Chapter 572

Just then, a glass hit the table with a loud thud as the village chief’s voice sounded, “Mr. Wilson, you’re from Rithol City and you’re a big shot, but I bet you’re not the only important person who’s come here, right?”

The village chief’s small, cloudy eyes flashed with a flicker of cunning. He was certain that the two outsiders at Josephine’s place were definitely not just fruit merchants.

He thought, ‘I heard the demolition project was restarted, but hardly anyone had come to the village so far. I guess they just brought in the big shots directly. For all I know, those two outsiders at Josephine’s place might be from Rithol City too!’

“If you’re not willing to cooperate, I’m sure plenty of others would love to get involved,” the village chief taunted with a sly smile.

As the chief smirked, Santiago quickly tried to smooth things over, “Mr. Wilson, please don’t take it the wrong way. Honestly, who wouldn’t want to grab the demolition money and get out of this dump? It’s just that we’re all sitting on a gold mine, am I right?”

Bryan let out a low chuckle, “What I mean is, let me take over the gold mine. I’ll pay you a lump sum for it.”

The village chief’s expression darkened, and he questioned, “Mr. Wilson, wouldn’t that be a huge loss for me?”

“What will you lose out on? Do you even have the guts to open up that gold mine yourself?” Bryan shot back, and his words struck a chord with everyone present.

The village chief had discovered the gold mine not long after the government announced the redevelopment project. The mine was hidden in the back mountain, on land owned by David. The village chief had secretly struck a deal with David, and they had agreed that he would stir up the orchard farmers to resist the demolition, while David would help him sway the rest of the villagers.

He promised David a 20% cut once the gold mine started operating, and David agreed. That was the real reason they’d been dragging their feet on the demolition.

But the problem was that the authorities were monitoring everything closely, and no one dared to take such a huge risk. The village chief couldn’t mine the gold on his own, and he couldn’t find any parties who had the guts or the skills to pull it off. As such, the whole situation had been left hanging for years.

Bryan wasn’t in a hurry, and he laid out his plan, “Look, it’s not like you can mine the gold yourself anyway. Why not just take a lump sum and keep quiet about it? I can use the redevelopment project in Ridgehaven Town as cover to mine the gold. By the time the project’s finished, the mine will be tapped out too. Isn’t that just perfect?”

The village chief’s expression kept changing, but none of them looked good.

‘Bryan does have a point,’ the village chief thought. ‘It’s not like I can do anything with the gold mine besides sitting on it. Getting a lump sum isn’t a bad deal either. But… how could I possibly be willing to let it go so easily?’

His jaw tightened as he replied, “Mr. Wilson, let’s not kid ourselves. In the end, you still need my input on this to get the redevelopment project, don’t you? If I don’t give the green light, I guarantee you that Wilson Group won’t get the project.”

The village chief really was a sly old fox, and he immediately came up with a new plan.

‘Fine,’ he thought. ‘If I can’t get a good deal, then no one else will either. Worst case, I’ll still walk away with the demolition payout.’

Santiago poured Bryan a glass of wine and offered a toast, “Mr. Wilson, harmony brings wealth. Let’s do business amicably and we will both profit. How about we each take a step back? Here’s my suggestion: we both make a compromise. You give us 20% of the gold mine’s profits. The land where the mine sits actually belongs to one of our village’s biggest fruit farmers, so he deserves a share too. My dad already promised him 20% as well.”

“And as for the county chief…”

The county chief knew better than anyone that with Bryan here, he himself didn’t matter at all.

“No, no, I don’t need anything,” the county chief quickly waved his hands in response. “I’m just the go-between here, nothing more.”

Santiago kept his smile plastered on as he added, “Not at all, sir. We couldn’t have managed any of this without you. If it weren’t for your help, people like us wouldn’t have been able to keep things under control. The County Chief should get a 10% cut too, don’t you think, Mr. Wilson?”