Although you did an excellent job with confidentiality, and no one knows the specifics of what you did, some things don't require knowing the process; just paying attention to the results is enough. By comparing the results, one can understand the intent behind your previous actions.
Intentionally leaking to the paparazzi before the stock market crash that the stock market would collapse was a good preemptive measure. At least now, ordinary people are not so resistant to you making a lot of money.
What you did in Montenegro was a demonstration to make people wary of you, but your mistake was being too deliberate. Being quiet is the best way to avoid attracting attention, and silently making a fortune is the way to go.
Now, people from the Treasury are constantly watching your every move. If you want to bring the money from Switzerland back to England, you'd better have a clear reason. I advise you to pay taxes in England. God, thinking about you having to pay a huge amount of tax makes me happy, hahahaha, William, can you still smile now?" Garret said gleefully.
"Damn it," William cursed and hung up on Garret. These old foxes were really hard to fool. The more he did, the more flaws there were. To cover up one thing, he had to do many actions, and these actions would lead clever people to guess other things about him. It was truly a headache.
He understood that what Garrick had just said on the phone was a test for William. They knew William had been watching the futures market in Switzerland for the past few months, but they weren't sure if William had made a profit or a loss, let alone how much he had earned.
"Damn it," William secretly regretted. He had really gotten ahead of himself. Now, because of his big mouth, these guys all knew he had made a fortune. Those old foxes were truly cunning.
William picked up his phone and dialed his lawyer, Anthony. When the call connected,
Anthony answered the phone and said, "Hello, boss."
William said, "I'm back in Oxford. Come see me at the castle. I have something to consult you about."
Anthony heard the seriousness in William's tone and quickly said, "I'm in London. I'll leave now and can be at the castle in two hours."
"Bring the best tax expert from your law firm. I need you to help me file my taxes. Everyone who comes today must sign a non-disclosure agreement," William instructed.
"Okay, boss. I'll get on it right away. The team was already prepared yesterday. See you in two hours, boss," Anthony said.
"Alright, bye."
William sat in the car, feeling dejected. He hadn't expected that despite his strict security measures, he would still be guessed by those with ulterior motives. Luckily, the outside world didn't yet know exactly how much money he had made, but William knew trouble was coming.
Garrick had been testing him earlier, and also reminding him that the news of him making a fortune during the stock market crash could no longer be kept secret. He believed it wouldn't be long before the English newspapers would be full of news about him. It seemed he really had to stay in Oxford longer or go abroad directly.
He needed to properly arrange his tax matters. At this time, he couldn't show any flaws. As long as everything was legal, the authorities couldn't do anything to him, at most condemning him in public opinion. Let them curse, it wouldn't cost him a limb anyway.
Barney and Christmas saw William's gloomy face after he finished his call and knew William was in trouble. They didn't speak a word to disturb William on the way. Upon arriving at the castle, Barney reminded him, "Boss, we're at the castle."
Getting out of the car, he looked up and saw a Gothic building over thirty meters high, with a main structure 90 meters long and 45 meters wide, covering more than an acre. Around it were 10 acres of gardens, lawns, and wooded hills. The castle was an open-style castle; its city walls had been demolished over 60 years ago for the reconstruction of Oxford.
His mother, Lena, had carried out extensive modernization of the castle. The castle walls had been polished to reveal their original tiger-skin yellow granite. Soaring spires, large and small skylights on the towers, vaulted ceilings, and slender clustered columns. Built in the 19th century, the overall impression was not as gloomy as medieval castles. After renovation, it felt bright and spacious.
Tina ran to William, hugged his arm, and asked, "How does it feel? Lena and I supervised all of this. I even chose the colors and patterns for the glass windows inside. Come on, I'll show you." With that, she dragged William into the castle.
Inside the castle, the 200-square-meter hall no longer had the gloomy feeling William remembered. Over a dozen small chandeliers, each three to four square meters, surrounded a large circular chandelier of eight square meters on the ceiling. The windows on the walls were also very large, all modern glass windows. Sunlight streamed in, reflecting off the sky-blue marble floor tiles with gold veins, making them dazzling. The stair railings and steps had all been replaced with new off-white marble.
After seeing the hall, Tina pulled William towards his bedroom. On the third floor of the castle, which was William's private area, there was a large 50-square-meter bedroom, a 20-square-meter walk-in closet, a 20-square-meter bathroom, a 60-square-meter study, and a 40-square-meter living room.
There was also a nursery, a nanny's room, and five empty, renovated rooms.
"How is it, Brother William? Many parts of this were discussed by me and the designer. I love this bedroom the most. There are two large windows around it. This is the only room in the entire castle that could be renovated to have two windows. And this bed, I bought it for you. Brother William, come and try if this bed is comfortable."
William looked speechlessly at Tina, who was pulling his hand, wanting to lie on the bed. This little girl was really doing everything she could to get him now, even using such tactics.
Fortunately, Tina hadn't chosen a pink bed for him, but rather the golden nanmu "birdsong and floral fragrance" bunk bed that William had specifically requested. This bed only cost William 10,000 pounds. In 2000, golden nanmu wasn't as popular as it would be later. A cubic meter of wood could be bought for 3,000 Great Heavenly Dynasty coins. All the furniture, tables, and chairs in his third-floor living room were made of golden nanmu, and the entire set only cost him 100,000 pounds.
In auction houses, antique golden nanmu chairs from the Ming Dynasty were only tens of thousands of pounds. At this time, antiques from the Great Heavenly Dynasty were not expensive. William wondered if he should acquire a large number of Great Heavenly Dynasty antiques in England and Europe. If he kept them for ten years or so, they could appreciate 20 times in value.
In his previous life, he only watched those sky-high antique prices on TV and online with envy because he had no money, and he even hesitated to buy a decent piece of jade. Now that he had money, the castle was so big and had plenty of space to store them. Antiques from the Great Heavenly Dynasty in Europe were cheap now. Even if he filled the 3rd floor, the remaining 4 rooms wouldn't cost much. Antiques from the Great Heavenly Dynasty would be the most valuable collectibles after more than ten years.
It's decided, I'll acquire them in Europe. Anyway, William isn't going to the Great Heavenly Dynasty to acquire them. It will take another ten years for Great Heavenly Dynasty antiques to flow back. Now, during the stock market crash, many rare items can still be found in Europe.
"Brother William, what are you thinking about? Why aren't you talking to me?" Tina complained when William remained silent.
"Nothing, I was just thinking about whether to acquire some antiques from the Great Heavenly Dynasty to display at home. There aren't many furnishings in the castle right now, and I like the culture of the Great Heavenly Dynasty, so I was thinking of acquiring some rare antiques from the Great Heavenly Dynasty to display at home," William said.
Tina pouted, "What's so good about those jars and bottles? My family has quite a few Heavenly Dynasty antiques, they've been stored in the warehouse for many years and no one touches them."
William smiled wryly, "It's okay if you don't like them, as long as you know those antiques will be very valuable in the future."
Tina pouted, "All you care about is money."
Seeing that Tina wasn't interested, William smiled helplessly. "Forget it, you wouldn't understand if I told you about these things. Let's talk about something else. Tina, you're almost 17. Have you thought about what you want to do in the future?"
"Hmph, Brother William, you're not even 20 yet. Why are you acting like my mom, always asking me what I want to do in the future? You're not cute at all," Tina complained petulantly.
"Brother William, why don't you marry me now? I haven't thought about what I want to do in the future, but my biggest wish right now is to marry you, Brother William. Shall we secretly go and get our marriage certificate?" Tina said, shaking William's arm, which made William feel a moment of disorientation.
Seeing William's dazed look, Tina burst into triumphant laughter.