Empire of Shadows

On the weekend, at the invitation of Precinct Chief Bruce, Lance attended the retirement ceremony of the Port District’s precinct chief with him.

The Port District’s precinct chief had reached retirement age. He was actually supposed to retire at the end of last year, but with various precincts facing personnel changes, in order to allow his successor to better secure the position and ensure a smooth transition.

So Charlie had specially called the old precinct chief and asked him to postpone his retirement for a few months, and he had agreed.

Now, the new assistant precinct chief, or one could say deputy chief, John, had fully taken over the work of the Port District. It was time for the old chief to lay down his burden.

To be able to work as a police officer until retirement without illness or injury was rare, and to retire as a precinct chief was even more so.

Therefore, some of the prominent figures in the Golden Port police circle would come, on one hand, to show the unity of the police force, and on the other hand, as a kind of beautiful prayer and aspiration for their own future.

“I heard John spent a lot of money to become this chief.”

On the way to the old chief’s residence, Lance asked casually.

John had made a hefty sum when he left the Empire District, at least ten or twenty thousand dollars. Many people knew about this.

Hearing Lance bring this up, a look of displeasure appeared on Precinct Chief Bruce’s face, “Don’t mention that son of a b—tch to me!”“He’s a bastard, you know?”

Seeing that Precinct Chief Bruce clearly had a desire to vent, Lance also had the idea of finding out more. After all… to him, this was also half an acquaintance. “If you don’t mind, I can help you judge.”

Precinct Chief Bruce began to speak while driving, “You know our income isn’t high. City Hall… those sons of b—tches won’t approve much of a budget for us at all.”

When speaking of City Hall, he noticeably lowered his voice.

“The officers’ expenses are actually quite a lot. Boots, uniforms, plain clothes, gun oil… there are many things they need to pay for themselves.”

“So $40 might seem like a lot, but in reality, our income is not much different from the workers on the docks, and our work is more dangerous. Sometimes when we get injured, City Hall only allocates funds to us according to the minimum standard.”

“So we need some extra income.”

He glanced at Lance.

Lance sponsored him with a sum of money every month, and many people in the police station also received some benefits from Lance. If the police officers of the Empire District precinct were to make a choice between him and Lance.

He believed he would be abandoned by that group of close comrades.

Ideals don’t put food on the table!

The people of the Federation actually have a deeper understanding than the immigrants. After all, they have been beaten by the cruel reality until they are powerless to resist, while those immigrants still retain a trace of illusion because they have not yet been heartbroken.

“John took three months of protection fees from a whole street at once, and also extorted some money from some people. He took $25,000 to Charlie, and another $5,000 to the old chief.”

“And then he was transferred over. Soon he will succeed the old chief’s position and become the official precinct chief of the Port precinct.”

“I heard that the money he gave to Charlie was actually more than this, much more. So once he takes office, he will definitely find a way to get it back from the Port District. The people here are going to have a hard time!”

Precinct Chief Bruce no longer had much respect for Charlie. A police chief who had already resigned to take responsibility had long lost his sense of pressure on him.

Moreover, his ability to become the “Bay Area Hound” was not only because of his loyalty but also because of his status.

There were many people in this city willing to offer their loyalty to the masters of the Bay Area, but the masters of the Bay Area wouldn’t even give them a second glance.

Unless they were some kind of chief, with a special status bonus.

Without that layer of skin, the masters of the Bay Area would not care about him as much as they used to, so Precinct Chief Bruce had lost his “fear.” As for respect?

A superior who was more greedy and better at acting than him did not arouse the slightest respect in him!

“I hear Hunter has a good chance?” Lance asked.

He had also heard this news. Hunter had a high probability of succeeding. He and Charlie had done a lot of dirty work for the masters, making him a good candidate to be the next dog.

Precinct Chief Bruce shook his head, “I’m not too sure about that. Although everyone says so, the ones who ultimately decide who sits in this position are the masters of the Bay Area.”

“And now there’s another problem, the mayor.”

The internal problems of a city with a mayoral system are ultimately decided by the mayor. If he doesn’t nod, Hunter cannot become the police chief.

Similarly, he can also directly appoint others. Now he hasn’t expressed any attitude, making it unclear what he is thinking.

And whether he can appoint Hunter as the next police chief is also a question.

The car approached the border area between Priliccia and the Port District. There were a few communities here where many police officers lived. They liked to live here in clusters.

This was the benefit of being rich. At all times, it could keep the rich in a state of physical and mental pleasure.

As soon as you open the door, you see colleagues you get along well with, unlike the low-level police officers living in the Empire District and the Port District.

When they open their doors, it’s those dark, even urine-stained apartment corridors.

Seeing that Precinct Chief Bruce had already started to slow down, he suddenly seemed to think of something and said, “Those two… cases, we discussed them and filed them as illegal immigrants.”

The two cases he was talking about referred to the recent jumping-from-a-building case. Two people with ropes around their heads hung from an apartment building. The forensic examiner said they were still alive before the ropes tightened.

Then, the moment the ropes tightened, both of them were as dead as they could be.

Plus, they died in such a “creative” way. One look and you knew it was an honor killing, a ritualistic way of death.

Others didn’t know what the situation was, but Precinct Chief Bruce knew very well. One of the cases occurred in the Empire District, and his side directly processed the deceased as an illegal immigrant.

That is to say, it was placed at the very bottom of the pending cases, and without external interference, it was highly unlikely they would ever touch this case in their lifetime.

Being an illegal immigrant meant they couldn’t clearly investigate the person’s identity and background, couldn’t figure out his social connections, and naturally couldn’t find out why he was hanged.

If it weren’t for the obvious ritualistic style of the killing, Precinct Chief Bruce could have even directly concluded it as “suicide.”

The other case occurred in the Port District. Precinct Chief Bruce and the old precinct chief had already discussed it and decided to handle it in the same way.

The car quickly turned onto an internal road of a community on the side of the road. At the gate before entering the community’s internal road, you could still see a description like “Police Home.”

The people living here were all mid-level and above police officers of Golden Port.

The old precinct chief had his own single-family house. Except for not having a swimming pool and a sports court, it was actually a large villa, but they still called it a single-family house.

There were already many people on the lawn outside the house, all chatting and talking.

Most of the people were wearing casual clothes. It was rare to see so many police officers and deputy chiefs gathered together. Even Charlie was here.

When they arrived, many people’s eyes turned towards them. When they saw Lance, some people didn’t recognize who he was.

After Precinct Chief Bruce parked the car, he came to the lawn with Lance.

The old precinct chief took the initiative to come over and hugged Precinct Chief Bruce, “Thank you for coming!” Then he looked at Lance, “You must be Mr. Lance, right?”

“I didn’t expect my retirement to make you run a trip. Thank you very much for coming. There are many friends today, you will definitely have a lot of gains.”

He knew Lance, had seen him from a distance, and had also seen his photo.

Lance shook his hand and then handed over the small gift he had brought with him, “I don’t know if I should bring a gift, but I think since this is a matter worth celebrating, it’s definitely not wrong for me to bring a small gift.”

As he spoke, he looked at Charlie next to him, “This shouldn’t violate police regulations, right?”

Charlie smiled and shook hands with Lance, “Of course not!”

At this time, Charlie was wearing a well-tailored formal suit. When he extended his hand, the gold watch on his wrist was exposed. Compared to believing he was a retired police officer, people should be more willing to believe that he was a rich capitalist or something.

This whole set would cost at least a few thousand dollars. Perhaps Charlie’s thinking had begun to change after he resigned to take responsibility.

In the past, he would use his sleeves to cover his gold watch, trying his best not to show off those good things, but now, he was very keen on these things.

The old precinct chief accepted the gift, “Thank you for your gift. I hope you have a good time…”

As they were talking, John came over from the side. He was stunned when he saw Lance. He seemed to have seen this face somewhere before.

He frowned slightly, his brain spinning frantically. To be able to stand with Charlie and the old precinct chief, he must not be some unknown small character.

Lance reminded him with a half-smile, “Johnny’s Bakery.”

John slapped his head, “Right, Johnny’s Bakery. You’re Lance?”

He extended his hand enthusiastically, “I’ve actually heard people talk about this matter, but I could never connect you with the situation at that time. By that count, we’re acquaintances!”

In this era of underdeveloped information dissemination, people’s understanding of a stranger often begins with “rumors.”

You may have heard many people’s names, but when they stand in front of you, you most likely don’t recognize them.

You might even, because of those circulated reputations, have imagined a person’s appearance, voice, and even more things in your mind, only to find the gap so large it’s unimaginable when you meet them for the first time.

After a simple exchange of pleasantries, the three of them left. Lance watched their backs as they went to greet others, glanced at Precinct Chief Bruce beside him, “Now that you’re going to hold the big party, there shouldn’t be much pressure, right?”

Precinct Chief Bruce was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, “Are you that eager to give away money?”

Lance shook his head. Seeing that he was being obedient, he explained, “Congress keeps giving more weight to the Bureau of Hazardous Materials. Right now, you might just think they can only check for smuggled liquor.”

“You wait and see. Soon they will extend their hands into your jurisdiction.”

“At that time, if the police force is not united enough and lacks a core figure, the police profession will be marginalized.”

Precinct Chief Bruce had a look of disbelief on his face, “That sounds scary, but I believe the Federation government will not let it become a reality, because we are the guardians of the city.”

He said it very firmly, but Lance was not so optimistic, “You will see.”

Today, Lance met many police officers here. He had met almost all of the precinct chiefs from the eleven districts, as well as their deputies.

They were all very happy to know Lance because everyone knew that Lance was a very generous person, and they had also vaguely heard that he planned to hold a party-like event for the police.

For this kind of rich, generous person with status and deterrent power, they all liked him from the bottom of their hearts.

The atmosphere at the scene was very good. Everyone was talking and laughing, but a few cars that suddenly arrived broke this relaxed atmosphere.

It was the cars of the Bureau of Hazardous Materials. Their greyhounds in uniform got out of the cars and walked towards this side.

Everyone stopped their ongoing socializing and looked at them.

Charlie and the old chief went to greet them. Compared to the old chief who still managed a smile, Charlie had no smile at all.

If it weren’t for this group of people and the masters behind them, he wouldn’t have lost his job!

So let alone pretending to squeeze out a smile, he couldn’t even be bothered to squeeze one out.

“Someone reported you are having a gathering for drinking here. We need to check. This is a search warrant.”

The senior agent directly showed the search warrant in his hand. This kind of legal document was issued by themselves to themselves.

Charlie finally couldn’t hold it in anymore, “Today is his retirement celebration. If you have to check, can you do it at another time?”

The senior agent shook his head with a cold face, “I don’t care who you are. In short, someone reported that you are having a gathering for drinking here, so we have to check. This is the job and task given to us by Congress.”

“If you are dissatisfied with me, you can call the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Hazardous Materials, or the relevant committee in Congress to complain about me.”

“If you don’t plan to resist our law enforcement, you’d better get out of the way first!”

Charlie’s face was very unhappy. He still wanted to say something, but the old precinct chief grabbed his arm and shook his head slightly.

Today was supposed to be a happy day. There was no need to make it unpleasant because of these people.

Perhaps he had known the result in advance. The corner of the senior agent’s mouth curled up slightly. His eyes lingered on the two of them for a moment, then he strode inside, waving his hand at the same time, “Search…”

In an instant, the party on the lawn was turned into a mess. These agents moved with particular force, and many things were knocked over to the ground by them, including the food on the table.

The police officers were all very angry, but the other party acted as if they didn’t notice. They even searched the old precinct chief’s house and found two boxes of liquor inside.

Seeing them come out holding two boxes of liquor, the old precinct chief really couldn’t hold it in anymore, “This was left to me by my father. The date on it can prove that they existed before the Prohibition was enacted!”

That senior agent looked down. Indeed, a few bottles had the production date written on them. He directly tore off those labels, “Now they’re gone.”

Looking at these police officers who were angry but dared not speak, the senior agent couldn’t help but show a sarcastic smile, “Let’s go.”

After watching them leave, Charlie finally let go of the old chief’s arm, “They are provoking us. They are doing it on purpose, just hoping we will make some drastic moves.”

The police officers all gathered around. Charlie’s expression was also very ugly. It seemed they had suddenly raided the old precinct chief’s retirement celebration, but in reality, they were trampling on his face!

When he was in office, he had clearly stated that he would not stand with the mayor. Now this was retaliation.

He looked at the old precinct chief, “I will find a way to get your liquor back!”

In the end, this celebration ended on a sour note.

When leaving, Precinct Chief Bruce and John chatted in a corner for a while. When he came back, he told Lance that John was asking if the case that had just been handled was Lance’s.

“I feel like he… might ask you for money. This person has a very bad reputation. He’s desperate when it comes to getting money, but he’s also very willing to spend it.”

“Although the people who hate him are more than the people who like him, the people who like him are clearly of a higher status.”

“If he… forget it, I don’t need to worry about this. I should be worried about him.”

If John really extorted Lance, Precinct Chief Bruce could no longer imagine John’s fate!

Hopefully, he would wipe his eyes clean. At the same time, he was also very sure that John would most likely do so.

Because as long as the position of chief was not confirmed for a single day, it meant that everyone still had a chance!

He could spend tens of thousands of dollars to be a precinct chief of a precinct, so it was not impossible for him to spend a little more to be a chief!

On the way back to the Empire District, as they approached the Port District, Lance heard intense firefights again. The surrounding area was full of hurried passersby, and some people had looks of horror on their faces.

Some people ran out from the distant streets. Obviously, that was where the firefight was taking place.

This was not the jurisdiction of the Empire District precinct. Precinct Chief Bruce directly turned the direction. He was not so stupid as to have the idea of going to the scene to see.

“The number of firefights within the Empire District has been increasing recently, and they are constantly escalating.”

“Before, they would only have firefights in the middle of the night. Now they also have firefights during the day.”

“Those outside gangs don’t follow the rules at all!”

“Fortunately, Lance, the Empire District has you. Otherwise, I can’t imagine how bad it would become!”

Lance’s gaze was still on the rearview mirror. At that intersection where there were no more people, a few young men staggered out.

One of them even fell.

They were retreating while fighting back, but they were soon caught up by another group of people.

On the main road, the incident ended with one side leaving three bodies and the other side leaving seven or eight bodies.

The police car in the distance happened to be coming head-on with Precinct Chief Bruce’s car. Obviously, they had arrived for some time and only drove out of the alley after the firefight ended.

This was Golden Port, getting more and more chaotic.

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