Empire of Shadows

In the emergency room, a pale-faced nurse pushed a trolley in from outside. A doctor who was resting walked over to her, picked up some medicine from the trolley, and took it to the operating table.

“Are those people still there?”

The nurse nodded. “More people are coming. Should we call the police?”

The doctor, who had been transferred from another hospital to handle emergencies, wasn't very familiar with them, but at this moment, he obviously wanted to say something to ease the tense atmosphere.

Sometimes, being too nervous can lead to mistakes.

“They're just the patient's friends. Why call the police?”

He said, while directing the assistant to hand him some tools.

Morris was lying in front of him, his chest and abdomen cut open. He had been shot twelve times, some in the legs, some in the body, and was currently in a near-death state.

Now, the bullets had basically been removed, but the remaining tasks became more numerous and troublesome.

First, the doctor had to deal with the internal organs that had been hit by the bullets, cleaning away the rotten flesh and tissue, and then treating the wounds and finally stitching them up.

This operation was very complex, involving multiple organs. Even just cleaning and suturing the wounds couldn't be done by him alone.

Therefore, there were three surgeons operating on Morris simultaneously at the operating table.

Morris was young and had a chance to hold on. Both he and the doctors were racing against death.

The sooner the operation ended, the greater Morris's chance of survival. However, they all had a judgment on Morris's condition.

Even if he survived, he would be sickly. The most serious were the two gunshot wounds in his lungs, which would accompany him for the rest of his life.

Even if he survived, he would lose the ability to engage in strenuous activity. Even climbing a few flights of stairs could leave him breathless.

Injuries like a severed intestine were now the least serious, although cleaning up the digestive fluids and intestinal fluids was also a troublesome matter, and they had to find a way to avoid infection.

On the other operating table lay Morris's father. The doctors had stopped resuscitation and covered his body with a white cloth.

“Thirty-one shots, all in the back.”

“He should be this young man's father. He used his life to exchange for this young man's chance to live.”

“This is a father!”

The doctor in charge of rescuing Morris's father sighed. Although he didn't know the specific situation at the time, he could make a simple analysis based on these injuries.

The person who tried to kill them rushed in front of them, and then the old man threw himself on the young man, shielding him from most of the harm.

“I'm a little tired,” one of the surgeons operating on Morris said, and a doctor immediately came to take over.

The doctor in charge of the entire rescue plan took a step back after treating the two gunshot wounds on the left lobe of Morris's lung. “You guys continue to deal with the other wounds. I'll go out and talk to the patient's family.”

He personally pushed Morris's father's body out of the operating room. Lance immediately stood up and walked to the trolley, somewhat hesitant.

“It's that old man,” the doctor said proactively, which relieved Lance.

Although this guy was Morris's father, from Lance's point of view, he hadn't interacted with the old man, so there was no question of feelings or anything like that.

“Morris… how is the remaining one doing?”

The doctor asked the nurse to push the trolley to the morgue, where the body would be placed in the freezer until the police or the deceased's family confirmed that no further confirmation was needed and that the deceased's death did not involve any case.

Then, a funeral could be held, or the body could be cremated directly.

However, not many people were cremated. In this era, people still believed that only by being buried in the ground could they go to heaven.

After all, under the long influence of religious civilization, people have always firmly believed that only heretics will be purified!

Yes, cremation used to be called a “purification ceremony.” Good families wouldn't cremate; they would all have burials.

The doctor and Lance walked to the corridor outside. “That young man's condition is also very bad. I don't know if letting him live is a cruel thing for him.”

Lance lit a cigarette, signaling him to continue.

“His lungs have three holes in them. Breathing and exercise will be very difficult in the future. Even a slight movement will make him feel breathless.”

“His intestines were severed in two places, and there is a risk of infection. The wounds themselves are not a problem.”

“We cut off part of his intestines and stomach. His diet will need attention for some time to come.”

“In addition, part of his liver was also removed. The bullet rolled around in his liver. We really couldn't clean it up. And the kidney on the right side was also pierced, so we had to remove it.”

“He was also shot many times in the legs, so he may limp a little when he walks in the future.”

Lance couldn't help but ask, “It's all bad news, so is there any good news?”

The doctor nodded. “The good news is that he might be able to survive. Isn't that the best news?”

Lance couldn't refute for a moment, but this was indeed very, very precious good news for Morris. He didn't know what to say at this time and could only stare blankly for a while.

“I hope he also thinks this is good news.”

The doctor wasn't too optimistic. “When I say 'maybe,' I don't mean he will definitely survive. The only thing we can do is try our best to help him achieve this goal.”

“In addition, the hospital equipment and technology here are too bad. My suggestion is to transfer him to the city center. We have experienced doctors and comprehensive safeguards…”

Lance sighed, threw away the cigarette, reached out and shook hands with the doctor. “Anyway, thank you for coming.”

He beckoned to Melo. “Tell my friend how much money you need, and he will pay you.”

“In addition, I accept your transfer plan. See how you arrange it, but I have one condition, which is to ensure that nothing happens to him!”

Lance let go of his hand, let Melo connect with him, then returned to the corridor, stomped his feet, and walked outside. First, a few people followed, and then most of the people followed out.

“Call Ennio and tell him about Morris,” Lance instructed.

Ennio and Morris were the best of friends. They were like brothers without blood ties. After all, they grew up together, and their relationship was much better than ordinary relatives.

If he wasn't told now, he would only complain about Lance and everyone else, so it was better to tell him early.

“I know, I'll have someone make a call right away.”

Lance lit another cigarette. In fact, he would throw away the cigarettes he lit after only taking three or five puffs, but if he didn't light one, he felt like he was missing something in his hand.

“First, collect some interest from them,” Lance said, exhaling smoke and looking at the dark sky.

The professor was in a very happy mood at this time. He withdrew his gaze from the dark sky outside the window and placed it on the people in the room.

This was an experience he could never feel when he was a teacher.

The students didn't respect him, and some mischievous people would even play pranks on him. When he was a teacher at school, he couldn't feel the majesty of being a teacher at all, only helplessness.

But now, it was different. These people trusted him very much, which gave him great satisfaction. “Lance has a fatal flaw, which is that he cares a lot about the friendship between brothers.”

The professor sat on the sofa, holding a wine glass, gently shaking it. Some of the Wolf Gang's senior executives and Wolf were here. They attacked Bolton and Morris almost at the same time, achieving good results and without any major losses. It could be said that this was a huge success.

This also made them more admire the professor, because this was all the professor's plan.

At this time, no matter what the professor said, they all thought the professor was right.

“I don't know if he's faking it or if he's really like this, but as long as he's a person who cares about brotherhood, he can't be conservative when facing this situation.”

“Even if he's not aggressive enough, people will think that maybe…” The professor pursed his lips and shook his head. “…they'll think that maybe he doesn't care about his brothers as much as people think.”

“I heard that Morris is still being rescued and his life or death is unknown. He must do something.”

“What do you say, what is he most likely to do at this time?”

Wolf scratched his head. “If I were him, I would bring people over and start a war with us.”

The professor looked at Wolf with an appreciative look. Although this idiot didn't have a brain most of the time, he was right this time.

“I just want to stimulate Lance. If he wants to show his brotherhood, he will definitely come to take revenge on us.”

“So I asked you to gather people together today and wait for them to come to our door!”

“The people above always think we don't have any progress. What do they know?”

“If we go out of our way to deal with Lance, even if we pluck out his two eyes now, we still won't have the advantage.”

“But conversely, if we let them attack us, then we will be the one with the advantage.”

“As long as they enter the port area, even if we can't eliminate them today, we can make them suffer heavy losses and no longer be qualified to compete with us.”

“By then, the only way left for them will be to escape.”

“Golden Port City is beautiful!” The professor picked up his wine glass and took a sip. After the wine was swallowed, he even licked his lips. “The first time I came here, I fell in love with this place.”

“So, no matter what, I will never leave.”

“Since we're not leaving, then someone has to leave!”

He looked at Wolf, "Go be a wolf king, lead all the wolf cubs, and tear apart all the prey!"

Tonight, the Wolf Gang headquarters is a huge trap. They have arranged a large number of gunmen around, and as long as Lance's people come over, they will inevitably be riddled with holes!

Moreover, the Professor believes that they have to come!

All that's left is to wait quietly!

At this time, Lance was indeed reorganizing his men and arranging for people to distribute weapons.

He couldn't take everyone away. If the Wolf Gang came to attack the headquarters, the loss would not only be manpower and wealth, but also face.

So, some people had to stay at the headquarters just in case.

Elvin seemed a little worried, "They might be waiting for us."

Lance stood outside the company gate, he nodded, "I know."

This made Elvin even more worried. He was afraid that Lance would be blinded by hatred, "Shouldn't we find out the situation before we act?"

Lance's gaze fell on him, "I didn't say I was going to the port area to fight them head-on. There is still a group of Wolf Gang people in the Imperial District."

Elvin then realized, "You mean... the Wolf Gang members on Mr. Chobaf's side?"

Lance nodded, "They are also core members of the Wolf Gang. They think that being with Chobaf will stop me."

"And their bar…"

Hearing this, Elvin felt relieved. He found Hiram and explained it briefly, and Hiram also felt relieved.

At 9:40 pm, Mr. Chobaf was still looking at materials. As October approached, the municipal councilor election was about to officially begin.

His chances of winning were limited, and he had to find a way to increase his approval rating as soon as possible in the last month or so.

The sudden noise downstairs made him frown. These people from the Wolf Gang were very rude.

He convinced himself that these rude people were at the bottom of society, that's just how they were. If they became less rude, it would seem abnormal.

But… they were too noisy!

How wonderful it would be if someone could make these people quiet down?

He put down the documents in his hand, looked at the dark night sky outside the window, and recalled everything in the past. In this quiet and lonely late night, he thought of his wife.

He thought of many things, and he also thought of regret.

Regret is an emotion that everyone has. After people have walked a certain distance forward, they will have more or less regret for every choice they made on this road.

“I should have chosen this way.”

“I should have chosen that way.”

When the fruits of the harvest are not sweet enough, or perhaps could have been sweeter, people will regret, be annoyed, or even remorseful.

Mr. Chobaf also regretted it very much. Why was he tricked onto the ship by the mayor's few words and a "municipal councilor" and "high society"?

If he... had chosen Lance's suggestion back then, burned down the warehouse, and only been a prostitute instead of a dog, would there have been a different scene?

He didn't know. Once a choice is made, there is no way to start over, and you can only bite the bullet and move on.

This was a terrible journey. He was not only physically exhausted, but also mentally exhausted.

The tranquility of the distant night sky was suddenly broken by a burst of gunfire, and he stared blankly in the direction of the gunfire.

All night long, there were gunshots everywhere. If it wasn't here, it was there, and there were even short bursts of explosions. The city seemed to have lost all order!

Police cars were patrolling back and forth on the streets like crazy, but they still couldn't stop the occurrence of various crimes.

He suddenly felt a deep disappointment and even disgust towards the mayor and the locals.

He stood up and left the study. He wanted to rest.

If he had stayed in the study a little longer, he would have noticed a row of car lights parked outside his villa and turned off.

At this time, in the hall on the first floor of the villa, the people from the Wolf Gang were still chatting loudly and recklessly.

The table in the living room was full of various meat products, and the corners were full of wine bottles.

Working here for Mr. Chobaf was the happiest thing for these people.

Leading the team here were two senior cadres, with a total of more than thirty people. They were divided into two teams.

One team had fewer people and was usually responsible for Mr. Chobaf's personal safety. The other team had more people and was responsible for the safety of various election campaigns.

When there were no such activities, they would eat and drink here, anyway, it wasn't their money.

The two senior cadres were discussing the sudden attack on the Lance family today, "Actually, it's not just us who are attacking. The Bear Gang is also attacking, and everyone else is attacking. Listen to the gunshots outside, the whole city is in chaos!"

His face still had the flush of excitement left after the alcohol stimulation, and the surrounding gang members also cheered, which gave him more desire to confide!

“After we get rid of the Lance family, we will occupy the territory of two districts, and then we can put pressure on Prussia.”

“The gangs over there are not very good, whether in terms of strength or financial resources. By then, we will definitely be able to take another district.”

“Brothers, eleven administrative districts, taking three districts. Even when the five major families were at their peak, it was probably only like this!”

“The era is about to change. This time, whether it is the three major families, the four major families, or the five major families, our Wolf Gang will have a place!”

“Cheers!”

A large group of people, either sitting or standing, raised their glasses, and the entire hall exuded a strange smell, not stinky, but not not stinky.

He raised his glass and drank the wine in one gulp. Under the stimulation of alcohol, he felt unprecedented happiness and laughed loudly!

When people laugh, most people subconsciously close their eyes or squint their eyes.

When he laughed for a while and raised his hand to wipe the tears from the corners of his eyes, the smile on his face instantly froze when he reopened his eyes.

The next second, his entire head suddenly swung backward, and a bloody hole in his forehead instantly woke everyone up!

Hiram held a submachine gun and pulled the trigger against the inside through the glass. Not only him, but almost everyone else was like this.

The bullets formed a storm that destroyed everything in the hall!

Everywhere was splashing blood or splashing sawdust, furniture, walls, decorations... even people were riddled with holes!

These people couldn't organize any resistance at all!

Thirty or forty seconds later, the entire hall was like it had been baptized by some terrible force, becoming ruins.

Hiram walked into the room and pulled out his pistol to shoot the corpses on the ground one by one. He wanted to return everything that Maurice had experienced to these people without any changes!

At the same time, in the Wolf Gang's bar, which was still under renovation, several gang members who stayed behind were also chatting.

They were used to staying up late. Even if there was nothing here, as long as there was a little wine and something to eat, they could chat and drink until late at night.

“Did you guys smell something?”

Someone suddenly asked.

When you drink too much, your reaction becomes sluggish, and the other people started sniffing.

At first, they didn't notice any smell, but after carefully identifying it for a while, everyone smelled a strong smell of gasoline.

“Could the car be leaking oil?”

Sometimes those old cars would leak oil. After all, the various technologies at this time were not advanced enough, and it was normal for the oil lines and engines to leak for some reason.

Someone stood up unsteadily. He planned to take a look at the situation. After all, an oil leak was a very dangerous thing.

But before he could take a few steps, he found thick smoke outside, seeping into the house from under the door.

He subconsciously opened the door, and the billowing smoke instantly rolled in from the outside, and everyone was instantly frightened awake!

Waves of heat accompanied by smoke made people feel fear for the world outside. At this time, the harm caused by smoke was more terrible than open fire!

Although fire will burn people's bodies, as long as you are not stupid enough to let the fire burn or ignite, there is always a place to hide.

But smoke is different. It first makes people unable to see the escape route, and then inhaling too much smoke can cause fainting.

Fainting at the scene of a fire…

The people in the room ran towards the door in panic. At this time, their minds were completely blank. They didn't know where to run, so they could only subconsciously look for a way out based on vague memories.

Some people found the direction of the door and rushed towards the door, but the door was locked from the outside. The fire had begun to engulf the entire house, and flames were starting to appear everywhere.

They ran towards the stairs again. As long as they could run to the second or third floor and jump out, they could survive.

They couldn't care about others anymore, and the only thought in their minds was to let themselves survive.

Someone was the first to rush into a room on the second floor. He vaguely saw the outline of the window. The oxygen outside was swept in by the high temperature, so there was not so much smoke in a certain area.

This person accelerated and ran through the flames, jumping out with all his strength, and the whole person flew out horizontally and fell heavily to the ground.

He didn't show a painful expression because of the fall. His face was full of joy after surviving the disaster. He looked back at the house engulfed in flames and even wanted to laugh.

But the sound of footsteps disturbed his emotional expression.

He turned his head and saw a pair of legs walking in front of him, and then his eyes followed the legs all the way up, and he saw a pistol and a person holding a pistol.

The dark muzzle was pointed directly at him. He looked up at the person, the flames crackling as they burned, illuminating the person's cold face, and destroying all hope of his survival.

"Shit!"

Dring dring dring…

The phone in front of Lance suddenly rang. He immediately reached out and answered it, "This is Lance."

"Mr. Lance, I have good news. Your friend, Mr. Maurice, survived all the surgeries."

"If no infection occurs, he will wake up tomorrow…"