“I don’t understand what you mean, Mu Lin! Haven’t I already come out of retirement?” Karen looked at Mu Lin, her tone clearly questioning.
“Exactly! Isn’t my mother already working for you? I don’t know what else you expect my mother to do?” Beth echoed Karen’s sentiment, challenging Mu Lin.
“Hehe! I knew you wouldn’t understand me!” Mu Lin laughed bitterly, looking at their puzzled expressions. “Fine, let me explain in detail. I don’t want you guessing randomly. Since everyone is here, let’s consider this our first family meeting!”
“Karen, I don’t know if you’ve noticed yourself, but maybe because you’ve worked at a law firm for so long, your thinking has become fixed. You’re an excellent manager, but you lack the talent for business,” Mu Lin said, looking at Karen.
“Yes, I’ve realized I’m just not a businessperson. Recently, I nearly made several investment mistakes. If it weren’t for timely reminders from Hong Jian Ni, Winnie, and Jessie, it could have caused significant losses,” Karen sighed.
“So, I hope you come out of retirement, using your excellent management experience to enter politics and carve out a path in the political arena. In this country’s political sphere, you can provide an umbrella of protection for all of us!” Mu Lin gazed at Karen, speaking firmly.
“Oh my God! Do you really think I can do this?” Karen exclaimed in surprise.
“Yeah, Brother Mu Lin, you know you’re much smarter than my mom. Why don’t you take the lead yourself?” Daisey also looked at Mu Lin in confusion.
“Me!” Mu Lin gave a bitter smile. “Don’t forget, I’m only seventeen this year, still underage according to the law! So, tell me, would that even be possible?”
Indeed, the women suddenly remembered his age upon hearing this. Hong Jian Ni looked at Mu Lin with a mocking expression.
Mu Lin naturally understood her meaning—’You’re underage, yet you already have four wives!’—and winked at her mischievously. Hong Jian Ni’s expression immediately turned flustered, her face turning bright red. All the women stared at the two of them.
“Alright! Mu Lin! Stop fooling around. Now it’s time to discuss serious matters. Once we’re done, whenever you want to ‘eat’ Hong Jian Ni, I don’t think she’ll object!” Karen said solemnly.
“Haha!” The women hadn’t expected Karen, who usually acted like a serious older sister, to say something like that, and they all burst into laughter together.
Hong Jian Ni herself had always been a spoiled young lady, living alone since childhood with very few close friends. After coming to Mu Lin’s place, she had been drawn to the warm, harmonious family atmosphere, and her cheerful and optimistic personality gradually emerged. Especially Finny and the others, who often teased her for ‘corrupting the boy scouts.’ Now seeing Hong Jian Ni embarrassed, they were naturally delighted to have the chance to laugh heartily.
Later, seeing Hong Jian Ni so ashamed she was ready to run away, they hurriedly stepped forward to stop her, saying the family meeting hadn’t ended yet, which finally calmed her down.
After everyone calmed down, Mu Lin changed the subject. “Besides, I’ve only been here for a few years, unlike Karen, who has lived here for over a decade. She can be considered a native resident. Plus, Karen has Daisey and Beth as her two daughters, which will help her gain the favor of most women and children.”
He paused here, looking lovingly at Karen as he continued, “Look at your big sister Karen—youthful, beautiful, elegant, and charming! If she were to come out of retirement, she would surely become the dream lover of most men! Don’t you all agree?” Mu Lin asked for everyone’s opinion.
Karen was momentarily overwhelmed by Mu Lin’s flattery, not yet recovered from the surprise.
Hong Jian Ni had already regained her composure and, never one to miss an opportunity for mischief, shouted loudly, “Exactly! Big sister Karen is just so beautiful! I wish I could be as pretty as her!”
Meizi and Meifang joined in the teasing, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere among the women.
“Alright, everyone listen to me!” Seeing Karen’s face blushing deeply, Mu Lin feared she couldn’t handle the teasing and quickly spoke up.
“Politics and economics have always been closely linked. Without a strong economic foundation, it’s impossible to achieve significant political development. And without strong political protection, once economic development reaches a certain level, it will face envy and potential division from various parties. The recent incident with our clinic is a clear example. That’s why I want Karen to enter politics for all of us!”
Mu Lin continued explaining to everyone, “Karen won’t be fighting alone in the political arena. I believe everyone here is family and can keep this secret. The Boston underworld families are all on our side, and we need to effectively integrate the people connected to them in the legitimate world under unified leadership—and that person is Karen.”
“Mu Lin, I don’t know how to do this. I’m afraid I won’t be good at it,” Karen said.
“No one is born knowing politics. Your first step should be to run for a state representative election. That will happen in the second half of this year. With our strength and your personal qualifications, there shouldn’t be any problem. Next year, we’ll have you run for mayor of Boston. With the connections I mentioned earlier and the power our clinic currently holds, you should easily win. The third step will be for you to run for governor. We must gain control of this state so we can place our people in key departments, turning the entire state into our strongest base.”
Everyone was momentarily stunned by Mu Lin’s three-step plan, carefully considering its feasibility. They hadn’t expected something that seemed so far-fetched to become so simple in Mu Lin’s explanation.
Seeing that everyone had mostly digested the information, Mu Lin continued, “Since Karen is entering politics, she must build her own team, which can be recruited from the company and society. Karen will personally choose the key positions, but the candidates must be interviewed by me.
“Economically, Jian Ni, you need to take over Karen’s previous responsibilities. Finny, Celia, and Kelly will come to the company to assist Jian Ni. The clinic’s foundation will be managed by recruiting professionals from society, and you don’t need to worry about it for now. Once you’ve gained some experience in the company, I’ll make other arrangements for you. I hope you can finish your work at the foundation quickly and return to the company to study diligently. Let me tell you clearly: in the company, you are not managers, but trainees, Jian Ni! When the time comes, you arrange for them to start from the bottom. Alright, today’s family meeting is over!”
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