King
Chapter 1206 - 1206 200 Affecting Innocent Bystanders

1206: Chapter 200: Affecting Innocent Bystanders 1206: Chapter 200: Affecting Innocent Bystanders The atmosphere in Canglan City became exceedingly tense as the murderer remained at large.

The troops stationed in the Capital were fully mobilized to apprehend any suspects, resulting in overcrowded prisons.

Regrettably, despite the multitude of arrests, no clues linked to the assassination case of the Crown Prince were found; instead, a host of other troubles surfaced.

The spies of various powers, the underground criminal forces, illegitimate children of Nobles and royal dignitaries, and bureaucrats’ proxies…

All sorts of chaotic elements emerged all at once.

Under usual circumstances, such commotion would have breached the gates of Caesar IV’s palace.

With so many arrested – some executed, others exiled – nobody dared interfere.

For a moment, the Capital’s security saw a significant cleanup, leading to the complete disappearance of spoiled heirs, while even entertainment venues faced a downturn.

The deeper the investigation went, the messier it became.

It wasn’t that there were no suspects, but rather that there were too many.

Domestic and foreign powers were all suspects, including core members of The Royal Family.

Anyone capable of infiltrating The Royal Family was now considered a suspect, with substantial motives at play.

The substantial dowry in the hands of the Queen served as a catalyst.

Should Caesar IV and the Queen remain childless, the sovereignties of six provinces would become the Kingdom’s greatest ticking bomb.

The stakes involved were so massive that everyone hesitated to draw conclusions, fearing major repercussions from a mistake.

Overwhelmed by the surplus of suspects, even Caesar IV felt helpless.

While concrete evidence wasn’t needed for revenge, knowing the perpetrator was vital.

Unlike now, where not even a target for venting was available.

Seeking revenge for his son, he didn’t even know who to confront.

The Nobles responsible for the Prince’s security were silenced immediately at the onset of the incident.

Now, all persons accountable were dead.

Such a large-scale silencing without leaving any clues clearly wasn’t within the capabilities of ordinary powers.

Yet, this was futile as no one could guarantee that the powers behind the assassination hadn’t colluded with domestic elites.

Bottling up his resentment, Caesar IV still had to manage his emotions to comfort the Queen.

Losing one Prince could lead to having another.

Should the Queen be overly distressed and harm her health, affecting her fertility, that would be the actual disaster.

…

As misfortunes spill out from the city gates, they afflict even those unrelated.

Hudson, thousands of miles away, never imagined, as a bystander, that the crisis would sweep over him.

As the investigation deepened, news that a Prince’s Attendant had taken out a loan from the Near East Development Bank two months ago also surfaced.

Another suspicious clue +1, suspected financial distress leading to desperate actions!

Regardless of how low the odds, the Near East Development Bank stuck in the storm still faced inquiries.

Business impairment was trivial; the main concern was the investigation team demanding to audit accounts.

Unsupervised bank statements devoid of issues would be the biggest concern.

Ever since its founding, the Near East Development Bank’s selling point was “customer confidentiality,” never probing into the sources or uses of clients’ funds.

This highly private, convenient, and money-laundering institution quickly gained popularity.

Within less than a year, the Capital Branch became the Kingdom’s busiest and most profitable branch out of dozens.

Generating profit was secondary; through these transactions, the Near East Development Bank had also formed close relationships with Kingdom’s bureaucrats, becoming intimate business partners.

Now with the investigation team set to audit, transactions previously hidden behind the scenes were bound to be exposed.

This was the moment for the relationship network to act.

Even before the investigation team made a move, bureaucrats were already alerting their contacts.

Upon receiving the message, the branch manager didn’t dare make decisions alone and immediately relayed the news back at the fastest speed.

…

“Duke, that’s the general situation.

The investigation team has set their sights on the Near East Development Bank, and our partners have tried their best to delay them.

From the current situation, it seems they cannot delay for much longer.

The branch manager asks whether to cooperate with the investigation team’s inquiry or…”

Listening to Rudolf’s report, Hudson developed an immediate headache.

Intuition told him this inquiry was not merely about the case but also a matter of being a high-profile target.

While rising, the Near East Development Bank had gathered a circle of stakeholders but had also offended many.

Now given the chance, these offended parties would definitely capitalize on the situation.

Even if there were no direct connections, they would strive to establish one.

Once the bank’s statements are made public, countless issues lurking in the shadows would come to light.

Not just the cooperative bureaucrats, but the Near East Development Bank itself could not withstand such shock.

Essentially, banks operate on trust, and confidentiality was not promised at the outset; the initial allure was indeed confidentiality.

It wasn’t an employee mistake making unfounded external promises; in all of Alpha Kingdom’s laws, there had never been a requirement to disclose bank statements.

“What is not forbidden by law is permissible!”

To attract customers, emphasizing privacy in external communications was clearly not the fault of bank staff.