Quartet Group was supposed to be based in Sunrise. With Darcy taking over the company, she wanted to rent an office building and expand into new markets. Renting an office building should not pose an issue, so what could have gone wrong? Kaze wanted to check it out. He gave Snow a call to look into the situation while walking out. Clover Center was a newly built office building in the city, so the space was vacant. After careful deliberation with the senior executives, Darcy decided to rent the entire building, including the basement parking to run Quartet Group’s operation. Quartet Group and the realty for Clover Center had come to a verbal agreement in a matter of two days. The annual rent was 20 million dollars with an upfront payment of a two-million-dollar deposit.The representative of Quartet Group would sign the tenancy in the morning as Darcy was away, attending Shangrila Group’s renaming ceremony with Miru. Darcy assumed it was a straightforward transaction
“What are you trying to say, Ms. Quint?” Dave narrowed his eyes. “Our legal teams drafted the contract, and now you’re saying you’re not signing it. You’re wasting my time.” He sounded malice. His demeanor screamed gangster instead of a company director. Thud. Darcy threw the contract on the table and said curtly, “I’m not wasting your time. You were not serious with the deal. We agreed on 20 million dollars on a year’s lease, but the amount here has changed to 200 million dollars.” 200 million dollars? The rental went up tenfold. Another 200 million dollars and Darcy could buy the title deed to Clover Center outright. Riley and the others behind Darcy were startled. With haste, Riley stepped forward and grabbed the document for a look. Sure enough, the rental price was 200 million dollars. “You’ve gone too far to change your mind at the last minute, Mr. Pamela.” Riley hurled the papers down on the table furiously. She was near tears. It was a good thing she was n
Arrogance. It was pure arrogance. Darcy never imagined that Dave would tear the stamped receipt right before everybody’s eyes. “Do you think you can destroy the evidence by ripping the receipt in half, Mr. Pamela?” Darcy heaved her chest and pursed her lips. Click! Dave took out a brass lighter and set the receipt on fire while saying, “Don’t be mad, Ms. Quint. I can tell the stamp is fake on the receipt. I’m afraid someone has impersonated one of my employees and scammed you out of two million dollars.“You should demand your money back from the person. My company is not involved in this.” All that was left of the receipt was ashes. Dave would not even return the deposit to them. His message was loud and clear. Darcy could bite her tongue and sign the unfair contract or get nothing at all. “We’ll see about this, Mr. Pamela. See you in court.” Darcy turned around to leave. Riley and the others stormed off. “See you in court then. I’m not the one needing an offi
Was it Darcy’s lucky day? She held the phone, and her mouth dropped wide open. She could not believe that Master Quint would do something nice for her. “If I run my company in Quintessential Group’s office building, what about Quintessential’s business, Grandpa?” she asked skeptically. “Quintessential Group is becoming a shell of its former self. What’s the use of such a big office building? I can’t think of a better idea than to support your career. “Come over to the house now. Your uncle and the others will have a talk with you.” With her phone in her grasp, Darcy fell into a daze. In the end, she decided to take a trip to her family home. She could sense the sincerity in Master Quint’s tone. “I need to head home for a bit. You guys should get back to the office. We’ll figure something out once I get back.” Darcy told the employees before driving off to the Quints’ family residence. The employees got ready to leave dejectedly. “Come on, Riley. Stop blaming yourse
“Shut up!” Buckling his belt back on, Dave cocked his head back and yelled. Riley shuddered with a pale face. It just dawned on her that Kaze was on his own. Dave, on the other hand, had burly men around him. Not only would Kaze have trouble saving her, but he might be dragged into this with her too. “Run, Kaze. Call the cops and tell Ms. Quint and the others!” It occurred to Riley that Kaze had just been out of a mental institution, so he probably did not have a handle on things. Riley quickly told him what to do. “Are you deaf, bitch? I told you to shut up!” Dave looked at her menacingly and raised his hand to slap Riley. Furrowing his brows, Kaze extended his leg to clip a chair. He pushed the chair with the tip of his foot. The chair swiveled in the air and crashed onto Dave’s shoulder. Smash! “Argh!” With the chair splitting into pieces, Dave coughed out blood. His heavy body tumbled to the right, slamming onto the desk. The pain was excruciating. Ril
Sizzle! The cigar scorched Dave’s tongue, and smoke permeated from his mouth. “Ugh!” Dave shook his head violently. As Kaze covered his mouth, Dave could only whimper in pain. The endless agony drained the color off Dave’s face. His eyes turned bloodshot as he gave Kaze a pleading and fearful look. Kaze was unfazed. Apart from Jackal and his team, the rest in the office stared at the scene with their jaws dropped. The situation made their hair stand and sent shivers down their spine. Even Riley was horrified by Kaze’s ruthlessness. Kaze only released Dave once the cigar was put out completely in his mouth. Dave sank to the ground and held his throbbing neck, gasping for air. Kaze paid him no attention. Instead, he took out his buzzing phone for a look. Snow was calling. “Mr. Chairman, Clover Center is one of Mr. Forrester’s invested real estate.“In other words, you own Clover Center. Most of the commercial spaces Skyline Estates manage belong to you.” Kaze
Dave had such thoughts? “Are you even worthy?” Kaze’s words pushed Dave over the cliff to the abyss of despair. “How about I recommend a place for you to go? As for whether you can make it out alive, it depends on how well-connected the top three families are.” Kaze called Don. Soon, a police siren sounded downstairs. Kaze handed over the video he had taken of Dave and his men, which recorded the evidence of his crimes. Dave and his men were taken away. “Watch them. If the top three families got into the police department and silenced them permanently, then we can add another charge on them,” Kaze said to Don. Don nodded. Soon, Clover Center’s management was handed over to a company named Vista Management. Vista Management was a department under Vista Group and its chairman was Haste Vista, also a well-known figure in Lilyrose. Haste went to meet Kaze himself and thanked him for what he did. “Mr. Vista, it’s you. You don’t need to thank me, it’s nothing.” Kaze
“What is it, Grandpa?” Darcy was still carried away by the kindness of her family and did not expect much. Master Quint sighed and said, “Darcy, we helped you when you are at your lowest because we are family. We all have the same blood flowing in our veins. Am I right?” “It’s great that you view me as a part of the family, Grandpa.” Darcy was gratified. She thought after the incident with the Hansers, Master Quint and her uncle had finally awakened and cherished each other more. As long as they could reflect on their mistakes and treat her parents better, she would forgive them. As Master Quint said, they were family after all. Master Quint was delighted with her answer. He added, “Now that you are leading Quartet Group, we are worried about you and we don’t want others to laugh at you. That’s why I hope you can merge Quartet Group with Quintessential Group.” The other family members looked at Darcy eagerly. Darcy frowned but she nodded. “It can be arranged but it’
Jiro pointed at the corner, indicating that the men could kneel there. His men behind him laughed in agreement. They then started to scrutinize the women as if they were picking one for themselves. The way they browsed through the women as if they were products left the women feeling sick and disgusted. Cyan’s face paled. She tried to shake off Jiro’s hand but could not even break free. She turned to Draig with eyes begging for help. “Let go of her!” Draig stepped up and stared down at Jiro. Jiro glanced at Draig and then raised his brows. He curled his lips up and said, “Hmph. And here I thought I found someone that I like.” “I said, let go of her!” Draig said, stepping closer to Jiro. Jiro tightened his clutch over Cyan’s jaw, making her tear up. He chuckled and said, “Beat me and I’ll let her go.” “You bastard!” Draig cursed. Cyan did everything she could to set him up with Snow, but he had to return the favor. Even though Draig feared Jiro, he steeled himsel
Everyone on the couch gasped in shock. A moment ago, the influencers, who were giggling and chuckling, waiting for Wesley to show off his strength, instinctively shrank in fear. “How dare you beat Wesley! You guys are asking for it!” Wesley’s followers failed to realize the severity of the situation. They bolted up, grabbed the nearest beer bottles, and jumped at the enemies. Jiro raised his hand to signal his men, indicating he would handle this challenge himself. Then, he stepped forward. Punches and kicks were dished out in a flurry. In less than thirty seconds, Wesley’s men were all beaten up to the ground, twirling around in painful groans. Like Wesley, they, too, suffered broken arms and legs. Everyone thought Wesley would be able to teach the Ryokanians another lesson they could not forget but it turned out the other way around. Other than Kaze and a few more, most of them on the couch were horrified. Cyan instinctively glanced at Kaze. She started to regret
Kaze frowned. He tapped on Snow’s shoulder, gesturing to her to sit down as they could no longer walk away. Since they were not part of this, Kaze wanted to leave the matter to Wesley and let them deal with it. The men were not towering but all of them were buff and bulky. Their muscles were obvious even through their uniforms. Their necks had the same tattoo of a sword, amplifying their ferocity. One of the men's heads was bleeding. He was the Ryokanian whom Wesley had hit with a bottle of beer. Wesley wiped the beer and snacks off himself and then shouted at the men, “Who the fuck are you pieces of shit? Do you know who the hell am I? How dare you hit my friend with the bottle?!” The leader of the Ryokanians was a young man in a black karate uniform. He was around 180 cm tall, which was considered tall among Ryokanians. He had a buzz cut that amplified his stern and stoic expression; his presence felt sharp and strong. He had a glass of whiskey in his hand as he loo
Kaze turned a blind eye to those who looked down on him. He smiled it off and said, “I don’t care whatever you guys want to say. I know if I am a coward or not. I am just giving you a friendly reminder. “Or else, when shit hits the fan, I don’t think everyone can be safe. Whether you want to take my advice or not, it’s up to you. As for Cyan…” He looked at Cyan with a serious look and continued, “If you don’t want this gathering to be ruined, you can consider what I just said.” Although he knew Cyan disliked him and would never take his words seriously, for the sake of Lock, he gave a piece of advice and did what he could. “Hmph!” Cyan scoffed. She remained seated with the glass of wine in her hand, looking at Kaze condescendingly. With a disappointed look, she said, “Don’t even talk to me. Since when were we that close? Wesley said what needed to be said. You are afraid of the Ryokanians, so be it. Don’t drag us down with you. You really think everyone is as cowardly as yo
No one knew what Wesley had gone through. Even Kaze felt that the useless coward was surprisingly brave. Therefore, he spoke up to give a piece of friendly advice, “Wesley, the Ryokanian wore the uniform of the Refined Blade and there’s an apprentice badge on him. I think he has some background. “If everyone wants to have a fun and peaceful night, you should consider changing the venue, or else trouble will come knocking.” Kaze thrashed Bronze Sparrow himself, so he knew the Ryokanians’ status in the establishment. When Zoro was still in charge of the place, the Ryokanians were basically the kings. Other than teasing the ladies, they could bring back whoever they were fond of and Bronze Sparrow could not do anything about it. After Miru took over, the Ryokanians no longer possessed the privilege. However, since Miru wanted to expand her business in Riverbank, she did not make enemies with the Ryokanians, so they were still welcome in the establishment. As long as they
Kaze’s words changed the expression of everyone around him. The influencers were left speechless. Kaze practically called them gold diggers! Yet he himself was a live-in husband and son-in-law! He had no right to call them gold diggers! Draig’s expression darkened. He did not expect Kaze to lecture him in front of the women. More importantly, Kaze sounded right and reasonable, leaving him with no words to argue back. No women at the scene would argue against Kaze’s words, or else they would practically admit that they were gold diggers. What was more unacceptable were the words that came from Kaze’s mouth, someone Draig looked down upon. If they were from someone with a similar status, he would still accept it. Yet Kaze was just a live-in useless piece of trash that all men despised! He was not even worthy to be a slave, let alone lecturing Draig in public! Draig felt insulted. “That’s enough, Kaze!” Right before Draig could lash out at Kaze, Cyan stepped up a
Yet Kaze simply sat down without having any knowledge of his status and position. More importantly, everyone else realized something was wrong. Cyan and the others stared at him coldly, silently wishing he would be self-aware enough to move away. Kaze, however, sat like a rock and ignored the gazes on him. He even picked up a piece of melon and started eating. Draig’s expression darkened. Wesley noticed the change of expression on Draig’s face and he, too, was agitated. Even he dared not have ill thoughts about Snow, a woman with exquisite beauty, yet Kaze, a live-in husband, showed no boundaries. “Slam!” Wesley slammed the table and bolted up. He pointed at Kaze and bellowed coldly, “Kaze Lee, Draig allowed you to stay but can’t you read the room? “This isn’t a place for you! You are just a bodyguard! Don’t you know Draig is into Snow? They are the main highlights for tonight! A piece of useless pie like you should get the hell away! Get it?!” The influencers who wer
Kaze wondered if his generous cash handouts had backfired on Cyan. Maybe he should take back his donations and retract the sources allocated to her by Golden Scale Corporation. Everybody took their seats. An awkward moment followed. Somehow or rather, there were no seats left when it was Kaze’s turn to sit down. “Ha. Mr. Lee of Golden Scale Corporation.” Wesley looked at Kaze with a smirk and said sarcastically, “I’m sorry. I might have forgotten that you were attending when I reserved the booths.“But you’re just a sales manager. You are not qualified to sit with us.“Look around. They are all senior members of Golden Scale Corporation. They are your boss’ boss’ boss. “You might want to find somewhere else to sit.“If you’re short of money, just put it on my tab. “It’s my treat tonight! “Consider it a celebration of my release. I’m disappointed that you reported me to the police, though.” Wesley gestured gracefully for Kaze to leave. Draig let out an amused gr
Cyan frowned. “You’ve not been out for long, Wesley. It’s better not to start anything, especially with Ryokanians.” Wesley was no longer on par with her anyway, so there was nothing romantic going on between them. Nevertheless, Cyan would consider being friends with Wesley. Upon learning that she wanted to have a party at Bronze Sparrow, Wesley volunteered to reserve her seats. “Tsk. Ryokanians don’t mean squat. My cousin, Buffy, is now the chairwoman of Gwake Corporation. She asked for my release, and I was let out with no questions asked. One Ryokanian doesn’t scare me.” Wesley pouted in disdain. He saw Kaze behind the crowd and grimaced. “Get out of the way!” Wesley yelled at the people in front and made a beeline toward Kaze. He said curly, “Oh, if it isn’t the moocher? I didn’t expect to see you here.“Tell me. Who did you have to suck up to get in? “I doubt you can get into this exclusive place on your own. “I hate to say this, Cyan. “But why did you bring