Chapter 1190 Attacking Allies
Desmond continued, “Mr. Quinnell Senior raised funds from
everywhere by leveraging his influence in the international business circle to gather a lot of money and supplies.
“Many overseas Canadians gave everything they could to the country. It was thanks to them that we had some of our medicines, firearms, and communication radios back then.
“The members of the Chamber of Commerce at that time had a very pure motive. They just didn’t want Cascadia to fall.
“That’s how the Southern Cascadia Chamber of Commerce came to be. It served as a contact point that was hidden and not easily suppressed. It had a vast logistics and distribution system.
“At that time, there was no such thing as express delivery. Instead, there were courier agencies. It was due to these courier agencies that critical supplies could help Cascadia reach their destinations.
“The Chamber was able to function thanks to the significant support from overseas Cascadians. Therefore, among the four main decision-
makers, two were overseas Cascadians, and two were Hawford
businessmen.
“Mr. Quinnell Senior had the deciding vote if there were
disagreements. Now, after so many years, the business world has
changed rapidly. The original Hawford businessmen’s descendants
have mostly gone overseas.
“Besides the overseas Cascadians, many foreign families are
involved. For instance, the Darnell family. Unlike the Clinton family, the Darnells have already become one of the four main decision- makers.
“Additionally, the Wray, Winston, and Hudson families each have
different stances. It’s very likely that the Hudsons will no longer be a decision–making member this time.
“The Hudson family’s business has stagnated for many years, with some companies declaring bankruptcy. They also hesitated when transitioning from state–owned to private enterprises.
“As it stands, the Darnell family is likely to cast their votes for the Clinton family. The Wray family is currently the most successful in the Chamber of Commerce, surpassing even the Whitmans in recent years.”
Wynter raised her eyes slightly upon hearing this. “Surpassing even the Whitmans? As far as I know, the Wray family wasn’t very prominent before. They rose to power with the Whitmans‘ help.
“During the year of the economic crisis, they would likely have gone bankrupt if it weren’t for the Whitmans‘ support.”
Desmond was surprised that Wynter knew about the economic crisis from years ago at her age.
“Indeed. The stock market was highly volatile at that time. The Wrays had gambled everything in the market, believing they could win it back.
“They ended up losing a lot of money to foreign investors and would have been finished without the Whitmans‘ help,” Desmond replied.
Wynter raised her eyebrows. “Did they surpass the Whitmans in just
ten years?”
Dalton also looked over upon hearing this.
Desmond knew he had to explain clearly or he would face serious consequences. Hence, he decided to speak openly.
The Wray family held absolute authority in the Southern Cascadia Chamber of Commerce. Therefore, it would be wise to not offend them if one wished to succeed in the Hawford market. This was
because they were backed by numerous other capital interests.
Nevertheless, Desmond worked for the Yarwood family, and the
Yarwood family was not under the Southern Cascadia Chamber
Commerce’s control.
“The Wray family’s methods weren’t exactly honorable,” Desmond remarked as he reminisced with a hint of regret.
He continued, “By right, after being saved by the Whitmans, the Wray should know how difficult it is for Cascadian Enterprises to survive especially those facing transformation.
“They should have helped when they could. But instead of helping, the Wrays pushed others down and became the driving force behind many failures.”
Wynter replied calmly, “I think they did more than push them into failure. They must have swallowed up quite a few companies to go from being a small enterprise to rivaling the Whitmans in such a short time.
“The Wrays‘ ultimate goal for being the driving forces for their failures was to acquire them at a low cost.”