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Chapter 339
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The Guardian's Return Chapter 340
“Are you Julius’ friend?” Stephen grew even more nervous. After all, Julius’ death was partly his fault. How could he face Julius’ friend? The person must surely hate him.Just as Stephen started to back away slowly, wanting to leave…“Since you’re here, why are you leaving without saying a word?” the person said.Stephen shuddered, simply because that voice… belonged to Ethan! He hurriedly walked over, and sure enough, it was Ethan.“What are you doing here?” Stephen asked in surprise. Ethan was supposed to be locked up in Drakthorn Ridge. It was the third time he had seen Ethan outside of Drakthorn Ridge.“I came to see him off,” Ethan replied.Back when he was in Hill City, he had interacted with Julius and thought highly of him. With Julius in Hill City, the city’s GDP could have risen by a trillion within ten years. Unfortunately, Julius did not have those years anymore.Ethan held two bouquets and gently placed one next to Julius’ body. Stephen watched silently, afr
The Guardian's Return Chapter 341
Seeing Ethan about to leave, Stephen quickly asked, “Where are you going?”“To see someone else.”Stephen was confused. Who was that someone else?Julius and Tommy were both there. However, he soon remembered that Nico was also in the hospital!“Are you going to see Nico? What are you planning to do?”Ethan was a high-priority target under strict surveillance, and so was Nico. The thought of them meeting made Stephen uneasy.Were they planning an escape?Ethan said calmly, “I’m not planning anything. He’s the one who wants to meet me.”As the door to the morgue opened, the doctor was stunned to see Ethan walking out.He wondered, ‘Who’s this guy? And why was there someone else in the morgue?’Soon, Stephen also came out, following right behind Ethan as they walked to Nico’s ward.In the ward, Nico lay awake, staring blankly at the ceiling. At the sound of the door opening, he stirred for the first time in hours.When he saw Ethan come in, he shot up in bed.Nico asked, “Ar
The Guardian's Return Chapter 342
Those answers were not what Stephen wanted to hear.He took a deep breath and asked, “Are you just going to stand by and watch people die?”Ethan slowly turned around. Stephen’s question almost made him laugh.“You can say that, but I have a question for you.” Ethan asked, “How did Julius and Tommy die?”Stephen was confused by the question. He had explained it back in the ward.“They died protecting Hill City.”Ethan said, “That’s too vague. Tell me again. How did they die?”Stephen thought about it for a moment. “Nico was going to shoot George, but Tommy jumped in to take the bullet. He saved George and died for Hill City. Julius died trying to stop Nico.”Ethan repeated, “It’s still too vague. Say it again.”Stephen’s frustration grew, and he repeated what happened again, this time in greater detail.He even recalled Julius’ final words as he died in Stephen’s arms. “Don’t… be deceived again.”Ethan said calmly, “You still don’t get the point. Say it again.”Cold sweat
The Guardian's Return Chapter 343
The next morning, George rushed over as soon as he heard Stephen was in the hospital. When he saw Stephen on the bed in a daze, he knew something was wrong. He had seen Stephen like that before—back when Stephen learned that he would never see Snow again. However, this time, it was worse. His face was ghostly pale, and his eyes were dim and vacant. If not for his breathing, George would have thought he was dead.“What happened? He was fine last night. How did he end up like this in just one night?”George’s head was pounding. There was a boatload of matters to handle today.According to the plan, they were supposed to hold a funeral service for Julius and Tommy. However, judging by Stephen’s condition, George knew there was no choice but to postpone it.After making the call to postpone the service, he tried using Simon’s way to snap Stephen out of it.“Wake up. As long as you rebuild Hill City, the people won’t blame you anymore.”However, Stephen remained motionless. Even
The Guardian's Return Chapter 344
George looked at Nico’s body and confirmed that he was really dead.At that moment, George felt a mix of tension and relief. He felt tense because Nico had committed suicide to avoid getting trialed, making the situation complicated to handle. However, he also felt relieved that Nico, who had pushed them to the edge, had ultimately chosen to take his own life.News of Nico’s suicide spread quickly. The first to hear were the villagers of Stone Village.Nico was dead, and so was Tommy. The Wyatt family was gone. With no one left to lead them, many villagers felt a sense of urgency, fearing that others might disregard the rules and take all the money for themselves.As a result, many became reckless, openly inciting others and leading people from other villages to raid the orchards and livestock farms. It did not matter if the targets were local or non-local. Everything was up for grabs.Some people also privately produced and sold firearms to local forces. They started mining exces
The Guardian's Return Chapter 345
Before George could come up with a plan, everyone in Hill City found out the news of the death of their mayor, Julius. Furthermore, they learned that his death was connected to George!When the people of Hill City learned that George, who was now in charge of running the city, was the cause of Julius’ death and the chaos in the city, their dissatisfaction with George completely erupted.They condemned George while sharing the news online. As soon as the news spread, it blew up the internet.“Is George an outsider sent to cause destruction?”“How could someone like him be the governor?”“I strongly demand an investigation into George Lowe!”“There was nothing wrong with Julius, but George killed him. Why is he still allowed to manage Hill City?”“We demand an explanation!”While the netizens were outraged, the people of Hill City wanted answers from George. Their painstakingly cultivated fruit trees were ready for harvest, and their livestock was almost ready to be sold, but eve
The Guardian's Return Chapter 346
Would they have ended up like this if they had not ridiculed and insulted Ethan and called for him to return instead?A single decision led to boundless regret!Seeing that he could no longer hide what happened to Julius, George went to the hospital to see Stephen.Alas, Stephen did not show any improvement. He had visibly lost weight.George said, “We need to hold a memorial service for Julius and Tommy.”Their bodies had already been cremated and buried. The memorial should have been held long ago, but with what happened to Stephen and the chaos spreading throughout Hill City, there was simply no time.Stephen did not react as if he did not hear George at all.George said helplessly, “You need to pull yourself together. They wouldn’t want to see you like this. Hill City and Riveria are still waiting for your return.”Stephen still did not move.George told the doctors and nurses to take care of Stephen.Recently, the cause of Nico’s death had been confirmed. He committed su
The Guardian's Return Chapter 347
Now that the orchards were destroyed and the animals were gone, there was no way to earn money from fruit or livestock for the next six months or longer. It would greatly affect Hill City’s GDP!Previously, a large sum of money was spent replacing trees with new tea trees, but they were all gone now. Even the newly repaired highway was severely damaged.So much money had gone to waste. They would need even more funds to fix the highway.A week later, the city somewhat stabilized, and the final losses were calculated. By then though, Hill City’s economic losses reached 900 billion dollars. Its original GDP of 2.8 trillion dropped to 1.9 trillion. It was a massive blow.George looked at the figures and felt as if the sky was falling. With such losses and the sacrifices that Julius and Tommy made, he did not know how to write the report.However, even if he did not report it, headquarters already knew of the situation in Hill City. The online public outcry was overwhelming. They knew
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His question rubbed salt in Stephen’s wounds, and it hurt. “I’m not in the mood now, nor have I thought about it,” Stephen replied. “Why? Are you that busy?” Simon pressed. Stephen took a deep breath. “When Lily made her final call to me, I hung up on her because of Rachel.”Simon was stunned to hear that. He realized that the problem might be more severe than he expected. From now on, whenever Rachel wanted to sleep with Stephen, he would think of that missed call. That call he had once hung up impatiently would become the regret that would haunt him for the rest of his life. Simon wanted to say something but hesitated. After a while, he finally asked, “Do you still want to sleep with women?”“No,” Stephen said honestly. “It makes me want to throw up.”Simon’s expression turned ugly. The worst-case scenario still happened in the end. The overwhelming stress and trauma had caused Stephen to lose interest in women, and getting him to have a child with someone would be a
The Guardian's Return Chapter 667
“Ah!” Stephen screamed. “Don’t kill me!”He clutched his head with both hands and immediately crouched down on the ground. “Why aren’t you the one dead?” A familiar voice rang out beside him.Stephen trembled and cautiously raised his head to see that all the coffins had vanished and only one person stood before him. The thick mist made it difficult for him to see the person’s face clearly. The next second, as if a breeze just swept through, the mist swirled, and Stephen finally saw the face of the man before him. Recognizing the man immediately, Stephen’s eyes widened. It was Ethan! “You don’t want to die, and neither did they. Why did you kill them?” Ethan looked down at Stephen.Stephen’s face paled. “I didn’t. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t want to kill anyone!”“Is that so?” The South Regent slowly stepped out from the side. “You might be able to explain it if there was only one death, but how many lives has it been now? Do you even remember? You only pick the ones closes
The Guardian's Return Chapter 666
Many people added insult to the injury, mocking Stephen further. “You deserve it!”“Do you want our pity? Truth be told, you brought it all onto yourself.”“What’s this called? This is karma. You’ve done terrible things, and now that your childhood sweetheart is dead, you realize how painful it is, huh?”“It was unlucky for Lily to have met someone like you.”Stephen did not dare to read the comments. In the past, he had spread rumors about Ethan to make everyone misunderstand the man and launch relentless attacks on Ethan online. At that time, he felt delighted about it. Now, it was his turn, and even his friends and Lily were dragged into it. Stephen was heartbroken, and regret consumed him. He knew the words that attacked Ethan were fake. Ethan had never embezzled or bribed anyone. He made everything up, and worst of all, the anger of others did not affect Ethan. However, the criticisms aimed at him were all true. He had indeed done too many wrongs that he now regretted
The Guardian's Return Chapter 665
Simon had tried to retain businesses, but only small, insignificant ones stayed. The large and medium-sized enterprises that comprised the bulk of Breeze City’s economic activities all chose to leave.The only solution he could think of now was to create new opportunities to attract other businesses."And the development zone issue must be addressed too."Simon knew that the problem would not just disappear if they ignored it."We'll have to spend money to fix it."He thought they could use Breeze City's funds to fill that hole, though the impact would be enormous since the city barely had any money left. As such, he planned a meeting the next day to discuss those plans.He found Stephen in his room. "Get some rest with Rachel. You'll need to attend a meeting with me tomorrow."In the room, Rachel had not forgotten her main purpose—to have Stephen's child.Now that they were in the same room, she tried to seduce him again. However, when Stephen saw her lying undressed on the be
The Guardian's Return Chapter 664
Stephen pushed his hand away. "You don't understand.""No, I understand perfectly." The man's weathered face showed no emotion, but his words stopped Stephen in his tracks."I lost my wife in a car accident, and my child to a terminal illness. Yet here I am, year after year, each difficult, but still getting by."After that, he turned and left, leaving Stephen staring at his back.While Stephen was still lost in thought, the funeral began.Everyone gathered in the cemetery to watch as "Lily's ashes" were lowered into the ground. Many people began crying softly. Stephen stood at the front, holding a white rose. Though silent, his eyes were red, tears threatening to fall.After the ground was filled in and people began laying down roses, Stephen spotted a familiar face in the crowd. It was Ethan!Stephen stopped in his steps, wondering why Ethan was there. After all, the man had no connection to the Fords.After Ethan laid down his rose, Stephen quickly caught up to him as he was
The Guardian's Return Chapter 663
Seeing him silent with his head bowed, no one else approached to speak with him.Meanwhile, in a distant room, Ethan took a sip from his teacup, sampling the supposedly premium tea from an elite family. Finding it rather ordinary, he set down the cup and asked softly, "You don't want to see him?"Beside him, Lily gently shook her head."No."After experiencing death, she gained clarity about many things. The current situation could not be changed by her wishes alone.Stephen was not the head of the Quinn family, just as Jason was not yet the head of the Fords. They all had to mind their families' opinions and follow their orders.That was why meeting Stephen now would not change anything; it would only create more problems. Besides… "I have more important things to do now."She glanced sideways at a young woman standing nearby. It was Snow.Ethan had brought Snow there to show Lily another world. Born into the Ford family, Lily had grown up wealthy and privileged, thinking
The Guardian's Return Chapter 662
The next day, Stephen, Simon, and Rachel went to the Fords’ residence for the funeral.The Fords’ mansion was packed that day, with representatives from various families. Many business executives and celebrities were in attendance too. Some of them had red, swollen eyes, clearly devastated by Lily's death. However, the moment Stephen appeared, all eyes turned to him.Everyone present was influential and knew about Stephen's relationship with Lily. They had grown up as childhood friends, and everyone remembered Lily always saying she wanted to marry Stephen one day.When they saw Stephen's graying hair, everyone was stunned, and a shiver ran down their spines.Just six months ago, Stephen had jet-black hair and was an air of confidence. He was the epitome of a young business prodigy, admired by every up-and-coming member of elite families and companies. Now, however, his hair was gray, his energy completely drained, and he walked with a slight stoop. He hardly looked like the youn
The Guardian's Return Chapter 661
"Don't be nervous," Ethan said. "What I need you to do is simple. All you need to do is say one sentence."Simon felt increasingly uneasy. "What is it?""Tell the Fords that the Quinns unconditionally support all of Jason Ford's decisions."Simon slammed his hands on the table with a bang. "You–"That would pit him against the Fords!Now that Lily had been rescued, Jason would certainly oppose some of the Fords’ decisions. When that happened, the family would pressure Jason. If Simon publicly stood with Jason on behalf of the Quinns, it would mean openly opposing the Fords. Although both Jason and Lily would be safe that way, the Fords would hold a grudge against the Quinns until Jason became the head of the family. Moreover, once Jason became the head of the family, his gratitude would be for Ethan, not Simon or the Quinns. After all, it was Ethan who saved Lily and sent the Quinns to help.If Stephen found out that Lily was still alive and that Simon knew yet secretly support
The Guardian's Return Chapter 660
Should he tell Stephen the truth? If he blurted it out and Stephen learned that Ethan saved Lily, he might side with Ethan just like Jason. Most importantly, Stephen was the future head of the Quinns. If Stephen really lowered his head to Ethan, it meant Ethan could control the Quinns in the future!Should he hide the truth from Stephen and use the time and opportunity to shower him with love and care?Still, he could not hide this forever. The longer he kept it from Stephen, the more intense Stephen’s reaction would be when he knew the truth. At that time, he might still choose to side with Ethan. Simon had been through many storms and made many important decisions in critical situations, but at this moment, faced with two choices, he could not choose either. To tell or not to tell—neither would work, and he was stuck in the middle. The final winner would still be Ethan. Ethan was imprisoned in the mansion on Drakthorn Ridge, but he still had everything in control!Simon as
