“Chairman Lee, let’s not talk about the unhappy past. Come. Enjoy the food. We should clink glasses later.” Samson made light of the conversation. The owner of Dynasty Hotel played a gracious host too. “Let’s dine.” Kaze smiled nonchalantly, not accepting Samson’s invitation to sit at the dinner table. He and the owner of Dynasty Hotel went way back. Plus, Lilyrose Commerce Guild operated in the same building, so they often came across each other. Faced with Kaze’s disrespect, Samson kept a smile on his face and did not take any offense. Food and drinks were the best way to break the ice.The owner of Dynasty Hotel excused himself, leaving the pair some space to talk. “Just get to the point, Mr. Hobbs,” Kaze said while drinking some broth. Samson said, “To be honest, Chairman Lee. I wanted to have this meeting with you in the hope we can put the past behind us. “Technically, you and I have no feud. I only went after you under the Lees’ order because I worked for
“If you can do me this favor, I will dedicate myself to helping you, Chairman Lee. I’ll be happy to serve you, and only you.” Samson stood before Kaze, his body hunched, as he looked at Kaze expectantly. Kaze sipped on the broth and said indifferently, “You expect me to hand over five percent shares to save your life while enjoying my protection as my subordinate. “You sure are asking for a lot, Mr. Hobbs. “But do you think you deserve it?” Five percent shares was a lot. Kaze could become the biggest shareholder of Lee Investment with just five percent shares. Heck, he could reestablish Lee Investment with the right tools. He could even cash in the shares for billions of dollars. Company shares owned by the Lees were sought after in the financial market. Most importantly, Samson’s survival did not matter to Kaze. Plus, they had never been friends. Kaze never saw Samson worthy as his enemy anyway. Hence, Kaze had no reason to save Samson. Samson kept his head l
Kai, with a strong will to live, opened his mouth and begged for help in a struggle. The holder of the phone drew close, only to stomp on Kai’s chest. That kick took Kai’s life. In the end, the holder of the phone switched the phone camera to the front view, revealing his face. Kaze recognized the person. The face belonged to the driver who drank and caused the accident. The video ended. Kai clearly did not die from the car crash. It was no accident that he was dead. Kaze put down the phone and looked at Samson. “So you plotted the car accident last night? “Why did you do it?” “Would you believe me if I said that I hate these idiots?” Samson asked. Kaze smiled offhandedly. He did not believe Samson would kill a citizen of Ryokan out of hatred. Samson was all about the profits. Besides, Kai belonged to the Well family. Caleb validated through his investigation yesterday that the Well family was a member of Sanwell Finances’ K division. The family in Ryokan
The Lees had betrayed Kaze before. The excruciating agony was cutting. Kaze would be happy putting the Lees through the same pain. For that reason, Kaze did not mind doing Samson a favor. “Your word is my command.” Samson nodded solemnly, got up, then said, “But I need to remind you, Chairman Lee. There is more to the Lees than meets the eye. “The Lees have a member in the military, and the individual seems to be doing well there.” The military held an extremely important place in Arcadia. While the military generally avoided involvement in local matters, the region’s influential families dared not brush off its presence. Having someone who served well in the army would also elevate the family in their social circles. Kaze understood what Samson was talking about. Moreover, no one knew better than Kaze. “Someone in the military, huh? So what?” Kaze commented indifferently. Kaze sounded disinterested, his tone reflecting his disdain. The news Samson brought d
It appeared Samson made the right choice. Kaze’s confidence in every way gave him assurance. Briefly after Samson’s departure, Snow walked into the private lounge from another room. “Samson is two-faced, Mr. Chairman. “He vowed loyalty to you because you could overturn the Lees. I doubt he’d betray the Lees entirely.“Given a chance, he will stab you in the back.” Kaze said nonchalantly, “It doesn’t matter. If he stays out of trouble, we can leave him alone. “Just sort him out if he tries anything.” In any case, Samson’s character did not matter to Kaze. He went along with the plan not to put hope in Samson to retaliate against the Lees. It was just to get under the Lees’ skin. That was all there was to it. …Then, Kaze told Snow to return the five percent shares to Lee Investment. Samson worked fast too. At the authority of Lilyrose’s mayor’s office, the private hospitals were sold off to both local and foreign enterprises at a low price. The businesses a
“We meet again, mayor.” Sirius drew close, staying several feet from Kaze before looking up with a smile. Only, there was nothing friendly in his eyes. His gaze was chilling and venomous. “Yes?” Kaze said indifferently without glancing at the dozen Viper’s Den agents. Sirius was out of the organization when Magnus came to Lilyrose looking for trouble. Now, it appeared Sirius must have found friends to get his position back in the Viper’s Den. Sirius lit a cigarette, took a puff, and then said, “There has been a murder in Lilyrose. The victim is Mr. Kai Well, the head of the Ryokan’s Cherry Capital branch in the South River State.“I was ordered to investigate the case.” Kaze replied callously, “Oh? And what does this have to do with me?“Besides, we aren’t close enough to meet when you’re here in the city on a case.” Sirius chuckled. “Aren’t you too quick to say you’re uninvolved?” “What do you mean?” Kaze kept a straight face. He knew Sirius was here for troubl
The members of the Viper’s Den were all pleased watching Kaze in trouble.Kaze glanced at the gleaming handcuffs on the ground expressionless and stomped his foot.‘Crack.’Kaze crushed the handcuffs beneath his foot followed by a jarring sound of metal breaking.“You dare to obstruct us to perform official duty!”Sirius looked furious, then flashed a murderous intent in his eyes and reached for his gun.Kaze’s gaze turned cold.A confrontation seemed imminent.At this moment, a Toyota Alphard drove up suddenly.Sirius frowned when saw the vehicle and holstered his weapon while approaching the car.“Ms. Hiden!” Sirius bowed slightly, showing utmost respect as he greeted the woman stepping out of the car.It was clear that Sirius feared the woman, with a mix of reverence and caution.The woman was Fanny, Miru’s aunt.At that moment, Agar also stepped out from the other side of the car, positioning himself behind Fanny.“Hmm.”Fanny gave a nonchalant nod and then turned
"Silence!" Fanny snapped.Kaze’s brazen disregard for Jerome infuriated her.In her heart, she believed Jerome and Miru to be a perfect match. As for Kaze, he was nothing but a son-in-law who had married into wealth and who was now meddling in her niece's marital affairs.To Fanny, Kaze was overly presumptuous."Kaze, who are you to speak so sarcastically about Jerome?" she spat. "A word of warning, I know all about your past affairs!“Not only were you chased out by the Lees, but you had to rely on your wife’s wealth to get to where you are today!“I have to hand it to you, though, you really are an expert at riding coattails. Not every gold-digger is as capable as you.“However, no matter how capable you are, in the end, you are still nothing more than a man who married into money.” Fanny’s words were laced with venom as she added, “Your potential was decided by your origins! Regardless of how you struggle, you will never reach Jerome’s heights!” She paused, her words hang
The incident did not sit well with Kaze, so he left them out to dry. After much searching, Kaze came across a café. Kaze bought a cup of coffee. Cupping the drink between his hands, Kaze sipped slowly. Many passengers swarmed the arrival hall in the airport, dragging along their luggage or pulling out their phones to get a pick-up. They all had a destination, a place they had to be in a rush. Intrigued, Kaze followed the crowd out. Kaze turned on his phone, and a text message from his airport pick-up came in. He glanced at the message, curious about who the person was. Nevertheless, Kaze trusted that the Westeros Branch members would not set him up out in the open. At most, they would pull little stunts to mess with him. Kaze was not the type to sweat the small stuff. However, he would not tolerate any extreme behavior. He had been keeping a low profile back in Butterworth, keeping the limelight off him. The purpose was to handle Jet without unnecessary complicati
“Alright. I will work hard to be the manager of the Northborn Group. You need to show me the ropes and teach me about management.” Leah looked at Katie with a smile. She believed Katie had not lost her mind. Katie simply had her memory mixed up. “You need to keep your people in line and reward those who deserve it. It all boils down to profits. “You need to work toward managing your people and working with rivals. You’ve got to keep the balance, and nobody loses out. “You need to build your own system when it comes to working together. Don’t be led around by the nose.” Hearing that Leah would start work soon, Katie imparted her knowledge. “Don’t worry too much about things. Joey is nice. You can go to her for help,” Katie said earnestly. Katie seemed to be herself at the moment. Leah wondered if Katie faked her insanity to escape the punishment. “What have become of you? Did they do something to you? “Did you really betray Kaze?” Leah whispered while leaning close
Leah kept working on her knowledge until late into the night. Just as she was about to hit the sack, she got a message from Snow. Learning was a hard enough process. The text message came out of the blue. Leah did not expect Snow to contact her at night. The message was strange as well. Leah could not understand why Snow would give her the address of a nursing home. Leah was determined to turn things around. She strived to become stronger instead of being a burden. She was grateful for Kaze’s help. At least, she had a job now. However, her gratitude was not extended to Snow. She believed Snow had gone too far. Snow left her feeling powerless. Leah did not think much about the message. She assumed that the text was not meant for her. Since Leah did not respond to the text, Snow put the matter aside and went to bed. Leah called Snow the next day. “Why did you send me an address?” Leah went straight to the question. She had been equipping herself with knowledge before
Snow could not believe her eyes. Katie suddenly went quiet and behaved like the CEO she was.However, Katie did not look like she was right in the mind earlier. “What’s going on? She seems to have gone insane.” Snow turned to the warden, still digesting the change. Katie had lost touch with reality before the Viper’s Den did anything to her. “How did this happen? She has been taking her meals. Just days earlier, she nagged about getting out because she was worried about her daughter. As usual, we didn’t respond to her requests.” The warden found the whole thing peculiar too. Just a few days ago, Katie demanded her release. Now, she kept to herself and abided by the rules. Out of the blue, Katie went nuts. Things had gotten complicated. Snow wanted to keep Katie behind bars due to her betrayal. However, Kaze decided against pursuing the matter for Leah’s sake. Katie would be let go soon enough, but she would lose her job at the Northborn Group. Katie’s presence woul
It was quiet in the office. Snow sorted the last bit of paperwork before picking her head up in exhaustion. Her initial plan was to delegate the tasks. However, Katie was controlling. Previously, she personally oversaw many matters. Snow could not distribute the responsibilities because the employees had no experience in handling them. They came to Snow for every tiny, little thing, and Snow really got her hands full. Despite her frustration, Snow could let things go as Katie was locked up. “I should pay her visit.” Snow decided to see Katie. Some things should not be left unsaid. Leah would be working for the Northborn Group soon, and the mother and daughter should meet to tie up loose ends. The truth would put Leah to shame, and her guilt would stop her from ever betraying Kaze. After a quick bite, Snow drove to the prison. Katie was furious when she was imprisoned. She was one step away from victory. She was so close to leaving Butterworth to head to Westeros
“Why do you want to sell the properties? Do you need money? Don’t you have some saved?” Joey had a good understanding of Leah’s finances since she ran all the paperwork. “My mother is being held, and I need money to ask favors. Maybe I can get her out.” Leah was not thinking much. Money could always be replaced, but not her mother’s freedom. “Don’t be silly. This is not the way to go.” Though Joey did not have the details, she observed that things were not as simple as Leah thought. Kaze was safe now, but the fact that Katie had betrayed Kaze and revealed his whereabouts remained unchanged. Katie had broken the Viper’s Den’s rules. Even if she got out, she would be a wreck. With Snow running the Northborn Group, Katie would remain a failure. Either way, Katie would not get away with it. Even if Leah offered all her assets, Katie’s situation would not change. It was a waste of money and resources for Leah to save her mother. Nothing would come out of it. “But I
“Give me an answer. Are you taking the job? If you are, you should sort out your affairs. Don’t bring your personal feelings to work.” Snow was not the type to go easy on fragile women. If Leah did not have what it took, she could be forced to leave the company. Nevertheless, Katie had left a lot of assets to Leah. Even without work, Leah could very well survive. The girl would have trouble keeping the wealth, seeing that she was without power or connections. If Leah had a job, she would have the resources to hold onto her assets. Leah had seen the best and worst of mankind. She was once the center of attention, and now, everybody avoided her. It dawned on Leah that it was over for Katie. If Leah could not even keep a job, she would lose everything. “I didn’t know things would happen.” Leah never thought that Katie was capable of stabbing Kaze and her in the back. The thought of betrayal put Leah in distress. Kaze was a great guy who helped Leah a lot. Feeling ete
Leah got dressed and was ready to leave, but she did not know who to turn to. She thought about going to her wealthy friends to see if they could uncover anything through their connections. However, Leah could not get a hold of them. It dawned on Leah that loyalty would fade when power was gone. Even though Katie was just missing, intel spread around Butterworth very quickly. These people must have found out and have chosen to stay away. Leah had always been treated like royalty. Nobody had ever avoided her like the plague. Nevertheless, she had not been in touch with these friends since her injury. Now, in her attempt to contact them, she could not reach them. “Why is this happening? My good friends have gone MIA, and I’m getting silence from those who have been trying to connect.” Sitting on the couch, Leah looked out the window in despair. She tried to seek help with her mother’s search, but her efforts were futile. She could do nothing for her mother. All al
“I have to work hard starting today. But before that, I have to get some sleep.” Snow remembered that Kaze punished her to get some sleep. He said her face looked tired and pale, signs of how hard she had been working. It felt great being cared for. It was because of his kindness, Snow fell for Kaze uncontrollably. Yet she understood not all things were meant to be. After she returned home, she went to sleep immediately without talking to anyone. She only woke up in the afternoon after a comfortable and easy sleep. Next, she would have to work on many things, first being taking over Northborn Group. Katie’s disappearance had the company shaken, but it gave many others a chance. They tried to calm their subordinates down and contact the higher-ups for more information, hoping that they could replace Katie as the new CEO. Little did they know, their preparations would eventually fall short. Snow and her secretary arrived at Northborn Group in the afternoon, and her a