Empire of Shadows

Every rich family is keen on large manors. This allows all family members to live together as much as possible, instead of being required to learn “independence” and move out to live because of poverty.

For a child to leave the family after graduating from high school is just a choice for a poor family, because it is very difficult for them to support the expenses of an extra adult.

The society of the Federation, in order to avoid these embarrassing problems, has packaged the fact that parents cannot afford to raise their children due to poverty as letting the children gain freedom in advance.

However, many people buy this, especially those foreigners who have been deceived by the Federation’s propaganda.

Frank stood by the window and watched Ted and his two subordinates quickly walk towards the parking lot in the courtyard. His gaze was fixed on Ted’s back.

It was not until he saw him get into the car and drive away that he withdrew his gaze.

He turned to look at the gentlemen in the room, slowly walked to the side of his chair, and pulled it out. “So, is it time to say something?”

As he spoke, he sat down. The excellent workmanship of the leather chair would have a “deflating” process when you sat down. The cushion would slowly sink, and would stop when it had sunk just right.

He crossed his hands and placed them on the desk in front of him, and looked at his good brother, Bob.

In fact, the cause of this matter was Bob. Of course, at this time, he would not admit that he also needed to bear the joint responsibility for his indulgence of Bob.Bob scratched his head. “How about we fight back?”

Frank nodded with no change in his expression. “A good idea. How do we fight back?”

Bob was a little “stuck” again. He “uh-ed” for a long time, looked at this, looked at that. “We can drive the Lance Family’s business out of other places!”

“They still have many movie theaters in Golden State, and some in other states. We can completely destroy these movie theaters and make him pay a huge price for his arrogance.”

He seemed to have forgotten that the truly arrogant one was him, not Lance.

But this was a manifestation of arrogance. An arrogant person never thinks that he is the one who is wrong.

Even if the world is wrong, it can’t possibly be him!

Frank still nodded like that. “How much does a movie theater cost? Will it make him feel pain?”

Now, the cost of a movie theater was only a few tens of thousands. The fact that they had burned down those movie theaters did not mean that the land was also burned down.

As long as the land was still there, they could rebuild a new movie theater anytime, anywhere, and the cost was not expensive.

The price of a movie theater was only the profit of a few dozen bottles of wine. No one would feel much pain for the profit of a few dozen bottles of wine.

Frank raised his finger and pointed at the ceiling. “And!” he added some emphasis to his tone, “they can do the same to us!”

“The Maple Iris Grass farm was their counterattack. A single fire burned down our Maple Iris Grass worth millions. If it weren’t for the fact that we had other farms and some inventory, it would have been very difficult for us to deliver this year.”

“The harm he has done to us is much more painful than the harm we have done to him!”

Another family member said in a low voice, “He is not afraid of going to war with us.”

Frank shook his head. “It is he who knows that the price we have to pay in a war with him, and the price he has to pay, are the same.”

The lawyer of the family picked up the conversation. “Actually, what we should do depends entirely on you, Frank.”

“If you want him to pay the price, we will do as you say.”

“If you are willing to temporarily put aside your hostility towards him, then we will stop.”

Bob gave this brother a friendly look and then looked back at Frank.

Frank also had a headache, in fact.

The reaction of the Lance Family and Lance himself, and their toughness, had far exceeded his imagination.

In such a short period of time, such a brutal retaliation had really given him a big scare!

Now the people outside had begun to laugh at them again. If they couldn’t handle this matter, the family’s reputation would be damaged to a certain extent.

After all, someone had slapped them in the face, but they had chosen to be “magnanimous.” It was hard for people not to think that they were weak and retreating in the face of a more ferocious force.

If a politician appears weak, he will become a stepping stone for other politicians.

If a capitalist appears weak, he will be served on the dinner table by other capitalists.

If a gangster appears weak, the hungry wolves around will hold a bonfire party around it.

He glanced at the lawyer brother who was speaking and gave him a slightly reproachful look. They were all direct descendants, but there was also a distinction between close and distant.

This kind of talk, it was best not to say it when there were many people.

However, he also knew very well the purpose of the lawyer brother’s words, which was to avoid letting an external conflict, under the pressure of too much external pressure, turn into an internal conflict.

To unify their thoughts, to unify their front, either fight, or stop. They had to choose one.

The old man of honor, who had been silent all along, spoke again. “I can understand Frank’s concerns.”

“We don’t have any strong allies in the south. The bastards of Griffin not causing us trouble is already a blessing.”

“Our strength is clearly far superior to that of the Lance Family, but if we go to war with them, we will lose the advantage of our home court. Even if our strength is stronger, we will fall into a passive position.”

“If we fight, we have no advantage.”

“If we don’t fight, the people outside will laugh at us again. Our authority will be hit, and our business will also be affected, so this is indeed a very difficult choice.”

A young man sitting in the corner asked, “Can’t we, even if we mobilize all the forces in our hands, solve the Lance Family?”

The old man shook his head. In the slightly surprised expression of the young man, he said another sentence, “Of course not.”

“We can probably solve the Lance Family. How can he be our opponent?”

“But now we have no way to mobilize our manpower on a large scale to do this. The congressional side should have already called,” he looked at Frank.

Frank nodded in acknowledgment. “After we had burned down the movie theaters, they had called me and warned me not to be so excessive.”

Although more than a dozen innocent people had died, in essence, for the gentlemen, it was just a “prank.”

However, even if it was a prank, they had still promptly reminded Frank that the first time could be considered a joke, but the second time would be a knowing offense.

This was also the reason why he was having some difficulty in his choice now.

The old man continued, “If it were any other time, we would not have had such a difficult choice. We would have just had someone go over and crush them.”

The young man probably understood what he was trying to express. He shook his head and did not continue to speak.

Another person raised his hand. “I have an idea.”

Frank took out a cigarette. His son, Robin, walked over and lit it for him with a lighter. “You speak.”

“We can fight them again. Isn’t Ted going to Indeno State to bring Milo back?”

“Based on my understanding of Ted, he will definitely not just bring Milo back. He will definitely go and find trouble with Lance.”

“If he wants to fight with Lance, then we will support him to fight with Lance. It’s best if the momentum can be made a little bigger, and then we will start to find someone to mediate.”

“This way, we can both convey to the outside world that we have not backed down, and at the same time, we can temporarily end this dispute in a decent and appropriate way.”

“After the war is over, we will crush them.”

The words of this gentleman made the gentlemen in the room all fall into thought. Frank frowned and thought about it. It had to be said that this was indeed a good idea.

This was like a lion that had been provoked by a hyena and had already started to bite. It was showing its might and majesty, but the zoo keeper had stopped its hunting plan.

The outside world would definitely not have the view of “coward” on it. They would only think that it could take the overall situation into account, and under the pressure of Congress, a gangster family, even a black-and-political-and-capital-integrated body, could only temporarily bow its head.

Even the president has to bow his head, let alone Frank Perez?

He had avoided all the troubles of the present, and had not shown any weakness. A very good idea.

However, he did not take a stand immediately, but looked at his other brothers.

Bob was the first to speak up in support. “I don’t think there’s a problem. We have gotten our face and have not suffered any loss. Others have nothing to say either.”

The old man who always had honor on his lips also stomped his cane. “Alright, a good idea.”

Soon everyone seemed to have reached a consensus on this matter. Frank also slowly nodded. This matter was thus decided.

But the things that followed would not become much simpler.

Since they still had to fight a battle, how to fight, and to what extent, also needed to be discussed.

However, on this issue, everyone reached a consensus much faster, which was that they had to show the might of the Perez family. Even if they all knew that it would eventually be mediated, at least before the mediation, they had to let people see their strength!

After discussing some of the specific details for a while, Frank had them all leave, leaving only himself.

He went over the whole matter in his mind again, and then made a phone call, a phone call to a member of Congress.

The call was quickly answered. “This is the manor of…”

“I’m Frank. I’d like to speak with the senator.”

“Please wait a moment. I’ll go and inform the senator.”

“He is currently entertaining, so he may not necessarily answer.”

After about seven or eight minutes, the sound of footsteps came from the receiver. “The senator has given you five minutes. Don’t hang up. Stay on the line. He will answer your call in his study.”

Soon he heard the sound of the phone being hung up from the receiver, but there was no busy tone.

After waiting for about twenty or thirty seconds, the phone was answered again.

“What’s the matter?” The sound of a lighter being lit and the sound of smoking came from the other end of the phone. It seemed that the senator was using the time to “smoke a cigarette” to chat with him.

The guest he was entertaining must not be an ordinary person.

Frank did not dare to delay for too long and quickly recounted what had happened.

“…That’s roughly the situation.”

“He and I have already been put on the spot. Neither of us can bow our heads first, and I think there is a high probability that they will not take the initiative to make peace with us.”

“So in order to prevent the situation from continuing to escalate, we need an intermediary.”

The senator had already understood. “So to put it bluntly, you don’t want to lose face, and you don’t want to really make a move?”

Frank was a little ashamed and angry. “If I really wanted to make a move, would you allow me to?”

“The Perez family has tens of thousands of members. I am willing to make a move. Do you dare to let me?”

A very sharp rhetorical question made the senator have no reaction for a moment. Indeed, the most important thing now was to maintain the stability of the domestic society.

If the Perez family really wanted to have a full-scale war, Congress would immediately press them down, and the military would also be mobilized.

The two sides had cooperation or interest relationships in many fields. The senator would not be willing to see this scene. The reason why he had used such a mocking tone was actually not entirely out of malice.

He was just, from the top of his life, teasing a small character who he considered to be powerful.

It was just that Frank’s reaction was very strong, and he had to seriously consider this matter.

After another two minutes, he agreed. “Alright, I think your plan is feasible. Give me a call when you need me…”

The senator had agreed. Then he hung up the phone, leaned back in his chair and took a few puffs of his cigarette, and then stubbed out the cigarette butt in the ashtray.

His face did not show much of a happy expression, but just appeared very calm.

He returned to the side hall. When his several colleagues saw him return, they all greeted him warmly.

He sat down in his own seat and asked with a smile, “Where were you?”

“We were talking about the new director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the one appointed by the president. Do you know him?”

The senator nodded repeatedly. He picked up a piece of fruit from the table and stuffed it into his mouth to neutralize the slight bitterness after smoking. “I know. It is said that he is a very capable person.”

The senator he was talking to nodded. “He has already submitted a proposal to Congress through the Presidential Palace, a proposal about expanding the scope of authority of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It should be in your hands soon.”

“This proposal mentioned that the police forces in various parts of the Federation, because of serious corruption problems, have been bought by the local capitalists and gangs. They can no longer be the defenders of the law and are mixed in with those evil forces.”

“He plans to push for the expansion of the authority of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to have a law enforcement power that is higher than that of the local authorities. Public security cases, criminal cases, all kinds of cases, and even espionage cases, political cases, he all wants to get involved in.”

The senator’s slightly surprised expression, while chewing on the fruit, exclaimed, “His ambition is so great!”

“But if he does this, he will offend the police of the entire Federation. This is equivalent to snatching power from their hands.”

The senator who had revealed this news had an indifferent expression. “Who let the problem of police corruption be so serious now?”

“He chose a good time, a good entry point. I hear this proposal will be passed.”

“And you know, this is not actually bad for us.”

The police system is also an independent system. The power belongs to the governments at all levels, but the Federal Bureau of Investigation belongs to the Presidential Palace. Of course, the congressional side can also get involved.

In other words, this language, the supreme ruling group of the Federation, is inserting its hand into the pockets of the relatively independent ruling groups of the lower levels. The ones who will really object will be the city-level governments, the lowest-level law enforcers, and the rulers.

This was indeed a very special piece of news, but they did not discuss this issue in depth. Anyway, as long as it was good for them, it was fine. This meant that Congress would not make things difficult for the new director who had just come to power on this proposal!

As for the people below?

As long as they still wanted federal financial appropriations, they would have to accept this result.

A little later, Robin (Frank’s son) took the initiative to find Ted, who was gathering his men. After all, they were all family. He knew where to find this guy.

For Robin’s sudden arrival, Ted was a little surprised. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say.

His office was full of people. Looking at these people, it was as if they were preparing for some big event. He simply couldn’t hide it.

Just as he was about to respond with silence, Robin had the people in his office all go out.

The others did not do so.

Although they were also members of the Perez family, the one who paid them was Ted, not Robin, or anyone else.

Ted nodded slightly, and only then did these people leave one after another from the door behind Robin.

When they passed by Robin, the look in their eyes as they looked at him was filled with questioning, arrogance, and even provocation!

Robin smiled and walked to the opposite of Ted’s desk and sat down, very naturally and relaxed. “Are you going to avenge Milo?”

Ted did not speak. Robin continued to say with a smile, “Come on, brother. You can’t fool me!”

Although Ted’s age was much older than Robin’s, and he was only a little younger than Frank, in terms of seniority, they were of the same generation.

Ted was not clear what Robin was here for, whether this was Frank’s meaning, or someone else’s. Before he could figure it out, he could only remain silent.

Robin laughed again. “You’re very cautious, guarding against me. This is a good thing.”

“Actually, I came over to tell you that my father is not stopping you from taking revenge, but the current family situation, and the external pressure, you know.”

“As the actual helmsman of the family, he has too many things to consider!”

“Some things he can acquiesce to you doing, but he can’t say it out loud.”

“He can’t just say in front of everyone, ‘Let’s go and get revenge, and we don’t care about anything else,’ right?”

“Do you think he doesn’t know what you are going to do in Indeno State?”

“He knows, which is why he had me come over and talk to you about this!”

Hearing Robin say so, a trace of warmth appeared on Ted’s cold face, and his expression also became much more natural. “What are you here for?” he asked.

Robin still had a smiling look on his face. “See, it’s not that difficult!”

“Frank is afraid that you will be in a hurry and will suffer a loss when you go over, so he had me transfer another batch of people to you.”

“About two hundred or so, all of them are good hands in the family.”

“Weapons, and a special train. You can choose to go to Indeno State first, or directly appear in Likalai State. This is all up to you to decide.”

“At the same time, he also asked me to pass on a sentence to you—”

“Don’t let people look down on the Perez family!”

(End of a Chapter)