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Chapter 20: The Second Negotiation
The venue for the second negotiation was set by Leo in the shabby conference room of the community center.
Wexler arrived as agreed.
He came alone, without his assistant.
On the walls of the meeting room hung black-and-white photographs. The steelworkers in those images, their faces weathered by time, stared at this uninvited guest with solemn eyes.
From the very first second, the psychological pressure of being on unfamiliar territory began to weigh heavily on Wexler.
Leo and Sarah sat at one end of the long table, with Margaret and Frank beside them.
Wexler took his seat across from them, still wearing a polite smile, but clearly uncomfortable with the surroundings.
"Alright, Mr. Wallace," Wexler began. "You mentioned you have a mutually beneficial solution. I’d love to hear it."
Leo, contrary to his usual self, started by expressing understanding of Wexler’s predicament.
"Mr. Wexler, I know the past week hasn’t been easy for you," Leo said. "This has escalated from a simple business case into a political crisis for the mayor. And unfortunately, you’re caught in the middle."
These words caused a subtle shift in Wexler’s expression.
"On one hand, your client, Summit Development Group, just wants to close this deal as quickly as possible. On the other hand, Mayor Cartwright hopes you can quell this public relations storm so it doesn’t affect his upcoming re-election campaign."
"And we…" Leo shrugged, feigning helplessness. "We’re just a stubborn bunch who don’t know how to compromise."
Next, Leo brought up the situation outside.
"Frank and his union brothers are extremely agitated out there. They’re already planning their next protest action. I heard they’re even considering holding peaceful rallies outside the private residences of Mayor Cartwright and the CEO of Summit Development Group."
At this, Wexler’s brows furrowed deeply.
This was his worst nightmare.
Once the protests escalated to harassing private residences, it would no longer be a simple demonstration—it would become a serious scandal.
"I’m doing my best to dissuade them," Leo said, his expression sincere. "But I don’t know how much longer I can hold them back."
Then, Leo produced the "Future Development Plan for the Community Center" that he and Sarah had prepared.
He slid the document toward Wexler.
"Mr. Wexler, to prove to you that we’re not just troublemakers, we’ve put together a detailed plan for the community’s future."
Wexler skeptically flipped through the document.
He saw grand plans for renovating the basketball court, purchasing new computers, adding a small library, building a rooftop garden, and even constructing a virtual reality experience room.
And then there was the total budget: four million dollars.
He immediately saw through Leo’s intentions.
With a cold laugh, he tossed the document onto the table.
"Mr. Wallace, are you joking with me? Four million dollars? Do you think my client is a charity?"
At that moment, Leo took a stack of documents from his folder.
As he flipped through them, one page—seemingly by accident—slipped out and landed face-up on the table in front of Wexler.
Wexler glanced at the paper and clearly saw the title:
"Minutes of the Informal Lunch Meeting Between the Mayor and the CEO of Summit Development Group."
Leo seemed to notice his "mistake."
He quickly picked up the paper and slowly placed it back in his folder, saying nothing.
But the message was clear.
Leo looked up and smiled at Wexler.
"Of course, Mr. Wexler, all these wonderful development plans we’ve proposed are based on one important condition."
"That is, all of us in the community won’t need to waste precious energy explaining the details of certain informal lunch meetings to the district attorney’s office—or to FBI agents."
Wexler’s expression finally changed.
He tried to regain his composure.
"Mr. Wallace, your allegations are very serious. And this proposal you’ve presented far exceeds my authority to decide. I’ll need to report this situation to my client and the mayor’s office. We’ll need time to discuss it."
He was trying to stall, to regain control.
Leo cut him off directly.
"Mr. Wexler, please don’t do that."
"My investigation wasn’t just about municipal ordinances. I also spent time looking into you and your client."
"I know very well that Summit Development Group’s board has authorized you to handle everything related to the community center. The authorized amount is more than enough to cover this proposal several times over. So the person sitting here today isn’t just a lawyer for Summit Development Group—you’re its sole decision-maker."
Leo continued, "So our choice is actually quite simple. Either we reach an agreement here today that both sides can accept."
"Or, the moment I step out of this door, the full content of those meeting minutes—and more interesting details about that lunch—will immediately appear in every journalist’s inbox in Pittsburgh."
Leo’s threat was direct, and Wexler weighed the pros and cons.
Those meeting minutes might not be enough to send the mayor to prison, but they were more than sufficient to spark a media storm that could completely destroy Cartwright’s political career.
He remained silent for a full minute.
When he finally raised his head to look at Leo, he knew he had lost today—but his pride demanded he salvage something from the negotiation table.
He picked up the four-million-dollar development plan again.
"Alright, Mr. Wallace," he said. "Since we’ve reached the most important consensus, let’s now discuss the budget for these specific projects."
"The rooftop garden? Completely unnecessary. The virtual reality experience room? Too extravagant. Renovating the exterior? I think keeping it as it is preserves more historical value."
He began fiercely haggling with Leo over the four-million-dollar budget.
This was his last stand, his final act of dignity.
And Leo engaged in a grueling hour-long "negotiation" with him.
"Mr. Wexler, the rooftop garden can go, but the virtual reality experience room must stay—it’s for the children’s education."
"Fine, we can cut the budget for the experience room in half, but not a penny less for renovating the basketball court."
"One point two million dollars—that’s our bottom line. We’ve already made significant concessions."
In the end, both sides reluctantly reached an agreement.
The final terms were written down in black and white.
1. Summit Development Group formally withdraws its acquisition plan for the Steelworkers Community Center property.
2. Summit Development Group will pay off all the community center’s overdue property taxes in one lump sum and, under the guise of a charitable donation, provide the community center with a development fund of $1.2 million.
3. Mayor Cartwright must personally hold a press conference within three days to publicly announce that the city government will permanently preserve the Steelworkers Community Center and designate it as a historical landmark of Pittsburgh.
The agreement was signed.
Wexler stood, shook hands with Leo.
"Mr. Wallace, you’re truly a born politician."
Leo smiled. "I’ll take that as a compliment."
Wexler replied, "Without a doubt."
---
Three days later, the press conference was held as scheduled in the press hall of City Hall.
Mayor Martin Cartwright and the CEO of Summit Development Group stood side by side at the podium, their faces beaming with enthusiasm.
Their expressions were cheerful, as if all of this was their own initiative.
Mayor Cartwright spoke first.
He highly praised Summit Development Group’s sense of social responsibility, calling them a model corporate citizen of Pittsburgh.
He also lavished praise on the historical contributions of the Steelworkers Community Center, calling it a precious legacy of Pittsburgh’s working-class spirit.
Finally, he proudly announced that, thanks to the joint efforts of the city government and Summit Development Group, the community center would not only be permanently preserved but would also receive a substantial development fund for future upgrades.
The CEO of Summit Development Group gave a brief speech.
He stated that his company had always been committed to community building in Pittsburgh, and contributing to the preservation of the community center was an honor.
The entire press conference was filled with harmony and goodwill.
They appeared so sincere, so generous, that some out-of-town journalists who didn’t know the full story thought they were witnessing a touching tale of government-business cooperation serving the community.
Such are politicians, such are businessmen.
You can never read any genuine emotion on their faces.
At the same time as the press conference, the hall of the Steelworkers Community Center was packed with residents.
Sarah projected the live stream of the press conference onto the wall using a projector.
When Mayor Cartwright personally declared the "permanent preservation of the community center," the entire hall erupted in thunderous cheers.
People hugged each other, cheered, jumped, and some elderly residents even shed tears of joy.
This weeks-long battle had finally ended in their victory.
When Leo returned to the community center, he was surrounded like a triumphant hero.
The crowd hoisted him high into the air.
In midair, Leo saw the familiar faces below.
Margaret, Sarah, Rosa, Mike…
Their faces radiated genuine joy.
The celebration lasted late into the night.
After the revelry died down, Leo walked home alone.
The cool night breeze dispersed the lingering smell of alcohol from his clothes and the joy of victory from his heart.
He had won.
But his victory had been so perilous, so lucky.
He knew well that this triumph relied not just on the unity of the community residents and public opinion.
More crucially, it depended on a minor procedural flaw made by the opponent and that anonymously delivered, almost prophetic meeting memo.
What if Cartwright’s municipal government had executed the announcement procedure perfectly?
What if that anonymous helper hadn’t delivered the meeting memo to him?
What would the result have been?
He dared not think about it.
He realized he had merely excised a harmless tumor.
But the body—the city’s power structure—that nurtured this disease was still terminally ill.
As long as Cartwright and his financial backers remained firmly in control of the city’s power, today’s story would replay tomorrow in another corner of the city, in another form.
Roosevelt’s voice echoed in his mind, filled with approval and guidance.
"You’ve learned how to win a battle, child."
"You used the methods I taught you to force them to surrender gracefully, even willingly offering war reparations."
"But do you understand that as long as they remain safely seated in their command center, this war will never truly end?"
Leo stopped in his tracks.
He looked up at the brightly lit building in the distance.
That was the enemy’s command center.
His gaze gradually hardened.
He knew the battle for the Steelworkers Community Center was over.
But Pittsburgh’s war had just begun.
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