The Established Siblings of the Pack

Megan and Zachary laughed when they heard this, and even Michael couldn’t help sneering.

“You don’t believe me?” Kingsley crossed his legs and drawled casually, “One phone call is all it takes

for me to have you expelled from the military.”

“Is that so?” Asher was laughing so hard that he was tearing up, and he mocked, “Aren’t you a big

talker? I would have fallen for it if I hadn’t known you were unemployed!”

“Challenging me, I see.” Kingsley sounded indifferent as he said, “You’ll be dealt with accordingly

minutes after I make that call.”

Asher was just about to retort when Zachary decided to add fuel to fire. “Asher, have the punk make

that call! Let’s just see if he’s all talk!” Then, he glanced over at Cecilia and mused, “See for yourself

what a loser he is! Your bum boyfriend is only good at bragging and nothing else, so if you think you’re

going to have your happily-ever-after with him, you’re wrong!”

At that moment, Cecilia grew worried and subtly tugged on Kingsley’s sleeve as she asked quietly,

“You’re not joking, are you?”

She was concerned that he was only saying these things because her family had razzed him. However,

he merely flashed her a smile as he said, “Don’t worry. Did you forget about what happened at the

Ramada?”

Her eyes widened by a fraction. Now that he mentioned it, he does seem to have connections with the

military… But isn’t that a friend of his friend’s? Will he really be able to expel Asher from the military?

“Hah!” Asher chortled. “You do realize I did not break the law or break the military code, right? Nothing

in the universe, not even a higher power, could have me kicked out of the troop. Call that buddy of

yours right now, and if you can’t have me expelled, then you bet your backside I’m going to arrest you

and have you locked up!”

Kingsley assessed him icily, but he made no reply as he took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.

He slipped one out of the box and lit it up as he said, “You asked for it.” While taking a drag, he

grabbed his phone and began to dial a number.

Just then, Asher noticed the cigarette box, and he shouted so loudly that his voice nearly broke, “Wait!”

The cigarette box had no logo on it, and it looked like it had been wrapped in white paper. However,

Asher knew that it was no ordinary box of cigarettes; it was military-issued!

He remembered coming across an identical box in the military chief’s garbage bin while he was

cleaning out the latter’s office, and the nondescript packaging had left quite the impression on him.

Presently, his mouth felt dry, and he gulped nervously as he stammered, “W-Where did you get those

cigarettes?”

Kingsley blew a perfect smoke ring and replied, “My friend in the military gave them to me. What, do

you want one?”

“N-No,” Asher said, looking flustered as he waved his hand.

Zachary spoke up then. “Asher, stop wasting your breath on the kid and get him to make the call. I’d

like to see how he’s going to weasel his way out of this!”

“That’s enough!” Asher said coldly. “We’re here to talk about Cecy’s predicament anyway, so leave me

out of it.” In actuality, his heart was beating so hard in his chest that it was a wonder he could hear

anyone speak at all. There was a slim chance that Kingsley was telling the truth when he said he had

connections in the military, but Asher did not want to gamble on that.

Presently, Kingsley was still holding his phone after dialing the number, and he raised a brow as he

asked, “Backing off so easily, Officer Larson?”

Asher glowered at him. He hesitated for what seemed like a long time, then hissed through gritted

teeth, “I see no point in engaging with someone like you.” He was trying to be subtle about it, but it was

clear that he had admitted defeat.

Stunned, Zachary asked, “Asher, you’re not actually scared of him, are you? He’s nothing but a—”

“Hey, Lev? Could you go into the Solaris Military District database and see if you can find a platoon

leader with the name Asher Larson? He’s supposedly from the Cleapolis Military District. There is?

Good. Issue him an official warning for disrespecting the military chief.” Kingsley hung up the phone

after that and grinned as he eyed Asher wickedly, “Seeing as you chose to back off, I’ll do Cecilia a

favor and let you get off on a warning instead of getting you booted from the military.”

Upon hearing this, Zachary and Megan looked distinctly unimpressed. Asher, too, was a little doubtful,

because whatever Kingsley had said earlier sounded an awful lot like empty brags.

Sensing that the air in the room was crackling with angry energy, Zachary seized the chance to

appease both Michael and Megan as he said, “Mr. and Mrs. Larson, I have with me today an

engagement gift! I certainly hope it will be good enough for the both of you.” As he said this, he

produced an ornate box from his messenger bag and offered it to Michael. “This is the jade passed

down to me from my great, great-grandfather, and it’s valued at around eight million right now.”

“Eight million?!” Michael and Megan were so astounded that their jaws nearly dropped to the floor. The

entire Larson Family combined had only a net worth of just over twenty million, and Zachary had so

generously gifted them a piece of jade that was a third of that!

Megan was beaming so brightly that she practically dazzled under the lights. Judging by the looks of it,

she would have married Zachary herself if it weren’t for the fact that he had his eyes set on Cecilia.

Meanwhile, Michael leaned forward in his seat and said cheerily, “You shouldn’t have, Young Master

Dugray! The jade must be precious to your family; far too precious to just give it away like this!”

There were no words to describe just how relieved and satisfied he was. With a jade that cost eight

million in his possession, he could easily put the Foxes in their place during the family banquet

tomorrow. He would finally be vindicated!

Zachary was pleased by how impressed they were with his gift, and he made it a point to glare at

Kingsley as he said, “It’s no big deal. I will give anything to be with Cecilia!”

“Oh, what a darling son-in-law you’ll make!” Megan crooned, her grin so wide that her eyes were

curving into crescent moons. “How very kind of you, Zachary.” Then, she shot Kingsley a disdainful

glance as she said sarcastically, “There are others who are merely all talk and still shamelessly pine

after what does not belong to them.”

Kingsley snorted. “It’s just some crap jade that’s worth eight million. I can’t imagine giving someone

trash like that!”