Chapter 96 - Riot

It was then that Jiang Ruolan found out what had happened to Xian Zihao the night before, the night he was at the Carlmore Bridge.

It turned out that more than a hundred laborers had been cheated by development companies for not paying their wages for a year. They have no money to go home, so they gathered on the bridge to commit suicide. They used this method to threaten builders.

The matter had alarmed Xian Zihao, the investor, to coordinate the situation personally, and those police cars were also used to prevent those laborers from doing something crazy. To solve this problem and prevent bad things from happening, Xian Zihao spent all night calming the laborers, then found the director of the development company to settle the matter seriously and decisively.

Those laborers were not citizens of H City; some of them just came here to work for a year or two and then go to another city. Logically, the security issues of this city were very low. Once those laborers tasted the sweetness and pleasure of living in this city, more than ten people were trying to threaten to commit suicide. Either see them commit suicide or let them meet the president.

However, Xian Zihao wasn't in H City at the moment. The police had already dispatched the men to detention centers to educate the public strictly. But as soon as they arrived, they heard that someone had been injured by the police officer's electric for resisting and breaking instructions.

That night, the problem of more than a hundred laborers who wanted to jump into the river to commit suicide was solved well by Xian Zihao. But now, without his presence, the situation was becoming increasingly chaotic.

The commotion in the detention center became more intense.

Jiang Ruolan rushed there to get the news, and when the family members of the laborer saw her journalist ID hanging around her neck, they immediately rushed towards her. "Are you a journalist? We want to make a complaint! We're going to expose these bastards! Wasn't Old Tang just going to ask them for some money? They actually dare to hit people!"

"Journalist! Journalist, you have to help us! Help us expose their actions!" 

"We have to show those superiors how difficult life is for us ordinary people. We must ask for insurance! We should ask for money from investors as compensation!"

"Is there still justice left in this situation ..."

"Hey, auntie, don't be like this." The woman in front of her, who was in her sixties, was about to kneel excitedly and hold her hand. Jiang Ruolan held onto the crying woman and didn't know what to do. "Auntie, let go of me first. I'll go in and check on the situation, okay?"

"You have to help us …"

"All right, all right. I will try my best to help." She had no choice but to agree. After the old woman let go of her hand, Jiang Ruolan hurriedly pushed the crowd and into the ward.

Two police officers were standing in the ward, along with some staff from an unknown department. Looking towards the side of the bed, Secretary Du was talking to the laborer, and she walked towards them quickly.

Secretary Du glanced at Jiang Ruolan and was stunned. He suddenly remembered her occupation and nodded at her.

"What's going on?" Although she already knew the situation on the way here but when she saw so many people here, she couldn't help furrowed her brows and look at Secretary Du.

Secretary Du stood up and told his staff to watch the laborer. He walked with Jiang Ruolan to a quiet corner of the ward and whispered. "This matter has already been told to President Xian, but right now he is in F City, and can't rush back. He told us to temporarily calm down these people's emotions. The situation now is that these laborers wanted to rely on Xian Group to help them ask for money from development companies, but their demand is very high. CEOs have long predicted that their demands will become more and more because they are all greedy. For the time being, he ordered us to calm these laborers. He said nothing more. This kind of greed is the thing that we don't want to see the most."

"These laborers dare to fight with the police at the detention center. The police couldn't beat them, they were even injured."

"I strongly disagree with this method. Isn't the punishment for keeping these laborers in the detention center too much?" She frowned.

"Everything has not been resolved. They will be released once the problem is resolved, but before being released, they must get the right education in their minds. If they thought that every related company is a welfare home for them, then they are wrong!" Secretary Du looked very mad.

Since Xian Zihao was not here, the problem was now on his shoulders. Secretary Du fears that if he did not deal with this matter properly, it would affect Xian Group's future prospects.

Jiang Ruolan looked at Secretary Du, who was in a bad mood. She asked softly, "Then, when you contacted President Xian, what was his opinion on this matter? What is he going to do with these people?"

Secretary Du paused, looking at the probing look in her eyes, "The CEO intends to calm them down for a while. If they are really overreacting, then we have no choice but to enforce a coercive policy."

"A strong policy of oppression?" Jiang Ruolan was a little worried. Although she did not understand what kind of policy was mentioned in this policy of oppression, she was more or less able to understand that these laborers would not have the opportunity to make a comeback in the future.

She said in a low voice, "Although they are the ones who cause trouble, they still have life. They live in imperfect environments, and they lack education."

"President Xian's meaning is very clear. He really understands them all, so he wants us to pacify them first. But if they ..." Secretary Du paused, then said, "Miss Jiang, you should understand that these people's methods are no longer just plain bad. They are rogues, and they can lie in front of our door for days and nights, affecting our normal working environment. No matter how benevolent President Xian is, there is only one way to deal with this kind of people."

"Long-term detention? Will you pay compensation if they have to go to a mental hospital to recover?" Jiang Ruolan asked.

Secretary Du didn't say anything further and just smiled. "I'm very curious. How do you want this to be reported?"

Jiang Ruolan didn't say anything, she merely turned her head to look at the haggard and fearful middle-aged man on the sickbed. She looked at the man's swarthy skin and rough hands that had become tanned from working under the sun for a long time and sighed. 

"I also believe that Miss Jiang knows the limits."

"This sort of thing is a big deal, I understand." She took a photo and said, "Try not to hurt them as much as possible. They are all parents and have children. They did all this because they were desperate."

Secretary Du silently nodded and smiled at her. Jiang Ruolan then turned to leave. When she walked past the laborers, she just smiled.

***

Back at the company, the chief editor suddenly called Jiang Ruolan to his office.

"Little Jiang, there are several construction planning exhibitions to be held in the city soon. Government officials from various provinces and cities in the country and executives of large finance companies will all participate. Not many media organizations have the right to enter the exhibition but our company has been granted the right to be involved in the filming process. The chief editor handed her the document.

Jiang Ruolan took the document and looked at it. It contained information related to the design and exhibition of city construction, as well as methods to contact the authorities. She couldn't help but raised her gaze to the editor standing in front of her with his beer belly puffed up.

"It's already very difficult to get admission. There are less than 10 media organizations across the country that have been eligible for admission, and each media group only allows one spot."

"On what day is this exhibition held?"

"The exhibition will be held next Monday for three days. I heard that you worked in F City before you came here, so you must have missed it a little. The company has specifically allowed you to stay in F City for an extra week, as long as you send us all the reports." The chief editor laughed and patted his stomach.

"Really?" Jiang Ruolan was happy. She held the document in her arms and looked at the chief editor's plump face. "You always tried to force us to work overtime and pressure us to work harder. How can you be so generous at this time and even allowed me to stay in F City using the company's money?"

"This is an order from President Qin." The chief editor chuckled, "Do you think I'm always good? Hahaha..."

"Qin …" Jiang Ruolan was stunned. "Qin Gengxin?"

The editor nodded, his eyes full of meaning.

Obviously, he knew Jiang Ruolan was Xian Zihao's wife. Although he didn't understand the relationship between her and President Qin, the chief editor didn't ask.