Everyone was stunned upon the sudden roar.Everyone hurriedly took out their phones and searched for Emgrand Group’s official social media account!Indeed!The certified official account of Emgrand Group had posted the latest statement!A shock wave swept the conference room as the post was announced!Claire really did strike the deal! With twice the intended total value!It only took half an hour!How was it possible? How was it so easy?It didn’t make any sense!Harold was feeling shocked and regretted!Before today, Claire Wilson was incomparable to himself in terms of status or identity.If he had accepted the task yesterday, he would not give Claire a chance to shine herself regardless of the results!Yet, he refused because he feared that he w
After the three bows, tears were swirling in Harold’s eyes but he didn’t dare to do anything rash now.He knew that his grandma was very disappointed and agitated at him now, so no matter what, he shouldn’t enrage her any further.Lady Wilson heaved a sigh of relief after seeing Harold bowing and admitting defeat. She didn’t wish for his precious grandson to bow his head at Charlie the loser, but they had made a bet that involved her.She was a very devoted Buddhist. If Harold didn’t keep his promise, she would certainly be so afraid of the retribution and karma to come at her that she would have trouble eating and sleeping.Thus, she looked at Harold and said flatly, “Harold, treat these three bows as a lesson for you. Next time, don’t bet on something that you have no absolute certainty of. Even if you wish to make a bet, keep your family out of it!”With a pouty face, Harold grumbled, “Okay, Grandma, I know better now. I’ll never do it again…”As he spoke, his eyes glared to
Assuming that Charlie was simply joking, Claire didn’t take it seriously. She walked aside and dialed Doris’s number.Soon, the call was answered.Doris’s sweet and pleasing voice resonated from the other end of the line. “Hello, Miss Wilson.”“Hi, Miss Young. I have a favor to ask from you,” Claire said timidly.“Okay, what is it?” Doris replied.Claire rehearsed the sentence in her head once again, taking a deep breath before she said determinedly, “May I know if the chairman is available tomorrow night? My family will be organizing a banquet tomorrow to officially announce our collaboration with Emgrand Group. I hope that the chairman would kindly accept my invitation…”There was silence at the other end of the line before Doris spoke again, “Miss Wilson, I’m sorry but I cannot make the decision on behalf of my chairman. Or, perhaps I could ask him for you, would that be alright?”Claire said respectfully, “Thank you, sorry for the trouble caused.”After the call was ended,
Claire’s heart was still thumping excitedly when she exited Wilson Group’s office.Grandma would officially announce her new position tomorrow. Finally, she could hold her head up high!She turned to Charlie and said gleefully, “Charlie, thank you! If it’s not for your encouragement, I wouldn’t have dared to step up and take the challenge.”Charlie replied with a smile, “Dear, you deserve this.”He turned his head away, then turned back to her and said, “Oh yes, it’s such a great and happy event. Let’s celebrate, shall we?”Claire nodded. “How do you want to do it?”“Our third anniversary is around the corner, let’s celebrate it together! I’ll prepare everything, you just have to sit back and relax.”Claire gaped in surprise. “Are you going to surprise me?”“Yes!” Charlie nodded and laughed. “I’m giving you a surprise!”Claire felt a dash of warmth surging her heart. “Okay, I won’t ask you for any details then.”“You don’t have to, just wait!”Charlie had several plans linin
Jane was taken aback by such an extravagant appearance, wondering to herself if these guys were here for him.She dismissed that thought very quickly!Impossible! The poor loser wouldn’t know anyone so powerful.Stephen got out from the third car and strode into Emerald Court. Jane quickly got up to greet him, but he ignored her completely and went straight to Charlie.“Young Master, I’m here with the money.”Then, Stephen gestured with his hand. The studly bodyguards walked into the store, placed the suitcase on the floor, and opened it.It was full of cash to the brink!Everyone gaped in extreme shock!D*mn it!The loser…oh no! What the guy had said was actually true!Oh d*mn! Who was he!Many people took their phones out, trying to take a picture or record a video. They wouldn’t want to miss such a shocking scene.Stephen’s bodyguards immediately cleared the scene and pushed them out of the store. All they managed to snap was the back of Charlie’s head.Charlie pointed
Charlie didn’t return home right away after leaving Emerald Court.He wanted to give his wife a full package of surprise during their wedding anniversary celebration.The surprise was not limited to the precious jade necklace—he wanted to make up for his wife a romantic wedding.As he recalled the earlier days, Charlie and Claire rushed to register their marriage under the request of Lord Wilson, Claire’s grandfather, and they didn’t manage to hold a wedding.Lord Wilson had intended to select a date for a lavish wedding, but not long after they got married, he was seriously ill and was admitted to the hospital. Hence, the wedding had to be delayed.Later, Lord Wilson passed away. Charlie was totally ignored by the Wilson family, so the wedding plan was flushed down the drain.However, it was different now. He was rich, so he could and must give his wife a wedding!The first venue that popped right up his head when he thought of the wedding was Shangri-La’s Sky Garden!Shangri-
Sabrina crossed her arms in front of her chest and said in a pompous tone, “Yeah, I despise you, so what? Can’t you bear some criticism now, you loser?”“Everyone in college knows that you married Claire and became their live-in son-in-law after graduation! A miserable loser who couldn’t even afford a decent meal in college and a toyboy after graduation! How dare you come looking for my help being such a big loser as you are? Who do you think you are?”A rage of fury was slowly burning inside Charlie.One would not attack unless attacked first. Sabrina was going too far this time!Right at this moment, he received a text message from Stephen. “Young Master, the Wade family owns Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts. The Shangri-La of Aurous Hill is just one of our many Shangri-Las throughout the world.”Charlie’s pupil shrank in astonishment!Did he just say that the Wade family owned Shangri-Las?He responded reflexively, “You’re not bluffing, are you?”“Of course not. The person in c
Sabrina hurriedly put on a coy smile and said to Charlie in a flattering voice, “Class rep, welcome to Shangri-La. It’s our honor for you to visit us and it’s also my pleasure as your former collegemate. Please come in…”She assumed that her compliments and gentle tone would make Charlie forget her rude behavior towards him earlier.Unfortunately for her, Charlie was not as kind as she thought he was.Isaac gaped in surprise when he heard Sabrina’s remark and quickly asked, “Lee, you’re Mr. Wade’s college mate?”“Yes, yes!” Sabrina said frantically, “Mr. Wade was my class rep when we were in college, we’re quite close!”Isaac announced instantly, “Go to the president’s office tomorrow. You’ll be the HR manager of Shangri-La!”In Shangri-La, the promotion from team leader to HR manager was at least a three-tier difference in ranking. Not only would her salary and welfare package increase by tenfold, but she would also control the manpower of most employees in the hotel. The HR man
Having lost it all, Jacob really looked like he wouldn't be getting back up.But fortunately, he had a pillar in the form of Elaine.In fact, Elaine would serve to be a container, whipping Jacob into shape if he got too full of himself.But on the other hand, now that Jacob was utterly despondent, she would be forcing him to smile and function in general.Elaine's attitude to the entire issue was clear as well. Even though Jacob had just lost his job, she would make him go shopping with her in Dubai even if he fell into a coma. Even if he was dead, she'd just cremate him and bring his ashes along.Hence, with Elaine's firm grip around Jacob's leash, he went on strolls, going shopping and taking selfies with Elaine everyday, eventually easing the toll on his mood and spirit.-Back at Aurous Hill, Charlie was preparing for Yolden Hart and Matilda Hall's wedding as it approached.Yolden was a schoolmate of his mother, Ashley Layna Acker, as well as Charlie's elder.And while Cha
"See you." As soon as Charlie hung up on Matilda, Don Albert's call came right after.He sounded nervous as Charlie answered the phone, saying, "Master Wade, I think I might have gone too far…""Wait, what's this about?" Charlie asked."Your father-in-law, of course…" Don Albert sighed. "You asked me to leave him hanging for a while, so I did. I even refused when he asked to book a room in Heaven Springs.""Well, that's not a problem, is it?" Charlie shrugged. "He and Zachary ganged up for some real mischief. As you are Zachary's boss, it's right that you refused him because you didn't appreciate what he did.""That's just it. I thought that approach was just right as well," Don Albert quickly said. "I wasn't playing nice when Mr. Bay of the Calligraphy and Painting Association called me either. That's when he said he'd try to save Jacob's position as vice-president, but I told him it's none of my business."I then hung up on him without much thought, only for Zachary to tell m
Meanwhile, Charlie was downstairs in Claire's office, waiting to pick her up and head home.That was when Matilda called him, asking as soon as he answered, "Charlie, do you know how Jacob is doing? He never answered any of my texts—is he going to be alright?""I wouldn't know," Charlie replied. "Both he and Elaine are in Dubai on a trip… What's wrong?""He resigned," Matilda sighed. "I only saw the public statement that the Calligraphy and Painting Association posted this afternoon. It says that he tendered the resignation himself, but it doesn't really feel that way. I wonder if he's at odds with other members of the association…"Charlie was actually surprised to hear that Jacob had resigned.He had told Zachary to expose the truth of the bronze sculpture fraud case to teach Jacob a lesson so that Jacob would understand the meaning of true pain.However, he anticipated that Mr. Bay would at least keep Jacob around with an unimportant job even if Jacob did lose some money and e
Falling apart in both mind and spirit, Jacob was crying as he disembarked and took a cab to the hotel.Elaine, who had been lying around for 24 hours, was stunned speechless as she watched him enter, crying like a child.In contrast, Elaine looked like a mother to Jacob just then as he threw himself into her arms and bawled, "Darling… That prick Mr. Bay screwed me over… I have nothing left now…"Taken aback for a moment that Jacob would bawl in her arms like that, Elaine soon came to her senses and patted his back as she comforted him, "Oh, stop crying already. Who cares about some Calligraphy and Painting groupies? We certainly don't! Just hear me out and don't ever go there again!"Jacob kept sobbing, "But I care… I want to go…"Annoyed, Elaine's hand that had been patting Jacob a moment ago slid down to his hip and pinched him viciously before he noticed."Ow!" Jacob yelped in pain, and he demanded indignantly, "What was that for?!""Shut up!" Elaine snapped, glowering. "I wa
Jacob couldn't even be bothered by the looks others were giving him, and he called Mr. Bay immediately.Mr. Bay had already gone home and was seated on the couch with his wife, watching his phone and waiting for Jacob to call and demand an explanation.Mr. Bay knew that he had to answer for this and that if he avoided Jacob, it may well be a confession that he had screwed Jacob over.So, to avoid unnecessary trouble, he decided to come clean with Jacob.Naturally, by coming clean, he meant passing the buck as his wife had suggested.Hence, as he answered Jacob's call, he immediately sighed in embarrassment, "Hey, Jacob. I'm so sorry about that…"However, Jacob was so furious he immediately started bellowing, "Mr. Bay! Are you fucking with me here?! You said that the resignation letter was more of a formality, but you just made it public instead! So, all those things you said about helping me were just a trap, was it?! You're despicable! And to think I've been so good to you, even
The repeated flights had left Jacob tormented.Even before he actually had the time to enjoy Dubai, he had already gotten sick of the place and didn't want to ever return.And on the flight, he couldn't stop his thoughts from going astray.Now that he was not getting back the money he had lost, his only hope was Mr. Bay.Fortunately, Mr. Bay was serious about his promise that he would at least save him a job as department head. That was why, despite his thoughts running astray, he never considered the thought that he would be kicked out of the Calligraphy and Painting Association.As soon as his flight landed, he didn't wait to turn off his phone's flight mode, waiting for the internet connection to return so that he could ask Mr. Bay about the meeting.Once he did, he received a ton of messages from public accounts to acquaintances—many had already found out that he had resigned from the post of administrative vice-president and wanted to ask how he was doing.And Matilda was
The Calligraphy and Painting Association was certainly efficient—soon after the meeting was dismissed, the news that the administrative vice-president had resigned was posted on their official page and social media.The notice was simple and never mentioned what Jacob had done, only that the administrative vice-president had asked to resign for personal reasons. The request had since been voted upon, and all members had agreed to it.And that was how a simple and short message kicked Jacob out of the Calligraphy and Painting Association entirely.In the city, other associations closely connected with the Calligraphy and Painting Association were the various cultural societies and circles of antique enthusiasts and the Senior University. In fact, most fans of the public page of the Calligraphy and Painting Association were from the Senior City, and every lecturer, student, and even guest lecturer were subscribed.As a matter of fact, that was entirely Jacob's doing. After his lect
There weren't that many members in the Calligraphy and Painting Association—just a handful over twenty.Hence, at Mr. Bay's request, everyone showed up at the conference at 1 pm.He chose the afternoon as there were a handful who were away on outreach, including Walker, who was subbing for Jacob's lectures.Once the entire Calligraphy and Painting Association save for Jacob was informed of the mandatory meeting, every member was there on the hour, seated primly and in attention in the huge conference room.Mr. Bay didn't waste his breath on the preamble either—as soon as he saw that everyone had arrived, he announced, "Everyone, I've gathered you here today because our administrative vice-president, Jacob Wilson, has been alleged to be involved in a certain malicious scheme."Last night, Mr. Wilson submitted his resignation to me, and after a discussion with my vice-presidents, we've all decided to hold a vote. It will be open to every member in the association as we will be decid
Having sent his resignation letter, Jacob had no idea that it would be the catalyst for his dismissal.He didn't sleep well at the rundown motel either and had dark circles under his eyes as he rushed to the airport early the next morning.Clearing the checkpoint and boarding his flight, everything went smoothly until his flight to Dubai lifted off at 10 am.-Meanwhile, the other vice-presidents of the Calligraphy and Painting Association had arrived at Mr. Bay's office.They all had the same goal—pressure Mr. Bay and get Jacob kicked out of the association no matter what it took.Naturally, they knew that Mr. Bay most definitely would have to help Jacob since Jacob was close with Don Albert. If Mr. Bay insisted on protecting Jacob, they shouldn't insist, or Jacob would hear about it, and the man would bear a grudge.Even so, as the vice-presidents entered Mr. Bay's office and closed the door behind them, one of them couldn't help asking, "So, Mr. Bay—how do you intend to deal