Darkstone Code-Chapter 948 - 946: Choices

"The problem isn’t too serious."

The head of the Legal Department and the main members of the company’s team of lawyers gathered in the president’s office. They re-examined the standard contract text, finding no clauses unfavorable to Every Moment.

As the first act upon taking office, the former president established a powerful team of lawyers.

The purpose was simply precautionary; he felt insecure in the Federation, and since the Federation is a nation governed by the rule of law, he believed that the law could protect his rights well—

At the very least, prevent the Federation people from legally causing him trouble!

This awareness led Every Moment to avoid many unpredictable risks during its development.

"There’s no stipulation that we must supply these clients with a certain amount of goods at a specified time; it’s merely a sales contract."

"They sell our goods, we provide the goods..."

Lynch interrupted them, "What if they demand goods and we’re unable to supply them?"

The head of the Legal Department put down the contract and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Breach of contract, Mr. Lynch, but we can drag the case out..."

It’s evident that supply constraints bind both parties, not just one party—that would be unfair.

Lynch asked another question, "Their demands mainly focus on two things: a penalty for breach of contract and the removal of our counters, right?"

The head of the Legal Department nodded, "That’s correct."

Lynch showed a thoughtful expression; he was already considering how to tackle these issues. "We need to buy time. Is there any good way to delay things for a longer period?"

"Yes, Mr. Lynch, we can request that the courts extend the trial date by a week or two."

"That’s enough!" Lynch nodded and packed up the documents on the table into a file bag, leaving it at the corner of the table. "Continue to research the contracts and see if we have any legal avenues to resolve these issues. As for the rest... I’ll make arrangements."

This was a signal for everyone to leave. After tidying up, they left the president’s office.

For them, it wasn’t good news. It seemed Lynch was already giving up, and some middle-level managers even began considering exit strategies.

Once everyone had left the office, Lynch asked his secretary to close the door after going out. He pondered for a while and dialed a number in Sabin City.

Shortly after the call was made, someone picked up, "This is Fern."

"Where’s your brother?"

"Mr. Lynch?" Fern recognized Lynch’s voice, "Wait just a moment, he’s working, I’ll go get him!"

With the sound of the receiver being placed down, footsteps grew distant.

Fern walked through the house to the door outside the basement. Standing here, one couldn’t hear any sound, but upon opening the door, pitiful screams emanated from within.

He followed the stairs down.

The basement was very bright, unlike some homes’ basements that have wooden or concrete walls. This basement was covered in smooth tiles, including the walls and ceiling; all were tiled smoothly.

A man was bound to a chair, screaming in pain, apparently in great distress.

Noel wore a shirt, sleeves rolled up, and the neckline completely open.

He glanced at Fern, "What’s the matter?"

"A call from the boss." 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Noel raised an eyebrow, walked to the table, put on his watch, then pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the blood on his fist. "Not many people can take my things without giving me an explanation..."

He glanced at Fern, "Let him understand this truth!" He patted Fern’s shoulder and left the basement.

The basement door, closed once again, made the place quiet. Despite the miserable whimpering of the man tied to the chair, anyone standing there could feel the true silence!

Fern took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves like his brother, unbuttoned his collar, took off his watch, and placed it on the table.

He selected a finger tiger he liked, gripped it tightly, and walked up to the captive under the fearful gaze, punching him in the abdomen.

The tearing pain caused the captive to cry out uncontrollably in pain, but the sound could not be heard beyond the basement door.

On the nearby street, someone gazed enviously at this luxurious house. They would never know what was happening at that moment in the basement.

Having resumed the demeanor of a civilized man, Noel entered the study upstairs, regulated his breathing, exhaled the turbid air from his chest, and then sat down, picking up the receiver.

"I’m here, Mr. Lynch."

Lynch used the empty time to think through his plans for a while. As Noel’s voice emerged, he quickly returned to the present, "How many people do you have at your disposal, adults, at least twenty years old."

"About a hundred or two, I haven’t bothered to categorize them by precise age."

"That’s enough. I have something I need you to do, and you must do it quickly. Later, I’ll have money transferred to your account. Now listen carefully..."

Approximately twenty minutes later, Noel hung up the phone, looking at the two pages filled with notes.

Lynch had said too much for him to remember, so he had to write everything down.

Lynch told them that people without culture would eventually be discarded by society, so these people, especially the children, were all required to be sent to school.

Even adults must at least be able to read and write, or else don’t try to make a living here.

Looking at his recorded achievements, Noel quickly returned to the basement, opened the door, and walked in. The guy sitting on the chair was still howling miserably, but it seemed that he had said nothing.

"Finished talking?"

Noel nodded his head and walked to the deepest part of the basement, taking down a raincoat hanging on the wall.

As he was putting on the raincoat, Fern returned to the table, wiped the Finger Tiger clean, threw it into a basin filled with colored liquid, and then took out a Handkerchief to clean the bloodstains on his hands.

He hummed a song that homeless people and poor kids in Sabin City often sang, and the lyrics were interesting—

"I saw a piece of bread"

"But it’s in the dog’s mouth"

"Hunger makes me forget fear"

"I just want to fill my stomach"

"The roadside stones are a bit heavy"

"The wooden sticks on the ground fit well in hand"

"I shout at it"

"Come here, baby, let me hug you!"

If you walk in places where Sabin City’s poor gather, you can often hear kids on the roadside singing this song in groups.

Nobody knows where it came from or who sang it first.

It’s just that the melody is interesting, the lyrics aren’t complicated, and the content fits people’s thoughts, so the song spreads widely among a certain group.

The man sitting in the chair suddenly became even more terrified; his swollen cheeks made speaking difficult, and he started struggling, with fear under his gaze, there was also a plea.

Noel finished putting on the raincoat and chose a two-inch-long Dagger from the table, walking expressionlessly to the man’s back, pressing his head firmly with his left hand to prevent his struggles from affecting the next move.

The imprisoned man got excited, repeatedly saying things like "Spare me," "I’ll tell you everything," "Don’t kill me," but this couldn’t move Noel.

"Too late!"

With a forceful pull of the knife across his neck, blood gushed out instantly.

A stream of air from the trachea blew away some blood when he breathed, and when he inhaled, a large amount of blood backfilled into the waste fluid.

Only in those ten or twenty seconds did he have a brief and intense twitch before completely becoming motionless.

Noel took off the raincoat, threw it into the sink, sprinkled some powder, and then turned on the faucet.

"What about the things we lost?", Fern asked.

The man was a member of another Gang, and not long ago, he collaborated with some people to steal a batch of raw materials just introduced by the Green brothers—

This was definitely not intentional; it was just something they found unexpectedly, not knowing whose goods those were.

By the time they stole it, they realized it belonged to the Green brothers, but it was already too late then.

This unlucky guy was captured not long ago; Noel originally planned to open a breakthrough from him, but he didn’t expect his mouth to be so tight, or perhaps he purely didn’t want to admit just to try to get away.

Noel, washing his hands, scrutinized himself in the mirror; if there were bloodstains, he would have to change his clothes.

"More than one person knows the truth; compared to this matter, Mr. Lynch’s assigned task is significantly more important."

Fern also showed some interest, "What are we supposed to do?"

Noel’s face gained a playful smile, "Help some people recognize reality..."

Half an hour later, the Green brothers’ people all moved, which terrified the Gangs in Sabin City.

The Green brothers don’t belong to any crime syndicate; they exist in a Grey area, not a Gang but a service company.

Although some say they use the service company name to cover their gang reality, this is of no use.

In Sabin City and even York State, no one investigates the Green brothers; everyone knows who their boss is.

Perhaps as soon as they initiate a case investigation, everyone from the clerk to the Director has to change jobs; as long as they don’t make too much trouble or invoke public resentment, the authorities turn a blind eye to their actions.

The Green brothers have been taught many times by Lynch; they gradually understood how to survive in this society, and even now, no one can present concrete criminal evidence to accuse them.

You can be a bad person doing bad things, but you must make many good people like you; as long as they all like you, even if you become worse day by day, they can accept it.

Conversely, even if you are a good person always doing good deeds, but those good people don’t like you, even if you make no mistakes, they will find a way to make you err.