Chapter 51

“Marion, are you crazy? How could that piece of sewage area be worth billions?”

Even if they used it to launder money, it wouldn’t be worth ten billion dollars. Randy gestured as if to pat Marion’s forehead, but Marion swatted his hand aside. “The municipality has issued a document.”

“What kind?” Randy scratched his head, clueless.

Debra explained, “For urban environmental protection and greening, the municipality will fund the redevelopment of all sewage areas. So, this place will soon become a greenbelt, and I won’t need to spend a dime.”

“For real?” Randy was skeptical.

“Additionally, I’ll receive a two-billion-dollar subsidy for corporate development,” Debra said.

“What?” Randy stood up from his chair.

Marion calmly added, “Moreover, the surrounding land was owned by the real estate tycoon, Mr. Stephen. For this conversion, he has started a new project to transform the area into high-end residential and commercial developments.”

“Are we talking about a major redevelopment here?” Randy blurted out.

“Furthermore, Debra plans to develop a large-scale commercial district on part of this land,” Marion chimed in.

“How did you know?” Debra asked, intrigued.

Marion remained silent, but Debra understood. With Marion’s intelligence, this was undoubtedly the best plan he could think of, and indeed, it was her optimal strategy.

Randy hesitated for a moment. “But building a new commercial street will be costly.”

“With the subsidy, plus Mr. Stephen’s upscale developments nearby, attracting investors will be a breeze. The financial issue is solved.” Debra had already planned this step.

Randy gave her a thumbs-up. “Impressive!”

“Thanks,” Debra smiled.

“But still, I don’t get it. The approval was just issued today, and none of us had any prior hints. How did you foresee that the city’s greening initiative would include this land?” Randy eyed Debra suspiciously.

It wasn’t something one could simply guess. Such decisions were usually kept confidential, and if they, the insiders, hadn’t heard about it, it meant the municipal decision-making was under tight wraps this time. Debra had never been involved in real estate development before, so predicting this was too far-fetched.

Marion’s gaze flicked to Debra. A sly smile played on her lips as she declared, “That’s a secret for now.”

Randy’s hopeful expression vanished. “Pfft!”

Marion’s gaze remained on Debra. She turned around and seemed to detect a smile in his eyes. Her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly averted her gaze, thinking she was imagining things. ‘Someone like Marion couldn’t possibly be interested in a married woman like me.’

Marion spoke up, “We still have time. I’ll ride you back.”

Glancing at the time, Debra didn’t rush to respond. “When did you find out about this new policy?”

“This morning,” Randy answered. “Why do you ask?”

“If you’ve seen it, others probably have too,” Debra replied.