Frank informed the guild that Shangrila Group was behind the impersonation of the God of War that made the headlines for the past two days. The guild paid close attention to this incident. Soon, a notice was released by the guild. The guild demanded all the offline medical supply distributors in South River to boycott the products manufactured by Shangrila Group. Whoever disobeyed the guild would be punished severely. “Shangrila Group purchased the factory and wanted to start production, but where are they going to sell the products?” Frank grinned when he learned the news. The notice from the guild was effective immediately. Everyone knew Shangrila Group was blacklisted. “Mr. Chairman, Ms. Souffle, we just got a call from Mr. Oliver Ramos, the CEO of Cynotech Medical, South River Branch. He wanted to cancel the meeting for tomorrow.” Sophie, the chairman’s assistant, updated Winnie and Kaze when they came back from the factory. Cynotech Medical was one of the top f
They could not even get out of South River State and Kaze was talking about nationwide sales? The executives were stunned by his words. They neither expressed it with their looks nor their voices, but they thought it was ridiculous. The chairman was either too naive or a complete rookie in the business world and its ecosystem. Shangrila Group had just been rebuilt and they had yet to form their own sales channel or have their sales team. In order to deliver their products to the consumers, the products must be on the racks of different physical stores and the only way to distribute the products was through the distributors, who had the sales channel. Kaze saw through their thoughts. He said calmly, “Why must we rely on the distributors? Our product can be sold online.” “Online?” The executives were surprised by his suggestion. They had never thought about it before because they were thinking in an orthodox way. “Anthony, can the chairman’s suggestion work?” Winnie aske
“The Four Ocean Commerce Guild thought they could kill us off with just one blacklist notice. How childish!” “There are more than a dozen social media platforms online! For example, Mega Dance, the hottest short video platform currently, we can market there and reach the entire nation! We don’t have to worry about the sales anymore!” The despair from being blacklisted faded when they found the solution. The executives were energized. “Let’s call it a day for now.” Kaze waved at them and ended the meeting since it was getting late. “Mr. Chairman, I have something to talk to you about.” Winnie stayed back. She said, “The company still has shortcomings in the biomedical field. I am planning to go south for a bit after James’ death anniversary. “I am going to look for talents and specialists in the field to join us in the R&D department.” After the Taylor Swan incident, Shangrila Group was turned down by multiple famous medical research teams, despite a handsome reward.
The video was clear, unlike the blurry surveillance footage. Someone at the party must have recorded the whole thing. It did not seem like Ryan was faking it, especially when his leg was hit by the baseball bat. Kaze could confirm that it was all a misunderstanding. Winnie misunderstood Ryan as the one who betrayed James. However, Zach, Aster, and Shelly obviously turned on James. Based on the video, Frank must have threatened James using Ryan and his team. That explained why James was forced to jump off the building. He took his own life because he wanted to protect the employees that he viewed as family. He was not a coward that the world claimed! James died a bitter death. Other than Ryan, others celebrated his death. Judging by their reaction, Frank must have bought them out long ago. “The lab achieved a major breakthrough that day and hosted a barbeque party on the rooftop. Frank invited James but I didn’t go because I was not feeling well. “I didn’t know Rya
The woman was Ryan’s wife, Rei. She scolded Ryan when she saw him talking to others. Ryan shrugged and said, “Rei, this is Winnie Souffle from Shangrila Group…” “I don’t care what souffle or pancake! If they are not here to see a doctor or buy medicine, tell them to… Wait, what? What did you say?” Rei widened her eyes at Winnie. “Winnie White you mean? James White’s wife?” Winnie smiled. “It’s Souffle now. Hi, Rei. I’m here on behalf of Shangrila Group to invite Ryan back to the company as the technical supervisor for the lab…” “Oh no you don’t!” Rei shouted and stopped Winnie before she could finish. “You just want the patent that Ryan has!” Rei’s arms akimbo as she glared at Winnie. “Don’t even think about it!” Winnie frowned. “Rei, the patents belonged to Ryan. Even if we were to use it, we would pay him accordingly, but a part of it belongs to our lab and it’s only natural for us to take it back.” “Winnie is right.” Ryan nodded. “What did you say?!” Rei slap
“He’s the chairman of Shangrila Group?” Upon hearing Winnie, not only Zach, Aster, and Shelly were shocked, but even Ryan looked at Kaze in surprise. No one expected that the young man who kept a low profile behind Winnie was the chairman who single-handedly brought Shangrila Group back to life. “Ryan, the chairman is here to welcome you back,” Winnie said. She wanted to use this chance to persuade Ryan back to oversee the lab. “Hmph! Chairman? So what? We are now working for the top three families!” “The top three families are kings in Lilyrose! They even got rid of Shangrila Group two years ago, and they can do it again now!” “As a matter of fact, Frank alone was more than enough to destroy you and your little chairman, let alone the top three families combined!” Zach, Aster, and Shelly mocked Winnie and Kaze after the initial surprise. The three of them were recruited by the top three families but they were never part of the core team. They had no idea that durin
“Get him!” Zach ordered Aster and Shelly. The three of them jumped on Ryan, punching and kicking him for the patents. Being crippled, Ryan was not capable of fighting back. He hugged his head and curled up his body on the ground, grunting in pain. The three of them were his students once, yet they turned on him. “Good one! Beat him to death! Useless piece of shit! If you gave the patents to the top three families, I would have lived a better life for the past two years, not being poor!” What devastated Ryan even more was his wife, Rei, cheering on his assaulters instead of helping him. “Hand it over!” “No!” Ryan refused to loosen his lips even though he was beaten up. Shelly was infuriated. She lifted her foot wearing the heel and aimed at Ryan’s crotch. Slap! Suddenly, a slap landed on her face and sent her to the ground. “What the fuck? You slapped me?!” She screamed as she covered her face. Slap! Slap! Kaze ignored the woman and slapped Zach and Aster t
“Really?” Ryan picked his chin up and looked at Kaze with a twinkle in his eyes. “As if! You’re just a good-for-nothing handicap. I will never regret my decision.“Hmph! Shangrila Group was no match for the top three families two years ago. I doubt that has changed even now. Ryan, you will only be in a worse situation if you go with him.“Mr. Golding said that it will be the end of Shangrila Group in the next few days.” Zach and the others expressed their disdain. Noticing Ryan’s hesitance, Winnie persuaded. “Trust in the chairman, Ryan. I wasn’t in a better circumstance than you before, but look at me now.” “Alright, I’ll go with you to Shangrila Group.” Ryan trusted Winnie more than anything. He rose to his feet. Rei panicked because Ryan had not handed over the technology. She blew a fuse and threatened him. “If you walked out on me, I’m filing for divorce, Ryan.” “Fine by me.” Ryan no longer cherished his wife who had betrayed their sacred vows. Nevertheless
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
Katie suddenly chuckled. “What’s the matter? You are after my daughter and you tried to give me advice? What are you trying to do?” She looked down on a man with no future. She stubbornly believed he approached her daughter because of her. If he said as such, he must have known something else. It was no secret that Katie was preparing the birthday banquet for Leah and one could easily find out about it with a little research. Katie took his words not as a suggestion but as a challenge to her power. “Whatever. You stubbornly believe that anyone who approaches you or your daughter is after your power, does that mean there’s no emotions or love throughout your life?” Kaze suddenly looked at Katie with a pitiful gaze. She had been consumed by the thirst for power and it wiped her humanity. Katie would eventually be a sacrifice of someone else before she knew it. “Don’t look at me with those eyes. Who do you think you are? I see through you right away! I’ve seen a lot of
Frustrated, Leah tried to shake her mother’s hand off, but Katie tightened the grip and did not let it happen. The more the girl resisted, the more Katie felt challenged. She felt that her authority was being shaken by her daughter’s defiance. “Stop it! I told you before that if you don’t listen to me, I will make you regret it! And, don’t let me catch you with this bastard anymore, or he won’t have a future here in Butterworth!” Katie shouted at the girl to silence her. Leah could resist her mother and defy her, but not at the expense of her friend’s well-being. She knew her mother always meant what she said, and once those words were spoken, she would certainly take action against Kaze. Therefore, she quickly fell silent and let her mother take control of the situation. Katie glared at Kaze resentfully. “Stay away from my daughter or I will make you pay!” she bellowed. She then dragged Leah to her car and told the girl to get in. Right after she closed the door, s
Without further ado, Katie stormed out of the car and dashed over to them. “Leah!” she shouted, startling her daughter. When Leah saw her mother, she knew doomsday was upon her. She was frightened and stunned on the spot. Kaze was surprised by the coincidence as well. He was not afraid of the woman but she was charging at them like a ferocious monster. “I told you not to be with this guy! Why didn’t you listen to me?!” Katie could not tolerate her daughter’s defiance. She saw it as a direct challenge to her authority and bottom line. She stepped up and dragged her daughter away. “I told you not to see this poor bastard. Why didn’t you listen to me?” She was consumed by rage and paid no attention to her choice of words. All she cared about was the fear that her daughter had nearly fallen into a stranger’s hands. Leah disliked her mother being unreasonable. She had no idea what changed her mother into an unreasonable wretched hag. “Mom, what are you talking about?” “W
“Katie’s daughter dined at my restaurant and she met the man Katie intended to match her with, yet Katie knew nothing and even threw a tantrum at the door. Why do you think that happened?” Master Fuller shook his head helplessly and poured himself a glass of beer. The last guest of the day had left and he could enjoy his rest peacefully. However, the last guest of the day was a rather interesting pair. “Isn’t it a little contradicting? She’s trying to get Mr. Lee to marry her daughter but she’s asking for trouble at the same time.” The woman was surprised but also found it interesting. “Do I have to deliver the meals to Mr. Lee?” “Let my disciple do it. Don’t you get involved in this, it’s better to stay away from trouble.” Master Fuller wanted to get back at Katie, yet he did not need to do anything because the woman was actively bringing trouble upon herself. The woman did not say anything and simply gazed into the distance. The wooden door at the entrance was ope
“It’s getting late. Let’s get you back.” Kaze knew that Leah had snuck out of the hotel, so it would not be good to let her stay out too late. Katie was a tough mother to deal with. If she found out her daughter snuck out without her permission and spent dinner with him, she would lose her mind. Kaze was not afraid but Leah would have to suffer her mother’s wrath. “It’s getting late. We have to go back.” Leah liked the cozy atmosphere of the restaurant. She felt free of restraints while on the premises, but time flew by quickly, leaving her with little time to savor the experience. She wished she could enjoy more moments of peace and quiet while indulging in good food. “Do visit if you have time. We usually open at night only,” Master Fuller said when he noticed the heavy look on the girl’s face. “Great. I’m definitely coming again!” Leah then got up and headed out. Kaze then pulled his wallet out and wanted to pay for the meal. “Mr. Lee, what are you doing here?
Passersby would spare an extra glance at the expensive car but dared not pause to inspect further. The woman in the car looked anxious as she relentlessly tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. Katie was still waiting, hoping to find out who Master Fuller’s guests were. Her patience was thinning by the second. Since she picked up her daughter, everything had gradually slipped out of her control, and she hated the feeling. Back at the restaurant, Master Fuller and his guests were still chatting over delicious dessert. Kaze had a bite and was amazed by the taste. As expected of a national-level chef, his culinary skills could turn the simplest ingredients into the most amazing delicacy. “I thought this was just a normal sweet potato but there’s something else added inside.” After an enjoyable dinner, Leah finally had the chance to taste the final dish—the dessert, which appeared to be an ordinary sweet potato. When she peeled the skin and took a bite, she realized