Chapter 282

There was a very oppressive atmosphere in the mayor's office; Sidney lit a cigarette, he leaned sideways in his chair, his right arm holding the cigarette pressed against the armrest, supporting his body.

The smoke was exhaled slightly by him and then inhaled back; the smoke exposed to the air seemed to have produced some strange chemical reaction, becoming more intense.

He twisted his neck; this was indeed a difficult problem.

He had seen many dark or open schemes; he could find solutions to most problems, and the more complex the scheme, the easier it actually is to crack.

A conspiracy or a plot is like a machine; if this machine is very precise, it has hundreds or thousands of parts, and each part cannot be placed in the wrong position.

Then it is very easy to crack it; his goal is not to dismantle this machine intact, but just to make it stop.

So as long as one link can be destroyed, the whole machine will stop turning.

On the contrary, those machines that are so simple they only have two gears are impossible to destroy; clumsy and simple are precisely their advantages.

Just like this impeccable ransom note on the table.

He suddenly hummed and laughed twice, picked up the ransom note, and then looked at his personal secretary, "Do you believe it?"

"Perhaps many years from now, this ransom note will sell for a sky-high price just like an antique!"

The young man couldn't really laugh, "Whether it will become an antique in the future, I don't know, but I know we have to solve this problem."

The mayor threw the letter back onto the table, "Do you know why they solved Red High Heels first?"

The young man nodded, "They were afraid that Red High Heels had some leverage that we would grasp, making them passive."

The mayor pointed at him, "Well said, because these are private, intimate, and secrets that cannot be discovered by people."

"That's why they were afraid and uneasy, and that's why they were so eager to destroy Red High Heels, even if they sacrificed that old dog Charlie!"

"I have to thank them; if they hadn't sacrificed Charlie, I wouldn't even have been able to let John take office!"

The corners of the mayor's mouth lifted slightly; this was a decision he was very proud of. If they wanted Sam and Booker, then give them to them.

As long as they wanted to silence them, someone had to come out to take responsibility, and this person could only be Charlie.

If it were someone else, he wouldn't approve, so no matter what, Charlie was finished!

But if Sam and Booker hadn't been silenced in the police station, he wouldn't have been able to let Charlie go; the reason is simple: even a mayor has to be reasonable.

This society, this world, is fucking hilarious!

The ruler actually has to be reasonable!

Perhaps this is the greatest constraint on the ruler, not the law!

But they did that, which gave him a chance.

"What they fear is having their secrets made public, so they lose the initiative, but I am different from them."

The mayor stood up with his hands on the armrests of the chair; he tidied his clothes, "Go help me call the newspaper office; I want to hold a press conference myself."

The young man was silent for a moment, "Then Eric..."

The mayor turned and walked to the window, looking at the city, "This is his mission."

Soon, all the newspaper offices in the city knew that the mayor was going to hold a press conference himself and announce a big piece of news.

The members of the five major families who heard about this all revealed smiles; they felt that their threatening strategy had worked!

The mayor was afraid and was going to compromise; the rest was for them to set a time, sit together, and chat about the future development of the city. They could give the mayor some benefits and let him become a part of the "local" faction.

The five major families all arranged for people to attend this press conference; they had press passes, which were actually just handwritten small cards that anyone could forge.

When a large number of reporters and people looking for news appeared at the press conference site at City Hall, they saw a man who looked very haggard.

Some people even exclaimed, unable to believe that this was the mayor!

He looked like he had lost his usual demeanor entirely: messy hair, a disheveled collar, a sorrowful expression, and tired eyes.

When the personal secretary told him that enough people had arrived, he patted the microphone.

Then he was dazed for a while, "I... don't know how to start talking about this matter."

"This morning, someone sent me some things, some special gifts."

"I have this habit; I receive emails from citizens. I want to know their views and opinions on some of my policies and management, but I didn't expect that I would encounter this!"

Soon, a box containing a dead cat and a kraft paper bag were placed on the table one after another; the City Hall guards showed these things to the reporters.

In an instant, the flashbulbs went off wildly, and smoke floated on the roof; people felt a chill looking at the dead cat and the bullets.

Of course, they knew what this was; this was the intimidation of the five major families!

However, this news was very explosive, and they wouldn't miss it.

"If these threats are not enough to shake my determination to make this city more prosperous, then now, I am hesitant."

He picked up the kraft paper bag in front of him, opened it, took out a piece of paper, and showed it to everyone.

"It looks like a few-year-old child cut out some fragmented paper scraps from a newspaper and then randomly pieced them together."

"But, gentlemen, please read this paragraph carefully, and you will find that it is not cute at all, but rather terrifying!"

A reporter read it out loud; for a moment, people couldn't believe that all this had really happened!

Someone kidnapped Eric to threaten the mayor and force him to resign voluntarily!

The re-equipped flashbulbs completed their mission in an instant; the room was a bit choking.

But the reporters' excited emotions made them ignore this point.

"I know many people hate me because I tried to shake their interests."

"They have always wanted to force me away, and now they have even resorted to such despicable means; I have already been able to imagine what they are going to do."

"They will kill Eric and then tell people that I sat by and watched Eric be killed because I was greedy for power."

"This is a devastating blow to a mayor who wants to make people live happier lives."

"They value their own interests highly, placing them above the interests of ordinary people!"

"Just because I want to build the Xingang Area."

"Once the Xingang Area construction is completed, it will increase at least 15,000 jobs for New Jincheng; 15,000 families will be better off, employment rates will rise, unemployment rates will fall, and security problems will be alleviated."

"We will become the world's number one port city, we will become the core of world shipping!"

"This place will become more prosperous, and everyone will be able to live happily as if in a fairy tale."

"You will have soft and fluffy bread, you will have whole pieces of beef, you will be able to afford fruit, and you won't even need to rent apartments anymore, having your own houses."

"But now, they are trying to end all of this; I don't know what to do, honestly."

"On one side is my relative, an innocent child, and on the other side, are 1.2 million citizens of New Jincheng; you are also my relatives!"

"I am very conflicted!"

"I want to save my relative, but the price is to let 1.2 million citizens fall into darkness."

"I know how to choose, but I don't know how to choose!"

"Perhaps, this is their goal."

The mayor stood up, "I have thought for a long time, and I have made a decision."

"I want to declare war on criminal forces, I want to declare war on the evil forces that prevent happiness from coming to New Jincheng!"

"When I have fulfilled my promise, I will voluntarily resign from my position, no longer serve as the mayor of New Jincheng, and not even take on other work; I will atone and repent for abandoning him!"

He slammed his hands heavily on the table, "The interests of the people are above everything, including me, or Eric!"

The wildly flashing lights made the young man standing in the corner breathe a heavy sigh of relief; he suddenly realized that no one could stop the mayor from moving forward!

Even if he really resigned from all positions at that time, with his "legendary" experience and reputation, wanting to participate in various elections again would not be a problem at all!

He could even directly run for governor; as long as he left enough traces in New Jincheng, he could run for governor, and even have a high chance of winning!

He sincerely admired this mayor; perhaps he had the qualifications to become a truly great person, the young man firmly believed this!

The news spread almost throughout the city in less than ten minutes, including the five major families, Councilor Wei De, and Councilor Williams; they all knew about this matter.

For a moment, the brains of the two councilors were... frozen!

They couldn't understand what kind of operation this was by the five major families—

In their cognition, except for the five major families, no one else could possibly do this, nor did they have the ability or the guts to do so!

That is the mayor's illegitimate son; you motherfuckers not only kidnapped him, but you also want to kill the hostage?

What made them feel even more afraid was that the mayor, that lunatic, Sidney, actually confronted them head-on!

Directly making this troublesome matter public; just look at the citizens on the road heading to City Hall to support the mayor, and you will know how high his prestige is now!

These idiots ruined their great plan!

And the five major families were also stunned; countless phone calls flew back and forth between them; they even started to suspect each other: who exactly kidnapped Eric?

But asking, you can't ask it out, especially at this time; asking themselves, even if they were the ones who kidnapped him, they couldn't possibly tell the outside world.

Whoever says it is everyone's enemy!

Almost everyone had the same question.

Where is Eric?