As everyone got lost in their own thoughts, Sophie caught a glimpse of Harold standing not too far away.
Harold seemed to have appeared out of thin air. Everyone else was too engrossed in the news to notice his
arrival.
Just then, Adler, following Sophie's line of sight, finally noticed Harold standing behind him. He jumped and
exclaimed, "Harold, are you trying to scare us to death by sneaking up like that?"
"I've been here for a while now. It's just that you were all so focused on the news you didn't see me," Harold
responded.
Jenna chimed in, "Joining the army has really changed you, Harold. Even | didn't notice you sneaking up. Good
job on the stealth."
She gave Harold a friendly pat on the shoulder.
"Jenna, I'm not a kid anymore. | have a name, you know. Stop callingthat," Harold replied.
Jenna waved him off, "Little brother is always gonna be little brother. Don't forget who taught you the
roundhouse kick back in the day!"
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The tension in the room eased a bit.
Sophie said, "Let's head to the office. Who knows what kind of mess is out there now. At the funeral yesterday,
someone actually had the nerve to mess with us. Unbelievable, right? Back in the day, no one would've dared."
"Was it that Zhao guy?" Adler cut in. "He's nothing! The Costello family was already on top when Zhao's
ancestors were still shining shoes! Don't worry, Sophie. He messed with the wrong family. I'll handle it!"
"Word sure travels fast," Sophie noted.
"Doesn't it? Yesterday, we heard people talking about the Zhao family causing trouble. But when we saw that
Zhao kid you beat up, we didn't ask any more questions," Jenna added. "The last person who dared to badmouth
the Costello family ended up buried who knows where. I'm definitely settling this score."
As they debated how to handle the Zhao family, Colby suddenly grabbed Sophie's hand and said, "Cwith
me."
"What's up?"
Sophie followed Colby outside to the Burke Estate.
Harold's eyes instinctively followed Sophie and Colby as they left.
"What's so secret it can't be discussed inside?"
Sophie got into the car with Colby.
Colby, driving with one hand, said, "I'm taking you to the office first."
"Now? Shouldn't we at least tell Adler and Jenna?"
Colby answered, "This is something we need to discuss privately."
Sophie noticed Colby's expression was as calm as always, but she could sense there was something important
he wanted to keep from Adler and Jenna.
So, she stayed quiet.
When they arrived at S Corporation, Tricia, as usual, escorted Sophie and Colby to the President's office.
Sophie asked, "Are we safe here? Can you tellwhat's going on now?"
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"S Corporation is facing an issue, but
I don't
Adler and Jenna to
wort it," Colby explained.
Sentent belongs to
"What kind of issue?" Sophie frowned.
Everything seemed to be running smoothly at S Corporation for now. James hadn't launched any major attacks,
giving them sbreathing room.
wr
"Do you remember the auction where you secured the land that's now the commercial district?"
"Of course | do. It was a turning point in my life," Sophie replied.
Colby paused for a moment before saying, "What is the commercial district known for?" &