Unedited
…
“Without us, the world would have fallen into a never-ending state of war, by now. Think about it.” Harringfort reasoned. “Everyone wanted to rule. Everyone wanted to become powerful, to rule over the others. Without our intervention, this world… would have been littered with cruelty and murder, racism, and everything that comes along with it.”
“You are trying to convince me that you are the good guys.” Zhou Jingren calmly stated. “You are not.”
“And we aren’t the bad guys either.” Harringfort then laid two cards on the table, one two of hearts and one four of spades. “I’d like to think that we are the good guys. After all, by killing tens of people, we were able to save millions. By enslaving a few, we were able to supply the needs of thousands.”
Pursing his lips, Zhou Jingren checked his own cards. “I can’t be one of you.”
“You have no choice. It’s either you take your seat or you die. The verdict is simple but cruel. But then again… life is cruel to everyone.” Harringfort touched the card on the table. “I am changing these two.” He then stared at Zhou Jingren’s stern expression. “Whatever you have now… we’ll take it from you. That is the punishment for ignoring the call— our call. Not many people have the opportunity to become one of us, President Zhou. I would advise you to think about it carefully.”
“You said that this was Old Man Yu’s doing?”
“He chose you to become one of us before he died.”
“You — Did you know that he would kill himself?”
Harringfort nodded.
“And… you never stopped him?”
“What for?” Harringfort lifted an eyebrow before he continued. “Death is part of life. Dying that way was his choice. It has nothing to do with us.”
“Why not choose his son instead?”
“The position cannot be inherited by a son unless he was appointed by the dead member.” Of course, Lily’s case was different. Lilian never appointed her before she died. However, she had been training Lily to become one of them the moment that she met her. The five other people in the council had been eyeing Lily’s progress since she entered the business world years ago. Her cruelty, decisiveness, and wisdom was something that not many people her age possess. Thanks to Lilian’s training and Lily’s experience, everything had been following the council’s plans. Lily would soon take her seat. Once she turns thirty, she will become one of them. Whether she likes it or not— she will become one of them.
Of course, he was not going to blurt this out to Zhou Jingren. Revealing such secrets would be idiotic.
Zhou Jingren nodded at his words before he laid two cards on the table. Once again, it was a pair. This time it was a pair of three. Harringfort laughed inwardly. He couldn’t help but mock Zhou Jingren’s actions. How could he be this stupid? Did he think that this move would fool a seasoned gambler like Harringfort? Mockery soon laced his gaze. “You know President Zhou… life is just like gambling. Once you fail to read your opponent— you lose.”
Zhou Jingren snorted. “You got it wrong. In gambling… there are no winners— only losers.” This was the reason why he is not very fond of gambling. As someone who worked in the financial industry, Zhou Jingren understood the anticipation that every gambler would feel while playing, the thought of being lucky, the thought of winning— it is addicting. However… there is no such thing as winning in gambling.
This was because… every addicted gambler would only stop once they lose all their money. Gambling is too euphoric, it is too addicting. It was the feeling of winning and the greed that lies behind it.
“Hah! That is the exact mentally of someone who was not born from a wealthy family. You value money too much, President Zhou. To us… money is nothing but a means to enjoy ourselves. Money is a tool— a tool to make us happy.” Harringfort beamed. “Let me start with forty chips. That’s twenty million.”
“Raise… twenty-one.” Zhou Jingren answered. Of course, he never missed the insults that this man had been spouting since meeting him. However… he would never let it get to him. “You seemed to hate me a lot.” He uttered. “Why recruit me if you hated me?”
“I already told you! I am not recruiting you into anything!” Harringfort hissed. “What? You think this is some sort of a scam where we recruit people into joining us for money?” realizing his overreaction, he immediately narrowed his eyes at Zhou Jingren. “You are very good at pushing my buttons.”And he hated it. Of course, he was aware that this hatred was because of his… jealousy.
As embarrassing as it is, Harringfort would accept that he was jealous. Not because he loved Lily. No. He liked her seat, her accomplishment, and her mind. Instead, he was jealous of Zhou Jingren’s luck. This man… an unknown man like him married one of the most or future most influential woman in the world. Then he got a seat in the Spectre just because of what? He attended some birthday party!
He shifted his gaze away from Zhou Jingren as he fought the urge to strangle him. He hated how he got every little good thing in this world without any effort. He is not someone from Royalty or someone from a very influential family. Still… he was lucky! How could someone like Harringfort accept this?
Compared to Harringfort, this man in front of him was nothing! He never went to an Ivy league nor he had the best education in Asia! He was nothing! A fly who was lucky enough to be able to sit on top of an elephant! What made him more furious is the council’s insistence on respecting him as he was already one of them. They actually punished him for intervening in this man’s business!
HIM! A prince! A mogul! The fucking messenger who had talked to every ruler in the world! How infuriating!
