Ruffy Smith 1

Lucy Wood thought to herself that, with a month to go, she might as well indulge herself a bit.

A large bowl of chicken was devoured clean by them.

Lucy hadn't expected Ellen Young's cooking to be so delicious, and she found herself less repulsed by the idea of staying in the countryside.

If Ellen were to cook for her every day, she wouldn't mind staying there for half a year.

But she also knew.

It was unrealistic for both Ellen and her.

***

In Imperial City, at the Smith Family home.

Ruffy Smith's father, a rare occasion, sat down at the dining table with Ruffy.

Both father and son were far too busy, one constantly flying from place to place for work, the other unruly and rebellious, accepting no family discipline, encounters always ending in father-son battles.

Rarely, today they sat together, calm and peaceful.

Of course, this was just a facade.

Many people said that Ruffy didn't seem like Taylor Smith's son.

Taylor was composed and steady, poised and charming, a gentleman born into a scholarly family, a model child from the start.

Smart, his succession to the Smith Family position was a matter of course.

His wife was equally perfect, elegant and generous, a well-born lady.

Yet they had Ruffy, the anomaly.

It's said every family has its cross to bear, and Ruffy was the Smith Family's heavy burden.

As the Smith Family's only young master, he had an odd temper, a volatile personality, and was capricious; a good conversation might turn sour in an instant, strangers thought he was insane, and those who knew him found it extremely difficult to get along with him, adding on a strained relationship with his father. Despite inheriting his parent's excellent genes, he never did the right thing.

Taylor had hoped that Ruffy would take over the Smith Family, yet Ruffy preferred to stay abroad, rarely returning home, and what often came back to the country was his endless list of fines from abroad.

Fines in various senses.

The one thing the Smith Family took solace in was that, at least, Ruffy didn't get into arson or murder.

"Ruffy."

Taylor, wearing a gray suit, looked as dashing and refined in middle age as ever, no hint of growing older.

He was well-kept, and when out and about, others might even mistake him for Ruffy's older brother.

Sitting opposite him, Ruffy was in a black shirt, one hand draped nonchalantly over the chair back, the other playing with a silver-gray limited edition lighter on the table.

He was striking to look at, his features so refined as though they had been carefully sculpted, inheriting the best aspects of both his father Taylor and his mother's perfect genes, Ruffy had a perfect face composed of their best attributes.

The slight upward tilt of his eyes gave him an air of roguishness, especially now, coupled with a thin-lipped smirk laced with sarcasm—yet he seemed unconcerned, exuding an innate nobility that made others wary.

Even Taylor couldn't suppress him, knowing his son's character, and opportunities for peaceful conversation being rare, he spoke gently of his own matters.

"Ellen Young from the Special Research Institute is out now. The news they've released is that she'll take a year off, and she's already returned to her hometown. When she left, she didn't announce anything. From what I've heard, Ellen has at least three unpublished research findings in her hands, one of which our group needs. I want you to find her and negotiate a cooperation with her before anyone else does."

Ruffy paused in playing with his lighter and glanced at Taylor with the corner of his eye.

He said—

"Who is Ellen Young?"