New Gods of North America.

Chapter 731 Misjudgment
After trying to suspend the "night patrol" in the dock area for one night,
The next morning, most of the members of the detective agency had basically resumed their normal routines, and Wayne finally changed his breakfast time at the temporary base back from "before going to bed" to "after waking up".

As Wayne flipped through the intelligence team's briefing, before he had even finished a slice of pizza, Doug came into the office to report: "Sir, the Secretary of State is here to visit, and he's in the carriage outside the back door."

what's the situation? !

Last night, the detective agency was just about to officially begin investigating the witness at the hearing. Connor hadn't even had a chance to pretend to be drunk at the state legislature yet, and then the person behind the scenes showed up.
Is the intelligence network of Richmond's high society really that terrifying?
Moreover, as a Secretary of State, he doesn't even know his place.
Is the dock area a place you should be visiting? Aren't you afraid of being shot in the dark when you go out?

At most, they can send a secretary over, like last time, and that will be enough.

immature.

But despite the complaints, you can't stop people from doing things.
According to etiquette, when something of this caliber arrives, the host should personally greet it at the door, or at least have a primary adult family member do so.

Even if necessary, the owner can secretly pretend they are not home.
The housekeeper should at least symbolically invite them in to sit down, have a cup of tea, or something like that.

Wayne nodded and told Doug to go and invite the person in. He himself was a little too lazy to walk too far and planned to wait a few steps before going to greet them.

Try to run into them again on the stairs, pretending you were just busy with something.

This is to appear slightly less attentive while still adhering to etiquette.

I don't want to be accused of neglecting others, and I also don't want the other party to take the opportunity to directly treat me as a subordinate and give me orders on the spot—at which point, trying to smooth things over might not be so "tactful".

After all, even if we take a step back, Wayne is still a free man who understands the law.
According to the unspoken rules of the American political arena, potential voters without public office have the right to choose which politicians they prefer to befriend, provided they do not offend anyone. Conversely, interest groups that seek favors from politicians or actively align themselves with them are often restrained by the politicians.

Doug added, "Sir, were the entourage who came with that gentleman also allowed in?"

"Are there a lot of people?" Wayne asked in return.

"There were two carriages, one in front and one behind, and about eight bodyguards, not counting the coachmen."

"Then don't worry about it, just cooperate with their security work as much as possible."

Judging solely by the number of people traveling, this scale is not considered high-profile, which also indicates that the other party did not come to cause trouble.
However, for state officials from prominent families like this, their bodyguards should be of high quality and well-equipped with weapons. At least when dealing with an equal number of gangsters, it would be a crushing victory.

The two eventually met in the stairwell, with Wayne pretending to be apologetic as he hurried down the stairs.

The man following behind Doug, led by two bodyguards in front and behind him, must be the legendary Secretary of State.

“Mr. Prier? Welcome to our temporary outpost.”

This was Wayne's first formal encounter with this guy. Although the other man was considered a "veteran politician" in terms of seniority and position, he was actually only in his late thirties, a perfect example of "young talent without inferiority complex."
Like Victor Beaton, the "grandson" of the Beaton family, if he had a smooth career path, he would have reached a similar level by the time he reached the same age. However, considering the probability factor, reality is often not so smooth. In fact, he is already considered to be at the ceiling of his level. Most family members, even with someone protecting them, would probably find it difficult to reach the same threshold at this age.

Mr. Pryor glanced at Wayne from bottom to top before flashing the standard, affable smile of a politician.

After their eyes met, he continued to slowly climb the steps until he and Wayne were on the same step. Then he extended his hand and said, "It's nice to meet you."

Wayne reached out and shook his hand back: "I'm honored."

The other party didn't seem to be there to cause trouble. After the two bodyguards quickly completed the initial verification and the agents tidied up the office, only Mr. Pryor and Wayne remained in the room.

The former took the poured brandy from Wayne's hand, took a small sip, and said, "I came here specifically to clarify and explain the situation regarding my confidential secretary's negligence. He misunderstood me and may have given Mr. Wayne incorrect advice without my consent."

Hmm... When that secretary came over last time, what he really meant was that Wayne should replace O'Sullivan and nominally take over the Ellan gang.
The advantage is that Wayne can gain their support and become the most powerful gang leader in the dock area, naturally reaping the corresponding profits.
The cost is that some things in the community will become a "black box" for Wayne. Wayne should neither inquire about nor interfere with them in detail, yet he theoretically manages them. Later, he may have to help "clean up the mess" or take the blame when problems arise.

But the person who came last time was just a "secretary," which, to put it bluntly, was just a messenger.
This time, the person behind the secretary indicated that they had something else to say and wanted to speak frankly. Wayne immediately nodded slightly, adopting an "all ears" expression, somewhat curious about what new information the other party would have to offer.
Based on the information the detective agency currently has, this Secretary of State is clearly not someone to be trifled with.

He seemingly had Jason removed from the church monastery and effortlessly accomplished two feats: "silencing the whistleblower at the hearing" and "retaliating against the sailors' gang."
It is also very likely that they organized a coordinated attack against that banker, Mr. Schwartz, planning to use a "large-scale bank run"—a method that is both difficult to criticize and almost impossible to resolve—to carry out a public "execution."

However, no one is invincible. Luke Matthews has reported that the Pryor family seems to be considering changing their next heir.
According to the intelligence team's current investigation, although there are quite a few young core members of the Pryor family, the Secretary of State seems to be the most suitable candidate.

Therefore, Wayne was also very curious about the other party's purpose in coming here at this time, and he was not sure whether there was a "trap" or "good news" waiting for him.

Mr. Pryor didn't rush into anything, but instead began by laying the groundwork: "I've heard that you, Mr. Wayne, have some personal connections with the Fisk and Beaton families. So you must have heard some rumors about me recently, right?"

The detective agency has gathered quite a few rumors lately, and Wayne isn't sure which part the other party is specifically referring to.
However, after thinking for a moment, he picked out a relatively insignificant one: "Are you referring to the news that a certain banker might be in trouble recently?"

“No,” Mr. Pryor shook his head, “I meant the news that our family might be changing its heir.”

Wayne remained noncommittal, instead asking, "It sounds like that information might be incorrect?"

"This is perhaps the meaning of 'communication'; everyone needs to constantly revise their knowledge to avoid making misjudgments."

Mr. Pryor shrugged, appearing "relaxed" and "approachable." "My father and I went to the cathedral yesterday to apologize in person and obtained the understanding of Bishop Tyrell."

"After that banker's bank goes bankrupt, our family's share of the profits will be used entirely to establish a charitable foundation to improve the living conditions of the clergy in this state. All specific matters will be handled by Bishop Tyrell. One of my brothers will also be formally 'blessed' to become a cathedral monk and will also be a special director of that foundation."

"Therefore, the message cannot be said to be 'incorrect,' but it is certainly 'outdated.'"

The logic here is a bit messy. While sorting through the pieces of the puzzle in his mind, Wayne asked a random question to buy time: "There are actually benefits? I thought the alliance between the big families this time was just a simple 'public punishment'."

“Our family obviously doesn’t have that much influence to get other big families in the south to cooperate and provide funds free of charge.”

Mr. Pryor smiled and explained briefly, “The bank’s bankruptcy is just the ‘dramatic climax’ in the public’s eyes, but the real key is actually the cheap acquisition of its high-quality assets after the bankruptcy. To be honest, if that banker hadn’t been so reckless and made such a provocative move, those big families wouldn’t have agreed to this alliance so easily.”

Damn it? !
So, there was a follow-up after the "massive bank run"?!
Wayne realized he was still too naive; he had only assumed that the powerful families had joined forces to "kill" him, never imagining they would then "divide and conquer" him...

It really is "two ways to eat one fish"—not a single bit is wasted.

Then Wayne thought of something even more absurd: the detective agency had only decided last night to officially begin investigating the whistleblower at the hearing, and now it felt like going all-in on a stock market crash before it even surged.
If the Secretary of State found out, the detective agency would look incredibly foolish, like opportunists who had tried to take advantage of someone's misfortune.

—Why didn't this guy come sooner? Connor had already set off with two bottles of whiskey to find an opportunity to cause trouble at the state capitol, and Inessa was already thinking about helping someone clear their name. She's not someone you can easily persuade in certain ways.

Wayne practically picked the toughest nut to crack as a "potential enemy"...

But then Wayne realized a new problem.

Given the Secretary of State's current confidence in victory, the detective agency is now nothing more than a small force that held a meeting with the dockside gangs. It's not even enough to fill their teeth, let alone have any "united front value."

The other party then honored the occasion by personally visiting and giving a friendly welcome, explaining the inside story in detail.

What is the reason for doing this?
(End of this chapter)