Just as the voice echoed through the room, Don Albert, followed by Bill and a large group of men, entered the room.Upon entering, he ordered Bill, “Shut the doors, don’t let others in this room!”Bill nodded. “Understood, Don Albert!”Zazpi stared at Don Albert, still in shock. It was as if his brain had been short-circuited. It was Don Albert Rhodes!The underground overlord of Aurous Hill!Zazpi was just one of the mere leaders within the area. However, Don Albert was the overlord of this very area! Everyone within the city knew that Don Albert was the absolute power!He would never have expected that he would meet Don Albert just because he had been asked to handle such small matters for Jerome!Jerome didn’t know who Don Albert was, however, seeing how shocked Zazpi was, he furrowed his eyebrows. “Zaz, what is going on? Who is this old man?”As soon as he heard those words, Zazpi was so scared that he started trembling.In the next second, Zazpi had grabbed Jerome by t
Right then and there, Bill took a metal rod out and approached Zazpi. Although the latter tried to beg for his life, Bill did not hesitate to raise the metal rod above his head and swing it down at a great speed.Crack! Zazpi’s right kneecap was smashed into pieces instantly. Such a comminuted fracture was almost impossible to recover from! Zazpi yelped in pain, but Charlie did not stop there. “We’re not quite done yet. We have only broken one leg, he would still be able to limp with the other. I want him crippled forever!”Bill nodded and raised the metal rod once more, and in no time, another loud crack came from Zazpi’s left knee. Zazpi rolled on the floor, screaming for help, his body about to go into shock.Don Albert barked out an order. “Bill, shove something into his mouth. His loud whining is going to annoy Mr. Wade!”“Yes, Don Albert!” Bill complied and shoved a few pieces of gauze pads into Zazpi’s mouth as the latter was already curled up into a ball on the ground.
Lawson had not expected that admitting to his faults would not do him any good either. He had just fainted out of shock, however, the pain from the impact woke him up in a mere second. “Ah!!!” Lawson had never experienced such torture in his entire life.Tears streamed down the wrinkles on his face as he cried out desperately, “Mr. Wade, it’s all my fault! I’ll never overlook her faults ever again, I won’t let her do such vile actions.”Disgusted, Charlie said, “Well, aren’t you good at blaming others for your faults?”Just this sentence was enough to send chills down Lawson Lewis’s spine.Charlie then demanded, “Lawson Lewis! Regarding the ten thousand dollars that my brother invested in your restaurant, why did you refuse to pay him back? Why did you claim that it was a gift?”Lawson’s face drained of color, and he tried to explain. “I was wrong, I was wrong for doing that! I was greedy, and I was shameless, I’m so sorry!” He then looked over to Douglas, who was enraged. Law
After a long pause, Charlie turned to Bill. “This old man seems to be quite sharp. He thinks that he won’t be punished as long as he doesn’t answer. Bill, shatter both of his legs!”“Yes, Mr. Wade!” Bill obeyed.Looking at Dylan, who was now panicking, Charles spoke in a cold tone. “You only have your son to blame.”Following two horrifying screams, Dylan Hunt was now crippled as well. At the sight of his father being beaten up, Jerome felt as though he had lost control of his body. In just a few moments, he was sitting in a pool of liquid that had a strong and unpleasant smell.He had actually wet his pants!Charlie chuckled. “Well, won’t you look at that? It looks like you can’t control that thing of yours! It’s the main cause of everything that has gone down up till now! I’d say that you would no longer be needing it anymore!”He then ordered, “Since that’s the case, destroy the one thing that makes him a man!”Bill seemed to hesitate. As a man himself, upon receiving such an
Charlie then had his men carry the five of them out, adding before they left, “I’ll spare your lives for now. However, if any of this is leaked to anyone else, I’ll kill all of you, understood?”The five of them nodded without hesitation. It was pure luck to be still able to walk out alive after this, how could they dare to defy Charlie even further?Knowing that the five of them no longer dared to defy him, Charlie nodded in satisfaction and turned to Lawson Lewis. “Trying to manipulate my brother comes at a great price. I want you and your daughter out of the restaurant and for it to be transferred under my brother’s name by tomorrow, understood?”Lawson nodded repeatedly. “Understood, I’ll be out of the restaurant by tomorrow for sure!”Charlie then turned to Dylan Hunt. “Your son hooked up with my brother’s fiance, even going as far as to beat him up this badly. You’d better prepare two million dollars as a compensation fee to him, and don’t you dare try and cut corners, unders
Charlie nodded. “Just get some rest. Once you’ve recovered, you can then run the restaurant. If I need anything, I’ll be sure to find you.”Douglas exclaimed, “Whenever you need me!”Charlie then added, “Oh, by the way, don’t tell anyone about what happened today. I don’t want people to know who I am, understood?”Douglas nodded. “Understood. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to take this secret with me to the grave!”Charlie smiled. “I’ll have two caretakers to take care of you, just get some rest. I’ll be off.”Upon reaching home, Charlie didn’t plan on telling Claire about what had happened since he didn’t want her to know too much. It was safer if she didn’t know anything about his identity.The next day, as he was buying groceries, Charlie received a call. When he picked up the phone, he realized it was the daughter of the boss of Vintage Deluxe, Jasmine Moore.Confused, Charlie couldn’t help but wonder what Jasmine wanted from him.As the call went through, Jasmine spoke, “Mr. Wa
Jasmine had only told the truth. She really did think that the new chairman of Emgrand Group was a mysterious man.After all, he had been able to acquire a group that was worth over a hundred billion just because he wanted to. Moreover, he hadn’t shown his face at all throughout this process. It would seem that his net worth was much grander than that of Emgrand Group.In comparison, the Moore family would seem quite insignificant.However, she had not realized that the chairman of Emgrand Group was currently sitting in her passenger’s seat. Charlie, on the other hand, was a man who liked to keep things as low-profile as possible. Although he would dismissively respond to Jasmine, he never once revealed any information about his identity to her.In a fast but steady speed, they had arrived at a small garden near the river in just a few minutes. The garden was elegant and tranquil. On the outside, it seemed quite worn and crude, however, it was extremely grand on the inside. Fro
The fat man glanced at Travis before placing a simple wooden box onto the round table. Inside the box was a crimson red jade, seemingly an ancient treasure. As soon as the box was opened, everyone present felt as though the lobby had been filled with a hint of warm energy.Everyone’s eyes lit up.Jasmine turned to Quilt. “Uncle Quilt, what do you think?”Quilt stared at it and nodded. “I think it’s the real thing. It seems to be the Bloody Jade from the Zhou dynasty. It also appears to have been blessed by a very powerful monk!”Jasmine nodded and then turned to Charlie. “What do you think, Mr. Wade?”Charlie, on the other hand, scowled in disgust. “It’s a fake……” Quilt glowered at him. “You’re just a youngster, who gave you the right to lie through your teeth in front of this many people?” Matthew Gibson, the elderly man who was sitting next to Travis, opened his eyes and stared at the piece of jade. “May I hold it?”The fat man let out a cold laugh. “Mr. Gibson, are you kid
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