Chapter 124: Benjamin's Dream

Carter, who was accustomed to the business models of the future information age, understood the value of traffic and the importance of consumer habits!

Additionally, he knew that this economic depression wouldn't last long. These few years would be enough to develop a fixed consumption habit among people. And during this period, he wouldn't be idly waiting.

With the low-priced fuel attracting a large number of vehicles and drivers to gather here, the increasing flow of people would make it easy to develop supporting and derivative services.

Once the tax-free period ended and his prices returned to average levels, the attraction might diminish. But by then, the draw would shift from low prices to more comprehensive and superior services.

Plus, the already established habits...

This is a must-do!

"Alright, alright! This is fantastic! Oh, if only Douglas had more people like you!"

Upon hearing Carter propose thirty positions in one breath, Benjamin was overjoyed. He immediately stood up and grabbed Carter's hand, sincerely promising:

"I don't know how to thank you enough. I assure you, as long as I'm in the mayor's office, you can come to me with any problems! Whether it's guarantees or benefits, you can directly ask me!"

"Uncle Robert, you're too kind! You're the true hero of this city! In these tough times, you're the one running around for them. In the next election, I'll definitely urge people to vote for you!"

Flattery is always appreciated, and Carter's straightforward words made Robert beam with pleasure. Regardless of the votes, or even putting votes aside entirely...

When someone recognizes your efforts, that spiritual satisfaction alone is enough to bring comfort and relief to Benjamin, who was overwhelmed at the moment.

Especially since he could sense the sincerity in Carter's words.

To genuinely think of ways and rack one's brains to solve problems during a crisis, and to have enough courage to immediately exempt the consumption tax! Even though consumption tax doesn't make up a large portion of local government revenue in the U.S., it's still money!

By exempting Carter's consumption tax, along with the previously exempted property tax, it could be said that the city government was not collecting any taxes from him. And Carter believed that Robert wasn't targeting him alone with these tax exemptions. Anyone stepping up to help stabilize employment would likely receive some tax breaks.

But here a little exemption, there a little exemption... when it comes time for the city government to pay officials' salaries, the funds would inevitably be insufficient. And insufficient funds would mean salary cuts. Throughout history, there have been many who wanted to achieve great things, but few were willing to lower their own salaries and sacrifice their interests for the greater good.

Especially since this person was an official! This was even rarer! Carter indeed had some admiration for Robert and appreciated his efforts. But aside from admiration, Carter also had some concerns.

After taking on Robert's task, Carter left the city hall and drove to the commercial area by the highway. All the way there, Carter pondered what kind of person Robert was or why he was doing this.

Maybe it was a dream?

In an era when the American Dream was widely promoted and not yet shattered, most people's goals were cities like New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles. Carter guessed that those willing to come to the famously poor state of Georgia to work might have aspirations that were somewhat above petty interests.

Carter had to admit that many Americans of this era had big dreams. From those around Ricolis, he saw their ambition to leave this small place and venture to New York or Los Angeles.

Similar stories of someone from a poor background making it big through hard work were also frequently seen on TV.

But all these dreams had one common theme: making money!

And people who dreamed of making money wouldn't stay in Douglas, let alone become the mayor!

Apart from dreams that transcend petty interests, Carter couldn't think of any other reason to explain Benjamin's actions. After all, American officials were typically appointed rather than elected, and selfless service to the people wasn't really the norm.

Being an official was just a job, and the government was just a workplace. Perhaps only by viewing this position as a platform to achieve one's dreams could Robert make such sacrifices, like voluntarily taking a pay cut and working overtime. After all, the idea of making reality bow to dreams was more believable than any baseless altruism.

Realizing or at least guessing that Robert Benjamin might be an idealist, Carter had to reconsider his future interactions with the city government.

For now, everything was fine between them! Every time Carter helped the city government, he received ample or even excessive rewards. But in the long run, if Robert truly had some grand vision for reviving Georgia or building up Douglas, there would inevitably be conflicts between them.

Because Carter never intended to settle in Douglas. He wasn't moving now because he couldn't unless he gave up the bank. But once he could expand, Carter was sure he would leave.

When he left Douglas with a lot of capital, would his current investments here still be supported or protected by the city government? If not, the more he invested now, the greater his future losses would be. And if he reduced his investments now and stayed out of the city government's affairs, would it already be too late? Or would it seem too intentional?

Full of thoughts, Carter drove to the highway commercial district. The first thing he saw was the large red and blue torch-shaped sign of the gas station. Chevron wasn't called Chevron back then, and the logo wasn't the familiar two slashes. But one could already see the future Chevron's torch-shaped logo in the California Standard Oil Company's logo.

Outside the gas station, the fuel pumps were already installed, while the interior was still being decorated. Watching the workers painting the walls, it seemed that the hard installations were almost complete. Once the painting was done, it would only take the installation of the cashier counter, shelves, and products to open for business.

Carter found the gas station construction engineer sent by Chevron... California Standard and an experienced gas station manager from Old Jones' side. He confirmed the construction schedule and coordinated the first oil delivery, which was also the opening date. Then Carter turned to the adjacent KFC restaurant.

Unlike his previous visit when everyone was busily working, this time the atmosphere was quite different. As Carter walked into the store, he could only feel a strong sense of idleness.

Anna and Joy were sitting in the back, chatting, with occasional mischievous smiles on their faces; Chris was on the other side, dozing off over a book, and the remaining two girls were enthusiastically discussing the latest town gossip behind the counter.

"Welcome… ahem… Boss, what brings you here?"

Hearing someone enter, the two girls looked up lazily. But upon seeing that it was their boss, they jumped up in shock, coughing to alert their companions that the boss was here for an inspection.

"No worries, don't be nervous. I came to check on the gas station's progress and decided to stop by to see you all. Play all you want, but when business picks up, no more slacking!"

Carter waved his hand with a smile. In their nervousness, he saw a reflection of his past self.

Carter didn't mind their idleness at this time. Given that the repair shop and gas station next door weren't open yet, expecting good business in a lone restaurant was unrealistic. Instead of them pretending to be busy, it was better to let them be natural like this.

"Let me see the menu. I'm actually a bit hungry... why are there so few items on the menu?!"