The price of betrayal (Jack and Ashley) novel Chapter 481

Nolan chuckled softly. "Do you have any idea how much these people have embezzled? The numbers I just read out loud? When you add them up, it's already an astronomical sum. If all that money were distributed among you, I believe each one of your lives would change in ways you can't even imagine.

"Oh, you might say that these are the fruits of Mr. Gallant and Mr. Stutton's labor and that it has nothing to do with me. But is that really the case?"

Nolan let out a soft sigh, "Today, many of Village Enterprise's partners are here. I may not know them personally, but they certainly know the bosses who came to find me.

"You can ask them yourselves—without the orders of these bosses, do you really think they'd come all the way to a small village just to discuss business?"

As soon as Nolan finished speaking, several bosses immediately stood up, confirming that it was their orders that had brought these partners to the village to discuss business. Many of Village Enterprise's partners also stepped forward, corroborating the claim.

Based on this alone was enough to make Stefan, Ben, and the others turn pale. They had always believed that it was their own skillful management that had made the company thrive. It had led to its ever-growing success and profits.

But now, they were being told that all of this—their entire success—was actually Nolan's doing? The villagers were all stunned.

However, there was one person on the stage who trembled slightly—Megan. In that instant, it seemed as though something had clicked in her mind, and her gaze toward Nolan grew increasingly complicated.

"It's one thing if you support Mr. Stutton and Mr. Gallant for what they've done. I can understand that. However, there are certain things that need to be made clear."

He paused briefly before continuing in an even colder tone, "Since I'm no longer connected to this village, I have no reason to care about your fate.

He then turned to Archie. "Mr. Baxter, why don't you tell everyone what you originally planned to do?"

Archie bowed slightly before addressing the crowd below in a cold voice, "Rio Village is Mr. Nolan's hometown, so naturally, I intended to do something for the people here. Originally, I planned to donate 50 million dollars to support the village's development.

"Of course, that would also include improving the living conditions and things like that. And this was just my personal stance. All the bosses here today have their own plans—some wanted to donate money, others wanted to set up businesses, build roads, construct houses, or even establish schools.

"In short, we, as a group, had intended to make a significant investment in this small village. And we planned on doing so without taking the profits. To put it bluntly, there was the possibility of a billion-dollar investment, which would have ensured that everyone here would be financially secure for the rest of their lives. But now… Well, naturally, that's no longer possible."

With that, Archie fell silent.