Empire of Shadows

The clock slowly ticked towards seven o'clock. Councillor Williams looked at the somewhat empty living room with a displeased expression.

James, Arthur, Lance, William, and a few others didn't even fill a tenth of the living room.

When the grandfather clock chimed seven times, all eyes focused on Councillor Williams.

Councillor Williams himself had a gathering planned for tonight. With the mayoral election drawing nearer, he certainly needed to put in some effort.

He had invited many politicians and wealthy individuals from the Bay Area, claiming it was a casual gathering to strengthen relationships, but everyone knew it was an act of "choosing sides."

Once Councillor Williams became mayor, he would naturally separate himself from the Bay Area's interest group.

He couldn't become the Bay Area's dog, or rather, his interests and the Bay Area's interests might conflict.

This might sound a bit unbelievable, as they were originally a group, so why couldn't they remain a group after he became mayor?

In reality, it's a matter of dominance. Of course, dominance here doesn't mean who is directing, but rather who is leading whom.

Councillor Williams has his own interests and political demands; he couldn't be led by the Bay Area.

And the Bay Area also has its own interests and political demands. If their interests aligned, their relationship would be relatively harmonious.

But that's unlikely. Lance knew that Councillor Williams planned to continue developing the New Port District and the New Bay District, and to push the New Port Terminal to take on some of the Golden Port Terminal's workload.

In fact, everyone in Golden Port City's ruling class, including those in the Bay Area, knew that building the New Port Terminal was necessary.

However, building the New Port Terminal would inevitably affect the interests of the old Golden Port Terminal, and most people here had many vested interests in the Golden Port Terminal.

This is just a microcosm of conflicting interests, like the situation some ancient dynasties faced when facing reforms.

Everyone knew that reforms would bring new hope to a decaying country, but they also knew that reforms would harm the interests of their own families.

Between the country's hope and the family's interests, they would often choose the family's interests over the country's hope.

These problems and conflicts will always exist, as long as there are vested interests.

Today's gathering can be said to be a statement, a prelude to choosing sides.

Those who came to Councillor Williams' gathering would have to fully support Councillor Williams and his family in a series of urban reform issues in the future.

And those who didn't come would firmly stand with the Bay Area and continue to defend their interests.

A new war is about to begin, but it seems that Councillor Williams is currently at a disadvantage.

After waiting another five minutes, no more people arrived.

In fact, many of them had promised to come, and said many nice things, as if they cared about the city's reforms and were willing to support Councillor Williams in fulfilling his political ideals.

But after the news of Charlie's murder spread, they seemed to have changed their minds and decided not to come.

The butler hurried over and whispered in Councillor Williams' ear for a moment, bending down.

Judging from his serious expression, it was definitely not good news.

After listening, Councillor Williams laughed twice. Although it was a laugh, everyone could hear the anger in his laughter.

The butler returned to his corner, and Councillor Williams stood up, "Alright, it seems they won't be coming. Let's go to the dining room."

Arthur couldn't help but ask, "Is it because of traffic on the road?"

This was indeed a very stupid question, but Arthur might have done it on purpose.

James glanced at his clumsy younger brother, then looked at Councillor Williams. He also wanted to know the reason.

Councillor Williams was silent for a few seconds before saying, "They held a grand party in the Bay Area. They all went to the party."

What the butler said just now was about this matter. All those who had received invitations and said they would come, but ultimately didn't, went to the Bay Area's party.

They were conveying a message in this way: they did not accept some of the plans and proposals after Councillor Williams came to power.

This is a kind of protest, but…

Lance looked at Councillor Williams. He could feel that, for this old man, this was more of a declaration of war!

Councillor Williams snorted angrily, glared at his youngest son, and then led the way into the dining room.

Arthur walked at the very back. There were no other negative emotions on his face. He knew his position very well and never competed for anything.

A large long table was set up in the spacious dining room, filled with all kinds of delicacies, all steaming hot.

It was originally estimated that at least forty or fifty people, or even fifty or sixty people, would come, so the chefs in the manor prepared ingredients on a scale of one hundred people and made food for sixty people.

This way, even if more people came than expected, the food could be replenished at any time.

But now it was clear that it wasn't that there wasn't enough food, but that there was too much!

Looking at such a big table with only them, Councillor Williams stood there for a while, and then said, "Change to a small table. We don't need so many seats."

The butler immediately asked people to change the table. They moved the food from the table to the trolley, then removed the large table and replaced it with a small table, sending each dish to the small table separately.

Even the small table could seat more than twenty people, which was still a bit spacious.

As for the excess food, it would most likely become the servants' dinner in the manor. They were in for a treat today.

"Sit wherever you like," Councillor Williams instructed, sitting in the host's seat himself.

Lance chose a relatively rear seat. Although his strength was very strong, the underworld was indeed not very presentable in a political setting.

Arthur sat next to him, even further back in the seating arrangement. This kid knew his position very well; he never competed for anything.

The butler and servants began to serve every gentleman at the table. He personally served Councillor Williams, while the others were served by the manor's maids.

Their main job was to pick up food for the gentlemen and pour wine for them, or do some other services within their capabilities.

In this solemn and serious occasion, no one would really stand up to reach for the dishes they couldn't reach.

They would tell the maids next to them what they needed, and then the maids would help them put the dishes on their plates.

If it was a family banquet, with only family members present, then maids could be dispensed with, making everything seem more casual and friendly.

But formal dinners required these people.

The butler poured wine for Councillor Williams, his fingers pinching the base of the glass, but he didn't pick it up.

Looking back on his life, this small problem was not a problem at all, but he was still a little emotional.

The others were also ready to raise their glasses, waiting for him to give a speech.

"I don't know what to say, actually," he said, all eyes on him.

"I really want to say some tolerant and generous words, such as I forgive them, or find some reasons for them not to come."

"But these words can't convince you, and they can't convince myself. They are demonstrating against me, even coercing me!"

"I won't say those tolerant words. I will let them know how foolish their choices are!"

"To our bright tomorrow!" He raised his glass, and the others followed suit.

Lance also raised his glass and said with everyone, "To tomorrow!"

Then he took a sip.

Good wine can enhance a dinner a lot. This was clearly not the cheap stuff Lance sold.

It must have come from the world's top winery. A bottle like this would cost at least several hundred dollars, or even more.

Until now, many people still don't understand, what exactly did the Prohibition ban?

It is said that Golden Standard Winery and other companies that produce alcohol have begun to invest in building factories overseas, and then they will find ways to smuggle these wines back into the country.

Prohibition, in the end, prohibits the poor from drinking.

On the other hand, the Prohibition did play a role. It allowed the poor to drink less and work better.

Everyone put down their glasses, and Councillor Williams signaled that they could eat. The dinner was indeed very rich. The maids constantly cooperated with the butler to pick up dishes for the guests, or listen to their requests and put their favorite dishes on their plates.

"The mayoral election will begin soon. Before that, we need to warm up in advance. Although we all know that my chances of winning are very high, we must be wary of possible accidents."

His tone still contained dissatisfaction with those people in the Bay Area, those former old friends. The people present all nodded in agreement.

"I'm not worried about the election situation in the Empire District and the Port District…" He looked at Lance, and the others also looked at Lance.

Some people didn't know Lance very well, but they had heard of him. After all, a gangster who could face the Kodak family head-on was unique in Golden Port City.

And he had done it. Nothing major had happened. The Kodak family seemed to have backed down, and there had been no reaction until now.

Please... You... Collect _ (Six\\ \\ \\ Nine\\ \\ \\ Book\\ \\ \\ Bar!)

Just these things were enough to make them value Lance.

Lance nodded and said, "I can ensure that only your promotional posters are in these two districts."

"Also, I can take care of the Sumuli District," he said.

With the publicity issues in three districts sorted out, plus James's current location and some forces in the city center, he could actually secure many areas of Jintang City.

This was also why he was confident that he could win the election even before it took place. He had already secured half of the eleven administrative districts, and the other half, except for the Bay Area and Starlight District, which might be more difficult, were not a problem.

He looked at Lance, "I'll need your help a lot with this matter."

Others might think that his "a lot of help" referred to Lance exerting effort in the three districts he mentioned, but Lance understood the underlying meaning of his words.

He nodded and said solemnly, "I will."

Afterward, he talked about other people's affairs, hoping that their factories and workers could support him, or that these politicians could stand with him during the election.

"I've been thinking about something lately!"

After discussing the most basic matters, he decided to share some concrete plans, "Once the Navy is stationed in Jintang City, it will become one of the safest ports in the Northern Hemisphere."

"I expect more ships to dock here then, including some from countries on the Tanfite continent."

"Their freighters will also dock here for supplies."

"Currently, our Jintang Wharf's carrying capacity is almost full. If we don't expand the existing wharf, we will soon face an overload situation."

"This is not conducive to the development of the wharf or the city, so I plan to continue building the New Port Wharf as the first thing I do after taking office."

Lance had no objections, and James and Arthur naturally wouldn't say much either.

William sat aside and glanced at Lance, but didn't say anything.

In fact, whether or not to continue building the New Port Wharf didn't conflict with his interests at all. In fact, restarting construction could provide more jobs, which would benefit him.

The grassroots people wouldn't care whether he facilitated this matter or not. In short, after he was elected as a city councilor, people would have more job opportunities.

You could say it was the right choice, right!

Others, more or less, had some connection to this matter. One of the tycoons from the Bay Area said, "Councilor, the construction of the New Port Wharf can bring benefits to the city. This has already been proven."

"At least I personally strongly support the continued construction of the New Port Wharf, but I'm not sure how I can contribute my strength to this matter?"

This sounded like meaningless nonsense. Are you ready to rebuild?

How is it arranged?

But in reality, the meaning behind this sentence was inquiring about the redistribution of profits.

A capitalist who wants to contribute to the city's infrastructure must not really want to serve the people. He wants to put the money from the people's pockets into his own pocket.

Councilor Williams nodded slightly, "They will give up at least half of the profits. I will have effective communication with them on these issues in the near future."

The "they" he was referring to were the investors behind the mayor. These people saw the huge benefits of the Jintang Wharf.

Under their promotion, the mayor presided over the construction of the New Port Wharf.

At that time, the carrying capacity of Jintang Wharf was not very high, so doing so at that time was undoubtedly a provocation, a signal of war, which led to a series of subsequent events.

Now, the shares of the New Port Wharf are basically still in the hands of those capitalists who have already failed. If Councilor Williams really wants to rebuild the New Port Wharf, then the first thing he has to do is to ensure that the promoters on Councilor Williams's side can also obtain huge profits from the New Port Wharf.

Who the hell would do something that doesn't make money?

They're not philanthropists.

Whether it's politicians, capitalists, or even gangsters like Lance, they are all seeking more profits, so it's better to make this clear from the beginning.

At least it can avoid unclear conflicts and dirty deals in the future.

Councilor Williams also nodded in agreement, "I will talk to them during this time. They will make concessions."

"This money has been rotting in these projects for so many years. No matter how powerful they are in other cities, they have realized our power in Jintang City, so you don't have to worry about this."

"You can come together when we talk."

"If there are no problems with this matter, then we will continue to expand the city circle," the butler cut the beef cubes for him. He ate while speaking.

"Continue to expand to the new north. I intend to have Jintang City annex Creek Valley City, but it will definitely not be possible to do this in a short period of time. This will be promoted as a long-term goal."

Everyone who heard him say this was slightly stunned, and then their eyes turned to James.

James also understood the meaning of this sentence. Although he had some unspeakable emotions, he still maintained his courtesy, nodded slightly, and smiled.

To put Councilor Williams's words more bluntly, he intends to pass on his power.

Otherwise, even if he serves two terms, it is impossible to annex an independent city in eight years.

Moreover, this matter requires the approval of the state government and even the federal government. Losing a city means losing many positions, and the federal government may not agree.

So even if Jintang City really annexes Creek Valley City in the end, it will not be during Councilor Williams's tenure.

Each mayor has their own governance philosophy and ambitions, which are not necessarily inherited. If there is anyone who can inherit his ideas and actively promote this matter, it must be his political successor.

Currently, the only person who meets this condition is James.

This is why the poor get poorer, the rich get richer, and the president's son is still the president!

Everyone at the table was full of interest in the future they described. This also meant that Jintang City would be larger in the future, and more benefits would flow into the city.

And they, these people who depend on the Williams family who created all of this, will get more!

Although there were not many people at the table, the atmosphere was very warm.

These people who came may have been a little uneasy, but more than that, they felt excited. They gradually realized that when they abandoned the mainstream and were also abandoned by the mainstream, the benefits they gained would be far higher than those who joined this interest group in the future.

Most of the time, risk and return are proportional.

After dinner, everyone chatted for a while and then took the initiative to say goodbye, but Councilor Williams kept Lance behind.

For him, Lance is now irreplaceable by others, and is definitely the core of the core in his entire plan!