Already feeling guilty that the Grand Marshal passed away in Riveria, they could not afford to let Ethan down again now. On the other hand, Ethan’s achievements were too monumental—so great that they overshadowed everyone else’s. It was enough to warrant his own chapter in history. None of them had the right or the courage to raise their voices in front of him.Ethan said calmly, “I’ve gotten what I wanted. It’s getting late. You should go.”All of them looked uncomfortable. Before they came, they had imagined every possible reaction, from being yelled at to being beaten, even. At worst, he would blame them and scold them for everything. However, they were wrong. They thought of everything except for Ethan’s indifference. At their level of status, they thought nobody could reject them, but now, they understood that they were not as powerful as they thought. “We’ll take our leave.” They could not help but sigh.Given the current circumstances, they could only return anothe
Simon hesitated to speak, knowing it was unlikely for Ethan to forgive them. However, he thought, what if? Stephen’s sincere apology and revealing the truth could have moved Ethan, making forgiveness possible. With that sliver of hope, he did not stop Harrison. Harrison immediately took an overnight flight to Riveria. It was seven in the morning when he landed, and without any rest, he headed straight for Drakthorn Ridge. His assistant could not help but advise, “Mr. Harrison, you’ve not rested all night. Why don’t you take a break before going up the mountain?”Harrison shook his head. “Time will wait for no one.”Ethan was about to leave Riveria, and the Quinns were on the brink of survival. He feared that if he slept, he would miss the final chance of saving the Quinn family. “This is nothing,” Harrison said, “I’ve gone three days without sleep before. Now, hurry up and drive up the mountain!”The assistant, exasperated, could only steer towards Drakthorn Ridge. At nine
Harrison was choking up. Before Ethan could speak…“Mr. Harrison, what are you doing here?” A shocked exclamation sounded from the doorway. Harrison immediately whipped his head around to see a few people standing at the door. He knew those people. They were from the federal government, many of them the heads of several prominent families. Instantly, the blood drained from his face because he was kneeling before Ethan. Everyone could see him like that—stripped of his dignity and utterly humiliated. How could the Quinns ever show their faces again?Harrison’s first instinct was to stand up. However, he then remembered what he said to Ethan earlier, that he was willing to do anything for Stephen and the Quinn family. Was he going back out just because he was embarrassed? At that thought, Harrison forced himself to suppress the urge to stand up. Looking at Harrison kneeling before Ethan, those who had just arrived gasped collectively. At that moment, no one was thinking abou
It was no longer about whether Ethan would forgive them. Even if Ethan forgave the Quinns, would the other families and factions let them off the hook? Obviously not. Harrison’s face went pale. He understood now that getting Ethan’s forgiveness could not save the Quinn family; only getting Ethan on their side could. However, was that possible? There might still be a chance if all they asked for was forgiveness, but to get Ethan on the Quinns’ side? Putting himself in Ethan’s shoes, Harrison knew it was impossible. The Quinns had worked with the Lowes to frame Ethan, imprison Ethan, and steal his achievements, turning the internet against him. Why would Ethan want to be on the Quinns’ side?If it were him, he could not forgive the Quinns either. When he finally pieced everything together, his body went limp. It was over. Things were much more serious than he thought. The Quinns were truly done for. “It looks like you’ve finally figured it out.” Ethan said, “All this time, y
At the Quinns’ residence, Simon had been pacing back and forth anxiously, racking his brain trying to think of a way to save the Quinn family when a maid came to serve him tea. He reached out for it, but as his mind wandered, his grip faltered. “Clang!”The teacup fell and shattered on the spot. The scalding water getting on his hands and feet made him frown. The Quinns were in a crisis, and being scalded by tea caused his frustration to boil. “Get lost!” he yelled at the maid, telling her to leave. Simon sat down, an uneasy feeling still lingering on his mind. At that moment, his phone rang. He picked it up, and seeing that the call was from the federal government, he answered immediately. “Bad news,” said the person on the other end. “Your father has fainted after coughing up a mouthful of blood. Come to Riveria now!”Simon was stunned. Harrison fainted after coughing up blood? How could it be?Without a second to waste, he boarded a plane to Riveria and arrived at 4 p
Simon called the doctor to ask about the cause of Harrison’s death.The doctor explained it truthfully. Harrison was old, sleep-deprived, and suffered an intense psychological blow that his body could not handle.Upon hearing this, Simon suddenly understood.Harrison had not rested properly for a long time because of the Quinn family, especially the night when Stephen revealed the truth. He did not sleep at all that night. Then, he went to beg Ethan, was rejected, and had a mental breakdown. He simply could not hold on anymore.“We were wrong,” Simon cried. “We were really wrong.”They brought this upon themselves. Because they provoked Ethan, everything that followed was inevitable.If they had not been blinded by greed, Harrison would not have died, Stephen would not be in prison, and the Quinns would not fall.What should he do now? What could he do?Stephen had sacrificed himself to give the Quinns a sliver of hope, but Simon failed to protect the family and Harrison. How w
It was like achieving success in business, owning a house and a car, having a young and beautiful girlfriend deeply in love with you, becoming a legend in your circle of friends, family, and even the whole city, only to be told that you had late-stage cancer and that there were a few days left to live.Shock, confusion, and disbelief surged up at once.Stephen snapped back to reality, his voice trembling. “You’re lying to me, right? You must be lying to me.”No one answered.However, from the look on their faces, Stephen saw the answer he did not want to believe: Harrison was truly dead.He collapsed to the ground with a thud, mumbling, “How could this be...”The Quinns were one of the top families. As a member of the Quinns, Harrison had access to the best medical care, diet, and security. Just half a year ago, his physical examination showed that he was in perfect health. He should have lived a long life. How did he suddenly die?“We don’t know,” they replied honestly. “You sh
After staying up all night, they sat at their desks the next morning. Their screens were lit up, but there was still no internet.Bang, bang!Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.They jumped like they had stepped barefoot on lava, exclaiming, “Who is it?”There was no answer.Bang, bang!The loud knocking continued.The door shook violently, and they were so scared they nearly wet themselves. They quickly grabbed their phones, only to remember that they could not make calls now.Crash! The doorknob fell off.Then, the door was kicked open, and a fully armed team rushed in.“Don’t move!”“Get on the ground with your hands on your head!”They trembled and crouched on the ground, completely pale.One officer stepped forward and punched the guy in the face, knocking him down. Several other officers pinned him down and cuffed his hands.“What’s going on?” The man who was hit was shocked. “What did I do? What are you doing?”The team said nothing. They just received orders
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