Factions, Three Sentences, and the Consequences

For businessmen, money is their most important asset.

For politicians, their political platforms and political ideologies are their most valuable assets.

No one can take away another person's private wealth without paying a price, not even the president.

Lin Qi was somewhat surprised to learn that he had been invited to the party's inauguration celebrations because the president had quoted a short passage from his own words, but he also saw it as a great opportunity.

He could have some contact with the top leaders of the Progressive Party, but what he valued more was that it was also a kind of qualification, and a very important one at that.

For ordinary people—ordinary people at the bottom of society—due to certain emotions, they are not willing to give businessmen too much trust.

This sentiment stems from the arduous struggle between the working people and capitalists over many years, and also from the propaganda of the ruling class. In the eyes of most people in society, capitalists are synonymous with cunning and greed; these people are willing to sell the rope that hanged them to the Executioners for profit.

Therefore, it is not easy for capitalists to gain the trust of ordinary people, and non-essential goods are not easily accepted by people, but they have their own methods.

They can find non-capitalist groups to represent them and reach out to the public. Spokespersons are not a trick unique to politics; they are also very common in capitalist environments.

From the moment a product endorsed by a person with a good reputation who frequently played a heroic role in various operas and movies became a bestseller and received high praise in the market, people immediately learned how to manipulate the will of the masses.

Movie stars, sports stars, social celebrities... anyone who is admired by the public will be subject to numerous invitations and tests.

They gained wealth by selling their influence, and the merchants' goods gained market trust. This method effectively solved some problems and guaranteed sales.

But if you were to pick out the most authoritative and influential person in the entire Federal, then without a doubt, that person would be the President.

However, the president never endorses any products. You should know that they are almost all backed by conglomerates. They are not short of money and would not become spokespeople for money.

However, this kind of thing is not a problem for businessmen. They have many ways to obtain the help of such authority and influence through various means, such as... shaking hands.

This may seem like a ridiculous thing, but in fact, in the early years of the Bayer Federation, at least two presidents sold "Photo Opportunity Rights".

Of course, this is just a more common way of saying it. The correct way to say it is that the businessmen received the president by donating to certain Charitable Foundation, and shook hands with the president and took photos with him at the presidential Presidential Palace.

These businessmen and their descendants are now the behind-the-scenes controllers of the major conglomerates in the Federal States. The president and his team got what they needed, and the capitalists got what they wanted.

If Lin Qi simply enlarged the photo of him shaking hands with the president and placed it in his office, people would believe that he was a morally upright and responsible businessman who bore even greater responsibilities and obligations.

His business will get even better!

This is only the value of his meeting and shaking hands with the president for ordinary people. For the Progressive Party, Lin Qi's invitation can be seen as him standing on the president's side.

This brings up another issue: party factions. In fact, whether it's the Progressive Party, the Conservative Party, or the Socialist Party, which is often forgotten, there isn't just one voice within these parties.

Because of the differences in everyone's political platform and political ideology, there will be many different factions under a common overarching goal.

For example, there are two main factions within the Progressive Party: the radical Internationalist Faction and the relatively conservative Internationalist Faction. They both share the same overarching goal: to enhance the Federal's value and role in the International Community, but they will choose different methods.

The current president leans slightly towards conservative internationalism and is a relatively Moderate Faction. Although they are Radical Faction within the Conservative Party, they are not as extreme, but they are still Radical Faction.

Factional stances are not as unshakable as party stances. As time and circumstances change, factional methods and approaches will also change. Therefore, factional issues should not be taken too seriously.

But there are always advantages to choosing the mainstream faction. Many open policies that had high barriers to entry were opened to Lin Qi because he was invited by the President and shook hands with him.

Some people might even approach him and bring him into small circles, uniting him around certain individuals, who in turn unite around the president, thus forming factions.

For at least the next six years, the mainstream factions will not change much, and as the Bayer Federation begins to try to develop international relations, Your Excellency will inevitably win the next election.

For six years, Lin Qi didn't need to worry about any regrets caused by taking the wrong side; he could fully utilize his abilities within the scope permitted by the president's political platform.

As for the future, things may change. At that time, the relatively conservative president may become more determined to reform and become more radical. Or maybe not, but who cares!

If things don't work out, why not switch to another faction? After all, everyone just has different methods to achieve their goals. Isn't it normal to switch factions without changing one's party affiliation?

So this is a good thing, a very good thing.

"Do I need to prepare a speech?" Lin Qi asked, seemingly jokingly.

This immediately brightened the mayor's mood. He laughed and asked, "Why do you think that?" He then explained his laughter, "You probably need to prepare three sentences, which are..."

"It is an honor to receive your invitation, Mr. President!"

"Me too, Mr. President!"

"Please do as you wish, Mr. President!"

After saying that, the mayor couldn't help but laugh again. These were probably the three sentences an ordinary person would say when they were received by the president, and also the only three sentences they could use. The president and those more distinguished guests would not give Lin Qi much time to say things that people might not be interested in, even if it was only two or three minutes.

Lin Qi wasn't embarrassed or annoyed by the mayor's "mockery." He just pursed his lips and said, "I was just thinking about whether to spend five or seven minutes speaking. You've completely disappointed me. But that's good news, at least I don't have to tear my hair out preparing all this."

Actually, it was just a casual joke, and it really was just a joke. With Lin Qi's abilities, it would be too easy for him to say something that people want to hear in the right situation.

After laughing for a while, the mayor gradually stopped laughing. "Your accountant might be in some trouble. If you have anything to deal with, take care of it as soon as possible."

"Vera?" Lin Qi frowned slightly. "What happened to her?"

The mayor casually stirred his coffee with the stirrer, a meaningless gesture. "Gepu has turned himself in. He confessed to the police that he entrusted some important evidence directly related to the Listoan Group corruption case to his wife, who is also your secretary."

"The State Prosecutor in charge of this case believes that the woman...", he paused, as if recalling the name Lin Qi had just mentioned, "Vera. He believes that Vera, knowing these things clearly, did not proactively report them to the prosecution or submit this evidence, attempting to conceal important evidence, and is therefore also a suspect in this case."

The mayor spoke casually, showing no concern for whether certain people were innocent, because he knew very well that innocence did not depend on what these people did or what the law said, but rather on the decisions made by those in power.

People believe that Neo and the Listoan Group's current predicament is the work of Sabine City Mayor Landon, but in reality, those at the heart of the matter know that there is another person behind Mayor Landon: the governor.

Neo's dissatisfaction stemmed from their inability to get what they wanted from Heng Hui. Frankly, this kind of case and its outcome, which involves the entire state, is not something Mayor Landon can decide; it can only be decided by the state.

Neo's disrespect for the mayor was tantamount to slapping the governor in the face, though few people knew the inside story, including the governor of the neighboring conservative territory. He was only getting involved to watch the spectacle, but this also prompted the governor to decide to completely crush Listoan.

If Neo hadn't done that, perhaps he and his Group Company could have survived for another two years, and maybe even had a chance to turn things around once everyone had become more familiar with international affairs.

But he was too eager, so much so that many things became difficult to recover.

The governor privately instructed Prosecutor to be ruthless as a warning to certain individuals that this was the governor's territory and they had to respect his decisions; they could question, but not challenge.

Heng Hui, being a foreign-invested enterprise, may not attract enough attention from some people, so let Listoan set a bad example! Everyone involved in this case will be prosecuted, including Vera, who is suspected of "concealing evidence" and will also be prosecuted on several charges.

Women are actually very unfortunate in cases of this magnitude because there is interference from higher Upper Class, and people's methods may be excessive. Many men cannot withstand it, let alone women.

They will tell whatever it is, just to get a quick conviction and sentencing.

So the mayor's point is that if Lin Qi has any shady dealings, they should be dealt with accordingly, and he shouldn't be implicated.

Although he won't be greatly implicated, being investigated is ultimately not a pleasant thing!