Merlin packed some simple clothing and supplies in the afternoon in the United States and took off from Houston to New York in the Gulfstream business jet arranged by the Acker. Christian arranged a flight for Merlin from New York to Aurous Hill at night. After Merlin landed in New York, he could transfer directly to the Ackers’ passenger plane to Aurous Hill.Although only Keith, Holly, and Christian from the Ackers would be going to Aurous Hill this time, they were accompanied by many maids, assistants, servants, and nearly a hundred well-trained bodyguards. Therefore, Christian arranged for a private jet modified from a Boeing 748. This large wide-body passenger aircraft was divided into two levels. The upper level had a small living room with two rooms, and the lower level had more than a hundred standard business class seats as well as a resting room for shift crews.When Merlin landed in New York, the Ackers and their entourage had just completed boarding at the exclusive h
Lady Acker said, “Charlie is already twenty-eight this year. We might even have a grandson after finding him.”Keith was stunned, then nodded before he looked out the window blankly without saying another word. Merlin asked Lady Acker in a low voice, “Aunt Holly, did Uncle Keith’s condition get even more serious?”Lady Acker nodded and said, “His condition seems to be a little worse than it was before. I spend more than half the time when I’m awake explaining the situation to him over and over again, but he seems to forget all about it most of the time after turning around.”After saying that, Lady Acker added, “The reason why I’m in such a hurry to go to Aurous Hill is also because of this. I’m afraid that if I delay it any longer, Keith will not be able to remember him even if we meet Charlie.”Merlin sighed and thought to himself, ‘Sigh… Charlie has divine powers that can even save me, so it would definitely be easy for him to cure the old man’s Alzheimer’s disease. Even if he
“There is also the kind of person with great foresight. After his parents were killed, he knows that his situation is not safe, so he might choose to stay in this place by adhering to the logic that the most dangerous place is the safest.”Having said that, Merlin added, “Oh, by the way, there is another possibility, and that is there are other people making arrangements for him behind the scenes. Under this kind of circumstance, it’s not up to him to make any decisions, then.”Lady Acker was silent for a moment, then asked, “You must have encountered similar cases, right? In the cases you handled, if the child’s family was killed and the child’s whereabouts are unknown, where would the child most likely be, in the end?”Merlin thought for a moment and said truthfully, “Aunt Holly, to be honest, I’ve handed many such similar cases. Most of the surviving children would contact their other relatives, such as their grandparents, uncles, or aunts after hiding for a period of time. They
The private jet that was modified from a Boeing 748 took off from JFK Airport at 9:00 PM local time in New York and headed to Aurous Hill, Oskia, which was ten thousand kilometers away. After a twelve-hour flight, the Ackers’ plane landed smoothly at Aurous Airport at 9:00 PM local time. The staff who had arrived in Aurous Hill in advance arranged a convoy to pick the elderly couple, Christian, Merlin, and the others back to Willow Manor.It was already late at night when the convoy arrived at Willow Manor. Willow Manor was particularly peaceful and comfortable, and the Ackers’ butler took the four of them directly to the villa in the center. The four of them were somewhat exhausted after travelling for more than ten hours. Therefore, they went back to their rooms to rest after the rooms were assigned. The villas in Willow Manor were very large in size with three levels above ground and a basement with a usable area of at least eight to nine hundred square meters. As the area
No one could imagine that after so many years with so many people searching the ground in Aurous Hill, Charlie would still be in this city. Twenty years later, Charlie’s grandparents and uncle were here again. Charlie knew from Merlin and Quinn’s descriptions that his grandparents had never given up looking for him for so many years. Charlie wanted to be reunited with his grandparents and the Ackers as well so that the two elderly people would no longer worry and blame themselves for his unknown fate. However, he could only suppress this thought temporarily when he thought of how the Qing Eliminating Society was still refusing to let his grandparents and the Ackers off. Since his grandparents had already arrived in Aurous Hill and probably planned to live here for a long time, judging from their attitude, Charlie would have to live right under their noses for quite some time. Under such circumstances, it would not be easy to ensure that his identity was not revealed.However, he
Lady Acker had gotten accustomed to having to explain her husband’s condition to him when they woke up every morning before letting him know the current time and telling him what had happened recently or even yesterday’s events. This was mainly because Keith’s memory had deteriorated so severely that he could no longer remember what had happened over the past ten years. He would definitely forget what happened every day the very next day.However, based on their conversation just now, it seemed as if Keith could remember the tiring journey yesterday and the blurry scene he had seen under the moonlight when they came to Willow Manor by car. Lady Acker was truly amazed. Keith was a little surprised. He touched his forehead and asked her, “Is it very strange for me to remember what happened yesterday?”Lady Acker was filled with joy as she said, “It has been a long time since you remembered what happened the day before after waking up the next day.”With that said, Lady Acker asked
The maids had prepared a sumptuous breakfast in the huge dining room on the first floor. Christian and Merlin were extremely energetic as they sat at the dining table to devour this exquisite breakfast that was filled with a variety of dishes. The elderly couple was not the only ones who felt that they had a particularly good sleep last night, but Christian and Merlin also felt the same way.The two of them felt as if they had returned to their careless and energetic age when they were seventeen or eighteen years old. They could fall asleep immediately as soon as they lay on the bed after using up all their energy during the day.When they saw the elderly couple arriving, they quickly stood up and greeted them. Christian asked with concern, “Mom, Dad, did the two of you have a good sleep last night?”Lady Acker said excitedly, “We slept very soundly. I have good news for you. Your father actually remembers what happened yesterday!”“Is that so?!” Christian was so shocked that he
Merlin exclaimed in awe when he heard Lady Acker’s words, “Aunt Holly, that is a great idea!”After saying that, he immediately took out his cell phone, turned on the video recording function, and said, “We will take turns recording Uncle Keith. Christian, please arrange for someone to buy a few action cameras that can be worn on a person to record non-stop. When Uncle Keith rests in the evening, you can ask people to import all the materials into the computer so we can review the videos together in the morning tomorrow!”Christian was very excited as well and said without hesitation, “Okay! I’ll make the arrangements now!”Lady Acker added, “I think the environment here is indeed very good. Keith, let’s have some breakfast quickly, and I’ll take you out to the lake for a walk after that. Perhaps there will be better results!”When Merline heard this, he hurriedly said, “Aunt Holly, I have a different opinion on this point. I think you and Uncle Keith should stay in this villa inst
If Matilda still had feelings for Jacob, his nostalgic strategy would definitely have a strong impact. However, Matilda had already decided to move on, so Jacob's suggestion did not stir any emotions in her at all. With an apologetic smile, she said, "Sorry, Jacob, Yolden is downstairs waiting for me. We have something to discuss. How about another day? We can have dinner together, and I'll treat you." Jacob didn't expect the nostalgia strategy to fall flat. His original plan was to use nostalgia to get Matilda to go with him to eat near the school, then take the opportunity to revisit old places and subtly reignite their past memories. After all, revisiting old places was the best way to rekindle old feelings, no exceptions. It was like drinking the pasta water after cooking the pasta. However, he never imagined that Matilda's expression wouldn't change in the slightest. There was no shyness, no hesitation, no nervousness, and certainly no fluttering heart. She simply and
Matilda had been listening attentively before, but now, she was lowering her head, fiddling with her phone, and her expression even carried a hint of shyness and happiness, like that of a young girl. Jacob felt a pang of jealousy. While doing the presentation, he couldn't help but resentfully think to himself, "What has Matilda been chatting about with that Yolden guy? She's so happy..." At that moment, Matilda had just received a message from Yolden. In the message, Yolden informed her of the outcome of his conversation with Charlie and expressed his desire to have the wedding as soon as possible. Seeing how eager her beloved was to marry her, Matilda naturally felt very touched. At that moment, she had completely fallen into Yolden's love. For this man, who had a similar background, education, values, and even lifestyle to her own, she could find no fault with him. She felt that he was perfectly tailor-made for her by heaven itself, almost as if everything about him perfectly m
Charlie's worries were not unfounded. He had long known that Jacob had not completely given up on Matilda despite her relationship with Yolden. After returning from the cultural exchange in Korea, Jacob had been more dejected than ever before—something he hadn't even displayed when his family had gone bankrupt. If there was still a chance to salvage the relationship when one's beloved was merely dating someone else, their marriage was tantamount to a death sentence. Furthermore, considering the high intellectual backgrounds of Matilda and Yolden as well as their age and life experience, their decision to marry at this stage of life undoubtedly signaled their intention to build a long-term future together. This left Jacob with absolutely no chance at all. At this moment, Jacob was blissfully unaware of the devastating news and was busy conducting a calligraphy and painting workshop at Senior University. The so-called workshop was essentially a few slides showcasing classic
After that, Charlie asked with a bit of curiosity, "When did you and Matilda decide to get married?" Yolden smiled sheepishly and explained, "Remember when the city organized our cultural exchange trip to South Korea? I confessed to Matilda during that trip, and she accepted. After spending some time together, we both felt we were a great match. Considering our age, we didn't want to delay such an important decision any longer, so we decided to take the next step and build a family together." He continued, "Last month, we went to Lambonear for a few days. I bought a ring and proposed to her by the seaside, and she said yes. We also sought the opinion of our respective children—Autumn and Paul—and they were both very supportive. Both kids are exceptional and independent, so they urged us to have the wedding as soon as possible. I wanted to wait until you returned so I could check your schedule. For our wedding, we'd like to ask you to be our officiant." "What? Me as the officiant?
Charlie said without hesitation, "Sure. When is it convenient for you? Send me the address, and I'll go meet you." Charlie had always respected Yolden not only because he was a nice and talented man but also because he and his mother went way back and went to the same school. Yolden said hastily, "I've just come from Senior University. It's the weekend, and I don't have classes today. Why don't you send me the address and I'll meet you?" Charlie gave it some thought. It was a little past 3 p.m., so Yolden had likely already had lunch, and there were still a few hours until dinner. Inviting him to The Heaven Springs didn't seem ideal for a discussion. Considering that he had lived in the United States for many years and probably had a habit of having coffee in the afternoon, Charlie said, "How about this? There's a Starbucks not far south of the university. Let's meet there for a cup of coffee." "Perfect!" Yolden said with a smile. "I was just thinking you could give me an addre
On the way back to The Heaven Springs, Julien was in a much better mood than when he had arrived. Initially, he was filled with anxiety, unsure of what Charlie had planned. But now, everything had become clear. The troublesome matter of Salem and Edmund was no longer his concern. All he had to do was wait for the video from the ship to be released and then head back home. Charlie noticed his improved mood and smiled as he asked, "Julien, you've resolved the most critical matter right after landing in Aurous Hill. You must be feeling pretty happy, right?" Julien chuckled and said, "To be honest, before coming here, I was worried that I'd end up going back empty-handed and being secretly mocked by others. But now, it's different. Once your video is released, no one can blame me for not doing my job. If anything, they can only blame their family for missing their chance. After all, so much time has passed, and it's their fault Salem and Edmund were moved to the Middle East." As he
"Good." With a light nod, Charlie turned to Jiro and spoke up, "Jiro, I'll give you a chance to prove yourself." "Okay, Mr. Wade!" Jiro beamed excitedly. "Please tell me what to do! I promise I will do my best to serve you." Charlie smiled and said, "Once the ship is ready, you'll board it together with them. Your only task is to keep a close watch on them the entire time. Don't let them pull any tricks. If you succeed, you'll be a free man here. You'll get a basic monthly salary and can ask for anything you like within reason—so long as it's not contraband, it will be yours." Hearing this, Jiro was so thrilled that he trembled all over. His current treatment was already decent, but he was still only a semi-free man. He didn't dare casually set foot on the ground outside. If he could become a truly free man, he would be able to enjoy the sunlight outdoors freely. More importantly, from then on, he would have a salary. Although he couldn't personally go out shopping, having a sa
Julien had uncovered Charlie's true identity quite some time ago and investigated Charlie's background. He was well aware that Charlie had become the head of the Wade family and that the Acker family fully supported him. Although the outside world believed that Ten Thousand Armies had subdued the Wade family, Julien had witnessed Charlie's methods firsthand. Even the top two figures of the Rothschild family had been toyed with by Charlie, so how could Ten Thousand Armies possibly make him surrender? Thus, Julien deduced that Ten Thousand Armies was undoubtedly Charlie's covert tool. Considering the combined strength of the Wade family, the Acker family, and Charlie's personally cultivated forces, it was evident that Charlie even had the power to contend with the entire Rothschild family. Moreover, with the life-extending pill in his possession and the life of the Rothschild family head in his hands, Charlie's chances of prevailing in a confrontation against the Rothschilds were e
Enraged, Julien cursed while angrily raising his leg, "Damn it! How dare you negotiate your terms now?!" Charlie stopped him and said, "Calm down. 1 billion dollars is quite a good amount. You offer 100 million, he offers 1 billion—doesn't that mean I'll make 1.1 billion?" Dumbfounded, Julien said, "Mr. Wade, how can you even take that money? Wouldn't taking the money expose you?" Charlie smiled and said, "That's simple. I'll give you a plan that not only makes your task impossible to complete but also gives me a chance to collect the money. What do you think?" "What's the idea?" Julien asked in surprise. Charlie replied, "Here's the plan, I'll have someone put these two on a cargo ship bound for the Middle East. Once the ship passes Sri Lanka and enters the Arabian Sea, I'll have them record a video with the endless ocean as the backdrop. In the video, they'll inform their family to prepare 1 billion dollars. The money will be transferred directly in cryptocurrency." "Once