Thrilled and overjoyed, Charlie quickly stuffed the Apocalyptic Book into his pocket, but the book instantly turned into powder and disappeared into thin air.Miraculously, every word in the book was clearly imprinted in Charlie’s brain.At this moment, Jacob, who ran away like a coward, was brutally apprehended by several big and strong men and was hurled back to the shop.Looking at his puffy and swelling cheeks, Charlie figured that he must have been beaten vigorously before he was carried back here.Charlie found Jacob’s piteous look very funny and amusing.How dare this old coot label him as a scapegoat after getting into trouble! It was outrageous! A little beating was necessary as a punishment for him to learn his lesson.Jacob was in a particularly dreaded and shaky position right now. Due to his desperate escape earlier, he was panting profusely like a dog, trying to catch his breath. His chubby and fragile body made it impossible for him to outrun those young people.
Charlie nodded. “What if I fix it?”Raymond snorted. “I’ll need to check with the appraisers. If they verify that you’ve fixed it and recovered most of the damage, I’ll let both of you go!”“Alright!” Charlie nodded. “It’s a deal!”He quickly turned back to the workstation and quietly started his work. He took the brush and sketched the outline of the vase on the Chinese rice paper.Then, he knocked the egg lightly to crack a small opening, dipped his index finger into the egg to get some egg white, wiped it on a fragment of the vase, and pressed it against the paper model. Then, he repeated the same process for the next fragment, and another, until the paper model was gradually covered with the vase’s pieces…Everyone watched silently while holding their breaths in for fear of interrupting his restoration process.Half an hour passed very quickly.When Charlie stood upright again, what appeared in front of everyone was a Tang Dynasty Yuhuchun vase that seemed to be rejuvenated
Raymond was dumbstruck!He never would have imagined, not even in his wildest dreams, that the vase would transform into a more precious treasure after being restored by a few eggs!He pointed to Charlie and said, “Miss, this is the man who fixed the vase…”As Jasmine glanced at Charlie, she couldn’t help but wonder how such a young man would know the long-forgotten cultural relic restoration technique!Despite her doubt, she managed a polite smile and asked, “Hi, I am Jasmine Moore. How should I address you? May I know from whom you have learned the relic restoration technique?”Jacob, who was still shivering at the side, was dumbfounded when he heard Jasmine Moore’s name!The Moore family!The Moore family was the most elite family in Aurous Hill! Their influence was not comparable to those of Eastcliff’s elite families, but in Aurous Hill, they were at the top of the pyramid where no one could ever reach!He didn’t expect that he would meet one of their family members here!
Charlie nodded. “Understood.”The old man let out a deep sigh. Rubbing his face, he grumbled, “If I knew that you had such skill, I wouldn’t have rushed to you! Now, I’m not just tired to the bone, I was even slapped multiple times! Damn, how unlucky!”He then continued, “Is my face still red?”Charlie replied, “A little.”The old man grumbled once more. “Tell your mother that I ran into a pole if she ever asks.”Upon reaching home, Charlie immediately rushed to the supermarket to get some groceries and make dinner for the family.He then called his wife, Claire Wilson, in case she was craving for something. However, it turned out that she had to plan an upcoming project with Doris Young that night and so, she had invited Claire to have dinner at Emgrand Group.Upon hearing those words, Doris had tested him at the same time as well by saying, “Sir, the project is in progress, so your wife might be quite busy from now. I hope you don’t mind.”Charlie was an understanding person,
Upon arriving at Silverwing Hospital, Douglas could be seen lying on one of the beds in the ward, covered in wounds and bruises. There was a cast on his right leg as well, and he looked miserable. Charlie couldn’t help but sympathize. This fully grown man had been cheated on, had his heart broken, and was now covered in wounds. At the sight of Charlie’s arrival, Douglas’s swollen eyes began to tear up, tears flowing down his cheeks like a river stream.“Charlie…” Douglas broke down crying.Charlie approached him slowly and said softly, “It’s okay, she’s just a b*tch, she’s not worth it.” Douglas continued, “I pursued her for three years, basically throwing my dignity into the dumpster for her! I feel like a lowly dog trying to latch on to everything I could, but now, I realize that I’ve never had anything in the first place…” Douglas seemed to be choking on his tears. “That b*tch didn’t just break up with me, she wanted me to lose absolutely everything! I’ve spent every penny I
Lily scowled. “Stop this bloody nonsense. The restaurant has nothing to do with you. Don’t go hoping that I’ll pay you even one penny! That painting belongs to the restaurant, if you don’t hand it to us now, I’ll have to call the cops and report you for theft!”Jerome, who was standing next to Lily, scoffed as well. “Listen up, kid. I’d advise you to cooperate with us. My connections within Aurous Hill are not something you would like to challenge now, is it? If you don’t hand over the painting, I will just have to pay a visit to the public security bureau and they’d lock you up immediately! With what it’s worth, you will be sentenced to at least ten years of jail-time!”Douglas’s tears poured down like rain, and he questioned Lily, “I’ve been nothing but good to you for the past few years, I gave you everything I had! It’s fine if you don’t really love me, but why do you have to do this to me!?”Lily let out a cold chuckle. “Love you? Who are you to expect such a thing? Listen up d
Jerome immediately punched in a number on his phone and yelled into it, “Zaz, I’m in Silverwing Hospital right now. Bring along a few of your underlings, we have a brat to kill!”Charlie, on the other hand, didn’t bother calling anyone. Instead, he texted Albert Rhodes: [Come to Silverwing Hospital, someone is trying to kill me.]Don Albert immediately called him. “Mr. Wade, who is this son of a b*tch?”Charlie then replied dismissively, “Less talking, just come over.”Don Albert replied, “Don’t worry Mr. Wade, I’ll be there in a few minutes.”When Jerome realized Charlie was talking on the phone as well, he scoffed. “Hah, don’t tell me you had someone to come over as backup. What a joke!”Charlie ignored his remark and smiled. “As I said earlier, I’ll have the both of you die the most painful death.”Jerome laughed as though he had just heard the funniest joke on earth. “Who the hell do you think you are? No one in Aurous Hill dares to defy me!”Douglas, who was struggling t
Charlie then texted Isaac Cameron from the Shangri-La: [Who is this Jerome Hunt?]Isaac replied almost immediately: [His family runs a business, they’re mostly involved in the jade industry. They buy stocks or put them up for bidding. His power within the area is just as everyone claims as well. Why do you ask? Did he piss you off?]Charlie responded: [Yeah. I’ve already asked Albert to handle this. But I do need a favor from you.]Isaac replied: [Anything, young master!]Charlie ordered: [I need you to bring Jerome’s father to the hospital. Oh, and another old man who identifies antiques, his name is Lewis Rhys. Bring them to me.]Isaac replied: [Yes, young master, I’ll have them brought to you this instant!]Charlie then responded: [You don’t have to, just have someone else do it. I don’t want people to notice that we know each other.]Another text from Isaac showed up on his phone: [Alright then, young master. Do they need to be taught a lesson?]Charlie texted back: [Give t
However, to Jacob's shock, Elaine wasn't misled at all as she growled icily, "Why would I ask anyone else?! If there's someone I must question, it's Matilda! She's getting married, isn't she? Good! I will be there and ask her why she hooked up with my husband!"Jacob turned pale right then.Matilda's son and even some of their old classmates would be attending her wedding.If Elaine went, he would be exposed, and he wouldn't be able to stay in Aurous Hill out of shame!His nerves gnawing at him, Jacob could only plead, "Please, just trust me this once! Anything else aside, she's getting married, anyway—there's no way that I'd have anything to do with her! That alone should prove my innocence!"Elaine snorted. "If Matilda returned when I was arrested, it means she has been back for a while! And you're saying nothing happened since? Hell, even if she's married, it doesn't prove that she wasn't up to some hanky-panky with you! Maybe while I was arrested and refused a divorce when you
The driver was left dumbstruck—this wasn't how it was supposed to go.Still, he blurted, "C-Crashing into a Cullinan? I might end up dead instead…""Fine! Then let's change cars, and you crash into ours—how about that?!" Elaine promptly retorted before continuing, "Or we could just stand right in front of your car while you run into us! I just happen to have a death wish, but if you don't kill me now, I'll kill you! Don't think about getting away either—I know your car plate! I'll sell this car and use the money to put a bounty on your head! I don't care what happens to me now! I'll claw my nails into the devil's face even if he shows up!"The driver was actually quite experienced, but even he had yet to meet someone as ridiculous as Elaine.Barely able to keep his hands steady, he threw them up as he apologized, "I'm so sorry, ma'am—I just lost my cool. I'm merely a humble driver of a Honda Civic while you own a Rolls. Hell, I spent fifty bucks buying that red emblem from Amazon,
Elaine may have led a life as if she was above the rules, but beneath that tough exterior lay crippling insecurities and a horrific inferiority complex.She was always afraid of being belittled—but more than that, of being ostracized and betrayed.Over the years, the greatest source of her complexes could all be traced back to Matilda.After all, Matilda had been a star back in their school days. Because Elaine was a close friend of hers, many boys would get chummy with Elaine, but only because they were interested in Matilda.Being from a poor farmer's family, Elaine had been scorned plenty and therefore felt exceedingly inferior around Matilda.It was from that sense of inferiority that Elaine had inadvertently developed a one-sided rivalry against Matilda, and she believed her greatest triumph over Matilda in this life was the moment she had stolen Jacob from her.However, while Elaine presumed that she could hold that victory over Matilda's head, Lady Wilson had soured that v
Moreover, given Elaine's ridiculous temper, Jacob knew she would definitely go overboard and destroy him.He wouldn't even have a place to live at that point, and it would really be game over if she held a grudge and stormed the Calligraphy and Painting Association!Under such circumstances, he couldn't ask for a divorce—hell, he might even refuse a divorce if Elaine asked for one!However, that was when Elaine laughed coldly. "Oh, my… You're really not going to divorce me?""Come on—how long were we married?" Jacob quickly reasoned. "Getting divorced at our age? People would laugh at us."Elaine scoffed. "Now I'm curious… Matilda's quite old too, and she's a divorcee marrying again. Won't people laugh at her?""Technically, she's a widow—"Jacob blurted out, but soon turned pale, tensing up again not a second after he had just calmed down, asking gingerly, "W-Why would you suddenly mention her?'Elaine stopped pretending right then and snapped, "It's actually impressive that y
Horrified, Jacob promptly grasped the steering wheel and brought the Cullinan back under control while not hesitating to snap, "Are you crazy?! We're on the highway—that could have killed the both of us!"However, Elaine ignored him and seized the moment to open the armrest box, pulling out the large white envelope.As she opened it, she muttered, "So, it really was a wedding invitation… You really are a terrible friend, Jacob Wilson, hiding a wedding invitation like this! What's the point? Just look at that nervous face of yours—would I suspect you of having an affair with the bride-to-be?"She flipped open the card and was experienced enough to check the names first while disregarding the usual preamble. She wouldn't care about the venue or the time either, focusing solely on the professor who had somehow made Jacob very nervous.That was how Elaine found the names in less than a second: Yolden Hart and Matilda Hall.Matilda?!The name could well be knives stabbing Elaine in th
Jacob's brain blanked out, leaving only a dull hum as soon as Walker mentioned 'Professor Hall'.Already feeling nervous in the first place, he quickly said, "Okay, okay—I got it. Anyway, I'm hanging up if there's nothing else!"With that, he promptly pressed the button to hang up.Nonetheless, Elaine was soon asking in curiosity, "Who's Professor Hall?"If Jacob had any semblance of composure, he would have said 'a colleague at Senior University' as if it was perfectly natural, and the matter would have been forgotten.But the reality was that he didn't—in fact, he was the champion when it came to dropping the ball as a casual question from Elaine left him sweating all over his brow.Even as he slid nervous glances at her face, he stammered uncontrollably, "N-Nobody…"Elaine promptly noticed his strange reaction and frowned. "I'm talking about Professor Hall. What do you mean, nobody? Who are they? And what's this about an invitation? Inviting you for what?"Seeing that he was
Jacob had really had too much to drink and couldn't remember the later parts of what had happened last night—even how he had gotten home was a blur.Naturally, he also forgot that Walker had brought Matilda's wedding invitation, and therefore didn't hesitate to answer the in-car answer button.Over the phone, Walker was positively fawning as he asked, "Mr. Wilson? It's Walker. Why didn't you come in today? Had too much to drink last night?""Uh-huh," Jacob grunted, lethargic. "I did—my head still hurts now… Anyway, what's up? Trouble at the association?""No, of course not," Walker quickly said. "I was just worried you're still hungover, so I called to ask. If you need a driver or anything, you just need to ask!"Then, before Jacob could answer, he continued, "By the way, my wife is somewhat knowledgable in Oskian medicine, and she has recipes for brews that cure hangovers and nourish the liver. I'm sure you'll need the latter since you're always drinking at social events, so I as
Fortunately, Elaine and Jacob's bickering never escalated.Even though Elaine was winning, Jacob found it tolerable.After Jacob finished his lunch and cleaned up, he never looked up as he said, "Charlie sent a text, saying Claire's flight would touch down earlier at three. We will leave at two."Elaine grumbled. "Why leave so early? She's coming back from abroad, and there'd be checkpoints she has to clear—she'd be lucky if she could leave by half past three. I'm sleeping a few winks now, and we'll leave at half past two."As she left the dining room, she didn't even look back as she said, "Clean up for me too."Jacob had a million complaints but said nothing as he kept his head down, throwing Elaine's lunchbox in the trash can as well.With Elaine gone, he sat on the couch as her hangover slowly cleared while his mood soured with the lack of alcohol.In the end, the pleasure of being fawned over at the Diamond Room was but temporary—the pain of his beloved leaving with someone
Vera kept her plan to investigate the identity of the abbess deep in her mind and told Charlie nothing.Instead, she smiled as she said, "It seems that it's both yours and Ms. Ito's good fortune that she has attained enlightenment. You've never had anyone who could attain enlightenment and master Reiki at the same time, so Ms. Ito will definitely be a great help to you in the future."Charlie chuckled and said calmly, "I'm not hoping for her to help. I'm simply happy for her with her enlightenment and excited to have another comrade in my solo ventures into the dark forests."Vera nodded in understanding, and she murmured emotionally, "I've lived for so long, and it's only when I opened my heart to you that I felt that sensation you described."There was a flicker of wistfulness in her eyes.She really did not expect to attain enlightenment before meeting Charlie.Years ago, she thought that she would eventually avenge her father.Now, she no longer hoped to murder Fleur Griffi