Chapter 105: Three Days for an Answer

That afternoon, William met with people from the Women’s Rights Defenders Association at an open-air café: a man in his thirties and a woman around thirty.

“William...” William introduced himself while shaking their hands. The two visitors did not show any particularly strong hatred or affection. Instead, they shook William’s hand politely and sat down at the table.

The poor economy had left the open-air café with far fewer customers than before. In the past, the place would often be full. Now, in the little roadside garden, there were only two occupied tables.

One was theirs. At the other sat a young man and woman who did not look as if they came from ordinary families.

“I heard from other channels that there may be some misunderstanding between us...” He stopped there, drawing out the purpose of the meeting. What remained was communication.

The two people sitting opposite him exchanged a glance. The man nodded. “Possibly, Mr. Carter. Do you know a woman named Julie?”

The visitors did not dodge the issue. They threw the heart of the matter straight onto the table.

Julie counted as a somewhat important member of the Sabine City Women’s Rights Protection Association. In earlier years, when Sabine City Football Club was at its height, Julie had enjoyed considerable influence. She could use the club’s fame to publish certain views, either on her own or together with some players, and people had the patience to listen while she said what the association needed her to say.

But over the past few years, her influence in Sabine City’s public opinion and among the general public had gradually faded. Her standing within the association had also begun to decline. Still, given her hard work in the past, some people continued to value her highly.

They could not act one way when she had influence and another way once she lost it. That would not look good.

After Julie was fired yesterday, she went to the association, found several of her friends, and told them what had happened. After a brief closed-door meeting, the association decided to help Julie seek justice.

But really, what justice was there to seek?

The economy was bad. Every level of society was withering, and the association had the same problem. Membership dues were difficult to collect, the funds they applied for were not being approved, and social sponsorships were growing fewer and fewer. If they did not move soon, if they did not make some noise, the Sabine City branch might have to dissolve.

Whether they stirred up trouble with William to make companies employing large numbers of female workers understand their value and importance, or got the higher-level association to allocate some maintenance funding, either would be important. Of course, the precondition was that they had to create a commotion.