Sensitive

Though he said there was no need for "revenge," Huo Ze recounted the events of his childhood very carefully.
He unconsciously stroked the steaming glass cup, trying to satisfy Ye Xing Zhi's curiosity.
Because Huo Ze had never forgotten the reason Ye Xing Zhi kept him—
"You are very strange and need further study."
If Ye Xing Zhi didn't ask proactively, Huo Ze wouldn't speak up; he had to leave himself a way out. But he could answer what was asked, his cooperative attitude was excellent.
The saying "a stepmother means a stepfather" was perfectly exemplified in Huo Ze's family.
Although his father wasn't bad to him, it was clear that a man who could cheat during his wife's pregnancy and then quickly marry a new woman after his wife's death... would surely love his new wife more, not the child left behind by his previous wife.
In terms of food, clothing, housing, and transportation, just getting by was enough. His stepmother wished she could control everything in the house; even the servants were changed several times, and Huo Ze couldn't order anyone around.
Even as a child, Huo Ze was often hungry. In the middle of the night, he had to secretly take food from the refrigerator to heat it up. If caught, he would surely be scolded for stealing.
If his father was about to come home, his stepmother would force him to eat all sorts of high-calorie snacks for months beforehand, making him quickly gain weight, then stuff a few old clothes his younger brother disliked into his wardrobe. It was a reluctant disguise, meant to deceive.
Huo Ze didn't have a phone when he was young, so he couldn't contact his father remotely. After all, his father didn't care much for his eldest son; as long as appearances were maintained, it was fine.
Even if he cried and complained about being bullied by his stepmother and younger brother, his father wouldn't pay attention, only telling him to yield to his younger brother, saying that as an older brother, he should act like one and not cry all day, that it showed no promise.
Therefore, Huo Ze taught himself to cook from a very young age. Initially, he even had to climb onto a chair to reach the stove, enduring the cold stares and mockery of the servants.
If he hadn't almost starved to the point of looking sickly, and a neighbor hadn't discovered clues, his stepmother very likely wouldn't have given him the chance to cook for himself.
According to his stepmother, she found it disgusting to sit at the same table and eat with him.
Ye Xing Zhi frowned upon hearing this. He hadn't expected Huo Ze to have such a family. The original novel hadn't mentioned a word of it.
"Why did she treat you like that? Was it necessary?"
"...Because my stepmother was my father's ex-girlfriend. She believed my mother used despicable means to steal her love, so she couldn't bear to see me live well."
Huo Ze spoke of this as if recounting someone else's story, even with a hint of speechlessness.
Later, Huo Ze simply stopped staying at home, starting to live at school from junior high, and went abroad for high school at fourteen. The biggest benefit of leaving home was financial freedom; after all, though his father couldn't provide affection, he wasn't stingy with money.
Huo Ze wasn't a spendthrift. He used his savings to invest, and by high school, he had earned a considerable sum, enough to live comfortably for life without worrying about food.
But when his stepmother learned of this, she became upset, forcing his father to bring Huo Ze back to the country to take the college entrance exam, insisting he attend university domestically. Because only when Huo Ze was in the country could his stepmother find ways to make his life difficult and restrict his investment directions.
She didn't want Huo Ze to become too wealthy and directly escape the family's control.
Therefore, Huo Ze never returned home for winter or summer holidays. Even during the Lunar New Year, he would only make a perfunctory visit before traveling with friends.
As a result, in his previous life, he went to City B to climb mountains, coincidentally encountering the Apocalypse. He was surrounded by a horde of Zombies on the mountain, suffering from a high fever that almost claimed his life... Of course, Huo Ze temporarily had no intention of telling Ye Xing Zhi about this.
In fact, ever since he became financially independent, Huo Ze had long since stopped caring about that eccentric stepmother. Now, looking back, he even felt fortunate.
"Thanks to her, I gained the ability to be independent, learned to cook many delicious dishes, and can survive wherever I'm thrown. My younger brother was spoiled rotten; he's eighteen and has never even washed his own face. Now, I wonder where he's crying."
His younger brother, not much younger than Huo Ze, failed all his college entrance exams last year and decisively went abroad to a "village university" to gild his resume. Two months later, he cried, claiming depression, and dropped out to return home and idle.
Now that the Apocalypse had arrived, their whole family was reunited. How wonderful.
Ye Xing Zhi picked a few ribs from his bowl for Huo Ze: "Eat more, or you'll be hungry and thin later."
No wonder this child seemed so dejected at first; it must have something to do with his family. The Heavenly Dao truly isn't human; why make Huo Ze the protagonist? Does it want to torment him to death?
"Yes, I will eat more, thank you, Sir."
Although he found Ye Xing Zhi's way of speaking strange, Huo Ze was very happy to hear it and immediately ate the rib he had picked for him.
"No wonder you felt I was bullying you before," Ye Xing Zhi watched him finish a few pieces of meat before sighing, "Children with experiences like yours are often very sensitive. I was an orphan from a young age, so I'm a bit better; I don't care about familial affection."
In truth, in Ye Xing Zhi's eyes, not having parents was the greatest blessing; no one to control him, making things very convenient, doing whatever he wanted.
However, his "Lone Star of Calamity" way of thinking had been refuted several times by his Senior Brothers and Sisters in the Cultivation World. So this time, Ye Xing Zhi refrained from speaking it aloud.