The Guardian's Return (Ethan Rivers) novel Chapter 189

Chapter 189

Chapter 190 

Simon went silent. He realized they were threatening him. 

He originally planned to shut down the factories for as long as possible, at least six months. His goal was to get Oliver and the other businessmen to beg him for mercy. 

Yet now, Oliver was using the people against him. Simon knew he could not shut down the factories for too long. 

“I will give you an answer soon. While the investigation is going on, just wait patiently,” he explained. 

“Don’t worry. We have the patience,” Oliver said with a grin. 

He and his friends had been waiting for three years, and dealing with Ethan back then had – honed their patience. 

Then, a few men came in through the door. 

One of them announced, “We are from the water company. Is the water of Aqua City still safe? The quality has dropped below drinking standards. If you cannot provide a solution, we will leave Aqua City for another place.” 

Simon felt a headache coming. 

The environmental destruction of Aqua City was huge, and it affected many things on different levels. Not only were the aquaculture and tourism were crippled, but even the water supply was being affected. 

“Give me some time. We’re dealing with it,” Simon answered. 

“That’s what you said last time, and the water quality only got worse. Can you guys do anything about it? Just give us the word and stop wasting everyone’s time!” 

The man’s company was in the water business, so water quality was a crucial factor in their operation. They had raised concerns as soon as the water contamination started and had even spoken to Stephen about it before, but he had brushed them off. 

He had wanted to wait until more companies were affected to deal with the problem properly. However, the damage was done, and the water companies were there to deliver the ultimatum. 

Stephen hung his head, ashamed to look at his father or the businessmen. He failed to get new companies into the city, and the water quality was ruined. In the end, he had lost everything from the delay. 

Simon spoke again, “Just give us a little more time.‘ 

31 

The man and his company saw through his words. They knew he was trying to stall. 

1/2 

+25 BONUS 

Chapter 190 

“We’ve got hundreds of employees to look after. One day of closure can cost us a few million! We don’t have time to waste!” 

Frustrated, they stormed out, determined to move their operations out of Aqua City. 

Seeing the situation, Stephen got anxious. 

He quickly went up to stop them, saying, “This isn’t what we wanted either. Please give us some more time! We will give you a satisfactory explanation!” 

The local companies were seeking a way out before Stephen could get new ones in. If that happened, it would be devastating to the city’s economy if it happened. 

A few of them paused in their steps. 

“If you were Ethan Rivers, maybe we’d stick around and wait, but you’re not. You are the reason the water is polluted. Why should we trust you? Your words alone aren’t enough to feed us!” 

Without looking back, they all walked away, leaving Stephen frozen in place. 

Upon learning that, the companies decided to abandon Aqua City because he was not Ethan, his body shook. Even if he was not as good as Ethan, he believed he was not that incompetent. 

Due to Ethan, he had missed the golden opportunity to save Aqua City, and they had the nerve to say he was not as good as Ethan. He was furious. 

Simon said, “Let them go. The city needs them the most right now, but they’ve chosen to leave. They will regret it in the future.” 

An hour later, the inspection results from the factories came in, and the results showed no issues. Simon looked at the report, his brows furrowing. Something did not seem right. 

Why were there no problems? Were Oliver and the others not planning to run away after ruining the city, just like Shawn, Brandon, and the others? 

Oliver glanced at Simon’s face and instantly knew what the man was thinking. 

“You think we’re planning to run? We can assure you that we’re not running. It took us three years to get in here. Why would we run now? From the start, we never intended to 

run. 

Between environment and industrial development, Ethan chose environment and focused on developing local tourism, aquaculture, and logistics. 

He denied Oliver and the others set up factories in Aqua City, not because he was short- sighted but because he knew their arrival would destroy the city’s environment. 

Stephen, on the other hand, allowed Oliver and others to set up factories the moment he arrived, destroying aquaculture and tourism. The construction of the stadium on water also affected the logistics industry. 

One wrong step set off a chain reaction of cascading mistakes. 

With a pale face, Stephen asked nervously, “What should we do now?” 

North Hill City and Seaside City were already in ruins. If Aqua City followed their footsteps, he would not be able to shift the blame again. 

If his right to govern Riveria was taken away, he would not be able to find Snow for the rest 

of his life. 

“Calm down. Get yourself together and think of a way. Your priority now is to stabilize the situation in Aqua City.” 

Simon had years of experience, so he transferred security forces from neighboring cities to help stabilize the volatile situation at Aqua City’s borders. 

He also got his men to keep an eye on Oliver and the others, preventing them from causing more trouble to the city and the environment. 

“Before we take any further action, we have to go to Aqua City and assess the situation.” 

Together, Simon and Stephen went to Aqua City 

Upon learning that local farmstays and hotels had been overcharging customers, Simon ordered immediate fines. He also issued an order to stop such behavior. Then, the money they got from the fine was used to hire professionals to clean the trash in the river. 

Simon looked grimly at the murky river. “The river is heavily polluted. It might take at least a year to recover.” 

Stephen regretted everything. 

Aqua City’s once–clear rivers and lush hills were gone, and it would take an entire year to restore the environment. During that time, both the fishing and tourism industries would suffer greatly. 

“If I had known, I would have moved the stadium to the water in the first place. I also shouldn’t have let that many factories set up base here. 

#25 BONUS 

Chapter 189 

Simon’s voice grew stern. “A year is just the time it’ll take for the environment to heal. Restoring the fishing industry will be even harder.” 

Due to the excessive release of non–native species into the waters, the rivers had too many invasive species. 

Like the catfish, which was an invasive species, it had no natural predators locally and had outstanding survivability. It would also eat up other fishes‘ eggs, curbing the reproductive speed of other species. Unless they completely eradicated them, the fishing industry would