Feng Yueshan felt he could no longer keep being "gentle."
He had backed Chen Mu into a corner. If he did not press forward now, both of them would end up at a dead end.
"Chen Mu, you've rejected me thirty-two times." Feng Yueshan's voice grew heavy. "I've never asked you why. Stop-don't give me any of those high-minded reasons. Just give me something real. If this really can't work, I'll give up."
Confusion flickered in Chen Mu's eyes. Something real? The difference in our backgrounds, the difference in our status-weren't all of those real?
"Do you like me?" Feng Yueshan asked abruptly.
Chen Mu's eyes widened slightly. Compared with his reasons for refusing, the words "I don't like you" seemed to become a weight pressing down on his soul, sealing his lips.
Chen Mu watched as light slowly bloomed in Feng Yueshan's eyes.
Yet instead of sharing Feng Yueshan's joy, Chen Mu felt something akin to despair well up inside him.
"Young Master Feng." Chen Mu's voice was hoarse.
Feng Yueshan had the illusion that even the wind had gone still. He held his breath and focused. "Go on."
"Do you remember accompanying your father to meet a business partner at the Huajincheng Hotel once?" Weariness seeped into Chen Mu's voice.
Feng Yueshan vaguely recalled the occasion. "Yes. What about it?"
"You were standing in the hallway talking. The sound echoed, so I could hear you clearly. Of course, I wasn't deliberately eavesdropping. I was having dinner with an investor that day. It was a coincidence."
Feng Yueshan nodded.
Chen Mu said, "Your father loves you very much. He also thinks highly of you."
Feng Yueshan did not understand, but he went along with him. "Yes, our family gets along well. I have a younger brother, too. I'll bring