After walking aimlessly for what felt like hours, Tedmond finally stopped to rest on a park bench. He clutched his bag on his lap while scrolling through his phone.
Though he had boldly told them they’d regret their actions, he had no idea how that would happen.
The first thing he did was check his account balance, hoping he had enough money for some food. The remaining $1 glared back at him.
“Damn it,” he muttered, digging into his wallet, only to find it empty as well. “I’m really broke.”
The more he stared at his account, the more it mocked him. He was about to shut off his phone when a message notification chimed. Expecting it to be from Lisa, he frowned but checked it anyway.
As he opened the message, his jaw dropped. It was a bank alert, notifying him of a credit to his account.
"Your account has been credited with $10,000,000,000," the message read.
He rubbed his eyes and counted the digits one by one.
“Ten billion dollars!” he screamed, shocked. But noticing people on the street staring at him, he quickly composed himself. “Oh, ten billion dollars... in the game. Such a fun game,” he added hastily.
The people who had turned to him quickly looked away, unimpressed.
Tedmond checked his account balance again, and indeed, the numbers stared back at him: $10,000,000,001.
As he was trying to wrap his head around it, his phone rang, startling him. Seeing an unknown number, he answered it in a hurry.
“Hello,” Tedmond said.
“Hello, Mr. Tedmond Griffin. It’s a pleasure to speak with you. You’ve been selected as the heir to the fortune of the Washington family.”
Tedmond’s jaw nearly hit the ground.
“Since you’ve passed the test, you can come over now. Meet us at Finsall’s Hospital. You don’t have much time.”
“Wait!” Tedmond half-yelled. “What are you talking about? How am I the heir to the Washington family fortune? Who are they?”
“You’ll find out soon enough, young master,” the man on the phone replied. “Finsall’s Hospital, room 509. You have twenty minutes. We’ll be waiting.”
“I don’t—” Beep! Beep!
The call ended before Tedmond could say anything more. Confused and curious, he bolted toward the street, hailed a taxi, and got in as quickly as he could.
“Finsall’s Hospital!”
Soon after, he was dashing out of the taxi, glancing at his account balance, now reduced to $9,999,999,981 after paying the fare. They wouldn’t mind, right?
Entering the hospital, he rushed past the front desk, already knowing the room number. Several women nearby turned to look at him immediately.
“Hey!” one of the women called, eyeing his appearance. “Why are you here?” she asked. “This hospital doesn’t treat people like you. Only the wealthy can afford it.”
Tedmond paused and glanced back at her. The women scowled, making him glance at his worn-out shoes.
“I’m here to see someone,” he replied. “I don’t see why I shouldn’t be.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you know you have to check in before going upstairs?”
“Why? I already know the room number. Why bother with trivial formalities?”
“How dare you!” she yelled, her brows twitching in anger. “With your appearance, there’s no way anyone from your family is here! You’re lying! If you're telling the truth, what’s the room number?”
The other women nodded in agreement.
“That’s right,” one of them said. “You must be here to steal from the sick.”
“Room 509,” Tedmond replied without hesitation.
“Hah!” the first woman sneered, a smirk playing on her lips. “The hospital rooms stop at 508! I knew you were lying! You son of a bitch!”
Before Tedmond could respond, the second woman shouted, “Security! Security!”
Tedmond blinked in confusion. Had he heard the room number wrong? He was sure the man on the phone had said room 509.
Security guards arrived, and the first woman pointed at Tedmond.
“Get him out of here! He’s here to cause trouble. A poor brat like him thinks he can sneak in and steal from the patients. Throw him out!”
The guards grabbed Tedmond, ready to drag him away.
“I’m not a thief!” Tedmond protested. “I’m here to meet someone in ward 509.”
“What’s going on here?” a loud voice demanded, stopping everyone in their tracks.
The guards froze and turned around. Tedmond saw a thin man with a long nose and blond hair that looked like a wig approaching. The women’s faces lit up.
“Oh, Mr. Gregory!” one of the women said, fluttering her eyelashes. “This boy is trying to sneak into the hospital under false pretenses! He claims he’s visiting someone in a non-existent room!”
Mr. Gregory was the hospital’s Chief Operating Officer, in charge of overseeing operations and managing departments.
“A non-existent room?” Mr. Gregory repeated. “What room?”
Tedmond freed himself from the guards' grip. “Room 509,” he said, glancing at the clock and seeing he only had five minutes left.
At the mention of room 509, Mr. Gregory’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Room 509?” Gregory asked. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Isn’t that Mr. Washington’s room?” Gregory muttered, then glared at Tedmond. “How dare someone like you claim to be connected to the Washington family?!”
Everyone chuckled upon hearing "Washington."
Realizing he was running out of time, Tedmond quickly dialed the number that had called him earlier. The person picked up immediately.
“Yes, young master. Are you here?”
“I’m at the front desk, but a man named Gregory won’t let me in,” Tedmond said, staring directly at Gregory.
“How dare he?!” the man on the phone growled. “Don’t worry, I’ll handle everything.”
The call ended, and the people around Tedmond looked at him with disdain.
“Do you think your fake call will scare me?” Gregory sneered. “What makes you think you could get in here?”
Just then, Gregory’s phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID, hesitating. It was his boss.
‘Why is the boss calling me?’ Gregory wondered, eyeing Tedmond warily. ‘Could he really be involved?’
Gregory answered in his most polite tone. “Hello...”
“How dare you?!” a harsh voice bellowed, loud enough for everyone to hear. “How dare you deny entrance to the guest of the Washington family?! Are you tired of living?!”
Latest Chapter
CHAPTER 874
Persis let out a soft, melodic laugh, the tension from the beach dissolving completely as she tossed the invitation back onto Thomas’s silver tray. She stepped closer to Tedmond, her eyes bright with a sudden, playful energy that contrasted sharply with the high-stakes corporate warfare they had been discussing."Well, if we're going to completely upstage a D.C. dynasty in front of the entire infrastructure committee," she murmured, looping her arms around his neck, "we certainly can't wear our beach clothes."She tilted her head up, a brilliant, knowing smile spreading across her face."Should I pick the outfits for us, honey? I think a classic black-tie aesthetic would contrast beautifully with whatever desperate shade of green Arthur is going to turn when we walk through the front doors."Tedmond’s gaze softened as he looked down at her. His hands came up to rest firmly on her waist, drawing her a fraction closer."I leave the wardrobe entirely in your hands," he said, the low ru
CHAPTER 873
Tedmond nodded slowly, unbuttoning his cuffs as they walked toward the study."I just need to check the morning routing logs for the infrastructure board before the capital markets open," he said. "The Meriwether seats should be cleared by seven.""Sir," Thomas stepped forward, his voice a smooth, rhythmic cadence that perfectly matched the quiet atmosphere of the house. "Forgive the late intrusion, but this arrived via courier fifteen minutes ago. It carries an executive priority seal."Tedmond paused, his blue eyes narrowing slightly at the silver tray. "Who sent it?""The return protocol traces back to Arthur Meriwether’s private office, sir," Thomas replied. "It is an invitation to a formal gala."Tedmond didn't even reach for the envelope. A flicker of cold disdain crossed his face, his voice dropping into a flat, immediate refusal. "Burn it. I told him in the parking lot that I don't do business on the sand, and I certainly don't drink with desperate men trying to buy back the
CHAPTER 872
Vance stepped up beside Arthur, resting a flat hand against the heavy table to ground him. "Arthur, ease off. Let him speak.""No, Vance! I am paying for an option!" Arthur hissed. His eyes were bloodshot, his voice rising to a frantic, erratic pitch that echoed off the metal bulkheads. "I’m the one on the hook here! Tomorrow morning, a mandate lands on my compliance chief's desk. Forty percent of my infrastructure seats… gone!”His eyes narrowed. “I am handing him the keys to the kingdom because my idiot son made a scene over a volleyball! I am not going to sit back and let a man in a linen shirt dictate whether my family eats or starves!"Henderson didn't flinch. He slowly set his mug down, the ceramic clicking sharply against the heavy oak surface."You think you're the first person to stand in this cabin and scream about the keys to the kingdom?" Henderson murmured, his voice dropping into a low, chilling register that instantly cut through Arthur’s hysteria. "Ten years ago,
CHAPTER 871
The SUV ground to a halt at the gated entrance of Pier Forty-Two, its tires crunching heavily over shards of glass and dried seaweed. The driver killed the engine and headlights, plunging the cabin into near-total darkness."Keep the engine warm," Vance told the driver, his voice a low whisper. He turned to Arthur, his expression grim. "Keep your mouth shut unless he asks you a direct question. These old intelligence brokers don't care about your banking committees. They only care about survival parameters."Arthur nodded frantically, his throat bone-dry as he stepped out into the biting, salt-heavy air.They walked down the long, creaking pier, the ancient timber groaning beneath their weight like a staircase ready to collapse. At the very end of the dock, tied to a pair of rusted iron bollards, sat The Iron Sentry. The trawler was massive, its hull covered in jagged patches of dark orange rust, looking completely abandoned to the casual eye. But Vance’s sharp ears caught the f
CHAPTER 870
Vance’s fingers moved across his screen with a rapid, practiced rhythm, its dull glow illuminating the sharp angles of his face. The interior of the SUV remained dead silent, save for the low hum of the climate control and the distant, mocking murmur of the surf.Outside the tinted window, Arthur paced a tight, frantic line in the gravel. Every crunch of stone beneath his designer loafers felt like a second ticking away from his life. He checked his watch again, his heart hammering violently against his ribs.Inside the cabin, Vance placed the phone to his ear. It didn't ring with a standard tone; instead, a series of high-pitched digital clicks echoed through the speaker before a heavily modulated voice patched through."Speak," the voice rasped, entirely devoid of inflection."It’s Vance. I need a line to Henderson," Vance said, his tone flat and professional. "Code alpha-seven. The maritime grid."A long pause stretched over the airwaves. The silence was so heavy that Vance co
CHAPTER 869
Arthur stood rooted to the gravel for a full minute after the taillights of the vintage convertible disappeared past the resort’s iron gates. The exhaust from Tedmond’s engine still hung faint and heavy in the humid night air.Slowly, the paralysis left his limbs. He lowered the leather portfolio, his knuckles aching from how tightly he’d been gripping the eighty-million-dollar offering. The panic in his chest hadn't receded; it had simply crystallized into a cold, terrifying realization. They weren't just taking his boards, his seats, and his autonomy. They were systematically dismantling the perimeter he had spent his entire life building."Are they..." Arthur’s voice cracked in the darkness, trailing off before he could finish the thought. He looked toward the shadow of the main gates. "Are they going to take revenge anyway?"The question hung unanswered in the empty driveway. A document at eight o'clock tomorrow morning wasn't a truce; it was a hostage situation. Handing ov
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