Empire of Shadows

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It was already September, and Bureau Chief Blue called Lance to ask whether to collect the regulatory fees for this month or not.

Lance told him to stop from this month onwards, because Lance's people had already started collecting these new sanitation fees.

He changed the name of these protection fees to "sanitation fees" and established a new company called "Wanli Cleaning Company."

The company's main business was to provide environmental cleaning services to customers, and all merchants in the Imperial District and Port District were their "customers."

Others didn't understand. They didn't understand why Lance had to specifically set up a company to collect this money.

You should know that if it is a business activity, this money needs to be taxed. The standard they charge is already low, and if they pay taxes, it will be even less.

Perhaps only Sean, who had already started college, understood a little, but not all of it.

Users can be monetized and may even go public!

Lance had a morbid sense of humor. He wanted to package Wanli Cleaning Company and list it on the stock market. A company that collects protection fees being listed on the stock market might sound like a joke, but it might not be impossible.

As long as its scale is large enough and it has enough users, capitalists won't care why every merchant wants to use this company's services and pay for it.

What they care about is market share, market prospects, and whether there is a possibility of monopoly!

As long as there is, they are willing to pay wealth for it and obtain rich profits from its development.

As a future successful person, how can he not have several listed companies in his hands?

So, these days, the company's salesmen have already started collecting sanitation fees.

About 30% of the company's employees are temporary members of the gang, and the rest are recruited from the Imperial District and Port District.

This was their first time officially entering a working state, and to be honest, it was not very adaptable.

In a retail store, the owner and two employees were organizing the shelves. The doorbell suddenly rang, and the owner said without looking up, "We haven't started business yet."

But the person who came did not leave, "We are here to collect sanitation fees."

The owner was stunned for a moment, then straightened up, wiped his hands on his apron, walked over with a smile on his face, and shook hands with the person walking in front.

"I seem to have seen you before."

The young man smiled and said, "I live on the next street. You may have seen me when you passed by there."

The boss suddenly realized, "No wonder...", he glanced at the two people behind him, "How much should I pay?"

The young man looked at the staff member on his left. That guy quickly opened his notebook and said, "Boss, you hired two employees, right?"

The owner nodded, "Yes, is there anything special about that?"

The staff member asked again, "Are they immigrants or locals?"

The owner looked at the two employees and said, "They are all Imperial immigrants."

The staff member then explained, "The company's regulations say that a store like yours needs to collect six yuan in sanitation fees, but if you hire immigrants, then your sanitation fees will be reduced by one yuan. You hired two people, so this month you need to pay four yuan in sanitation fees."

The owner was even a little worried after hearing this, "Will it be too little?"

The staff member looked blank. He looked at his little leader, who said with a smile, "No, this is the rule personally set by Mr. Lance."

The name "Mr. Lance" seemed to have a kind of magic. The owner immediately walked behind the cashier, took out four yuan, and handed it over, "Here you are."

The leader asked the staff member to issue a receipt, then chatted for a few words before leaving with his people.

A new young man in the store was a little confused, "Sanitation fee, what sanitation fee?"

The owner explained while working, "It's actually a protection fee."

The young employee's eyes widened, "Why not call the police?"

"Before I came, I always heard that the federal police are very honest and efficient. If we call the police, they will definitely be unlucky, right?"

The young man arrived in Jincheng City at the end of August and the beginning of September. He has a temporary visa and entered through legal channels. He has to leave every once in a while.

During this period, a large number of Imperial immigrants came to the Federation and went to all parts of the world. The struggle between the royal family and the nobles was almost completely over.

Those who longed for the overthrow of the royal family were once again defeated by the cruel reality. They could not accept such a result, so they chose to immigrate, smuggle, or work to leave the empire to express their dissatisfaction with the outcome of the situation.

During this period, the population of Jincheng City is still increasing, and some say that it will soon reach a permanent population of two million.

In this period, two million in a city is already a very considerable number.

So it's normal that he doesn't understand these things.

The owner looked at him like he was an idiot, "Why should I call the police?"

The young clerk pointed outside the door, "They... shouldn't do that."

The owner shook his head and continued working, not wanting to speak.

Instead, another old clerk explained.

Since Lance changed the rules of the Imperial District, the boss hired a new clerk and increased the business content, which was unthinkable before.

He put his arm around the young employee's shoulder and explained, "The Federation is not as good as you think. The police and the gang here are often in the same gang."

"In the past, we had to pay a sum of money to the gang every month, and we also had to pay a sum of money to the police. They often came to blackmail us..."

The owner couldn't help but curse when he heard this, "Those greedy bitches and dogs, I curse them all to go to hell!"

The older clerk simply explained that those gangsters or policemen would pick out a few yuan worth of things at a time when they bought things here, but they would only give some coins when paying the bill.

If you are lucky, you can get fifty cents, and if you are unlucky, you may only get a dozen cents.

If you think it's too little and want to argue with them, then trouble will appear, and the loss will be far more than what they intend to take away.

Especially some low-level gangs, they often come to take cigarettes without paying, and the shop owner is also miserable.

As for why it is so hard to continue operating?

That's because although it's hard, you can indeed make money.

Just like Johnny's bakery, although the police and gangsters have been taking his money, he can still have a surplus of about seventy or eighty yuan to one hundred yuan a month, which is much more comfortable than going to work - of course, all of this is based on the fact that he does not pay the apprentice and Lance's wages.

The other shops are roughly the same, a little better than going to work, so they can persevere.

When the young employee heard these words, he felt that his understanding of the Federation was completely shattered, because in his understanding, the federal police were honest, efficient, and impartial.

Anyone can call the police and enjoy the various rights granted to them by the federal judiciary, but after really coming here, it doesn't seem to be the same thing!

The older employee smiled and patted him on the shoulder, "These people are Mr. Lance's people. The entire Imperial District is his territory. He has eliminated the protection fees we paid to the gang, and now he has eliminated the large protection fees we have to pay to the police. Compared to the protection fees of fifteen yuan per month in the past, it now only costs four yuan. I think this is very appropriate."

The owner hummed twice, "You can have a job, and you have to thank Mr. Lance, otherwise I wouldn't consider hiring another person..."

If the young clerk is still rebuilding his understanding of the Federation, then the two staff members standing at the door are also rebuilding their understanding of the Federation.

One is an immigrant and the other is a local. They are both ordinary people. This is their first time collecting protection fees.

"Manager... are we sure we don't need to arrange someone to clean up for them?"

The local whispered, "Even if it's just... doing it at the door?"

The guy who was called "Manager" smiled and shook his head, "We are collecting protection fees, not real sanitation fees. It would be a joke if you helped them clean up."

The two were silent. It's so blatant to say that you're collecting protection fees, and you even set up a company to collect them. Is this appropriate?

The three walked to the next store. As he walked, he said, "Don't worry that this is illegal. It meets all the requirements of federal law. We will also pay taxes normally and pay you wages."

"As for whether we send someone to clean up, there is no direct practical relationship with whether they pay."

"You are not familiar with it yet, so I will take you to collect it once. Starting next month, you will collect it yourself."

"If someone doesn't pay..."

The three happened to walk outside the next shop. The owner was waiting at the door early, with a righteous expression on his face, "Who didn't pay?"

"Tell me, I'll go scold him!"

"Mr. Lance is such a good and kind person, but he doesn't appreciate it. We will drive him out of the Imperial District!"

As he said that, the anger on his face turned into a smile, "How much do we have to pay here?"

The staff member subconsciously glanced at the notebook, "Five yuan. You hired an employee, so you can deduct one yuan. It's also four yuan."

"Here, this is four yuan...", the owner had already prepared the money, and also packed two kraft paper bags, which contained some cooked food, meat or something, which should be worth at least one yuan or so.

"It was just cooked this morning, try it."

The leader said "Thank you," took a piece, and ate it in front of the shop owner. "It's delicious, the taste is excellent, I will recommend it to my friends."

The shop owner was overjoyed. "If your friends come, I will give them a discount price..."

Along the way, the two of them felt like they had opened a new world. Almost all the shops enthusiastically paid the money, and some even gave them small gifts.

Food, drinks, or other things. This was the first time they had encountered such a situation.

The people paying protection money were so proactive, which was completely different from their previous understanding of society!

They had heard before that those who collected protection money were villains, and those who were charged protection money were pitiful people, but the situation... how was it a little different?

Their brains couldn't figure it out, but it didn't matter, as long as someone could figure it out.

However, there were also people who were unwilling to pay and even cursed, saying that they had never paid before and would not pay in the future!

"Have the names of these people been recorded?"

Lance sat back in his chair. He had just finished a call with Branch Chief Blue. This money could be collected in at most three days. After it was collected, it would be around the tenth. At that time, he would issue another salary to the police according to the lists submitted by the two districts.

It sounded incredible!

The mafia paying the police salaries, but this was precisely one of the most bizarre "snapshots" of this era, and there would be even more bizarre things than this!

In a period when the overall order of the country was not yet perfect, all kinds of strange things could happen, and as long as they happened, they were reasonable.

Erwin nodded and said, "They have all been recorded. What are you going to do?"

Lance leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and tapped his fingers rhythmically on the armrest. "The rules are not made for a few people to disobey. I am not a good person, let alone a pushover. Since they don't abide by our rules, we will make them abide by the rules."

Erwin was a little worried. "Will this cause some negative impact?"

"After all... they have lived here for a long time, and they are also imperial immigrants, with certain social connections."

Lance retorted, "Does this have anything to do with them not following my rules?"

"If everyone can disobey the rules because they know a lot of people, then what is the purpose and meaning of me making these rules?"

"Don't worry about causing any discussions that are unfavorable to me, as long as we make people understand that the problem is not with us!"

"Arrange for some people to teach them a lesson. They can be given a chance to regret, but only once!"

Erwin immediately understood. He knew where the line was. They had to be frightened and then made to pay the money.

As for those who resolutely refused to pay, they could only be used as negative examples.

As they were talking, the phone on Lance's desk rang. Erwin also stood up as the phone rang. "I'm going to do my work."

Lance nodded and answered the phone. "This is Lance."

"It's me, Alberto. Sarif just called me and said that Bandiyo is negotiating in the city center, and so is Rick."

Lance "hmm"ed, "He wouldn't want us to ambush Rick on the road, would he?"

Alberto laughed. "I knew you could guess it."

"Really?", Lance was a little surprised, "I was just guessing."

Alberto explained, "He's worried that if Rick falls into a disadvantage, Bandi will increase his support for him, and he has hired a new batch of gunmen. This time, we haven't been able to get the location and route of their meeting."

"So, in order to avoid being dragged on indefinitely, he decided to solve the problem once and for all."

Lance thought for a while, "No problem, when, where, how do we act?"

"I'll come find you in the afternoon."

In the afternoon, Alberto and Francisco came to Lance's office. Francisco was still a little restrained. Apart from saying hello, he didn't say anything to Lance.

Alberto seemed very relaxed. He sat in the chair, crossed his legs, "They agreed to negotiate at Jincheng Century in two days. We will attack Rick when he comes out."

"You send some people, we send some people, and Sarif also sends some people. The people he sends will definitely be more than us."

Lance thought for a while, "Sounds reasonable. Why do they suddenly want to negotiate again?"

Alberto shrugged, "Isn't it because Rick's son died and the bar was raided?"

"I guess there's also Bandi's reason. Haven't you noticed?"

"Bandi has been actively mediating the conflict between us these two times. He is very concerned about this matter."

"I heard a rumor, I don't know if it's true or not."

Lance became a little interested. He opened the cigarette case and motioned for Alberto to take one. Francisco also took one on his own initiative.

Although he was only sixteen years old.

He has also been under a lot of pressure recently, pressure from within the family, pressure from outside the family, and the revenge for his father that he has to take. It is not easy for him to be able to hold on to this point without collapsing.

Not every sixteen-year-old who has been living a pampered life can be so stable when suddenly encountering an accident.

"There may be some personnel adjustments within the Socialist Party of Likale State. You know, adjustments mean opportunities, and opportunities require money."

"In addition, the chaos in Jincheng City during this period has greatly reduced the revenue of their casinos. They need to transport a lot of benefits upward. It seems that they are earning less, but in fact, the people above are taking less."

"Someone is urging them."

"I don't know if these news are true or not. They are all hearsay, but I think it is possible because Bandi is indeed very active."

Lance couldn't tell the truth from the false for a while. After all, he didn't have the connections at this level.

Although he knew Tom and Senator Cleveland, he couldn't call and ask for verification for this kind of thing. It wasn't appropriate.

Lance nodded, "Do you need me to prepare a truck?"

Hearing this, Alberto couldn't help but laugh. After laughing for a while, he thought for a while, "It's best to prepare it, no one knows how things will develop..."

"Hopefully this time, we can solve this trouble once and for all."

Lance nodded in agreement.

While they were preparing manpower, Rick was also preparing manpower. A new batch of gunmen will arrive tonight, and this batch of gunmen will be used entirely for the attack on Sarif.

His plan was actually similar to Sarif's plan. After they finished negotiating and came out, they would attack Sarif.

Why not before the negotiation?

Because he didn't know where Sarif would come from. Only after he entered the hotel could he determine where he was.

As long as Sarif is taken care of, the others are not a problem in his eyes!

He is now increasingly looking forward to the arrival of two days later!