CHAPTER 154: CHAPTER 154: RUTHLESS AND LOVELESS

In the hospital room, there was only the regular ticking of the machine.

Ian Kane was trapped in a chaotic dream.

"Daddy! I came first in the finals again, can you take me skiing too? Please! Daddy..."

The man, expressionless, pried his fingers apart with disdain as if brushing off dust, and then disappeared through the door without looking back.

An autumn night in Veridia, a dark alleyway.

"Vera..."

"Just give me one chance... let me prove... prove I’ve changed! Prove that I, Ian Kane... can learn how to truly love you! I won’t... won’t hurt you again!"

He stumbled, chasing the decisive figure ahead, a metallic taste rising in his chest.

She did not pause in the slightest, nor did she look back at him even once.

That indifferent silhouette was elongated by the dim street lamps, eventually melting into the brightness of the alley’s entrance, disappearing completely.

An immense sense of despair engulfed him.

"Cough!"

On the hospital bed, Ian Kane suddenly opened his eyes, pupils dilated, chest heaving violently, gasping for air, as cold sweat soaked through his hospital gown.

He gripped the white sheets tightly.

Amidst his clouded consciousness, he vaguely heard voices deliberately lowered outside the room.

Outside, Kane Crowe stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the night through the floor-to-ceiling window.

"Jasper, being soft-hearted, is a major taboo." He did not turn around, his tone flat, yet it tightened one’s heart, "How did I tell you two years ago? It seems you heard it in one ear and out the other."

Standing a few steps away, Jasper Crowe slightly bowed his head, respectfully, tightly clenching his fists at his pant seams.

Only then did Kane Crowe slowly turn around, "Ian Kane, he’s got skills, top-notch." He paused, pointing to his temple,

"But here, there’s a problem. That woman, she’s his demon. A man willing to risk life and death for love, who could go insane at any moment, what does that mean for the Crowe Family?"

Not waiting for Jasper to reply, Kane continued, "He’s a ticking bomb!"

"A bomb that could explode at any time and topple the Crowe Family!"

Jasper’s throat moved, wanting to say something.

Kane Crowe raised a hand, stopping him.

"You won’t listen to advice, insisting on giving him a hand, letting him rise again." Kane glanced into the hospital room, "The result... incorrigible. Turning himself into this neither-human-nor-ghost form, half a life almost gone."

"Truly not a qualified white glove."

Jasper solemnly nodded, "Sir, you see things clearly."

Actually, did he not understand these things himself?

Kane Crowe stepped forward a small step, the invisible pressure instantly enveloped him, "Noah Grant, he’s not the same Noah Grant from two years ago. Ian Kane goes to block someone, and he can cut off our finances right after. This trouble is a warning."

He looked into Jasper’s eyes, pausing word by word, "This time, if you don’t break it off, the entire Crowe Family will be dragged down by him."

"When it’s time to cut losses, you must cut losses. You are the future head of the Crowe Family, you must make this decision!"

Old Mr. Crowe had spoken to this extent, it was a mandate to completely abandon Ian Kane!

Jasper secretly clenched his fists, steeling himself to speak, "Sir, Ian Kane is already in despair in love. If the Crowe Family also abandons him, he is truly finished... Please allow me to guide him a bit more, you’ve witnessed his capability, he bounced back in just a year—"

"Enough!" Kane’s voice suddenly sank, filled with an uncontrollable anger and impatience, "A woman’s compassion won’t do!"

"Uncle Crowe!"

The door to the inner room was pushed open.

Ian Kane stood at the door, pale, his body swaying slightly, gripping the door frame tightly to avoid falling, yet his back was straight.

Jasper turned his eyes away helplessly.

Ian Kane’s sunken eyes locked directly onto Kane Crowe’s naturally authoritative face.

Kane Crowe also looked at his frail appearance, a trace of regret passing through his heart, "Ian, since you’ve heard... I still stand by this decision."

Ian Kane took two steps forward, his dark eyes resolutely looking at him, his tone carrying an unyielding conviction, "Uncle Crowe, give me one last chance."

The hospital room instantly became quiet.

Kane’s sharp eyes scrutinized and weighed him, full of disbelief.

Ian Kane swallowed hard, forcing the metallic taste of despair from his dream down, his tone filled with unprecedented determination:

"From now on, I, Ian Kane, will have only business in my eyes."

"Matters of love and affection, over.

Kane Crowe, and Jasper too, displayed disbelief.

Ian Kane blinked, thoughtful for a moment, then declared decisively, "Within three months at the latest, I must secure the Norheim New Energy project!"

The Crowe father and son both flinched; that was an almost impossible project to tackle, but of immense strategic importance!

Kane Crowe’s expression gradually softened.

Jasper assessed Ian Kane, and after a while, a smile tugged at his lips.

The guy was always true to his word, said and done!

Kane Crowe approached Ian Kane, patting his shoulder, heavy with appreciation, "Ian, I’ll take your word as a pledge! This is your last chance!"

Also, this is the opportunity for this business prodigy to change his destiny!

Ian Kane nodded.

Kane Crowe patted his upper arm again, "Do not betray Jasper’s brotherly friendship towards you."

"As someone who’s been around, Uncle Crowe advises both of you, men should prioritize their careers. Affairs of the heart, seductive women, are fleeting; power held in your hands is what’s real."

Saying this, Kane Crowe left the hospital room quietly.

Leaving only Ian Kane and Jasper.

Jasper pulled out a pack of cigarettes, dexterously taking one out and biting it between his lips, lighting it, inhaling a couple of times before looking at Ian Kane slouched in the sofa.

"Where’s Justin?" Ian Kane’s tone showed no fluctuation.

Jasper was taken aback, then smiled, "Damn, you saw through that ’Letter of Understanding’ was fake from the start?... I got an expert to forge Vera’s signature, and you weren’t fooled?"

Ian Kane said nothing.

The first glance told him it was fake.

But he preferred to deceive himself, to believe she still had a sliver of softness towards him.

In truth, he knew better than anyone, her heart towards him had died out long ago.

"Justin’s been sent to Verrado to oversee things, he’s fine." Jasper exhaled a smoke ring, "Had I known I couldn’t fool you, I wouldn’t have bothered going through all that trouble with those staged courtroom dramas." To make the fake trial seem real, he had put in a lot of effort.

Ian Kane was silent for a few seconds, then looked up at Jasper, his gaze unusually serious, "Crowe, thank you."

Jasper was rendered uncomfortable by his gaze and the unexpected "thank you," almost choked on the smoke.

Annoyed, he said, "Why I saved you, you don’t know?"

As he spoke, he deftly rubbed his fingers, making a gesture of counting money.

Ian Kane remained silent.

...

Late at night, the elevator stopped with a "ding" on the 27th floor, the metal door silently sliding open.

Vera Sheridan raised her hand, her fingertips just touching the heavy suit jacket on her shoulder, ready to take it off.

Suddenly her wrist tightened!

Noah Grant’s warm, broad hand firmly grasped her slender wrist, his grip indisputable as he pulled her out of the elevator.

Vera was pulled forward, almost crashing into his embrace.

"Senior Grant." She steadied herself, frowning slightly, "Your home is upstairs."

Noah Grant turned slightly, his tall figure casting a shadow under the corridor light, completely enveloping her.

The corners of the man’s lips curled into a mischievous smile, "Go in and see my son."

His gaze locked onto hers, filled with a particular kind of heat, "Haven’t seen him for quite a while..."