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,
Having said that, Gopher turned around and left the room. Charlie was left with Andre, the dealer, and the two bunny girls.Charlie didn’t bother to give the dealer any psychological hints, nor did he put on an act.He planned to lose two million Canadian dollars first, and then barter his cargo ship, and lose it in the game as well.In this completely unfair poker game, Charlie and Andre’s poker luck was simply lopsided. In just under an hour, Charlie lost half of his two million Canadian dollars’ worth of chips. Andre, on the other hand, grew more and more excited. He had never made money as quickly as he did tonight! The thought of earning one million Canadian dollars in the span of an hour was so much that he felt he was floating in the sky.At this moment, one of Gopher’s subordinates approached him and whispered to Gopher, “Mr. Gopher, we’ve already succeeded in capturing several prey. They’re all at the port, waiting to be delivered to the high seas tomorrow. Are you st
Andre hurriedly took the thick stack of documents Charlie threw at him and carefully flipped through it.After reading a few pages, the corners of his mouth curled into a delighted grin. His flattering expression from before returned as he looked at Charlie with an oily smile. “Why, Mr. Wade! You really are an extraordinary man! You’re even doing business in Vancouver. This cargo ship is secondhand, but it still costs twenty million US dollars. That’s not cheap!” Charlie was indifferent. “It’s only a fifteen thousand ton cargo ship. It’s nothing!”Then, Charlie growled impatiently, “Stop spewing nonsense. How much money can this cargo ship be offset for? Give me a number.”Andre was actively brainstorming the best outcome.His gang often transported contraband in and out of Canada by sea. Due to their lack of financial strength and resources, they didn’t have their own cargo ship. Thus, they were always borrowing cargo ships from other parties to transport their goods. As the
“Never mind.” Charlie pointed at the stack of documents relating to the cargo ship, which was lying in front of Andre. He hissed through gritted teeth, “That cargo ship will be yours if I can’t turn things around tonight!”Andre laughed and said excitedly, “Okay! Mr. Wade, you really are easygoing! I guess I’ll play a few more rounds with you!”Having said that, Andre immediately instructed Gopher, “Get Mr. Wade another two million chips!” Gopher ran out without hesitation and returned with a tray of chips a minute later. This time, Charlie set a new record for the speed at which he lost money.It took him only twenty minutes to lose two million Canadian dollars. The bunny girl next to him had never seen anything like it, and was completely stunned.She wasn’t a professional in the casino, and she had never witnessed such a big gambling game. Andre’s body was now trembling in excitement. Despite having been in this field for so long, he’d never make money this quickly. Ever
“What?!”At Charlie’s words, Andre instantly stood up and blurted out, “Are you sure it’s going back to Oskia that early?”Charlie said, “The reason I bought this cargo ship was to bring it back to Oskia. I can’t possibly leave it parked at the Vancouver dock after buying it, right?”Having said that, Charlie asked casually, “Do you want me to make a phone call and ask the captain not to set sail for the time being?”How could Andre possibly dare to allow Charlie make a phone call at this time? If Charlie happened to request the other party to contact the police, things would undoubtedly be very difficult for Andre to deal with. After all, Charlie was a foreigner. He was not a stowaway, nor was he an illegal immigrant. Andre pocketed so much money from Charlie that if the police got involved, everything would turn into a mess too big for him to handle. Moreover, the Oskian embassies have always attached great importance to the safety and rights of their citizens. If the embas
There were more than ten masked men inside all four cars, and they were all members of the Italian gang under Andre’s command. Two unconscious young women were stuffed inside the trunk, both bound and gagged, with black gunny sacks pulled over their heads. These unfortunate women were the gang’s targets, and it seemed Stephanie was the last one to complete the collection. Following the plan, they would drive to the pier immediately after acquiring Stephanie. They would meet the rest of the gang there, and then ship the kidnapped women to the high seas.The window of the passenger side of the car at the very front was soon lowered, and out popped the head of a masked man. He shone a special violet flashlight at Mrs. Lewis’ house. Sure enough, his gang’s markings could be seen on the pillar by the door. Having confirmed this, he closed the window and whispered in the intercom, “Sam, drive around to the back door. We’ll go in at the same time. Make it quick!”A voice replied to him
"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