Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 65 Organizing a Negotiation

"fishing?"

Milton's plan had already taken shape: "Yes... perfect, we not only need to catch those two traitors, but also purge any potential surrender factions within our ranks."

Sometimes, those who surrender are more hateful than the enemy, or even more hateful than traitors.

The surrender faction may not stab Milton in the back or take hostile actions against him, but if he chooses to flee at a crucial moment, causing him to relinquish a key position, the consequences will be disastrous.

Such individuals cannot be identified immediately by the panel; Milton himself must purge them.

Veronica, aware of the importance of internal team issues, pressed for details: "Boss, what exactly do we need to do?"

"What do you think of our current strength on paper?" Milton countered. "What price would other powers have to pay to take us by force?"

The old streets have now been converted into temporary bunkers, making them much harder to attack.

Lutz pondered for a moment and said, "Our strength on paper is already considerable. To launch an attack, we would need at least 20 well-trained warriors equipped with powerful gear, and we would have to suffer some casualties to have any hope. But in reality, this kind of operation can't last long."

“Strict control over the old streets can only be carried out for a short period of time; while other forces have far more funds and resources at their disposal than we do. As long as they are willing to spend time and resources to wage a protracted war, we still cannot resist.”

"However... these are all just analyses on paper. I believe you, boss, will definitely have a way to solve this."

Milton chuckled: "Then let me ask you again, do you think our enemy will choose to launch a direct assault, or will they choose to use other means to dismantle our temporary team first?"

“A direct attack would be too costly right now, so they might try the latter method first,” Lutz replied. “If that doesn’t work, they’ll probably choose to attack.”

These criminal gangs are all in the same boat and don't want to lose too much of their strength in attacking Milton, giving others an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

Therefore, they will most likely choose the option with the lower cost first.

“Yes, since the enemy will definitely try to undermine our team from within, we don’t need to wait passively. We might as well take the initiative.” Milton tapped the table. “Find someone trustworthy who wasn’t in our core team before, and spread false information to the police or checkpoints that we are unstable internally and that someone is planning to defect.”

"If those two really have connections with the outside world, they will definitely take action upon hearing this news. Then we can catch them red-handed. Doing this will not only expose the traitors and find the surrender faction, but we might also be able to ambush the enemy."

Milton happened to have one such candidate in mind.

Matteo, who was robbed of everything, whose wife and children were killed, and who had a blood feud with Fan Kang's gang, the police station, the court, and the prison!
The panel shows that this person's ally level is not even "informant", but has been upgraded to "ally", the same level as Lutz and Veronica.

The teammate assessment panel is divided into several different categories, with the lower-level teammates being "informants" and "hired agents".

At an even higher level are "allies" and "confidants".

In other words, it's about distinguishing between "peripheral members," "external hires," "internal members," and "core members."

People who are identified as falling into the latter two categories by the panel are generally trustworthy.

The power of hatred is truly terrifying.

Lutz thought for a moment and asked, "Will they believe us? Is it possible that they've seen through our intentions?"

"If they see through it, they see through it. It doesn't cost us anything," Milton said casually. "We'll just have to tear off the mask eventually anyway." If they can fool them, it would be best to ambush the enemy. If they can't fool them, they can just forcibly control the suspicious people and then start fighting.

Luz had no more questions, stood up, nodded, and said, "Then I'll go and call Matteo over now."

A few minutes later, Matteo arrived at the black market pharmacy and learned the general outline of the "plan".

“You should be able to get in touch with the police,” Milton said after explaining the plan. “Don’t worry, you’ll get paid properly no matter what you do working for me.”

As a leading figure in the fight against gangs, police, and checkpoints, Matteo readily agreed, completely disregarding the issue of payment: "No problem at all... They think they've broken my spine, so I'll go and tip them off to surrender. They won't suspect much."

"The only problem is, I can only play this card once. They won't fall for it a second time. Boss, are you sure you want to use it now?"

Internal problems take precedence over everything else.

Milton nodded in confirmation: "Yes, tell them that there are significant disagreements within our team, and many members yearn for peace. We are fighting to join their interests, not to become their enemies."

"In other words, we want to negotiate."

With such power and having accomplished so many great things, surrendering outright seems too convincing. A slightly different approach, such as saying they want to join the profit chain and make money together, would greatly increase their credibility.

"Okay, I'll contact them now."

"If you encounter any problems, come to the gun shop and find me. Report any new developments to me as soon as possible. I'm going to practice shooting there and will be back in a bit."

Milton gave an order, stood up, walked out of the pharmacy, and called Flora, who was on guard duty, over.

With the assistance of these retired soldiers, the construction of the bunker was very successful—even if the enemy came with a suicide car bomb, it would be blocked by various obstacles on the outside and could not cause much damage.

That $4 a month price is absolutely worth it.

Flora turned around, roughly brushed her gray hair aside, and asked, "Boss, who are we killing this time... no, who are we going to collect taxes from?"

“Young people shouldn’t always be fighting.” Milton glanced at the gun shop. “It’s just a new commission.”

Flora's eyes lit up, and she immediately asked, "What request?"

The previous $10 stolen money gave the nearly bankrupt PMC a much-needed reprieve, but Flora was still desperately poor and in dire need of more money.

“Be my instructor and help me train my combat personnel.” Milton led Flora toward the gun shop. “As you can see, most of the people here lack systematic combat skills. With a little training, their combat effectiveness can at least double.”

“You’re making it sound like you’re not a local…” Flora followed up, adding with a sarcastic remark, “No problem, I can help you train them. Give me the list of people who need training, and I’ll design a course. I’ll tell you the cost once the course is finalized.”

Milton moved with undiminished speed: "I'm the one you'll be training later."

"...Huh?" Flora's eyes widened, somewhat incredulous. "You still need training? Aren't you the God of War?"

Milton retorted, "You guys are always fighting in places like this, you're practically becoming part of the local style. When did you start calling yourself a war god after beating up a few weak gangsters?"

(End of this chapter)