Charlie raised a hand to interrupt him and then said seriously, “Uncle Janus, I am asking for an explanation on my father’s behalf right now. I think that any decent person would have abided by the promise that he made to others even if the other party has already passed away!”Having said that, Charlie looked at Shawn and said coldly, “Although my father is no longer here, as his son, I will pay for what he owes others, and I will also collect what others owe him on his behalf!”When Shawn heard this, he was so flustered that he could not stop shaking violently. The reason why Shawn had not taken the agreement that he had made with Curtis into consideration at that time was mainly because he felt that Curtis and Ashley had already been abandoned by both the Wade and Acker family. Otherwise, both families would not have sat back and watched them both get killed. It was precisely because of this that he had not taken the promise that he made to Curtis to heart at all.Many people
Shawn was so frightened by Charlie’s words that he nearly fainted.He secretly thought to himself, ‘When that prodigal son, Rudy, provoked Charlie, Charlie extorted ten billion US dollars from him within a span of ten years. I offended Charlie’s father twenty years ago, and I even went back on my own word. According to this perspective, this crime of mine is even worse than Rudy’s...’As he thought of this, he almost cried as he pleaded repeatedly, “Mr. Wade, I’m to blame for not being trustworthy and reneging on my promise. I really know that I was wrong now. I am willing to fly overnight to repent and admit my mistakes in front of your father, Curtis’s grave. I’m also willing to grovel before Janus and apologize to him. As long as you can forgive me this time, I can assure you that I will never make things difficult for Janus again in the future. From now on, Janus will be my brother, and I will definitely do my best to do anything that you want me to do!” Charlie sneered and sai
Although he looked as though he was a happy person who was always smiling, this old man was, in fact, a downright miser.He knew about Rudy’s previous experience, yet he could still offer Charlie a price of merely two billion US dollars over twenty years. This showed that he clearly wanted money more than he cared about his life.However, Charlie did not really want his money.For him, he currently only had two demands. The first was to make Shawn pay for the breach of his promise to his father, and the second was to make Shawn come up with compensation to make it up to Janus. The second matter could be solved with money, but the first matter was never a question of money.Charlie would never use his father’s name so that he could go and wantonly make money out of Shawn. In Charlie’s opinion, Shawn should pay a price other than money for this matter, and this price should include but was not limited to personality, dignity, and also physical punishment. However, he did not wa
Charlie’s words frightened Shawn so much that he fainted directly. Jenna, who was beside him, hurriedly reached out her hands to hold him and support his head. She shook him as she shouted in his ear, “What’s wrong with you, Shawn?! Wake up, Shawn! Don’t scare me like this...”Thanks to Jenna’s screams, Shawn woke up with a start. The first thing he did when he woke up was to look at Charlie as he cried and said, “Mr. Wade, you’re killing me! How can I possibly afford to give you twenty billion US dollars in ten years?!”As Shawn said that, he cried bitterly and said, “It’s true that I was not trustworthy and went back on my word, but you cannot take advantage of this matter to ask me for so much money! You might as well kill me directly if you want so much money from me! Why don’t you kill me? If you kill me, my inheritance can still be left to Marianne and all my other children. However, if I make you that promise, I will be left with nothing, and their futures will also be penni
“It’s okay.” Charlie waved his hand. “You can go ahead and buy it first. Get an invoice for the amount that you spend, and I will reimburse you for it. If you don’t have money to pay in advance, you can call me when you have decided, and I will arrange for someone to go over to settle the bill.”Shawn became even more and more frightened. He knelt down and said with an expression full of remorse, “Mr. Wade, I am sincerely repentant now. Please give me another chance, and we can discuss the specific amount...”Charlie smiled slightly, “Mr. Long, there is no need for us to continue discussing such matters. I don’t want your money. You can just go ahead and die, and you won’t have to worry about anything else.”Shawn was so frightened at this point that he instantly burst into tears. He felt that if Charlie really wanted to take his life, he would not have any way to survive at all. Even if he was a billionaire, Porter would have ten thousand ways to kill him in one day.As Shawn thou
Charlie did not continue covering up in the face of Marianne’s questioning. He asked Marianne, “Miss Long, do you know that your father once made a promise to a man named Curtis Wade more than twenty years ago, saying that he would not continue causing trouble for a young man named Janus Campbell? However, Curtis Wade passed away due to an accident not long after that, and your father then broke his promise immediately, causing Janus Campbell to live in hiding in Oskiatown for more than twenty years.”Marianne’s eyes widened as she stared at Charlie in disbelief and asked him, “What... What is your relationship with these two people?”Charlie said indifferently, “Curtis Wade is my father, and Janus Campbell is my father’s good friend.”When Marianne heard this news, she was instantly shocked. She stared at Charlie, choked up, and said, “So, that means that you did not come to Hong Kong and stay in our house to discuss a collaboration with my father at all. You were deliberately appr
So, he knelt down in front of Charlie again and begged, “Mr. Wade, Marianne is right. I really haven’t done anything truly evil to hurt anyone, and no matter how bad I am, I do not deserve to die. Please spare my godd*mned life! I will give you all the money that you want from me!”At this time, Marianne also suddenly knelt down and lowered her head as she said, “Mr. Wade, money is a material item. As long as you are willing to give my father a chance to repent, we will not hesitate to give you any sum of money that you ask for!”Charlie did not expect that Marianne would kneel as well. So, he hurriedly reached out his hand as he tried to help her up.However, Marianne resisted and said expressionlessly, “Mr. Wade, I will not get up if you refuse to agree to my request. Please kill me too if you really want to take my father’s life.”Charlie looked at the resentful expression in Marianne’s eyes, and he felt his heart throb a little. So, he could not help but sigh as he looked at Sh
Shawn’s whole spirit and will had long been destroyed by Charlie. He could no longer consider his gain or loss now, and his only wish was to be spared from death.Therefore, he was willing to agree to all the conditions that Charlie was about to propose without any hesitation at all.When Charlie saw that Shawn had conceded completely and that he had also achieved his purpose of disciplining him, Charlie said coldly, “Shawn, listen carefully to me. The first thing I want you to do is to pay Uncle Janus twenty years of salary according to the highest salary drawn by professional managers in Hong Kong. After that, you should pay an additional two times the compensation. The first will be used as compensation for Uncle Janus’s loss of youth, and the other will be regarded as emotional compensation for Uncle Janus’s family.”Having said that, Charlie then said again, “That means that you will be paying Uncle Janus sixty years' worth of salary all at once according to the salary of the h
Neither Charlie nor the Ackers expected Yolden's insight to cover all corners.In fact, it felt like the man had a blueprint ready and was only waiting for the time to put it to use.That was why everyone was immensely approving of Yolden and wanted no other man for the job of CEO.Kaeden smiled, "Well, since everyone has agreed, let's put this to rest as soon as possible—this will be a joint investment between our family and the Wades, and Professor Hart will take the post of CEO. Let's all do our best to make this a good one!"Yolden also made up his mind, deciding that he didn't want to let slip a chance to realize his ambitions. "I'll resign from the university after my honeymoon trip. It probably shouldn't be long, and I can get involved in early preparations via teleconference."Charlie nodded. "Then, we can have Uncle Kaeden stay on schedule while I'll ask the Wades to send a representative over to sign a memorandum for the investment."Keith smiled and nodded. "You should
Charlie hadn't been born and raised in Aurous Hill, but he still started living here at the age of eight and was more attached to this place than Eastcliff.If he was going to take part in this automotive investment with the Ackers, he naturally found Aurous Hill the ideal location.Not only would it create a huge number of jobs for Aurous Hill, but it would also rake in much economic flow for the region.Yolden also nodded at his suggestion. "If the first plant is meant to cover the demand of the entire local market, there's no reason for a coastal plant. Aurous Hill stands at an intersection between the north and the south, so transportation is convenient. It's also killing two birds with one stone, as Mr. Wade is fond of the city."Charlie couldn't help but agree. "I won't lie—Aurous Hill has been good to me, and I hope to give back. Nothing's better than succeeding in that respect."Yolden spread his hands, "Heavy industries are certainly ideal to contribute to Aurous Hill's e
Yolden had actually been researching new energy for a while—in fact, it was when Tesla's first car models were produced.He was passionate about the subject and had his own opinions as well as ambitions, but he was busy teaching, so he couldn't realize any of it.But was this not a golden opportunity tailor-made for him?Seeing that Yolden was clearly interested, Charlie turned toward Kaeden, "Actually, the professor is getting married soon. There's no way we'd split up newlyweds so soon after the wedding, right? So, is it possible to set up base in Aurous Hill instead?""Not a problem!" Kaeden replied without hesitation. "Our family is planning to return to Oskia anyway, and everyone knows about Ashley and Curtis. So, why don't we invest in this enterprise alongside the Wades and have the base set up in Aurous Hill? And then bring Godot under as a subsidiary?"Turning to Yolden, he continued, "By the way, Godot's plant is already in the province—barely 100 miles from Aurous Hill,
Pausing, Yolden continued, "Moreover, the greatest advantage of AI is that it is self-conscious and has the processing power to analyze astronomical proportions of data. As car sales grow, every car owner's driving data will add precious new data to our data vault, and it will be processed by AI for even greater space of imagination."For example, kst's say I experienced a bumpiness along a certain road, and when the sensors pick up on that anomaly, the data will be uploaded to the servers along with images of the road condition in real time. The processing AI module would determine in no time at all that there was damage and label said location on the map, and then forward the data to other vehicles close to that location, sending notifications when they are close enough and providing the appropriate advice for countermeasures."Naturally, the AI can even be refined further so that it immediately warns us to slow down while uploading the data to the servers and informing any cars cl
Yolden's mind short-circuited at those words. "The most advanced AI module?!"He had been working on Wall Street for years, having invested in substantial startup tech companies as well as assisting plenty of Nasdaq tech enterprises with their IPO. That was why he especially had a sharp six sense for cutting-edge technology.It had been a while since he had gotten up the saddle, and AI had just become the trend recently, but he still paid close attention. He was well aware what applications were possible for AI modules, but he was shocked that Charlie already possessed what all the online giants were coveting!Thrilled, he quickly asked Charlie, "Can the Rothschilds resolve all the hardware and software issues? High-processing power display cards are a dime a dozen these days, and local enterprises are all planning to sell them one by one. The demand is just that high!"Charlie chuckled. "Don't worry—the Rothschilds will handle both issues for me, even the data centers. We bought i
Keith, who had been silent throughout, waved him off as he said solemnly, "Please don't sell yourself short, Professor Hart. I'm sure you can do well in this position, but it's still a matter of will."If your heart is truly set on educating future generations, then I'm sure you'd reject our offer no matter what we say."However, if you felt the slightest interest, even anticipation, for such a major project, then you really should consider our offer."We've already invested in Godot Autos for 3 billion USD and over 10 billion if we're counting in Ricebolt. But we still have 30 billion more in capital available—and that means it's 40 billion USD at play."I doubt any other global car maker can afford that much, let alone a new car maker. So, I dare say that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"Keith's words spoke to Yolden's very soul—a startup capital of forty billion US dollars was certainly unprecedented for electric-powered vehicles. Even Ricebolt had barely garnered ove
Charlie smiled. "Who, me? You'd laugh at me, but it was only after Steven found me that I learned to drive. I never bought my own car either and only had the two supercars gifted to me, and I only drove those a handful of times at best. Even now, I'm driving the BMW 5-series I bought for my father-in-law."Then, he remembered Marianne Long and said, "I did drive a friend's Tesla back to Hong Kong, but it was only for a short time, and I didn't manage to look into their so-called assisted driving system."Yolden thought about it and smiled, "But y'know… how would I describe the car, specifically? Have you heard of Mario Balotelli, the soccer player?"Every man present aside from Keith nodded—Mario had been a philosopher on the soccer field, and even those who didn't watch soccer were familiar with his name.Nodding, Yolden continued, "The way I see it, Mario has been a player with top-class hardware but third-rate software. Give him Messi or Ronaldinho's intelligence, and he'd be a
Kaeden then asked, "Well, professor, how do you suppose we overtake the competition at turning points? Or indeed, what qualifies as succeeding in that respect?"Yolden thought about it, formulating his words before explaining, "My personal understanding of the matter isn't simply to aim for turning points. Instead, it's things like staying on the inner lane of the race track and reaching the finish line faster by going where no other race car had gone before—or indeed where people never thought to go before."That's the case for new energy cars. Our fossil fuel energies have constantly lost to other countries and would always come up short. But with new energy cars, we can change the rules altogether."We can't catch up to their engine tech? Then we won't—there's no way they are masters in electric-powered engines, are they? They've spent decades on internal combustion engines and haven't the first clue about electric-powered engines."So, while everyone hasn't turned all their foc
The Ackers were really interested in Yolden's perspective.For their family, investing in the new energy automotive industry wasn't meant to make money—they simply intended to add to Oskia's strength as a manufacturer.But with Yolden's input, they had new things to look forward to.If they really could propel their business to giants like Tesla, opportunities and profits would go without saying—there was also no question that it supported and improved Oskia's local car industry and manufacturing sector.Giants in the manufacturing sector were different from online giants, as the latter often enforced a stranglehold monopoly. Before they had the monopoly, they would be offering perks and subsidies to the market, and when they gained sufficient customers and consumer faith, they would start choking the market for profits.To put it in perspective, a five-mile Uber ride would cost five bucks before, and the driver would be paid ten for it. But after Uber got the monopoly, the rider