Shadow Empire

Chapter 1015 What's Lost and What's Gained

As the wedding march began, Lance turned to look towards the church entrance, where a well-dressed man led his daughter by the hand down the red carpet.

Arthur got married.

Lance was invited to the wedding and sat next to Mayor Williams.

Mayor Williams arrived in New Gold City by train early in the morning and then rushed over to attend the wedding. He will probably stay in New Gold City for two days to visit some mid-to-high-level party officials before returning to Gold Harbor City.

This is a good opportunity for him to officially enter the middle ranks of the Socialist Party. Arthur's wife's father is a high-ranking member of the Socialist Party, and with his help, Mayor Williams' "promotion" will be very smooth.

Moreover, no one would think he was unsuitable. Golden Harbor City's annual tax revenue to the federal government is quite substantial, and being the mayor of Golden Harbor City is naturally a very important position.

Maintaining firm control over this money-making machine within the hands of the Socialists has been a long-term political goal of the Socialist Party.

Moreover, some of the actions taken by Mayor Williams and Lance recently have been quietly spreading in a "I have a secret" manner, indicating that they all know that a new interest group may be forming in Likalai.

Spanning capital, politics, and the mafia, Lance plays a crucial role in this new interest group, connecting all the key elements and making them a cohesive whole.

This is the most interesting thing. In the past, it was usually capitalists who did this kind of work, but this time it's Lance.

Mayor Williams also played a significant role here, since Likalai is not like those industrial states where every city can generate huge tax revenues.

In Likale State, only coastal cities have higher tax rates, and Valley City is now very close to Golden Harbor City. If they can control a few major tax-paying cities, they will have control over the key to the state's tax revenue.

With the large number of votes held by the Lance and Lawrence families, they could be said to have initially gained the power to appoint and dismiss governors.

This is the purpose of federal politicians' tireless pursuit of votes and voters. Although these people are just lackeys, they can really use the votes in their hands to create miracles in their eyes!
Now that the miracle is in someone else's hands, it's perfectly normal for Lance to form a local interest group around him.

Senator Cleveland has not discussed this issue with Lance either. The entire federal government is currently seeking stability, and neither the federal government nor Congress has any good way to restrain local authorities.

Until they figure out a good solution, as long as Likalai remains at least outwardly compliant with the federal government and Congress, they will not interfere too much.

After all, the federal government and Congress cannot truly manipulate a state's "domestic affairs"—the term "domestic affairs" is used here.

Therefore, as long as they respect the rights and status of the federal government and do not withhold federal taxes paid to the federal government, turning a blind eye is not unacceptable.

Eliminating localism and factionalism is a long-term political task. Until a viable solution is available, compromise is more appropriate than provocation.

In fact, they did have some ideas, but all of this could only be done after the federal government's authority reached its peak due to the victory in the war.

When the federal government only wanted to be a "general manager," even if they wanted to, they might not be able to.

The local gentry of New Gold City are also willing to get to know Mayor Williams, this newly minted local bigwig, in case there are any areas where they can cooperate in the future.

Since he arrived here, his face has been full of smiles, and he hasn't stopped for a moment.

He watched as the young woman who was about to become his daughter-in-law, led by her in-laws, slowly walked to the front of the church and handed his daughter's hand to Arthur.

Mrs. Williams sat a seat away from Lance, wiping away tears with a handkerchief. As a young mother, seeing her son truly married and an adult filled her with indescribable emotions and reflections.

Actually, she is still very young. She was only eighteen or nineteen years old when she gave birth to Arthur, so she is probably only thirty-nine or forty years old this year.

Because of good maintenance, they may look like they are only in their early thirties.

After she and Mayor Williams arrived in New Gold City, some people thought she was Mayor Williams' daughter, although in a way, that's not entirely wrong.

Sensing his wife's tears, Mayor Williams took her hand. "You should be happy. This bastard has become a man. He needs to mature and become the kind of man we want him to be."

Sitting to the side, Lance listened to Mayor Williams's speech with some emotion. He certainly hadn't seen Arthur extort Mr. Chobaff (the banker).

That arrogant and domineering expression, that "if you don't give me money, I'll make sure you can't stay here" attitude, is more than just "mature".
However, this is a common problem in large families. These people seem to never know how terrible the young people they still see as children are outside.

They might actually know, but to them, this kind of misery is just a kind of playful mischief unique to children.

So what if you extort a banker?
So what if he took advantage of some ordinary women?
This is the biggest problem between classes.

However, as a member of the vested interest group of the era, Lance wouldn't say anything, he just kept smiling.

Mayor Williams comforted his wife for a while before letting go of her hand. At that moment, Arthur was swearing to God before the priest that he would love his wife forever.

His wife also said that she would never leave Arthur.

Being God isn't always easy, because when two people are fucking lying, God can't send down a miracle to tell people they're lying and won't bless their marriage.

He had to remain silent and pretend to bless their marriage.

Being God is really tough!

As the couple exchanged rings and began to kiss, people stood up and applauded. It was a political marriage that pleased everyone.

The powerful figures in the central government contacted the powerful figures in the local areas, giving them a way out and gaining local support.

Meanwhile, local powerful figures paved the way to the central government, creating opportunities for further advancement and laying a solid foundation for the future development of their families.

As for the two young people on stage who have barely met, whether they are truly in love or how long their marriage will last, no one really cares.

Lance also stood up and applauded, doing what a guest of honor should do.

The wedding ceremony ends at this point. If it were a wedding for ordinary people, everyone would most likely go back to where they came from.

But this was not a wedding for ordinary people. Outside the church, buses took the visiting guests to a nearby hotel where a wedding party was held, which could be considered a high-class social event.

"I heard you've been very busy lately, I hope I haven't taken up too much of your time. If you have something to do this afternoon, you don't have to participate in the later activities."

In the car, Mayor Williams expressed his goodwill, knowing that Lance had indeed been very busy lately.

Before he even arrived in New Gold City, he had heard some things about what Lance had caused there. As for why he was so sure it was Lance, it was because nothing like this had ever happened before Lance arrived.

These things happened after he arrived. Who would believe that he had nothing to do with them?
He beat up a direct member of the Perez family in the street, killed several people, and left one in a vegetative state. In the end, the Perez family had no choice but to abandon their idea of ​​immediate revenge and negotiate with Lance again.

Then there's the attack on Senator Porter. Ordinary people have many speculations, all guessing who it is, but anyone with a little political acumen knows that the hawks, led by Senator Cleveland, are the prime suspects.

And Lance, being close to Senator Cleveland, might be met with suspicion from others, but Mayor Williams was certain.

However, he did not mention this matter, nor did he intend to ask Lance to verify the truth of the rumor.

There are some things you can think about. For example, you have a very good friend, and you always feel that he smells very nice. You can think about it in your heart, or even try to find out more.

But you can't ask, because if you do, your relationship with him will get worse.

Such a busy person must have a lot of things to do.

Lance shook his head slightly. "There won't be much going on these next few days. I'll still go over there later; after all, it's Arthur's wedding, and leaving halfway might hurt his young heart." Mayor Williams couldn't help but laugh after hearing Lance's explanation. "What harm could he possibly suffer?"

His tone was disdainful, but deep down, it was full of doting affection.

James was also there this time, sitting in another car. Although he will inherit all of Mayor Williams' political legacy, it is highly likely that he will not inherit much "fatherly love".

His wedding wasn't this grand; Mayor Williams made a brief appearance and left quickly.

When it was Arthur's turn, not only did his whole family come from Lycalley, but they were also going to be involved from the very end.

It's hard to say whether this is what he really wanted; he gained power but lost other things.

Arthur, his half-brother, possessed almost everything except for a small amount of power.

This includes love and care from parents.

The convoy quickly arrived at the hotel, and Lance and Mayor Williams went to the floor where the wedding party was being held, where a joyful atmosphere filled the entire room.

Lance noticed that a lot of people had also come to Golden Harbor City, including Governor Terry's sister, as well as some other people.

The Lawrence family also sent a few people to attend. To ordinary people, it was just a wedding party, but to those who were good at observing, it was a stage for fame and fortune.

Soon, people took the initiative to come over and chat with Lance, to get to know him. Lance had indeed done a lot in New Gold City during this period, and his reputation was constantly growing there.

The first person to find Lance was Arthur's wife's father, a socialist in his fifties.

He had a healthy, ruddy complexion, platinum blonde hair that swept back neatly, and wore a slightly loose-fitting suit. He laughed and reached out his hand as soon as he saw Lance from afar.

"Mr. White, I've heard so much about you, but this is the first time we've met!"

Lance shook hands with him. "That's true..."

Arthur's father-in-law already knew enough about Lance White.

The more I learn about him, the more amazed I become by his rapid growth. In the history of the Federation and even the world, there is no one whose development speed has been as fast as his.

In fact, it wasn't just him; many people throughout the Federation began to pay attention to Lance, and some even tried to find some replicable successes in his past development trajectory.

Unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing that can be replicated. Every step he took unexpectedly landed in places that people would not have imagined, yet happened to be everywhere.

His ability to spot and seize opportunities is first-rate, and he also possesses a boldness that most people lack.

He turned against the admiral so easily; if it were anyone else, they would probably grit their teeth and try to maintain the relationship.

But he said he would cut ties just like that. This has nothing to do with courage; it's that he has absolute confidence in his decision!
These kinds of people are terrifying. As long as they ride the wave, they will not stop as long as the tide of the times continues.

Therefore, many people are willing to get to know Lance, and his gangster background is not actually a negative label in the eyes of many people.

Normally, someone like Arthur's father-in-law would have to put in a lot of effort to befriend Lance, since Lance's associates in New Gold City are mostly members of Congress.

He didn't have much contact with mid-level politicians.

The two exchanged very polite pleasantries, indicating that today was just a preliminary introduction and that if they wanted to get to know each other better, this was not the right place; they would choose another location.

Seeing the two talking so enthusiastically, some people had already started queuing up, waiting for Lance to have a moment to free so they could reach out and greet him!
Mayor Williams stood to the side, a broad smile on his face. He looked around at the social elites from Likalai and the local community gathered together.

Perhaps there are no members of Congress or federal cabinet members here today, but he believes that one day, a young man with the Williams family blood flowing through his veins will stand in the most dazzling place, chatting and laughing with those who are now out of reach of him.

He glanced at James, who was likely to be the one to handle this matter. Only if his wife could give birth to a daughter could they be more firmly bound to Lance.

James, who had been inexplicably glanced at by Mayor Williams, suddenly shuddered. He didn't know why he was somewhat afraid of the mayor's gaze at that moment. He had never seen such a gaze, full of strong emotions and aggression, on his father before, and he felt a little flustered.

While Mayor Williams was beaming as he celebrated the most glorious moment in the Williams family's history, Diego, the president of Lapa, was hitting rock bottom.

The series of defeats in the war have made him lose a lot of weight recently. He has always dreamed of losing weight, but he has never been able to.

Now that he has unexpectedly succeeded, he is not happy at all.

Starting in August, the intensity of the fighting continued to rise, and the 200,000 soldiers were quickly reduced to only half, while the anti-government forces were constantly replenishing their forces.

The scale and intensity of the war escalated, and he ran out of money again.

So he quickly set his sights on the Republic of Geed, since they had been providing him with aid, so naturally, the Republic of Geed was the first country he thought of, not the Federation.

Lance, the Federation, those people's aid is hard to come by!
The president of the Czech Republic had some premonition when Diego called him, but he still underestimated Diego's appetite.

"Fifty million?"

"Diego, do you know what fifty million Federal Sols means?"

It is clear that the president of the Czech Republic does not want to pay this money, and he is now somewhat fed up with it.

Clearly, Diego is not a competent president. He had hoped Diego could hold his own and become a symbol against the Union, but it now appears he is simply incapable of doing so.

And President Chidde and his officials and staff gradually gave up their illusions.

Even without direct military invasion, it is very difficult for a small country to resist when a world-class superpower confronts it.

Just like in Lapa now, with the support of the federal government, the anti-government armed groups are becoming stronger and stronger. At the beginning, they were chased around by the government army, but now they have begun to actively squeeze the government army's living space.

The collapse of Diego's government was only a matter of time, and the president of the Czech Republic, who had fully realized this outcome, was no longer willing to commit.

Since it doesn't matter how much you invest, why waste the money?

As for what will happen after Diego's government falls, they already have some premonitions.

Sometimes you can't resist it, so you just have to grit your teeth and enjoy it.

Diego hung up the phone in despair. He sat blankly in his chair, gazing at the fine weather outside the window.

The temperature in Lapa is still around 20 degrees Celsius. It's not the coldest time yet. The coldest time will come in February, when the temperature in Zhuolan will probably only be in the teens.

So, considering the current temperature, weather, and other factors, these are the most comfortable months of the year.

It wasn't hot, it was cool. A sea breeze blew in through the open window, but the wind that had previously only made him feel refreshed now felt like a knife, constantly stimulating Diego's joints.

A gust of wind blew, and his joints ached. He eventually had to put on a coat to feel a little better.

The chilling winds of deep winter can be unsettling, but human power is powerless to stop winter from arriving; we can only face it.

(End of this chapter)