Chapter 896

Li Luo understood Ying Zhicheng's reaction.

Or rather, someone like Xu Rongsheng, who could remain completely rational and calmly discuss topics like roses and The Little Prince with Li Luo, was truly rare.

So when facing Ying Zhicheng, Li Luo showed exceptional patience, meeting whatever expression he wore with calm composure, neither hurried nor flustered.

After sitting down, he exchanged a glance with Yuan Wanqing, who immediately signaled the waiter to bring out the dishes promptly.

Seeing this, Ying Zhicheng could only take a deep breath, soften his expression, and return to his usual composure.

As CEO of a major company, his emotions were generally stable.

But whenever his daughter's affairs were involved, he easily lost his temper.

Yan Ruqing's death back then had been his eternal pain, so he always wanted Ying Chanxi to live a more comfortable life.

Previously, he had already reached his limit by tacitly accepting that Xixi and Zhusheng were together with Li Luo.

But now, the situation was simply unacceptable to him.

If he agreed now, how could he ever explain himself to Yan Ruqing in the afterlife?

In truth, he had wrestled with this for a long time.

Because faced with the current situation, he simply could not think of any solution that satisfied both sides.

Ying Zhicheng knew clearly that his daughter's feelings for Li Luo were unlikely to be easily severed by him.

The best outcome, then, was for Li Luo to give up Xu Youyu.

But the result was obvious: after that day when Li Luo laid everything bare, all four children stood united on the same side, showing no sign of compromise.

Frustrated, Ying Zhicheng brought Ying Chanxi back here and spoke with her many times, yet still failed to convince his daughter.

In a fit of anger, he blocked Li Luo, temporarily not wanting to see the boy.

Now, forced into this meeting, he wouldn't throw a tantrum and walk out—he decided to stay and eat the meal.

"What have you been busy with these days, Uncle Ying?" Li Luo asked, picking up a duck tongue from the cold appetizer as he looked at Ying Zhicheng.

"Nothing important," Ying Zhicheng replied flatly. "Just handling routine company matters."

"And you've kept Xixi by your side nonstop?"

"You—" Ying Zhicheng frowned, thinking: what else should I do? Let Xixi sneak out to find you?

Fortunately, Li Luo only mentioned it in passing and immediately changed the subject: "I've talked a lot with Director Wang these past two days. The editing of 'The Beginning' is going smoothly, right?"

"Mm." Ying Zhicheng nodded slightly. "They say it's going well; according to schedule, it'll be finished by April."

I wouldn't have gone through the trouble of asking Aunt Yuan to arrange this meal if I didn't want to avoid major conflict between us."

"What do you mean?" Ying Zhicheng frowned, surprised by Li Luo's firm stance and total refusal to compromise. "I'm still Xixi's father—I can't possibly push her into a firepit for the sake of her future marital happiness?"

"Why is it a firepit?" Li Luo asked. "What isn't a firepit?"

At this, Ying Zhicheng was left speechless.

In truth, Li Luo as a partner could hardly be called a firepit.

But if any other man with similar conditions demanded that his daughter share a husband with two other girls, Ying Zhicheng wouldn't have offered a meal—he'd have punched him already.

It's only because it's Li Luo—someone whose character Ying Zhicheng knows well—that he's managed to stay calm and eat this meal with him.

"So why must you be so greedy?" Ying Zhicheng sighed heavily, speaking earnestly. "Even if I agree, do you think Xu will agree?"

"All three girls are outstanding. Any man who marries even one of them would have a happy marriage."

"But now you want all three—why create rifts between these families?"

Li Luo shook his head. "Why would there be rifts? According to Zhusheng, didn't everyone get along well during the New Year?"

"How can that be the same?" Ying Zhicheng grew angry at this, and in his frustration, blurted out: "How can you betray Aunt Yan? You and Xixi were both raised under her watch—now you want Xixi to marry you alongside two other girls."

"Do you think Aunt Yan would approve if she knew?"

"Li Luo, think again!"

Ying Zhicheng's emotions flared, and these words caused Li Luo to frown deeply.

He fell silent, put down his chopsticks, picked up the napkin beside him, and quietly wiped his mouth. Then he looked at Ying Zhicheng, stared at him for several seconds, and said: "Uncle Ying, you've eaten enough. Let's go clear our heads."

"What do you mean?"

"I remember there's a boxing gym nearby."

Yuan Wanqing panicked—she hadn't expected things to turn like this.

Seeing Li Luo and Ying Zhicheng actually rise and head toward the nearby boxing gym, she couldn't stop them, so she sent a message to Ying Chanxi.

But when Li Luo and Ying Zhicheng received Ying Chanxi's call, they both hung up in silent agreement and turned off their phones.

Soon after, the two arrived at the boxing gym and changed into their gear.

Ying Zhicheng wore red; Li Luo wore blue.

The two stood facing each other on the ring, while Yuan Wanqing waited anxiously below, fearing they'd go too far—her phone still connected to Ying Chanxi's call.

"Mom, how are they doing?" Ying Chanxi's voice came through the phone.

"They're already on the ring," Yuan Wanqing said helplessly, unconsciously rubbing her belly.

She had wanted to intervene, but remembering her pregnancy, she dared not act, afraid of causing an accident.

"Wait fifteen minutes," Ying Chanxi gritted her teeth. "I'm already on the way."

"Alright, go slowly," Yuan Wanqing hurriedly said. "Be careful on the road—I'll keep an eye on them."

On the ring.

Li Luo and Ying Zhicheng stood face to face.

Clenching his gloves, Li Luo waved at Ying Zhicheng across from him, standing casually, then said: "Uncle Ying, do you know what Aunt Yan used to say most often when she was still alive?"

"What?" Ying Zhicheng's face darkened; he stepped forward and swung a punch at Li Luo, who easily dodged it.

"He's busy with work, so don't trouble him—I'm fine alone," Li Luo smiled, sifting through memories of his childhood in the previous life. "Aunt Yan often said this to my mother."

"What are you trying to say?" Ying Zhicheng frowned, threw another punch, again easily dodged by Li Luo.

"Then guess again." Li Luo waved at Ying Zhicheng once more, signaling him to continue. "What's the one phrase Xi Xi always said when she was in school?"

"What?" Ying Zhicheng grew impatient, stepped forward with another punch—but it was a feint, followed instantly by a sweeping leg.

But Li Luo, in his soul-possessed state, saw every movement clearly; he sidestepped effortlessly again and said, "Dad's work is too busy. No need to trouble him. I'm fine on my own."

Hearing this, Ying Zhicheng's brow twitched slightly, his anger flaring up: "What do you mean?"

"Nothing meaningful." Li Luo shook his head. "But Uncle Ying, do you truly know what Aunt Yan and Xi Xi want?"

"Hmph." Ying Zhicheng let out a light laugh. "So you're saying working hard to earn money is wrong?"

"It's both yes and no." Li Luo didn't deny it. "To gain something, you must always lose something. Uncle Ying, you've held up this family, spared Xi Xi from financial worries—of course, you're an excellent father."

"But excellence in one area means deficiency in another."

"Like boxing—the more you push to attack, the more openings you expose."

"The more you defend, the more patience and composure you need."

With that, Li Luo suddenly stepped forward and delivered a hard punch straight to Ying Zhicheng's stomach.

Ying Zhicheng instinctively blocked—but the next instant, Li Luo retracted his fist unexpectedly. His left fist, which had been behind, shot upward in a sudden uppercut, striking Ying Zhicheng square in the face.

Boom!

Ying Zhicheng slammed into the soft railing beside him, stretched out a few feet, then bounced back.

"Uncle Ying, for Xi Xi, growing up without a father beside her, yet still striving to study and be the perfect good girl—"

"You don't think staying top of her grade all these years is easy, do you?"

"For Xi Xi, being alone at home—isn't that also a fire pit?"

Li Luo stepped forward again and punched Ying Zhicheng's stomach once more, sending him bouncing back against the railing.

"Wait—" Ying Zhicheng felt dizzy, then his stomach clenched violently, as if his insides were churning.

The next second, he gagged.

At the same time, someone twisted his head, forcing it directly toward the arena's edge.

A stream of vomit splattered across the floor.

"Slow down, slow down," Li Luo's palm rested gently on the back of Ying Zhicheng's skull, his voice soft in his ear. "Uncle Ying, I'm sorry for my blunt tone."

"But I can tell you this with absolute certainty."

"I can give Xi Xi happiness. You cannot."

"Hmm—let's leave it at that."

"Tomorrow, Uncle Ying, send me the promotional plan for 'The Beginning.' That's all for today."

"What about promotion?" The editing didn't concern Ying Zhicheng, but promotion wasn't under Director Wang's purview, so Li Luo asked again: "We've already had Ruan Lin set up an account for Bai Lixuan on Douyin and started preliminary promotion. Do you need them to cooperate with anything?"

"We've already prepared a plan. I'll send it to you tomorrow." Ying Zhicheng said. "It's mostly the usual—our side can offer them variety show resources, get them on programs for promotion."

"Mm." Li Luo nodded. "Then it's settled. I'll assign staff to follow up; Xiao Wen will handle the process coordination."

"Alright, I understand."

Unconsciously, the two had exchanged words about company affairs.

Only when Ying Zhicheng snapped back to awareness did he realize—why did it feel like he was reporting progress to Li Luo?

It made him feel like a subordinate!

But then he thought again, and a strange helplessness settled over him.

Though not officially a subordinate, in reality, it was nearly the same—

Ying Zhicheng knew one thing clearly: without Li Luo's help, he might never have held his current position at Huayue Film and Television.

He'd likely have been replaced long ago by the opposing interest group.

But Yuan Wanqing's second comeback and explosive popularity delayed his downfall.

Then 'A Little Reunion' turned the tide, securing his position completely.

Calling him Li Luo's subordinate wasn't technically true—but practically, it was nearly the same.

Worse still, Li Luo's 'Night Watch of Great Qian' is now up for film and TV rights sale, and Chongran Culture is still negotiating investment shares with Tencent Video.

If it succeeds, Huayue Film and Television could join Tencent Video's flagship project—then no one could shake his position.

Even better, if they could secure a stake, let Li Luo hold shares, their interest group would gain absolute veto power.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they'd directly control the entire company.

Thinking of this, Ying Zhicheng grew increasingly uneasy, fearing Li Luo might suddenly use these matters as leverage.

But Li Luo only asked casually, confirmed the promotion progress, then let it drop.

At that moment, several hot dishes were brought in by waiters.

Yuan Wanqing had chosen a small private room—not large, barely enough for six or seven people.

Now only three sat inside, spacious enough, yet the distance between them remained close.

As the company talk continued, the steam from the hot dishes rose, and the room's atmosphere gradually softened.

Halfway through the meal, chatting about trivial matters, when the mood was right, Yuan Wanqing glanced left and right, then whispered: "Shall we talk about something serious?"

At these words, both Ying Zhicheng and Li Luo paused their chopsticks.

They looked up, met each other's eyes, then resumed eating as if nothing had happened.

"What serious matter?" Ying Zhicheng spoke first. "There's really nothing to discuss."

"True." Li Luo sighed inwardly at his tone—he knew he couldn't handle this like Xu Rongsheng had. So he said: "What needs saying has already been said. It's just whether Uncle Ying and Aunt Yuan can accept it."

Hearing this, Yuan Wanqing gave Li Luo a helpless look, thinking: Why are you being so rigid too?

Couldn't you soften your tone a little?

How are we supposed to talk like this?

But Li Luo never expected to settle everything with Ying Zhicheng in one go.

Although he had no desire to damage his feelings with the elders, that did not mean he would make any concessions or compromises.

He must still maintain his basic stance, and not give Ying Zhicheng the illusion that he could be bargained with.

"My position is equally clear," Ying Zhicheng snorted, equally unwilling to yield, merely saying, "If it's just Chanxi and Zhusheng, I absolutely have no objection—but add Xu Youyu, and that's unacceptable."

Li Luo heard this and couldn't help sighing: "Our position is equally clear, Uncle Ying—I merely don't wish to…"