Shadow Empire

Chapter 100 Shit in the stomach
The surge in alcoholic beverage prices was expected by everyone, but they didn't expect it to rise so quickly.

After other states joined the Prohibition League, they did see varying degrees of increases, but the growth was slow at that time because people were unsure how many states the Prohibition League could spread to and whether the enforcement standards would be strict.

But now something is wrong. It looks like it will become the formal federal constitution. You know, once it becomes the federal constitution, it means that all states cannot bypass it.

Many people are privately saying that once the federal prohibition is fully implemented, the price of alcohol throughout the federation will see a new increase.

The president also mentioned at a private party two days ago that he had discussed the implementation of a complete prohibition of alcohol with the Speaker of the House and the Senate Majority Leader.

Although he did not explicitly express that he would sign and begin full implementation, or said that he still needed to consider it, from his expression, attitude, and speed of speech when he talked about these things, people believed that there was a high probability that he had actually signed.

The reason it was not taken out is that we are just waiting for the results of the midterm elections. This is a deal, but it comes after another deal.

The results of this year's election will be announced in November, which should be a very lively "social event", but the enthusiasm for this year's midterm elections is obviously not very high.

Some groups among the public shouted "conspiracy", but it did not cause any waves.

The President did not make the Union much better during his four years in office, but he did make one thing possible: he did not make it worse.

As long as he does this, his re-election will basically not be a big problem unless he encounters a very strong competitor.

His rivals gave up the race in mid-to-late August after a series of political deals to prevent him from being re-elected through a state of war.

Of course he wouldn't say that. He was distracted by other things, so in the two months from September to now, the heat of the election has not only not increased but has begun to decline.

This means that it won’t be long before a complete ban on alcohol is implemented.

Some wineries in areas that have not yet joined the Prohibition Alliance have begun to brew strong liquor frantically, hoping to gain some time.

It is almost impossible to find the records of large quantities of liquor leaving the warehouse in society, and many wineries themselves are stockpiling goods, waiting for the "crazy moment" to come.

In this case, Mr. Jobaf, it's torture.

The reason for the torture is that there are only about 2,000 bottles left of the hundreds of thousands of bottles of liquor in the warehouse, and most of them are not considered high-end gin.

He would be in trouble if Arthur asked him to cash in the drinks he had pledged to him.

He doesn't want trouble, but trouble always haunts him.

"Mr. Williams wants to see you, Mr. Jobaff.", the assistant knocked on the door and stood at the door looking at Mr. Jobaff.

The latter was processing the documents in his hands. He was stunned for a moment, "Serena Williams?"

The assistant reminded, "James."

Some people don't like this title, which seems more like a contemptuous title to federal people.

It does not say "this is so-and-so", but "this is the son of so-and-so", which is difficult to accept for federal people with distinct personalities, independent personalities and free spirits.

Even if the subject of the title is their father whom they may admire.

In the city of Golden Harbor, there is only one person that people know, and that is Congressman Williams. So the only person who is active in the city of Golden Harbor under the name "Little Williams" is James Williams.

However, he himself does not care much about this title, because this is a title that many people desire but cannot obtain.

Not everyone is qualified to be called like this, like "the second generation of so-and-so".

They would only call you that if your father was an emperor or a great noble.

But if your father is just a factory assembly line worker, even if they call you that, at most they would just be a "little mud lackey" or a "little dog."

Mr. Jobaf took a breath and hesitated for a moment, "Let him in."

Although James and Arthur are brothers, their reputations are completely different.

James is considered the most qualified successor to Congressman Williams. He has an exceptionally good resume and has been working as Congressman Williams' assistant since graduating from a prestigious university.

Especially in the past two years, Congressman Williams has often retreated behind the scenes, leaving all matters in front of the stage to James, who has a good reputation in the eyes of the upper class in Jingang City.

Humble, gentle, well-educated, totally different from his bastard brother.

Two minutes later, James, who was dressed elegantly, walked in from the door. "Mr. Jobaf, thank you for taking the time to see me."

He handed his hat and coat to Mr. Jobbaugh's assistant, who took it and hung it on a hanger by the door.

Mr. Jobaf smiled and said, "What to drink?"

"No, thank you." James sat on the sofa and Mr. Jobaf also sat over.

"I came here this time to tell you that Arthur has given me full authority to handle the wine he has pledged to you."

"I looked at the documents he gave me, and it showed about 42,000 bottles of La Boquerque Gold Label, and 3,500 bottles of gin."

Gin is not as valuable as Gold Label whiskey, but it is easier to sell now because the price is relatively low. Mr. Jobaf forced a smile and took the mortgage documents and read them, although he made them all.

"No problem, then did you bring the money?"

He returned the documents. James did not notice anything unusual about him. "You know, this is a large sum of money, so it will take some time to prepare."

“It will take no more than a week for the money to be deposited into your bank account or the account you specify.”

"But before that, I want to go to the warehouse and take a look at the wine."

It’s not that he doesn’t believe his brother, it’s just that Arthur is like a piece of shit most of the time, and he can’t really believe that “he has it” just because Arthur says “I have it”.

Mr. Jobaf nodded. "Of course, it's a reasonable request." He glanced at his assistant and said, "Go prepare the car."

The assistant trotted away, and Mr. Jobaf took the opportunity to chat with James about some recent events in Jingang City.

The car was very difficult to prepare and took more than ten minutes to get it ready. Mr. Jobaff got angry on the spot. James comforted him and said that he had nothing else to do and that it was a valuable experience for him to chat with a successful banker like Mr. Jobaff.

He spoke very nicely, completely different from Arthur, but Mr. Jobaf did not dare to underestimate him at all.

Now he had a clearer understanding of the Federals than before. These people were more gentle and educated.

When you start stabbing, you will get more deadly.

Unfortunately, the car broke down on the road, and Mr. Jobaf called another car. It was a simple task that should have taken only 20 minutes to reach the warehouse, but it took more than an hour.

But fortunately, they finally arrived at the warehouse.

The warehouse number was the same as Arthur had said, and Mr. Jobaf pushed open the door, revealing a mountain of wine.

Tens of thousands of bottles of wine piled together are indeed shocking, and at this time, they are no longer wine, but resources and cash!
Even James felt suffocated for a moment.

He walked over to the pile of drinks and said, seemingly in a request, but only to inform Mr. Jobaf, "Can I open it and have a look?"

Mr. Jobaf nodded, picked up a bottle, weighed it, and opened it. The Gold Label La Boquerque whisky was very recognizable.

Its wine bottles are all special, with a medal-like bulge under the bottle mouth.

This bump will have different colors depending on the "mark".

They can be distinguished at a glance from the copper-brown copper label, the silver-white silver label, and the gold label with hot stamping.

He took out a bottle, shook it, and even unscrewed the lid and smelled the fragrance inside.

It was indeed Gold Label La Boquerque, not some other inferior liquor, and he smiled more.

"All here?"

Mr. Jobaf nodded, and James' mood suddenly became very good. Now everyone knew that this batch of wine would have another price increase.

In other words, even if he sold the wine to other people at the current price, those people would still owe him a favor.

Because he gave them the opportunity to make money!
"Is it okay for me to take this bottle of wine away?" he asked, holding the opened bottle of wine in his hand.

"Of course, I'll treat you!" said Mr. Jobaf with a smile.

"Thank you for your generosity, but business is business." He looked at his assistant first, "How much is a bottle of Gold Label now?"

"Eleven dollars and fifty-five cents."

He took out a ten-dollar bill, two quarters and a five-cent coin, and put them in Mr. Jobaf's hand, then shook the wine in his hand, "One hand for money, the other for goods!"

Mr. Jobaf's smile was a little stiff, but soon became natural again.

All the people in the Federation were like this; on the surface they appeared to be very harmonious, but deep down, they were always wary of him.

So did the Federals who had extorted from him, so did Arthur, so did the mayor, and even so did James.

What made him even more dissatisfied was that he had to flatter the other party as "a noble person with excellent moral character"!
"I will redeem these bottles by next Monday, so I'll trouble you and your workers to take care of them in the next few days. I hope I can take them away immediately then."

Mr. Jobaf suppressed his uneasiness and agreed, "No problem."

After James left, he thought about it and finally called the mayor.

He spent so much money on the mayor, didn't he just want someone to protect him from the wind and rain?

But it is obvious that he underestimated the shamelessness of federal people, especially federal politicians.

(End of this chapter)