Chapter 3

"You think business is booming because of your little car modification skills? Don't kid yourself. Anyone can modify cars. There are repair shops everywhere with mechanics who have real skills. Why would those rich kids come to our little hole-in-the-wall?"

"It's because of me. This past year I've been drinking, playing ball, and singing karaoke with those rich kids. We're friends now. They come here out of respect for me, Ethan. You're just some grease monkey who fixes cars, and you actually think you're somebody special."

Hearing these words made me want to punch him right in the face.

I'm not bragging, but there are only a handful of people in the country who can match my skill level.

The reason those rich kids choose our shop over the big chains for modifications, and why Harrison Parker wanted to poach me, is all because of my technical abilities.

I can not only meet all their requirements but also save them money.

After all, some of these cars would have to be sent overseas if they didn't come to me for modifications.

Without me, Ethan could drink with those rich kids ten thousand times and they still wouldn't bring a multi-million dollar sports car to this dump.

Seeing my displeasure, Ethan stood up from his executive chair and patted my shoulder. "Mason, I know you're upset, but I've got my own difficulties. This shop doesn't just have you as a mechanic—there are several others who've worked here longer than you and done more work than you. They don't get dividends, but you do. People will have opinions about that."

"How about this—I'll raise your salary by another thousand, and I guarantee you a hundred thousand bonus every year. That's pretty generous, right?"

Seeing him act like he was doing me some huge favor made me laugh with anger.

Three years ago when I first came to this shop, there were only three interns and not a single proper mechanic.

Every day we just patched tires and changed oil, bringing in less than twenty thousand a month in revenue.

I paid out of my own pocket to study abroad for six months. During that half year, I didn't take a cent in salary from the shop, and I paid all my tuition and living expenses myself.

After returning home, I pulled several layers of connections before finding a rich kid willing to let me try my hand. I modified an M4 for him. The day after he drove it out, he brought back a group of friends. From then on, the shop really came to life.

This past year, I was the first one at the shop at seven every morning and the last one to leave at eleven at night.

Three hundred sixty-five days—I didn't dare take a single day off, afraid of delaying any customer's deadline.

During that time, I injured my back and had to be sent to the hospital for surgery.

The doctor told me my back couldn't handle high-intensity labor anymore, so Ethan found me a young apprentice.

Even so, after getting out of the hospital, I was still the last one to leave. When I couldn't bend over for heavy work, I'd squat or kneel. If that didn't work, I'd have my apprentice help support the parts.

Those other mechanics only came to apply after business picked up. Even if they had more seniority than me, which one of them hadn't been trained hands-on by me?

Thinking of this, my heart went completely cold. "Ethan, if you don't want to honor your commitment, just say so directly. If you want to fire me, you can say that too. Why go in such a big circle, using 'other people will have opinions' as an excuse? Do you think I'm stupid?"

Ethan waved his hand. "Mason, you're really misunderstanding me. We're brothers—how could I fire you? It's just that even brothers need to keep clear accounts. If you want that big of a dividend, you need to prove your value, right?"

I almost laughed out loud.

My value needed proving?

The custom modification parts piled up in the workshop—I negotiated with every single overseas supplier to get them. The dozens of modification cases hanging on the wall were all my work.

Ethan dismissed all of this with a single sentence, then said I had no value.

I suddenly thought about suing him.