A Graduation Gift novel Chapter 217

This was all the more reason why it was uncanny how they had failed to find who their rival was this time. What kind of enemy could hide itself so carefully?

Charlie strode back and forth in his office with his hands clasped behind his back. His frame gave off an oppressive air to people around him.

Then, his head shot up, and everyone held their breath at the movement. "Did you ever contact Clark?"

He suddenly asked his assistant, his eyebrows knitted in question.

"Mr. Ke, Mr. Ji has been out for quite some time now, and we couldn't contact him,"

The assistant replied carefully, his voice trembling as he watched Charlie's face warily, searching for signs of another outburst.

"This is ridiculous!" Charlie roared. "His father had entrusted the group to him, but where is he now when he is needed?"

Charlie cast a stern glance at his assistant, his frustration boiling inside him. The son of the former president fell a long way off from his expectations.

When his father passed away, Clark was next in line to his father's position. He was supposed to handle everything in the group, but he failed to act like a proper owner. This young man had never taken his job seriously, and he was nowhere to be found when something happened, not to mention being dependable enough to solve problems. Charlie was the second in command and had to clean up after his mess, taking charge of everything, bustling to and fro and bearing all hardships without any complaint.

Had Clark not been the son of the former president, he would have been thrown out long ago.

"Mr. Ke, I found something the other day. I've been wondering whether I should tell you…"

the assistant spoke in a measured voice, looking at Charlie with hesitation. From his face, Charlie had a foreboding sense that things were about to get worse.

"Hurry up!" he snapped, losing his patience. "If you feel that it's necessary, tell me now; if it's something you can take care of, then don't bother. Do I always have to do the work?"

Charlie stared at him. Yet another disappointment. His assistant had no conviction of his own. It seemed that he had wasted time in mentoring him.

"It's about Mr. Ji..." his assistant breathed out hurriedly. "I heard that he was contacting the Thai, and was having close relations to firearms merchants in Thailand recently," he finished.

The assistant stood shaking as he told Charlie what he knew, his skin pale despite the sheen of sweat covering his forehead.

Even he couldn't believe it when he heard the news. He had no idea why Clark was associated with those gangsters, and once they had established a connection with him, it would be difficult to get rid of them.

He thought of it as nothing but a rumor at first, however, he had confirmed the news again and again. Solid evidence piled up until it was impossible to deny the truth. He contacted them multiple times. With this knowledge, it was his duty to report it to Charlie.

A visible shudder swept over Charlie and he looked into the assistant's eyes. His eyes were stormy and he wore a grim expression.

Those merchants in Thailand were enemy to all decent people, and it was better to not have anything to do with them. They were notorious for under-the-table deals, and they had no qualms when it came to dirty business, as long as the person could match their price.

The most terrible thing of all was the drugs.

If Clark was in contact, there would be the ugly possibility that he was also involved in drug dealing—something that was strictly forbidden in Dark Night Group.

Upon the group's founding, the members had laid down strict rules for training newcomers. Anyone who wanted to be a member needed to undergo a stringent review process before being accepted; afterwards, they would be monitored closely to make sure that they would not involve themselves in any illegal dealings.

However, Clark was an exception.

He had always been a frivolous boy, and because his father was the boss of the group, he looked down at everyone else, except for his father and Charlie. Having grown up in privilege and never having to work hard for anything did not prepare him well for the responsibilities and ways of the business.

Things took a turn for the worse when his father died and he succeeded his position. Now that he was higher than Charlie, Clark was getting more and more irresponsible and disrespectful. Even his language changed. He had begun cursing and calling him names, as if he owned him.

Charlie had always let impropriety of his behavior slip out of respect to Clark's father. However, this was a different matter altogether. Rules were rules, and however things proceeded was no longer in his hands.

"Don't say a word to anyone about it for now. Send more people to look into whether Clark had really been involved, and keep me informed!"

He ordered his assistant. After these words, he heaved a deep sigh.

Things were getting more and more problematic as the situation unfolded, and it came at such a bad timing. He already had his hands full with the current domestic strife and foreign aggression that threatened the economic stability of the market. And now, Clark. If he had truly broken the rules, it would be impossible for him to remain as the leader of the group. On the event that it happened, they would have to decide who would take his place as soon as possible.

Charlie had gone through numerous great storms in his life, and he knew that if they had to replace Clark with a new leader, there would be a rain of blood, with all the others wanting a claim to the position. It would take quite a while before everything settled, and only then could they work to fix the problems that they were facing.

In his heart, Charlie never saw Clark as his boss. He was far too unqualified, but he supported him all these years in respect to the memory of his late father. A promise was a promise. On his deathbed, the late president asked him, to take care of his son, and so he did.

However, this and that were different matters. He would not take Clark's side or show any mercy if he deliberately broke the rules.

Charlie had always believed that Rufus was more suitable than Clark to take the helm of the group.

He was far better than Clark, in mind and in action; if Rufus was willing to step forward to the task, Charlie had no doubt that most of the executives would give him their favor.

Charlie had watched as Rufus built his own empire. It was the greatest success they had seen since the establishment of Dark Night Group. The young man had ambition, drive, and purpose—things that Clark had none of. Lost in his thoughts, Charlie wondered if Rufus would accept to handle this trouble.

He had just one flaw: he was bent on destroying his own father, and he was clinging to that hatred and using it as fuel.

One day, this loathing would burn him. At this thought, Charlie couldn't help but heave one deep sigh after another. There was much work to be done.