Charlie ordered Porter to obtain the information regarding Kylie’s real identity in their intelligence network. After that, he gave Kylie a call.Kathleen had been waiting for Charlie to contact her. She wanted to please him, so she sent Jacob a brand new Rolls-Royce Cullinan and even gave Claire a huge project worth tens of millions.She expected Charlie to at least call as a courteous gesture.She answered the call at once. “Mr. Wade, why are you calling me so early in the morning?”Charlie told his reasons. “Ms. Jane. As I’ve said yesterday, you didn’t have to pay for my Feng Shui readings. Why did you give my father-in-law a Cullinan? You’re too generous to me. It made me embarrassed.”Charlie only said that as a polite exchange. In truth, he wasn’t embarrassed at all.Kathleen answered, “Mr. Wade, please don’t fret. You’re a great Feng Shui master. How can I not pay for your services? If I set a precedent, it may affect your further business. I’ll feel bad about that.”Kath
Claire asked in surprise, “Dad, why are you dressed so formally today?”Jacob carefully adjusted his tie and grinned. “I’m someone who drives a Rolls-Royce Cullinan now, so I have to pay attention to what I wear. Otherwise, others may think of me as just the driver.”Claire was speechless. She said helplessly, “Dad, did you forget? Your Rolls-Royce is supposed to be a gift for Charlie! Why didn’t you ask Charlie if he needed the car?”Jacob rubbed his nose awkwardly and hurriedly asked Charlie, “Charlie, you… Do you need the car? If you need it, I’ll leave the car with you…”He then added quickly, “Well, if you aren’t using the car anytime soon, I’ll drive the car for the time being. Let me know in advance when you need the car. I’ll leave the car for you and not be a hindrance!”Charlie smiled and said calmly, “Dad, don’t worry about it. I don’t plan to drive that car. If you don’t mind, you can bring your BMW 530 home for me to use occasionally.”Jacob was overjoyed to hear tha
It was soon noon, but the Ten Thousand Armies’ intelligence system hadn’t reported any useful information yet.Charlie had decided on his plan to restrain the six-star martial artist by her side, regardless of Kathleen’s real identity. He would execute his plan that night.It was five o’clock in the evening. He forwarded the address from Albert to Kathleen.After that, he took his father-in-law’s BMW 530 and drove to the farmhouse in the suburbs.In her hotel, Kathleen was busy dressing up and getting herself ready.She wore a handmade white Hermes Haute dress. She tucked her long hair elegantly at the back of her head, and fixed it with a black hairpin. Then, she took a pair of beautiful pearl earrings and put them on carefully.She wore a modern dress and matched her look with simple accessories. It completed her look harmoniously.Kathleen improved her features drastically with just some simple makeup. When she was done getting ready, she finally received the address to the d
If she failed to win the pill at the auction, she could at least try negotiating with Charlie through their established friendship.Besides, she wasn’t worried about the possibility of revealing her true identity at the auction. Her identity as Kylie Jane was real. Moreover, the Jane family in France was a distant relative of the Fox family. She could accompany the head of the Fox family to the auction as a distant relative, which made sense.She felt relieved at that thought. Deep in her heart, she began to fantasize.She imagined her grandfather missing out on the Rejuvenating Pill at the auction. Just as he was grief-stricken, she managed to purchase a Rejuvenating Pill from Charlie and became a savior in her grandfather’s eyes.Her wild imagination left her with shame. However, this feeling quickly went away. She knew very well she could only turn the table around beautifully by relying on such an opportunity.It would be hard to fight for power in the Fox family. In fact, it
Kathleen furrowed her brows at Julian’s words. Julian wasn’t unnecessarily pessimistic, but he was just vigilant with the possible threats. After all, he had just broken through the sixth meridian and became an official six-star martial artist last year.With his current strength, he was probably the weakest compared to others at the same level. If Charlie was at least as strong as a six-star martial artist, he would probably be stronger than Julian and could easily see through Julian’s real strength.Even so, Julian couldn’t be certain with his assumption. He noticed that Kathleen was a little worried, and went silent as he pondered for a moment. After a while, he informed her, “Young Lady, in my opinion, it’s unlikely for Charlie to be a six-star martial artist or a martial artist of a higher level. You don’t have to worry too much.” Kathleen asked, “Mr. Larson, why do you think so?”Julian explained, “This is a peaceful and prosperous country. There hasn’t been any chance f
He was certain that these people were only ordinary people based on their strength and breathing rhythm. None of them had even dabbled in martial arts.From that, he could conclude that there was no ambush waiting for them in the yard.Julian then informed Kathleen, “Young Lady, we can get down the car now.”Kathleen nodded curtly and relaxed her slightly furrowed brows at that.She knew Julian was strong enough to detect enemies hidden behind a few walls. He did so by judging at the rhythm of their breathing and their heartbeat.If he said it was safe to go out, then there was nothing unusual about the place.However, she still found herself somewhat speechless by the restaurant’s environment.The farmhouse’s buildings were a little dilapidated. It was renovated and restored, but she could still tell that they had a long history. She could smell a terrible stench floating in the yard as soon as she got out of the car. Her eyes swept around the place carefully and spotted more
Charlie had invited her in, so although Kathleen felt helpless, she had no choice but to enter.Charlie turned to Julian and invited him to join them, enthusiastic. “Sir, why don’t you come and join us as well? Don’t be shy!”Julian shook his head and rejected politely, “Thank you, Mr. Wade. I’m just a driver, so I should probably wait outside.”Charlie went with the flow and nodded understandingly. “In that case, we’ll leave you alone.”Julian quickly added, “Thank you, Mr. Wade.”Charlie gave him a small smile before entering the private room with Kathleen. Though it was called a private room, in reality, it was just an ordinary brick house. The room wasn’t very huge, but was relatively empty. There was a square earthen stove built against the wall facing the door.The stove was full of firewood, flames burning vigorously. The large iron pot above was covered with a wooden lid, but steam was constantly bubbling out from all sides.A strong meaty aroma filled the entire room.
Kathleen felt moved, but she was also slightly embarrassed to see Charlie filling the small plate in front of her with a mountain of food. She rarely had the chance to share a meal with a man, so this was her first time being taken care of by someone of the opposite sex.She nodded shyly and said, “Mr. Wade, you don’t have to keep filling my plate. You still haven’t eaten a bite…”Charlie grinned, “There’s no hurry. If I use my cutleries now, I won’t be able to help fill your plates anymore!”He took a piece of goose meat with skin as he said that. “Eating the goose meat with its skin tastes the best! You really should try it!”Kathleen nodded, and carefully blew some air on the meat before putting it in her mouth. She made sure the food wasn’t burning her lips before putting it in her mouth. Then, she started chewing slowly.Kathleen’s eyes widened in surprise at the first taste. A rich aroma filled her mouth and taste buds. The strong flavor, coming from a stew simmered in a woo
However, to Jacob's shock, Elaine wasn't misled at all as she growled icily, "Why would I ask anyone else?! If there's someone I must question, it's Matilda! She's getting married, isn't she? Good! I will be there and ask her why she hooked up with my husband!"Jacob turned pale right then.Matilda's son and even some of their old classmates would be attending her wedding.If Elaine went, he would be exposed, and he wouldn't be able to stay in Aurous Hill out of shame!His nerves gnawing at him, Jacob could only plead, "Please, just trust me this once! Anything else aside, she's getting married, anyway—there's no way that I'd have anything to do with her! That alone should prove my innocence!"Elaine snorted. "If Matilda returned when I was arrested, it means she has been back for a while! And you're saying nothing happened since? Hell, even if she's married, it doesn't prove that she wasn't up to some hanky-panky with you! Maybe while I was arrested and refused a divorce when you
The driver was left dumbstruck—this wasn't how it was supposed to go.Still, he blurted, "C-Crashing into a Cullinan? I might end up dead instead…""Fine! Then let's change cars, and you crash into ours—how about that?!" Elaine promptly retorted before continuing, "Or we could just stand right in front of your car while you run into us! I just happen to have a death wish, but if you don't kill me now, I'll kill you! Don't think about getting away either—I know your car plate! I'll sell this car and use the money to put a bounty on your head! I don't care what happens to me now! I'll claw my nails into the devil's face even if he shows up!"The driver was actually quite experienced, but even he had yet to meet someone as ridiculous as Elaine.Barely able to keep his hands steady, he threw them up as he apologized, "I'm so sorry, ma'am—I just lost my cool. I'm merely a humble driver of a Honda Civic while you own a Rolls. Hell, I spent fifty bucks buying that red emblem from Amazon,
Elaine may have led a life as if she was above the rules, but beneath that tough exterior lay crippling insecurities and a horrific inferiority complex.She was always afraid of being belittled—but more than that, of being ostracized and betrayed.Over the years, the greatest source of her complexes could all be traced back to Matilda.After all, Matilda had been a star back in their school days. Because Elaine was a close friend of hers, many boys would get chummy with Elaine, but only because they were interested in Matilda.Being from a poor farmer's family, Elaine had been scorned plenty and therefore felt exceedingly inferior around Matilda.It was from that sense of inferiority that Elaine had inadvertently developed a one-sided rivalry against Matilda, and she believed her greatest triumph over Matilda in this life was the moment she had stolen Jacob from her.However, while Elaine presumed that she could hold that victory over Matilda's head, Lady Wilson had soured that v
Moreover, given Elaine's ridiculous temper, Jacob knew she would definitely go overboard and destroy him.He wouldn't even have a place to live at that point, and it would really be game over if she held a grudge and stormed the Calligraphy and Painting Association!Under such circumstances, he couldn't ask for a divorce—hell, he might even refuse a divorce if Elaine asked for one!However, that was when Elaine laughed coldly. "Oh, my… You're really not going to divorce me?""Come on—how long were we married?" Jacob quickly reasoned. "Getting divorced at our age? People would laugh at us."Elaine scoffed. "Now I'm curious… Matilda's quite old too, and she's a divorcee marrying again. Won't people laugh at her?""Technically, she's a widow—"Jacob blurted out, but soon turned pale, tensing up again not a second after he had just calmed down, asking gingerly, "W-Why would you suddenly mention her?'Elaine stopped pretending right then and snapped, "It's actually impressive that y
Horrified, Jacob promptly grasped the steering wheel and brought the Cullinan back under control while not hesitating to snap, "Are you crazy?! We're on the highway—that could have killed the both of us!"However, Elaine ignored him and seized the moment to open the armrest box, pulling out the large white envelope.As she opened it, she muttered, "So, it really was a wedding invitation… You really are a terrible friend, Jacob Wilson, hiding a wedding invitation like this! What's the point? Just look at that nervous face of yours—would I suspect you of having an affair with the bride-to-be?"She flipped open the card and was experienced enough to check the names first while disregarding the usual preamble. She wouldn't care about the venue or the time either, focusing solely on the professor who had somehow made Jacob very nervous.That was how Elaine found the names in less than a second: Yolden Hart and Matilda Hall.Matilda?!The name could well be knives stabbing Elaine in th
Jacob's brain blanked out, leaving only a dull hum as soon as Walker mentioned 'Professor Hall'.Already feeling nervous in the first place, he quickly said, "Okay, okay—I got it. Anyway, I'm hanging up if there's nothing else!"With that, he promptly pressed the button to hang up.Nonetheless, Elaine was soon asking in curiosity, "Who's Professor Hall?"If Jacob had any semblance of composure, he would have said 'a colleague at Senior University' as if it was perfectly natural, and the matter would have been forgotten.But the reality was that he didn't—in fact, he was the champion when it came to dropping the ball as a casual question from Elaine left him sweating all over his brow.Even as he slid nervous glances at her face, he stammered uncontrollably, "N-Nobody…"Elaine promptly noticed his strange reaction and frowned. "I'm talking about Professor Hall. What do you mean, nobody? Who are they? And what's this about an invitation? Inviting you for what?"Seeing that he was
Jacob had really had too much to drink and couldn't remember the later parts of what had happened last night—even how he had gotten home was a blur.Naturally, he also forgot that Walker had brought Matilda's wedding invitation, and therefore didn't hesitate to answer the in-car answer button.Over the phone, Walker was positively fawning as he asked, "Mr. Wilson? It's Walker. Why didn't you come in today? Had too much to drink last night?""Uh-huh," Jacob grunted, lethargic. "I did—my head still hurts now… Anyway, what's up? Trouble at the association?""No, of course not," Walker quickly said. "I was just worried you're still hungover, so I called to ask. If you need a driver or anything, you just need to ask!"Then, before Jacob could answer, he continued, "By the way, my wife is somewhat knowledgable in Oskian medicine, and she has recipes for brews that cure hangovers and nourish the liver. I'm sure you'll need the latter since you're always drinking at social events, so I as
Fortunately, Elaine and Jacob's bickering never escalated.Even though Elaine was winning, Jacob found it tolerable.After Jacob finished his lunch and cleaned up, he never looked up as he said, "Charlie sent a text, saying Claire's flight would touch down earlier at three. We will leave at two."Elaine grumbled. "Why leave so early? She's coming back from abroad, and there'd be checkpoints she has to clear—she'd be lucky if she could leave by half past three. I'm sleeping a few winks now, and we'll leave at half past two."As she left the dining room, she didn't even look back as she said, "Clean up for me too."Jacob had a million complaints but said nothing as he kept his head down, throwing Elaine's lunchbox in the trash can as well.With Elaine gone, he sat on the couch as her hangover slowly cleared while his mood soured with the lack of alcohol.In the end, the pleasure of being fawned over at the Diamond Room was but temporary—the pain of his beloved leaving with someone
Vera kept her plan to investigate the identity of the abbess deep in her mind and told Charlie nothing.Instead, she smiled as she said, "It seems that it's both yours and Ms. Ito's good fortune that she has attained enlightenment. You've never had anyone who could attain enlightenment and master Reiki at the same time, so Ms. Ito will definitely be a great help to you in the future."Charlie chuckled and said calmly, "I'm not hoping for her to help. I'm simply happy for her with her enlightenment and excited to have another comrade in my solo ventures into the dark forests."Vera nodded in understanding, and she murmured emotionally, "I've lived for so long, and it's only when I opened my heart to you that I felt that sensation you described."There was a flicker of wistfulness in her eyes.She really did not expect to attain enlightenment before meeting Charlie.Years ago, she thought that she would eventually avenge her father.Now, she no longer hoped to murder Fleur Griffi