Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

Chapter 106: Lunch box?

“Hey there.” Joseph, carrying a lunch box, walked up to his brother, a stark contrast to the middle-aged, balding Michael. Joseph, much gentler and definitely handsome, had met Ethan before. This time, without the previous panic, he initiated a greeting.

“Sorry, I won’t keep you,” Ethan said with a smile, not lingering any longer as he pushed his wheelchair out of the hospital room.

“Let me help you with that.” Seeing Ethan struggle with the wheelchair, Joseph handed the lunch box to his brother and then stood up to push Ethan.

“Thanks for the help, Mr. Joseph.” Ethan didn’t refuse,he was keen on getting to know this younger brother a bit better.

He glanced at Michael, noticing a flicker of reluctance in his expression, clearly not keen on Joseph helping Ethan, but he didn’t voice his objection.

Ethan also noticed the lunch box. When opened, it revealed beautifully arranged and meticulously prepared contents.

“No worries,” Joseph said easily, pushing the wheelchair out of the room. “I should be thanking you for visiting my brother so often.”

As they moved down the hallway, Joseph greeted the passing nurses, who responded warmly. No one could resist a charming, humble guy.

“I get along pretty well with Mr. Michael too,guess you could say we’re friends beyond our years,” Ethan said, his tone tinged with melancholy. “Probably because we both feel like our lives are on a countdown, we find a lot to talk about.”

Ethan knew that appearing vulnerable was the best way to lower people’s guards.

And being seriously ill, paralyzed, was his perfect disguise.

Whenever he shared these details, people let down their guard, making it easier for him to uncover secrets.

“Ethan, you look well. As long as you don’t give up, miracles can happen,” Joseph said, his eyes briefly dimming as he tried to offer some encouragement.

“I really admire the relationship you have with Mr. Michael. Brothers these days aren’t usually that close,” Ethan remarked as they turned a corner, nearing his room, probing further.

“Yeah,” Joseph said with a smile. “Our parents passed away early, and we fell out with our relatives around that time, cutting off contact. My brother had just come of age and took on the family responsibilities.”

By then, they had reached the door to Ethan’s room.

“Thanks, Mr. Joseph.” Ethan felt a pang of regret,the conversation had been too short to gather much information.

“No problem, I’ll be off then,” Joseph waved goodbye and left.

Ethan wheeled himself back into his room and closed the door. No longer pretending, he stood up from the wheelchair, sat on the bed, and began to piece together the information he had gathered.

Michael’s wish was for his estate not to be inherited by his wife.

The relationships among them were definitely not as simple as Michael’s claim of his wife’s infidelity.

But this mission, he had to complete it. Besides the system reward of a thousand points, it would also double his exchangeable skills and add a skill recycling feature.

These were key to unlocking system functionalities.

Ethan clenched his fists, closing his eyes to think.

Michael knew about Victoria’s infidelity but was unaware of her habit of hiring male escorts.

So, the question was, who did he think his wife was cheating with, and why keep it from him?

“That’s not right,” Ethan mused, supporting his chin with his hand. “Michael’s request wasn’t really about finding out who his wife was cheating with, but rather ensuring she didn’t inherit his wealth.”

So, the identity of his wife’s lover was a secret he couldn’t reveal.

Suddenly, Joseph’s young, handsome face popped into Ethan’s mind.

“That doesn’t make sense either.”

He shook his head,the logic didn’t add up. If Joseph was the lover, it wouldn’t make sense for them to still be so comfortable around each other.

At least he didn’t think a brother would prepare a lunch box so carefully if his sister-in-law was cheating with him.

“Lunch box?”

Ethan sensed something was off.

It was four in the afternoon when Blair came home from school, opened the door, and saw Ethan sitting by the window, lost in thought. She ignored him, took out her laptop, and started doing her own thing.

“Blair,” Ethan turned his head, “why haven’t you ever made me a lunch box?”

Blair looked puzzled and slightly furrowed her brows, “I don’t know how to make lunch boxes.”

“What if you did know how?” Ethan asked.

“It’s easier to just buy one from the supermarket,” Blair replied, her eyes playful. “You want to eat a lunch box I make?”

“No, just thought it was odd,” Ethan shrugged. “Under what circumstances does someone make a lunch box so elaborate and neatly arranged?”

“Are you talking about a love-packed lunch box?” Blair chuckled. “Could just be a habit.”

“Maybe,” Ethan conceded, realizing it might be hasty to jump to conclusions based on a lunch box alone.

There were still many mysteries to unravel.

“By the way, I washed all your clothes and bed sheets,remember to hang them up,” Ethan pointed towards the bathroom. Being a paralyzed patient, it would look suspicious if he were seen hanging bed sheets.

Blair sat on the bed, hesitated for a moment, then her lips curled into a mischievous smile, “Did we take a bath together last night?”

“Are you still shy?” Ethan’s mind flashed back to the previous night.

He had drunk some alcohol, and it was only now coming back to him.

Both of them had been undressed, and although Blair sometimes ran around in her underwear, being completely undressed was a first.

And then there was the sight of her pink labia and the clean skin around it.

Blair looked cool and handsome, yet unexpectedly girlish in that area.

“Yeah, a little,” Blair said with a laugh, her face showing no sign of shyness as she ended the topic and continued typing on her keyboard.

Ethan took out his phone, thinking of teasing his aunt, but remembering she had an exam soon, he put the phone down, not wanting to disturb her.

He looked through his contacts. After becoming paralyzed, almost all his friends had stopped contacting him.

The most recent contacts were just two.

Emily, the young lady currently interviewing at Yale Law School. Given her family’s status and her own achievements, she was likely to get in.

Their paths, from here on, seemed destined to run parallel, never to cross again.

Next was Abigaile, the celebrity who hadn’t contacted him since he borrowed money from her.

Maybe she was mad.

Ethan was quite pleased,as long as she didn’t contact him, he wouldn’t have to pay her back.

Meanwhile.

Abigaile had just finished shooting an ad when her phone chimed. She quickly grabbed it, only to see a game advertisement.

“Damn it!”

Abigaile clenched her teeth. She had lent Ethan $20,000, waiting for him to reach out to her.

But for several days, he had vanished off the face of the earth.

“Money thrown in the water at least makes a splash!”

Abigaile resisted the urge to throw her phone. Now that the money was lent, it was a sunk cost, and she wasn’t ready to give up on leveraging his popularity.

“I need to think of something.”

Abigaile was used to freeloading off others, not the other way around.

As night fell.

Ethan dressed in a stylish, casual outfit that made him look youthful and handsome. Tonight, he was starting his job as a male escort.

As soon as he entered the gentlemen’s club, he immediately caught the attention of the female patrons.

A young, handsome guy like him had a special appeal to mature ladies.