Invasion of the United States

Accounting for one-quarter of the Federal Government's expenditure.

This is only the budget; if all the resources consumed are converted, the total amount will exceed 2.6 trillion US dollars.

Sometimes Zhou Qingfeng feels dazed, wondering how he made it step by step to become one of the controllers of a "behemoth" department.

With just a flick of his fingers and the signing of a few documents, he can extract jaw-dropping wealth from that never-ending flow of funds.

This power that nearly controls the lifeline of the country makes him feel thrilled, with a subtle, almost proud satisfaction.

When the report marked "resource shortage" was handed to Fauci, he was like a seasoned hunter, already predicting the prey's next move.

Faced with such a massive shortfall and urgent need, the old bureaucrat had virtually no choice but to choose the path of "procurement," seemingly the most direct but actually the easiest to manipulate.

The entire United States, even globally, is shrouded in the enormous social upheaval caused by the "X" virus, with countless ordinary people struggling in panic and despair.

But in the eyes of the elite, this is a once-in-a-lifetime feast of wealth, an ideal opportunity for power monetization.

The "subprime" crisis of 08, which almost destroyed the global financial market, ultimately was just a game of massive wealth transfer.

Countless large financial institutions collapsed, countless people went bankrupt, but the great wealth on the ledger did not disappear; it just surged like a tide into the pockets of a few "smart people" who had long planned.

And now, the rampage of the "X" virus, the lamentations and cries of the lower-class citizens are nothing but a rousing prelude to wealth in the ears of those in power.

With just a few strokes of his pen across numbers, the massive funds from the "Ministry of Health" for disaster relief can be directed like a trickle into the private vault he carefully constructed.

He even considered himself to be somewhat "honest"—he did not directly misappropriate public funds, but rather instructed the chief procurement officer of the "Ministry of Health" to place large orders with companies he designated. ReadersupportatM*VLEM*PYRmadethistranslationpossible.

Of course, the goods still have to be delivered, and the quality must pass. After all, overdoing it would easily attract unnecessary attention.

As for the price, multiplying it by four or five is completely reasonable.

Emergency delivery, workers need to work overtime; global supply chains are tight, and naturally, the cost of raw materials and transportation has soared.

Various reasons come naturally, enough to silence all questioning mouths.

With a nearly charitable "benevolence" Zhou Qingfeng thought, don't think it's expensive—he didn't directly add a "zero" to the price of the goods.

This already counts as a "great concession" given the suffering of the American people.

At this moment, Kelly should be busy at Dongda registering a new pharmaceutical company or acquiring a "shell" trading company.

At this moment, no one knows how much benefit Zhou Qingfeng can extract from the emergency orders of the "Ministry of Health"—even he himself cannot estimate it.

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The United States' "Ministry of Health" materials and equipment issues are still somewhat solvable, just spend money to buy them. The troubles that follow are even larger.

"Harden" signed a draft to give all healthcare workers on duty during the pandemic a bonus.

When Fauci became the chairman of the "Medical Efficiency Committee," this draft had already taken shape, coming up for confirmation.

Fauci saw this draft, and really had to thank Harden's ancestors for eight generations—damn, you want to win people's hearts, just sign it, but why sign a draft without legal effect?

Because this draft is riddled with significant flaws; once implemented, it will inevitably cause an uproar, yet it was delivered at this timing, clearly aiming to drag Fauci into this heavy mess!

The content of the draft is quite simple, intending to issue bonuses to healthcare workers who stuck to their posts during the pandemic to honor their diligent contributions and significant sacrifices.

This sounds undisputable, but the scope of this draft is shockingly limited to over ten thousand healthcare workers in Washington D.C.!

There are more than 6 million healthcare workers across the United States!

Those fighting on the front lines in each state under immense pressure, are they not entitled to this deserved compensation?

This seemingly generous plan, in Fauci's eyes, is a well-packaged poison pill, a trap hiding dangers.

To sign or not to sign?

If approved, then the "Ministry of Health" will use tax collection from the Federal Government to issue bonuses only to healthcare workers in Washington D.C.

One can imagine how intense the anger and dissatisfaction would be when healthcare workers in the other states learn of this news.

To appease the public, state governments would undoubtedly apply immense pressure on the Federal Government as well.

But if not signed... this colossal bureaucratic institution, the "Ministry of Health," might temporarily withstand the public opinion pressure; they are well accustomed to various criticisms and reproaches.

But what about those Washington D.C. healthcare workers who've been struggling under high-intensity, overloaded working conditions for half a month?

They've made huge sacrifices, expecting a long-awaited consolation, but if hope falls through, they will certainly "revolt"!

At the "National Rehabilitation Medical Center," Fauci has already witnessed the immense anger when he tried to announce withdrawing Harden's vice-chairmanship.

They loudly accused the government's incompetence, expressed their support for Harden, even threatening to strike collectively.