Empire of Shadows

”The New Federal Center Helps Rapa’s Economy Take Off!”

Lance flipped through the newspaper, a faint smile on his face. The photographer had taken the picture from a low angle, with the sky as Lance’s background, making him appear... tall.

It conveyed a somewhat sacred feeling!

”What he holds in his hands is not just a simple bunch of keys, but the lighthouse guiding the poor and suffering people of Rapa toward happiness.”

Lance read the excerpt aloud, then put down the paper. ”Well written.”

Mayor Wade, sitting across the table, chuckled. ”You have some popularity and recognition domestically now. Some people have even asked me if I know you and so on.”

Lance had returned to the Federation these past few days because the gubernatorial election in Indeno State was imminent.

The election would conclude before Saint’s Harvest Day (Sheng Nong Jie), and the new governor’s team would formally take over the state government’s work in mid-November.

With just over a month until the election results, and little left in Rapa that required Lance’s direct attention, he had returned early to meet with Mayor Wade.

If Mayor Wade won the election, it would be a very significant advantage for Lance.It meant that Indeno State and Likalai State, the two neighboring states, would be tightly connected, both falling within his sphere of influence.

Currently, many liquor businesses in Indeno State were beyond his reach; these gangs and mayors were aligned with the current Deputy Governor.

Only after Wade was elected could these people be cleared out, allowing Lance to consolidate these businesses.

Facing Mayor Wade’s praise, Lance smiled. ”In reality, such reputation isn’t that important to me. You know, compared to things like reputation, I care more about your election.”

”Reputation, fame—I can give you as much as you want, provided you have the money.”

Mayor Wade did not argue, as Lance spoke the truth.

Take, for instance, a few of the hottest stars now. Due to the booming film industry, they were known by more people and gained greater influence.

Of course, the star’s own qualities were good, too. He was handsome, even beautiful. It was rumored that during some high-society gatherings, people had repeatedly mentioned wanting to spend the night with Gerald—a suggestion made by men.

It was imaginable that Gerald’s looks allowed the upper-class gentlemen to overlook the fact that he was male. Of course, this was also related to the promiscuity and complexity of Federal high society.

The imagination of the lower classes was usually limited.

This lack of imagination was not due to a lack of capacity, but because their perception of the world was limited.

For example, many people would speculate whether the powerful figures changed female companions daily. They would look at the young and beautiful girls standing next to these figures and talk about the stories that would follow, often with a tone of envy and sourness.

Or they might discuss celebrity gossip—stories between a famous man and a famous woman.

Because their perception of the world was simply man seeks woman, woman seeks man.

They couldn’t imagine that sometimes, those powerful male figures would also seek men, or that some powerful figures would even proactively bend over on the bed.

Their understanding of high society and the world was too limited. They only knew what happened in their immediate vicinity and took those events as common sense.

Some people wanted Gerald’s body, but others wanted to give their body to Gerald.

Gerald was favored by these people not only for his looks but also for his fame and status.

Lance had been involved in similar matters before. For instance, some television hosts privately took on lucrative side jobs.

Some of these hosts were not particularly good-looking or had exceptional figures, yet they could still charge high prices.

What people bought was not just a one-time physical pleasure, but the enjoyment of the host’s status.

People loved seeing public figures act subserviently before them, loved watching them bow their heads or look submissively upward.

This gave them the perverse pleasure of destroying the beautiful things in people’s minds!

The two quickly ended this topic. Lance took out his cigarette case and lit a cigarette. ”How is the election going?”

Mayor Wade nodded, a look of confidence on his face. ”Excellent, I can only say.”

”Based on the last two public opinion polls, people favor me becoming the Governor.”

The Federal Governor was elected by direct vote from within the state’s registered voters. This involved many votes and numerous regions, making cheating difficult, though not impossible.

However, Wade had his advantage: the economic adjustments he implemented were effective, and economic recovery in his city started earlier than in other areas.

His campaign team used this as a key selling point, promoting Mayor Wade as a master of economics.

In his campaign speeches, Mayor Wade constantly emphasized that if elected, he would rapidly boost the economy of Indeno State, create more jobs, and attract more capital.

These were indeed appealing and popular with voters, as everyone hoped for a stable and prosperous life.

The Federal voter population was small. Meeting the Federation’s stringent requirements to become a voter was not easy. Non-official reports suggested that only 12% of the entire Federal population were legal voters.

And even within this demographic, some people were uninterested in voting and elections.

Politicians knew exactly where the most voters resided. By fiercely targeting a few core voting blocks, winning the election wasn’t too difficult.

”If there’s anything you need my help with, just say the word,” Lance offered, indicating his willingness to assist.

It wasn’t merely to curry favor with Mayor Wade; it was because he didn’t want his investment to be wasted.

He didn’t care about the loss of campaign funds. What mattered were the favors he had expended, which money could not measure.

When a person gains enough wealth, they realize money truly is just a number; favors are what matter more.

Mayor Wade certainly wouldn’t refuse. ”Perfect. Since you brought it up, I do need your help with a few minor issues.”

Lance signaled him to continue. This was no time for mutual modesty. Solving small problems now could lead to more opportunities for victory in the vote.

”Some people...” He interlaced his fingers on his thigh, then spread his hands wide with a look of helplessness, before interlacing them again. ”...They have objections to me, an outsider, running for Governor of Indeno State.”

Lance interjected, ”Politicians?”

”No, no, no. Just some ordinary people with some social influence,” Mayor Wade quickly clarified.

Lance’s help wasn’t very useful against politicians. Politicians were divided into factions across three parties. Every prominent politician usually represented a faction, a large group of people.

Therefore, political means were required to deal with politicians. That was the rule of the game.

However, Lance was perfectly suited to deal with ordinary people.

Mayor Wade briefly explained his troubles. Since he was from Golden Port City, he was seen as an outsider in Indeno State.

His popularity for the governorship was high, which led to objections from some conservative, old local families.

They believed allowing an outsider to become Governor of Indeno State might damage local traditions and was humiliating.

It meant they lacked unity, despite having qualified local politicians.

These individuals were generally older and were influential among the common populace.

Mayor Wade had approached them privately, discussing whether a backroom deal could persuade them to drop the issue, but they refused.

They refused to negotiate with an outsider and would not compromise. They were rallying people to oppose Mayor Wade’s candidacy.

”...That’s the gist of it. It’s inappropriate for me to get involved personally. After much thought, I figured you are the best person to handle this.”

The Lance family organization was not a native local gang, so they had fewer entrenched interests and fewer scruples about dealing with local matters.

Lance agreed after little consideration.

Mayor Wade then handed him a list with photos and personal information of the three individuals.

”Three old men,” Lance noted after glancing at the file.

Wade nodded. ”That’s why they are so stubborn.”

Lance quickly scanned the file, seeing nothing extraordinary, and put it away. ”I’ll handle this.”

They then discussed other needs for the campaign. For example, Mayor Wade needed Lance’s manpower for his rallies. He had several speeches planned in various parts of the state.

Although television existed, it wasn’t yet widely accessible. Most people gained information about elections from newspapers and public speaking events.

To gain more support, Mayor Wade and the Deputy Governor were prepared to travel non-stop across the state for over a month.

Covering six or seven cities in five days was already considered a demanding schedule.

Wade had a professional campaign team, but the team lacked ”flexible” people—those who weren’t directly associated with him but could handle things that required criminal means when necessary.

Lance readily agreed to all these requests.

After meeting with Mayor Wade, Lance returned to New Birmingham City, which had become the Lance family’s base of operations in Indeno State.

Before the motorcade even entered the city, they could see numerous smuggling vehicles moving in and out.

These smuggling vehicles were instantly recognizable—

They were almost all modified, old secondhand vehicles. All the cars had curtains, preventing people from seeing inside.

Some cars even had gang-related markings on the surface.

These vehicles were visible everywhere on the road from outside the city to the interior, indicating Lance’s business was booming.

When the motorcade stopped outside the company building and Lance met Elvin in the office, the two men shared a strong embrace.

They had been separated for six months and hadn’t seen each other in a long time.

Lance and the cadres, as well as some of the combat captains, had been together for many years. They were like family!

”Let me look at you. You look much more mature, and you grew a beard!” Lance looked at Elvin’s new look with some surprise.

He had grown a beard, which made him look... Lance couldn’t quite describe it.

Elvin laughed heartily. ”I was initially too busy to shave my face and trim my beard. Then I just stopped managing it. It actually makes me look more mature.”

He draped his arm over Lance’s shoulder. ”How long are you staying this time?”

The two walked to the sofa and sat down. Lance crossed his legs, looking relaxed. ”I’m not sure. I hope to stay until Mayor Wade wins the election.”

”If anything unexpected happens, I can handle it immediately.”

He paused. ”How is Golden Label Liquor doing?”

”I heard the production line has been rebuilt.”

The Golden Label Liquor company was burned down by Lance’s people and took three or four months to rebuild. Lance hadn’t heard much about the subsequent developments.

Elvin explained. ”Golden Label Liquor has stopped selling whiskey to the general market. They are only supplying liquor to soldiers.”

The Lance family’s actions had made Golden Label Liquor feel threatened. After all, they were just businessmen, not professional gangsters.

Faced with this situation, Golden Label Liquor’s board ultimately gritted their teeth and abandoned the Indeno State market.

However, there were rumors that they were shipping their products to other states.

Listening to Elvin’s account of local developments, Lance couldn’t help but walk to the window to look outside.

The liquor factory was diagonally across the street. The factory was massive. Since over half the gangs in the state bought their liquor here, the entire New Birmingham City gained certain benefits, prompting the Mayor to deliberately ignore the open sale of liquor.

The Hazardous Materials Administration was also restrained. The State Prohibition Committee had instructed them, and they had transferred less resolute agents here, who were also well-compensated. The city was peaceful now.

Lance could see the vehicles entering the factory’s warehouse area in an orderly fashion, and workers loading liquor onto the trucks.

When the loading was done, they would close the doors, tap the roof, and the vehicles would quickly leave the factory and speed out of the city, heading toward their destinations.

Everything was systematic, even visually pleasing.

This was a scene highly characteristic of the era: workers, factories, and business!

Yes, business!

Lance turned his head. ”Are there any other gangs provoking us now?”

Elvin shook his head. ”Things quieted down after we fought them severely a few times.”

There was now a prevailing belief in the Southern underworld of the Federation: don’t mess with the Lance family.

If you provoked other gang members, you could usually resolve the conflict through negotiation.

But if you provoked the Lance family, someone had to die.

Either you died, or they died.

If they suffered losses, the feud became a fight to the death. Thus, ultimately, you died.

More than one gang had proven this, from Golden Port City to Indeno State.

Lance asked about other matters, such as the sales of the Sumurean brandy here.

When this issue was raised, Elvin suddenly slapped his head as if he had just remembered something important. ”See, I almost forgot something important.”

Lance turned to him with a confused look. ”What?”

”I assigned some people to try selling whiskey in South Yanan State. The quality of the whiskey there is far inferior to ours, so I think our liquor could find a market there.”

Lance listened and nodded, lighting a cigarette. ”And then?”

”Did you run into trouble?”

Elvin shook his head. ”We ran into some trouble, but that’s not what I wanted to talk about.”

”One of the men I sent recognized Dover. He said he saw a guy over there who looked like Dover. He might be the Summurian manager there.”

Lance paused. ”He returned?”

Elvin also looked confused. ”I don’t know. I haven’t heard anything about him, so I couldn’t confirm the news and didn’t mention it to you.”

”If you hadn’t asked about this, I might have forgotten quickly.”

Christopher had changed his name. He was still somewhat fearful internally. Lance’s actions had seemed crazy and terrifying to him.

A small-time figure had managed to consolidate Golden Port City, and even all of Likalai State!

Honestly, he was scared.

Had Leonardo not insisted that he manage the Federal liquor sales, he would never have come back to the Federation!

So, to avoid attracting Lance’s attention, he wasn’t using his real name, but an alias: Camilo Bianchi.

The people he traded with were unaware of this, so no one realized that the ”leader” they were trading with was actually Christopher.

”Arrange for a few more people who know him to go check it out. If there’s a possibility, don’t ignore it.”

”If it really is him...”

Lance took a drag of his cigarette, watching the busy cargo handlers at the factory across the street. He slowly exhaled the smoke. ”Then we drag him out. I want to take him out personally.”

Alberto was a very important person to Lance. Without Alberto’s support, the Lance family organization wouldn’t exist today.

In a gang war, people live and die; it’s normal.

If Alberto died seeking revenge on Summuri Island, Lance would certainly avenge him; that would be a normal blood feud.

What truly enraged him was that when he sent people to retrieve Alberto’s body, that son of a bitch not only refused but killed his envoys as well.

That feud was absolute and permanent. No one could mediate it!