The Retired CEO's Guide To Being Spoiled Chapter 320: The Undercurrents of St. Lawrence

Julian did not even bother to glance at the man anymore. Sotis Ethan was just like that, responding to whatever people said with that sa lingering smile. Julian could not be bothered to care, rely nestling deeper into Ethan’s chest, his eyes half-closed as he prepared to fall back asleep.

Then, all of a sudden, he heard Ethan Caldwell ask: "Jules, what do you know about the power factions in St. Lawrence?"

"Hmm? What do you an by what do I know?"

"For instance, the other families, the Talbot family, the York family... and the tangled webs of relationships within this circle."

Julian lifted his head to look straight into Ethan’s eyes. That gaze was incredibly serene, appearing so profoundly deep that one could not fathom its bottom. Suddenly, Julian had a feeling that perhaps Ethan Caldwell was going to reveal sothing to him today.

What could it be...

It was likely related to CORE.

But was that organization truly connected to the top aristocratic families of St. Lawrence, or perhaps even those in other major cities? As Julian recalled from the last ti, Dahlia Thorne had ntioned that the long-standing families also had people ddling within CORE. Who were these ancient families?

Were the Talbot family and the York family... the ones that ca to his mind? The figures standing behind Kieran Talbot and Louis York...

There were far too many things to consider, making Julian feel a montary headache. Ultimately, he spoke with absolute candor: "Ethan Caldwell, even though I carry the reputation of being a mber of the Sterling family. But... I was just an impoverished wretch brought into the Sterling household."

A beggar clinging to a high branch like him possessed absolutely no right to be privy to so many secrets of this upper-class society.

Furthermore, prior to transmigrating here, he had not read that much information either. This book revolved primarily around Aaron, depicting how exceptionally capable he was and how many suitors chased after him. However, ever since he transmigrated here, everything had deviated from its original trajectory, and Aaron had gradually vanished from Julian’s life.

It was clearly a recent occurrence, yet bringing it up felt as though several lifetis had passed. It felt so distant that he genuinely no longer wished to expend any ntal effort to despise or set traps for Aaron anymore.

And while Julian was lost in his sprawling thoughts, Ethan Caldwell planted a kiss on his forehead. It was a kiss that felt as if it were consoling his wounded soul.

Ethan Caldwell’s voice rang out in a steady, rhythmic tone: "Let tell you a few tales of the past. They are a bit chaotic..."

Ethan Caldwell’s tales of the past consisted of nurous stories from a very long ti ago in St. Lawrence, concerning the colossal factions that cast their shadows over the city.

"Have you ever noticed before that St. Lawrence is not the capital of this country. Yet all the operational command centers, spanning from politics to the economy, are situated in St. Lawrence."

Back when he first established the company with Lucas Hill, and while searching for a way to guarantee himself a peaceful life in the future in the event that Ethan Caldwell was not around, Julian had also discovered this very fact. The city of St. Lawrence was exceedingly peculiar, possessing no official title or phrase to affirm its status. It was located in the eastern part of the nation, whereas the capital sat at the farthest northern extremity of the country.

Nor was it evaluated as the premier tropolitan area within the nation.

But St. Lawrence possessed an absolutely massive upper-class social circle, a place where all the monuntal aristocratic families congregated. Exactly how monuntal they were, how many households there were, and who they consisted of, Julian had never intended to investigate. When researching information on the internet, he had once seen articles published with sensationalized clickbait titles, but they also clearly demonstrated that many individuals belonging to corporations headquartered in the capital had to humble themselves upon arriving in St. Lawrence.

St. Lawrence was not even a forr capital, and throughout history, it had never been a location of glorious renown.

It was simply a piece of land that endured through the passage of ti.

It must have been a land of outstanding spirit and exceptional people, which was why the wealthy all favored residing here, eventually clustering together to form an elite circle that commanded such profound apprehension from others.

Ethan Caldwell gently stroked Julian’s hair, his voice steady: "In truth, no one has ever ntioned the fact that St. Lawrence was originally the nation’s autonomous economic zone. It is the sole city to have cultivated the most distinct economic system, holding the majority of the crucial threads for national developnt and bearing the most significant international ties."

It was true that absolutely no one had ever ntioned it. Julian was completely oblivious to this matter, and even when he had first arrived in this world, he had undeniably conducted thorough research to figure out a viable strategy for his own independent developnt. Yet, within the entirety of the information that Julian had managed to unearth, there was never a single ntion of St. Lawrence being an autonomous economic zone.

A land of freedom governed by a separate economic administration.

This was one of those elents that exerted a trendous influence and consequentially led to significant repercussions. A special administrative zone ant that aside from the highest echelon of the national governnt, there was soone else directly interfering in the operation and managent of this specific territory. The laws, the values, and everything pertaining to the economy operated under a distinctly established, isolated system.

But who was the overarching figure holding the reins of power here?

A singular na materialized in Julian’s mind...

"Is it CORE?"

It was obvious that Julian’s question lacked any proper context or preamble, but Ethan Caldwell seed to understand him perfectly. Ethan’s finger slid down the bridge of Julian’s nose, playfully tracing it as he let out an affirming hum: "The high-ranking executive of the St. Lawrence managent board maintains a connection with CORE."

"CORE does not monopolize the entirety of the governing power, they lack the capability to do so. Or perhaps it is possible that they have attempted it, but were intercepted and blocked. Nobody truly knows, people only know that in years past, CORE used to stir up massive storms and dominate St. Lawrence, only to suddenly beco utterly docile. It is exactly like what people often say about politics, when one faction secures a resounding victory, the opposing side will face a bloody purge."

That certainly sounded a bit troubleso and complicated.

"But truthfully, economics always walk hand in hand with other avenues of developnt. Such as science and dicine."

Julian agreed with this point, only after delving into the research did he realize that St. Lawrence boasted an outstanding evolution in science and dicine, and was even currently elevating its computer technology sectors to new heights. In the past, there was an era when the dical field in St. Lawrence achieved groundbreaking milestones that multiple allied nations collaborating together might not have been guaranteed to accomplish.

The reason he specified the past was because the relevant information Julian had read dated back at least five years ago. Following that period, St. Lawrence seed to plunge into a phase of deep stagnation after experiencing an era of excessively transcendent growth.

Much like an economic cycle, there would be monts when it reached its peak of prosperity before inevitably plumting, falling into a grueling recession. It was just that this particular recession had dragged on for far too long, whereas the caliber of dical and technological developnt in other countries was advancing as rapidly as a soaring rocket.

Blasting forward without any conceivable limits.

Ultimately, a city that was once profoundly radiant in these specific domains was now nothing more than a diminutive star lost amidst a vast, boundless galaxy.

"Have I ever ntioned this to you before..." For so inexplicable reason, Ethan Caldwell’s voice faltered slightly: "My mother was a highly distinguished researcher in the dical field."

Julian froze for a fleeting second.

Yet, in the re blink of an eye, he reached out to grasp Ethan’s hand that had been playfully tracing the bridge of his nose, burying his face deep into Ethan’s palm. He looked exactly like a small, affectionately coaxing kitten. This had practically beco a reflex for Julian, he simply had this profound sensation that Ethan Caldwell was feeling sowhat lancholic, which prompted him to gently console his lover.

Only after doing so did he begin to ponder the words that Ethan Caldwell had just spoken.

Ethan Caldwell’s... mother was a renowned researcher in the dical arena.

Exactly when did his parents pass away? Julian could not rember clearly, it seed as though it had not been ntioned on nurous occasions. Because within the original novel, Ethan Caldwell was rely a fleeting character brought up in passing, thus he was not described in extensive detail.

He only knew that Ethan’s parents had perished, his grandfather Grandpa Arthur had seized control of Caldwell Empire, and subsequently raised Ethan Caldwell to adulthood.

In that case, it was highly probable that they passed away when Ethan Caldwell was still very young.

But precisely how long ago was that? Julian did not have a clear answer either.

Furthermore... did her story have any direct correlation with the abrupt stagnation in the developnt of St. Lawrence?