Shadow Empire

Chapter 1092 Attack
The weather was starting to get warm in late June, and Fran sat in his study on the third floor of the manor.

There is a large terrace outside his study, and sometimes he will spend some time on the terrace after work.

There were parasols, barbecue grills, and all sorts of relaxation equipment. He liked to sit in a wicker chair on such a nice day, enjoying fine cigars from around the world and savoring the leisurely time.

However, he didn't do that today because the room was full of people.

He turned his gaze away from the bright sunshine outside the window. "You've spent more than a week on this. I hope that this long period of time will bring me some useful information."

“I’ve been talking to some of them lately, you know, sometimes we call each other to say hello.”

"They also asked me what I was planning to do."

“The Lance family has always made us lose face, and given the previous hatred, I don’t want us to always be seen as clowns by others.”

Despite being dealt several severe blows by Lance, the Perez family was not seriously injured, although several direct members died.

For such large criminal families, with their numerous peripheral members, the FBI has two dedicated rooms for storing their files.

They should be the rulers of the underworld, not clowns or anything like that.

For the past week or so, they have been discussing how to deal with Lance and how to achieve the desired effect.

Bob sat at the front of the crowd. "We've figured out the route and timing of the drinks the Lance family is sending to New Gold City. The next shipment is in two days."

Fran looked at Bob. As the conflict with the Lance family continued to escalate, Bob also needed to bear some responsibility.

However, Fran wouldn't say these things, as it would be detrimental to family unity. Besides, they've all known each other for so long, he'd allow Bob to make mistakes and forgive him, but not forever.

"So, you're planning to attack their transport convoy?"

Bob nodded. "You may not know this, but the Lance family is currently selling alcohol to the public through the embassy's internal bar, making a high profit, and it's almost an open sale."

"The federal government wants to win over the countries behind these embassies, so neither Congress nor the Hazardous Materials Administration are turning a blind eye to these actions."

"With four embassies selling these drinks simultaneously, they can sell at least 70,000 to 80,000 yuan worth of alcohol in bars every day."

“Whiskey, beer, and other things.”

Fran's expression changed slightly upon hearing this. "How much profit is involved?"

“More than 50,000 dollars.” Bob had clearly done his homework, and this number made Fran somewhat tempted.

"A lot of money!" he said, pursing his lips. He casually picked up a small trinket from the table, a habit he had of playing with while thinking.

It was a small wooden puppet-like thing, so dark that its original color and texture were no longer visible. It was said to be a toy that his father had carved by hand when he was a child, and he had kept it ever since.

When he holds this thing, he can feel his family with him!
Of course, these are all his own words, and only he knows whether they are true or not.

"They must have a lot of alcohol on each shipment, right?"

Bob nodded again. "About four hundred thousand to five hundred thousand worth of goods, enough for his bars to sell for one to two weeks."

Fran had already made his decision: "Smashing this shipment will not only give us so much wine, but also cause him huge losses. If we continue to intercept their shipments, he won't be able to do business anymore."

"A profit of 40,000 to 50,000 yuan a day adds up to tens of millions a year. It's true that alcohol is a more profitable business!"

Fran couldn't help but sigh. Although Maple Leaf Grass was also profitable, it was a niche business, and there was also a competitor like the Ghost Face Mushroom.

Furthermore, they are not the only ones doing this business in the entire Federation, so there is no question of huge profits or monopoly. On the contrary, the profits of the liquor business are constantly rising and have entered a period of explosive growth.

Due to the significant increase in people's income, many people who previously could not afford alcohol can now afford it.

Even if they can only consume once every three or five days, it still results in an exponential increase in profits.

He believed that destroying Lance's supply line would make Lance feel bad for a long time.

"What are you planning to do?" He was still looking at Bob. He was quite satisfied with the information Bob had obtained this time; at least Bob was actually doing something.

Regardless of his various flaws, as long as he can get things done, that's fine.

There used to be no shortage of capable people in the family, but now there are far fewer of them.

The Perez family is so famous that many problems can be solved simply by telling others which family they belong to, which has made many people lazy.

Bob looked at Peggy in the crowd. "I plan to have Peggy do it. He'll lead his men to stop the convoy, then kill the escorts, drive the truck back, and we'll spread some rumors that we did it."

Peggy is the guy who got into a fight with Lance at the restaurant and got stabbed in the thigh by Lance.

Although the injury has long since healed and he can walk without any problems, this injury has not only harmed his body but also his spirit.

He still feels a pain in his wound when he walks, and sometimes he feels inconvenienced when walking, all because of Lance.

He consulted the best doctors, who examined his wound and conducted more detailed tests. They then told him that his wound was healing very well and that the pain and difficulty walking he felt were not physiological but psychological.

To put it bluntly, there's a hurdle he can't overcome in his heart, which is why he has these feelings.

He also went to see a psychologist, who provided counseling, but the results were not very good.

The psychologist gave him a suggestion: if he believed that the wound represented the shame and pain of his life, then he should try to resolve his problem by erasing the person who caused it.

When Bob was discussing the operation privately, Peggy volunteered to lead the charge!
If Bob is targeting Lance because he misjudged matters related to Lance and the Lance family, creating the current awkward situation, he needs to reverse everything and erase this stain on his life.

Peggy's clear and active opposition to Lance was precisely to wash away the shame and resolve her own physical and mental problems.

Fran turned his gaze to Peggy, who stepped out from the crowd. "I'm ready, Fran."

Fran looked at him and nodded slightly. "And then what?"

"If you cut off their transport routes, then what?"

Bob adjusted his posture. "Tens of millions of dollars in profits a year have been affected, and everyone knows it was us who did it. He definitely won't be happy about it, and we'll definitely start a fierce battle."

"Most of their people are in the Likale region, so it's not easy to move them, and their numbers aren't large."

"They are going to fight us on our home turf, and their chances of winning are actually not high."

"We just need to wait for them to attack us, and then we can launch a defensive counterattack."

"The battlefield is not in Xinjin City."

There are too many political figures and celebrities in New Gold City. If a large-scale shootout were to take place there, as soon as the gunfire started, higher-ups would definitely intervene. Therefore, Bob's idea was to lure Lance and his family out of New Gold City.

As for whether Lance will come out, it's uncertain, but trying is definitely better than not trying, and the Perez family does need a "victory" against the Lance family.

If they do nothing, they will only disappoint the lower-level gang members and those on the periphery, eventually leading to a lack of confidence in the family, departure, or the development of some unhealthy emotions.

Fran nodded after thinking the whole thing over. “It sounds like there’s no problem. Now that you’ve made your decision, then…” His gaze fell on Peggy again, “Go ahead and do it.”

"I'm waiting for your good news."

Bob nodded solemnly, "I'll bring you some good news..."

Meanwhile, when the bartenders at the Cassia embassy were taking stock of their inventory, they discovered that they only had enough drinks for four or five days of sales, which meant they would need to restock from the state of Licale.

The replenishment method is not to transport the goods directly to the New Gold City station or dock via train or other means of transportation. As the "headquarters" of the prohibition order, the management here is relatively strict, and the standards of enforcement in all aspects are also acceptable.

Porters at the station and docks would proactively report anything amiss when they noticed something was wrong while handling these goods.

This will bring them some generous rewards, and as long as the Hazardous Materials Administration doesn't expose them, they won't be in any danger.

Many porters have achieved upward social mobility by reporting others.

This is no joke. Goods that can be transported to the New Gold Market are often calculated in the tens of thousands. According to some regulations issued by the Prohibition Committee, there is a system to reward whistleblowers. They can receive a considerable portion of the case value in cash, up to half!
Even though Lance has connections in Congress, and many people know him and that he's part of Senator Cleveland's group, once caught red-handed, even Lance doesn't have a good way to deal with it.

We can't just let such a large department and the Congressional Prohibition Committee pretend that nothing happened in public, can we?
Therefore, the goods do not enter Xinjin City directly, but are unloaded south of Xinjin City and then transported to Xinjin City by truck.

The entire transportation cycle takes about two and a half days. The bars here will keep enough for four or five days of sales, without accumulating sales for an extended period.

This was also Lance's initial decision, and it's basically the same for bars here and elsewhere, a rule established during the early struggles with the Dangerous Goods Administration.

Even if the bar is closed, the amount of alcohol lost won't be too much, and the total value of the stolen goods won't be outrageously high.

When the value of a case is ridiculously high, it will attract nationwide attention once it is disclosed.

Lance knew very well that if a case caused a huge social discussion and attention, then even if he had the president and Congress behind him, he would be powerless to do anything about it!
Just like those patriarchs or even popes who have run into trouble, when public opinion and public sentiment reach a certain level, even if they have God behind them, it won't work!

The bartender reported the matter to the manager, who then called a senior official in Licale, and Melo immediately arranged for the goods to be loaded onto the ship.

Sea freight is the fastest mode of transport. Heading directly north along the coastline, the goods can be unloaded in less than two days, and then it takes about half a day to transport them to New Gold City.

The shipping process in the Licale region is very mature, with batches of wine being loaded directly onto ships from the dock warehouses.

Lance is a man who knows how to protect his friends' interests. Every now and then, he would have the local Dangerous Goods Administration "seize" a batch of contraband smuggled liquor, so that they would always get credit and bonuses.

And most importantly, this doesn't require them to take any risks. They just need to arrive at a certain place at a specified time, feeling a little embarrassed, and then they can take down a group of smugglers.

The state's alcohol prohibition office is aware of the situation here, and isn't it the same in other places?

However, in other cities, the losses were shared by the local gangs, while in Jin Gang City, Lance bore the burden alone.

Everyone involved benefits from this, so naturally no one will have any hostile thoughts or opinions.

If so, they can approach Lance privately, and Lance will resolve these issues for them, if he can.

After the people at the dock watched the ship loaded with goods set sail, they reported to Mero, who then notified New Gold City. A group of people then headed to the small town to the south to pick up the goods.

After receiving the goods, I will bring them back with me.

Two nights later, the cargo ship loaded with wine arrived at the small town's seaside dock in the middle of the night, and the surroundings were quiet.

In fact, the locals also know that this is a smuggling hub. It's not just the Lance family that unloads goods here; many other smuggling organizations also unload their goods here.

The local residents didn't dislike these people at all. The pier itself wasn't a very big place, and the houses in the vicinity had all been rented by them at high prices.

Moreover, these gangs reside and stay here, and during their stay, they also spend a great deal of money here.

The spending power of these lucrative gang members is undeniable, and some local residents also participate in the smuggling profit-making environment.

They buy small, scattered goods from these smugglers at very low prices and then sell them in surrounding cities, or even in Xinjin City.

Small-scale smuggling, such as smuggling a case or two of wine, is difficult to detect on the road, but the profits can be substantial.

The authorities are aware of the situation to some extent, but since we are all part of the same group, they don't have any good solutions.

Aside from prominently displaying signs stating that "smuggling is a serious economic crime," there aren't many other effective solutions.

When the goods were loaded onto the trucks, the combat captain in charge of the transport specially left fifteen cases of wine at the dock, as agreed upon with the locals.

These people would buy the liquor at almost cost price as a form of payment for their assistance in the smuggling.

Once everything was in order, the six trucks set off, heading towards New Gold City.

They will enter New Gold City in three hours and deliver the wine to the warehouse before 5 a.m.

The intercontinental highway was quieter at night, and even more terrifying.

Studies have shown that drivers who drive on interstate highways at night are more prone to psychological problems.

Because the surrounding area was completely dark wilderness, with only the road less than ten meters in front of us illuminated by the car headlights, we probably didn't think there was anything wrong at first.

If they drive for too long and there's no one to talk to to alleviate the oppressive emotions of being trapped in the darkness for so long, they will develop psychological problems.

Perhaps this is why interstate highways are teeming with serial killers; they always find ways to relieve the ever-increasing pressure and fear in their hearts.

Some people fight against fear, while others become fear themselves.

Fortunately, the Lance family's transport fleet doesn't do this every day, and each transport only lasts for a short few hours. Moreover, each truck carries at least four people, along with four cars that accompany them.

Originally, only the people on the vehicle were to be escorted, but considering the recent tense situation, Lance instructed them to arrange for more people to be escorted when transporting the goods.

So we ended up with about twenty more people.

If so many people can't solve the problem, then even if we send more people, thirty or fifty, it will probably still be difficult to solve the problem.

Inside the swaying truck, the driver was chatting with the person next to him, sharing topics that seemed interesting but were actually quite boring.

This also made the road trip less boring.

The driver of the lead truck was an experienced driver, over fifty years old, who had been working in the transportation business with his father since he was fourteen.

They used to drive old-fashioned freight trucks and horse-drawn carriages, but now they drive these internal combustion engine trucks. In his words, the times are developing so fast!
He was very focused on his job because, as the lead car, he needed to be very familiar with the roads. The cars behind him would follow, and if he made a mistake, it would be a big problem.

He drove while listening to the young people around him bragging and chatting about interesting things, a faint smile on his face.

But suddenly, a car appearing in the streetlight startled him, and he slammed on the brakes.

The convoy came to a stop amidst the screech of brakes.

(End of this chapter)