Empire of Shadows

Carl tried his best to appear more sincere; he was truly willing to become a sword in Lance’s hand.

After being a good person with Boni for over a decade, he was still poor, still suffering.

But now that he was a bad person, he had suddenly struck it rich. This was the allure of being a bad person.

What he didn’t know was that every country had enacted laws to prevent people from being bad, or to only allow a small portion of people to be bad, precisely because being a bad person made it too easy to cross class lines!

Lance looked at him. He lowered his head, his hands on his clasped knees, like a boy scout.

“Can I trust you?”

“Carl?”

Carl looked up at Lance, his face showing some grievance, but more excitement. “Of course, Mr. Lance, believe me, I am your most devout servant!”

Lance nodded. “I need some people, some of your people over there.”

“Some things happened this afternoon that will affect our future development.”“Some people are very dissatisfied with me, with the mayor ruling this city…”

Before Lance could finish, the hatred and anger reappeared on Carl’s face!

“Who is it?”

“Mr. Lance, just tell me who it is, and I’ll go and kill him immediately!” Lance was about to laugh, but suddenly a flash of inspiration struck him.

Yes, they’re using the refugees as a breakthrough point to overturn the rules and the negotiating table, so why can’t I do the same?

He nodded. “I understand your good intentions, but now is not the time.”

Carl was stunned for a moment. Although he hadn’t received much higher education, he was a smart person. He realized that “not the time” wasn’t “I don’t need you,” but “I will need you in the future.”

He immediately became obedient. With this statement, and even a promise, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He needed to show more of his value to this Mr. Lance, who was not much older than himself, and also his unbreakable loyalty!

Only in this way could he continue to enjoy everything he could enjoy now!

Fine wine, cigars, these beautiful clothes, those beautiful houses, beautiful cars, and a “harem” as vast as an emperor’s.

Countless young refugee girls wanted to sleep with him in exchange for a few days’ food for their families, or a more comfortable living environment.

If he wanted to continue to have all this, he had to maintain a high degree of consistency with Lance’s pace.

“These people must be your men, your trusted men. I need you to do a few things for me.”

“First, find a few people and have them admit that they participated in inciting and organizing the riot this afternoon.”

“At that time, they will need to cooperate with us in acting out a play. There will be reporters interviewing them, and they will need to follow our script.”

Carl thought for a moment, and many faces appeared in his mind. Finally, he locked onto a few people.

These people all had complete families, with parents and younger siblings, and their relationship with their families was very harmonious, and their feelings were also very good.

This was their precious life wealth, but sometimes it would also become their shackles, when they really cared about these relatives.

“I’ve already got my candidates. I’ll tell them what to say.”

“The second thing…” Lance took out a cigarette. Carl quickly took out a match and lit it, holding his posture to light Lance’s cigarette.

Finally, he didn’t forget to extinguish the match head and put it in a handkerchief to carry in his pocket. Sometimes, details determine success or failure. This was no joke.

Lance was very satisfied with his attentiveness. No matter why he did it, at least for now, while he still had something to ask for, while he was still dominated by desire, he would not cause trouble.

Just like Bolton. As long as he didn’t want to go back to that terrible life of the past and still wanted to live the life of a superior person, he had to wholeheartedly consider for Lance.

Carl was the same. He still wanted to wear a decent suit that didn’t match his temperament, wear a gold watch, and live the life of a rich man. He had to ensure that nothing happened to Lance, and even at a necessary time, he had to block a bullet for Lance.

They were all serious, all sincere. Before a replacement for Lance appeared, or another way out, they would not change their original intention.

Lance took a puff of his cigarette, licked his lips. He liked this action, letting the smoke stay in his lungs for a while longer.

Then, as he spoke, he naturally exhaled it from his lungs, “…find all the people you know, find their families, and then hide them. Tell me where they are.”

Carl nodded again. “No problem, Mr. Lance. I guarantee that they will be found by you by tomorrow at the latest.”

“Third thing, the scale of your subordinates must continue to expand.”

Carl was stunned for a moment, and then a look of joy appeared on his face.

Now their small gang had only fifty-odd people in total. Because only so many were needed, and at the same time Lance had not mentioned the idea of letting them continue to expand, Carl did not dare to act recklessly.

The more people there were, the better it was for him, naturally. The one who rules three or five people is just a small captain.

The one who rules thirty or fifty people is a minor cadre.

The one who rules three or five hundred people is the leader of a gang.

And if one could rule three or five hundred thousand people, then that would be a mayor, a governor, a president, or even an emperor!

If he could have hundreds or even several hundred people working for him, he could live a better life.

He would have a higher status in Mr. Lance’s mind, and be more important!

“I… how many people should I expand to?”

Lance took another puff of his cigarette, and as he breathed, it came out of his nostrils. “You are to become the largest gang among the refugee community.”

“I hear that outside the naval base, besides you, there are also others who are serving the navy.”

This was an affirmative sentence. The navy, this group with spending power and the desire to consume, would definitely attract all the streetwalkers in Golden Port City. They would definitely gather here.

Carl nodded. “There are not too many people now, and the competition is not very fierce. Our work is basically full.”

“But in the future, it’s not clear.”

Lance nodded. “So I plan to separate a piece from it specifically for you to operate. In the future, the soldiers will only go there to solve their personal problems, and only our people can enter there.”

“As for the people outside, if they want to enter, they have to pay according to the rules.”

“In the future, it won’t just be about the flesh trade. There will be other businesses: tobacco, liquor, and even Maple Iris Grass.”

Lance had been thinking about something recently. He was considering whether there was a way to list liquor as an important military supply.

Just like cookies, chocolate, cigarettes, gum, and candy, those personal military supplies, to become a necessary supply for every soldier.

He had heard from Major General Bruney that this military expansion would give the Federation about four to five million active-duty soldiers.

If each person consumed even just a small bottle of liquor a month, the kind that cost forty or fifty dollars, there would be hundreds of millions in sales every month.

That would be several billion a year. With such a huge income, whether it was the military, the group in Congress, or Lance and other liquor suppliers, everyone could eat their fill!

However, this matter could not be mentioned for the time being. After all, Prohibition, which had just started to be promoted the year before last and the year before that, would be publicly made a special case now. Even if the faces of Congress were any thicker, they would deny it.

To get this done, you can’t just look for it. This needs an opportunity, an opportunity brought by the outbreak of war.

Although that couldn’t be done now, he could start to prepare for it in advance.

However, there was no need to tell Carl about these plans. He just needed to know that the future was bright, incomparably bright, so bright that it could blind people’s eyes, and that was enough!

After these few things were instructed, Carl’s heart had already begun to pound. A better future, who wouldn’t want it?

“Besides these, of the money you hand over to the company every month, you can keep a portion, 10%, for the development of your gang.”

“I won’t give you any other funding. If you can do it well enough, besides the share that the girls get, the rest can be given to you.”

At this moment, Carl’s mouth was dry. He now only had a 5% share, and he was getting more than two hundred a day. If this share was increased to 25%, he would be getting thousands a day!

He had never thought that making money was such a simple and easy thing. And if he really monopolized this part of the business, he was afraid the income would only be more.

Lance looked at his flushed face and knew that his mind was now full of beautiful aspirations. He also reminded him a few times.

“We have taken this part to do exclusive business, so we must provide them with better service. I need you to regularly check the girls’ bodies and put their check-up reports in the most conspicuous position.”

“Besides this, what other services do they need, even if it’s a little excessive, as long as it doesn’t harm the girls, and the girls are also willing, then you can agree to them.”

“Of course, the price has to be raised!”

“We do indeed rely on them to make money, but that doesn’t mean we are kneeling to make money, understand?”

Carl’s excited expression cooled down a little. He nodded repeatedly. “I see.”

“Mr. Lance, I promise I won’t mess up anything!”

Lance nodded. “I believe you can do these things, Carl.”

“From the first day I saw you, I knew that you are a person who can become a big shot!”

A different kind of change appeared in Carl’s eyes. Lance saw that he seemed to have something more to say. He glanced at his watch. “Our time is short. If you have nothing else, then go to work.”

Carl immediately said, “Mr. Lance, I have an idea. You see, don’t all the members of the Lance Family have a red armband?”

“Then we…” he said cautiously, “can we also have something similar, something that allows people to easily identify our logo?”

“For example… a red and white armband?”

Lance was stunned for a moment, as if he had thought of something, but in the end, he still agreed. “Yes, but not now. We’ll talk about it after a while.”

He took a final puff of his cigarette, then threw the cigarette into the ashtray. “If there’s nothing else, then that’s it!”

He was about to shake hands with Carl to show his “respect,” and then let him go out to work.

But Carl’s gaze was focused on the cigarette ash that had flown up from Lance’s action of throwing the cigarette butt. He saw the ash fall on Lance’s shoe. He immediately took out the white pocket square from his jacket pocket, bent down, and wiped his leather shoe for Lance.

“Mr. Lance, the cigarette ash has dirtied your leather shoe. I’ll help you wipe it off!”

He straightened up, his face still a little flushed. Lance canceled his original idea of shaking his hand and instead placed his hand on his shoulder. “Good boy, I appreciate you very much.”

Carl was so excited he couldn’t speak. “Whatever it is, I am willing to serve you, sir!”

“Very good. First, complete what I have entrusted to you. The future is still long. We all have a chance to see the most beautiful future!”

With the depiction of a beautiful future that Lance had imparted to him, Carl left Lance’s office with his head held high. He now felt that his body was full of strength, and he felt terrifyingly strong!

Lance looked at Carl’s back as he gradually disappeared. He shook his head. Why did the Bay Area like Charlie?

Because Charlie was a dog with no bottom line. He was clearly a representative of justice, an enforcer of law and justice, yet he had become a tool for the wealthy of the Bay Area.

Helping them destroy corpses and eliminate evidence, helping them escape the punishment of the law, helping them plunder wealth, helping them destroy justice.

From the master’s point of view, having a dog is really satisfying!

He didn’t have Carl go and find Hope. Hope must be in hiding now, and Lance could even guess that he must be in some villa or mansion in the Bay Area.

Now was not the time for him to appear, so he would not appear.

He returned to his chair and sat down, opened the drawer, took out a transfer checkbook, and after a little thought, filled in the number “fifty thousand,” and then signed his name.

Then he put on his hat again, put on his trench coat, and left this place.

At the same time, the media reporters had already gathered at the City Hall’s press conference. Almost all the reporters in Golden Port City who could come were here.

The events of the afternoon had already begun to spread to the surrounding areas. There were also some rumors in society that Mayor Williams’s son, Arthur, had used the refugees as slaves, which had eventually led to a confrontation.

In order not to let the situation get out of control, Arthur had used Mayor Williams’s authority to have Chief Bruce come over with the police for support.

And at their request, a large number of people who were resisting exploitation and oppression were shot dead.

As soon as this rumor came out, the little experts in Golden Port City who were born with the skill of picking cotton suddenly boiled over!

The attack of public opinion is never directed at a certain point, but at the entire surface!

Someone was digging up the old accounts of the Williams family, saying that they had previously been a large landowner class and had employed thousands or even tens of thousands of slaves!

The land of Golden Port City was hiding the blood and flesh of countless slaves they had killed. The early construction of this city was also built on the basis of countless slave casualties!

Now they were using the refugees as slaves. These little cotton-picking experts felt the same way, and at the same time, they wanted to use this matter more to fight for their own rights.

Although many people felt that their brains were not very good, even if it were really so, out of ten thousand people, a hundred thousand people, a million people, there would always be one with a quick mind!

According to the Federal Constitution amendment, even people like them could become voters, legally possessing the right to vote and be elected. But in fact, there were very few places where it was implemented.

The three major parties would not nominate these heretics to be political candidates. The votes against them would be marked. They were powerless.

If they wanted more social attention, they needed more “atrocities.”

From a certain point of view, the thoughts of some of them were consistent with Hope’s.

When the federal government feels that it can no longer tolerate it, and can no longer erase these people, they will have to compromise!

With the addition of these people, the speed of public opinion fermenting was very fast. The reporters also wanted to know what had happened.

When the time pointed to 7:45, Mayor Williams, Councilman James, and his younger brother Arthur appeared at the venue.

But before people had time to ask anything, everyone’s eyes were focused on Arthur!

“What the fuck is that on him?”

“Is it shit?”

A voice like this suddenly came from the quiet press conference scene. First, someone burst out laughing, but the laughter soon stopped.

A reporter said, “Mr. Mayor, what on earth has happened?”

Arthur stood at the very front. People found that something was not quite right. There were marks of something whipping on his body, face, and head. Each one was oozing blood, which looked a little scary.

Everyone knew that Mayor Williams’s favorite was his younger son. Although he himself did not admit it, everyone knew.

He could open his mouth for Arthur and ask others to do something, but he rarely, or never, asked others to do something for James. He only asked James to do better!

Obvious favoritism. So no matter who it was, they wouldn’t mess with Arthur.

Many people had a common thought, which was that if you were bullied by Arthur, just treat it as being bitten by a dog. If you endure it, it will pass.

But now, seeing him in this state, people had already realized that perhaps this matter was not as simple as it was rumored to be outside.

“From noon until now, no one has seen me at City Hall, because I went to find my son, Arthur.”

“He was kidnapped. Someone kidnapped him and demanded that I follow their instructions and drive around the entire city.”

“I am an old man. I love my child. I left here!”

He poked the desk with his finger. Although his hands were full of wrinkles, the feeling of him poking the desk was like a steel bar poking the desk, making a banging sound!

“Not long after I left here, a problem occurred at the demolition site of the old industrial district.”

“Those refugee workers, organized, disciplined, and with a purpose, destroyed the demolition equipment and cruelly killed the foreman, the manager, all the non-refugee federal citizens at the scene!”

“They are also spreading outwards, smashing and robbing shops on the road of the old industrial district, attacking passersby and robbing them of their money.”

“This is not a story of oppression and resistance as you know it. This is a conspiracy!”

(End of a Chapter)