Chapter 58: Left Hand, Pocket, Right Hand

George deliberately arrived at their agreed meeting spot ten minutes early. On one hand, it was a matter of personal discipline; on the other, he wanted to avoid giving Director Johnson any chance to gain an upper hand.

He didn’t want to offend Johnson, but neither did he want to appear too close to him. The tax department had recently run into a string of troubles, and keeping his distance was the safest move.

What he didn’t expect was that someone else was already there—and looked familiar.

George never bothered remembering the faces of small-time figures, so the moment of doubt quickly passed. A warm smile appeared on his face, as if he, Johnson, and this stranger were all close friends.

After the three shook hands, he finally realized who the man was. That surprised him—he had assumed these two should be at odds. But the way they behaved suggested something else entirely. In other words, there might be more behind the headlines than meets the eye.

They began the conversation with small talk about the weather and the declining market. Originally, Director Johnson was only supposed to introduce George to Lynch and then leave, but now he didn’t feel like going.

It wasn’t that he suspected anything between the two; it was the piece of paper in his pocket that left him uneasy and indecisive. He wanted to wait until Lynch and George finished talking before discussing things privately with Lynch.

As they kept the conversation going, Johnson found himself gradually convinced by Lynch’s reasoning. Michael’s wife had never worked, their child was due for release from prison early next year, and their house and other expenses were all pressing. After Michael’s arrest, the family had lost its only income source.

Michael was facing a minimum prison term of at least three years, according to legal consultants from the tax bureau. His knowing violation of the law was one of the primary reasons for the heavier sentence.

A family with no income can’t survive. Johnson’s guilt made him want to make amends. That money—suddenly—felt justified. He convinced himself it wasn’t bribery, since the money wouldn’t be going into his own pocket.

As he was thinking this through, Lynch suddenly asked, “Director Johnson, didn’t you say earlier you had something urgent to take care of?”

Johnson snapped out of his thoughts and stared at Lynch for a few seconds before realizing what was said. “Ah… yes, I have something to handle…”

Now that Lynch had said that, Johnson couldn’t stay. He reluctantly stood up, apologized, and left.

George watched him leave, pondering the true purpose of today’s meeting. He wasn’t sure yet, but since it came with Johnson’s endorsement, he would take it seriously.

“Mr. George, as you know, I’m a businessman…” George nodded. He knew who Lynch was; the newspapers had written about him. Lynch continued, “I have some business ventures lately that require capital…”

At this point, George already understood the gist. He didn’t know why Lynch and Johnson were friends, or why Johnson would vouch for him—but ultimately, Lynch wanted money.

It wasn’t hard, but it wasn’t easy either. George gave a faint, practiced smile—the kind he used when faced with the pleas of small business owners—quietly showing his superior position. “How much do you want?”

“As much as possible,” Lynch replied, pulling a folder from behind him.

George couldn’t help but laugh.

“Everyone says that. But you should know, we have policy limits. For Director Johnson’s sake, I can offer you a $5,000 credit loan.”

Credit loans hadn’t yet been widely rolled out. The six major banks were extremely cautious in issuing them. The goal was to reactivate the market economy.

After the economy slowed down over two years ago, problems emerged across society. The president’s cabinet and senior bank officials spent a year drafting a pilot scheme: open up unsecured personal credit loans to help people get through tough times and lower interest rates to stimulate activity.

Five thousand wasn’t a lot. Even if Lynch defaulted, George could cover it himself. It would be a favor to Johnson—and a favor Lynch would owe him in return. Not a bad trade.

Lynch didn’t object or agree. Instead, he placed a few mortgage loan contracts on the table and pushed them over.

George frowned slightly, gave them a cursory glance, then took a fine glasses case from his pocket and began reading them carefully.

About ten minutes later, he removed the glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Looks similar to standard bank mortgage contracts. But you’ve added a supplemental agreement about waiving rights to the collateral…” He had read thoroughly. “This… I’m sorry, but these won’t work here. If you’ve read the papers, you’d know Sabin City has been cracking down on financial crimes lately. Gatner is already blacklisted.”

He was stern. These small finance companies were essentially poaching market share from the banks, offering easy approvals and lenient conditions. People who couldn’t pass a bank’s checks often turned to them.

George disdained them. Yet, they were still a necessary part of society. Still, at his level, he didn’t want to be associated with them.

But Lynch wasn’t upset. Instead, he pulled out more documents and pushed them over.

George looked at him. Lynch nodded slightly. After some hesitation, George put on his glasses again and resumed reading.

Some of the documents were company registration and authority papers. A man named Dyson had founded a company called Dyson Asset Management as sole owner, with full legal and tax registration—fully legitimate.

Others were agreements assigning mortgage contracts from Gatner Financial to Dyson Asset Management. These stated that from the date of signing, Dyson Asset Management would hold full legal rights to the contracts.

Whether or not there was anything shady between the two companies, legally, based on the documents, statements, and even official legal notices in the newspaper, the rights to these mortgage contracts had already been transferred.

In other words, they no longer belonged to Gatner.

As George sank into thought, Lynch knew he was halfway to success.

Gatner—Mr. Fox’s finance company—had handed over the contracts to Dyson Asset Management. That made Dyson the rights holder. Legally, the debtors no longer had any connection to Mr. Fox.

And since it was a delegation agreement, one could always add clauses—like what happens at contract maturity—to sidestep legal barriers while making everything look legitimate.

Even if not fully legal, it wouldn’t be illegal either.

George eventually set the papers down and tapped the registration document of Dyson Asset Management. “Who’s this Dyson?”

“That’s not important, sir. What matters is that he, as a legally recognized citizen, registered this company independently.”

George nodded. He understood Lynch’s point. A sole proprietorship had clearly defined liability. With only one rights holder, there were no internal legal disputes.

If a company had multiple owners, lawsuits could drag on for years. Even if responsibilities were eventually sorted out, the company could still declare bankruptcy and liquidate. It was a mess.

But sole proprietorships were simpler. If something went wrong, resolution was quick. George could already see Lynch’s intent—this was an empty shell, but a valuable one.

Frankly, he was tempted.

Banks had to worry about appearances, even though theirs were already unseemly. But what Lynch had brought forward looked like quality assets in George’s eyes.

He noted the dates on the pledge documents. Gatner’s current interest rates looked fine, but the supplemental clauses were questionable.

Essentially, everyone who signed those agreements would eventually forfeit their collateral. It was a disguised form of high-interest lending—something not yet explicitly outlawed.

And if it wasn’t outlawed, a judge might still uphold it.

“I need to consult with our legal department…” He put away his glasses and suddenly found Lynch more agreeable. “If I need to reach you, where can I find you?”

Lynch handed him a business card at just the right moment. “Here’s my number. I’m always available.”

George glanced at it—and was surprised. He looked back at Lynch with a more serious expression.

“General Manager, Auction House…”

Yes, the auction house was registered just this morning. It’s also part of Lynch’s plan.