?Chapter 786:


    William’s face was unreadable as he turned and opened the file. Insidey a few yellowed photocopies of old photographs, along with some hastily scrawled notes.


    His eyes swept over the chaotic crash-site images. Then—suddenly—his pupils contracted sharply.


    In one blurry photo, amid the wreckage and scattered debris, a tiny shard of metal no bigger than a fingernail glinted. Warped by fire, almost unrecognizable.


    The copy was grainy, the details faint. But William’s heart gave a jolt.


    He snatched up a magnifying ss and leaned closer.


    Under the lens, the twisted fragment revealed a faint symbol—an eagle spreading its wings—beside a distinctive letter abbreviation. That pattern… and abbreviation…


    William’s breath caught as he stared at the markings again and again. The more he looked, the clearer it became. He knew this pattern.


    It traced back to his uncle, the man who had stepped away from the Briggs Group years ago but still pulled strings behind the scenes, handling the family’s shadow business.


    William hadn’t expected this trail to lead back to his uncle once again.


    His eyes narrowed, and with it, the room seemed to grow colder.


    Behind him, Luca finally broke the silence. “Mr. Briggs, do you n on meeting the policeman’s son?”<f55> Read full story at find?novel</f55>


    A face-to-face talk might be the fastest way to dig up the truth.


    William gave a short nod. “Is he willing to meet?”


    Luca pressed his lips together, hesitant.


    William’s brow creased in irritation. “Spit it out. Since when did you start dragging your feet?”


    Luca wasn’t usually this cagey. Something about this was different.


    Looking helpless, Luca adjusted his stance. If this were a regr business deal, he wouldn’t think twice. But Ste’s name was tied up in all this, and that made it trickier.


    “He agreed, but there are conditions.”


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    William’s lips curved in a knowing smile. He had expected as much. After all, in this world, who offered help without wanting something in return?


    Besides, this was the kind of matter that could easily stir up trouble with people lurking in the shadows.


    “What conditions?” William asked.


    Luca fixed his sses, answering carefully. “First, he wants five hundred thousand transferred before the meeting. Second, he needs an admission letter from Crossroads University. And the third… he wants you to y a game of pool with him.”


    William’s brow lifted. The first two, though troublesome, at least made sense.


    But pool?


    A game of billiards as a bargaining chip? It sounded more like a joke than a negotiation tactic.


    Squandering a condition on that seemed absurd.


    After a pause, William asked, “What program is he trying to get into?”


    “Finance,” Luca replied, flipping through the folder.


    William gave a short nod. “Fine. Handle the transfer and see what can be done about the admission. As for the pool game, let him know I’ll show up whenever he’s ready.”


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