novelnext Chapter 94 The Mouse's Cheese
Chapter 94 The Mouse's Cheese
Chapter 94 The Mouse's Cheese
Ethan left, leaving Leo alone in the office.
Just now, he received news that Moretti had convened an emergency closed-door meeting with the members of parliament.
But not everyone attended the meeting.
Elsa Williams and Benji Cohen, two allies who clearly sided with Leo, did not attend the meeting.
That doesn't matter.
Apart from the two of them, Moretti still holds seven votes.
Seven votes are enough to pass any resolution, enough to overturn any veto by the mayor, and enough to turn the entire city council into his personal fiefdom.
"Mr. President."
Leo stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, his fingers gently tapping on the glass.
"What if Moretti can keep them in check?"
"What if he could use his prestige, or even more ruthless methods, to force everyone to unite?"
"What if they'd rather bite the bullet and lose money, even if it means bearing the brunt of the criticism, than let this go on with me?"
This is a reasonable concern.
After all, Moretti had spent twenty-five years on the city council and had seen too many storms.
"Unity? Ha!"
Roosevelt's voice echoed in Leo's mind.
"Fear is the best divider."
"Especially when this fear is not just about power, but also about money."
"Human nature is greedy, but even more so, cowardly."
"When the boat started taking on water, the mice were not worried about whether the boat would sink, but whether their little piece of cheese would get wet."
"Since you're so worried, let me help you predict what they might say during their meeting."
At the same time.
In the city council meeting room.
Thomas Moretti sat at the head of the conference table, his face so dark it seemed to drip water.
-
In front of him lay a report that had just been delivered from the Ministry of Justice.
It listed the number of lawsuits received up to that point, along with the staggering estimated damages.
Thirty-one million US dollars, and this is only the first day.
"This is outright robbery!"
A roar shattered the deathly silence of the conference room.
The speaker was Gavin Stone.
The councilor, who represented the downtown business district and affluent neighborhood, was now flushed and slammed his fist on the table.
"Moretti! You have to deal with that madman!"
Stone pointed to the report on the table, his fingers trembling.
"Thirty million US dollars? Do you know what that means?"
"This means the municipal deficit will explode next year!"
"If the city council is forced to raise property taxes to fill this hole, I'm finished!"
"My constituents, those lawyers, doctors, and bankers living in those big houses on Squirrel Hill, they'll devour me alive!"
"They don't care about any of that bullshit political infighting; all they care about is their own wallets!"
Stone tugged at his tie, looking somewhat hysterical.
"We must approve those repair budgets immediately!"
"Or just go through his damn revival plan!"
"I'm willing to compromise if it means shutting him up and stopping his suicidal legal attacks!"
"Capital has absolutely surrendered."
Roosevelt's voice carried a hint of amusement.
"That's the power of fear."
"Gavin Stone, he's Morganfield's agent, the rich man's watchdog."
"For the wealthy, nothing is more terrifying than the unpredictable loss of their wealth."
"He will be the first to oppose Moretti's delaying tactics because he can't afford to lose."
"Absolutely not!"
Another sharp voice rang out in the conference room.
Linda Rossi jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
She stared intently at Stone, her eyes filled with disdain.
"Gavin, you spineless coward!"
"If we compromise now, if we give him the money now, then we'll become that brat's rubber stamp!"
"So, in the future, if he wants something, will we have to give it to him just by threatening him?"
Linda Rossi is a guardian of the old bureaucratic system. Her hatred for Leo is not just a conflict of interest, but a deep-seated class hatred.
The changes Leo represents are destroying the comfortable old world she depends on for survival.
"We are the legislature! We have the power to approve the budget!"
Linda's voice was sharp and shrill.
"We cannot be blackmailed by the authorities!"
"Those lawsuits? Let him sue!"
"Let the Ministry of Justice handle the lawsuits! Let those lawyers stall! We can drag it out for three, five years!"
"Let's see who can outlast whom!"
"Hatred."
Roosevelt commented.
"Linda Rossi would oppose Stone."
"Because for her, making you fail is more important than anything else."
"Even if it comes at a huge cost, she is willing to do it."
"She will try to stubbornly stick to her rigid, old-fashioned bureaucratic logic to the very end."
"However, her madness will frighten those centrists who only care about their own interests."
The argument continued in the meeting room.
Old Billy, representing a traditional union constituency, twirled a pen in his hand, his brow furrowed.
"drag?"
Old Billy muttered, his voice not loud, but it sounded particularly clear in the quiet meeting room.
"Linda, you make it sound so easy."
"My district is full of old working-class neighborhoods, full of potholes, and half of the streetlights are broken."
"In the past, if I didn't want to repair it, I could say I didn't have the money, and even if the voters complained a bit, I would just put up with it."
"But now, that Wallace is telling everyone that you can get compensation if you get injured."
"My constituents are calling me every day now, asking why I'm not letting them repair the road, and whether I want them to break their legs so I can collect compensation."
Old Billy sighed.
"If these compensation payments really drain the city's coffers."
"What about the park ranger position I arranged for my nephew next year?"
"Where will the additional activity funding I promised to give to the retired police association come from?"
"If I run out of money, I won't be able to hold onto my position."
Samira Rodriguez, who was sitting next to him, echoed this sentiment.
"yes."
The female councilwoman, representing the Latino community, spoke with obvious concern.
"If we run out of money, will the commercial street redevelopment project in my constituency also fall through?"
"I promised the voters that construction would definitely begin next year."
"We can't afford to lose all of everyone's money just to spite the mayor."
"Look, Leo."
Roosevelt's voice rang out.
"This is the vulnerability of the alliance."
"When there is no external pressure, they can sit together, share the cake, and chat happily."
"But when a real crisis comes, when everyone's vital interests are threatened."
"That seemingly solid alliance will crumble into a pile of loose sand in an instant."
"Everyone is calculating, everyone is looking for a way out."
"Moretti is facing more than just your attack now."
"It was more of an internal betrayal."
"Shut up, all of you!"
Moretti slammed the mallet in his hand.
"Bang!"
The dull thud silenced everyone.
Moretti stood up, his cold gaze sweeping over everyone present.
He looked at the flustered Stone, at the frantic Linda, and at the wavering Billy and Samira.
He knew that people's hearts were scattered.
-
If no action is taken, this parliament will split tonight.
"You think you can get the money by compromising?"
Moretti's voice wasn't loud, but every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.
"Do you think that as long as we give him that 20 million, he will let us go?"
"That's your naiveté!"
Moretti pointed out the window to the brightly lit building across the street.
"You all know very well what kind of person that new mayor is!"
"He's Sanders' man! He's the one who's going to revolutionize us!"
"Today he's using road construction to pressure us, tomorrow he'll use anti-corruption to pressure us, and the day after tomorrow he'll use redistricting to pressure us!"
"If we let him grow bigger, if we let him take the initiative."
"next year!"
Moretti slammed his hand heavily on the table.
"Your budgets are all going to be cut next year!"
"All your slush funds, the positions you arranged for your relatives, your contracts with contractors—he'll expose them all to the light of day!"
"At that time, you will lose more than just the money for road repairs; you will lose everything!"
These words were like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing any lingering hope in the members of parliament's hearts.
They remembered Leo's campaign promises and the so-called "transparency reforms."
Yes, Leo is the enemy.
They are the kind of enemies that fight to the death.
Seeing the change in everyone's expressions, Moretti knew that the intimidation had worked.
Now, it's time to give the carrots.
Listen.
Moretti softened his tone.
"We can't just refuse outright, that would be too stupid."
"But we can't approve his 'Revitalization Plan Phase Two,' that's the bottom line."
"We adopted a compromise."
Moretti then presented his response strategy.
"We can start with an emergency municipal infrastructure repair fund."
"The amount doesn't need to be too large, five million US dollars is enough to shut up those citizens who want to file complaints, and it's also enough to repair the most dangerous holes."
"But this money must be directly overseen by the city council and cannot go into Rio's redevelopment plan account."
"We should turn this money into our political achievements, not his."
Moretti looked at old Billy and Samira with a knowing look in his eyes.
"As long as we get through this round, as long as we don't let him gain full control of the budget."
"When it comes time to draft the annual operating and capital budget, I will give priority to each of your constituencies."
"Whether it's a park ranger position, a commercial street renovation project, or a property tax reduction."
"If you stand with me today, I promise you will all have it."
"This is a promise."
Old Billy and Samira exchanged a glance, both seeing the wavering in each other's eyes.
Five million can solve the immediate problem and protect future interests.
Since you can protect your interests without completely falling out with the mayor, why not do it?
Stone fell silent as well.
He could accept this compromise as long as there were no tax increases and no major disruptions.
Even Linda, though somewhat unwilling, knew that this was the only way at the moment.
"Agreed," Stone was the first to raise his hand.
"Agreed," old Billy followed immediately.
"agree."
"agree."
Hands were raised.
Tempted by the lure of real money, and driven by the fear of Leo, their common enemy.
These seven people barely managed to reach an agreement.
Unite against external forces and temporarily resist.
Roosevelt's voice carried a hint of amusement.
"They will eventually reach some kind of compromise."
"They'll try to fob you off with a small amount of money, like they'd fob off a beggar who comes to their door asking for food."
"They thought that as long as the road was repaired and the citizens were silenced, you would shut up."
"The cracks had already appeared, but Moretti forcibly glued them back together with the glue of profit."
"Now, the ball is back at your feet."
"They gave you the money to build the road, but rejected your revitalization plan."
Do you accept it?
Leo turned around and looked at the law code that was still open on the desk.
"No, Mr. President."
"I not only want to build roads, I also want to build people."
-
"They want to limit the solution to this problem to money."
"Then I'll turn this issue from a money issue into a political issue."
"Since they want to play, let's play even bigger."
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