Early the next morning, James received a call from Thea.

“Hey honey, I’ve managed to get in touch with my classmate. She’s willing to help and has set an appointment up with the chairman, Alex Yates. Where are you? Let’s go to Celestial Group’s office now and secure the order. Grandfather will accept you then!” Thea’s excited voice sounded through the phone.

“Wait for me at home. I’ll pick you up in a bit.”

After hanging up, James rolled out of bed and got ready at top speed.

“Where are we going, James?”

Henry was already waiting with the car.

“To Thea’s.”

“Hop in.”

James complied. With Henry at the wheel, they reached Thea’s place in no time. They waited for her outside.

Thea appeared soon.

As she was going to meet the chairman of Celestial Group, Thea had put in extra effort to groom herself. Wearing a pretty, form-fitting dress and her black hair hanging loose over her shoulders, she was a vision to behold indeed.

“Honey.”

Having seen the black multi-purpose vehicle approach from a distance, Thea jogged up to the car with a joyful expression on her face, saying, “My classmate pulled out all the stops. She’s made the appointment for us, so all we have to do is show up at Celestial Group’s office.”

James smiled thinly.

It had nothing to do with her classmate at all. If he had not spoken with Alex Yates, there would not be any appointment to speak of.

However, seeing as Thea was so happy, he decided not to spoil it. Instead, he complimented her. “I knew it. You’ve got this, darling. It’s all up to you now. If we don’t get the order, I’m out.”

Thea smiled brilliantly. “Don’t worry. I won’t let that happen.”

She might still be hazy about the details of James’ background, but she had been to his villa before.

The House of Royals was the poshest villa in Cansington, and it had a hefty price tag attached to it. Any Tom, Dick, or Harry would not be able to afford it.

She felt impossibly lucky that he was hers. Now, she wanted to prove her capability to him.

She wanted to show him that she was no longer the old Thea. Even though she had been a laughing stock for years and years, she kept up with her studies at home and was an accomplished scholar.

“Let’s go, darling.”

Thea got into the car.

James said, “Henry, to Celestial Group’s office.”

Thea cuddled up to James and thought about what happened last night. She said, “Honey, did you know that old Warren Xavier was killed last night?”

The Xaviers were the leaders of The Great Four.

As the head of the Xaviers, Warren was famous. Everyone knew who he was.

At the Xaviers’ banquet last night.

There was a celebration where they celebrated the partnership of Megatron Group and Celestial Group. Now that Megatron would be getting first dibs on Celestial’s orders, their business and influence would expand even more.

It was also Warren Xavier’s eightieth birthday.

However, a mystery person crashed the party with a coffin. He beheaded Warren and took his head with him. News spread fast, and it was the hottest news in Cansington at the moment.

Now, the relevant departments were investigating the incident.

There was not much to go on with, though.

James pretended to be shocked at Thea’s question. “I went straight to bed after I got home last night. I didn’t know about this. The Xaviers are part of The Great Four in Cansington, right?”

“That’s right,” Thea said. “The Xaviers are the leaders of The Great Four, and their businesses span various industries. Megatron Group alone, belonging to them, is more powerful than all the Callahan’s businesses added up, and the Xaviers have plenty of businesses too.”

Thea looked slightly envious. “All the women in Cansington desperately want to marry the Xaviers so that they can enjoy an easy life.”

James smiled a little. “Didn’t you have a chance yesterday? Divorce me, and you’ll have your chance.”

“Ugh.”

Thea looked unimpressed. “Being in a rich family isn’t a bed of roses. Over the past ten years, I’ve witnessed too much ridicule for my liking. To them, I’m nothing but a joke. I know full well who’s treating me sincerely. I don’t care about marrying the rich. Besides, my husband is rich.”

With that, she grinned, a blissful expression on her face.

James squeezed Thea’s hand.

She was quite a logical woman.

Henry said nothing, focusing on the road. Soon, they reached Celestial Group’s office.

An international group, Celestial Group was the Yates’ family business, which hailed from the Capital.

Their headquarters was an impressive, eight-story building.

James and Thea exited the car.

Thea looked up at the imposing building, panic creeping over her.

Over the past ten years, she had stayed home as much as she could.

However, she had a strong thirst to visit and explore the world outside. The reason why she studied so hard at home was to free herself from the proverbial cage and soar higher.

She took her phone out and called her classmate.

About 20 minutes later, a woman in thick makeup and a work skirt approached them. When she saw Thea standing at the entrance, she could not hide her surprise.

She had heard that Thea recovered her looks. Thea had even sent her a picture, but she did not believe it. She was forced to accept the truth now that she saw Thea in the flesh.

She looked envious as she noticed how beautiful Thea was now.

Coming up to them, she asked hesitantly, “Thea?”

Excitedly, Thea grabbed the other woman’s hand. She said, “Jane, it’s me! You’ve really made it as the head of a department at Celestial Group!”

Jane Whitman was extremely flattered. She smiled and said, “I’m just trying to make a living. Thea, if you want to meet the chairman, you still need the general manager’s permission. Let’s go.”

Thea stood rooted to the spot.

When they spoke on the phone yesterday, Jane promised that she had made an appointment with the chairman, Alex Yates.

“Thea, you must know that it’s not easy to get an order from Celestial. If you want the order, you’ll have to…” She bent closer to Thea and whispered something in her ear.

Thea rejected Jane’s idea firmly. “Absolutely not.”

Jane lost her patience. “Thea, if you’re unwilling to make sacrifices, how will you get anything in return? I’ve sent your picture to the manager. He has agreed to let you obtain the order if you sleep with him. You don’t even have to see the chairman!”

“Jane, I thought we were friends. Is this how you treat a friend?”

Jane looked unimpressed. “You want to get an order without a sacrifice? Let me tell you right now. It’s impossible. I’ve made it clear, so think about it and let me know if you still want to go ahead.”

She turned and left after that, her heels clicking against the floor loudly.

Thea was on the verge of tears. She turned around to look at James who had remained silent all this time. “I’m useless, aren’t I?”

James comforted her. “Of course not. Why not try and see Alex Yates straightaway? I think he’ll see you. Go on, I’ll wait for you in the car.”

James gently pushed Thea in the direction of the building.

Just then, Jane returned with a middle-aged man.

The man was in a suit and tie, looking like a successful businessman.

Jane had her arm curled intimately around his, approaching Thea once again. Smiling, she said, “Thea, this is the manager of Celestial Group. He’s in charge of all the business connections. He calls the shots on who gets the orders.”

The only reason Jane was in this position today was all because she had slept with the manager, Linus Johnson. She was his mistress.

Jane had sent Linus a picture of Thea last night.

Linus was intrigued immediately. He promised Jane that he would promote her to the position of deputy department manager if she would help him get Thea into bed.

Now that Linus saw Thea in the flesh, he was even more aroused.

Thea was even more beautiful in person.

He swore that he would get her into bed by hook or by crook.

He walked up to her with his chest puffed out. “Thea, right? Jane has told me everything. It’s a hot day today. Why don’t we take this discussion to a hotel room? Don’t worry. Come with me, and you don’t have to worry about the order. I’ll even give you a deal of fifty million dollars!”

Linus looked like he wanted to eat Thea up right there and then.

Ever since he became the manager, he had slept with countless women, offering them benefits with his role.

At first, most of them rejected him.

However, after a while, they started to offer themselves up to him to gain access to deals, partnerships, and other benefits.

Jane was keen to make Linus’ plan a success as well. Making him happy was imperative to her own benefit.

She walked up to Thea and pulled her aside. “Thea, I know that you’ve suffered over the years. Now that you’re beautiful again, you have to use your looks to your advantage. We won’t stay young forever, you know? Once this golden period is gone, we’ll never get it back.”

“I’m married. I won’t do it.” Thea refused to give in.

Jane lost her temper. “Who do you think you are, Thea? Don’t you know it’s an honor that Linus likes you? If you offend him, you can forget about working with Celestial Group. Forever.”

“Jamie…”

Thea walked over to James.

James ignored Linus and Jane, gesturing toward the entrance. “Go on,” he said. “You’re meeting the chairman, not a lowly manager. Just ignore him.”

“Who are you, boy?” Linus looked at James coldly.

“F*ck off.”

James only had two words to say to him.

He was still the legendary Dragon General of the Southern Plains after all. Linus was a complete nobody.

In the chairman’s office on the top floor of the Celestial Group building.

Alex had been waiting for Thea since morning.

After all this time, she still had not shown up.

Being extremely anxious, he went downstairs to the first floor, checking with reception if a woman named Thea Callahan had asked to see him. The reception confirmed that no one by that name had come by.

Oh sh*t, he thought. Thea was the Dragon General’s wife. If he had somehow missed her or messed this up, not even the power the Yates name had could protect him.

Alex exited the building, planning to wait at the entrance for Thea.

As soon as he walked out, he saw his manager speaking to two people. He glanced over and noticed James. He shuddered involuntarily, his knees almost buckling. Wiping the sweat from his face, he quickly made his way over to them.

“Gen…”

Before he could finish, James glared at him.

Alex understood at once, quickly stopping himself.

James said, “Thea, isn’t that the chairman? Why are you still standing here? Go on. My fate depends on you.”

Thea followed his gaze and saw the balding man. Her eyes lit up. That was the chairman of Celestial Group indeed, Alex Yates.

“Ha ha.” Jane burst out laughing. “What a joke. The chairman is in his office.”

Linus wore an ugly expression on his face. “Thea, let me make this clear once and for all. If we don’t go to the hotel now, you’ll never be able to make a deal with Celestial, ever.”

He had to have Thea.

Every connection Celestial had with other companies and businesses was under his charge.

Besides the core partnerships, he decided on the distribution of the extra orders. If he blocked the Callahans off within Celestial, Thea would never get an order.

Alex approached them. With a wooden expression, he asked, “What are you doing? Don’t you have work to do?”

Jane and Linus turned around together.

Their smug expressions slid right off their faces as soon as they saw Alex.

“S-sir.” Linus started sweating. If the chairman found out what he had been doing, he would lose his job.

All he could do was pray that Alex did not hear what he had said earlier on.

Alex spread his arms. “What’s going on?”

James lightly shoved a stunned Thea.

Thea came to her senses. “H-hi, Mister Yates. I’m Thea Callahan from Eternality Group. I’m here on behalf of the company to explore a collaboration with Celestial Group. We would like to obtain some orders from you.”

As Alex Yates was a very important person, Thea felt small talking to him. She lost a bit of her confidence.

Cansington was the capital of medicine.

There were thousands of medicinal processing companies operating in Cansington, and these companies depended on big pharmaceutical organizations like Celestial to survive.

As Eternality Group was not a large company, they were not yet qualified to work with a company as large as Celestial Group.

“I’m asking you again. What are you doing here?” Alex’s face was stern as he looked at Jane and Linus.

James piped up. “My wife’s here to talk business with Celestial, but this manager wanted to take advantage of her. He’s abusing his power by dismissing Eternality Group. I think that as a large company, Celestial Group should deal with this matter fairly.”

“Of course.”

Alex nodded and said, “He’s right. Looks like we have some corruption to eradicate in the company. Linus Johnson, right? Go to the finance department and collect your salary. You’re fired.”

“Huh?”

Linus was shocked.

Had he been fired just like that?

“S-sir, don’t listen to him. The Callahans are too small to work with us. Celestial’s orders are meant for the more capable companies. They were bothering me, so I came up with an excuse to brush them off. All I do is for the company’s benefit.”

“Do you want me to repeat myself? And you, pack your things up and get lost.” Alex pointed to Jane.

He turned to James and Thea after that, smiling at them. “Miss Thea Callahan from Eternality Group, was it? This way to my office, please. Let me handle this personally.”

Alex gestured politely with his arm.

Thea was confused.

Since when was the chairman of Celestial Group this polite and easygoing?

James pushed her lightly again. “Go on then. This is a golden opportunity. My fate is in your hands.”

Thea caught up and nodded. “Oh, yes. Okay. Of course. No problem at all, Mister Yates.”

She was a little nervous.

Over the past ten years, she had barely left the house.

She had read a lot of looks and gained plenty of knowledge, but this was her first time conducting business after all.

Furthermore, she was trying to make a deal with the chairman of Celestial Group, of all people!

She lost her confidence and turned to James, looking scared. “Honey, I-I don’t think I can do it.”

“Mister Yates has extended an invitation to you personally. What else are you afraid of?” James pushed her, saying, “Go on. I’ll wait for you in the car.”

“Miss Callahan, this way, please.” Alex bowed slightly, gesturing with his arm again.

Jane and Linus goggled at this display.

They were right outside the building of Celestial Group. As they were a big corporation, there were always plenty of reporters lurking around. Many of them snapped pictures as they saw this scene play out.

It would be big news.

Alex Yates was the chairman of Celestial Group after all.

The Great Four were imposing, but even they had to play by Alex’s rules. Now he was being so respectful toward this woman.

Who was she?

What family did she come from?

Why had nobody seen her before?

Thanks to Alex’s invitation, Thea finally entered the building.

James, on the other hand, climbed into his car.

Sitting in the passenger seat, he lit a cigarette and passed one to Henry.

Henry did the same and took a drag from it. He asked, “General, was all that necessary? All you had to do was ask, and the Yates would have given you their entire corporation.”

James blew a smoke ring. “And why would I want it? As a gift for Thea? She might not like it. All I have to do is support her in her endeavors. Also, how many times do I have to tell you? Don’t call me General. It’s James here.”

“Sorry, James. It’s hard to break the habit.”

On the top floor of the Celestial Group building.

Alex took Thea to his office and made tea for her himself.

Thea was extremely shocked. Quickly, she said, “Mister Yates, l-let me do it myself.”

“Please sit down, Miss Callahan. I’ll make the tea. Make yourself at home, please.”

Thea could not wrap her head around it. “Mister Yates, I’m here to talk business…”

“Yes, yes, I know. Have a cup of tea first. I’ll get someone to prepare the contract right now. Oh, is an order of a hundred million enough? If not, I can increase the volume.”

“What?”

Thea was stunned.

She had not even said anything, yet Alex had given her an order of a hundred million dollars just like that. Since when was it so easy to conduct business with Celestial?

Alex noticed that Thea’s expression was uneasy, and thought that a hundred million was not enough. Immediately, he said, “Is it not enough? I’ll give you more. How does five hundred million sound to you?”

“No, no, it’s enough. A hundred million is enough,” Thea replied hurriedly.

Five hundred million?

What was going on?

With an order of five hundred million, the commission would be 20%. If the deal went through, the Callahans would get a profit of a hundred million dollars.

The Callahans were not able to pull off such a huge order yet.

They would be scrambling to keep up, and even an order of a hundred million dollars would require them to put their best foot forward.

Alex was extremely efficient. In no time, his secretary had drawn up a contract. Thea signed it, still in a state of shock.

Before she left, Alex gave her his business card. “Miss Callahan, this is my card. Let’s keep in touch.”

He never mentioned James once.

He knew who James was, yet Thea did not seem to know. As the chairman of Celestial Group, he knew how to read body language fairly well. James did not want his identity exposed. That much he knew.

Thea took the contract with her. As she left the building, she felt like all that happened was like a fever dream.

It was too easy.

She had barely spoken, yet Celestial had practically gifted the order to her.

She got into the car.

“Honey, I think that Alex Yates is trying to get into my good books. I barely said two words before he gave me an order worth a hundred million dollars. Actually, he wanted to give me an order worth five hundred million.”

James smiled. “You must have met him before.”

“Impossible. In the last ten years, I have not made any friends.” Thea rolled her eyes and looked at James, her eyes sparkling. “Honey, Alex was only so nice to me because of you, right?”

James shrugged. “What do you mean? I’m just an orphan. How could I possibly meet Alex Yates?”

“Oh, come on. What about the House of Royals then?”

James launched into an explanation. “How could I afford it? It belongs to a friend. We grew up together at the orphanage. He’s out of the country and knew that I needed a place to stay, so he graciously allowed me to stay there and look after the house for him.”

“Really?” Thea still looked doubtful.

“Of course. Why? Planning on divorcing me if the House of Royals isn’t mine? A little materialistic, aren’t you?”

“No!” Thea pouted. “You helped me recover and gave me a new lease of life. We’re married now, and I’m your wife. Money is not a problem. I’ll take care of us!”

“Thea, I’m sorry! It’s all my fault!”

Just then, a woman rushed over and threw herself against the car window.

Her hair was a mess and her face was red and swollen. From the looks of it, she was just beaten up.

The woman was Jane Whitman.

Linus followed closely behind her. He yanked her hair violently and threw her against the car, hard.

“You b*tch! I lost my job because of you! I’ll kill you!”

“James…” Henry started to say.

James waved his hand. “It’s none of our business. Let’s go.”

“Honey…” Thea looked at Jane, who was heavily injured. Worriedly, she asked, “Honey, will everything be okay?”

James smiled at her. “They’re having a lovers’ tiff. We’d better not get involved.”

“Thea, I’m sorry. I didn’t know that you knew the chairman. Please help me.” Jane fell to her knees, begging Thea.

After Linus had finished beating her up, he came to the front of the car. He took out a pack of cigarettes that cost a hundred dollars per packet and offered one to Henry. “Bro, no, kind sir, could you please wind the window down? Please let me speak to Miss Callahan.”

Henry turned around to seek permission from James.

James nodded lightly.

Henry wound the window down.

Linus moved to the back and offered a cigarette to James.

James did not take it.

Linus smiled awkwardly. “Miss Callahan, it’s my fault for not knowing how important you are to Mister Yates. Please do me a favor and tell him not to fire me.”

He took an envelope out and offered it to Thea. “Here’s ten thousand dollars as a small gesture.”

Thea looked at James.

James put his arm around her and smiled. “Darling, let’s go. We have to show grandfather the contract. We’ll only be an official couple with his approval.”

Thea understood, nodding in agreement.

Furthermore, she did not know Alex Yates and could not help either of them.

It was their own fault anyway.

“Henry, let’s go.”

“Got it.”

Henry started the engine and drove off.

“Thea…” Jane remained kneeling on the ground, crying her heart out.

Thea ignored her. In the car, she stuck her tongue out at James, smiling mischievously. “Honey, do you think that both of them lost their jobs because of me?”

James said, “Not entirely. Celestial’s a huge company, and they would never allow a worker like Linus to spoil their name. With the way he was abusing his power, it was only a matter of time before he got fired. All you did was hasten things along.”

Thea felt relieved after hearing James say that.

Soon, they reached the Callahans’.

Ever since the Callahans learned that Thea had recovered her looks, they had made plans for her.

Tommy had even invited a friend over, planning to introduce Thea to him.

His friend was Joel Xavier, a playboy who had the world wrapped around his finger thanks to the wealth of his family.

Just last night, the Xaviers had suffered a major blow with Warren’s death. Joel was indifferent about the whole matter. What could he do anyway? He could not bring a person back from the dead.

Over the years, Warren had been in complete control of the family. He kept reducing Joel’s allowance as well. Now that he was dead, Joel’s father would be the new patriarch.

Once his father was in control, he would be more important than ever.

Furthermore, Warren’s funeral was simple and the family was not in mourning.

According to Tommy, Thea had recovered her looks and was a great beauty. He was here to see how beautiful she was now, given that she was so ugly before this.

In the villa, the Callahans swarmed around Joel, almost like they were worshiping a god.

Tommy felt important. He sat on the couch with his legs crossed, saying, “Grandfather, Joel’s a good friend of mine. I’ve told him how pretty Thea is, which is why he’s here. Thea has to divorce James and become Joel’s girlfriend.”

Lex smiled in agreement. “Of course. Young Joel Xavier here is a perfect match for our Thea.”

The Callahans’ flattery went straight to Joel’s head and he reveled in it.

This was what it was like being part of The Great Four in Cansington. Everywhere he went, there were people waiting to butter him up.

“Grandfather.”

Just then, Thea entered with James.

As soon as she was in the house, she produced the contract. Happily, she said, “Here’s the contract with Celestial Group. Does this mean that James can stay?”

Tommy bounded to his feet at once and pointed to Joel who was sitting on the couch. “Thea, let me introduce you to Joel Xavier. You know who the Xaviers are, right? The leaders of The Great Four? Why don’t you light a cigarette for him?”

Joel almost started drooling at the sight of Thea.

He had known Thea before when she was disfigured. Now that she was beautiful again, she looked just like a goddess. It looked like the trip to the Callahans’ was well worth it. Thea was much more beautiful than all the other women he had fooled around with.

He swore that he would get Thea into bed.

Thea glanced at Joel. His stare was making her extremely uncomfortable. “Who is he? I’m not lighting a cigarette for him.”

“Watch your words,” Lex said coldly. “How could you speak to Joel like that? Apologize at once.”

Joel waved a magnanimous hand. “Mister Callahan, don’t berate Thea. I love the stubborn ones. Also, what was that about getting an order from Celestial?”

Tommy hastened to explain.

It was then Joel noticed James, who was standing behind Thea. He had thought that James was the driver. Who knew that he was Thea’s husband, hand-picked by Lex?

His expression darkened. “Mister Callahan, I want Thea. Annul the marriage immediately. Otherwise, all it takes is one phone call from me and the contract with Celestial will be void. Don’t forget that the Xaviers are Celestial Group’s closest business partner. We get the lion’s share before the orders are distributed among the other businesses.”

James barely glanced at Joel. “I heard that Warren Xavier is dead. You’re a Xavier, no? Why are you here instead of mourning at home?”

“F*ck you.” Joel straightened up and grabbed James’ collar, raising his hand to slap him.

James blocked the slap. Gently, he pushed Joel away.

Even though James had barely used any strength, Joel still stumbled, falling onto the couch. That only made him angrier. He was part of The Great Four, used to everyone worshiping him. Now, this nobody was pushing him? Worse, who was he to mention his late grandfather?

Everyone knew about Warren’s death, but no one dared mention it.

Except for James Caden.

Joel produced a switchblade and threw it onto the ground. Coldly, he ordered, “Cut one of your own hands off and I’ll spare your life. Otherwise, I’ll kill you myself!”

Tommy stood up, grinning widely. “Joel, come sit down and have a cigarette. Calm down. It would be too easy to get rid of this piece of trash. Don’t hold back on our account. Even if he dies, no one would care. Once he’s dead, Thea will be yours.”

Thea was furious, her teeth grinding.

Joel sat down and gave James a death glare. “For what you said earlier on, you’re dead. No one will be able to save you.”

James smiled, ignoring all of them.

If they were not at the Callahans’, Joel would be dead by now.

Thea passed the contract to Lex in a subdued manner. “Grandfather, we did what you told us to. If we could get an order from Celestial, you’d acknowledge James as my husband. This order isn’t just worth thirty million. It’s worth a hundred million. Please take a look.”

“What? A hundred million?” Lex was shocked.

“Grandfather, you’ve got to hear this! The chairman of Celestial Group invited Thea to his office personally!” Just then, a girl stumbled into the room, her expression disbelieving.