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Chapter 214
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The Guardian's Return Chapter 215
They had already arranged accommodations through the mayor, similar to what had been prepared for them with several young, beautiful women waiting in hopes of making the investor reluctant to leave.On the way to the lodgings, Stephen sat next to the investor and smiled, "Celestial City has beautiful scenery, and it's very safe too. How long are you planning to stay in Celestial City during your visit?"The investor smiled and said, "The original plan was to stay for three days. If the environment in Celestial City is really good, I might stay a few more days.”"You won't be disappointed." Stephen smiled. Although Celestial City's scenery was not as good as Aqua City's, because the two cities were not far apart, there were still some calming green mountains dotted throughout its landscape.They quickly escorted the investor to his lodgings where the mayor was already waiting.Seeing the investor get out of the car, the mayor immediately went up to greet him, "Hello, hello, I'm the
The Guardian's Return Chapter 216
Kenny narrowed his eyes. “His Highness? And who might that be?” “South Regent.” Shaken, Kenny’s eyes widened in disbelief. The South Regent's man had become the mayor of Celestial City?! They had infiltrated so deeply?! Kenny gasped heavily. “I thought the South Regent promised Mr. Rivers never to cross the border. Is he going back on his promise?!” “He did not,” said James with a shake of his head. “His Highness is keen to keep his promise. As long as Ethan Rivers is alive, he will not cross the border. However, Ethan Rivers is no longer here.” Kenny went silent. Ethan had gone missing for a long time, and the search party that Kenny sent out came back empty-handed.“This morning, His Highness met Lord Rivers.” Kenny was shocked. “Where is Mr. Rivers?!” “The capital. He is being imprisoned in the mountains by the Quinns and the Lowes.” “I see!” Kenny clenched his fists tightly. Despite Ethan’s significant contributions to Riveria, instead of being recognized and
The Guardian's Return Chapter 217
“What? What happened? Why are they leaving all of a sudden? Celestial City is the financial hub of Riveria. They can’t leave!” George and Stephen panicked. George said, “Go talk to Richard right away and make the deal happen! I’ll contact the companies and tell them to stay!” “Got it!” Stephen moved out right away. Without further ado, George contacted the companies, starting with Kenny’s, and gathered them for a meeting. George looked at the CEOs of the various companies. “Is there any problem that you are facing? Why are all of you leaving the city all of a sudden?” Someone said, “That’s because Celestial City is over. Or more precisely, Riveria is over.” George frowned. “Where did you hear that? That’s groundless rumors! Celestial City is fine! Riveria will prosper!” Someone chuckled. “Is that so? Then why is Riveria’s GDP down to 11.4 trillion dollars?” George was silenced by the question. “Don’t even try to keep us. It won’t work unless Ethan Rivers comes back.
The Guardian's Return Chapter 218
They left because of Ethan. In order to make them stay, George must release Ethan, but was that even possible? Ethan knew too much. George would never let him go, let alone the Quinns. “Hmph. Their leaving might affect Celestial City’s economy a little, but as long as we can get Richard’s investment, we can fill the hole. “Once they leave, many spots in the city will open up, and other companies will compete fiercely to fill their positions!” George did a quick calculation. The departure of those companies might not cause significant losses to Celestial City. He could also address the underlying issues in one sweep, which could ultimately benefit the city more than the losses from the companies leaving. “Once Celestial City’s GDP crosses the three-trillion mark, they will regret it! They will then realize that following Ethan is the worst mistake they’ve made in their lives! Without Ethan, Riveria will continue to thrive and prosper!” George glanced at his watch. “Steph
The Guardian's Return Chapter 219
As the truck drove off, the bodyguard’s car drove past Stephen’s car. He widened his eyes in shock as he watched the car drive past his own and the truck before disappearing beyond the road. He sweated profusely. It was then he realized that the kidnappers came prepared! They used trucks and a spare car to fool the bodyguards! “Who are you?!” Stephen asked. His body was trembling as he sensed danger looming. He had a feeling that his life was under threat. “Who we are is not important. The important thing is…” The man in the rear seat chuckled. “Why don’t we play a game?” “Game? Is my life a game to you?!” Stephen was agitated. He was the son of Simon Quinn of Metropolis, not some random John Doe! “Don’t worry. I know who you are and we won’t hurt you. Don’t you want us arrested?” A sudden realization struck Stephen. He was behind the wheel with the kidnapper behind him. If the kidnapper did not dare hurt him, he could easily drive the car to the police station and th
The Guardian's Return Chapter 220
Stephen clenched his teeth and unwillingly stepped on the brake. The car was less than a hundred meters away from the police station. The man in the rear seat chuckled. “It seems like you’ve lost.” He pulled out a smoke grenade and detonated it in the car. Bang! Smoke billowed inside the car, forcing Stephen to leap out, coughing and gasping for air. The pedestrians were shocked, thinking that the car had caught on fire. Stephen made his way to the back of the car to open the door, but the kidnapper was long gone. “Fuck!” he cursed. He felt defeated and aggrieved. He was less than a hundred meters away from sending the kidnapper to jail, yet he was forced to let the man go. On top of that, he was held up for a full five minutes at the truck, which was more than enough time for the kidnappers to transfer Richard somewhere else. He pulled his phone out to call for help. He ordered his men to seal all the possible routes out of the city and set up roadblocks to inspect t
The Guardian's Return Chapter 221
Stephen pulled out his phone to call the mayor, James. The call got through immediately. “Do you know what happened?” James knew exactly what had happened because he had ordered his assistant, Tommy, to abduct Richard. As a matter of fact, Tommy simply carried out his task without understanding its essence. It was the mayor who had told him to meet the factory owner. Then, the South Regent’s men shoved Richard into the trunk without Tommy’s knowledge. The mayor had simply told the assistant to drive out of the city. With that, Richard was whisked out of the city without any hassle. James feigned ignorance and asked, “What?” “Your assistant, Tommy… He kidnapped Richard!” “What?! How? Why would he do something like that? We must go after him right away!” James said in a shocked tone. When Tommy came back in another car, he had driven straight into the surveillance zone and roadblocks, hence his immediate apprehension. He was still confused when the police took him.
The Guardian's Return Chapter 222
The South Regent did not plan to explain himself either. He said, “In three days, I want to see a hundred billion. If there’s no money, you can take his body back.” The phone call ended. George fell on the couch, feeling drained and exhausted. The South Regent had joined the fray and was demanding a hundred billion, which was an astronomical figure. On top of that, Celestial City was facing another crisis as well—the departure of the major companies. The city’s GDP would decline with their absence, and following the abduction of Richard, fewer people would want to expand their businesses locally. George originally planned for foreign companies to fill in the positions of those who departed, but the South Regent had taken Richard. If the news got out, no other companies would come and the remaining local companies would be terrified. No one wanted to be abducted by the South Regent! George did not see this coming at all. “What should we do now?” His forehead was glisteni
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The Guardian's Return Chapter 817
Hugo waited until Natalie fell asleep before leaving the hospital ward with the South Regent. He said in a low voice, “Please take me to see Mr. Rivers.”From that moment onward, he also addressed Ethan as Mr. Rivers.Ethan did not only save his life but also Natalie’s. He would repay that debt with his life.“Are you sure?” the South Regent asked. “If you take Natalie and her grandfather back to Metropolis now, you can stay out of all of this.”Natalie’s grandfather’s health had also stabilized after treatment.If Hugo wished, he could take them back to Metropolis, where the medical treatments were better. Furthermore, Hugo had worked as a psychologist for many years and even treated Stephen, so he had saved up over a million dollars.If he managed his finances well, he would not become rich, but it was enough for Natalie to grow up safe and healthy and ensure that her grandfather retired peacefully.Hugo did not hesitate. “I’ve made up my mind.”He played a part in how things
The Guardian's Return Chapter 816
“Stephen has always lived in Riveria. He is the Grand Marshal’s sole mentee and the one who brought three years of peace to Riveria. Ethan is a corrupt criminal.”Scrolling further down, there was also an apology video from Stephen. He claimed that the statement was true and expressed regret that he caused an outcry and wasted public resources.Hugo fell completely silent after watching it.How could this be? Others might not know whether Stephen truly was the Grand Marshal’s mentee or not, but he did.Victor had told him about Ethan’s achievements. Even assassins feared Ethan. Stephen had also admitted in front of him who Ethan really was.Only Ethan could save Riveria.In the past, Hugo thought that Stephen was just being misled and used, which was why he wanted to help him.However, now, Stephen insisted that he was the Grand Marshal’s mentee and that he was the one who had managed Riveria in the past.As a psychologist, Hugo could tell from Stephen’s expressions in the vide
The Guardian's Return Chapter 815
The doctors told Hugo what happened.“Back then, you had already lost too much blood. You’re lucky that there was a young man with the same blood type as you when you were brought in, so he gave you a transfusion. Then, our family head sent us to take care of you. If not for our excellent medical skills, you probably wouldn’t have woken up.”Hugo was confused. “Family head? Did Simon send you?”The two doctors suddenly froze, their expressions turning dark.“Watch what you say. Simon didn’t send us. Ugh!”They were so angry that they stopped the examination.Hugo was stunned at the sudden change in their attitude. They were not sent by Simon? Furthermore, why did they react so strongly to the mention of Simon’s name? If not Simon, who else could be the ‘family head’?“Who sent you?” Hugo asked in confusion.“We’re from the Ledger family,” the doctor said coldly. “Who’s Simon? We don’t know him. Don’t lump us in with that filth.”“Huh?” Hugo was still bewildered. “The Ledger fa
The Guardian's Return Chapter 814
Tyler frowned. “What happened?”“It’s about Riveria.” Nolan handed his phone to Tyler. “Simon and Stephen have completely lost all shame. I can’t believe they said something like this.”After reading the news, Tyler’s expression darkened. “Although I know they’re shameless, I still underestimated them.”In the past, they had slandered Ethan and stole his achievements. Now, after being exposed, they fabricated evidence and worked with headquarters to deceive the public.“Tyler, what should we do?” Nolan asked. “I can’t stand by while they slander Mr. Rivers like this.”Tyler said, “Let me think.”To them, Ethan was their savior. Without Ethan, the Spencers would never have made it out of Riveria alive. It was thanks to Ethan stepping in that they had a chance to start over.However, Simon was shamelessly going further to distort the truth and rewrite history. They could not watch this happen. The truth had to be exposed!A moment later, Tyler said in a low voice, “Let’s go to Ri
The Guardian's Return Chapter 813
The netizens had mostly been deceived by the internet trolls.When they saw Simon and headquarters both speaking out, they fully believed that Stephen was innocent and that everything was part of Leo and Ethan’s schemes. Even the few who had firmly believed in Ethan began to doubt themselves.Online, the uproar gradually died down. At that moment, Simon took the next step! He had someone publish the recording of the gala and instructed the trolls to guide the audience in revisiting the highlights.With that, both he and Stephen were completely safe.When people reviewed the gala recording, it also boosted Riveria’s popularity. It was killing multiple birds with one stone!Simon did not rest. Instead, he took the official statement and the trending discussions online and headed to the jail to meet Leo.“Has he confessed yet?” Simon asked the staff.After Leo was imprisoned, he had been questioned who the mastermind behind this was.“No. He keeps saying there’s no mastermind.”S
The Guardian's Return Chapter 812
“Yeah. I’m from Breeze City. If Stephen is driven away by all your insults, what are we supposed to do?”“All this is part of Ethan’s scheme. He’s deliberately trying to frame Stephen!”This was the next phase of their attack. They accused everyone of being too extreme and then created a victim narrative to gain sympathy. Finally, they flipped the story. Stephen was the pure-hearted and selfless one while Ethan was the true villain!While the internet was being flooded with manipulated narratives, Simon was not idle either. He felt that fabricating transaction records and hiring internet trolls alone was not enough. Ne needed more fabricated evidence.Thus, he had several people in Riveria publicly claim that Stephen had been the one managing Riveria all along.Ethan Rivers? Never heard of him!After a day of work, Simon was drenched in sweat. He felt his heart pound as if it might leap out of his throat.After all, he had not rested properly for days because of the gala. Furthe
The Guardian's Return Chapter 811
Simon stayed up all night thinking.The next morning, a little after 6 a.m., he called someone to forge records that Stephen had lived in Riveria before.At the gala, someone had questioned whether Stephen really was the Grand Marshal’s mentee. His response at that time was that Stephen had always lived in Riveria.Now, he had to fabricate those records as soon as possible and release them publicly. Protecting Stephen’s identity as ‘the Grand Marshal’s sole heir’ was extremely important. As long as that narrative was maintained, it would minimize suspicions from others.“But that’s not enough.”Simon continued to take action and hired internet trolls. Since he could not suppress the public’s interest, he personally intervened and made the trolls comment that Stephen was the one in charge of Riveria while Ethan was a corrupt criminal and that Leo was spewing nonsense!As soon as the money was paid, the trolls began their work.“You guys say that Ethan was the one in charge of Riv
The Guardian's Return Chapter 810
However, the event was quickly losing steam! Leo had shifted everyone’s attention away, and people were more curious about Ethan and Stephen’s true identities. The whole internet buzzed with discussions, and many were engaged in fierce arguments. Even if Simon tried to suppress the controversy, it was nearly impossible to stop it. Quite a few people were even starting to leave the event. Many planned to stay in Breeze City for a few days and tour the city, but after experiencing the incident, they no longer trusted Simon. Therefore, they changed their plans and decided to leave the next day!By the time the event ended at 1 a.m., the audience present had dropped to less than half of the original count. When Simon and Stephen took the stage and saw the half-empty seats, they felt dispirited. The celebrities and singers who attended the event could also barely manage a smile. They regretted coming. The scandal surrounding Stephen’s real identity could easily engulf them, and the l
The Guardian's Return Chapter 809
Stephen immediately raised his head and asked, “Where is she?”Simon fell silent. He had no idea where Lily was. Perhaps only Ethan would know her whereabouts, and he did not know how to answer Stephen. Stephen frowned as he waited for a response. “What’s wrong? Didn’t you say she’s alive? Why don’t you tell me where she is?”Simon took a deep breath. “It might not be the best time to tell you now.”He still tried to brush it off. “What do you mean?” Stephen was getting anxious. “Do you want me to get on my knees and beg you? Don’t you know how important she is to me?” Stephen pointed at his gray hair. “I want to see her again so badly.”As Simon lowered his head, looking conflicted, Stephen fell to his knees with a bam. “What are you doing?” Simon exclaimed and quickly pulled him up. At that point, he realized that he could not hide it anymore. He did not want to say that Ethan saved Lily, but only Ethan knew where she was now. Even if he wanted to lie, he could not. W
