He stared at her for a moment, then suddenly said, "To be fair, Shen Tingyu is handsome and talented enough. He also has that gentle temperament girls adore. You've spent all this time with him—have you developed any feelings?"
"..." Cui Lingyao fell silent. Her tone was complicated as she said, "If I said I have, would you let us be?"
'Let them be.'
Xie Jinbai's eyes turned cold. "In your dreams!"
'Tsk...'
"Since you're not giving me any other choice, why do you even care?" Cui Lingyao said irritably. "You're all-powerful, anyway. Who could possibly defy you?"
"It's not the same."
'Her feelings were something he couldn't obtain no matter how hard he schemed. How could he not care?'
'Even though he'd resolved not to let her go, regardless of whether she'd fallen for someone else...'
'He still couldn't bring himself not to care.'
Xie Jinbai tightened his arms, holding her closer as he murmured, "In any case, we will resolve our own issues. Just don't fall for anyone else."
