The car soon arrived at the infamous Carmine Pawnshop. The place was rumored to be a treasure house, filled with displays of rare treasures, curious cultural antiques, exotic animals, and other peculiar paraphernalia from all over the world.
Nevertheless, the actual pawnshop did not occupy a large area at all. In fact, it was just a simple building. It did not even have that many guards surrounding it, so it looked no different from the other buildings in the area.
The car drove into the pawnshop's private garage. Mr. Q parked the car and turned to Adie, and asked him in a leisurely tone, "Are you sure you want to go inside? You do know that anyone who's stepped into Carmine Pawnshop gives up the control of their own fate, don't you?"
"I'm just a kid," Adie replied chirpily, blinking his big bright eyes innocently," so anything I say doesn't count. As for you being in control of my fate, you'll have to ask for Mommy's permission before you can do that."
Adie had always been an expert in using his status as a child to his own advantage. He was clearly much smarter than many adults!
"Your mommy again, huh?"
The man drummed the steering wheel with his long slender fingers. The feather mask could not fully conceal his handsome face, just as it could not conceal the playful smile on his lips as he added, "You've been going on and on about your mommy all the way here. Is she really that great? Do you love her very much?"
'Of course I do!" Adie's eyes were pure and innocent as he answered the question. His voice was firm, and he was filled with pride. "Mommy's the greatest person in the world! She can do anything! No one on this planet is better than her! I love her very, very much!"
But then his bright eyes quickly dimmed, and in a lowered voice Adie added, "But right now, Mommy's facing an opponent, so I must find a way to help her eliminate this opponent. I don't want her to be too tired."
"Oh?" the man could not help but raise his eyebrows.
Adie was completely undaunted even as he was faced with the man's intimidating aura. Instead, he went straight to the point and clearly stated his intentions of seeking this man out.
"You must be curious about the identity of this opponent of hers, aren't you? Well, it's really not that hard to guess. Mommy said this man is a mean villain. Everyone in the City wants to defeat him. I guess you want to defeat him too. That's why I came to find you. I hope you can be Mommy's helper, and when Mommy finally wins. I'm sure she'd be very generous in rewarding you…"
The man's expressions beneath the mask became even more complicated now. He coldly asked, "Why don't you tell me who this mean villain is?"
"Can't you guess? It's Ace Moran, the president of Moran Group, of course! You're an idiot, aren't you?!"
Adie slapped his forehead, looking very disappointed. He had expected Mr. Q to be powerful and intelligent, but he unfortunately turned out to be so stupid. Even Daddy Liam was smarter than him! If he had known this, he would never choose him to be his mother's helper!
"That man, huh? Well, he is pretty impressive, I'll give you that. So what does your mommy think of him?"
"Mommy said Ace Moran is the most arrogant, cunning, and ruthless person in the City. He's also the person she regrets ever knowing the most! And because he's always so cocky he ends up offending many people! The whole of the City wants to defeat him! If you add up all of his enemies together, you'd get more people than the water in the sea!"
"Is that so?"
The man suddenly clenched his fingers. The smile on his lips turned cold and stiff, and the expressions underneath his mask were inscrutable. He stared at Adie's little face from behind the mask, regarding the boy's adorable face, healthy red lips, and clean white teeth. He then brusquely asked, "Did your mommy ever tell you who your daddy is?
'Well, about that…"
Adie's eyes darted around as he contemplated the question. He figured that he could not possibly let this man know that he was the villain Ace Moran's own son himself, since that would lessen the chances that he would want to be his mother's helper.
With that in mind, he told the man in a serious tone, "My daddy is Liam Blackwood. You do know him, don't you? Mommy told me that he's not too shabby himself. He's the future heir to the Blackwood family, which is one of the eight great families of the. Mommy also said that with the combined strengths of the Blackwood family and the Pierce family, defeating the Moran family is only a matter of time!"
"Is that so? Hmph, your mommy is pretty ambitious, isn't she?"
Mr. Q's words sounded especially curt and surly, as if he was upset about something.
'Alice, you sly woman! How dare you lie to me?!'
'But it's fine,' he thought. 'It doesn't matter whether this kid has the blood of the Moran family or not. As long as he's Joanna Pierce's son, then this deal is definitely worth it!'
Without any emotion on his face, he opened the car door and stepped out, striding into the pawnshop with his long legs.
Adie, utterly unafraid, followed him in bouncing little steps, as if it was just another normal day of going back home for him. He was truly a free spirit.
An attractive young man in a long white coat warmly greeted the man as soon as he got inside.
"You're back, Mr. Q! So… this is the priceless treasure you were talking about?"
The young man was called Chase Cheever. He was the person in charge of the Carmine Pawnshop. Although he was still young, he was gifted with a pair of shrewd piercing eyes that made him the leading figure in the item appraisal circle. Everything in the pawnshop had to go through his appraisal before they were accepted here.
As Chase noticed Adie, he looked the boy up and down, scrutinizing him, before displaying a confused expression.
"What an adorable baby this boy is! He is good-looking, for sure, but I can tell at a glance that he's been brought up like a prince. He won't be able to work much, and he won't be worth that much money either. What need do we have for someone like him?"
He had heard a few days ago that Mr. Q would go out and procure a new ' rare treasure' he had found himself. He had not slept at all after hearing that, as he was just too excited to see what Mr. Q would bring back. But this is just… a useless brat?!
"You don't need to know anything about that," replied Mr. Q. "All you need to do is make sure he is well taken care of in the next few days."
Mr. Q put his hands in his pockets and turned around to look at Adie with a somewhat cold attitude, as if trying to maintain a distance from the boy. But then Adie unexpectedly ran up to him and clung onto his leg like a koala bear before declaring in a pure childlike voice, "I knew you're a good person, Little Q!"
Mr. Q's whole body stiffened. He neither pushed the boy away nor embraced him.
Adie raised his soft and chubby face and smiled as brightly as a flower in full bloom. Then, in a voice that sounded as adult-like as he could muster, he said, "Congratulations. You passed my test. I can introduce you to Mommy without any worries now. If you work hard as her helper from now on, your future will be bright!"
Both Mr. Q and Chase were rendered speechless.
Chase began to understand why his boss wanted this little brat now. His audacity and courage alone were beyond the reach of some adults. He was indeed a precious gem, and if they continued to polish him, the power he might attain in the future could be immeasurable!
He assumed that the brat's antics would lead Mr. Q to erupt in rage. After all, rumors had it that he despised being physically close to anyone.
Surprisingly, not only did he not lose his temper, he even gently caressed the boy's head and gently reminded him, "Don't get cheeky."
Could… Could it be that this little brat was actually Mr. Q's illegitimate son?!
The next day, Clara gingerly unlocked the door to Joanna's bedroom and cautiously leaned half of her body into the room, and looked around.
All she saw was everything in the room in impeccable order just as it had always been. There was not a trace in there to suggest that anything " passionate' had happened last night as she expected.
Her best friend Joanna was lying on the bed with her back turned towards the door. She was sleeping very soundly, wrapped up in a thick beige blanket