“Really?” Ryan picked his chin up and looked at Kaze with a twinkle in his eyes. “As if! You’re just a good-for-nothing handicap. I will never regret my decision.“Hmph! Shangrila Group was no match for the top three families two years ago. I doubt that has changed even now. Ryan, you will only be in a worse situation if you go with him.“Mr. Golding said that it will be the end of Shangrila Group in the next few days.” Zach and the others expressed their disdain. Noticing Ryan’s hesitance, Winnie persuaded. “Trust in the chairman, Ryan. I wasn’t in a better circumstance than you before, but look at me now.” “Alright, I’ll go with you to Shangrila Group.” Ryan trusted Winnie more than anything. He rose to his feet. Rei panicked because Ryan had not handed over the technology. She blew a fuse and threatened him. “If you walked out on me, I’m filing for divorce, Ryan.” “Fine by me.” Ryan no longer cherished his wife who had betrayed their sacred vows. Nevertheless
Winnie sensed something amiss because it sounded like the person on the other end of the line was brushing her off. She asked with a frown, “By a later date, how long are you referring to?” “The earliest we can do is three months, but I can’t give you a definitive deadline. It can be a year or more,” the company representative replied nonchalantly. Winnie grew furious. “But the contract states that the shipment would be dispatched within ten days. Don’t tell me Key High Tech can’t keep up with production.” “Don’t put that on us, Ms. Souffle.” The representative said unhappily, “We have received a lot of orders, and you are in the back of the line. What choice do we have?” Winnie saw red. Key High Tech only received such a large order because Shangrila Group was trying to set up a laboratory. A procurement order of tens of millions of dollars was considered a substantial order to Key High Tech. Besides, some equipment was worth millions of dollars individually. Even
Kaze merely smiled as Ryan reeled in the shock. If Ryan had seen the God of War Palace’s defense technology laboratory, he probably would have passed out in awe. Winnie and Ryan were confused. They did not understand why Kaze brought them there. “Derek, can you share the quality of the precision instrument you developed for clinical studies?” Kaze asked. Carrying the pride of a scholar, Derek said proudly, “Our lab boasts the most advanced technology in the entire military. Our commitment to quality is unsurpassed, Sir. Even state-level labs utilize our state-of-the-art equipment.” Ryan was envious. If only Shangrila Group’s laboratory could be set up with such cutting-edge equipment. No doubt it would be a great help to his research. Kaze pointed at Ryan and Winnie before uttering, “This is Ms. Souffle from Shangrila Group and Ryan Waker, who oversees the company research lab.“I have a thought of a possible collaboration. You can partner with Shangrila Group to set u
Rei did not stop with just the video. She also sent Ryan two voice messages. “You’re useless, Ryan. I heard from Zach that the Four Ocean Commerce Guild issued a boycott order on Shangrila Group. You can forget ever acquiring any equipment. “Are you running a laboratory or nothing? Haha! How do you like that?” The sound of running water and Zach’s ridicule played in the background. Ryan dared not imagine what they were doing. “Don’t get too excited, bitch. The Four Ocean Commerce Guild is irrelevant. We are getting the testing apparatus transported to the company overnight, and I can guarantee you that the technology is more advanced than the top three families’.” He pressed the button to record his reply. Once done, he did not send the voice message. It was not too late to prove the cheating couple wrong after setting up the laboratory and conducting the important experiments. Kaze witnessed everything.He smiled and uttered, “Just send the voice message, Ryan.” “Mr
The general manager of Lilyrose Logistics, Howard was the son-in-law of the Goldings. He was an uncle to Frank. Howard would not neglect a call from his nephew, Frank. So, he immediately rolled out Frank’s instructions. Lilyrose Logistics dominated the distribution chain in Lilyrose. No other shipping companies would dare retaliate against it. These companies heeded Lilyrose Logistics’ orders right away. Soon, the main roads into the city were closed. All freight vehicles entering Lilyrose would be stopped and searched. The power and reach of the top three families permeated the complex network.The local government turned a blind eye to Lilyrose Logistics’ illegal road closures. Some authorities in uniform even volunteered to cover for them. It explained why the public considered Johnson a figurehead mayor. The real people running the city were the three family heads. Large trucks snaked along the roadside, queueing on the other side of the toll booth at around t
Greed was visible on Leath’s face. He had thoughts about hijacking the freight and logistics domain in Melrose. Leath had attempted to dip his fingers there before, but he suffered a massive loss instead. Now that he had a chance for a do-over, he was not going to let the opportunity slip through his fingers. All he needed to do was destroy dozens of cargo vans. The destruction would cost a heavy loss to the logistics company in Melrose. Even if the company did not go bankrupt, the loss would be hard to recover from. “Stop!” “Stop and pull over to the side!” Leath’s men had set up a roadblock. As the men clamored, the fleet of cargo vans pulled over. “Where are the goods heading?” Leath’s subordinate aggressively pulled the driver from his seat. “Shangrila Group.” “Open the door now.” “Alright.” The strange thing was the drivers appeared rather calm. They opened the doors to the cargo beds, no questions asked, nor did they consider retaliation. Leath’
Under the command of the commander, Leath and his men were arrested. Soldiers were not only found in one cargo van. The remaining last vehicle in the fleet contained military personnel too. Heeding the order of their superior, they jumped out of the cargo beds. Leath’s other dozens of men were caught before they knew it. Lilyrose Strategic Department’s defense technology laboratory assigned a team of soldiers to escort the equipment to its destination. The commander gave Kaze a call. “The gang who tried to hijack the military resources at the toll booth has been arrested, Sir.” “Got it. Leave them to the police for conviction.” “Yes, Sir!” Soon, Leath and his gang were handed over to Don, who rushed over with his team. While on the way to the police station, Leath, shaken by fear, spilled the beans and called Howard out. Half an hour later, Howard, the notorious general manager of Lilyrose Logistics, had been apprehended too. Now that the big fish was caught, t
Thud!Frank kicked Zach in the face. “You have the morning to make Ryan hand over the technology by any means possible.” With the establishment of its own laboratory, Shangrila Group would now leverage Ryan’s skills and technology to enter the pharmaceutical market.Frank had to stop Shangrila Group from growing. …Other things were happening at Shangrila Group. The chairman had sorted out the boycott order from the Four Ocean Commence Guild. A laboratory had been set up overnight. The employees of the group were filled with motivation and drive. Winnie could finally rest after working through the night. Then came the call from Key High Tech. “Ms. Souffle, we are ready to dispatch the shipment your company has acquired. When will you be making the final payment?” once the call was connected, the representative said merrily. His attitude was a complete 180 from the day before. Winnie replied curtly, “Sorry, but we have set up the laboratory. We no longer need th
Dwight approached with a smile. He looked at Edmund earnestly. “I am Dwight McCorney. I have heard good things about you. I finally got to meet the man of the hour. “It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Witterson.” Dwight was starstruck. Edmund was embarrassed by Dwight’s behavior. He could not believe that Dwight was a member of the Viper’s Den. Nevertheless, Dwight seemed genuine in expressing his thrill. Edmund became curious about him. He turned around to look at Kaze, who was the polar opposite of Dwight. Kaze stood there, holding his ground. He stood up to greet Edmund and nothing else. He appeared to be refined, unlike Dwight, who was brash. Dwight had no idea that his behavior had upset Edmund. Edmund looked at Dwight in disdain. However, Dwight was a member of the Viper’s Den. It was best for Edmund to keep his comments to himself. Without a word, Edmund stared at the pair. Ryan stepped in to smooth things over. “What are you doing? We have a guest here.
Since Kaze would not change these people’s minds, he was better off doing what he wanted to do. “This vase must be valuable. I got to give it to Mr. Witterson. A display in the living room is worth so much.” Dwight had never seen so much luxury in one room. He had been to the museum, but the displays were nothing like he had ever seen before. The rich had the means to splurge. “Do you think this is pure gold?” Dwight turned to a gold statue. The design was to die for. The purity of color made it hard to doubt its authenticity. “I’m not too sure, but I guess most of the ornaments here are real.”Kaze watched as Dwight gasped in awe. Nevertheless, his behavior would clear any suspicion on Kaze. It could be a good thing. “I knew Mr. Witterson was rich. His businesses are doing well. “But I didn’t expect this sort of lifestyle. The gold must be worth a million dollars. “If I were this wealthy, I would not spend it on decoration.” Dwight rambled on, his eyes stuck t
“I’m not familiar with the area. We’ll have to look around,” Dwight said behind the wheel. He looked for restaurants while driving. It was early, and many restaurants were not open for business. They circled the block and finally uncovered a small breakfast bar. They ordered some food, filled their bellies, and got back into the car. “Mr. Witterson said that he wouldn’t meet you. Why does he want to see you now?” Dwight was curious. Something must have happened last night. Otherwise, Edmund would not suddenly grant an audience to Kaze. “I don’t know. I had some drinks last night, and now he probably made time.” Kaze felt better after breakfast. He did not think much of the situation. Things would carry on as planned regardless of what the Wittersons or the Siegfrieds had to say.This was exactly what Kaze hoped for. Dwight remained in the dark. He drove to the city’s most exclusive area for the rich. It was all greenery in this part of town. The road was wider, an
After a brief hesitation, Kaze followed Rosie. The room turned out to be Rosie’s. Though not a big room, it was crammed with all kinds of junk. The place looked cluttered. Rosie approached the vanity table and grabbed the comb to comb her hair. She turned to look at Kaze. “You said a lot of stuff last night. Do you remember any of it?” Rosie spoke like they had been friends for years. It was just small talk. “What did I say? I don’t really remember. You made a lovely drink, but man, it really kicked in.” Kaze put a cigarette to his lips, but he did not light it. Instead, he spotted a chair to sit down on. “Well, it’s pointless to talk about it if you can’t remember.” Rosie was pleased to hear that. At least, Kaze had no idea that she had gotten him drunk. “Don’t leave me hanging.” Kaze looked peeved. “Are you off the clock?” Kaze asked. “Yes. I work odd hours. It’s time for me to sleep now.” Rosie stared at Kaze. “I shouldn’t keep you from resting.”
“Can you give me something for the pain?” Clemont had a low tolerance for pain. Standing on the stairway, Morris heard his voice and sighed. Clemont could do no good in his eyes. “Keep an eye on him. He’s not allowed to leave the house for the time being.” Morris believed the incident was more than meets the eye. Yet, Clemont was tricked into going to Absolute Zero and starting shit. There was no telling whether the Wittersons or someone else was behind it. Morris let out a sigh and returned to the study. He sent the butler to the storage room to fetch a few valuable antiques. These items were collected years ago, and they cost a fortune. Morris’ intention was to be on good terms with the Wittersons. There was no need to be at war with them. He had to do it for the interest of the Viper’s Den and his family. Morris was all about looking at the bigger picture. Otherwise, he would not have put up with all the bullshit before. Edmund would not let him off the ho
“Are you trying to kill your son?” Clara intervened. “You’re ruining him by spoiling him. If you want things to continue as they were, you can kiss him goodbye forever,” Morris said. Clara was lost for words. She knew better, but she just could not stop herself. Clemont had her heart. Clara could not stand to see him hurt. She was distressed. However, she knew that Morris would not get over the matter without beating Clemont up. She had to step in. “Hit him!” Morris was too old to do anything laborious. However, the kid would not go anywhere in life without a good beating. Despite starting trouble, he sure was arrogant to admit that he was wrong. “I see the errors of my ways.” Clemont apologized in time to avoid the punishment. He managed to escape all repercussions by doing so. Plus, his mother would plead on his behalf. The whole thing would usually get brushed aside. Though it was more serious in this instance, Clemont still believed that Morris would not hur
Morris was in his study, wiping a plaque of commandments that was covered in dust. Due to his commitment to the Viper’s Den, he had neglected his family for years and left his son in his wife’s care. Morris regretted doing so. Unaware of the impending danger, Clemont enjoyed drinks with his friends. They were having fun, playing drinking games. Losing the game, Clemont downed a glass of liquor. Things could get far and exciting in a game. It was then that the door swung open. Clemont’s driver entered the room. “Young Master Siegfried, the master is waiting for you at home,” the driver said, noting the complexity of the situation. The only thing on his mind was to take Clemont away. Tipsy from the drinks, Clemont waved his arm. “Let him wait. What’s the rush to get home?” Clemont’s friends were shocked. Nothing scared Clemont like his father. However, Clemont toughened up for once. “Young Master Siegfried, why don’t you call it a night?” “Yeah. I’m sur
“What’s that supposed to mean? When have I ever made a mistake?” Morris heard nothing of that sort. It could only mean that his people had done nothing wrong. However, Edmund could not possibly get aggressive on the phone. Something must have happened, and he simply had no idea. Morris felt unsettled like something big was about to happen. “You seem to be lax when managing your people. You don’t seem to know what goes on around your house.“Is your age getting to you? Is that why you can’t handle most of the work? If you can’t get your own house in order, how will you ever manage the Viper’s Den Westeros Branch?” Edmund called to say his piece. It was his way to make Morris step down. Though it was likely that Morris would resign, Edmund could at least make things unpleasant for him. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Morris was completely in the dark, but Edmund must hold some secret to act so cocky. Despite his troubled feelings, Morris kept his cool and calmly aske
Since it was a rare opportunity, Edmund had to settle the score with them properly. He knew opportunities like this were hard to come by so he had to seize them well. “I understand. I will take care of the guest,” Rosie said. She was glad that her information was useful to her boss. After Edmund hung up the phone, Rosie then looked at the unconscious Kaze. “You are indeed more useful than I thought. Hardly anyone has ever managed to impress Edmund.” She did not feel sorry for Kaze, believing that everything happened as it was meant to. She knew that to climb higher, she had to please her superior. With the Wittersons on the rise, now was the perfect time for her to pledge her loyalty to Edmund. When the Wittersons truly took over the Westeros Branch, she would become one of the most powerful people in the city, second only to them. She was looking forward to that day. Since Kaze was fast asleep and no arrangements could be made, Rosie went out to call her men and