New Gods of North America.

Chapter 713 Secretary
Walk back upstairs from the back door to the temporary base.
Wayne soon met privately with the Secretary of State's secretary in an empty office.

In terms of status, to be precise, this person is actually a "confidential secretary" in the Secretary of State's office, the kind of official staff appointed by political appointees and whose salary is paid by their agency.

Compared to a simple private secretary, this type of "chief secretary" has an official appointment, can accumulate civil service experience as a civil servant, and can exert a certain influence on the actual execution of government affairs within the scope of their authority. It can be regarded as one of the career advancement forms of the former, and the future development direction is also broader.

However, everything has two sides. Official staff holding public office and the political appointees who appointed them are, in a sense, openly bound together. Moreover, the law is often stricter on incumbent public officials. Once it's discovered that they've engaged in illegal transactions, it becomes a so-called "handle," which is very detrimental to their public image.
However, if we turn the situation around again, and the Secretary of State specifically sent someone to discuss some less-than-compliant matters, then the other party's willingness to cooperate wouldn't be too low.

In American politics, there's an unspoken rule: to demonstrate sincerity by offering the other side some incriminating evidence, big or small.

However, if the other party still refuses to "conspire" under such circumstances, they may be even more hated afterward. After all, knowing someone else's secrets for no reason is somewhat like "possessing a treasure and being punished."

“Mr. Wayne, Mr. Pryor knows that you have recently been assisting the city hall in collecting taxes and is aware that you are using this matter to settle some personal grudges that have occurred between you and the mob.”

"The Pryor family knows some old acquaintances among the Irish in the dock area. Mr. Pryor is willing to help Mr. Wayne by working together to deal with some despicable gangsters."

After officially meeting Wayne face-to-face, the secretary's initial wording was quite impeccable.
However, since he had already chosen to show his face, Wayne was too lazy to continue beating around the bush and quickly cut to the chase: "There are only the two of us here, so why don't we keep things simple? What exactly does Mr. Pryor intend to offer, and what should I do in return?"

The secretary's face subtly revealed an expression of "We're all civilized people, how can our language be so vulgar?" as he tried his best to maintain the air of someone representing the Secretary of State at this meeting.

"Mr. Pryor respects your detective agency's desire to expand in the dock area. He can have some of the Irish immigrants directly take orders from Mr. Wayne, so your detective agency won't have to worry about this most uncontrollable group in the dock area causing trouble."

"As for what Mr. Pryor hopes you can do, Mr. Wayne, there are only two things. First, to ensure that the existing businesses of the Airland Gang can continue to operate according to existing practices. Second, he hopes that you can completely deal with that Sailor Gang this time."

Wayne frowned slightly: "What do you mean by 'existing business'?"

"Well……"

It's unclear whether the secretary was "unaware" or simply felt it was "unreliable to say."
Therefore, although he still appeared elegant, he was actually a bit stuck. "It's probably about the things that the Erland Gang is currently operating? For example, maintaining community order, managing the laborers on the docks, and some business and economic transactions. Mr. Pryor once hinted that those things would be handled by someone, Mr. Wayne, you don't need to worry about them, and you might even get a share of the profits."

Wayne clasped his hands together, tilted his head slightly, and decided to start by speaking softly, trying not to make the conversation awkward:
"Dealing with the Sailors Gang is simple. Their original personnel have been involved in a series of incidents in recent days, which has severely damaged the organization. Moreover, they still have a lot of gang goods suspected of being smuggled, which no one has dared to claim yet, and they are prepared to confiscate them."

"Although the Sailors' Gang still has a few remaining leaders who are trying to regroup and recruit more people, their strength will definitely be weakened in the short term. We will not let this go too smoothly, and other gangs may also try to seize this opportunity to drive them away from the docks they currently manage."

"Furthermore, if we continue to pursue additional taxes from the Sailors' Gang based on their current known assets, and require the remaining gang members to contribute to make up the difference, they might stop using the name 'Sailors' Gang.' At that point, the so-called 'Sailors' Gang' might become a thing of the dock district's history." Seeing the secretary listening intently and nodding repeatedly,
Wayne then changed the subject, returning to the previous question: "So, what does 'existing business' of the Erlan Gang mean?"

The secretary seemed somewhat surprised by Wayne's hesitation over this small detail. Being a shrewd man, he quickly connected it to some potentially shady business dealings:

"Perhaps there will be some business dealings related to ocean-going vessels? I am not clear about that, but Mr. Pryer's point is that he has already made things clear. I think there are some things that are better left unsaid."

Wayne, now certain that this guy probably didn't know enough inside information, forced a smile and decided not to argue with him.

"Please convey my reply to the Secretary of State, saying that I am willing to cooperate. However, regarding the definition of the Irish gang's 'existing business,' I need to know the specifics and clear scope, otherwise I can only express my regret."

joke,

The traces of a high-level Beyonder that Inessa found a while ago, the recent targeting of the Sailors' Gang by Jason, the few members of the Silent Church before that, and the dock accident that still raises questions when I think about it now...

If we talk about these things in general, it seems that they are all related to the Erlan riot gang.

Even setting aside the potential involvement of the Erlan rioters in smuggling and assisting with illegal immigration, the charges of "colluding with extraordinary individuals from outside the church," "harboring or assisting criminals in their escape," and "hosting heretics or cult members" are all types of offenses that would be severely punished by the church.

The Secretary of State should either make things clear or not expect the detective agency to be dragged into this mess.

Our detective agency is a law-abiding organization; how could we get involved in such things?

Well……

Even if the detective agency secretly makes a little money off the top of their head, Wayne and his team know how to keep it within limits.
At least Inessa is an "Outsider" openly acknowledged by the church, and Lina is no longer considered a legitimate American criminal.

Even the twins who just arrived were adopted by priests from the Holy See when they were young.
Rounding it off, I guess I can be considered a believer in the Holy Spirit.

Furthermore, Wayne had roughly confirmed one thing: the recent troubles the Sailors had encountered might not be due to their own actions.
It seems more likely to be related to the banker behind the Sailors' Gang—otherwise, for such a trivial gang matter, the Secretary of State might not even need to send someone from his inner circle to show up.

(End of this chapter)