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At that moment, Zev''s ears perked up, and he instinctively stepped in front of Kelly. "You two know cach other?"
"Oh, are you bothered by it?" Shawn chuckled, quickly correcting himself, He had no intention of provoking Zev at this moment. "We met when Kelly was studying at Hallowick Medical University as an exchange student. We even worked together to save a young girl suffering from acute asthma caused by an allergen inhtion."
Kelly was momentarily stunned as she tried to recall the event.
After all, it had happened many years ago.
She did remember saving someone in Hallowick during her second year of university. Tyson had led them on an exchange program at the university, and she had saved a girl with the help of a passerby. The situation had been urgent, so she hadn''t paid much attention to the passerby then.
So, that person had been Shawn?
"You''ve changed a lot over the years," Kelly said honestly. Her memory of Shawn was of a much smaller, more fragile figure. Back then, he had struggled to carry the eleven-year-old girl.
"That year, you told me that someone as tall as I am should take better care of their health. I took your words to heart and started working out," Shawn replied with a lighthearted smile.
He seemed cheerful and healthy, but with her background in psychology, Kelly could sense something deeper.
His brightness and health seemed forced.
Thinking back to their first encounter, she recalled that Shawn had been tall but thin, with an air of lifelessness. He had worn sses, carried a stack of books in his arms, and looked like nothing more than a dedicated bookworm.
At the time, she had called out for help on the roadside, hoping someone would assist her in saving the girl. Shawn had hesitated for a long time before stepping forward. He had asked Kelly to hold his books while he struggled to carry the young girl to the hospital.
Kelly nced at his books back then. His handwriting was meticulous, and his economics textbook was densely packed with notes and insights. It was clear that he was a hardworking person.
"Kelly, don''t you think I look much better now?" Shawn smiled again.
Kelly nodded, smiling back. "Yes, you don''t look as frail as before. If another child needed saving, I''m sure you could carry them without a problem."
Shawn chuckled, looking slightly embarrassed but genuinely pleased.
Yet, Kelly no longer trusted people so easily.
rissa had remained nearby the entire time, clearly setting her sights on Shawn. She had already realized that Zev would never marry her and that the Lockharts were out of her reach. Now, she was shifting her ambitions toward Shawn instead.
"Hey, hey, he''s not as strong as me, is he?" Zev suddenly chimed in, feeling jealous.
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"You''re the strongest. Kelly quickly pulled him away, not wanting him to embarrass himself further.
Shawn simply smiled, standing still and watching them leave,
"I told you, he''s just a simple-minded brute, He''ll never be a threat to us," rissamented as she walked up beside Shawn, smirking.
"I never considered him my opponent. But don''t mistake that for ''us," Shawn replied, his smile fading as he looked at her. "Thanks for speaking up for me earlier, Ms. Lynch.
rissa frowned, realizing that Shawn was drawing a clear boundary between them. “Your talent is undeniable," she said, regaining herposure. "But the shares of the Wagner Group aren''t solely in your father''s hands. Gary and Helena also hold shares.
rissa smiled again before continuing, "Helena''s shares will undoubtedly be left to Zev. All of Lockhart''s assets will also belong to him alone. A talentless fool like him doesn''t deserve such luck. He''s just been blessed with sheer dumb fortune. But if everything that belongs to him were given to you. I believe you could achieve far greater things.
She despised men like Zev, who relied on luck rather than skill.
"Oh? And do you have a way to take something that belongs to someone else and make it your own?" Shawn turned to look at her, his smile returning. "Perhaps by having a child for him through surrogacy? Or by marrying him? You''re a smart woman, and you''ve yed your cards well. But in the end, you still lost to Kelly-a doctor."
rissa clenched her fists. "Who says I''ve lost?! It''s not over yet! How do you know I won''t turn the tables?"
"Then I''ll wait for your moment of victory and celebrate with you," Shawn said indifferently before turning away to escort his mother into the banquet hall.
"You and Shawn know each other?" Several of rissa''s socialite friends ran over, envious. "I heard Shawn is all about his studies and has never been in a rtionship before. A man with no dating experience must be easy to manipte!”
rissa sneered. "Easy? He''s just too self-assured. He doesn''t even see women as worth his time. Compared to his career, love is nothing."
A man like him, too rational and tooposed, would take effort to win over. But not impossible.
She lifted her chin confidently and stepped into the banquet hall.
Inside, the business elites mingled, exchanging pleasantries andworking.
Most of the attendees hade for Shawn-he was a rising star in the business world with a promising future and a proven track record.
As for Zev...
Aside from a few acquaintances who greeted him, nearly no one approached. Some didn''t know who he was, while others simply didn''t see a retired soldier- someone disconnected from the business world-as worth their attention.
"You were deliberately acting weak in front of Shawn, weren''t you?" Kelly asked in a hushed voice.
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"You''re the strongest." Kelly quickly pulled him away, not wanting him to
embarrass himself further.
Shawn simply smiled, standing still and watching them leave.
"I told you, he''s just a simple-minded brute. He''ll never be a threat to us," rissa
"I never considered him my opponent. But don''t mistake that for ''us," Shawn replied, his smile fading as he looked at her. "Thanks for speaking up for me earlier, Ms. Lynch."
rissa frowned, realizing that Shawn was drawing a clear boundary between them. “Your talent is undeniable," she said, regaining herposure. "But the shares of the Wagner Group aren''t solely in your father''s hands. Gary and Helena also hold shares."
rissa smiled again before continuing, "Helena''s shares will undoubtedly be left to Zev. All of Lockhart''s assets will also belong to him alone. A talentless fool like him doesn''t deserve such luck. He''s just been blessed with sheer dumb fortune. But if everything that belongs to him were given to you. I believe you could achieve far greater things."
She despised men like Zev, who relied on luck rather than skill.
"Oh? And do you have a way to take something that belongs to someone else and make it your own?" Shawn turned to look at her, his smile returning. "Perhaps by having a child for him through surrogacy? Or by marrying him? You''re a smart woman, and you''ve yed your cards well. But in the end, you still lost to Kelly-a doctor."
! rissa clenched her fists. "Who says I''ve lost?! It''s not over yet! How do you know I won''t turn the tables?"
"Then I''ll wait for your moment of victory and celebrate with you," Shawn said indifferently before turning away to escort his mother into the banquet hall.
"You and Shawn know each other?" Several of rissa''s socialite friends ran over, envious. "I heard Shawn is all about his studies and has never been in a rtionship before. A man with no dating experience must be easy to manipte!”
rissa sneered. "Easy? He''s just too self-assured. He doesn''t even see women as worth his time. Compared to his career, love is nothing."
A man like him, too rational and tooposed, would take effort to win over.
But not impossible.
She lifted her chin confidently and stepped into the banquet hall.
Inside, the business elites mingled, exchanging pleasantries andworking.
Most of the attendees hade for Shawn-he was a rising star in the business world with a promising future and a proven track record.
As for Zev...
Aside from a few acquaintances who greeted him, nearly no one approached. Some didn''t know who he was, while others simply didn''t see a retired soldier- someone disconnected from the business world-as worth their attention.
"You were deliberately acting weak in front of Shawn, weren''t you?" Kelly asked in
a hushed voice.
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"How can you call it ''acting weak''? I''ve just taken over Lockhart Group and haven''t even resolved internal conflicts yet. Creating external enemies now would
be foolish," Zev replied, swirling his wine ss, a sharp glint in his eyes.
Right now, the smartest strategy was to lie low externally whileunching swift attacks internally.
The more Shawn and rissa underestimated him, the more room hed to solidify
his position.
Kelly took a deep breath and sipped her wine.
She had a feeling...
Zev''s future held limitless possibilities.
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