Chapter Twelve: A Father's Revenge

“Grandma, which room will I stay in?”

Sun Siyu followed Yui Maeda into the Maeda mansion. The servants they passed greeted Yui and Sun Siyu respectfully, clearly already aware of Sun Siyu’s identity.

“Mai, take Siyu to see his room. Siyu, follow Sister Mai and take a look around your new room. If you think anything is missing, just tell Sister Mai directly, and she’ll prepare it for you.” Yui knelt down and affectionately stroked Sun Siyu’s head.

“Come with me, young master,” Mai gestured invitingly.

Sun Siyu responded with an “Oh,” then reached out his small hand, trying to hold Mai’s hand.

Instinctively, Mai pulled her hand back, casting a slightly fearful glance at Yui.

In the Kingdom of Sakuragi, the hierarchy between master and servant is very clear. The master is the master, and the servants are servants. Servants cannot take the initiative to get close to their masters. This is even more strictly enforced in a big family like the Maedas. On the plane, it was only under Yui Maeda’s orders that Mai dared to hold Sun Siyu. Now, without Yui’s permission, she dared not take the initiative to hold Sun Siyu’s hand, even if it was he who reached out first.

“What’s wrong, Sister Mai?” Sun Siyu looked at Mai in confusion.

Yui gave Mai a slight nod.

“Mai, take the young master upstairs.”

“Yes, young master, let’s go.” With permission granted, Mai took Sun Siyu’s small hand and led him upstairs.

After watching Sun Siyu go upstairs, Yui sat down on the sofa, accepted a glass of boiled water from Chiyo, and took a small sip.

“President, should we bring the young master’s luggage upstairs?” Chiyo asked cautiously from the side.

“Throw it all away,” Yui replied coldly.

“Throw it away?”

“I don’t want him to keep anything related to his past,” Yui said firmly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

The room Yui prepared for Sun Siyu was at the corner of the second floor. Opening the door revealed a nearly hundred-square-meter bedroom filled with toys characteristic of the Kingdom of Sakuragi: toy cars, airplanes, dolls, plush toys, a swing chair... It resembled a small children’s playground.

“Wow...”

Children have no resistance to toys. Although Sun Siyu was highly intelligent, that didn’t mean he wasn’t childish.

“Sister Mai, come play with me.”

Sun Siyu sat on a small seesaw, waving to Mai.

“Uh, okay.” Mai hesitated for a moment, but recalling Yui’s approval, she stepped forward and began playing with Sun Siyu.

...

“Sister Mai, why don’t you ever smile? Are you unhappy playing with me?”

Sun Siyu sat on a swing, puffing his cheeks and looking upset at Mai’s cold expression standing nearby. At the Ling residence, the servants adored the young master. Whenever they finished their tasks, they eagerly came to play with him, and everyone enjoyed themselves joyfully. This was a good habit cultivated for Sun Siyu in the large Ling family: it’s better to make others happy than just yourself. But here, only Mai played with him, and she never smiled. In these three days, she had accompanied him around the entire Maeda estate, showing him every scenic spot. What was new and fascinating to Sun Siyu might have been mundane for her. In these three days, she hadn’t smiled once.

“Ah, no, it’s not that. I’m happy. It’s an honor for me to accompany the young master,” Mai explained, looking at Sun Siyu.

“I want to go home. I want to go home. This place is no fun at all. The whole house is cold and lifeless. I miss Mom. I want Mom!” Sun Siyu suddenly threw a tantrum.

“Young master, young master, I’m playing with you, and I’m very happy. I’m smiling...” Mai panicked as soon as Sun Siyu started crying. She knew that Yui had assigned her the task of taking good care of the young master and preventing him from wanting to return to the Ling family. If Yui heard Sun Siyu’s crying, Mai would be in serious trouble. She forced a smile, perhaps because she hadn’t smiled in so long, it looked stiff and strained.

“Then today, can you take me out to play? Staying here all day is so boring,” Sun Siyu said, stopping his fuss when he saw Mai smile. During his ten years at the Ling residence, he had learned never to trouble the servants. That’s why the Ling servants had voluntarily sent him off when he left. These days, he got along well with Mai. When he missed home at night and couldn’t sleep, Mai would hold him gently, pat his back, and sing softly like a mother until he fell asleep.

“Well, I need to ask the president first,” Mai replied.

“Knock knock.”

The door to Sun Siyu’s room was knocked on, and Chiyo appeared in the half-open doorway.

“Young master, breakfast is ready, and the president is waiting for you.”

“Oh, okay.” Sun Siyu jumped down from the swing, put on his slippers, and ran out.

“Young master, here’s your jacket and scarf.”

Mai quickly grabbed Sun Siyu’s coat and scarf from the nearby rack and helped him put them on.

In the dining room on the first floor, Yui Maeda and Sun Siyu sat cross-legged on red cushions. On the elongated redwood table lay dishes, soup, sushi, sashimi, cold dishes, stewed delicacies...

Sun Siyu sat at the table, holding chopsticks, looking at his meal—soup, rice, a whole fish—and pouted, puffing his cheeks. He slowly picked up a piece of fish with his chopsticks.

“Siyu, what should you say before eating?” Yui reminded him.

“I’ll start eating.”

“There’s no flavor at all...” Sun Siyu complained as he chewed the fish.

“Siyu, eating food in its original flavor is healthier,” Yui smiled, picking up a slice of sashimi, dipping it in sauce, and placing it on his plate.

“Grandma, can you ask Sister Mai to take me out to play today?” Sun Siyu put his chopsticks in his mouth and looked at Yui expectantly.

“Hmm, sure. As long as you finish your breakfast obediently, I’ll have Chiyo and Mai accompany you outside,” Yui said after a brief thought, adding a piece of sushi to his plate.

“Okay.” Excited, Sun Siyu picked up his chopsticks and spoon and began eating heartily.

“Chiyo, Mai, please get ready,” Yui said, smiling as she watched Sun Siyu eat so happily. This was probably the first time in three days he had eaten so well.

Yui occasionally helped him with his food to balance his nutrition. Eager to go out, Sun Siyu ate heartily.

“Siyu, when you go out later, if you want to go somewhere, just tell Sister Mai and Sister Chiyo. They’ll take you there. You must not wander off alone, understand?” Yui instructed.

“Hmm, Grandma, aren’t you coming?” Sun Siyu rubbed his belly and leaned back in his chair, looking at Yui.

“Grandma has other things to attend to later, so I won’t be going with you,” Yui said, picking up a napkin and gently wiping Sun Siyu’s mouth.

“Oh.”

“Butler Sato, please pack all the leftover food, then pick some fresh fruit from the backyard and bring a few bottles of juice from our own fruit juice factory for the young master to take with him,” Yui instructed the butler standing by the table.

“Yes, I’ll prepare it immediately,” Butler Sato replied respectfully.

“Grandma, no need, no need. I’ll ask Sister Mai to take me outside to eat something fresh and new,” Sun Siyu quickly waved his hands in refusal. Having lived in the Dragon Soaring Kingdom for ten years, he couldn’t get used to the food here. Most days, he ate cake and snacks. Now that he finally had a chance to go out, he didn’t want to eat the house food.

“What’s wrong? If you want to eat something, just tell the kitchen, and they’ll make it. The food outside isn’t as hygienic as ours.”

“No need. Actually, I’m already very, very full. I won’t be hungry all day today. Sister Mai, Sister Mai, Sister Chiyo, let’s go!” Sun Siyu jumped down from his chair and ran out.

“That child... let him have his last day of fun,” Yui said calmly from her seat, watching Sun Siyu’s figure disappear through the door, a resolute gleam in her eyes.

“President, Mr. Inoue is already in the backyard. Are you really going to send the young master there?” Butler Sato sighed softly as he looked at the small figure of Sun Siyu, hoping that the next time he saw the young master, he would still be this happy...

“Blood debt must be repaid.”