The trip to Riverbank City had moved up the schedule. Kaze also planned to relocate some businesses of Perfect World Group to that city for the sake of convenience in conducting his affairs there. After all, he had to cleanse the Viper’s Den from within and he needed all the manpower and resources he could get, especially his trusty assistant, Snow. Snow was able to arrange everything to perfection and he never needed to worry about her. He got so attached to the convenience that he did not want to leave her behind. He called Snow and unlike the usual where she picked up almost instantly, it took her a while before the call got through. “Chairman Lee, anything I can help you with?” Unlike her usual frosty and confident voice, she sounded slightly weak. Kaze frowned. “You sound terrible. Are you okay?” “I’m feeling unwell. I’m resting at home.” Then, Snow switched to a more energetic voice and explained, “What can I do for you, Chairman Lee? I’ll arrange for my men t
Kaze ignored the men and went over to the opened door. “What happened?” A man came out from the door after hearing the commotion. When he saw Kaze, he frowned and asked, “Who are you?” “I’m here to visit Snow. Who are you?” Kaze scrutinized the young man and spotted hostility in his tone. He, too, replied without any courtesy. The young man in his early 30s wore a custom-made suit, had neatly combed hair, and wore a pair of golden-framed glasses—all signs of a successful businessman. His handsome looks surely promised him the attention of many women. “Mr. Lee, you’re here? Please come in!” Snow, who looked pale, appeared behind the young man. Kaze sharply noticed the look of relief on her face when she spotted him. “Oh? So you are Snow’s friend? I see. Please come in.” The young man had another glance at Kaze before he stepped aside. A hint of viciousness flashed in his eyes. The man was Snow’s distant cousin, Vance Presley. He always had thoughts about his co
“Yeah, Snow. What do you feel like eating? Vance can go out and get something for you.” Miranda spoke up to support her son, waving her chubby hand adored with an emerald as she did so. Kaze found it amusing. Judging from Miranda’s dazzling outlook, if one did not know better, one might assume she would give Snow cars or houses. At the same time, Kaze also felt puzzled. Snow came from a decent family. He might not have a deep understanding but based on Conan’s explanation, Snow’s family was powerful enough to rival the Butterworth Queens. However, her relatives looked like a bunch of nouveau riche and tried to act cool in front of Snow, who drove a supercar. “Yeah, Snow. Just tell me what you want to eat. I’ll get it for you.” Vance stood up and rolled his sleeve up, seemingly trying to flaunt his expensive watch. He already noticed that Kaze did not have any expensive watch on his wrist, in fact not even a smartwatch. If he did not know better, he might assume Kaze
Miranda found out Snow was working in Lilyrose and assumed Snow got into an argument with her own family. The Presleys were a big family in Riverbank and because of that, Miranda did not take a small company in Lilyrose seriously. Even if Kaze was the chairman, she had little to no respect for him. Vance noticed his mother’s assistance, so he said confidently, “Snow, which company do you want to work for? I have a strong connection in Riverbank City. “The Perfect World Group that you are working for now might sound big but in this tiny city, there’s a limit to how far it can go. There’s no reason for you to stay…” Vance did not hold back in belittling Kaze and even expressed provocatively at the end. “You…” Anger was obvious on Snow’s face. She wanted to ask them to go out. Right before she could speak, Kaze indifferently said, “Snow, they are right. You have to eat something to replenish your energy and you shouldn’t hurt your body just because you don’t have an appeti
“Other than the rich and powerful, the ordinary folks have to book two weeks in advance and they might not even get a spot. “I am able to order from there because I already have a booking and I’m using it for Snow. You said you could ask Bourbon to prepare a bird’s nest soup for Snow? You talk big.” Rare things were highly valued. The chefs in Bourbon were renowned for their ability to prepare home-cooked food with a high-end twist. As a result, they only accepted ten bookings per day, and their schedules were filled a month in advance. Kaze said he had ordered food from Bourbon before he arrived. Others might be impressed if he had told them this, but to Vance, who knew Bourbon’s booking system, Kaze’s words felt like a joke. “Vance, don’t waste your time with him. He’s just bluffing.” Miranda teared up from all the laughing. She elegantly wiped her tears with a handkerchief and said scornfully, “You even asked Bourbon to deliver the food? Who do you think you are? “
“You? If you were the one who made Bourbon deliver the takeout, I’d eat my shoe!” The bodyguard grunted and shot a scornful gaze at Kaze before going back outside. Had he not experienced the power of Kaze’s slap earlier, he and his colleague would have beaten up Kaze. Moments later, a middle-aged woman wearing a Bourbon uniform came in with two waiters pushing the carts. “Ms. Frost, good evening. I am the manager of Bourbon, Laura. Mr. Lee had requested us to prepare dinner for you. “The bird’s nest soup is prepared specially with Mr. Lee’s high-grade blood bird’s nest. I heard it’s priced over a million and I had ordered our head chef to prepare it for you. “I just have to oversee the delivery and ensure everything is safely delivered. I wish you a speedy recovery.” Snow’s pale face blushed immediately. She looked at Kaze with a happy smile and said, “Thank you, Mr. Chairman.” The expensive bird’s nest was nothing to Kaze. She was happy because Kaze thought of her
Miranda took a deep breath and forced a smile. She said to the manager, “Thanks but I’ve dined at Bourbon many times and I’ve grown tired of the taste.” Kaze scoffed as he shook his head. He was amazed by the woman’s pride. “Snow, if your relatives are not joining, then let's dig in. If you are not feeling it, you can have as little as you want. You can start with the bird’s nest soup.” After he served a bowl of soup to Snow, he started eating. He was hungry. The food tasted great, which lived up to its name. Vance and Miranda watched as Kaze and Snow ate. They did not want to leave either. When their stomachs started growling, even Kaze felt embarrassed for them. After Kaze and Snow were done, the manager and the waiter cleaned the table and left with the plates and carts. Snow noticed the tension in the air, so she said, “Mr. Chairman, thank you for visiting. Why don’t you go back and have some rest? I’ll see you tomorrow.” “Sure. You have some good rest yourself.
The man’s eyes were bright and crystal clear, which made him look energetic and healthy. At first glance, he lived up to his title as a doctor because he would set a great example of a healthy person. The public would also easily trust his skills. If a doctor could not stay healthy himself, then he had no right to treat his patients. However, when Kaze looked at the doctor, he frowned slightly. Dr. Tyson looked healthy, but a little too much. With a warm smile, he entered the apartment under Vance’s guidance. Miranda greeted the man with a bright smile. "Dr. Tyson, thank you for coming all the way from Riverbank. It's rare to have a kind and compassionate doctor these days." The distance between Riverbank and Lilyrose was only an hour's drive. It was not ridiculously far. However, Miranda continued to flatter the doctor and aggrandize him. Dr. Tyson remained smiley and waved his hand humbly. “Treating patients is my duty. Let’s put aside the chatter. Is this young lad
The hostages were locked up in the containers. Some of them were elites in their own field while some were ordinary people with average income, yet all of them got into trouble when they boarded the plane. Most of them could not accept their fate. Yet they dared not defy or resist the mercenaries. When things started to calm down, they broke down in tears, weeping in silence as resentment consumed them. Kaze sat down at a clean corner that allowed him to look outside the window. The window was dirty but at least he could see outside. The space inside the container was filled with people sitting closely, offering comfort to one another. They were aware they were just temporarily safe in this container. No one knew what the mercenaries would do to them at the next moment. “My parents must be worried. I said I would call them when I land but now I can’t even get in touch,” Barney muttered as he sat beside Kaze. He too looked outside the window, his feelings mixed. He watc
Kaze thought of what he had overheard in the toilet. If he told the hostages about that, they would probably panic. “It’s nothing. They are just going to separate us into different rooms or containers. They said the buses would be disposed of,” he said. He did not want to reveal too much because it would cause panic. Once the hostages knew their lives were on the line, things might spiral out of control. The mercenaries could kill a few of them to make an example, and none of the hostages would dare to cause problems anymore. Kaze kept it a secret because he wanted to protect the people. “That’s it?” “Is there anything else? How many men are there? What is their plan? Who are they looking for?” “We want to know because we want to survive. This isn't our problem—we just got caught up in it.” The hostages looked at Kaze, their eyes filled with worry. They felt aggrieved because they should not be caught in such a huge problem. “I don’t know either.” No matter how m
“There’s a room there. Get in.” The mercenary pointed his gun at the mother and son, which led them to look at Kaze nervously, seemingly asking for help. “What do you want?” The mother was nervous. She clutched her son’s hand tightly, nearly making him cry, but she reacted quickly enough to cover her son’s mouth to prevent him from doing so. “All women must go into that room. You go in now,” the mercenary explained. He did not want the woman to get the wrong idea. “You people won’t hurt me, right?” the mother asked, worried that she might be ravaged. “We are not into MILF,” said the other mercenary who was escorting Kaze, indirectly assuring the mother. Kaze shot a glance at the mother and nodded at her. “They told us they were going to separate us, so there’s nothing to worry about,” he said, worried that the mother and son would not cooperate. The mother then carried her son and followed the other mercenary into the room. It was called a room but it was actually ju
“Can you make him stop? If the man comes back, we’ll be done for,” someone said. The kid’s crying made everyone anxious. “What can I do? He’s crying because he’s scared. I can’t just stop him.” The mother was afraid as well, and she did not want her son to be taken advantage of. “Calm down. Just don’t alert the men and we’ll be fine,” Miguel said, hoping to ease the situation. “I’ll fight him if he comes in. I believe I can make it,” someone said. Those with an impulsive nature grew restless from being kept on the bus for too long, feeling like livestock being kept in cages. “Shut it. They are coming,” Barney said after a glance outside the window. The other passengers fell silent, sat back down, lowered their heads, and tried their best not to look out the window. The mother quickly hugged her son and covered his mouth to prevent him from crying. Kaze felt peace and quiet once more, even the air felt smoother. He knew the passengers were merely ordinary people and
Unfortunately, Leah knew she would not get an answer out of Snow since she was refusing to help. Everything seemed to have changed following her mother’s disappearance. She tried to stay for answers but when security came in, she could not resist them anymore. It was the first time she was escorted out by security guards and it impacted her. She used to be the daughter of the CEO of Northborn Group—everyone respected her. She used to enjoy a privileged status. No matter where she went, she was the star of the event. Yet when her mother disappeared, everything changed. She wanted to look for Kaze but she had just lost the chance. Snow turned her down and gazed at her with contempt and irritation. Leah could not accept the changes but some things felt like they were destined to change. She was forced to leave the branch office but then had no idea where else to go. She felt abandoned by the world. Before this, she could still hope for Kaze’s help, but now she had no
Leah went to her mother’s company but did not find her anywhere. Joey was busy working in the CEO’s office. Leah went over and asked, “Joey, where’s my mother? I can’t reach her.” She wanted to know what happened to her mother. “I don’t know about your mother either. We went out together earlier in the day but I don’t know where she went. I can’t get in touch with her.” Joey was so busy that she could not even free herself from the desk to explain to the girl. “Where did she go? How am I supposed to find her?” Leah panicked. If even Joey did not know where her mother went, then something must have happened. A bad feeling rose from her heart. Things just got serious. “I don’t know. Why don’t you ask someone else?” Joey did not have time to deal with the girl. Leah was unfamiliar with Joey’s coldness. Joey had always treated her with kindness and flattery, so the sudden coldness caught her off guard. She felt like something had changed. “Who should I be looking f
“No! My daughter is still in the hospital!” Katie refused to accept her punishment. She started to regret her decision but it was too late. “Now only you think about your daughter? I guess you are not that foolish, but have you thought about her when you betrayed Chairman Lee? “Don’t worry. Leah knew Chairman Lee personally and we won’t hurt her, but she might not live a good life anymore,” Snow said coldly. She did not want to put the girl in a difficult situation but her life as a princess would come to an end. “You can’t do that!” Katie could not believe Snow would do that. “I bet you never thought of the consequences when you leaked the information. Too bad. You’ve lost.” Snow revealed the truth because she wanted Katie to suffer for the decision she made. Katie would now regret every decision she made because she knew she had jeopardized her daughter’s life. She would feel like a fool. She devoted her life to climbing higher to gain more power but she ignored the
“I went to a bar to have a drink and I bumped into an informant of the Viper’s Den.” Katie looked helpless as she explained as if everything that had happened was planned out for her, pushing her to the edge step by step. It was a lively night at the bar. The atmosphere was pleasant and most of the guests were having a good time. Katie was a single woman. She needed care and love at times. She was alone when she visited the bar. She started off by ordering some drinks at the counter, waiting for a chance to meet a man who shared the same ideals. A drink or two later, maybe she could get herself a company for the night. As a grown-up woman, she had her desires. It was a way to release her stress. Katie entered the bar in a casual outfit but it did not diminish her elegant demeanor. When she sat down at the counter, a few young men approached her but she was not interested in immature boys. She continued drinking. She looked at the dance floor occasionally, searching for a
“Who do you think will believe you?” Arthur frowned. There were too many coincidences that it felt like a giant setup. “I’ve explained what I need to. Don’t interrogate me like I’m a criminal. I am the CEO of the Northborn Group.” Katie left them speechless. She had said the necessary and it was up to them whether they wanted to believe it or not. They did not have the evidence to charge her anyway. “You really think we can’t hold you responsible?” Snow was not really looking for a definite answer. The moment she suspected Katie, whether or not she was truly the traitor, Snow already had the right to hold her accountable. It was necessary to make things clear and it was to find out who Katie leaked Kaze’s information to. “It has come down to this. No matter how you deny it, it’s useless. We already know what you have done and you can’t escape. Even if you don’t want to confess, we can continue the investigation, and we’ll eventually find out the truth. “If you come clean