Chapter 121: Persuasion

“Did you know all along?” Tang Yi asked Gu Qingyue.

Gu Qingyue chuckled softly. “How could I have known you were his idol? But that actually works out well—you’ll have to help even more with this now.”

Gu Ding’s parents hadn’t come home from work yet, so Gu Ding busied himself serving tea and water to Tang Yi with great enthusiasm. Gu Qingyue and Little Lucky Egg went to fetch the young Sparrow Girl who had been quietly staying in her room.

The sparrow was still in a rapid growth phase. Gu Qingyue explained that it had only hatched a few weeks ago. Its petite body was covered with brown, feather-like crests resembling a crown, and its wings were still very short—clear signs it had not yet fully developed.

“Sparrow, this is Brother Tang I mentioned before, and this must be Tang’s partner, Lalulasi. See? I wasn’t lying,” Gu Ding said earnestly, as if he had finally found an ally.

Gu Qingyue lightly tapped his head and said, exasperated, “Stop stirring the pot. I called Tang Yi here today to mediate between you two.”

Sparrow was cold toward Tang Yi, her voice crisp. “Hmph. When I go to the welfare center, you can go buy yourself another Lalulasi. I won’t be in your way anymore!”

Gu Ding snapped back angrily, “What are you saying? I’m doing all this for your own good!”

“All right, all right, can you both just calm down?” Gu Qingyue’s head began to ache. Every time she came, these two would start bickering within minutes.

Tang Yi watched quietly. Hearing Gu Ding’s words just now, something suddenly clicked for him. He waved to Gu Qingyue to hush and turned to Gu Ding. “I’ve heard you treat Sparrow well, is that right?”

Gu Ding seemed to find a vent for his frustration. “Yeah! When she just hatched, she only drank imported milk. Do you know how expensive that is? My dad was reluctant, so I used all my saved pocket money and New Year’s money. To find a suitable training class, I ran all over the city every weekend, visiting and comparing every place. Do you think that was easy for me?”

Hearing this, Tang Yi shook his head and cut him off sharply. “No, you don’t really like Sparrow. That’s just an excuse. You keep saying you’re doing it for her, but it’s just moral manipulation.”

Gu Qingyue grew anxious. She had asked Tang Yi to mediate, not to pour gasoline on the fire.

But Tang Yi gave her a reassuring look to be quiet. Gu Qingyue hesitated, then, after knowing him for so many years, chose to stay silent, albeit with some doubt.

Gu Ding wanted to argue but was interrupted by Tang Yi again.

“All your efforts are real, of course, but you expect equal returns from Sparrow. That’s where it goes wrong. She is your partner, meant to be your lifelong companion, not your puppet. Only a puppet without feelings can be manipulated at will.”

“I’m not,” Gu Ding protested, feeling wronged.

“You are!” Tang Yi immediately shot back. “Let me be blunt. Your grades aren’t good, so you want to force Sparrow to do what you cannot. You just want to reap rewards without effort, having Sparrow study hard for college while you sit back. Compared to that payoff, the money you spent is nothing more than an upfront investment. Isn’t that true?”

Tang Yi’s words came sharp and fast, leaving no room for rebuttal. He was almost painting Gu Ding as a cold, selfish villain.

“No, that’s not true.” Gu Ding’s eyes reddened; he looked like he might cry.

“Hey, shut up!” Sparrow, who had been silently observing, suddenly stood up, pointing angrily at Tang Yi. “Who are you to say that?”

Tang Yi winked at her. “I’m just trying to help you.”

Sparrow hesitated, then, with even more anger in her voice, said, “He did go too far, but your words are even worse! You don’t know how he treats me daily. What right do you have to accuse him like this?”

Little Lucky Egg glanced strangely at Lalulasi beside him, who wore a face that said, “I knew this would happen.”

Tang Yi looked puzzled. “So, does Gu Ding usually treat you well?”

“Yes! I like lean meat, and when we eat, he always bites off the leanest parts for me…” Sparrow said proudly, then suddenly realized something was off and fell silent.

Tang Yi spread his hands and smiled. “Okay, problem solved.”

Gu Ding came back to his senses, amazed that Sparrow, who had been upset just days ago, was now standing up for him. He looked at Tang Yi gratefully. “You said that on purpose, didn’t you? Thank you so much. I almost believed it.”

“No, I wasn’t trying to be clever. That’s the truth,” Tang Yi said, his smile fading just a bit. “Just like Sparrow tried to see things from your perspective, you should try to understand her.”

“Try to put aside your pride as a human trainer and get along with Sparrow. As for training classes, everyone has their own methods. I won’t say more, but I can tell you, my Lalulasi never attended any training classes before.”

After a pause, Tang Yi looked at Sparrow. “The same goes for you. Understanding and respect go both ways. Also, anger makes you lose your reason temporarily. Remember not to focus only on the negatives.”

Both fell into deep thought.

After a long moment, Gu Ding suddenly stood up and gently took Sparrow’s small hand. Sincerely, he said, “Sparrow, I won’t pressure you so much next time. I was wrong before.”

Sparrow said nothing but didn’t pull her hand away, which was almost as good as words.

“We should be going,” Tang Yi said quietly to Gu Qingyue, knowing some things might be awkward for Sparrow to voice with others around.

The major conflict was resolved; the rest was just mutual communication, which should pose no problem.

Gu Qingyue understood.

They all rose and took their leave.

On the way back, Gu Qingyue was both impressed and curious. “You really have a way with words. But I’m a bit curious—if Sparrow hadn’t defended my brother and argued with you, what would you have done?”

Tang Yi had already considered that possibility and answered without hesitation, “I would have introduced Sparrow to the Chang Le Welfare Center. I know someone there, so I could have helped her get in.”

Gu Qingyue was speechless. “You actually planned to say that?”

Tang Yi smiled. “They say it’s better to reconcile than to part. But if I criticized him and Sparrow remained indifferent, it would mean she’d truly lost hope. In that case, it’s better to leave sooner than suffer longer. That would be good for both of them. But well, the outcome is good, isn’t it?”