Empire of Shadows

Gangs would indeed be phased out by society. An organization whose operational mandate was violence, destruction, and crime could certainly not last long.

But this ”long term” wouldn’t be resolved in a short period.

As long as the Federation’s labor unions and labor federations hadn’t been dismantled, gangs would inevitably retain their value and space to exist.

Using the police to counter unreasonable major strikes?

Highly unlikely!

Because sometimes the police would also participate in strikes. In this country and society, being a police officer was a profession, and they naturally had their own demands and desires. If unsatisfied, they too would strike.

And even if the police didn’t strike, how much could they actually do?

They could not prevent the development of a strike; that was a liberty granted to the Federal people by the Constitution. If the current Congressmen were collectively transported back to the day the Constitution was ratified, they would likely stab the person who proposed that idea.

So, ultimately, gangs were still needed for the solution.

They only needed to swing a fist or display a handgun hidden behind their clothing, and those who were clamoring, ”We must teach the capitalists and officials a lesson,” would instantly fall silent.Facts proved that gangs were the best means to curb the outbreak of strikes.

Therefore, Lance did not believe Senator Cleveland was wrong, but they differed on the timing.

”Your previous method was actually very good: having both the gang and the enterprise. See if you can split them into two parts, and operate officially as an entrepreneur.”

”The best method might be to hand over the explicit gang operations to trustworthy people.”

Senator Cleveland wasn’t asking Lance to abandon the gang entirely, but to hide it. He was also well aware of the gang’s value.

Once you become accustomed to using a simple and direct method like the gang to achieve your objectives, it is very difficult to give it up.

It was like a highly addictive substance; once you’re hooked, you can’t shake it off.

Lance agreed. ”I will handle it at my discretion.” He looked into the Senator’s eyes. ”I am very interested in matters concerning the FBI. Do you have any resources within that agency?”

”For example... is there anyone I can contact?”

”If I only maintain a passive defense, no one knows what they plan to do, how far they will go, or how much evidence they’ve collected. That is very unfavorable to me.”

”I need someone who can provide intelligence to me, to us.”

Senator Cleveland frowned. ”I hadn’t considered that before!”

Although the FBI helped the Presidential Office and Congress gain more power, it had not yet fully and formally ramped up operations. Many things remained on paper, and Congress currently had no interest in directly interfering in local governance.

So, the FBI still lacked significant presence. A lack of presence meant they hadn’t yet changed people’s perception of them, leading to a basic assumption.

That assumption was that people’s impression of the FBI was still stuck in the past—an agency used by the President to investigate who spoke ill of him and as a tool for political infighting.

Such an agency was a joke, a clown, because they dared not investigate the truly powerful figures.

The people they could and dared to investigate and publicly report on were often those without strong backing, so the agency’s reputation had always been poor.

Lance’s reminder made him realize that the FBI was changing.

”I will find someone to ask. I should be able to find someone willing to cooperate with us. Wait for my news.”

Lance nodded. ”I don’t mean to rush, but this matter seems somewhat urgent right now.”

Senator Cleveland tapped his finger on the desk. ”Wait for my call tonight.”

The matter was essentially settled.

As for campaign funding, Senator Cleveland didn’t even mention it. After all, the candidate they put forward wouldn’t be their main contender and wouldn’t enter the actual Presidential campaign system.

Two or three million Federal Sols were enough to signal, ”We are participating, we have ambition,” and to let the people below feel that this was an energetic, hopeful, and potential interest group.

They had just harvested several hundred million dollars from the financial market. Everyone had money, and some minor figures who were desperate to join the interest group were also eager to contribute their share.

Lance himself used to play that role, trying to use money and other means to become an outer member and slowly enter the group’s core.

Now that he had succeeded, Senator Cleveland didn’t even think of asking Lance for money when needed; there were plenty of people outside who were willing to do so.

Lance quickly left with the documents. The task of investigating these Presidential candidates certainly wasn’t just his to do; there were likely others, including some official figures, doing it secretly.

However, he was the person Senator Cleveland chose for the job. The reason why he was chosen was simple: reliable and effective.

In Senator Cleveland’s eyes, Lance was on the same level as him in terms of political acumen and work execution.

If Lance had better parentage—say, if one of his ancestors appeared in that famous oil painting, or if he had a distinguished surname—they might have been future ”colleagues” in Congress.

Unfortunately, he lacked these things, which meant he had no chance of reaching the very top. But in a way, this was also good.

As long as his interests didn’t directly conflict with Senator Cleveland’s, the Senator had a reliable person he could use.

A talented figure like him wouldn’t take on such tasks unless it was highly convenient, so the Senator delegated this work to Lance, trusting his ability.

Before Lance left, Senator Cleveland also advised him to mobilize some people to the New Golden City. With the coming general election, their workload would increase.

When the new President took office, there would certainly be adjustments to official positions across the Federal government. Congress would also see some changes; for example, more Liberal Party Senators would enter Congress, and the Socialist Party would lose seats.

This was inevitable. Their victory meant more people supported them than the Socialist Party, so the composition of Congress would change.

Even if the current situation wasn’t completely overturned, there would be significant shifts.

The Liberal Party hadn’t achieved this level of success in a long time. If the new President truly came from their ranks, they would have many ideas.

Internal conflicts within Congress would become more intense!

Under such circumstances, having people on hand who could cleanly handle dirty work was ideal.

Even if Senator Cleveland didn’t order anyone killed, causing some disruption or engaging in intimidation would be useful.

It was evening by the time Lance returned to his estate. Barbara was sitting on the sofa watching TV, occasionally giggling.

It seemed people’s emotional thresholds became strange when faced with novel forms of entertainment. Lance found the show uninteresting, but everyone watching it was laughing.

Barbara looked back, saw Lance entering, and immediately rushed over barefoot on the soft carpet, planting a kiss on his cheek.

Lance held her waist. ”I heard they’re still promoting the film everywhere. Didn’t you go?”

Barbara let go of Lance and took his arm. ”I took a leave of absence. Actually, my role isn’t really the female lead. You saw the movie. I only lasted about thirty minutes in the final cut.”

The film ran for over seventy minutes, nearly eighty. She died around the thirty-two or thirty-three-minute mark.

In the film, she was torn apart by a shell hitting the field hospital.

The scene was quite bloody, thanks to the lack of a rating system at the time. She fell to the ground, ripped into pieces by shrapnel.

In reality, the scene used camera tricks, digging several pits in the ground to expose only parts of Barbara’s body, including her head, which established her identity. The other arms and legs were played by other actors, making it look like a body scattered everywhere.

The central theme of the entire film was the men’s war, not the women’s. The female characters were merely seasoning, brightening the otherwise iron-gray, dark tone of the film.

The pace of the film quickened after Barbara’s character died, leading the plot to its climax.

The male lead was the focus; he was the only survivor, so the promotion centered on him.

Even if Barbara attended, reporters and critics would only ask her one or two symbolic questions.

Lance didn’t much care about her decision. ”You go back to watching TV. I need to work.”

Barbara glanced at the briefcase he was carrying, then let go of his arm and returned to the sofa. ”Should I call you for dinner?”

Lance nodded. ”Yes.”

He then walked toward the study. He needed to mobilize some people now.

He called Elvin directly. Business in Indeno State was relatively stable now. Although Wade, the governor, had turned against Lance, the impact on Lance’s business wasn’t severe.

The people supporting Lance’s illegal liquor trade were the city mayors, who profited directly. If Wade tried to expel Lance’s people without guaranteeing the mayors’ continued profits, the mayors would be the first to oppose him.

In fact, Golden Label Liquor found it difficult to balance this. Currently, Lance still controlled 60% to 70% of the Indeno State market, with the rest split among others.

Lance didn’t have time to deal with Wade right now, so he allowed him to continue as governor for a while. Once he finished his current tasks, he would make that man regret his decision.

Elvin sounded delighted to receive Lance’s call. The last time they spoke was months ago, at Morris’s wedding. Then Lance went to Rapa and hadn’t returned until now.

”How’s business?” Lance asked.

”Not bad. No major changes compared to the past. We have a high market share, but there are a few things I think I should tell you.”

”Some Imperial gangs approached me, hoping we could supply them with some funds and weapons to gain an advantage in the gang wars in their cities. In exchange, they promised to sell more of our liquor.”

”I agreed to their request.”

Lance listened to the details and gave him positive affirmation and support. ”You did nothing wrong. That’s a smart decision.”

”This way, we don’t have to engage in gunfights ourselves to gain more gang support. For us now, any problem that can be solved with money is no problem at all.”

He paused and added, ”Excluding unreasonable ones, of course.”

Like Governor Wade.

After chatting about a few other things, Elvin asked, ”Alright, we’ve talked enough. Time to tell me what you need me to do for you.”

Lance chuckled. ”How could you tell I needed something?”

”Come on!” Elvin’s voice came through the receiver powerfully. ”You’re a super busy man, you know?”

”I see you in the papers. You have a huge reputation in Likalai State. They say you’re the most successful gang leader, having made it all the way to Congress!”

Lance couldn’t help but laugh heartily. ”I like those things they say about me. Did they say anything else?”

”If so, tell me. Let me have a good laugh.”

Elvin was also laughing. ”Plenty of other things. Some people say you got in because you’re handsome and have a nice butt.”

”F***!” Lance cut him off. ”If I find out who said that, I’ll cut out his tongue!”

Elvin smiled, not mentioning whether he would actually check.

Lance was clearly just joking, but if he were serious, he might actually look for that person.

”Alright, enough joking. I need to mobilize a group of experienced combat captains. Can you recommend some people?”

”I plan to establish a branch in the New Golden City. The family’s business and influence need to gradually expand here.”

”Besides needing these men for work, we might have a gunfight with the Perez family starting in the second half of the year, so we need experienced people here.”

Previously, the family’s most experienced combat captains were transferred to Indeno State for the expansion there.

Now that business there was stable, a batch of those experienced captains could be transferred to the New Golden City to quickly establish the family branch.

Elvin thought for a moment. ”I’ll send you a list later tonight...”