Blackstone Code

The situation was resolved much quicker than expected.

Walking down the busiest street in Sabin City, one could finally sense the desolate atmosphere that followed turmoil.

The streets were almost empty. Those who were around hunched their shoulders and kept their heads down, fearing to attract the attention of the patrolling soldiers.

In just one morning, the city's security had been effectively controlled. So far, there was almost no visible crime, at least not in places where people could see.

Someone tried to provoke these soldiers, unaware of what had happened earlier that morning, and ended up getting the result they were looking for.

Some people were pinned to the ground, while others who fled home were not spared either. Not only were they themselves pinned down, but their family members were also pinned to the ground, thus fulfilling their wishes.

Unfortunately, at this moment, they didn't have the courage to shout the shocking slogan "Who dares to shoot me!" Otherwise, someone might've actually obliged them

Currently, it was non-restricted time. Every day from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM and from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM people were allowed to travel in an orderly manner.

It must be orderly. If more than three people walked together, they would be investigated by soldiers. If there were more than five people, they would likely be forced to lie on the ground.

Protests? Demonstrations? These had already ended because of a news report simultaneously broadcasted by all channels of Sabin City Television at 8:45 this morning.

The proposal to impeach the President had passed the first round of voting, moving to the second round. If the second round passed, the President would face the embarrassment of being ousted from the Presidential Palace.

He could become the second President in federal history to be ousted, joining his predecessor as a historical joke, mocked for decades, if not centuries.

The report claimed that all current societal sufferings stemmed from the President and his cabinet's domestic and international policy errors. Their mass arrests of political opponents caused widespread fear, triggering this massive strike.

This report seemed like a ladder for the people, providing an excuse for their irreparable societal damage, shifting all blame to the President and his cabinet.

Suddenly, the people sitting in front of their televisions "woke up" to the truth that the real culprits were actually the president and his cabinet; no wonder they felt deceived...

This greatly relieved some people and provided an outlet for their actions over the past month, as it turned out the president was to blame.

It also explained why what initially wasn't a particular special general strike could rapidly sweep across the entire federation—the government's top echelons were deliberately indulging people's behavior; they needed "unity among the masses."

If it were just through simple propaganda, it would be difficult for people to unite and stand together. However, now they achieved this. Whether they genuinely believed it or were just eager to find excuses for their actions, they all felt compelled to align with the prevailing mainstream.

The report successfully diverted attention from the strike and labor disputes to the impeachment issue. They now hoped for a successful impeachment, further proving everything was the President's fault.

Meanwhile, local governments began to accelerate the negotiation process between workers and capitalists. Most regions started to implement strict control measures, and the attitude of local city halls towards the public suddenly made a 180-degree turn, leaving some people feeling bewildered.

It was like a mother who was always tolerant of her children, remaining patient despite their mischievous behavior, until one day they got too far, and she slapped them so hard they were knocked off their feet.

The children would cry from the pain, but they would also learn what respect was from it—until they forgot the pain and got into trouble again.

"Where have all the homeless gone?" Lynch noticed the streets were unusually clean, without a single homeless person. This seemed uncharacteristic for the federation, where the homeless were a part of Baylor Federation's social culture. Their sudden absence felt strange.

The staff sergeant explained, "They've been rounded up for unified management. They're relatively free but now under some control."

Lynch nodded, "I understand. No need to explain."

The staff sergeant stopped speaking. His explanation was meant to prevent Lynch from viewing the military as too cruel or inhumane.

Under martial law, the homeless were often the first to suffer. They were herded into specific areas, stripped of their possessions—cardboard boxes, various worthless but possibly useful items.

Checking these items for safety required manpower the military lacked, so the best solution was to remove everything. The homeless wouldn't object. After all, no one would stand defiant in front of a gun barrel.

Not to mention that homeless people, an implicit part of society, could disappear without causing much notice or protest.

Today, the second round of the negotiations was to take place. With nothing better to do, Lynch decided to attend.

The auction could not be held currently as the City Hall would not approve such a request. Additionally, the number of people gathering was too large, and in this special period, any mishap could potentially have turned into a political incident. For the sake of stability, everything else had to be set aside.

Since there was nothing else to do, he decided to attend the negotiation as an observer. After all, he was a somewhat well-known capitalist.

Upon arrival, Lynch had no designated seat, so he sat at the hall's edge, a decent spot. People wouldn't pay much attention to a young man in the corner, but Lynch could see most of those under the lights and identify them by their name cards.

From the start, the negotiation was tense. Though the workers had stopped causing trouble, issues remained unresolved, affecting their negotiation attitude.

To expedite the resolution, the workers' union sent several representatives to mediate between workers and capitalists.

Understanding the authorities' stance, they aimed to restore normalcy.

In this negotiation, the workers' representatives had slightly relaxed their bottom line compared to the last time. They were willing to agree to the capitalists' demand for full-time work, which meant working sixty hours a week, with one day off on the weekend, and ten hours of work each day.

This was actually a relatively moderate working duration. In some other places, they still enforced twelve hours a day, seventy-two hours a week.

However, wages needed to be increased by 4.5%, which was a rate acceptable to both parties.

There were still many unresolved conflicts regarding welfare benefits. Nevertheless, having made some progress was already a good sign; at least they had resolved part of the issues. Perhaps next time, or the time after, after everyone went back and had a calm discussion, someone would make some concessions.

After all, negotiation was simply a process of making mutual concessions step by step to reach an agreement acceptable to both parties.

What surprised Lynch, however, was that something unrelated to work and workers had been included in this negotiation.

After addressing major issues, the mayor was about to adjourn the significant yet inconclusive meeting when a union representative cleared his throat, drawing attention.

The representative, looking solemn, said, "Mr. Mayor, I have another request, unrelated to the employers but involving you."

"Me?" The mayor looked over at the representative through his glasses. He even took them off altogether, rubbing his eyes as he asked. "Okay, then let's extend the discussion for a little while. I'm sure it'll be quicker than your discussions."

The representative knew the mayor was mocking their tactic of stalling with trivial issues. In fact, this was also a strategy aimed at making the capitalists understand that settling matters once workers started causing trouble wouldn't be easy.

Once they understood this, handling issues would become somewhat easier in the future.

Smiling politely, the representative said, "Sorry for taking up so much time. This demand comes from most ordinary workers."

"You said the same thing when you caused trouble." someone couldn't help but interject, drawing relaxed, disdainful laughter from some of the capitalists.

The representative remained unaffected by the remark, feeling neither offended nor embarrassed. In fact, to a certain extent, he himself was not part of the working class; he belonged to a class above the workers. He also did not identify himself as part of the working class, so he was not sensitive to that remark or the impolite laughter it provoked.

Still, he needed to caution them. "Many of our workers are currently unable to work or have lost their jobs. It's difficult for them to maintain a normal household. Moreover, as we all know, the City Hall has stopped issuing food stamps for some time now. We hope that food stamps distribution and redemption can be resumed as soon as possible."Please vote for this novel at https://www.novelupdates.com/series/blackstone-code/There are advance chapters available nowAccess will be granted 24 hours after the donationTier 1: 7 Advance chapters Link

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