Naturally, neither Mr. Bay nor Hal argued with this, thus following Albert and Jacob to the Diamond Room—the grandest room of Heaven Springs.After Albert led the trio there and smiled, "Gentlemen, if you would please take your seats, my people will be delivering Big Red Robe tea and our menu to your table shortly. I've spoken to the kitchen as well, and they will be preparing appetizers first. Please feel free to enjoy a game of poker until everyone arrives, and the main courses will be delivered right away."His arrangement was utterly detailed, and the trio were awash with gratitude.Hal and Mr. Bay especially were looking upon Jacob worshipfully, as if he was an unassuming bigwig on Charlie's level.Soon, as the invited guests arrived, Albert personally brought two bottles of 3-liter Moutai that cost an arm and leg to the Diamond Room.For politeness's sake, Hal ordered two more bottles of one-liter Moutai, meaning that it was one liter for the eight persons in attendance.Th
By the time Jacob was sent home, he was almost passed out drunk.As Charlie took him off Walker's hands, Jacob's eyelids were but narrow slits.With his rough facial features, his flushed cheeks, and that strange smile of his, he looked just like those sleazy middle-aged men often seen in animated cartoons.Still, seeing that Charlie had come out of the house to get him, he chuckled drunkenly, "D-Dear boy… Your dad… was so amazing!"Charlie shook his head in exasperation. "You're drunk, Dad—get some rest already. Otherwise, you might wake Mom up and get an earful for this.""Earful?" Jacob's eyes widened ferociously as he snorted, "S-She'd never dare!"Charlie chuckled as he said quietly, "Come on, keep it down—Elaine is plenty daring. And in your state, you stand no chance if she starts to beat you."Despite being drunk a second ago, Jacob suddenly shuddered from the shiver running down his spine, and he promptly corrected himself, "A gentleman… never lays a hand on a woman! T-
"Anyway, we have an issue," Helena continued. "Two days ago, Nvidia launched the B100 processor, their latest product, just two hours ago—a next-generation chip that will outperform our H100 considerably. I've instructed Harrison to pull some strings and preorder a batch from Nvidia before the B100 hits the market, at least ensuring that we can get our hands on 20,000 in the first quarter when the B100 circulates."Charlie asked, "What are Harrison's thoughts on the matter?" "Of course that old fox is going to be reluctant," Helena snorted. "But with the B100's processing strength outclassing the H100's, many AI institutions and multimedia giants are waiting with their wallets wide open. He's complaining that after pulling strings to get his hands on so many H100s, he is too embarrassed to do it again for the B100.""Bullshit," Charlie chuckled. "He's just not keen on us raising our prices after that previous agreement.""Exactly," Helena laughed as well. "He's about the shrewdest
Jacob slept in the next day while Elaine got out of bed past ten as well.However, in the case of the latter, she wasn't drunk and was simply watching livestreams and video clips on her phone—a hobby she had picked up recently.As for Charlie, he had initially planned to visit the Champs Elys hot spring villa and train Nanako in her Reiki control. However, since Claire would be arriving in the afternoon, he stayed home, planning to leave for the airport when it was time.Elaine appeared groggy as she emerged from the elevator, rubbing her eyes while holding her phone in the other hand.Seeing Charlie cleaning the living room, she asked in curiosity, "Not going out today, Charlie? Aren't you usually going out to meet clients?"Then, she became concerned in an instant, "Wait, don't tell me—the Feng Shui business is falling off? Are we going to be affected altogether?"Charlie laughed. "You're just getting paranoid now. Things are going fine—I'm just giving myself a day's leave.""
Jacob yawned, stretching his arms and smacking his cheeks, before finally retorting in contempt, "For Pete's sake, woman—don't make dissing me a habit. Or does it please you so much?"Elaine pursed her lips. "You call that dissing? It's all facts—do you think I don't know you? Tell me, what qualifications do you have? Your knowledge about calligraphy is skin-deep, and even the frauds working on Antique Street could beat you.""Only you would have the audacity to take the role of vice president at the Calligraphy and Painting Association—heaven's above, how blind is the president to appoint you as his second fiddle? Still, you'll be packing your things as soon as he realizes the truth.""Oh, Elaine, poor Elaine…" Jacob grinned smugly at her right then. "I'm afraid things won't go the way you want. Mr. Bay's been chasing a promotion lately, and once he gets it, I will take his place as president. That means I'll be the top dog instead of second fiddle!""Bullshit!" Elaine snapped in
Charlie shook his head. "It's alright, Dad. You can go ahead if you're busy—I can pick up Claire on my own.""No way!" Elaine promptly snapped. "It's been so long since she came back. We are all going to the airport!"Jacob sighed in exasperation. "Well, I'm sticking to my schedule—first the Calligraphy and Painting Association, then I'll be back an hour before to pick you guys up before going together to the airport."Elaine was left fuming. "Is there no getting through to you? You really have to go to that stupid association, don't you? Okay, fine. If you must go, I will be going with you!""You're their honored vice president who will be promoted to president soon, no? As Mrs. Vice President and the future Mrs. President, is there an issue if I went for a look?"Jacob shuddered at the thought of Elaine going to the Calligraphy and Painting Association as he absolutely didn't want her to humiliate him with her antics. People would talk, asking how a proper gentleman like him c
While Charlie had long since gotten used to Elaine and Jacob's bizarre marriage, being near the heart of the storm still took a toll on his senses—to the point that he felt physically sick.Leaving right away was therefore his best solution.Once he left, however, he realized he didn't have anywhere to go. Champs Elys was quite far, and it would take a lot of time.As he started to feel bored stiff, he remembered Vera for some reason and called her.Once Vera answered, she quickly asked in curiosity, "To what do I owe the pleasure? Lunch, perhaps?"Charlie chuckled. "Since you've put it that way… I haven't eaten either, so lunch it is!"Vera giggled. "Come over to my place, then. It's cold outside, and I was just lighting up a hot pot. I'll have Madam Marilyn prepare an additional portion.""Okay!" Charlie agreed to it without hesitation. "I can return her car too. Just wait, I'll be right there!"Once he hung up, he got on the Rolls Roycs he had borrowed from Scarlet Pinnacl
Vera was inwardly disappointed to hear that Claire was returning.That meant there were fewer chances of Charlie visiting the Scarlet Pinnacle Manor, as were her chances of seeing him again.Still, she didn't let it show, instead asking casually, "How are things at Champs Elys? Are the warriors improving at a rate to your satisfaction?""Well, most of everyone's improvement is within expectations…" Charlie explained, just as he remembered a certain someone. "By the way, there's something I haven't told you yet. Are you perhaps acquainted with the name Ito Nanako?""Yes," Vera smiled. "The Japanese lady who was with you. What about her?""She attained enlightenment days ago.""Enlightenment?" Vera did a double take and soon pressed, "Enlightenment in what sense? Essential Qi or Reiki?"After all, the former was the path to enlightenment in martial arts, while the latter meant enlightenment in cultivation.But despite the distinction between both domains, enlightenment was a comm
"Invest?!"Billy was left dumbstruck at the term.What even was this fool up to? This definitely wasn't in the script! What about the questions he was supposed to ask? It was like sitting for a grade-schooler test and suddenly being hit with a bar exam!In the car, Jacob blurted out, "What the hell is that bastard thinking? Is he really going to pay 250 thousand?!"Zachary pursed his lips. "Maybe he's just throwing us bait. Think about it—if we took the deal, we'd have to leave a contact number.""After that, he would trick us and say he sold it for ten million and lure us in for the five million. We'd definitely show up, wouldn't we? Once we came, it might turn out that he has called the cops and would even produce\ the bronze sculpture as evidence. Wouldn't we be just shooting ourselves in the foot?"Jacob was left in misery, his face contorting as he pouted, "But you said the cops wouldn't get involved…"Zachary rolled his eyes, "Yes, they wouldn't most of the time since that
However, neither Zachary nor Jacob expected Raymond to confuse them further as he asked Billy, "If you can afford to wait, you can leave the bronze sculpture with me as a consignment. I'll only take 10% off the sales while you get the rest—how about that?"Jacob was stunned and asked Zachary, "What the hell is he up to? Did he get too deep into character?"Zachary shook his head. "I don't get it either… is he trying to keep the bronze sculpture to use as evidence against us?"Jacob frowned. "I thought you said there was a gentleman agreement in this business, and the cops won't really care anyway?"Zachary snorted. "He said he would keep it as a consignment, meaning that he won't spend a dime. What if he told all the antique dealers instead of going to the cops? He would prove that he's sharp, making a name for himself… and what can we do? Do we take back the bronze sculpture? Even if we do, can we really ask for it?'"Fuck!" Jacob swore. "Then what are we waiting for? Tell Billy
In Treasure Measure, even Billy was having a hard time understanding what was going on.Before he came, Zachary made it very clear that he was here to dupe Raymond Cole, and he had come.As such, his job was now to claim that this bronze sculpture which was made in the last century was actually from the Renaissance era and then sell it to Raymond at a cutthroat price.But now, Raymond himself was saying that it was medieval? What was that supposed to mean?Even as he was left confused, he blurted out, "Sir, if you say it's from medieval times… then how much is it worth?"Raymond thought about it and said, "It's quite an unpopular item, but it's not to say that no one would buy it or that no one likes it. The main issue is that there were plenty of wars at that time, and most bronze would be used for weapons. Copper production would be low with rationing as well, so bronze tools were naturally rare for civilians.""Gilding is common for better quality items, and from the northern
Zachary couldn't help pointing at the screen and snapping, "Fucking loser! The more you feel pressed, the less you should be nervous! What are you thinking?! You're falling right under that bastard's trap!"Jacob was frustrated too, growling through his teeth, "Shit! I didn't think that bastard was a sly old fox. Fucking hell!"He then sighed, shaking his head. "Forget it, Zachary—I'm going home to pack my shit, and I'll depart for Dubai first thing tomorrow. Just handle that bronze sculpture for me and wire the money over."As he was about to get off, Zachary sighed in exasperation and apologetically said, "Sorry, Mr. Wilson… but it's fine! Even if this plan screwed up, just let me cook up another plan to destroy Raymond Cole!"Jacob ignored him as he strode out of the car, but that was when Raymond spoke audibly from Zachary's phone, "You can calm down. I'm not accusing you of lying to me. I just think that it's not Renaissance… Rather, it's medieval.""E-Early medieval…?" Billy
In Treasure Measure, Raymond unwrapped the red cloth around the bronze sculpture in front of Billy and the camera.There was a brief flash of surprise on his face, and it was soon gone.Still, he picked up the bronze sculpture, fiddling with it as he asked, "Do you know where it's from?""Yeah," Billy nodded. "A Renaissance-era sculpture. I think the base makes it obvious."Raymond looked up at him and asked in curiosity, "Are you sure about that?"Billy, presuming that Raymond had already noticed a catch, quickly said, "Well, the old man had an expert check it, and the expert said it was immediately obvious! To be honest, I want to sell it because the old man just passed away—gotta sell this baby before my brother goes for a garage sale."He had certainly added more details to the script, and Raymond nodded as he said nonchalantly, "But it doesn't look Renaissance to me. Sculptures from that era—be it the craftsmanship or the unique attributes? It's quite different from this one
In the antique trade, items that raised eyebrows would only be shown in the evenings—when various shops were about to close.That was certainly the case in Antique Street, as most items arriving in the evening were either freshly excavated, stolen, or forgery used to dupe unsuspecting victims.Even if Raymond had started his career abroad, he had learned every last unspoken rule during his earlier stint in Aurous Hill.Seeing the wariness on Billy's face and the way he was holding something in his arms, Raymond knew right away that what he carried wasn't legal.Still, the antique trade was no different here than it was abroad.Tomb raiding, forgery, or adding some touch-ups that increased the value of an item—everyone across the globe pretty much played the same tricks, and Raymond had his fair share of experience.Still, he did not let his wariness show, instead grinning, "Yes, of course. Come on in—let's talk inside!"And with that, he quickly led Billy inside.Meanwhile, bot
"Five hundred grand?"Mick chuckled. "Well, the sculpture looks Renaissance, and the craftsmanship as well as the material are all ideal. It would sell for up to two million in an auction, while established antique traders like us could offer up to a million. So, why the lowball?"Bill sighed. "I won't lie—it belonged to my old man, who just croaked this afternoon. But you see, he left a will stating that every antique in the house would be given to my brother… Since he's playing favorites, I thought I had to get something for myself.""That's why I quietly sneaked this baby out without anyone else knowing and am trying to sell it quickly to change my own circumstances. You don't have to tell me how many millions it's worth—I'm not that greedy. Give me five hundred grand, and it's yours."Mick shrugged as he shot back, "If it's as you say and your old man intended for your brother to have it, the fact that you sneaked it out here makes this theft. Do you think I'd buy stolen proper
It was half past six, and the skies were darkening when a figure hurried into Antique Street, heading straight toward the center—to Vintage Deluxe.Mick Crane, the manager, was holding the fort with some of his employees, and there were some guests window shopping there as well. As Mick asked the employees to assist the guests, he waited anxiously for Billy—Zachary's henchman.Nonetheless, a certain figure rushed inside within minutes, asking eagerly as he entered, "Is the manager in? Do you still buy antiques?""Yes, and yes!" Mick exclaimed as he approached Billy enthusiastically, asking, "May I ask what you're planning to sell?"Billy looked around before sneakily holding up a parcel wrapped in red cloth, carefully lifting a corner to reveal an edge so that Mick could see.Then, he promptly lowered the cloth again, whispering, "This is the good stuff. I'm just not sure if you have the money to buy it."Mick grinned. "What are you saying? If it's something Vintage Deluxe coul
Jacob chuckled. "Can't tell you right now. But I will once it's done.""Well, have you decided when we're going to Dubai?" Elaine quickly pressed.Jacob said, "I'd have to wait until tonight to see if this deal works, but we're leaving first thing tomorrow. I'll get the tickets first, and we will be staying at the Burj Al-Arab that I told you about. People are always saying how amazing it is on the internet every day, seeing how luxurious the seven-star hotel is, but I'll be the judge of that."Elaine was overjoyed to hear that. "That's amazing! And I was just thinking we can't go sooner! Go about your business, then. I'll pack our luggage right away."Jacob chuckled smugly. "Don't pack so much, though. Just stick to the necessities, since we can get the rest over there!""Alright!" Elaine exclaimed, beside herself in excitement. "Alright, you hurry up and get your thing done over there. I'll start packing now!"After hanging up, Elaine called Charlie, who was in Champs Elys Reso