Aurora replied shyly, “I am not a feisty young lady…”Charlie smiled before he asked, “Then, what are you?”Aurora replied, “I… I… I am a beautiful young woman! A little cutie!”After she was done speaking, Aurora hung up the phone shyly before Charlie could even respond.When Charlie heard the sudden beeping sound on the other end of the line, he could not help but laugh as he shook his head. This feisty young lady was truly cute.***Claire headed to her studio after she was done eating breakfast.Recently, the scale of her studio had expanded a lot compared to before. Therefore, she had recruited some employees. Several renovation projects were also underway at the same time, and it could be said that Claire’s business was booming.Jacob also immersed himself at the Calligraphy and Painting Association every day, and he was very busy.He was very anxious to go to the Calligraphy and Painting Association after eating breakfast today, and this made Charlie a little curious.
After Charlie and his father-in-law, Jacob, had left the house, his father-in-law drove as he laughed and said, “Oh! I have waited for such a long time! Finally, the Senior University is having an exchange and interaction with our Calligraphy and Painting Association!Charlie smiled and asked, “Have you communicated with Aunt Hall yet?”“Not yet.” Jacob smiled before he said, “I plan to give her a surprise. After all, I have not seen her in a long time.”Charlie nodded before he said, “But dad, you should be a little more careful. You should not let mom find out that Aunt Hall has already returned to Oskia, let alone let her find out that you’ve made contact with Aunt Hall. Otherwise, there will truly be chaos in our family.”Charlie understood Elaine’s character very well. There were a few things that could easily rub Elaine the wrong way in this life. The first was money, and the second was Matilda.Although Elaine was very angry that Jacob wanted to divorce her, she had not los
Charlie nodded before he walked into the stadium with Graham.Aurous Stadium had a huge area. There was not only a standard indoor swimming pool, but there was also a standard indoor track and field as well as venues for badminton, table tennis, and basketball competitions.At this time, aside from the swimming pool, the entire stadium had already been vacated for the combat and fighting championship.The whole scene was divided into many square shapes, and there was a ring in each of the squares.Graham pointed to these rings before he explained to Charlie, “Master Wade, there are eight rings in this stadium, and these eight rings correspond to eight different groups. These eight groups will finish competing in all of the preliminary matches in these eight rings. The person who finally wins all the matches in these rings will become the top eight participants in the entire match.”After that, he pointed at the fifth ring before he said, “Master Wade, Aurora has always been fighti
As Adam’s voice landed, Charlie immediately saw Aurora, who walked in from the entrance!Today, Aurora was dressed in a sports bra and a pair of shorts. Her excellent body figure was revealed. What Charlie didn’t expect was Aurora’s amazing muscle lines, and there was even a visible vest line in the middle of her waist.That kind of body was unmatched among the girls!Besides, Aurora’s skin was as white as snow and flawless. With such a beautiful figure, it was impeccably perfect.Aurora’s long hair at the back of her head was tied into a neat ponytail. Wearing a pair of big red boxing gloves, she looked valiant with great poise. Walking out together with Aurora was a young woman with a dark brown skin tone.Adam eagerly explained to Charlie, “Master Wade, my sister is facing a Thai player today. I heard that she has a strong foundation in Muay Thai and is a seeded player in the Philippines team!”Charlie laughed and answered, “This is only Muay Thai. There’s nothing to fear. In the w
Charlie could see that this Thai female boxer had very fast punches. Moreover, she was shorter than Charlie by 10 cm. With her agile body and petite overall body structure, her lower body was more stable. Moreover, this Thai female boxer was very smart. She not only knew her lower body was her advantage, but she also recognized that Aurora’s advantage was her upper body. As such, she often launched attacks with her lower body.Since the opponent had come up and was launching attacks swiftly, Aurora could only focus on blocking, and the whole game was quite embarrassing. In the first round, the opponent had significantly more effective hits as compared to Aurora. After one round, the opponent was in the lead by a stretch.During the short break, Aurora’s coach hurriedly gave her some tactical guidance near her ear. After a short break of a few minutes, the game immediately entered the second round.Once round two had begun, Aurora changed her strategy. She initiated attacks against t
After listening to what Charlie had said, Aurora looked at him with joy and emotionally shouted, “Master Wade!”After she had finished speaking, she continued shyly, “Master Wade, I’m sorry for letting you see such a joke!”Charlie comforted her and said, “No worries. It’s normal to not find your rhythm at the start. If you carefully analyze the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses and choose a suitable strategy, you will make a comeback and prevail in the end.”Aurora nodded her head and sincerely said, “I know, Master Wade. Thank you for your guidance!”At that moment, the coach next to Aurora looked at Charlie in dissatisfaction and spoke, “What are you blindly commanding her to do here? Do you even know Sanda? Aurora is in the most critical moment now! If she can’t redeem herself in this third round, she will most likely lose! You are still giving her poor ideas at this time, aren’t you intentionally harming her?!” Charlie calmly explained, “I’m merely telling her the truth. It i
Charlie nodded and said, “If you don’t believe me, just wait and see.”“Good!” Coach Zavier sneered and replied, “Let’s see. I will wait here to see how Aurora loses this game!”After speaking, he walked straight to the audience seat, found an empty seat, and sat down. With his arms folded in front of his chest and looking on, he recognized Aurora in his heart. She would surely lose this game. Charlie ignored him and spoke to Aurora softly, “Don’t be nervous later. Just follow what I’ve said. I believe that you will be able to defeat this opponent.”Aurora nodded. With a pitiful look, she lamented, “Master Wade, Coach Zavier has left. I don’t have a coach anymore. If I win this game, I might need to fight a few more matches. Can you be my coach?” Without any hesitation, Charlie said, “No problem. From now on, I’m your coach.”Aurora became emotional, and she cheerfully exclaimed, “Great! During matches, I will call you Coach Wade!”Charlie laughed and said, “You can call me whatever
Coach Zavier looked on from the side. As he saw Aurora passively defending and being beaten continuously, he sneered.To him, Aurora’s tactic was simply the weakest of the weak.Since the opponent’s attack toward the lower body was swift and the upper body strength was inferior, she should’ve focused on striking the opponent's upper body just like how the opponent had fiercely attacked her lower body.This way, she could’ve found the breakthrough and reversed the situation in the blink of an eye.This was also a traditional thought among many coaches. However, this was also the main reason why many coaches couldn’t be top coaches, and even when they were players themselves, they couldn’t become top players.From Charlie’s point of view, whether it was a battle between two armies or two people, the best and most stable way was to take away the enemy’s trump card.Just like in a war, if the opponent’s ace master was defeated, the opponent’s strength would not only weaken, but the milita
In Treasure Measure, even Billy was having a hard time understanding what was going on.Before he came, Zachary made it very clear that he was here to dupe Raymond Cole, and he had come.As such, his job was now to claim that this bronze sculpture which was made in the last century was actually from the Renaissance era and then sell it to Raymond at a cutthroat price.But now, Raymond himself was saying that it was medieval? What was that supposed to mean?Even as he was left confused, he blurted out, "Sir, if you say it's from medieval times… then how much is it worth?"Raymond thought about it and said, "It's quite an unpopular item, but it's not to say that no one would buy it or that no one likes it. The main issue is that there were plenty of wars at that time, and most bronze would be used for weapons. Copper production would be low with rationing as well, so bronze tools were naturally rare for civilians.""Gilding is common for better quality items, and from the northern
Zachary couldn't help pointing at the screen and snapping, "Fucking loser! The more you feel pressed, the less you should be nervous! What are you thinking?! You're falling right under that bastard's trap!"Jacob was frustrated too, growling through his teeth, "Shit! I didn't think that bastard was a sly old fox. Fucking hell!"He then sighed, shaking his head. "Forget it, Zachary—I'm going home to pack my shit, and I'll depart for Dubai first thing tomorrow. Just handle that bronze sculpture for me and wire the money over."As he was about to get off, Zachary sighed in exasperation and apologetically said, "Sorry, Mr. Wilson… but it's fine! Even if this plan screwed up, just let me cook up another plan to destroy Raymond Cole!"Jacob ignored him as he strode out of the car, but that was when Raymond spoke audibly from Zachary's phone, "You can calm down. I'm not accusing you of lying to me. I just think that it's not Renaissance… Rather, it's medieval.""E-Early medieval…?" Billy
In Treasure Measure, Raymond unwrapped the red cloth around the bronze sculpture in front of Billy and the camera.There was a brief flash of surprise on his face, and it was soon gone.Still, he picked up the bronze sculpture, fiddling with it as he asked, "Do you know where it's from?""Yeah," Billy nodded. "A Renaissance-era sculpture. I think the base makes it obvious."Raymond looked up at him and asked in curiosity, "Are you sure about that?"Billy, presuming that Raymond had already noticed a catch, quickly said, "Well, the old man had an expert check it, and the expert said it was immediately obvious! To be honest, I want to sell it because the old man just passed away—gotta sell this baby before my brother goes for a garage sale."He had certainly added more details to the script, and Raymond nodded as he said nonchalantly, "But it doesn't look Renaissance to me. Sculptures from that era—be it the craftsmanship or the unique attributes? It's quite different from this one
In the antique trade, items that raised eyebrows would only be shown in the evenings—when various shops were about to close.That was certainly the case in Antique Street, as most items arriving in the evening were either freshly excavated, stolen, or forgery used to dupe unsuspecting victims.Even if Raymond had started his career abroad, he had learned every last unspoken rule during his earlier stint in Aurous Hill.Seeing the wariness on Billy's face and the way he was holding something in his arms, Raymond knew right away that what he carried wasn't legal.Still, the antique trade was no different here than it was abroad.Tomb raiding, forgery, or adding some touch-ups that increased the value of an item—everyone across the globe pretty much played the same tricks, and Raymond had his fair share of experience.Still, he did not let his wariness show, instead grinning, "Yes, of course. Come on in—let's talk inside!"And with that, he quickly led Billy inside.Meanwhile, bot
"Five hundred grand?"Mick chuckled. "Well, the sculpture looks Renaissance, and the craftsmanship as well as the material are all ideal. It would sell for up to two million in an auction, while established antique traders like us could offer up to a million. So, why the lowball?"Bill sighed. "I won't lie—it belonged to my old man, who just croaked this afternoon. But you see, he left a will stating that every antique in the house would be given to my brother… Since he's playing favorites, I thought I had to get something for myself.""That's why I quietly sneaked this baby out without anyone else knowing and am trying to sell it quickly to change my own circumstances. You don't have to tell me how many millions it's worth—I'm not that greedy. Give me five hundred grand, and it's yours."Mick shrugged as he shot back, "If it's as you say and your old man intended for your brother to have it, the fact that you sneaked it out here makes this theft. Do you think I'd buy stolen proper
It was half past six, and the skies were darkening when a figure hurried into Antique Street, heading straight toward the center—to Vintage Deluxe.Mick Crane, the manager, was holding the fort with some of his employees, and there were some guests window shopping there as well. As Mick asked the employees to assist the guests, he waited anxiously for Billy—Zachary's henchman.Nonetheless, a certain figure rushed inside within minutes, asking eagerly as he entered, "Is the manager in? Do you still buy antiques?""Yes, and yes!" Mick exclaimed as he approached Billy enthusiastically, asking, "May I ask what you're planning to sell?"Billy looked around before sneakily holding up a parcel wrapped in red cloth, carefully lifting a corner to reveal an edge so that Mick could see.Then, he promptly lowered the cloth again, whispering, "This is the good stuff. I'm just not sure if you have the money to buy it."Mick grinned. "What are you saying? If it's something Vintage Deluxe coul
Jacob chuckled. "Can't tell you right now. But I will once it's done.""Well, have you decided when we're going to Dubai?" Elaine quickly pressed.Jacob said, "I'd have to wait until tonight to see if this deal works, but we're leaving first thing tomorrow. I'll get the tickets first, and we will be staying at the Burj Al-Arab that I told you about. People are always saying how amazing it is on the internet every day, seeing how luxurious the seven-star hotel is, but I'll be the judge of that."Elaine was overjoyed to hear that. "That's amazing! And I was just thinking we can't go sooner! Go about your business, then. I'll pack our luggage right away."Jacob chuckled smugly. "Don't pack so much, though. Just stick to the necessities, since we can get the rest over there!""Alright!" Elaine exclaimed, beside herself in excitement. "Alright, you hurry up and get your thing done over there. I'll start packing now!"After hanging up, Elaine called Charlie, who was in Champs Elys Reso
As Zachary agreed to do a favor for Vintage Deluxe's Mick Crane in passing, he and Jacob agreed to meet up at 7pm at the car park by Antique Street.He first took Jacob back to the Calligraphy and Painting Association and called Billy, one of his boys whom he thought was smarter than the rest, giving him the gist of the plan and telling him to familiarize himself with the script.Then, he took the sculpture back to Heaven Springs and met up with Billy in office, telling Billy what to do in finer detail and making sure he committed everything to memory.Zachary's strength as a judge of character certainly proved itself—Billy had never done anything like this before, but he took to the plan like fish to water. He committed the script to memory soon enough, and he was flawless.Once he made sure that Billy was fine, Zachary called Mick.As soon as Mick answered, he immediately asked, "Hello, Mr. Evans. How is that thing we talked about going?"Zachary chuckled. All the arrangements
Zachary continued, "Why do you think casinos are always making a profit? It's exactly because no matter how unassuming a guest is the first time, they would be allowed to win a couple of hands, making a little profit.""And suddenly, they would think that they are the chosen one, destined to win against all odds and always come out triumphant! Once such radical, blind confidence hits them, every last bit of his money would be lost to the casino!""At that point, you can get anything from them—their house, their wife, their children… hell, they'd be willing to die if you'd just let them gamble again!"Turning toward Jacob with a grin, Zachary then asked, "So, with all the points I made and that sculpture you're holding… Do you still think Raymond wouldn't fall for it?"Jacob laughed out loud. "Oh, talk about a plan within a plan! No one would ever see it coming! Raymond Cole is so screwed!"Zachary smiled and nodded. "That's why there's no reason to rush—I'll arrange a man to get r