Jacob and Elaine happened to be in the living room, so Charlie waved his phone at them and said, "Mom, Dad, it's Claire. I'll answer it here." The two stopped bickering instantly, and Charlie pressed the answer button. After the call was connected, Claire's beautiful face appeared on the phone screen. Seeing the background, Claire said in surprise, "Honey! You're home!" Charlie nodded. "I just got back today. Let me show you Mom and Dad." As he said that, he turned his phone around and pointed the front camera at Jacob and Elaine. Jacob asked worriedly, "Darling, when will you come back? I miss you!" Elaine interjected hastily, "Don't listen to your dad's nonsense. I miss you too, but it's a great opportunity that you're finally working with the Fox family in America. You must focus on your career. If you want, I can go over to take care of you!" "Mom, this is why I'm calling Charlie," Claire said with a smile. "I just finished the morning meeting with Miss Fox and the
Noticing Elaine's disappointment, Charlie quickly spoke up, "Honey, when are you coming back? Have you set a time?" Claire replied, "I plan to first finalize the project's documents and progress here as well as resolve any outstanding issues. If there's nothing else, I'll go back. If I can't finish today, it will probably be the day after tomorrow at the latest." "Have you checked the flights?" Charlie asked. "Are there any suitable flights for the day after tomorrow?" Claire replied, "Miss Fox suggested arranging her family's private jet to send me back, but I feel bad about it. A flight on a private jet costs over a million, and I can't let them spend that money." Elaine quickly interrupted, "Then just take a regular flight back and let her give you the money for the private jet. Convert it into a million!" Charlie hurriedly said, "They have plenty of planes. Even when they're not in use, they have to be maintained. The actual cost of flying one more trip isn't that high. B
Jacob rolled his eyes in annoyance and jeered, "Do you think money from rich families grows on trees? Working for wealthy people is just about the market price. Are you saying the janitor sweeping the floors at Apple makes a million dollars a year?" "You really have some nerve, Jacob Wilson!" Elaine scoffed and scolded. "How can you compare our sweet daughter to a janitor? So, in your eyes, Claire is on the same level as a janitor at Apple?" "That's not what I meant!" Jacob snapped and quickly explained, "What I'm saying is, even if you're working for Apple, you just earn what you're supposed to earn. Claire has done well in her field, and earning a few million a year is already pretty good. It's only been a short time since she went to the U.S. yet you're already expecting Miss Fox to pay her tens of millions? That's ridiculous!" Elaine rolled her eyes and disdainfully snarled, "Clearly, you don't understand the ways of the world. Miss Fox had Charlie help with Feng Shui multipl
Charlie dropped the formalities and said, "Thank you very much then, Miss Fox." "You're welcome, Mr. Wade," Kathleen said. "It's my honor to serve you." After reaching an agreement with Kathleen, Charlie then called Doris. Doris hadn't received a call from Charlie in a long time, so her voice was filled with excitement as she said, "Mr. Wade, what can I do for you?" Charlie replied, "Are you familiar with the situation at Sonfo Valley? I want to acquire the entire area, but I can't do it too conspicuously, so I can't offer a price that's too outrageous to avoid drawing attention. Do you think that will be difficult?" "Sonfo Valley..." Doris thought for a moment before speaking, "Sonfo Valley is an older residential area. After I took over Emgrand, I reviewed the company's previous documents. That land was actually something Emgrand considered competing for initially, but later, they gave up because the surrounding area lacked supporting infrastructure. It's located in the mou
The next morning, Charlie met up with Nanako and drove to Champs Elys together. He wanted to send Nanako to the villa halfway up the mountain so that she could concentrate on improving her control of Reiki while he himself would take the oral fluid and distribute it to all the martial arts students. At the same time, Julien had already crossed the Pacific Ocean in a private plane, getting closer and closer to Aurous Hill with only a few hours left. While Charlie was on his way, Caden said to over 400 martial arts students who were doing morning training, "Guys, I have good news for you. Master Wade will come to see you later with gifts. He will give them to you personally." The students were excited upon hearing this. Aurora, Rosalie, the Harker family members, and the members of Ten Thousand Armies all knew that Charlie had a special medicine that could enhance the cultivation of martial arts. Although Sonia wasn't familiar with this, ever since she had arrived in Oskia, she c
The people in the audience answered in unison, "Yes!" Some even said loudly, "Not only that, but it is extremely beneficial!" "Yes! The improvement is indeed very significant!" "My personal understanding of martial arts has also become much clearer!" Among the crowd, Sonia gathered the courage to say loudly, "Since coming here, cultivation has truly been twice as effective!" Charlie recognized her voice and curiously asked, "Miss Letterman, you trained under Master Howton too when you were in the United States, and it is the same here. Why does this place make you feel that way?" "I... Uh..." Sonia was taken aback as she did not expect Charlie to direct a question to her, so she stuttered nervously. "I speak only the truth and am not exaggerating. The reason I feel it is twice as effective lies mainly in three factors." With that, she paused briefly, gathered her thoughts, and continued, "The first reason is that when the Taoist Sect was in America, Master Howton was not
Albert then selected a few students to help him distribute a bottle of oral fluid to everyone. Even Caden, who had already reached the Great Perfection Realm of the Illuminating Realm, got his share. After the distribution, Charlie said, "What you're holding in your hands is a special supplement for strengthening the body and the meridians. After you take it, it will help your cultivation. If you happen to be at the critical stage of a realm breakthrough, you might be able to complete the breakthrough with this bottle of supplement." Everyone was especially excited when they heard that it was a medicine that could improve cultivation. For martial artists, the most valuable things were complete internal capabilities and supplements that could improve strength. Many martial artists spent their entire lives in arduous cultivation without ever receiving the assistance of any medicinal elixir. At times, they could feel that they were just one step away from breaking through to the nex
At one point, Sonia thought about summoning the courage to go to Charlie and beg him for mercy. But upon the thought of her previous arrogance and outrageous remarks, she resisted the urge. Thus, she became even more depressed and sat cross-legged, staring at the floor. Charlie only needed a glance to notice Sonia's dejection. After all, in a crowd of people cheering excitedly, she sat there silently, looking completely out of place. Charlie knew very well that Sonia's frustration was undoubtedly because he had sealed her meridians. On her own, she no longer had the possibility of further advancement. Recalling her earlier disrespectful remarks, he chalked it up to the personality of a young martial arts fanatic. It wasn't that Charlie was petty or unwilling to let go of past grievances, but the key issue was that he had already opened all of her meridians in one go. If he were to seal them back up, she would instantly become a master at the Great Perfection Realm of Illu
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