I bought a prison in the United States.

A sneer came from the other end of the phone:

"Danforth? You asked him out? Then you'll have to choose one."

"Parker doesn't like waiting, and the sooner you know the information he found out, the better."

Lin Ge remained silent for a few seconds.

Danforth's order is important, but Crawford and Hammond's information is equally important.

If he had leverage over these two men, he would have real bargaining power in McLean County.

He asked again:

"What time can I reschedule?"

Lei suggested:

"Parker said he'll be in his office until four o'clock. You can go see Danforth first, then go find him."

"Okay, one more thing, Ray, have you heard of a company called [Beles Building Materials]?"

Lin Ge pressed for an answer.

There was a sudden silence on the other end of the phone.

Ringo could hear Ray's breathing become heavy, and the silence itself spoke volumes.

After a while, Lei asked somewhat cautiously:

Why are you looking into this?

"My deputy warden told me that Crawford had purchased a batch of fabric from this company, but the invoice stated that it was for repair materials."

Lin Ge explained.

Lei said in a very serious tone:

"The owner of [Baylers Building Materials] is the vice president of the Tulsa Building Materials Association and a golf buddy of the chairman of the county purchasing committee."

"Even I have to be very careful when dealing with this person, so don't make any rash moves. There's no need to blow a small matter out of proportion."

Clearly, Ray was worried that Ringo might do something unwise.

In Tulsa, even the slightest breeze can trigger a storm.

Lin Ge understood the warning in Lei's words and explained:

"I didn't intend to harm him; I just wanted to know about his relationship with Crawford."

"Leonard will tell you."

Lei's tone became serious:

"But Chen, let me give you a piece of advice: Bayless and Crawford are not the same."

"Crawford is just a small fry, he's gone and that's it. Bayless has been in Tulsa for twenty years, you'd better think carefully before you touch him."

Lin Ge hung up the phone and glanced at the clock on the wall.

11:20.

He still had time to finish some miscellaneous tasks in the prison before going to see Danforth.

Ringo found Mrs. Martha in the cafeteria.

She was preparing lunch, and her chopping movements were more efficient than yesterday.

Seeing Lin Ge enter, she immediately asked:

"The helper has arrived?"

"Not yet, but I can get Randy to help you."

Mrs. Martha stopped wielding her knife and turned to look at him:

"That brat who stole the TV?"

Lin Ge explained:

"He is skillful and obedient, and he needs to work to try to get a reduced sentence, since he still has more than four years left on his sentence."

Of course, what Lin Ge really thought was that hiring help was too expensive!

The prisoners under my command cost nothing, so why not use them?

He needs to save money wherever possible, at least until the prison receives its first legitimate sum of money, and minimize any losses the prison incurs!

Mrs. Martha looked Ringo up and down, her expression suggesting she was trying to determine if he was joking.

Judging from the new boss's expression, there was no room for negotiation. She sighed.

"Alright, it's better than nothing, but he has to start by washing dishes. I wouldn't dare let him touch a kitchen knife."

Lin Ge then reminded him:

"In addition, he can only work in the kitchen for two hours a day, and spends the rest of his time helping to repair machines in the factory."

"Two hours is enough; at least someone helped me move the potatoes."

Mrs. Martha turned back to continue chopping vegetables, but after a while she stopped and turned back to ask:

"Mr. Chen, is what you said about the procurement true?"

"What is it?" Ringo asked, then suddenly noticed the word "expectation" above Mrs. Martha's head.

"The price difference will be my subsidy," Mrs. Martha said.

"real."

Lin Ge answered affirmatively.

[Achievement: Expected 10%]

"I'm going to the wholesale market in Tulsa this afternoon. There's a shop there that sells eggs for three cents a piece cheaper than my current supplier. That'll save me tens of dollars a month."

Mrs. Martha said.

Lin Ge smiled:

"Go ahead, but remember to get a receipt."

Mrs. Martha snorted:

"Who do you think I am? I've been in this business for twenty years, and I'm better at saving money than you are."

……

At noon, Lin Ge ate a sandwich he bought from a donut shop in his office while chewing and flipping through the book "How to Survive in a Small Business".

One chapter in the book was about "how to negotiate with suppliers," and the very first sentence struck him as absurd:

"In business negotiations, the most important thing is not price, but trust."

Lin Ge swallowed the sandwich and wrote another line in the blank space:

"But trust is a luxury that small business owners can't afford."

"What truly matters is information. The more you know about the other party's cards, the better price you can get!"

He closed the book, feeling that the publisher should revise it according to his idea.

At one o'clock in the afternoon, Lin Ge picked up his coat, walked out of the office, and prepared to go out to his appointment.

As he passed through the prison area, he suddenly heard a low humming sound, as if one of the prisoners was singing.

The melody was familiar; it was an old song he had heard in his past life, but he couldn't remember the name.

The voice came from the end of the corridor, near the cell of the veteran prisoner, Foster.

Ringo slowed his pace and glanced into Foster's cell as he passed it.

The old prisoner lay motionless on the lower bunk, facing the wall.

But the humming was definitely coming from here, and the sound was so soft it seemed to come from a very far place.

There seems to be a lack of entertainment in the prison, and when the prisoners feel they have nothing to do, they always end up doing something.

It seems that prison reform plans need to be put on the agenda, and a points system should be introduced.

After pausing briefly, Lingo continued walking forward.

……

The Tulsa Metals Factory is located in Tulsa's industrial district. It's a huge gray steel structure building with a chimney on the roof, currently emitting gray smoke.

The parking lot contained more than a dozen pickup trucks and several semi-trailer trucks, and the ground was covered with oil stains and tire tracks.

Ringo's car is a 1977 Ford F-150, which he bought for seven hundred dollars from a used car dealer.

He needs to travel frequently for business, so he has to get a vehicle.

If your clients see that you rely solely on your own two legs to conduct business, they will think you are unreliable, and no one will want to do business with someone like that.

He parked his car at the entrance and went inside.

The factory itself is a single-story steel structure building covering an area of ​​about 3,000 square meters. The exterior walls are made of corrugated iron sheets, and the rusty red primer is faintly visible at the edges.

Above the main entrance hangs a faded sign that reads:

"Tulsa Metal Works—Since 1955"

The font is the bold sans-serif typeface popular in the 1980s, and the paint has started to peel off.

Several pickup trucks and an old van were parked at the entrance, their logos and signs faded.