Shadow Empire

Chapter 1095 A Different Way to Play
Just as Zoe had guessed, Lance's men were already in action, only their methods were different from before.

If someone has enormous resources but doesn't know how to use them and instead uses the most primitive methods to do things, then that person is definitely an idiot.

It's like having a lighter in your hand but thinking it can only light cigarettes. When you need to start a fire, you find two twigs and rub them together to start a fire. That's typical idiocy.

At this moment, Lance was sitting in a luxurious room, smoking and reading a newspaper, showing no signs of the impatience and rage that were rumored to be present.

The newspaper reported on the economic development and reforms in Rapa, mentioning that the federal government had achieved significant economic growth in Rapa within three months through measures such as optimizing the economy and opening up the market.

A large number of factories have flocked to the area to invest and build property, and almost every ordinary Lapa resident has found a job.

Having a job means having a stable income, and having a stable income means that society will become more stable.

These changes don't need much flowery language to embellish them; a quick glance at the past is enough to see that Lapa is developing at an incredibly high speed.

This has put the surrounding countries and the entire Asia-Pacific region in a very strange state.

On the one hand, they admired the achievements of the current Lapa government, and they persuaded the federal government to provide them with various forms of aid, including economic, industrial, and other forms.

On the one hand, there is some apprehension about the federal government's political interference in the Lapa region.

The new government of Rapa has now been sidelined by them, replaced by government employees from the federal government. If you say that Rapa's sovereignty has not been shaken and there is no problem, then there is actually no problem with saying that.

These Rapa chiefs remain at the core of the new government's leadership.

But to say that they haven't lost any power seems a bit untrue, since they are not the ones actually doing the work and holding the power now.

This is essentially a matter of making choices, gaining, and letting go.

They relinquished the power they clung to, in exchange for rapid economic and other developments in Lapa, which was actually a very worthwhile deal.

People may not see it now, but as history progresses, they will eventually find that this deal is much more worthwhile than they imagined!

Lance also played a role in this. Some people had tried to flatter him by suggesting that a bronze statue be made for Lance, the "Father of Freedom in Lapa," but Lance stopped them.

He always felt that the person who made such a suggestion was definitely not a good person, and was plotting something bad. He was probably not thinking of himself, but most likely wanted to sabotage him.

As Lapa develops better and better, the value of the special zone that Lance took away will also increase, because it is located in Zhuolan, not far from the port, and it can even be said that a small part of it is directly connected to the port.

He could easily establish a true "free zone," which would attract a large influx of capital, but he hasn't done so yet.

He needs to keep in touch with the federal government and Senator Cleveland.

The senator had already given him some hints that the federal government might revoke the authorization for the concession, and Lance could ask the federal government for some things.

However, he will do his best to help Lance retain this concession.

His gaze lingered on the smiling faces of the Lapa people facing the camera. The air was thick with dust and dirt, but their eyes shone brightly, reflecting not the sky, but their hopes for a better future.

There's no doubt that this report and this photo have a chance to win this year's Golden Newspaper Award, if the reporter can pull some strings.

As he turned the page of the newspaper, he heard the doorknob turn. He put down the newspaper, stood up, and came out from behind the coffee table on the sofa.

The door opened, and Tom walked in with a smile on his face. He then stepped aside to let the other person outside in.

The guy behind him looked to be in his forties and was visibly bald, but he had a thick beard, as if his body hair wasn't happy with his mother's arrangement and had found a new spot for itself.

This is a guy who looks rather rude; people inevitably have some stereotypes about big beards.

“Chief Hel,” Tom introduced to Lance, “Hel Mond, chief of the Old City Police Department.”

"Old City" is another relatively large city in Golden State, ranking only after New Golden City, Oris, and another city in the entire state.

The city and "New Gold City" seem to have some connection in their names, and that is indeed the case. Before New Gold City developed, the old city played a more important role.

It is located a little north of New Gold City, where industry is very developed and the old city was once an important port.

But because it was too cold here, and with the end of the emancipation movement and the more comprehensive development of the southern region, many things from the old city began to move to New Gold City.

Some say that the new city of Jinshi developed on the "corpse" of the old city, but this is not entirely accurate, as the old city is now doing quite well.

It has a decent industrial port, and it is also part of the transportation hub of the entire continental mid-region, with a considerable number of ships coming and going.

Busy trade and transportation have brought more opportunities, and apart from the lack of a financial industry, it is almost another new gold market.

If you put it in any state, it would definitely be one of the top cities.

Unfortunately, it has too many competitors here. Not only can it not beat these competitors, but even if other cities came here, it would still not be able to beat a megacity like New Gold City.

The Perez family's headquarters are located in the old city.

"This is Mr. Lance White, whom I mentioned to you before. You should have heard of him."

Hull appeared very enthusiastic, his face beaming as he walked over and took Lance's hand. "Of course, I've heard a lot about Mr. White and seen your illustrious image in the newspapers. I've always wanted to befriend someone as important as you, but I've never had the chance."

"Thanks to Mr. Tom's introduction, I had the honor of meeting you!"

Hull was very humble. Lance glanced at Tom, whose lips curled up slightly. He didn't say anything, but it seemed like he said everything.

"No need to be so polite, Director Mond. You must have heard that I enjoy making friends, right?"

Director Helmond nodded repeatedly. "Yes, everyone praises you as a friendly person."

"Then it seems we also have a chance to become friends."

If the bearded chief still couldn't understand Lance's words, then he might as well leave the room. "I look forward to being your friend, Mr. White!"

Lance released his grip. "Now you're my friend. My friends all call me Lance, so I can call you Hel too, right?"

“Of course!” the bearded chief said enthusiastically. Lance gestured for him to sit down, and Tom began to work as a waiter.

He brought over some coffee, and of course, some wine; how they chose was up to them.

"I invited you here because there are some things, or rather, some work, that I would like to do with you."

The bearded bureau chief picked up his coffee, a rather cautious man who hadn't chosen any other beverage. "I'm willing to cooperate with you on anything, Mr. Lance."

Lance smiled and waved his hand. "Friends are equals, there's no need for honorifics, Hel."

“I’m not a good talker, so I’ll be blunt: I’m going to deal with the Perez family, and you know them best. I need your cooperation.”

The bearded chief had considered many possibilities, including the possibility that Lance had called him over because of the Perez family, but he hadn't expected the other party to be so direct.

He asked somewhat uncertainly, "Mr. Lance, do you trust me that much?"

This is also what puzzles him. In many versions of the story, he, the police chief, has long been portrayed as a lackey of the Perez family, cleaning up their messes.

Some of these rumors came from his enemies, such as his rivals or political enemies whom he had dealt with.

Some of these may have originated from the Perez family themselves, intended to demonstrate their authority in the old city.

The bearded police chief did receive an extra income from the Perez family each year, but not as much as people imagined—ten thousand dollars. For an ordinary person, this would be an astonishing sum, but for a city's police chief, it was practically an insult.

Richard, the former director of Golden Harbor City, could earn tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars a year from the city's black money system.

The money mainly came from underground transactions and from extortion of legitimate businesses under various pretexts.

The Old City is a large city with rampant gang dealings. If the fees were collected in the same way that Richard and his gang did, the bearded chief might earn hundreds of thousands or even more each year.

But the Perez family gave him ten thousand dollars and forbade him from getting involved in gang transactions, and they often ordered him around.

He was indeed a dog of the Perez family, but not a lackey; he was just a leashed watchdog, not even a lackey.

How could a police chief possibly accept this?
The Perez family is simply too powerful; whether in the open or in the shadows, it's all their domain.

On their home turf, any rash action other than bowing down to them would have terrible consequences.

The bearded bureau chief was a little confused as to why Lance thought he could cooperate with him; that was what he was curious about.

If he doesn't understand this, it will be difficult for him to truly cooperate with Lance.

Lance shook his head slightly, stood up, and walked to another low table next to him.

When the bearded bureau chief came in, he saw the low table because it seemed to have some things piled on it, but these things were covered by a silk cloth.

At this moment, Lance walked over, grabbed the piece of silk cloth, and yanked it hard, causing the bearded bureau chief to gasp in shock.

There were stacks of twenty-yuan bills piled up on the table, indicating that there must be a lot of money here.

He had never seen so much money together before, and even his breathing slowed down.

Tom, who was sitting to the side, glanced at it and couldn't help but smile. He understood Lance very well and was also surprised by some of Lance's actions and ways of thinking.

It's actually very difficult to convince someone who doesn't really trust you that your trust in them is reliable.

It's like randomly picking someone on the street and getting them to trust you enough to entrust their life to you—it's practically an impossible task.

So Lance used another, simpler approach: "I believe I can use this much money to earn your integrity and loyalty."

"There's 500,000 here. I heard they only give you 10,000 a year?"

Lance sat back down on the sofa, picked up the bottle, and poured some wine into two glasses. "You are worth far more than what they gave you."

“Hel, I don’t know what you’re thinking, but from my perspective as your friend, they’re not just humiliating you, they’re using you as a flag of shame to show to everyone.”

"Besides the financial changes I can bring you by cooperating with me, I will severely damage the Perez family's businesses and influence. I will drag them down from their position as one of the five major families in the Federation and slam them to the ground."

"You can take revenge on all the unfair treatment, humiliation, and disgrace you've endured over the years!"

“Use these shoes of yours to stomp hard on Fran’s old face and make him say to you, ‘I’m sorry, Chief Mond.’”

Upon hearing Lance's seductive words, the bearded director's emotions began to change, and his breathing became rapid, heavy, and labored.

It seemed that the day had truly come to pass before his eyes. He stood at the entrance of the police station, spat in Fran's face, and told him to get out of his police station!

The thought of having a chance to get revenge for all the grievances he had suffered over the years flashed with a cruel glint in the bearded bureau chief's eyes.

He glanced at the money again, and when he finally looked at Lance, his eyes softened again. "No problem, I'm willing to cooperate with you, Mr. Lance."

He reached for another glass that had been filled with some wine, clinked it against the glass in Lance's hand, and then drank it all in one gulp.

Countless nights, he was preoccupied with the excruciating pain of hatred before falling asleep, and filled with a euphoric sense of pleasure from fantasizing about one day being able to stand up again.

Now, the dream has become a reality, and an opportunity has arisen.

If he succeeds, he will naturally turn his life around and become a real bureau chief.

If he fails, that's Lance's own problem, it has nothing to do with him. He can still continue to play his current role well.

Lance nodded with satisfaction. "Very good. You will soon see that we are different from them."

"So, let's start by talking about some of the core members of the Perez family and their businesses."

In fact, Lance has already investigated some of the core members of the Perez family, but the information is not necessarily accurate, complete, or comprehensive; he still needs the bearded director's help to refine it.

On the other hand, he planned to give this group a harsh lesson, to make them realize that they had gotten themselves into big trouble from the very beginning.

Perhaps others are afraid of them, afraid of the Perez family name and everything it represents.

But Lance and the Lance family are different; all they see is conquest!

This long conversation was a pleasant surprise and a source of satisfaction for both Lance and the bearded director.

Lance got what he wanted, and the director, who was supposed to play an important role in the city, will also gain the power that truly belongs to him.

He will no longer be a watchdog; he will become a vicious dog, or even a hungry wolf!
Go and tear apart all those who have looked down on him and humiliated him.

After the conversation, Lance had someone escort the bearded chief back, leaving only him and Tom in the room.

Neither of them spoke; they were both drinking. After a couple of sips, Tom asked, "Can we win?"

Lance looked up at him, munching on a snack to accompany his drink, and said with a smile, "Even that bearded man has confidence in me, don't you have confidence in me?"

Tom smiled slightly. "Yes, there are, but this time your opponents are clearly different from the past ones. They also have people in Congress, and recently..."

He hesitated for a moment, but ultimately decided to speak up, because his own interests were tied to Lance's.

The better Lance develops, the higher his position will be with Senator Lance. Even just the fact that Lance receives hundreds of millions of dollars every year is enough to solidify his position in Senator Lance's staff.

Because of his current status, he is able to thrive in the federal political arena, with so many people willing to be his friends and present their kind and gentle sides to him.

All of this was because of Lance, not because of his own abilities or anything else.

If Lance falls, he will lose all of this too, overnight.

"The senators are trying to find out who is trying to undermine us, and they already have a few candidates in mind."

“There are Liberal Party members, Socialist Party members, and possibly two or three presidential candidates.”

“They’re in cahoots, and we’re not sure what role the Perez family plays in this, so I’m a little worried.”

Hearing him say that, Lance shifted his position and sat down next to him, patting him on the shoulder. "You should trust me. I'm better at dealing with these people than you are."

"You and the senators can just wait for the good news; it will absolutely not affect those performances in the year-end election."

Six months is enough time for Lance to deal with the Perez family.

(End of this chapter)