Ganter and Austin witnessed the chaos that unfolded in Hill City over the past two weeks. The hospitals were overloaded, and more patients were being admitted. Even they, a psychologist, were asked to help. Ganter shook his head helplessly. He was a doctor in psychology, so there was nothing he could do for those people. All he could do was watch them leave, disheartened and desperate. When he went out on the street, he noticed the people walking around were fewer than before. Every day, he could hear robberies happening and gunshots in the air. The street where his clinic was located used to be a bustling area with merchants selling their goods, but they were all gone. His clinic was the only establishment left in the street. Austin looked worried. “Ganter, we should also think about leaving. Hill City is not safe anymore.” News of robberies, shootings, and outbreaks of sickness were so frequent that the growing fear among the people was palpable. Even Austin was scared too.
A while later, Charles, who was enjoying his spa and massage with several other business owners, got a call from the hospital that his parents had discharged themselves. The delight on his face disappeared. Why would his parents leave the hospital? He quickly called his father but could not get through. The same happened with his mother. Anxious, Charles called the hospital, demanding an explanation. How could the hospital release his parents without informing him first? The nurse explained, “They said there were not enough beds in the hospital because of the current situation and believed other people needed the treatment more than them, so they insisted on leaving. We tried to convince them to stay, but they were adamant.” Charles was stunned. Not enough beds in the hospital? What kind of excuse was that? He had the money to pay for their medical bills! He had more than a million at hand, and if he kept working hard, the money he was making would be enough to last him a l
Was Ethan more important than their own son? Stephen said, “I understand. Please get up. Ethan Rivers has been accused of bribery, and it puts me in a tough spot.” Xavier argued, “He’s not capable of that! He has been fixing roads, as well as repairing hospitals and schools. He even used his own money to send other people’s children to school! Why would he take bribes?” Riveria used to be in chaos, and education was scarce. The adults in the family would rather keep their children at home to work than send them to school for education. Ethan then used his personal money to send every child to school, paying the families a stipend of 500 dollars a month. The children could also enjoy free lunches at schools, which drastically improved both attendance rates and nutrition levels in the region.Stephen said with gritted teeth, “It’s bribery! I don’t need you to tell me what he did!” He dared not look them in the eyes, so he quickly called security to send them off. After they
“No!” Charles’ face paled. He pulled his phone out to call for help, but then his mother, Jessica, said, “You don’t need to call for help.” She had been fighting her illness for years and should have died a long time ago. It was Ethan’s subsidy and health insurance that helped her to stay alive, and after what happened, she believed she was the reason her son became twisted. She felt guilty, not just toward Ethan, but also toward her husband and their son. Years of pain and the burden she placed on her family had worn her down. She could not go on any longer. Maybe, just maybe, her death could help Charles find his way back.“I know what’s going on with my body,” she said, her voice strained and labored. “Son, I’ve hurt you enough. I’m so sorry. I will no longer be your burden. If you can, turn yourself in. You’re on your own now. We will always love you.” Charles teared up, his body shaking. He did not understand. He had worked so hard and taken so many risks, all to make s
Charles ran into his car and suddenly, he spotted a gun in the passenger’s seat. He was consumed by vengeance and did not care how the gun got into his car. He wound down the window and pointed the gun at Nolan. “Please take care of my parents’ funeral for me. Thanks.” He then stepped on the pedal and drove off. Nolan watched calmly as the car drove off. Everything was progressing as he planned. He walked into the house and saw Xavier and Jessica, both dead in each other’s embrace. He sighed helplessly. He may have dragged the two of them into this mess, but he never thought of hurting them or making them take their own lives. He made a call to his men and ordered them to give the elderly couple a proper burial. Meanwhile, Stephen was going through the reports on the recent updates. Even though riot police were deployed to maintain order in the city, things did not improve. Quite the opposite, the dangerous men armed with guns were further stimulated, causing them to be m
Stephen slumped into his chair, boneless. He was really scared out of his wits when he had a gun pointed at him at such close range. He almost died. Only then did he have time to pick up his phone and check who had tried to call him earlier. However, before he could look, Nolan’s call came in. “Stephen, Charles’ parents committed suicide. He has a gun. He injured me and then escaped.”Stephen fell silent for a while before saying, “Got it. I’ve caught Charles. You should head to the hospital and get yourself checked out. You’ve done well.”He was more assured of Nolan, someone willing to risk his life to capture Charles. It looked like he was right in his choice of mayor this time. In fact, he had made an excellent choice!After hanging up, Stephen finally saw that it was Ganter who had tried to call him just now. However, nobody picked up when he returned the call. Seeing that he could not reach Stephen, Ganter had taken to the streets, trying to find someone to send Austin t
Not long after Nolan left, Stephen came with his men to interrogate Charles. “How long have you been embezzling and taking bribes?” Stephen asked bluntly as soon as he entered. “I had such high hopes for you.”Charles looked at him and said, “Half a month.”“Half a month?” Stephen did some quick mental calculations. Hill City plunged into chaos again half a month ago, which matched Charles’ timeline of corruption. “You’re such a fool!” Stephen said coldly, “Who bribed you? You’d better speak.”Charles knew that even if he did not get a death sentence, he would spend the rest of his life behind bars. He had come to terms with his fate, so he named everyone who bribed him with money. After ordering his men to record it, Stephen asked, “Why did you do it? You’ve let me down so much.”Upon hearing that, Charles laughed. “Let you down? If I let you down, then you’ve completely devastated me! You must know my parents died, right? Do you know how they died?”Stephen frowned. Did
Even Ganter himself doubted that he could have endured it. Besides, Austin should not have suffered that fate. It was all his fault. If he had not insisted on saving Stephen back then, he would not have come to Hill City and encountered the armed robbers. Everything was his fault!Ganter fell to the ground helplessly, wallowing in regret. He should not have saved Stephen back then. A few minutes later, he slowly walked out of the hospital ward and booked a flight to Riveria. He wanted to meet Ethan and beg for his forgiveness. Half a day later, Ganter arrived at Ethan’s mansion. Memories of his first visit flashed across his mind. At that time, he was confident, as if victory was already in the bag. Yet now, standing before the mansion again, his face was pale, and he looked significantly older. Ganter slowly walked into the mansion and saw Ethan sitting on the couch, reading a book, just like their first meeting. “Ethan…” Ganter approached him but hesitated. He was a master
Stephen immediately opened his eyes, but there was no one beside him.“Stephen, I wish you an early happy birthday too!” Lily’s voice rang out from his other side.Stephen turned his head and saw Lily lying beside him, smiling sweetly.Then, he looked toward where Snow’s voice had come from. Snow was also lying beside him, looking at him with gentle eyes.Stephen knew in his heart that it was just an illusion.“Aren’t you making a wish?”“What’s your wish?”Stephen closed his eyes again. At that moment, a thousand thoughts rushed through his mind.Who was he?He was the heir of the Quinns. From the moment he was born, he held a position that countless people envied.However, out of a million possible paths, not one was truly his own.He could not be with his loved ones. He could not achieve success overnight. He was not admired by all or surrounded by family and friends.Stephen thought that at least one of those fates belonged to him and her.However, their final meeting
Stephen would be lighting the first segment, and Simon would light the final one.As the celebrities arrived, the riverside became even more lively. People called out their favorite celebrity’s names or nicknames.Seeing this, Stephen felt emotional. If he had not made mistakes, perhaps these people would be calling his name too.When it was nearly midnight, Simon approached Stephen and said, “It’s about time. Get ready to light the fireworks.”He pulled Stephen over to the spot where the fireworks he was responsible for were, and a staff member handed him a torch.“When the countdown ends, use the torch to ignite the fuse, then run and pass the torch to the next person, who will continue lighting the fireworks.“Good luck,” Simon encouraged him. “You can do it!”Stephen took the torch and sighed inwardly. He felt like this whole thing was meaningless. However, when the countdown began, he started to feel a little nervous.“Ten! Nine!”Stephen instinctively tightened his grip
After Simon’s livestream, everyone felt slightly more reassured about Breeze City’s situation.“If he dares to guarantee this, he must have prepared thoroughly.”“It should be safe to attend the gala, right?”“My favorite celebrity will be there, and right now, Breeze City has 40% off train fares, 20% off flight tickets, and 50% off tour packages. It’s so tempting.”Simon placed all his hopes on this gala. He was willing to pour money into it to ensure its success.The event venue was fully set up three days before the new year. The tickets were completely sold out, and the city’s visitor count was now dozens of times higher than before!Breeze City’s declining economy finally showed signs of rising!Simon’s eyes nearly welled up when he saw the financial reports.Two days before the gala, the celebrities attending the event started arriving and followed Simon’s instructions to interact with fans so that more tourists would be attracted to come and spend.Even some celebrities
During this past week, Simon worked without stopping. He spent most of his rest time either in his office or sleeping in cars or planes.He got less than five hours of rest every day!However, thanks to his efforts, Breeze City improved significantly. Its economy stabilized, goods prices returned to normal, robbery incidents decreased, and dangerous elements were eliminated. Furthermore, seventeen new factories were also established in the city.Everything was moving in a positive direction, but Simon’s lack of rest was just one of the consequences. Every day, the Quinns were spending money. In just a week, another 300 million had been spent.Harrison called him again and told him to spend more cautiously. Although the Quinn family had a lot of money, it was not infinite.Furthermore, most of their wealth was not in liquid cash. The actual funds they could use at any time were only a few tens of billions.The South Regent and Victor observed Simon’s actions and felt slightly amaz
Without Ethan’s support, what had Breeze City become? It was somewhere people struggled to survive.What happened to Stephen? His hair turned white overnight, and he grew depressed like a soulless walking corpse.All of this was the result of their wrong decisions.Simon stared at the scattered documents on the ground and let out a long sigh. He felt a heavy weight on his shoulders. He had hoped to use Ethan’s past methods to turn things around, but in the end, he only ended up harming himself.Just then, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen and saw that it was a call from Harrison.As soon as he picked it up, Harrison said, “Something’s happened to Stephen again. He went out with his friends but coughed up blood at a riddle booth. The doctor said his condition is serious.”After a brief pause, he continued, “His will to live is extremely low.”“What?” Simon was stunned. He had sent Stephen back in hopes that his friends could help him recover. However, things had gotten wor
Everyone watched as Simon made a solemn promise. Coupled with his offer of 300 million dollars to restore Breeze City, their anger somewhat subsided.“Maybe Stephen really was framed.”“Should we trust him again?”“At this point, let’s just trust him one last time.”After a brief discussion, they decided to believe Simon once more.Simon sighed in relief and quickly said, “Thank you, everyone!”Although the 300 million dollars and his final guarantee were not a big deal to him, it was still a disgrace to the Quinn family’s reputation.Simon knew that from now on, he had to devote himself to protecting Breeze City and ensure that it would never fall into chaos again. Otherwise, he would have no more excuses, and no one would trust him anymore.Back in his office, he had a subordinate retrieve Breeze City’s development plans and important decision-making documents from the past three years.Back then, Ethan had been in charge of the city. Simon planned to study Ethan’s methods a
They answered, “We have other business here. There’s a rather special patient we need to attend to. Goodbye.”They did not want to share more with Simon as the special patient they were referring to was Hugo. Hugo was shot in the stomach and sent to the hospital for emergency treatment by the South Regent’s subordinates. Those two doctors received orders to save Hugo, who was recovering well and would be discharged in a few days. Watching the two doctors walk away, Simon frowned. He felt as if they were hiding something from him. At that moment, he was still unaware that Hugo and Natalie had both survived. If he knew, one phone call to Stephen would be enough to improve his condition significantly. Simon took his medicine and left the hospital. Just after he returned to his office, a staff member hurried in. “Bad news. Someone is protesting at the entrance. They’re accusing us of covering up for Stephen!”Simon felt a headache coming. The issue with Stephen’s company producin
“The boiling point of vinegar… Snow told me before she left. As for the tears flowing backward, I understood it when I stood alone on the edge of a cliff after Lily died. As for the negative one-twelfth, it was the question those criminals asked me before detonating the bomb. I got it wrong.”Everyone was stunned, especially Stephen’s friends. When Stephen gave the correct answer, they cheered, but now, they realized that each answer came at an unforgettable and agonizing cost. Snow was missing, Lily was dead, and Hugo had turned against him because of the detonated bomb, only to sacrifice himself in the end for him. They finally understood why Stephen had coughed up blood. “Stephen…”His friends felt a heavy weight in their chests suffocating them. They could not imagine this would become of an arrogant young man like Stephen.Harrison also fell silent for a while. He understood that everything his grandson had experienced was far worse than what he or Simon had in their life
The vendor’s face paled in fright. “I just wanted to stump you, not kill you! Just take the prize!”He quickly took down the grand, first, runner-up, and second runner-up prizes, handing all of them to Stephen. However, Stephen’s body convulsed. The memories he had suppressed came flooding back, one more intense than the other. Stephen clutched his chest as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. His legs had gone weak. “He pushed himself this far just to answer a few questions?”“What sort of questions are these? They made someone cough up blood.”“This is unreal. If I hadn’t seen it myself, I wouldn’t have believed something like this.”“I’m starting to believe those dramatic effects in TV shows. Perhaps it’s true that someone could die while playing chess!”Stephen’s friends were now panicking. “Stephen, what’s wrong? Stephen!”“Don’t scare us!”“Ambulance! Call the ambulance!”Stephen had been doing well just moments ago. When he left the carousel, he even reveal