Shadow Empire

Chapter 1221 Empty
"Damn it, you've made the car all covered in blood!" the driver couldn't help but complain. The guard's artery had been cut open, and blood was gushing out of the wound like a tap that had been turned on.

The passenger seat and the driver's seat were covered in blood, and the pungent smell of blood filled the entire vehicle!

The guy in the passenger seat shoved the guard aside, went through the side door, found the key in the guardhouse, and opened the manor gate completely.

Actually, there are quite a few people in the manor. Christopher and his group have about seventy or eighty core members in the local area, not counting the peripheral members.

They are not "gangs" in the strict sense, the kind that occupy a certain area and make money through criminal business, such as the five major families of the Federation.

Christopher was more like a smuggler; for him, there was no such thing as "territory" in the strict sense. Wherever he was, that was his territory.

He doesn't need to run his own territory; all he needs are some bars, and when people come to him to buy alcohol, he just hands it over to them.

He had no conflicts with the local gangs; his bar was even located on someone else's turf, but there were no actual conflicts between them.

So he wasn't a gang leader; he was the leader of a criminal organization that mainly smuggled and sold alcohol, and he didn't need that many people.

Someone looked after his warehouse, someone sold him alcohol, and a group of gunmen were responsible for maintaining the safety of the business and himself—that was enough.

He didn't have enough territory to make everyone stand on the street to maintain his gang's dignity. He wasn't a gangster in the traditional sense; he was more like a "gangster businessman."

The Lance family has many members because they also need to manage their own territory; the family members who roam the streets are the main reason for the ever-increasing number of members.

If there are twenty or thirty people on one street, or even more, then ten streets would have several hundred people, and twenty or thirty streets would have two or three thousand people.

However, there weren't many people here. He took a large number of people with him, leaving only the servants, a dozen or so core members, and twenty or thirty peripheral members in the manor.

They were all gathered near the manor, some distance from the gate to the main building, with a vegetation wall blocking the view between them, so the people inside had no idea what was going on.

Those standing on higher ground only saw two cars enter from outside. They were able to pass through the gate, which meant the gatekeeper had given them permission. So the two gunmen on higher ground only glanced at them before looking away.

A group of people got out of the car, with the blood-covered guy at the back of the group, while the people in the second car were at the front.

There were also four or five people standing at the entrance of the manor, gathered together smoking. These people, who were patrolling or on duty outside the building, were all peripheral members.

They are not allowed to enter the building without permission.

When they saw a group of people coming up the steps, they dispersed, but they weren't nervous.

This is Christopher's estate, his stronghold. Nobody comes here to cause trouble for them unless they don't want to get their highly profitable liquor from here.

Hey, who are you?

"I've never seen you before!"

Standing at the front, blocking these people, he appeared somewhat nonchalant, carrying his submachine gun on his side instead of holding it in his hand.

The guy standing in front of him smiled and said to him, "You'll have to go home and ask your mom."

"Wang Defa?" The guard could hardly believe what he was hearing. He turned to look at his equally surprised companion, but soon the confusion on his companion's face turned into horror. He seemed to see the Grim Reaper's scythe swinging at him in his companion's eyes.

Almost instinctively, he reached for his gun and turned around. His body was already leaning to the side, ready to dodge. But the next instant, he heard a gunshot. He took two steps forward and then stumbled and fell to the ground.

The bullet pierced the side of his head, and he lay on the ground convulsing. His perception and analysis of the world gradually ceased as his brain was damaged.

In his last moments, his companions were quickly shot dead in front of him as the group rushed into the house.

More cars appeared in the courtyard, and more people appeared there.

The two guards on the roof didn't even have time to sound the alarm before they were shot down by rifles, and the entire manor instantly descended into chaos...

The battle did not last long. Their main force was drawn away by Christopher, and the remaining forces in the entire manor were unable to stop the Lance family's attack. They easily cleared the place out.

Large trucks were transporting the bodies, and several police cars had already set up roadblocks on the road leading to the manor in the distance. Everything was proceeding in an orderly manner.

In the basement of the manor, the locksmith, wearing a stethoscope, was "listening" to a huge iron door. His hand kept turning the wheel on the door. When he heard a very faint sound from the stethoscope, in addition to the friction of the gears turning normally, there was also a very faint sound, like a thin iron wire tapping on a steel plate. A smile appeared on his face.

This combination lock isn't actually difficult to open; once you understand its structure, you'll know how to open it.

Since following Lance, the locksmith has reached the pinnacle of his life. He no longer needs to search for work every day to make a living, and people not only do not stare at him with strange eyes, but also show him respect.

He poured all his passion into his ideal and career of "how to open every lock in the world," including a salary and bonuses that he didn't know how to spend, as well as patent royalties.

He had disassembled more than one lock on the iron gate they were opening today, and he had completely figured out how this combination lock worked, so opening it was just a matter of practice.

Without a doubt, the door couldn't stop him. He took out a whole bunch of handmade lock picks, selected one, inserted it into the keyhole and turned it a few times. The sound of the lock spring popping was as beautiful as heavenly music!
He turned the wheel like a ship's rudder, and the subtle friction sound of the latch retracting became exceptionally beautiful at this moment!

For a locksmith, opening the locks he knows has become his pursuit and dream. He had talked about this with Lance some time ago, and he wanted to try to open the door of a bank vault.

However, this is not so easy to implement, since no bank would easily agree to Lance's request, as it involves the bank's security.

For banks, a secure vault door is a key selling point, and if a locksmith were to actually open it, it would undoubtedly be a heavy blow to their reputation.

As for why it can't be opened?

People won't care about an unknown person or their story of failing to unlock a bank's door, so for the bank, this kind of thing only does harm, not benefit. The vault door slowly opened with the combined effort of the two people, and the nearly foot-thick iron door exuded the smell of money!
The ever-burning lights shone on the priceless items piled up inside, and people standing outside the door gasped in amazement!
Christopher's "ill-gotten gains" from selling alcohol were all in cash.

Those criminal groups and gangs dared not transfer money to Christopher via bank transfer, and Christopher dared not accept any transfers, so transactions between the two parties were mainly in cash.

Even when they transferred funds to Sumuli Island, they always sent cash, smuggling it there.

Having so much cash would be inconvenient, so criminal groups wouldn't be foolish enough to use it all. They would also use some precious metals, such as gold, or some transparently priced works of art.

This room contains a portion of money, a portion of gold artifacts, and some works of art.

Like the painting "Girl on the Balcony" hanging on the wall, which could easily fetch 200,000 federal soles on the market, it was "paid" to Christopher by the mob last year for 215,000.

For example, there is a very ornate gold scepter displayed in a corner cabinet. If you only assess its weight and the gems inlaid on it, it might only be worth tens of thousands of dollars.

It is a cultural relic, and a precious one at that; some collectors are willing to pay 300,000 yuan for it.

These things eventually made up Christopher's fortune, which was around thirty million.

They are not professional appraisers after all, and cannot accurately value all the goods, but that should be about right.

This money wasn't all of Christopher's. He also had some money laundered and deposited into different accounts, and even another place to store his artwork. The money in all those places should add up to around 20 million.

The plan for this operation is to force them to leave and then take all these things with them.

Even if Christopher isn't angered by someone refusing to pay and doesn't leave, Lance has other ways to force him to leave.

For example, when the police, Prohibition agents, and even the FBI started harassing him as the "head of the Sumuli crime syndicate," he would definitely have to go somewhere else.

Given his insecurity, he will likely lead most people away from here and hide for a while.

As long as Lance himself is in Indenau and makes public appearances, Christopher won't be too worried.

Lance arranged for people to keep an eye on Christopher, so Christopher must have also arranged for people to keep an eye on Lance. It's a reciprocal process!

Lance has been making frequent public appearances during this period, which is one of the main reasons why Christopher did not run away.

As long as he leaves the manor, even for just a few hours, Lance will empty it of everything.

Making someone despair, especially someone who always lacks a sense of security, is actually quite simple: just peel away the layers of that person, stripping away everything that could increase their sense of security from their surroundings.

Wealth, power, status, the people who protect him—everything!
Lance will not let him die easily; he must suffer endless torment before he can atone for all the wrongdoings he has committed through death!
"Let's get started, brothers!"

The two captains in charge of the operation were all beaming with excitement. Undoubtedly, the success of the operation would increase their "merit" within their families, providing the necessary support for their subsequent promotion to leadership positions.

Because of his good performance last time, Devon has been promoted to a family cadre, which makes many captains envious and jealous!

The captain and the officers may not seem to be that different, but in reality they are worlds apart.

The team leader must obey the orders of the officers. Even if they have their own ideas, they must prioritize the opinions of the officers. Furthermore, they have no say in what they do or don't do.

Just like Lance's family headquarters in Golden Harbor City, there are many captains who are bored out of their minds every day.

They would chat together, play billiards, play video games, or simply exercise or fight in the ring.

When cadres need to take action, they will select some team leaders they know or have a good relationship with to go out and handle the matter.

Because no one knows what unexpected situations might arise, many managers are on duty at the company every day.

The same is true everywhere, including Indenor State. With Lance's arrival, a large number of captains and their men have arrived in Indenor State, ready to be at Lance's command at any time.

Being able to participate in the operation is a very valuable opportunity for these team leaders.

Perhaps it is because of their work this time that they have the opportunity to rise from the lower and middle classes to the upper and middle classes of the gang, just like Devon and his group!
A large amount of artwork, antiques, bonds, gold, and boxes of banknotes were loaded into the trucks. There wasn't actually that much stuff, but it still filled two trucks.

This time, some professionals came and guided these young men on how to properly transport the artworks.

From the arrival of the first vehicle at the estate to their complete evacuation, the entire process took just over an hour...

That evening, Christopher and his group arrived in the neighboring city. Without lingering, they headed straight for the territory of the gang that owed them money. To Christopher's dismay, the gang, with whom they had a stable working relationship for some time, had actually absconded.

Their bar was also closed, not just pretending. Christopher had someone pry open the door and sneak inside. It was spotless, empty, and without any alcohol, as if it had been specially cleaned.

There was hardly anyone at their gang's headquarters, which made Christopher feel uneasy.

Without lingering, he immediately contacted another local gang with which they had a cooperative relationship and inquired about the matter.

His friend told him that the gang that owed him money had been on the run for some time, supposedly because they had offended a big shot and had fled long ago...

Back at the hotel, Christopher, increasingly uneasy, dialed the manor's number. His heart, like the unanswered phone call, sank lower and lower.

"problem occurs!"

(End of this chapter)