There were plenty of illegitimate children who lived well, wielded great power, and even seized control of their families.


    The main reason he''d been bullied was simply that he was too weak.


    This world was never fair. It was a world where the strong were revered and the weak submitted. Survival of the fittest was thew of nature.


    Seeing that Ste Cameron remained silent, Leonard Lerman added, "But since you don''t like it, I''ll try not to harm innocent people in the future."


    Ste said nothing.


    If she told him not to, those innocent people might end up just like she once had.


    But she wasn''t so much of a saint that she would maintain any kind of connection with Leonard for the sake of strangers she didn''t even know.


    Silence was the best option.


    Perhaps because she was about to leave, Leonard was more talkative than usual.


    He said, "I arranged for the share transfer before I came here. All you need to do is sign, and it will take effect immediately. My assistant will handle the rest of the paperwork for you."


    Ste frowned. "I don''t want your things."


    Leonard looked at her. "Then wouldn''t you have wasted this past month for nothing?"


    Ste replied, "Surviving a month in the hands of an ouw like you is already a blessing. How could I dare ask for more? If I epted your shares, who knows what kind of stories people would spin about us. It might not be that I was kidnapped and missing, but that I ran away with you."


    Leonard said, "What outsiders say is their business. Power is only real when it''s in your own hands. Why cate about tale gossip? If it were. Aurora Williams, and I offered Ker this many shares to marry me, she wouldn''t hesitate for a second."


    A thirty-percent stake was basically enough to take over the Lerman family''s key


    businesses and be the head of the family.


    The Lerman family''s shares were


    too fragmented. Apart from the three percent Leonard had given Aurora, the five percent he''d given Simone Lerman, and the ten percent he still held, the rest was in the hands of various major shareholders and was very difficult to buy back.


    Leonard had used plenty of threats and persuasion to acquire as many shares as he had.


    He had long since reorganized the Lerman family''s power structure. To purge Hand Lerman''s remaining influence, the people under him recognized authority, not individuals.


    Of course, this was something he had been working on for years, ever since he became the head of the family. He had only recentlypleted the final stages. Therefore, once Ste received the shares, she wouldn''t need the support of the Lerman family members or its major shareholders tomand a portion of the family''s power.


    Although the other Lerman family members also held considerable power, Leonard, as the head, naturally controlled the most critical and important assets.


    Leonard hadpartmentalized the


    power within the Lerman family''s


    various businesses. Even if one


    business suffered a loss, the others


    wouldn''t be affected. In fact, he


    could use the unaffected businesses to stage aeback.


    As long as it wasn''t a total loss, there was always a glimmer of hope and a chance


    to recover.


    Before this, Ste didn''t really understand Leonard all that well.


    But now, she had to admit that Leonard had his own unique qualities and abilities that had allowed him to be the head of the family.


    By segmenting his businesses, he could not only purge Hand''s loyalists but also ensure he always had an ace up his sleeve.


    Of course, this wasn''t something that could be achieved overnight. It had taken Leonard at least five or six years since he became the head of the family.