Empire of Shadows

This book is first published on the entire network by 𝕥 𝕨 𝕜 𝕒 𝕟 . 𝕔 𝕠 𝕞

“Mr. Lance…”

An elderly woman, not very tall, wiped away tears with her daughter's comfort. Seeing Lance arrive, she quickly greeted him.

Compared to the old woman's casualness, her daughter was noticeably more reserved, only nodding slightly before standing behind her mother.

Burton approached, standing beside Lance, "The robbery victim is old Hampton. He lives on this street. These are his wife and daughter."

He emphasized, "They are early Empire immigrants."

Lance nodded slightly, "How is old… Mr. Hampton doing?"

"He was stabbed in the abdomen. It looks bad, but the ambulance arrived quickly. They should have already started surgery. Hopefully, he can hold on!"

After hearing this, Lance walked to the old woman's side, "We never want to see things like this happen, but it did. We can only face it."

"Don't worry, I will cover Mr. Hampton's medical expenses…"

Perhaps it was this last sentence that completely broke the old woman's composure. The tears she had already wiped away welled up again, "Mr. Lance… I don't know what to say. My family and I are grateful for everything you've done!"

"When the old guy comes back, I'll have him work for you!"

Lance smiled upon hearing this. The surrounding onlookers also had their serious expressions broken up by smiles, and they laughed.

"We better not disturb his peaceful life. You all live here. I should lend a hand when you encounter trouble!"

The girl standing behind the old woman also stepped forward. Her eyes were filled with gratitude. At least, surgery costs of several hundred or even a thousand were simply unaffordable for their family!

If Lance didn't pay, the hospital might not provide treatment for such an emergency surgery without seeing the money. It could be said that Lance saved old Hampton's life!

The girl was in her twenties and working. She didn't have a good impression of gangs or families, all thanks to the Camilla gang.

She was also unwilling to interact with these people, but the guys in front of her didn't seem like the gangsters she knew. Her expression softened a lot.

"Mr. Lance, thank you."

The muscles on Lance's face tightened slightly, revealing a smile that was clearly different from the previous one as he responded to her words. He casually patted the old woman's shoulder, "Relax, he'll be fine. I'm going to take a look at these young people who did wrong."

He passed the two and went to the center of the crowd. Two young men were squatting in the corner, looking unruly.

The patrol officer in charge of the area was standing beside them, looking a little nervous.

"Mr. Lance!" he greeted proactively, hands on his hips, but then feeling it was impolite, he quickly lowered them.

He was afraid Lance would think he hadn't done well since this happened in his patrol area, but Lance didn't do that.

He patted the patrol officer's upper arm, "Relax, I don't bite."

A hint of a smile appeared on the patrol officer's face, then he quickly apologized, "I'm very sorry, I wasn't able to get here as quickly as possible…"

Lance shook his head, "You can't predict who someone is going to hurt in some place. You were able to get here as quickly as possible and subdue these two people. You've already done what you should do. I can't blame you. It's not your fault!"

As he spoke, he took out a cigarette. The patrol officer quickly took out a lighter to light it for Lance. Lance took a puff and looked at the two young men squatting in the corner.

Judging from their immature faces, they shouldn't be too old, probably just graduated from high school.

The two men didn't show any remorse, or even much nervousness, as if they had done this kind of thing before.

They even raised their heads to look at Lance, their eyes filled with curiosity, scrutiny, and a desire to attack.

"Are you from the Empire District?"

The two exchanged a glance. One of them, with brown hair and natural curls, asked, "Are you the respected person here?"

Lance pursed his lips, "I should be."

Someone immediately shouted, "Mr. Lance is the person respected by all of us, kid. Watch your mouth!"

The curly-haired guy glanced at the surrounding crowd, "No, sir, we came from the port district."

Lance nodded slightly. The two major poor districts of Goldport City, "Why did you rob and use a knife to hurt someone?"

The curly-haired guy said as a matter of course, "What else could it be? We ran out of money?!"

The blond kid next to him couldn't help but laugh, "That old guy was carrying a gold pocket watch. He didn't want to give it to us."

The surrounding crowd was already murmuring. They felt that these two young men were too arrogant!

There were even voices shouting "Beat them!" but Lance raised his hand to stop them.

"You haven't done this for the first time."

The two were silent for a while. The curly-haired guy nodded, "We do this when we don't have money."

"Do you regret what you've done?"

Whether this sentence stung the blond guy or not, he suddenly became impatient, "If you're going to arrest us, then arrest us. Don't get someone to lecture us. Are you a priest?"

The first half of the sentence was addressed to the patrol officer, and the second half was addressed to Lance.

The curly-haired guy hesitated for a moment and didn't speak. He might have a little bit of yielding and regret, but he wouldn't say it in front of his friend.

Lance looked at the patrol officer, "How would you usually handle this kind of situation?"

Just as they were talking, another police car arrived. Branch Chief Blue came in person.

When he heard that Lance was also at the scene, he felt that things might be difficult to handle, so he hurried over.

"You've come at the right time," he waved to Branch Chief Blue, "How do you usually handle cases of robbery that cause injury and endanger life?"

Branch Chief Blue already knew what had happened. He looked around and then looked at Lance's expression. He knew that there was no way to talk to Lance on the side now.

He could only walk up to Lance and whispered, "Take them back and let them go after two days. That's Charlie's intention."

"If it were before, we might have thrown them in jail for a while, but now…"

He hesitated, everyone wanted this city to be completely chaotic, only in this way would it meet the demands of each interest group for subsequent benefits.

What's even more ridiculous is that the enforcers are actually one of them!

Charlie's attitude towards crime is still softening, releasing these criminals after only one or two days of detention.

The lower cost of crime is like a demon behind them encouraging them. Even if they are caught, they will not be punished, so why not take advantage of the good opportunity to quickly make a fortune?

Perhaps this is the most tragic part of the bottom people. No matter what the decisions above are, good or bad, only they ultimately bear everything.

Lance nodded slightly. He looked at the two, "You almost killed a kind old man for perhaps a few tens or hundreds of dollars."

The curly hair was also a little irritable, especially under the gaze of so many people. Every word of Lance made him feel more resistant than a fist.

He stopped talking, and Golden Hair had an indifferent attitude. They had been caught many times in the past few days and didn't care at all.

Even if they were caught now, they might be released by evening, "Hurry up, let the police take me away, I don't want to listen to your nagging!"

The surrounding discussion became louder, and many people were angered by the attitude of these two young men!

Lance took a puff of his cigarette and looked at them, "Are you willing to apologize for your actions?"

Curly Hair looked to the side and didn't speak, while Golden Hair smiled and gave Lance the middle finger, "Fuck you!"

The surrounding onlookers suddenly became emotional, but Lance couldn't help but laugh, "You don't know what you missed!"

He turned to look at Branch Chief Blue, "Take your people back, leave this to me."

Branch Chief Blue glanced at the two young men again, hoping they would have good luck!

He nodded and signaled the patrol officer to leave with him. The two directly crossed the crowd and left, and the two young men were dumbfounded in an instant!

Lance took two steps back, "Do what you want to do, I'll be responsible if something happens."

The young people couldn't bear it any longer. When the first person rushed out of the crowd and kicked Golden Hair, everyone else couldn't control themselves anymore!

At first, you could still hear the two people begging for mercy, but soon their pleas were drowned out by the curses.

Lance leaned against the hood of the car, smoking his dwindling cigarette. Burton had just received a call. Now that he was done, he quickly walked over, "Old Hampton's condition has stabilized. The surgery was successful."

Lance threw the cigarette on the ground and approached the old woman and her daughter, "The hospital has called. Old Hampton survived and will recover soon!"

The old woman's heart, which had been hanging in the air, fell to the ground in an instant. She didn't know how to express her gratitude to Lance. She wanted to bow, but Lance supported her hands, "You live on my territory, and I have a responsibility to think about your safety."

"We should unite. Only when we unite will they be afraid of us!"

The old woman looked at Lance with tears in her eyes, "Can I hug you?"

Lance immediately opened his arms, "Of course."

"Oh God!" the old woman hugged Lance tightly, "Thank you, thank you for everything you've done for us!"

Lance patted her back, "I'll have someone take you to the hospital later. He needs you more than a doctor right now!"

The old woman finally realized and quickly released him, "Yes, yes, look at me, I need to go prepare something."

The girl looked at Lance's handsome smile and suddenly felt a sting. Her face flushed slightly, "I…"

Seeing Lance's open arms, she hugged him briefly, "Thank you."

Lance asked Bolton to send them home and then take them to the hospital.

As for him, he would deal with the aftermath.

In just a few minutes, the angry crowd vented their emotions. The two young men were lying on the ground, their lives hanging in the balance. The blond one was beaten the worst, blood already seeping from his mouth and nose.

This made some people feel a little scared, but more than that, they felt a sense of relief after venting their anger!

Lance gave Raun a look, then said loudly, "I'll handle this. No one will get into trouble for carrying out justice!"

"They were never here, and no one saw them!"

This sentence immediately calmed the previously uneasy commotion in the crowd.

"Gentlemen, look, these people are not scary. I hope that when you see someone being hurt in the Imperial District, you can lend a hand to the best of your ability while ensuring your own safety."

"Whether it's helping them drive away the aggressors, telling our people nearby, or calling the police, all are good actions."

"Today, you help others."

"Tomorrow, when you need help, someone will come to help you!"

"In this country, we are just a small part. We need to be more united than the Federation people, than others, so that we can have the most ordinary happiness!"

The two young men had already been thrown into the trunk. Without a doubt, they would most likely be diving in Angel Lake. Perhaps they could see Jason and discuss with him the experience of holding their breath for nearly a year underwater.

Lance's words moved and inspired everyone. Some older and more outgoing people came over.

They seemed hesitant. Lance noticed something and proactively extended his hand, which improved these people's perception of Lance!

They shook Lance's hand tightly, right in front of Lance's car!

"Mr. Lance, I don't know what to say. I have lived in the Federation for over thirty years."

"I have seen many people, but I have never seen someone like you!"

"I have a feeling that this place, we, will become different from the past because of your appearance!"

"If there is anything you need from me, please let me know!"

Lance nodded slightly, "I will. If I really need you, you won't be able to hide!"

This sentence made people laugh, and this person knew that there were more people waiting to shake hands with Lance, so he took the initiative to let go.

But he didn't leave, just stood aside. He sincerely believed that Lance would become a great person.

Every great person has obvious differences from ordinary people!

Everything was reflected in the glass of the roadside shop window. This was not the scenery on the street, but a reflection of an era!

Old Hampton's condition quickly stabilized. Lance found a good doctor, and with over two thousand dollars, Old Hampton wouldn't die from being stabbed.

This matter had a satisfactory ending, and in less than an hour, the whole Imperial District began to circulate the story of what happened.

Everyone was very angry at first, but as the "story" progressed, they gradually felt relieved and sincerely admired Lance.

Regardless of whether the Lance family was a gang or not, at least they did something the Federal government couldn't do.

Not plundering and harvesting wealth, but helping them to obtain simple and ordinary happiness!

On the way back, the two young men were on the verge of death. It was unknown how many people participated in beating them, maybe a dozen, maybe dozens.

Even ordinary blows would be unbearable for ordinary people, let alone these people who were attacking in anger.

Lance directly had people throw them into gasoline drums. Angel Lake was their eternal resting place!

After resolving this matter, Ethan came to Lance alone and talked about what Elvin had said to him.

He was obviously a little unhappy, "I don't want to box anymore."

"Why?" Lance asked.

Ethan rarely came to Lance alone because he was not good at communicating. He needed Elvin in his interactions with others.

Hiram was also okay, but Hiram's cheapness made him want to punch that horse face a few times.

Elvin said that Lance wanted him to concentrate on boxing, which made Ethan a little… He didn't know what to say. He was very unhappy now. He liked the life of everyone being together. He didn't want to be separated from others.

Lance sat with him on the sofa, "I actually strongly support your decision to box. We need more people to be able to make a voice for us in this country that doesn't belong to us."

"Gerald is like this, those outstanding Imperial immigrants are like this, and so are you, Ethan."

"If you can become an excellent boxer, not necessarily a boxing champion, and your spirit can influence many people, then you will be successful!"

"You will reshape a positive image for Imperial immigrants. The more successful you and they are, the more the stereotypes of thieves, criminals, and vagrants will fade away in the minds of the Federation people."

"As long as there are enough people like you, people will be able to fully accept us and truly integrate us into this country!"

"Moreover, you boxing doesn't mean you have to leave us."

"We will still live together, be together every day, and we will all cheer for you when you compete."

He patted Ethan's arm, "Don't waste your good talent. I'm still thinking of adding another display case in my office specifically for your trophies and gold belts!"

Ethan finally said a word after a long time, "Can I do it?"

"Please!" Lance punched him, "You are as strong as an ox, how can you doubt whether you can do it?"

"More than that, you should be worried about whether you will beat your opponent to death!"

Ethan's mood visibly improved. He scratched his head, "If I beat my opponent to death in the ring, will I be convicted?"

Lance laughed and said, "No one but God can convict my brother!"

He pushed Ethan, "Brother!"

Ethan also laughed happily, "Yes, brother, no one!"

This matter was settled. Lance asked Maurice to inquire about it.

Boxing was a hot sport in this era, and championships and high bonuses stimulated every practitioner.

Maurice only took half a day to find a suitable coach, who used to be a boxer himself and even won a championship.

Now he has become a coach, leading several boxers, all of whom have performed well this year!

[High-definition image]