Empire of Shadows
Chapter 171:

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Chambers of commerce are not uncommon. But not uncommon doesn’t necessarily mean they are low-end; a chamber of commerce is not low-end at all.

The people in the seats looked at each other, somewhat unsure how to respond. Finally, the oldest gentleman spoke, “Mr. Lance, if we join this chamber of commerce, what can it bring us, and what will we have to give?” “If we don’t join the chamber of commerce, will it…” He was very worried, but seeing that Lance didn’t seem too difficult to talk to, he voiced his true thoughts.

Lance remained seated, his legs crossed, but his body neither leaning forward nor backward. He maintained an upright posture, which naturally compelled people to listen intently to his every word.

“I have no intention of seeking wealth from you in a different way. As I said, in the Empire District, on my territory, no one has to pay protection fees.”

“If you do not join the chamber of commerce, you will suffer no losses. My people will still patrol the streets, maintaining order.”

“They will not trouble or extort you because you haven’t joined the chamber of commerce. If you encounter trouble, you can still seek out Bolton or our people.”

“Everything will be no different from now!”

“Whether or not to join the chamber of commerce is entirely up to you, whether you are satisfied with your current situation, and whether you still have the desire to do something for your children.”

“Now, let me discuss joining the chamber of commerce.”

“I believe you already have some understanding of chambers of commerce. Over the years, you should have realized that in the Federation, if we don’t unite, we will certainly be bullied…”

Before saying a lot, he would unconsciously take a few puffs, which helped him better organize his thoughts. He pulled out a cigarette case from his pocket. I

t was a silver and ivory cigarette case given to him by Luigi, emitting an expensive glow under the light. The frame was pure silver, and the rest was made of the finest ivory, appearing as warm and lustrous as jade, and comfortable to hold.

The price of this item was not cheap, but not too expensive either; the current market price was probably one to two hundred dollars.

He pressed a switch, and it popped open with a click, revealing two neatly arranged rows of cigarettes.

These cigarettes were held in place by a total of four silver clips inside the cigarette case. He slid one side open and took out a cigarette.

Then, after closing the cigarette case, he tapped the cigarette filter against the surface of the case to pack the tobacco more tightly.

Next, he put the filter in his mouth. As he leaned to one side, reaching to get a match, Bolton quickly approached, took out a match from his pocket, bent over, and struck it.

Lance slightly raised his head and glanced at Bolton. Bolton’s ingratiating and fawning smile flickered like a clown’s in the matchlight, but you couldn’t truly see him as just a clown.

At least a clown didn’t possess such determination and keen perception.

He tilted his head, lit his cigarette with the flame, and patted Bolton’s hand. “Thank you.”

Bolton smiled widely. “You’re too kind.” Then he tossed the match and discreetly returned to his seat.

Lance exhaled a thick cloud of smoke. Some old smokers seemed to get the signal and couldn’t help but reach for their cigarettes. T

he atmosphere suddenly became very relaxed. Lance casually raised the hand holding his cigarette. “Why don’t the Federals dare to casually bully the Summurians?”

“Because they are very united. If you bully one of them, you might have already provoked someone in their family tree.”

“The family’s honor will compel them, to cleanse the shame you brought upon their family, to journey from Summuri Island across one-third of the world to stand before you and shoot you.”

“They are very united, which is why the Federals do not bully them, nor do they dare to casually bully them.”

“But what about Imperials?”

A rhetorical question silenced the people.

“Heller, that son of a bitch, bullied his own people, setting a terrible precedent. The Federals know we ourselves are not united, so they can wantonly exploit and oppress us.”

“They know that no one will come by ship from the Empire to the Federation, to their doorstep, and shoot them, telling them it’s all because they extorted one of you.”

“Without cost or consequence, behavior becomes reckless.”

“I intend to change this situation!”

He again raised his finger and pointed diagonally upwards. The bluish smoke drifting from the cigarette tip, illuminated by the gentle spotlight, formed into a smoke ring, slowly, gracefully, continuously expanding.

His gaze swept across each of their faces. He nodded slightly and continued speaking:

“I aim to change this situation. Unlike the Summurians, we do not possess such unique family ties, and the Empire cannot offer us any assistance.”

“Those of us who have drifted here can only rely on ourselves, on our brothers and sisters.”

“The Chamber of Commerce serves precisely this purpose.”

“It’s very simple: earn money together, stand united against outsiders.”

“I, or other members of the chamber of commerce, can share insights on earning money, or discovered business opportunities.”

“There are some businesses you see, but cannot do, and then you watch others profit greatly from these opportunities you first discovered.”

“This situation, as long as you join the chamber of commerce, will no longer occur.”

“You may not have money, but the chamber of commerce does. Businesses you cannot undertake, we can. This is the power of unity!”

“If you encounter trouble, we will all come together to help you, to face it. I believe that as long as we also unite, the Federals will pay attention to us and listen to our voices.”

“Of course, there are many benefits to joining the chamber of commerce: regular salons, gatherings, anything…”

“Furthermore, if…”

He suddenly paused, seemingly deliberating over his wording. For about a minute, he remained still, like a statue.

So much so that some people even thought… perhaps he had suddenly fallen ill or something. Although it was very offensive, people still showed concerned expressions.

Fortunately, he snapped out of his frozen state. “For instance, I currently have a highly profitable business opportunity that I am willing to share with you, and the Chamber of Commerce will collectively undertake this endeavor.”

“If you earn money from this business that I’ve shared, then fifteen percent of your net profit needs to be contributed.”

“Ten percent goes to the initiator, as it is only right that I receive something for leading you to profit.”

“And five percent goes to the Chamber of Commerce, to be used as a development fund for the Chamber, as we need to organize numerous activities and promotions.”

“So what must one contribute to join the chamber of commerce?”

“Firstly, membership dues. This is not a protection fee. It’s ten dollars a month, which is an initial fee and may change in the future.”

“As our business improves, perhaps soon we will completely abolish membership fees and switch to a recommendation and review system.”

“At that time, joining won’t be so easy.”

“Secondly, when one of us requires your assistance, and you are capable of providing it, you must extend a helping hand.”

“If you do not offer aid when we suffer, then when you suffer in the future, do not expect others to extend a helping hand.”

“Finally, I require your unity. Only by uniting, becoming iron, becoming steel, can we cease to be bullied!”

Lance took his last puff of cigarette. Bolton had already approached with an ashtray. Lance didn’t particularly like this extremely fawning “Mr. Bolton,” but he didn’t dislike him either. A useful honest scoundrel—that was his assessment of him.

“Thank you for your trouble,” he said, extinguishing the cigarette butt in the ashtray.

Bolton seemed not to feel like he was playing the role of a clown at all. “No, it’s no trouble at all. It is my sincere honor to be able to do something for a person of such noble character as yourself.”

Lance couldn’t help but chuckle, patting Bolton’s shoulder. “I’ll have Elvin get two suits made for you.” Bolton’s face immediately lit up with surprise. Lance’s gaze halted his impulse to thank him; it wasn’t the right time.

“Work hard. Everything will get better in the future.”

He carried the ashtray back to his seat excitedly, his mind filled with a beautiful future.

Giving a petty person a small benefit costs you nothing, but it makes them think you’re generous.

Even if they might sometimes think you’re not entirely right, they won’t harm you.

But if you speak coldly to a petty person, even if you don’t cause them substantial harm, just because they feel their self-esteem has been hurt, they will try to retaliate against you.

Lance had encountered many such petty individuals.

Although he wasn’t concerned whether this Mr. Bolton could cause him trouble under the current rules of the era, he didn’t mind telling people that as long as it was useful to him, it had value.

The others were discussing in hushed tones, conferring. Lance did not pressure them; it didn’t matter if they didn’t want to participate, because soon, he would show these people the benefits of the Chamber of Commerce—by betting on grapes.

However, his concerns were clearly superfluous. Ten dollars a month, even if it was protection money, these people were willing to pay it.

At least Lance’s family members were genuinely maintaining order on the streets every day, and their presence was often seen. With the help of these people, some police officers seemed to come here less often.

Previously, sometimes the police would visit their shops, eat and drink something, and then leave without paying a penny, even taking some items with them.

If you tried to argue with them, they would claim these might be stolen goods. If you encountered someone with a slightly less bad temper, they’d take away a large box of your goods.

If you encountered someone with a bad temper, your entire shop might be closed down for investigation. But since Lance’s people were everywhere on the streets, the frequency of police harassment had significantly decreased, and even when they came, they wouldn’t be too excessive.

Soon, everyone expressed their willingness to join the chamber of commerce. Lance also had them go back and spread the word to the people in their respective neighborhoods, but he also made a request.

“…I am absolutely not forcing you to join. You must make this clear to people: whether you join the chamber of commerce or not, we are all Imperials.”

“I will look after you within my abilities, regardless of whether you join the chamber of commerce, pay your dues, or not.”

He said, patting his leg, and stood up. A large group of people also stood up with a rustle.

“That’s all then…”

People proactively stepped forward to shake Lance’s hand and bid him farewell. It was evident that Lance still commanded great respect in their hearts.

Lance also didn’t mind the trouble; he shook hands with everyone in line and bid them farewell. After they had all left, Lance let out a heavy sigh.

Elvin was actually there too, but sitting in the corner, and others were also sitting in the corner. After everyone had left, he came over. “Can it work?”

Lance nodded. “It will definitely work!”

“I don’t guarantee that everyone will believe I can change anything, but as long as some people believe and indeed see changes, others will believe.” As he spoke, staff members had already started their shifts.

The sky outside was already starting to darken, and some dancers, singers, including strippers, began to enter.

They enthusiastically greeted Lance. Now, under Lance’s management, the Imperial Night nightclub was much better than before, at least for them.

Heller, that bastard, liked to elevate himself by trampling on others’ dignity, but Lance wouldn’t. He greeted everyone warmly, which made these people like him even more.

As more and more people arrived, it was no longer suitable for Lance to stay downstairs.

He went upstairs with Elvin and the others. Heller’s office had been renovated, removing the bar and bookshelves, making the space larger so more sofas could be arranged for people to sit.

After everyone was seated, looking at the dozen or so good brothers around him, Lance spoke the idea he hadn’t revealed downstairs.

“I intend to unify the entire Empire District, leaving no other gangs or families here.”

Initially, they didn’t react, but then Hiram’s face lit up with excitement!

“Is another war about to start?”

Currently, over thirty percent of the Empire District’s territory was still controlled by the Red Dog Gang.

In reality, their business operations did not significantly overlap with Lance’s.

The Red Dog Gang primarily focused on selling smuggled alcohol and providing sexual services through pimping, also incidentally offering security services to some bars.

After all, security personnel with big gang backgrounds were more intimidating than a bar’s own security.

For instance, when Lance and his men went to the bar to find someone, the security guard’s first words after being subdued were, “I’m with the Red Dog Gang.” If it were some small gang, they might genuinely be intimidated.

Yet, despite the lack of direct conflict and low overlap in their operations, it did not mean they had no impact on Lance’s overall plan.

Controlling the entire Empire District was actually a firm declaration, just as there was only one Pasoretto family in the entire Summuri District.

One could say this was a symbol of “status” or “strength.” Otherwise, if the Empire District alone had two large gangs and various chaotic neighborhood families, no matter how well Lance performed, others wouldn’t view him as particularly outstanding.

If you can’t even handle the situation in your own home, how can you convince others to agree with you on certain matters? Moreover, this could increase Imperial immigrants’ confidence in him.

Although the Camille gang later degenerated beyond recognition, in its early days, they indeed raised the banner of standing with Imperials against other gangs.

Even at its peak, the Camille gang failed to unify the Empire District, but Lance succeeded.

Therefore, he could, to a certain extent, better represent the interests of Imperials in Golden Port! In fact, upon closer reflection, there were so many things that could have been done, yet no one stepped up to do them.

Perhaps they were overly short-sighted, or perhaps they genuinely couldn’t see these opportunities.

Like Mr. Jobav, he had never considered funding the poor all these years. Perhaps the fervor of capitalists only wanting to acquire profit blinded him to the benefits of giving, but this coincidentally benefited Lance.

As for whether to immediately go to war with the Red Dog Gang, Lance slightly shook his head. “It’s not necessarily about going to war. If they can voluntarily retreat, that would be the best outcome.”

“We can talk to them first, but if they are unwilling to retreat, then we will have no choice but to drive them out.”

“The unification of the Empire District is a task we cannot avoid and must accomplish. Its priority is on par with the Imperial Chamber of Commerce!”

Morris leaned against the corner of the sofa. He wasn’t very tall, and sitting on the sofa would give the impression of “a child mixed in among a group of adults,” so he hated sitting on sofas. However, he could accept sitting on the back of the sofa.

“I’ll immediately send people to keep an eye on their men.”

Lance nodded. “What’s their boss’s name again?”

“Bill.”

“Right, keep an eye on Bill, and also the senior cadres operating in the Empire District. It’s best not to go to war if possible, but if we really have to, we need to dismantle their resistance in the shortest possible time.”

He said, looking at Elvin, “Have we recruited any soldiers?”

Elvin nodded. “The word is out. Some people in the Empire want to come and join us, but they need some money.”

“The internal situation in the Empire is currently very corrupt, and there have been some problems within the rebel army. Many people want to come to the Federation.”

“Not just the Imperial Army, but some rebel forces also want to come over.”

The Imperial Emperor was forced to flee everywhere, seemingly on the verge of becoming a historical joke, yet internal conflicts erupted within the rebel army.

it was rumored that His Majesty the Emperor had sent word that he intended to surrender, but he didn’t know to whom, and needed the rebel army to provide him with a candidate.

These “private messages” were actually public, and combined with some of his schemes, they made people clearly realize that whoever the Emperor surrendered to could be the next Emperor! The rebel army was not one single force, but many.

Everyone began the uprising with the ideal of overthrowing the Imperial monarchy’s tyranny. But now, it seemed the fruits of victory were within reach, yet a problem they hadn’t considered before arose: who would pick this fruit!

For a moment, turmoil resurfaced within the Empire, which Lance found incredibly exciting. However, his attention quickly shifted away from this.

No matter how well the Imperial Emperor played his games, that was the Imperial Emperor’s business, and it had nothing to do with him. He now needed to deal with the matters at hand!

“Arrange for some people to come over as soon as possible. We need some military training, and also to expand our recruitment a bit. We’re a little short-handed again.”

“Although I don’t intend to start a war, we must be prepared for an all-out war.”

“There can only be one voice in the Empire District, and that is my voice, Lance’s voice.”

“And there can only be one family, and that is our Lance family!”

(End of this chapter)

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