Imagine you and me [Part 3]

Douluo Continent

Some time later.

"You can't force us to do that. Do you know how many people in the lower sectors of society will be harmed if he were to start the replantation and make those areas a conservation site."

"""Yeah, think about the poor people."""

In a meeting room full of people complaining about their troubles and protests against Fan Lin.

"I know how much we care about the poor people, state your actual reasons for your disapproval."

The middle aged man at the centre table remarked. He was the one who had gathered all the people that were the main forces voicing their disagreement against Fan Lin's replantation of the land in various areas of the Southern Douluo Continent.

All the people were sitting on a round table and they were at least 50 of the in the room but none of the gathered knew who the Middle-aged man in the centre was. They only knew that he was in power.

After the middle-aged man had said that they can talk openly about their actual problems regarding the replantation instead of using the cliche noble lines, they all sheepishly looked at each other and one of them began to speak.

"I have many businesses and I usually use those lands as landfills. Over 90 percent of the my businesses trash are dumped in the various places that that kid wants to replant."

"If he did the replantation then where would I throw the trash? Sir must already know that the Federation has put so many laws on the conservation of various places and buildings and rivers already already making it quite hard to find a new places to dispose our excess trash,"

"And even then, they had laws on the amount of trash that we could produce, their toxicity levels, non usage of various things and blah blah blah other troublesome quirks."

"Sir, we have been jointly using those lands as our disposal area for decades. Not just us normal populace have been doing the same as well, and we have even given quite large sums in bribes to the officials to keep the matters in check every year."

"Now suddenly some random young kid there wants to use every empty land to replant it with trees. Do you know how stupid that sounds. Like they they are just trees, they can be planted anywhere. Using those lands as plantation is basically just killing our businesses and we won't be quiet about this."

"It took us a long time and so much bribing and handling various organisations to be able to stealthily earn a living, we can't just let it go for a stupid situation like the planting trees. We are even ready to pay our tributes to the sir if you help us, but we really can't lose those lands."

"Like just think about it Sir, now he is asking for land to be replanted, tomorrow someone else will ask us to stop producing waste and then to use eco-friendly stuff and other pollution control reforms, ban on plastic and etc etc. They will just keep asking for more and more."

"How would our businesses survive then? That's why I am saying Sir, we should crush the so called replantation project right here so to avoid future problems."

The man articulately spoke while trying to be humble. As if his voice cleared away the hesitation of others, the others began to speak as well.

"The same with my businesses as well. Since that damning herbal products supplier had joined the market, my soap and other bath materials had been experiencing a huge drop in their sales and I have to survive on my other businesses."

"Many of which are slightly on the those replantation areas that the young man wants to replant, and do you know what he said, to destroy the whole factory and not just one but all of them."

"Like it's just slightly on the government property but you can't just destroy the whole factory for that. Can't he just ignore the slight breach and replant it on the remaining area. I will even ask my men to water the area everyday."

"Personally I am not that against the idea, I just want that brat to just replant the rest of the area while ignoring the factories. That's it."

"You guys have it easier. I need a gallon of water to prepare a bottle of shampoo and have been taking the water from the nearby river of my main factories, I even paid the official for it."

"Now that land has suddenly fallen into the replantation area and no one is allowed to use the river water from there. If I had to pay to water upfrontly, my profit margin will be 3 times less, that's too low."

"And many of my businesses also throw out toxic garbage in the land as well since we need the clean river water for my various stuff. It's just landfills, what's the big deal if they are left without any trees on it."

"What about my organisation's problem then? We have been using the empty areas as our secret hideouts, if they become conservation areas under the protection of the Federation and Spirit Pagoda, aren't we just fish on a chopping board then?"

"The same with our gangs as well. We have been collecting fares from all the sellers for setting their shops in the open markets and if the open markets close, we will lose a big chunk of our revenue. The other gangs might seize this chance and end us all."

"The same with us as well. The slums are our source of income be it the trafficking, courthouses, monthly protection money from the people of the slums or the various shops of ours. We have our bases in there and we have always paid the officials keep things under the table."

"Now that brat wants to remove the whole slum. The WHOLE slum and plants trees there! What about our people?"

And after the first person spoke, the rest began to open up about their problems while hiding quite a lot of things.

The Middle-aged man listened to them all in silence and patiently waited for them to finish. Once the clamour and shoutings had died down, he spoke in a charming manner.

"I think you didn't understand my words. I said don't interfere in his way."

"It meant that I, want you all, to not make things troublesome. That's it."

An aura of suppression was released from the Middle-aged man as he spoke, his voice still smooth and charming.

Yet the people on the round table began to palpitate as they realised of the danger they had gotten into. They were all people who had dealings with the darker sides of the society and knew what was dangerous and what wasn't.

But looks like this time, they all made a mistake in their guessing and now they all had to pay for it.

When the Middle-aged had gathered them all to talk, the matter had already settled there. They had no choice but to obey him.

And yet he listened to their ramblings as if the meowing of puppies and chickens before being slaughtered.

"You wasted my time. You wasted his time. How many would he have completed by now? What do you think? Hmm?"

"Now it's delayed. So did his future plans. How is he going to finish his task here on time now? When will he proceed to the next area?"

"What if he quit? Hm?"

"All because some insects decided to forget their place and dared to be an annoyance."

"Did you not hear that it was a plan proposed by the Spirit Pagoda? Or is the prestige of the Pagoda on the downfall since mere hoodlums like you have the guts to defy the Pagoda?"

"Then let me make it clear to you all. Every single piece of land that he is replanting is a property of the Spirit Pagoda and thus will be protected by it."

The Middle-aged looked at all the people on the large round table and receded the pressure on them.

"I don't care what you do or how you fare by after the replantation, interfere in this matter again and those lands of 'yours' will be your graves."

His eyes coldly scanned the whole room as the others silently lowered their gazes in fear and trepidation.

Their answers were already set and they knew they couldn't change it. Neither they had the courage to argue.

"What are you waiting for? Pay your tributes for the time you wasted and scram!"

The Middle-aged said while getting up. The other also sprang up on the legs and gave a polite 90° bow of understanding.

"We will heed your words, Titled Venerable."

The middle aged man glanced at them one more time before disappearing from the room. His men will oversee the rest.

....

In a private room of the nearby Spirit Pagoda branch.

The middle aged man sat while looking at the various reports from his subordinates.

"You could have just told me about it Sir President. I would have handled the situation on my own."

A woman said to the Middle aged man while bowing on one knee.

"It's because you didn't do anything that I have to come."

The Middle-aged man that was referred as the President coldly remarked, causing a shiver to run down the spine of the woman.

He was the President of the Spirit Pagoda, aka Qiangu Donfeng.

Fan Lin had to stop his Resurgence of Life project due to the underworkings of the people who were not benefitting from the project.

Now Fan Lin had taken a few days off to meditate.

Qiangu Donfeng looked at the progress report of the project. In the past weeks, Fan Lin had an average replantation speed of 79 areas per day, total to roughly 800 areas in ten days.

The 10000 target seemed feasible now and that would mean that Fan Lin could start working on the other areas after then.

After reading Fan Lin's progress report, Qiangu Donfeng was on cloud nine since he had already pitched the bill for the rearing of the smaller spirit beasts in these areas which the Parliamentary opposition factions, the ones that were supported by Tang Sect from the background, had put a hold on it due to not having having sufficient areas. They couldn't stop it and putting a hold was the most that they could do at this time.

Qiangu Donfeng didn't care much about that though, since him showing too much eagerness might alert the Tang Sect onto the project.

And he already knew that Fan Lin was steadily replanting the areas so sooner or later, he will gain the permit regardless of the disapproval of the Tang Sect.

With the permit, his problems will soon cease to exist and he will be able to safely and legally export the spirit beasts to his NEW facilities that will be built in those areas.

Then he was dragged down to the ground from the skies as he read the news that the Federation had stopped Fan Lin's replantation contract for a month due to the recent uprisings of the poor public and the hate from the media and general public.

If the situation persisted, the cease in contract might increase or Fan Lin might even have to change the contract while resubmitting a new list of areas while leaving the ones that are inhibited or used by people even if it is the government property.

The Federation might even take the whole project in there hands and draft the new list by their own officials, which were mostly like the members from one of the three Temples.

According to the Federation, lots of different communities and others had been living on those areas for a long times, some of them for even centuries.

Now if those areas are to be taken from those people, they might become wanderers with no home or place of work.

The Federation won't allow such a cruel thing to happen to fellow poor humans and face the wrath of the general public in the elections.

Hence Fan Lin's Resurgence of Life project had been put on hold for a month.

If the situation calms down, be it by the work of Federation providing another form of residence to them or the protest just for down on its own, Fan Lin can continue.

If the situation persisted, the project has to be taken down for the moment while an appeal for a better project and a staff for the proper management of the project was to be created. The estimated time that it will take to do all these things was three to five years.

In that time, the Federation could either shift the population by providing (building) housing facilities for the people or they can just create a better list of areas that are to be replanted; all in all, they had to show that they are working for the time they will take.

This was the situation that Qiangu Donfeng wanted to avoid. He owned the people that ran the various things in the parliament and controlled it however he wished but the Parliament doesn't represent the Federation.

Even he had some things that he can't weave his ways through. It was also the reason why he needed Fan Lin's assistance in creating his future facilities.

Now that project was on hold, Qiangu Donfeng was seething with silent anger. Nearly half his plan to deal with the mysterious death depended on Fan Lin.

Now that something like this has happened he didn't want Fan Lin to feel like he was alone and stop his project in despair or pressure from the situation, that would be the end of his goody-goody relationship with Fan Lin and Qiangu Donfeng would have to use some forceful methods of cooperation to finish the rest of the work.

Qiangu Donfeng didn't want that and hence, he personally dealt with the situation.

He wanted Fan Lin to feel that he was important and that his work was important and do his all to increase his pace in the replantation.

That would solve a lot of his problems, be it the mysterious death, the unavailability of reasearch facilities or materials and lastly confidentiality.

'The Mysterious Death should not be able to find out about this.'

And truth to be told, Qiangu Donfeng wasn't the only one that was disgruntled at the halting of the project.

The whole upper echelon of the Spirit Pagoda were also fuming with rage at the Federation's actions.

Fan Lin had been a low level cash cow for them and had been earning quite a lot of fortune without much investment and they liked that fact.

Fan Lin being talent was another likable fact, adding his cultivation, Three Word Battle Armor and secondary profession, he was a talent that could and should be nurtured.

This was the first project of Fan Lin and not much was wrong with his project. The Federation, if they really cared about the poor people, then they should have provided them housing facilities like decades ago.

The people would have not even be living in those areas but what did the Federation did, they did nothing and ignored it for all this time.

Now they were interfering in things they shouldn't. If they actually care about the public then they should shift them to the newly created cities that they were making, why stop the project. It wasn't like the top brass of the Federation didn't know the significance of the replantation on the Douluo Continent.

Adding to the fact that the protestors weren't even properly poor and were just puppets by the rich to make the matters worse.

That was infuriating.

Now that President Qiangu Donfeng had dealt with the situation and it was under the wraps, Fan Lin should be able to work on his project with any worries and they will be raking in cash and vitality for the plane.

Fan Lin's loyalty could also be gained in the meantime.

That's what they all planned and thought.

"How's his cultivation?"

Qiangu Donfeng asked the woman who was kneeling on one knee while still bowing down to Qiangu Donfeng in fear.

"I haven't seen him meditate since he came. Much less cultivate, I haven't even seen his take breaks or sleep. It's all chose a place, go there, start the plantation, finish it, take pictures and leave for the next area and repeat the same thing again and again."

"This has been his daily routine for the past weeks and if they haven't stopped him, he might have been on his 1500 area by today."

"He can start again from the next week. This time, do your job properly and take care of anything that gets in his way. Anything else on him?" [Qiangu Donfeng]

"He likes tomatoes and orange juice."

"..." [Qiangu Donfeng]

"Leave." [Qiangu Donfeng]

The woman immediately left the private room in a hurry.

"The quality of the staff is decreasing each year."

Qiangu Donfeng whispered before disappearing from the private room as well.

His work here was done and now was the time to wait.

"He must have returned to the Pagoda, I should try to convince him on replanting the bigger cities first. That would make things easier."

...

Three more parts remaining.

Next update is unknown.