Chapter 260 - 259: The Real Ethan Bishop Is My Uncle

A knowing glint flashed in Yvonne Lowell’s eyes. She subtly met Leo Grant’s gaze before turning around.

"Ah, Miss White. Is something the matter?"

"Miss Lowell, I... could I speak with you in private? It’ll be quick, I won’t take up too much of your time."

Lynn White glanced at The Living Yama standing rigidly nearby and spoke cautiously.

’Tsk, what’s with the double standard?’

’Seems my fearsome reputation hasn’t spread far enough. Why else would people in Aurelia only be afraid of Leo Grant? Am I not scarier than he is?!’

’Looks like I’ll have to do something earth-shattering in Aurelia to show them who the real Living Yama is.’

Leo Grant: ’...Yes, you’re The Living Yama. You’re the ancestor of The Living Yama, how about that? Just stop it already!!!’

「Stop, Drew! That’s enough!!!」

Yvonne Lowell turned to the man who, despite his aloof expression, was radiating a frosty aura. She gave his palm a little squeeze.

"Wait for me here? I’ll be right back."

"Okay. Don’t go far. We still have a long walk to the restaurant."

Leo Grant reluctantly let go of her hand, and it was hard to say who that last sentence was really intended for.

"Got it."

Yvonne Lowell raised an eyebrow and pointed to a nearby pavilion. "Will that work?"

"Yes, of course!" Lynn White answered quickly.

Though clearly terrified, she seemed worried about being impolite, giving Leo Grant a tentative nod before following Yvonne Lowell.

Leo Grant tucked his hands in his pockets, his gaze fixed unblinkingly on the pavilion.

「In the Pavilion」

Yvonne Lowell didn’t speak first, choosing instead to leisurely count the fat fish in the lake.

’One steamed fish, one fish poached in chili broth, one sweet-and-sour fish, one braised fish, one fish with pickled greens, one grilled fish, some pan-fried fillets, some sashimi, a pot of fish soup...’

’If I could avoid the surveillance cameras and security, and snag a few fish behind Old Man Hawthorne’s back, what would my chances of success be?’

"The Ethan Bishop who was actually accepted into Kingsland University back then was my uncle," Lynn White said out of the blue.

Yvonne Lowell’s hand paused in its counting, then quickly resumed its natural rhythm. "What do you mean?"

’Identity theft? They’re really pulling out all the stops, huh?!’

The NPCs in the auditorium: ’The Seer is down! We spectators are about to rack up some serious points!!!’

Lynn White stood at her side, staring at the calm, waveless lake. Her eyes seemed to lose focus as she spoke in a subdued tone.

"I’m the daughter of a mistress. My birth mother got pregnant with me behind her lover’s back, hoping a son would help her solidify her position."

"After realizing I was just a ’money-losing daughter,’ she dumped me in her hometown and ran off. My maternal grandparents and my uncle raised me."

"And Lynn White was the name my uncle gave me. It was meant to imply I was bright, clever, and endowed with natural grace."

"The uncle I remember was brilliant and incredibly capable, like he could do anything. But he ended up trapped in those mountains for his entire life."

"Every day, he toiled in the fields, doing endless farm work, caring for my grandparents, and enduring my birth mother’s constant calls to extort money from him."

"Only when I was old enough to understand did I learn that my uncle was the first person from our mountain village to be admitted to high school—and he was top of his class. Yet, the year he took the college entrance exam, he failed."

"The pity and sympathy from the villagers, the confusion and disappointment from his teachers, his parents’ ever-graying hair and increasingly stooped backs, and a family so poor they could barely eat..."

"It all led him to give up on retaking the exam. He stayed in the mountains and became an elementary school teacher, a position he held for more than twenty years. After his classes, he still had to go help my grandparents in the fields."

"Later, my birth mother latched onto a new wealthy man. She thought she’d found a soft-hearted cash cow, but she ended up being his designated scapegoat and was thrown in jail to take the fall for him."

"At the time, I was just thankful that I was registered under my uncle’s household, so her troubles wouldn’t affect me."

"To me, my uncle was a father figure."

"He was always strict with me, but never without love. I didn’t let him down—I got into a first-tier university in Gantor."

"After graduating from college, while I was job hunting in Keldor, I coincidentally landed an interview at ’Ethan Bishop’s’ company. When I saw the chairman’s name, I figured it was just a coincidence."

"But he was vain and obsessed with saving face. He’d plastered posters with his Kingsland University degree and his ’inspirational’ life story in every corner of the company."

"The year he took the exam, the major he chose—everything was identical to my uncle’s. Furthermore, his management style was appalling, not something you’d expect from a graduate of a prestigious university."

"So, I started thinking about cases of academic identity theft. On a long shot, I used the money I earned from my job to hire a private investigator."

"After a long investigation, I finally discovered that he was originally from the same region as us. The only difference was that he was a ’townie’ from the county seat, while we were ’mud-legs’ from the mountains."

"His real name is Kevin Clark. He was the one who usurped my uncle’s position at Kingsland University."

"At the time, the mountain areas were isolated, and we had no status or connections, which made my uncle the easiest target to manipulate and replace."

After listening to her story, Yvonne Lowell leaned against a pillar and asked nonchalantly,

"Logically, you can’t pull something like this off without some kind of backing. But him...?"

’That bastard’s worldview, conversation, and upbringing are all appalling. The key thing is, he also resents the wealthy.’

A flash of disgust appeared in Lynn White’s eyes. "His family was just a household with two working parents. But he has two older sisters. His parents used them to trade for his spot."

Seeing Yvonne Lowell fall silent, Lynn White paid it no mind and just continued on her own,

"Later, I also discovered that his first wife died in an ’accident.’ His company was founded only after she died; before that, he was just a regular office employee."

"He’s remained unmarried all these years, maintaining the persona of a man who could never forget his late wife. In reality, he’s more of a playboy than anyone."

"This raised my suspicions, so I deliberately got close to him. I landed major deals for the company to earn his trust, and eventually, I married him."

"Unsurprisingly, not long after we got our marriage certificate, he bought a massive accidental death insurance policy in my name, all under the guise of ’love’."

"Following that lead and digging deeper, I found proof that he’d murdered his first wife for the insurance payout. That sicko had even filmed it and hidden the video in a mattress."

"He probably hasn’t made a move on me yet because he still finds me useful to the company, or maybe he just hasn’t grown tired of me."

Yvonne Lowell looked up at the woman across from her, who couldn’t have been much older. Her gaze was dark and complex. "Was it worth it?"

’There are many ways to find proof and get revenge. She chose the fastest path, but also the one that would hurt her the most—gambling her youth and everything she had.’