Charlie won again in the second round.After winning two hands in a row, his mood seemed to have skyrocketed. He threw a large handful of one-hundred-dollar chips to Gopher and said, “Change them all into a thousand. A hundred is much too little.”Gopher nodded eagerly and handed the order to a passing waiter.Charlie casually counted his chips before throwing in ten thousand dollars with a small smile. “I want to beat the dealer three times in a row tonight!”Seeing that Charlie was full of confidence and wanted to take advantage of the situation, Gopher immediately winked at the dealer.This round, neither Charlie nor the dealer had a big hand. The dealer was only one point larger than Charlie. So, the dealer won Charlie’s chips and paid out to the other two players. However, the other players’ bets were miniscule in amount. One was a hundred, and the other was two hundred. Thus, the dealer took back all of his previous losses and even made a profit.Unbeknownst to the deal
Gopher was over the moon. He took the money and made a beeline for the counter, all too happy to exchange them for chips. This time, he didn’t get chips of a hundred for Charlie. The smallest value of the chips started from a thousand, and then to two thousand, five thousand and ten thousand.When Gopher returned with the chips, he placed them respectfully in front of Charlie and said politely, “Mr. Wade, your chips. You can count them.”“No need.” Charlie didn’t even bother to look at them. He took out a chip worth ten thousand Canadian dollars and threw it at Gopher with an indifferent drawl, “This is for you.”“Oh! Thank you, Mr. Wade. You’re so generous!”Gopher was flattered. Gratitude filled his heart as he kept thanking Charlie, joy spreading throughout all of his body. Charlie ignored him, took another ten-thousand-dollar chip, and placed it on the table as he knocked on the table top. He turned to the dealer and said, “Come on. Deal the cards.”The dealer nodded befo
Charlie then instructed Gopher, “Send us back.”Gopher was now a diligent lackey. He said eagerly, “This way please, Mr. Wade!”After leaving the casino, Gopher drove the three back to Mrs. Lewis’ house.They had only gone out for two hours, mainly because Charlie had lost all his money so quickly.Before getting out of the car, Gopher said to Charlie respectfully, “Have a good rest tonight, Mr. Wade. I’ll come and pick you up again tomorrow night!”After saying that, he hurriedly added, “By the way, Mr. Wade. Will it be convenient for you to leave me your contact information? I’ll contact you in advance tomorrow night.”“No need,” Charlie said casually. “You can just call Claudia at that time.”Gopher nodded. “That’s fine. I’ll call Claudia tomorrow.”Charlie let out a small hum as he pushed the car door open. He got out and entered the villa together with the company of the two girls. Gopher watched as Charlie’s back disappeared. A smug grin danced on his lips and he let ou
Charlie knew that at this moment, Gopher would be filled with the thoughts of the two million Canadian dollars he had promised tomorrow. Thus, Gopher wouldn’t care about kidnapping Stephanie for the time being. Things happened the way he had predicted, and the night passed safely and soundly without a single hiccup. When Charlie woke up that morning, he received a phone call from Porter. Porter said respectfully, “Mr. Wade. I and three hundred of my subordinates from Ten Thousand Armies have already arrived in Vancouver. We’re ready to be at your disposal at any time!”Charlie was startled. “Porter? Why are you here?”Porter replied quickly, “There’s nothing important in the Middle East for the time being. I know you’re in urgent need of manpower, so I personally brought these men here.”As Porter spoke, he then asked, “Mr. Wade, feel free to give us your orders if you have any. We’ll do our best to carry them out!”Charlie said, “You should find a place to settle down first
Later, they went down for breakfast. There, Stephanie suggested, “Brother Charlie, why don’t we just close the convenience store today? The three of us will take you around Vancouver together!”Charlie laughed. “Sorry, Stephanie. I have some business to take care of later.”Mrs. Lewis was curious. “Charlie, do you have other things to do in Vancouver?”Charlie replied with a warm smile, “Mrs. Lewis, the Wade family’s ocean shipping company happens to be looking at a cargo ship in Vancouver. Since I’m here, I’ll take a look at the port and go through the transaction procedures at the same time.”Mrs. Lewis didn’t doubt his words. “The port’s not that far from here. Let Stephanie send you there.” Charlie rejected her offer gently. “No need, Mrs. Lewis. I can just take a taxi there myself.”He turned to Stephanie and said, “Stephanie, you should just go to the convenience store as usual. I’ll drop by the store after I’m done.”At his words, Stephanie nodded and stopped insisting.
Soon, day turned into night and the sky darkened. After dinner, Gopher took his boss’s Rolls-Royce and drove diligently to Mrs. Lewis’s house. There, he waited diligently for Charlie to appear. Charlie came out of the villa alone, carrying a huge sports bag over his shoulder.The bag was filled with two million Canadian dollars that he had just cashed out earlier that day, in addition to the materials for the cargo ship that he just bought.Upon seeing Charlie, Gopher’s eyes lit up immediately. The thought of money was pushing him into cloud nine. Eager, he leapt out of the car and opened the door to the passenger’s seat for Charlie in advance. When Charlie reached him, greeted respectfully, “Please get in the car, Mr. Wade!”Charlie nodded, not saying anything. He was about to put the bag into the car when Gopher quickly stretched out his hands and offered with an enthusiastic grin, “Let me help you put the bag in, Mr. Wade. I insist!”Charlie did not refuse, and watched quietly
Charlie smiled in return and said casually, “Thank you for your kindness, Andre. I came to Vancouver for a personal errand, but I’d be happy to play a couple of games with you. There’s probably nothing that I’ll need to trouble you with.”Charlie raised his brow and let out an easy laugh. “But if you have the opportunity to visit Oskia in future, you can contact me if you encounter any trouble. Do pay attention, I’m talking about the whole Oskia. My influence isn’t just limited to a certain city. I’m quite renowned in that country.”Andre felt a little annoyed after hearing this. The implication behind Charlie’s words was clear as day. Charlie had a powerful influence in an entire country, compared to Andre, who only had a tiny fraction of power limited to just a small city. Andre knew it was a clear jab on him. Charlie was making it clear that he thought little of Andre. The realization gave rise to a small burst of anger. Andre was seething.He was a merciless character who
Never did the bunny girl imagine that Charlie would be so generous. All sorts of emotions colored her face. She was stunned, surprised, and delighted, all at the same time. Gripping the two chips in her hand, she stammered in excitement, “Sir… You… You… This…”She couldn’t believe that Charlie would give her the chips worth twenty thousand dollars without so much as a blink. It was too good to be true! According to the rules of the casino, the chips are a currency issued by the casino and can be exchanged for cash at any time.The moment she exited the door, she could immediately exchange the two plastic chips for twenty thousand Canadian dollars!The bunny girl was over the moon. She could scarcely believe there was someone in this world who would be so generous. Charlie studied her expression of delight with a small smile. “Don’t worry, just take it. It’s a tip for you.”Then, he deliberately glanced at the other bunny girl who was standing at Andre’s side.Jealousy, envy,
"Exactly!"Charlie agreed, striking the metal while it was hot. "To be honest, the years Matilda spent in the States would be wasted if she was actually still interested!" "She's a Wall Street veteran who'd definitely have met so many successful men! Why would she be interested in a loser like Jacbo Wilson? It's not like she returned from the States after thirty years to help the poor, don't you agree?"Charlie then finished with a sigh. "The way I see it? You're the only one who'd be interested in him."Jacob heard that from behind the wall and was left absolutely fuming and humiliated.He was the only one who knew that Matilda had come back for him—even if she was worth millions now.However, he just didn't have the spine to divorce Elaine and get together with Matilda.He presumed that it was no rush and that he could just give Elaine the silent treatment—who knew, she might just give in and ask for a divorce herself, and then, he would have no issues getting together with M
"Her real lover?!" Elaine exclaimed in shock. "What are you talking about?"Charlie put on a serious face as she said, "Matilda came back to Oskia for her one true love, who is now her fiance. His name is Yolden Hart, a top economist who's now a lecturer at Aurous Hill University, who was invited all the way from the States. He's a professional manager and used to work in Wall Street, so he'd be qualified to be a CEO in any Fortune 500 company…""Professional manager?" Elaine pouted. "That still means he's a wage slave!"Charlie laughed. "Don't underestimate professional managers now. Just look at Apple Inc.'s CEO—the man earns around a hundred million USD per year, and that's over seven hundred million in Oskian dollars!"Elaine was left gaping, unable to imagine how a wage slave could earn so much.At the same time, Charlie continued, "To be fair, Professor Hart wouldn't earn that much, but 50 million per year is still no sweat for him. Do you get the amount of money we're talki
Elaine appeared taken aback, and she promptly demanded, "You've met Matilda too?!"It was only then that Claire realized she had let the cat out of the bag, and she suddenly didn't know what to say. "Oh… Uh… Mom… I, uh… didn't?"Nonetheless, Elaine was suddenly pressing her menacingly, "If you've never met her, how would you know she's a serious person?!"As Claire stayed silent, Elaine broke down in tears. "No… You're lying to me too! Aren't you?!"While Claire was left at a loss of how she should salvage this mess, Charlie suddenly entered and said, "Claire didn't—but I did.""What?!" Elaine was left staring at Charlie, stunned.Still, she soon demanded, "Y-You've met Matilda?! Did Jacob take you with him to see her?""Yes," Charlie admitted, nodding.Elaine snapped right then, and she bellowed, "Then why didn't you tell me?! To think that I've always done right by you, treating you like my own son, but you wouldn't tell me that Jacob is cheating on me! Y-You disappoint me!"
Jacob certainly left Charlie speechless—the man might get kicked out of the house, but he was more worried about his car.Sighing in exasperation, he told Jacob, "Look, if it fails, I won't be able to get you a nice place, let alone leave the Cullinan with you."Jacob blurted out, "But why—""Don't forget—I'm still living in this house even if you're gone!" Charlie explained, his expression dead serious. "If I let you have a nice place and the Cullinan, God knows how terrible a grudge your wife would hold against me. I need to have a sense of self-preservation too!""If I got you a rundown apartment, I could at least defend myself even if she gets upset about that. I mean, I can't let you sleep in the streets, can I? Claire and I would be guilty of abandoning our elders."Seeing the serious look on Charlie's face, Jacob breathed a long sigh as he clapped him on the shoulder, groaning mournfully, "Oh, I get it. I wouldn't want to upset Elaine if I were in your shoes too…"Charlie
Charlie sighed. "I told you it'd blow up, Dad, but you had to doubt me.""I wasn't doubting you," Jacob promptly defended himself. "I thought I might catch a lucky break—"Charlie cut him short, "Fair enough. Then, how are you going to handle this? I can try to stop Mom from going to that wedding and prevent her from getting in the hall even if she went, but what's going to happen to the both of you? Do you want a divorce or do you want to stay with her?"The light in Jacob's faded as he shrugged and sighed. "If I could divorce her, I would've—and I would be living happily with Matilda now. What company would I have if I did it now? Do you think Elaine would let me stay in Thompson First, with that attitude of hers?""In the end, I'd be chased out without a place to stay, and I can't suffer the humiliation of moving back with my mom and brother, can I? Hell, they might not even take me back!""So, that's a no?" Charlie pressed.Jacob smiled wryly. "At my age, even if I could, I w
Hearing that Elaine was threatening suicide, Claire exclaimed urgently, "Take me to her now!"The traffic police officer quickly nodded. "Come on!"As the traffic police officer quickly led Claire to Elaine, Charlie arrived just then and gave chase after leaving the luggage by the entrance.Stopping them, he asked, "Excuse me, officer—where's the gentleman who came with Madam Parker? May I see him?""And who are you?" The traffic police officer asked."I'm his son-in-law," Charlier replied. "I was thinking that while my wife talks to her mom, I can talk to my father-in-law, make peace, and take them both home.""Oh, that'd be great!"The traffic police officer exclaimed and quickly beckoned at a colleague, "Come over. Take this gentleman to Jacob Wilson!""Okay!" The other traffic police officer was also quite enthusiastic.Charlie entered the room where Jacob was first, immediately seeing a disfigured Jacob taking deep puffs of his cigarette.Another traffic police officer w
Charlie frowned in thought for a while, before saying, "Well, there is a plan, but I can't vouch for the chances. I also need you to cooperate with me and not let anything slip, or everything will go to waste. Can you do that?""I can!" Claire nodded, determined, before quickly asking, "So? What's the plan?""Well, it's not specific," Charlie replied. "We just have to improvise as we go along. Let's just head in for now!"-They left the airport and took a cab to the traffic police's headquarters. Just as she entered, they saw their Cullinan parked outside.Charlie sent Claire in first while he carried her luggage before following.Meanwhile, Elaine was wailing in her room, "I've been married to him for years! Suffering so much pain and humiliation, only for him to hook up with an old flame behind my back! Is it wrong if I struck out?"The traffic police officer was on the verge of a breakdown, but he still said patiently, "Ma'am, I've told you many times—what he did was wrong
Claire wasn't all that experienced in love and hence didn't know how a person caught in a love triangle would think or why they would experience such terrible mood swings.Still, Charlie's explanation gave her a general idea, and she sighed, "Actually, Dad looked really bad when Matilda came back. He was so obsessed with her that he didn't care if Mom was alive—even bringing her home for dinner. I'd be seething if I was Mom."Charlie sighed in exasperation. "Well, let's not loiter about. Let's go to the traffic police station.""Yeah!" Claire nodded, before holding his arm, "If they're there, that means they're safe, and they won't be fighting with those officers around. So, let's not head over so quickly."Charlie raised a brow. "What are you getting at?"Claire sighed, clearly troubled. "We have to think—how are we going to alleviate this crisis? If it's really as you say and Mom has mostly guessed it right, this fight might just be the start. At best, that fight on the highway
The traffic police officer smiled in exasperation. "Is there no getting through to you? You could even afford to drive a nice car, and you'd most likely survive an accident. But what if you were left bedridden for a long time? Yell at each other in the same hospital room?"Elaine waved him off. "I don't care—all I know is that I will always get my revenge, and on the spot if possible. If there were superheroes, I would be Wonder Woman!""Urgh…" The traffic police officer was utterly speechless. "How about this? We will call your daughter and have her come over to bail you. She will mediate your fight!"With those words, he returned Elaine's phone to her, and it happened to ring just then.It was a call from Claire.Seeing that the contact name said [Daughter], the traffic police officer quickly said, "Go on, answer it!"Elaine took it and answered the call, and Claire asked urgently before she could say a word, "Mom? Where are you? Where's Dad? Are you both alright?"Elaine sulk