Chapter 32: Granduncle Visits
Adrian, his face red with embarrassment, hesitated to explain the past. Layne snorted, saying to Cheyenne, "He's too ashamed to tell the truth!" Tension, bordering on violence, filled the air between the two men. The animosity, however, was entirely one-sided—Layne's dislike of Adrian.
Passersby paused to admire the elegant car parked before the Edwards mansion, casting envious and curious glances. Cheyenne, uncomfortable under their scrutiny, said to her grandfather, "Since Granduncle is here, let's go inside. Grandfather, please don't be angry."
"Come on, Layne, I promise it's business this time!" Adrian pleaded.
Layne reluctantly nodded. The three of them sat around a square table. Layne glared at Adrian, who responded with a sycophantic smile. Cheyenne, shifting her gaze between them, silently sipped her tea.
"Adrian, why did you return?" Layne finally asked.
Tears glistening in his eyes, Adrian replied with genuine emotion, "Layne, my family is here. Naturally, I wanted to come home!" Cheyenne believed him instantly. He seemed like an ordinary old man, with ordinary human feelings.
"What have you been doing for the past twenty years?" Layne asked, his eyes narrowed.
"After being expelled from the family home, I went to Spacoar with a businessman and drove for him," Adrian explained. "Later, he needed to go to Metshire, and I went with him. Who knew it would be twenty-five years before we returned?"
He recalled leaving when his niece, Selah, was still in school. Now, Selah was gone, and her daughter, Cheyenne, was in her twenties. Cheyenne was shocked. Granduncle had been expelled? Why? Suppressing her emotions, she quickly took another sip of tea.
"I see," Layne replied, his tone seemingly nonchalant yet hinting at underlying suspicion. He knew Adrian well; he wouldn't have sunk so low without a compelling reason. The car outside belonged to Adrian.
"What's your purpose today?" Layne asked directly.
Adrian, dispensing with pleasantries, produced a business card from his suit pocket. The black card, edged in gold, featured a delicate gold peony design. The elegant white lettering read: Kai Todd.
Kai Todd! Head of the Todd family and father of Major-General Todd. His influence rivaled Layne's, albeit in different fields.
"What is this?" Cheyenne recognized the name. She remembered Granduncle asking her to meet the young Master Todd at an auction—a meeting she had cleverly navigated with a deceptive performance. Granduncle's visit to the Edwards mansion was clearly linked to her grandfather's medical expertise.
Layne, in fact, was more than a failed businessman with artistic talent. He was a nationally renowned doctor. Generations of Edwards family members were physicians, possessing unique medical secrets. However, a past event forced them into early retirement and relocation to Shedale. Few subsequent family members pursued medicine, fewer still achieving their ancestors' skill level.
Layne was one of ten children, the third eldest. At five, each child began studying herbs and medicine. The family head selected the most promising candidate to inherit the medical secrets. Layne proved exceptionally gifted, surpassing his peers and gaining admission to a top medical university at fifteen. The medical secrets accelerated his progress.
Adrian, less talented than Layne, intensely envied his access to those secrets, attempting to steal them. He only managed to obtain half before his expulsion. He subsequently became a skilled physician for the Todd family, accompanying their patriarch on dangerous missions in Metshire, a notoriously violent region.
Despite his status with the Todds, true power required more value, a cure for their young master's ailment—becoming their savior. His return, his visit to Layne, was about obtaining the remaining medical secrets. Mastering them held the key to curing Master Iker's leg injury.