“And you are?” Trent’s courteous behavior toward Lyon stemmed from either his kind words or the possible influence of the Glitters.Lyon said, “I am Lyon Hicks, an aide to the Glitters.” “Ah, Mr. Hicks.” Trent nodded and uttered, “I heard the heir of the Glitters has met with some problems. As a neighbor, I thought I should lend a hand. “This is my grandson, Pete Fuller. Come and say hello, Pete.” Trent told the young man in the back to greet Lyon.His act of kindness was to pave the way for his grandson. Trent was old. Yet, he was out and about to earn favors for the sake of his grandson. Reading Trent’s mind, Lyon praised patiently, “You have a fine grandson. He’s around Mr. Glitter’s age. I’m sure they will be best friends.” Though overjoyed, Trent said humbly, “Mr. Glitter is blue blood. Pete wouldn’t dream about being friends with Mr. Glitter. “He’ll be more than happy just to learn a thing or two from Mr. Glitter.“I wonder where Mr. Glitter is now.” Trent
“The new mayor of Lilyrose will show the old guy the utmost respect?” Kaze looked at Trent with a pretentious smile. “Oh, really? Who is he? I know nothing about him.” He found Pete’s statement hilarious because he was the new mayor. “You’re cocky, young man. Who are you?” Trent grimaced. Pierce called Trent for two reasons. In a way, this was his way of apologizing to the Glitters and making up for walking away when Kaze scared him. He also wanted Trent to find out who Kaze was. Hence, Pierce left out the information that Kaze might be the new mayor. Heck, he did not even let Trent know anything about Kaze. Trent knew nothing about Kaze. Lyon said angrily, “You’re the son-in-law of the Quints, Kaze. You were lucky to be the chairman of Shangrila Group thanks to your wife’s help. “I don’t know how you managed to seek Johnson’s favor. So you have a friend in high places. “Do you think you’re untouchable? “I’ll be honest with you. Your connections and social stat
Everybody there was stunned. Um… It was bad enough that Kaze kept testing Trent’s patience. Now, he was reprimanding Trent as if he stood on higher ground. The young man, who was no more than 30 years old, was just a boy before Trent’s presence. The nerve of Kaze. Where did he find the courage to take jabs at the former mayor? The crowd was speechless. It was clear to them that Kaze did not know how to read the room. Trent smirked in rage. “I have walked this earth longer than you, young man. Who are you to tell me off?“I was the mayor of the city for twenty years, and the people love me. “The only thing I heard about you is your reputation as a mooching son-in-law of the Quints.“I don’t know why you think it’s appropriate for you to give me a dressing down.” Trent’s tone was flat. He had never met such an arrogant prick. Kaze smiled callously. “It’s just a nice reminder. “It’s your business whether you want to take my advice. “Don’t keep bringing up the
Apart from Kaze and Draco, everybody else in the villa pricked up their ears. They wanted to know Johnson’s response. Maybe Trent’s stern tone pressured Johnson for an answer. The latter did not keep the crowd waiting for long. Johnson replied eagerly, “Why do you ask, Trent?“No, I’m not his friend in high places.” The urgency in his tone gave the impression of his keenness to dissociate from Kaze. Mocking gazes fell on Kaze. “Yesterday’s news?” “Now you know the extent of Mr. Fuller’s influence. Your friend dropped you without hesitation.”“Who do you think you are to be rude to Mr. Fuller? You’re asking for it.” “Mr. Fuller can crush you without lifting a finger.” Lyon and members of the Four Ocean Commerce Guild were left frustrated since Kaze’s arrival. Finally, Trent broke the cycle. They attacked Kaze with taunts and jeers to blow off steam. Trent turned to Kaze and said callously, “What do you have to say for yourself?” He expected to see Kaze turnin
“What? You can’t?” Johnson’s response stirred an uproar. “Why? Kaze is just the son-in-law of the Quints. Yet, Mayor Brooks defied his teacher for him. Did I hear that right?” “Johnson didn’t punish Kaze for upsetting Mr. Glitter in his name and disrespecting Mr. Fuller. What is he thinking?” No one could figure out why Johnson would do such a thing. Kaze was just a loser who took his wife’s last name. Given Johnson’s steady rise in politics, he could just say the word to make Kaze pay. Even Trent could not wrap his head around it. No one expected Johnson’s shocking response. After reeling in from the shock, Trent blew up. “What’s the meaning of this, Johnson? “You can’t even handle a trivial matter. I can’t believe you were the mayor.” On the other end of the line, Johnson said patiently, “Anything to do with Mr. Lee is out of my hands, Trent. “I’d advise you to stay out of it too. “If you are not deeply involved, you can apologize to Mr. Lee. I believe Mr. L
“Johnson just hung up on you. Shouldn’t you learn your lesson by now, old man?” Kaze shook his head. Despite his age, Trent was stubborn and refused to admit he was wrong. “Hmph! Do you think I care about Johnson?” Trent said curtly, “He was only the mayor for a couple of years. He didn’t even get the hang of the job yet. “I’ll show you whose voice carries weight on the council.” Trent stubbornly thought Johnson was Kaze’s friend in high places. Johnson’s statement about not getting in Kaze’s business was just his way of washing his hands of the matter and humiliating Trent. Kaze was not powerful and well-connected as Johnson hinted. Otherwise, Kaze would not marry into an upper-middle-class family and take his wife’s last name. “I can say the word and make the Quints the public enemy, boy,” Trent threatened grimacingly. He would not let the matter go until Kaze yielded to him. Kaze furrowed his brows. He was disinterested in going around in circles with Trent.
The military had always been an extraordinary existence in Arcadia. Even the most prominent families would put their attitude down a notch in the face of the army. Trent’s heart skipped a beat when Draco admitted he was serving. Even Lyon frowned and observed Draco in silence. “Which branch of the military do you serve him, buddy?” Trent asked, even taking a more amiable form of address. Draco kept the vile attitude. “I serve Lilyrose Strategic Department. Just cut the crap and get to the point.” Lilyrose Strategic Department! He was from Lilyrose Strategic Department. Trent and Lyon’s hearts sank. Lilyrose Strategic Department governed the military in five states. The local council answered to Lilyrose Strategic Department, not the other way around. Lilyrose Strategic Department was prominent in the South River State too. Trent stared intently at Draco’s arrogant face as some bad times came to mind. As the mayor of Lilyrose for twenty years, Trent often got
Lyon tried to find out more about Draco before he made any decisions about the next move, but Draco did not even answer him. “Who do you think you are, talking to me?” With that, Draco strutted back and stood behind Kaze. Lyon and the others were surprised by Draco’s reaction. The man from Lilyrose Strategic Department seemed to assume Kaze as his leader. Who exactly was the useless son-in-law of the Quints? Lyon was a smart man who could read the room. He knew that before he identified Draco’s identity, it would be better to patch things up with him. As for what would come after this, it would be a matter for a later date. He took a deep breath and went over to Kaze. He bowed and nodded, saying, “Brother, I’m sorry to have offended you in any way. How about we put this little misunderstanding aside?” When the words escaped his mouth, Lyon was drowning in his own grievance. Since he was one of the martial artist Gareth Hornberg’s best students, and also affiliated w