Empire of Shadows

In truth, Lance didn’t know how much money that Mr. Thurray owed him. He didn’t care about that. The extra was a punishment for him.

If an apology and compensation for losses were useful, why would the Federation need so many courts and prosecutors?

This was a punishment to make him not dare to do it again next time. Of course, there was a high probability that he wouldn’t have a next time.

“I hear there was already a movie with a box office of several million?” Lance seemed to have heard someone say this.

The director immediately echoed, “Yes, but that was just the box office generated. How much of it was real and how much was fake, we are not yet clear.”

“The production company only earned a little over 400,000.”

“So little?” Lance found it a bit incredible. A box office of several million, even if it was exaggerated, the production company only earned less than 10%. This was obviously too unreasonable.

The director explained with a smile, “Because everyone has been using the buyout and screening method before. Tallying the box office was just a marketing strategy, Mr. Lance.”

“People are definitely more willing to buy tickets to watch movies that have created box office history, even if their prices are not cheap.”

“But in fact, the buyout fee for that movie was about 750, and there were also cases of piracy in some areas.”750 for one copy, a hundred copies were only 75,000. 600 copies were only a little over 400,000. If there was also piracy, their luck was indeed not very good.

This was also the most important problem that all film companies were facing now. Making movies was definitely profitable, but most of it was earned by the movie theaters.

“If we can ensure the feasibility of the box office sharing model and are willing to help them distribute their movies and provide guarantees for the screening of the movies.”

“Do you think they would be willing to join our system?”

Lance stated his considerations. The director was stunned for a moment, his eyes gradually widening. He understood Lance’s meaning too well!

“This is really… God!”

“You will become the God of all film companies, Mr. Lance!”

“Everyone will go crazy for you!”

He suddenly became fanatical, because he realized that if this could really work, then his status in the film circle would be even higher!

Any film production company that wanted to make money would have to give their movies to them for distribution and screening.

At that time, how to show them, and whose to show, would all be up to him!

He was so excited that his body was trembling slightly. As a person of the Federation in this era, he understood the value of the word “monopoly” too well!

If only Lance could do this, then this was a monopoly.

And a monopoly would bring immeasurable benefits, wealth, status, everything!

“Recently, you can intentionally or unintentionally talk about this matter to everyone. Find a few reporters, publicize it, and then sit down and chat with everyone to see how to set the price.”

“I’m more inclined to share with them based on a percentage of the box office as well.”

“In addition, someone may come to find trouble with you recently. I have already arranged for people to be near the company. You should also be careful.”

After the director left, Lance walked to the window to smoke. He looked at the beautiful scenery outside the window, enjoying a moment of peace brought by the tobacco.

It was just that not long after, this peace was interrupted by a phone call.

He walked back to the desk with a cigarette in his mouth, sat down, and picked up the phone. “It’s me.”

“Mr. Lance, it’s me… I’ve encountered a problem and I don’t know how to tell you.”

The call was from the casino. Lance frowned. “Use your simplest language.”

This guy was from the Kodak family. In order to set up a banner of “I am not a tyrant,” they were still working in the casino and still had everything they had before.

When people began to gradually accept all of this, Lance would find a way to slowly replace them and eventually clean them out.

He did not trust these people, at any time.

If he could still trust Bolton after killing his son Rob, it was because of Bolton’s desire for power, and also because there was a Gerald between them as a bridge of trust, and Bolton’s current family was under his control.

Then the hatred between him and these remnants of the Kodak family might not be so naked, but it would definitely not be less.

There was no bridge of trust or guarantee between them yet. Maybe now, and in the future, they would maintain their loyalty to Lance, but as long as there was an opportunity, they would definitely betray Lance.

Lance was not willing to bet that these people all had excellent moral character and could dedicate all their loyalty to their enemies. So after their use value disappeared, it would be the moment they disappeared.

Now the casino also really needed them. Lance’s men had never run a casino. Morris was very familiar with casinos, but he was also still in the process of exploring how to run a casino well.

These people could provide some valuable experience and let Lance’s men grow up quickly.

Hearing Lance say so, he immediately organized his language. “There’s a player who has been winning all the time. We suspect he’s cheating, but we can’t find any signs of him cheating.”

This kind of thing often happens, in stories, or in rumors. “So is he cheating?”

The voice from the receiver was slightly panicked. “He is definitely cheating. Otherwise, no one can keep winning, Mr. Lance!”

Lance took a puff of his cigarette. “Did you use your methods?”

He knew that some dealers in the casino had a few tricks up their sleeves. Each dealer had their own unique skill. The more capable the dealer, the higher their income, so they were very fond of this job.

“We did, but we still lost.”

“You lost even after using your methods, so he must be cheating.”

Lance first laughed twice, but soon put away his smile. “Has Morris gone to deal with it?”

“The manager has already gone to deal with it, but the other party… is asking for a very high price.”

In fact, many casinos have encountered this situation. Someone with superb skills comes to gamble and keeps winning.

The best way is to send them to their death, but many times this cannot be done.

So they can only choose to give them a sum of money, have them get lost, and at the same time put this person on a blacklist.

The next time they come, they will not be provided with the service of exchanging chips, and they may not even be allowed in.

Morris had gone to deal with it, which meant that Morris had gone to give him money, but this person’s purpose was not to make a quick buck.

Lance said “I see” and then hung up the phone and went straight out of the office.

When he came down from upstairs, many of the people in the lobby who were chatting, playing video games, or playing pool stopped what they were doing when they saw Lance and all stood there looking at him.

Lance’s gaze swept over a few people. Hiram was not here; he had gone to the director’s side. Lawn had not come back from New Golden City.

His gaze swept around, and after a circle on some of the eager young men, it stopped on Devon.

He had a deep impression of Devon. This was a ruthless person, very skilled in torturing people.

“Devon, bring your men and come with me.”

Devon immediately waved his fist. “No problem, Boss!”

The people around him also showed smiles one after another, immediately put down what they were holding, and gathered around Lance.

The moment the main door was pushed open, the pedestrians passing by the door subconsciously quickened their pace, or stopped outside the main door. The car door that had been slowly stopping by the side of the road was opened by a gang member at the door.

Lance quickly walked out and got into the car. The whole process took only four or five seconds.

“Where are we going?” Devon turned his head and asked.

“To the Golden Port Casino.”

The convoy slowly started. Many people watched the convoy with their eyes.

More than ten minutes later, the convoy arrived at the Golden Port Casino. Someone was already waiting for him at the door.

Looking at the chubby white man who was constantly wiping his sweat, Lance corresponded him with the person on the phone just now.

“Mr. Lance, please follow me.”

Lance nodded, and the group quickly entered the main hall. They were not on the second-floor gambling hall.

The upper limit of the first-floor hall was 100. This meant that no matter which table you played at, the maximum bet you could place was 100.

The dealer would push the excess back to you. The maximum win or loss was 100.

They said it nicely, that it was to prevent gambling addicts from getting carried away. In fact, it was to screen the poor and the rich.

The first floor only provided free iced lemon water and some cheap food. In the past, they would also provide some cheap wine, but now they couldn’t do that.

The second floor provided more things, juice, coffee, black tea, and all kinds of food.

Even if someone said they needed a massage or something, the casino would also provide it, but it required a fee.

On the third floor, for the real VIPs, everything was provided for free, including liquor.

If a guest said he was hungry and wanted to eat lamb chops, then a chef would come over with a cooking cart and cook two small lamb chops in front of the guests for them to eat.

As for the fourth floor, although it was run by the casino, it was already a gamble between the guests and the guests. The casino was only responsible for providing the venue, the game, and the role of the dealer.

Sometimes the dealer was not even needed; they could handle it themselves.

The minimum bet on the second floor was 20, and the upper limit was 2,000. Although this minimum bet was not small, there were still many people here.

As soon as he went up to the second floor, Lance saw that a gambling table in the main hall was already surrounded by people. With the constant shouts of the people, there were then thunderous cheers and laughter.

There was no doubt that the lighthouse was leading his followers on a killing spree.

Seeing Lance, Morris breathed a sigh of relief. He took the initiative to leave the side of the gambling table and came to Lance. “I’m a little confused.”

As he spoke, he walked towards the side of the gambling table with Lance. “I’ve been keeping an eye on him. It doesn’t look like he’s cheating, but you know, no one can keep winning at the gambling table.”

Lance nodded. “How much have we lost?”

“We’ve lost seventeen times in a row. Now people are crazy. Every time we open a new round, we lose about forty to fifty thousand.”

“The good news is that not everyone dares to bet, but the bad news is that that person doesn’t seem to have any intention of stopping.”

Lance nodded. “I hear he’s asking for a high price?”

Morris sighed. “He wants two million.”

This was indeed an ridiculously high number. If the news got out, soon those who considered themselves to be cheating masters would gather here and ask for a lion’s share.

Lance turned around and said something in Morris’s ear, then walked to the side of the gambling table.

The people from the casino cleared a spot and let Lance sit down.

After Lance sat down, the gambling addicts who were still shouting “deal the cards quickly” suddenly shivered!

Except for a very few people, most of the gambling addicts had withdrawn their chips and moved a distance away from the gambling table.

They recognized Lance.

Perhaps the media and newspapers would use some beautifying methods to cover up the bloody degree of the power transfer in the casino, but as these gambling addicts who spent their days in the casino, how could they not have heard of it?

More than half of the Kodak family’s people had died. Their property had been squeezed dry. A bunch of core figures had died, and only Fleming was missing.

The prosecutor’s application for a pardon for Stone was rejected, but in terms of sentencing, they gave Stone a “discount” of fifteen years.

If he could perform well and get his sentence reduced, he would only be in his early forties when he got out.

Lance, who had gotten the casino after doing so much, how could he be a “civilized person” who had defeated the Kodak family through some commercial means?

They didn’t dare to act recklessly anymore. The blood in their heads began to cool down, and they became rational.

But there were also some people who were not very clear about the situation here, and new people who had just come here, who were still following that person’s bet.

And that person’s eyes, looking at Lance, were very calm, as if he didn’t know him.

But Lance believed that this person knew him.

The dealer glanced at Lance and asked if he wanted to continue dealing. Lance nodded.

The suspected cheater won again.

In fact, at this moment, even the stupidest person knew that this person was cheating.

The dealer pushed the chips in front of him. He casually picked up a 2,000 chip and threw it back into the betting area.

Lance turned to look at Morris. Morris walked over and bent down. Lance said a few words in his ear, and then Morris took the dealer’s place and brought a new deck of poker to deal.

“I hear you want two million?”

The gambler nodded. “Yes, two million, and I’ll leave now.”

Lance did not refuse. “If you can win the next three rounds, I agree to give you this number.”

Lance nodded at Morris. Morris began to deal.

There was no doubt that this cheater won again, and three times in a row.

Just as he was about to reach for the poker in front of him and throw it back, Lance’s hand pressed on his arm.

Morris took back the cards in front of him. A slight change appeared in the eyes of this cheater sitting at the table.

Lance said, “They say you’re cheating. To be honest, I didn’t see how you did it, but I believe my people.”

“Do you mind if we go to the room next door and let us check the things on your body?”

“If you didn’t cheat, I will give you two million and ensure that you leave Golden Port City safely.”

“If you did cheat, then I can only say sorry.”

The person was not afraid. After a short silence, he instead said with a smile, “What?”

“As long as you win money, it’s cheating?”

“As long as someone wins money, you have to search them?”

He did not look at Lance, but at the others, as if he were sending them this signal.

This casino, you can only lose money, you can’t win money.

This was a big taboo for a casino. This was also why many casinos, when they encountered this situation, would give money and then let the matter rest.

If the news that “the casino does not allow players to win money” spread, soon the casino’s business would become visibly cold.

Although most people lose money in the casino, but what if?

They think, what if they win?

Lance looked at Morris. “Count the poker.”

The guy who had been a bit arrogant suddenly stopped talking.

He had a lot of small movements in his hands. He would clench his fist for a while, and then make a gesture of one or two fingers. Lance had been keeping an eye on him.

Soon the poker was counted. Fifty-two cards, but there were five of the same.

Lance stood up and glanced at Devon. “He’s all yours.”

The others also realized what was happening. They looked at the person with a mixture of natural expectation and unexpectedness. The person sat there, his face changing back and forth.

He suddenly stood up. “This is a setup, sir!”

“That card was put in by this gentleman. It has nothing to do with me.”

Lance shook his head and went straight to the general manager’s office. Morris soon followed.

“How did you know he was cheating that way?” Morris asked.

He had watched for a long time and hadn’t seen it. Lance had seen it after being here for a short while. He found it a bit incredible.

Lance didn’t hide his thoughts. “Although our poker cards are printed separately, if someone wants to get it, it’s not a difficult task.”

“They can also spend the same amount of money to find a printing factory to print similar poker for them. This way, we can’t tell which are ours and which are brought by them.”

“As long as he cheated, then he must have changed his hand.”

“Fifty-two cards will not change. If he changed any of them, there will definitely be one more or one less.”

“You didn’t find it before because he always had an action of picking up his hand and throwing it to the dealer.”

“He probably took back the poker he had switched out at that time, so you couldn’t find any problem.”

After listening, Morris nodded repeatedly. “What you said makes a lot of sense. But is it worth it for him to take such a big risk?”

Lance shook his head. “This may have to wait a while. I believe Devon can get me something I’m interested in.”

Less than fifteen minutes later, Devon came to the room with a shirt.

“It seems he used this shirt to cheat?” Lance asked.

Devon showed them. The cuff of this shirt was a little wider than a normal shirt. A few poker cards were hidden inside and could be taken out or put in through an opening that looked like a pattern.

It was a very interesting little mechanism. When you put a poker card in from one pattern, another poker card would pop out from the same place.

Even if someone asked him to take off his clothes for inspection, they might not be able to discover the secret in his cuff.

For people who are proficient in gambling, they don’t need to hide a whole deck of poker. They only need to hide three or five cards to maintain the greatest winning rate.

“So what was his purpose?”

Devon said with a grin, “He’s a friend of Bandy’s and wanted to get some revenge for Bandy.”

Lance continued, “And by the way, extort some money from me.”

Devon shrugged. “That’s what it means.”

Lance played with the interesting little mechanism for a while, then said, “Get a display case and put it at the entrance of the casino so that everyone can see it.”

“Then that person, deal with him. I need everyone to know why he died. Do you understand what I mean?”

“Yes, Boss!”

(End of a Chapter)