Repairing A Broken Home With My Patriarch System

"I didn’t think you’d show your face around here again," Chris spat, his voice cold and unfriendly.

Evelyn opened her mouth to speak, but fell silent immediately. Ethan kept his expression neutral as he turned to the blonde man.

"Excuse me?"

Chris scoffed. "What? You’re gonna pretend you don’t know me?"

"No, I recognize you," Ethan replied. "But I’m a little confused."

"Huh? What’re you confused about?" Chris frowned, feeling irked.

"Your words didn’t sound proper. Shouldn’t I be the one asking you what you’re doing here?" Ethan asked casually.

Chris’s lips twitched, and he scowled. "You... I see. You’ve gotten better with words, haven’t you? Not bad for scum like you."

"Chris..." Evelyn tried to caution him, but he didn’t listen.

His cold gaze remained fixated on Ethan. "Why are you here? You want to collect today’s profit again?"

Ethan blinked, surprised. Had Evelyn been telling him all that? The young woman avoided his gaze, and Chris even moved to block his view and shield her from his gaze.

Ethan sighed. He didn’t blame Evelyn, actually. Anyone in her situation would need someone to confide in. It was only natural that she shared her problems with her friends.

Still, Ethan wasn’t going to let another man question him as he wished.

"You don’t actually qualify to ask me that. But since you’re my wife’s friend, I’ll humor you. My answer to your question is no."

Chris’s eyes narrowed, and he glanced at the takeaway in Ethan’s hand, then the new toy in Nora’s hand.

"Oh? You don’t need the money? Then whose money did you use to get these? You even got Nora a toy. What an awesome father!"

Behind him, Evelyn frowned. "Chris, you shouldn’t say that..."

The blonde man glanced at her, then shook his head. "You’re still too soft, Eve."

Ethan rolled his eyes, not even bothering to answer his question. He walked around Chris, heading into the shop.

Thinking he was approaching Evelyn with bad intentions, Chris grabbed his shoulder from behind and stopped him.

"Hey, I’m talking to you."

By now, the other sellers in the shop had noticed the argument and were paying close attention.

Ethan lazily glanced at the hand on his shoulder, then said flatly.

"Hands off. Now."

His voice was casual, yet so authoritative that it made Chris let go immediately. It felt like his boss in the company had just spoken to him, and he felt chilled to the core.

’What the heck...?’

Ethan gently pushed Nora towards her mother, then turned to face Chris.

"This is getting rather ugly."

Chris frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You have a crush on my wife," Ethan stated matter-of-factly, without a single change in his expression.

Chris froze, his eyes darting towards Evelyn to see her reaction. The woman was slightly surprised, but already guessed this so she wasn’t that shocked.

"You..." Chris turned back to Ethan, his gaze dark. "What are you getting at?"

Ethan shrugged. "Nothing. I simply find it amusing that a man who has spent years admiring another man’s wife has finally gathered enough courage to insult her husband."

Chris’s face darkened further, and he said in a low voice.

"I’ve watched Evelyn work herself to exhaustion while you spend her money like it’s yours. Do you think I don’t qualify to insult a useless husband like you?"

Ethan shook his head, posture relaxed. "You do, actually."

Once again, Chris’s anger was dispersed into confusion, and he looked at Ethan with an awkward expression.

"But..." Ethan continued. "That doesn’t mean I’d simply accept your words like facts. Behave yourself around me, Chris. For Evelyn’s sake."

Chris clenched his jaw hard, then glanced at Evelyn. She quietly avoided his gaze, not saying a word. Chris understood that she couldn’t defend him here.

They were just former classmates and nothing more.

It was a bitter feeling, but he was used to acknowledging it.

He gave Ethan one last look, then turned around.

"See you another day, Eve."

Ethan watched him walk away, almost impressed. At least the young man knew how to control himself. Ethan wasn’t going to allow some young brat barely half his age, at least by Victor’s standards, to blabber harsh words at him.

He turned back to Evelyn, only for her to step back. She probably expected a scolding from him. After all, her friend had publicly humiliated him with harsh words.

Ethan stretched out his hand, handing the plastic bag to her.

"You should go eat. I’ll handle the selling while you’re doing that."

Evelyn stared at the plastic bag containing food in surprise, then looked at Ethan as though she couldn’t believe her eyes.

"Um... you didn’t eat?" She asked, puzzled.

"I did," Ethan replied.

Evelyn frowned slightly, still confused. "But I only gave you enough money for two meals..."

Ethan coughed awkwardly and looked away. "Well, I still had some cash with me."

He sounded particularly embarrassed, since that was actually Evelyn’s money too. There was no need to point out the obvious, though.

Evelyn looked at him deeply, then quietly accepted the takeaway.

"Thank you."

Ethan nodded and watched her retreat deeper into the shop where she could eat. Nora followed her, hoping to get some extra fries.

Meanwhile, Ethan stood at the counter, patiently waiting for a customer to approach.

Soon, a young high school girl approached with quick steps, glancing at the fruits displayed before her.

"Hey, handsome mister. How much for an apple?"

Ethan was slightly amused by how she addressed him, but he responded smoothly.

"One dollar and twenty cents. How many do you want?"

The young girl reached into her purse and answered, "Just two. With your phone number too."

Ethan blinked, caught off guard. He looked at the girl again. She was really young. Young enough to be his little sister.

Were girls now so bold?

He chuckled and shook his head. "Brat, I’m a married man. You should find someone who’s your age."

The girl was slightly embarrassed after realizing that he was a married man, then hurried away with the two apples she had bought.

Ethan chuckled and turned to the next customer who was already approaching.

’Wait. Isn’t that...?’

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