Speaking was sometimes an art; this was especially the case at this moment, for Leon’s question spoiled Heather’s mood just as it finally improved. Heather sometimes hated Leon for being so blunt. Even if he has seen through it, he shouldn’t disclose it. How should I answer this kind of question?
Seeing how Heather didn’t answer him, Leon looked somewhat sheepish, and he started to forcibly change the subject again. “I’m feeling rather hungry.”
“It’s not good to eat so much at night.” Heather went on with the subject. Since Leon had given her a way out, why shouldn’t she take this opportunity to get herself out of this?
She thought to herself, It seems that it’s inappropriate to talk to anyone about Matthias. Even when I try to talk to Leon about Matthias, the conversation still ends on a sour note even though he’s an outsider. Any conversation automatically turns grave once it involves Matthias, and it seems like talking about this in a relaxed atmosphere is merely wishful thinking.
“Can you cook?” Leon looked at Heather with utmost sincerity as he was really hungry. He had good digestion, and he always felt hungry not long after a meal. As such, having four or five meals in a day wasn’t a problem for him. He felt even hungrier after drinking some cognac, but he knew that he could kill someone with his cooking skills.
“No,” Heather replied stoically. She refused to make food for Leon, for the grease and smoke produced in the kitchen would make her dirty. It never occurred to her that she would cook for someone one day, for she would rather do so to fill herself with food.
Leon looked at Heather helplessly. In his opinion, Heather was capable of everything, but it was apparent that she would never make a few stir-fries for him. The last glimmer of hope was gone.
When she saw that Leon’s mind was preoccupied with getting something to eat, Heather decided to go back to her room with the remaining half bottle of cognac in her arms to drink to her heart’s content alone.
Meanwhile, Leon looked at Heather helplessly from behind. Heather has abandoned me again by leaving me alone on the sofa. She’s too cruel!
After drinking almost the whole bottle of cognac, Heather lay on her back in bed with a look of despair. Her cheeks were warm, and all she could smell was alcohol; even her body reeked of it. She soon felt that the world was spinning around her, so she closed her eyes and quietly appreciated the peaceful silence at this moment.
The day would dawn in a while, and she opened her eyes to look at the curtains thoughtfully. Her head was dizzy, and it was probably because she had almost stayed up through the entire night—staying up late would make someone weak, after all. I wasted an entire night because of Matthias again, thought Heather as she scolded herself inwardly for being useless. Why should she let him control her?
Just then, the poisonous look Matthias had given her before he turned around crossed her mind. Judging by the hatred which filled Matthias’s eyes, he would probably never forgive her for the rest of his life. Perhaps he would get over his obsession with her one day, or perhaps he would no longer hate her bitterly one day.
…
Meanwhile, Matthias’s entire face looked somewhat unreal behind the shroud of mist as he was soaked in a hot spring bath. Evan dutifully kept watch nearby, for he could never have a good night’s sleep whenever Matthias was in a bad mood.
“Extreme anger will hurt the liver, so please pay more attention to your health,” Evan comforted Matthias as his eyes almost flashed fire. He felt that what Matthias needed right now wasn’t a hot spring bath; instead, Matthias needed a cold bath to cool and calm him down!
“I want to tackle the Langston Group,” Matthias said impassively. It was clear from the look in his eyes that he was suppressing something.
Evan looked at Matthias calmly without a flicker in his eyes; he seemed to have figured out long ago that Matthias would have such a plan. “Are you aware of the consequences?” Matthias would sometimes discuss work-related matters with Evan since the latter had a bit of business acumen. After all, Evan majored in economics and was born into a family of businessmen.
“Why would I grant Old Master Langston’s wish when he wants to reap the spoils without lifting a finger?” Picking up the cigar from the side, Matthias took a big puff from it and blew a smoke ring.
Evan couldn’t express his opinion, though. After all, he wasn’t very interested in what was going on in the business circle. Matthias talked to him about this not to discuss the issue with him, but only to speak his mind. “I’m afraid that the Locke Group isn’t powerful enough to deal with the Hart Group and the Langston Group simultaneously for now,” he advised Matthias dutifully nevertheless, for he couldn’t imagine the Locke Group dealing with the Langston Group and the Hart Group at the same time. Wouldn’t the Locke Group be unable to defend itself if the Langston Group and the Hart Group joined hands?
“We can’t deal with the Langston Group head-on. Instead, we must disintegrate the Langston Group from the inside.” Matthias’s mouth curved into a sly smile. Right now, only a heavy workload could stop his imagination from running wild.
“Blake hasn’t risen to the bait yet, so I’m afraid it won’t be easy to disintegrate the Langston Group from the inside,” Evan analyzed calmly. They had previously thought that they could easily make Blake take the bait, but they had underestimated him.
“We can only start with Blake. Then, we’ll either wait for an opportunity or create one.” Matthias was making plans inwardly, for he must bring Blake down no matter what. Otherwise, how was the Langston Group going to collapse from the inside?
“What about Miss Langston, then?” Evan thought to himself, How is Matthias going to date Heather in the future if he’s about to launch a ruthless attack? Won’t they become enemies instead?
“She is the vital pawn.” Heather’s indifferent face, which one would love and hate simultaneously, crossed Matthias’s mind. Now that things had come to this point, Matthias thought he didn’t have to show anyone mercy. Business rivalries were an extremely common thing. Since Myra had forgotten him completely, he would better do something to make her remember him even if it meant that she would end up remembering his unsavory reputation!
“Are you really going to—” Evan asked, but Matthias cut him short directly before he could finish his sentence. “I want the Locke Group to become the most outstanding enterprise in Bradfort City. I want to prove myself to the Locke Family, and I don’t care about anything else!” It was evident from the harshness of his voice that Matthias had made up his mind.
“Isn’t it too fast, though? We recently took root in Bradfort City, after all.” Evan felt that Matthias was a bit too eager to achieve instant success and gain quick profits. Ever since coming to Bradfort City, Matthias behaved like he had been fired up—he even brought his plans forward.
“What?” Matthias looked up at Evan, for he didn’t like being questioned by someone else.
Since he felt that Matthias was becoming more and more autocratic, Evan couldn’t say anything else. He had said everything he should, so to what extent Matthias would listen to his words was the man’s own business.
“I know your worries. Indeed, the Locke Group isn’t powerful enough to do such a rash thing,” Matthias replied unconcernedly as he didn’t go so far as to lose his basic judgment. When he received no reply from Evan, he continued, “It might be a good way to take them by surprise.” After all, he had a plan in mind. If everyone thought that the Locke Group couldn’t possibly do such a thing, he might get good results by launching an attack when everyone had their guards down.
“Clamping down on them might be useful for the time being, but this method must be disputed if we want to have the number one position to ourselves all the time,” Evan retorted perfectly. In short, he disapproved of Matthias doing such a rash thing. After all, it wasn’t too late to lay a solid foundation in Bradfort City and take their time with this later.
Matthias wanted to take a huge gamble, though. “I can’t wait that long. Since it’s a competition, it’ll be a trade war without bloodshed. I’ll deprive the Hart Group and the Langston Group of the chance to rise again!”
Evan looked at him worriedly, for he felt that Matthias was behaving like a possessed person. Now that nothing could probably stop Matthias, it seemed like he could only wait until Matthias learned the hard way. Matthias isn’t going to stop until he bangs his head against the wall! he thought to himself. “You’re gambling.” The last thing Evan liked was such a leap of faith that was a gamble in nature, for that was how his family had gone bankrupt back then.
Matthias had never been radical, but he became increasingly difficult to understand right now. Evan originally thought that he understood Matthias, but he could no longer tell if that was the case since Matthias had changed a lot. What on earth affected Matthias? Does this irrational behavior have something to do with his relationships?
Business-related matters couldn’t be confused with private affairs. Matthias was in a dangerous state right now, but Evan had no idea where to start. He thought that Heather might be able to put a stop to Matthias’s madness, but Matthias now considered her one of his enemies; it seemed like he wanted to deal with her.
“I’m confident of doing that,” Matthis replied confidently. So what if it was a gamble with high stakes? He could afford any price.
Evan buttoned his lips. Now that Matthias had said this, Evan could no longer give any suggestions. Right now, he could only observe what would be the consequences of Matthias’s obstinacy. At times, Evan even felt that Matthias didn’t like the Locke Group at all and might destroy the Locke Group someday. Instead of saying any negative remarks once more, he encouraged Matthias and said, “In that case, I wish you good luck in advance. May you reach the summit in one fell swoop.”
Since he was satisfied with Evan’s words, Matthias took a glance at him and immersed himself in the hot spring. Evan, who was taken by surprise, nervously looked at the position where Matthias had submerged himself underwater. He thought that Matthias was a bit too capricious.
Matthias didn’t emerge from the hot spring until two minutes later. After looking at Evan impassively with his emotionless eyes, he directly got up from the hot spring. Evan hurriedly unfolded the bathrobe and put it on Matthias, who directly put on his oversized nightgown despite his damp body. At last, he gave a faint smile. “Trust me on this; nothing serious happened to the Locke Group while it was in my hands, so it won’t suffer an unexpected setback in Bradfort City. On the contrary, it will surely make a name for itself.” Matthias knew that Evan was advising him for his own good, but he was more determined to forge ahead since he was bolder than ordinary people.
Evan nodded at Matthias, but he still had misgivings deep down inside as he didn’t know how to answer the latter. After going back to the villa, Matthias went to the master bedroom on the second floor right away, whereas Evan stopped keeping him company.
As he looked at Matthias’s straightened back from behind, Evan had a meaningful look in his eyes; naturally, he wouldn’t easily show it in front of Matthias. Then, he pulled open a nearby door and walked inside without hesitation. No one knew what exactly was on Evan’s mind. Sometimes, Matthias even had a feeling that a potential threat might come from Evan, and this concern was probably not groundless.
As he leaned his back against the door, Matthias reached out his hand, felt his heartbeat, and gave a sorrowful smile. Now that he had no way of turning back, he could only brace himself and walk down this path. He planned on taking a hot shower, so he stepped toward the bathroom. It was already late, and he would have to go to work a few hours later.
It was a new day, and the sun was about to rise. Matthias took a meaningful look at the drawn curtains as another day had gone to waste. I mustn’t let a woman interrupt my train of thoughts, he thought to himself silently.
