The Shadow Tycoon
Copyright© 2026 by CaffeinatedTales
Chapter 89: Favor Beneath the Mayor’s Smile
“Settled?” The mayor withdrew his gaze from the window, glanced at Ferraler, and asked, “How did the talks go?”
Ferraler, back in the office, saw His Honor the Mayor, and the complicated emotions in his heart were like a truck crashing into a chemical shop, with one reaction after another going off.
The only thing that made him feel a little more comfortable was the check in his breast pocket, the one that belonged to him. In truth, agreeing to William might not necessarily be a bad thing.
City Hall did not provide wages for people like Ferraler. Their wages were paid out of the mayor’s own private office. In other words, the mayor paid the salaries of people like Ferraler, which meant those salaries could not be too high. That was why his wage was only a little over five hundred dollars. It was very difficult for the mayor to give him a high salary.
One could also say he could not afford to. Or rather, it was difficult to give too much. The salaries of people like Ferraler, who belonged to His Honor the Mayor’s private office, as well as the expenses of the private office itself, all came from the campaign contributions donated by capitalists.
The use of campaign contributions also had certain standards and requirements. It was not as if capitalists handed the money to a politician and the politician could spend it however he wanted. There was a relatively complete process, and it was also subject to oversight.
If the salary of a personal aide employed by His Honor the Mayor, such as Ferraler, was too high, the group responsible for supervising the use of that money had the authority to lower Ferraler’s salary standard, or demand that the mayor dismiss him.
It was a very rigorous, complicated, and ridiculous process. To put it simply, after capitalists gave money to politicians, they still had to prevent the politicians from taking the money without doing anything, and at the same time prevent the politicians’ greed from expanding. So they had come up with a great many methods to restrict how campaign contributions could be used. Only when certain needs were met could that political cash be drawn on to the greatest extent without conditions.
But before that, it had to follow the rules. Many pairs of eyes were watching them.
At the same time, this became the greatest weakness, or rather the greatest professional drawback, of aides like Ferraler.
Once they were dismissed for some reason, it would be very difficult for them to find similar work again. Even if they went to an ordinary firm, the firm would have a hard time giving them work they found satisfactory. So even if they suffered certain grievances outside, they had to endure them as much as possible.
If one day in the future the mayor could realize his ambitions and ideals in politics, it was not impossible for them to have a chance to move from behind the curtain to the front of the stage.
In the Federation’s history, there were many examples of aides turning into politicians. They had helped their former employers realize their life ideals, gained sufficient experience themselves, and more importantly, obtained the friendship of capitalists.
With the support of capitalists, combined with their experience and knowledge, they could succeed easily. This was also why, even when William behaved somewhat forcefully, Ferraler did not resist.
First, if the matter became too ugly, William could simply pat his ass and leave. People would only say that his political position was not aligned with the mayor’s political position, and so he left.
But Ferraler would easily run into trouble. When people talked about William, they would also talk about the mayor. A mayor forcing away a capitalist was not a funny thing. It would make more capitalists become wary.
In the end, the unlucky one would only be Ferraler. Acting was not something only he and William could do. The mayor could do it too: “Bear with this grievance for a while...” and then a whole lifetime would pass.
If he did not do that, and instead maintained a certain degree of closeness with William, it would actually help his future plans.
Once he decided to run for some position, William, who had a good relationship with him, could immediately become his supporter. These days, the key to winning an election was not how capable a person was, but whether he knew how to act, and how much campaign money he had.
The mayor was holding a cup of coffee, sipping it in small mouthfuls while looking at Ferraler.
He did indeed have a great deal of work, but he also had quite a few aides under him. Including Ferraler, he had four aides in total, plus two young fellows responsible for dirty and tiring work.
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