Empire of Shadows

While checking the list of visitors this time, the Speaker of the House saw a name he had heard of but was not very familiar with: Lance White.

“Does this matter have something to do with this person?” he put down the list in his hand and looked at his secretary.

The secretary glanced at the name on the list, which seemed a little out of place. While continuing to do the work in his hand, he said, “The underworld of Golden Port City has now been unified, and this person, Lance White, has become the emperor of the underworld there.”

“He has a relatively close cooperation with the Williams family, and at the same time, he also has some connections with Senator Cleveland’s side.”

The Speaker raised his eyebrows and nodded. “The casinos.”

The secretary smiled and bowed slightly. “Yes, the casinos.”

The huge profits brought by the casinos made everyone green with envy. He glanced at Lance’s file again and pursed his lips. “A lucky guy.”

In fact, he could also get a share of the money from the profits that Lance’s casinos transferred to the state government. After all, he was the Speaker of the House, not some minor character. It was about 200,000 a year.

To say that this sum of money was a lot, it actually only accounted for about one-sixth to one-seventh of the Speaker’s annual income besides his salary.

But to say that it was very little and uninteresting, it was, after all, 200,000.Many people, let alone 200,000, even if it were 20,000, or 2,000, they might not be able to earn it, might not be able to take it out, let alone 200,000.

After checking these materials, he sat there thinking. Soon these people would arrive. The news from Congress was that he should invite them over for a talk and ask them not to continue to be in opposition.

The stability of the city was very important. This kind of behavior was not conducive to the subsequent development of Golden Port City.

He was considering what strategy to use to communicate with them.

To be honest, the Speaker of the House and Mayor Williams, and Mr. Charles and those people, did not have any direct connection. At most, it was a relationship of personal favors.

They knew each other, and it could be considered a superficial acquaintance. They could say a few words when they met, but it was limited to two sentences, not one more.

Besides this, there was no deeper communication.

He had a bit of a headache. The people in Congress had really found him a big trouble.

This kind of order that was pressed down from top to bottom, layer by layer, he was really powerless!

At 12:05 noon, a luxurious convoy stopped outside the hotel. Lance and Mayor Williams got out of the car.

The Speaker of the House very enthusiastically shook hands with the two of them and introduced himself, and then invited them into the hotel.

A little later, Mr. Charles and others also arrived here. They also had a luxurious convoy and what seemed to be a very large number of bodyguards.

They were a little scared, afraid that Lance would suddenly give them a blow, so they had made precautions.

A fully bulletproof car plus a bodyguard team of up to fifty people. As long as Lance and his men didn’t bring out a tank, even if they were attacked, Mr. Charles and the others could hold on until the Manteno police arrived at the scene.

The Speaker of the House, who had just settled Lance and the others, hurried downstairs again, shook hands with Mr. Charles and others, introduced himself, and then led them into the hotel.

The negotiations would be held after dinner. Before that, they could move freely.

After lunch, Mayor Williams and Lance were preparing to go back to their rooms to rest. The two’s rooms were on opposite sides of the corridor.

When they came out of the elevator, Lance took the initiative to ask, “Are you free tomorrow?”

Mayor Williams glanced at James. The latter took out a small notebook with his schedule for tomorrow recorded on it.

“Yes, an hour and a half, after lunch.”

His voice was not small, and he was not being secretive. Lance could also hear it.

This made Mayor Williams look directly at Lance, a slightly probing look in his eyes as if he were asking what he was going to do.

“There’s something we can talk about, with Owen, and his friends.”

“Owen?” Mayor Williams repeated the name. “A very familiar name, but now that you mention it, I can’t remember who it is.”

James, on the other hand, reminded him, “Is it the former mayor’s secretary?”

Lance nodded slightly. “That’s him.”

A smile appeared on Mayor Williams’s face. “I hear people say that he is actually Sidney’s son.”

He had originally intended to tell a joke he had heard, but when he saw that Lance did not show a smile, he was stunned for a moment. “Really?”

Lance pursed his lips and did not answer, but it was enough to let Mayor Williams know the answer!

“What the fuck, how could he…” he was about to say how that guy Sidney could have done such a thing when he suddenly got stuck.

Because he thought of Arthur, of Sidney’s already finished illegitimate son, and of the current Owen!

As a qualified politician, he immediately understood many things!

Using a nominal illegitimate son who was not his own to attract the malicious fire from the outside, while hiding his real son until the end, and successfully inheriting everything from him.

He had also heard that Owen was now a representative in the state legislature. After Sidney had left office, he had squeezed out the last of his remaining political value to get Owen a seat in this year’s House of Representatives.

This start was definitely the best for Owen. In the House of Representatives, he could get to know many people and quickly have his own network of connections.

At the same time, he did not have to bear the bad consequences after Sidney’s downfall. He was just a secretary. Even if he could not get rid of some of the causal relationships, what could fall on him would not be so heavy.

Whether he sought re-election later, or sought to transfer to a local area to develop or to develop within the party, this was a relatively perfect start.

It couldn’t be compared with the start of directly interning at the Presidential Palace, but in the region, it was already a very strong start.

Although some people in Golden Port City were unwilling to admit it, this city of Golden Port ultimately had the traces of Sidney’s term as mayor, indelible traces!

Mayor Williams agreed and did not ask what they would talk about specifically. Anyway, he would know tomorrow.

Lance slept until dinnertime in the afternoon. Originally, the Speaker of the House had intended for everyone to have dinner together, but it was still rejected.

Lance got something to eat in his room, then took a shower, changed his clothes, and then came to the conference room.

Mayor Williams and James were already here. It looked like they had been here for a while. There were two cigarettes in the ashtray in front of him.

If they weren’t all his, he had been here for at least a dozen minutes.

He took the initiative to raise his hand and greet Lance. Lance sat next to him.

The unfriendly gazes of the people sitting opposite them swept over Lance and then gathered together to whisper to each other.

After waiting for a while, the Speaker of the House finally arrived.

“There was a bit of a traffic jam on the road. The evening rush hour in Manteno is really a killer. I’m sorry!”

He sat in his seat, in the middle of the two groups, and casually took out the documents from his briefcase, placed them on the table, and flipped through a few pages.

“What should I say?” After looking for a while, he looked up, glanced at Mayor Williams and Lance next to him, and then looked at Mr. Charles and the others on the other side for a while.

“I don’t understand why you two sides have to make such a big deal out of a small matter.”

He had hoped that someone would follow up on his words. Negotiation, communication, the most important thing is to talk.

If they weren’t even willing to talk, how could it be called communication?

But this also made him realize the difficulty of this mediation. He frowned and looked at Mayor Williams. “Mayor Williams, you speak first.”

Mayor Williams stroked his hair. “The planning of Golden Port City is limited by the times and can no longer keep up with the current development speed. I want to expand the city to lay a good foundation for a faster urban development. They are obstructing the development of the city. It’s that simple.”

The Speaker of the House was a little puzzled. If it was really that simple, how did it get involved with the refugee group?

He turned his head to look at Mr. Charles. “And you?”

“Regarding Mayor Williams’s statement, is there anything you want to say?”

Mr. Charles shook his head. “I respect the mayor’s development plan for the new city, but, Mr. Speaker, just because the city is going to develop, does that mean I have to suffer a loss?”

He looked at the Speaker of the House and took out a few documents and handed them over. “This piece of land was originally on the outskirts of the city, but according to the mayor’s plan, it will soon become a new central area close to the city center.”

“You should know a little about the land prices in Golden Port City. After these plots are commercialized and developed, their value will be far higher than the compensation plan that City Hall is giving us now.”

“The city is going to develop, and I support it. But I will not, for the development of the city, let myself lose a large sum of money!”

The Speaker of the House looked at some of the documents he had provided and immediately had a headache.

If it were just a matter of personal pique or something, it would be relatively easy to mediate. But if it was for money, purely for money, it would be the most difficult.

This document showed the changes in land prices, the development trend, and people’s confidence in the value of these lands. From any point of view, it was not a problem for the prices of these lands to increase several times over.

He turned his head to look at Mayor Williams. The latter frowned and said, “The planning of the city is constantly changing. The use of this land was originally for industrial construction. Later, its nature will indeed be changed to commercial use.”

“According to the supplementary contract and the local ordinance we signed, City Hall has the right to demand the repossession of these lands whose nature has been changed and to re-arrange them for you.”

Mr. Charles raised his eyebrows. “But the price has to be reasonable. The price you are giving now is obviously not reasonable!”

“You’re planning to give me a few million for land that is worth tens of millions. On what grounds should I obey you?”

Mayor Williams glanced at him sideways. “A price that others can accept, why can’t you accept it?”

“You’re just trying to extort me. Don’t make your reasons sound so grand!”

Mr. Charles couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Ah ha, this is the most interesting joke I’ve heard. I’m extorting you?”

“How much money do you have for me to extort?”

“Don’t make yourself out to be so righteous, Williams. You know me, and I know you. Put away your tricks.”

“You want these lands, fine, no problem. Just give me the money!”

“If you don’t give me the money and still want to get these lands, I can only say there’s no way!”

His voice was a little louder than before. After he had said these words, he turned to look at the Speaker of the House. “It’s not that I’m not giving you face, it’s just that these people’s words are too infuriating. They’re only willing to give me a tenth, or even less than a tenth of the price for something worth tens of millions.”

“It’s not me who is begging you, Mayor Williams!”

“It’s you who is begging me!”

The emphasis he placed on the title “Mayor Williams” gave people a sense of being overbearing.

The Speaker of the House watched them argue for a long while and couldn’t help but slap the table with his hand. The two groups of people finally quieted down.

He tapped the table hard. “Manners, gentlemen!”

“You are civilized people, not those uneducated illiterates. Maintain your grace and etiquette. Don’t make me feel like you are a bunch of clowns!”

He paused for a moment. “I roughly understand your problem now. I think, can we do this!”

He looked at Mayor Williams. “What Charles said is not without fault. City Hall will definitely make a steady profit in this business.”

“Can you appropriately raise the amount a little, and not be so rigid?”

He then looked at Charles. “The planning and development of the city is also a good thing for you local businessmen.”

“The city becomes more prosperous, and the population is larger. The money you earn will also be more.”

“You can completely lower the price a little, and not be so stubborn.”

Mr. Charles immediately said, “I can lower it a little, for your sake, Mr. Speaker!”

A smile appeared on the Speaker’s face. He then turned his head to look at Mayor Williams. The latter closed his eyes, with a look of not wanting to speak.

This made the Speaker of the House a little annoyed, but he was still trying to mediate. “You see, Charles is even willing to lower the price a little. Why can’t you walk two steps forward?”

“Mayor Williams?”

Of course, he couldn’t walk two steps forward. If he walked two steps forward, when he returned to Golden Port City, he would have to take many steps back!

He took a deep breath and opened his eyes to look at the Speaker of the House. “A price that others can accept, why can’t they accept it?”

“Mr. Speaker, I don’t want to make you feel that you have lost face, but if I do so, it will be me who loses face.”

“What will those who have already signed the contract think of me? Will they go back on their word? Will it cause problems that we cannot predict?”

“This price has been evaluated. From a little over a thousand to two thousand, I have already shown my sincerity!”

“Other problems are easy to talk about, but this price cannot be changed!”

If it changed, it would be equivalent to a de facto compromise with the Bay Area. The authority and prestige he had established would be completely lost with the concession.

Charles knew that he could not back down, which was why he had said he was willing to lower the price a little. This treacherous scoundrel!

The Speaker of the House looked at Mayor Williams, who also looked at him without fear. The gazes of the two collided, and sparks flew!

Lance coughed twice, interrupting the standoff that was constantly heating up.

The Speaker of the House turned his head to look at Lance. His expression softened a little, for the sake of the 200,000 a year.

“Mr. Lance, do you have any insights?”

Lance shook his head. “No, I just think we should take a short break. Everyone’s emotions are a little too excited.”

The Speaker of the House glanced at Mayor Williams again and still gave Lance this face. “Alright, then let’s take a break.”

After coming to the rest room, Mayor Williams sat on the sofa with a grim face, his legs crossed, and lit a cigarette. “His ass is completely crooked. Maybe Charles and the others have already fed him!”

This was actually his angry words. Whether it was Lance or Mayor Williams, they knew very well that in this mediation, they were definitely at a disadvantage.

And they would become the side that was obstructing the mediation.

Whether Charles and the others made concessions, and how much they made, would not affect the actual effect—the mayor says one, I say two, I win!

On Mayor Williams’s side, on the contrary, he could not give in at all. Even if it was just an increase from two thousand to three thousand, four thousand, that was also a concession to the Bay Area.

The people who had already signed the agreement would feel regret. What if they had held on for a little longer?

Those who were wavering would stand on the Bay Area’s side again, because the Bay Area had once again proven that they were the rulers of Golden Port City.

So no matter what, Mayor Williams could not give in, not a single step.

It may seem that this is a war caused by “price,” but in fact, what they are fighting for is the supreme power of the city!

“We can’t let this Speaker of the House continue to mediate. He will only become more and more biased. Is there any way… to end this terrible mediation in advance?”

“For example, having the prosecutor bring the police to arrest those with evidence?” he proposed a suggestion.

Lance, however, shook his head. What Mayor Williams was talking about, using the ledger from the Red High Heels to arrest those involved for “soliciting prostitutes,” was of no significance.

This kind of crime might be fatal for politicians, but for these capitalists, it didn’t have much of a lethal effect.

Lance was silent for a moment, walked to the side of the phone and picked it up, and dialed the number of Mello, who was staying behind.

“Have someone arrest Charles’s family, and then have them find a way to contact Charles.”

As he spoke, he put down the receiver, walked back to the side of the sofa and sat down. “I have already arranged for people to keep an eye on them. There will be news soon.”

Mayor Williams nodded slightly. James sat in the back and wanted to say something, but he didn’t know what to say.

Fifteen minutes passed quickly. At the invitation of the staff, they returned to the negotiating table.

The Speaker of the House glanced at Mayor Williams with a not-so-good expression. “After considering for so long, what have you considered?”

He also took the initiative to persuade, “These are all small things. There is really no need to make such a big deal out of these small things. It’s not worth it!”

Mr. Charles still had a mocking and sarcastic expression on his face. He just wanted to see, now that he was willing to cooperate, how Mayor Williams would respond!

Mayor Williams remained silent. The Speaker of the House became a little impatient again. He had rarely encountered such a difficult-to-handle mayor-level minor character. Just as he was about to lose his temper, someone suddenly knocked on the door. The knocking was very urgent.

The Speaker of the House had someone open the door. His secretary whispered a few words to the hotel staff at the door, and his face immediately changed dramatically.

After the door was closed, he returned to the side of the Speaker of the House, a little at a loss as to what to do. He whispered what had happened in his ear.

The expression on the Speaker’s face immediately became serious. He looked at Mr. Charles. The latter was still a little confused. What did this have to do with him?

Before he could figure out what had happened, the Speaker of the House said, “Just now there was a call from Golden Port City. Your family was kidnapped on their way home…”

(End of a Chapter)