All the goddesses in the world are lusting after my body.

"It's no bother, Jiang Tang, Yu Qing, you can continue."

After saying that, President Mu prepared to close the door and leave, perhaps going back to his study or perhaps making a cup of hot tea in the living room.

But just then, Jiang Tang suddenly spoke up.

"Mr. Mu, may I take up a little of your time for a moment?"

"I have something I'd like to talk to you about."

Are you scared? 105

Even Jiang Tang felt significant pressure facing a successful middle-aged man.

Mr. Mu was reading in his study when Jiang Tang, guided by the maid, came to him.

He was actually very easygoing and had prepared a chair for Jiang Tang in advance, sitting right opposite him.

Jiang Tang sat down, and President Mu put down his book, crossed his fingers and smiled. They then naturally began exchanging pleasantries.

“Jiang Tang, when my Yuqing recommended you to me, I was a little skeptical, but after I checked your grades at school.”

"Truly, heroes emerge from among the young. Thanks to you, Yuqing's interest in learning has increased significantly."

Indeed, Mu Yuqing would mutter to herself every few days, "When is Jiang Jiang coming?" To others, it would naturally seem that she wanted tutoring.

"Mr. Mu, you flatter me. I was just doing what I should do."

"No, I can see your good intentions. I thank you on Yuqing's behalf."

"What brings you here today? If it's about salary, don't worry about that. Didn't Yuqing tell you that I got a raise of three thousand per class hour?"

"If that's the case, I'll give her a good talking to."

"No... she told me about that a long time ago. On the contrary, I always felt that the price was a bit too high."

"Of course, what I want to talk to President Mu about now is not about salary."

Jiang Tang clenched his fist slightly.

President Mu frowned in confusion.

"What's that?"

"Although it might be inappropriate for me, given my position, to discuss your family matters, Mr. Mu..."

"..." President Mu's brows furrowed even more.

"But don't you think you've been somewhat neglectful of your youngest daughter, Mu Yunyi?"

"Just like when you were talking to me, you couldn't stop talking about Yuqing. Yuqing is a very good child." Jiang Tang didn't mean it sarcastically. In his eyes, Yuqing was also a beautiful jade, only she was a beautiful jade that he had willingly stained.

As for Mu Yunyi, she was like an uncut gem, clearly capable of being radiant and dazzling, yet no one cared about her, showed her any interest, or tried to discover her potential…

They are both beautiful jades, even sisters, so why are they treated so differently?

“Yuqing is a very good child…” Jiang Tang repeated, “but Yunyi also deserves your care.”

"If Yunyi had received proper upbringing from the beginning, and had a counselor provided for her, she wouldn't be much worse off than Yuqing now. Yunyi, she..."

"Her what?" President Mu's tone was low, and his eyes clearly showed some displeasure.

They didn't really refute Jiang Tang's words just to maintain a facade of politeness.

If an ordinary person were in the face of his aura, they would only shrink back and stop insisting on expressing their own ideas.

But Jiang Tang had anticipated this step, so he did not give up.

"She is your daughter, just like Yuqing."

The air seemed to freeze the moment Jiang Tang uttered those words.

Jiang Tang and President Mu locked eyes. One was worth hundreds of millions, while the other was just a high school graduate, yet he remained composed and dignified.

"Jiang Tang, actually I admire you."

After a long silence, President Mu suddenly spoke.

"Thank you."

"But you just need to do your own thing, instead of meddling in my family affairs. Every family has its own problems. Please don't use the principles you learned in school to measure every part of this world, to correct things, to set things right, and to get back to what you think is the 'right track'."

"That would be tiring and pointless."

"why."

"Not every question can be answered, but I happen to be free today, so it's okay to chat with you."

President Mu took a sip of the strong tea beside him. It must have been very bitter. Yuqing had complained to Jiang Tang that she had tasted the tea her father drank, and it was simply inedible.

But his expression seemed completely numb. He had grown accustomed to the bitterness of day after day, year after year. What could possibly break his composure?

Do you really think that everything you've done is a good thing for Yunyi?

He raised a question, but his purpose was not to get Jiang Tang to answer it; rather, he continued the conversation himself.

“You are not the person who has been with her the longest, nor are you her family. You don’t know her past and you can’t guarantee her future.”

"But with selfish concern, they stand on moral high ground looking down on me and advising me. Is that really reasonable?"

“I am not standing on a moral high ground, but simply expressing what I see and feel.”

Jiang Tang tried to control himself, maintaining a calm tone and remaining composed in the face of the man's powerful aura and eloquent arguments.

“You naturally have the right to express your views, but I also have my own observations and experiences.”

"Can you sense her fear and apprehension towards the outside world? Did you help her when she stepped into school and faced ridicule from unfamiliar classmates or reprimands from teachers?"

"Have you ever experienced what it feels like for her to cry in your arms, saying she's afraid of books and words?"

"Do you know that since you came, Yunyi has smiled less—or perhaps she smiles more in front of you, making you mistakenly believe that what you are doing is right?"

"But after you leave, you will only come two days a week, and you can only stay for a few hours each day. What about the remaining five days, and the remaining dozen or so hours of day and night? What you see is not all of her, and please don't selfishly become someone else's everything."

"Who exactly are the family members who will accompany her throughout her life?"

"You are like a sudden rain, which can indeed relieve the drought in a region in a short time, but what about after that? The land cracks again, and the heart bleeds and scabs again. What is more painful than receiving rain is having been nourished by rain and then cracked again by being exposed to the sun."

"Yunyi is an introverted child, the kind of child who can grow well without much rain or dew, like a mushroom, preferring to hide in dark and damp places." President Mu said calmly, but his words were anything but calm.

On the contrary, his series of rhetorical questions were so powerful, not because of emotion, but because he was pointing out "another reality" that many people overlook.

This reality stirs up a storm in one's heart.

Most people have long given up on debating, because there is nothing to argue about in the face of facts.

But is reality always the right thing to do?

"Is a life where one person, three meals a day, a bathroom, and a bed are enough to live out the rest of their life? Is a life that desires nothing the kind of happiness you think it is? Is a life that merely satisfies material needs the future that you see as suitable for Yunyi?"

"In the end, is it Mu Yunyi who is satisfied, or your desire for control?"

President Mu smiled but did not answer. The two held their own opinions, and neither could convince the other.

But Jiang Tang couldn't keep arguing, and in the end, only her father could help Yun Yi choose her own path in life.

So from the very beginning, Jiang Tang had already lost. He was like a sudden rainstorm, giving Mu Yunyi a period of time as refreshing as a dream, but the rain will stop and the sky will clear, just as people will leave.

If we cannot find a real way to break the deadlock, and cannot see through Mu Yunyi's father's true purpose, the reason why he decided to restrict his daughter's life.

That would prevent him from changing his mind or Mu Yunyi's future.

But without evidence or clues, what could Jiang Tang rely on?

All that's left is speculation.

A bold guess, yet a guess based on reality.

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Tang looked into President Mu's eyes again, pretending that he already knew some secret.

This time, the latter was somewhat moved by Jiang Tang's next words.

"Mr. Mu, you're actually scared, aren't you?"

106 The Secret Revealed

"You're afraid that Mu Yunyi will leave your side."

"You're more afraid...of something happening to her."

Jiang Tang emphasized the word "unexpected," and he kept his eyes glued to President Mu's face.

This man never seemed vulnerable; he was so calm and composed, with a powerful aura—qualities that a leader should possess.

But Jiang Tang was equally certain; for a fleeting moment, when he forcefully uttered the word "accident."

Mr. Mu, you've shown a hint of vulnerability.

I'm sorry I saw it.

Like the scars on a swordsman's back, a man's vulnerability is always kept to himself. After composing himself, he faces his family with a normal face again.

"What do you want to say, Jiang Tang? After you've finished tutoring my daughter, you should leave," President Mu said coldly.

This is an order to leave.

“Yuqing told me about her mother…” Jiang Tang ignored him and murmured thoughtfully.

"I said, you should leave now, and don't come back again!"

President Mu's voice was like a suppressed lion, and his eyes were even a little red. Jiang Tang had no doubt that the man in front of him would call security guards and drag him out the next moment.

This is the price of choice. Jiang Tang could, of course, just ignore other people's family affairs, come to teach four classes a week as usual, comfortably receive a reward of 12,000 yuan, and after a summer vacation, earn an exorbitant amount of tutoring money, pat his butt and leave.

But now, he has to stop running this business on his own, and he and Yuqing will probably not have many opportunities to meet every week in the future.

He quite liked Yuqing, although this seemed somewhat inconsistent with his cold attitude towards her in reality, where she was usually the one pursuing him.

But if Jiang Tang didn't treat Yu Qing well, why would she go out of her way to be with him?

He also likes Yunyi, which is why he's standing up to her father for her sake.

Or perhaps it's more of a feeling of heartache than liking.

“Yunyi looks a lot like her mother, doesn’t she?” Jiang Tang smiled sadly; he could actually understand the man in front of him very well.