After making up his mind to deal with Charlie, Aivan used a dagger to cut the tip of his left index finger. The moment the blood gushed out, he dripped the blood into the bottle containing the blood mosquitoes.When the fresh blood dripped into the bottle, the blood mosquitoes’ larva floating on the top layer of the blood crossed the normal mosquito pupa process directly, and a pair of almost transparent wings emerged on the blood mosquitoes immediately.Subsequently, these blood mosquitoes flew out from the bottle one after the other, flying in circles three meters above Aivan’s head. As these blood mosquitoes were very small, when these blood mosquitoes were flying in the sky, other people could not detect them with the naked eye.Aivan immediately used a special mantra to drive this group of blood mosquitoes toward the villa.Meanwhile, Charlie was chatting with Kathleen in the living room of the villa.Charlie had already noticed the abnormality the moment more than twenty m
Charlie looked around the living room and soon found a porcelain bottle for ornamental use. So, he immediately put these huge blood mosquitoes into the bottle temporarily. Right then, Kathleen came over with a cup of tea and smiled as she said to Charlie, “Mr. Wade, I’ve prepared a cup of black tea for you. Please try it.”“Thank you.” Charlie smiled slightly, took a sip from the teacup, and then smiled as he said, “This tea is pretty good, it should be the best black tea available on the market. It seems that Shawn really did not hold back this time.”Kathleen nodded, smiled, and then said, “Mr. Wade, you were the one who gave Mr. Long these instructions, after all. He certainly would not dare to be neglectful.”Meanwhile, Aivan, who was in the courtyard, suddenly had a bad premonition.Those blood mosquitoes who had drunk his blood to complete their final emergence were connected to his consciousness. This was also the reason why those blood mosquitoes could obey his instructio
“Infestation?!”Aivan frowned, and he suddenly felt a little nervous.What he feared the most was that Charlie actually had a hidden meaning behind his words. ‘Could it be possible that my blood mosquitoes have really ended up dying in his hands?!’ ‘But that shouldn’t be the case... If my blood mosquitoes have really died in his hands, I would be able to sense it. Furthermore, the blood mosquitoes’ stomachs are full of corrupt and highly toxic blood water. If one were to be killed here, the bloody smell would only get stronger, but there is no blood smell here, almost as if the blood mosquitoes never came here at all...’As Aivan thought of this, he comforted himself, “Although there must have been a mistake in a certain link, it should have nothing to do with Mr. Wade!’So, he snorted coldly, looked at Charlie, and asked, “Why? You’re asking me to beware of an infestation when you said that I will encounter a bloody calamity?”“That’s right.” Charlie nodded and laughed as he
It was only when the blood mosquitoes had flown above Aivan’s head that Charlie kindly reminded him, “Master Yaleman, beware of those big mosquitoes!”Aivan subconsciously turned his head, but by then, the huge blood mosquitoes had already flown in front of him from a height.Aivan’s first reaction was surprise as he thought to himself, ‘D*mn it! Aren’t these my blood mosquitoes?!’His second reaction was shock and fright, and he cursed offhandedly, “D*mn it! How did these blood mosquitoes get so big?!” Before his third reaction could be made, he felt a burst of sharp pain in his face, neck, arms, and legs. These blood mosquitoes’ mouthparts had changed from the thickness of a hair to being as thick and long as the needles of a syringe. It was also incredibly hard. This kind of crazy sting was even worse compared to a sting from a wasp. Moreover, the bodies of these blood mosquitoes had already become larger, and the toxin in their bodies had also increased exponentially. Th
When Charlie saw that Aivan seemed to be on the verge of death, he shook his head helplessly and said, “You were not convinced when I told you that you would encounter a bloody calamity. Now, you’ve ended up getting into this situation, and you’re still asking me to help you resolve this issue. Don’t you feel ashamed at all?”Aivan was dying, and he pleaded, “Mr. Wade, I... I know that I’m wrong... I only want to be able to keep my godd*mned life now... so that the Yaleman family will not end here...”Charlie said lightly, “Don’t worry. I will not let you die. Not for now, at least. After all, it’s Uncle Janus’s housewarming ceremony today, and it would be too unlucky if you were to die here.”Having said that, Charlie stepped forward, took out the packet of medicinal powder from Aivan’s pocket, and asked, “Is this the antidote?” “Yes...” Aivan nodded repeatedly. Charlie pinched Aivan’s mouth open and poured the whole packet of medicinal powder into Aivan’s mouth.Aivan said gr
Aivan panicked as he looked at Charlie and asked in disbelief, “My... My father... Is he really dead?!”Charlie nodded. “He was just like you, and he was raising these kinds of inferior mosquitoes. As for your master, Falco, he enjoyed raising Parasitic Worms that loved to eat human brains. So, I simply eliminated the evil for the people by sending them both to hell.”“What?! Master Xanthos is also...”Aivan was in despair at this time.He no longer doubted Charlie’s words because his intuition told him that Charlie was definitely not joking with him.However, he could no longer care about hating Charlie, and he could only plead with tears streaming down his face, “Mr. Wade... As long as you... can spare my life... I... I’ll never do anything wrong again...”Charlie laughed and said, “Aren’t you afraid of death? I can help to call an ambulance for you. The antidote that you took just now is working in your stomach, so it wouldn’t be a big problem for you for a while.”As Charlie
The ambulance sped off and took Aivan, who was already in a deep coma, away from the villa.Everyone else at the scene also had lingering fears, and they were suddenly at a loss for what to do.Shawn’s assistant, Marley, knew a little about Aivan, and he guessed that this guy must have raised something sinister for him to end up in the tragic and miserable situation that he was in currently.He was too lazy to be bothered about Aivan’s life and death. However, the auspicious time was coming soon, and Shawn and Janus’s family would also arrive at the villa at any moment. According to the procedure, the grand housewarming ceremony would have to be conducted after they arrived at the villa. Aside from the lion dance troupe, the most important thing was, in fact, the ritual which was supposed to have been officiated by Aivan.However, the Feng Shui master who was supposed to preside over the housewarming ceremony had just been taken away by an ambulance due to a strange serious injury
Charlie smiled faintly as he said, “My main purpose in coming to Hong Kong is to solve Uncle Janus’s matter for him. I will not be calculative as to whether Shawn will ultimately benefit from this or not.”Kathleen smiled and said, “I seem to have made a mistake just now. I think that Shawn should be at the losing end of this deal instead.”Charlie asked curiously, “Why did you change your opinion again?”Kathleen said seriously, “I didn’t take Marianne into account just now. She has already fallen in love with you now, so although Shawn has earned the endorsement of the Fox family, he has lost Marianne. So, ultimately, he is still at the losing end.”Charlie said a little embarrassedly, “You’re making it seem as though I’ve done something for Miss Marianne. I’ve only shown her a little more appreciation on the basis of ordinary friends. Besides that, I haven’t done anything to her, so how could it be considered as if Shawn has lost her to me, then?”Kathleen smiled slightly and s
The other antique traders who were keeping tabs on the situation were left confused by Trippy's message.[Maybe even those out-of-towners know that Raymond is a sucker? So they traveled overnight just to see what happens?][I know Raymond is in trouble, but is it really worth traveling hundreds of miles just to watch?][Maybe they know he's a sucker, so they came to sell him more counterfeits?][Shit, that must be it! Suckers are rare these days, after all!][Damn straight! Just knowing that there's one in Aurous Hill, you'd be eager to come over.]Even Mick Crane who had just woken up and saw the message immediately sent a voice message: "Those conmen are just like flies flocking around shit as soon as they smell it.""Oh, but what they don't know is that Raymond has no more money! I heard he only had a few hundred thousand for the startup, and the bronze sculpture must have cost most of it. I'm afraid those people won't even get their gas money and toll costs back after travel
Trippy rolled his eyes as he texted back: [Hell no. I need to start my business instead of wasting my time. You morons can come get a number yourself if you like. Haha!]Still, Trippy had just sent his text when a trio arrived in a hurry outside Treasure Measure.Seeing that the doors were closed, the leader asked Trippy, "Excuse me, can I ask if this is Treasure Measure? Owned by a man named Mr. Cole?"Trippy was at once surprised. "You mean Raymond Cole?"The leader quickly said, "We don't know his first name, only that his last name is Cole, and his handle name was Treasure Measure's Mr. Cole."Trippy chuckled. "That'd be him. Has to be, since he hand wrote that shop sign."Pausing, he then asked in curiosity, "So, you've come to see him being a sucker?"The leader was naturally curious as to what Trippy was talking about. However, he was also reluctant to reveal why he had come since there was a killer bargain at stake. In fact, every other collector who was coming was k
Raymond also added that the 20 million price tag wouldn't be cut or increased. To put it simply, the bronze sculpture was right there in Aurous Hill and waiting—it was a race.Hence, many reputable collectors contacted expert appraisers throughout the night, some even booking night flights straight to Aurous Hill.The best amongst them was a fanatic collector of bronze items in Eastcliff.Following a brief exchange with Raymond online, he immediately called an expert who was also a close friend. As soon as his call was answered, he asked the other man if he had time to travel to Aurous Hill so that no one else would beat them to it—and they would drive out in the night if at all possible.After all, the earliest flight was at six in the morning, and it'd be eight by the time they made it to Aurous Hill Airport and nine by the time they got to Antique Street in a cab.Therefore, the ideal way to get there was by driving over six hundred miles at top speed, and that meant reaching A
While Jacob was feeling delighted after pulling off his con, Raymond had posted details of the bronze sculpture online.The website he was using was the biggest platform for antique collectors and the antique trade where each user could set a favorite tag in the antique category and era. If a user who preferred canvas art pieces of the Tudor dynasty set that label as their favorite, they would immediately be notified with text or desktop notifications in regards to any item with the same label.As medieval bronze sculptures were rare in the first place, most who were interested had already set that label on their favorites and were immediately notified soon after Raymond posted pictures of the bronze sculpture online.The collectors were naturally eager to check it out as gilded sculptures of the medieval era were really rare, and most collectors would go a lifetime without picking one up for their collection.On top of that, the seller had even listed a major flaw and was only ask
"Nope," Jacob chuckled. "We were both working separately and just happened to get back in at the same time."Then, he immediately became smug and excited, "Guess what, dear? I made 200 thousand out of the deal! In net profits!""For real?!" Elaine gaped. "200 thousand in just one night?! That's amazing! How did you do that?"Claire was surprised to hear that too, and she came over to ask, "What deal was it, Dad?"Jacob grinned, "Oh, it's nothing to brag about. It's just that I managed to pick up a nice antique item thanks to my wisdom and then sold it for 200 thousand."Pausing, he then sighed in dismay, "However, the buyer wasn't too rich—I would have squeezed him for 400 thousand, but he couldn't afford more, so I had to settle for less."Elaine quickly exclaimed, "Shit, we're talking about a loss of 200 thousand! People would work a year and still never earn that much…"She trailed off for a moment before asking, "By the way, dear—are we still flying out first thing tomorrow?
Jacob laughed. "Put that issue behind us? Sure, but we're not becoming friends. Hell, I can't even hold a grudge now that you're shit out of luck."Then, his tone changed sharply and suddenly became icy, "But you see, Aurous Hill is not a place you can stay just because you want to. No… After this, you're not going to be able to make a living in the antique trade.""If I were you, I'd be running a thousand miles away, far away from Aurous Hill where no one would know my face to start over. That way, you just might be able to make a living."Raymond simply kept smiling, "You need not be concerned about how I'm going to survive here, Mr. Wilson. I'd be very grateful if you'd cease any form of harassment once you leave my premises."Jacob pursed his lips, staring at Raymond in disappointment. "I'm plenty magnanimous, so I won't stoop to such pettiness. Just do whatever you like!"Clicking his tongue, he huffed, "Tut, tut… And here I'd thought you're tough, but you're just yet another
Raymond chuckled at the title, humble as ever, "The Duke of Wastage? Now, that's quite the royal title, and I don't think I deserve such an honor…"Trailing off, he then made an especially curious look, "By the way, how'd you know they were calling me that?"Seeing that he was still so ignorant, Jacob scoffed. "You bought a Renaissance-era bronze sculpture earlier, didn't you?"Raymond nodded. "I did. But technically, it's medieval and not Renaissance, along with a Renaissance-era base."Jacob clutched his stomach as he laughed, "Oh, please! Medieval? Hahaha… You're killing me, Mr. Cole!"Raymond kept a serious look on his face. "It's really medieval. Why don't you take a look?""No way," Jacob snorted, pursing his lips. "Anyway, word has already spread that someone was selling a counterfeit bronze sculpture to defraud Antique Street for some serious dough. He went first to Vintage Deluxe, but their manager, Mr. Crane, saw through it and didn't buy it… and then he came to you, an
That was why most of the collectors only knew that such an item existed but they did not know in whose possession it was.After registering a new account and paying the ten thousand registration fee, Raymond got in.It was very safe as it was anonymous, and he posted a photo of the bronze sculpture and an announcement with an asking price of twenty million.In his opinion, it wasn't that expensive—if it was still gilded, it would be worth around a hundred million. Without it, it was plenty reasonable to cut the price down to just thirty million.And Raymond was cutting another ten million off that, so twenty million was plenty reasonable.Moreover, medieval bronze sculptures were exceedingly rare, and less than one specimen showed up annually at times. Collectors who desired it would therefore be willing to break the bank for it, and that was why Raymond was sure that someone would put in an order once he posted it.As he wrote the summary of the item, someone knocked on his door
Jacob frowned in disdain. "Why would I be worried? He's no longer the manager of Vintage Deluxe, and he just lost a shit ton of money for messing up his appraisal. I am also the vice president of the Calligraphy and Painting Association, so why would I be worried about some loser who will soon be kicked out of Antique Street?"Straightening his collar, he snorted coldly, "I am now going to see Raymond Cole and humiliate him face-to-face! He thinks he's impressive, doesn't he? Let's see how he will keep up that facade!"Zachary chuckled, "Yes, exactly! People like him need to be given a slap in the face! As hard as you can! Don't worry—I'll be right behind you. If he gets physical, I'll rush in to help. If he doesn't dare to start a fight, you just insult him as much as possible!""Good plan!" Jacob nodded since he was concerned that Raymond might get physical when pushed too far.And with his body, there was no way he could beat anyone…Spreading his arms, he exclaimed, "Come! I'l