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Chapter 128: A Ticket
When Ferrall finished breakfast, he called Lynch and mentioned that he would come over later. Lynch decided to wait for him instead of leaving immediately.
Around ten o'clock, Ferrall hurriedly arrived at Lynch's residence.
He glanced curiously at Katherine, whom Lynch introduced, then greeted her before she went back upstairs to her room.
After Katherine left, Ferrall didn't bring up the girl. In the Baylor Federation, respecting others' privacy and their personal lives was a crucial etiquette. He only took a slight note of the girl.
Then he brought some things Lynch had requested and some replies from the mayor's office.
"The mayor has agreed to your request. He can offer you eighty two acres, but you need to provide at least eighteen hundred job positions locally, or three thousand job positions statewide."
In the Baylor Federation, there were standards for purchasing non-residential land, which required providing a certain number of job positions or fulfilling some economic plans.
If the landowner couldn't meet these standards, the "violative" land would be confiscated, auctioned, or left idle.
This also included all immovable properties on the land. So, before encroaching on land, most entrepreneurs and factory owners would spend money inviting famous designers to design a set of plans.
They would plan their industrial scale for the short, medium, and long term and then sign a land transfer contract with the local city hall in phases.
This way, it wouldn't put too much pressure on factory owners or entrepreneurs in certain aspects, such as the required job positions and corresponding wages.
Initially, Lynch didn't ask for eighty two acres, but now the mayor had doubled his plan, meaning there was no room for negotiation.
Facing the expanded plan, Lynch responded decisively, "I can't meet these requirements in the short term."
Ferrall wasn't surprised by Lynch's reaction. Eighteen hundred job positions, paying each worker two hundred bucks a month, would cost him three hundred and sixty thousand bucks just in wages per month. Even if Lynch could come up with the money now, he would be done by next month.
"This is just a medium-term goal set by the mayor. You have two years to meet the employment requirements," Ferrall said, lowering his voice slightly. "Actually, you only need to solve two-thirds of it. After all, you've solved two-thirds of the problem!"
This was where the value and benefits of having a consultant lay. He knew better than Lynch where the mayor's bottom line was. Solving two-thirds, or twelve hundred job positions, would be enough.
If Lynch hired twelve hundred workers to work on that piece of land, even if he couldn't meet the remaining targets later, the mayor wouldn't easily kick him out because these twelve hundred workers and their families would disturb the city hall.
Lynch nodded thoughtfully. Ferrall didn't realize that the information he had just revealed leaked some more important intelligence, such as the severity of Sabin City's current dilemma being more serious than Lynch imagined.
But at the same time, it added more fog to his understanding. He didn't have more opportunities and information to dispel the fog and naturally didn't know that the severity of the situation came not from the overall societal development but from the Listoan Group and their CEO, Mr. Neo.
After a brief pause, Ferrall mentioned the second matter, "The mayor hopes to have dinner with you this Sunday night. Adjust your schedule."
Monday to Friday were workdays, and even after work, there would often be one or two social events to attend. These were unavoidable.
Saturday was a rest day, but Saturday nights tended to lean more towards traditional "weekend" activities, so dinners on that day would also be utilized.
It was Sunday, the "first day" of the week, the only day the mayor could control. He could only spare time for dinner with Lynch on this day, or it might take at least two weeks to find a free time to have a meal meeting with him.
After Lynch nodded again, Ferrall took out an envelope from his pocket and handed it over.
"What's this?" Lynch checked the envelope. Since it wasn't sealed, he opened it directly and found a card inside, similar to a celebrity photo card, which he then took out.
It was an "expensive-looking" card with a slight metallic texture. The strong contrast between black and bright gold gave it a noble and mysterious aura.
There were only time, location, and two signatures on it, with no other content.
"This is an invitation card to an auction. Only with this card do you have the qualifications to enter the auction," Ferrall said with a hint of a special emotion in his tone.
Lynch smiled, "What's being auctioned, second-hand goods?"
"You could say that." Ferrall didn't refute. Anything auctioned meant it was second-hand goods, even if it might not have been unboxed yet, it was definitely second-hand goods.
This was an auction to divide the EverBright Group. The industries of the EverBright Group in the local area would be auctioned according to federal law, and the money raised from the auction would be used partly to pay hefty fines and partly to enter the local finance.
As for how much these assets would ultimately fetch, it was an entirely unpredictable market behavior. Sometimes it would be higher, sometimes lower.
After all, even large companies like EverBright Group had to resort to tax evasion to survive. Perhaps what some people considered high-quality assets weren't really that good?
Well, these were unimportant questions. The important thing was that Lynch had to attend this auction, but he didn't have the qualifications to bid.
Ferrall's intention was for him to sneak in and experience the cruelty, ruthlessness, bloodiness, and madness of the upper class, which could be considered exposing him to the most authentic side of society.
Ferrall was a good person. He believed Lynch needed to experience this atmosphere. Lynch might appear very "extraordinary" to him, but he lacked a solid background, and his upbringing had deprived him of the opportunity to experience the real side of this society.
Without experiencing this aspect, it was akin to living in a world that felt less real, hindering his development and growth.
Only by realizing the cruelty and ruthlessness of the real society would he become more cautious and mature.
Before a wolf was injured, it would only treat attacks from its own kind as play. Only when it was injured did it understand that sometimes "play" could be fatal, and only then could it provoke the wolf's ferocity.
Lynch raised an eyebrow, carefully storing the card away. He never disappointed or offended others when it came to goodwill.
After expressing his thoughts, Ferrall departed shortly thereafter. Lately, the mayor's advisors, like him, had been exceptionally busy. Mr. Neo's attitude had placed the city hall and the mayor in a passive position, and the mayor didn't intend to compromise.
Once both sides split, if the Listoan Group withdrew from Sabin City, the problems left behind must be resolved; otherwise, it would be a disaster, affecting tens of thousands of families!
Actually, neither the mayor himself nor Mr. Neo, the CEO of the Listoan Group, anticipated that the situation would deteriorate to this point.
The mutual stance of non-compromise created a deadlock where neither party could relent. Essentially, neither side could afford to yield first. It evolved beyond a minor issue that could be resolved through one side conceding.
If the mayor chose to compromise, he could indeed keep the Listoan Group, but he would also bury his own political life.
Mr. Neo could also compromise, but his compromise would cost him his position as CEO, and there was even a possibility that the board of directors would initiate a stock recovery mechanism to take away his shares.
This was no longer a farce for distributing benefits; it had become a demonstration of power, and someone had to submit!
From the current situation, the mayor clearly didn't want to bow to the Listoan Group. He didn't think his future was limited to just being a "mayor."
He didn't want to bow, Mr. Neo and the Listoan Group couldn't afford to compromise either. In the wilderness, concession was not a virtue but a sign of weakness.
After Ferrall left with a serious expression, Lynch called Katherine in the room and asked her to come down.
In some large houses, each room would have a telephone. To avoid interference when they were used simultaneously, there would be a semi-automatic switchboard for such large houses.
It wasn't as complicated as people imagined. Each phone had its own unique number, but they could also directly connect to other phones within the same number by dialing a specific extension, enabling short-dialing.
"Finished talking?" Katherine changed into a different outfit and came downstairs. She didn't see the formidable man from earlier.
Lynch was supposed to be a man she knew inside out, but he suddenly became somewhat unfamiliar to her in certain aspects. Nevertheless, she found this change quite refreshing.
Lynch nodded and then asked, "Do you remember what we talked about last night?" The girl nodded, and Lynch continued, "Do you have any goals? Like what major you want to pursue, or if there's a university you dream of attending?"
He walked to the entrance, looking at Katherine. "Let's grab some food first, then we'll go check out the university you want to visit."
Seeing him stopping at the doorway and waiting for her, Katherine couldn't help but smile, "Is this what life in the upper class is like?"
Noticing the hint of confusion in Lynch's eyes, she continued, "Spending every day dining and chatting?"
Lynch paused for a moment, then affirmed the girl's viewpoint, "I'm glad you have a completely new understanding of my current life."
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