Countless Thoughts

It was evening, and the mayor had just finished a social engagement. Slightly tipsy, he sat in his car, gazing at the colorful city. Unlike the ambitious and heroic figures described in novels, he didn't have many thoughts in mind.

He felt it was a problem, a huge problem.

The sky had completely darkened, much like the city's current predicament, shrouded in despair.

Many people believe that mayors are better than some State Councilor or city legislators, at least because they wield real power rather than having it generated through collective voting.

But only they themselves know that while being mayor is certainly enjoyable when things are going smoothly, it is difficult for a mayor to perform well under the current circumstances, even if he has great abilities.

Some things are beyond human control, like a constantly declining economy.

Every day, as he watched the rising unemployment rate, the homeless wandering the streets because they couldn't find work, and the ever-widening gap in employment, he felt a deep sense of powerlessness and utter exhaustion.

The car slowly came to a stop. The slight loss of strength at that moment made him feel slightly nauseous. He patted his cheeks and got out of the car.

He refused the driver's help and went home, plopped down on the sofa, and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

The maid brought him some chilled water, and he took a sip to shake off the slight drunkenness. He casually asked, "Ferral returned?"

Ferral and the other staff lived in the same neighborhood as the mayor, even in the house next door. They could come to serve the mayor at any time whenever he needed them.

The maid nodded. "I saw Mr. Ferral's car return around seven o'clock."

"Have him come over; I'll wait for him in the study."

The mayor drank the remaining half glass of ice water, and felt much more energetic. He supported himself as he stood up and walked wearily into his study.

He sat in the chair waiting for Ferral to arrive, lost in thought. He was in a daze, and when he came to, Ferral was already standing in front of him.

"When did you arrive?" He took out a handkerchief and wiped the corner of his eye. He wasn't sure if he had any eye boogers; he had to maintain his appearance.

After Mayor Ferral and others tidied themselves up, they looked up and replied, "We've been here for a while. We saw you were resting, so we didn't want to disturb you."

The mayor smiled, but the smile was forced, and then he sighed, "I met with Neo tonight, and his attitude was very ambiguous."

A rumor has been circulating in Sabine City recently that Neo, the president of Listoan, is actively contacting Conservative Party members. In some private settings, he has praised some of the Conservative Party's policies in recent years, believing that these policies have put the Bayer Federation ahead of other countries.

In this country, everything can be confused: gender, loyalty, love, hate, but not political stance.

Neo could tell others that he had fallen out with the mayor while simultaneously demonstrating his continued commitment to the Progressive Party, thus establishing the issue between him and the mayor.

However, his rhetoric is now undergoing some fundamental changes, and the mayor certainly needs to figure out whether he is trying to put pressure on himself or if he really has other ideas.

Unfortunately, he failed to find out that Neo was consistently avoiding the issue. This actually gave the mayor a preliminary judgment; he was still making a choice and hoped that both parties could offer him some incentives that would sway his decision.

Despicable businessmen, despicable capitalists!

Tens of thousands of people work directly or indirectly for Listoan, and if Listoan announces his departure from Sabine City and the state to move to Conservative Party territory, it will be the mayor's biggest defeat during his tenure in Sabine City!

Even more frightening is that if even just ten or twenty thousand new unemployed people were added under such circumstances, the entire Sabine City would instantly fall into hell.

In addition, with the rumors that Neo has deliberately spread recently, everyone will blame the mayor, believing that the mayor forced Neo out, causing everyone to lose their jobs and their lives.

The angry public was enough to end his political career, Neo was determined to force the mayor to back down. However, this President Neo overlooked another problem.

The downfall of Heng Hui was not something that Listoan could have accomplished alone. Many people worked together, including some economic entities of similar size to Listoan. Why would these people be willing to let the most lucrative part be swallowed up by the Listoan Group?

Even if the mayor agrees, mayors, councilors, and even governors from other regions will not agree to him doing so, which leads to a deadlock.

So is all of this really unchangeable? Not really. Neo must have known all this. His purpose in doing this was simply to get the mayor to fight for the greatest benefit for him and serve him wholeheartedly. But that was impossible. If an excellent politician completely degenerates into a capitalist's henchman, it only shows that the politician is not good enough, and his political career is pretty much over.

This is a difficult choice that has been giving the mayor a headache.

When he brought up the topic, he didn't expect Ferral to come up with a solution immediately. This wasn't something that had just happened today; he just mentioned it casually, like someone who had been holding back a brief urge to vent, and then he was fine.

The topic was put aside for a moment, and then he brought up another matter that had led to Ferral's visit. "How's the situation with Lin Qi today?"

Ferral's expression changed slightly. He nodded and described the scene, which impressed the mayor. As he did his calculations, he asked, "If all of this becomes a fixed pattern, how many people would Lin Qi need to hire to serve him?"

He added, fearing Ferral might misunderstand, "I mean if his business expands throughout the state!"

Ferral frowned and calculated for a while, then said uncertainly, "Today he hired about forty sales people, several accountants, and if you include the temporary workers who helped him set up the site, as well as the people in the warehouse, he will provide at least two to three hundred job opportunities in a city."

"All the cities in the entire state combined..." Ferral's face showed some surprise, "At least five thousand jobs!"

Talking about 5,000 jobs in a state with a population of several million might seem a bit underwhelming, but the mayor still valued these jobs because he knew Lin Qi's plan was not limited to just these few.

He started calculating, and according to Lin Qi, the club he was building could provide many jobs. Coupled with some of his other ideas, the mayor gradually became aware of the situation.

If Lin Qi's words come true, he could provide at least 10,000 jobs for the entire state and at least 4,000 jobs for the Sabine City.

If a few hundred job openings might only get the mayor's attention, then four thousand job opportunities, if arranged well, could take care of at least four thousand families, directly affecting the lives of about fifteen thousand people, and indirectly affecting the lives of about ten thousand people.

Just one Lin Qi can affect the lives of nearly 30,000 people, and that's when he was still relatively unknown. What if he were given a chance to rise to prominence? The mayor couldn't help but fall into deep thought. Currently, there is a consensus within the Progressive Party: put aside economic development for now and solve the people's livelihood problems first. If these problems are not solved, the Federal government's seemingly good finances will be in danger of collapsing in an instant.

If the decline cannot be reversed, there is a possibility of a local financial bankruptcy farce.

And it is precisely at times like these that capitalists become increasingly important. Politicians find it difficult to provide direct job opportunities for the people, but capitalists may be able to.

They don't need to fatten everyone up; as long as ordinary people can persevere, the system can function normally, and they can get through this period, things will eventually get better.

Having considered this, the mayor had already made his decision.

His meeting with Neo that evening made him realize that Neo was no longer reliable, nor was Listoan, and that even if he compromised, they were still unreliable.

Today, Neo forced him to bow down for the sake of the Listoan Group. Even if he does bow down, it will sow the seeds of irreconcilable enmity between them.

The mayor isn't acting now because he needs their help, but once he has the power to turn things around, he will definitely make Neo and the Listoan Group pay the price.

How could Neo not know about this situation?

No, he knew it all along, but he did it anyway, which meant that the compromise between the two sides would not last long, and would soon be triggered by another incident to confront each other again.

"Make arrangements for me. I'd like to meet with Lin Qi." After making his decision, the mayor directly shared his thoughts. Lin Qi might not be able to change the current situation, but he could offer some alternative ideas.

Just look at the businesses Lin Qi manages to show that he's a very ambitious young man. If he can offer some solutions to weather this difficult time, the mayor might not only stand his ground, but might even have the chance to slap Neo in the face.

As someone who was quite familiar with Lin Qi, Ferral was clearly a good intermediary. The mayor and Lin Qi not only knew each other but had also had a meal together. However, their "acquaintance" was only superficial. If they wanted to have a deeper conversation and discuss some more core issues, they needed a reliable intermediary as a bridge.

Suddenly he felt that arranging for Ferral to contact Lin Qi was a good choice, at least giving him another path and an opportunity.

His mood suddenly improved, he felt more relaxed, and he began to look forward to the meeting.