Shadow Empire

Chapter 450 This matter is very difficult to handle

The Golden State is a great place, the center of federal politics, culture, and business.

But the gangs don't like it here very much.

It’s because this place is too “central”.

There are too many powerful people here, and you never know if your criminal activities will offend these people who control the entire country.

Their family, relatives, friends, and even a dog.

There was an incident like this before. The son of a gang leader was driving his new car on the street. When he stopped on the side of the road, a dog urinated next to his wheel.

He ran two steps and kicked the puppy to death with a football. He thought it was just a trivial matter, but in less than a week, his gang was completely wiped out.

Because they couldn't afford to offend the dog's owner.

Although gangs exist in the Golden State, they are very low-key and cautious. They do not charge any protection fees. Their main job, or way of making money, is to make money by working for Congress and the presidential palace.

By the way, run some businesses like bars and nightclubs that are less likely to cause trouble.

Just like now, there are a total of three gangs providing alcohol for the congressmen, and there is another gang that specializes in providing alcohol for the presidential palace. They are the designated "alcohol supplier" of the Golden State's upper class.

It sounds incredible that Congress and the presidency pushed for the implementation of Prohibition, but the people who pushed for it were constantly breaking the law themselves.

In fact, this is what people have been saying and thinking all the time.

When making laws, those who make them never really include themselves in the group that needs to abide by the laws.

In other words, laws have always been made for the lower and middle classes of society, not for them.

This will create a very special social phenomenon:

Those who make the laws are constantly breaking the laws because the laws are not only not binding on them, but they also cannot feel the majesty of the laws. They are just their "toys"!

Some gangs provide them with various services, such as being "designated call girl suppliers" for Congress, the Presidential Palace, and senior government departments.

For example, there are "gambling middlemen" who can bring together these upper-class dignitaries and politicians to engage in gambling games.

Including all possible criminal activities such as human trafficking and illegal smuggling, they are actually exposed to all of them, and there are people who do it for them.

This is the Golden State, the desirable Golden State, and Bandy also longs for the Golden State very much.

The Kodak family has been almost cleansed, and in a few years it will be completely whitewashed.

Black and white will cut apart.

So he really wanted to go to Golden State and fight for a position in the Kodak family on a higher stage.

Therefore, it is particularly important to have friends and a network of relationships in Golden State.

He first finished the work in his hands, then changed into a bathrobe and went to the bathroom.

Soaking in the hot water, he completely relaxed and dialed the number.

"Mr. Bandy?"

"Yes, I am. I am here. You must be Mr. Herrick?"

"I remember you, last time at Fleming's graduation party."

The vice president on the other side laughed. "Yes, it's me. I didn't expect your memory to be so good. I'm still thinking about how to explain it so that you can remember me."

Bendy shrank back into the bathtub, letting more hot water soak his body, leaving only his head exposed. The phone was on the cart next to him, with the speaker turned on, so he could talk to the guy on the other side without having to hold the receiver.

"Of course I remember you. We even had a drink together..." He paused, "So, Mr. Herick, is there anything you want to talk to me about?"

"Yes, Bandy, is it okay for me to call you that?"

Bandy didn't refuse. This was a friendly gesture to get closer to each other. "No problem, of course. I'll call you Herick, too."

"Okay, Bandy, here's the thing. We ran into a little trouble. A gangster boy caused us some damage."

"so……"

Bendy understood the meaning of his words and a confident smile appeared on his face.

That's a good thing for him.

There was nothing in Jingang City that he could not handle. His solution to this problem was equivalent to selling face to Mr. Herick. This was a very cost-effective deal.

He agreed. "I will help you negotiate or deal with it. What will happen to him depends entirely on your thoughts."

"In Jingang City, you can trust me completely, my friend!"

Hearing Bandy's confident words, the vice president smiled and said, "I won't bother you, will I?"

"We are friends!", Bendy reiterated this point.

This made the vice president understand what he meant, "Yes, we are friends, so I owe you a favor."

Some things should be said directly. Federal people can sometimes be very roundabout, but sometimes they can be very direct.

"Can I know that person's name?"

"So I can arrange someone to deal with him as soon as possible."

Then, he heard a name from the loudspeaker that was very familiar to him and that he had heard many times - "Lance, Lance White."

Seven or eight seconds later, the vice president's voice came out again from the speaker, "Bandy, are you still there?"

Bendy reacted quickly. He changed from curled up in the bathtub to sitting up with his upper body straight. The gushing water made a sound of water. "I'm here."

Perhaps he heard the hesitation in Bandy's tone, and the vice president's tone became a little uncertain. "Is it difficult?"

How should Bandy answer this question?

Bandy's expression was a little serious. "Whether it's difficult or not depends on what you want me to do."

The Lance family is indeed a little difficult to deal with, and a head-on confrontation is definitely not a smart choice, but at the same time, Bandy doesn't want to give up his relationship with Mr. Herick.

He would seize any opportunity that would allow his family to continue to develop. He also knew that only by becoming a real big man could he control his own destiny.

The vice president thought for a while. Bandy's silence just now obviously made him realize that Lance and the Lance family were not easy to deal with.

This is Jingang City, not Jinzhou. The Liji Group cannot reach so far.

He thought about it, "There was some unpleasantness between us, and he also made us lose a lot of money."

He first emphasized the reason for doing so, and then said in a slightly low and cautious tone, "The company's intention is to get rid of him. We don't want the money. We'll just use it as a place to buy him a grave."

"A cemetery with millions of dollars should be comfortable to live in!"

Bendy raised his hand and rubbed his forehead, "You've caused me a lot of trouble, Herick!"

The vice president's voice was full of confusion and puzzlement. "Is there anyone more powerful than your five major families?"

"I have always thought that you have the final say in Jingang City, but now it seems that I may have slightly overestimated your control over Jingang City."

This statement was already very impolite, and Bandy was a little embarrassed and annoyed, but he did not want to give up this opportunity to deepen his understanding and cooperation with Herick.

The headquarters of the Liji Group is in Golden State, and through them, one can get in touch with many important people, such as members of both houses of the Federal Agricultural Committee and the Federal Agricultural Foreign Trade Committee.

There are also upper-class gentlemen such as the "Soybean Association" and the "Corn Association" who can change the industry landscape.

The Kodak family has been committed to whitewashing itself and gaining more upper-class connections over the years because after gaining a huge amount of wealth, Bandy finally realized one thing.

If they cannot obtain a higher status, no matter how much money they have now, it is fake and not real.

Every year in the Federation, many wealthy people are served on the table in various ways. Perhaps they themselves do not understand that they are obviously wealthy people and capitalists.

Why did they become food?

In fact, the reason is very simple. Wealth without political power is just fragile wealth that will break at the slightest touch.

Those real tycoons and big capitalists always have multiple senators, even presidents, or some political families standing behind them.

Their money can be converted into political power through these forces anytime and anywhere to help them defeat all enemies!
If money is not combined with politics, and the bigwigs think it's time to eat, everything will return to zero.

To live a good life in the Federation, for an ordinary person, as long as he has money, but the money does not exceed the limit he can have, then everything will be fine.

Once you exceed the limit, you have to climb higher to keep your wealth.

Bandy has always encouraged Fleming to participate in more social activities, make friends with more powerful people in the Bay Area, and even considered letting him go into politics.

This is the best solution to the core problem of the Kodak family. Herick is of great help in expanding their network in Golden State.

However, he would not show excessive indulgence or weakness, and at the same time he had to let Herrick know that this matter was not easy to handle.

"It's not that I can't deal with him, but I can hardly bear the price to deal with him, Herik."

"If you can come up with a large sum of money now, I can find a way to help you deal with him, but the question is, can you come up with it?"

Spending money to solve the problem was also an option for Herick. He asked, "How much does it cost to fix this Lance?"

"At least seven figures, and not a small number."

The vice president waved his fingers and counted them, "one, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, one hundred thousand, one million..."

"Millions, is he that expensive?"

"He has a large group of people under his command. He is very careful and has extensive experience in assassinations. Once we take action, it will be an all-out war."

"They have extensive experience in warfare, and they have helpers in the five major families."

"A few million may not be enough."

"You can also go ask others, maybe they only want 2,000 yuan."

"Actually, I have a suggestion. It will be easier if we resolve the conflict."

"He will definitely give me some face. I think this is a very suitable choice."

If it really costs so much money to kill Lance, the vice president really needs to inquire further.

He thought for a moment and said, "I'll call you tomorrow."

After hanging up the phone, Bandy sank back into the water, the hot water soaking him.

In fact, his words are a little exaggerated. When someone asks you for help, you have to let the other person know that this favor is very valuable, not just a "small thing."

The vice president made a few more phone calls. Although these people were not as well-known as the Kodak family, or were not from the underground world, they all more or less showed the same attitude that "Lance is not easy to deal with."

This also made the vice president start to think about whether he should change his attitude to deal with this matter.

The next morning, as soon as the board members arrived at the company, the vice president convened an internal conference call, during which he talked about Lance's case and what happened in Jingang City.

"I have consulted with the Kodak family, one of the five major families. They believe that it will cost a great price to kill Lance."

The executive director had been listening to his speech and couldn't help but said, "Then ask them how much money they need. You don't think we can't even afford to hire gangsters, do you?"

The vice president repeated what Bandy had said and then stopped talking.

millions?
Even if it is only three million, it is a huge expense for those who run agricultural products.

They have to sell at least 50 million worth of agricultural products to make a net profit of 3 million.

It's not a good deal.

When no one else spoke, the vice president continued, "Bandy gave me another plan, and that's it."

"We don't need to worry about Lance's case. We will deal with the contaminated crops ourselves."

"They won't cause trouble to us in the future, and we won't cause trouble to them either."

Some on the board objected, saying it wasn't cost-effective, but the vice president emphasized a point.

That is, regardless of whether Lance did this case, at least they did breach the contract.

Although their litigation costs are low, they still have costs, and no one knows whether Lance and others will also invest costs, making them compete in judicial support.

Moreover, that was Jingang City, not Golden State. If they were in Golden State, they would never compromise and would definitely fight Lance to the end.

But in Likalai State, perhaps "respecting" local forces is the right approach.

After the meeting, he called Bandi and said, "We have discussed it and we accept your proposal for peace talks."

This brought a smug smile to Bendy's face. He knew this would happen. "Lance's situation is very special. If you choose someone else, there is a high probability that they will not be able to do this."

"You're lucky, Herrick, you chose me. I'll talk to him."

Bandy did not guarantee that the deal would be successful, he just said "I will talk to him", and combined with his previous and subsequent context, it gives people the illusion that "I can handle him".

The vice president either didn't hear it or heard it but was pretending to be stupid, and said loudly, "That's great, Bandy, you are trustworthy."

"We will hold some activities during our annual meeting this year, and I hope you can attend then."

All the big shots will attend the annual meeting of Liji Group. It is a grand social party and he will not be absent.

"No problem, I will come, remember to give me an invitation then!"

It’s not long until the end of the year, just one or two months at most, and Bandy is very concerned about these things.

After the call ended, he called Gao Li to his office and asked, "Do you know Lance?"

Gao Li sat on the chair casually, "I know him, but I'm not familiar with him. What's wrong?"

"Just now, a well-known guy in Golden State invited me to attend their annual meeting. Members of both houses of Congress and some high-society politicians will be in attendance."

"But the prerequisite is that I have to resolve the conflict between them and Lance."

Gao Li took a puff of his cigarette and exhaled slowly with a "hush" sound. "I heard that Alberto has a good relationship with him, and he is also very close to the two children of the Williams family."

Let James or Arthur talk to Lance about these things. Not to mention how much it will cost, it is hard to say whether they can handle it.

There is a high probability that Alberto can convince Lance, but how they convince Alberto is a problem.

"Where are Fleming and Stone?"

“They are all young people. Are there any overlaps in their social circles?”

Fleming is his son, Stone is Gowrie’s son, they are of the same age as Lance, maybe they know each other and have some friendship?

Gao Li quickly gave him a negative answer, "They haven't played with Lance, and he can't join the children's social circle."

Gao Li paused and said, "I think you should just call him directly. You are Bandy, no one in this city can refuse you!"

Bendy hesitated. This seemed like the best approach. "I'll do that."

As he said that, he called Lance.

"I'm Bendy..."

"Hello, Mr. Bandy."

It was a somewhat stiff greeting, but nothing out of the ordinary. After all, the two parties had no friendship before this, so he naturally wouldn't show much enthusiasm.

"Lance, can we meet?"

This request made Lance feel a little puzzled. He had never had any contact with the Kodak family, and he didn't like them very much.

They are strong and tough.

The entire gambling industry in Jingang City is firmly controlled by them. From this point, it can be seen that they are actually very greedy.

A powerful and greedy family, Lance would not like them.

"Can I ask why?"

Lance's "rhetorical question" caught Bendy off guard. In the past, when facing these "small characters", he would just ask "Can we meet?"

Even if those people don't know why they need to meet them, they will still run to meet him.

For many gang members, including the leaders, being able to meet Bandy is a very prestigious thing.

It can even be used as a source of bragging rights.

Lance's attitude of not wanting to meet him made him feel a little confused for a moment, but he quickly reacted, "I have a friend, and there may be a little misunderstanding between him and you, so..."

He didn't say which friend it was, and Lance didn't ask, but he agreed.

"I'm free this afternoon."

"See you this afternoon then, Lance."

(End of this chapter)