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
Even if he was still the former Christopher, he couldn’t go up against Charlie in any way.He wasn’t sure when and how Charlie had become so skillful and amazing in martial arts that he could defeat the Wilson family’s brawny bodyguards. He definitely couldn’t withstand Charlie’s beating!Dejected, Christopher contained his fury and said in a low voice, “Jacob, it’s my fault for being so rude earlier. I’m sorry, but could you please ask Elaine to see me? I have something important that I must ask her.”Jacob was utterly happy right now. He wanted to just hug his darling son-in-law and kiss him! He had been so frustrated by Christopher’s provocation when suddenly, Charlie slapped him! It was such a refreshing scene!Smiling gleefully inside, Jacob donned an emotionless face and said, “Brother, did you and Hannah want to buy a villa two days ago?”“How did you know?” asked Christopher suspiciously.“Elaine told me. She was at her friend’s house playing mahjong when you and Hannah
Christopher was trembling with anger at Jacob’s deliberate sarcasm!Indeed, he occasionally saw such news on virtual news portals. In fact, he admitted that he had even imagined such a scene before. He imagined that one day when he was super rich and bumped into a young and beautiful girl who told him that she didn’t want to work anymore, he would just send her an address and let her come to him…Of course, it was nothing but a figment of his imagination. He had never had the courage nor the ability to turn it into a reality.However, when Jacob talked about his wife like that, for some reason, a very vivid and realistic picture showed up in his mind!In the imaginative picture, there was a young man leaning against his wife’s embrace and calling her name sweetly…Christopher was extremely agitated, wondering how many times his wife had cheated on him. He stomped furiously and cursed, “Jacob, don’t you dare mock my wife like that! Your wife isn’t any better! You should be thankful
At this moment, the gleeful Jacob said, “Oh yes, dear, give me twenty grand. I want to have a get-together tomorrow.”“A get-together?” Elaine asked nervously, “Why do you need twenty grand for a get-together?! Did you invite the president?”“I joined the Aurous Calligraphy and Painting Association, I’ve told you that, remember? Now, there’s a vacancy for the executive director of the association and I want it! So, I’d like to invite the chairman and other directors to dinner to enhance our relationship.”Then, he added with a smug look, “If I’m elected as one of the executive directors, I’ll be popular in the antique social group in the city!”Elaine shouted angrily, “Are you crazy? Why do you need twenty grand for a dinner? Do you really think we own a money printer at home? No, I don’t allow you to!”Jacob hurriedly said, “Oh, dear, I just want to climb the ladder one step at a time! Once I become the director, I will have more opportunities to get in touch with the rare and pr
As Charlie was preparing dinner, Donald and his son, Sean, also left the Moore family mansion and drove to The Heaven Springs.Donald has invited some of the more powerful and prestigious people in Aurous Hill to attend the banquet dinner that he would be hosting at The Heaven Springs tonight. On one hand, he wanted to find more clues relating to his youngest son, Kian’s sudden illness, and on the other hand, he wanted to lay down a little foundation for the Webb family in Aurous Hill.Although the Webb family was the top family in the South Region, this did not mean that they had sufficient control and power over the entire South Region.The Webb family’s base camp was in Sudbury, and this meant that they had extraordinary control and power in the Sudbury area. However, since the Moore family’s base camp was in Aurous Hill, this meant that the Webb family’s influence and power in Aurous Hill were relatively worse than the Moore family.As these wealthy and powerful families in the
Besides that, even if the girls admired him or were interested in him, their family might not necessarily be able to accept him into their families.Donald sighed before he said, “I received news from home that your younger brother’s condition is not very optimistic now.”“What’s wrong?” Sean hurriedly asked. “Did his condition deteriorate any further?”“No, that did not happen.” Donald continued speaking, “His illness is the same as it was before. He still has to eat shit every hour. However, it seems as though your brother’s emotional and mental condition is in very bad shape. In the past, he would feel like committing suicide if he did not get to eat shit every hour. However, now, whenever he has finished eating shit and regained his consciousness, he would feel like committing suicide. He said that it is too painful and pointless for him to continue living like this.”Donald could only sigh after he was done speaking. He really did not know who Kian had offended and why he woul
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
Mick inspected every video to see who was getting the most views, and he then paid out of his own pocket to use paid advertising to get the video viral.It cost five thousand and it hurt, but reaching the trending page was definitely worth it.Mick was quite shrewd too, making sure that the paid advertising was focused locally. After all, he knew all too well that five thousand didn't buy many clicks, and clicks from elsewhere might be too sporadic to gain any worthwhile attention.As he worked in Antique Street, he naturally had to come up with a plan to promote himself in this place, ideally presenting himself as a master appraiser.That way, his fame would slowly extend throughout the province and perhaps Eastern Oskia, and eventually the country.As such, focusing on Aurous Hill was the best idea.Moreover, he also had another idea—if Jasmine Moore happened to see this video, she would see him in a new light.When that happened, he could look forward to getting really rich!