Chapter 153: Quite Sweet
Loren felt utterly humiliated; never in his life had he experienced such indignity. Five million dollars slipped through his fingers, and to make matters worse, they went to his nemesis, which only deepened his sense of frustration.
In a fit of rage, he turned around and slapped Roy hard across the face. "You useless piece of trash! You're good for nothing! I pay you a hefty salary every month, and this is how you repay me? Get out of my sight, you son of a bitch!"
Roy was already in a foul mood due to the recent events, teetering on the edge of a breakdown. Loren's slap was the final straw, igniting his fury. His face turned red, his eyes bloodshot, and he shouted before swinging a punch at Loren's face, "Fuck you!" With a loud thud, he hit Loren's nose with all his might, breaking it instantly.
Roy, a young man in his early twenties, was strong and fit. Fueled by pent-up anger, he unleashed twice his usual strength. Loren, on the other hand, became physically weak by excessive drinking and indulgence. He couldn't withstand such a powerful punch and fell to the ground with a pained scream.
"You dare hit back? I'll kill you!" Loren touched his nose, which was bleeding profusely, and screamed in agony.
Seeing Loren in such a pitiful state, Roy's long-standing fear of him began to wane. After taking a punch from Loren, his fear vanished completely, and he started wrestling with Loren.
"Loren, you asshole! I've had enough of you! Today, you're going down!"
"My eye... fuck you!"
The two of them rolled on the ground, fighting in a most undignified manner. Loren, though larger in size, was quickly exhausted after just a few punches. Roy, the younger man, pinned him down and continued to pummel him. Loren, already bruised and battered, was now in even worse shape, utterly humiliated.
The sudden turn of events left everyone stunned; no one had expected things to escalate this far.
Alan frowned. As a civilized man, he despised such thuggish behavior, and his impression of Loren took a sudden nosedive.
James, on the other hand, was thoroughly entertained, watching the brawl as if it were a theatrical performance.
Alan ignored Loren and turned to James. "Buddy, may I take a look at that top-grade Reishi mushroom? Don't worry, I just want to see it. I won't go back on my word about the five million dollars."
Seeing Alan's genuine eagerness, James felt a bit reluctant to refuse and handed the Reishi mushroom to Alan.
Alan, visibly excited, carefully took the Reishi mushroom and examined it closely, his eyes shining with admiration. "Wow, I've only heard about top-grade Reishi mushrooms from my elders. I never thought I'd be lucky enough to see one in person today. By the quality and the medicinal aroma—it's surely worth every penny of the five million. With this Reishi mushroom, I believe my daughter's illness can finally be cured."
Tears welled up in Alan's eyes, and his hands trembled slightly as he spoke.
James noticed Alan's emotional state and asked, "Mr. Jordan, are you buying this Reishi mushroom to treat your daughter's illness?"
Alan didn't hide the truth and sighed. "Yes, my daughter has a rare illness that no doctor has been able to cure. Even Dr. Edwin from HC Medical Center is at a loss. He said that only a Reishi mushroom over three hundred years old could cure her. I've been searching for a long time and finally found this five-hundred-year-old Reishi mushroom."
James frowned slightly and asked, "Mr. Jordan, what specific illness does your daughter have?"
Alan looked at him with some surprise and reluctance but eventually gave a brief explanation.
After listening, James's frown deepened even more. He hesitated for a moment and said, "Mr. Jordan, with all due respect, given your daughter's condition, this Reishi mushroom might not cure her. If used improperly, it could even worsen her condition."
Alan was even more displeased upon hearing this. He thought James was being overly presumptuous. Dr. Edwin, a highly skilled physician who had cured many people, had said the Reishi mushroom could cure his daughter. Even Alan had to show respect to Dr. Edwin, but here was James, a young man in his twenties, daring to question him. It was sheer arrogance.
Alan's attitude turned cold. "That's none of your concern. I know what I'm doing."
Seeing that Alan wasn't listening, James didn't press further. He knew that someone as successful as Alan wouldn't be easily swayed unless he saw the truth for himself. So, James didn't bother to argue the point and accepted the five million dollars, selling the Reishi mushroom to Alan.
Though he felt a bit reluctant to part with such a rare Reishi mushroom, he had already accepted the offer and couldn't go back on his word.
Before leaving, Jennifer asked for Alan's contact information to discuss future collaborations.
Alan, upon hearing Jennifer's intentions, merely nodded slightly.
Thus, the farce came to an end. Shortly after James and Jennifer left, someone called the police, and both Loren and Roy were arrested for fighting.
Loren was utterly humiliated; not only had he been beaten, but the incident also became widely known. In the end, it was Barbara who came to bail him out.
When Barbara learned of the incident, she was so furious that she nearly fainted. She scolded Loren harshly—after all, it was five million dollars, and she was extremely distressed by this.
As they left the crowd and headed to a restaurant, Jennifer looked at the text message showing the five million dollars deposited into her account. She still found it unbelievable, like a dream. They had just gone out and made a net profit of almost five million dollars. And on top of that, they had Alan's contact information.
All of this was thanks to James.
She looked at James, the man she had known for five years and should have been familiar with to the core, yet he seemed increasingly mysterious and unfathomable.
James felt a bit uncomfortable under her gaze, so he touched his face and asked, "Is there something on my face?"
Jennifer stared at him intently and said, "James, how did you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Today's deal!"
James scratched his head and said, "Well, when you went to the restroom, I happened to see that middle-aged man being kicked out by the doctors, and I discovered that top-grade Reishi mushroom."
In a few brief words, he recounted the events casually.
"How did you recognize it as a top-grade Reishi mushroom?" Jennifer still felt puzzled.
"Uh..." James hesitated for a moment. "I read about it in a book and happened to come across it."
Jennifer felt that James was lying; he was hiding something from her.
But she couldn't pinpoint what it was, which frustrated her.
Suddenly, she thought of something and said, "By the way, why didn't you mention our intention to collaborate with Alan just now?"
"I forgot," he answered.
Jennifer rolled her eyes at him. "How could you forget something like that? What are you thinking about all day?"
Looking at Jennifer's stunningly beautiful face, James blurted out, "I'm thinking about you."
Jennifer was taken aback, then blushed, feeling inexplicably happy She tried to maintain a facade of anger and coldness. "Ugh, you're so slick. Disgusting."
James was speechless.
After a pause, Jennifer said with some annoyance, "When we exchanged contact information, I felt Alan was quite cold towards me, as if he wasn't interested in collaborating. It's all your fault. Why did you say the Reishi may not cure his daughter? You couldn't just deny Edwin's advice. No matter how skilled you are, can you be better than Edwin? Edwin is a renowned doctor in Lindwood City; everyone in the medical community admires him."
James was a bit surprised. "Is Edwin that famous?"
"Of course! He's a true miracle doctor. He's almost eighty but looks like he's in his sixties, full of energy. His medical skills are exceptional. Even our university professors are his students and invite him to give lectures." Jennifer's eyes showed a hint of admiration.
James recalled he met Edwin once at Carlos Green's hotpot restaurant and had a good impression of him.
"He does take good care of himself, much healthier than many young people today," James agreed.
Jennifer was surprised. "You've met Edwin?"
James didn't hide it and nodded. "Yes, once. He was even excited to see me and wanted to learn acupuncture from me."
Jennifer was drinking water and couldn't help but spit it out upon hearing this, spraying James's face. "Please, can you stop bragging? Edwin has cured more people than you've ever met!"
James, bewildered by the spray, felt a sweet taste on his lips and instinctively tasted it.
Jennifer saw this and blushed with heart racing. She kicked James under the table. "You pervert!"
James chuckled. "That was quite sweet."
"Disgusting!" Jennifer pretended to gag but felt a strange sweetness inside, as if she had indirectly kissed James.
At that moment, a call of delight came from behind James. "Jennifer? What are you doing in Pearl Peak City?"
Hearing the familiar voice, James turned around and saw a familiar face.
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