As soon as the Human Emperor Banner came out, I became the Lord of the Old Ones

Chapter 288 Shark Fishing

"Even without the serious deficit of the Dawn Fund, the BlackRock family was very dissatisfied with the current situation of Dawn Heavy Industries. The main problem was that the number of miners on the job was seriously aging, and there were too many miners who had retired due to illness, making the burden too heavy."

Jean-Jacques said, "If this situation continues, even if Dawn Heavy Industry can still mine a large amount of crystals from deep underground in the next few decades, the profits will continue to flow into the bottom miners, leaving little for the management to make a profit."

"Furthermore, the agreed-upon salary levels were far too high in order to win over the lower-level miners. Many miners also hold small shares in the company and receive dividends every year, which is another huge burden."

"Thinking about it carefully, starting anew might not be a bad thing for the BlackRock family."

"With the bankruptcy of Dawn Heavy Industries, the BlackRock family can naturally get rid of all the burdens and no longer have to pay for the pensions, survivor's benefits, disability allowances, and huge medical expenses for treating the Spirit Corrosion disease of the lower-level miners."

"After the new company is established, the newly recruited miners will definitely be younger and healthier, and they will not have much leverage to demand high salaries, so the labor costs of the new company will inevitably decrease significantly."

"In addition, all the old mines with depleted resources have been eliminated, leaving only the rich mines with inflated data and hidden potential. The new company, which is now lightly equipped, may not be as large as Dawn Heavy Industry, but its competitiveness will definitely be greatly enhanced. Moreover, the BlackRock family will firmly control all the power of the new company, and there will be no more unruly small and medium-sized shareholders to oppose them."

"From this perspective, the Belad family is not afraid of any trouble. Even the arrival of your Black Dream organization may not be outside their calculations."

"Don't worry, no matter what big things the Black Dream Organization wants to do in Dawn City, the Belad family will not sincerely stop them. In fact, they would love for you to make as much trouble as possible."

"After all, the more chaotic Dawn City is, the more it can cover up the various problems that Dawn Heavy Industries has. Moreover, the greater the destruction you create, the less likely anyone will dare to take over this mess. When the new company of the Belad family descends from the sky like a white knight to save everything, the lower the cost they pay will be. I believe that by then, people struggling to survive will be willing to crawl into the dark mines and swing their pickaxes for three days and three nights, even if it's just for a can of food."

The Snake Princess clenched her fist slightly.

It makes a faint "clicking" sound.

It's like a python constricting its prey.

"So, what should be done about those 'burdens'—the families of injured, retired, seriously ill miners, and those who died in the accident?"

She asked calmly.

"To live or die on their own, to perish or flee."

Jean-Jacques shrugged. "You don't actually think the Belgrade family cares about the future of these burdens, do you?"

The Snake Princess chuckled softly.

"I originally thought that our Black Dream organization was ruthless enough."

She muttered to herself, "I never imagined that the Belad family would be even more ruthless, vicious, and cunning than us."

"You're not ruthless enough to begin with."

Jean-Jacques grew increasingly audacious, "otherwise he wouldn't have spent decades still lingering on the borders of the Union."

"Ok?"

The Snake Princess placed her hand on Jean-Jacques' shoulder again. Unlike before, her hand, which had been as cold as a corpse, was now burning hot, as if she were grasping two invisible embers.

"How much evidence do you actually have for everything you just said?"

Snake Queen said coldly, "Don't tell me that's all hearsay, or even speculation and conjecture!"

"I don't really have much evidence."

Jean-Jacques once again felt the killing intent spreading like venom through his veins and nerves. He quickly shrank back and said, "However, I can cooperate with you to capture Hess Belad. Even if he isn't the mastermind behind the Belad family's entire plan, he is one of the most important core members, possessing many crucial clues and evidence!"

“We’ll catch him even without you telling us.”

The Snake Princess asked, "What can you do for us?"

"Catching him won't be as easy as catching me."

Jean-Jacques grinned and said, "This guy is one of the highest-ranking managers of Dawn Heavy Industries. He usually stays in the heavily guarded headquarters building. Especially recently, he has been keeping a low profile and acting mysteriously. It seems that he has also hired several senior spirit masters from the core area of ​​the alliance to act as bodyguards."

"Furthermore, he has eyes and ears everywhere in and around Dawn City, so he can detect any action taken against him by any force immediately."

"The Black Dream Organization is certainly powerful, with many elite warriors who are not afraid of death."

"But good steel should be used where it's needed most. Why waste the precious lives of elite assassins for a mere Hess Belad? Wouldn't it be more worthwhile and more effective in preventing the apocalypse if they were sacrificed in a truly significant event?"

"You see things very clearly."

The Snake Princess said in a deep voice, "Then what's your plan? Does Hess Belad trust you that much?"

"On the contrary, even though he used to trust me a lot, lately he has become more and more suspicious and distrustful of me."

Jean-Jacques said, "That's normal. After all, he's running such a huge plan. If he's not careful, not only could he get burned, but the entire Belride family could be destroyed. Of course, he'd feel guilty."

"After all, I am not his confidant, but just a lackey whose weakness he has caught. Over the years, I have done a lot of dirty work and also come into contact with many of his dirtiest secrets. I'm afraid he has been plotting to kill me to silence me for a long time."

"Furthermore, the bankruptcy liquidation of Liming Heavy Industry is not an easy matter. Many loopholes, deficits, misappropriation, and even life-threatening mining accidents, once put under the spotlight, require the sacrifice of some sufficiently weighty scapegoats in order to fool all the stakeholders."

"Looking around at Hess Blackride, my experience, my identity and his relationship make me the perfect scapegoat."

"In fact, this is also the biggest reason why I prepared a safe house in advance and wanted to escape from Dawn City at the slightest sign of trouble—not because I was afraid of others, but because I was afraid of this guy who dared to kill hundreds of miners without batting an eye."

"On the other hand, what if, after I've made my escape, I suddenly call Hess Belad and angrily tell him that I'm convinced he's trying to kill me, so I'm going to have a complete falling out with him and fight to the death?"

"Do you think such a threat can lure this great shark out of its heavily fortified lair?"

(End of this chapter)