Goodbye, My Love

If the Cooper family were genuinely altruistic, they wouldn’t have collected gifts at the gate, allowing only those bearing gifts to partake in the banquet.

It was one thing to fool the villagers, but quite another to fool herself.

At this moment, Judie was utterly absorbed in her self-aggrandizing speech, her fervor only growing.

“In order to guide our fellow villagers towards prosperity, the Cooper family has tirelessly coordinated with city-based construction teams, and they’ve agreed to assist us in building an agritainment resort! You see, these types of resorts are all the rage in the city! They believe we can build one here, and once it’s operational, the city’s tourists will flock to us! Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

The profits will be shared among us all!”

A N G E L A ‘s L I B R A R Y

Her concluding remark proved too enticing for the villagers to ignore.

Roused from their gastronomic bliss, someone led with an approving

“Okay,” and the crowd erupted in applause.

“The Cooper family is truly generous!”

“The Cooper family is indeed the wealthiest in the village! Not only do they prosper themselves, but they also uplift their fellow villagers.

Commendable indeed!”

At first, Loraine didn’t heed Judie’s speech, finding it amusing more than anything. However, as she listened more intently, she realized something was amiss, and her expression grew stern.

Building an agritainment resort?

Loraine recalled how she and Marco had to park their car in town and walk the rest of the way along a rugged, muddy path to get to the village. Even the most adventurous or wealthy city dwellers wouldn’t endure such inconvenience to visit a rural agritainment resort.

Unlike the villagers, who saw this as a money-making opportunity,

Loraine, having taken over the Universe Group and supervised numerous architectural projects, had a keen business acumen. She assessed the feasibility of opening an agritainment resort in the village with a calm, objective eye.

The conclusion was straightforward-it wouldn’t work.

Having grown up here, she was well aware of the region’s impoverished state and Lack of picturesque scenery. Moreover, beyond the county town were dirt roads, unsuitable for most vehicles. Taken together, it was clear that an agritainment resort would be doomed from the start.

Yet, Judie insisted on constructing one. Was this not foolhardy?

Furrowing her brow, Loraine doubted Judie’s claim of having the villagers’ welfare at heart. She realized Judie was trying to rile the villagers, blaming the orphanage for withholding the critical piece of land required for the resort.

As Loraine expected, Judie sighed.

“Despite my best efforts to negotiate, Mrs. Harvey remains unyielding. She is hindering our progress in building the agritainment resort.”

Several agitated villagers rose and began accusing Eloise, who had always been revered in the village.