Empire of Shadows

From Lance’s perspective, the operating style of the Golden Port Casino was still a bit too conservative.

Of course, this wasn’t to say Bandy was incompetent. Some states still considered gambling to be illegal, so they might have been a bit more conservative in their promotions.

For someone trying to whitewash their image, they didn’t necessarily have to be excellent, but they absolutely could not afford to offend too many people.

But from the perspective of a modern person like Lance, these operating strategies seemed too conservative and also failed to take advantage of the conflicts in the Federation’s local laws.

To put it simply, how to better attract gamblers from regions where gambling was illegal to Golden Port City was a key issue.

If it was just to have them come over to gamble, then they might not be willing to do so. The reason was simple.

Since they were gamblers, they certainly had a small group of people in their local area who could participate in gambling games with them. They could gamble locally and didn’t necessarily have to go to Golden Port City to gamble.

Pure gambling lacked attraction for them, so more content, more attractive things had to be added.

For example, treating a trip here as a form of “compensation for family affection,” bringing their families for a trip, and playing a few hands here on the side.

“A few hands” was not a noun and did not represent anything tangible.This could give the gamblers a feeling that… although they had gambled, they had also done something good for their families.

This operating strategy seemed to be of no use, but that was actually because the people who thought it was of no use were not real gamblers.

Real gamblers actually feel guilty towards their families. This was an opportunity to both make up for their guilt towards their families and also enjoy some of the more trendy ways of playing.

Lance briefly explained his plan for the upcoming changes, including the consideration of building a large-scale water park and rebuilding the “Palace Casino,” a super-luxurious integrated casino with more of Lance’s characteristics and style.

The governor listened very carefully. This not only represented his interests, but also his political achievements.

If Councilman Williams and Lance developed well in Golden Port City, then they would be able to provide more tax revenue, allowing the state government to have more independent decision-making power in more decisions.

Instead of relying on federal financial allocations and watching the face of Congress, if they had their own money, they could make their own decisions.

He thought that Lance’s ideas were very good.

“And, Mr. Governor…”

“You can call me Dylan.”

Dylan was the governor’s name. It was said that his ancestors also appeared in that photo!

For him to say this was a sign of closeness. Lance’s performance had won his approval, which made their relationship a little closer.

The people of the Federation can indeed be very formal at times, which also mistakenly makes many foreigners think that they are always so mutually respectful and have no closer relationship, in public affairs.

In fact, that’s just because the person who thinks so hasn’t gotten to know the people of the Federation well. If they got to know them well, they would find that this place is actually no different from their own country, and is even worse in some ways.

“Mr. Dylan!” Lance corrected his form of address. At this time, there was no need to be overly humble. Addressing him as he said was essentially also a recognition of their relationship.

Of course, he added the common honorific, at least to make him not seem to be on an equal footing with the governor.

“The development of Golden Port City can promote the development of the surrounding tourism industry. The film industry in Creek Valley City is developing very well now.”

“People who come to Golden Port City will also be willing to go to Creek Valley City for a visit, if there is enough publicity.”

“Will they want to try hunting? Will they want to try some performances, even if their scenes will not appear in the cinema in the end?”

“After seeing the beautiful Creek Valley City and Golden Port City, will they be more interested in other surrounding cities and thus embark on a new journey?”

“I think this is very possible, and very likely!”

“The people of the Federation are full of the spirit of adventure and curiosity. They will leave more consumption here before they leave.”

The governor looked at Lance with some surprise. He had not expected Lance to be able to say such things and have such insights.

At this moment, Lance was more like a politician than a gang leader.

And the ideas he mentioned were indeed very likely to be realized.

“Your ideas are great. I believe Mr. Williams can cooperate with you.”

Councilman Williams also looked at Lance with some surprise, and then nodded. “Indeed very good. These ideas are full of agile creativity!”

The purpose of Lance saying so much was actually still to get that large piece of land to build his “Palace.” And it would be located behind the beach area. There was still a large open space there, and it was connected to the long beaches of the beach area and the Bay Area.

Whether it was building a water park or a new casino next to it, there were infinite possibilities, and it could continue to expand outwards.

This was a big project, but it would definitely not have a long construction period.

The “Federation Speed” was shocking the world. Those world-class buildings in New Golden City, on average, took only a little over a year to build. The construction difficulty of the new casino would not be greater than those buildings, only lower.

In the case of no shortage of labor in Golden Port City, it would be completed at a flying speed, including the water park and the like.

Only by persuading the governor would Councilman Williams’s side approve this plan faster.

A few people came to the tee. The first to hit was Councilman Williams. He was old, and he couldn’t use too much force when he hit the ball, so naturally, he couldn’t hit it very far.

While he was hitting the ball, Lance and the governor were still chatting about some issues and matters concerning Golden Port City.

After the shot was over, the three continued to walk forward.

As they walked, the governor said, “Some of what Lance just said has given me some inspiration. I will support your work!”

He paused for a moment, and then took a note from his pocket and handed it to Lance. “The list is on this. If you have any objections, you can contact me at any time.”

“Now, let’s finish this game!” He came to his ball’s landing spot, took a club from James’s hand, spread his legs, looked at the distant green, and swung hard!

After dealing with the governor, the rest of the people were very easy to deal with. That night, Lance made an appointment to meet with Attorney General Terry.

Compared to the previous two, Attorney General Terry’s attitude was a little more enthusiastic. After all, his purpose was not just to share the money, but also the congressional circle behind these two.

He did not give Lance or Councilman Williams any tests and simply gave them the list. “If you need to cross someone off, let me know first.”

“So I can make new arrangements,” he said, with a slight emphasis. If he didn’t emphasize this, it was possible that they would just cross them off and be done with it. This way, he, who could have inserted one more person to get benefits from this, would have lost this benefit, which was not worth it.

Lance took the list and glanced at it briefly. Then, instead of putting it in his pocket, he placed it on the desk.

This action was a bit special. Did it represent that he seemed to have some dissatisfaction with this list?

“What’s wrong?” Attorney General Terry asked.

He realized that Lance might have some additional “deal” with him, so he asked.

But he couldn’t ask too directly, so he could only frown and pretend to be stupid. “Is someone not suitable?”

Seemingly without shaking his head or nodding, he just placed the list on the desk. “Yesterday, a friend of mine met with me at the hotel.”

“He is a businessman. He talked to me about some problems he encountered in Manteno. His legitimate business was being made difficult.”

It was no secret who Lance had met yesterday. From the moment they arrived in Manteno, countless pairs of eyes had been watching them.

Yesterday he had met a local gang leader, an Empire immigrant.

Some of the lower class still believed that Lance was an illegal immigrant who had changed his identity, but for those in the upper echelons, they firmly believed that Lance was a man of the Federation!

He must just be friends with these people!

After giving himself an explanation, Attorney General Terry thought for a moment and gave Lance a number. “You can call him and have him help you solve this matter.”

Lance nodded and put the list in his pocket. A smile appeared on Attorney General Terry’s face.

The slightly tense atmosphere just now suddenly became relaxed and easygoing.

“You’ve done a beautiful job this time, Lance. Even in Manteno, I know that you’ve done everything without making any mistakes.”

“I hope the people I arranged to go over have helped you!” he hinted, hinting that he also had a hand in Lance’s dealing with the Bandy family.

Councilman Williams had been sitting quietly on the side, not speaking.

The governor and lieutenant governor were both directly or indirectly contacted by him, so he had to occupy a more primary position.

But here with Attorney General Terry, it was Lance who had contacted him on his own. It was not suitable for him to be the one to lead the topic here.

Lance could naturally taste the meaning of Attorney General Terry’s words. He nodded. “You’re not the first to praise me like this.”

“At the end of the year, I’m going to New Golden City. If they don’t mind me bringing someone over…”

More smiles appeared on Attorney General Terry’s face. He moved his butt and got a little closer to Lance. “You’re too kind, Lance. Actually, that’s not what I meant…”

He looked at Lance’s teasing eyes, and then he couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Alright, then should I thank you?”

“You’re welcome!” Lance directly exempted him from the process of thanking, which also made Attorney General Terry not feel any discomfort.

For him, a number three figure in the state government, to say “thank you” to a gang leader from a city below, even if he could say it, he would definitely feel a little awkward or uncomfortable in his heart.

But now Lance had directly waived this process. He not only had no dissatisfaction with Lance, but on the contrary, he liked him even more.

After separating from Attorney General Terry, Councilman Williams reminded Lance, “The New Golden City matter you mentioned, does it refer to the senator’s gathering over there?”

Councilman Williams was about to become the mayor. He was also qualified to attend such gatherings, but similarly, only as a marginal character.

Lance did not deny it and nodded. “Yes, what’s wrong?”

He said cautiously, “Wouldn’t that be too reckless?”

“To bring someone who doesn’t belong to that circle over?”

He was considering for Lance. He was afraid that Lance bringing Attorney General Terry over like this was too reckless.

Just like an inconspicuous minor character in his own family, bringing a stranger over during the New Year and saying that he wanted to join his circle, he would also feel annoyed and dislike it.

Considering for Lance was more about considering for himself. He would be partnering with Lance for a considerable period of time, so Lance’s stability was also equal to his stability.

If Senator Cleveland disliked him because he randomly brought people to New Golden City, then Councilman Williams would also be affected.

Lance said with a smile, “I know what you mean, but you don’t have to worry too much. Before I go, I will find out first.”

“And I don’t think this is reckless.”

“Whether it can be accepted or not does not depend on the impact my or Terry’s appearance will have on the senator.”

“But on how much funds I can provide for them in the next two quarters!”

Councilman Williams mulled over Lance’s words for a moment, then nodded and did not continue to discuss.

He was right. Lance was even more important than him, the future mayor, at this stage!

Just a mayor. In that political circle of the senator, how many mayors wanted to get close?

One more mayor, one less mayor, would not change the situation of Senator Cleveland’s circle.

But Lance was different. Although he couldn’t provide any specific political assistance, he could provide a large amount of money.

And this money, through their magical means, could quickly and well be transformed into political assistance!

When Councilman Williams was not yet influential enough, money was obviously more important!

Having figured this out, Councilman Williams no longer discussed whether it was appropriate for Lance to do so. As long as he gave an excessive amount of money, whatever he did was appropriate.

If he couldn’t complete the plan of interest transfer, then no matter how careful he was, he would also annoy the senator for some random reason.

Thinking of this, he ended the topic.

The conversation with Attorney General Terry was also successfully completed, and then the Secretary of State, and more people!

These people did not need to choose a separate day with such ceremony, to meet them in a separate high-end private occasion.

Of course, if they had already booked, there was no problem.

Lance and Councilman Williams met and talked almost one after another.

Many people got a promise from them that everything would be according to the past regulations and list.

But some people were also rejected. At the moment the new era set sail, they had already been abandoned in the old era.

They did not make a fuss, because when there was no turmoil from the governor’s side, they knew that the governor had also supported them.

During this period, Lance also met the local police chief. He behaved not at all as… unruly as Rhode had said.

He was clearly very easy to get along with and had no airs, just like Charlie, this Bay Area hound, when he saw his Bay Area masters.

If you were to say that a week ago, probably not many people in Manteno had heard of Lance, then now, almost everyone in Manteno had heard of Lance. And he, this relatively slightly higher-level official, also knew what had happened recently.

He was just a police chief. In the eyes of those at the bottom of society, he might be a remarkable person.

But when he was raised to a higher level, the way the big shots looked at him was not much different from the way he looked at those mud-legged dogs!

So when someone called and said that Mr. Lance had invited him to a meeting, he came running. And beside Lance, he saw a familiar person, Rhode.

At this moment, as a police chief who had dealt with both the upper and lower classes the most, how could he not know what had happened?

If he was so stupid that he didn’t realize anything, then he wouldn’t be sitting in such a position.

Soon, with Lance’s matchmaking, he and Rhode became good friends, and he stated that as long as he was the police chief, no one would discriminate against Rhode and his company.

At the same time, he also hoped that Rhode could, together with him, contribute a share of Rhode’s strength to the city’s public order and stability!

What a noble sentiment. Even after work, they were still discussing work matters.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons why the Federation is more advanced than other countries. They are always humble and virtuous in completing every task, even after work!

After this matter was over, Lance believed that Rhode and his gang would soon be able to develop rapidly.

Originally, he had planned to stay in Manteno for a week, but in the end, it exceeded the plan.

Too many people wanted to meet with Lance and Councilman Williams. After all, it was related to their interests for the next four to eight years.

Those who were kicked off the list were also trying their best to get back on the list—losing their position on the list not only meant that they would not get a share of the money, but also meant that they had been abandoned by the Likalai State political group.

There were no such foolish actions as “scolding Lance for being ungrateful” and then “one day making Lance pay the price for it.” When those people knew they could not get back on the list, they could only leave with their heads bowed in dejection.

After staying for nearly two weeks, they finally returned to Golden Port City from Manteno.

This trip was very important. It had rebuilt one of the main arteries of interest in Likalai State’s blood supply.

For the next period of time, it would be a period of calm and tranquility. Although the Bureau of Hazardous Materials was still a bit annoying, overall, it was already very peaceful.

Almost all the districts in the entire city had canceled various fees and had them converted into Lance’s company’s management fees. Even that stubborn old man, Anderson, had honestly paid the money.

At the end of June, the Republic of Dantra issued a serious protest to the Federation, protesting against their stationing of troops in Golden Port City, believing that this was a sign that the Federation intended to interfere in the war on the Tanfit continent by force.

And they stated to the Federation that if they insisted on stationing a naval fleet in Golden Port City, then they would not rule out unilaterally declaring the Federation’s actions as a declaration of war against them.

For a time, some news that had occurred in Golden Port City was once again suppressed by this international news. Everyone was discussing it!

(End of a Chapter)