The Retired CEO's Guide To Being Spoiled-Chapter 137: The Most Potent Weapon

It was perfect. This was a pincer attack, striking from two sides simultaneously. On one front, the Harrington family was dealing with the loss of the strategic land to Ethan Caldwell. On the other front, internal strife was about to erupt thanks to a hollow project led by an incompetent heir.

Julian wanted to sit back and watch. He wanted to see if, in the midst of this storm, Cedric Harrington would still have the peace of mind to cherish and protect Aaron Sterling. When the throne is shaking, when the crown is slipping, love often becomes the cheapest commodity, the first thing to be discarded to lighten the load. If Cedric was truly the type of man who would throw away his empire for the sake of love, then Julian would genuinely be impressed. He would stand up and applaud the man’s romantic spirit.

But he doubted it.

Frankly speaking, Julian couldn’t deny that his current life with Ethan Caldwell was good. It was comfortable. He wouldn’t even deny the possibility that between him and Ethan, something more than a mere commercial marriage contract had begun to blossom. There were moments of tenderness, of care, that transcended the cold ink of their agreement. But even so, in his heart of hearts, Julian did not believe in love.

Compared to tangible benefits, to cold calculations, to the intoxicating schemes for power and authority, was love truly worth anything? In their world, when faced with the choice between profit and power, even blood brothers would not hesitate to stab each other in the back. If those sharing the same DNA could turn on one another, how could two strangers, bound only by the fragile concept of "love", truly sacrifice everything for each other?

Julian didn’t know the answer for certain. He had never experienced such a love in his previous life, and he had yet to see it fully in this one. However, if he had to wager, he guessed that Cedric Harrington’s answer would also be a resounding "no".

On the other end of the line, hearing the soft, enigmatic chuckles emanating from Julian, Lucas Hill felt a wave of irritation rise within him. The sound cut through his anxiety, and he couldn’t help but interrupt his friend’s train of thought.

"Hey! Julian!" Lucas’s voice boomed through the speaker, shattering the quiet atmosphere of the bedroom: "What on earth has been wrong with you these past few days since you went missing? Is there something wrong with your head? You keep spacing out, drifting away, and then laughing and mumbling to yourself. Are you going to tell me or not? I am sitting on a pile of fire over here! I’m anxious!"

Startled, Julian was pulled back from the depths of his strategic musings. He cleared his throat, forcing a cough to mask his composure and regain a semblance of normalcy.

"Ahem... it’s nothing." Julian replied, his voice smoothing out: "I was just imagining the spectacular expressions on their faces when they finally receive our little gift."

He shifted slightly, trying to find a more comfortable position. Even that small movement caused his waist to protest, a sharp reminder of his physical condition. Ignoring the ache, he lowered his voice, adopting a tone dripping with mystery.

"Do you want to know who the person is? The one I suggested you approach, the one currently holding that contract?"

On the other end, Lucas held his breath. The suspense was killing him, his curiosity piqued to the absolute limit.

"Who?" Lucas whispered.

Julian narrowed his eyes, staring into the void of the darkened room. He enunciated every syllable clearly, letting the weight of the name sink in.

"He is of the same generation as Cedric Harrington, yet he has always lived cowering in his shadow. He is also the son who has spent his entire life existing as nothing more than an accessory to his mother. Kevin Harrington."

There was total silence on the other end of the line for a full three seconds.

Then came the sharp sound of Lucas sucking in a breath of cold air, followed immediately by a voice filled with shock, disbelief, and a touch of panic.

"Kevin Harrington? That pampered dandy? The one famous for his debauchery, the notorious prodigal son who destroys his family’s fortune?" Lucas stammered, his voice rising in pitch: "You... you gave the contract to him? Julian, have you gone mad? What the hell does he know about business? Why would he even read a contract? Giving it to him is no different than throwing money out the window!"

"It is precisely because he knows nothing that he is so easy to deceive. Didn’t you just call him an idiot yourself?" Julian responded calmly. His tone had shifted, becoming cold and ruthless, a stark contrast to the sickly, weak demeanor he had displayed just moments before: "He doesn’t need to understand the contract, Lucas. He doesn’t need to understand the logistics or the feasibility. He only needs to see the fake profit numbers I painted for him. He only needs to see the vision we fed him, the vision where he climbs on top of Cedric’s head and rides him like a horse."

Julian paused for a moment, allowing Lucas time to digest the information, before delivering the final blow.

"Ignorance, combined with greed and jealousy, is the most potent weapon we have. Furthermore, Kevin’s mother, Evelyn Harrington, also holds shares in the company. She is a woman whose thirst for power rivals that of her son, but unlike him, she actually has a brain. She might be a daughter-in-law, and perhaps she doesn’t hold the ultimate authority, but that doesn’t matter. As long as Kevin can convince his mother, I suspect she has the connections to pull quite a few strings behind the scenes. And if he can’t convince her? It doesn’t matter. We are not involved. Our hands are clean." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Lucas Hill was rendered completely speechless. A shiver ran down his spine. For the first time in their friendship, he felt a profound sense of awe mixed with fear. He had always thought of Julian as gentle, perhaps a bit meek. He never realized that beneath that soft exterior lay a mind capable of such deep, terrifying, and Machiavellian calculations.

"Alright, I get it." Lucas said finally, his voice stripping away the previous joking tone. It was replaced by a tone of respect, tinged with a healthy dose of apprehension: "You are truly... deep. Terrifyingly deep. I will keep a close watch on the movements over at Kevin’s side. If anything happens, I will report to you immediately."