Chapter 154: Saying It to Him

Ling Hanyu looked at Song Qingtian, a chill in his eyes, but when he lowered his gaze to his daughter’s little face, his expression softened completely.

Song Qingtian was impressed—his mood really changed faster than turning a page!

Seeing Ling Hanyu’s doting look, Ling Nuonuo suddenly lost her fear.

She said, “Daddy, Mommy says I only belong to Daddy and Mommy. Then I’m going to tell him he’s not my belonging.”

“Mm.”

Ling Hanyu replied, “That’s great!”

Taking advantage of the moment, Song Qingtian took her daughter from Ling Hanyu’s arms and held her close.

Ling Nuonuo thought it was so much fun—both Daddy and Mommy wanted to hold her!

She stared wide-eyed at Ling Hanyu.

Ling Nuonuo smiled at him happily.

Even though Ling Hanyu felt quite dissatisfied inside, he restrained himself and didn’t lose his temper.

“Nuonuo, what Mommy just said was only part of it; there’s still more left unsaid. Would you like to hear the rest?”

Song Qingtian wore an ingratiating smile, looking even more like an innocent child—and Ling Hanyu found himself mesmerized by this.

Ling Nuonuo quickly nodded, “Yes, please!”

“Nuonuo, you’re three years old now. According to Mommy’s calculations, you won’t be able to start looking for your own ‘belonging’ until you’re twenty. Of course, ‘looking’ shouldn’t be forced. Forcing it would mean that because you’re twenty and grown up, you’d just spread your wings and leave Daddy and Mommy to find your ‘belonging.’ Right now, we’ll temporarily call that ‘belonging’ a boyfriend—more specifically, a fiancé—and on a deeper level, a husband. Do you understand?”

“I do! Mommy means I’m still too young. For now, I have to stay with Daddy and Mommy, or else I’ll get bullied—just like Mommy got bullied by Daddy.”

Only Mommy wouldn’t bully her; she’d protect her, and Daddy would protect her too, as long as she wasn’t bullied.

But if Daddy bullied Mommy, she didn’t like it at all!

So a boyfriend might bully his girlfriend, right?

Nuonuo didn’t want to be bullied—not ever!

“That’s not entirely true, though. Being bullied is indeed a real thing. Think about it: your Daddy and Mommy both love you. If you’re together, you’ll have a family like a little universe—when something happens, they’ll protect you and stand up for you. But what about kids who don’t have parents? They’d be scared, and other kids might bully them, wouldn’t they?”

Song Qingtian spoke step by step. Ling Nuonuo was very smart, and a bit sad in her heart. She pursed her lips and said, “Before, when Daddy didn’t go to school and Mommy didn’t go to school, they bullied me and called me a silly girl, a little fool girl—like I was a kid without parents.”

Ling Nuonuo felt very wronged and hugged Song Qingtian, sniffling as if she were about to cry.

Song Qingtian felt so sorry for her. Remembering how she’d been full of resentment toward the original female supporting character, she coaxed her daughter for a while before continuing, “So right now, you’re little and need Daddy and Mommy. But Daddy and Mommy are definitely not people who will stop you from growing up. When you’re older—maybe twenty, maybe a bit younger or older, nineteen or twenty-one—it’ll be time for you to be beautiful, graceful, dignified, elegant, lively, independent, and able to protect yourself. Then you can leave Daddy and Mommy.”

“Oh!”

Ling Nuonuo brightened up, imagining how wonderful that would be.

“Will I be as beautiful as Mommy?”

“Mommy isn’t exactly beautiful, but even ordinary people can be elegant—as long as you carry a whole universe within you, wherever you go, there’ll be light, and naturally lots of people will gravitate around you.”

“Oh!”

Ling Nuonuo seemed to understand somewhat, but she knew Mommy was right.

Song Qingtian got back to the point: “In short, before you turn twenty, Daddy and Mommy will protect you. After twenty, you can start looking for your ‘belonging.’ But remember: when you find it, you and your ‘belonging’ should be equals—you respect each other, love each other, and can protect one another. But never lose yourself.”

“Self?”

“Yes—your cleverness and cuteness are 100% yours when you don’t have a ‘belonging.’ But once you do, you can do a little something for them, just a tiny bit. The rest has to stay with you. Why? Because everyone falls in love with you because of your excellence, and everyone gets captivated by your brilliance. Mommy knows you don’t understand yet, but these are the fundamentals of being a girl.”

“…” Ling Nuonuo really didn’t get it, so she stayed silent.

Song Qingtian continued explaining carefully: “Let’s say, if you weren’t cute, would they still like you?”

“No way!”

Ling Nuonuo understood this perfectly.

“What if you became unattractive? What if you clung to them all day, like a snot-nosed kid, constantly pestering them and dragging them into games? Wouldn’t they dislike you then?”

“Mm.”

Ling Nuonuo nodded emphatically: “There’s a classmate who really likes her deskmate and sticks to him all the time, but he doesn’t like her at all!”

“So just be yourself. Their liking you is like a beautiful scene in your life. You can enjoy that scene, but you mustn’t get lost in it. You’ve got to know how to love and cherish yourself!”

Song Qingtian’s words opened Ling Nuonuo’s eyes—and also made Ling Hanyu suddenly realize something.

Was she talking to him?

End of Chapter 154: Saying It to Him