Charlie smiled at him. After finding out that Claire and Elaine were not in the living room, he asked, “Have Claire and Mom returned?”“No and yes,” Jacob gestured indifferently and said, “Your mom went into the room as soon as she came home, saying that she was not feeling well. I wonder what’s wrong with her, she must have lost money playing mahjong and is heartbroken!”Charlie nodded and asked attentively, “Dad, don’t you want to check on her? Just in case?”“Argh, forget it.” Jacob gestured, unconcerned. “She only knows playing mahjong and nothing else, I’m sick of it. Even if she loses, it’s only about several thousand, just leave her be. She’ll know how to slow down after crying for two days!”Charlie tried to stifle his laugh.Several thousand?Dad, you should multiply that by eight thousand!Your wife has lost more than sixty million today!Now that he thought about it, he couldn’t help but sigh at Elaine’s stupidity. She had lost more than sixty million in a mahjong ga
While Christopher indulged in his imagination, thinking about how to make Elaine his long-term cash withdrawal machine, Lady Wilson walked in from the outside with a gloomy expression.Christopher jumped from his seat and greeted, “Mom, you’re home! How’s everything?”Lady Wilson huffed indignantly and said, “The bank will soon start the bankruptcy liquidation process, they said that it will start next Monday. Once the process starts, they will seize this house. Where is the eight million that you promised? Why haven’t you transferred it to me yet?!”Christopher chuckled pretentiously. “Mom, stop rushing me. Didn’t I tell you that the money is stuck in the fixed deposit account? My fund manager is trying to withdraw it as soon as possible. I promised that I’ll give you the money, just be patient.”If possible, he didn’t want to give his mother even a penny. However, something changed his mind.He depended on Lady Wilson to inherit the anonymous assets that Lady Wilson had hidden a
After taking the phone, Lady Wilson tried to dial Hannah’s number, but the same notification came through.She said in confusion, “What’s wrong? Why has she switched off her phone?”“Mom, it’s quite common for the phone to turn off automatically when the battery is dead. Besides, she’s outside and it’s inconvenient for her to charge her phone.”Lady Wilson threw the phone to him and chided angrily, “Then keep calling until the call gets through!”Christopher sighed. He sat on the couch and kept calling and hanging up.It went on for half an hour but he couldn’t get through to her.As Christopher attempted to call her again, he felt that something wasn’t going right as they had planned…Logically speaking, the mahjong scam that Hannah and Linda had planned was not held outdoors but inside a house. Charging a phone should not be a big problem.Moreover, he reminded her again and again to always keep in touch just so he could go and save her if anything happened.Hence, it was im
Upon hearing the words ‘Thompson First’, Lady Wilson’s eyes opened so wide they almost popped out of her eye sockets.She had coveted Charlie’s new villa for a long time and even in her dreams, she wanted to move into the house so badly.In fact, she hoped she could die in the house.There were some superstitions and sayings among the folk, such as it is best not to die in the hospital because you might not find the way home.Another one was it is best to wear your shroud before you die because you might be naked when you go to the afterlife.Yet another example was that if you die in a mansion, you would be able to reincarnate into a wealthy family in your next life and enjoy the glory and wealth.Therefore, Lady Wilson longed that she could live in a top-notch luxury villa like Thompson First until the day she died.The other day, she had directed Harold to rob the villa but ended with horrible consequences. Harold and his bodyguards had been beaten up terribly.Since then, s
It was possible that Hannah would make a run for it if she really had that much money in hand. After all, she and Elaine were two peas in a pod. They were greedy and loved money more than anything.‘Mother is right,’ Christopher thought. ‘Now that me, our children, and even my mother have become burdens, it’s possible that she has chosen to run away with the money!’A layer of resentment and gloom surfaced on Christopher’s face. He said in a deep voice, “Let me call Elaine and ask.”He grabbed his phone and called Elaine.His call was answered almost immediately.“Hey, Elaine, it’s your brother-in-law, Christopher…”Elaine gritted her teeth in disdain when his voice came from the other end of the line!This f*cking old dog! He must have known about Hannah’s plot to scam her!Maybe he was the real mastermind behind all this!When she thought about the terrible losses she had suffered today, she wanted to curse him at the top of her lungs!However, when her thought shifted to t
Christopher shouted angrily into the phone, “Elaine, you’re slinging mud—that’s a pack of f*cking lies!”Elaine blurted anxiously, “Oh, don’t you believe me? Fine! If you can find Hannah, I’ll admit defeat!”“What do you mean?”“Go and figure it out yourself! I’m very tired now, I don’t want to talk to you anymore!”Immediately, Elaine ended the call.Christopher almost smashed the phone with anger when he heard the busy tone on the phone.Harold caught his arms hurriedly and said, “Dad, calm down! The priority right now is to find Mom!”Unfortunately, Harold didn’t know that his mother was on the way to the gullies in Erith and it was utterly impossible for the Wilson family to find her with their resources.Wendy leaned against her father and persuaded, “Yeah, Dad! Don’t be so mad! What did the b*tch say?”Christopher huffed indignantly, “Elaine said that your mom has an affair with some dude and that she eloped with him!”“What?!” Harold, Wendy, and Lady Wilson looked shoc
There was a dash of uncertainty and doubt on Christopher’s face. He was almost convinced that his wife had run away with the money!There was no other better explanation than this!How could four adults disappear out of thin air just like that?Even if they did, there must be some clues or traces left behind, right?The more he thought about it, the more certain he was that Hannah might have betrayed him! Indeed, she was very rich now with the winning and their fifteen million cash.He huffed and bit his lips in anguish, then said, “No, I can’t just wait here. I want to go to Elaine and ask her in person!”The annoyed Lady Wilson smacked Christopher with her cane and cursed, “You’d better get some answers from her and find Hannah! Even if you can’t find her, get the fifteen million back for me! You don’t have to come back if you can’t get the money, I’ll just assume that I only have one son!”Christopher nodded dejectedly. “Okay, alright, I’ll go now!”Suddenly, Lady Wilson sai
Never did Lady Wilson expect that the cowardly Jacob would be so gutsy and confident in front of her!She couldn’t help feeling angry and frustrated!For decades, she had been suppressing Jacob using her majesty and authority, and Jacob had never been able to resist or even refute her bossiness.He didn’t even dare to object when she kicked him out of the Wilson family house.But now, he dared to say such things to her!He had become bold and brazen, didn’t he?!He didn’t want such a mother?! How the hell dare he spout such a rebellious remark!This was outrageous!Just when she blew a gasket and wanted to pick a bone with them to solidify her dignity, Christopher, on the other hand, stood humbly and said, “Charlie, we aren’t here to look for trouble today, I have something very urgent that I need to ask Elaine, so could you please ask her to come out quickly?”Charlie knew that Christopher must be here because of Hannah, but he wouldn’t know, not even in his dreams, that Hann
Falling apart in both mind and spirit, Jacob was crying as he disembarked and took a cab to the hotel.Elaine, who had been lying around for 24 hours, was stunned speechless as she watched him enter, crying like a child.In contrast, Elaine looked like a mother to Jacob just then as he threw himself into her arms and bawled, "Darling… That prick Mr. Bay screwed me over… I have nothing left now…"Taken aback for a moment that Jacob would bawl in her arms like that, Elaine soon came to her senses and patted his back as she comforted him, "Oh, stop crying already. Who cares about some Calligraphy and Painting groupies? We certainly don't! Just hear me out and don't ever go there again!"Jacob kept sobbing, "But I care… I want to go…"Annoyed, Elaine's hand that had been patting Jacob a moment ago slid down to his hip and pinched him viciously before he noticed."Ow!" Jacob yelped in pain, and he demanded indignantly, "What was that for?!""Shut up!" Elaine snapped, glowering. "I wa
Jacob couldn't even be bothered by the looks others were giving him, and he called Mr. Bay immediately.Mr. Bay had already gone home and was seated on the couch with his wife, watching his phone and waiting for Jacob to call and demand an explanation.Mr. Bay knew that he had to answer for this and that if he avoided Jacob, it may well be a confession that he had screwed Jacob over.So, to avoid unnecessary trouble, he decided to come clean with Jacob.Naturally, by coming clean, he meant passing the buck as his wife had suggested.Hence, as he answered Jacob's call, he immediately sighed in embarrassment, "Hey, Jacob. I'm so sorry about that…"However, Jacob was so furious he immediately started bellowing, "Mr. Bay! Are you fucking with me here?! You said that the resignation letter was more of a formality, but you just made it public instead! So, all those things you said about helping me were just a trap, was it?! You're despicable! And to think I've been so good to you, even
The repeated flights had left Jacob tormented.Even before he actually had the time to enjoy Dubai, he had already gotten sick of the place and didn't want to ever return.And on the flight, he couldn't stop his thoughts from going astray.Now that he was not getting back the money he had lost, his only hope was Mr. Bay.Fortunately, Mr. Bay was serious about his promise that he would at least save him a job as department head. That was why, despite his thoughts running astray, he never considered the thought that he would be kicked out of the Calligraphy and Painting Association.As soon as his flight landed, he didn't wait to turn off his phone's flight mode, waiting for the internet connection to return so that he could ask Mr. Bay about the meeting.Once he did, he received a ton of messages from public accounts to acquaintances—many had already found out that he had resigned from the post of administrative vice-president and wanted to ask how he was doing.And Matilda was
The Calligraphy and Painting Association was certainly efficient—soon after the meeting was dismissed, the news that the administrative vice-president had resigned was posted on their official page and social media.The notice was simple and never mentioned what Jacob had done, only that the administrative vice-president had asked to resign for personal reasons. The request had since been voted upon, and all members had agreed to it.And that was how a simple and short message kicked Jacob out of the Calligraphy and Painting Association entirely.In the city, other associations closely connected with the Calligraphy and Painting Association were the various cultural societies and circles of antique enthusiasts and the Senior University. In fact, most fans of the public page of the Calligraphy and Painting Association were from the Senior City, and every lecturer, student, and even guest lecturer were subscribed.As a matter of fact, that was entirely Jacob's doing. After his lect
There weren't that many members in the Calligraphy and Painting Association—just a handful over twenty.Hence, at Mr. Bay's request, everyone showed up at the conference at 1 pm.He chose the afternoon as there were a handful who were away on outreach, including Walker, who was subbing for Jacob's lectures.Once the entire Calligraphy and Painting Association save for Jacob was informed of the mandatory meeting, every member was there on the hour, seated primly and in attention in the huge conference room.Mr. Bay didn't waste his breath on the preamble either—as soon as he saw that everyone had arrived, he announced, "Everyone, I've gathered you here today because our administrative vice-president, Jacob Wilson, has been alleged to be involved in a certain malicious scheme."Last night, Mr. Wilson submitted his resignation to me, and after a discussion with my vice-presidents, we've all decided to hold a vote. It will be open to every member in the association as we will be decid
Having sent his resignation letter, Jacob had no idea that it would be the catalyst for his dismissal.He didn't sleep well at the rundown motel either and had dark circles under his eyes as he rushed to the airport early the next morning.Clearing the checkpoint and boarding his flight, everything went smoothly until his flight to Dubai lifted off at 10 am.-Meanwhile, the other vice-presidents of the Calligraphy and Painting Association had arrived at Mr. Bay's office.They all had the same goal—pressure Mr. Bay and get Jacob kicked out of the association no matter what it took.Naturally, they knew that Mr. Bay most definitely would have to help Jacob since Jacob was close with Don Albert. If Mr. Bay insisted on protecting Jacob, they shouldn't insist, or Jacob would hear about it, and the man would bear a grudge.Even so, as the vice-presidents entered Mr. Bay's office and closed the door behind them, one of them couldn't help asking, "So, Mr. Bay—how do you intend to deal
Hence, Mr. Bay sent a reply in under five minutes after Jacob sent his resignation letter.As Jacob tapped on it, he immediately saw Mr. Bay's reply: Mr. Wilson's resignation is a huge loss to the association. However, we should also respect his individual situation and opinion. As such, to discuss our direction forward, all vice-presidents are required to attend a meeting at 10am tomorrow to discuss this matter.Jacob was still perplexed as to why Mr. Bay would reply to his mail and even summon the other vice-presidents for a meeting, and when he had a closer look, he saw that Mr. Bay had forwarded his mail to everyone else.Seeing that, Jacob thought to himself that Mr. Bay could just stick to a discussion involving just Mr. Bay and the vice-presidents instead of the entire association.As such, he sent a voice message on WhatsApp: "Mr. Bay, did you make a mistake and forward my mail to everyone else?"Mr. Bay soon replied, "Everyone already knows about your situation, so there'
Mr. Bay was left pursing his lips awkwardly. "T-That's way too despicable, don't you think? I'm the one who asked him to write a resignation and give up his place as vice-president while I handle the other vice-presidents and resolve the entire matter internally. Everyone can take a step back from escalation, and it's a solution that could please everyone."If I take that resignation at face value, won't it be like a bank goading a client into taking a scam loan? Won't he hate me to the bone if he finds out I screwed him over?""What are you worried about?" Mrs. Bay shot back in annoyance. "Are you that scared of Jacob Wilson turning against you? Hell, my own sister hates me to the bone—but what did you think I told her? That I'm never lending her the money no matter how much she hates me!"What do you think would have happened if I were worried about her feelings and loaned her the money she asked for? She wouldn't have to use a single cent to get herself a new house! She would say
"Don Albert… is giving up on Jacob Wilson?!"Mr. Bay exclaimed in shock. "B-But he was so respectful toward Jacob just the other day when we had dinner at the Heaven Springs… He gave us the best private room and even offered his best wine, filling our glasses personally…"Mrs. Bay waved him off. "You've been stuck with the retirees of the Calligraphy and Painting Association for so long that you've lost your nose for danger! Just think about it—married couples who were just sharing a bed one night could pull a knife on their partner the very next day. And these are men with priorities we're talking about."Also, you should take into account that Zachary Evans is Don Albert's right-hand man, and Jacob somehow dragged him into a fraud scheme. So, do you think Don Albert would be happy with that?"And according to Zachary's public statement, all the money they got went straight into Jacob's pocket—and what does that mean? It means Zachary is an accessory to a crime—at worst, an accomp