Historically, May Day originated with the Chicago labor strike of May 1, 1886. While Labor Day is celebrated in approximately eighty countries worldwide, it's not necessarily on May 1.
In the United States, its birthplace, labor unions have deliberately avoided this date to distance themselves from certain ideologies, instead observing it on the first Monday of September.
Still, having a rare, long break in September, a month devoid of public holidays, is a welcome relief. Perhaps it was precisely because of Labor Day, with the three days off, including the weekend, that Jack's life was busier than usual.
First, a conflict arose between the well-behaved Alexis and her father, Cassel, who refused to allow the young girl to travel to Paris alone to visit her mother, his ex-wife.
While Jack generally sided with the younger but more mature Alexis whenever they had a minor disagreement, this time he sided with Cassel.
While the two worlds differed slightly in various ways, Paris, as a former revolutionary capital of Europe, was similarly awful. Thefts were common, not to mention the sheer number of cases, and open robberies were equally numerous.
Of course, Jack's approach to persuasion differed slightly from Cassel's. He simply made a pact with the girl: he would personally take her on a tour of Paris this Christmas, indirectly helping someone out while also leaving himself a way out.
Ever since he'd gotten involved with the four girls, Jack had managed to manage Thanksgiving each year, but Christmas and the following Valentine's Day were truly agonizing, and simply giving them gifts was no longer enough.
While Jiejie and Hannah usually had a good understanding and didn't give him too much trouble, the occasional sad glances and subtle teasing from the two women were quite annoying. He felt overwhelmed if he tried to accompany them both, and he might even end up dismembering them.
So booking my Christmas vacation in advance was a good idea. At worst, I could bring both girls along. As for Valentine's Day, that could only be discussed later. Hopefully, there would be a big case by then.
After coaxing the younger one, the older one arrived. Rossi reappeared in New York, looking elated. Upon seeing Jack, she asked a strange question.
"Do you know how many Americans leave the country each year to travel and work around the world?"
Jack looked puzzled, unsure of the old man's riddle. He casually replied, "Over 68 million, what's wrong?"
Rossi choked, seemingly havingn't expected to answer such an unpopular question. His lips pursed in a childish pout. It's true what they say about people becoming more childish as they age.
"I'm a writer like you, after all. I need to browse through a lot of data that might come in handy someday, and this kind of data isn't hard to find. I'm very different from a humanoid computer like Red,"
Jack explained casually, pouring him a glass of whiskey. They met at the Most Wanted Unit's office on Long Island. The luxurious kitchen on the first floor had become his personal office.
Across from the neatly tidy counter sat a long dining table, where his laptop sat, where he was typing. When there weren't any cases, Jack could be found either here or through a small door to the backyard, where he usually worked.
"This is exactly my dream retirement life. I thought your new unit would be very busy," Rossi sighed, swirling his glass. The ice cubes gently hit the wall, making a pleasant, crisp sound.
Jack's eyelids twitched slightly, sensing that this wasn't a casual remark. He simply didn't respond, wanting to see what he was up to.
Rossi was quite patient. He found a sofa to sit on and admired the wine glass in his hand, as if he could see flowers in the amber wine in the glass.
But as he looked at it, the old man started to feel uneasy. It wasn't that the bourbon in the glass was special, but that the glass containing the liquor looked a little off.
The shape of the glass looked a little too gorgeous, but beneath the layers of intricate patterns, the glass itself didn't seem pure enough.
"Is this white crystal?" Rossi raised his eyebrows. Although he wasn't a wealthy man, he believed he had some appreciation for art.
"I brought some local specialties with me when I came back from Arkansas. I ground a set of six. I can't give them to you." Jack cut him off from the idea, but left him a hint.
"If you like, I can grind a set for you, but you have to find the raw materials yourself."
Rossi smacked his lips with a hint of regret, drank the whiskey at the bottom of the glass in one gulp, poured the ice directly into the trash can, and admired the patterns on it under the light.
Under the white light, the cup's snowflake-like pattern, rising from its base, reflected a dazzling rainbow of colors. The old man couldn't help but sigh, increasingly puzzled by his "closed disciple."
He was so young, yet he acted more like an old man than he did, dabbling in obscure crafts that only old men could sink their teeth into.
Shaking his head to clear his head of chaotic thoughts, Rossi finally remembered the purpose of his visit. "I'm telling you something. Mike Taylor has joined the FBI."
Jack was slightly taken aback. Why had this round-faced, baggy-eyed "Uncle Baozi" quit his job as the head of the New York CSI lab to join the FBI?
Rossi continued, "I invited him to lead the BAU's overseas operations team. Stella Bonasilla has taken over as lab director."
Ah, that, Jack suddenly understood. No wonder Rossi had asked him such a strange question earlier. No wonder Hannah had seemed to complain about how busy Stella had become lately and how they hadn't been shopping together in ages. But what did that have to do with him?
And there was another question: "Isn't Mike Taylor's specialty in forensic science? Does he also dabble in criminal psychology?" Jack was puzzled. He hadn't noticed this when he was working with "Uncle Baozi."
Rossi placed the crystal glass on the table and tapped it, signaling Jack to pour it for him. "Yes, but not much. Mike will still be responsible for his expertise, but his team will be drawn from the BAU, and his team will be part of the BAU's field division."
"Congratulations," Jack understood. No wonder Rossi had looked so elated upon his arrival. This meant his vision of combining criminal psychology with the latest forensic science had taken another step forward.
Rossi's slightly smug smile was gone in a flash, and he suddenly frowned and sighed heavily, "But there is a problem now. Mike's international response team has just been established and is short of staff, while cases are coming in one after another from embassies all over the world, so..."
"I can help you, but I won't ask for help." Jack waved his hand decisively. He had just finished cleaning up his little piece of land, and now he was being targeted?
Don't look at what he said before that he would kick Aubrey away if something happened. That was purely to scare the kid, so that he would take it easy when pursuing Alice and not make things too embarrassing.
In all the years since he came to this world, he has met many "familiar faces", but there are not many who are suitable as teammates. This is not a hero card pool. As long as you spend money, you will get it sooner or later.
(End of this chapter)