Xue Hui is a very weird boy. Many people in the Divine Family knew him for two things: being a diligent attendant to Chen Linlin and being a creepy, blank-faced kid.
A few months ago, Chen Zhenlong brought the little boy with him with the intention of making him Chen Linlin's personal attendant.
At first, everyone thought that due to his daughter's worsening condition, Chen Zhenlong had begun to lose his mind.
No one could comprehend why Chen Zhenlong would place his trust in such a person as his daughter's caretaker.
Xue Hui was a seven-year-old boy with lilac-colored hair and an average height for his age. He had soft features that could easily be mistaken for a girl's. Minus the creepy blank expression, Xue Hui's appearance was quite pleasing to look at.
Despite this, everyone was wary of him.
This was because not only was Xue Hui devoid of any visible emotion, but he also seemed to have no trace of life within his eyes.
Many people who caught his stare would immediately look away with unease in their hearts.
The blankness in Xue Hui's eyes felt unnatural for someone who was still alive.
And right now, these same lifeless orbs were boring into the faces of two Gold Rank experts guarding the door to Chen Zhenlong's office.
Being looked at by him, the two guards couldn't help but shift uncomfortably in place.
The boy had been staring at them for quite some time and hadn't said anything.
Urged by his companion, one of them finally spoke and asked Xue Hui what his business with the Patriarch was.
"I wish to talk with Lord Patriarch."
Both guards looked at each other upon hearing his words, troubled expressions appearing on their faces.
Chen Zhenlong was in the middle of an important meeting, and they couldn't just barge in and disturb him.
"Ah, Little Hui, is this an emergency? Is the Young Miss okay?" one of the guards asked concernedly.
After all, even with his weird state, Xue Hui was a very capable attendant, and if this was about the Young Miss and it was an emergency, they would immediately take action and call for Chen Zhenlong.
"Yes, she's okay. Linlin is sleeping."
Both guards breathed out a sigh of relief. At least it wasn't an emergency.
"Umm, Little Hui, Lord Patriarch is in the middle of an important meeting. You'll have to wait for it to finish before you'll be able to talk to him," one of the guards said politely.
Although everyone in the Divine Family found Xue Hui a little weird, no one dared to be rude to him.
This was because Xue Hui was Chen Linlin's personal attendant, and she was very fond of him. Despite his creepy disposition, offending Xue Hui was the same as offending Chen Linlin.
"Okay."
Xue Hui nodded and turned on his heel, walking to the corner of the hallway a few steps away from the guards.
Both guards let out shaky breaths after being freed from his stare.
They didn't really want to be subjected to those soulless eyes.
Thirty minutes passed, and the door to Chen Zhenlong's office opened.
Five people stepped out.
Three of them were familiar to Xue Hui. It was Chen Zhenlong alongside the two Great Elders.
The other two were people Xue Hui had never seen before.
One was an imposing man whose aura was not the slightest bit weaker than Chen Zhenlong's.
It was the Patriarch of the Sacred Family, Shen Hong.
Together with him was his daughter, a young lady with fiery red hair and sharp eyes. Her name was Shen Xiu.
The group walked toward the direction where Xue Hui was waiting.
In his hands was a tray of food he had never let go of.
The five people immediately noticed him.
As they approached, Xue Hui bowed to greet everyone.
The Great Elders of the Divine Family looked a bit awkward upon seeing him.
They really didn't want people outside the family to know that they had such a child among them.
Xue Hui was too abnormal.
The Great Elders worried that people might think they were treating him badly, causing him to end up in such a state. Such rumors could ruin the reputation of their family.
Chen Zhenlong, on the other hand, was already trying to figure out why Xue Hui was waiting for him.
Normally, the boy would stay by his daughter's side most of the time. Seeing him away from her was a little concerning.
But it didn't seem to be an emergency since the boy looked calm.
Xue Hui's kind of calm.
Shen Hong merely raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
Shen Xiu, however, did not share her father's restraint.
"Ew! What's wrong with him? Why does this boy look so creepy!?"
The people of the Divine Family all grimaced upon hearing her words.
"Hey! What's your name? What's wrong with your eyes? You look weird. Stop staring at me, you hear me!? Hello!? Are you dumb or something?"
Shen Hong cleared his throat and sent an apologetic look in Chen Zhenlong's direction.
Although he agreed with some of his daughter's observations, this was still the Divine Family Mansion, so they couldn't just start insulting their people.
"Shen Xiu, that's enough. Leave the boy alone," Shen Hong said firmly.
He then turned to Chen Zhenlong.
"I apologize for her behavior, Brother Chen. This child of mine is too forward with her words."
Chen Zhenlong shook his head.
"No need for an apology, Brother Shen. It's just a kid being truthful. Xiao Hui is indeed a little weird, but he's a good kid."
Shen Hong nodded and was about to pull his daughter away, whose face was inches from Xue Hui's, but stopped when the latter responded.
"My name is Xue Hui. My eyes can see just fine. I'm a little weird-looking. I'm not staring at you, you're staring at me. I can hear you. I'm not dumb. And you smell weird."
Everyone who heard Xue Hui's response nearly choked on their own spit.
They hadn't expected such a response from him.
Shen Xiu stared blankly for a moment before her entire face turned red.
She furiously pointed at him and shrieked.
"SMELL WEIRD!? WHO SMELLS WEIRD!? ME!? SHUT YOUR MOUTH! I'VE NEVER SMELLED WEIRD! YOU WEIRDO! HOW DARE YOU PERV ON ME!? I'M GOING TO BEAT YOUR ASS!"
Shen Xiu yelled at the top of her lungs.
Her father held her in place to stop her from pouncing on the boy.
Said boy simply ignored her and kept his gaze fixed on Chen Zhenlong.
Chen Zhenlong sent an apologetic look to Shen Hong.
The latter merely shook his head, signaling it was fine, and dragged Shen Xiu away with him.
Judging from Chen Zhenlong's apologetic expression, Shen Hong surmised that the boy held some importance to him and therefore chose not to pursue the matter.
Eventually, the Great Elders escorted the two guests away while Shen Xiu continued to shriek in anger.
Shaking his head, Chen Zhenlong turned to Xue Hui and immediately noticed the tray in his hands.
"What's the matter, Xiao Hui? And why are you waiting for me?" he asked, a little worried by the boy's unusual presence.
"Lord Patriarch, the meal tastes bad."
Chen Zhenlong furrowed his brows.
He could tell the food belonged to his daughter.
"She hasn't eaten her meal yet, Xiao Hui?" he asked concernedly.
The boy shook his head.
"I didn't serve it to Linlin. It tastes bad."
Chen Zhenlong stopped asking questions and instead sampled the food.
His face twisted.
He quickly spat it out in disgust.
He proceeded to try everything on the tray, and his expression became increasingly gloomy.
"Xue Hui, is this the first time something like this has happened?" he asked seriously.
It was one thing for a single dish to be ruined. Accidents happened from time to time.
But for every dish to taste this bad, there was definitely something at play.
The boy shook his head.
"No. I've noticed that every time Linlin eats her meals, her face looks bad. So I tried all her meals last night and today, and everything tasted bad."
Although spoken in a monotone voice, Chen Zhenlong could practically hear the concern hidden within Xue Hui's words.
While everyone judged the boy as emotionless, Chen Zhenlong knew that Xue Hui cared deeply about his daughter's well-being.
"Xiao Hui, follow me."
Both guards who had been listening straightened and quickly followed them.
The group headed toward the kitchen.
In the large kitchen, bustling noise filled the air as every staff member rushed to prepare food for the next meal.
Li Lukong, the head cook of the Divine Family for nearly thirty years, was yelling at the top of his lungs while delegating tasks.
Suddenly, an overbearing aura engulfed the kitchen, causing everyone to freeze in terror.
Li Lukong had worked for the Divine Family for a long time and knew exactly what this aura meant.
BANG!
Everyone jumped in shock as someone burst through the door.
"Xiao Hui, hand me the meal!"
Xue Hui, who had been trailing behind Chen Zhenlong with his short legs, stepped forward and passed him the tray.
The small boy appearance confused everyone.
"Li Lukong, here's my daughter's meal. Try it."
Being ordered in such a cold tone, Li Lukong didn't dare disobey.
He stepped forward and sampled the food.
His face immediately turned ashen.
After tasting it, he was so terrified that he swallowed the foul-tasting food.
"Taste the rest of it."
Li Lukong obeyed.
He didn't dare raise his head, afraid to meet Chen Zhenlong's gaze.
Every bite felt like a death sentence.
Each dish was overly salty.
It was obvious that the food had been tampered with.
This was Chen Linlin's meal.
Chen Zhenlong's only daughter.
And with everything that had happened to her, the last thing Chen Zhenlong would tolerate was someone deliberately tampering with her food.
While Li Lukong was despairing over the food, Chen Zhenlong swept his gaze across the staff and quickly noticed something.
"Li Lukong!"
Hearing his name, Li Lukong lifted his ashen face and shamefully met Chen Zhenlong's gaze.
If he could, he would immediately kowtow and smash his forehead against the floor in apology.
To allow something like this to happen in his own kitchen was a shame Li Lukong would carry for the rest of his life.
"If this had happened in any other noble family, you'd be dead before you could even apologize. You're the head cook. I entrusted you with the safety of my entire family, and yet you failed and almost caused even more damage to my daughter's health."
Li Lukong nodded in terror, his clothes drenched in sweat.
Chen Zhenlong was right.
If this had happened in another noble family, not only he but his entire family would likely have been executed.
"On behalf of our long friendship, and because of all the contributions you and your mother have made to my Divine Family, I will let you keep your head on your shoulders. But your duty as head cook ends here. Go. I want you and your family out of my estate as soon as I finish handling this matter."
Li Lukong nodded in acceptance.
He felt numb.
The only sensation he could feel was the bone-deep shame seeping through his body.
Chen Zhenlong let out a huff and turned his gaze to the second-in-command.
"Peng Yu Han, from now on you'll be in charge of this kitchen. If something like this ever happens again, you won't be as lucky as Li Lukong. Do you accept this duty?"
Cold sweat ran down Peng Yu Han's back.
Although accepting the position was like placing a blade over his own neck, he still nodded.
Being the head cook of a major family was a great honor that few could achieve.
As long as he wasn't careless like Li Lukong, he wouldn't have to worry about losing his head.
"Yes, Lord Patriarch! I, Peng Yu Han, promise that something like this will never happen again. I will personally ensure that Young Miss Linlin's meals are taken care of properly."
Chen Zhenlong nodded.
He then shifted his gaze toward the staff.
More specifically, toward the suspicious person hiding at the back.
Chen Zhenlong's strength ranked among the top three in all of Glory City.
His stare alone was enough to make ordinary people freeze in terror.
"Now that that's settled, why don't you show yourself and make things easier for your family? Because if you keep pretending you had nothing to do with the tampering of my daughter's meal, you won't be the only one who loses your head."
Tampering with a noble's food was a very serious offense.
After all, the salt could easily have been replaced with poison if the culprit had the heart to do so.
"T-The b-boy... the b-boy did it!"
Suddenly, a terrified woman's voice rang out from the back of the kitchen.
Her reaction alone was enough proof that she was the culprit.
She was also the same person Chen Zhenlong had been watching from the beginning.
"Xiao Xue, did you tamper with your master's meal?" Chen Zhenlong asked in a disbelieving tone as he kept his eyes locked on the trembling woman.
"No."
"There you have it. You heard him. He didn't do it," Chen Zhenlong replied.
"He's defi— Ack!"
Before the woman could continue, the two experts leaped forward and apprehended her.
She was dragged out of the kitchen.
The Divine Family was known for its Soul Techniques.
These techniques allowed family members to communicate over great distances.
Chen Zhenlong had already sent a command to the two guards to apprehend the woman.
He wasn't in the mood to listen to excuses.
The family could simply use their guarded Soul Search Technique to learn why she thought tampering with his daughter's meals was a good idea.
"Peng Yu Han, go and make my Lin'er a meal. She hasn't eaten anything since breakfast. Don't mess this up."
"Yes, Lord Patriarch. Leave everything to me," Peng Yu Han replied obediently.
"C'mon, Xiao Hui. Let's check on Lin'er. She might be awake by now."
Chen Zhenlong was about to leave the kitchen when he noticed Xue Hui was holding the tray.
"Xiao Hui, discard that tray. You don't have to carry that thing anymore."
The moment Chen Zhenlong finished speaking, he, Peng Yu Han, and the kitchen staff all winced at the sound of expensive porcelain shattering.
Chen Zhenlong stared at the emotionless boy and pinched the bridge of his nose.
Well, he did tell him to discard it.
"C'mon. Let's head to Lin'er's room."
The Patriarch and his attendant finally left the kitchen.
End of Chapter 5.