Franklin furrowed his handsome brows, a hint of seriousness appearing on his stern face. “I’ve heard of this EMPEROR. He’s a ruthless man.”
“He seemed to have suddenly emerged from the red-light district in the past two years. Before that, no one had ever heard of him. Somehow, he gained power and caused all sorts of trouble.” Tony sighed heavily, a look of helplessness and worry flashing across his face. The Gentry family couldn’t compete with this EMPEROR. Every time EMPEROR sent people to get medicine, Tony had no choice but to comply.
However, he felt uneasy about it.
After all, EMPEROR was not a good person.
But if he didn’t comply, he feared bringing disaster upon his family.
Although the Blood Medical Sect appeared mysterious to outsiders and had many miraculous medicines, its members were not skilled in combat. Their combat abilities were relatively weak, which was a fatal flaw for their family.
Even though many children of Casey’s generation had been practicing martial arts since childhood, they were still far behind compared to the desperados led by EMPEROR.
Sylvia looked at Tony’s worried expression, put down her chopsticks, and took a sip of red wine. “As long as he doesn’t harm the Blood Medical Sect, you don’t need to worry too much.”
For now, it seemed that EMPEROR only came to the Blood Medical Sect for medicine.
Selling the medicine to anyone would still bring money.
Tony’s face was full of worry. “Two months ago, EMPEROR personally came to request a batch of the latest healing medicine from the Blood Medical Sect, pressing the price extremely low. I couldn’t disregard the lives of my clan members, so I agreed. But when it came time to collect the goods, EMPEROR only paid fifty percent of the funds. The remaining fifty percent has yet to be paid. Not only that, but just yesterday, he shamelessly called to order another batch.”
“So much medicine without paying is too much!” Antwan cursed angrily. “He doesn’t respect our Blood Medical Sect at all.”
“Yes, Miss Andrews, Mr. Maskelyne, we hope you can stand up for us! Our Blood Medical Sect can only rely on you two.” Tony’s eyes reddened as he spoke. “It’s my incompetence that I can’t protect my clan members.”
“But…” Sylvia didn’t want to get involved in such trouble.
Moreover, she had never met EMPEROR and had no personal grievances with him.
“Miss Andrews, Mr. Maskelyne, you don’t need to risk your lives.” Tony quickly explained when he saw Sylvia misunderstood. “Here’s the situation.”
“Yesterday, when they called, I was very angry and demanded the payment for the last batch. But EMPEROR set a condition: if someone from our Gentry family competes against someone from his side and wins, he will pay the full amount. If we lose, we can’t ask for the payment, and the new order must be given to him at half price.”
Tony became more agitated as he spoke. “Clearly, the payment should be settled, but he set such a difficult condition. It’s outrageous.”
“A competition?” Franklin’s deep eyes glanced at Tony and then at Sylvia.
Their eyes met, and Sylvia’s pretty face showed a thoughtful expression. “What kind of competition?”
“For us scholars from the Gentry family, it’s as difficult as climbing to heaven.” Tony’s brows were full of worry. “A skiing competition.”
“Skiing?” Sylvia was slightly surprised. “Skiing shouldn’t be that difficult.”
“Miss Andrews, you don’t know how harsh his requirements are. It’s a freestyle halfpipe skiing competition judged by five expert ski judges. It’s like an Olympic event. How can our family members win? I’ve heard that EMPEROR himself is very fond of golf and skiing… And now it’s winter…”
Tony became more agitated and lost his appetite for the delicious food in front of him.
He put down his chopsticks, feeling indescribably uncomfortable as if he had swallowed ten kilograms of flies.
“I even tried to hire an expert to help with the competition, but everyone refused when they heard EMPEROR was the opponent.” Tony said sadly. “Miss Andrews, Mr. Maskelyne, you know many people. Do you know any experts in this field? Skiing experts are hard to find.”
Franklin hadn’t expected it was just about finding a skiing expert; he thought they wanted Sylvia and him to fight EMPEROR…
“If it’s just finding a skiing expert, Tony doesn’t need to worry so much. There’s no need to be afraid; EMPEROR is just making things difficult because he knows you’re not skilled in this area.” Franklin said.
Hearing Franklin’s words, Tony grabbed a glass of white wine and drank it in one gulp. “He’s too much, too shameless. It’s so hard for us to get our money back!”
This was the sorrow of living in the red-light district.
“When is the competition?” Sylvia didn’t think it was that difficult since it was just skiing.
“Tomorrow. So please help us if you know any experts…” Tony raised his glass towards Franklin and Sylvia. “I toast to you both.”
Sylvia couldn’t help but say seeing Tony so distressed, “Don’t worry. I do know an expert who will definitely come.”
Casey was shocked and looked at Sylvia with wide eyes. “Miss Andrews, really? You really know such an amazing expert who can save our family?”
Sylvia nodded. “Yes, don’t worry.”
It’s just skiing; how hard could it be?
Casey was still shocked and couldn’t help but explain what he knew. “The halfpipe skiing course is no joke. The competition takes place in a U-shaped snow trough with a length of 150 to 170 meters, a width of 19 to 22 meters, a depth of 6. 7 meters, and a slope of 17 to 18 degrees. It’s a very challenging course with high-difficulty moves…”
“And EMPEROR has hired five professional judges who will score based on height, turns, skills, difficulty coefficient, etc., with a total score of 100 points. The average score will be the final score. Competitors can perform twice, and the higher score will determine the ranking.”
“Casey, you’re too nervous.” Sylvia calmly looked at him with a voice that carried an inexplicable sense of trust. “It’s just skiing; it’s not difficult.”
Not difficult!
Everyone was shocked again!
In their eyes, it was as difficult as climbing to heaven!
“Miss Andrews, skiing is really hard, especially in a halfpipe course… If you can’t help us, we’ll keep looking…”
“Miss Andrews, this concerns the survival of our Blood Medical Sect. The batch of medicine ordered by EMPEROR is very valuable. If we can’t get the payment back, our Gentry family is close to destruction.”
Sylvia didn’t take the Gentry family’s anxious looks to heart and smiled relaxedly.
“We originally planned to leave after today’s lunch banquet. But since Tony asked for help, we’ll stay here for another day.”
“Since my wife said so, we’ll stay with the Gentry family for another day.” Franklin agreed without objection and held Sylvia’s hand. “Will your expert come tomorrow?”
“Yes.” Sylvia nodded again and said in a very casual tone, “It’s just skiing; it’s no big deal.”
No big deal…
These four words were light but struck like a giant bell in the ears of the Gentry family members.
She said it was no big deal!
Did they hear wrong?
Tony remained composed and chose to believe Sylvia despite his inner shock. “Since Miss Andrews said so confidently, she must be sure. Everyone eats; the food is getting cold.”
With that said, although everyone had doubts in their hearts, they didn’t say anything more.
After all, they couldn’t find any skiing experts themselves; this wasn’t an ice-skating competition; it was skiing!
They heard that EMPEROR was a professional-level skiing expert; sigh!
Who knows what will happen tomorrow?
Fatima overheard the discussion at the main table and couldn’t help but whisper to her mother Brittany, “Mom, do you think Miss Andrews is bragging?”
“Don’t talk nonsense! Miss Andrews is our Gentry family’s benefactor. Didn’t you see your uncle chose to believe her?” Brittany quickly warned her daughter in a low voice.
Fatima reluctantly rolled her eyes. “I was just saying… Do you have to be so scared?”
“Disaster comes from careless talk.” Brittany pinched her daughter. “We are from the second branch; your uncle is the patriarch. Why do you think our Gentry family gets along so well? It’s because everyone knows their place.”
Many large families have severe internal conflicts, but the Gentry family members are almost all focused on medicine and don’t care about power struggles or profits.
They value medical achievements most.
“Alright, alright, I get it.” Fatima impatiently wiped her mouth. “So nagging.”
Brittany didn’t say anything more but glanced at Sylvia from afar. So young and beautiful yet so capable; truly enviable!
The lunch banquet finally ended after half an hour, and everyone left one after another.
Tony personally escorted Sylvia and Franklin’s group to their residence.
“If you need anything, just let me know; don’t hesitate.”
“No need; everything is well arranged.” Sylvia smiled.
Tony exchanged a few more polite words before leaving with the Gentry family members.
Adonis couldn’t help but ask Tony, “Do you really believe Sylvia can find such an expert?”
Tony looked at him with deep eyes. “Do I have any other choice?”