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Chapter 512
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The Guardian's Return Chapter 513
Hearing that, Stephen finally felt the weight lift from his shoulders. At least, part of the issue was settled now. All that remained was to hold a meeting to discuss how to increase welfare in Hill City, and that incident would be over. However, Stephen dared not rest yet. He immediately called people over for a meeting.In the conference room, Stephen spoke gravely, "I'm going to increase welfare in Hill City. I want everyone to report which areas need improvement."Everyone found it strange that Stephen would suddenly think about increasing welfare.Nolan frowned and said, "Sir, we understand what you want to do and how you’re feeling, but Hill City's current situation doesn't allow this."Hill City's GDP had fallen to just one trillion dollars, and it was taking everything they had just to prevent it from dropping further. Increasing welfare now would only burn through Hill City's GDP, meaning that the disadvantages of the decision outweighed the benefits.Stephen looked at
The Guardian's Return Chapter 514
Stephen fell silent as he recalled his thoughts. Ethan had remained calm throughout their interaction, while he was the one who had been anxious. Their interaction could not be considered an argument as Ethan had crushed him, one-sidedly.Nolan continued, "Being scolded is one thing, but you didn't threaten him or try to deceive him, did you?"Stephen remained silent. He had indeed tried to play innocent to trick Ethan into helping.Seeing Stephen's reaction, Nolan's heart sank. This was bad! The worst-case scenario had happened."Let me guess. You had a problem and tried to trick Ethan into solving it?"Stephen snapped out of his thoughts, asking in confusion, "What's wrong with that?"Nolan paused before responding, "You’ve invited disaster, and worst of all, you didn’t leave before it hit. I admire your courage, but it should be directed elsewhere."Too many people had tried to deceive and kill Ethan before. However, the many deaths that unfolded proved one thing: if they wer
The Guardian's Return Chapter 515
"Who are you?" Charles asked nervously. Finding a stranger in his home, he suspected a burglar had intruded. However, based on how calmly the man was sitting on the sofa, it seemed like the man had been waiting.Charles quickly introduced himself, "I'm Stephen Quinn's assistant. What do you want here?"Ethan looked at him and smiled faintly. "I'm Ethan Rivers."Charles felt a shiver down his spine."You're Ethan Rivers?"Just moments ago, he had been talking about Ethan, saying if he ever got the chance to meet him, he would handle him for Stephen’s sake. Now, before him, in his house, was Ethan.Charles then recalled what Nolan had said about people across Riveria owing Ethan favors and that someone might come home to find Ethan waiting for them.He thought long and hard. He had never met Ethan before, much less owed him any favors. Since he did not owe Ethan anything, it meant he did not have to be afraid of Ethan!Realizing that, Charles sneered, "So you're Ethan Rivers. I
The Guardian's Return Chapter 516
Justin pulled out a bank card and handed it to Ethan with both hands. “There’s one 100 thousand dollars here.” Ethan nodded and said, “Give him the card.” Justin turned around and gave Charles the card with one hand. Charles was confused. Why would the director of the Security Bureau give him 100 thousand dollars? “Are you bribing me? Is that what you can do, Ethan Rivers?” He laughed. “I’m telling you, money is not almighty! I won’t take this! I won’t take whatever you have to offer, and I will not bow to money! And most importantly, I will not bow to you! “You are a criminal! So is the director of the Security Bureau! The hammer of justice will be waiting for you!” He tapped Justin’ hand away, sending the card flying. “This is my answer! I will never compromise!” Charles looked at Ethan scornfully. Ethan glanced at the card on the floor. “The money inside the card was originally yours.” “Huh?” Charles was surprised. “What do you mean?” Then, a middle-aged man stro
The Guardian's Return Chapter 517
As the only mentee, Ethan took over governing Riveria after the Grand Marshal passed.First, he tackled the issue between Riveria and the land beyond the borders, calming all the conflicts. After that, he entered the Lowes and used George’s identity to continue governing the state. Since George never really did his job, Ethan took full control, which led to his hair growing white at a young age. However, now that he had stepped down, it only took him half a year of rest at Drakthorn Ridge to regain his health. Charles looked at Ethan blankly, not knowing how to react. He was rude a moment ago, calling Ethan a criminal and threatening to serve justice. Now, Ethan turned out to be his family’s savior. He tried to speak but lacked the courage to do so. Ethan said, “Let’s leave the past behind for now. I’m here today to tell you that I’ve been imprisoned, so everything under my name will be forced to cease operation, including the institute. The health insurance plan and the medic
The Guardian's Return Chapter 518
After the doctor came out, he informed Charles about Xavier’s condition and mentioned that the medical bill would cost 30 thousand dollars. Charles went to the reception to make the necessary payment. As his mother was also in the same hospital, he dared not tell her about his father and Ethan when he visited her. With Ethan jailed, the medication subsidy discontinued, and the health insurance expired, the monthly medical expenses reverted to costing tens of thousands of dollars.Charles talked to his mother for a while before leaving. “My salary is only 8000 dollars per month. How am I going to do this?” He felt lost. Suddenly, his phone rang. Looking at the screen and seeing an unregistered number, he answered it. “Hello, we’re from the loan company…” Charles hung up immediately. For some reason, the loan company had caught wind of his situation and reached out to make him an offer. He sighed, baffled by how quickly they had obtained such accurate information. His father
The Guardian's Return Chapter 519
Charles went to visit his mother, but his mother was asleep after taking the medication. He sighed. Not wanting to disturb his mother, he left the hospital to go back to work. If he skipped work for even one day, he might not get his full salary at the end of the month. As such, he got into the car and went to pick Stephen up. When he saw Stephen, he felt a mix of feelings. They arrived at the office soon after, and Stephen called a meeting, asking everyone whether they had thought of a way to increase the benefits. Everyone shook their heads, including Nolan. Hill City’s economy was no longer thriving, and things were getting increasingly expensive. The people’s salaries, however, were getting lower or stagnant. With the people lacking the money to survive, why would they care about the benefits? Stephen sighed. The matter was more complicated than he had expected. Not even the experienced Nolan had a suggestion. “I’ll give us more time to think of a solution. Let’s end the
The Guardian's Return Chapter 520
Charles went to the hospital to take care of the medical bills and then talk to his father. He believed even without Ethan, he and his family could live a good life. “Ethan committed a crime and was jailed for it. If you want me to take him as our savior, I can’t do it. Besides, I have the money. I have 500 thousand dollars.” Xavier was astonished by the astronomical amount. He looked at Charles, but there was no happiness or excitement in the man’s eyes. As a father, he knew exactly what happened. “You took bribes.” Charles’ expression froze, but he forced a smile and said, “What? No. I’m not that kind of person. I will never bow down to money.” He was slightly stunned when the words escaped his mouth. They felt familiar. It was what Ethan had told him last night, and in less than twenty-four hours, he had done the complete opposite. It was a slap in his face.Nevertheless, he feigned a calm look and said, “The money is clean.” Xavier looked at him but said nothing. He si
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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
