Li Tianran looked at Ding Lu, his gaze somewhat complicated.

Throughout, his team had been full of talented people. Qin Yiming, Lan Ning, and Lu Chi were all incredibly dazzling in their respective fields, completing one outstanding achievement after another. But while everyone cheered for the team's accomplishments, no one noticed the faint figure in the shadows, watching them with envious and bitter eyes.

Ding Lu, the big, honest, and loyal boy who had followed Li Tianran the longest. When he saw his friends and companions gaining power and boundless prestige, he didn't feel jealousy or resentment towards Li Tianran, but rather a sense of panic, inferiority, and unease!

When he saw his companions and friends achieve success, all he could do was work even harder in the planting area, so his efforts would be worthy of the treatment Li Tianran gave him!

But as Ding Lu himself said, his work could be replaced by any person with all their limbs and a functional brain.

So he felt very uneasy, because even if he did this simple job until the end of time, it still wouldn't be equivalent to his current treatment!

If Qin Yiming and Lu Chi and the others had obtained everything they had through their own abilities, bit by bit, from Li Tianran; then everything Ding Lu currently possessed had been given to him by Li Tianran proactively!

Assuming Qin Yiming and Lu Chi's abilities were 3, and they enjoyed the treatment and power of 3, then Ding Lu's ability was 1, but he enjoyed the treatment and power of 2.

This disparity caused Ding Lu to be immersed in internal torment every day.

Li Tianran looked at the dejected Ding Lu. He recalled Ding Lu's situation when he first arrived at the farm. To repay his life-saving grace, Ding Lu ran to the Umbrella Corporation's branch and caused a great disturbance, although he almost lost his life in the end, it was enough to prove Ding Lu's character.

He was the kind of person who couldn't accept kindness from others with peace of mind. If others were kind to him, he would try every possible means to repay them; otherwise, he would be restless!

Li Tianran was gratified that Ding Lu hadn't changed after so long and was still the honest boy he had always been.

"So, you proactively approached Damian's daughter?" Li Tianran tilted his head and asked.

Yes, when everyone was talking about this at the dinner table, Li Tianran quickly noticed something was wrong, because Ding Lu's expression at the time was very unsightly. It wasn't the happiness or embarrassment a normal boy would have when his friends mentioned his ambiguous crush, but rather a kind of uneasy guilt of being exposed.

Li Tianran immediately realized that there might be some hidden secrets behind this matter.

And as they walked along, connecting Ding Lu's situation recently, Li Tianran understood everything.

Ding Lu's approach to Damian's daughter wasn't out of love, but with a strong sense of purpose, to use his relationship with her to tie Damian firmly to the warship that was Crazy Breath Island!

Ding Lu, this boy who wasn't good at expressing himself, also knew very well what Crazy Breath Island and Li Tianran's biggest worries were at this time. He wanted to truly do something useful for Li Tianran through his own methods, to truly do something that others couldn't replace and that was worthy of Li Tianran's treatment!

"You... you know everything." Ding Lu was a little astonished.

"You're not good at hiding your thoughts. Not only me, but Tang Su and Yuan Wen may have seen through your true intentions long ago." Li Tianran took a deep breath. He looked directly at Ding Lu and said very seriously, "The reason I chose you wasn't because you had any special abilities, but because of your character."

"You're different from Qin Yiming, Lu Chi, and everyone else! I never thought of having your value reflected in working for me. You're the shield I cultivated, the person I trust the most! To put it realistically, if I were to have any accidents in the future, I would give you the command of the farm instead of anyone else. I would entrust Han Han's life to your hands instead of anyone else!"

"Because I know that before you die, you will definitely strictly follow my orders to carry out everything! No external forces can shake your will!"

"You don't need to prove yourself in this way at all! You also don't need to be uneasy because I've given you too much, do you understand?!"

Li Tianran sternly reprimanded Ding Lu.

"I know, I know you're good to me, you don't have any other requirements for me! But the more you are like this, the more restless I become. I sincerely hope to be able to help you." Ding Lu's eyes turned red, "Now that Crazy Breath Island is about to join the Human Alliance, it's hard to guarantee that Damian's mind won't change. He might be passively resisting work, or he might want to take the opportunity to escape! If he leaves Crazy Breath Island at some point in the future, we will lose a major source of help."

"For weapons experts like Damian, you can't brainwash them, you can't coerce them..."

"This is the only way." Ding Lu's voice lowered, and he said to Li Tianran in an almost pleading tone, "I beg you, please give me this opportunity!"

Li Tianran looked at Ding Lu; he was helpless.

Wanting to repay Li Tianran had almost become Ding Lu's inner demon. If Li Tianran continued to suppress him forcefully, it might cause Ding Lu to become autistic and change his personality…

"The relationship of marriage is indeed a strong bond." Li Tianran sighed, his tone softened, "But you have to know that once you are with her, it's a long-term thing… Do you like that girl?"

"…" Ding Lu didn't speak.

"Does she like you?" Li Tianran continued to ask.

"I've given her and her family a few things, and I can feel… she has a good impression of me," Ding Lu said.

Li Tianran was silent for a long time, then he reached out and rubbed Ding Lu's head. He always felt that Ding Lu was a bit like an ancient princess who was forced into a marriage for the stability of the country.

"Old brother, you've had it too rough… I really don't want you to continue to suffer." Li Tianran took a deep breath and asked one last time, "Are you sure you want to develop a relationship with Damian's daughter?"

"She's actually quite pretty. If we spend a little more time together, maybe I really will fall in love with her… Love growing over time is very common. My neighbors used to get married through blind dates, registered their marriage three days after meeting, and later lived a lifetime, quite happily." Ding Lu grinned, "Actually, if you compare her figure, appearance, and temperament, she's prettier than Tang Su. I even think I'm a bit unworthy of her!"

Li Tianran stared at the distant sky, speechless for a long time, finally looking at Ding Lu and sighing:

"You're only seventeen years old… Why do you have so many thoughts?"