One success story is of Jane. She entered a local sweepstakes by a supermarket. She won a year's supply of groceries. It really helped her family save a lot on their daily expenses.
Another success story involves Sarah. She participated in a sweepstakes for a home makeover. She won, and her entire house was renovated. They redid the kitchen, added a new bathroom, and painted all the rooms. Her home value increased significantly, and she got to enjoy a more comfortable living environment. It was a huge transformation that she couldn't have achieved on her own so easily.
There were novels similar to I am the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.:
Book of Troubled Times, Author: Ji Cha
2:"Spiritual Realm Walker", Author: Xiao Langjun
3: The Tang's Table, Author: Jie and 2
4."King of Familiars", Author: Light Spring Flowing Sound
Fairy, Please Listen to My Explanation, Author: Mi Tian Building
National Forensic Medicine, Author: Zhiniao Village
7:"Wait, Heroine." Author: Guan Guan Gongzi
8: Mantang Colorful, Author: Weird Cousin
9:"Hidden Dead Corner", Author: Get Lost
Final Divine Duty, Author: Tuoba Goudan
Beyond Time, Author: Er Gen
"This Game Is Too Real." Author: Chen Xing LL
Red Heart Sky Patrol, Author: What's the Matter?
Ring of Destiny, Author: Squid Who Loves to Dive
National Master of Ming Dynasty, Author: West Lake Encountered Rain
Choose a Day to Ascend, Author: Otaku Pig
17:"Who's in Love After Rebirth?" Author: What's Wrong?
Deep Sea Ember, Author: Yuantong
Chapter 19: Cultivation in the Chaotic World of Demonic Martial Arts, Author: Wenplagiarism
20:"Who told him to cultivate!" Author: The Whitest Crow
The following is a detailed introduction of these novels:
1."Book of Troubled Times":"Book of Troubled Times" is a fascinating novel that makes people feel like they are in the world of martial artists. The young man in the story carried a long knife on his shoulder and hung wine on his waist as he strode forward. People could not help but be moved by his courage and determination. The author brought the readers into a world full of Jianghu with his unique settings and wonderful dungeons. Although the protagonist had a cheat, his journey was not smooth sailing, but full of challenges and difficulties. This sense of realism made people more invested in the story, and at the same time, it made people feel gratified by the growth and progress of the protagonist. All in all,"Book of Troubled Times" was a fascinating novel. It inspired people to think. Not only did it make people enjoy the book, but it also gave people a deeper understanding of life, emotions, psychology, society, and history. It was worth reading!
2."Spirit Realm Traveler":··4-star recommendation
In terms of style, it continued the humor of Da Feng's The Nightwatchman, and added many new elements: suspense (slightly but just right) and speculation (full of depth). As for the battle and other parts, there were some small flaws, but they could not overshadow the merits. Moreover, the places with bugs had been fixed. Overall, I'm very satisfied with this book. Not only did I say that it's amazing to sell newspapers, but there's always a reason for being first! I'm looking forward to what happens next. Let's see if this book can continue the style of the previous book!
3.<<The Tang's Table>> The people of the world and the affairs of the world are just the dishes on the table of the Tang people.
Although the original ingredients had the original flavor of food, Yun Chu still believed that the most delicious food still needed to be divided, cooked, and handled. The food that was finally served on the table was the food that most suited the stomach of the Tang people.
Steaming, braising, stir-frying, stewing... There were many cooking methods in the kitchen.
Whether it was Goguryeo, the Turks, Tubo, Tuyuhun, Xue Yantuo, Tiele…or even whales, tigers, sharks, and hungry wolves, the Great Tang was a furnace that could cook them all into peerless delicacies…
In addition to Li Zhi, Wu Wei, Zhangsun Wuji, Chu Suiliang, Li Ji, Cheng Yaojin, and other peerless seasonings, there would always be one thing that you would never forget, regardless of color, fragrance, or taste.
Yun Chu hoped that she would definitely have a seat at such a luxurious banquet!
Now, the delicious food had been cooked. Yun Chu laid out the napkin, picked up the deer knife, and closed her eyes. She was ready to enjoy an unprecedented feast to satisfy her hungry stomach.
4."King of Familiars": Qing Quan's new book: In this brand new era of familiars, who can become the well-deserved king of familiars?
5: Fairy, Please Listen to My Explanation: [recommended words]: Reincarnated into a game novel in a different way, similar to a book novel, the kind where you dress up as a villain and kill the protagonist. The author's strength was on the line, and the plot was very attractive to the readers. He did not deliberately suppress the main character's realm. The reader's perception was coherent, and the plot was interesting. He could only say that he was not a novice writer.
[Rating]: 4
[Goldfinger: Understand the plot, easy to obtain treasures]
[Plot Introduction: Dressed as a villain, with the help of his father, brother, and fairy, he eliminated the protagonist without any danger, and the article officially kicked off.]
6. National Forensics: The Almighty's New Book
[Corpse: Are you polite?]
7."Wait, Heroine":"Wait, Heroine" was a martial arts novel. The plot was compact and fascinating. The author's description of the martial world and the temple was very exciting, giving people a feeling of being there. Especially the description of the fighting scenes, it made people feel the taste of Wuxia, which was very attractive. At the same time, the author's creation of the female character's image was also very outstanding, leaving a deep impression on people. Although the description of the temple was relatively weak, it did not affect the overall reading experience. Overall, this book was a highly recommended work. Both the plot and the writing style were excellent. The recommendation index was five stars.
8."Mantang Colorful Scenery": Rating: 8.7
The opening had vividly described the prosperity of the Great Tang, but behind this prosperity was the final moment when the building was about to collapse.
He watched the tall buildings of the Great Tang rise, he watched the buildings collapse, he watched the rising sun and the beating of the drums, breaking the song of the Rainbow Feathers…
9."Hidden Dead Corner": Although there was an event support factor, an initial order of 40,000 yuan was really too much. The rhythm was slow, and the protagonist could absorb different flowers to get different enhancements. The protagonist's IQ was online, but it did not drop. It's a strange style of mech writing. I think it's very good!
Author: Get Lost
Tagged: sci-fi futuristic world
[Status: Series]
[First order: 40041 (available on May 16, 2023)]
Have you heard of it?
If you turned on the music player in the dead of the night, put on headphones, and hid under the blanket to cover your head, listening to the single repeatedly.
If you were unlucky and opened your eyes again, you would no longer be lying on your own bed, but would enter a strange space that was completely isolated from reality.
That space…On the surface, it looked like the places we usually see, such as our bedroom, the living room, the underground garage, the bathroom, the basketball court, the construction site, etc. However, if you looked carefully, you would realize that it was different…Everything was different.
"Final Divine Duty":"Final Divine Duty" was a very exciting novel. The story progressed layer by layer, and the rhythm was well controlled, making it impossible to stop. The author's writing was smooth, and the story was set in science fiction. It was similar to the Atlas of Heaven and Man, but it was a little more relaxed. The combat setting combined the three types of martial arts prosthetics, bringing a new experience to the readers. Although this was a cool novel, the author handled the details very well, making it very enjoyable to read. Overall, Final Divine Duty was a novel worthy of recommendation, especially for readers who liked martial arts books. This book should not be missed.
11:"Beyond Time": Er Gen's new book finally stopped writing about the funny male protagonist. The new book is the recently popular stable style, disaster pollution setting, Xianxia novel, decisive killing. There weren't many chapters at the moment. If it could maintain its standard, it would be a good book.
This Game Is Too Realistic: New Book, Pretty Good The main character transmigrated to a wasteland world after the nuclear war and obtained a sanctuary that could summon players. He was still relatively young and was in the farming development stage. The plot and characters were not bad and there was nothing brainless about them.
"Red Heart Sky Patrol": In ancient times, the demon race went extinct. In the modern era, the dragon race disappeared. The era of the Great Divine Dao was already like smoke, and the era of the peak of flying swords had finally fallen…
What happened in this world?
Who would listen to the truth of history buried in the river of time?
Thousands of miles of mountains and rivers are painted with corpses, and hundreds of years of heaven and earth are painted with hungry tigers.
Heaven and earth are fair as heartless,
I have a pure heart to survey the heavens!
Ring of Destiny: Five Stars!
Secrets 2!
There should be no need to say anything else!
Writing style, plot, male lead, female lead…Bah, there shouldn't be a female lead!
"State Preceptor of Ming Dynasty": Jiang Xinghuo, who felt that he was about to succeed, was so bored that he started to teach in prison, but something seemed to be wrong... Ma Sanbao: What is the Great Voyage Era in "On Sea Power"? [Yao Guangxiao: On the Fate of a Nation is actually the legendary dragon-slaying technique!]
16:"Ascending on a Better Day": I have always liked Otaku Pig's works, and every one of them is a masterpiece. This one is no exception. The writing is really good, and the plot design is also very reasonable. It is a rare Xianxia work. I recommend it.
Chapter 17:"Who's in Love After Rebirth?": The Story of City Life
The male protagonist was hung up before his death, and he was a long-term spare tire. He was despised for blind dates in his thirties. He would rather die than fall in love when he was eighteen again.
Everything was "forward-looking" and he would never be a bootlicker. However, things were often the more he did not want to get something, the more he could get it. The male lead had started a new life...
Unexpectedly good-looking
The characters are pretty good
The female protagonist is scared and silly. She's quite cute. The interaction between the male and female protagonists is quite sweet.
"Deep Sea Ember": A recently recommended work.
The first three chapters might not be particularly surprising, but the author's work did not care about the golden chapters. The author's storytelling rhythm was very good. You just need to be a little more patient and read slowly.
Actually, when I read chapter 10, I was already very interested in this story.
This process, from chapter 1 to chapter 10, was a process of increasing anticipation.
When you see chapter 10, you won't think about saving this work anymore. You'll just have a sense of anticipation. You'll want to catch up and see the latest chapter as soon as possible.
The writing is good, the story rhythm is also very good, and there is a very big world view, and a stable update time... Isn't this worth reading?
"Cultivation in the Chaos of the Demonic Martial World":"Cultivation in the Chaos of the Demonic Martial World" is a novel with an old-fashioned setting but a novel story. The protagonist seemed to be emotional and heartless, devoted to the Dao but also listening to music. This contradictory character made the story even more fascinating. Even though the early stage of Great Liang's development was pushed out to become a Martial Immortal, the author's updates could reach ten thousand words per day, showing the author's diligence and hard work. In the story, Fang Xi transmigrated to another world and displayed her spirit of striking with a heavy fist. Moreover, she seamlessly connected the two worlds and developed steadily, which was amazing. The author's writing style was sharp and unrestrained, bringing a new reading experience to the readers. It was reasonable to say that laws were important in troubled times. The protagonist could also become a big shot in the cultivation world, which made people look forward to the development of the story in the future. In short,'Cultivating Immortals in the Demonic Martial World' was a fascinating novel that was worth reading.
"Who told him to cultivate!" "I've repeatedly stressed that the atmosphere in the cultivation world is crooked, and I'm not the one who led it astray. It's said that history books are written by the victors. Then why are there always people framing me when I win?" Sword Immortal Lu Yang said this to the reporters, expressing his anger.
The next day.
"I have repeatedly stressed that I am the one who led the cultivation world astray." Sword Immortal Lu Yang said this in an interview, expressing his anger. 'Daily Cultivation' reporting for you.
You can read these novels on Qidian Chinese Network.
Vajiram and Ravi's success story can be attributed to multiple factors. Firstly, they offer structured courses. For example, their General Studies course is designed in a way that it covers all aspects from history to current affairs. Secondly, they conduct regular mock tests. These mock tests help students get a feel of the real exam and improve their time - management skills. Moreover, they also provide personalized guidance to students who need extra help. All these aspects combined have made Vajiram and Ravi a successful name in the world of exam preparation.
There were novels similar to Marvel: My Years as the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.:
1:"Beautiful Man: Why are you still a human after all the mutations?" Author: Cai Mou Dan
2: The Lord of Hell, Author: The Soul of Fan
3."The Ancestor of Beauty and Man. Mutant." Author: My Little Erlang
4:"Beautiful Man Begins From the Fusion of the T-Virus", Author: Infinite Beibei
5:"New Krypton," Author: Otaku Cong
6:"Diary in Marvel, All the Decent Villains Are Broken", Author: Elegant Scroll
7: Superman's Saiyan Brother, Author: Inspiration Depends on Dreams
8:"The Mechanical Frenzy in Marvel," Author: Lazy Cat Little Fishing
9:"Being a Police Officer in a Comic, Every Day Is a Holiday", Author: In the Dead of Night
10:"Beautiful Muscle Saiyan," Author: The Dog That Bits the Phoenix Tail
11:"The Happy Life of a Happy Man in Marvel", Author: Very Sleepy Guo Sansui
12:"Meizo: Starting from Getting the Twelve Charms." Author: The Diligent Lazy Cow
13:"Beautiful Man: Plunder of the Heavens!" Author: Infinite Watermelon
14:"Crossing Killian: I am the Master of Technology", Author: Jiang Jiang Shisan
Marvel: I Can't Be Spider-Man, I Play Ke Xue, Author: A House Without Dreams
16:"Marvel: The Showdown, I Have a World Tree!" Author: Dream Lake Sanren
I'm Really Not a Native, Author: The Car Passed
Chapter 18: From the Beginning of Becoming a Terminator by Uncle Pure De
19:"I'm in Marvel, I've been possessed by the Three Kings." Author: Author 2wgBQO
The following is a detailed introduction of these novels:
1:"Beautiful Man: Why are you still human after all the mutations?":"Is this the Marvel Universe?"
"Yes."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, this place was still normal at that time."
"This is not the Marvel Universe."
"You mean this place isn't?"
"No."
"I said this isn't the Marvel Universe. This isn't the Marvel Universe at all!"
"Then what happened?"
"I still want to know what happened! It wasn't easy for me to cross the border, so I had to have a destination. They sent me here. I said that this wasn't the Marvel Universe, and they didn't care, so I could only stay here."
┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
Below was the official version of the introduction:
So, in the end, she had transmigrated. Perhaps she was in Marvel. Was the bat light in the sky really not coming from next door?
I have been reborn. In my previous life, I was betrayed by my wife, abandoned by my companions, and died tragically on the streets. Now that I have been reborn, I have awakened the typing system. I want to personally take back everything I have lost. Quickly enter the group to listen to my revenge plan!
2:"The Lord of Hell": Added
3."The Ancestor of the American Comics, Mutants": When Apocalypse gave up its meaningless glory and began to develop its own power in a low-key manner, becoming a stronger existence step by step, what would the ending of the story be like?
When Ye Ming woke up, he realized that he had become the first mutated human in history. Let's see how he would become a different Tianqi and spread his name to the world step by step.
4."The Beauty and Manga Beginning from the Fusion of the T-Virus": Ye Xuan had just transmigrated to the Marvel Universe when he was threatened by the debt collectors of Jin Bing.
Faced with the sudden crisis, Ye Xuan activated the golden finger that could cross the myriad worlds.
In order to obtain extraordinary power and kill the BOSS of the novice village, Jin Bing, Ye Xuan resolutely transmigrated into the Resident Evil world and successfully fused with the T-Virus.
A fantasy journey with Marvel as the main universe began.
[Temporary Dungeon World: Biohazard, Cyberpunk]
5:"DC-New Kryptonite": Shuang Wen
The Kryptonians swept away everything. The main character's goal was clear-to build a new Krypton. He killed and plundered decisively. It was just that it was very enjoyable to watch.
6."Diary of a Man in Marvel, All the Righteous Villains Are Broken": The latest version, the protagonist's subordinate group.
Tenth Ring Mercenary
The Karma Taj Mages
Hydra *2 departments
S.H.I.E.L.D.(Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division)
Afterlife (Inhuman)
Anyway, it looked pretty good.
Book Desolate took a look. It was just that the updates were a little slow.
"Superman's Saiyan Brother": Twelve years ago, the first spaceship brought a Superman son to the Kent family.
Twelve years later, the second spaceship brought a Saiyan son to the Kent family.
What kind of waves would the brothers of Superman and Saiyan set off in this world?
Ps1: The world setting was a new and completely different comprehensive world after the main character of the previous game merged with the universe. It was a combination of a series of movies and anime, Marvel movies, some comics, the adventures of Chan, and some movies that contained extraordinary power. Some of the characters and abilities would not follow the original plot flow, but would be rewritten by intercepting major events. The plot and characters would be affected by the butterfly effect of the comprehensive world. I will try my best to write the plot direction that you have never read (I can't accept the DC-Marvel mixed world and the plot character's second creation)
8."The Mechanical Frenzy in Marvel": Traversing the Marvel World and Awakening the Heavenly Technology System.
On the surface, he was a revered superhero and a top-notch arms dealer.
In the dark, he was the most feared emperor in the underground world.
A miniature robot the size of a palm.
The Spartan armor from the halo.
The huge super fleet would let all enemies know that justice was justice.
The Battle of New York had become a sea of machines, with endless killing robots covering the entire horizon.
Hila attacked, and Nolan flew through the sky in her mecha.
Under the mechanical frenzy, there was only trembling!
……
9."Being a Police Officer in a Comic, Every Day Is a Holiday": Zhao Hao found himself a rookie police officer after transmigrating into a comics.
On the first day of patrol, they encountered three criminals who were committing crimes.
He emptied the magazine on the spot to show his respect.
"Ding! Emptying the magazine was the best form of respect for the criminal. The host had made the right choice and activated the respect system.
For every criminal the host respects, the host will receive a treasure chest.“
……
One day, Zhao Hao saw a super criminal smashing cars at each other. He picked up the electromagnetic pulse cannon without hesitation to show his respect.
"Beautiful Muscle Saiyan": When Huang Yuan opened his eyes from his infant state, he realized that he had transmigrated.
Soon, he realized that he had a strong Saiyan bloodline.
In the process of growing up, he realized that this world was a world of American comics with Captain America and the Stark Corporation.
He thought it was the Marvel World, but he saw the news about Wayne Corporation on TV?
Even Huang Yuan, a Saiyan, panicked.
However, he decided to use his fists to show the world how powerful the Saiyans were!
[Setting: This is the New Era Universe, not the movie universe or the comic universe. Please show mercy.]
[Past events: "Havoc at S.H.I.E.L.D.","Iron Man","The Aeonians and the Deity Group","The Sea King and the Land War","The Death of Superman and the First Appearance of the Lamp Ring"
11:"The Happy Life of a Happy Man in Marvel": Good news, I've transmigrated, and with the buff of my parents 'sacrifice to the heavens, I've gone from a 996-yuan social animal to a rich second-generation heir who has a business that he only thought about in his previous life. He can receive a large amount of funds every month.
The bad news was that this was a f * cking Marvel World where humans were worse than dogs!
The good news within the bad news was that at least there were no super dark people in the city!
This was a record of a fun person's happy life after transmigrating to Marvel.
It was more of a daily routine. The main focus was to relax and have fun together.
12:"Mei Shou: Starting from Obtaining the Twelve Charms": When you have the Twelve Charms, what will you choose to do?
To be a doctor who saved lives?
Or the immortal Gou Sheng?
Or a flying chicken?
At the Umbrella Headquarters in Raccoon City, Li Yun looked at the T-virus and antidote in his hands, which were in the shape of a double spiral, and gently pressed them on his arm.
"Awaken, my Psyche Power!"
…………
In the ruins of New York City, Li Yun looked at the increasingly irritable Hulk. He stretched out his hand, and the bull talisman rune was faintly discernible.
"Roar…" The green giant looked at Li Yun and angrily hammered the ground a few times before swinging its huge fist at Li Yun.
Bang!
In the next moment, the green giant flew back with a wronged and puzzled expression!
…………
In space, Li Yun looked at Slayer Tyrant and took out the three Infinity Gems in his hand.
…………
13:"Beautiful Man: Plunder the Heavens!" Beautiful manga and doujin novels.
As an ordinary person, Luo Ming accidentally transmigrated to the Marvel World.
At first, he was terrified because the Marvel World was very dangerous.
Loki would lead the aliens to invade, Ultron would destroy humanity, Hydra would rule the world, and Thanos would destroy half of the universe...
Fortunately, he had awakened the heavenly plundering system and could travel through the myriad worlds to strengthen himself by plundering resources!
Nick Fury: "Please join the Avengers. They need your leadership!"
[Luoming is my friend forever!]
"Luoming is my hero!" Walter said.
Loki and Thanos: "I won't dare to do bad things anymore. Don't hit me!"
.......
A super brain was obtained in the Endless World!
Resident Evil obtained the T-Virus and artificial intelligence!
He had lost control of his superpower and obtained omnipotent telekinesis!
Transformers, Megamind, D.C. World, Wandering Earth, Interstellar Travel, and so on could all be written.
14:"Crossing Killian: I'm the Master of Technology": Man in Marvel, Becoming the Villain Killian Bind the Dark Technology System.
As long as one obtained Reputation from the technology they developed, they could unlock all the black technology.
Hence, he created Da Bai at the beginning.
In half a year, he had developed the Tyrant and Terminator.
A year later, he invented artificial intelligence and a space carrier to develop the solar system.
Ten years later, when Thanos began his journey to collect gems.
Killian took the suitcase from the Protoss warrior and opened it.
'Here! A box full of gems. You can choose any color you want!
15:"Marvel: I Can't Be Spider-Man, I Play Ke Xue": I traveled to Marvel to become Peter Parker, only to find out that my childhood sweetheart Gwen was Spider-Man, and I became Spider-Man's sacrificial object.
Fortunately, every transmigrator has a Goldfinger, and my Goldfinger can have those learning items.
Thus, a person who did not follow science at all appeared in Marvel.
Taking out the bulletproof shield from Call of Duty in front of Captain America showed that it was tough.
Taking out a zooming lamp in front of Hank Pym, Pym particles were too outdated.
He took out the teleportation gun in front of Dr. Strange, who was drawing circles to open the portal. Drawing circles was too childish, but this was still more convenient.
What do you mean Thanos and Dommum are invading Earth? Let me try a two-way foil strike!
[Ke Xue: From Detective Conan. Ke Xue in this book = unscientific. For example, Detective Conan shot a satellite with his football.]
[Conan's character and plot will not appear in this book.]
16:"Marvel: It's showdown, I have a World Tree!" An ordinary young man from Earth accidentally came to the dangerous Marvel Universe, only to find that there was a World Tree from Norse mythology in his body!
To stir the fate of the world and obtain all kinds of divinity and magic from Norse mythology!
What kind of storm would he cause in the Marvel World?
I'll stop pretending, I'll lay my cards on the table…
You are meeting the Regent of Asgard, Advisor of S.H.I.E.L.D., High Priest of Wakanda, God Hunter, Eternal Sun, Incarnation of Magic, Child of the World, Infinite Entropy-Siegal Noxson!
17:"I'm Really Not a Native":"And you, my friend, you are the real hero!"
When Li Yi saw the Chinese man wearing the Star-Spangled Banner standing in front of him and saying those words with a smile, he felt terrible.
"I don't want to be a superhero, especially in this world!"
"From the Beginning of Being a Terminator": Surprisingly, it's a story of a pure Terminator world from the beginning to the end. I guess the people who like it will be very small. I can only understand it by relying on bullet comments and Baidu. The idea is not bad. The writing and plot are also online. Those who are interested in the governor can try.
19:"I'm in Marvel, I'm Possessed by the Three Kings": Traversing the Marvel movie universe, but I'm haunted by three evil spirits.
However, these three evil spirits were actually three kings.
You can read these novels on Qidian Chinese Network.
Disha Ravi, a young environmentalist. She got involved in the farmers' protest situation through the so - called toolkit. Her arrest made headlines. Supporters of Disha argued that the arrest was unjust and that she was merely expressing her support for the farmers. Critics of the arrest pointed out that it seemed like an overreaction by the authorities and raised questions about the right to peaceful protest and sharing of information in the digital age.
Paritala Ravi was a significant figure. He was involved in various activities in his region. He was known for his influence in local politics and his efforts to bring about certain changes. He had his own group of supporters and detractors. Overall, his life was full of events that shaped the local scenario.
Ravi Pillai's journey to success was filled with challenges that he overcame with tenacity. In the highly competitive construction and infrastructure industry in the Middle East, he had to prove himself time and again. He invested in the latest technology and equipment, which enabled his company to execute projects more efficiently. His reputation for integrity and reliability also helped him. For instance, when working on large - scale projects like building commercial complexes or residential areas, his company was known for delivering on time and within budget. This led to more referrals and business opportunities, and over the years, he has amassed great wealth and influence, all starting from his initial vision and hard - working nature.
Paritala Ravi was a significant figure in Andhra Pradesh. He was a politician who was involved in various power struggles. He was known for his strong-arm tactics in some aspects of his political career. He had a large following in his region, and his actions often made headlines. His story involves complex political rivalries and the fight for influence in local politics.