"A huge piece of good news?" Ashley raised an eyebrow, curious as she asked, "What exactly is this good news?" Suzanne, overjoyed, said, "Aren't you curious about what kind of deal Mr. Charlie reached with the Rothschild family? Miss Lavor told me that he made a secret agreement with Harrison, the current Rothschild family head. Mr. Charlie gave him a pill, and in exchange, he received some cash and a complete AI model." "A complete set?!" Ashley widened her eyes in astonishment. "Is it the most powerful AI model currently invested in by the Rothschilds?" "Yes!" Suzanne nodded vigorously. Ashley hastily asked again, "This AI model is currently the biggest trend in internet technology, and its future market value will be no less than several hundred billion dollars. It has even been elevated to a strategic level by America, with both software and hardware being banned from export. How did Charlie manage to pull this off?" Suzanne replied, "Miss Lavor didn't reveal too many d
Holly and Jaxson asked Charlie many questions but avoided any mention of Zekeiah, almost as if they had a mutual understanding to steer clear of that topic. After lunch, Charlie stayed to chat with Holly for a while before saying his goodbyes. When Holly saw him preparing to leave, she stood up and said, "Charlie, let me walk you out." At this moment, Lulu, who had been silent, stood up and said, "Mom, you take a rest. I'll see him out." Charlie knew that Lulu wanted to talk to him privately, so he nodded and said, "Yes, Grandma. Lulu will take me out." Knowing that Lulu needed some privacy with Charlie, Holly nodded. "Okay. Lulu, see him out, then." Lulu and Charlie walked out of the villa one after the other. As they reached the courtyard, Lulu couldn't help but ask, "Charlie, be honest with me—is Zekeiah already dead?" Her question didn't surprise Charlie, and he replied candidly, "Yes, he is dead." Lulu pursed her lips and followed up, "How did he die?" Charlie a
Fortunately, the Acker family members had weathered many storms and had a far greater perspective than most people. Charlie said, "The infiltration capabilities of the scholars from the Qing Eliminating Society are far beyond what we could have imagined. The individuals who appeared around you and Jaxson back then—those who left a strong impression or even earned some of your admiration—were likely all part of their network. Even if it were me, I might not have been able to discern their true intentions in time." Lulu nodded gently, and Charlie's words seemed to offer her some comfort. Charlie knew that she needed time to process everything, so he spoke gently, "For the next couple of days, don't think about anything. Just rest. After some time, the situation between us and the Qing Eliminating Society should change significantly, and it will give us more control. When that happens, we might need to take the initiative, and at that time, you and Jaxson should try to be involved
Upon hearing that Charlie would host him, Julien was flattered and expressed his gratitude, saying, "I truly appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to meet with me!" Charlie smiled and replied, "We're good friends, no need for formalities. When do you expect to land in Aurous Hill?" Julien thought for a moment and respectfully responded, "I'll be flying in a few hours, with a flight time of about 15 hours. I expect to land in Aurous Hill around 10 a.m. local time tomorrow." Charlie said, "In that case, tomorrow at noon, I'll host a banquet for you at The Heaven Springs, the most famous restaurant in Aurous Hill. It's well-known, so your employees should be able to find it easily. You can just come over directly when you arrive." Although the Rothschild family didn't have personnel stationed in Aurous Hill, their Asian headquarters was located in Eastcliff with high-ranking officials as well as a large number of staff. Julien had already informed the administrative
Meanwhile, Charlie went down the mountain and arrived at the Champs Elys Resort. To avoid disturbing the students during their practice, Charlie informed Albert of his arrival by phone. Albert, being at the bottom of the martial arts students in terms of skill and treating it more as a casual interest, was asked to wait at the entrance of the resort. When Charlie arrived, Albert, dressed in his training outfit, was already waiting at the door. He quickly stepped up to the car, opened the door for Charlie, and respectfully greeted, "Mr. Wade, welcome." Charlie nodded and said, "Tomorrow, have The Heaven Springs temporarily closed to the public and prepare a table with excellent food and drinks. For any customers with existing reservations, make sure to provide them with appropriate compensation." Without hesitation, Albert agreed and asked, "Are you expecting some guests?" Charlie casually replied, "Not exactly guests—just someone coming from afar who's a bit of a fool."
"The Rothschild family members?" Hearing Albert's remarks, Charlie frowned slightly and said, "Oh! Are you talking about Edmund and his dad?" "Yes!" Albert nodded and laughed out loud. "That American bastard who poisoned Miss Young's father and caused his kidney failure. Didn't he and his dad always say that they were from the Rothschild family?" Charlie waved him off dismissively. "They're not part of the Rothschild family. Rothschilds wouldn't carry the surname 'Whittaker'." Pausing to think, he added, "The surname 'Whittaker' is likely of Jewish origin. They might actually be relatives of the Rothschild family by marriage." As he spoke, a realization dawned on him. "I think I've got it. Julien coming to Aurous Hill might very well be to look for this father-and-son duo. Harrison has just recovered and wants to remain the family head for a few more years—he's probably trying to strengthen ties with these branch families." Albert gasped, "If that's the case, that bastard i
After that, Charlie asked, "Has everything been going well here lately?" Caden clasped his hands respectfully and replied, "Everything has been going very well. With the follow-up mental techniques you provided from the Taoist Sect Hanbloom Method, everyone's foundations are very solid. This batch of students has made the fastest progress I've seen in all my years of teaching." Charlie remembered his disciple, Sonia, who had previously taken the entire Taoist Sect to Oskia on her own initiative, effectively becoming part of his sect. Since he didn't have time to manage them, he had left everything under Caden's supervision. Curious, he asked, "How are the Taoist Sect disciples doing in their training?" Caden responded, "These disciples' training progress has been much faster than when they were in the United States. Sonia is now like a workaholic, training all day, every day, and her progress is astonishing—beyond my expectations." He continued, unable to hide his admiration, "
Caden didn't know what kind of gifts Charlie was planning to give everyone, but from his perspective, since each of the over 400 people would receive one, it was likely something that could be bought with money. Caden was as rich as a king and wasn't particularly interested in things that money could buy. However, since Charlie had mentioned it, he naturally wanted to show his support. He expressed his gratitude, saying, "Despite your busy schedule, you're still thinking of us. I'm truly honored, and on behalf of everyone, I thank you." Charlie chuckled. "You're welcome." Caden respectfully replied, "If there's nothing else, I'll go ahead and ask Miss Ito to come over." "Okay." Caden retreated and went back to the martial arts hall. He called Nanako over and said in a low voice, "Miss Ito, Mr. Wade is at the manager's office right now. He wants to see you." "What?" Nanako squealed in pleasant surprise. "Mr. Wade is here? Oh my, I'll go over now! Thank you, Master Howton."