Chapter 956 The Cunningham Family is Now in the Eye of the Storm
Vincent drove away, ignoring Selene.
In his rearview mirror, he could still see her counting the money on her phone, her face a picture of disbelief.
Vincent smiled wryly, finding her rather amusing.
His smile quickly faded as Lily called again.
"Vincent, where have you been? Why didn't you answer my calls last night?" Lily asked anxiously.
"I was seeing my therapist and stayed nearby," Vincent replied coolly.
There was no point in lying since Lily's people were always monitoring him.
"My phone was in the car, so I didn't see your messages," he added.
Lily seemed to relax. "Vincent, come home soon. I need to discuss something with you."
"Alright."
At the Cunningham Mansion, Edgar returned home in a somber mood.
"Avery and Rhett are already divorced, and she's well into her pregnancy. Still no plans to marry her?" Nolan questioned. "You shouldn't play games—pregnant women need security."
Having supported Amelia through her pregnancy, Nolan was concerned about his spoiled brother's behavior.
"You think I don't want to? She doesn't want to marry me," Edgar muttered. "With the Cunningham family's current situation, that unknown person behind everything is like a ticking bomb. Our ports and docks are already sealed. If we get implicated..."
Edgar didn't want to endanger Avery. "She's safer not marrying me."
Nolan frowned and sighed. "Enough. I'll handle this. Edward and I will shoulder the burden—why are you worrying?"
Edgar remained silent, head bowed.
He feared that eventually, no one would be able to withstand the pressure.
"This royal bid... it's clear the authorities don't intend to award it to us. They keep delaying, using the Murray family situation as an excuse for another month's postponement. I suspect we've lost our chance," he said, doubting they'd secure the project.
"The project isn't critical. If the Cunningham Group doesn't get it, the Raymond Group will. At least it won't go to outsiders. The main concern is the Muskow situation," Nolan replied, rubbing his temples as he reclined on the sofa.
Edgar lay motionless on the couch, both brothers looking utterly deflated.
"Mother returned to Muskow with Arnold to handle matters there. Don't be so pessimistic," Jasmine reassured them as she emerged from the kitchen. "With Arnold involved, things should work out."
Edgar and Nolan nodded. "I've assigned Ethan to follow up on this project. He'll be busy, so don't blame me..."
Nolan felt guilty, believing Ethan should have more time with Jasmine, but the Cunningham family's troubles were affecting not only their own group but the Raymond Group as well.
"Don't talk like that, Nolan. We're all family," Jasmine said, though clearly worried. "Edward mentioned auditing the company internally—there must be serious problems."
The Cunningham Group had long been infiltrated by someone operating from the shadows.
"The mid and senior leadership across all departments... it's shocking. A significant portion of their income comes from questionable sources," Nolan said, his headache worsening.
This meant that if the person behind everything was exposed or investigated, the Cunningham family would be implicated.
The mysterious figure had appeared to help the Cunningham family for years while actually infiltrating their organization.
Now they had backed the family into a corner: if the mastermind fell, they would take the entire Cunningham family down with them.
If the family wanted to protect themselves, they would have to protect this person.
But since this individual was involved in illegal transactions, protecting them would make the family complicit, leading to an even worse fate.
"This person is truly clever... all these years, and we never noticed," Jasmine said worriedly.
Nolan nodded. "I've managed the Cunningham Group for so long without detecting anything."
"Actually, Mother suspected something early on. The Muskow business circle isn't friendly to foreigners—there's too much discrimination. Yet whenever our family faced danger, we always emerged with maximum benefit. Mother was suspicious but could never find evidence or identify anyone," Edward explained as he returned.
"So this person is remarkable—using Mark and Kavi as frontmen while remaining hidden and maintaining leverage over our family," Nolan said, looking at Edward. "Have you assessed the company personnel?"
"Yes, I've prepared evidence on problematic individuals and filed reports," Edward replied, thinking about preemptively reporting to authorities to potentially separate the Cunningham Group from the scandal.
But problems remained. The infiltration was too comprehensive.
Removing everyone involved would severely damage the company.
It might even cause the Cunningham Group to collapse.
"We need to prepare an exit strategy," Nolan said, standing to face Edward. "You two and Jasmine should transfer all your Cunningham Group shares to me. I'll pay above market price. If the Group survives this crisis, I'll return them. If not... you should distance yourselves from the company as much as possible."
Nolan intended to bear the burden alone.
If there were legal consequences or implications, he would face them alone.
The rest of the family shouldn't suffer.
Jasmine frowned at Nolan. "You're planning to handle this alone?"
"What do you take us for?" Edgar snorted. "We're family. If we run at the first sign of trouble, what kind of family are we? We'll get through this together."
"Nolan has a point. Jasmine, Edgar, you two should stay out of this. If anything happens, Nolan and I will handle it," Edward said gravely.
It was clear the Cunningham Group's situation had become dire.
At Vincent's residence, Lily sat on the sofa. Seeing Vincent return, she jumped up excitedly and embraced him. "Vincent, you're finally back! I have great news!"
"What news?" Vincent asked with a smile.
"I recently met a project manager who told me the bidding timeline was delayed because the committee decided to exclude the Cunningham family from the project. With them being under scrutiny, the committee fears it might affect the project's progress," Lily explained enthusiastically.
"Vincent, this is our opportunity," Lily's lips curved into a smile. "We must strike while the Cunningham family is vulnerable—deliver a fatal blow!"
She wanted to ensure the Cunningham Group would never recover!
If the Cunningham Group fell into trouble, Ethan would inevitably be implicated as long as he remained married to Jasmine—unless he was ruthless enough to divorce her to prove his innocence.
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