Chapter 52 Audacious
After hanging up Douglas’ boss’ call, Jonathan went back to sleep again. Since Jennifer was already at work, he did not need to send her there. Nonetheless, he wasn’t able to sleep for long as she knocked on his bedroom door a little after eight o’clock.
Jonathan was still groggy as he got up to open the door.
Meanwhile, Jennifer was standing outside the room, her expression cheerful. Today, she was dressed in white sportswear and had her hair tied up in a ponytail, looking especially energetic. Not to mention, the fragrance she exuded got him all excited.
Getting to see her every morning was the best moment of his day.
As Jonathan saw more of Jennifer’s captivating beauty, he felt she was truly a one-of-a-kind woman. Every movement she made was enough to enchant him. At the same time, he sighed, thinking that Wesley was too oblivious of his fortune to actually divorce someone like her.
“Jen!” greeted Jonathan loudly as he beamed.
The woman smiled gently. In fact, she always looked forward to seeing his bright smile and hearing his boisterous greeting every morning. It gave her the impression that Jonathan was a lively and simple man. That was the same feeling one would get from watching a sweaty university student play basketball on a sunny day.
It was a kind of personality that was rare in the adult world.
“Hurry up and go wash up. I’m already cooking the pasta. We’ll have breakfast in a few minutes,” she informed.
Jonathan felt a warm feeling in his heart as he replied, “All right!”
To him, it was pretty great to be able to wake up and have breakfast ready for him.
The man was a carefree person and did not like to pay much attention to trivial things. When he was alone, he would eat whatever was available. At times, he would even be too lazy and go hungry instead.
Today’s breakfast was chicken fettuccine alfredo and bagels. They were still piping hot, fresh out of the kitchen.
Jennifer was unquestionably a considerate woman, as seen by her meticulous care of Jonathan. The man gobbled up the pasta merrily in an instant. Looking at how he savored it, she shared some of her pasta with him.
Simultaneously, she asked, “What are we doing today?”
Jonathan mumbled while chewing his food, “The boss of that punk, Douglas, said he wanted to treat me to a meal at Riches Restaurant this afternoon. Come with me.”
Jennifer’s expression darkened slightly as she inquired, “Could it be a trap?”
He chuckled. “Doesn’t matter. As long as there’s food to eat.”
It was evident from his tone that he looked down on Douglas and his gang. This was the confidence that Jonathan exuded from deep within. It doesn’t matter what they are scheming. It won’t bother me at all anyway.
Upon hearing that, Jennifer could not help but smile, knowing she had worried too much. After all, Jonathan was not someone easy to deal with.
Riches Restaurant was situated close to Bar Street. During the day, Bar Street would be quiet, with only a few temperance bars open for business. Riches Restaurant was pretty mysterious among the civilians as it was a popular gathering location for many gangs in Horington.
At present, on the second floor of Riches Restaurant, Yvette, Douglas, and Stuart were standing reverentially beside a middle-aged man.
Stuart’s arm was bandaged and strapped into an arm sling. The doctor had diagnosed him with a comminuted fracture, which meant that even if his arm healed, it would not have much strength anymore. Thus, he could probably register as a disabled person soon.
The middle-aged man was wearing a suit, looking strangely elegant. His name was Jimmy Lancaster, and he was the underground boss in Horington’s northern district.
There were four districts in Horington—north, south, east, and west.
Four districts implied that there were four leaders controlling the underground circles. However, there was someone who reigned over them—Dragon King. He was the true ruler of the underground circles. Yet, he had redeemed himself and no longer cared much about the matters of the underworld. Currently, he was known as a social entrepreneur.
Jimmy did not bring a bunch of lackeys with him. In actuality, all of his subordinates were not insignificant thugs but elite soldiers instead. Today, he brought two burly, intimidating subordinates—Grayden Lewis and Fenix Bronte.
Grayden was forty years old and an expert in Spirit Fist. He was wearing a loose white coat as he sat at the side, sipping his coffee leisurely. As for Fenix, his body was heavily built, and he practiced Octagram Palm Strike. He was thirty-six years old this year and currently in the prime of his life.
When one talked about Jimmy, Grayden and Fenix would be the first names that came to mind. Jimmy’s achievements and current position were all the result of their efforts. Grayden’s Spirit Fist was absolutely terrifying as he once won thirty-six matches consecutively in an underground arena despite how powerful the opponents were. Meanwhile, Fenix had a bad temper. His strength was out of this world, and rumor had it that he could tear a bison apart with his bare hands.
With those two warriors next to him, Jimmy was practically invincible.
At the moment, the man was expressionless.
Douglas, who stood next to him, was afraid of making the slightest sound.
Fenix was the one who broke the silence. “Jim, are you seriously going to give that rascal one million?”
Jimmy turned to him and replied, “It’ll depend on his capabilities. Even though this Jonathan Lawson seems to be a nobody, he dared to provoke me. I’m afraid this matter is not as simple as it looks.”
Grayden, who was more composed, agreed with Jimmy. “That’s right. Even a tiny nail can prick one’s foot. We must be more careful and vigilant. Fighting stubbornly will only cause us to fall sooner or later.”
Jimmy smiled faintly and said, “Times are different now. Not everything is resolved by violence anymore. Dragon King is indeed observant. He has already redeemed himself and retired from the underground circles. Even though we’re currently nowhere near his level, we still need to head in this new direction. As time pass, technology is becoming even more advanced. It’ll only become harder for us to earn a living in this industry.” He paused to glare at Douglas and Stuart before continuing, “Didn’t I tell you guys not to cause trouble? Do you know that there are countless people stronger than you out there? Only someone who has never seen the world would be so ignorant!”
The duo quickly lowered their heads. “You’re right, sir. We got it now.”
Although Yvette was typically an audacious girl, she was particularly quiet before Jimmy’s imposing presence. Supposedly, it was hard for low-ranking people like Yvette and Stuart to meet Jimmy. However, Jimmy needed to understand the whole story of the situation, so he called them over.
Speaking of which, he was tired of cleaning up Douglas’ mess, but he had no choice, for the latter was his subordinate. Besides, Jonathan was ruthless. Jimmy could not possibly allow the man to really cripple Douglas. As a boss, one needed to be ready to accept and bear the responsibility. In addition, Jimmy wanted to find out Jonathan’s background and intentions.
He was a wise man, so he did not let his men cause trouble for Jonathan impulsively. Instead, he invited the latter over for a meal to learn about him.
Based on this, it was evident that Jimmy and Douglas were on different levels.
In the meantime, Jonathan and Jennifer had arrived at Riches Restaurant punctually. Under the guidance of the staff, the two came to the entrance of a private room on the second floor.
After the door was opened, Jonathan immediately strode in.
Jennifer followed behind closely.
Finally, the two parties had met.
Jimmy stood up at once and approached Jonathan with a smile. “You must be Jonathan. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you!” As he spoke, he hugged Jonathan as though they were decades-long old friends.
Jimmy was being all friendly because he knew that no one would strike a smiling face.
After being hugged like that, Jonathan couldn’t bring himself to spew forth harsh words.
When they separated, he rubbed the back of his head and said, “Why are you being so cordial? Could it be that you’re not planning to give me the money?”
Jimmy froze for a moment before bursting into laughter. “You’re a funny one, Jonathan.”
Jonathan could not help cursing silently. Funny, my ass!
Jimmy then went on, “Please, have a seat.”
Following that, Jonathan and Jennifer sat down across from Jimmy.
“Jonathan, I must admit that my men were far too ignorant. I taught them a harsh lesson as soon as I heard the news.” Jimmy paused before saying to Douglas, “What are you waiting for? Hurry up and apologize!”
Douglas promptly responded as he heard the order. Of course, he was upset that Jimmy did not stand up for him and was chastising him before the enemy instead.
However, he held back his anger and quickly apologized to Jonathan while pouring coffee for everyone in the room.
Then, he went back to stand beside Jimmy deferentially.
Jonathan held the cup and looked at Jimmy. “I know that you’re a smart person, but it doesn’t matter whether he apologizes to me or not. Where’s the money you promised me?”
The man had spoken like a money-grubber.
Jimmy continued to smile at Jonathan, who he now found even more mysterious.
Despite facing Jimmy’s intent gaze, Jonathan did not feel uncomfortable at all. He merely crossed his legs and sipped on his drink.
Annoyed, Fenix stood up and rebuked, “Hey, rascal, you’re quite audacious, huh?”
Jonathan chuckled, ignoring him. He turned to Jimmy and said, “So, how should I address you?”
Jimmy replied, “My name is Jimmy Lancaster.”
“Oh, Jimmy!” Jonathan nodded. “It seems like this subordinate of yours is quite impolite, but it’s fine. I’ll help you to discipline him.”
Immediately after saying that, he stood up and turned to Fenix. “Hey, rascal, you’re pretty arrogant, aren’t you?”
Fenix was stunned for a moment before he sneered. “What? You wanna discipline me?”
Jonathan replied with a grin, “That’s right. Why? Is there a problem?”
Fenix’s eyes instantly flashed with rage. He was a formidable person, so there was no way he could tolerate such insolent disrespect. He scoffed, “Sure. Let’s see how good you really are, then.”
Fenix took a big step toward Jonathan right after he spoke. A single step of his had closed up the over-one-meter distance between them. He appeared in front of Jonathan in the blink of an eye as a shockwave ripped through the room.
His palm was aimed at Jonathan’s chest with incredible speed as if it was fortified with unfathomable power.
Such fearsome technique was known as Octagram Palm Strike’s Stele-smashing Fist!
