liangjin put down the documents in his hand and looked up: "Come in."

Ling Wu called to him: "Father."

Jin Liangjin sat in his chair and sized him up; although he was in the lower position, he gave off a sense of looking down from above, his custom-made suit was as stiff and straight as ever, paired with a black dark-patterned tie.

After a long while, he said: "Sit."

"How long do you plan to stay this time you've returned?" Jin Liangjin made small talk with his son, expressionless: "You look much thinner again; even if your studies are busy, you must take care of your health."

Ling Wu: "I know."

"I don't plan on leaving this time I've returned."

Jin Liangjin agreed: "Good child, since you've returned, don't hold onto the matters of the past anymore; how can there be overnight grudges between a father and son?"

There are no overnight grudges between a father and son.

So, did his mother deserve to die?

Ling Wu sat there motionless, his entire body seemingly pressed into ice water, as dark, cold fear silently seeped from his bone marrow into his limbs and bones.

However, Jin Liangjin said again: "Ah Wu, since you've returned, your mother's research efforts from back then will not have been wasted in vain."

His expression was entirely calm, even carrying the benevolence of a loving father, without the slightest hint of coercion, his gaze peaceful.

But that tone allowed for no turning back.

Ling Wu acted as if he hadn't heard the subtext: "Father, I think you've misunderstood; I didn't return to fight for power or influence. As the saying goes, fallen leaves return to their roots; I simply missed home."

"I majored in economics in the Federation; arts and sciences are separate, and I'm afraid I have the heart but lack the strength for Mother's weapons research."

The study was silent.

Jin Liangjin was not in a hurry for his answer; instead, he smiled loosely and gave a generous deadline: "Take care of yourself; I will wait for the day you are willing."

Ling Wu ended up leaving the Jin Family overnight.

Because of his appointment with Yin Huaiyu, Ling Wu found a high-end restaurant on Sunday.

The warm orange lighting was exceptionally gentle, with bouquets and candelabras creating a unique ambiance, and the sound of violins flew like silk, melodious and pleasant.

The revolving door of the restaurant was pushed open, and Yin Huaiyu, with his flamboyant pink hair, was wearing a handmade shirt, as usual with two buttons left undone, a wine-red dark-patterned tie fastened with an obsidian tie clip, his long legs wrapped in straight-cut trousers.

Yin Huaiyu sat directly across from him: "Apologies, there was a traffic jam on the way, I'm late."

Ling Wu handed him a glass of water: "It's fine, I just arrived too."

"Thank you."

The other party reached out to take it, and a subtle, mellow men's perfume scent drifted from his cuffs, setting off that bewitching, gender-ambiguous face, which was extremely seductive.

A waiter wearing a tuxedo presented the menu.

Ling Wu asked Yin Huaiyu: "Is there any dish you particularly love to eat?"

Yin Huaiyu rested his left hand on the dining table and propped his cheek with his right, looking at him with composure: "Whatever... I love to eat whatever you order."

These words were very ambiguous.

"Alright."

Ling Wu remained calm, lowering his head under the warm orange light, revealing a slender, fair neck, and casually ordered a portion of salmon sashimi and black truffle beef tenderloin, then randomly checked off a few other dish names.

"That will be all."

The waiter said respectfully: "Very well, sir, please wait a moment."

Yin Huaiyu watched the beauty under the light, feeling more at ease the more he looked; there were only the two of them at this table by the floor-to-ceiling window, and he pushed aside the vase with fresh roses that was slightly in the way.

"Ling Wu, has anyone ever told you that you really look..." He seemed to weigh his words before blurting out: "... very alluring."

Ling Wu replied unhurriedly: "Probably only you."

"Others just compliment me on being good-looking."

The waiter began to serve the dishes in an orderly fashion.

Yin Huaiyu slowly spread his napkin, his posture elegant, like an aristocrat from the old century: "Strictly speaking, this is our proper fourth meeting, right?"

In the past, when Ling Wu's body was occupied by a Transmigrator and he frequently appeared by Jing Du's side, Yin Huaiyu would only glance from afar, or brush past him with indifference.

He didn't like to mess with people who liked his brothers.

But today is different from the past, and even Yin Huaiyu himself couldn't say where that unique feeling he had for Ling Wu came from.

Good-looking?

That accounts for the vast majority of the reason.

And that cold, transcendent temperament of his is truly very endearing.

Then why hadn't he noticed Ling Wu had this kind of temperament before?

Ling Wu picked up the knife and fork: "You could say that."

Seeing him start to cut the steak, Yin Huaiyu passed the portion already cut in front of himself over to him, his gaze burning and highly aggressive: "Eat mine."

The other party's tone left him no room for refusal.

Ling Wu smiled shyly: "Thank you."

Just as he used his fork to spear the steak and prepared to bring it to his mouth, Yin Huaiyu raised an eyebrow, pondered for a moment with a drawn-out tone, and dropped a bombshell: "Ling Wu, stop liking Jing Du, like me instead."

"Hm?"

Ling Wu was so startled by these words he nearly spat out the steak in his mouth, and his hand holding the knife and fork paused; he wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin, his tone distant: "Young Master Yin, actually, this kind of joke is not funny."

Can something that can be so easily spoken of as 'liking' still be called liking?

Furthermore, with Yin Huaiyu's family background and appearance, he is not lacking in beautiful and considerate men and women; there are plenty of people who would throw themselves at him, like moths to a flame.

But regardless of what was said, Ling Wu only wanted to finish this formality as quickly as possible to repay the favor of the other party retrieving his phone for him.

Yin Huaiyu froze for a moment, then looked relieved: "You think I'm joking?"

Ling Wu countered: "Aren't you?"

Yin Huaiyu was vague: "Of course not."

He just leaned against the back of the chair like that, his brows and eyes relaxed, a smile on his lips; under the ambiguous candlelight, the expression on that face carried hypocrisy, yet also seemed to add a touch of sincerity, hazy and unclear.