Zayn was here for real. Raymond’s pupils constricted beyond his control when he saw Zayn as he felt even more anxious now. The numerous Larsons in the hall narrowed their eyes and assumed completely different expressions from Raymond’s the moment they saw Zayn. Delighted, they were gloating to themselves about how successful their scheme was…Jordan looked at Zayn with a tinge of admiration in his gaze. Zayn had the courage to attend the event solo anyhow. Not everyone had the boldness to attend a memorial service alone. Of course, it was one thing to admire him and another thing to decide what to do with him. Zidane looked towards Zayn with the corners of his lips curled up ever so slightly. He looked just like a poisonous snake that had its eyes on its prey. Everyone’s gaze was fixed upon Zayn. At this very moment, he sensed pressure that he had never experienced before. However, the pressure dissolved into nothingness when he took a breath. He smiled and walked into the h
The atmosphere in the room immediately tensed up when he made the statement. There was a slight change in everyone’s expression. Jordan’s pupils constricted ever so slightly for a moment. Soon afterward, he revealed an expression filled with guilt as he heaved a sigh heavily and said, “Sigh! It was our fault for being too impulsive. We lost our senses when we saw Master Larson turn into a vegetable, and we didn’t investigate things properly first before we kicked you out of the family. It was all our fault! Zayn, I’ve been feeling very guilty for having done that to you all this while, and I haven’t been able to sleep well for nights on end. Sigh…”Jordan was so good at acting that he could have won the best actor award. Not even Zayn could immediately tell that the regret and guilt on his expression were fake. “Uncle, your acting skills are improving by the day. I was almost deceived by you, heh-heh,” said Zayn while chuckling. Jordan’s expression tightened for a moment instantly
Zayn’s words were like a nuke sending a seismic shock to every single Larson in the room. Their eyes widened, and their reactions quickly became violent.Many of them went from zero to absolute rage in a matter of seconds, and they were sure to let Zayn know through the glares they shot him. The most senior members of the family—those who had been talking just moments ago—slapped their hands over their chest as the color left their mien before they gasped for air. The news was so shocking to them that they thought they were going to pass out!Jordan’s reaction was overblown, too. He blurted out a yelp, “Seven billion dollars of inheritance and you gave it all out for charity?!”Just how thriftless and dumb must a punk be to pull off that sort of thing?!Apoplectic, many in the family abandoned whatever courtesies they might have used moments ago as they leaped to their feet and strode towards Zayn before unleashing a salvo of shrieking censures.“You prodigal b*stard! How could yo
What really cemented the possibility into reality, however, was that supercilious half-smile on Zayn’s lips.In unison, the crowd felt their cheeks burning as exasperated humiliation lashed across their faces. A massive rant strewn from colorful and interesting word choices blared within their minds as the realization of being played like a fiddle bred new rage.Jordan was one of those whose recovery from shock was instantly followed by a surfeit of embarrassed fury. The only reason why he did not send Zayn straight to his maker right there and then was because that young man still had his use.“A-ha! You know me so well, Zidane!” Zayn said, chuckling. He pulled out his phone and called the bank, opting for information on his bank account when prompted. Soon, a clear, jaunty voice belted from the speakers, “Thank you for calling, our most esteemed Black Card VVIP. The amount of money remaining in your account is 9,110,034,258 dollars and 33 cents.”All manners of noises whisked out
All Zayn did was smile without another word and enjoy the fulsome adulations and their pathetic flatteries. It was impossible to not feel immensely gratified—especially since these were the same family members who gave not a damn about the blood he shared with them when they decided to kill him with character assassination four years ago.Zayn was practically banished from the family under the threat of death by physical assault! It had been such a harrowing experience to him that he remembered every single bit of it vividly. The first two years following that incident had given him frequent nightmares as he catapulted up from his sleep, drenched in cold sweat and dread.Look at how the tides had changed. Now, the very same people were licking his boots with the gushiness of a dog. Zayn could not help but be amused by this striking irony.Meanwhile, the Larsons continued to flatter him as hard as they could until they ran out of flowery things to say, and yet, the young man appeared
Knowing that this was all for the bigger good of the family, Jordan took a deep breath and forced his ire down. The most important thing he had to do right now was to fool Zayn into giving up the money. As for payback? Well, he had time.With that in mind, Jordan smiled. “This is Liber Pater’s Les Liberalia. If you like it so much, Zayn, I’m happy to procure more for you.”“Really? Thanks! Ten bottles for me, please,” Zayn said, cracking a toothy grin.The corner of Jordan’s lips twitched. Ten bottles of Liber Pater?! What did he think he was ordering—Coca-Cola?As the exchange dragged on, Zayn’s antics embittered the crowd more and more. And yet, they could not afford to show even a faint sign of vexation.“Right. I’ll do my best,” Jordan babbled, his smile ossified. He had never been so humiliated in his life since the day he turned into the patriarch of the family!He paused for a moment before asking, “Zayn, as we were discussing—”“Oh, Uncle Jordan, that was so out of left
It made sense for Raymond to feel that way. This was a riot formed by Machiavellian people who had long adapted to positions of power and clout. They were used to seeing loyal subjects and yes-men. They had been in power for so long that they continued to blindly carry themselves with the authoritative air of kings, regardless of the capabilities they truly held.Take an aura like that and mix it with explosive furor—pure intimidation was inevitable. A normal person might start fearing for themselves just by being near an angry Sean Wilson or an infuriated Victor Smith for the same reason, let alone those who occupy even higher positions of power like Jordan, Shane, or Zidane.Whatever visceral reaction Zayn had that shadowed his mien, however, expired after a mere second. He lapsed back to his usual demeanor with a slight smile on his lips. He was rather immune to these sorts of high-society pressure, so at most, all the rioting around him did was to make some of his bones pop.Mr.
Zayn, that son of a b*tch! This had been his plan since the very beginning—he had provoked them as part of his strategy.And they were suckers for taking the bait!The Larsons were shrewd people. They immediately knew what could happen if that recording were sent to the cops and how far-reaching the ramifications would be. They might command a lot of influence in Waltz City and Fenx City, but word of a conspiracy involving several billion dollars could still deal a heavy blow to the family no matter how well-connected they might be.They were careless. They had not expected such an underhanded scheme at all. Their plan to force Zayn into submission had effectively been thwarted, because once the recording got out, the consequences would be a tidal wave.The mob’s eagerness had dwindled. A few of the more cowardly ones were showing signs of backing down and stopped glaring furiously at Zayn.Raymond looked on, bewildered. He had not expected Zayn to pull off such an unexpected, let