The bustling crowd was led by a gaunt man holding a wooden sign, with a bunch of transparent umbrellas, wandering towards the end of the street. "Your group is rather large, isn’t it?" A slightly bulky bald man glanced at the dense crowd and turned to the slender man with a beard beside him. "Eighty or ninety, buddy," the bearded man raised his hand and pulled out a metal box from his pocket, opened it to reveal the neat and tidy cigarettes inside, "You know, at the price of 75 federal coins, in Nevus District you can hire a man to work for you for a whole week, but they just need to follow the team for one day to earn what others desperately earn in a week, and they even get a part of the money upfront. Who wouldn’t like that? They all call their friends, desperately trying to snatch up this job." He took out a cigarette and handed it to the bald man next to him, "And for us, the price of a bottle of wine at a bar can hire three people to shout for you all day. Why not?" "You’re surprisingly generous this time." The bald man took the cigarette and put it in his mouth. "Didn’t you seek out those ’elderly’ this time? Aren’t there any supporters of the doctor from the White Jasmine Palace among these newcomers? Aren’t you afraid they won’t cooperate if you deceive them into opposing the doctor? Aren’t you afraid they will take your money and not work?" He lifted his hand, and the tip of his shiny index finger split open, emitting a deep blue windproof flame, reaching out in front of the bearded man. "Your mechanized body is quite handy." The bearded man also pulled out a cigarette, put it in his mouth, and brought the end closer to the flame. Accompanied by flickering sparks, the cigarette lit up at the tip, and he took a puff, slowly saying, "The true supporters have been weeded out a long time ago. Those who came here are just ordinary people trying to make some money for food, and their bracelets have already been taken. The perimeter is filled with my people, and they already got the part of their income I advanced to them. They’ve eaten the dates and suffered the blows. Even if they want to not cooperate, they would need the ability to resist," Then he looked up at the people in the rain, a smile curling at the corner of his mouth, "Moreover, this time we don’t really need ’cooperation’, right? My money isn’t that easy to take." "You’re still as ruthless as ever," The bald man lit his cigarette, the flame on his finger went out, and the tips came together. He looked at the crowd ahead, "I remember there were supposed to be more than just our group, at least two other teams, right?" "The other groups are relatively small, supposedly arranged by Levis," the bearded man said with the cigarette in his mouth, "The news came this morning from above. Apparently, Levis was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation last night. Maybe the arrangements weren’t completed." "That’s how it is with these all-talk guys," the bald man muttered with the cigarette in his mouth, looking toward the end of the road ahead, where white jasmine petals were blurred by the misty rain. "Apart from being good with words, they can’t get anything else done." A middle-aged man with a lean figure and a calm face stood at the edge of the corridor. He saw He Ao approaching from a distance and waved, hurrying over, "How are you feeling now?" "Not bad, my injuries weren’t that serious," He Ao looked at the man in front of him and nodded gently, "Dr. Des treated me, and I’m much better now." The man in front was the Deputy Mayor of Linen City and Lin En’s political ally, a representative of the conservative faction, Lante. "That’s good to hear," Lante breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at He Ao and said earnestly, "As you know, I wouldn’t resort to such despicable tactics. In this regard, my stance is the same as your subordinates; none of us wants anything bad to happen to you." "I’ve said it before, I believe you." He Ao put out the cigarette butt in his hand and threw it into the trash bin nearby, turning to Lante as he spoke softly. Lante’s stance was, in fact, neutral but leaning towards Lin En. He had to compete for the conservative faction’s interests within the Ruling Alliance while also supporting reforms. However, he didn’t wish for actions as radical as those of Lin En. And now, within the current Ruling Alliance, the conservative faction’s power was not strong enough to control the alliance. So, once Mayor Linen was assassinated, the entire Ruling Alliance would collapse immediately, even if Lante succeeded according to the law to become the new mayor, he would lose control over the government and parliament. The forces that originally supported Linen might even target him deliberately because of their suspicion towards Lante. By then, an isolated and unsupported Lante could either join forces with the Consortium, using their strength to reorganize a government completely aligned with the Consortium, or be confined in the Mayor’s Mansion, awaiting the next assassination amid betrayals and ineffective decrees, until a pro-Consortium mayor took the stage. And Lante’s inclination was anti-Consortium, otherwise, he would not have allied with Linen. So, from Lante’s perspective, Linen’s assassination meant that unless he had completely turned towards the Consortium, his succession as mayor would be entirely harmful without any benefit. And at this moment, Lante was also gazing into those aged and firm hazel-gray eyes, taking a deep breath, "Thank you." Although he had already heard this phrase over the phone, when He Ao expressed this ’trust’ in person at the Mayor’s Mansion, there was still an unusual stirring in his heart. He also knew that ’Linen’ saying he trusted him here was likely largely a temporary measure to maintain the situation, but the fact that the other party was willing to make this choice in such a tense situation fundamentally implied a bit of real ’trust’. Moreover, he noticed that the ’Linen’ before him had indeed changed somewhat after last night’s assassination. If the former Linen had been a sharp but flexible rapier, strikingly evident but indecisive at crucial moments, then the current Linen was more like a knight’s sword shimmering with cold light under the night sky, hard, upright, honorable, and substantial. Those hazel-gray pupils still revealed a sharp edge, but vaguely it seemed as if a veil had covered them, with the razor’s gleam flickering behind it. He could still impart the same sharpness and grace as before, yet make one believe he had the ability and breadth of mind to act on his words. Lante could clearly feel that the ’Mayor Lin En’ before him had become more reliable. "It seems that last night really did have a big impact on you." He took a breath, looking towards the Elderly man beside him, asking with a bit of amazement. "After a brush with death, a person always learns something," He Ao smiled, extending his hand, signaling Lante to follow him along the corridor. "How is everything with General Corvey of South City? Have you made any arrangements? I heard..." Lante followed He Ao’s pace, asking with some concern. After dodging an assassination, the next major influence factor was the ’coup.’ The ’ambition’ of South City Commander Corvey, as well as the discord between the South City Defense Army and Linen’s City Cabinet, had reached a point where almost anyone with a bit of access to information in Yilan City knew about. "There are no problems with South City at the moment," He Ao chuckled, "I have met with General Corvey. He is a very reasonable man and will be willing to ." Lante paused, then his entire being froze, eyes widening in shock as he looked at He Ao, "You’ve met with him? You’ve come to an agreement? When?" He Ao nodded lightly. Just then, the blonde Chief of Staff ran over from behind, leaning in to speak softly and quickly into He Ao’s ear, "A parade troop has formed at the entrance of the Mayor’s Mansion." He Ao nodded lightly, turning to look at Lante, who still appeared slightly shocked, "I might be a bit delayed with some matters, could you go to the Cabinet meeting room and wait for me? The ministers of the Cabinet should be on their way there now." Lante did his best to collect his somewhat out of control emotions, nodded gently, and waved goodbye to He Ao. Then, he watched He Ao turn and leave, his gaze lowered slightly, mumbling to himself, "General Corvey I met last night..." Was it before the assassination or after? Corvey had hardly left the South City Command Center recently. If it was after the assassination, did Lin En go directly to the South City Command Center in such a dangerous situation? Upon introspection, Lante didn’t believe he could have made it to South City as composedly under the same circumstances, let alone ’negotiate’ with Corvey, the Commander of South City? He watched the aged but upright figure recede into the distance, and amidst the haze, he felt that the figure he once easily caught up to, and even thought of replacing, seemed to be drifting further and further away. But for some reason, a faint excitement stirred in a corner of his heart that had long been desolate. It was as if something he had never regarded as hopeful had now finally sparked a flame. Although the flame seemed very small and weak, ready to be extinguished by the slightest wind or rain. "Have all the TV stations and broadcast media been contacted?" Striding down the long corridor, He Ao looked at his chief of staff beside him and asked quickly. "Including Yilan Morning Post, big TV stations under Nord, Kopes, and Yiwis Space System have all refused to transmit your upcoming speech live," the blonde chief of staff reported swiftly, "They claim ’the TV stations’ commercial actions are purely market-based; customers with higher bids have bought the corresponding time slots for broadcasting, and they have no obligation to serve the City Government.’" At this, she paused and clenched her teeth slightly, "When they transmitted speeches from the Mayor loyal to the Consortiums, they didn’t talk ." "This is normal; these major Consortiums have completely torn their facade with us," "Try to secure as many local Yilan City TV stations and newspapers as possible. For those Consortium-controlled TV stations, if we can persuade them, then good; if not, let’s not force it. Have the Mayor’s Mansion official website open a separate window as the broadcast window for the speech. "Then, buy targeted ads on streaming media and short video platforms leaning towards the network Consortiums, like Triton Group and Menshu Group, to funnel viewers to the live broadcast. They don’t have a major direct conflict of interest with us, so we can collaborate." The chief of staff nodded rapidly. He Ao glanced at the neon-lit skyscraper adverts outside the stained-glass window and said quickly, "Have those billboards been taken down?" "The billboards in Yilan District are mostly controlled by major Consortiums, so they’re not easy to handle." The chief of staff spoke softly, "Nevus District and Wick District have already been arranged. Captain Tucker has provided some support from the Mayor’s Guard. There are no clear messages yet, but based on the current feedback, progress seems good." She looked up at He Ao, "Mr. Lin En, is it really useful to broadcast the live stream using the billboards in Nevus District? According to the data, the advertising industry there has shrunk severely, so the coverage might not be ideal." "When I used to do pro bono clinics, I often went there. Those poor and chaotic places usually have such large billboards, and the exposure rate of those billboards is actually very high. "Sometimes data reports can’t be trusted because you don’t know what key points were missed or intentionally concealed while gathering that data. If you want to fully understand the situation in an area, it’s best to go and investigate on site." He Ao withdrew his gaze, continuing as he moved forward, "This city isn’t just illuminated by neon lights; there are places that neon lights don’t reach, and it’s in these shadows where the majority of the city lies." The chief of staff nodded gently. At this moment, the two had already reached the end of the walkway, where the tall Tucker was now standing in front of a glass window that had just opened. He looked towards He Ao, "Mr. Lin En, the crowd outside has already gathered. As per your instructions, we have arranged for personnel to maintain order." He Ao stood by the window, looking down. Perhaps it was the news of the Mayor’s speech, or perhaps it was just a matter of coming to watch the excitement, but the garden outside the Mayor’s Mansion was now crowded with all kinds of people, more so than last night. They stood in the wind and rain, accompanied by the swaying white jasmine flowers, looking towards the Mayor’s Mansion. And there was a group within the crowd that was moving; they carried banners like "Lin En step down," "We want food," "This is the worst City Government in Yilan," rapidly weaving through the crowd in front of the Mayor’s Mansion under their gaze. "This protest group has about eighty people. The banners have also appeared before," Tucker spoke calmly, "Based on the information collected from Evis’s subordinates, it’s pretty much confirmed that they’ve been hired to protest." He Ao gathered his Divine Sense in his eyes, raised his head, and quickly scanned the crowd below. Although it was a bit of a distance, with his physical fitness, he could still clearly see the people in the protesting crowd, "Those surrounded in the middle, without wristbands, are being pushed along by the outer ring." "Are you suggesting they might be coerced?" Tucker frowned slightly and quickly said, "Should I use this as an opportunity to contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation for interference, to ’rescue’ them? And to disperse the protest group?" the staff chief beside him immediately shook his head, "That way, the headline of all the Federation’s news this afternoon would become about us joining with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to ’suppress’ the opposition with force. The Consortium will definitely seize this opportunity, to hype it up massively, accusing us of disrupting the Federation; they might even be very much looking forward to us intervening." "So we ignore this protest group?" Tucker’s frown deepened. He Ao looked up at the surrounding crowd again, his gaze locked onto some figures mixed within, "Arrange for some Transcendents and warriors with Full Body Prosthesis in plain clothes to protect the protest group. They need to be strong enough." Tucker looked up at He Ao, puzzled. Although those in the middle did indeed seem coerced, they weren’t in obvious danger to their lives, and the entire protest group had been checked when they came in – they weren’t carrying any firearms or weapons. He now felt caught in a dilemma. He could keenly sense that the organizer of the protest clearly knew about today’s speech and was intentionally upsetting Mr. Lin En; he now desperately wanted to smash that guy to smithereens. He Ao withdrew his gaze, calmly stated. Tucker glanced at the Mayor in front of him, knowing the Mayor certainly had his own plans. He pondered a moment, then nodded, "Okay, then I’ll take people over there." "Be careful to cover your tracks, don’t expose yourself, and make sure to arrange an emergency evacuation route for the crowd." He Ao nodded, rapidly instructing. Tucker nodded his head and turned to walk towards the elevator. At this time, the chief of staff also raised his head to look towards He Ao, "Mr. Lin En, all the Cabinet ministers have entered the Cabinet meeting room." He Ao gently lifted his brass cane, "Let’s head over."