The press had gathered outside the lobby of Philip. They were all eager to hear what Eldrich Cho had to say. It was quite rare for the old man to personally call for a press conference. “Did your boss say anything?” One of the reporters asked a man dressed in the uniform of Ke Network. “No. He should have had prior information, he always does, but this time he just told us to prepare today.” The reporter told his companion.Inside Philip Tower, both Robert Ke and Edward Hao sat down waiting for Stephen and Eldrich Cho to make an appearance.Stephen had given them prior notice since they would still be affected by the announcement. Prior to his death it was well knownt that the young masters of the Ke, Hao, and Cho families were best friends. After Stephen had died, they were the most affected. When the elevator doors opened, Robert and Edward quickly stood up, bowing towards Eldrich Cho, greeting their senior properly. “Why am I not surprised that you are here?” Eldrich Cho tea
Stephen looked out to the crowd as they all started to snap photos of Stephen and Eldrich Cho. They weren’t sure if their suspicions were correct, but they knew the man that stood before them was important. It only added to his importance that Robert and Edward quickly chased after him, something that didn’t slip the reporter’s attention. “The fourth announcement.” Eldrich Cho said with a smile as he reached out and held his grandson’s hand. “Six years ago, Stephen Cho didn’t die. He managed to escape the accident and was manipulated by William so that he could be his puppet in the future.” Stephen held his grandfather’s hand tightly as they faced the press together. “I am proud to announce that my grandson, Stephen Cho has returned.” Eldrich Cho looked at Stephen and smiled. Hearing the Chairman’s confirmation, the press began to snap photos of Stephen. They couldn’t initially recognize Stephen because he hadn’t been a public figure in his youth. He was too young for scanda
The reporter hadn’t realized his mistake until it was too late. Stephen was not laughing with him at his joke, instead the man’s expression remained stoic, making the reporter panic.Everyone was aware of how powerful the Cho family was, and one wrong offense could not just end his career, but even the careers of those he cared about and worked for.“We will keep our plans to ourselves, for the meantime.” Stephen answered. “My fiance wants to keep her privacy and for her to continue to pursue the career she wants. She isn’t someone that would want to be dependent on the Cho family.”Stephen knew that as soon as he said those words people would not only search for who Vanessa was, but they would also assume the worst. “Let me remind you all, my fiance only found out about my identity very recently. She didn’t know about this until after she agreed to marry me.” Stephen said as he warned people against calling Vanessa a gold digger. When he was satisfied, Stephen turned to his grandf
Stephen and Vanessa got a taste of popularity as the entire day people were either trying to contact them or the press was camping outside of Cho Industries. They believed that Vanessa would come to Philip Tower and that she would make an appearance, unfortunately for them she was already in the building. Stephen returned to his old office and continued to work as if nothing had changed, so did most of his team except Amalia and Andrew.He had given the pair the task of finding which department each team member would be more suited to work at. Stephen wanted his people to earn the respect of the other employees, he wanted their work ethic and intelligence to shine.“Sir, some of the department heads were wondering if you would have dinner with them.” Isabelle asked as she knocked on Stephen’s office door.“Not today, Isabelle.” The good thing about being the new Vice President, Stephen didn’t even need to explain himself. He could refuse and people wouldn’t dare question him.Step
“We have always been supportive of Vanessa and Stephen’s relationship.” Amalia rolled her eyes as she watched the news. “They wanted to engage Vanessa to someone else while Stephen was there, what are these idiots talking about!” Amalia exclaimed as she continued to watch the interview.Stephen chuckled behind her as he leaned against the frame of her bedroom door. “I have a high tolerance for their bullshit.” Stephen said as he walked over and sat next to his sister. “I don’t want Vanessa to lose her family the way we just did.”Amalia frowned and crossed her arms. “Did you ask Vanessa what her thoughts on her family doing this are?” Amalia asked her brother, choosing not to sugar coat her words.She loved him and cared for him and she didn’t want to see him making a mistake because he was too stubborn. “We will discuss it tonight. There are many things that Vanessa and I need to talk about.” Stephen said, shaking his head as the news flashed several photos of Stephen growing up.
Stephen looked up at the building before him, he hadn’t expected Charlie to move into such a high profile place. The apartment buildings also had state of the art security, the kind which even the Cho family couldn’t even breach. Most of the occupants were dignitaries from other countries and high ranking officials based on what Stephen could gather.He never knew that Charlie had that much money, or that he had placed such a premium on his security. It was the complete opposite of everything Stephen thought Charlie was. Throughout their travels, Charlie would place them in any apartment that could fit their budget and their needs. He never seemed to look over his shoulder and lived carelessly.“Young master, won’t you go in?” One of his bodyguards asked.They had found it odd that Stephen was just standing outside and didn’t even bother entering the lobby. He had been so deep in thought that they didn’t want to question him before. “I will.” Stephen said as he looked at the sim
“I think it’s him.” Stephen said as Edward, Robert, Andrew, and John sat around his dining table.He had invited them over on neutral territory. It was dangerous for Edward and Robert to be seen too often at his club.If the authorities or rival mafia families and gangs realized that it housed the headquarters of the Essen Mafia, it could be used as leverage against his friends.It was best to meet at a place where no one would look or suspect anything.“We will still need proof, he could either still be hiding, not wanting to reveal his identity, or it could be someone your uncle planted.” Robert suggested as he slowly considered the situation.
“Hi Charlie.” Stephen greeted as Charlie picked up the call. Stephen was currently being driven by one of his bodyguards to the airport. His uncle Armand would be arriving in the next hour with his entire family. “Why did you call me, Stephen? Isn’t it enough that you pestered me yesterday?” Charlie grumbled as Stephen watched the scenery as his car drove by. “I just wanted to ask how you are. Vanessa and I both realized that we haven’t been visiting as much or checking up on you.” Stephen told Charlie. He wasn’t lying, both he and Vanessa felt bad about how much they had neglected Charlie while they were in Marina. Back when they were in another country, Stephen lived with Charlie so they would see each other everyday. Even when Vanessa and Stephen moved in together, they still lived with Charlie. Now that they were in Marina city they hadn’t even had a proper dinner with him yet. “You guys have been busy, I’m sure Eldrich Cho has been keeping his grandson busy.” Charlie hi