New Gods of North America.

Chapter 542 Price
I don't know whether to praise Lina or talk about her.

However, after she had temporarily organized such a big thing, the captives, after some doubt and hesitation, finally chose to join one by one, and two of them even seemed to have become more determined.

We walked out of the basement and came to the lobby, where the real "welcome party" was.
The tables in the restaurant were put together to form a large table, which was filled with drinks and food made by Chef Parker himself. Except for a few agents who were on duty outside, the rest of the agents were seated around the table as arranged, with an empty seat left for every few people.

The partners' seats were still connected as usual. After everyone was seated, Wayne was the first to pick up the glass:
“Although family visits and training inspections are still required before formal employment, they are not officially employed yet, but those who appear here with us now are basically new members of the detective agency.

"Since they happened to come across our celebration party for solving the case, we welcome them to join us first."

Everyone raised their glasses, "Welcome!"

In fact, it is not easy for the agents to have a drink with a "boss" like a partner present.

However, the newly joined members are relatively special after all, so Wayne had to set an example for Doug and the others, or at least make a standard template to facilitate their subsequent "copying homework".

According to Wayne's own design, everyone should first get to know each other, and everyone should say their names and where they came from.
Then we drank some wine and chatted with each other, and started talking about our past experiences, why we joined the detective agency, and how we felt after joining.

Willy was a good agent in this regard. "I used to live in Kansas City. It's not as strictly controlled as Virginia, but it's also more chaotic in some ways. I received help when I was a child, and I once dreamed of becoming a sheriff or a policeman. Later, although I knew it was impossible, I could at least become a private detective, and what I could do was actually similar..."

Ryan sounded like he was both complaining and boasting, "I originally thought that after joining the detective agency, I would just follow them to arrest wanted criminals or deal with gangs, but the boss insisted that I go to be in charge of the office... and I just came back from the office not long ago, and I thought I should be able to stay in the base camp for a while, but the boss told me that I have to go to the 'second office' now..."

Conor was a straight guy, not interested in any of this, but curious about the extraordinary abilities of his "new colleagues". He asked about their weaknesses, as if to say, "I've made an appointment with you guys, we're going to have a fight in the arena when we get back to Georgeburg."

There are also Doug and Sanders, who are relatively silent and always listen more than talk, Liam, who is good at making jokes, "Sharp" and "Vine", who are always competing with others in drinking, and so on. Their performances vary, but at least they have "broken the ice".

Afterwards, when everyone was getting drunk, Inissa had already run away, and Lina started to instigate others to bet and drink, the new members finally let go.
It turns out that in places with "strict control", everyone also has their own sufferings. Not to mention that some people's beliefs may not be convenient to "speak openly" in this era. Even if they are believers of the Holy Spirit, they may not necessarily belong to the "Holy Spirit Church" in America. There are also some small churches or scattered believers in various places, and they are generally mainly with their parents or the community.

Some places in the south were originally colonies of the French. Later, they were driven away by the Windsors, who were then driven away by the Americans. However, some traditions and living habits still left their mark on this land, and were passed down from generation to generation by some people.
As for the extraordinary people, if they choose to avoid the Holy Spirit Church in some corners, other forces will come to them. Even in Virginia, there are still some other organizations that can exist "in accordance with the rules", such as local agent organizations.

Wayne was listening to a new member, whose code name was temporarily called "Hound" at the table, telling a story, and he learned a lot of strange and obscure facts.
For example, he was absorbed into the postal system because of his family's beliefs and extraordinary field issues. If he had no one to protect him, the local management of the Holy Spirit Church would not be very loose, especially for someone like him. It would be difficult to find a relatively well-paid job - just being required to settle in one place meant losing a lot of opportunities.

But then again, relatively “free” shelter is often not without a price. “You don’t know, the local postal system is actually like a swamp. When people first walk in, they think they are fine, but when they find themselves sinking, it’s too late.

"I'm relatively good. I was doing the same shady work. At most, I was just a gangster thug before, but some people are almost becoming 'killers' - that's how they can quickly improve their status.

"And like Wagsena... Eh? Where is he? Did he go to vomit again? Anyway, he is the one you just decided to call 'softened'. I just want to tell you secretly that he was sent to participate in the suppression of his own people before. In order to protect his brothers, he had to do it himself. He has not dared to go back to... his... next... home for several years..."

The amount of nonsense he talked about became higher and higher, but Wayne did notice the word "softening" because of this. This temporary code name was not very good, but this was what his extraordinary ability meant. It was not the kind of softening that could be freely stretched like the "Rubber Man", but another kind that could "flow into a pool".
Before getting this temporary code name at the dinner table, Wayne called him "Nosebleed Brother" in his heart, and he was also the first person to take the initiative to express his willingness to leave the local agent organization.

Put together the fragments of information about the new members in the story and match them with the previous information in my mind.

Wayne did have a rough idea of the composition of the local spy organization, and at least had a general and intuitive impression of the postal system in the Richmond area.

The reason why America became a "federation" was actually because the founding fathers wanted to unify the people's hearts at the lowest cost.

Before the War of Independence broke out, the New World was actually a group of "colonies" that had no jurisdiction over each other and whose historical development paths varied. Some places had powerful governors who could directly command the army, some places needed to rely on landlords for co-governance, and some places were even managed by a group of poor people who huddled together for warmth.

In the process of driving out the Windsors, some colonies were supporters of the "federation", thinking of "eventually becoming a shareholder of the group and becoming the CEO"; some colonies only intended to drive out the original "emperor", thinking "it will only be a figurehead in the future, and the branch company will still have the final say";
Some people don’t care, “It doesn’t matter who I pay taxes to, I’ll kneel down no matter which side wins”; others are forced to “follow the crowd” due to the situation, thinking “you guys have the final say, but don’t delay me from making money”.
Therefore, in the federal constitution, there are so many provisions that "limit" the power of the federal government, and the federal government always pursues the "unity" of the states.

I won't talk about the things that are too far away, let's just talk about Virginia's current postal system.
The old butler of the Beaton family once told Wayne that the local postal system went through a process of "reorganization and dismissal" after the establishment of the Federation. Some of the personnel were able to continue to make a living with the donations and support of local wealthy people.

So it makes sense that when local wealthy people encounter personal troubles, some people will "repay the favor" or "be forced to get close".

A gray area. If the "imperial power does not reach the countryside" for decades...

It doesn't feel strange what it will turn out like.

(End of this chapter)