Chapter 14: Fate

“My father is in good health, thank you for your concern, Uncle Cao,” I said with a slight bow, rolling my eyes inwardly.

“No, you misunderstood. I wasn’t concerned about that bastard. If anything, I’d rather his health take a turn for the worse,” the man said, waving his hand dismissively.

His calm demeanor made it hard to believe he’d just said something so harsh about someone else.

Even I couldn’t help but frown.

Cao Zhen had said this man was a close friend of my father, and it didn’t seem like a joke.

But judging by his reaction to my father, I’d be damned if I believed they were on good terms.

This left me confused about their relationship, but it didn’t stop me from feeling annoyed at this guy.

I could grumble all I wanted, and sure, calling my father a bastard was one thing—after all, I didn’t know the full story of their relationship—but wishing ill on him?

That was crossing a line.

“In that case, perhaps my father does have a minor ailment,” I said with a forced smile, addressing the man seated before me.

“My father once mentioned Uncle Cao to me, saying you’re always upright and honorable… but now it seems his eyesight might indeed have some issues.”

If Bingqiao or Lengyu heard me say this, they’d definitely blush on my behalf.

My father had never mentioned any Uncle Cao.

I was blatantly lying, just to vent a little for my old-fashioned father.

But to be fair, this man’s every word targeted my father.

Even if they weren’t enemies, there was no shortage of bad blood between them.

Yet my father never mentioned this supposedly significant person.

Wasn’t ignoring him entirely even more ruthless than cursing him a couple of times?

Hearing my words, the beautiful woman smiled, and Uncle Cao chuckled.

I thought no one would see through my lie, but Uncle Cao clearly knew my father better than I did.

“He mentioned me? And praised me? That’s interesting. Has that stubborn old man changed his foul temper after all these years?”

Before I could respond, Uncle Cao continued, “Well, you’re young, but you’re filial. You’re not some heartless ingrate.”

I was stunned for a moment before it clicked.

So all this talk of calling my father a bastard and wishing him ill—was it just to test if I was filial?

Still, I didn’t understand why he felt the need to test me or why he’d think I could be a “heartless ingrate.”

His next words answered my question.

“Too bad. If you hadn’t defended that old fogey, I’d have one more thing to lord over him. My daughter may act like she’s not close to me, but she’s just shy about showing it. Deep down, she loves her dad the most, right?” Uncle Cao said with a regretful look, then grinned at his daughter, Cao Cao.

This bastard rambled on just to one-up my father in the parenting department?

I swear, in all my years, I’ve met plenty of boring people, but someone this absurdly petty?

This was a first.

But he got his comeuppance.

His beloved daughter, upon hearing his words, quickly hid behind Cao Zhen, shaking her head with a slightly scared expression.

“Pfft…” The man collapsed as if struck a mortal blow.

That was a more powerful attack than any words could muster…

But this guy must be a disciple of Brother Chun, because despite being crushed by his daughter’s rejection, he bounced back in no time, sitting upright in his seat again.

“I hear you’re training under a master?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“My master travels the world, and I was fortunate to gain his favor. My father instructed me to follow him.”

“Ohhh? Hmm? Ehhh?” The man drawled in a strange, exaggerated tone, looking every bit like a thug.

God, I wanted to punch him… but I knew I couldn’t win, so I settled for cursing him as an idiot in my head.

Luckily, I pride myself on my self-control—otherwise, Liu Lingshan’s natural idiocy would’ve driven me mad long ago.

The main reason I held back, though, was the beautiful woman’s next move.

She reached behind her, pulled out a frying pan, and with a smile, smashed it against the back of the man’s head with lightning speed.

“Dear, that’s quite rude, you know?”

“You’re right, my lady,” the man said, sitting up straight with a serious expression, as if he’d learned his lesson.

Yeah, no.

Maybe deal with that swelling lump on your head first if you want to salvage what’s left of your already negative dignity and image.

I glanced at the starry-eyed, chuunibyou girl Cao Cao, who looked at the beautiful woman with admiration, then at Cao Zhen, who remained as calm and gentle as still water throughout.

I sighed.

To have parents like these and a sister like her…

I don’t know whether to call it luck or misfortune.

“Miss, we’ve found the people you asked for,” a servant reported to Cao Zhen as I marveled at the Creator’s ability to produce such oddballs.

It must be the old man and the maid sisters Cao Zhen had sent people to find.

“Let them in.”

“Yes.”

From start to finish, the servant didn’t spare the man a glance, let alone ask for his opinion.

I thought he’d be furious, but he maintained his serious expression, still reflecting on the lesson from the beautiful woman.

At that moment, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of pity for this pathetic man.

To be the head of the household and act so nonchalant about it—how much “training” had this guy endured?

I suddenly thought of the heartbroken Young Master Wei.

He should count himself lucky.

If he married Cao Zhen, who’d clearly inherited the beautiful woman’s ways, and had to deal with a mother-in-law like her, his life would be far darker and more tragic than this man’s.

As my thoughts wandered, the old man and the others arrived.

Bingqiao rushed in first, checking me over to ensure I was unharmed.

She let out a relieved sigh before blaming herself, “Young Master, I failed you. I wasn’t by your side. Please punish me.”

“It’s fine. That foolish boy got lost on his own. It’s not your fault,” I was about to comfort the little maid when the old man walked in with Lengyu.

Unlike Bingqiao’s urgency, Lengyu strolled over calmly, saying nothing but giving a subtle nod to agree with the old man.

Sure, it was my fault, but hearing someone else say it still pissed me off.

Ignoring my annoyed glare, the old man bowed to the man, who had stood up.

“My troublesome disciple has caused you trouble.”

The man returned the bow with a smile.

“Not at all. Actually, I share some history with this foolish boy.”

“You know this foolish boy?”

Why did you both label me a “foolish boy” in just a few words?

“Back in the day, I met this foolish boy’s father through a fight, and we hit it off. We became as close as brothers.”

Have you ever seen brothers curse each other to death in front of their kids?

The only thing he probably didn’t lie about was that they’d fought.

I had no doubt these two clashed the moment they met—their personalities were polar opposites, natural enemies.

One rigid and conventional, the other carefree and irreverent.

Similar temperaments?

I couldn’t see it.

I didn’t buy his story, but the old man didn’t know that.

“I see. What a coincidence.”

Yeah, what a coincidence.

This guy’s daughter screwed over his rival’s son.

“Come, let’s celebrate this rare occasion. Stay a while, and we’ll drink and catch up while we welcome you.”

“If this is fate, it’s a cursed one,” I muttered, glancing at the chuunibyou girl, careful not to let the sister-obsessed Cao Zhen or the daughter-obsessed Cao Song hear me.

Yes, this was truly a cursed fate.

At that moment, I didn’t realize that their meeting was just the start of her cursed fate.

Yes.

A decades-long entanglement, a meeting that altered the course of the world, a long road walked together… it all began the moment that chuunibyou beauty, Cao Cao, grabbed my hand and dragged me into her escape from an arranged marriage.