Ch. 71..80

Life at the Top Chapter 71

“G-God, is he telling the truth?”

Logan gulped as his gaze burned.

Zaine rubbed his face in disbelief.

Hudson stared at Jasper in shock. Had it not been for the other’s identity, Hudson would surely think that he had stumbled into a madman.

Even Jack was taken aback. He knew that Jasper liked Terizone, but he had not expected such a high appraisal from the man.

Only Jasper, who came from the future, knew very clearly that everything he said would come true.

When he transmigrated, Terizone was worth 460 billion dollars and produced an annual revenue of 360 billion Oriental Dollars. They had more than one billion users of different products worldwide.

Jasper would be using ten million to buy 51% of the company’s shares, essentially exchanging a piece of rock for a golden egg.

What was more important would be the future social media ecosystem that could be created by relying on a terrifying number of user groups.

That was Jasper’s main goal, to leverage traffic with funds and use said traffic to control the ecosystem so that the ecosystem could rule!Yet what was Hudson thinking then?

Hudson did not even think much of this promising future that Jasper spoke of, for he was more concerned about something else.

“You say that you’ve already come up with a way to profit?”

Hudson found that the future of a trillion dollars and the reestablishment of human communication to be shallow in comparison.

Now when Terizone could not even afford to pay the salary of its founders, nothing was more important than how to make profits.

The problem of how to profit from the internet was something the whole world, let alone the country, still could not resolve.

His words had brought everyone’s mind back to reality as they stared at Jasper with heated gazes.

“Sign the contract and I’ll tell you.” Jasper showed his palms.

He was not an idiot, for history from his past life had proven that such a method to profit was sound. That was how Terizone came back to life.

Still, he would be the one facing a loss if he told them and they went back on their word.

“Fine! We agree! But the part where we’ll profit and your promise to not manage the company’s day-to-day business must be written into the contract as well.” Hudson clenched his jaw.

“Of course. The moment I become a shareholder, resolving your problem on how to make a profit is no different than doing myself a favor. I wouldn’t be that stingy. As for managing the company’s business, I don’t have that kind of time.

“However, Jack will help build your company structure in the very beginning. He’ll be given other things to do when JW Capital starts having more businesses. Is that alright with you?”

Hudson could not be more grateful to have a professional manager like Jack helping them.

Now that they had agreed, Hudson called Daniel, the last founder who was in charge of the legal side of the business, to draft a contract.

Daniel rushed over to the company. He was stunned when he heard of Jasper’s identity. He whispered to Hudson and the rest when he was told that Jasper was going to add ten million to their capital. After that, he happily went to draft an agreement.

Jasper skimmed through the agreement and discussed it with Jack before they changed two small aspects to guarantee that they would benefit more. Both sides then signed and stamped the agreement before it was made effective immediately.

“Transfer equity at the Bureau of Industry and Commerce tomorrow after work and my funds will be credited to your accounts.” Jasper passed the contract to Jack and a large boulder was finally lifted from his chest.

Meanwhile, Hudson and the rest stared at Jasper with a shine in their eyes.

Everyone was waiting to hear about the method to profit.

Jasper chuckled aloud.

As far as everyone was concerned, how Terizone was supposed to make a profit was an unsolvable problem.

On the other hand, Jasper was well aware that there were just too many ways to make money.

Life at the Top Chapter 72

Future products like KK Show, KZone, and KK Members, for example, were derivative products that would bring unimaginable profits.

Would you dare to believe that a piece of code and a few pictures could be sold for ten dollars?

Yet that was the truth.

Moreover, these derivative products had brought more than just profits for Terizone. They had also broadened KK’s product line and thus increased customer stickiness as well as competitiveness between products.

Coupled with KK’s ultimate attack in the form of a game, it would be simply invincible.

Jasper knew of a rich woman in his past life who had spent four million alone on virtual currency for KK’s poker game.

Yet the most suitable method for Terizone at that moment was something else.

KK’s renowned mobile service.

“All of you have this little thing, right?” Jasper pulled out his mobile phone.

At that moment, he saw Hudson and the rest of them looking at him weirdly.

A mobile phone was the current trendy method of communication. Sure, there were better phones with higher specs too, but those cost thousands of dollars and were too expensive. This mobile phone, though, was much cheaper and way more humble.

However, it felt wrong to see such a thing on a rich man like Jasper.

Jasper did not seem to care about their questioning gazes as he continued to speak, “For KK users who are mutual friends to contact each other, it requires that both of them be in touch with a computer.

“However, say that we work together with Netcom, that would allow us to contact each other through messaging on mobile phones instead of computers. KK’s competitiveness would increase fundamentally and that’s a great way to make a profit.”

Hearing Jasper’s suggestion, Hudson and the rest fell deep in thought.

The first to react was Cameron. In the past, he had been the first person to think of this method.

“That… That’ll cause a great stir! It’ll be a good thing for both us and Netcom since one text message costs ten cents. It’ll still be a great profit even if we only get three cents per message.”

Cameron looked at Jasper with excitement and admiration, as if Jasper’s words had spoken to his heart.

Meanwhile, Jasper felt embarrassed, for Cameron was the actual person who had come up with the idea…

“Good plan.” Both Logan and Zaine nodded.

“I’ve already given you an idea, but how you plan to make it work is up to you. Alright, so after you’ve formed a partnership with Netcom, the next business you’ll want to look out for is Nobile.”

As per history, Nobile would have just split and become independent this year. It was still in a sorry state of going through development as a small company with little reputation.

Yet Jasper knew that Nobile would soon take over networking and telecommunications, thus turning the mobile phone industry into one of the country’s biggest businesses.

By building a foundation with Nobile right now, it would greatly ease any further partnerships.

“Nobile has just been established, though?” As Hudson kept himself in the loop with a lot of the information regarding the outside world, he knew of the company.

“Indeed, but its development will be immense. Netcom is too big of a company, and while its capital is way bigger than Nobile’s, something tells me that Nobile will turn out to be the most suitable telecommunications service provider in the future.

“The funds will be transferred tomorrow. Find another office and maybe buy a few servers. Then pay yourselves all the salary you’re owed,” Jasper took a look at the pitiful state the Terizone office was in and said.

Hudson was a little embarrassed but was soon filled with confidence. “I’ve never been so confident with Terizone before than I am now.”

“Oh, and one more thing.” Jasper turned to Zaine. “I know you developed KK’s program, but the problem now is that the program is too big. Maybe think of a way to compress it? So that it’s around the size of 1MB.

“I know that it’s troublesome, but trust me. Doing so will increase the number of KK users by threefold.”

The average internet speed in the country right now did not exceed 50KB/s and most of which were dial-up internet access, making it hard for customers to download programs that were too large in size.

Compressing the program to 1MB would be the beginning of how Terizone completely crushed other communication software and began to thrive, enlarging the gap between Terizone and others.

Life at the Top Chapter 73

“Alright. I’ll start working on it tomorrow!” Zaine nodded vigorously.

Now that funds were no longer a problem and they did not need to worry when the servers would crash, Zaine could direct his energy to other things.

Not to mention that past events only proved that be it his terrifying net worth or the ten million dollars he had easily fished out, as well as his method of helping Terizone make a profit, Jasper’s abilities were something that they could not possibly catch up to.

Jasper’s words were no different to those of a god as far as Zaine and the rest were concerned.

Hudson stared at the scene before him in exasperation. He knew that Jasper had won over his small team entirely.

‘So what, then?’

Hudson moved on from the thought in no time. As long as Terizone could grow, his achievements would not be lost. Looking at it that way, the fact that Jasper had taken a liking to Terizone seemed to be a blessing to the lot of them.

The night darkened, and Jasper and Jack decided to return to the hotel.

Before they left, Jasper made sure to advise Hudson and the rest to stop issuing five-digit numbers for KK, and instead, start with six digits. He also told them to keep lucky number sequences like 777777 in the number pool.

Hudson and the others did not understand the significance of this move but promised to follow suit.

Cameron even used his authority to change Jasper’s normal five-digit KK number into 999999.

Jasper was the only one who knew that any of these numbers would easily sell for tens of millions.

It was of precious value, and even if he did not wish to sell it, he could always give the number to his friends.

After bidding Hudson and the rest farewell, Jack spent the entire ride back to the hotel asking Jasper questions about Terizone Inc.

Business-wise, he would be representing JW Capital as he helped Terizone build their company’s structure. To do so, he must first understand what his boss, Jasper’s, strategic vision for Terizone was in advance.

If one were to ask him, Jack found Terizone’s future promising, especially with Jasper’s investment. Not to mention how weighted Terizone was in Jasper’s heart. Even if it was for the sake of Jasper’s impression of him, Jack would make sure that he completed his first job perfectly.

Jasper told him everything he knew and even revealed the idea of derivative products that were similar to KK Show and KK Games to Jack.

He would not have the time to spend every minute watching over Terizone in the future, which was why Jack was there to help him do things on his behalf.

KK Show was still fine, but KK Games required the merging of a ready-made game company into Terizone, or Terizone would use up too much of its time and effort. Jasper did not give them money so that they could be frugal.

Every minute mattered when it came to seizing market opportunities these years.

As for the game companies to look for, Jasper did not have the time to discuss this with them himself, so he would leave this matter to Jack instead.

After receiving Jasper’s instructions, Jack happily returned to the room to plan.

He was confident that he could help Hudson completely rebuild Terizone.

The following day, Jasper received a phone call just as he and Hudson went through the equity transfer procedures.

The phone call forced Jasper to end his trip in Cavern City. Leaving Jack behind and bidding Hudson and the rest farewell, Jasper bought a ticket for the next flight back to the city.

Naturally, Wendy was the one who picked him up.

Getting out of the Bentley, the enchanting sight of a beauty and a luxury car together stunned Jasper.

“What are you looking at, silly?”

Wendy stood alluringly in front of Jasper and smiled.

Jasper sighed heavily. “Why do you give me the vibe of a beauty driving her husband’s luxury car to meet up with her paramour?”

Stunned, Wendy immediately flushed in embarrassment and raised her hand to smack him.

Smiling, Jasper slid into the car.

The Bentley sped on the highway, and Wendy turned to ask Jasper curiously, “Didn’t you say you’ll be back in a couple of days? Why’d you hurry back?”

“Something happened at home,” Jasper rubbed his temples and spoke plainly.

Life at the Top Chapter 74

“Home? Where your parents are?” Wendy quickly asked.

Jasper nodded and replied, “My mom called me this morning and said that my neighbor has decided to build a house.

They took more than half of my family’s land. My dad went to talk to them about it and they almost beat him up. She wants me to go and take a look.”

“What kind of neighbor is that? That’s just straight-up bullying!” Wendy spoke angrily.

“There’s nothing wrong with building a house, but you can’t just take someone else’s land and then beat them up.”

“That’s why I put the matter in Cavern City on hold. I’ve got to get back and deal with the neighbor first. Maybe I’ll take the chance to move Mom and Dad to the new villa as well, so that they can relax and not worry,” Jasper spoke.

Wendy nodded in approval. “I’ll come with you!”

“Sure. You’ll have to meet my parents sooner or later anyway.” Jasper finally smiled.

Wendy blinked. “Why do I feel like there’s more to your words? I just don’t like seeing people get trampled on even if they’re your parents… Don’t drive too fast, I’m retouching my makeup.”

“There’s still two more hours before we reach, we have time,” Jasper replied in exasperation.

“Hey, steady. I’ll make you pay if my lipstick ends up crooked.”

“I’ll buy you 100 more.”

“You think you can do what you want just because you’re rich?”

“My apologies, but you can do whatever you want when you’re rich.”

It was rare for Laine Village to have visitors, let alone someone with a Bentley. Even the most knowledgeable person in the village had only gone to live in town for a few years, so none of them knew what a Bentley was.

However, it was an incredible enough feat to have a four-wheeled car during such a time.

Therefore, the moment Jasper’s car entered the village, it was suddenly surrounded by a large group of children. Even the adults in the village looked at the car with curiosity and envy.

Much like the other villages in the country, most of the residents in the Laine Village shared the aforementioned surname and were mostly related to each other in some way.

Jasper’s father, Charlie Laine, and mother, Sally Lard, were well known within the destitute Laine Village for being poor.

Despite knowing that Jasper’s family’s condition was not good, Wendy still could not help but be shocked as they walked along the twisty mountain roads. They then arrived at a small four-walled house.

As far as Wendy was concerned, a hardly standing house that was old enough to be a relic such as this one was something she had only seen on television and pictures.

Yet, that was Jasper’s home.

The kids were still chatting among each other as they surrounded the Bentley, touching it with unmatched curiosity.

The adults watched as Wendy got out of the car and were immediately stunned.

“Wow, who’s daughter is that? So pretty.”

“So beautiful. I’ve never seen such a beautiful girl before.”

“She must be from the city. Look at her clothes, I’ve never seen such clothes before.”

“Tsk tsk, we’ve never had such a pretty lady in our village before. But why is she going to Charlie’s home?”

Amidst the chit-chat, Jasper got out of the car as well.

Everyone was stricken.

“That… That’s Jasper, isn’t it?”

“It is him. I heard that he has been working in town after university. His parents even sold their house so that he could buy one there.”

“Why is he back today? Is that pretty lady his girlfriend?”

“It must be about his dad almost getting beaten up!”

“Look at that car. It must’ve cost tens of thousands. His family’s so broke that they even sold his house. How does he have the money to buy a car?”

Life at the Top Chapter 75

“Jasper?!”

Amidst the chattering of the other villagers, Jasper heard an ever so familiar voice.

Jasper turned around and looked at the woman in a simple outfit and whose hair had gone more than half-white. He also spotted her aged features that were caused by wind and sun.

“Mom,” Jasper strode over and spoke remorsefully, “I’m sorry I’m late, Mom.”

Be it in the past life or this one, the only people who would give their all for him were his parents.

When he had been obsessed with Penelope, he had sucked his parents dry of every hardworking cent just to spoil her. He ended up suffering, and he dragged his parents into a difficult life as well.

He had finally changed everything this life, and while he should have brought his parents to the city to support them long ago, he ended up being delayed by various things.

Looking at his mother’s face which had aged much more than he remembered, Jasper felt guilty beyond words.

Sally did not know of Jasper’s internal turmoil, so she merely replied, “All that matters is that you’re back.”

“This is my friend, Wendy.” Jasper pulled Wendy, who was somehow too embarrassed to show her face, over and introduced her.

“Hello, Mrs. Laine.” Wendy greeted shyly.

Wendy was devastatingly beautiful, and Sally had never seen such a beautiful girl after having spent most of her life in the village facing the soil.

Watching the two interact, there was no way she could not see the relationship they shared.

She was way better than Penelope.

“Hi,” Sally immediately replied, slightly nervous.

However, she felt a little confused. Why had her son changed girlfriends? Back then, he was even about to marry Penelope.

Although she wanted to ask, there were too many people present and she did not think this was the place to ask.

“Where’s Dad?” Jasper then remembered the situation.

Sally’s expression was one of concern when she heard him. “He’s with the village chief. Your aunt’s family is there too. They’re talking it out.”

“What’s there to talk about?” Jasper frowned and said, “They’re building their house on our land. They even started hitting people yesterday. There’s nothing to talk about here.”

With that, Jasper went to the village chief’s house.

Sally and Wendy quickly followed.

Joining in the frenzy, the surrounding villagers came over to watch what was happening.

Jasper ignored them.

Sally turned to Jasper. “Don’t be rash, Jasper. You know how stubborn your dad is. Just try and calm him down later, okay? Let’s not make this bigger than it already is.”

“Mom.” Jasper frowned. “They’re already trampling all over us here. Her family has never respected us at all to begin with anyway, and the fact that they can do such a thing is enough evidence that we don’t matter to them. I have no qualms with making a fuss.”

“You brat.” Sally was annoyed. “Why are you just like your dad? They’re your neighbors and your cousins. You’ll only end up making a fool of yourself if this gets blown out of proportion. Besides, we’ll be the ones suffering in the end if we offend your aunt.”

“I know you’re worried, Mom.” Jasper sighed. “It’s just about me borrowing 10,000 from them to buy a house back then, isn’t it? I’ve come back today mainly to deal with this once and for all.”

“Huh?” Sally looked at her son in shock, but Jasper only strode off without much of an explanation.

Wendy smiled at Sally and said, “Don’t worry, Mrs. Laine. Your son has made quite the name for himself now.”

Sally still did not know how she should face Wendy.

On one hand, she found the girl stunning, like an actress you would find on television.

On the other hand, she wondered what had become of Penelope.

Not knowing what to say at that moment, Sally could only smile and nod. “Ah, I see, I see.”

Life at the Top Chapter 76

The village was not big, so it took less than five minutes before Jasper arrived at the village chief’s house.

In truth, the house just had a larger garden in front. Jasper had not even reached the door yet when he heard the sharp voice of a woman with a strong accent shouting.

“We’re more than neighbors, Charlie, we’re family. I’ve helped you when your family needed it. It’s just a small issue and you’re suddenly here to fight me over it? Aren’t you afraid of making a fool of yourself?”

“If I have to say anything, then it’s always the poor who have so many problems. What do you even need the land for? Can you even build a house? If you’re just going to waste it and leave it bare, then you might as well just give it to us.”

“Exactly. I just don’t understand why you think you’re in the right here. You don’t want to give us that plot of land? Fine, then pay back that 10,000 dollars we lent you!”

“Isn’t your son living in town? So you have money to buy your son a house but not to pay us back?”

A man’s roar suddenly rang out amidst the accusations that flew around the room.

“I admit that I borrowed money from you and I promise you I’ll pay it back, but that has nothing to do with the plot of land. The land was given to me by our ancestors. I cannot give it to you!”

“Ha!” The sharp voice of the woman from earlier sounded again. “Then pay us back! I’ve never seen someone as shameless as you, buying a house in town even when you’re broke. Don’t you feel shameful for pretending to be some big shot?”

“Exactly! Cut the bullsh*t. Either you hand over the land and we’ll give you more time to pay us back, or you pay us back right now!”

“Everyone knows how broke your family is. You don’t even have any skills at all. I should’ve known that you’re just a useless piece of trash.”

“Enough about him, isn’t his son a useless good-for-nothing too? I heard long ago that they bought the house for their son because his girlfriend wanted a house before she was willing to marry him.”

“What a joke. They’re already so broke and they still want to taint another family’s daughter? What did you get in return for borrowing money and buying the house, then? All you have now is debt. What a great father you are.”

“Don’t you see how foolish this father and son is? Who knows, maybe that girl has even scammed the house away.”

“Exactly. You’re already 50, yet you can’t even pull out ten dollars? Don’t you even have a sense of shame? What kind of family would be so blind to marry their daughter to you?”

Bang!

The garden’s door was kicked open, and the sound of it interrupted everyone’s debate.

Jasper’s expression was cold as he stared at the seven to eight others in the room.

Excluding the village chief and his wife, the other five were members of his so-called aunt’s family.

Meanwhile, his father was fending off everyone alone.

Jasper’s appearance had given them a shock, but his aunt quickly spoke in a dark tone, “Huh, and here I thought someone important had come in. Turns out it’s just the useless child of a useless old man.”

The village chief frowned and glared at Jasper before turning to Charlie. “Your son is too impolite, Charlie. Kicking the door down, what does he take me for?”

Charlie frowned as he looked at Jasper. “Why are you here?”

Jasper and Charlie’s relationship was very similar to others in the country, where the fathers would be more solemn and unnecessarily strict.

The sons would be more willing to spend time with their mothers, and their impressions of their dads were mostly filled with fear.

In his last life, up until the very end, Jasper’s relationship with Charlie was rather distant.

However, Jasper had never once disregarded Charlie’s love for him.

His father just did not know how to best express his feelings.

When Penelope was aggressive and humiliated him from time to time, Charlie, as hot-blooded as he was, would choose to remain silent so that Jasper would not be placed in a difficult position.

Just like that, a machismo village man endured his daughter-in-law’s insults.

Having lived two lives, Jasper found himself overwhelmed with emotions as he took in his father’s aging features.

“Mom said something happened at home, so I came back,” Jasper replied.

“This has nothing to do with you. Don’t poke your nose into others’ businesses.” Charlie glared at Sally who had followed after in reprimand for telling Jasper about this.

Life at the Top Chapter 77

“Go outside with your mom. I’ll come out in a bit.”

It was just like when Jasper was young. As far as Charlie was concerned, Jasper would always be a little boy who could not solve adult situations like this.

Jasper shook his head. There was no way he would leave.

“Did you bring the money?” Jasper asked Wendy.

When Jasper asked Wendy to come pick him up at the airport, Jasper had also told her to take some money out.

Wendy nodded and pulled out ten bundles of brand new hundred-dollar bills.

While everyone in the house was still stunned by Wendy’s ethereal beauty, they saw her taking the money out.

Everyone’s eyes shone as they looked at Jasper in disbelief.

Jasper’s family was known for being poor, and while Charlie had done everything he could to buy a house in town, doing so had only made their family’s situation worse.

Now there were bundles of hundred-dollar bills. Where did Jasper get the money?

“This is 20,000. I’m paying the 10,000 I owe your family back two-fold!”

Jasper then took two bundles and handed them to the middle-aged woman with a cold tone. “My family doesn’t owe you anything anymore, so stop using that 10,000 as your bargaining chip.”

Turning around, Jasper then handed four bundles to the village chief. “We owe your family 20,000 for the time my dad went to see the doctor. I’ll pay you back now as well. Here, 40,000, doubled with interest!”

The village chief took the money in shock and asked, “Where did you get the money from, Jasper?”

“Didn’t you see how he got it from that pretty lady’s hands? Who knows, maybe he found himself a rich woman in the city and got himself a pretty lady?”

The son of Jasper’s aunt, Bard, had always been the village’s ruffian. People were afraid of him in the village. The man spoke enviously as his gaze was trained on Wendy.

His words kickstarted the reactions of everyone else there.

“That’s right. I heard that Jasper has been doing horribly lately. There’s no way he could have so much money. Bard is right, he must’ve sold himself to someone.”

“Good Lord. What a shame to the Laine family! How could your family give birth to such an embarrassment, Charlie?”

Jasper’s aunt pointed at Charlie and accused him.

Charlie’s expression turned sour. His gaze when he looked at Jasper was filled with doubt and anger.

If that was the case, then Charlie would never be able to hold his head up high again.

“I earned my own money,” Jasper replied.

“Bullsh*t!”

Bard scoffed. “Don’t think that just because we aren’t that knowledgeable that you can get away with lying to us. I’ve heard since a long time ago that you were the lowest piece of trash in the city. If you have the guts to sell yourself to someone rich, why can’t you have the guts to admit it?”

“You’re the one spewing nonsense!”

Sally stood up. She could not bear to see her son getting accused like this.

“Did you see it for yourself or what? Don’t accuse people of something they didn’t do when you don’t even have evidence!”

Jasper’s aunt scoffed and was about to speak when Charlie suddenly stood up.

“Enough! If Jasper said he didn’t do it, then he didn’t do it. I watched this child grow up. You think I wouldn’t know if he’s lying to me?

“We’ve already paid you the money, so stop using it as leverage.”

With that, Charlie then pulled Jasper to leave.

“Wait, Dad. There’s still more I want to say!”

Jasper motioned for Charlie that it was alright.

Taking two steps to stand in the middle of the courtyard, Jasper swept his gaze over everyone’s faces as he spoke indifferently, “Our family is poor, and I admit that we’ve borrowed money from all of you for various reasons.”

“However, no matter how you had mocked and humiliated my parents when we borrowed money, the truth is that we’ve also paid all of it back now. I’ve done my part, returning the money I’ve borrowed and with interest too!

“So from today onward, be it the plot of land or the contract fields, or anything else, if it doesn’t belong to us, we won’t touch it. But if it belongs to my family, don’t even dream about taking advantage of my family because I won’t let you!

“I don’t care what all of you think. What matters is what you’ll do about it in the future. Move on, and we can all still be a close group of family and friends. But if you bare your fangs first, then I will not be blamed for turning against you as well!”

Life at the Top Chapter 78

Jasper was not loud when he spoke, but his aura had stunned the crowd.

Jasper, despite his youth and the fact that he was still one of the younger ones in his generation, had managed to silence the elders in the garden with his words.

Jasper was about to leave, but Bard was not having any of it.

“Bullsh*t. You really think you’re some big shot now, huh? Who are you acting for? Do you need me to beat you up before you listen?” Bard scoffed as he glared at Jasper enviously.

Having been held back one too many times, the hot-tempered Charlie had yet the chance to let out the flames of fury within him.

After feeling pleased with his son’s outstanding performance just now, he now roared at Bard’s threat. “I dare you to say that again, you b*stard!”

Regardless of how much of a ruffian Bard was, he still cowered before Charlie who was known for his hot temper. Hiding behind his parents, he yelled, “Don’t look so proud of yourself. Aren’t you living off the money your son got from selling his body?”

“I’ll kill you, you fcking bstard!”

Charlie grabbed a hoe by the garden’s door and ran after him.

Not expecting Charlie to fend for his son to such a degree, Bard screamed and staggered backward.

Just then, the village chief and the rest surrounded them to hold Charlie off.

Jasper’s aunt screamed, “What do you want, Charlie? Do you still want to fight?”

“Watch your son’s mouth!”

Charlie threw the hoe down harshly and warned.

Just then, Wendy stepped out. Her appearance and figure stunned the crowd and turned the spotlight on her.

“I think there’s a misunderstanding here…”

Wendy reached out to tuck her stray hairs behind her ear. The elegance of her small act even made the elders pin their gazes on her.

“Jasp started a company recently. He bought a new house, a car, and he still has money to spare.

“I’m not saying this to brag, but I want you to know that his money is very much clean and hard-earned.

“Don’t look at people with your narrow ideals, or at least, don’t look at Jasp like that.”

Wendy’s words had thrown the entire garden into chaos.

“Is she telling the truth?”

“Jasper started a company in the city? He even bought a new house and car?”

“Wow. He’s really living a good life, then!”

“Shut up, we don’t even know if she’s telling the truth or not.”

Amidst the group of people, Jasper’s aunt pulled Bard to the side and sneered, “That distant relative of ours, Terry, his family’s factory sells ready-made goods right? Go call him and ask. I’d like to see how Jasper deals with this if it turns out to be a lie.”

“But what if it’s real?” Bard asked nervously.

“That’s even better, then!”

His mother’s eyes were filled with greed. “It’s only right that his family gives more to his cousins and elders if they’re rich.

“Your dad and I had planned to foster him before we had you. We even took care of him for a few months.

“Then we had you, and his parents refused to agree, so that was that. But we still took care of him for a few months, so he needs to repay us somehow.”

Bard’s gaze shone, and he quickly ran to make the call.

Soon later, Bard returned and whispered in his mother’s ear with a strange expression.

Hearing Bard’s words, Jasper’s aunt was filled with burning excitement.

“Don’t miss out on this opportunity, okay? Just follow as I say.”

Bard nodded vigorously and replied with joy, “Don’t worry, Mom. I’ve inherited your smartness.”

Jasper’s aunt pushed the crowd away and arrived before Jasper. Smiling drily, her attitude made a 180-degree change.

“Bard and I acted a little too impulsively just now, Jasper. But we’re all a family, so don’t take it to heart, okay? Let’s all just move on from it.”

Life at the Top Chapter 79

Jasper replied calmly, “Sure, if that’s what you wish.”

Elated, Jasper’s aunt began to praise him. “Look at you, so forgiving, surely befitting of a man who has made it in the city. You’ve got to learn more from Jasper, Bard.”

“Yes, of course. I’ll definitely follow him so I can learn more.”

Bard smiled as he nodded and bowed.

Jasper frowned. “Follow me? What are you trying to say?”

His aunt quickly replied, “Bard is your cousin, Jasper. Now that you’ve established your own company, you need to have someone on your side to look after it, don’t you? I think Bard’s a perfect choice.”

Bard patted his chest. “Don’t worry, Jasper. I’ll make sure to keep a close eye on your company. I’ll make sure not even a burglar gets in.”

Jasper finally understood what this family’s intentions were and replied, “My company isn’t hiring, nor do I need you to go and watch over it.”

Bard was an idler, and there was nothing Bard had that he could be proud of—from his educational background to his abilities and his character. Jasper, who had never liked the idea of a family business to begin with, would be crazy to allow Bard into his company.

Hearing that, Jasper’s aunt’s expression shifted, but she forced her smile to stay on her face. “Haha, is that so? Then there’s no point in forcing anything.

“Think about it, Jasper. You’ve gotten rich now, haven’t you? You shouldn’t forget about your elders, then. I want to build a house, and it’s not easy financially. How about you give us several tens of thousands of dollars?”

Instead of ‘lend’, she had told Jasper to ‘give’. Not even Wendy could bear to see the utter shamelessness of this family, but she forced herself to remain silent.

“My money doesn’t come dropping from the sky either.”

Jasper replied indifferently, “Not to mention that I’ve already repaid the money we owe you with interest. I don’t have that much money.”

Jasper’s aunt was done being polite as Jasper did not seem willing to listen to anything. “I’m still your elder, Jasper. Be grateful that I’m even talking to you nicely.

“You think that because you’re earning money you can look down on your poor relatives? You’re going overboard here.”

“Of course, I wouldn’t look down on you. My family used to be even poorer,” Jasper refuted without restraint, “But the situation matters too. Just because I’ve made money, you’re shimmying up to me so that you can get a taste of it? What kind of relative are you? Who do you think you are?”

Jasper’s words had turned the atmosphere awkward.

Easily ashamed, Sally wanted to persuade Jasper but a glare from Charlie stopped her.

“Don’t placate him blindly. Jasper’s right.”

Charlie’s words killed the thought from Sally’s mind.

With a wretched expression, Jasper’s aunt yelled cruelly, “I’m still your aunt and your elder no matter how you look at it, Jasper. How can you talk to me like that? Do you think that just because you’re making money you’re better than us?

“You’re just making a fool of yourself. The village will talk behind your back! Is that what you want?”

Jasper replied in annoyance, “Let them say what they want, I don’t care. The truth of the situation is very obvious here, whether I’m the one being cruel or if you’re just asking for too much.

“Basically, I don’t have money to give you, and if you want a job, go look for one yourself. Go home, you’re delaying my family dinner. I’ve already given you what I owe, so stop bothering me.”

Bard and his mother paled in humiliation and anger before she suddenly wailed madly. It was as if she wanted the entire village to hear her.

“What an outstanding person you are now, huh, Jasper? You’re even scolding your own aunt now! Do you think that just because you’re making money now you don’t need to respect your elders?”

Jasper’s aunt was wailing louder by the second. Charlie got up and stared at the hoe behind the door intently.

“Keep wailing and I’ll kill you. You think I won’t?”

Bard and his mother’s expression changed. He immediately pulled his mom away. “Let’s go first, Mom. I’d like to see just how much longer they can be so full of themselves.”

Jasper was expressionless as he watched the family flee.

“Do you know how my dad managed to borrow that 10,000 from them at the beginning, Wendy?”

Naturally, Wendy shook her head in response.

“Haha.”

Jasper scoffed. “My dad used our cow as a mortgage and was even forced to cut 20% of our farm’s land. They call it lending, but they might as well have stolen it!

“My dad had never begged anyone before in his entire life, but he begged them for three days for my sake and got humiliated in those three days.”

Wendy turned to look at Charlie and Sally who were quiet before turning to Jasper and speaking sincerely, “You’ve got to repay your parents for all they’ve done, Jasp.”

…

At Jasper’s house.

The family was too poor to have actual furniture, so they could only let Wendy sit on the long bench with embarrassed looks on their faces.

It was a familiar sight when Jasper had brought Penelope back.

The only difference was that Penelope would have an expression of distaste and refused to even enter the house, opting to stand outside the door as if entering the house would infect her with diseases.

Wendy, however, was completely different.

For starters, she was way more beautiful than Penelope, and she was not deterred by the family’s poor condition at all. Instead, she kept talking to Jasper’s parents and addressed them closely as Sally and Charlie.

While comparing the two, Sally breathed a breath of relief.

This girl was pretty and understanding, a million times better than Penelope.

It would be a blessing to have such a daughter-in-law.

Sally relayed what had happened, as well as Wendy’s identity as Jasper’s ‘friend’ to Charlie.

The man’s eyes were glued to the Bentley outside when Wendy suddenly spoke to him.

“Everything I said just now is the truth, Uncle Charlie. Jasper really is making money now and it’s all thanks to his hard work. Please don’t misunderstand.”

Charlie, whose expression was usually one of solemnness, gave a rare and slightly embarrassed smile as he replied unnaturally, “Oh, that’s good. That’s good.”

He no longer showed a temper nor had the urge to hit people with a hoe, unlike back in the village chief’s house.

His reaction now stemmed from being nervous, just like how Sally acted before.

After replying to Wendy, Charlie then looked at Jasper.

He reverted back to the grim and strict father figure.

“It’s good that you’re making money now, and if you can, repay the debts our family owes. Excluding the 30,000 just now, we still owe a few other relatives 50,000.”

Jasper nodded. “I brought the money. I’ll pay them all back today.”

“Good.” Charlie nodded and fell silent.

He remained silent and did not ask Jasper how he was making money or what he was doing now.

The father-son duo did not know what to say.

“Let’s eat first. I’ll go kill a chicken,” Sally stood up and suggested.

“I’ll come with you, Sally,” Wendy suggested dotingly.

“No, no, you sit here. You don’t need to help out.” Pleased with Wendy, Sally quickly refused her.

Life at the Top Chapter 80

Sally went to make dinner with a happy chuckle.

Wendy turned to Jasper with a proud look.

Jasper chuckled. ‘This woman’s getting cuter by the second.’

…

Dinner consisted of chicken, a few vegetable dishes, and soup.

Jasper and his family sat around the dining table. The atmosphere had lightened greatly and Wendy was no longer as nervous as she was before. In fact, she began to actively lighten the mood.

Charlie spoke more now that Wendy was here, and he would ask her some questions from time to time.

The lady was smart, for she did not tell the whole story. Instead, she merely said that her family did business and she worked for Commercial Bank.

As far as ordinary families were concerned, a lady with such a family background was the most suitable for their son.

Not to mention that Wendy was a beautiful lady, and both Sally and Charlie were extremely pleased with her.

Jasper drank with Charlie and said, “Dad, these years… I’ve troubled the two of you too much.”

Charlie did not even raise his head. “What are you talking about? It’s part of our life as your parents.”

Jasper chuckled bitterly. “I’ve broken up with Penelope already.”

Wendy’s ears immediately perked up at the topic.

“That’s good, then.” Charlie was pleased. “This girl is way better than Penelope.”

“Wendy and I are still getting to know each other. We haven’t gotten together yet. But it’s only a matter of time before we do.”

“Come back with us tonight, Dad. I bought a new house, we can live together,” Jasper suggested.

“No.”

Charlie declined without much thought.

“I can’t be as free in the city as in the village,” Charlie explained.

Jasper insisted, saying, “I bought a few villas in the city a while ago. The two of you can live in one together. There’s even a garden by the side where you can plant vegetables and flowers. It’s all up to you.”

Charlie fell silent.

“I know that you and Mom have sacrificed a lot for me, Dad. I know that you’ve been keeping silent about how Penelope mistreated you just because I liked her. But it’s different now. I just want the two of you to be happy.”

Jasper was sincere.

“I’ll have your mom pack things up after dinner. Remember to pay the money back,” Charlie reminded.

“I won’t forget,” Jasper replied joyfully, “Not when the dignity of the Laine family is on the line.”

“Brat.” Charlie smiled and walked back into the house.

After dinner, Jasper brought Wendy along as he went to repay everyone his family owed money to.

Except for Bard’s family, most of his relatives pitied his family, so they were more grateful than resentful.

Jasper was clear when it came to these families. He would return 10,000 for every few thousand his family had borrowed, and 15,000 when they had borrowed 10,000.

It was not that Jasper did not want to give more, for the mere interest he earned a day with his wealth was more than the amount he repaid today.

It was just that people tended to take advantage of kindness.

He would only be planting seeds of hatred if he gave too much.

Having made his rounds, the entire village came to know that Charlie’s son had made it in the city. He was even so generous to repay the debts they owed. The entire village praised him.

Jasper returned home to find Charlie and his mom already packed and ready to go.

They only had a few clothes, so they were ready to leave at any time.

Locking the door, Jasper personally made a trip to the village chief’s house and asked him to watch over his plot of land. Jasper would not be so kind anymore if Bard’s family tried to take it from them again.

Jasper did not actually care about the plot of land, but he refused to let his aunt do as she wished. If she wanted it, then he would do everything to keep it from her.

Not to mention that this was something their ancestors had given to Charlie, so it could not be given away.

This was a matter of the Laine family’s dignity.

After taking care of everything, Jasper put his parents’ luggage into the trunk and left Laine Village, heading toward the city.

Sitting in the car, Sally touched here and there before she exclaimed, “This car is really comfortable. It must’ve cost a lot, didn’t it?”

Charlie held his words back, but his gaze was filled with admiration.

Jasper’s parents had never sat in a luxury car, so they did not know much about them, but whether cars of this caliber were comfortable or not could be felt the moment they sat inside.

Wendy smiled. “It’s not cheap, but it’s all your son’s hard-earned money.”

“It must’ve been difficult.” Sally’s heart ached for her son.

Wendy covered her mouth and smiled before turning to look at Jasper intently as the other drove. “Yeah, it wasn’t easy at all.”

It was so difficult, in fact, to sit behind a computer and move the mouse while typing on the keyboard. He made money in just a few minutes.

…

A few hours later, at the villa area of Mirage City, Jasper parked his car at the door of the villa he had chosen long ago and entered the house with his shocked parents in tow.

“Mom, Dad, you’ll live here from now on. I’ll have Wendy employ two housekeepers for you tomorrow as well to take care of you.”

Both Sally and Charlie shook their heads.

“What housekeepers? They’re just a waste of money. Why have someone take care of us when we can move around by ourselves? Don’t get a housekeeper.”

“Don’t waste money.” Charlie agreed.

Jasper shook his head but let the subject drop.

Jasper handed Sally a card, the keys to the villa, and a few bundles of cash. “I live right next door but I’m usually busy, so just take care of yourselves. I’ll be alright. Wendy and I will come over for dinner and accompany you when we’re free.”

“Keep the money, and the password to the card is my birthday. Don’t worry about spending money.”

Sally accepted the card and promised, but it seemed obvious that she was planning to keep the card and save the money, unwilling to spend it.

There was nothing Jasper could do, for his parents had gotten used to being frugal. It was almost impossible for his parents to start splurging now.

Yet that was a habit that could slowly be changed.

At least their living conditions were way better now.

Wendy accompanied the old couple, and they walked up and down the villa to familiarize themselves with their new home. Meanwhile, Jasper took a call and walked to the villa’s entrance.

“As per your instructions, Mr. Laine, we’ve uploaded the newly compressed program of less than 1MB this evening and the customer feedback has been great! Our registered users have exceeded seven million, and we’ve arrived at a peak number of three million online users!”

Hudson’s voice was filled with excitement.

“Good job.” Jasper smiled.

“But, Mr. Laine, I just received a notification from an old classmate who works at Sena, the largest portal website within the country. They’re coveting our number of users and secretly developing a new instant messaging software to attack us. We might be in trouble.”