A strange scene happened. Every row in front of Kaze swiftly got empty. Only him, Gold Tooth, Dan, and their men remained seated at the same place. There was no one left in front of him but it was extremely crowded behind him. Kaze came under the spotlight as the crowd moved behind him. Jessica followed everyone to the back. When she noticed Kaze was still sitting at the same spot, she scoffed. “Kaze, all the VVIPs had gone to the back but you are still sitting there. Are you trying to embarrass them?!” She was loud with her sneers. Kelly, Haiden, and the others were busy arranging the seats for the guests and they too laughed when they heard Jessica. “What’s the problem with me sitting here? Who said I can’t sit here?” Kaze leaned back and sat comfortably on the chair. He was not moving. Haiden bellowed, “You stupid idiot! How dare you sit in front of the mayor and the other VVIPs? Who do you think you are? Get the hell back there!” He and Wayne wanted to drag
Kaze did not want to waste time on the woman. He was more interested in Roger’s performance. The emcee was on stage with the mic. The rebuilding ceremony of the Construction and Material Society had officially begun. “Ladies and gentlemen, today is the big day that the Construction and Material Society will be rebuilt. Welcome…” The emcee gave an uplifting speech. There were almost two thousand people on the floor, applauding like rumbling thunder. Next, as the chief secretary of the new Construction and Material Society, Kelly was invited on stage to read the new system and projects. They were just some beautiful but empty words. After the standard speech, Kelly smiled and said, “Now, let me introduce you to the fifteen board members of the new Construction and Material Society!” Then, many people stood up from their seats. As a matter of fact, the list of board members was not a secret. They were all the gangster bosses of the underworld. Fifteen of them joined
Amid the thunderous applause, Roger strutted up on stage and stood in front of everyone. All fifteen gangster bosses became the supporting characters that set him off. “Mr. Hilfinger, why don’t you give a speech?” Kelly took the mic from the emcee and gave it to him. It was the emcee’s job but she snatched it just like that. She was the chief secretary of the Construction and Material Society, she should be the woman of the event. With all the limelight on her, it would propel her life to the next level. Soon, she would become the daughter-in-law of the Hilfinger family. In the future, she might even be the missus of the top family in Lilyrose. Kelly had high hopes for her future. Roger looked at the guests on the floor. Some of them were CEOs of local and foreign companies, some of them were heads of top families, and some were in charge of various government departments. There was also the mayor, the chief of police, and the two brigadier generals from the milit
Following Roger’s order, the massive LED screen embedded on the wall behind him lit up. Something started to appear on the screen. The first scene that appeared was a huge construction site. “That's the Golden Edge construction site!” Someone immediately recognized the site project. Golden Edge was a new mall in the city, currently undergoing construction. It had a total investment of over a billion. The scene then cut to the front gate of the site. A red banner was being pulled up. “Golden Edge Project Department Congratulates the NEW Construction and Material Society on the Rebuilding Ceremony!” Below were the workers at the site, lining up neatly and clapping their hands. Judging from the time frame displayed on the screen, it was live. The scene reminded everyone of an incident that happened recently. It was said that Bob sent his men to cause trouble at the Golden Edge construction site. The person in charge of the site ultimately submitted and agreed to st
This time, everyone looked at Kaze as if he was a corpse. They believed Kaze would not continue to be stubborn after witnessing the power of the Construction and Material Society, but they were wrong. “Roger Hilfinger, you are not worthy of judging me.” Kaze remained seated with a scornful look. He stared at Roger, finding it amusing for all that he had done just to display his power. Roger said coldly, “A stubborn one I see. Your support, Perfect World Group, is going down. Ray Forrester is just a coward and he’s not even here at the ceremony! “Gold Tooth and Dan Niners are useless. I can kill them if I want to. What else do you think you have against me? Your status as the son-in-law of the Quint family? Hahaha…” He cackled. “The Quint family is just a second-tier family. I just need to send one board member there and even Master Quint would kneel before me, let alone your wife who has no power in the family. No one can protect you now. I can kill you with just one pinch!
Following the scream, two thousand people in the hall switched their attention to the big screen on stage. The screen was switched back to the Golden Edge construction site. It was still live but the workers with the congratulatory banner were gone. Loud sirens could be heard from the site. Then police cruisers entered the frame, followed by multiple green armored cars. Common police officers and riot police officers came down from the cruisers. The green armored vehicles unloaded a battalion of fully-armed soldiers. They were equipped with live rounds and were ready to take out their targets. “Arrest them all!” The captain of the operation gave the signal. The police officers and soldiers charged into the construction site. In less than a minute, more than a hundred gangsters were arrested. Some gangsters were bleeding and bruised, and they were dragged across the ground like ragdolls. They were thrown into the armored vehicles mercilessly. Bob, one of the boar
Everything went dead silent. Underneath everyone’s mortified look was their hearts pounding anxiously. The numbers that the vice police chief provided were like three heavy attacks that landed on everyone’s heart, inflicting critical damage. More than 2,300 gangsters were arrested and they were the men of the fifteen board members of the society. The gangsters were scattered across 109 construction sites yet they were all arrested in less than five minutes. The police force and the Tiger Fangs mobilized more than ten thousand men for the operation. An operation with ten thousand police officers and soldiers! It had never happened before in the history of Lilyrose. The most surprising thing was that no one got news on it or foresaw it coming. Roger’s blank look said it all. Even after all the gangsters were arrested, he still had no idea how it happened. “Why? Why did you arrest them?” Roger looked in Don and Shin’s direction with a blank look, murmuring. The fifte
“No! I won’t accept this! There are two thousand people here and they are all influential figures. Since we still have some men outside, why don’t we hold them hostage and force the police to let us go! “After we get out, we’ll escape the city. With our influence and resources, we can make a comeback elsewhere!” Maybe Bob had lost his mind or maybe he was born a fugitive. He knew the odds were against him and he considered taking the risk to escape. The other gangster bosses were horrified, their legs turned weak. Only a few of them had a ferocious gaze in their eyes, wondering if they should take the risk. Most of the gangster bosses were still sane, but Bob had decided for them without their consent. He turned around and shouted, “You want to ruin us?! No fucking way! You think we can’t do anything after you arrest our men? Do you know how many people we have around Universal Tower?! “Don Braders, Shin Scarlet, one word and my men will come in here to take control of the
Kaze watched as the senior citizens took off. The place was quiet as usual, and many things in the unit were left uncollected. “Mr. Lee, does this arrangement work?” Arthur awaited Kaze’s orders. “It will do for now.” After being out for the day, Kaze had seen some stuff. Business was all about making money, but some lines should not be crossed. As long as things remained within reason, there would not be scrutiny or blame. It was astounding the lengths Jet would go to. “The area will be demolished after a while. I want all of the Frosts’ projects on hold. Don’t approve any of them.” One word from Kaze could shake the very foundation of the Frosts’ business. “Alright. My team is on it. “But the Frosts will ask questions and find out who is behind this.” Arthur looked at Kaze worriedly. “They can’t find anything.” No one would know who Kaze was without his permission. It probably never crossed Jet’s mind that Snow had a powerful friend. Otherwise, he woul
Kaze was confused. Surely, the authorities would not disregard human lives and demolish the place by force. “Well, we tried to relocate them, but they refused our services. If they are still not on board, they will be sent to the retirement home tonight.” That was all Pax knew. The retirement home was just another place for the senior citizens to await death. “Is there nothing else you can do? So you signed the contract without thinking about the consequences? Karma will get back at you.” Pax’s shamelessness shocked Arthur. Pax mentioned that he would put the demolition on hold. It had not been long, and now the rights to the land were handed over. “It’s out of my hands. Jet went to my superiors to seal the deal. We are not allowed to intervene. “We had been figuring out ways to reach reconciliation for these senior citizens, but Jet was determined to make them pay.” It was the best Pax could do. He was just an employee, working to make a living. He did not have a say
“I want to see the person in charge of the demolition project now.” It was not a matter of time before the area was bulldozed, but Kaze hoped to delay it. Generally, it would take a large amount of capital to launch a project. Any delay would cause massive losses. Jet had several projects that had been put on hold, and it was a heavy blow to him. If Jet could not fix things quickly enough, all his money tied to the projects would be gone. He would be forced to ditch some projects to cut his losses. “I’ll get him here right now.” Arthur went out to make phone calls. He believed Kaze did the right thing as the senior citizens had nowhere to turn to. The senior citizens could only survive with some help. “Thank you, young man. Why are you helping us?” The senior citizens were old, but they could tell that Kaze genuinely wanted them to be okay. “I don’t think it’s right to bully you.” Kaze looked at the senior citizens earnestly, feeling sorry for them. Jet lack
“We agreed on relocation because we would get a place to stay. “But these people were unreasonable. We were offered only one-third of what everyone else got.” The senior citizens were going to swallow their losses. They just needed the money to live their last days, and they did not have family, to begin with. Later, the same people had their eyes on their money and tried to put them up at an old folks’ home. The senior citizens refused to relocate and finally chose to protect themselves by contacting the media. These people sure left the senior citizens to die. Kaze was sympathetic to the senior citizens. He went back with them to a unit on the ground floor. The place was bare, with several beds placed together. The senior citizens must be sleeping in the same room. There was little to eat, only some water and dry provisions.The old residents did not have much savings. It was good enough that they had something to eat. “Have a cup of water, boy. We don’t have any
“Are you one of those people from the pier? Are you trying to get us to leave?” A grizzled-haired man looked at Kaze warily. “I was just passing by when I saw you struggling with the buckets. I came to help you.” Kaze explained patiently. He could understand why their guards were up. They must have been lied to many times before. “Are you here to help?” “Yes, I am. My companion has gone to get you some water. He’ll be back soon. There’s no need for you to fetch water,” Kaze said kindly. “We’ll pay you.” The senior citizens exchanged glances before accepting Kaze’s gesture. They could not handle the weight of the heavy buckets. “The building here is about to be demolished. Why are you still living here?” Pretending to be in the dark, Kaze asked. “This is our home. Someone is trying to take this land away.” The grizzled-haired man was upset. “What? I thought no one could demolish the building unless they had the residents’ permission.” “You’re right, but there
“Jet sure is bold to ensure business. Isn’t he afraid of shooting himself in the foot?” Kaze had never met a man like Jet. “He has done a lot to get to the top. His ruthless methods got him a lot of money. A lot of people are happy to support him.” Arthur was impressed with Jet’s tactics. However, his approach was too cruel for his liking. “Let’s head to the residential building.” Kaze just wanted to check out the area. He was happy to help when needed. The flashy, red sports car was eye-catching. However, the flamboyant car was uncommon in these places. Most workers would express their amazement, but they would not ask questions. The car pulled up outside a soon-to-be abandoned building. It looked desolate. The power lines and infrastructure were not visible either. Kaze knew that was one of the Frosts’ methods. Sometimes, nothing, not even demolition, was required. The goal was to get the residents out. All Jet needed to do was cut the water and electricity.
“Just tell me what you need, Arthur. You wouldn’t be calling unless you have received orders.” Philip was surprised to get a call from Arthur. Though they were acquainted, they had only communicated because of work. “We have just left Rising Sun. Don’t approve the films for now.” Arthur was blunt. “I can do that, but can I ask why?” Philip was caught in a dilemma because he had just promised Jet to release the films. Philip needed to know if the orders to delay came from a high power who could cover his ass. “Since you got a call from me, you should know that there are eyes on Jet. “You should know what you can and cannot say. Otherwise, you never know when you’re going to lose your job.” Arthur threatened. Philip was reluctant. He accepted Jet’s payment, and now he had to go back on his word. Nevertheless, Arthur was part of the Viper’s Den, and his status was rather unique. Arthur provided services to confidential individuals. These individuals were elites among t
A balanced, profitable dynamic had been developed among the ports in Butterworth. Jet spotted his chance in the lucrative port business. He covertly took out some money to invest in a dying port. The port was situated in a more remote area. Some businesspeople favored more accessible ports. This drove shippers away from the dying port. Jet snagged the steal and improved the logistics and facilities around the area. The port was up and running again. Business at the port was decent enough. As the Frosts would run their business through the port, the local economy took off too. It was a good thing. However, Jet set his sights on several residential buildings around the area. He needed space to accommodate containers. The land was required to make business at the port more profitable. This triggered a whole new thing. Jet could spend some money to buy the residents out of their homes. However, the residents preferred to stay put in their long-time homes. No a
“I’ll keep the bank cards for now. I’ll talk to our superiors and give you a decision. Since the man said that the cards are meant for us, they won’t be going anywhere.” Knox had no idea who Kaze was, but he knew Arthur was with the Viper’s Den. Arthur must be someone from high places. Eli soon put the little incident behind him. He got a call from Aloysius yesterday and was made aware of Jet’s plans. The films had been put on hold for far too long, and the people above Eli were anxious to get things moving. Though Eli was surprised by the review board’s visit, everything was still in his control. Eli left the matter at that without reporting the incident to the higher-ups. The flashy, red car sped along the road. Arthur kept looking back at Kaze, eager to find out about the next plan. Arthur brought Kaze out today to witness how Eli and his team operated. As it happened, Eli adopted such a shallow ploy. Arthur was not surprised, though. Eli’s methods were common.