Chapter 403 Explosive News
The military-green SUV roared away, disappearing from Noah's sight in the blink of an eye.
"Damn it! He got away!" Sidney stomped his foot in frustration. The operation had cost him several men, and they had nothing to show for it.
Noah stared in the direction of the vanished vehicle, his expression thoughtful but silent.
Inside the speeding SUV, Hawk laughed as he clutched the contract. "We lost about a dozen men, but we achieved our objective. Bodhi signed."
He smiled with satisfaction. "Now Bodhi doesn't hold a single share in the Harris factory. One hundred percent of the equity belongs to the Harris family. Uncle Isaac should reward me handsomely for this accomplishment!"
His expression darkened slightly. "As for Noah... he was somewhat unexpected. It seems we underestimated him. That guy might not be just a lackey after all."
He dialed a number. "Uncle Isaac, it's done."
"Good work, Hawk. Come home now," came the approving voice from the other end.
"Yes, sir!" Hawk ended the call.
Suddenly, his phone chimed with news alerts from the Silverlight City news app. Two headlines appeared:
[SHOCKING: Harris Group Factories Exposed as Sweatshops! Workers Living Worse Than Dogs?]
[BREAKING: Eagleland East Harris Family Executive Nathaniel's Secret Mistress? Otto Has an Illegitimate Child? Chaos in the Wealthy Family!]
"What the hell?" Hawk stared at his phone in disbelief. "Where did these stories come from?"
Almost simultaneously, these two news stories exploded across Eagleland East like nuclear bombs. With a population in the hundreds of millions, eighty to ninety million people immediately clicked on these headlines.
The articles included damning videos and recordings of factory workers as evidence. After reading them, the entire Eagleland East population erupted in outrage.
[What? Harris Group factories are sweatshops? Workers putting in over twelve hours a day for just $10 an hour?]
[That salary is way too low! The Harris family factories are in Silverlight City, the heart of Imperial State—that's a tier-one city!]
[The labor and compensation are completely out of balance.]
[Worse yet, the factory workers have no benefits, they employ child labor, and people have died from overwork!]
Comments flooded in by the thousands. [Boycott sweatshops!] received over 100,000 likes in minutes. The article about the Harris family executives' private lives drew equally scathing reactions:
[These wealthy families are so corrupt!]Nathaniel has a mistress!]Otto has an illegitimate child! Unbelievable!]Do people with such corrupt private lives deserve such high positions?]
In the SUV, Hawk frantically scrolled through the comments, sweat beading on his forehead. His earlier joy over obtaining the contract had completely vanished, replaced by a feeling of ice water being poured over him.
"Why are these stories coming out? Is our PR team completely useless?" Hawk, having received an excellent education, understood the terrifying power of public opinion.
With these stories breaking, the Imperial State government would inevitably side with the public and take action against the Harris family. Even if they survived, they would suffer severe damage—possibly setting them back decades.
Meanwhile, at the Harris Manor, Isaac smashed his phone to the ground, his eyes bloodshot with rage. "What's happening? Why are these stories out there?"
"Silverlight City Daily! Eagleland East Evening News! All these media outlets publishing these stories!" he fumed. "How much money does the Harris family give these organizations every year? How much PR work have we done? We've always feared public opinion—why are these stories appearing now?"
As the head of the Harris family, Isaac deeply understood the power of public sentiment. These stories instantly thrust his family into the spotlight—if the angry public were before him now, their spit alone could drown him.
"Damn it! These aren't exclusive stories! They're being published simultaneously by over a dozen media outlets across Eagleland East! Someone must be pulling the strings behind this!"
Nathaniel, seated nearby, was equally furious, his face ice-cold. Hawk and Rhett sat in the corner, not daring to make a sound.
Outside the Old Memories Nightclub, Noah received a call from Terry. "Mr. Anderson, the news has been published."
"Good," Noah nodded, a slight smile playing on his lips.
His WhatsApp chimed with a message from Atticus: [Mr. Anderson, I've spoken with all the media outlets in Eagleland East. The stories about the Harris family will also be featured on all major television morning news programs tomorrow.]
[I understand,] Noah replied. He knew that Terry alone couldn't mobilize so many media organizations in Eagleland East.
The Harris family had murky connections to numerous news outlets. But Noah had the backing of the Moore family—equals to the Harris family with their own media influence. That's why he had informed Atticus of his plans.
"This news will gradually ferment. By tomorrow, we'll see the results," Noah murmured.
Early the next morning at the Harris Manor, Isaac, Nathaniel, and Otto sat with grim expressions, having not slept all night.
The bad news arrived in waves as men in suits rushed in one after another:
"Mr. Harris, all workers at every Harris family factory in Silverlight City are on strike today! Not a single one showed up for work!"
"Mr. Harris, our family's stock has dropped ten points overnight, wiping out hundreds of billions in market value! Investors are pulling out!"
"Mr. Harris, customers are lining up to withdraw money from the banks we've invested in. The banks are facing a cash shortage!"
"Mr. Harris, all major TV stations are broadcasting last night's news in their morning programs! Public opinion throughout Silverlight City is extremely unfavorable toward us!"
"Mr. Harris, many business partners and distributors are gathered outside the estate demanding explanations!"
"Mr. Harris..."
Each report made the atmosphere in the great hall increasingly heavy, shrouding it in a pall of doom.
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