Love Began with the First Meeting
Chapter 795 The Celebration Party (Part Two)

"Take it easy. I can't control Mr. Brian Long's feelings with my gambling skills," replied Hanson while rolling his eyes. "I'll give you my yacht 'The Sunny Sword' if you'll win the bet. It was a gift from Mr. Brian Long. How do you like it?"

"Really? Are you serious?" The man's eyes glittered with excitement.

"Of course. And if you lose..." Hanson continued, "...you should give me five percent of your share from your family's business group."

A cold smile spread over the man's face. "What a good bet! Mr. Brian Long has already gotten another five percent share. If you win, he'll be able to take control of our Board of Directors."

"How do you like it?" Hanson said as he ignored what the man said. This man was Clement. He was from the Ye family, one of the four greatest families besides the Long family in Dragon Island. He had a hobby of collecting yachts. However, one of his favorite yachts, "The Sunny Sword", was owned by Brian who then gave it to Hanson as a gift.

"It seems that Mr. Brian Long holds all the winning cards this time," said Clement, trying to sound Hanson out.

"Well, it's hard to say." Hanson replied flatly. "After all, it's just an even bet. Besides, I can ensure you that Mr. Brian Long won't take control of your Board of Directors. Instead, the shares will be owned by his son, Mark."

Clement took a sip of his wine and fell into deep thoughts. The Dragon Empire Group hadn't chosen to develop and grow in Dragon Island in order to give ways to local enterprises. Currently, the four great families of Dragon Island already owned a large part of its economy. It was vital for the Long family to purchase the shares of the four great families' business groups. Restricted by the political factors, Eric, the governor of the parliament, wasn't supposed to do that publicly, thus, Brian would have to do it for his cousin.

"Okay, I'll make the bet with you!" Clement finally decided. He and his father understood their situation clearly and they knew that resisting anyone from the Long family would only result in failure. These were the reasons why he agreed to do Brian a favor. Nonetheless, he still wouldn't necessarily lose the bet regardless of who won between them.

"I bet that..." said Clement as he shot a glance at Brian who was leisurely walking into the door with an official. "...he will lose his cool in three months."

Hanson also looked towards Brian's direction and said, "Then I bet... It will be in just one month!" He raised his wine glass and clinked glasses with Clement. There was a silent triumph in his eyes. He didn't believe that Brian would still be able to keep his cool for long once he saw Molly and Eric sticking together all the time. After all, he was willing to sacrifice his own life for that woman. All he needed was a potent antidote which would drive Brian out of his pretend-composure.

Hanson had developed an outstanding perception while learning how to gamble. He had a strong feeling that something interesting would take place in the near future.

The bitter-sweet taste of the wine spread in his mouth. With an arched eyebrow, he looked towards the direction where Molly had disappeared. He thought to himself, 'I'm wondering how much you have learned from Chester. Maybe I should seize an opportunity to bet with you!'

Of course, Molly had no knowledge of their schemes at all. She was gloomy while holding a glass of wine in her hand. She was following Eric the whole time as he walked around to greet different people at the party. In order to play as the perfect and fortunate woman at his side, she almost applied everything she had learned from Golden Flower No.5. Aside from helping Eric on the surface, she also wanted to try Brian's limit and see if he could maintain his poker face all the time.

"Mr. Eric Long, why not introduce this beautiful lady with you to me?" said the Director of Sun Island government while smiling at Molly. His expensive suits couldn't cover his beer belly and short height. Thus, he looked kind of funny compared to Eric.

Eric glanced at Molly with soft eyes and then turned to the Director and said, "Let me introduce her to you. She is Molly Xia, the woman I am pursuing now." He paused for a while as his eyes went notches darker. "If I'm lucky enough to receive her consent, I might soon invite you to our wedding so you can witness the day when she becomes the first lady of Dragon Island."

"Oh really?" The Director's eyes glittered with astonishment upon hearing his words. He looked at Molly again and claimed, "It's said that every member of the Long family is sincere in their love. The previous rulers of the Dragon Island all loved their wives deeply. Miss Xia, please allow me to congratulate you beforehand."

The grin on Molly's face froze in confusion. She couldn't understand why Eric said those words. However, in order not to embarrass Eric in public, she still clinked glasses with the Director and smiled. She didn't say anything to confirm Eric's words or to disprove it as she didn't want to give a final comment about it yet.

The Director kept talking with Eric enthusiastically because Eric, as the ruler of Dragon Island, had somehow influenced the Sun Island's economy with the Crystal project. Frankly, Molly quickly got bored with the men's talks but kept listening silently out of respect. Despite her lack of interest, she still forced herself to learn about social engagements. She had learned that she should not only protect herself well but also help Brian in this kind of occasions if she really wanted to come back to him.

"Are you tired?" Eric asked in a low voice as he noticed the hint of tiredness in her eyes. He glanced at her injured ankle and suggested, "Let's sit down and have a rest. You can also have some food there."

Molly glanced at the Director apologetically.

As a reaction, the Director smiled and said, "I'll go talk with Mr. Lu. See you later!"

After the Director left, Eric took Molly's hand and guided her to the resting area. "Why did you force yourself to listen to his boring talks?" he teased.

"Because he's quite enthusiastic..."

"He talked about nothing other than politics but you listened to him so intently. Are you really thinking about being my first lady and helping me at the parliament?" That was when they reached the resting area. Seeing the noncommittal look on Molly's face, Eric said with a sly smile, "I'll get you some food." He turned around and took one step out before tilting his head and reminding, "Don't drink because you are not good at that. I'll pour a glass of orange juice for you."

"Okay." Molly nodded and smiled, "Don't worry! I won't embarrass you here."

Eric replied her with a loving smile. He took a plate at the dining area and started to select the foods Molly liked.

On the other hand, Brian was surrounded by several officials after he showed up there. They had known him since they heard about Richie's story of anticipating to get the rights in oil and then stopping the prospection for no reason. The oil project had been unsettled for decades. However, it was Brian who had finally settled the mess that his father had started.

The officials kept talking happily to him but Brian didn't take in any of their words. He was just unwittingly looking at the direction of the resting area. He could see Molly from afar. She was laughing happily after Eric whispered some words into her ear.

Anger glinted in his eyes. Coincidentally, Molly suddenly looked towards his direction at that very same time. Brian already withdrew his eyes quickly and pretended to talk with the officials close to him. He smiled at them, made toast with everyone, and acted as if he didn't see her.

Molly didn't join in any more of Eric's social engagement after she finished her food. She chose to just wait for him in the resting area as he went back to the hall. However, it was to her surprise that Eric came back to her side sooner than she expected. "Look how bored you are getting here," Eric said in a soft voice, "Let's get out of here now."

"Don't you have to stay here until it finishes?" Molly asked out of curiosity.

"Well, my men will do it for me," replied Eric with a wide grin. Then he added jokingly, "If I have to handle everything by myself, then there's no need for me to give them salaries."

Molly burst into laughter and said, "Yeah, you're right!" She stood up from her seat as she looked around to search for Brian's figure. When she saw his familiar poker face, she sneered and murmured to herself, "If you keep ignoring me like this, I'll go with Eric sooner or later!"

"What? What did you say?" Eric asked when he heard her calling his name.

"Nothing!" Molly replied grumpily. She took Eric's hand moodily and walked towards the door.

The party went on and the sound of glasses clinking and people talking continued. It seemed that nobody even noticed that they already left. However, there were actually two people in that party who were bored enough and had kept observing them all the time. "Look at Mr. Brian Long," said Hanson who rested one of his hands on his chest. He was still holding a glass of wine with his other hand.

Clement followed his gaze and saw Brian who was pressing his lips together and staring at Molly's back with resentful eyes.

Of course, only Brian himself could know if he was really feeling resentful or not. Others could only guess his feelings based on what they saw. Nobody knew what he was exactly feeling at the moment.

"Okay, I bet he will soon lose his cool in less than a month now," said Hanson while shaking his head in disappointment. A disdainful look appeared on his face as if he was disappointed by Brian's weak self-control.

Clement looked at Molly who was leaving with Eric and said, "Say, don't you think the situation between them is very complicated now?"

"What do you mean?" Hanson asked back curiously.

"Hey, Gambler! Do you know what's the most fearful thing for a woman in love?"

asked Clement, a strange glint flowing in his eyes.