Numbers and Life Sponsored by: Three Thousand Galaxies 688 Plus an Additional 38

Johnny is a worker at the Listoan Chemical Plant. In an "accident" six years ago, he and some of his colleagues lost parts of their skin.

Yes, skin. Who knows how quickly the gases produced by those chemical materials after heating would corrode their skin? Their exposed skin was steamed and quickly became red, swollen, blistered, and then the epidermis peeled off.

The factory claimed that their mistakes in production caused such serious consequences, including failing to control the dosage precisely as required, not following standard procedures, not wearing proper work clothes, and not promptly handling the incident according to accident standards.

The company's explanation seemed very reasonable, with every point being logically sound. However, some of them, including Johnny, actually knew that it was a new batch of materials, and they hadn't made any mistakes at any step. They had strictly followed the factory's requirements for production.

However, the factory laboratory made some mistakes in the formula, which led to serious consequences.

As for why they agreed, it's because if they didn't, they wouldn't receive a single penny in compensation, and the company would sue them in court.

Because of their operational errors, the company lost a lot of money, its image, and its workers.

Later, the union's lawyer told them that they had a high chance of winning the lawsuit against the factory, and just when everyone was about to rejoice, the lawyer informed them again.

If they want to win this lawsuit, they may have to fight a long legal battle that lasts about two to three years, and pay exorbitant legal fees. In the end, the money they receive may not even be enough to cover the lawyers' fees.

Moreover, their problems were already quite serious at that time. One colleague had been breathing heavily due to tension or some other reason when the accident occurred, which caused severe damage to his trachea and lungs.

Ultimately, with the help of union lawyers, they had to sign the agreement, admitting that it was their fault that caused the accident, and that the company, based on humanitarian principles, provided them with some compensation.

That money could only cover the initial medical expenses. Less than three months later, he was kicked out of the hospital. Then his wife divorced him, and his children refused to associate with him, shouting "Go away, monster!" and avoiding every expectant hug he gave them.

He now lives in Welfare Home, where his job is to wait for death to come, and to be pushed out to show his miserable state and the hardships of the Welfare Home when some important person is coming.

Because of the loss of some skin, bacteria can easily multiply in his body.

In the early years, things were better; he had some money to get nursing care and apply ointments, and his immunity was relatively strong.

Now it's no use. Many of his exposed muscles have turned black and developed black circles, which are signs of a serious infection. The doctor told him that if he cannot raise approximately 200,000 yuan for medical expenses in the short term, he could die at any time from sepsis or Organ Failure.

This was one of the few times he could see the sun.

Lying on the hospital bed in the courtyard, Johnny looked at the sky and thought about the gray sky. He was grateful that the company had at least provided them with goggles, so that his eyes could still see blurry.

Before long, he heard the Director's angry rebuke, heard a lot of noise around him, and even heard people's exclamations!

What are they shouting? The mayor?

Has the mayor arrived? Johnny's eyes darted around, but he finally gave up. Even if the mayor came, it wouldn't do him any good anyway, so he might as well enjoy his life, which could end at any moment.

You know, normally no one would push him out of his room to enjoy nature.

Just one day later, on January 1st of the new year, the entire Sabine City was shocked by the report "Hell is empty, and all the devils are here!"

In fact, people have long known about the existence of these groups, but they have been self-suggesting in various ways that they cannot see them. When someone tears through their delusion, they are finally forced to face the bloody reality.

The mayor was the first to react. He specifically chose this morning, canceling all his other commitments, to come to the Welfare Home to see the victims of the accident.

Following them were some social celebrities, some people with ulterior motives, reporters, and some onlookers.

The mayor, with a somber expression, expressed his shock, anger, and disbelief at these events to the public and reporters.

The atmosphere at the scene was very heavy, but they didn't know that not far from them, a guy named Johnny was lamenting how boring these people were.

In fact, the mayor had known about these things for a long time, but the way he knew was completely different from how he knows now. In the past, no matter what these people became, they were probably just a small part of a number in some document.

It's only a small part, not all of them. No matter how much their lives are threatened or endangered, their names won't even appear on that document.

Anyone who sees the words "11 injured" would never imagine that these 11 people had more than just a cut on their finger or a white mark on their head.

No matter how vibrant a life may be, it cannot dispel the indifference of data unless people can see it with their own eyes.

When Johnny came to his senses, all he heard was the mayor's last words—"Investigate thoroughly!" After a semi-impromptu speech, he felt the time was right, and his attitude was evident to the people. To be honest, he hadn't thought of dealing with Neo this way before.

In essence, when this kind of thing is exposed, it's not just Neo and the Listoan Group who are shameful; the Labor Union, the City Hall, and even the entire indifferent society are also disgraced.

It was probably for this reason that he hadn't considered using this tactic, but Lin Qi had.

He called Lin Qi yesterday to inquire about the matter, and Lin Qi's answer surprised him.

At the time, Lin Qi said that instead of avoiding these issues, it would be better to acknowledge them. People would appreciate those who have courage, responsibility, and a willingness to change, while also hating the silent perpetrators even more.

Silence cannot conceal the crimes they have committed!

More importantly, this can set the Listoan Group up as a negative example, so that no matter what happens to them, people will only be happy and take it for granted.

And that's how today's events came about. Actually, Johnny didn't notice that 70% of the speech was the mayor's apology.

He apologized to the people who had suffered such torment and treatment over the years, to society, and pleaded for forgiveness in front of the public and the media, while reiterating his determination to bring certain individuals to justice.

His speech was a great success; whether they were social celebrities, media reporters, or just onlookers, they all applauded enthusiastically and looked forward to it.

However, everyone's expectations may be different.

Social elites are hoping that Listoan will follow in Heng Hui's footsteps and fall completely, which would be a rare opportunity for all sectors of society.

Regional pillar enterprises do not only benefit a region; in some respects, their harm to society outweighs their contributions.

Because of their dominance in regional finance and economy, they plunder local resources almost endlessly to grow themselves. All small and medium-sized enterprises that are "taken care of" by such enterprises are destined to work for others their whole lives. They have no chance to grow and thrive, because once they do, they will compete with local pillar enterprises and eventually fail and become a thing of the past.

Now, the stone weighing on businessmen and capitalists is about to be removed, and they have no reason not to be happy.

As for the others? The journalists were thrilled to have gotten a new big story, which meant a huge social impact, and they could reap more wealth and more personal influence.

Ordinary people, on the other hand, simply look forward to seeing certain wealthy, powerful, and privileged individuals suffer misfortune, nothing more.

Under Mark's active influence, people began a certain "routine" of making donations.

It seems that any misfortune can be turned into good fortune by initiating a donation drive. At this moment, Johnny became focused, wanting to find out how much money these people would donate and how much he could get to treat his body.

The mayor then slipped out of sight, walking to the edge of the crowd and standing with Lin Qi.

His assistant brought him a handkerchief to wipe his hands. The Little Assistant had noticed that the mayor had secretly wiped his palms twice earlier, probably because his palms were sweaty due to emotional reasons.

"How did you come up with the idea of joining this game?" the mayor asked curiously. It wasn't convenient to talk on the phone yesterday, and there were some things that couldn't be said over the phone, so now he could ask.

Lin Qi didn't joke or change the subject. At this moment, he had to clarify his own position and demands, and try not to conflict with the demands of others. This is also an important process of forming a united force.

"I've got my eye on those machines in the Listoan Group factory—sewing machines, cutting machines, steam irons, and some other small items..." Lin Qi turned to the mayor. "Do you think auctioning all of these things would be enough to compensate these people for the torment they've endured over the years?"

The mayor's eyelids twitched; he suddenly became wary. "What do you want to do?"

Lin Qi spread his hands nonchalantly, "I heard that President Neo of Listoan is a supporter of the president's re-election. Maybe we can take this opportunity to release a big news story!"

A knowing smile appeared on his face. "People need these!"