The Accident and Tomorrow

"Mr. Lin Qi!"

Lin Qi stood on the steps, looking at the two young men he knew very well, and couldn't help but laugh at their current appearance.

"Looks like you're doing well, Noel, Fern," he said, stepping down the steps and embracing the two boys as they looked on in surprise.

This is a courtesy that Lin Qi rarely displays. He always shakes hands with people and rarely hugs them. Firstly, hugging is a way of expressing closeness, and secondly, this courtesy is not suitable for everyone.

But the Green Brothers are different. Strictly speaking, they are Lin Qi's "sons" because when the adoption procedures were processed, they had to follow the existing Federal adoption process, which means adopting a child or an elderly person, rather than having a younger brother or something.

Federal Judicial Process can be rigid at times. In fact, Lin Qi could have been allowed to become a helper for these Orphanage children from the beginning, or simply adopted some younger brothers. It was his business to take on these social responsibilities, and the Social Services Bureau should not have prevented him.

But the Social Services Bureau told him that if he wanted to get these people out of the Orphanage, he would have to adopt them. According to the Federal laws and interpretations currently in use, adoption is only divided into two categories.

First, adopt a child.

Some couples are unable to have children due to physiological reasons, but they still want children, and adoption is their best option.

Of course, some people have also seen an opportunity in this, and they adopt a child every few years to defraud the government of special subsidies. Some people have even turned this business into an industry chain.

However, regardless of the circumstances, the first type of adoption is when an older person adopts the person and makes them their adopted son or younger generation.

The second scenario is taking in elderly people.

This does happen. Some people genuinely want to take on some social responsibility or make up for some emotional deficiency. The Federal is never short of all sorts of strange and eccentric people.

The fact that the Social Services Bureau has such a regulation means that someone has taken this matter to court before, which prompted the legislation.

Not all adoptions of the elderly are acts of kindness. Some, like professional child adopters, adopt elderly people who are dying or have serious illnesses, and then wait for these elderly people to die suddenly in the next few months. Afterward, they can receive a funeral allowance and some additional subsidies or even insurance from the government.

With very little money, they can burn the bodies of these elderly people through certain channels and then simply dump them somewhere without even preparing a grave.

Taking care of elderly people is like gambling, but with a high probability of winning.

Welfare Home are not all about welfare, nor are they all about the bright side. Anything that is profitable can attract people's attention, even if doing these things will leave people with blood on their hands.

Leaving aside these social issues, there are people who adopt children and others who adopt their elders, but there has never been a case of adopting someone of the same age. Therefore, the Social Services Bureau only gave Lin Qi two options.

Either he becomes the father of these children, or these children become his father; as for age, that's another matter.

Based on the principle that "if I don't become a father, who will?", Lin Qi became the "adoptive father" of these children in a legal sense, which naturally made his relationship with these teenagers closer.

Noel, the older brother, was wearing a very fine suit with a red vest with beige checks, a blue tie with starlight, a long trench coat, and a black fedora with a red ribbon around the top. He looked very smart and capable, like an old-fashioned man.

Fern is the younger brother. He is slightly shorter and dresses almost identically to Noel, except for the colors. Noel's clothes are based on dark and red tones, while Fern's are dark and blue. It is worth mentioning that his tie is red with a star pattern, which is the opposite of Noel's.

Two people standing together look seven parts alike, and with the help of these clothes, they look at least nine parts alike.

Besides these, the most crucial thing is their spirit and energy. They no longer seem like the people who hadn't fully adapted to their current lives before Lin Qi left; they seem to have adapted already.

Lin Qi patted their arms. "How's the situation in the city lately?"

Noel nodded and said, "Fortunately, nothing serious has happened. We have people watching over it every day."

Lin Qi was very satisfied with the two people's responsible attitude towards their work. When Lin Qi was away, he couldn't take care of things here, so he had to rely on the people here to take care of things for him.

Richard, that guy Lin Qi was planning to send him to Gefra. Since he liked money so much and wanted to go it alone, Lin Qi gave him a chance to create his own brilliant life in Gefra.

Vera is mainly in charge of all the cash flow, and as a woman, she also has to take care of her children and her personality is not strong enough to help Lin Qi deal with these difficult people. Only the Green Brothers are the most suitable.

"I heard you guys often get into fights?" Lin Qi suddenly asked.

The two brothers exchanged a glance, and Noel finally decided to tell the truth. He knew very well that there was nothing in this city that could be hidden from Lin Qi.

"Yes, Mr. Lin Qi, some people are taking our raw materials and machinery and reselling them. If we don't do something, people will soon follow suit, and your business will run into problems."

Lin Qi nodded. "I won't blame you for doing a good job, but there's something wrong with your technique. Come on, let's talk as we walk, it's a bit cold here."

Fern helped Lin Qi carry his briefcase, glanced at the Sergeant not far away, and caught up with Lin Qi and Noel in a few steps.

"In the Federal, intentional injury is a felony. Regardless of whether you cause terrible consequences, the jury will not be on your side, so you can't just go directly to them."

"But physical collisions are different. For example, if you 'accidentally' bump into those people while running..." Lin Qi reached out and pressed on Noel's waist, causing Noel to bend over and not catch his breath for a long time.

This move was something Lin Qi learned in a small room. A truly ruthless person wouldn't use their fists to clash with someone's hardest bone, but they would also control their lethality.

"See, I didn't even use much force. Remember this spot. When you're running fast and hit someone in this area with your shoulder, they're very likely to have a ruptured spleen, and you..."

Lin Qi shrugged. "It was just an accidental collision while chasing someone on the street. As for the other charges, I'll arrange for a lawyer to handle them for you or your men. But you must remember, we are businessmen, we don't do illegal things!"

After catching his breath, Noel finally managed to straighten up, clutching his back. Even so, he couldn't stand up straight. The sharp pain from a moment ago quickly turned into waves of spasmodic pain, making even breathing painful.

It's a bit better now, but I still feel pain if I straighten my body.

He nodded, sweating profusely. "Yes, I understand, Mr. Lin Qi."

Lin Qi patted him on the shoulder. "Scientists tell us that pain is extremely effective at helping us turn events into memories. I hope you can remember these."

As they spoke, they reached the roadside, still some distance from Ferral. Lin Qi stopped, took the suitcase from Fern's hand, and looked at the two brothers. "I'll say it again, we are businessmen. We don't do illegal things, but many unexpected things happen in this world every day."

"Street chases resulting in injuries, cars going out of control, objects falling from heights—accidents happen every day. I have enough financial resources to prove to society that accidents are ultimately just accidents, but I can't turn black into white and right into wrong, or make people indifferent to criminal behavior. Do you understand what I mean?" He tilted his head slightly, looking at the two teenagers.

The two nodded in agreement. "Yes, Mr. Lin Qi, we understand."

"Very good, I will have Vera allocate some of the company's shares to you. It's about time you had your own business!" He paused, giving the two brothers some time to process what he had to say. "Mr. Ferral and I have some private matters to discuss. I am very grateful that you came to pick me up. It made me feel at home. We can discuss other things when we meet tomorrow or the day after."

He spread his arms and hugged the two boys again before saying goodbye and getting into his car by the roadside.

As soon as he settled into his seat and closed the car door, shutting out the temperature difference between inside and outside, Lin Qi immediately felt much warmer.

The car was already running, Ferral was driving himself, and he looked very focused, just like a real driver.

But he was not a real driver after all, and he was about to become the mayor of the city.

"How's the election going?" he asked casually, taking off his hat and gloves, which made him look a bit bulky.

"The problem isn't too big. Thanks to your help, the situation we're facing is much better than before. The governor is very happy; they feel there's a great chance."

A significant portion of the businessmen Lin Qi hosted in the Mengwu Province were from Sabine City. As these businessmen resumed production there, banks softened their stance towards them. Furthermore, with Lin Qi's help, Gold Exchange was willing to provide them with additional entrepreneurial Credit Loan, which indirectly improved the situation in Sabine City and even the entire state.

Even if things get worse in dire circumstances, people won't notice much change because everything is terrible anyway. But even the slightest improvement will be immediately noticed.

Because there, even the slightest improvement is like light shining into an abyss! Polls are the most direct feedback; they don't guarantee an absolute victory, but winning isn't difficult.

Lin Qi pursed his lips, then turned his attention to Ferral. "And what about you?"