Chapter 353, Update 353

353:

Mu Feng looked at the person in front of him.

He looked down at the documents he had placed on the table.

To be honest, he hadn't expected Duan Yi to want to tell him these things.

He thought he came to tell Mu Shaoyan that he loved him, that he wanted to be with him, and that he would treat him well for the rest of his life.

That's just a statement.

Instead of emptying his entire fortune.

Mu Feng's agitation subsided slightly in that instant.

He admitted once again that Duan Yi was indeed a very good person.

Very responsible.

Unfortunately, he was a man.

Mu Feng sighed and said to him, "You may not believe it, but before last night, I always admired and liked you a lot, and even now, I still admire you."

“Today, if you come to see me as Shao Yan’s friend or partner, I will be very happy and even grateful to you for helping him, accompanying him, and walking hand in hand with him on his path of growth.”

"But unfortunately, you came here as his lover, as a suitor who wants to spend his life with him. Therefore, I cannot treat you, who now wants to marry him, the same way I treat Mu Shaoyan's friends."

“I understand,” Duan Yi said.

“You don’t understand.” Mu Feng looked at him. “As you said, what you’ve brought out is indeed insignificant to me.”

"A house, some shares, a little savings—I don't care about any of these."

He gestured with his chin to indicate to Duan Yi the decorations in the room.

Luxurious crystal chandeliers, oil paintings by famous masters, cabinets and chairs flown in – every piece exudes wealth.

"As you walk from the outside to the inside, from the courtyard gate to the reception room where you are now, you can see that this is the home where Mu Shaoyan grew up, the environment he was exposed to since childhood."

"He has never suffered much in his life. His family is harmonious and his brothers are friendly and respectful. His greatest hardship was probably the sense of loss during his adolescence. Apart from that, he has never experienced hardship, whether material or emotional."

"He has friends and family, and he can get whatever he wants just by reaching out. His life is stable, smooth, and carefree."

“But you are not,” Mu Feng said. “Duan Yi, you live in reality and have walked this path step by step. It has not been easy for you. Many of the things you have experienced are things that Mu Shaoyan could not even imagine. So it is destined that he will be as innocent as a blank sheet of paper in front of you, while you will be as deep as the ocean in his eyes. Once you decide to use this marriage and this relationship to scheme against him, ten Mu Shaoyans would not be a match for you.”

"I won't."

"Of course you'd say that now," Mu Feng said calmly. "People are like that when they're in the throes of new love, but when love settles down and you reach a higher position, won't you do the same?"

"I won't," Duan Yi said firmly.

Mu Feng smiled and said, "Duan Yi, I'm almost seventy. I've seen couples who started from scratch. They faced many hardships when they were building their businesses, but they loved each other deeply and stood by each other through thick and thin. Later, when their businesses succeeded, their careers grew bigger and bigger, and their lives got better and better, the man cheated on her. He fell in love with a younger and prettier woman."

"He said it was just a fling, that it was just for fun, but his heart was no longer with his former lover."

"That's what men are like. You and I are both men, so we both know very well that men and women are different."

"Women are sentimental, and the longer the relationship lasts, the deeper their love becomes."

“Men, however, will get tired of it over time and find it boring. So, others will advise him to ‘not abandon his wife who has shared hardship’ and say that the three great fortunes in life are ‘getting promoted, getting rich, and losing his wife’.”

"Emotions can become a tool for men to cross social classes at any time. Many people use emotions to become so-called superior people, and then they feel that they have endured humiliation and hardship, feeling both inferior and arrogant, as if they have suffered a great injustice. In the end, even though they have betrayed their marriage, they still act as if they are the victims."

"I can't," Duan Yi insisted.

“That’s difficult,” Mu Feng said to him. “Of all the talented people from humble backgrounds I’ve met, only one person has truly achieved a balance of humility and arrogance, without being overly proud or looking down on himself.”

“I hope you are the second one, but you are only in your twenties, still very young. I can’t guarantee that when you are thirty or forty, you will still be the same as you are now.”

"Actually, I've always been in favor of marriages between people of similar social standing. Marriages with too large a class gap are prone to problems. Like now, for you and Shao Yan, two million is nothing to Shao Yan. He wouldn't care even if he threw it away. But two million is very important to you. You will use it very carefully and hope that it will create more value."

“But I won’t interfere with Shao Yan,” Duan Yi said.

"If you can't do it now, what about later? When you live together, will you still not know how to take care of your food, clothing, and daily necessities?"

“I won’t,” Duan Yi said. “I want to be with him. I asked him to marry me not to lower his quality of life. If one day he is with me but his life is worse than it used to be, then I would rather divorce him.”

"Uncle Mu, do you think I only started thinking about marrying him this year?"

Duan Yi confessed: "No. In fact, from the first day he was with me, I wanted to marry him. When we graduated from college, we were both of marriageable age, and I wished we could get our marriage certificate, have a wedding, and commit to each other for life."

"But I don't deserve it."

"He is the young master of the Mu family. What am I? I am nothing. So I can only continue to work hard and wait until I achieve something. Only then will I dare to, and be able to, barely qualify to propose to him."

"Of course I know I'm still not worthy. The success of 'Gods War' is certainly due to our efforts, but the help from his older brother and sister is also very important, and even the support from the Mu Group for our fledgling company is very important."

"But at least it tells me that I am capable of moving in a better direction together with him."

That's why I dared to propose to him.

“I don’t expect to marry him right now. I can wait five or ten years. I just hope that if Shao Yan wants to get married one day, I can be eligible to be his candidate and compete with others.”

"For this, I am willing to agree to any of your conditions."

Hearing his words, Mu Feng asked, "What about your mother? Is she also willing to agree to any of my conditions?"

“My mother is very supportive of Shao Yan and me. She said that it was indeed my good fortune to be with him, so I should treat him well and make more efforts for our future.”

"Doesn't she want her own grandchildren?"

Duan Yi shook his head.

He said, “My parents’ marriage was not happy. They were in love, but they broke up. My mother took me and left my father, so she doesn’t think that heterosexuality is necessarily better or more stable. She respects my choice, and I chose Shao Yan. The fact that we don’t have children is an inevitable consequence. I can accept this consequence, and she is willing to accept it as well.”

"She only hoped that I could be happy."

“Then she loves you very much,” Mu Feng said.

"Aren't you the same?" Duan Yi said gently. "You're sitting here now, telling me all this, isn't it because you love Shao Yan too?"

He said, "You love Shao Yan, and I love him too, which is why we are sitting here today."

"Otherwise, someone of your status wouldn't need to see me at all."

Mu Feng smiled.

He didn't expect Duan Yi to say that.

There was no resentment, no shame, only empathetic understanding and respect from the younger generation to the older generation.

Mu Feng thought that he might indeed become the second person who, despite not having a good background, was neither ashamed nor overly proud, but was insightful and noble.

"Do you believe in love?" Mu Feng asked him.

Duan Yi hadn't expected him to ask this. He paused for two seconds before firmly replying, "I believe you."

"At least I believe in our love."

He saw the smile on Mu Feng's lips. He thought Mu Feng would laugh at him, and he was even prepared for it. But instead, he heard Mu Feng say, "I believe it too."

Duan Yi was surprised.

Mu Feng's tone was calm as he said, "Because I've been through it, I believe it."

"I told you before that I agree with the idea of ​​marrying someone of equal social standing, but actually my own love life is not one of marriage between equals."

"At that time, my parents also disagreed. They hoped that I could choose someone better and more suitable, but I insisted. My parents tried some methods, but they were ineffective. My partner and I were very determined, so they had no choice but to agree to my request."

"Later, we did live a very good life together and were very loving. Even now, after she left, I still love her very much."

"That's why I believe in love."

“Duan Yi,” Mu Feng looked at him, “you hope I can give you a chance, and you said you are willing to give everything for it and agree to any of my conditions.”

"But none of your things matter to me, and there's nothing I need you to do."

"You've already earned your own opportunities, so now you're here saying these things to me?"

"You're right. Someone of my status doesn't need to see you at all."

"The reason I am willing to see you is simply because you are Duan Yi, the person who appeared by Shao Yan's side when he was eighteen years old, helping and guiding him. Back then, you were also the one who, at a young age, dared to send Qiu Lu to the police station with just a surge of courage."

"I've said it before, I admire you."

"Therefore, I have not and will not forcibly separate you."

"But I can't bring myself to say that I'm happy to see this. If Shao Yan asks me, I'll still tell him that I prefer him to date, marry, and have children with a girl. But if he insists on marrying you, I won't break them up."

"You're only in your early twenties now. When I first met you, you were already eighteen, with a very intelligent mind, clear logical thinking, and strong mental fortitude. I didn't watch you grow up, nor am I you, so I believe in you in your early twenties. But you are only in your early twenties. I don't know what the future holds for you or your love, and I won't speculate."

“But I am Mu Shaoyan’s father. I am just his father, so I can only think of his best interests and not let him suffer too much in this marriage.”

"So Duan Yi, if you two get married, I will have Mu Shaoyan sign a prenuptial agreement without his knowledge."

“I don’t want you to tell him about this, because you and I both know very well that with his personality, if he knew, he definitely wouldn’t sign it.”

"As for your things."

Mu Feng pushed his deposit transfer agreement back in front of him.

"I don't need this."

"I don't really need this house transfer agreement or your share transfer agreement."

"But you need these two, so I'll keep these two."

“If you don’t end up getting married in the future, I will return both of these agreements to you, along with a gift from me.”

"Once you decide to get married—and Mu Shaoyan insists on marrying you, then as long as your marriage is happy and you don't do anything to betray him, these two agreements and Shaoyan's prenuptial agreement will not actually affect you in any way."

“But if you do something to betray him, I guarantee that what you will face will be far more than just these two agreements.”

“That day will never come,” Duan Yi said firmly.

"That would be best, of course," Mu Feng said calmly.

He wasn't actually that afraid of Mu Shaoyan losing money. Money could be earned back, and besides, the Mu family was large and powerful enough to withstand his losses.

What he didn't want to see was Mu Shaoyan's grief at that time.

He has lived a chivalrous and loyal life since childhood. Lu Zhao and the others accompanied him for a year. Even after he returned to the right path, he did not forget to spend money to build a future for them.

Let alone Duan Yi?

Mu Shaoyan must have been in great pain at that time.

Therefore, friends should be friends, not lovers, much less spouses.

Mu Feng leaned back in his chair. "You can leave now."

Duan Yi looked at him and vaguely understood what he meant.

Mu Feng does not support their marriage, but he will not forcibly separate them.

They can still get married, but that might not be what Mu Feng would most like to see.

"Thank you," Duan Yi said. "I promise that I will never let him down, hurt him, or cause him pain in my life."

Mu Feng remained silent.

He still doesn't want them to get married.

But if they really do come to this point, he hopes that Duan Yi can keep his word.

"No matter what, as his father, I am very grateful for your help with his studies back then, and for your decision to start a business with him later."

"You are a very good kid. He is lucky to have a friend like you."

Duan Yi was stunned; he hadn't expected him to say that.

After a long pause, he shook his head and said, "It's my good fortune."

He said, "Before him, I didn't really have any friends. It's my luck to have a friend like him."

It was precisely because he was so lucky that he couldn't let go, which led him to have inappropriate thoughts and feelings.

"Let's go back," Mu Feng said softly.

Duan Yi stood up and nodded politely to him, "Then I'll be going now. Please feel free to contact me if you need anything."

Mu Feng nodded, indicating that he understood.

Duan Yi then walked out of the reception room.

Ye Qingxi saw him coming out from afar, grabbed him, and pulled him into the courtyard, afraid that Mu Shaoyan would bump into him after finishing his afternoon nap and coming downstairs.

"How did it go?" He stood in the courtyard, holding Duan Yi's arm, and asked curiously, "How did your talk with my grandfather go? Did he agree?"