Chapter 164: Businessmen, Politicians and Workers
There was no order, and this was the general problem in the United States in the late 19th century. It was necessary to take into account both party interests and the interests of workers' organizations, as these would be reflected in election results and bills.
These bastards, in the absence of order, always target the kind capitalists, not understanding who created the wealth of this country, always wanting the cows to work but not giving them grass to eat. Can't they just starve to death instead of jumping out to cause trouble?
Sheffield believed that he was not the only one who thought so. His colleagues, whether they had a good relationship or a bad one, whether they were Rockefeller or DuPont, must have had enough of these thorny and unruly people. They were still enduring them only because they had not fulfilled their dream of reshaping order. Once this dream was fulfilled, they could live a good life in peace.
So even if Sheffield is dissatisfied with these bastards and looks down on the civil servants who are not honest enough, he still has to contact them. This is all for a better life in the future. I am the only one who can feed them shit and bribe them. This right does not belong to the jumping up and down people. He endures everything in front of him.
The two men hugged each other with a passion that could be described as disgusting, like friends of different ages. However, this scene could not be considered collusion between officials and businessmen. There was no law that explicitly stated that a businessman and a civil servant could not be friends, and the city councilor was not a very high-ranking civil servant.
"As a successful entrepreneur, I'm very happy to be in California," Harvey said with a slightly exaggerated enthusiasm. "We really need successful people here to help the local development."
Sheffield was a little annoyed by this wording. Why did it sound a bit like the wording used to attract investment? It seems that although cultures vary around the world, there is no innovation in the wording used in official articles. They all follow a certain formula.
"The agricultural conditions in California are very good. Although the terrain is somewhat difficult, it is not unacceptable. However, there is one thing, which is the lack of certain management. Our company is rooted in agriculture and animal husbandry and has been committed to promoting the modernization of agriculture and animal husbandry. It has always been the pursuit of the United Company to complete greater production in less time."
Sheffield's hands naturally dropped, with a reserved attitude, and the official documents were also set, proving with facts that if it weren't for his status as an heir, being a civil servant who talks nonsense would not necessarily be worse than you. In terms of deceiving the people, he is just as good as you, and even better.
A bunch of nice words floating in the sky, which sounded reasonable at first, but in fact, there were no specific measures when listening carefully. After proving that he was also a master of deception, Sheffield talked about something practical. "For Democrats, especially Democrats who lived in the South at a certain stage in their lives, our company has always had a very good impression. Fortunately, I came to California, where I was unfamiliar with the place, and I had such good luck to meet such a friend."
"Who can refuse to be friends with Sheffield United?" Harvey said meaningfully, indicating that he was willing to do everything he could to prove that he was willing to be friends with the rich.
Hehe... Sheffield tilted his head, and Evelyn took out an exquisite box. Harvey frowned and said, "How can this be so embarrassing? Don't do this next time..."
"We'll talk about it next time!" Sheffield laughed happily. How free and unrestrained was the United States in the late 19th century? The cooperation between officials and businessmen was so smooth, but he did not forget that order must be established. The common people should not be allowed to have the ability to open up connections. If I have to bribe, my purpose of bribing will not change.
Evelyn bit her lip lightly, watching the scenes in front of her. Even a city council member like Harvey was something she, an ordinary girl, had never seen in Los Angeles, a city with a population of just over 100,000, because her family didn't care much about the election itself.
But even as a bystander, she felt complicated during such a meeting and could only stand aside and watch.
"We have other guests today, so we can finish everything together. By the way, this is Mr. Candler, who came all the way from Chicago to plan a beverage factory." Sheffield put his hands in his pockets, leaned over and said to Candler, "Let's talk slowly while waiting for the others to come."
"Okay!" Harvey nodded and invited Sheffield into his residence. Although it was a little small, he believed that Sheffield's bodyguards would not mind.
There are three more guests today, all of whom are members of the California Workers' Party. Judging from the people at the gathering, they are politicians, capitalists and workers, which simply crosses class boundaries. I just don't know if this can be a unifying meeting.
If it goes smoothly, Sheffield doesn't mind giving these workers' organizations some sweet treats, just like he did to the members of the KKK. As long as they obey, everything is negotiable. Although the working class is naturally opposed to him, the leaders of the working class can be bribed.
Didn't someone say that workers' organizations in bourgeois countries are inherently weak? Sheffield forgot who said it, but I think it makes a lot of sense. Otherwise, why did the spokesperson for the workers' organization go to his company last time and end up leaving?
The members of the California Workers Party who came here, including the people we met last time, were eventually kicked out of their company by Sheffield. During this meeting, their attitudes were obviously much better, and they stopped acting like they were local bastards.
"Everyone knows that I'm a good person. I was commended by the Los Angeles Police Department two days ago for helping the police solve a railway robbery and bringing the criminals to justice. Even if many people know that I was the one who killed those people, so what? Evelyn knows about this. She was the conductor on that train and is now my secretary." Sheffield pointed at John Connor standing aside and asked, "Is this true?"
Evelin saw that everyone's eyes were on her, and she lowered her head with a complicated expression, with an embarrassed expression on her face. When other people saw this expression, they immediately imagined a story of a rich and powerful young man forcing a pure girl to submit. Now this lawless young man was narrating the events of the day with great joy.
"But I don't want to talk about that little thing today!" Sheffield tapped the table with his hand holding a cigar, and the ash fell on it, but no one paid attention to this issue. "Out of sympathy for the local workers, I have brought in Mr. Candler and plan to open a beverage factory locally to serve the citizens of the United States in the Great West. This will of course also require skilled workers. Beverages need sugar, which naturally requires land to grow. Bottled beverages require glass factories, which are all employment opportunities. I believe Congressman Harvey will also support it."
"Of course I support anything that can help local development. I even hope that more factories can be built here." Harvey nodded solemnly, looking tired as if he had worked hard for the citizens. He was completely different from the look on his face when he just accepted the gift.
"Well, as you can see, for the development of Los Angeles, I am also using my connections to get partners to come and invest. I personally believe that the Los Angeles City Government welcomes this. However, it seems that some people are not very welcoming to my arrival and even came to blackmail me." Sheffield looked at the three members of the California Workers Party with a hostile look on his face. He spoke word by word, "Is this how you treat a businessman who came here with enthusiasm to invest?"
"Mr. William, you are here to do business so that we can live a better life. These workers' organizations are sometimes so short-sighted!" After hearing this, Harvey's smooth face became serious and he stood up decisively to help Sheffield accuse the three peasants in front of him. The heir to a big company and three members of a workers' organization who only knew how to make trouble. This was a multiple-choice question with only one option and he would definitely not make a mistake.
A powerful businessman was spitting all over the place, unscrupulously accusing the local workers of being shameless, with the help of a Los Angeles city council member. Most importantly, the direction of the three-party talks was easy to see from the bulging guns under the clothes of several bodyguards in suits.
Inviting these workers' representatives here is more like Sheffield insulting these hooligans unscrupulously after everything is ready.
It's not like that, it's just like that, the working class trembled under the alliance of businessmen and politicians. Finally, a worker representative spoke weakly, "In fact, we also welcome more job opportunities. The last visit was a bit reckless."
"Is that reckless? It's simply shameless!" Sheffield crossed his legs, "Without us capitalists, you lazy people wouldn't even have enough to eat."
"We just want more opportunities for our country. Those Chinese workers are tireless and many people cannot compete with them. This is our country. Why should we let these outsiders compete with us!" The spokesperson who went to Sheffield last time whispered, "No matter which country it is, this doesn't make sense."
What he said really makes sense. Even Sheffield could not refute this reason because he is still marketing the image of a patriotic businessman and is even preparing to go to Greece to attend the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in person.
But would this be a problem for Sheffield? No way. He knew that public opinion was there. The bill restricting the Chinese could not be ruled out, but if it could not be repealed, could it not be expanded? He asked the same question again, "What do you think of the increasing number of Mexicans crossing the border every year? Or are you pretending not to see it?"
(End of this chapter)
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