Xiu Xin Aoyama was on his way to work.

"Ring ring! Ring ring!"

Suddenly, the phone in his pocket rang urgently.

"Moshi moshi." He answered it casually.

"Governor, there's trouble. Hundreds of workers from the Kujō Seafood Processing Factory are causing a commotion in front of the Governor's Hall." The person on the other end of the line sounded anxious.

Indeed, to a bureaucrat, people demanding their legitimate rights in this manner was considered causing trouble.

Xiu Xin Aoyama raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are they demanding the wages that have been withheld?"

"Yes, and one more thing. One of their co-workers died last night, and they suspect it was the Kujō Company that hired someone to do it. They want the police to investigate and punish the murderer firmly."

"Idiot!" Xiu Xin Aoyama cursed.

In an instant, he figured out what was happening.

That arrogant fool Shūichi Kujō killed the workers' leader, trying to scare off the others, but instead, it provoked their anger, leading them to besiege the Governor's Hall, demanding government intervention to resolve the matter.

Hearing Xiu Xin Aoyama curse, the person on the other end immediately tried to ease his troubles, "I will notify the police right away to arrest and detain these troublemaking rascals."

"Fool!" Xiu Xin Aoyama cursed again and took a deep breath, "Calm them down, tell them I'm on my way and I will definitely provide an explanation."

If he really let the police forcibly remove or even arrest all these workers, he would lose the public support in Hokkaido that he had painstakingly gained. People would think that since leaving the police for politics, he had lost his original intentions.

As the saying goes, Wang Mang was humble before he usurped the throne, and now was not the time for him to reveal his true self; he needed to stand with the citizens and solve their problems.

After hanging up the phone, Xiu Xin Aoyama's face darkened.

He had already given Shūichi Kujō a chance.

But this waste had not only failed to suppress the matter but had also let the situation escalate to him. He couldn't blame anyone but himself for being forced to side with the workers.

He then called the deputy governor, "Inform Shūichi Kujō immediately that he has to start distributing the withheld wages from today onwards and settle it within a month, or else don't blame me for handling it impartially."

He couldn't even be bothered to see this loser in person, someone who couldn't even handle a group of troublemaking rascals is just a pure fool.

In other words, it was Shūichi Kujō himself who pushed him from the side of the capitalists to the side of the people!

"Yes!" The deputy governor immediately agreed.

At the same time, an official at the steps of the Governor's Hall shouted, "Please calm down, everyone. I've already spoken to the governor, and he's on his way to resolve the issue for you. Choose a few people to tell me your specific demands in detail, and I'll report to the governor when he arrives."

Meanwhile, Shūichi Kujō had already learned about what was happening at the entrance of the Governor's Hall and was both shocked and angry.

"Idiots! How dare those bastards!"

The day before, Xiu Xin Aoyama had warned him to resolve the issue quickly and not to let it escalate, but now those rascals had brought the trouble right to Xiu Xin Aoyama's doorstep.

He hurriedly called Xiu Xin Aoyama.

But after just a few rings, it was directly hung up.

Fretful and a bit angry, he felt that Xiu Xin Aoyama was disrespecting his father.

"Ring ring! Ring ring!" The next second his phone rang, and he quickly answered, "Hello."

"President Kujō, the governor asked me to inform you to announce today that you will gradually start paying the withheld wages and promise to settle them within a month, otherwise the government will handle it impartially," the deputy governor said.

"Wait! Wait!" Shūichi Kujō sensed the other party was about to hang up and quickly said, "We're experiencing some operational difficulties, it's definitely not intentional to withhold, please help me arrange a meeting with the governor..."

"You'll have to arrange that yourself, or have your father intervene," the deputy governor hung up directly.

Ten minutes later, Xiu Xin Aoyama arrived near the Governor's Hall and could see the gathered crowd from afar.

Many reporters had also arrived to cover the story.

A large number of police officers were on the scene maintaining order.

"Governor Aoyama is here!"

"It's Governor Aoyama! Governor Aoyama, please stand up for us! There are suspicious circumstances surrounding Mr. Takahashi's death!"

"Kujō Company hasn't paid wages for half a year, and they bribe the police and the Black Society to threaten and intimidate us!"

"Everyone calm down! Calm down! I'm here to solve your problems!" Xiu Xin Aoyama said as he got out of the car and walked forward, surrounded by his secretary and police, raising his hand and shouting, "Please trust me!"

After much effort, he finally made his way through the crowd to stand behind the human wall formed by the police, where he got a further understanding of the situation from the officials in charge of maintaining order.

He then picked up a megaphone, stood on the steps, and addressed the emotionally charged workers, "I understand all your demands, and they are completely reasonable! On behalf of the Governor's Hall, I fully support them and will immediately urge Kujō Company to pay the withheld wages. Within a month, at most a month, everything will be settled! Otherwise, come back to me!"

"As for Mr. Takahashi's death, I will urge the police to file a case and investigate. If it is indeed a murder, we will find the culprit and bring them to justice!"

With just a few straightforward words, he addressed everyone's demands clearly and concisely and earned their trust.

"Great! We trust Governor Aoyama!"

"Governor Aoyama never lets us down!"

"Listen to Governor Aoyama, everyone should go back and wait for news; he has never lied to us."

The influence and prestige Xiu Xin Aoyama had built over the years took effect, and after hearing his direct promise, the workers' emotions calmed, and they began to disperse.

But the reporters hadn't left and flocked to ask questions, "Does Governor Aoyama believe that the sudden wage arrears at Kujō Company are due to business difficulties? Is this related to Japan's economic downturn in recent years?"

"I don't care or concern myself with why the wages are withheld; I only care that companies must not and cannot withhold employees' wages!" Xiu Xin Aoyama said righteously, "I will take the next steps to organize personnel to investigate wage arrears throughout the prefecture, strictly preventing such incidents and ensuring every employee receives their salary."

"Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap!"

Thunderous applause erupted instantly.

After dealing with the reporters, Xiu Xin Aoyama turned and headed towards the office building. His secretary, Haruno Takayoshi, immediately approached to report, "Kenji Kujō wants to meet you."

"That old bastard," Xiu Xin Aoyama murmured a moment, feeling helpless, "No choice, meet with him."

He could ignore Shūichi Kujō's invitation.

But he still had to give face to Kenji Kujō as there were many in the current government who had benefitted from him in the past.

Although he was not afraid of making enemies, minimizing conflicts when possible was wise, as he didn't want to have too much trouble dealing with adversaries after a political shift.

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