Empire of Shadows

"It's me."

"...Is that so?"

"This is truly terrible news, but bring him over after it's over, and I can talk to him..."

"Okay, I understand. I'll arrange for someone to go over."

Lance hung up the phone, his gaze sweeping over the people in the room, finally settling on Ron.

Hiram had gone to sleep; his cold hadn't completely cleared up yet, and resting early would greatly help him recover his condition as quickly as possible.

Ron also noticed Lance's gaze. He stood up from the sofa. "Is there anything you need me to do?"

Lance nodded. This was where they lived, not the company. "Ennio's father was beaten up, or so he says. Now he wants to teach those bastards a lesson. Take some men to support them."

Melo asked from the corner, "Is it dangerous?"

Lance shook his head. "Just ordinary people, no danger."

Melo didn't ask further.

Ron called a few people, and they arrived near Ennio's house in two cars. The two groups joined together, forming a three-car convoy, heading towards the Prescia District.

The Prescia District was currently a relatively lawless area with little fighting.

The mayor's political failure caused some of the weaker Fides-aligned groups to quickly flee.

Without the support of the city's ruler, they found it difficult to compete with the locals.

Some semblance of peace had returned here.

Currently, two local gangs temporarily controlled the area, along with some smaller gangs. Their interference in the overall functioning of the district was not significant.

In other words, their main means of profit were no longer as basic as collecting protection fees, but rather operating entertainment venues, mainly providing flesh trade or alcoholic beverages.

They might also engage in extortion and fraud, but not much, and it was done very secretly.

The convoy was spotted as it entered the district, but when they realized it was the Lance family, they took no further action, only kept watching.

At a traffic light intersection, the car that had been following them came from another lane to the front.

The driver in the driver's seat looked over. "This isn't the Empire District or the Harbor District."

He was reminding these people that this wasn't Lance family territory.

Ennio, sitting in the back seat, leaned forward. "I'm Ennio. Someone hurt my family, and I'm here to talk to them."

The man across from him looked at Ennio. "I've heard your name."

He listened for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the people, finally nodding slightly. "Try not to cause too much of a commotion."

"Thanks!"

When the green light came on, that guy turned right directly, leaving the route, while they continued forward.

The Lance family already had considerable fame in Goldport City. Although they had always been in the Empire District and the newly acquired Harbor District, they didn't come out to operate very often.

No one would underestimate them now.

Ennio's father, sitting in the car, watched all this happen. He had a strange feeling he couldn't explain. He hadn't expected his son to be a person of "some renown."

Ennio's father had been to the manager's villa, located in the Prescia District.

Or rather, basically everyone who joined the company had been to this villa because it was part of the company's plan.

You have to let these low-level workers see it and touch it for them to go crazy!

If you just tell them that their hard work will eventually lead to them owning their own house and car and becoming rich, that's too vague, too ethereal, and impractical.

But if you bring them to this villa, let them attend a "welcoming party" here, and let them personally feel the reality of it all, it will become the motivation for them to work hard to create value for the company!

Who the hell doesn't want to live in such a big house one day?

Who doesn't want to have a few naked young girls stretching their bodies in their pool?

The more depraved, the greater the motivation!

Capital has long studied human nature extremely thoroughly. Once you fall into the trap, it's hard to struggle out!

These experiences allowed Ennio and the others to quickly obtain a "precise location."

The car quickly arrived at the entrance of the community. The security guard on duty didn't open the gate; he walked out of the guard room.

"Who are you looking for?"

"You need to register to enter here!"

Ennio took out twenty dollars in cash with his fingers. "Open the gate and let us in. We'll leave soon."

The security guard glanced at the twenty dollars. Although he was a little tempted, he still knew whether twenty dollars was more important or his job was more important.

The salary for being a security guard here wasn't low. All together, he could earn fifty-five dollars a month.

Usually, when the owners came in and out, they would sometimes give him a tip or a pack or two of cigarettes, so his actual income was much more than people imagined!

People often say that they would rather be a dog in a rich man's house than be reincarnated into a poor family, and that's the reason!

Twenty dollars wasn't enough for him to take the risk of losing his job.

He raised his hand in a serious manner, slightly pushing Ennio's hand away. "I'm sorry, sir. If you want to enter, you must have someone you're visiting, and that person also agrees to let you in."

"Otherwise, I can't open this gate for you."

As he spoke, he lifted his uniform, revealing the holster on his waist. He wanted to use this method to warn the other party that they weren't pushovers either.

But the next second, a gun was pointed at his head. "Can you open it now?"

He slowly raised his hands, his expression a little frightened. "Of course."

The gate opened quickly. He was tied to the chair in the guard room. They wouldn't go so far as to make things difficult for a working security guard.

Moreover, doing this was actually helping him solve the problem. At least he could appeal to the company, saying that he resisted but failed.

The three cars quickly entered the community, and soon they found the place they were looking for.

The huge villa exuded an elegance surrounded by lights and greenery. The group got out of the car, and Ennio's father, standing next to Ennio, was a little worried for some reason.

"Will this cause trouble?"

Ennio shook his head. "He's just a small fry!"

In the bedroom, the manager was spreading his diligent sweat. Most nights were so wonderful.

In fact, this villa wasn't his personally either. This villa was the company's asset. They needed such a facade to prove the company's strength, and incidentally, to give those newly hired employees a little shock from the "Federal Dream!"

Just as he was about to finish, the bedroom door suddenly opened. He cursed without turning his head. "I told you, don't come in at this time!"

He turned his head with some dissatisfaction, his eyes also revealing a strong dissatisfaction. But when he saw the person standing at the door, his whole body shuddered, and all his movements stopped.

The girl lying on the bed accepting the baptism turned around in confusion and looked at him, also noticing the people outside the door. Accompanied by a scream, the manager came back to his senses.

He turned around abruptly and saw some young people standing at the door. He originally had some frightened expressions on his face, but when he saw Ennio's father standing outside the door, he became less afraid!

He picked up the bed sheet and wrapped it around his crotch, not letting his little bird swing around. "This is my fucking house. You're trespassing on private property. If you don't get out now, I'll call the police."

Ennio suddenly grabbed a vase by the door and rushed over, smashing it on his head!

"Fuck!" He suddenly cursed, then shook his hand, some blood flowing from his palm.

There were thorns on the branches, not completely removed, piercing his palm.

The pain made his anger even more intense, and he began to beat the manager who had squatted down with his head in his hands.

A few minutes later, the manager, who was unrecognizable, squatted on the coffee table in the villa's hall. The look in his eyes towards Ennio was filled with deep fear.

Ennio's father seemed to want to say something but hesitated. Every time he wanted to say something, he was interrupted by Ennio.

At first, he felt sorry for the manager, but as the manager tried not to be beaten, not to be burned with cigarette butts—

He was really scared. Even now, that place still hurt. He had never imagined that a seemingly hardworking and stupid old guy would actually have a gangster son!

Even more unexpectedly… this young man actually used a cigarette butt to burn his bird!

He just wanted to end it all as soon as possible!

He wanted to go to the hospital and ask the doctor if his bird was still alive!

So he directly explained why his father was fired.

"…He's too old. If he stays, the newly hired young people might question whether working here can really realize their wealth dreams."

"So, the company arranged such a plan to find a way to clean up some of the older people."

The corners of Ennio's father's eyes were about to crack from his glare. He couldn't imagine that he was fired simply because he had no value to the company!

His belief collapsed at this moment!

He looked at the manager and asked slowly, "I saw the honor wall…"

The company had an honor wall, and everyone who became a "sales champion" had their own page on it. The manager was silent for a while. "Besides the ones you know who are our own people, the other photos were bought from bankrupt photo studios for a dollar each."

"So it's been a scam all along?"

The manager's smile was very awkward.

The company had made no small amount of money from these salespeople, from training fees, material costs, various losses, and the money they themselves advanced for products.

The so-called top spots on the monthly sales charts were, frankly, either shills or the company's true 'big clients!'

"Motherf**ker!" the honest man's teeth chattered with rage.

He reached out to grab the vase next to him, then put it down, then picked up the ashtray, but felt it was too heavy.

Ultimately, after much deliberation, he chose an electrical cord and vented his anger on the manager amidst his look of relief!

It was just a whip, just physical pain. As long as it wasn't the vase or the ashtray, as long as it didn't cost him his life, it was just a temporary pain.

After whipping him for a while, the honest man saw the bloodstains on the manager's body and ultimately couldn't bear to continue. He panted slightly, looking at the man with hatred in his eyes!

For so many years, he had wasted his time, wasted his energy, wasted everything, and in the end, these people told him it was all just their trickery!

The meager monthly income of just over ten dollars barely kept his family from starving, so his wife had left him, and his son didn't want to be with him either.

He thought that one day he would achieve the Federal dream through his own efforts, making everyone who looked down on him look up to him in admiration.

In the end, he was the biggest fool!

He was heartbroken, slumped on the sofa, covering his face with his hands, "What have I done!"

Ennio patted him on the back, then took out his pistol and pressed it against the manager's head.

Although his father hadn't been good to him in the past, he had ultimately been raised by him, and they were father and son and had forgiven each other.

Now this guy was causing his father so much pain, a surge of anger made him want to kill him!

The manager was so scared that he urinated, visibly trying to hold it in, but truly unable to!

He squatted on the coffee table, hugging his head, and peed himself.

Just as Ennio said, "Go to hell!" and was about to pull the trigger, his father grabbed his arm, "There's no need."

Ennio looked at him, and he looked back at Ennio, "It's not worth it, Ennio."

"They taught me a lesson. Consider this money, this time, as my tuition."

He looked at the manager, the power dynamic between them having undergone a dramatic shift, no longer like during the day when the manager was high and mighty.

Suddenly, a smile appeared on his face, "You're not as great as you think you are, are you?"

The manager quickly put on a fawning smile, "Yes, yes, you're right..."

Ennio's father shook his head, "So, in the face of the ultimate answer, we are all equal." He finished speaking and, without waiting for the manager's reply, walked outside.

The manager's humility had largely smoothed over the dissatisfaction in his heart and allowed him to truly recognize this world!

If his son wasn't Ennio, if they hadn't come here.

The Federal dream's beautiful filter was slowly fading away. He couldn't say he was disappointed, only that he regretted wasting so much time.

Ennio glanced at the manager again, then put away his weapon, "For my father's sake."

The manager knelt directly on the coffee table, kneeling in his own urine, expressing his sincere gratitude to Ennio's father.

Soon, the group left. The manager didn't call the police, only silently had people clean up the villa, then got dressed and went to the hospital.

Federal society was never fair. It wasn't easy for poor people to see a doctor, but for the rich, they could see a doctor anytime, anywhere.

When the doctor saw the unbelievable injuries on the manager's body, his brain short-circuited slightly.

He originally intended to call the police, but the manager said it was his "little hobby," so the doctor only gave him some simple bandages.

The bad news was that it might take two to four weeks for him to recover relatively, but the good news was that his bird hadn't died.

More than half an hour later, the group returned to Lance's villa because Lance wanted to talk to Ennio's father.

As the convoy stopped outside the villa, looking at the renovated villa covered with green plants, he glanced at his son.

Although they were father and son, they were already on two parallel lines that didn't intersect!

He was a little restrained. Ennio saw this and said, "Lance is a very easy person to get along with. He's also an Imperial. You'll know once you meet him."

The villa was full of people. As Ennio and his father came in, he actively explained the course and outcome of the matter.

After listening, Lance nodded, "A very good handling!" He said, looking at Ennio's father, "Now that you've recognized your previous work, what's next?"

"Are you planning to find something to do, or are you planning to rest for a while?"

Perhaps because the people here weren't like the gangsters he had imagined, standing in a row with scary clothes and stern faces, but rather everyone was casually sitting together chatting like friends and brothers, he felt less restrained.

His face was slightly red as he said, "I plan to find another job. I can't just sit idle at home. There are bills to pay every month."

Lance sized up Ennio's father. He looked... actually, he was relatively in line with Federal aesthetics.

He wasn't intimidated. In fact, most salespeople weren't intimidated, and not being intimidated was the most basic quality for them to enter the industry.

If you can't even sell a bunch of garbage to strangers, then you certainly won't become a 'god of sales'.

He was also of moderate build, and his appearance looked very gentle.

Lance thought for a moment and said, "Why don't you work for us? That way, you and Ennio can see each other often."

A look of joy appeared on Ennio's face, but his father was a little dazed, "But I can't shoot a gun, and I don't... dare to kill people."

The young people in the room laughed. Lance handed him a cigarette, "We also have legitimate businesses. You are Ennio's father, I'm more willing to trust you..."

In the Federation, the so-called 'people' are actually the lowest level of society, and the least important group.

But at the same time, they are the most important group, because whether politicians can realize their ideals and step onto the political stage is related to how much public support they can get.

To protect their own interests, they must surround themselves with more 'political base'.

The reason why those conglomerates can confront the Federal government is not only because they have money, but also because once they 'let go', tens of thousands of unemployed workers will ruin everything for the politicians!

Lance also had to run many legitimate businesses and build his own protective umbrella.

Not only those officials, the ruling class, but also countless people at the bottom!