Not Even the Chicken Is Spared

"Oh, thank you, Princess Consort! I won’t be shy then!" Sean Hayes’s eyes lit up as he spotted the spread of freshly made dishes on the table, especially that plate of Crispy Chicken!

Sean remembered that Mrs. Penny was especially fond of Crispy Chicken!

Sean immediately reached out for the plate of Crispy Chicken, but to his surprise, another hand grabbed it at the exact same moment.

Sean glared at that hand, his face darkening instantly: "Who dares fight me for Crispy Chicken!"

"I’m having Crispy Chicken, whether you like it or not!" the other person snapped back, refusing to back down.

Sean looked up and saw a very familiar—and very annoying—face right in front of him. The face was covered in bruises, and it belonged to Simon Yu, who’d just brawled with Sean in the courtyard.

Sean’s eyes went wide as he glared at Simon Yu.

Simon Yu wasn’t about to lose either; he opened his eyes as wide as possible and glared right back at Sean.

Talk about a narrow road for enemies!

"Let go! Today, that Crispy Chicken is mine, no matter what!" Sean gripped the plate with all his strength, refusing to let go.

Simon Yu was originally just interested in the Crispy Chicken—not desperate to eat it. But now, seeing this annoying guy who’d just beaten him up also eyeing the Crispy Chicken, Simon’s temper flared. Today, he was determined to go head-to-head with Sean Hayes!

"I’m not backing down! That Crispy Chicken is mine too!" Simon Yu insisted, refusing to show weakness.

The two of them faced off, both bracing their stances like martial artists, each gripping one side of the plate. It looked exactly like a tug-of-war, both secretly trying to pull the plate toward themselves.

But worried the plate might break if they pulled too hard, they both had to use just the right amount of force.

In the middle of stir-frying, Lily Evans looked up and saw Sean Hayes and Simon Yu standing face-to-face, glaring at each other, both gripping the same plate, braced like martial artists.

Lily was baffled—what on earth were these two doing?

"What are you two doing?" Lily asked, expertly plating another dish as she spoke.

"Nothing, Princess Consort, I—I’m just practicing my stance!" Sean’s face turned bright red as he glared even harder.

"Me too, Lily! I’m just practicing my stance!" Simon Yu insisted, glaring even harder to keep up.

Lily gave them a look and shook her head, torn between laughter and tears. "If you want to practice your stance, do it in the courtyard! What are you doing in my kitchen?"

"No, the kitchen is... just perfect for practicing stances," Sean Hayes insisted, taking a deep breath and gripping the plate even tighter. As the plate edged closer to him, a smug grin spread across his face.

Simon Yu panicked and yanked the plate back toward himself. "Exactly! Lily, you need to practice martial arts anywhere, anytime—the kitchen’s great for it!"

Lily burst out laughing at the two with their bizarre expressions, each clutching the plate of chicken. She finished plating the last dish, told the maid to serve everything, then took off her apron and walked over. Casually, she picked up the plate of Crispy Chicken: "I only made one chicken today. I’ll take it to let Father have a taste!"

With a light touch, Lily took the plate. Neither Sean nor Simon dared fight her for it. Both instantly let go, but the force was so strong they stumbled backward and landed on the floor.

Lily glanced at the two on the floor, then walked off with the chicken. Sean glared at Simon and huffed, "You shameless rascal, you won’t even let the chicken go!"

With that, Sean jumped up, dusted himself off, packed up some dishes, and strode out with the food box.

Simon Yu: ???

What do you mean, 'won’t even let the chicken go'? What’s that supposed to mean!?