On the Day I Was Kicked Out of the Wealthy Family, I Had a Flash Marriage with a Tycoon

Chapter 206: No Sense of Security

"If I tried to stop you, would you still go through with it?" Chloe Sterling asked in return.

’No matter what, Silas Coldwell just helped them. To take advantage of him while he’s vulnerable would be wrong.’

After a long silence, Jasper Lockwood said, "No, I wouldn’t."

’It was, indeed, the perfect opportunity to strike at Silas Coldwell, but he had no intention of kicking a man while he was down.’

Chloe breathed a small sigh of relief. But seeing how clearly she didn’t want him to hurt Silas Coldwell, Jasper felt a knot of frustration tighten in his chest.

So, he asked an incredibly irrational and childish question. "If one day Silas Coldwell and I were both fatally poisoned, and you only had one antidote, who would you save?"

Hearing this, Chloe stared at him in astonishment, seemingly unable to believe Jasper Lockwood would ask such a thing.

Realizing just how childish his question was, a flash of embarrassment crossed Jasper Lockwood’s handsome face. He started to get up and leave, but then he heard Chloe Sterling say, "I’d save you, of course. In a life-or-death moment, no one is more important than you."

Her words were exactly what Jasper Lockwood wanted to hear, and a faint smile touched his eyes.

Chloe stood up as well, the corners of her lips twitching as she teased, "But... how could you ask such a childish question? It’s not like you."

Jasper Lockwood glanced at her sideways and said leisurely, "Because when I’m with you, I feel insecure."

’Insecure?’

’Who would believe that the high and mighty, ever-confident President Lockwood would feel insecure with his own wife?’

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Chloe Sterling said, "You’re not serious, are you?"

Jasper Lockwood replied, "I am."

Chloe Sterling didn’t know what to say to that. ’I’ve always felt I was completely loyal to this marriage and to Jasper Lockwood. How could I have made him feel insecure?’

"What have I done to make you feel insecure?"

Jasper Lockwood turned slowly to face her and began to speak. "You said before that maybe we shouldn’t be together. That tells me that, subconsciously, you regret being with me. And once that subconscious thought grows, your regret will grow with it. If you truly came to regret it, you might leave me. The thought that I could be abandoned one day... of course I feel insecure."

"That’s not what I meant! I don’t regret it, and I already explained that, didn’t I?" ’She couldn’t believe he was still holding onto that one sentence.’

Jasper Lockwood lowered his head slightly, his face almost touching Chloe Sterling’s. His thin lips parted. "But those words still make me feel this way."

Chloe Sterling swallowed hard. "I’ll never say anything like that again."

"Good." Jasper Lockwood lifted his head, a cunning glint flashing in his deep-set eyes. He then added, "Shall we go down for dinner?"

Chloe Sterling looked down at her bathrobe. "I need to change."

"Okay, I’ll wait for you."

Chloe Sterling changed into a dark set of loungewear, and then the two of them went downstairs together.

As they stepped out of the elevator, Henry Chamberlain approached and gave a slight nod to them both. He then addressed Jasper Lockwood, "President Lockwood, President Morgan is here. She said she has something urgent to discuss with you."

"Where is she?" Jasper Lockwood asked.

"She’s waiting for you in the reception area."

Jasper Lockwood turned to glance at Chloe Sterling. "You go on to the dining room. I’ll head over and see what this is about."

Chloe Sterling gave an expressionless "mm" and walked toward the dining room.

Jasper Lockwood arrived at the reception area, where Stella Morgan immediately came forward. "Jasper."

"What happened?"

"The shipment of red wine from Aveline Winery... it was hijacked by pirates at sea."

Aveline Winery is a premier winery established by the Sinclair Group in Country A, in which the Morgan Family is also an investor. The winery produces high-end red wines, with a single bottle valued in the millions. This entire shipment was worth at least a billion.

Jasper Lockwood’s brow furrowed slightly. "How could it be hijacked by pirates? Where were they from? When did this happen?"

Stella Morgan shook her head. "This afternoon. We don’t know where they were from. They appeared out of nowhere, and it seemed they knew our cargo ship’s route. They came prepared. The entire shipment was stolen."

After a moment of thought, Jasper Lockwood said, "If they came prepared, then someone must have deliberately leaked our route. Those pirates certainly know the value of the wine. Let’s just wait. We should be hearing from them soon."

"We’re just going to wait?" Stella Morgan asked.

"What else can we do? There’s no surveillance out on the open sea. We have no way of identifying the pirates, and no way to contact them."

After a moment, Stella Morgan suggested, "What if I take some people out to sea and investigate?"

"There’s no need. It’s too dangerous," Jasper Lockwood said. "Even if they don’t contact us, they’ll have to find a way to turn that wine into cash. They can’t go through legitimate channels, so they’ll most likely use the black market. We just need to monitor it."

Stella Morgan nodded. "Alright, I’ll assign some people to watch it."

"Good."

After a pause of a few seconds, Stella Morgan added, "I’m sorry. This was my mistake. I didn’t assign enough people to security."

Jasper Lockwood replied, "If someone intentionally leaked the information, it wouldn’t have mattered how many people you assigned. Let’s focus on how to fix this."

"Who do you think is behind this?"

Jasper Lockwood’s gaze darkened. He had no immediate leads; after all, he had more than just one or two enemies.

Seeing his silence, Stella Morgan asked, "No ideas?"

Jasper Lockwood shook his head. "Not at the moment."

"I can’t think of anyone either." After a moment of thought, Stella Morgan said, "I’ll go arrange for my people to monitor the black market. We’ll move the second a deal appears."

"Alright. Go on," Jasper Lockwood said.

Stella Morgan watched him for a moment, then nodded. "I’ll be going, then."

Jasper Lockwood called out, "Henry Chamberlain, see President Morgan out."

"Yes, sir." Henry Chamberlain stepped forward. "President Morgan, this way please."

"Thank you," Stella Morgan said before turning to leave.

’Truthfully, she hadn’t expected Jasper Lockwood to ask her to stay for dinner. She knew he wouldn’t. Their relationship was strictly business, but she still couldn’t help feeling a pang of disappointment.’

Jasper Lockwood returned to the dining room.

As soon as he entered, Chloe Sterling asked, "What happened?"

Jasper Lockwood sat down across from her. He didn’t hide anything, replying, "A shipment of red wine coming from Country A was hijacked by pirates this afternoon."

"Pirates hijacking... red wine?"

"A shipment of premium red wine, valued at 1.6 billion."

"...Don’t tell me it’s the kind of wine that costs a million a bottle?"

"That’s the one."

"So what’s the plan? Have you found the pirates?"

"No. The sea is too vast; it’s impossible to find them. We can only monitor the black market. They’ll probably try to sell it there."

"A black market deal..." After a moment’s thought, Chloe Sterling picked up her phone and made a call. A man’s lazy voice came through the receiver. "Chloe, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"You’re familiar with the black market, aren’t you?" Chloe Sterling asked directly.

"I am. Why?"

"Could you keep an eye out for me over the next few days? See if anyone tries to make a deal for red wine—a large shipment of high-end stuff, the kind worth a million a bottle."

"Hm? What are you looking for that for?" the man asked curiously.

"I..." Chloe Sterling glanced at Jasper Lockwood, her expression a little unnatural. She then said, "It’s... my husband’s wine."