Shadow Empire

Chapter 326: Flexibility and Debt Collection

In the office, Lance and Vaughn sat together, both lighting cigarettes and drinking coffee.

"The prosperity of the entire Golden Port City is built on the success of the port, but now those parasites in the Bay Area have never appreciated the efforts of the dock workers."

"They took untold wealth from here, but they didn't even want to give the workers forty bucks."

"That's irrational, Vaughn."

Vaughn glanced up at Lance, "So you're in a political party now, too?"

"These words sound like what politicians always say, they always tell you that your life is so bad because you trusted the wrong people."

“If you believe them, your life will get better.”

"But the actual result is that if you believe him, your life may become worse!"

"But you are right about one thing. We haven't had a salary increase in more than two years."

Vaughn was also analyzing what Lance had talked to him about. Striking was not a simple matter, especially in a place like Jingang City. If the dock workers' union wanted to organize a strike, it would definitely alert the General Labor Union.

And they must have appropriate reasons to convince the Confederation of Trade Unions that this strike is indispensable and necessary.

Otherwise, the Federation of Trade Unions will not provide support.

There is definitely a difference in impact between a strike with support and a strike without support.

The simplest example.

If the Federation of Trade Unions supports it, then the force that can be mobilized by the Federation of Trade Unions will be enormous, and all the docks in the entire federation can be paralyzed in an instant, and people in the entire federation and even the world will know everything that happened here, their demands, and the results.

But without the support of the Federation of Trade Unions, it would be a local strike and it would be difficult for more people to know about it.

In this era when information was not well developed, it was only a matter of a few phone calls for those gentlemen to block certain news.

Vaughan still hopes to get the support of the Federation of Trade Unions, but there must be a reason.

You can't just say... I'm bored lately so I want to go on strike?
Lance leaned back on the couch, one hand on his knee, "You're making it too complicated, Vaughn."

“Those who shouted ‘workers’ unity’ never thought about what reasons they could use to convince others to join them in fighting against the power of capital.”

"They just felt that they were being treated unfairly and were unwilling to be manipulated by the power of capital, so they did it."

“No one is promoting them, no one knows what’s going on in that corner!”

"What we need to do is to observe, promote, help, and help everyone find a balance point. This is something that happens naturally, not the result of anyone's manipulation."

"I don't like this a bit, Vaughan. The union gained power through strikes, and then regarded the strikes as its own thing, not allowing ordinary workers to touch it. This is not right!"

Strike is a right that everyone has!
You make me uncomfortable, I quit fucking doing this!

That is the heart of the strike, no compromise, at least not now.

Everyone can strike, but now the CGT and the AFL-CIO are taking this right away from the working class and turning it into a weapon for the union and AFL-CIO management.

This is also a prominent feature of the politicization of trade unions and the AFL, as they try to control the "weapon", a weapon of great destructive power.

Vaughn felt a little embarrassed after hearing this. He clasped his hands together, then spread them apart, shook his head and said, "We just... uh, the strike is terrible. We are just worried that the workers are being taken advantage of."

Lance didn't laugh at him. "Everyone wants more power. Vaughn, I won't express my opinion, but I think you can be more flexible."

Vaughn fell into deep thought. The power of various trade unions and labor federations was at its peak at this time. The more so, the more those people standing on the top of the mountain feared that others would be able to use the weapons that helped them to get started.

Politicizing and profiteering strikes is becoming a problem.

The federal government and Congress have discussed privately more than once how to solve these problems. They do not want to see an interest group centered on the working class grow stronger.

However, there is really no better solution at the moment, because the "super weapons" in their hands are indeed very lethal. If they are not careful, the whole country will be shut down. This kind of loss is unacceptable to politicians.

It’s not that they cannot accept the losses caused by the strike, but that they cannot afford the consequences of the political turmoil and the loss of public support.

They don’t care whose factory can’t open, they only care about the interests that are related to themselves!

Seeing Vaughn deep in thought, Lance proposed another idea, "I plan to register ordinary workers, those federal workers, as well, my firm."

Vaughn looked up at him, a little puzzled. "I don't quite understand. What are the benefits of these workers joining the firm?"

Lance tilted his head, "Strength, my friend."

“People are power.”

"The more people there are, the stronger the power is, not to mention such a decisive force!"

He drank all the coffee and stood up. "Think about it carefully and communicate with Scott. I'm not discussing whether to do this or not. I'm just informing you that the game has already begun."

"At the same time, as a friend, I must also tell you that this matter will definitely only benefit you, not harm you!"

He exhaled and raised his wrist to check his watch, "I have to go. I have other things to do."

"I'll take you there." Vaughn quickly stood up and walked downstairs while talking to Lance. He even took the initiative to open the car door for Lance. "I'll seriously consider it."

Lance nodded and said nothing more. He would rather these things happened when Vaughn was the president. Vaughn and he had a good relationship, so he wouldn't have to bother others with many things later.

I got into the car and it started slowly. Many people on the dock looked over here.

“Do we have any good connections with any businesses on the dock?”

"Or is there any company that has a particularly bad relationship with us?"

Erwin, who was sitting in the passenger seat, thought for a moment and said, "All of them, what's wrong?"

Lance crossed his legs and looked at the scenery outside the window. The dock was busy day after day and never stopped. Even on holidays, there were still many people working here.

The working class will always be the tears of the times, but they also possess great power and potential.

They are the most inconspicuous group of people, but also the most dazzling group of people!

"We need some representatives, role models. I'm planning a big strike, on the docks, throughout the Golden Harbor (referring to the port area)."

Erwin's eyes lit up, he really loved this kind of grand scene!
"What do you need us to do?"

The car slowly entered the main road of the port area from the dock. There were more vehicles on the street, and many trucks were coming in and out.

"What we need to do is to push things to become more explosive. We don't need to do the rest. You can pick out a few typical and representative ones."

Erwin thought for a moment and said, "There is one guy who I think is very representative. He is a trading company opened by an imperial man, specializing in import and export trade between the Federation and the Empire."

Lance became interested. There were many people from the Empire doing business in the Federation, but not many of them could expand their business.

There are shackles everywhere here. It’s not as equal and free as they say. “Is this person good to the workers?”

This was what he could think of, but he also vaguely felt that perhaps his opinion was the opposite.

This is indeed the case. Erwin shook his head and said, "He is a negative example. Almost all of his employees are immigrants from the Empire, but he treats these fellow countrymen more harshly than the Federation people."

"Since he doesn't delay paying wages, there are still people willing to suffer there."

"These Imperial bosses are more ruthless to us than the Federation people, because they know where our bottom line is, so they can step on it again and again!"

Lance agrees with what Erwin said. At any time, the people who are the most ruthless to their own people are always their own people, not foreigners. It's like playing with glue. A stranger never knows where you can hit the target. Maybe you can't complete your work today even if you play with glue for a long time.

Only you know how to apply the glue correctly, and you know it very well, just like those imperial capitalists.

They understand the imperial immigrants as well as they understand themselves. As long as they think they can tolerate it, most of the imperial immigrants can tolerate it as well.

Plus there is no need to worry about other issues due to ethnic differences. These people are definitely the best at exploiting imperial immigrants!
"Then it's him. We have someone working for him?"

Erwin shook his head. "We don't recommend workers to him. He only hires the lowest-level ones."

"Contact them, the time for revenge has come."

The convoy sped past on the road, and when it was about to leave the port area, another convoy was speeding up to catch up.

From the rearview mirror, we can see that these vehicles are constantly speeding up. There are quite a lot of cars on the road, which to some extent hinders their pursuit.

"It's the Wolf Gang's car." Erwin took out the submachine gun from under the seat and stared at the vehicles that were chasing him quickly through the rearview mirror.

Lance lit a cigarette and took out his submachine gun, but he didn't think a fight would break out because they were already close to the edge of the Imperial District and the Port District.

If a fight breaks out here, the Lance family will be able to provide support quickly, and it will be hard to say who will win or lose at that time.

As expected, the convoy stopped at the junction of the two areas. Several people got out of the car and gave Lance's convoy the middle finger...

Lance put the submachine gun back and straightened his slightly messy clothes. "Once these things are over, we must eradicate them completely."

Erwin said with a smile, "It's actually quite interesting. There are many people who want to kill us, but not everyone can kill us!"

After entering the Imperial District, the slightly tense atmosphere disappeared and the car went straight back to Wanli Office.

There was a car at the entrance of the alley slightly blocking the way into the alley. The driver went to find the owner of the vehicle, while Lance and Erwin stood on the side of the road.

Passersby kept greeting them, and not far away there were some little kids wearing only shorts watching them.

Lance watched as the kids casually took out a handful of coins from their pockets, one cent, two cents, five cents, and threw them over.

The children didn't react at first, but soon ran over cheering and started fighting for it.

Soon, everyone had at least two or three coins in their hands. They politely came to Lance and bowed to express their gratitude.

People like polite people because they can feel respect from these polite people. He talks to every child as if he were an adult. He is respected and the children are also respected.

Passersby on the roadside were watching this scene with a smile, and one child ran back and gave the coins he had received to his mother.

The woman came over with her child to thank him again, "Mr. Lance, thank you for your generosity..."

Because she was a woman, Lance was reluctant to approach her and did not shake her hand. He just smiled and responded, "The child is cute, and I happen to have some change."

“I hope these small changes can bring you a good mood for the whole day!”

The woman bowed again, "You are a good man, Mr. Lance."

The driver ran out of the house on the roadside, apologizing as he ran and moved the car a little to allow the convoy to enter.

No one beat him, no one even scolded him, everything was so peaceful, as peaceful as if it were something that could happen on the block every year and every day!
Many people think that gangsters just spend their days eating, drinking, gambling, and having fun, but in fact, gangsters also have a lot of things to do.

For example, Nick recently discovered a nice piece of land. This land does not belong to Jingang City, but is under the jurisdiction of the state government, and requires an application to the state government’s Land Administration Bureau.

How to apply, how much it costs, and how to ensure that you get more years at the lowest cost, these all require someone to do.

Federal land is actually easy to obtain, but it is difficult to do anything with it once you have it.

For example, in some places around Jingang City, a piece of land costs one yuan, which seems to be a good deal, but the government's regulations and requirements are that you must complete the infrastructure work within the specified time, and then put it into production within the specified time and hire a certain number of people to work for you.

Otherwise they have the power to take back the land and look for the next buyer.

These things can be found almost everywhere in the federal government, which is why everyone needs a lawyer.

Because if you don't consult a lawyer about some things, you can really get into big trouble.

There are also some people like Ennio who recently contacted some Imperial gangsters who want to stabilize their supply and make a living in other places.

They don't have any stable channels, and the bar is open one day and closed the next. Now they are heading towards Jingang City, hoping to get a stable supply of goods from Lans.

For example, the Navy and the Army eliminated a batch of weapons, some of which had been in service for more than ten years, but the amazing thing was that most of them were brand new and someone was looking for buyers. Lance also wanted to buy some...

The situation of each bar, whether it is necessary to open a new bar, recruit new people...

"Family business" is definitely not just empty talk. Sometimes Lance feels like he is more like the president of a company than the head of a family.

It was past six in the evening and the sky was starting to get dark, which was considered late evening... What the hell is this adjective?

In short, the sky was half dark, the dim street lights on the roadside had been lit, the little tunes playing in the window and the aroma of baked bread wafting from the bakery made people realize that the day was over.

Lance hung up a phone call, the receiver was already slightly warm, and Luigi delivered another batch of goods.

He was reluctant to give up the market here, so this time he arranged more people to escort the goods, including his nephew.

However, the price of this batch of goods is not high. The last loss made him feel painful for a long time. This time there are only about 150,000 to 200,000 goods, which may be enough for Lance to sell for two weeks.

This time, Lance still didn't intend to let him go.

The phone that had just been hung up started ringing again. Lance picked it up, "Anything else?"

Alberto just talked to him. Paul has been actively preparing for a big move recently. Alberto told Lance that they seemed to be planning to take action against the Cassia family.

The Cassia family has mobilized too many gunmen, and leaving them alone would make people feel uneasy. The Keane family is trapped in the war with the Bear Gang in the city center and cannot extricate themselves, so this time it is the Pasletto family and the Tita family that take action.

The voice coming from the receiver was not Alberto's, but William's.

"There is something I may need to trouble you with. Do you remember Barbara?"

Lance laughed, "Of course I remember, didn't we meet some time ago?"

"Barbara borrowed a loan shark, and now those people have tracked her down to her house."

"They said if she couldn't come up with the money tonight, they would make her go out and have sex with other men."

Lance was a little curious. "Sixty thousand dollars may be a lot for ordinary people, but it's not a lot for Barbara's family, right?"

"I heard her parents have about this much money?"

William explained, "There are a lot of stocks and bonds. It takes time to cash them out. What's more, the other party doesn't want 60,000, but 90,000."

"They said that they had agreed that she would repay them the 120,000 yuan with interest after one year. Now they want to get it back in advance, so they only want the normal interest."

Lance couldn't help but laugh twice. "They are a very ungentlemanly gangster who doesn't follow the rules. Who are they?"

"It seems to be someone from Doug's family."

Lance thought about it for a moment, "I'll come over in a bit, are you with them?"

William nodded and said, "No, I was just planning to go over there."

"Okay, I'll be there later."

(End of this chapter)