“Uncle Camry, Aunt Teresa, now that James is gone, let me take care of you. You can treat me as your own son. I will do whatever I can to take back Shangrila Group.” Kaze consoled the two of them. Camry and Teresa were happy enough to have their son’s friend visiting. As for taking back Shangrila Group, they never thought of it before and did not dare to rely on Kaze to do it. They knew the person that James offended was powerful, someone that they could not afford to mess with. After the little reunion with Kaze, Camry and Teresa realized the problem at hand had not been solved. “Kaze, you better leave now. Zenon’s boss is Scarface. He’ll definitely come back with more men!” Camry said anxiously. Before Zenon scuttled away, he said he would bring his boss back for vengeance. Scarface was the gangster boss who ruled the Old District for years. He had a dozen ferocious men working under him and he controlled the local strip clubs and bars. He even operated a loan com
A man with a grimace strutted into the front yard. There was a huge scar on the left of his face, from his temple down to his chin. The scar looked like a giant centipede crawling on his face, making him look vicious and scary. His presence alone was terrifying. The man was the notorious Scarface of the Old District. Scarface had a cigarette hanging in his mouth, his eyes narrowed as he glared at the elderly couple who came out from the house. “Camry White, where is that little shit that broke Zenon’s arm?” Camry and Teresa were frightened by his shout. Even though Kaze told them that he was a chairman of a big company and had gotten two other gangster bosses to deal with Scarface, they were still afraid of Scarface when they saw him in person. “Scarface, Kaze is my son’s classmate. He visited and thought Zenon was harassing us, that’s why he broke his arm. Please forgive him, we’ll pay for Zenon’s medical fee!” Camry bit the bullet and begged. “Medical fee? Do you ha
The alley was filled with people, from the house’s front yard to the end of the alley. There were around a few hundred people at first glance. Scarface and his men were stunned. Some of them were shaking and even peed themselves. “What the hell? Why are there so many people? Are they here for me?” Scarface wiped the sweat off his forehead. The men in the alley automatically split up, opening a path in the center. Two sets of hurried footsteps came. When Scarface saw the owners of the footsteps, his heart skipped a beat. He went up to them with flattery and said, “Gold Tooth, Dan, what are you guys doing here?” Scarface saw the two of them before during the gathering of the gangster bosses. After fifteen gangster bosses were arrested, Gold Tooth and Dan were the only ones left. He also heard that the two of them took over the properties and resources of the other gangs, making them invincible. “Who the hell are you? Get the hell out of my face!” Dan slapped Scarf
“Aunt Teresa, I’m not a gangster.” Kaze was amused, but it was difficult to explain the situation clearly to her. Fortunately, Gold Tooth read the situation and said, “Madam, it’s Master Lee who arrested the gangsters yesterday.” “Yeah. Master Lee is the commander of the anti-riot operation yesterday!” Dan echoed. Camry and Teresa were surprised. No wonder Gold Tooth and Dan were so afraid of Kaze. They could be arrested if they defy Kaze! Scarface and his men were mortified. Rumors of the fifteen gangster bosses were circulating the city. It was said that the fifteen of them would be executed. Kaze then looked at Scarface. “So, James owed you twenty thousand?” “No! No, Master Lee! I was wrong! James White didn’t owe me any money! This is a misunderstanding!” Scarface ordered Zenon to extort money from Camry and Teresa even though James did not owe anyone money. Two years ago, if James was still the chairman of Shangrila Group, Scarface would never dare. “No? Then
“Uncle Camry, Aunt Teresa, you are being too courteous,” Kaze said as he helped them into the house. “I said I will take care of you two on behalf of James now that he’s gone.” Camry and Teresa were thrilled to hear that. After losing their son, this would be the first time they felt truly happy. Kaze added, “The Old District environment is terrible. Brenda can’t grow up happily here, you guys can’t stay here anymore. I’ll buy a big house for you and you can move in with Brenda. I’ll hire a maid to take care of you all. “Aunt Teresa, you don’t need to wash clothes in the winter anymore.” “Kaze, that sounds… expensive. We are fine living here. Why don’t you just take Brenda away? The two of us are going to be okay.” Teresa’s hands were shaking when she rejected the suggestion. Kaze saw the cracks on her hands and it pained him. “Money is not that important to me. I’m more concerned about your health. Just leave it to me. I’ll let you know when everything is done.” “Kaz
A group of security guards rushed out and flanked the Quint family as if it were an ambush. “Jay, you traitor! Are you out of your mind? The Hilfinger Corporation belongs to the Quint family now. How dare you tell the security to throw us out!?” The Quint family was stunned and enraged. Jay scoffed, “The Quint family is shit. Who told you that Hilfinger Corporation is going back to the Quint family?” “My grandson-in-law, Kaze Lee! He was at the rebuilding ceremony yesterday and he saw the fall of the Hilfinger family!” Master Quint argued. Jay cackled. “Your useless grandson-in-law? You believed him? If he said Lilyrose City belongs to him, would you ask the mayor to give you his place” Irritated, Jay urged the security guards to throw the Quint family out. “Don’t just stand there, throw them all out!” All of them were thrown out of the lobby. "Get the hell out of here! Hilfinger Corporation is now under the control of the Everia, Golding, and Chapman families. The Quin
"He’s just the Quints’ son-in-law, why did the Lee family go to such an extent to warn him? They must have overestimated him," Eliot said with a scornful grunt. He was displeased with the Lee family because they used to hold the same rank as the top three families. Now, the Everia, Golding, and Chapman families had to take orders from the Lee family. Eliot was an ambitious man and he too wanted to push the Everia family to new heights. Frank said, “I heard he has the support of the Perfect World Group. After Roger Hilfinger killed himself, his body was sent back to the Lee family in a coffin.“He even gave the Lee family three weeks to apologize to him in person. The family was having a birthday party for Karina Lee when the coffin crashed their party. Then, George Lee asked us to deal with this little retard.” The top three families accepted the terms offered by the Lees. All they had to do was deal with a retard of a son-in-law and they could get Hilfinger Corporation. W
“Ms. Lowry, I didn’t hit Ben. He took my toy and he fell when he ran away!” Brenda stood with her hands behind her back in the corner of the office, crying her lungs out as she tried to defend herself. The boy named Ben was sitting in front of her. There seemed to be some blood stain below his nose, and he was also crying. Slam! Ben’s father, Ken, slammed the table and shouted, “You wretched girl! How dare you lie! Ben is a good boy, he has a lot of toys. Why would he take yours? No wonder you lie at such a young age, your parents didn’t teach you right!” Ben’s mother, Elsa, said coldly, “Ms. Lowry, Brenda White is obviously a badly educated child. I’m afraid Ben might be influenced by being in the same class as her. I’d suggest she gets expelled!” Brenda cried when she heard the boy’s mother threatened to expel her. “Sobs, no I don’t want! Ms. Lowry, please don’t expel me! I am a good girl, I didn’t hit Ben!” Ms. Arina Lowry was a fresh grad recently recruited as a tea
Arthur chuckled, his smile carrying a touch of sleaziness. “Oh, I see.” A realization dawned on Kaze. “Are you with quality control?” Several individuals in dark blue suits approached. The men and women carried files and documents. Kaze nodded without a word. “We are just here to announce the results. We shouldn’t be long.” Arthur came forward to engage with them. The group was likely given the heads-up as they had the right number of people. They swaggered into Rising Sun’s building. The general manager straightened up his tie in a fluster and walked out. None of the film productions made the cut yet, and the delay was costing the company money by the day. At this rate, the project would go down under. Eli, the general manager, rushed to the entrance upon learning the news. The review team was there to do one final check. The films would get the green light if the board found that everything was up to par. The head office would stop putting pressure on
Given Kaze’s status, Alfonso knew better than to have him waiting under the hot sun. Of course, he would send his people to be on standby for Kaze’s arrival. Peter only came to the rescue when Kaze was pestered by some street gang. Alfonso’s omission of Kaze’s identity led to this hiccup. Kaze did not care one bit about the incident. Heck, he did not even bring it up. Arthur straightened his back nervously, becoming even more cautious behind the wheel. “You knew, but why didn’t you say anything, Mr. Lee? You didn’t even tell on us.” Arthur could not understand why. However, he had more respect for the man. “I didn’t see a point. You’ll learn what happens when you displease me, so I won’t bother telling you now.” Kaze was mild-mannered as ever. He spoke softly without a hint of anger. All the more Arthur revered him. “Mr. Lee, we didn’t do our jobs right. We didn’t know who you were.“But my duty is to protect you in the dark. “We saw you getting out of the train
“Rising Sun is a media company. Several of their films are about to be released. They are trying to get them approved to air due to some censorship issues.” Arthur took out a document. “Are there any issues with the films? Why aren’t they approved yet?” Kaze asked curiously. Kaze had no idea. “There are some issues. They aren’t fit to be aired. “Typically, there aren’t a lot of restrictions for film productions so long as the themes aren’t sensitive topics. “But these films featured altered history. The company has been asked multiple times to make revisions, but the films still don’t make the cut.” The Viper’s Den’s members were not privy to the information. The Frosts were insignificant. Kaze was after the Frosts. Otherwise, the Viper’s Den would not waste its resources on a mere film production company. Jet’s investment of nearly ten million bucks in Rising Sun caught the Viper’s Den’s attention. The delayed approval of the films would be catastrophic to the in
“It’s quite a bustle even when it’s late at night.” Kaze looked down from above and saw the bright lights. A street in the distance was brightly lit with many people working into the night. “The majority of people would do many things to make a living.” Arthur rarely observed these sights. “Thank you. Keep me in the loop of any progress. I’m curious as to what you’d do.” Kaze did not see a need to get involved with the minor stuff. He delegated the tasks to his people. “If you have time, why don’t you go out and have a bit of fun, Mr. Lee?” Arthur asked. The reason for Kaze’s trip was to deal with Jet. Kaze would get some satisfaction from upsetting Jet. “I don’t want to attract attention.” The last thing Kaze wanted was to blow his cover. From Kaze’s question, Arthur knew that Kaze was interested. “No. We can give you a whole new identity.” Arthur knew what to do. “I’ll leave you to it, but don’t take it too far,” Kaze replied. Still, Kaze was intrigued a
Katie was narrow-minded to spit out the unpleasant things. Her words would never harm Kaze. Kaze took the private elevator back to the penthouse for a rest. He had more important things to do. He needed to keep tabs on the Frosts. Leah’s business was none of Kaze’s concern. Sure, Leah was in a state, being manipulated by her mother and all. However, it was a family matter at the end of the day. Kaze had no rhyme or reason to get involved. Kaze soon put the whole thing behind him. Arthur was already there at the penthouse. As Kaze entered the room, Arthur jolted up from the couch. “Mr. Lee, this is the document you requested. It should have detailed information to give you a clearer idea of the situation.” Arthur put the papers in front of Kaze and grabbed him a bottle of water. Feeling hot from his walk back, Kaze took a sip and held the document up for a look. “I got to give it to the Frosts. They sure work in the shadows.” Kaze grinned. A strong opponent p
“Despite everything I’ve said, you still won’t listen! Kaze is a liar! He befriended you with a motive. Yet, you trust him. He’s a good friend to you? What do you take me for?” Katie could not put up with her daughter’s defiance. Leah must obey her because that was what a good daughter would do. “I see you as my mother. What about you? Am I a daughter to you?” Leah did not want to ask such a distressing question. However, there was no way around it. She was escaping reality. Still, she had to swallow the truth, however cruel. “What are you talking about? I wouldn’t raise you if I didn’t consider you my daughter.” Katie worked hard to keep a level head. The last thing she wanted was the whole thing to blow up into a bigger fight. She had a lot to do for the upcoming party. There was no time to lose in keeping her daughter happy. Besides, Leah was no longer a child. Yet, she was so defiant and rebellious. “Why do you plan on giving me away if I’m supposed to be your d
Katie proudly made the statement, convinced that she had done a lot for her daughter. It was only right for Leah to be grateful and understand her sacrifice. To Katie’s surprise, Leah chuckled. “What else have you done for me? You never showed me any attention. You don’t know what I like. You have no idea what I want.” Leah finally saw her mother as the person she was. This side of Katie was terrifying. “What more do you want? Am I not supposed to work? Should I be spending every waking minute of the day with you?” Katie understood Leah’s needs. However, there was no way she could make it happen. It was not easy for a woman to take hold in the Northborn Group, much less secure a high position there. Katie went through great pains to get where she was today. Alas, Leah could not understand where she was coming from. “I’m not asking you to be with me every day. I’ve tried my best to do everything you asked of me, but you can’t even be there for me during my birthdays.
“Everything I do, I do for you. Get this straight. The guy approached you because of what I could bring to the table.” Katie was pissed by her daughter’s defiance which was becoming worse with age. “I know the kind of person he is. Without Kaze’s help, I wouldn’t have escaped. Where were you then? You’re in no position to say that. “Even if there’s something he’s after, what would he want from me? I have nothing to offer.” Leah did not believe a word Katie said. Clearly, Katie was out to get Kaze. “He’s nothing but a poor kid. Why are you blowing this out of proportion? I’ve clearly stated what needed to be done. Why are you still being stubborn?”Katie believed she had not raised her daughter right. Leah turned out pretty naïve. “I told you. He has no ulterior motive. He doesn’t know who I am. He doesn’t have any other intentions. I approached him, not the other way around.” Leah kicked herself for pulling a reckless stunt. All she did was give Kaze more problems. Kat
Leah hated her mother being unreasonable. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I fed you, I gave you clothes, I put a roof over your head, I gave you life! The least you could do is to listen to me!” Katie did not expect her daughter to go so far as to defy her. Kaze remained silent, knowing that no matter what he said, it would be meaningless to someone unwilling to listen. “Kaze, I’m sorry. It was my fault that you are in this mess. I’m a jinx…” Leah blamed herself for getting Kaze in trouble with her mother. If not because of her, he would never encounter her mother. “Shut it! Why are you apologizing!? He approached you with purpose and you can’t even see that? He’s not worthy of your time!” Katie was livid. She felt her daughter was blinded by emotions, incapable of making the right decision. And to make matters worse, the girl even apologized to Kaze—what nonsense! A poor man without any background was no match for her daughter and her status. He approached the girl becaus