Empire of Shadows

"Please sit down, no need to be so polite. This is your home, not mine."

The vice president was restless. He didn't know how his family was doing.

Although he hadn't given his wife a kind look for a long time, he didn't know why, but at this moment, he actually began to worry about her safety.

"My wife and children…"

Lance pointed to the rooms upstairs, "If they're not too stupid, no one will get hurt. I'd rather talk to you about the things between us."

These words made the vice president feel a little relieved. After hesitating for a while, he said, "Actually, I originally supported the company in fulfilling the contract, but you know, I'm just a vice president."

"Above me, there's also the CEO, the chairman of the board, and the people on the board."

"My words don't count!"

From his humble attitude, it could be seen that he really wanted to gain Lance's trust and was being very sincere.

Both in expression and attitude.

Lance nodded noncommittally, "Then how do you think I can get the money that belongs to me?"

In fact, Lance was now in a very special situation. It was obvious that the Liji Group was unwilling to give him the money, but he couldn't give up, nor could he possibly give up.

Both sides were competing, both had reasons not to give up, which put the situation in a less than ideal position.

But this matter had to be resolved, otherwise he wouldn't be at ease, and he believed that the Liji Group's executives wouldn't be at ease either. That was why he came to this city.

The vice president's brain was working at an unprecedented speed. He licked his lips, "Mr. Lance, actually, from the beginning, you gave us a difficult problem."

Lance suddenly wanted to laugh, with a smile on his face, "So this is my fault?"

The vice president nodded.

As long as Lance didn't pull out a gun and turn him into pieces at the slightest disagreement, then he could completely say some of his innermost thoughts.

"You made things too obvious, and look, it's already the end of the year."

"The annual financial report is a very important part. For the company, it determines the development trend of the company's stock in the next three months or even half a year."

"If the shareholders and investors know that the company has a loss of four million at this time, and it's because of extortion!"

"Then there's a high probability that it will cause the company's stock to plummet!"

"If you can extort us, then others can extort us too. The risks in our environment will continue to increase."

"They will become less trusting of us, investments will have problems, stocks will fall, everything will become very bad."

Lance also knew something about this. He had heard a friend surnamed Lin talk about it, and he nodded, "So?"

"So we can't be extorted by you, we must solve this problem!"

"We must make the shareholders and investors believe that we are no different from the past, and that no matter what challenges we face, we can solve them!"

"Only in this way can the stock price stabilize, and investors will still be optimistic and full of hope for the coming year."

"Everyone can get a lot of money from it, nothing will get worse, it will only get better and better!"

"So, even if we pay some price or use some means, it's worth it, and we must do it."

"It's not just a matter of money, or rather, it's a matter of more money."

Lance thought about it carefully for a while, and quite agreed with his point of view. He also knew that for listed companies, the stock price was the only benchmark of wealth.

A slightly disappointed expression appeared on his face, "Then it seems we can't solve this problem."

His tone revealed some… disappointment that seemed to want to end everything!

This startled the vice president. Only now did he remember that someone had just died!

"Mr. Lance, I'm talking about the normal situation. We have no way, but isn't there an abnormal way?"

The smile on his face was very sincere. Lance looked at him, signaling him to continue.

"If… I mean if, we are not successfully extorted and solve this problem."

"Then shareholders and investors will still be full of confidence in us, and the stock price will continue to rise next year. No one will have trouble."

"Four million may not be a small amount for you…"

He noticed the subtle changes in the expressions on the faces of the people around Lance, and quickly added, "Of course, it's the same for me."

"But for our stock, it may only be a few thousandths, or even a few ten-thousandths of a price fluctuation!"

The current market value of the Liji Group is more than one billion. It sounds exaggerated, but in fact, it's not the company with the highest market value, and even the word "high" is barely applicable.

Many years ago, capitalists created amazing wealth through monopolies. Families with billions or tens of billions were everywhere!

When stocks began to allow more ordinary people to enter on a wider and lower threshold, it was filled with all kinds of miracles and myths.

For a company with a market value of over one billion, four million is only a few thousandths of a price fluctuation.

A bad piece of news can instantly evaporate countless amounts of money, so looking at this matter calmly and objectively, the vice president was not wrong.

Lance was silent for a while, "I just want to get back what you owe me."

The vice president breathed a sigh of relief, "Then there is a solution between us."

Lance thought of what Steven had told him.

The vice president also gave a clear answer, "We will continue to drag the case on, and we will publicly reveal in the financial report our determination and confidence to win the lawsuit."

"Then we will secretly transfer a sum of money to your account, and this matter will be over."

"The stock will not plummet, and may even experience unplanned growth because of this."

"At the same time, you will also get what you want."

This was indeed a solution.

However, Lance looked at him with distrust, "How will you convince the board of directors to agree to give me four million?"

This was indeed a problem, but the vice president's heart was now racing, and even his breathing became slightly heavy.

He swallowed and said with a kind of… indescribable madness!

"Mr. Lance, Steven is just a minor character. He does dirty work for the company. His death, besides making people uneasy, doesn't scare anyone,"

he said to Lance.

Lance immediately understood what he meant and saw the vice president's ambition in his eyes.

What he meant was that solving Steven was not only not a problem for the company, but it also helped the company.

If the company were to deal with Steven, it might cause some trouble.

After all, Steven had done so much dirty work for the company. The more bad things he did, the more he worried about his own fate, and he might even sense something in advance.

But Lance didn't give him any chance to arrange a backup plan. Now, the president and the chairman of the board may have already arranged for people to ransack Steven's house!

Steven's death had nothing to do with the company, allowing them to calmly change to a new pair of gloves, so it's hard to say whether Steven's death was more beneficial or detrimental to the company.

Then, to truly shock the entire company and make them understand "We must make a choice," Lance must do something big!

Either someone is backing him, such as a senator.

Or, someone of great importance dies, which will truly make them feel the arrival of danger.

Lance thought for a long time before saying noncommittally, "I don't like being used as a weapon."

The vice president waved his hands and said, "I don't mean that, but it should be the easiest way for you."

"Unless a big shot speaks for you, the company won't give you the money because of Steven's death."

"He wasn't worth that much when he was alive, let alone after he died!"

"Or, make those real decision-makers feel afraid, make them feel that their lives, like those of the lower classes they look down on, will also disappear."

Lance thought for a while, "I don't like being led by the nose,"

He beckoned to the vice president, "Lean your face closer."

The vice president didn't know what Lance meant, so he leaned his head forward.

The next second, Lance suddenly punched him, knocking him off balance and to the ground!

He staggered, wanting to get up, but the punch was very heavy and hit his cheek, causing his body to lose its balance for a short time.

He looked at Lance in horror, fearing that Lance would pull out a gun and biubiu him twice!

What vice president, what big shot, what status, at this moment, his only thought was to survive!

Looking at his horrified appearance, Lance straightened his clothes and looked at each other.

He saw a strong fear in the vice president's eyes, which made him feel a little satisfied.

Even if he were to adopt the vice president's idea, it would be him who took the initiative, not this person.

"Help our vice president sit back down,"

Someone helped the vice president put him back on the sofa.

At this time, his body trembled slightly again. He thought Lance was going to deal with him.

But the next second, Lance's words dispelled the fear in his heart and gave rise to endless joy!

"Who do you think is the most suitable person for this role?"

"Let me think about it."

Those who could suppress him kept flashing through his mind. He lowered his eyes, slightly bowed his head, and asked, "Can I choose two?"

Lance looked at him, stunned for a moment, and then burst out laughing.

"I like your greed, Mr. Vice President!"

As for which two he chose, only he himself knew. Lance didn't completely agree to him, only saying he would consider it, but this already made the Vice President very happy.

In his opinion, Lance had no other way to go but to execute this plan.

Despite the rapid development of Golden Port City in the past decade, in the eyes of the people of New Golden City, it was still just a "small fishing village" that had just begun to prosper.

Coming from such a place, a gangster leader with no foundation, what big shots could he possibly know?

After Lance and his group left, his wife and son came downstairs, both with expressions of worry in their eyes.

"Should we call the police?" his son asked.

The Vice President suddenly widened his eyes, "Call the police?"

"Why call the police?"

His son hadn't reacted yet, but his wife already had. She quickly said to the child, "Those gentlemen just now were your father's friends. They were just playing a little joke..."

His son wasn't completely stupid. He couldn't believe it was true. Just as he was about to say something, the Vice President's wife grabbed his hand, "Honey, trust us, we wouldn't hurt you."

"Forget about this. Didn't you want that car?"

"You can go pick out the color now!"

The young man was immediately distracted by this. His face was full of surprise, "Really?"

The Vice President smiled and nodded, "Yes, your mother has the final say!"

"Thank you, thank you..."

The couple looked at each other and both smiled.

Although he and this woman hadn't been together for a long time, he had to admit that among his female partners, only this woman understood him the most!

After finding a reason to make his son believe that nothing had happened, the couple, very rarely, slept in the same bed for the first time in almost five years.

"What exactly is going on with that young man?" she couldn't help but ask.

The Vice President hesitated for a moment, then picked out some things he could say. This made his wife exclaim in surprise, "If they're finished, do you have a great chance of becoming the company president?"

President and Vice President, although both are presidents, their status in the company and in society are completely different.

The Vice President suppressed the joy and excitement in his heart and nodded, "Very likely."

His wife's eyes softened instantly. "Vice President's wife" and "President's wife," she knew which to choose!

She pounced on her husband. She knew that her husband was fond of young girls and was no longer so interested in her body. What she wanted to happen might not happen.

But it didn't matter, she had great oral skills, and she could push everything forward!

On the other side of the city, Tom (an aide to Cleveland Senator) had just finished his social engagements and returned home. He tore off his tie and sat on the sofa.

He had drunk a lot of alcohol that night and his whole body exuded the smell of alcohol.

It's funny to say, but the Dangerous Goods Investigation Bureau of New Golden City actually knew that there were various social engagements with alcohol every night in some places, but they just didn't investigate.

Why?

Because they all knew that those places were full of big shots!

Senators, congressmen, cabinet members, heads of various departments, those billionaires and political figures, there wasn't a single person they could afford to offend!

It could be said that the Dangerous Goods Management Bureaus in all regions of the Federation, except for New Golden City, held great power, but here, they didn't dare to move.

As one of Senator Cleveland's aides, Tom also undertook some of the work.

He just wanted to rest now, but the phone rang particularly jarringly.

Who the hell would call him at this time?

Many people would!

Some people who weren't convenient to contact the senator directly would contact him through him. Among these people, some didn't know when he was available and could only call him every once in a while.

Some people even got this number from somewhere and harassed him.

But he didn't dare to miss any call, because if he missed an important one, he would make a mistake.

"This is Tom..."

He had no official position or any identification, only his name.

"Mr. Tom, this is Lance."

Tom searched his mind for a while before remembering who this name was, "Ah, Lance, I remember you. What's the matter?"

"It's like this, Mr. Tom, I'm in New Golden City right now. I've encountered a little problem and I'd like to ask for your advice in person. Do you have time now?"

Tom perked up a little, "You're in New Golden City?"

Before waiting for Lance to answer, he spoke again, "Let me see..."

He took out a notebook with his tasks for tomorrow recorded in it.

Because it was already the end of the year, almost every day was fully booked, and they were all important appointments.

Those that weren't important didn't even have the qualification to be on this notebook!

The closest free time was still more than a week away, and he believed that even if it was scheduled for a week later, there was a high probability that something else would take up this free time.

He rubbed his temples, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Let's do it now, I don't have that much time at other times. You better make sure that what you want to discuss with me is worth me taking thirty minutes to give you!"

Lance assured him on the phone, "I can promise you that these thirty minutes will definitely be worth it!"

Tom didn't say anything more and directly gave Lance an address. Twenty minutes later, Lance arrived here.

Tom also lived alone. The nature of his work made it inconvenient for him to live with his family, whether it was a sudden phone call in the middle of the night or the many confidential materials in his life.

He knew that even family members would sometimes let things slip, even if they didn't mean to.

He had already taken a shower and eaten something before Lance arrived, but it made him even more sleepy.

He didn't have much energy when he opened the door, "I almost fell asleep before you came!"

He glanced at the person outside the door, "Come in alone."

Lance raised his hand to signal that the others should stay outside. Lance entered the house alone.

Without going to the study, he sat down in the living room. "If you want something to drink, you can get it yourself," he pointed to the bar next to the dining room.

He leaned back on the sofa, looking tired, "Speak, what do you want to see me about?"

"But you better be concise, because I'm about to fall asleep!"