She knew that there was another meaning behind her master's words. He was implying that her character was not upright and righteous enough compared to Elijah, and there was still a big gap between them. This made her even more displeased.However, Elijah did not intend to accept the ring. He quickly refused, saying, “Master, you have already helped me too much. I cannot accept this ring…”Marcius smiled lightly and tossed the ring at Elijah. The ring suddenly disappeared in midair and appeared on Elijah’s finger the next second.Before Elijah could understand what had happened, Marcius spoke up and said, “Elijah, the ring has recognized you as its master. Keep it well. This ring might save your life if you encounter any unexpected events in the future.”After Marcius was done speaking, two cranes raised by him walked in. They stood on both sides of Marcius and constantly rubbed their necks against him as they made whimpering sounds.Marcius reached out his hand to stroke the two c
Fleur was also filled with anger, so she said coldly, “Elijah, you don't need to defend that old man anymore. Since he's already dead, you and I should take this Eternal Pill and improve our cultivation quickly. We should find the treasures he hid as soon as possible!”Elijah was extremely disappointed. “Fleur, from today onward, I am no longer your senior, and you are no longer my junior. From today onward, you are just a Griffin family member to me. I only acknowledge Flynn, and I have no more connection with anyone else at all!”Fleur immediately became anxious and blurted out, “Elijah, why are you so obtuse?! That old man lived for a thousand years, so why did he only give us pills to live for five hundred years? He's clearly holding something back from us and it’s something extremely significant!”Elijah waved his hand and said, “Forget it, Fleur. Our relationship ends today. I will stay here and mourn our master for three years, so you can leave on your own.”Fleur stomped he
Fleur was extremely shocked when Elijah disappeared in an instant.At first, she could not understand why Elijah had vanished into thin air. It took her a while to realize that the ring must have teleported Elijah to another place. This made her furious. She clenched her teeth angrily and exclaimed, “You old coot, you're so biased! You said that Elijah and I weren't qualified to inherit your legacy, but you gave him a treasure that can teleport instantly. Why don't I have one? Why not! Tell me! Tell me!!!”Only Fleur remained at the cave where her Master rested and where Elijah disappeared, and her hysterical screams echoed through the valley.After a long time, Fleur wiped the blood off her sword with an expressionless face, sheathed the sword back in her waist, and said coldly, “Elijah, from today onward, you and I are enemies!”With that said, she walked away without looking back and headed down the mountain. More than ten days later, when she rushed to Yorkshire Hill withou
Meanwhile, in the luxurious Champs Elys hot spring villa in Aurous Hill, the Ackers waited anxiously the entire day but did not see Charlie at all.They could not eat or drink all day, only wanting to see Charlie as soon as possible to confirm with their own eyes that he was indeed safe and sound.During dinner time, Albert and a few others arrived and entered the house. After coming in, Albert said to Christian, who came to open the door, “Mr. Christian, I have prepared some exquisite dishes for you all. These are all specially prepared by the chefs from The Heaven Springs. I personally supervised the ingredients and watched over them while they cooked. I asked them to make an additional small portion, and I've already tested it for poison. It's safe to eat!”Christian didn't expect that this middle-aged man, Albert, could be so meticulous in his work. He couldn't help but feel surprised and quickly expressed his gratitude, “Thank you so much for going through all this trouble, Mr.
The Acker family members were all extremely happy when they found out that Charlie was coming for dinner. They were all overjoyed, almost as if they were celebrating the New Year.Lady Acker instructed her children to tidy up the dining table and arrange the dishes brought by Albert’s subordinates neatly. Lord Acker kept muttering to himself, “It’s a good day today. No matter what it is, I'm going to have a few drinks later when Charlie comes!”Lulu, who was aside, hurriedly said, “Dad, you've just started to recover a little, so you shouldn't be drinking.”“Nonsense!” Lord Acker replied without hesitation, “Isn’t the purpose of my recovery just for this day? It wouldn’t make sense for me not to drink on such an important occasion!”Lady Acker smiled and said, “You should let your dad drink if he wants to. We've been hoping for our grandson to come back for twenty years. Not to mention him, even I want to have a couple of drinks as well.”Christian quickly suggested, “Mom, why d
Charlie nodded and said, “Grandpa, to be honest with you, after my parents met with an accident, Stephen arranged for me to stay in the welfare home, where my true identity was kept hidden.”Lord Acker couldn't help but sigh and say, “It seems I underestimated your father's abilities. I’m afraid only your father could have thought of making such bold moves in the dark.”At this point, he said with great satisfaction, “I used to think that your father might be the most capable young talent I had ever met, but I never expected that you, Charlie, would surpass him. If it weren't for your covert assistance, your grandmother, aunt and uncles, and I would probably have died long ago.”Charlie said seriously, “Grandpa, you don't need to be so polite with me. The same blood that’s running through the Ackers runs through my veins as well, so I will never stand by and do nothing for the Ackers.”Lord Acker's eyes reddened, and he choked up as he said, “When I was critically ill back then, Na
Charlie shook his head and said, “Grandma, even if she comes back, I may not bring her to meet you and Grandpa.”Lady Acker asked in confusion, “Why not, Charlie? Are you still holding a grudge against us?”Charlie shook his head slightly and said, “Grandma, my wife… She still doesn't know my true identity.”Everyone present opened their eyes wide in surprise. No one had expected that Charlie's wife of four years did not know his true identity.Lady Acker couldn't help but ask, “Charlie, you have been married to Claire for four years now, so how can she still not know your identity?”Charlie said in a self-deprecating manner, “I had nothing when she married me at first. I was still working as a laborer on a construction site, moving bricks and cement. After we got married, I married into her family. In the eyes of the Wilsons, I was just a person with no education or real skills, who was raised in an orphanage. At that time, I enjoyed the feeling of being ignored and unnoticed, so
The Ackers had long known that their benefactor and the Fox family’s benefactor were the same person. However, when Christian found out that the behind-the-scenes figure, who had eyes and ears everywhere, was actually his missing nephew of twenty years, he still felt somewhat incredulous.At this moment, Charlie didn't hide anything and said calmly, “During the auction for the Rejuvenating Pill that day, Mr. Fox intended to purchase a Rejuvenating Pill. However, his son unexpectedly took advantage of the opportunity to seize power from him. I had some acquaintance with Miss Fox, so I helped them a bit.”Christian nodded lightly and said, “I really didn't expect that my eldest nephew actually has such extraordinary abilities. You’re truly extraordinary!”Merlin, who had been silent all this time, spoke up, “Christian, don't forget that even my life was saved by Mr. Wade.”Christian came to his senses and said, “Yes, that’s right. It's truly remarkable! I used to hear my brother-in-l
Jacob asked, "Then, what would this sculpture be worth if it was genuine?"Mr. Cardensky thought about it. "Well, there are standards when it comes to Renaissance relics, but with something this exquisite, it'd definitely be auctionable for one or two million—and that's the conservative estimate.""How much would you sell it to me for?" Jacob then asked."Thirty percent of the market price," Mr. Cardensky quickly replied. "As I've said, the conservative estimate for this one is around one to two million, so we will set the price with the median estimate value at 1.5 million. And thirty percent means 450 grand."Jacob shook his head right away. "No, no, no… that's too expensive. What if I end up unable to sell it, on top of that?"In his mind, while he could barely accept that pricing, he still needed Raymond to be able to afford it if he wanted to swindle Raymond for twice the money.Mr. Cardensky quickly chuckled, "Oh, Mr. Montague—now you're being too serious. In this business,
"Okay!"Mr. Cardensky smiled and pointed at a nearby farmyard. "There's our workshop—the good stuff is all in there. Allow me to take you there!"The farmyard seemed uninteresting at first glance, but Mr. Cardensky soon led them to the stables and brushed off the straws covering the floor, revealing a plank laid flat on the ground.Mr. Cardensky then lifted it, revealing a passage below—they had dug a cellar into the ground beneath, with the stables as an entry point.As Jacob followed Mr. Cardensky down the cellar, he exclaimed in awe, "Your operation is definitely big, digging such a huge cellar!"Mr. Cardensky smiled humbly. "Anyone working in the business would have sustained their losses before. In the end, we're all folk of humble origins, starting out with raiding tombs or excavating artifacts. Just digging a cellar is really nothing."As they conversed, they cleared the stairs and arrived at the main hall.It was certainly a hall as it was around a hundred square meters,
Zachary nodded repeatedly. "Mr. Montague? Very well!""Yes!" Jacob grinned smugly. "Longer last names are simply better—it just sounds so authoritative."With that agreed upon, both men alighted, where the master was waiting nearby.Seeing them get off, he hurried over to them, smiling, "Please, follow me."Zachary looked around and huffed, "Honestly, Mr. Cardensky, isn't this way too far from the highway? The road is narrow and terrible, and I have to park my car all the way out here. Just coming here is taxing."Mr. Cardensky smiled in turn. "My friend, that's exactly why we picked this place. Do you remember seeing a couple of cars parked by the road, occupying half of it?""We arranged for them to be there. Anyone coming by car would have to slow down that way, buying time for us to see who they truly are. If it's cops, our watchers would quietly text us while we clean the house and bail."Zachary exclaimed in realization, "You boys really run a tight ship!""For sure," Mr.
After working in Antique Street for years, Zachary's connections and influence were naturally special. And yet, though he was acquainted with some of the more impressive individuals, he was not that close with them either.For example, the forgery masters who worked specifically to deceive experts only accepted jobs from major clients, usually antique traders high in social status and wealth.In contrast, they wouldn't ever be interested in frivolous people like Zachary. Even if he could reach them, they might not look at him twice.If one would describe them as the cartel boss, then Zachary would be a low-level enforcer, managing night joints or goofing off.But now, Zachary had turned over a new leaf—he worked under Don Albert, so one of those masters was pleasantly surprised when he called one of them, inviting him to his own workshop for a visit and further discussion.As such, Zachary picked up Jacob and went over to the master's hideout where the latter worked on his count
Zachary was naturally shrewd enough to read Jacob's intention.In reality, he wasn't offering to pay just because he wanted the profit. He merely wanted to get in Jacob's good graces. After all, wouldn't Jacob be even more grateful that he wasn't just helping his revenge but also helping him make money?As such, he didn't hesitate to tell Jacob, "Well, chief—since you'll be paying, I will make sure that you will get every cent of profit that you deserve."Jacob was grinning ear-to-ear, but he said, "Oh, you don't have to! If we really are making a profit, there's no way I would let your good work go unrewarded!"Spreading his arms, he continued generously, "How about this? I will pay the full cost while you get twenty percent of the net profit!"Zachary laughed. "Now, that can wait, chief. We need to pay as soon as we decide on the item we want, and there's no time for buyer's regret. But if Raymond doesn't take the bait, all that money will go down the drain, and whether we can s
Zachary chuckled and continued, "Well, I went to Antique Street and asked around. Turns out our mutual friend only brought a few hundred thousand grand with him. If he messes up and loses all his money, won't it be over for him?""He won't just be broke either—he'd be humiliated and forced to fuck off from Antique Street. You'd get even then!"Jacob was at once excited.Just yesterday, Claire and Charlie were warning him that assault meant doing time.As the vice president of the Calligraphy and Painting Association and the next presidential-hopeful, he would lose his place if he was charged with assault or being an accessory to a case.However, Zachary's plan was much better. Jacob wouldn't have to take responsibility, and the damage on Raymond would be even worse!In comparison, slapping Raymond meant nothing. Watching him go broke and get humiliated would really ease his heart!With that in mind, he promptly pressed Zachary, "Are you sure that prick will mess up?""I can't a
Jacob Wilson was in his office at the Calligraphy and Painting Association, planning his itinerary in Dubai.Still, he was immediately thrilled when Zachary told him that there was progress, and he quickly said, "Come see me at the Calligraphy and Painting Association. We'll talk in my office!""Alright!" Zachary agreed to it happily. "Just wait, Mr. Wilson. I'll be right there!"Jacob then quickly told him, "By the way, remember to address me as the vice president when you're here. Got it?"Zachary was naturally sharp enough to understand why, especially around other members of the Calligraphy and Painting Association.Smiling, he said, "Don't worry, chief. You can always be at ease when I'm on the job!"Once he hung up, he drove to the Calligraphy and Painting Association at top speed.There were just a dozen people around the dozens of work cubicles although Zachary was curious about the personal effects or office tools in the cubicles.After asking around, a staff member le
Then, Mick continued, "I won't lie—Moore Group's bean counters have been eager to get rid of Vintage Deluxe for a while now. It's only Miss Moore's insistence that keeps them at bay, even occasionally coming to check on how business is going. That means she holds sentiment for this place, but if she knows that Raymond is back and doing well, she might hire him again!"Zachary could laugh right then. After all, Mick was terrible at gathering information—he could worry about anyone taking his palace, but not Raymond. The man was fired because he had insulted Master Wade's father in-law, and Miss Moore was endlessly respectful—even obedient to Master Wade. There was no chance that she would hire Raymond back after what he had done, and Mick was just being paranoid.However, Zachary did not tell Mick that.As Mick was begging him to intervene and thus owing him big time, he would also be helping Jacob Wilson get even.Two birds with one stone, so why not?With that in mind, Zachar
Zachary then said, "By the way, I have some friends who have a lot of stock. How much capital do you have, Mr. Cole? I'll check if they have stuff that suits you, and you can partner with them."When Zachary asked how much capital, he was basically asking Raymond how much he would invest in his own business and how much he could spend on taking new stock as he was buying.As such, Raymond replied modestly, "I've been chasing my tail for a while, so I didn't earn more than a few hundred thousand. I definitely would have no issue taking items with rebates, but I'm afraid I can't afford premiums.""Alright!" Zachary nodded, having discerned the scale of Zachary's capital."I'll check on what's available and see if we can get a few personal deals."Raymond nodded. "Thank you, Zachary!"Zachary smiled, shaking his head. "Mr. Crane, please buy another fruit basket for Mr. Cole—I'll pay you later."Mick quickly said, "Oh, you don't have to, Mr. Evans! It's my pleasure, no worries!"Zach