Shadow Empire

Chapter 985 Healthcare, Development, and Address
Many people attended Morris's wedding, including members of the Lance family, the bride's parents, relatives and friends, as well as Morris's own friends.

Morris is now the general manager of Golden Harbor Casino, and he is fully responsible for the operation of the entire casino.

The Golden Casino has not yet officially opened due to the war and other reasons. Lance has set the opening date after the war ends.

People don't have much money in their pockets right now because of the "war tax," even though wages are constantly increasing—

It must be said that wages have increased very rapidly in the last two years, with almost all companies now offering a wage increase every six months, and the amount of the increase is not small.

This is the most direct manifestation of rapid economic growth.

During the economic downturn of the past few years, it was common to see companies that didn't raise wages for two or three years.

If you don't do it, someone else will.

Moreover, these people are not only willing to work, they are also willing to lower their salary expectations and work as hard as they can.

In the past, if capitalists wanted workers to work overtime voluntarily, the union leaders would immediately come knocking on their door, accusing them of exploiting and oppressing the workers.

Back then, it was normal to work twelve, thirteen, or even fourteen hours a day but only receive pay for ten or eleven hours.

With the economic downturn, many factories went bankrupt and closed down, and federal workers received wages of around thirty dollars for at least five or six years.

But look at the present: the economy is booming, and because of the war, the Federation's goods are being dumped halfway around the world, and there are also a large number of military equipment orders.

Millions of workers were drawn to the battlefield, creating a labor shortage in factories, and factories began offering higher wages to recruit workers.

It is said that the wages of some workers in Jin Gang City have risen to around 52, 53, 54 or 55 yuan this year. In Xin Jin City, for example, the average wage of workers in the car factory has exceeded 60 yuan.

For example, some engineers have already earned over a hundred, or even more than a hundred or two hundred.

The current salary increase is like a retaliatory surge, making up for all the losses of those past few years in one go.

But that doesn’t mean people have more money than before. After the war broke out, a nationwide tax was levied, and the tax rate was quite high. Most people’s wages increased, but in the end, they had less money to spend.

Therefore, Golden City is not in a hurry to open; one Golden Harbor Casino is enough.

Therefore, in Golden City, in terms of casinos, Morris is definitely the top player in the industry.

He made many friends, including those who specialized in casino finance, i.e., loan sharks.

There are also other suppliers, such as gambling equipment suppliers.

In large casinos, gambling equipment can be considered consumables. Sometimes, some customers may feel that a particular deck of cards is not favorable to them, and they will ask to change the cards.

The dealer will place the playing cards on the table for everyone to see, making sure there are no extra or missing cards, and then tear them up in front of everyone and throw them into the shredder to be completely shredded.

If you encounter a customer with a bad temper, they will demand to change their cards every time they lose, and the casino will definitely comply.

Don't think that encountering such customers will cause the casino to lose money. In fact, the "table tax" they pay during their gambling is enough to support them to exchange for more poker cards.

The Golden Harbor Casino consumes thousands of dollars worth of various gambling equipment every day. This amount of money may not be a lot for Lance, Morris, or even any other wealthy person.

But for small businesses, even getting just a portion of it, not all of it, can bring them substantial profits!

Therefore, Morris has a wide circle of friends in society. Lance used to think that Ennio was a master at networking, but now it seems that Morris is just as good.

After all, he had been dealing with all sorts of people in casinos since he was a child, so how could he not know how to interact with people?

"Mr. Lance!"

Lance turned to look at the two gentlemen walking towards him. These two gentlemen were clearly different from most of the other people present.

They carried an arrogant reserve about them, a feeling that was hard to describe, but in short, it made you feel that they were out of place with most people.

Lance patted Barbara's hand, and she rolled her eyes at him, but still politely greeted the two gentlemen before leaving.

"I hope I haven't bothered you!" The guy walking in front looked to be around thirty-seven or thirty-eight years old. His face and hair were meticulously groomed, suggesting he had very good skincare habits.

That's how the middle class is. When it comes to pursuing the so-called "high-quality life," they are absolutely at the forefront, even surpassing the wealthy in high society.

The reason he said that was because Barbara wasn't Patricia; she was a female celebrity. They might not know what Patricia looked like, but they knew Barbara.

He was unaware of the relationship between Lance and Barbara, and there might have been some misunderstanding, which Lance did not correct.

It wasn't that he did it on purpose, but rather that he felt it didn't matter.

"No," Lance replied succinctly.

"Let me introduce you. This is Dr. Eisen." The guy standing in front is the head, or rather the manager, of the "Kangjian Medical" research center in Likalai.

He is also the head of a hospital in Jin Gang City.

Kangjian Medical is one of the five largest healthcare groups in the federal government, and they cover many industries.

Many people think that medical groups are just about building hospitals and manufacturing pharmaceuticals, but that's not actually the case.

Their operations span numerous fields, including chemistry, materials science, industry, and education. If the military-industrial complex is a visible, powerful, and increasingly invincible super-complex, then...

So the medical group is a super behemoth hidden in the shadows that most people in the Federation and even the world are unlikely to notice!
The entire sector is under the control of these five medical groups.

Previously, there had been lawsuits alleging that they monopolized the federal healthcare industry, but Congress formed a special investigation team, which ultimately found no evidence of any actual monopolistic practices.

Lance contacted them because he wanted to collaborate with them to accelerate the development of human medical science and technology!

Lance shook hands with Dr. Eisen, a very typical "scholar-doctor," whose hair was somewhat gray, and who looked tall and thin with a cold look in his eyes.

It's not that he's indifferent to Lance; he sees everyone that way. He's indifferent to the human species as a whole!
In the laboratory, he dissected too many humans, and even killed many humans directly or indirectly through certain "scientific rituals".

From his perspective, humans are merely materials that can be used for research and experimentation.

A PhD or expert might verbally express respect for the materials, but there's a high probability that they don't truly respect them.

“Bede told me that you were willing to fund some of my research projects.”

Bede was the manager of the experimental center in Likalai State who was standing next to him.

Lance nodded. “Yes…” He then glanced back at Morris, who was socializing in the crowd. “That guy over there, the groom, he had a very serious gunshot wound, and many of his internal organs were severely damaged.”

"The doctor judged that his lifespan would be significantly reduced due to these injuries, and he may already be feeling the irreversible changes these traumas have brought to him."

“He often coughs and has trouble breathing; these are his problems.”

Dr. Eisen nodded. "Yes, I have seen Mr. Morris's file, and his situation is indeed very bad."

"So your purpose in supporting my research is to help him achieve a better quality of life and extend his lifespan as much as possible?"

Lance did not deny that Dr. Eisen is one of the fastest-growing experts in the field of organ transplantation.

In fact, he didn't need Lance's sponsorship; Kangjian Medical alone allocated a lot of money to him every year for various research projects.

Many people feel that medical expenses are expensive, and they find it hard to accept spending two or three hundred yuan to treat a fracture.

This is because they haven't seen how much the wealthy spend on healthcare; that's truly "astounding"!
Organ transplantation has always been one of the core areas of human research, and every medical group is conducting research on it.

Lance nodded. "Yes." Eisenburg glanced at the experimental center manager beside him, and after a brief exchange of glances, he looked back at Lance. "You know, my research is not short of funding."

"Several private equity firms give me substantial grants every year."

Most people are afraid of death. Many wealthy people never cherished their health when they were young, which is why their bodies are now in a mess.

In some literary works, and even some mythological stories, blood and organs are not only shrouded in mystery, but are also a manifestation of health and youth.

Organ transplants may be difficult, but blood transfusions are relatively easy, and some wealthy individuals have already undergone the procedure.

Although there is no clear data to prove that their bodies became younger after the blood transfusion, they all said they felt great!
This has fueled people's fervent desire for organ transplants!
Dr. Eisen's statement meant that he wanted to confirm the information relayed by those people.

What Lance offered to sponsor him was not money, but the materials he desperately needed.

Currently, 200,000 to 300,000 people go missing in the federal government every year, disappearing completely. What's most interesting is that they include men, women, young and old.

Young and beautiful women, or even younger boys and girls, often end up in cages in the basements of some gentlemen's manors after they disappear, becoming toys.

As for ordinary people, after they disappear, they either appear in farms or mines, or in these laboratories.

In the current federal black market, the price of a living person ranges from about 1,200 to 2,000 dollars, depending on their physical condition.

If there are special requirements, such as being particularly thin or overweight, or suffering from a certain medical condition, an additional price will apply.

This is a very secretive and terrifying market. Even Lance, with his current status, reputation, and influence in the underworld, cannot access the deepest darkness.

Because what's hidden behind this darkness isn't just the clean and superficial stuff like gangsters, but also things that people wouldn't expect and that would instill fear.

For example, men.

Research on organ transplantation is not about theory; they've already done most of the theoretical work. What's left is continuous practice—finding and solving problems through practice.

They have also conducted many experiments on animal organ transplantation, mainly to verify some theoretical claims.

When it comes to actual practice, people should still be the primary focus.

They will recruit volunteers to participate in the trials, such as patients with severe end-stage organ failure.

These people would die soon if they didn't receive organ transplants, so they decided to take a gamble.

Besides that, the only option is to buy.

However, the entire federal government is facing a huge shortage in this area. Dr. Eisen applied for a long time before being granted six sets of supplies, which were then used up in less than a month.

Then he applied again, but the head office was very strict in this regard, because it would be terrible if any scandal broke out!

Therefore, they are very strict in handling these consumables.

Everyone is researching this topic, and whoever can solve it first will gain great prestige and status in the medical industry. There are other scientists researching it as well, and Dr. Eisen doesn't want to give up this opportunity.

If he misses out on this research, there's a high probability he'll never have another chance to achieve top-tier medical accomplishments in his lifetime.

So when Lance said he could provide him with some supplies, he came over.

Lance made some small movements with his hands. "I have invested in some businesses in Lapa. Lapa is currently embroiled in a civil war, and thousands of people are dying every day."

Dr. Eisen listened and nodded, and although he lacked reverence and respect for life, he still showed some appropriate emotion at this moment.

"My God, what a pity!"

Lance nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's better to let them contribute to the medical field than to let them die for something meaningless. What do you think?"

"Dr. Eisen?"

Dr. Eisen was immediately intrigued. He looked at Lance, then at the manager, who nodded slightly.

In reality, Lance alone would not have been able to sway this plan. It was only because someone in CommonHealth contacted Congress and was very supportive after hearing about it that this development came about.

After a moment's thought, Dr. Eisen said, "I can't be sure right away whether this will work. I need to go to Lapa for a field visit to see if the environment there is suitable for us to conduct these research projects."

"No problem. Once you've decided on a time, just give me a call. I'll arrange for someone to protect you throughout the process, so you can get closer to those harsh realities."

"From my perspective, giving these people a chance to live is doing good."

Many people, whether government soldiers or anti-government militants, died in some corner or in a hospital bed after being shot and unable to receive timely medical assistance.

Lance's idea was to establish a completely neutral hospital to provide free treatment for the wounded like Lapa.

On the one hand, it can be used to promote and strengthen people's goodwill towards the Federation, and on the other hand, it can give Dr. Eisen the opportunity to access more consumables.

Beyond organ transplantation, research can also be conducted on the limits and duration of human survival when organs are damaged or have limited function.

This will be valuable data, and it's difficult to achieve this at the federal level, since there won't be that many patients who meet their requirements appearing in hospitals every day and are willing to cooperate with hospitals in recording data and conducting various studies.

This is a good thing, actually!
The three were discussing some details when louder noises came from afar. Manager Bed interrupted their conversation, saying, "It looks like Mr. Morris's wedding ceremony is about to begin."

Lance looked back and saw that it was indeed the case. He apologized, "I am the officiant today, so I must leave now."

"We can discuss any issues in more detail later."

He said goodbye to the two men and went to the front of the crowd.

Morris hugged him and they talked quietly. When people saw Lance, the previously noisy chatter immediately quieted down.

After Lance and Morris exchanged a few words, he took the initiative to walk to the stage and stand there. "Welcome everyone to Morris's wedding today. I don't think anyone doesn't know me."

People were very cooperative, and some were quite excited, such as Maurice's wife's relatives and friends.

For them, this was tantamount to realizing their federal dream in another way!
Yes, their dream came true at this moment, and everyone was so excited that they couldn't speak.

They didn't know how much income Morris earned each year, but it must have been a great fortune, so much that they couldn't even count it all.

They were fantasizing about what they could gain from this relationship in the future, and now that they had seen Lance, a wonderful life seemed to be beckoning to them.

“Maurice asked me to be the officiant, which is a very important role, and I’m not sure if I can play it well.”

"But no matter who it is or what they do, there's always a first time."

"Just like the first time we hold our wife's hand, the first time we put a diamond ring on her finger, the first time we are affectionate, the first time we become a father or mother, there are many firsts in our lives."

"For us, the first time often means the beginning of happiness: the first time we learn to walk, the first time we learn to run, the first time we learn to love!"

"I am very honored to be here on this special day to witness the love of my good brother, Maurice, and his wife."

"I hope they can go further in their love and marriage!"

"Brother, you can come up now. Asking me to say this is a little torturous. The gazes from the audience are too intense, making me sweat a bit!"

He made a gesture of wiping away sweat, and Maurice quickly came to his side. After the two hugged, Lance left and returned to the first seat on the left side of the front row.

Morris stood on the stage, thanking Lance for his speech and also thanking every friend and family member who was able to attend...

(End of this chapter)