Empire of Shadows

What Lance said to President Scott, he had actually said to Vaughn, but he was worried that Vaughn would consider some issues and make his words very tactful.

The biggest problem with relaying messages is that the attitude, emotions, and expression can never be exactly the same.

As long as they are not exactly the same, problems may arise.

Perhaps some of Lance's requests, such as having to sit on the podium, might be conveyed by Vaughn as "Lance hopes to sit in more conspicuous positions," leading to him being arranged in the first row below the podium.

This kind of thing is very likely to happen, and has happened many times, in other places or matters.

It was difficult for Vaughn to say these things as firmly as Lance, and as long as his attitude was tactful, he would misrepresent the meaning.

So Lance had to express himself personally.

President Scott didn't think it was excessive. People had spent money. He had been working at the docks for so many years, and he no longer had the unrealistic ideas he had when he was young.

He immediately nodded and expressed his attitude more strongly, "Lance, you can trust me, I am not an ungrateful person!"

"You have helped me so much, you are one of my best friends, if there is anything I can do to help, I will definitely not refuse!"

A very good statement, at least from this moment on.

After ending this somewhat private topic, they began "rehearsing", mainly the organizers rehearsing the general process of the entire event.

Lance's position was originally on the far right of the podium, but now it was moved closer to the center, roughly at the three-quarters mark on the right side. Scott was very clever.

Including going on stage to present awards, several people took turns doing this.

Of course, they still had some arrangements for who would go first and who would go later. Lance was roughly ranked fourth, following closely behind the Vice President of the Licalle State Labor Federation, the Commissioner of the Trade Union, and the President of the Licalle State Dockworkers Union, to present medals and bonuses, one position ahead of President Scott.

This is the value of a sponsor. If it weren't for the people from the Labor Federation insisting on joining in the fun, Lance would definitely have been ranked third.

If it were another event, as a sponsor, Lance would definitely be ranked first or second, but this time was different.

Under the slogan of "Workers' Great Unity", the federal working class at this time believed that they had the power to change the world!

Therefore, capitalists cannot be ranked above them!

This is also the most troublesome problem for the federal government and capitalists, because they really have this power!

When the Labor Federation launches a major strike, both the federal government and the capitalists must pay for it, and an industry or even the entire society may come to a standstill!

They are studying ways to solve this problem, through what means to make the "key" in their hands ineffective, but it seems that it may still take some time.

The whole process was arranged very meticulously, and what Lance didn't expect was that he also saw a very special young man.

That young man was also surrounded by some people, and even President Coster, when he saw him, took the initiative to apologize to Lance and went to greet him.

"Who is this?" Lance had never seen this young man, but judging from his dress and temperament, he shouldn't be an ordinary person.

Vaughn looked at Lance strangely, "This is the mayor's secretary, but some people say he is an advisor."

Perhaps noticing the gaze from this side, the young man even smiled and nodded at Lance, and Lance also politely reached out and touched his hat.

Vaughn said in an envious tone, "Graduated from a well-known Alliance University, and was spotted by the mayor as soon as he graduated, becoming his secretary, and has been ever since."

"Many people say that the mayor is cultivating him as his political successor. Everyone believes this. You can see that he is doing everything, not that person."

The "that person" Vaughn was talking about was obviously the rumored illegitimate son Eric, but judging from Lance's past dealings with Eric, Eric was indeed not up to the job.

And there will be no chance in the future, because he is very dependent on painkillers. No one likes a patient who needs pain relief anytime, anywhere, and his status as an illegitimate son is not so presentable.

Cultivating another one seems to have become a necessary choice.

Lance also thought of more things. If the mayor has no blood relatives as heirs, then he will not have many enemies in the political arena.

He has no blood descendants to inherit his glory and hatred, which means that everything will come to a perfect or imperfect end the moment he loses his ability to work.

Perhaps this is also one of the reasons why he was able to come to Goldport City. No one is worried that he will become the next "mountain top"!

But what Lance found even more interesting was Vaughn, "You seem to be very familiar with these people in the City Hall."

Vaughn also heard the somewhat joking sarcasm in Lance's words, but he didn't care at all, "This is also one of my jobs. I have to figure out who I should go to when the workers are persecuted in order to solve the problem."

"I agree with your statement."

Vaughn laughed loudly after hearing this, "I don't need agreement, Lance, this is my job!"

As he spoke, that person and President Scott walked over together. A few steps away, the young man reached out his hand, "Sink."

"Lance."

The two shook hands. Lance felt very strange. This young man named Sink had no need to know him.

But soon he knew that it turned out that the mayor also knew about this, but he… it was not convenient for him to appear here, so he sent this Sink to participate.

This avoids some problems, such as the mayor may not be sitting in the center of the podium. The people from the Labor Federation will not talk to you about whether you are the mayor or not.

Even if it is the president, the people from the Labor Federation want to compete with him, let alone a mayor.

So he wouldn't come himself, and sent Sink.

"I will sit next to you then."

Sink even took the initiative to give Lance a cigarette.

Cigarettes are always a social weapon. Even strangers, or even people in "opposite" relationships, can talk a few words.

Lance smoked his cigarette and looked at him again, "I thought you would hide."

Sink narrowed his eyes into a slit, "Hiding doesn't solve the problem, Mr. Lance."

"And I don't think there is anything that can't be discussed. Politics, gangs, economy, finance, trade, countries, and even wars can be discussed and resolved."

This sentence made Lance ponder some different feelings, "Are you lobbying for the mayor?"

Sink straightened his back and shook his head, "Please, do I really look like an idiot?"

"You rejected his invitation before, and now you won't even more. Everyone can see that he doesn't have any advantage."

"This city is as stubborn as a piece of steel. Even if there are some potholes on the surface, it is difficult to find a gap enough to tear it apart."

"The reason I say this is because we will leave sooner or later. When there is no opposing position, we can actually be friends."

"I am very interested in you, Lance."

Lance took a step back, "I don't object to this, but I can't accept it either."

He was expressing his attitude in a relatively gentle way. Sink laughed loudly after hearing this, "I heard that you were able to get to where you are today from an illegal immigrant, and you also used some small tricks in a very short period of time to become a local. To be honest, it's incredible!"

"So I think you are very interesting and want to know more about you, maybe I can discover more of your magical practices."

"Instead of…", his eyes went down, and then he showed a slightly apologetic smile, "…I'm not interested in that either."

The communication ended here. He reached out his hand again and shook hands with Lance, "I have some other things to do. It was very interesting to chat with you, Mr. Lance."

Lance also expressed at least superficial goodwill, "You are also an interesting person, Mr. Sink."

Without further conversation, Sink nodded to the others, and finally shook Lance's arm and turned to leave.

Watching his leaving back, Lance felt that this was a very strange person.

Vaughn and President Scott, who were chatting not far away, returned here again, "I didn't know you knew each other."

President Scott felt a little magical. Shouldn't they be opposing sides?

Lance smiled and didn't answer, "If there is nothing else, I will go to the club to take a look."

They didn't refuse, and Lance went directly to the club.

Along the way, the workers greeted Lance enthusiastically and asked him how he was doing. Lance also responded to them warmly.

Everyone respected Lance, mainly because the club's wine was really too cheap, and the blue-collar workers spread the word that Lance would lose thousands of dollars every month. His purpose in doing this was only to allow everyone to have a glass of affordable beer or something else after get off work.

The working class is actually very easy to be persuaded, of course, this is not to say that they are easily fooled.

They have a stronger sense of participation and empathy. They can feel Lance's respect for them, so they respect Lance, which is normal, and they also revere him.

The club is not open until before get off work in the evening, but there are many people here preparing for the evening's business.

They need to sweep the floor and then sort out various things, including cleaning some props and the like.

Seeing Lance, the guy in charge here took the initiative to run over, "Lance…"

Lance bumped fists with him. This guy is called Robert, he is Alvin's fellow villager, and he is also one of the first people to join the Lance family.

“I just came to take a look…” He noticed that many people's photos were already posted on the wall, along with their honors.

“They actually value this a lot!” Because the operating hours here are the opposite, he almost never goes back to his house in the New Bay Area.

He introduced Lance to the recent situation of the club, those who could have their photos hung on the wall, and what they had obtained.

A medal that is actually not worth much money, a certificate, and bonuses ranging from tens to hundreds of dollars!

“A little reward can make their work full of passion. Some wharf companies and management companies have come to me, saying they want to give us some sponsorship, but I refused.”

He said with some apprehension, but Lance looked at him with admiration, "You did well. We don't lack money, and you need to make them understand that what they get is given to them by me at a loss, not by those capitalists."

“When things don't come so easily, they will protect us. But if they think anyone can do this, then we will become less important to them.”

“At that time, they will think that it's all the capitalists' money anyway, and we are just organizers in front of the stage. They won't be grateful to us, but instead, they will think we are the running dogs of the capitalists.”

“So, maintaining independence and purity, and continuing to lose money, is not a problem.”

“The more I lose, the happier I am, and I don't have to worry about this place causing huge losses.”

“The speed at which this money is lost is far slower than the speed at which I earn it.”

“Pour the beer full, fill the food with more meat, and pour more gravy.”

Robert followed closely behind Lance, firmly remembering these things.

At a time when people didn't value spiritual satisfaction so much, Lance's approach was definitely dominant.

It satisfied people's appetites, satisfied people's desire for alcohol, and also satisfied people's spiritual needs.

Painkillers can only make people dependent because of pain, but these things can enable them to overcome pain!

Suddenly, several gunshots came from across the port, followed by intense gunfire, which lasted for about three or four minutes before completely stopping.

Even from a distance, you could feel the intensity of the firefight.

“The port area is getting more and more chaotic. Now there are gunshots almost every day.” Robert sighed. It used to be very peaceful here, but as the mayor no longer hypocritically concealed himself, the conflicts escalated, and the port area became more and more chaotic.

Vaughn trotted over from a distance, slightly out of breath, "Should we find some police to maintain order tomorrow?"

“These gunfights are a bit too scary now!”

Lance thought for a while and nodded, "That's right, I know the new branch director of the port area branch. I'll take care of this matter."

In the afternoon, he went to the labor agency. There are now more than 9,000 illegal immigrants registered at the labor agency, and some are legal immigrants and locals.

The total number of people who can be included in the statistics exceeds 13,000.

And as the scale of Wanli Labor Agency grows, more and more locals who don't want to work but want to get money are starting to send their work cards over.

There are very complete resources and statistical methods here to ensure that everyone's work card can be used to the maximum extent, so that they can get a high salary of at least forty dollars a month!

Without having to work, and still having an income close to the standard average wage, it's like an advertisement, attracting more people to join!

This is a virtuous circle that will only get better and better.

The entrance of the labor agency was already crowded with people, and it has also become a spontaneous "talent center". Many companies directly posted recruitment brochures nearby, and they did recruit some people.

After chatting with Sean for a while, Lance went to his office.

He hadn't been here for a while, but someone cleaned it every day.

After he sat down, he dialed John's number, and the phone was quickly picked up.

“It's me, Lance.”

“Hey, Lance, how's it going today?”

“Very good, there's something I'd like to discuss with you.”

“Go ahead, I'm listening.”

Lance sorted it out, "There will be a dockworkers' sports meeting opening ceremony at the pier tomorrow, which will last for several days."

“But the port area has been a bit noisy recently. I hope you can help maintain order tomorrow, and it's best to talk to those gangs and have them quiet down for a few days.”

Lance finished speaking and waited for a few seconds, looking at the receiver, "Are you listening?"

“Yes, Lance, I'm considering your suggestion, but I'm in a bit of a dilemma now.”

Lance raised his eyebrows, "What's the difficulty? Maybe I can help you solve it?"

“We don't have this job content, such as helping you maintain the治安 of the port area. If the police officers are dispatched to places outside their work, it may make the public very dissatisfied.”

“These small citizens are very difficult to deal with. They will make complaint calls. You haven't been a policeman, so you don't know how annoying they are…”

Lance interrupted him, "I'll sponsor the port area branch with two thousand dollars."

John's voice in the receiver did become lighter, "That's not what I meant…"

“Three thousand, and if it's any more, I'll let Blue cross the district to do it.”

John immediately agreed, "This is a matter within my jurisdiction. It's unreasonable for them to cross the district, but I think what you said still makes some sense."

“I will arrange for people to be on duty tomorrow. I guarantee that there will be no shootings in the port area in the next three days!”

“Very good, it's settled, and it's best if nothing unexpected happens.”

John's cheerful voice came from the receiver, "I guarantee that nothing unexpected will happen, Mr. Lance!"

After Lance hung up the phone and thought about it, he left after concluding that there was no problem.

In the evening, when he talked to Branch Director Blue on the phone, he expressed his support for Lance's choice.

It is indeed not very good for the police to work across districts, which is a disrespect for their colleagues, but he also reminded Lance that John is a very greedy person, and if he can avoid contacting him, he should try to avoid it as much as possible.

The next day, before dawn, the entire pier was hung with colorful flags, and many workers brought their families here today.

Although there is still work to be done today, this is, after all, a grand event, and both the pier management company and those enterprises have expressed their support.

As the time pointed to 9:30, the motorcade, led by police cars, went straight to the pier from the hotel.

When the motorcade entered the gate of the pier, Chairman Scott even ordered people to set off salutes!

It can be seen that he really invested a lot!

Lance's car was the fourth one. Today, he also specially put on the new clothes that he had the old tailor make some time ago, and he looked even more energetic!

When the car stopped, a large number of reporters around were frantically pressing the shutter. This is definitely a historic moment!

For the union and the labor federation!