The Guardian's Return (Ethan Rivers) novel Chapter 188

Chapter 188 

Simon’s heart pounded when he heard the phone. 

He asked seriously, “What happened?” 

George told him what went down in Aqua City. 

The number of agritourism farms and hotels had grown out of control. They charged exorbitant prices to maximize profits, taking advantage of tourists and scamming them. 

The factories had been dumping waste into the water, and in retaliation, frustrated tourists started littering everywhere. 

People were releasing wild aquatic species into the waters, disrupting the local ecosystem and balance, and invasive foreign species overran the local habitat, devastating native populations. Without natural predators to control them, many local species faced the threat of extinction. 

Fish, once a hallmark of the region, were dwindling in number, and their quality had dropped so much that even local markets did not want them anymore. 

The worst thing would be the influence of illegal criminals sneaking across the borders, bringing in illegal goods, trafficking, scamming people, and even kidnapping. It had gotten so bad that the city’s safety was at serious risk 

Simon’s expression darkened when he found out what really happened. 

“Where’s Stephen?” 

George said helplessly, “He’s still the same.” 

Simon slammed the table and got up, announcing, “I’ll go there right now!” 

Aqua City was facing its biggest crisis. The sports games had been put on hold and might be canceled, ultimately moving to another city next time. He could not afford to let Aqua City spiral out of control. Thus, he was determined to handle things personally. 

At 10 p.m., Simon arrived at Riveria. George and the other government officials welcomed him at the airport. 

“Take me to Stephen,” Simon said coldly. 

He was disappointed in Stephen. How could Stephen, a Quinn, be defeated by a woman? It was embarrassing, and a disgrace to the family name. 

When he arrived at George’s place and saw Stephen lying down on the bed, half–dead, his blood boiled. 

“Get up! Look at yourself!” he barked. 

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Chapter 188 

Stephen did not budge at all. 

The room remained quiet for half a minute before suddenly, the sharp sound of a slap echoed through the room. 

Simon had slapped Stephen in the face, and the intense pain forced Stephen to regain his 

senses. 

“Do you know Aqua City is in a mess? All this over a woman? You’ve embarrassed us all! 

“How long are you going to stay in bed? Get up and do your job! When you’ve gotten Riveria back on track and people start to see your success, you can find that woman, and no one would say anything!” 

Stephen was shaken. Simon’s slap and those harsh words finally woke him, both physically and mentally. 

His father was right. If he could govern Riveria properly, no one would say anything. Once he showed results, people would come to his aid at his command. 

“What’s the situation in Aqua City now?” Stephen asked nervously. 

“You’re asking now?” 

Mentioning Aqua City made Simon angrier. Nevertheless, he laid out the state of things in Aqua City, and as Stephen learned about what happened, his face turned pale. 

“How did it end up like this? I had only been gone for two days, and the city was fine then.”