Ch. 476..480: The Secretly Rich Man Chapter 476-480

Chapter 476

Gerald Crawford:The Secretly Rich Man Novel (Invisible or Poorest) Chapter 476 After Xeno was expelled, Gerald got beaten up several times.

Even that girl that the gangster was after left Gerald, opting instead to be with the bully.

The reason why Gerald became afraid and shy of girls whenever he saw them during his high school and university years, was directly linked to this event.

Once Xeno got expelled from school, he simply continued living his life out on the streets. He was rarely ever at home. What more, when Gerald entered high school, Xeno kept changing his phone number. It was difficult for Gerald just to be able to get in touch with him sometimes!

Since that day, Gerald had always kept Xeno’s sacrifice and kindness deep in his heart.

This was because Xeno’s possibly great future had been shattered by a single event, and it was directly caused by Gerald!

Sienna knew about all this and this was why she didn’t like Gerald.

Sienna was actually a very nice girl. Her family owned a big supermarket in town and they were very rich. However, she never despised or looked down on Xeno. After all, she had been dating Xeno from the first year of junior high school up till this point.

Therefore, Gerald had always had a really good impression of Sienna.

Hence, no matter what Sienna said or how badly she treated him, Gerald just couldn’t feel angry at her at all.

After all, Xeno seemed to be doing well with her. This made Gerald feel even happier and he wasn’t about to hold anything against his best friend’s fiancée.

It took some time and persuasion, but he finally managed to prevent the fight from getting too wild.

Once things calmed down a little, Sienna went to the kitchen to finish preparing the breakfast that had only been half completed before she ran out.

As they ate, Xeno and Gerald chatted about various things that had happened in the past.

Gerald also took this opportunity to tell Xeno that he had actually won the Mercedes Benz G500 at an event.

Gerald was still hesitant about whether he should tell Xeno about his true identity.

This was mainly because Gerald was afraid that if he told Xeno the truth out of the blue, then the sincere brotherhood they had shared would disappear just like that.

Naturally, since Gerald was now back in Serene County, he would definitely go all out to help Xeno as much as he could!

“Alright, what if we do this instead? I really don’t feel comfortable taking so much money from you, Gerald. I already have a stable life and I even have a fiancée now! You, however, haven’t settled down yet. You may find a girlfriend in the city and she may want to get married and live with you in the future. Think of this as an investment from me for your future happiness. I’ll just take back a small amount of money, and you take the rest. How’s that?”

Xeno was still insistent on giving Gerald some money.

However, Gerald continued to refuse. He even said that he would leave immediately if Xeno kept insisting on giving him the money.

Hearing that, Xeno scratched the back of his head before finally giving up.

“Hey Xeno, isn’t this way better? With that money, you’ll be able to expand your business! That way, Gerald can finally repay you for everything that you’ve done for him!”

Sienna was noticeably happier the moment she saw Xeno give up.

However, she could also tell that Xeno was slightly upset.

“By the way, Xeno, an old colleague of mine called the other day. She said that one of her best friends was in a hurry to get married and she’s around the same age as we are. She told me to introduce a good person to her friend but I didn’t have anyone in mind that day. Why don’t we try introducing Gerald to her? They could go on a blind date and if everything goes well, Gerald may meet his future wife, just like that! You would essentially have helped Gerald find his life partner then!”

Xeno slapped his thigh before laughing aloud. “You hear that Gerald? It’s time for a blind date, brother! Since she wants to get married quickly, with any luck, you two can get married this year! I’m sure she won’t be like the girls you met in the city. Those have overly high standards and their families? Probably even higher standards than the girls themselves! They’re just being too unrealistic!” said Xeno as he shook his head.

Gerald shook his own head, signifying that there was no need for the blind date.

“Why not? There’s nothing for you to lose if it doesn’t work out anyway. Naturally, I’m not asking you to get married immediately. If both of you get along and are suited for each other, good for you! If you’re not, nothing wrong with that! At the very least, both of you could be regular friends then!”

Xeno was really considering everything for Gerald.

It was precisely because of that that Gerald just didn’t feel good turning down his best friend’s goodwill.

What more, Gerald couldn’t just tell Xeno that he didn’t need to worry about him just because he was actually a rich heir!

Their good relationship could fall into shambles there and then!

Seeing no other option, Gerald simply smiled in resignation as he nodded. “Alright, I’ll give it a go!”

He decided to at least meet the girl once and as Xeno had said, it wasn’t a big deal anyway. At the very least, just as Xeno had said, both of them could just end up being regular friends.

“Hahaha! It’s settled then! I’ll start making the arrangements immediately! That girl lives in Serene County too. Let’s see if we can get both of you ready for lunch together today!” said Sienna happily.

After finishing their breakfast, Sienna told Gerald to go back and change into something nicer first to prepare for his blind date.

Not too long after Gerald left Xeno’s shop, he received a call from Zack.

Chapter 477

Gerald Crawford:The Secretly Rich Man Novel (Invisible or Poorest) Chapter 477 It was about the jade pendant.

Zack had managed to contact an old, well-experienced master on a jade antique street in Serene County. He was apparently very famous in the local area.

What more, he had also been told that the old master had inherited his craftsmanship from his ancestors.

This was perfect since Gerald needed an experienced person like this to help identify and appraise such an ancient jade.

Gerald decided that he would let the old master have a go at identifying and appraising the jade pendant first. If he couldn’t, Gerald would simply look for other jade masters from all over the country then.

After all, if even the dean didn’t know anything about Xara Machamer’s identity, how else would Gerald be able to find out anything about her?

His only clue was this jade pendant, and Gerald understood that.

Originally, Zack had wanted to accompany Gerald to meet the master. However, Gerald’s father had told him that the fewer people knew about Xara Machamer, the better.

In addition, Zack was also very busy now so Gerald declined his offer. After all, Gerald just so happened to know that street well too.

The antique street wasn’t too big and there were just a few shops selling antique porcelain there.

Zack, being the professional that he was, had arranged Gerald’s meeting with the old master. Because of that, the bespectacled old man with a long white beard was already there waiting for Gerald by the time Gerald got to his shop.

“Mr. Crawford, I assume? My name is Matthew Xiques!” said the old man as he smiled at Gerald.

“Hello, Mr. Xiques, a pleasure to meet you. Let’s get straight to business, shall we? See, I wanted to meet you today because I need you to help me identify and appraise a jade pendant. I’d like to know how old it really is and if possible, where it originated from as well. Basically, the more details you can give me, the better,” said Gerald as he presented the jade pendant to the old master carefully.

When Matthew saw the jade pendant, he was slightly surprised. Carefully picking the pendant up, he squinted his eyes as he brought it close to his face. He looked like a seasoned expert, just as Zack had said.

“I must thank you, Mr. Crawford, for allowing me to see such a rare jade with my very own eyes. In fact, it’s one of the rarest kinds of jade! It’s top quality! Mr. Crawford, if you don’t mind me asking, how did you get your hands on this jade?” asked Matthew as he looked at Gerald with great interest.

Matthew couldn’t guess for the life of him why Gerald would have such an expensive piece of jade on him.

Earlier when Gerald was addressed by Matthew by name, he had assumed that Zack had arranged the entire meeting for him. However, Zack seemed to have left out Gerald’s true identity and Gerald was thankful for that.

Gerald replied, “How I got it isn’t important, Mr. Xiques. Have you managed to identify the origins of this jade pendant…?”

“Ah, I see. Forgive me for being nosy. Also, it’s a little difficult for me to identify the origins of the jade pendant immediately. However, I do recall reading about a jade with such fine texture in one of the notebooks left behind by my ancestors. Would it be convenient for you to leave this jade pendant behind so that I can properly analyze it? Once I get the information you require, I’ll let you know immediately,” said Matthew.

Hearing that, Gerald thought about it for a moment. Since Zack had arranged for Gerald to meet the master, the master should be capable enough in Zack’s eyes.

“That’s fine, Mr. Xiques. I hope to hear from you soon!” said Gerald as he nodded.

The two of them chatted for a little while more before Gerald stepped out of the shop.

What was he going to do now? It was still a little too early for him to head out for his blind date.

After some thought, he decided to withdraw some money from the bank since the new house he had bought was also nearby. Gerald so happened to be carrying the house purchase agreement contract in his bag so he might as well clear the payment immediately.

After all, it wouldn’t be possible for Gerald to take up a loan!

“Gerald?”

At that moment, Gerald heard a girl’s voice calling out to him. It sounded surprised.

When Gerald turned around to look, he too was pleasantly surprised.

It was Leila’s good friend, Cindy.

She had just come out from the inner courtyard. Apparently she lived here.

When Gerald had gone to Leila’s house the first time that day, the very beautiful Cindy had left a deep impression on Gerald. He could tell that the girl was a very kind one.

“Do you live here, Cindy?” asked Gerald with a smile.

“Yes! The one inside is my grandfather! Speaking of which, Gerald, why did you come to our shop in the first place?” asked Cindy with a smile as she walked toward Gerald.

“Cindy! That’s no way to address him! Refer to him as Mr. Crawford!” shouted Matthew who had poked his head out from his shop.

Matthew didn’t know much about Gerald’s background. However, he knew that the person who had arranged for Gerald and him to meet was someone who could contact both the county magistrate as well as the chairman of the National Antiquities Research Association. For someone with such an extraordinary status to work under Gerald, he knew that Gerald wasn’t someone to mess with.

Why else would Matthew have acted so courteously toward Gerald earlier?

That was the reason why he was so startled at Cindy’s lack of manners just a while ago.

“Oh, grandpa! This is a new friend I met recently. His name is Gerald and he’s also Leila’s childhood friend!” replied Cindy her smile unwavering.

“That’s quite alright, Mr. Xiques. Just focus on the job I gave you first!” said Gerald as he smiled.

Chapter 478

Gerald Crawford:The Secretly Rich Man Novel (Invisible or Poorest) Chapter 478 “Job…? Also, you still haven’t told me why you came to look for my grandpa today!” said Cindy, her curiosity growing.

“It’s nothing serious, I just came to ask him for a favor, no big deal,” replied Gerald.

“I see… Oh! Since you’re already here, why not come in? I’ll make some tea for you!”

“Maybe next time, I’ll be back soon anyway. I’m just going to head to the bank now to withdraw some money,” replied Gerald as he smiled.

“What a coincidence! I’m also going to the bank to pass my mother’s cell phone over to her. Let’s go together!” said Cindy as she walked out of the shop and stood beside Gerald.

Gerald could only nod awkwardly.

All he wanted to do was to leave quietly after leaving the pendant for Matthew to analyze and withdrawing his money. He really hadn’t anticipated running into Cindy here today.

“So, your mother forgot to bring her cell phone out with her?” asked Gerald to break the silence as they walked to the bank.

“Well, that’s sort of correct. See, my mother has several cell phones. The bank that she works with urgently needs to attract funds and capital. Since my mother is a deputy director and she needs to meet her targets, she requires several cell phones to call different customers. She’s just really busy all the time!” replied Cindy.

Both of them arrived at the bank not too long later.

“Mom, I’ve brought your cell phone here for you!” called out Cindy to a middle-aged woman who seemed to be waiting for someone.

Hearing Cindy’s voice, she turned to look at Gerald and her daughter.

“Thank you Cindy, and who might this be?” asked Cindy’s mother.

“Just a friend. His name is Gerald. I think I’ve mentioned him to you last time! He was the one who had invited me to have French cuisine at the western restaurant. Hehe… It just so happened that we met while we were both on our way over to the bank! He’s here to withdraw some money!” replied Cindy with a smile.

“Oh? So this is the young man. Not bad, quite good looking as well! Are both of you going out together later to play?” asked her mother.

Gerald didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to tell that Cindy’s mother must already have considered him to be Cindy’s boyfriend at that moment.

“Oh, not at all! Once I withdraw some money to pay for my house I’ll be on my way!”

“Oh? You’ve already bought yourself a house!” said Cindy’s mother happily.

As she said that, she recalled when her daughter had told her about everything that had happened that night. The French cuisine was apparently very expensive and this was proof that this young man was at the very least, financially capable.

He had even bought a house for himself.

“Who’s bought a house, Deputy Director Lacy?” said a cynical voice out of the blue.

At that moment, another middle-aged woman walked up to the trio.

Gerald couldn’t help but feel surprised when he finally saw who had spoken. It was Leila’s mother, Leia.

Leia was also working at the bank, and she was a leader and deputy director as well. She and Cindy’s mother were of similar rank.

“What are you doing here, Gerald?”

She certainly hadn’t expected to see him there.

“I came over to withdraw money!” said Gerald without even bothering to address her as ‘Aunt Leia’ anymore.

“Oh, I see how it is. Can’t even be bothered to greet me by my name now? Why even bother trying to show off if you’re penniless now?”

“Also, you could have started working at a labor dispatch unit by this month if you had just paid according to what was agreed. You know, there were many others who donated much more than you had. Since you only donated seventy thousand dollars to your Uncle Jung, you’ll have to wait a little longer before you get your job!”

Leia was taking every chance she could to widen the gap between Gerald’s status and hers.

“Deputy Director Tolbert, what are you talking about? Penniless?” asked Cindy’s mother, surprised.

“Oh, you didn’t know? So that’s why you were talking to him! I guess poor Cindy doesn’t know about this either. Well, you see, Gerald here is now…”

And with that, Leia took the opportunity to share how Gerald’s family used to be very poor. She even told them about the car he had sold to buy his new house.

Naturally, she also kept emphasizing how much of a pauper Gerald was now.

‘F*ck! I almost pushed my own daughter into a lion’s den!’ Cindy’s mother thought to herself as she shuddered.

At that moment, the sound of tires screeching could be heard as a car stopped right outside the bank. As the four people turned to look, they could see several men in suits running into the bank.

“Mom! Your cell phone’s here! Come get it!”

Leila, Douglas, and the two girls from the day before entered the bank, with Leila calling out. It seemed like the group was heading out to play again.

By some wild coincidence, they were here to pass Leia’s phone to her as well.

“Gerald? What are you doing here?” asked Leila as soon as she saw him.

Chapter 479

Gerald Crawford:The Secretly Rich Man Novel (Invisible or Poorest) Chapter 479 “Pfft! Do you even need to ask? He’s probably here to get what little pocket money he has left in his bank account! Hahaha! All of you probably didn’t notice, but he didn’t even have any money in his wallet yesterday!” said Douglas as he laughed.

Leila didn’t say anything else. When he was still rich, she couldn’t deny that she had some feelings for him.

Now, however, she felt nothing for him after witnessing all that he had done yesterday.

“That’s right! He’s come to withdraw money and Cindy here came together with him!” said Leia as she too, laughed.

Leila’s face scrunched slightly when she heard Cindy’s name. She immediately pulled Cindy to the side and began telling her tales of how he was broke and that he may have pulled her along to cheat her of her money.

Once she heard all that, Cindy looked at Gerald with anxious eyes. “Why did you sell the car, Gerald? Also, why did you sell it for such a low price?”

She was sincerely worried about Gerald.

“I’ll tell you about it if an opportunity arises in the future. For now, I’m just going to go withdraw some money. I’ve an appointment at noon!” replied Gerald as he smiled at Cindy.

He didn’t even bother to look at anyone else as he walked to the counter.

Douglas himself brought the girls closer to the counter to observe Gerald. He wanted them to see Gerald make a fool of himself in front of the others.

“How much money would you like to withdraw, sir?” asked the clerk.

“Ninety thousand dollars, please,” replied Gerald without batting an eyelid.

“Ninety- What?” said Douglas, startled.

Leila was taken aback as well.

The same went for Leia and Cindy’s mother who were already heading back into their office. They froze and turned around in shock.

“Just a minute, sir!”

After Gerald entered his password and validated the transaction with his signature, the money counting machine came to life.

Douglas’s smug smile disappeared in an instant.

“You… you still have money? Didn’t you use all of it to buy that car?” asked Douglas in surprise.

“Did I say I used all of it?” replied Gerald, coldly.

“Then… How much did you actually win?” It was Leila’s turn to ask.

Cindy’s mother and Leia herself had inched closer to the group by then. All of them waited anxiously.

“I won…”

Gerald made sure to keep the suspense up for as long as he could. He deserved at least that. Once he had enough, he smiled and said, “Actually, forget it. It’s not that much. There’s really no need to talk about it!”

“You!” Leila could only manage a single word. She was furious.

Gerald couldn’t fit all the money into his small bag so he asked one of the cleaning staff there for a black garbage bag. He stuffed the money—all ninety thousand dollars—into it and nodded to Cindy with a smile before leaving the bank with the bag.

“…So… He actually still had money!” shouted Aunt Leia, devastated.

“That Gerald! How much did he actually win from the lottery?” asked Leila anxiously.

“D*mn it all! I think he’s just doing all this on purpose! He’s just pretending to be poor in front of us!” Douglas was beyond annoyed at that point.

After all, he had just received a huge mental slap from Gerald. All his intentions of having fun were now down the drain.

As for Gerald, he soon arrived at the sales office and the salesgirl from before definitely felt the same mental slap that Douglas received when Gerald fully paid for the house in cold, hard cash.

One hundred and five thousand dollars’ worth of cash in one go.

This was a big boss.

Chapter 480

Gerald Crawford:The Secretly Rich Man Novel (Invisible or Poorest) Chapter 480 By the time Gerald was done settling the house’s payment, it was already close to noon and Xeno made sure Gerald was aware of this by constantly calling him.

After hurrying back to his hotel room to change into some better clothes, Gerald immediately headed for a restaurant called Johnsbury Bistro.

While he was on his way there, Xeno and Sienna were already at the restaurant.

Three other people were in the private room with them.

One of them was Sienna’s colleague while the other two were the girl who was going to be Gerald’s blind date today as well as her mother.

The girl had long, black hair, and her skin was very fair. She looked both delicate and beautiful. However, her looks dictated her behavior as she seemed cold and her head was lowered most of the time as she constantly looked through her WeChat.

Her mother, on the other hand, was a plump middle-aged woman with tattooed eyebrows that looked similar to caterpillars. Contrasting her daughter, she looked rather sturdy and even formidable.

“Gerald’s a very nice person, and we’re not praising him for the sake of it either. You’ll know what we mean when you meet later. What more, he graduated from a prestigious university and he’s quite handsome as well! He’s started looking for a job and I heard that he’s aiming to work for a public office. Don’t let that get your hopes down, though. He recently just bought a house in Serene County!” explained Sienna as they waited.

Though Sienna had some resentment for Gerald in recent years, she wasn’t always like that. She used to have a good relationship with him during junior high due to him constantly being around Xeno.

The slight hatred only began because of the incident that had caused Xeno to be expelled back then. However, the resentment she had for him had now dissipated after the events of this morning.

She was now sincerely worried for Gerald as well, and she wanted to do all she could to help him.

“Well, how big is the house that he bought? If it has less than three rooms, can it even be considered to be a house? There must be at least three bedrooms, two living rooms, and two bathrooms!” asked the girl as she finally raised her head.

“Well wouldn’t you know it? His new house fits your bare minimum! Haha!” replied Xeno.

“Well, what about his car? What car is he driving now?”

This time, it was her mother who asked.

“Oh, he doesn’t have a car yet. But you know, cars aren’t worth that much money in the first place!” replied Xeno.

Her mother coughed before saying, “Well, you see, having a house or a car isn’t the most important thing to us. We just hope that he’s an honest man! I won’t accept a man who only likes to brag and talk big!”

“Oh, you can be assured that that guy’s the most honest man on the planet! We grew up together so we’re more than certain about his personality,” replied Sienna.

While everyone was chatting, Gerald finally opened the door and entered the room.

“Gerald! There you are! Come over here quickly so that I can introduce you to them!” said Xeno with a smile as he began introducing the two parties to one another.

The girl’s mother scanned Gerald from head to toe and she could sense that he really did look and feel like an honest person.

She could breathe a bit easier knowing that.

The dishes arrived soon after and both parties talked to each other as they ate their lunch.

“You know, they’re really taking their sweet time to serve the last dish! I’m going to go over and ask them about it!” said Sienna’s colleague as she stood up. She secretly winked at Sienna and Xeno.

“Yeah, I think I’ll join you,” said Sienna. Xeno excused himself to go to the bathroom as well.

Before Xeno left the room with the other two, he patted Gerald on the shoulder and gave him a secret thumbs-up. He closed the door of the private room, leaving only Gerald, the girl, and her mother inside.

Seeing that everyone else had left, the middle-aged woman wiped her mouth with a paper towel.

“So, Gerald, right? We’ve heard about all the good things about you from your good friends. I personally think that you’re quite an honest person. Tell me, what do you think about my daughter?” asked the woman.

Of course he was honest. This was his first time partaking in a blind date event. What more, the woman looked extremely fierce! She also hadn’t said much since Gerald arrived.

“She’s not bad!” replied Gerald.

At that moment, the girl raised her head to look at him for a moment. After a few seconds, she pouted before lowering her head again in disdain.

‘…F*ck! What kind of expression was that?’ Gerald thought to himself. He couldn’t help but curse in his mind.

The woman cleared her throat before saying, “Let me tell you this, Gerald. My daughter is working for a company under the Dream Investment Group. She’s working for the Dencouls Production and Trading Corporation. I believe you should know about the Dream Investment Group, right? Being such a large group with superb financial strength, do you know how difficult it is for someone to get into that company?”

Dencouls Production and Trading Corporation. If Gerald remembered correctly, that was just one of the companies supported by the Dream Investment Group. After all, the Dream Investment Group was supporting several local projects and companies like this.

Did she actually just claim that her daughter was working under the Dream Investment Group because of that?

Gerald could only smile at that before nodding slightly.

He was honestly thinking to himself at that moment. The woman looked quite normal. She looked decent and her personality wasn’t too bad either. Why was she lowering her standards and going on blind dates then?

“My daughter’s interested in you because she can tell that you’re an honest man. She would love to marry an honest man. However! There are three absolute rules that you have to abide by before both of you can marry. Listen closely now!”

“I beg your pardon?”

Gerald was dumbfounded. What in f*ck’s name was going on here?