Inside the small wooden hut outside the cemetery, Evan Chu had already finished cooking and was waiting for Chloe Snow to return.
After waiting for about fifteen minutes, a thin, small figure was struggling up the rugged mountain path leading to the cemetery—it was Chloe.
"You're back?"
Standing in front of the hut, Evan Chu smiled at Chloe.
"Young master, I'm sorry I'm late. I'll go make your meal right away!" Chloe kept her head down, not daring to meet Evan's eyes—she was afraid he would notice the whip mark on her face. That's right, Blake Chu's riding whip had landed squarely across her cheek.
"Wait!"
Evan called out to her, "What happened to your face?"
"I... I tripped and fell!" Chloe stammered.
Evan almost laughed out of frustration—did she really think he was blind? That kind of wound couldn't possibly come from a fall; it was clearly a whip mark.
However, he paused and chose not to press further. Instead, he said, "I've already finished cooking. Go wash your hands and come eat!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Evan turned and walked into the hut. But as he turned, a cold glint flashed in his eyes—whoever dared to hurt his maid would pay tenfold, or even a hundredfold.
Seeing that Evan didn't keep questioning her, Chloe finally breathed a sigh of relief. But then she froze—did her young master just say he'd already cooked?
Young master can cook?
Before the trouble at the Chu Family, her young master was just the type who only knew how to eat, drink, and play. How could he possibly know how to cook?
With these doubts swirling in her mind, Chloe quickly washed her hands and hurried into the hut.
When she saw the big bowl of meat, the pot of bone soup, and a whole pot of white rice on the table, she froze. Then her face turned pale, and she blurted out, "Young master, did you cook all the rice we had?"
"Yep. Come sit down and try your young master's cooking!" Evan nodded and beckoned her over.
But Chloe didn't feel happy at all—instead, she felt like crying. There was only that little bit of rice left in the house, and now Evan had cooked all of it. What would they eat after this?
What's more, Blake Chu had already forbidden her from working in town, and she hadn't even gotten paid yet. If the rice was gone, wouldn't they be left starving in the days to come?
Seeing Chloe looking like she was about to cry, Evan said, "Don't worry. From now on, I'll take care of our food. You won't go hungry!"
"But...!"
"No more buts. Hurry up and eat, unless you want to make your young master angry again!"
Seeing Evan about to get mad, Chloe quickly walked over and sat down obediently.
Evan picked up the wooden bowl to serve rice, but Chloe snatched it away. "Young master, let me do it!"
"Remember, from now on, don't ever call yourself a servant in front of me. You're my only real family in this world. From now on, call me 'big brother!'"
"Ah!"
Chloe stared blankly at Evan, forgetting all about serving the rice.
"What are you 'ah'ing about? Hurry up and serve the rice. Are you trying to starve your brother?" Evan urged her, half-joking, half-annoyed.
Chloe snapped out of it and quickly said, "Okay, big brother!"
A sweet smile bloomed on her face.
"Don't just eat rice, you need to eat meat too. You're still growing, so you have to get enough nutrition." Evan picked up a piece of Demonic Beast meat and put it in Chloe's bowl.
"It's fine, I can just eat rice!" Chloe hesitated.
"What, you're not going to listen to your brother? If I tell you to eat, you eat!" Evan's face darkened as he spoke.
"Don't be mad, big brother! I'll eat it!" Chloe quickly picked up the Demonic Beast meat and put it in her mouth. She froze for a moment—it was the best thing she'd ever tasted, and even beyond the flavor, she could feel a kind of happiness in every bite.
"Isn't it delicious?" Evan asked with a grin.
"Mm, it's so good!"
"Then eat more!"
............
Gracefield Town. The sprawling Chu Family estate covers a hundred mu.
The Chu Family has dominated Gracefield Town for centuries. One third of the town's businesses belong to the Chu Family, with the remaining two thirds split among the Qin, Lee, Zhou, and Wang families.
After Evan Chu was crippled and sent to guard the ancestral graves, Drake Chu became the new head of the Chu Family.
Stone Chu now serves as the Grand Elder of the Chu Family.
"Father, guess who I ran into today?"
In the patriarch's private residence, Blake Chu was having dinner with his father, Drake Chu.
Drake Chu was just over fifty, with two sons and a daughter.
His eldest son, Ray Chu, was currently serving in the army and rarely returned to Gracefield Town.
His elder daughter, Yen Chu, was already married into another martial family in a larger town.
With both his eldest son and daughter away, he placed all his hopes on his second son, grooming him as the next head of the Chu Family.
"Oh? Who did you meet?"
Drake Chu leisurely picked up his wine cup, took a sip, and asked.
"That fool's maid, Chloe Snow." Blake picked up the wine pot and refilled his father's cup. "I heard that fool's household is almost out of grain, so the maid came to town to work and earn money for food!"
Drake Chu paused, a complicated look flashing in his eyes. To be honest, before Thomas Chu passed away, he had treated him as an elder brother quite well. But Drake had always resented that their late father hadn't passed the patriarch's position to him, leaving him bitter. So when Thomas died, Drake and Stone Chu seized the chance to take control, and to eliminate any future threat, Drake personally crippled Evan Chu's dantian.
Honestly, he had wanted to kill Evan outright, but worried about gossip, he left Evan alive.
But later, hearing that Evan had gone mad, he paid no more attention.
"Evan is already a cripple; there's no need to waste any thought on him!"
But Blake's eyes gleamed with ambition. "But Father, I heard that Second Uncle didn't cultivate our family's Tiger Roar Art. And after he died, we never found a copy of his technique. I think he must have passed it to that fool Evan. If you could get Second Uncle's method, maybe you'd break through to Divine Sea!"
Drake Chu frowned. "But that kid's already crazy. Even if he knows the technique, what use is it?"
"He might not really be crazy—maybe he's just pretending to survive!" Blake guessed.
Drake Chu didn't believe it. "Blake, you're giving that kid too much credit. He was just a spoiled brat who only knew how to eat, drink, and play. No way he's that cunning!"
A cold light flashed in Blake's eyes. "Shouldn't we send someone to test him? If he's truly a fool, fine. But if he's pretending, we must force out Second Uncle's cultivation method!"
Drake Chu nodded thoughtfully. "In that case, send Charles Chu to pay him a visit!"
Charles Chu was originally the Chu Family's second steward, a Tempering Body nine expert. He'd long been bought off by Drake Chu, and after Thomas Chu's death and Drake's rise as patriarch, Charles became the chief steward.