Empire of Shadows

Over the weekend, at the invitation of Blue Precinct Chief, Lance attended the retirement ceremony of the Port District Precinct Chief with him.

The Port District Precinct Chief had reached retirement age, and in fact, he should have retired at the end of last year. However, as each precinct was facing some transfers, in order to allow his successor to better secure the position and smoothly take over,

Charlie specifically called the old precinct chief and asked him to postpone his retirement for a few months, which he agreed to.

Now, the new precinct assistant chief, or rather, the deputy chief, John, has fully taken over the work of the Port District, and it is time for the old chief to lay down the burden.

After all, only a few people can work in the police force without illness or injury until retirement, especially as a precinct chief.

Therefore, some influential figures in Goldport City's police circle would come over, partly to show the unity of the police force, and partly as a beautiful prayer and aspiration for their own future.

"I heard that John spent a lot of money to become this chief."

On the way to the old chief's residence, Lance asked casually.

John made a fortune when he left the Empire District, at least ten or twenty thousand, which many people knew.

Hearing Lance mention this, an unpleasant expression appeared on the Blue Precinct Chief's face, "Don't mention that son of a bitch to me!"

"He's a bastard, you know?"

Seeing the Blue Precinct Chief's obvious desire to confide, Lance also had the idea of understanding the situation, after all... to him, this was half an acquaintance, "If you don't mind, I can help you judge."

The Blue Precinct Chief said while driving, "You know our income isn't high, the city hall... those sons of bitches won't approve too much budget for us at all."

When mentioning the city hall, he obviously lowered his voice.

"The expenses of the police officers are actually quite a lot, leather boots, police uniforms, plain clothes, gun oil... they have to pay for many things themselves."

"So forty yuan seems like a lot, but in reality, our income is not much different from that of the dockworkers, and the dangerousness of our work is even greater. Sometimes when we get injured, the city hall only allocates funds to us according to the lowest standard."

"So we need to have some extra income."

He glanced at Lance.

Lance sponsored him a sum of money every month, and many people in the police station also got some benefits from Lance. If the police officers in the Empire District were to choose between him and Lance.

He believed that he would be abandoned by those close comrades.

Ideals can't fill your stomach!

The Federation people actually have a deeper understanding than the immigrants, after all, they have been whipped by the cruel reality until they are powerless to resist, while those immigrants still retain a glimmer of fantasy because they have not been completely heartbroken.

"John took away three months' worth of protection fees from a street all at once, and also extorted some money from some people, giving 25,000 yuan to Charlie and 5,000 to the old chief."

"Then he was transferred over, and soon he will inherit the position of the old chief and become the real chief of the Port District Precinct."

"I heard that the money he sent to Charlie was actually more than that, there was even more, so once he takes office, he will definitely try to get it back from the Port District, and the people here will have a hard time!"

The Blue Precinct Chief no longer had much respect for Charlie. A police chief who had resigned due to his own fault no longer had a sense of oppression for him.

Moreover, he was able to become the "Bay Area Hound" not only because of his loyalty, but also because of his identity.

There are many people in this city who are willing to offer their loyalty to the masters of the Bay Area, but the masters of the Bay Area won't even give them an extra glance.

Unless they are something like a chief, with a special identity bonus.

Without that skin, the masters of the Bay Area would not care about him as they used to, so the Blue Precinct Chief lost his "fear". As for respect?

A boss who was more greedy and better at acting than him made him unable to feel the slightest respect!

"I heard that Hunter has a high probability?", Lance asked.

He also heard the news that Hunter had a high probability of succeeding. He and Charlie did a lot of dirty work for the masters, and he was a good candidate to be the next dog.

The Blue Precinct Chief shook his head, "I'm not too sure about this. Although everyone says so, the person who can ultimately decide who sits in this position is the master of the Bay Area."

"And now there is another trouble, the mayor."

The internal problems of the mayor-system city are ultimately decided by the mayor. If he doesn't nod, Hunter cannot become the police chief.

Similarly, he can also directly appoint other people. Now he hasn't expressed anything, making it unclear what he is thinking.

And whether he can appoint Hunter as the next police chief is also a question.

The car approached the edge of Prussia and the Port District. There are several communities here where many police households live. They like to live together.

This is the benefit of having money. It can keep the rich happy both physically and mentally at all times.

When you open the door, you see colleagues who get along well, unlike those lower and middle-class police officers who live in the Empire District and the Port District.

When they open the door, they see those dark and even urine-stained apartment corridors.

Seeing that the Blue Precinct Chief had already begun to slow down, he suddenly seemed to think of something and said, "Those two... cases, we discussed them and arranged them as illegal immigrants."

The two cases he was talking about were the suicide jumps not long ago. Two people were hung from the apartment building with ropes around their necks. The forensic doctor said that they were still alive before the ropes tightened.

Then, at the moment the ropes tightened, both of them were dead beyond dead.

Plus, they died so "creatively" that it was obvious that it was a glory kill, a ritualistic way of death.

Others didn't know what was going on, but the Blue Precinct Chief knew very well that one of the cases occurred in the Empire District, and he directly processed the deceased as an illegal immigrant.

That is, it was placed at the bottom of the pending cases, and without external interference, they would probably not touch this case in their lifetime.

Illegal immigrants mean that they cannot investigate the person's identity background clearly, cannot figure out his social network, and naturally cannot find out why he was hanged.

If it weren't for the obvious ritualistic killing style, the Blue Precinct Chief could even directly conclude that it was a "suicide".

The other case happened in the Port District. The Blue Precinct Chief and the old precinct chief had already talked about it and dealt with it in the same way.

The car quickly turned into an internal road of a community on the side of the road. At the gate before entering the internal road of the community, you could still see descriptions like "Police Home".

All the middle and upper-level police officers of Goldport City live here.

The old precinct chief has his own detached house. Except for the lack of a swimming pool and a court, it is actually a big villa, but they still call it a detached house.

Many people had already arrived on the lawn outside the house, and everyone was chatting and talking.

Most people were wearing casual clothes. It was rare to see so many police officers and deputy chiefs gathered together, even Charlie was here.

When they arrived, many people's eyes were cast over, and some people didn't recognize who Lance was when they saw him.

After the Blue Precinct Chief parked the car, he came to the lawn with Lance.

The old precinct chief took the initiative to greet him and hugged the Blue Precinct Chief, "Thank you for coming!", then he looked at Lance, "You are Mr. Lance, right?"

"I didn't expect my retirement to make you take a trip. Thank you very much for coming. There are many friends here today, and you will definitely have a lot of gains."

He knew Lance, had seen him from afar, and had also seen Lance's photos.

Lance shook hands with him, and then handed over the small gift he was carrying, "I don't know if I should give a gift, but I think since this is something worth celebrating, it's definitely right for me to give a small gift."

As he spoke, he looked at Charlie next to him, "This shouldn't violate police regulations, right?"

Charlie shook hands with Lance with a smile, "Of course not violate!"

At this time, Charlie was wearing a well-tailored suit, and when he reached out, he also revealed the gold watch on his wrist. Rather than believing that he was a retired police officer, people should be more willing to believe that he was a wealthy capitalist or something.

This set, you can't get it down without a few thousand yuan at all. Maybe Charlie's thinking has begun to change after resigning due to his own fault.

In the past, he would cover up the gold watch with his sleeves, trying not to show those good things, but now, he is very enthusiastic about these.

The old precinct chief took the gift, "Thank you for your gift, I hope you have a good time..."

While speaking, John walked over from the side. When he saw Lance, he was stunned for a moment. He seemed to have seen this face somewhere.

He frowned slightly, his brain was spinning frantically. Being able to stand with Charlie and the old precinct chief must not be a small role without fame.

Lance reminded him with a non-smiling smile, "Jonny's Bakery."

John slapped his head, "Yes, Jonny's Bakery, you are Lance?"

He stretched out his hand very enthusiastically, "I have actually heard people talk about this matter, but I have never been able to connect you with the situation at that time. So we are acquaintances!"

In this era of underdeveloped information dissemination, people's understanding of a stranger often starts from "rumors".

You may have heard the names of many people, but when they stand in front of you, you are very likely not to recognize them.

The fame they spread might even lead you to imagine a person's appearance, voice, and more in your mind, only to discover an unimaginable gap when you meet them for the first time.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the three departed, and Lance, watching them greet others, glanced at the Blue District Chief beside him, "Now, asking you to organize a grand celebration shouldn't be too stressful, right?"

The Blue District Chief gave a wry smile, "Are you so eager to give away money?"

Lance shook his head, and seeing how obedient he was, he explained, "Congress keeps increasing the authority of the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau. Right now, you might only think they can investigate liquor smuggling."

"Wait and see, soon they'll extend their reach into your jurisdiction."

"When that time comes, if the police force isn't united and lacks a central figure, the police profession will become marginalized."

The Blue District Chief looked incredulous, "That sounds scary, but I believe the federal government won't let it become a reality, because we are the guardians of the city."

He spoke with conviction, but Lance wasn't so optimistic, "You'll see."

Today, Lance met many police officers here, almost all the district chiefs from the eleven districts, as well as their deputies.

They were all eager to meet Lance, because everyone knew that Lance was a very generous person, and they had vaguely heard that he was planning to hold an event similar to a celebration for the police.

They all genuinely liked someone with money, generosity, status, and deterrence.

The atmosphere at the scene was good, with everyone talking and laughing, but the sudden arrival of several cars disrupted this relaxed mood.

Vehicles from the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau. Those grayhounds in their uniform got out of the cars and walked towards them.

Everyone stopped their ongoing socializing and looked at them.

Charlie and the old chief went to greet them. Compared to the old chief, who managed a forced smile, Charlie didn't have any smile at all.

If it weren't for these people and their masters behind them, he wouldn't have lost his job!

So, forget faking a smile, he couldn't even bother to squeeze one out.

"Someone reported that you are gathering here to drink alcohol. We need to inspect it. This is a search warrant."

The senior special agent directly presented the search warrant in his hand. They issued these legal documents to themselves.

Charlie couldn't help but restrain himself, "Today is his retirement celebration. If you have to investigate, can you do it at another time?"

The senior special agent shook his head coldly, "I don't care who you are. In short, someone reported that you are gathering to drink alcohol, so we have to investigate it. This is the work and task that Congress has given us."

"If you are dissatisfied with me, you can call the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and Hazardous Materials Management Bureau, or the relevant congressional committee to complain about me."

"If you don't plan to resist our law enforcement, you better step aside!"

Charlie's expression was unpleasant. He wanted to say something, but the old district chief grabbed his arm and shook his head slightly.

Today was supposed to be a happy day, and there was no need to make it unpleasant because of these people.

Perhaps knowing the result in advance, the senior special agent's mouth curled up slightly, his gaze lingered on the two faces for a moment, and he strode inside, waving his hand at the same time, "Search…"

In an instant, the gathering on the lawn was thrown into chaos. The agents' movements were particularly large, and many things were knocked over, including the food on the tables.

The police officers were very angry, but the other party didn't seem to notice. They even searched the old district chief's house and found two boxes of wine inside.

Seeing them carrying two boxes of wine out, the old district chief couldn't help but say, "This was left to me by my father. The dates on it can prove that they existed before the Prohibition was enacted!"

The senior special agent looked down and saw that indeed, some bottles had the production date written on them. He directly tore off those labels, "Now they're gone."

Looking at the police officers' angry but helpless expressions, the senior special agent couldn't help but reveal a mocking smile, "Let's go."

After watching them leave, Charlie released the old chief's arm, "They are provoking us. They are doing it on purpose, hoping we will take some extreme actions."

The police officers gathered around, and Charlie's expression was also very unsightly. It seemed like they had suddenly attacked the old district chief's retirement celebration, but in reality, they were slapping his face!

When he was in office, he clearly stated that he would not stand on the mayor's side, and now this was revenge.

He looked at the old district chief, "I will find a way to get your wine back!"

In the end, the celebration broke up unhappily.

When leaving, the Blue District Chief and John chatted in the corner for a while. When he came back, he told Lance that John was asking about the case that had just been handled, whether it was Lance's.

"I feel like he… might ask you for money. His reputation is very bad. He's ruthless when it comes to making money, but he's also very generous when spending it."

"Although there are more people who hate him than like him, the people who like him are obviously in higher positions."

"If he… never mind, I don't need to worry about this matter. I should be worried about him."

If John really extorted Lance, the Blue District Chief couldn't imagine John's fate!

He hoped he could open his eyes wide, and at the same time, he was very sure that John would most likely do that.

Because the position of director is not determined for a day, it means that everyone still has a chance!

He can spend tens of thousands of dollars to be the chief of a sub-bureau, then it is not impossible to spend a little more to be a director!

On the way back to the Empire District, as Lance approached the port area, he heard intense gunfire again. All around were hurried passersby, and some people had expressions of panic on their faces.

Some people ran out of the streets in the distance, obviously that was where the firefight was taking place.

This was not within the jurisdiction of the Empire District Branch, and the Blue District Chief directly turned the direction. He was not stupid enough to want to go to the scene to see.

"Recently, the number of infighting incidents in the Empire District has been increasing and constantly escalating."

"Before, they would only fight in the second half of the night, but now they are also fighting during the day."

"Those foreign gangs don't follow the rules at all!"

"Fortunately, Lance, the Empire District has you, otherwise I can hardly imagine how bad it would become!"

Lance's gaze was still lingering in the rearview mirror. At the intersection where there was no one, several young people staggered out.

Some of them even fell.

They retreated while fighting back, but were soon caught up by another group.

On the main road, the conflict ended with one side leaving three corpses and the other side leaving seven or eight corpses.

The police car in the distance happened to be coming head-on with the Blue District Chief's car. Obviously, they had arrived for some time and only drove out of the alley after the firefight ended.

This is Golden Port City, getting more and more chaotic.