Life Game In Other World
Chapter 1132: The Minister of Grain and Food Residue (Large - for Monthly Ticket)

Chapter 1132: Chapter 1132: The Minister of Grain and Food Residue (Large Chapter for Monthly Ticket)

He Ao’s gaze followed the frail figure’s line of sight forward.

In the narrow streets between those grand buildings, among the shadows, cramped shanties were currently squeezed together.

A boxy vehicle resembling a garbage truck was parked among the shanties, and surrounding the vehicle, some people were busy at work.

They were carrying off big plastic tubs full of what appeared to be discarded food from the vehicle and distributing them to various groups of people, who then started sorting through them.

And that frail figure sitting by the street, at this moment, was holding a black plastic bag, staring blankly at the sorting crowd.

"They are sorting ’Packaged Meat’."

At this time, Hel seemed to have noticed the shift in He Ao’s gaze, he set the vehicle on autopilot, turned his head, and whispered.

"’Packaged Meat’?"

He Ao turned his head, looking confusedly at Hel.

"Simply put,"

Looking at the sorting crowd, Hel paused, as if recalling something, his voice growing lower, "it’s food remnants,"

His gaze swept across the surrounding magnificent buildings with a light sigh,

"The city center almost gathers all of Minte City’s upscale, or slightly better restaurants, these high-end hotels and restaurants, and the bars with nightly revelry, produce a huge amount of uneaten discarded food,

"This includes prime steaks, bread made from genuine wheat flour, and synthetic meat that tastes and looks good.

"So, someone collects these ’wastes’, sorts, and packages them, selling them to people in the four districts and city center who can’t afford meat, or even basic bread."

"Are many buying this?"

He Ao looked at the busy street crowd sorting and packaging food.

"Many,"

Hel spoke slowly, his gaze raising as if recalling something, "This should be just one of the packaging points, I remember there are over a dozen such points, big and small, in the city center."

He glanced at a splendid building next to him, which was a high-end hotel, "The gentry upstairs have this trend, eat a small piece of the best stuff, then drink wine, have banquets, and throw away the leftovers.

"There’s a lot of meat that looks almost untouched, just picked up and ’packaged’ carelessly by these packers.

"So everyone named such food ’Packaged Meat,’ and as time went by, all such food came to be called this."

"Have these foods ever caused illness or death?"

He Ao withdrew his gaze and asked in a low voice.

"Yes, food mixed together and stored in garbage bins is fine in winter, but in summer, it can spoil in just an hour or two,"

Hel nodded gently, glancing at the people on the street,

"Every year, many people get sick or suffer from diarrhea because of this food, there’s also food poisoning. If they’re strong, they endure it, but if not, and they can’t afford medical treatment, they can only wait to die."

Saying this, his voice faltered, then he said quietly,

"But those who buy ’Packaged Meat’ seldom are in good health.

"Most of them are homeless, unemployed, or have very low incomes, so they have no choice but to buy ’Packaged Meat’ to fill their stomachs or to slightly improve their meals."

As he spoke, he glanced subconsciously over his shoulder at the two people sitting behind.

He Ao also turned his head, looking at the two people in the back seat.

As they felt He Ao’s gaze, the two’s bodies stiffened.

Elder Weiken also turned to look out the window, his voice hoarse,

"I hadn’t thought that in the center of Minte City, there’d be such an industry. Still, the profit margin for this kind of distribution must not be high, having to hire so many people and deliver this trash to every corner of the city.

"Manpower, vehicle wear, rent for the land, and the cost of communicating with underground gangs for safety, are all expenses, yet they are selling to wanderers who have very little money."

"It seems like some gangs have taken control of these industries. They have enough manpower to maintain safety and order, thus saving a significant amount of costs."

Hel’s grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly, then he gradually relaxed his hold.

"Does Mr. Weiken also have thoughts about this industry?"

He Ao withdrew his gaze and looked at the street again, asking hoarsely.

"The profit margins are too low,"

With a slight lift of his brows and eyes, Weiken spoke with a hint of disdain, "It would affect our financial statements and stock price."

"Since they have arranged so many spots in the city center and communicated with so many high-end hotels under your group,"

He Ao said calmly,

"It proves that there must be someone from your consortium providing shelter and collusion. Perhaps they are sitting in the cars ahead. A significant part of these ’meager’ profits must be flowing into your pockets through irregular means.

"Perhaps, a portion of that has already made its way into your pocket through ’irregular’ means and then through your hands to your group’s board of directors."

Hearing He Ao’s words, Weiken fell silent for a moment and did not speak again.

Some ’projects’ cannot be accounted for, but that does not mean they cannot be profitable.

Hel’s hand remained on the steering wheel as he glanced back at the silent Weiken through the rearview mirror.

Having been in Minte City for many years, Weiken may not be entirely ignorant of the ’Packaged Meat’ issue.

He Ao’s gaze swept over the crowd taking photos on the street. In his field of view, some people, after quickly snapping pictures, blended into the brightly lit street and squeezed into the dim alleys where food was distributed.

They walked beside the packagers, under the guidance of a person who appeared to be in charge, and picked out a few pieces of good-looking meat, wrapping it in their pockets.

Clearly, they had intentionally come here to buy ’Packaged Meat,’ choosing at the source of distribution, where it is easier to find better quality and fresher options.

The surrounding crowd also seemed to notice the busy distribution point under the shadow.

More and more people pushed through.

Many of them wore relatively neat clothing, looking quite respectable.

He Ao watched the coming and going crowd, as well as a frail man sitting by the roadside watching the people.

Hel followed He Ao’s gaze, feeling that the figure seemed familiar, but he couldn’t recall who it was.

As the convoy got closer and the contours became clearer, Hel seemed to finally remember something.

He lifted his bracelet, quickly searched, then opened a photo to compare, whispering to He Ao, "Mr. Suote, that’s Viko, the Minister of Food of Minte City."

He Ao turned his head to look at Hel.

Hel quickly explained, "Viko was originally a neutral member of the city council. I had listened to his election campaign, which is why he looked familiar to me."

"Does he have a bad relationship with Lokte?"

He Ao turned his gaze back to the distribution point in the shadow, asking softly.

"I’m not quite sure about that,"

Hel shook his head, "All I know is that he was one of Lokte’s opponents. Later, when Lokte formed the Ruling Alliance, somehow he persuaded Viko and even made him the Minister of Food.

"But apart from appearing in public when he was first introduced, he doesn’t seem to have had much exposure since then, and I haven’t heard about him implementing any policies."

That’s all Hel could know at his level.

If this were before, the remaining information would have been something He Ao would have asked Eve to search for.

However, in this car, there happened to be two individuals at the top of this city’s hierarchy.

He Ao took another look at the Minister of Food sitting by the side of the road, then turned back to look at Lambert and Weiken behind him.

Lambert, noticing He Ao’s gaze, coughed lightly and said, "I’ve only recently been transferred to Minte City and am not yet very familiar with the situation here."

This is essentially passing the buck to Weiken.

"Cough,"

Weiken snorted coldly, turned his head, and looked out the window, seemingly unaware of He Ao’s gaze.

Then, from the corner of his eye, he saw He Ao take out a small remote control that was flashing with red light, playfully twirling it around his fingertips.

And right beneath the feet of him and Lambert, there was something else that was also flashing with red light—the bomb installed on the vehicle.

"Madman!"

His expression slightly changed, he snorted again, withdrew his gaze, and then slowly softened his voice, with a barely detectable cold hum, "Viko is impulsive and illogical..."

Then he saw He Ao’s hand resting on the button of the remote control.

Lambert by his side had already started reaching out nervously, attempting to grab Weiken’s wrist.

"Viko comes from the Southern District, the poorest area of Minte City,"

Weiken’s voice gradually rose, his pronunciation became distinctly audible, but his facial expression did not change at all, as if it was his usual tone of speech,

"I don’t know what method he used, what kind of witchcraft he put on the mobs there, defeated the councilor families we had invested in, and became one of the council members of the Southern District,

"And also brought along a bunch of people with him, entering the City Council simultaneously, forming a ’faction’ that’s not too large nor too small."

Then he paused, glanced at the remote control in He Ao’s hand that had not been put away, and continued,

"Lokte has been re-elected too many times; this time, we had already discussed making him ’retire behind the scenes.’

"But he did not agree with our suggestion and even competed with our supported candidate. Although relying on his many years of accumulation, he eventually succeeded in re-election, without our permission, he lost control of the City Council.

"During that time, he desperately sought out the small parties in the City Council, attempting to form a temporary alliance and promised various positions.

"The Minister of Food from Viko was a result of this,

"At that time, Viko had already lost to our supported candidate in the council election, but his small group still managed to keep their positions barely,

"In order to pull Viko’s small group to our side, Lokte promised him the position of Cabinet Minister of Food."

At this point, Weiken sneered, looking at the slender figure sitting on the street corner,

"Sadly, he does not know that he is just a bargaining chip Lokte used to negotiate with us,

"After the negotiations were concluded, he and his friends naturally became useless.

"Once Lokte reached a new agreement with us and regained control of the City Council, he completely marginalized Viko,

"In fact, he does not understand that the position of Minister of Food that Lokte initially gave him was a preparation to marginalize him.

"The entirety of Minte City’s food imports is controlled by the Montshanto Group, without any food-producing factories of its own, all food prices are solely determined by the Montshanto Group,

"Under these circumstances, the Minte City’s food department wanting to influence food prices and sales can only rely on forcefully promoting legislation through the City Government and City Council,

"But the Montshanto Group’s ’contributions’ to the City Council are not less than ours, and they also give many benefits to Lokte.

"Neither Lokte nor the City Council would be willing to help him."

Weiken spoke calmly, "Before this foolish kid took office, the Minister of Food was a rubber stamp; after he took office, it became a hidden rubber stamp.

"Over these decades, there have been many such foolish kids, some of whom never turned their heads until they died, but some acquired wealth that they could never spend in their lifetimes."

He looked at He Ao and continued,

"In Minte City, no one can oppose the conglomerates. Those who submit thrive, those who resist perish—it’s the only way out."

Then he just gazed at He Ao like that, as if waiting for He Ao’s response.

"If Mayor Lokte no longer needs him, why keep him as the Minister of Food?"

At that moment, a voice broke the silence; it was from Hel.

Weiken glanced at Hel and flicked his gaze away, seeming to disdain responding to Hel’s question.

Then he saw He Ao holding the remote control, his thumb slowly pressing towards the detonation button.

He stiffened his neck, silent, his gaze fixed on He Ao’s movement.

This standoff continued until He Ao’s thumb touched the button.

"Cough,"

Weiken coughed, shifting his gaze away as if he just thought to give some ’junior’ advice, and said, "Lokte has never been one to take orders, he just wants to keep this knife to threaten us and Montshanto, in order to get benefits from us whenever he wants."

"Is that so."

Hel nodded slightly, retracting his gaze.

And He Ao also put away the remote control and turned his head to look outside the car again.

He naturally guessed Lokte’s intentions, but it was more interesting to have Weiken ’voluntarily’ say it.

Weiken in the back seat hung his head low, his face dark and somber.

At this moment, the motorcade had completely driven past Viko, who was sitting by the roadside, and was heading far away towards the end of the street.

At this time, the Minister of Food finally lifted his head; he turned his gaze to see the receding vehicles in the street and saw He Ao sitting in the SUV.

In the instant he saw He Ao’s face, he paused slightly and then withdrew his gaze, unsteadily rose to his feet, clutching the plastic bags that were ’packaged meat’, and staggered towards the shadows where ’food’ was being distributed.

The dim wind blew out from the shadows, carrying a hint of the stench of rotting food, brushing against people’s cheeks.

——

The slender motorcade stopped in front of the towering Federal Bureau of Investigation Building, the crowded throng had gradually dispersed, and fewer figures surrounded the area.

The Note Intelligence Building was indeed very close to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Building, not far behind the ’packaged meat distribution point’ was the main entrance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Building.

At this moment, the area was heavily surrounded by fully armed security personnel, who, upon seeing the convoy coming, swiftly moved their guns to aim at the motorcade.

On both sides of the building, a series of temporary electromagnetic cannons also rotated to aim at the motorcade.

Six SUVs opened their doors in succession, with red-haired Borek leading the people from the leading SUVs to get out one after another.

With each person getting off, he dismantled the bomb from the vehicle, having the executives who were originally seated inside hold them.

In this manner, the group formed a long line, standing in front of the fully armed security personnel.

The security officers had clearly already received the news, and in the brief silence, they moved to both sides, making way for the crowd.

Simultaneously, the last SUV’s door opened, and He Ao got down from the vehicle.

Hel also got out of the car, opening the rear door.

However, Lambert and Weiken who were seated in the back did not get out immediately.

He Ao didn’t look at the two in the back, instead lifting his head to glance at a building next to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Building.

At the top of that building, a barely perceptible glint was shining dimly.

······

"He seems to have noticed us?"

The figure holding the binoculars looked at the scene below and whispered.

"Don’t worry, he’s just a Level C,"

Next to him, another figure leaning on a massive Gauss Sniper Rifle rasped, "This gun of mine has taken out countless Level Cs."

His palm extended, steadying the gun barrel, while the other hand’s index finger curled around the trigger, "Just a pack of stray dogs. Once you take out the leader, the rest will scatter like monkeys when the tree falls."