Neteranti headquarters, Puerto Rico.
In Puerto Rico, Lawrence had dressed himself neatly in his garden, and received the travel-worn Bis on his way to Puerto Rico.
There were eighteen other people who participated in this meeting, all of whom were core members of the Puerto Rican families.
Biscay respectfully reported the current situation of the Neteranti to Lawrence.
Biskai's report was very detailed, no matter how big or small, he did not miss anything.
He did not hide anything. He was more honest in front of Lawrence than when he confessed to the holy statue of Jesus.
Because Lawrence knew everything he did.
What Biscay knew, Lawrence knew.
What Biscay did not know, Lawrence also knew.
Such a report was actually meaningless. It was nothing more than a lengthy repetition.
But it was essential.
Although such a report was repetitive, it could test a person's loyalty.
The significance of the report was not in the report itself, but to prove Biscay's loyalty to the Puerto Rican families.
Biscay reported nervously and calmly. He was nervous not because he wanted to hide anything, but because he was worried that he would miss something.
Biscay was worried that some of his careless omissions would create the illusion that he was deliberately hiding something.
Would Lawrence form such an assumption?
Who knew?
Lawrence listened carefully and raised a few irrelevant questions from time to time, as if he really had doubts.
Even if he really had doubts, he could quickly get answers, far more efficient and detailed than tearing the report apart.
However, Lawrence did not have doubts.
As the highest boss of the Neteranti, he knew the Neteranti like the back of his hand.
He asked questions to show that he was listening carefully to the report and to give some necessary hints to Biscay, so that Biscay would not miss out on some information due to his nervousness.
Biscay was a very outstanding young man. Lawrence did not want to see such an outstanding young man lying in the sewer and gradually rotting because of suspected betrayal or disloyalty.
In this regard, Lawrence was indeed worthy of respect.
Listening to reports was boring, but he wasn't like some of the big bosses who would randomly deal with the reports from their subordinates. He put on a serious look, but in his heart, he was thinking about going out to pick up girls.
Lawrence liked to listen to his subordinates' reports because it allowed him to truly experience his supreme power and the sense of superiority that this power brought him.
In addition, this kind of report could show a person's room for development.
Many of Lawrence's confidants were born from such reports.
Therefore, Lawrence was really listening attentively. He wasn't doing it half-heartedly. Every question he asked was relevant, and he was improvising on the spot.
He was really enjoying it.
Biscay did his best to answer Lawrence's questions.
He was very grateful to Lawrence.
Lawrence's question effectively eased Biscay's nervousness.
This would allow Biscay to be as honest as possible.
In the Puerto Rican families, honesty was a very important requirement.
One of the principles of the Puerto Rican families was: to be loyal, one must first be honest.
Like all groups and gangs, the Puerto Rican families also attached great importance to loyalty.
Many gangs hated traitors and would give traitors the cruelest death penalty. Even if the traitors were the most closely protected, they would still be pursued by their original gang until they died.
On this point, the Puerto Rican families and any gang had reached a consensus.
Traitors must die, no exceptions.
Unlike many gangs and groups, the Puerto Rican families placed great importance on honesty.
Sometimes, honesty was even more important than loyalty.
"You can't ask for loyalty, but you can ask for honesty."
This sentence was engraved on Lawrence's bookshelf to ensure that he could read it every day.
As Lawrence grew older, laziness began to corrode his body and mind.
Therefore, he put the most important things in the place that he could not forget the most.
Every day, Lawrence would see the principle of honesty.
No matter how bad a person's memory was, as long as they reviewed it every day, they could still remember some things.
A person wouldn't even have a memory for a day.
Lawrence reviewed the principle of honesty every day.
Every day, he would not forget the principle of honesty.
He believed that even if he had Alzheimer's and forgot all his confidants, he would not forget the principle of honesty.
In this regard, Lawrence was quite confident.
Loyalty was hard to come by. Even the most loyal subordinates would not know how loyal they were until the moment of betrayal.
Unfortunately, once the loyalty of a subordinate was known, it meant that the subordinate had already been lost.
Yes, loyalty was limited.
Since loyalty could be built, it must be destroyed.
A person chose loyalty because he had not been moved by other things.
Lawrence pursued the concept of change.
He believed that everything was changing.
Only things that changed were eternal.
He liked to use the phrase "a person's loyalty at a certain stage."
This broadened his horizons and allowed him to use more people.
As long as those people remained loyal at this stage of his service.
This required frequent evaluation of the subordinates to assess whether their loyalty was insufficient.
Based on this evaluation, Lawrence decided whether to continue to top up or directly pay the bill.
Lawrence would not wait for the day when his subordinates betrayed him to make up for it.
He always planned ahead and used people appropriately.
Therefore, the Puerto Rican family achieved the greatest prosperity in Lawrence's hands, and the Neteranti business reached an unprecedented peak during Lawrence's time.
Loyalty was hard to come by, but honesty was easier to obtain.
Whether it was a follower, friend, or enemy, they could all be required to be honest.
As for the means to achieve this requirement, there were many.
Lawrence had accumulated enough means to deal with all kinds of situations.
Therefore, honesty was very operable, but loyalty was more of a metaphysical issue.
During Biscay's report, Lawrence did not say a word. Except for the question and answer session, he spent most of his time stroking the brownish-gray long-tailed cat in his arms.
The cat's tail was very long, hanging high from Lawrence's arms, swaying slowly, as if to avoid disturbing Lawrence's thinking.
The cat's brownish-gray fur seeped out of Lawrence's white palms.
The cat's head was lazy but not decadent, energetic but not violent.
The cat was very docile.
Its body was motionless in Lawrence's hands, as if it was asleep.
However, its head was constantly looking at Biscay in front of it, like a cobra looking at its environment.
It was an ordinary and dignified cat.
It was not fat or thin, just enough to match Lawrence's identity as a pet.
The tiger in the heart sniffed the rose.
This was the portrayal of the cat.
When Biscay and the cat looked at each other, he thought that the cat must have gained considerable wisdom from being with Lawrence.
Looking at its belly, it was plump but not fat.
Biscay believed that the cat ate itself to not be fat or thin, so it must be easy for Lawrence to pick it up, and at the same time, it felt that his pet was very healthy.
Moreover, the cat's small movements already had a trace of Lawrence's charm.
To be able to become Lawrence's pet, its quality was certainly not low.
The cat and Lawrence cooperated quite well, perfectly matching Lawrence's authoritative aura.
The tail that hung high was the finishing touch.
This wasn't something that could be done overnight.
One is marked by the company one keeps.
Biscay thought.
Like the cat, Biscay had been trained by Lawrence.
At this moment, Biscay was honest to Lawrence, just like the cat was honest to Lawrence.
The brown cat lowered its head and closed its eyes, as if it was about to fall asleep.
Biscay finished his report.
Holding the cat, Lawrence slowly walked to Biscay's side.
"FSA, do you have any suggestions?"
Lawrence spoke very slowly, like an elder asking a junior in a friendly manner.
Lawrence looked like he was really asking for Biscay's advice, but Biscay knew that the other person must have a card up his sleeve.
Biscay didn't answer immediately, but paused for a moment.
Answering immediately would leave an impression of him as a quick-witted, quick-witted, and resourceful person, but it would also damage his calm and steady image.
A quick response was an excellent quality, but it was inevitable that he would be frivolous.
Biscay knew that in front of Lawrence, he had to show his calm and steady side.
Only such a person could take on big things.
Lawrence's cat had already set an example for Biscay.
Biscay thought for a moment and said slowly, "Many members of the FSA have been incited by the Heavenly Alliance.
Our interests are at stake.
I thought that the FSA could no longer be fully trusted.
Neteranti's important business must also be carefully handed over to the FSA.
"However, you know how big Neteranti is.
We can't give up this power just because the FSA has a little problem.
Of course, we do have to be more cautious. "
Lawrence emphasized the word "cautious".
"Sir, you mean …" Biscay went with the flow.
"There will be some costs."
Lawrence still spoke very slowly, "For the interests of Neteranti, some necessary costs are necessary."
Biscay knew that Lawrence had to re-evaluate the FSA.
Whether he should continue to top up these collaborators, or settle the bill, would need to be evaluated later.
However, Biscay believed that in the FSA, there must be some people who were not suitable to continue to be collaborators with Neteranti.
"Biscay, you are an upright young man, honest and loyal to Neteranti.
I want to leave this matter to you, "Lawrence said to Biscay.
The cat in Lawrence's hand had completely closed its eyes and was lying on Lawrence's wrist.
It didn't listen to anything it shouldn't.
The cat knew when to advance and when to retreat.
Biscay was excited.
Lawrence gave him the task of testing loyalty, which proved that he had passed Lawrence's evaluation.
His status in the Puerto Rican family would be promoted again.
Lawrence gestured to the two people on his left, a young man who was shorter than him, and an elder who was taller than him.
These two would assist Biscay in handling the following matters.
Biscay and the two nodded to each other.
The Puerto Rican family didn't need to express their stance, but they had to speak with their actions.
"Biscay, I watched you grow up.
I still remember that when you were six years old, you climbed up an apple tree more than two meters high.
You panicked at the time, but I told you to calm down.
Then, you really calmed down and came down from the tree unscathed. You also brought back all your trophies – four apples.
From that moment on, I knew that you would be able to shoulder the heavy responsibility of the Puerto Rican family in the future. "
Of course, Biscay remembered that incident.
It was from that moment on that Biscay grew from a weak little boy to a man of indomitable spirit.
He was grateful for Lawrence's guidance.
Now, Biscay also knew that Lawrence wasn't simply discussing his childhood with him, but was giving him encouragement and requests at the same time.
"Eliminate the traitors, rescue Ispagny, and rebuild the FSA's loyalty to Neteranti."
These were Lawrence's original words.