Darkstone Code

Chapter 1231 - 1229: Fake News!

How painful can it be?

It’s hard to say. The chest has a lot of sensitive nerves, especially in women, and the external pressure on the chest can suddenly disrupt the heart’s rhythm. In that instant, the woman feels she might die here.

Her face is filled with horror because the screams of pain didn’t even have a chance to escape her mouth before a slap silenced them!

Slap!

It’s like... it’s like... something sticky and whole was fiercely thrown onto a smooth floor or table, that kind of sound, with a brief echo throughout the room!

The woman is completely stunned, so much so that she forgets the pain.

She tilts her head, her mind blank, suffering severe tinnitus in the ear that was hit, even feeling a warm flow in her ear!

The man punches and slaps, then returns to the table, lights a cigarette, sits on the edge of the table, and begins formal interrogation.

"Just the money you didn’t report for taxes, and the possibility of your connection to the money laundering group, we can make sure you never get out of here for life."

"But you know, this may not necessarily be your fault. If you’re willing to pay for someone else’s mistakes with your entire life, then I’ll tell the judge how determined you are."

"And don’t think that nothing will happen during this time. We’ll keep interrogating you like this, and this is the easiest way."

"I have dozens of methods for you to experience one by one. Maybe you’ll find it interesting!"

The special agent paused after speaking to give the woman some time to accept and understand the information, then asked, "Now tell me where every penny came from and where you spent it, or whom you gave it to."

"We have plenty of time!"

The half-voice scream in the interrogation room echoed outside, but no one took it seriously. The unique nature of the tax system gave them a lot of extrajudicial privileges.

For example, they can use the reason "the case hasn’t fully concluded and needs confidentiality" to avoid public trials and judgments. No one would know what happened; people would only learn from newspapers or some places afterward that some individuals, possibly even with their names blacked out, were sentenced to severe punishment.

So sometimes they’re quite reckless, of course, under the premise that their "opponent" can’t escalate the issue to the point where the entire society is focused.

A responder, he didn’t have that ability!

Meanwhile, the director of the local Tax Bureau had just hung up the phone. He was also smoking, staring at the pitch-black sky outside, lost in thought.

The call just now was from a guy named Johnson. He knew this guy; they had met and talked in upper-level meetings.

Johnson used to be the director of the Sabin City Tax Bureau, and now he’s a consultant for the York State Tax Bureau, semi-retired.

Johnson called, hoping he would increase the intensity of the interrogation slightly, and hinted that a big person was concerned about the matter, advising to report truthfully once it’s settled.

For someone he hadn’t contacted in years to suddenly call and say these things, the director felt a bit uneasy in his heart.

After deflecting Johnson, he called some connections and learned through various channels that Johnson seemed to have some connections with Lynch.

And Lynch? A regular guest of the President, a close friend of "Shadow President" Truman, a big capitalist, with power, influence, status, and wealth.

He indeed was a big figure, and then he considered some things within this. If anything needed action recently, it must be related to the state election.

This responder might be a key person.

The director felt a little unlucky, but luckily, the tax system is vertical, with local authorities having no power to interfere with their work, making him less fearful of whether the investigation results would be shocking.

He didn’t sleep well that night, feeling he might punch a big hole.

Early the next morning, he arrived at the Federal Tax Bureau, and as soon as he entered the office, two special agents responsible for the interrogation handed him a document.

He didn’t open it immediately but tried to read something from the expressions on the two special agents’ faces.

"How did it go?" He put his briefcase down, walked to the chair behind the desk, and sat down. "What did she confess?"

The two special agents looked at each other.

They dragged on until past eleven pm; the woman finally broke down. But the revelations she made caused them a bit of a headache.

One of them opened his mouth several times and finally gritted his teeth, revealing the truth.

"According to the woman, the five thousand dollars were hush money from Governor candidate Hicks, and those unreported earnings were fees collected when she worked as a respondent."

Although mentally prepared, when it truly happened, the director’s mind still buzzed.

He scratched his head, feeling an itch even in not so high temperatures.

Looking at the report in front of him, he sighed, "I understand. Don’t disclose these matters until there’s a result..."

After letting his subordinates leave, he hesitated and found the phone number for the York State office, then reached the consultant Johnson.

Once the call connected, he bluntly said, "Related to Hicks, is this what you guys want?"

Johnson wasn’t irate or embarrassed at all. "Mr. Director, actually no one did anything; even without us, you would still be able to find this stuff."

"We just accelerated the process for you and exposed the cases you might have hidden."

"There’s no need to hate me or be angry with me. You have to understand, when the gears of destiny start turning, we are all just pieces on the chessboard!"

"By the way, I heard your son will receive a full scholarship this year. Congratulations in advance..."

The director’s son is in the second grade at a Saint Harmony Alliance School, where the tuition is incredibly expensive, so much so that even as a director, he finds it hard to afford it.

This is why he used many favors to get his son in, and the Saint Harmony Academy never intended to offer scholarships to the son of a Tax Bureau director from the start.

Now, with Johnson’s words, he realized that Johnson wasn’t "boasting" about a big figure orchestrating everything but that there truly was such a person.

The full scholarship from Saint Harmony Academy, regardless of its origin, indicates that his son could be a preliminary candidate for Saint Harmony Alliance...

It’s a rare opportunity, even though he knows this status is actually the lowest, just serving the high-ranking members in the Saint Harmony Association.

But serving the President and consortium presidents, is it the same as serving society like he is?

Certainly not!

After hanging up the phone, he felt less restless and anxious and looked at the report in front of him. He then called the state office, "... I investigated a case yesterday and found some issues, I don’t know how to deal with them. Do you have time in the afternoon?"

He knew very well that once Hicks got involved in a money-laundering scandal, his chances of winning would be practically zero!

Because it’s an anonymous account, no one knows how much money is in it, and it involves some sex scandals, which is fatal for a politician!

A little later, these reports were placed on the desk in the state office, and the director breathed a sigh of relief.

The trouble was passed to others.

The Federation’s tax system is unique, not managed by local governments, which ensures its neutrality in some respects.

Soon, the state office received approval from the Federal Tax Administration Bureau to investigate Hicks.

Of course, such an investigation does not yet involve an arrest or search warrant; it’s just a normal inquiry.

You can’t just believe these things because someone says so; there must be evidence.

It’s an anonymous account, and the Federation has always been tough on anonymous accounts, rejecting any form of investigation, and it’s the same for regular accounts.

Protecting depositors’ personal information from being leaked has become a sort of correct orientation, which the public strongly supports, and politicians wouldn’t forcibly pass related proposals in Congress to avoid losing public support.

This makes many investigations involving banks difficult to proceed without irresistible force interference!

Without a clear result, the investigation must continue.

Inquiry is one way of investigating.

Reporters and those skilled women are people with skills, and they can bring cheap joy to the public.

The joy from skilled women is simple and direct, and that from reporters is the same.

For only fifty cents, you can buy a newspaper and smile knowingly as you watch reporters making up stories.

This joy is more advanced because it comes from spiritual satisfaction.

To be a very successful reporter, you must grasp certain elements, like keeping an eye on the frontline of news at all times.

If anything has been most under public attention recently, undoubtedly it’s the governor elections in various states.

Every day, countless reporters linger around the candidates.

Hicks had just completed a veterans’ meeting. As a military person, it’s necessary for him to pay attention to the living and work problems of veterans, which is part of his political platform.

He wants to give this group of military personnel more attention and provide them with more favorable conditions.

Even if no one likes this approach, at least it won’t be disliked.

As soon as he returned home, he discovered people in "Federal Tax Bureau" uniforms waiting for him.

A few individuals stood at his doorstep, exchanged a few words, and then entered Hicks’ house.

Lately, the fabricated news quickly surfaced—"Candidate Hicks Suspected of Financial Fraud, Tax Authorities File Investigation"

It’s so detailed as if the reporter saw it firsthand, obviously fake news.

But fake news is still news, and some people like to watch it!