Chapter 26
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The bank employee nodded and slowly opened the envelope with his white–gloved hands. There were no money or gold bars inside, just a letter. The handwriting was not particularly beautiful, but it was neat and looked written with care.
The employee subconsciously read it aloud, “Dear Mr. Rivers, hello. I’m thirteen years. this year. Our teacher told us that you built our school, provided us with delicious meals, and even prepared clothes for everyone…”
old
The smile on Stephen’s face faded, and the officials around also looked shocked..
“A thank–you letter?”
Stephen snapped out of his daze and rushed forward, grabbing the letter to examine it
carefully, It really was a thank–you letter!
“Impossible!”
He hurriedly tore open other envelopes.
“Thank you, Mr. Rivers. Our family has finally moved on from the earthquake. My sister has started smiling again and often mentions you…”
“Respected Mr. Rivers…”
“Thank you…”
Each envelope contained a letter, and every letter was a note of gratitude!
Those letters came from all over, from different people. Each one had different handwriting, -some messy, some beautifully written. The only common thread was their gratitude and.
vation for Ethan Rivers! Every word was heartfelt and sincere!
The officials also started opening the other suitcases, revealing even more letters inside. They took them out and started reading them.
“This is from a poverty–stricken mountain area. They thanked Ethan for building schools and roads and providing new clothes.”
“This is from a flood–affected region. They thanked Ethan for his timely aid. Gosh, even. the mayor wrote a letter!”
“Mine is also from a poor mountain area!”
“And mine is from an earthquake–affected zone.”
П
“Look at this one. It’s from the desert region. They thanked Ethan for helping them fund desertification management.”
“This is from an ethnic minority, thanking Ethan for helping preserve and pass on their
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nearly lost traditional skills.”
“Dum, this is from an international aid organization!”
All the officials in the room exclaimed in surprise. Every letter in every suitcase told a story, and Ethan Rivers was the protagonist of each story who had been quietly helping the entire world!
Stephen’s face tunned pale as he staggered backward, tripping over a suitcase. He fell clumsily to the ground, with letters scattering everywhere and landing on top of him.
Dazed, he saw a drawing in front of him that had fallen out of an envelope. It was a simple drawing of three stick figures. The middle one was larger, holding hands with two children
Con either side.
Above the middle figure read: Ethan Rivers, our hope.
wing could not make a sound, but at that moment, those words thundered in Stephen’s ears. Terrified, he threw the drawing away as if he had seen a ghost.
There was no money to be found in the villa, but what it contained was even more valuable. The bank employees and many officials already had tears in their eyes.
It might not have moved them so deeply if it had been just one letter, but there was more than just one. In fact, there were too many to count–so many that they filled suitcases, and the suitcases filled over a dozen properties!
Even a single suitcase of thank–you letters would be a monumental achievement for
yone else, but Ethan had enough to fill over a dozen propertie
Chapter 27
