The Inheritance
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Chapter 51

“Are you kidding me, didn’t I just see you holding it?”

They arrived at the entrance, and other rich young men advised him.

“Yeah, but just now I had to pee, didn’t I? The car stopped somewhere on the way and I peed in the woods. Damn it, I was holding on the admission ticket, and after I finished peeing, I don’t seem to remember holding anything in my hand, I guess that’s when I lost it!”

The group started poking fun at him, but they were clearly just joking as friends.

Everyone was getting a bit anxious.

“Let’s look for it again, but if we can’t, we’ll go back and get it…”

“That’s pretty far from here!”

They discussed and explained to the female receptionist about how he had the ticket but he lost it, and if he was still allowed to enter and such.

The female receptionist directly denied their entrance.

“What’s the matter?”

At this moment, a middle-aged man in a suit walked towards the group of men and women.

“Oh, you must be Yancy Zimmerman.”

The middle-aged manager originally had an indifferent expression across his face, but when he saw the person who had lost his ticket, his face brightened up.

“Do you still remember me? I had dinner with your father, Mr. Taylor Zimmerman, in a restaurant in the county state. You were there with us!”

The middle-aged manager smiled.

“Oh, I remember, are you Ted Lopez, the manager of the tour company?”

“Yes, yes, yes it’s me. So, what’s all this commotion here about?”

Ted asked with a smile.

Usually, Yancy had an easy-going personality and everyone loved to joke around with him, but his family’s billion dollar assets were considered big in the County state.

And it was obvious that Yancy was the main focal in the group of men and women.

So, no matter how much they fooled around, once they heard that Yancy is in trouble, none of them would leave his side.

Especially the girls.

“Hahaha, well, Mr. Lopez, I lost my entrance ticket, but if I go back to search for it, that wouldn’t be such a great idea. So, is it okay if I can enter without the ticket?”

Yancy smiled, thinking in his mind, everything would be fine.

He tried to brush it off and was ready to step inside.

“No, Yancy!” Ted stopped him. “If it were the usual old days, you could do whatever you want, but this time, it is a special occasion. I’ll just give you a direct explanation. On the surface, this cruise party was seemingly organized by Mr. Holden for a group of rich young people to have fun and party. But in actual fact, Mr. Holden actually wanted to invite Mr. Crawford from Mayberry!”

“Mr. Crawford?”

Yancy and the others looked at each other.

“Ahem, I don’t think you’ll know who Mr. Crawford is based on my direct explanation, but you must’ve known about the commercial street at Mayberry, right?”

“Nonsense, the street was known as the Gold Fountain of Mayberry! That street was always bustling and crowded. I used to want to go to Wayfair Mountain Entertainment, but I almost could not afford it!” said Yancy.

“Ahem, forget about Wayfair Mountain Entertainment. Actually, the entire Mayberry Commercial Street is owned by one person, and that person is Mr. Crawford!”

“What!”

Yancy was shocked.

The pretty girls next to him were all shocked as well.

Some of the second-generation rich people were indeed rich, but they got the money from their parents. As for someone like Richard Crawford, who had his own big industry, he was simply way too up there. They were wondering who were the ones supporting him from behind.

The entire crowd was shocked.

“Yancy, that is why the entrance rules are stricter this time. They’re afraid some nasty people or the paparazzi would sneak in or something.”

Ted explained, patiently.

“Okay, okay, then we’ll go back and look for the ticket!”

They drove back and searched for half a day, but to no avail.

“F*ck, does this mean I can’t get in?”

Yancy said bitterly.

There was only one admission ticket per person, and this was not a commodity that one could just buy.

And at that very moment, the female receptionist who had been standing quietly by the side, suddenly turned red.

She was dying to say something just now, but she did not dare because what the manager had said was a little too frightening.

She did run into a very suspicious person going in earlier that evening.

Should she say or not?

She was afraid she would get fired if she said it, but if she did not, thinking about it, she felt like she should as this was a very grand event.

She could not bear the burden even if it kills her.

In the end….

She decided to say it out loud.

“Mr. Lopez and Mr. Zimmerman, you don’t have to worry. Maybe the reason you can’t find your ticket was because someone must have picked it up!” The female receptionist immediately spoke up.

“What? By whom?”

Yancy asked.

Hadley Zamora, the female receptionist, immediately told everything that she had seen about the suspicious man right on the spot.

“Why didn’t you call out to me then, if something like this happens, we’ll all be in trouble, didn’t you know that!”

Ted slammed his thighs.

He hated the sound of this person whom Hadley had described to the very detail.

In that instance, he ordered Hadley to look for the person.

As for Yancy and the others, they went in and mingled with the crowd.

Richard seemed to not know anything that was happening outside. He was enjoying the wide, beautiful golden beach.

As he listened to the sea whistling, he figured the party that will be held tonight would be really cool.

Next to the beach was a hotel overlooking the ocean.

Richard took the admission ticket and entered the hotel under the guidance of another male receptionist.

Earlier that day, Aiden Baker gave him a call.

They were still in their rooms and they had not woken up yet. They never thought Richard would come so early.

They immediately went out to find Richard.

“Stop right there, someone please stop him!”

Suddenly, Ted ran all the way here and saw Richard was about to enter the elevator. He immediately shouted at him.

Richard saw a group of people running towards him.

—

Richard was surprised. He stopped to see what they were up to.

“You! Show me your admission ticket right now!”

Ted Lopez’s anger was overwhelming.

To be honest, Richard looked nothing like a rich young man.

He doubted earlier that this could’ve been a mistake, but after taking a look at Richard’s clothing.

This definitely was not a mistake!

Ted hated him to the bone.

“Didn’t you check my admission ticket earlier!” Richard pointed at the female receptionist.

“If I didn’t check, how would I know that a loser just sneaked in!”

“Mr. Zimmerman, this is the person, I think he picked up your admission ticket!” Hadley shouted at him, rudely.

After saying that, she approached Richard and snatched away the admission ticket from his hands.

“Geez, the world is really big and there are all kinds of people, and people like you really think you can just join tonight’s cruise party!”

A few girls covered their mouths as they snickered, their eyes were filled with contempt.

Only then did Richard understand.

He had a feeling that they called out to him because they suspected that he had picked up someone else’s admission ticket, and it just so happened that someone had lost a ticket, so the first person that they suspected was him!  

Richard was left speechless.

“Mr. Lopez, call the police, this person must be trying to plot something bad!” The girls said.

Hedley had already taken out her phone and was ready to call the police.

“Mr. Crawford, so you’re here!”

Just then, Aiden Baker and the others arrived.

They came running over.

“Huh? Aiden, it’s you!”

Yancy said at the same time.

“Nice to meet you, Aiden!”

The few beautiful girls beside Yancy greeted him respectfully.

The Baker family’s assets were over a hundred million dollars in total.

“Oh, Yancy, so it’s you guys!”

The group, like Aiden, were all third-year students at Johnhurst University.

Of course they all knew Aiden Baker, the big bully of Johnhurst University.

“Mr. Crawford, do you know them?”

Aiden laughed and asked Richard.

“I don’t know any of them. They accused me of stealing their ticket and sneaked in, they were even going to call the police to arrest me!”

Richard smiled bitterly.

“What? Steal their tickets? Who the f*ck said that?”

Aiden was furious.

Hadley was stunned. She had heard of Aiden Baker, and he was considered quite famous, just like Mr. Holden.

But why was Aiden so polite towards this loser?

And what did Aiden just call him?

Mr. Cra…Crawford?

“Mr. Baker, please let me explain, I think there might be some misunderstanding. We were just suspicious of this young man and we only wanted to check his admission ticket. After all, you know how important this cruise party is!”

“Hehe, of course I know! Ted Lopez and Yancy Zimmerman, do you both know who this person is?”

Aiden pointed at Richard.

“He’s Richard Crawford, the owner of Mayberry Commercial Street. Do you seriously think he would steal your tickets?”

“What? He’s Mr. Crawford?”

The crowd had their jaws dropped all the way to the ground.

“Oh! Mr. Richard, I’m really sorry!”

Hadley’s legs were trembling.

She immediately bent and bowed at him.

The words that came out of Aiden’s mouth were obviously valid.

“Umm, Mr. Crawford, I’m really sorry. I really didn’t expect…”

Ted felt a lump forming in his throat, he tried to apologize respectfully.

Not to mention, the girls who stood next to Yancy and mocked Richard were simply nymphomaniacs.

So, he was the super-duper rich guy, Richard Crawford!

Ah!

And they have just said something so mean towards him.

Ugh!

Richard was used to all the mockery. He did not feel like he needed to slap them across their faces. Even if he wanted to, he would have slapped Hadley right in the face when she tried to stop him earlier.

He was only here for a simple meet-up, and he did not want to cause a scene.

All he did was to flash a tight smile across his face, then he headed into the hotel with Aiden Baker and the others.

His phone rang again, and it was Elena Larson calling.

“Mr. Crawford, have you settled in yet? I’m afraid I won’t be able to get over to you!”

“What’s the matter? Is something wrong?” Richard tried to listen closely as Elena sounded quite anxious.

“Argh, I think I’m about to go mad! As you know, I’m at my cousin’s house now, and guess what. My cousin wants to introduce a boyfriend to me, but I don’t want to! My cousin is not letting me go and there’s no way I can hide, argh, Richard, what should I do!”

Elena had always been well-mannered, but from her tone, Richard could tell that she was really frustrated and helpless at the same time.

“Oh, it’s simple, just tell them you have a boyfriend!”

“But here’s the problem, I got all excited and told her that my boyfriend is already here, but I can’t go out to meet other guys and such. My cousin started forcing me to introduce my said boyfriend to her, but where am I going to find a boyfriend? This is such a mess!”

Suddenly, Elena lowered her voice, “Richard, can you do me a small favor?”

“Oh sh*t, what do you mean by that?” Richard’s eyes widened.

—

Richard knew what Elena meant without even thinking about it!

She was definitely trying to get him to pretend he was her boyfriend so she could use him to deal with that cousin of hers.

Richard had done enough pretending, though, let alone pretending as her boyfriend.

“Richard, please, I beg you, please pretend you’re my boyfriend. Aiden and the others look too much like gangsters; they are not as composed as you are. You’re the best candidate for me. If you’re not going to help me, my cousin will definitely hook me up with that guy, and I really don’t want to meet him!” begged Elena.

Although Richard wanted to refuse, he could really find no reason to. After all, Elena had helped him a few times before, and now she was just asking him to return the favor. It was a simple request, and it would be embarrassing if he refused.

“Alright!” Richard nodded and agreed.

After hanging up the phone, Richard did not go upstairs with Aiden and the others. Instead, he took a taxi to Elena’s cousin’s house.

Her cousin’s family was also quite wealthy, having owned a villa in Rivington City.

When he arrived, Elena was already at the entrance waiting for him.

And next to her was a girl who looked to be Elena’s age.

No matter how Richard looked at it, the scene reminded him of the time when he went to Mila Smith’s house. One day, would he run into all of them by pretending to be someone else’s boyfriend?

Richard got out of the car and greeted Elena.

“AH! My gosh, cousin, is this Richard? Is he the boyfriend you mentioned earlier? Why did he get a cab here?”

The girl next to her was relatively fair and pretty, but when he saw Richard, he looked at him with a mix of resentment and disappointment.

It seemed Elena didn’t reveal his identity.

The rich and fair girl had no idea who he was at all.

Judging by how he dressed, he looked like some poor loser no matter which way he was looked at. Besides, wasn’t he ashamed of taking a cab here?

She was disappointed.

“Amber, what are you talking about? Richard is a very nice person! What’s wrong with him being my boyfriend!”

Smiling sweetly, Elena ran over and held Richard’s arm.

Alas, how nice it would be if Richard was really was her boyfriend, Elena thought to herself.

“Alright, alright. I hope my parents and relatives won’t say anything when they see him later!”

Amber curled her lips, not bothered to look at Richard any longer.

She turned and went inside.

“Damn... didn’t you say I only had to meet your cousin? Why are there so many other people?” Richard was stunned.

“They only came after I called you. I’m so sorry, Richard... help me just this once!” Elena popped out her tongue.

“Alright, just this once!” replied Richard helplessly.

What Richard had in mind before he came here was actually quite simple. Once he met up with Elena’s cousin’s family, her cousins would definitely start comparing him with other guys. He would then bring out some of his assets and let them play compare.

It was that simple.

But now, all of Elena’s aunts and uncles were there, and that gave him a headache.

It turned out everyone heard that Elena was coming today, and her family and her cousin’s side were usually quite close.

They even had ties with one another when it came to business dealings.

What more, they heard that Elena had found herself a boyfriend.

So, they all came here.

Chapter 52

“Is he your boyfriend, Elena?”

Upon entering the house, a group of young men and women of about the same age approached them before the adults even spoke a word.

Each one of them sized up Richard.

It wasn’t long before these people revealed their mind.

‘Wow, Elena is so beautiful, and yet she has such horrible taste? It’s obvious that her boyfriend is far from it!’

“Elena, we were going to ask you to join us at the cruise party together, but you always say you have something to do. Hmmm, so you brought your boyfriend with you!” said one of the girls.

“Yeah, but what a coincidence... we can go together!” Elena smiled and held Richard’s hand, never letting it go once.

None of her cousins greeted Richard at all.

Elena knew that they looked down on him too.

However, she didn’t dare reveal Richard’s identity without his consent. Seeing that Richard seemed alright, she was relieved.

But Richard was far from happy, numbed from attending such occasions too often. He simply chose to remain silent and keep his composure.

“Okay, Elena, have a seat!”

At this time, a middle-aged lady stood up. She was Elena’s aunt, Ruby Larson.

She ran her own beauty company, making tens of millions of dollars in annual profits.

Her skin was maintained exceptionally well, and she was used to seeing many wealthy. When she saw an ordinary person like Richard, she felt extremely uncomfortable.

“You must be Richard! Where do you live? What does your family do?” Ruby asked.

The group of rich heirs sneered at Richard’s direction.

“I don’t think he will answer that question. His family must be from the countryside, and they own a farm, right?”

“Ugh, I really can’t fathom how Elena could find such a shabby-looking guy when she’s so pretty and rich? If he was my boyfriend, I would’ve jumped out of the building and died!”

“Look at him; he’s been quiet from the moment he entered the house. Obviously, he’s nervous because he has never seen such a nice house before. He must be overwhelmed by the luxurious surroundings. He’s no competition for Dickson Wayward!”

“Fuck! What are you talking about? He, a competition for Dickson Wayward?”

On one side, several men and women were crossing their arms as they gossiped about Richard.

When Amber heard that they were comparing him to Dickson Wayward, she immediately frowned in disdain.

Who was Dickson Wayward anyway? He was the guy that Ruby introduced to Elena; his family owned a hotel chain. He was a graduate of Johnhurst University and the president of the Department of Economics and Management’s student body!

‘He’s someone with great achievements. This guy right here will never be a match for him!’  

Richard heard everything since they were all chatting loudly.

He wasn’t angry, only slightly depressed.

Did a person’s wealth really matter that much? When did the criteria to differentiate between a good or bad person change from morality to wealth?

If you had the wealth, everything that you said and did was always right; but if you were poor, you were nothing!

Richard reminisced about all the things that happened in the past.

Only then did he look at Amber. “My family is now in a small town in the country. My parents run a small business!” Richard said truthfully.

“Pfft, he really is from a small rural village! His parents probably just run a small kiosk in town... my goodness!”

Amber and the others were even more despicable.

Ruby, who had not said anything about letting Richard sit down, became more serious when she heard this.

“Then what kind of merits do you have to fall in love with Elena? What nerve!”

—

“Auntie, don’t say that!”

Elena glared at her with widened eyes.

She really did not expect such cruel words to come out from her aunt’s mouth.

She really had no idea who the person standing in front of her was. He was truly a great tycoon and a great patron of the Larson family!

Elena was a little shocked.

After being scolded so much, Richard was only slightly agitated. The words and mockeries seemed to have numbed him.

Ruby was about to reprimand Richard even more. She wanted to make him understand that he had to stay away from Elena.

Suddenly, her phone rang, and she picked it up to answer the call.

“Oh? Dickson Wayward? Huh? Didn’t I say I’d let you come next time? What? You’re already at the door? Okay, okay, I’ll go get you now!”

The call was from Dickson Wayward. Ruby had already told him that he wouldn’t be coming today.

But who knew that Dickson would still insist on coming here?

It was Elena’s boyfriend who was coming over, after all, Ruby thought. She was quite pleased with Dickson and wanted Elena to get to know him, perhaps, even get to pull a few strings.

But what if Elena’s boyfriend was even better than the handsome Dickson Wayward?

What if her boyfriend was even richer than the already wealthy Dickson Wayward?

What if…

Ruby had thought of countless what-ifs, but this wasn’t what she had expected.

She did not even want to say it.

Elena had to break up with Richard, or she would let her dad what kind of mess his daughter was in!

“Woah Woah Woah, Dickson is here! Elena, since Dickson will be attending the cruise party as well, you can get to know him more, right?”

Amber and the others had already put Richard aside. As of now, they intended to set up Dickson with Elena.

Right at that moment, Dickson entered the house with Ruby.

“Dickson, you’re looking great!”

Amber smiled sweetly when she saw him.

Dickson was tall and handsome. He wore silver and gold rings and watches on his hands, and it made him look rich.

“Haha! Amber is really getting better with her sweet compliments!”

Dickson shook the watch on his arm and smiled.

His gaze slowly shifted, and that was when he spotted the beautiful, heavenly Elena Larson.

“Let me guess, she must be Elena Lawson, that pretty cousin of yours from Mayberry, right?”

In actual fact, Dickson had met Elena a long time ago. They were both from Johnhurst University, and how could he not notice an impeccable beauty the likes of Elena Larson?

With just a mere glance, Dickson found himself falling in love with her.

She was simply too beautiful, so beautiful his heart was about to explode!

So, when Dickson heard Auntie Amber’s intentionally planned meeting, he was over the moon. But then, he was suddenly told that their meeting was canceled.

Anyhow, a socialite like Dickson wanted to know why she had to cancel the meeting. The more he was not allowed to come, the more he insisted on coming!

“Well, hi there!” Elena greeted politely but immediately stood next to Richard after that.

Was he really that unattractive?

Dickson felt grim.

It was then that he shifted his gaze to Richard.

“So, you’re Elena’s boyfriend?” Dickson laughed confidently, attempting to give off the impression that he was a generous and capable person.

“I am!”

—

“So you’re saying you’re also from Sunnydale University? I’ve never seen you around, though!” Dickson was smiling the whole time.  

“No. I’m from Mayberry University.” Richard knew how to stay calm no matter what kind of vibes the other people were giving him.  

“Mayberry University is fine. Anyways, what does your family do? How did you make Elena fall for you?” Dickson asked.  

“Well, Dickson, allow me to tell you. He came from a small village, and his family runs a tiny grocery store! How do you still not understand by the way he dresses?” Amber answered.

The highest state of ignorance was pretending someone didn’t exist even when he was just right in front of you. Although it was hurtful, nobody would actually point it out. However, Amber had been doing that to Richard all along, and it showed how much she despised him.  

“Oh, it must have been tough studying in Mayberry coming from a small village. Do let me know if you’re in any kind of trouble. My father knows the dean, and I can get things settled for you. If you need a loan, you could always come to me too. I’m from Sunnydale, but I’m actually well connected! Anyways, have you taken any sort of loans before?”  

Dickson soon noticed that Amber had been ignoring him...

“Yes, I did apply for a three-year loan. I used the money to pay for tuition!” replied Richard.

Richard initially intended to prove that Elena was wrong, but now he decided it best to keep a low profile.  

There were three reasons for it:  

One, Richard did apply for a loan and did indeed pay the tuition fee with that money.

Two, even if he was trying to help Elena, there was no need to go to such an extent. Richard realized that Elena wasn’t just pretending that he was her boyfriend, but she actually wanted to develop a different kind of relationship. It wasn’t him being narcissistic. He could actually feel it. Even though Richard did fancy pretty girls and would easily fall for any one of them, he wasn’t a bad person in general.  

Richard had always wanted his girlfriend to connect with on a deeper level, but Elena was definitely not that person. This was because the first time they met, Elena injured his face, resulting in Richard not wanting to date her.  

Three, he did not want to expose his true identity. He was uncomfortable each time he became the center of attention. He never understood why anyone would like that.  

“Damn! You had to pay your school fees with a three-year loan? You must be broke!”  

“Fuck! This is big news. How could someone be so poor they had to apply for a three-year loan? I’d be embarrassed even if I had to just apply for one. I’d probably kill myself!” Amber and the girls mocked.  

Ruby frowned, thinking Elena must have gone crazy to have chosen a guy like him!  

Why would she choose someone like him!

“They say children from poor families are more independent. Well, it does seem right. But if you require money, you can always approach me. I’ll gladly lend it to you since Elena, and I are schoolmates. We can be friends too!” Dickson smiled.  

Even though it was a small gesture, it was clear they were mocking him.  

Being the student president, he was clearly good with words. Every sentence that came out of his mouth subtly insulted Richard.

“There is no need for that, but thank you anyway.” Richard smiled and politely rejected his offer.  

“You’re always welcome. Anyways, since you’re studying at Mayberry University, have you been to the nearby attractions? You should go check out Mayberry Commercial Street and Wayfair Mountain Entertainment. How could you not when you’re already at Mayberry, right? Why not I show you around after this?. My father knows the CEO of a restaurant on Commercial Street. I could bring you there!”  

“Hey Dickson, don’t you remember what Elena's family does? Even if Richard pays a visit, Elena could bring him!” said Amber smiled as she smiled.  

“Oh, right. How could I have forgotten? I only remember that Richard is a pretty poor pauper who hasn’t been anywhere before. Well, it seems like he’s been frequenting Mayberry Commercial Street after being in a relationship with Elena.”  

“Oops… definitely my fault for having bad memory! Hahaha!” Dickson hit his head as he laughed it off.

Chapter 53

Dickson had been showing off his family’s connection with Mayberry in the rest of the conversations while poking fun at Richard.

It would be unreal if Richard was not angry at all. At this point in time, he would have really loved to punch Dickson in his face. All Dickson could ever do was to just show off and mock people. Other than those things, he had no greater purpose.  

That afternoon’s family gathering was quite awful. They continued talking after lunch, and soon, it was past noon.  

Richard had been awake since early that morning, and he was starting to get exhausted.  

Amber suddenly shouted, shocking Richard. “ Dickson, Elena. It’s almost five, and the party is about to start soon! Let’s go get ready now. It’s not nice to be late!”  

“Right! Yoel Holden organized it, after all. We mustn't be late!” Dickson said.  

“Okay, you should get going now. Dickson, please take good care of Amber and Elena!” Ruby said, leaving Richard out of the conversation deliberately.  

“Yes, ma’am!” Dickson replied.  

They went to pick up their cars, and Richard hopped onto Amber’s Porsche. It was only because Elena insisted. If it wasn’t for her, they would probably not have let Richard into the car.  

Elena held onto Richard’s arm tightly, a gesture to tell him that she was sorry. She never thought they would be so mean to him. She apologized on behalf of her family.  

Richard shook his head with a bitter smile on his face.  

As they were talking, they reached the entrance of Mayberry Beach.  

“Does Richard have an entrance ticket?” Dickson wanted to ask that question early on. Still, he waited until they all arrived at the entrance before asking just to embarrass him.  

“I do have it!” Richard nodded as he reached into his pocket for the ticket.  

“You must have gotten it from Elena. Seriously Elena, why are you even so nice to him! Don’t you know? You’re just going to ruin his life if you bring him into our world. Why not just let him live his own life?” Amber complained.  

Amber didn’t usually sound like an adult, but now, she was acting like one. There was even a hint of sophistication in the tone.  

She would usually treat Elena with respect, but she had enough for today. It was the gathering of the wealthy, and everyone there would be really rich. She understood that her sister really loved this Richard and intended to show him their world. But wouldn’t it hurt his pride after seeing so many rich people inside?  

“That’s quite enough, Amber. Don’t be a nuisance!” Elena was frustrated.  

“You two have to stop arguing now, okay. Let’s just go in and have a look, alright? If there’s anything that Richard is afraid of answering, I’ll answer it for him!” Dickson took advantage of the situation.  

“Dickson, you’re such a gentleman!” Amber complimented as she rolled her eyes at Richard.  

It was only five in the afternoon, yet the beach was already crowded.  

“Dickson is here!”  

“Amber, you’re here too! We have already started up the barbeque!”

—

A few rich young men waved at Dickson when they arrived. They all seemed to know each other.

“Wow, so many friends are here. Come, Elena. Let me introduce them to you!” Dickson said.

The youths in question were playing around while eating and drinking, all having a blast.  

Richard was exhausted, not in the mood to meet new people anymore. He really needed a place to rest, then find out where Aiden and the others went.

“You guys have fun. I’ll be heading to the washroom. You guys don’t have to look for me!” Richard told them and left by himself.  

“Is he really just heading to the washroom, or he is embarrassed to let anyone know that he’s from a poor family?”  

“I know, right! Doesn’t he know what social setting this is? And he’s probably regretting now!”  

Everyone was talking about him.

Elena wanted to follow Richard, but she knew she had troubled him way too much today. She didn’t want to bother him anymore.

“Who was that person? He just went off without saying anything?”  

One of the young men was unhappy.  

“Don’t bother. Just a stupid peasant!” Amber replied.

Meanwhile, Richard was already on the other side of the beach. He loved the feeling of walking by himself.  

After grabbing a glass of wine from a waiter holding a tray, he lay on a chair and slowly sipped the drink.  

Finally, his ears were free!

His phone rang. It was Zack.  

“Mr. Crawford, how did the party go?”  

Richard had mentioned the party previously, and he knew all about it.  

“It’s alright!” Richard smiled bitterly.

“That’s good to hear. I hope Yoel has been treating you well… there are things I shouldn’t tell you, but I’ll just let you know anyways. The person that organized the party, Yoel Holden, has a profound connection with your sister. He organized this gathering all because of you!”  

“Huh? What does it have to do with me?” Richard was confused. If the party was because of him, then why did he get the ticket from Elena?  

And what did the son of the richest man of the county have to do with his sister?  

“Hmm. Holden’s family only sprung up because of the support that Ms. Jessica gave. Yoel’s mother was your sister’s godmother. Understand it now?”

Richard would have never known that such a history existed. It seemed he was the only one clueless about his sister’s developments.  

“I’m only telling you all these things because this family can be quite pretentious, just like how they tried to get close to your sister after learning about her actual identity. They acted as if they helped her during her poor days and when she had become successful, they pretended that they wouldn’t try to get any advantage out of it. Your sister was touched by their actions hence the support she’s giving to them!

“But then again, they have been really loyal to Ms. Crawford too!”

“I believe this Yoel Holden is pulling the same trick to get your attention, and since you’ve told me about the party, I’ll be really guilty if I didn’t tell you all of this!”  

“Okay. Thanks a lot, Zack!”  

“You’re welcome, Mr. Crawford. It is my pleasure!”  

Richard hung up the phone after that conversation.  

Through the call, he had gained some information that made him feel differently about some things.  

Zack was not very fond of the Holdens, and he implied that their family was using dirty tricks too. What were they up to?  

It was Richard’s first time being in a situation like this, and he did not want to ignore what Zack said either because that would make him feel guilty.  

Richard drank as all these thoughts flooded his mind.  

“Hey, look! That guy has been watching us for quite some time now. He must be having dirty thoughts because we are in bikinis!”  

“Huh? No way?! Why on earth would there be people like that?”  

Suddenly, Richard noticed a bunch of pretty girls wearing bikinis staring at him coldly while murmuring to themselves.

—

The bikini-clad girls were playing volleyball by the beachside while Richard lay down by the chair. He was too tired, and he was not even sure where he was looking, but the girls got the wrong idea.

They thought he was staring at them with dirty thoughts.

At first, those girls thought it would be acceptable to be slightly exposed to the guys since they were out here to have fun, but the man staring at them was way too undesirable. He even daydreamed while watching them!  

The girls thought they knew very well what was going on, and they felt disgusted.  

“Look! He’s so disgusting, and he’s getting excited while looking at us!”  

“He must be looking at Crystal. Her outfit is more daring than her usual ones today. Even that rich young man over, there was even trying to get a picture of her. Once he heard that she’s very close with Yoel Holden, though, he immediately backed off!”

“I know, right? This guy must have a death wish. He probably even has all of our pictures on his phone.

He’ll bring them back to his hotel room and jerk off with it. Oh my goodness... that is so disgusting!”  “What do you think, Crystal?” All the pretty girls looked toward a girl with long hair, fair skin, and a hot body.  

She was gorgeous and was probably the center of attention of the whole volleyball court.  

Most men knew that she was very close to Yoel Holden, and they would not even dare to look at her.  

This automatically made Richard an outlaw.  

Crystal brushed her hair with her fingers.  “Hmm... I’ve seen all kinds of dirty men before. Sisters, let’s go check his phone and if he really did sneak some photos of us. We shall beat him to death!”  

“That’s right! If it was Yoel or Aiden, it would have been fine, but it’s a dirty little peasant! What humiliation!” the girls went on, as they stormed toward Richard.  

Richard wanted to run, but it was too late.  

“You! Were you staring at us the whole time while thinking about dirty stuff?” one of the girls shouted, her large breasts bouncing as she walked.

“I...I wasn’t!” Richard spoke the truth as he was innocent. He wasn’t even paying attention to them.

He did not even realize that there was such a pretty girl among them. If he had noticed her, he would have been long staring at her by now.  

“Ya, right! Who are you trying to fool, huh? You’re already drooling all over the place. I’ve never seen such a disgusting person like you! Show us your phone!”  

“Yes! Show us your phone, you disgusting pervert! You better listen before Yoel comes and screws you up!” the girls yelled at him.

Crystal was hugging her arms and looking very satisfied.

It was true that Yoel was popular, and he and Crystal were close, but until today their relationship was still not confirmed.  

Crystal knew that things that were easily obtained weren't even worth a penny. It was why she’d always kept her distance from Yoel no matter how hard he tried to win her heart.  

She had fallen for him already since she knew Yoel was the son of the county’s richest man, a genuinely wealthy heir.  

Just like she planned, as long as she kept her distance from him, he would try even harder. This would give Crystal the upper hand since the girls always saw her as the leader.  

“I told you, I did not take any pictures of you all!” Richard smiled helplessly.  

Even though these girls were pretty, they were not friendly at all, and who would not stare at a bunch of pretty girls in bikinis if they were just right in front of you!  

It was getting awkward, and Richard wanted to get away.  

“Where do you think you’re going? Get him, sisters!”  

The pretty girls surrounded Richard to stop him from fleeing, pinning him to the ground while a few sat on top of him.

Chapter 54

The girls pinned him against the sandy beach.  

“Don’t you dare offend me, you perverted peasant! You’re finished when Yoel gets here!” Crystal scoffed.  

A girl handed Crystal a bathrobe to cover up.  

“Guys! There's some big news. A group of girls is ganging up on a guy over there!”  

“Huh? What happened?”  

“A pervert guy apparently staring at the bikini girls playing volleyball. They were unhappy that he was staring, and they fought!”  

“Let’s go check it out!”  

People were coming over to the other side of the beach after hearing what happened.  

Dickson, Amber, and Elena heard about it amid the barbeque and immediately went over.

“Elena and Amber, let’s go and have a look. I would really like to see which brother has fallen.”  

Elena did not want to follow them at first, but she wanted to leave anyway, to check if Richard had gone back to the hotel. She nodded and followed them.  

When they reached the other end of the beach, a few girls were sitting on a guy, pinning him down as he struggled.  

Dickson, Amber, and Elena were stunned.  

“Richard?”

Elena could not believe what she just saw. She almost thought she was dreaming. How could a fine young man like Richard get beaten up by a bunch of girls?  

Amber gulped.

“Hey, Dickson, Amber... isn’t he the guy you people brought over?”  

One of Dickson’s friends scowled.

“No, no, we don’t know him. Oh my goodness, he’s so disgusting!” shouted Amber. She wanted to cover her face in embarrassment.  

Being poor and ugly was not even a big problem, and now, he had become dirty and perverted while his girlfriend was still around. Amber could not take it anymore.  

“Amber, it’s probably his first time seeing girls in bikinis, and he went out of his mind! Hahaha!” Dickson started laughing loudly after seeing that Elena’s face had bunched up. He thought she was embarrassed and disappointed, and that made him feel even better.

“I don’t even know how you got in here, pervert. Now speak! Did you take pictures?” Crystal hugged herself while she stepped on Richard’s head.  

Fuck!  

What a disgrace!

Richard was so pissed off the last time he promised himself that a situation like this wouldn’t happen the second time. That said, the last time he was ganged by a bunch of girls, it was because of Elena and the others.  

He promised himself there would be no third time!  

Just when Richard was going to beat up someone.  

“Look! The Luxurious Cruise is here. Yoel is here!” someone shouted.  

Everyone turned and looked toward the sea.  

A luxury yacht pulled up by the Mayberry Beach harbor. A fat young man in a bathrobe and sunglasses stood standing on the deck. By his side were all manner of girls in bikinis. They were all around him, feeding him with wine.  

On the corner of the deck were also many rich young men. It was Aiden and the rest. Since they were all subordinates of Jessica, they shared a close relationship.  

“Yoel!”

“Yoel!”

“Yoel!”

Everyone was shouting the name of the wealthy young man.

—

Yoel Holden was the son of County’s State wealthiest man. He was also the leader of the rich youths around the whole Gangnam district.  

Not only that, many young women were fond of him, all hoping they would have a perfect encounter with him one day. Yoel might just fall for their beauty one day, they thought.

But these were all pipe dreams as Yoel Holden wasn’t someone they could so easily snuggle up to.  

The cruise ship blared its horn as it docked by the port.  

The cabin doors were opened, and down came Yoel with women on his left and right. He wasn’t exactly good looking, nor was he tall, even slightly fat, but the pretty girls kept on shouting, “He’s hot!”  

Amber was the loudest on their side, hoping to capture Yoel’s attention.

Dickson, on the other hand, stared at him in jealousy. He was dying to be him and wished he could become like that someday.  

Even if he could not turn out like him, turning out as Aiden wasn’t so bad. Being Yoel’s best friend, most men would undoubtedly share Dickson’s desires as well.

Yoel took off his Armani sunglasses that were worth a couple of grand and threw it on the beach as if it was a piece of trash.  

He then walked toward Crystal, noticing how extraordinarily sexy and pretty she was today. “Crystal, you look wonderful today!” Yoel smiled gently.  

Even though his eyes were two tiny slits, many girls were still very fond of him! “Yoel, you’re hot today as well!” they cooed.

Crystal brushed her hair and went back to being a dainty princess. She only wanted Yoel to notice her, hence the super exposed outfit.  

Since the internship was approaching and Yoel had been after her for three years, it was hard to say if he would still do so after it was over. Thus, she had to confirm her relationship with Yoel as soon as possible.  

An intelligent woman should always know the right timing.  

“Come here, Crystal. I would like you to meet a significant guest of the day!”  

“Huh? Important guest?” Crystal was shocked. All these years being around with Yoel, she had never heard him mentioning important guests. She had never thought anyone would be important enough to be too important in his eyes.  

Yoel nodded, looking around the audience of wealthy young men and women. “Everyone… what a happy and joyous occasion. It’s nice to meet all of you! I would like to introduce someone very important to all of you!”  

“You all probably know how my family got a part in County’s State? It was all because of my dearest godsister’s help and now, my godsister’s blood-related brother. Richard is here today!”  

Yoel attempted to make a big entrance for his godbrother, Richard, as a surprise!  

Of course, all these were just for impressing Richard and a more promising future for their family.  

“What? Who is Richard? What does he do? My dad has mentioned him multiple times!”  

“How could you not know who Richard is? You must have heard of Mayberry Commercial Street right?

It’s one of Richard’s properties. It’s not his family business, but it’s listed under his own property, get it?”  

“What the fuck? The whole Commercial Street belongs to him?”  

Everyone turned completely speechless.  

Because it would also mean that Yoel’s father's entire net worth was worth no more than a piece of Richard’s property.

—

”Dickson, could Richard really be that great?” Amber was shocked.  

“I’ve only heard about this guy recently, that he has lots of potential. Come to think about it, Holden’s family could only become this successful thanks to Richard’s sister!” Dickson crossed his arms as he explained it to everyone.  

“Damn! Does it mean we get to see who this Richard person is?” Amber was super excited.  

At the same time, Yoel looked at Aiden. “Aiden, where is Richard?” he asked.

Yoel used to call Aiden by his full name, but ever since he found out that he and Richard were best friends, he now addressed him on a first-name basis. That said, no matter how he mentioned his name, there was still a big gap between them.  

“He arrived a long time ago, but he probably just went out!” Aiden was looking all around for Richard.  

“Yoel, should we look for him at the hotel? We shouldn’t let him wait since he’s such an important guest,” replied Crystal as she nudged Yoel’s arm.  

Crystal was all blushing. At first, she thought Yoel was everything, but now, there was apparently someone else even greater! And since this Richard was already here, she would really love to meet him.  

Crystal believed that since her relationship with Yoel wasn’t confirmed, she might just get Richard’s interest. Everything in a relationship had to be as tough as hell!  

“I agree, Yoel. We should look for him personally!” A few guests suggested the same idea too.  

“How could I have missed this point!” Yoel’s face had changed. He thought Richard would be at the beach when he arrived. He would then invite him to join them respectfully. It was all supposed to end well, but what he didn’t expect was the fact that Richard wasn’t even at the beach at all.

If that were to be the case, it meant he was waiting for his godbrother to see him, and that would be a terrible idea!  

“You’re right. Let’s find my godbrother, but we don’t need too many people!” said Yoel.  

“ Please bring us, Yoel?!” shouted the girls who were sitting on Richard.  

“ We were hitting a pervert just now. Could you bring us to see Richard?” the girls asked as their eyes watered.  

“Alright! I’ll bring you girls along. Aiden and Crystal, let’s go find my godbrother!” Yoel replied.  

“There’s no need for that!” Richard raised his head, spitting out a mouthful of sand.  

The girls moved their butts away, and Richard could finally breathe properly.  

“I was here all the time!” groaned Richard as he rolled over the sand.

“What?” Everyone was shocked when they heard that.

Aiden immediately took a good look at the guy who got beaten up by the girls.  

 “Richard! You’re here!” he screamed.

Chapter 55

“What? He is Mr. Crawford?!”

Upon hearing Aiden’s words, the crowd looked toward their direction in shock.

Dickson’s eyes widened in disbelief while Amber’s jaw dropped.

“Hey man, are you my godbrother Richard Crawford?” Yoel asked anxiously. He never thought that Richard would appear just like this.  

“Yes, indeed!” Richard answered while struggling to get up. He hissed and took a breath. His body felt numb from bearing the weight of the few pretty ladies who sat on top of him.

“Someone, help me up!”

“Oh my! Mr. Crawford, Mr. Crawford!”

The pretty ladies who were standing nearest to Richard were stunned. Their screams drowned out Richard’s voice.

Elena felt afraid and was almost shocked at what she saw. Nevertheless, she still rushed over to help Richard get on his feet.

Last time, Elena had offended Mr. Crawford before, but Mr. Crawford was not too harsh on her because of her father.

However, this incident seemed very serious. Elena was uncertain as to how Mr. Crawford would be angry about this. She stood aside in silence without daring to say a word. Her brain could not process any response at the moment.

“Mr. Crawford! Who beat you up like this?” Yoel asked as he immediately lunged forward to help Richard up with his hand.

This scene left Crystal and the few pretty ladies in bikinis dumbfounded. They realized that the VIP of the day was actually Richard, also known as tycoon Mr. Crawford! Oh my goodness, they thought to themselves, what have we done?!

Since Mr. Crawford found favor in those pretty ladies’ eyes, Richard went over to visit them. However, they ended up putting Mr. Crawford to shame, wasting the opportunity of getting to know who Mr. Crawford was.

Argh! Crystal started to regret this, but Dickson and Amber had the worst feelings of regret.

Dickson had spent the whole day beating Richard up and showing off his connections and how great his family was. Richard, however, simply smiled in silence while Dickson was flaunting what he had.

Dickson believed that his ridicule on Richard had succeeded, causing him to lose his face to the point he couldn’t reply a word. Fuck, he thought. Richard was actually laughing at how stupid he was!

Amber couldn’t process what was going on. She looked at Richard with terror, dying to speak, but the noise of the crowd would just drown her voice out.

“Mr. Crawford! Mr. Crawford!” screamed the pretty ladies started screaming.

“Anyone noticed how Mr. Crawford looks so elegant and handsome?!”

“Yes, indeed! Look at Mr. Crawford. He rocks in such a plain outfit! Ordinary people ain’t his match!”

“I wonder if Mr. Crawford is still single? Goodness me! Mr. Crawford is so reserved. He’s such a gem! I want to be his girlfriend!

Numerous ladies loudly discussed Mr. Crawford, expressing their utmost adoration toward Richard. With that many girls finding favor in ‘Mr. Crawford,’ Richard was elated. It was his first time after all.

“Mr. Crawford, I’m sorry!” Crystal apologized and bowed in embarrassment. A group of ladies followed suit and bowed as well. Crystal even squeezed her chest a little, hoping to attract Richard’s attention.

“These ladies were really disrespectful a while ago, Mr. Crawford. How should we punish them?” Yoel asked, but he already had an answer in mind. He even caught Crystal’s flirtatious antics.

Since he was young, girls would automatically flock to Yoel. With the emergence of Crystal Lester, a clingy yet playing-hard-to-get girl, Yoel Holden did not want to lose this opportunity. He simply wanted to experience what it was like pursuing a lady.

Deep down inside, Yoel actually felt like beating silly Crystal to death for rudely roughing up Mr. Crawford and screwing his perfectly prepared plan of a cool Mr. Crawford introduction.

Richard glared at Crystal and the other girls.

—

Richard was honestly so done with the ladies. They mustn’t be led off the hook!

“It was simple. As punishment, get the ladies to have a volleyball match with us, but in bikinis!” said Richard bluntly.

“What? It is that simple?” Crystal responded with joy.

Crystal started overthinking, “Perhaps Mr. Crawford pitied me and took the initiative to make peace? I am, after all, stunning. Which guy wouldn’t be enchanted by me?”

“Of course y’all wouldn’t be doing it here! It’ll be at Rivington City’s most popular street!” replied Richard.

Crystal’s mind went blank. Shocked, she let out a loud scream. How embarrassing was that!

“Hmph, y’all should thank Mr. Crawford for the punishment! Alright, it’s getting dark now, and many have left. See you at noon tomorrow noon on Rivington City’s most crowded street. I’ll be organizing a volleyball match!” Yoel announced before giving Richard a nudge, a gesture inviting him to board the cruise ship as well.

“Mr. Crawford, I love you! Oh my!” a few girls screamed, grabbing locks of Richard’s hair as he passed them and entered the cruise ship.

Richard even had a few pretty ladies in bikini’s holding on to his arm intimately. Tonight’s VIP was indeed, Richard, Mr. Crawford!

“Sister Elena, sister Elena!” shouted Amber while stomping her feet anxiously.

The moment Elena Larson heard her younger cousin’s voice, she backed off from following Richard into the cruise ship.

“Richard is really Mr. Crawford from Mayberry Commercial Street! Why didn’t you tell me this earlier? He’s very handsome, truly handsome indeed! I was wrong, it’s all my fault. Elena, you must explain this to Mr. Crawford!”

“Hey Amber, haven’t I reminded you many times that you gotta be more reserved when speaking?

Anyway, don’t worry, it doesn’t seem that Mr. Crawford will blame you. I’ll tell you the details after this. Oh yes, never tell others that Richard is actually Mr. Crawford. Keep it to yourself. Mr. Crawford isn’t willing to reveal his identity, and as long as he wants it to remain hidden, you must never spill the beans!”

“What? But sister Elena, so many people have seen Mr. Crawford today!”

Elena shook her head while pointing to the side. “See those bodyguards in black walking back and forth?”

Amber saw more than ten expressionless bodyguards in black outfits. They were dealing with all the rich heirs who were present. The youngsters nodded were nodding in compliance with everything the bodyguards had to tell them. Clearly, no one dared to defy their orders.

“Is this the true boss?” Amber was stunned.

Afterward, the Cruise Ship Festival then began on the sea.

This was Richard’s first time boarding a cruise ship. He found it really cool, seeing the sea at night while listening to the whistling sea breeze.

The issue of Richard’s own identity turned out better than what he had imagined, so his mind was at ease. Richard would still live his simple life as usual. At least for now, he didn’t fancy Yoel’s extravagant lifestyle. These were the reasons why Richard called for Aiden to settle this matter before this.

Otherwise, it would be like insisting a freely-swimming water-only fish to come ashore and climb a tree. It would be absolutely impossible given such a short period!

During the gala, Richard, Yoel, and Aiden almost spent the entire night having fun before finally going to sleep at dawn. It was also the same for the other youngsters from wealthy families on the cruise ship, in extremely high spirits.

The next day, Richard followed Yoel and the rest to the sea again. The Cruise Ship Festival went on and only ended in the afternoon.

“Brother… I’ll be going on a trip to Mayberry in three days. Since I’ll be there, I’ll look for you again!” laughed Yoel jovially on their way back from the sea.

“Business in Mayberry?”

“Are you going to join Mountain Top Villa’s exhibition?” asked Aiden with a smile.

Yoel nodded, “My dad absolutely insisted that I experience it myself!”

Richard was already lost in thought. Mountain Top Villa sounded like a nice place, considering he really wanted to buy a condominium right now. “I have not heard of Mountain Top Villa before. Is it very luxurious?” he asked.

Shocked, Yoel cleared his throat before saying, “Brother. Mountain Top Villa is so much more than just a luxurious place!”

—

Richard caught interest in Mountain Top Villa, so he wanted Yoel to elaborate on it.

“Hehe, brother, how should I say this…” Yoel chuckled before he continued, “Mountain Top Villa is no longer just a simple residential area. It actually represents an honorable identity of sorts. As its name suggests, the villa is located on the highest peak of Mayberry’s cloudy mountain top. The surrounding area has already been made into an estate; as if sitting above the clouds themselves, you can enjoy a birds-eye view of Mayberry City’s mountains and rivers!”

Yoel’s heart yearned for this villa.

Could it really be as perfect as what Yoel described?

Richard asked, “By the way it sounds, this property must be quite expensive, aye?”

Richard was very determined to buy a house this time. He decided to spend a couple of hundred grand to buy a villa, making it a lot more convenient to store his car and other things. His search for a new home led him to ask about Mountain Top Villa’s price.

“What?!” Yoel was so shocked he spat out some wine. “F*ck! This is not just quite expensive, brother!

Wanna know how much it costs? Exactly 1.0465 billion dollars!” he exclaimed, eyes as wide as golfballs.

Yoel’s father would have surely spent 1.0465 billion if it was used to invest in a business. On the other hand, spending 1.0465 billion for a villa of no business value would be equivalent to a total waste of cash. Unless they had an endless supply of cash, even the very rich wouldn’t have spent such money on something like that.

Yoel was still quite afraid of this property purchase price. Although he had invited many wealthy familied youngsters to join him today, he only spent a sheer 90,000 to 105,000 dollars.

“This amount of money is definitely nothing to you, brother. I remember your elder sister spending something like 149.5 million to 299 million dollars just to buy a customized car!”

Yoel gave Richard the feeling of wanting to try out new things. He knew such small amounts of money meant nothing to Richard anyway.

In reality,  however, Richard could imagine the pain in his flesh. Spending 1.0465 billion just to buy a residential home would be way too extravagant! Richard shook his head, deciding to be more realistic instead. Perhaps he would buy villas worth between 149.5 thousand to 299 thousand instead.

“But that’s alright, bro. We’ll just go and have a look in three days. That wouldn’t hurt, right?” said Yoel unwillingly.

If Richard ended up buying it, Yoel would get to stay there too. Now that would be a true luxury!

“Alright, we’ll take a look at Mountain Top Villa when I’ve got the time!” Richard thought it won’t be nice to reject Yoel, so he agreed despite knowing Yoel’s motives. Behind his meticulous preparation of the pomp and splendor, all Yoel wanted was to get closer to Richard. Besides, being thought highly by others wasn’t something he hated.  

A bunch of youngsters from wealthy families surfing happily could be seen. They were enjoying themselves and looked to be having a great time.

Of course, Richard took the number one spot for most girls. Wherever he went, girls would follow, each doing their very best to convey their amorous intent. They repeatedly stole glances at him, hoping to get his attention.

However, Richard was already exhausted, too tired to continue messing around with the bunch of pretty ladies. It would be the afternoon in no time, and the festival on the cruise ship had ended as well. He even declined Yoel’s invitation to explore another place.

Richard was, after all, different from Yoel. It didn’t even matter if Yoel earned no college credits. It would be Monday tomorrow, and Richard needed to attend college!

Aiden, in charge of driving, sent Richard back to college.

Upon returning to his dorm, Richard found nobody at his unit. It seemed Harper Sullivan and the others must have gone surfing the net again.

Richard had been tired for two days straight. He planted his head on his pillow, instantly sleeping like a baby until he was awoken by the sound of the door opening.

“Harper, isn’t Gerry back?”

“What? He’s back? Why is his phone switched off then?”

Harper, Benjamin, and the rest had returned. They looked at Richard excitedly, joking and laughing as they went along.  

“Oh, it’s been some time since I switched my phone off. I was too tired, and I didn’t charge it. Hey, I’ve slept till six p.m. You guys were surfing the net for that long?” asked Richard as he glanced at his watch. He’s been sleeping for more than three hours.

Chapter 56

”D*mn it! Still surfing the internet? Richard, I really suspect that you must have gone on a vacation for the past two days, or did you go to pleasure town? Don’t you read the news in our class group chat?”

Benjamin asked excitedly.

Before this, Richard simply told them that he was going out with a friend but he did not tell them exactly what he was going to do.

Therefore, Benjamin and Harper did not know what Richard had been up to over the past two days.

As for the pleasure town that Benjamin had just mentioned, Richard had really been there.

They were all the same, they were all big beauties!

At this time, Richard smiled before he said, “What pleasure town are you talking about? So, tell me, what is happening in our class?”

“Before you left, didn’t Felicity enter the popularity competition for the star anchor? In the end, Felicity won the competition directly and she became the absolute top anchor, the star anchor in the same city live broadcast platform. That day, Felicity earned more than thirty thousand dollars of rewards! D*mn it!”

Benjamin was really envious and hateful. He really envied the fact that other people could earn so much money in one day. He hated it that he wasn’t a woman too!

“Well, yesterday, many newspapers and media came to interview Felicity and the headlines were even more domineering: A girl from Mayberry University, who does live broadcasts for a few hours a day, earns more than thirty thousand dollars!”

“Oh, in short, all kinds of related reports have already been launched. This is all because of the propaganda from the newspaper. Ever since this afternoon, some people from the Mayberry Television Station also came to do a special interview with Felicity. Just now, we also recorded a video as Felicity’s classmates. I even showed my face!”

Harper explained everything.

Richard understood this.

Felicity was famous now. After interviewing her, they naturally had to conduct some other peripheral interviews too. This was similar to the interview column of the television stations. After the interview, they would then interview the person’s classmates, family, and friends.

This was all usually planned in advance.

Hahaha. Richard really did not expect that using his identity as Ordinary Man to give Felicity some gifts and then investing some funds in the same city live broadcast would have such an effect.

He actually indirectly provided some free publicity for Felicity.

This made Richard feel a little dumbfounded.

“Richard, hurry up and change! Felicity is treating all of us to dinner tonight. She will be buying us dinner at the Homeland Kitchen where you bought us dinner the last time. She has already booked the place! All of our classmates will be coming too!”

Harper patted Richard’s bed before he went to change his clothes.

“Okay!”

This time, Richard quickly agreed.

After all, he was almost done resting and he was already hungry.

Secondly, Felicity became famous all because of him. So, what was the big deal if he went to eat at the celebration banquet hosted by her?

This was reasonable and justified!

Richard hurriedly changed his clothes before he ran downstairs with Harper and the others.

At the school gate.

A large group of Richard’s classmates was already waiting here.

Felicity was no longer the same person that she used to be. She used to be just a small-time anchor who was earning just a little money. Now, she was a real internet celebrity who was making a lot of money.

Therefore, she was naturally everyone’s focus of attention.

“Sister Felicity, are we going to call for cabs?”

Blondie was following closely behind Felicity. Ever since Danny had beaten up the son of a wealthy and powerful man in Mayberry City with his cousin brother, Chad, he had been in a very miserable state. He did not even dare to come to school at all. Now, only Blondie was left in class.

“Why should we call for cabs? I have already contacted the service company and asked them to send ten Audis over here. We will go by car. By the way, Blondie, can you count the number of people who have already arrived and check to see who else is not here yet?”

“I’ll do it now!” Blondie happily replied before he got to work immediately, as though he was managing his own affairs. After that, he shouted, “Don’t talk anymore! I will call out everyone’s name!”

He was done very quickly.

Blondie ran over before he said, “Sister Felicity, only Harper and the boys from his dormitory are not here yet. Layla said that she is feeling unwell and she is resting alone in the dormitory!”

“Okay, I got it. Why are Harper and the boys taking so long just to change their clothes?” Felicity asked coldly as she put on a branded wine-red sunglasses while crossing her hands in front of her chest. After all, she was an internet celebrity now so she would have to be more stylish.

“They are here! They are here! Harper and the boys are here!”

At this time, a girl shouted.

Harper and the other boys, a total of six of them were running over to them.

“Eh? Didn’t Richard go out to play? Why is he back already?”

“Yes! Oh my. Perhaps he hurried back as soon as he heard that we would be going out to eat. Who knows if he had already spent all of his lottery money? Maybe he is just saying that he went on a vacation, but he was probably out working!”

Richard had not even arrived yet but the ridicule had already sounded…

—

”Richard, you’re here too? You know how to come when we are going out for dinner but why weren’t you there when all of us from the class were recording the interview for Felicity then? Hahaha! The attributes of a pathetic person would never change!”

A girl who was very close to Felicity could not help but scolded him.

Many girls had already gradually changed their views on Richard. They would even smile faintly at Richard when they saw him now.

How should this be explained?

Some time ago, Richard suddenly got rich. He got very rich.

He really attracted many girls’ favor at that time.

They felt that it would be great if they could get together with Richard. They would be able to buy some really pretty bags, especially since this Richard was quite handsome.

However, Felicity had already hit the jackpot.

She became an online celebrity who could make a lot of money.

This gave all the girls in her class a very huge booster. So, what if they were girls? They felt that as long as a girl was willing to work hard and head in the right direction, she could also become rich, famous, and successful.

Therefore, many girls in their class also came up with an idea. They wanted to try and do live broadcasts too. It would be even better if they could sign a contract too!

“Forget it. Just bring him along with us. Another person would not make a big difference anyway.”

Felicity replied as she fixed her sunglasses. When she used to say anything contemptuously in the past, Felicity would glare at Richard. However, now, she could not even be bothered to even look at him at all.