America: My Time

Chapter 763 Human Greed

Chapter 753 The Greed of the Human Heart
Most of the Bayard family's businesses are in the hands of these people. They don't want to see Allen involved in the struggle for the next patriarch, and they want to get more benefits. Most importantly, they feel that John has already given a gift, so they don't have so many scruples and can ask for more benefits, at least without the conditions and restrictions of the gift.

"You've already said it yourself, these are shares that John gifted to the family. What right do you have to ask John to do this? You say John hasn't considered the family's interests, but do you know that John was the one who pushed for the congressman position? What have you done for the family? As a core member of the family, how could you not know how much weight a congressman carries?"

“But these cannot be confused. The family has also borne the pressure from the outside world for John and has gone to great lengths for him. Isn’t that what he should be doing?”

“Old Martin, I think James is right. Since John is a member of the family, he should consider the development of the family and make some sacrifices for the family. He can’t keep taking benefits from the family.”

Soon, most of the core members of the family sided with James, all wanting more benefits. Of course, they were also excluding John's family, or more accurately, excluding Allen from the competition for the next head of the family, because they feared they couldn't compete with Allen.

This is the greed of the human heart, the wickedness of human nature. For the sake of profit, this guy completely applies double standards to John. He himself has made no contribution to the family, yet he expects John to contribute more to the family. This is simply a joke, but this is exactly what most of the core members of the family think, because they all have greedy thoughts.

John's words proved prophetic: "Human greed is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant." These family members are far too greedy. They are not satisfied with the dividends from their shares; they want more, and even want to use the shares John gave them as bargaining chips to gain more benefits for themselves. They keep saying they are thinking of the family, but in reality, they are thinking of themselves.

"Grandpa, you've seen it all, haven't you? I've said it before, I'm not one of them. It's not that I'm unwilling to participate in family affairs, nor that I intentionally want to exclude them. It's just that they're too greedy. 'A snake trying to swallow an elephant' perfectly describes them. I don't believe I owe the family anything. You all know in your hearts how little help you offer. Besides, you're not truly on my side. The only one who truly supports me is you, Grandpa, and my only ally is Morgan. You're not even outsiders, yet you dare to dream of getting more benefits from me. Do you think that's possible?"

At this point, Allen was a little dumbfounded. He hadn't expected that his first family meeting would turn out so intense right from the start, and this situation also made him understand why his brother had distanced himself from the family!

“John, are our demands excessive for you? This is nothing compared to the assets you possess. Is it really necessary for you to haggle with us over such a small amount? Don’t you think you’re being too stingy?”

"Heh, how ridiculous. What does my money have to do with you? Just because I have money doesn't mean I have to do what you want and give you benefits. Don't you think you're being too optimistic? Don't bring up the family. You're not doing this for the family at all; you're only doing it for your own benefit. I can tell you clearly that I will not accept your demands. Since you're unwilling to accept my demands, then there's no need to mention the gift anymore. This matter ends here!"

When John finished speaking, everyone present changed their expressions drastically. The core members of the family who stood against John were shocked, as they had not expected John to say such a thing.

“John, what do you mean by this? Are you trying to play us, or the family? And don’t forget, your gift agreement has already been signed. You can’t go back on your word now!” “Old Master, you’ve seen it all. It’s not that I want to part ways with the family, but some people are too selfish, too calculating. They always want to get something out of me. They all claim the family has sacrificed so much for me, but you know the truth perfectly well, and they know it themselves. Do you think I need to help this group of people who are worse than outsiders? To be honest, I’d rather trust Morgan than them. At least Morgan wouldn’t cheat me, but they would. My relationship with Morgan is genuine cooperation; with them, it’s just one-sided giving, and I’m still being blamed. Today, I only came back because of you, but this is the result. I’m speechless. Tell them all the terms of the gift agreement yourself; I won’t say any more!”

Although he had been prepared, John still felt a slight sense of loss when he actually faced all of this. Were these family members still worth his help? In his previous battles against those old guys, the only people who were truly willing to stand by him were his uncle's family and his grandfather. The others were just going through the motions; he hadn't contacted anyone of any real use!
Seeing the reactions of his family and their attitude towards John, old Martin was completely disheartened. Such a family was not worth John's help anymore. Their greed was ingrained in their very bones, and their actions were a slap in the face to their patriarch. It seemed they had developed ideas they shouldn't have.

"Fine, I was too presumptuous in this matter. I always thought the family should be united, but I forgot the influence of greed! John stipulated in the gift agreement that he could withdraw the gifted shares at any time if he was dissatisfied with the family's attitude. This clause was written very clearly. You have disappointed me greatly. I showed you the agreement, but you didn't see it. All you were thinking about was how to get more benefits from John. I'm not involved in this matter now, and I'm already old. Let the next family election begin after the new year!"

Seeing the situation today, Old Martin's thoughts changed. He had always strived to maintain family unity and worked hard for the family's development, but this was the result. If it weren't for his persuasion, John wouldn't have made such a decision, much less given such a large gift to the family. But this gift hadn't brought about harmonious unity, but rather greater greed.

Old Martin wasn't unaware of the immense value of Dreamworld's shares, nor were these family members. They were simply too greedy, craving even more profit and wanting to extract more benefits from John. As John himself said, they were worse than outsiders. Even Morgan didn't have such thoughts, and not even Rockefeller and his ilk dared to entertain such ideas or try to take John's shares for free. Yet these guys possessed such greed.

The greed of human nature was on full display among the core members of the Bayard family, yet these guys didn't think they were wrong. The wrongdoers were John, old Martin, and John's family. If Allen hadn't wanted to get involved in the family's power struggle, things wouldn't have turned out this way.

"Chieftain, this is impossible! You must be lying to us. There couldn't be such a clause in the gift agreement!" At this moment, James was already somewhat panicked, and many others were also panicked. This was an outcome they had not expected!
“I have no reason to deceive you. The agreement is right here. Take a closer look for yourselves. However, it won’t make a difference if you do. The outcome will not change. I have dedicated my life to the clan. Now I’m tired and don’t want to deal with these matters anymore. I have fulfilled my responsibilities as clan leader. After Christmas, you can discuss and choose the next clan leader. He can take over from me in the New Year.”

He dedicated his life to the family, only to end up like this. This is the problem with established families. Why did this happen? The reason is simple: profit. Because of his position, Old Martin wasn't involved in managing the family business, so that aspect was handled by others. When those people were blinded by greed, this change naturally occurred. Of course, another reason was the Congressman position. This seat went to John's Uncle Albert. It wasn't that Old Martin had any ulterior motives, but rather that no one in the family was capable of shouldering this responsibility; their status wasn't sufficient. However, these people didn't see it that way; they believed it was Old Martin's personal gain.

When many problems come together, this kind of thing naturally happens. John had already noticed all of this, but unfortunately Old Martin didn't believe him, which is why we have all of this today.

When Old Martin made his decision, James and the other groups who controlled the family business were dumbfounded. They hadn't expected their actions to have such serious consequences, forcing Old Martin to relinquish control. They hadn't considered the severity of the consequences before, but now they suddenly realized how serious they were. Although the Bayard family had always been a long-established family, they were primarily involved in politics. The real core members of the family were Old Martin and Albert. If Old Martin were to relinquish control, the Bayard family's influence would be affected.

They wanted more benefits, but forgot that they had no real ability to offer. The consequences of such greed were predictable. Now, even if they wanted to stop them, it was impossible. As soon as Old Martin made his decision, they panicked. Without the protection of Old Martin's faction, the Bayard family would be in great danger!
(End of this chapter)