Once outside the house, Stephen asked Snow, “Are you okay?” “I’m fine. I understand how Rachel feels, so I’ll talk to her when I get the time. I just want to be with you,” Snow said softly. Moved by Snow’s resolve, he said, “I want you to meet someone.” Snow’s heart skipped a beat. Was she finally going to meet Ethan? Still, she asked, “Who is it?” Stephen scoffed. “My arch nemesis. Let’s go.” With that, he drove to Drakthorn Ridge with her. He had been waiting half a month to see Ethan again. In that time, everything in Aqua City had gone smoothly for him, and he had even found love, which would surely crush Ethan when they met again. A while later, they arrived at the mansion. Staring at the mansion, Snow felt nervous. The one responsible for Nina’s death was beyond those doors. Different questions flooded her mind: what was he like? How did he do it? How should she take revenge? “Come on,” Stephen, who was already a few steps in, said when he noticed Snow had not
All the criticism Stephen threw at Ethan had come back to haunt him, and it was a slap in his face.Stephen could feel his face stinging with embarrassment, and his expression was ashen. He had to take a deep breath to force himself to calm down. “Hmph. It’s been half a month, and you’re still as sharp-tongued as ever.” “I’m just stating the truth.” Ethan then asked, “So are you going to publicly criticize yourself? Or are you planning to hide this woman away in some mansion like a dirty secret?” “That’s none of your business!” Stephen could not answer the questions because the answers were not in his favor. “No matter what you say, it won’t change the outcome. You will die here alone!” He had always wanted to crush Ethan mentally, hoping to regain some ground. However, Ethan simply smiled. “Do you really think you can have two women around you for all your life? You’re incapable, but you want everything. However, you won’t get anything, just like the woman beside you.”
“Thump!”Nina knelt before Ethan, thanking him. “Thank you for helping me with finding the killer.” Ethan said, “You should know I’m not helping you.” He just wanted to use Nina to remove her employer. If Nina could kill her employer and then take her own life, Ethan would have two fewer enemies to worry about. It could also set an example for the others. It was a win-win, and Ethan would not even have to lift a finger. Despite knowing Ethan wanted her dead, Nina thanked him. “Mr. Rivers, I know I won’t walk away alive, but I have a request. I have a junior. She’s not all that bad. If she doesn’t leave Riveria, I don’t ask for you to help her, but please don’t kill her.” She then handed Ethan a bank card. “This is all the money I have. A total of five million. Please show some mercy and don’t kill her.” Ethan took the card, and Nina then left around the evening. Three days later, Ethan received the news of her death. Nina had killed her employer and his family before
Hearing the question made Stephen’s heart sink. He had a feeling that if he found out the truth, there might be no turning back. Hence, he did not dare ask anymore. He looked down in silence, avoiding eye contact with Ethan. He did not want to talk to Ethan anymore. In fact, he wanted to leave. Ethan had some strange things he could not understand, and Snow looked defeated. If he stayed any longer, who knew what else Ethan would say? “Snow, let’s go.” He scooped Snow into his arms and turned on his heels, practically running from the place as if his life depended on it. Back in the car, Stephen glanced at Snow, who still sat there, blank and lifeless, and his heart ached. “What did he mean by all that? Why are you reacting like this?” Desperate for answers, he quickly brought Snow to the hospital for a checkup. The doctor came back with the results. “She’s traumatized. Take her back and make sure she gets enough rest. With care, she should recover soon.” Traumatized?
Stephen answered the call. The mayor had requested his presence back in Aqua City for some matters that needed his attention.“The construction of the stadium needs more money, and a few towns have been restless. They think that the compensation for the demolition is too little.”The mayor also felt overwhelmed. All those issues were under Stephen’s management now, and he did not dare to make decisions without Stephen’s input.“Okay.”Stephen hung up the phone and looked at Snow apologetically.“I need to take care of some matters in Aqua City. Do you want to accompany me back?”Snow shook her head. “I’ll wait for you here.”“Okay.” Stephen gently stroked her cheek and said, “I’ll be back as soon as possible.”He left quickly, never once sparing a glance at Rachel in the living room.Rachel felt her heart aching so badly. It was as if someone had reached inside and squeezed it hard, twisting until she could barely breathe.In terms of looks, she was more beautiful than Snow,
Snow raised her head to look at Ethan. “Have you ever been affected by fate before?”“So far...” Ethan looked outside the door and said, “I control my fate.”Snow’s heart skipped a beat, her face filled with shock. The teacup in her hand dropped to the ground, spilling tea everywhere.Her mind flashed with the many things she had heard about Ethan over the years—how he taught the ruthless town of Lytton how to farm and how he turned the fierce Crestwood into a place of song and dance. He also stopped a group of billionaire tycoons at the border of Riveria, killing half of them, and used their money to develop Aqua City; he even forced the South Regent, who commanded over a hundred thousand soldiers, to flee in the middle of the night and declare that he would never cross the border again!Snow smiled bitterly. “If you step in, would that mean I could finally be with him?”“Yes.” Ethan said, “I have many ways to bring you two together, but I won’t help him. All I’ll do is pick a
Ethan was still alive, and not only that, Snow had even seen him!Oliver’s breathing quickened. Could Ethan have learned about what was happening in Aqua City and was planning to take action against them?At that moment, all Oliver wanted to do was away, and maybe he should. He could forget about the money and everything. He knew very well how the previous businessmen had met their tragic end. Not only did they die, but their entire fortune had mysteriously disappeared as well. “Oliver?”Stephen noticed something off with Oliver.“What’s wrong?”Oliver snapped back to his senses, his body tensing up as he asked nervously, “What did Ethan say?”“He just mentioned that Snow’s parents died in a famine. He also said a lot of strange things, like she chose to sacrifice herself or something.”Stephen still could not make sense of it.Oliver pressed, “Is that it?”Stephen nodded.Oliver continued, “Did he mention us?”“Haha!” Stephen laughed. “I understand now. Are you worried
Ethan had left them too traumatized.They had witnessed a businessmen get crushed to death by an electronic signboard that fell from the sky, right in front of them. Blood splattered all over them, making them scream on the spot.The most terrifying thing was that after the investigation, the person’s death was ruled an accident, not murder!“I’ll be more mindful next time,” Oliver said, “There’s something more important now.”“Don’t tell me… Is Snow planning to go against Ethan?”They all gasped in unison when they thought of that possibility.The last person who tried to use a honeypot trap against Ethan met a horrible death. His room was filled with blood, and his family was poisoned to death.“I don’t think so.”Oliver looked nervous as he brought it up. Simply bringing up the topic gave him chills. After all, he was the one who sent Snow out on that mission.“It’s not about Ethan. It’s about Snow. She knows that her parents are dead, so her wish has been fulfilled. I’m wo
After everything was settled, the people from HQ went to Ethan again. They apologized to him and begged for his forgiveness.“We’ve dealt with everyone involved in this matter. Are you satisfied with the outcome, Mr. Rivers?”With that, they lowered their heads to the ground nervously. Their only hope now hinged on Ethan’s response.They did not dare to ask for much. All they hoped for was that Ethan would not leave the country.Ethan glanced at them calmly and said, “Send someone to help move my stuff down the mountain.”Hearing that, everyone was first stunned, and then ecstatic.“Of course!” they replied in unison.They understood what Ethan meant. He was staying! Although it was not his complete forgiveness, he was willing to give them another chance.They were all overjoyed. As long as Ethan did not leave, there was plenty of time to slowly make amends.They took out their phones and made arrangements to help Ethan move.After the call ended, they said, “We respectfully
The day of Rachel and George’s trial came.The livestream began at 10 a.m., and hundreds of thousands of viewers joined instantly.Rachel and George slowly walked into the courtroom in handcuffs.Bang! The judge’s gavel fell, and the room went silent.It was not a lawsuit. It was a trial to expose the sins of Rachel and George.The judge read out their crimes one by one, until Rachel and George’s faces paled to the point that they looked like corpses.The viewers in the livestream finally saw the full picture.“So that’s it! The Quinns and the Lowes conspired!”“They deserve to die! How could they frame Ethan like that? Are they even human?”“The death penalty! They deserve the death penalty!”They were all furious.Many people had lost their families as a result of supporting Stephen and scolding Ethan. After watching the livestream, they realized just how deeply they had been wrong.They were accomplices to the Quinns and the Lowes' crimes in framing Ethan!Their current
They suppressed their disgust and returned home, only to see their parents and wives’ panicked expressions.“What did you do out there?”“So many people came today, asking for you by name.”How were they supposed to answer those questions? They could not just say that they had insulted Ethan online.If they did, their parents would beat them to death before anyone else could.“It’s nothing,” they replied stiffly. They had no choice but to hide the truth. After all, they could not say that they had insulted Ethan, or that they had lost their jobs.However, the next second, their parents received text messages. After their parents glanced at their phones, their expressions instantly changed.It was a message from the bank, stating that their child had been listed as a defaulter and urging them to repay the loan immediately.“What have you done?” Their parents’ voices trembled.Seeing that there was no way to hide it anymore, they had no choice but to confess the truth.They los
Seeing that message, they immediately felt as if their world had ended.Because they had insulted Ethan, they lost their jobs, were blacklisted, and could not find work again.“How could this be?”No one expected this outcome. They thought, ‘So what if I insulted him? Are they going to punish me for it? Besides, so many people are insulting him. They can’t possibly punish every single person who did it. At most, I’ll post a public apology and promise that I’ll never do it again.’However, now they were all fired. Everyone who had insulted Ethan had been dismissed from their jobs.It seemed like there were several tens of thousands of people involved! It was hard to imagine just how many people had lost their jobs in real life.“Why are they going this far? Aren’t they afraid of causing unrest?”Of course, HQ had considered that. However, they knew what was more serious.If Ethan went abroad and cooperated with foreign countries, the consequences would not be limited to a few pe
George thought that Rachel had already escaped abroad, so he was not afraid when he arrived.Now, when he saw Rachel there as well, he completely panicked.This was not what he had expected!“Where else would she be?” someone from HQ asked.George looked nervous and stammered, unable to say a word.With Rachel caught and him being brought here, it was clear that HQ already knew the truth. Coupled with his fear of Ethan and his helplessness in the face of reality, he no longer had the strength to make up any excuses.He had resigned himself to fate.“You really have some nerve." The people from HQ sneered. “You fooled us all completely.”“You’ve been hiding Ethan’s contributions all this time, haven’t you?”“You two are nothing but disasters to this country! You deserve to die a thousand times over.”George kept his head down while Rachel sobbed. “I was wrongfully accused!”“Shut up! Are you still trying to fool us at a time like this? You were wrongfully accused? By who? Sim
They brought this on themselves, forcing themselves into a corner with no way out. “Ah!”Simon could not take it anymore. He suddenly ran towards the window, trying to end his life. Fortunately, the officials quickly stopped him. “Don’t be reckless! Think about Stephen. You’re all he has now!”That sentence made Simon stop. Now, Stephen and Simon were each other’s support and burden. Simon slumped on the ground weakly. Right now, they both wanted to die, but neither of them had the courage to follow through. All they could do was live on in pain. After a long silence, Simon said, “I’d like to file a report on someone.”To obtain some kind of reward and survive a little longer, Simon decided to turn in George and Rachel. When the officials heard him, they were stunned. They did not expect Rachel to be involved in framing Ethan. “Shit!” Someone exclaimed. “I heard Rachel bought a flight ticket overseas. Could she have fled?”The room was filled with dread. If Rachel ra
Seeing that Stephen was awake, the others rushed to get the doctor. The doctor was astonished as well. Stephen’s sudden awakening was nothing short of a miracle. However, after examining him, the doctor’s expression darkened. Stephen had regained consciousness, but the prognosis was far from hopeful.“He can’t move,” the doctor said. “As of now, he’s paralyzed.”Stephen could open his eyes, but the rest of his body was unresponsive. He could not move his limbs or his neck and mouth. The only part he could move freely was his eye. Even his breathing was dependent entirely on medical equipment. “He might never be able to leave the bed again.”Upon hearing that, Stephen closed his eyes in despair, tears continuously rolling down his cheeks. He had fought so hard to wake up, only to realize he had missed his final chance to meet Snow and Lily. Worse yet, he also lost the ability to move. From now on, he would be confined to the bed and hooked up to machines just to stay alive.
His father died a miserable death, his son was in a coma, and the Quinn family was shattered, leaving only Simon behind to finally realize all his mistakes. However, it was too late. Harrison could not come back to life, the Quinn family could not be whole again, and Stephen could not recover. Simon would forever be haunted by pain, despair, and regret for the rest of his life. At that moment, in complete darkness, Stephen heard Simon’s voice. He was conscious but failed to open his eyes or speak; he could not move a muscle. He wanted so badly to sit up and tell Simon that it was not solely his fault. They were all wrong, and this was their retribution!Just then, two women walked into the ward. When the officials saw them, their eyes widened in shock. For a second, no one even breathed. They were Snow and Lily!The officials thought they were seeing ghosts. Those women were supposed to be dead. Why were they there? Snow and Lily noticed their shocked gazes and offered them
Due to Harrison’s previous incident, the officials reacted quickly by sending Stephen straight to the hospital.After an emergency rescue, Stephen’s life was saved. However, he paid a heavy price. When the doctor walked out of the emergency room, the officials asked, “How is he?”“The situation isn’t looking good,” the doctor said grimly. “His body is in a bad state, and due to long-term emotional distress, he suffered a brain hemorrhage from the emotional shock.“He’s still in a coma, and we can’t say for sure when he’ll wake up again. It depends on his will to live.”The officials drew a sharp breath. “Do you mean he might end up in a coma forever?”The doctor nodded. No one saw coming that Stephen would fall into a coma, with little chance of ever waking up again. However, it also meant he did not have to die anymore. He would be alive but confined to a bed. Suddenly, they thought of Harrison’s desperate pleas to Ethan back in his villa. “I’m willing to trade my life fo