Chapter 1172: Voting and Disappearance

Voting and Disappearance

After October passed, the temperature suddenly began to drop. Even in Jincheng, it fell to around ten degrees, and true winter was not far off.

Early in the morning, pedestrians on the street were all wearing thick cotton coats, their hands tucked into their pockets.

Every few steps they took, a large cloud of hot air would cover their faces, which looked quite interesting.

Some polling stations on the roadside were already prepared, with police officers and dedicated federal government staff responsible for supervision, along with people from the City Hall.

Quite a few people had already gathered around these polling stations. They arrived with their voting cards and began to cast their votes.

Voting is a "sacred matter" because not everyone has the qualifications to vote.

With the push of the war, some families who originally lacked voting qualifications became true electors eligible to vote due to their experience of enlisting in the military.

According to incomplete official statistics, those currently possessing voting qualifications across the entire Federation account for approximately thirty-one percent of the total population.

That is to say, three out of every ten people have votes with legal effect, but not everyone qualified to vote actually does so. The votes that effectively count only account for a little over twenty percent of the total legal population.

This is a very small number, and at the same time, it means the election is susceptible to manipulation.

Because the number of people that presidential candidates need to win over is not very large, they can use various legal and illegal means to influence the choices and leanings of these voters.

Every state has different circumstances. In states with fixed camps, their voting direction doesn't change from the start; basically, seventy, eighty, or even ninety percent of people will vote for the presidential candidate of their own camp.

As for those swing states, they require the campaign teams of these presidential candidates to fight for them.

Laizhou is not a swing state in the traditional sense; it is the territory of the Social Party, so basically, no surprises will occur there.

People with voting qualifications arrived at the polling stations, handed over their credentials in exchange for a ballot, stood before the voting machine, used a pen to mark their chosen candidate, and then inserted the ballot into the slot of the voting machine.

The entire process did not require much time.

Some federal government staff stood beside the polling station, observing every move there.

"The voting here this year looks... very calm, so calm that I find it a bit unbelievable!"

Two staff members began to chat. One of them shared a cigarette with the other; in such cold weather, having a smoke seemed to make their bodies feel a bit warmer.

The other nodded in agreement, "Indeed. Compared to other places, the voting atmosphere here is more like what they often advertise—full of the flavor of freedom!"

He took a deep breath, which caused his nostrils to flare quite a bit. A large amount of cold air entered his body, and he shivered and coughed twice.

Thinking of other polling stations, they felt a sense of scalp-numbing dread, with various campaign teams still constantly soliciting votes outside the polling stations.

By logic, such behavior is not allowed. Voting is sacred and should not be interfered with; the federal government will punish those soliciting votes outside the polling stations.

But it is of no use. These campaign teams are willing to accept the fines, just as they post promotional posters in places where it is not allowed, even if they have to pay fines for it.

The loss from fines is a small matter compared to the election results, but the final direction of the votes relates to the tilting of incalculable interests.

Never mind fines; even if these people were to be jailed, there would still be those willing to do it.

Outside the polling stations, they would tell those intending to vote that as long as they voted for the candidate supported by the campaign team, these voters could receive some small items based on their voting intent, usually worth one or two dollars.

This year, because per capita income has increased, the price in swing states has reached three dollars.

As long as you vote and show your voting result, you can receive a voucher from there.

It might be a cash voucher for a certain supermarket—the supermarket owner is a supporter of a certain presidential candidate, and he is willing to support them in this way.

It could also be the most common food voucher—those major sponsors also like this approach; a value of three dollars doesn't mean those few cans of beans are really worth three dollars.

In short, they will use such methods to solicit votes.

Besides this, there are also people from the unions and the Labor Federation; they are also the most active group in every general election.

Because they control a large number of the working class, and the working class accounts for about sixty percent of the total voters—this is a very astonishing number!

That is why unions have risen so quickly during this period; they can also manipulate votes, and workers are willing to cooperate with some of the unions' decisions.

When a group has a certain say in the major event of an election, their political status will be greatly enhanced. This is why the unions and the Labor Federation were able to form the Labor Party.

They have powerful political influence and ways to monetize that influence. Not everyone in every region is like Lans, able to drive the unions out.

As long as they cannot expel the unions, they will be influenced by them, eventually compromising or trading.

Compared to the chaos outside the polling stations in other cities and regions, the polling station in Jincheng is as quiet as a young girl standing in the cold winter, so serene that it makes people a bit unaccustomed to it.

The two men's topic quickly shifted from the voting situation here to Lans and the Lans family. During this period, Lans has also become somewhat famous in the Federation again.

Because of Director Luo Bu.

It is impossible for only Lans to attack; the logic of Director Luo Bu's defense is that they are also attacking, also through the way of media and public opinion.

When the "Federal Daily" focused on Director Luo Bu's recent public opinion spotlight, they guided readers' attention toward Lans and the Lans family by analyzing why this incident happened.

In the news draft written by the columnist of the "Federal Daily," Lans and the Lans family have clearly become one of the most difficult non-governmental organizations to deal with in the Federation.

They were very careful with their wording, not directly defining the Lans family as a gang, because Lans would really sue them.

Tabloids can gain more attention and fame by suing celebrities, but if major newspapers sue celebrities, it only makes people feel they are not rigorous, not authoritative, and not professional enough.

So they used a very vague, undefined term: non-governmental organization.

Under the "flattery" of this columnist, Lans already had a faint trend of being the number one gang leader in the Federation; this is a form of "killing with praise."

People are also willing to discuss these things. Plus, this is Jincheng, the base camp of the Lans family, so they naturally talk about the true ruler here, Lans White.

"... I don't know much about this Mr. White, but from my experience of staying here these past few days, I feel he is not a bad person."

"Look around; no one here is harassed by gangs. Has anyone pulled a knife on you to beg?"

The guy speaking was filled with a faint sarcasm. In New Jincheng, they had all been robbed, but in Jincheng, surprisingly, no one robbed them, and they hadn't discovered any obvious criminal behavior.

The entire Jincheng is like being in another dimension; there are no gunshots in the middle of the night that keep people awake, and the news and television don't have endless reports of crime problems.

Everything is so peaceful, safe, and reliable, which made him truly feel the difference between here and other places.

His companion laughed and said, "So you think Mr. White is a good person?"

The person speaking paused for a moment, "I don't know. Some people say he is bad, and you know, we all understand this point—that must be a gang or something."

"But if you have to make me say whether it is good or bad, I can only say I don't know. My time here is still too short. Perhaps if I stay longer, I will know."

They were chatting when suddenly a motorcade slowly pulled over to the side of the road. The two hurriedly put out their half-smoked cigarettes, threw them on the ground, and even stepped on them.

It was obvious that a big shot had come to vote. With the arrival of the motorcade, some reporters at the scene also took the initiative to surround them.

When they called out that person's name, the two federal government staff members realized who had arrived.

"Mr. Lans, can you reveal who you are going to vote for?" The reporters held notebooks and pens, greeting Lans very enthusiastically and asking about his voting target.

Lans naturally replied that he would vote for the Social Party presidential candidate and claimed that he was a staunch supporter of the Social Party.

"Mr. Lans, do you think the Social Party has a chance to continue its winning streak in this election?"

"There are many consulting agencies now that claim the Social Party's probability of winning is less than thirty percent. How do you view this issue?"

These were all "harmless" questions. Of course, those sharp, harmful questions, ordinary people wouldn't dare to ask randomly.

After all, they still have to live in this city.

"No matter what our winning percentage is, we will fight until the last moment. This is what the Social Party, and we who support the Social Party, should do."

"The Federation is undoubtedly a great country because the President of the Federation comes from the people's election, not the inheritance of power. This is very difficult to achieve on a global scale."

"The more this is the case, the more we should cherish the votes in our hands. It doesn't just elect a presidential candidate; it elects the future of the Federation!"

The reporters all began to applaud, "Well said, Mr. Lans. Can I publish this passage in the newspaper?"

Lans smiled and agreed to his request, "This is your freedom, Mr. Reporter."

Lans looked back at Meiluo beside him, "In such cold weather, these gentlemen still insist on staying at their posts. This is also a spirit of 'fighting'."

"I remember we have a cooperative relationship with several coffee houses?"

Meiluo nodded, "Yes."

"Then prepare a cup of hot coffee and some pastries for each of them, including these gentlemen who are queuing to vote!"

His voice was not loud, but it could be heard by most people. When those workers who were queuing and watching the excitement learned that they could also get a cup of coffee and a piece of pastry, they immediately showed sincere smiles and loudly thanked Mr. Lans for his generosity!

Someone even took the initiative to give up the first position, letting Lans go to vote first.

Lans greeted them, then filled out his ballot, turned around to show it to everyone, and then inserted it into the voting slot.

Although people didn't know why they should applaud, they still began to applaud for Lans completing his vote under some magical collective consciousness.

Perhaps it is just as Lans said: voting is sacred, and they who vote are also sacred. This point was embodied in Lans at this moment.

After voting, Lans said goodbye to everyone and left by car. At the same time, in less than ten minutes, two box trucks arrived, belonging to two different cafes. They delivered a large amount of coffee, including for the polling station staff.

These federal government staff members who came from out of town couldn't say it was their first time encountering such a situation. When they were at polling stations in other states before, they had also encountered some politicians' on-site grandstanding.

But those people's shows were far less natural than Lans's performance, and he gave everyone a cup of hot coffee in this cold weather.

When the hot coffee entered their bodies and made them feel warm, they would spontaneously remember who allowed them to enjoy all this.

This is a very good piece of propaganda.

The two staff members looked at each other, both feeling that this person Lans was truly extraordinary!

The matter of Lans voting in person also made it into the local news in Jincheng the next day. Reporters used many flowery terms to praise Lans's thoughts that could touch the moon.

Even the "Federal Post" adopted fragments from these reports, which also allowed more people to begin to recognize Lans.

Those who know him are not likely to dislike him, and those who are not familiar with him will not develop feelings of disgust toward someone they don't know.

And those who know him, as long as they are not his enemies, will all sigh at his generosity.

Who can refuse a generous person?

As for his enemies?

They most likely have no mind to focus on this matter right now, for example, Director Luo Bu.

Because his wife and children disappeared, on the very first day of the general election.

They were in a safe house prepared by Director Luo Bu. That place was very safe; only he and his cousin knew, and others were completely unaware.

In order to avoid reporters or others in the local area discovering his wife and children and harassing them, or obtaining some important information from the children who had never experienced these things, he had his wife and children stay in the safe house and not go out.

All daily necessities were purchased by his cousin, the director, and then sent over.

A week had passed since the grand celebration of the Saint Agricultural Festival, and the food and groceries in the safe house were also almost consumed.

The cousin, the director, drove to the safe house. He used a small trailer to place food and groceries and such on it, and dragged it to the outside of the safe house.

He knocked on the door, but there was no response. He immediately sensed something was wrong, so he took out the spare key and opened the room.

The entire safe house looked very tidy, with no traces of fighting or the like, and it didn't look messy, which meant that Director Luo Bu's wife and the three children had left the place in an orderly fashion.

Why they left, and whether something had happened, the cousin, the director, was completely unaware.

He only knew that there was big trouble.

"You didn't send anyone to protect them?" Director Luo Bu felt for the first time that this cousin of his was so unreliable.

His cousin, the director, also felt a bit aggrieved at this time, "If I had arranged for people, would it have caused them to be exposed?"

"And the safe house here is very safe; it's impossible for anyone to discover the situation here..."

Director Luo Bu interrupted him rudely, "But someone discovered it, and something happened!"

This left his cousin with a belly full of words that he couldn't say, and he could only remain calm.

Director Luo Bu walked back and forth in front of his office desk several times, "They couldn't have disappeared for no reason. Go investigate; someone must have discovered something. Find out clearly, find them!"

"No matter what, whatever the cost, find them!"

After putting down the phone, Director Luo Bu's mind uncontrollably conjured up Lans's appearance. He felt that at this time, the only person who could possibly do this was Lans.

This caused him to develop some feelings of terror. During this period, he had indeed been tossed around enough by Lans. The abortion and pregnancy scandal, and the secret marriage scandal, had only just been overshadowed by the general election, and he had safely passed through.

Now the problem had come again, as if Lans's attacks were endless.

He had dodged the first time, dodged the second time, dodged the third time, but there were still a fourth, a fifth, and who knows how many times waiting for him behind.

And the methods were becoming more and more despicable; he actually went to kidnap his wife and children!

He didn't know what Lans wanted to do, but it must be something that would make him suffer!

For the first time, Director Luo Bu truly felt regret for choosing Lans as his opponent. He could actually have chosen someone else, but for some reason, under various coincidences, his target became the person who was about to become the biggest nightmare of his life!

Far exceeding the person who had made him feel despair before, becoming his new source of fear!

He didn't dare to call Lans now, because before he completely figured out this matter, he was afraid to call Lans. If it wasn't Lans who did it, it would expose this matter.

He didn't know if Lans would use the information gap to do something to him, so he had to figure out exactly what was going on before he could decide what to do.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 1173 =====