Some people liked wealth, and some liked power. In fact, these things had something in common, and that was privilege.
Lynch was not only rich, but he also had a bit of power — the Federation's National Security Council's Special Advisor.
There were two types of special consultants in the Safety Committee. One was a low fit. For example, some investigators from the Investigation Bureau had outstanding abilities in certain areas and met the requirements of the Safety Committee, but there were some unstable factors in certain areas, such as alcoholism, the use of mind-control drugs, or their family background didn't allow them to join the Safety Committee as an official member, so they couldn't really become an agent of the Safety Committee.
But the Security Council needed them, so they gave these people the title of special advisor.
They had almost the same rights and obligations as the agents of the Security Council, so they could avoid some audit questions and use their personal abilities.
The agents of the Safety Committee didn't like these people from the bottom of their hearts because the existence of these people made the agents of the Safety Committee unhappy. It was precisely because of their incompetence that there were these special consultants.
The existence of special advisors denied the ability of many agents.
The other type was a high fit. People like Lynch, who had money, status, and prestige, their role in the Security Council wasn't to compete with the agents. They might really just be "advisors," so the agents didn't dislike these high fit advisors at all. They even enjoyed working with them.
At least they went in and out of luxurious hotels and manors. They enjoyed delicious food and expensive wine. This was more enjoyable than drinking ninety-nine cents a bottle of wine in those small inns that cost more than ten yuan a night.
When Lynch came to the capital and found the branch of the Security Council to help find Richard's whereabouts, these people showed great enthusiasm. Soon, Richard's movements appeared in people's sight.
His car!
The cavalry saw his car and then investigated around a certain area. It only took Lynch a little over an hour to lock onto Richard. This was probably what some people called the abuse of public resources.
Lynch didn't find him immediately. Instead, he went to the local company. When he appeared, many people were dumbfounded.
Any department that had a problem could not have only one worm. Or rather, when there was only one worm, the department's problem would not be discovered by others, and no one would even notice the problem.
When Vivian, who was in Saibin City, noticed that there was a problem with the payment, it meant that there was a problem with the whole department.
Since Richard couldn't escape, Lynch started with Richard's subordinates.
Compared to Richard, these young men did not resist for long.
In fact, the problem here wasn't just about what Richard had stuffed into his mouth during the transaction. There were many more problems involved.
For example, some female marketers also had their own small cliques. Every week, they would spend the night with whoever had the highest transaction amount.
Using one's body as a form of gratitude and asking customers to bid was a serious violation of the Federation's ethical standards and damaged the company's image.
Perhaps some people would think that since that was the case, why didn't they do it more thoroughly and go out to be a candidate or something? This was precisely the contradiction in human nature.
Those girls could tolerate sleeping with customers for work, but they couldn't tolerate sleeping with strangers for money, even if the ultimate goal of the former was money.
After a series of questions, Lynch roughly figured out the situation. Then, he appeared here.
"Come, sit down. Let's chat and play some cards …"
Lynch's voice made Richard unable to resist. He didn't know how to describe this feeling. When a person who didn't follow the rules met someone who could control his fate, he would often reveal his fragile nature.
Richard moved his heavy feet and walked to the opposite side of Lynch. He squeezed out a smile. "Boss, why didn't you inform me when you came? I should have picked you up."
Lynch raised his head and glanced at him. He shook his head and didn't say anything. He raised his hand and gestured for Richard to sit down. Then, he reached out and pointed a deck of cards in his hand at Richard. "Cut the cards."
Richard hesitated for a moment, but he still obediently picked up a stack of cards and gently placed it on the table.
Lynch began to deal the cards swiftly. Richard was a little surprised because Lynch dealt the cards very skillfully.
It only took a few seconds for the cards to be dealt. Lynch didn't look at the cards on the table. Instead, he looked at Richard. "I've figured out some of the things that happened here. You're the first person to follow me. I'm a very soft-hearted person, so I'll give you a chance."
As he spoke, he stretched out three fingers. "Let's bet three rounds. As long as you can beat me once, any time, I'll let you off …"
He kept looking at Richard. Richard's eyes suddenly lit up with the desire to live!
Yes, although Lynch didn't say how he would deal with him, the desire to live rose in Richard's eyes.
"But if you lose …" Lynch got a shiny, half-foot-long dagger from somewhere and stabbed it on the table between the two of them. This action made Richard tremble violently.
"You took so much of my money. You have to give me an explanation, right?"
Lynch tidied his clothes and sat back down.
Richard swallowed a mouthful of saliva and nodded fearfully.
"Very well, we'll play the game you guys played before. We'll decide your outcome!"
This game was almost the same as the one Lynch knew in the past. What was more interesting was that when he was in the small room, he knew a guy who called himself the Gambling King. That guy only had four fingers on both hands, but he still gambled so much that everyone in the small room couldn't raise their heads.
Everyone knew that he cheated, and even knew how he cheated, but they just couldn't catch the moment he cheated.
Many people wanted to see the Gambling King's glory, so they sat together with him. Other than losing all their cigarettes and money every time, they couldn't decipher anything. Over time, the Gambling King became one of the more famous people in the small room.
Lynch talked to him before. In that kind of place, everyone had time. They were bored and had nothing to do. He asked the Gambling King for advice, and the Gambling King asked him why he wanted to learn.
He thought about it for a while before telling the Gambling King his idea.
It wasn't to win other people's money, but to prevent others from cheating him of his money. Therefore, the Gambling King taught him some tricks.
These were just small tricks to the Gambling King, but in the eyes of outsiders, they were miracles!
"Show me the cards …"
Lynch casually flipped the cards on the deck. The three biggest cards formed the biggest combination, and it was also the only combination. No other cards could be bigger than the cards in Lynch's hand.
He looked at Richard expressionlessly. He didn't even want to look at his opponent's cards. "You lost. Again!"
He took back the cards in front of Richard and inserted them into the queue with his own cards. He shuffled and cut the cards. The marks made by his little finger and thumb could ensure that the cards he wanted were either at the bottom or the top of the queue.
He dealt and flipped the cards in one go.
It was the same card type again, and it was the biggest one. He didn't even have a chance to resist!
"You've lost again. You only have one chance!"
Lynch said as he flipped the cards in front of him. He scooped up Richard's cards and stacked them together to shuffle them.
At that moment, Richard suddenly said, "I'll shuffle, I'll deal!"
The two of them looked at each other for a moment. Lynch released his hand, and the deck of cards fell on the table. He tilted his head slightly. "Sure!"
One sentence, one word, but it was like a cannonball bombarding Richard's chest. Lin Qi's words were so simple and straightforward, but they revealed a confidence that Richard could understand, as well as a mockery of Richard's overconfidence.
He began to sweat. The cold gleam of the dagger on the table made him fearful. He wiped his sweat and shuffled the cards clumsily before dealing them.
This concerned his fate, so he dared not be careless. However, when the cards were in Lynch's hand, he flipped them over. It was the biggest card again. Richard, who was about to look at his cards, was stunned.
In fact, he wasn't thinking about why Lynch could beat him, but why he kept losing!
Someone was cheating. Lynch used this method to tell him that as long as there were enough benefits and skills, cheating in a card game of this level was as easy as eating and drinking. He had been set up!
However, at that moment, it didn't matter whether someone was setting someone up or not. No one could force others to change their minds. All traps were passive. If the person who was trapped didn't covet the bait in the trap, they wouldn't be tricked either!
Richard pursed his lips and pulled out the dagger from the table. The sweat on his face dripped down, along his temples, cheeks, chin, and finally onto the gambling table.
"Mr. Lynch …"
"One finger, one hand, one finger, I don't care. This is a lesson for you …"
Between the lines, it was clear that this was only a punishment and not the final judgment. Richard's expression flashed with a hint of joy at surviving a disaster, but it was quickly followed by a resolute expression.
He pressed the little finger of his left hand on the edge of the gambling table, and held the dagger in his right hand. The blade of the dagger was pressed against the base of his little finger. The sharp edge of the dagger had already cut open the skin, and traces of bright red blood were particularly conspicuous between the snow-white blade and the white skin.
His body was trembling, and he seemed to be giving himself courage. His breathing became rapid, and his chest rose and fell. His whole body suddenly tensed up, and his right shoulder was obviously raised, and then suddenly dropped!
Dong!
After the obstruction of the bone, the blade finally cut open the bone and landed on the table with a dong.
This sound wasn't as violent as the sound of a chop, but it still made one's teeth ache.
Blood quickly flowed out of the wound. Richard quickly pinched the wound and looked at Lynch with a pale face. "Mr. Lynch …"
Lynch nodded slightly and stood up. "At least you've proven that you're not a coward. Richard, I want to see you in the company tomorrow morning."
"Now, you can leave with your finger!"