50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 586 Sitting in a Row, Sharing the Fruit

After more than an hour of discussion, they basically understood the key to the solution and saw the benefits involved.

Among the assets under the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, some are highly profitable and some are not. They have already determined that everyone here will have priority in purchasing some of the high-quality resources.

They may not have money themselves, but with the right of first refusal, they can naturally exchange it for the wealth they deserve from capital.

As for how to exchange them—whether to sell the right of first refusal directly or use it as leverage to acquire a portion of the shares—each has its own way of doing things, and no one interferes with the other.

Of course, the interests of Sun Zhiwei, who proposed this plan, will also be guaranteed. This is an unspoken understanding among everyone, and it is something Cuomo must ensure.

Others can be greedy enough, but he can't; he's the leader of the team and needs to maintain the necessary order within it.

If he can't even guarantee Sun Zhiwei's share of the profits, what will the other members of the team think? Even those who have taken a share of the profits with him won't feel at ease.

Leaders must set the rules and lead by example in following them, otherwise the team will quickly fall apart. Cuomo is clearly not a short-sighted person.

At 11:00 AM, Sun Zhiwei returned to the state government office building, where Cuomo invited him to join the meeting in progress.

Prior to this, his secretary had confirmed the intentions of both parties with Sun Zhiwei.

As Sun Zhiwei entered the conference room with his secretary, Cuomo led the applause in welcome, and the others also applauded in welcome because of the benefits brought by Sun Zhiwei's plan.

After glancing at his secretary and receiving confirmation, Cuomo stood up happily and introduced, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is Mr. James Robert, who proposed the plan."

"Starting today, he will serve as my special advisor and lead this streamlining plan for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey."

Amid applause, Sun Zhiwei walked to the fourth empty chair on the right side of the conference table and sat down.

This seat used to belong to the representative of the Administration Bureau, but now that they are all lambs to the slaughter, there is no need to keep this seat. It is perfect for Sun Zhiwei to sit in.

There wasn't much to say in the subsequent meetings; everything that needed to be decided was decided, mainly to determine the allocation ratio of priorities.

The specific allocation of resources among the subordinate units of the Administration Bureau will have to wait until we obtain the Administration Bureau's internal documents.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has far too many subordinate units.

The larger units include New York City’s three major airports, two train stations, New York Harbor, four underwater tunnels, as well as subway and bus networks.

What remains are a vast number of bridges, highways, small docks, bus stations, freight stations, and small feeder airports, among others.

One can imagine how huge an undertaking it would be to downsize such a massive traffic management unit.

So when Cuomo asked Sun Zhiwei what help he needed, he had two requests.

His first requirement was that he needed a law enforcement agency to cooperate with the initial investigation.

Such a massive administration involves far too many vested interests. He certainly didn't want to be shot at any moment.

Therefore, he needs a strong armed force to carry out his decisions.

The second requirement is that he needs an entire accounting team.

If they want to sell off those subordinate units, the first thing they need to do is audit the accounts. Who would take on this mess if the accounts aren't clear? Cuomo was a little surprised by his request. He understood the need for an accounting team, but was it really necessary for an armed forces department?
It's not that he's out of touch with reality, but the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is a third department directly under the state government. Is it really necessary to use excessive force?

However, many of his staff members knew the inside story, and they quickly explained it to Governor Cuomo.

Because the various subordinate units of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey have their own legal gun-carrying law enforcement agencies.

For example, airport security departments, port and train station patrols, etc. Without a certain level of armed protection, Sun Zhiwei would not directly confront those vested interests.

The security situation in New York City is not very good right now, and as the person in charge of this plan, he is easily targeted by a hidden gunman.

After being given a long explanation by his staff, Cuomo finally understood why an armed force was needed to complete this plan.

Cuomo then agreed to call up a 100-strong state National Guard to be under Sun Zhiwei's command in this operation.

The early National Guard was similar to our militia; it was a reserve force of the regular army, under the dual management of the state and federal governments, and commanded by the governor.

Moreover, this "federal administration" specifically refers to the fact that during foreign wars, the National Guard is required to follow the Pentagon's orders, but in normal times it still follows the governor's orders.

Just like when Trump later wanted to mobilize the National Guard to arrest illegal immigrants in the city, his reason was that the protesters were waving Mexican flags and he claimed that this was a foreign invasion.

Since it's an external operation, Trump can legally mobilize them.

During World War II, in order to make up for the shortage of manpower, the National Guard was established as a second military force and began to be deployed in unison with the regular army.

From this point on, the National Guard became an independent force, no longer an appendage or reserve force of the regular army, and their weapons and equipment began to be comparable to those of the regular army.

Today, the National Guard has a total size of nearly 70 personnel, who are deployed in all states across the United States.

In peacetime, they are under the jurisdiction of the governors of their respective states. Their usual tasks include safeguarding national and regional security interests, maintaining regional stability, and carrying out disaster relief and other tasks.

Cuomo called in a company under the pretext of maintaining local stability.

Three days later, Sun Zhiwei received the governor's letter of full power of attorney.

That morning, he led a company of fully armed National Guard soldiers and a 50-person accounting team to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, located in the office of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in the World Trade Center Tower 1.

The first thing he did after arriving was to seal off all the accounts and records in the finance department, and then he began to audit the accounts.

If you really want to thoroughly investigate the accounts of such a huge organization, it might take more than six months to finish.

But he didn't need to investigate further. His purpose in coming here today was to give them a hard time and make them surrender willingly.

So the terrified officials and staff watched as these heavily armed soldiers dragged one of them away every now and then.

Within an hour, some of the people in the controlled group broke down, and Sun Zhiwei immediately took them to a separate office to begin questioning them.

As more and more people surrendered, the intricate network of interests within the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey gradually became clear.

(End of this chapter)