Empire of Shadows

God is supreme and flawless in the hearts of every believer.

Just like Hope, in the eyes of his followers, he may have some flaws, but overall, he is still good.

The moment the bald kid said, "He is destroying us," the followers sitting in the chairs couldn't help but stand up again and shout something at him.

Soon, they were warned again that if they couldn't control themselves, they would have to leave.

Eventually, they promised to sit there quietly, and if they made any more noise, they would be asked to leave.

Two police officers recorded what he said, and the precinct chief tapped his fingers on the table, "Why do you say he is destroying you?"

The bald kid glanced at the people behind the precinct chief and then at the reporter, "Hope advocates gaining attention through confrontation, thereby enhancing our social status in the Federation."

"If some strangers broke into your home and wanted to gain the right to live in this house by giving you a few punches, would you agree?"

Those followers who were originally preparing to refute his point of view couldn't find a point to refute when they heard his simple description.

Because what he said and what is happening now are the same thing.

Everyone's face had slightly different expressions: shock, contemplation, furrowed brows. Although they felt that this analogy was not quite right, they didn't know how to refute it.

George (the star reporter of 'Golden Port Today') gave the bald kid two close-ups.

"I heard that he was going to hold a new opportunity to confront this city on January 1st, and I knew I should do something."

The bald kid replied, "Stolen. When we broke into a house, we found weapons in the house, and I hid them."

"Originally, I planned to take it out to exchange for some money, but I later changed my mind. I want to use it to save our group!"

There are also many houses in the New Port District that have been sold, and there may be anything in them, like a large blind box.

Now many community houses have been pried open, but there are also some communities with security guards on duty.

During this period, many "lucky events" have indeed occurred, such as finding clothes, winter supplies, things that can be sold for money, and even cash in the pried-open houses.

Finding a gun can only be said to be a bit unexpected, but it is definitely within reason.

The precinct chief nodded. The bald kid was very cooperative, which made his questioning work go smoothly. "When we caught you, there was more than just you. Are you an organization?"

"Who is the leader?"

The bald kid shook his head, "We are just ordinary friends, all with the same ideas and thoughts. We are not an organization, and there is no leader."

"Who proposed you do this?"

The bald kid seemed to hesitate for a moment, "I proposed it, I also provided the weapon, and I fired the gun."

The precinct chief nodded, "Do you know what this means?"

The bald kid nodded again, "I know, I will go to jail, and I may even be put on the gallows, but I don't regret it."

"Hope took everyone on his dangerous chariot and drove towards destruction. If he can't stop, then he can only overturn this chariot!"

"Even if I pay the price, at least more people have survived."

The precinct chief shook his head. He turned around, holding the back of the chair, and looked at the onlookers behind him, "Now the suspect has admitted to shooting Mr. Hope Wright and explained the reason. Do you have any questions?"

Hope's assistant stood up immediately, "This is murder!"

"He is just the executor, there are deeper masterminds hiding behind the scenes!"

He said it very definitely, and the expressions on the faces of the followers listening beside him were also surprised and uncertain as they looked at him and then at the bald kid.

The precinct chief's expression was calm, "Do you have any evidence?"

"The laws of the Federation emphasize evidence. If you have evidence, I can continue the investigation."

"If you don't have evidence, these unfounded speculations can only be regarded as your personal deductions and will not be used by us as a factual basis for reference."

"He has already confessed!"

With a suitable motive and the suspect confessing without resistance, basically this case cannot involve more people at this point.

Unless Hope's assistant can produce more evidence, everything stops here.

This is also one of the reasons why gangs are rampant. When they hurt or even kill some people and are discovered by the police, they only need to push out a few scapegoats to get away with it.

Spend some money, speed up the judicial process, and everything is equal to the end after the sentence is pronounced.

Even if new evidence can still be found, it is difficult to continue to pursue it on the basis of this case, unless indirect prosecution is carried out through new evidence through other cases.

George could actually see that this bald kid should be a character pushed to the front, but in any case, this news is indeed valuable.

What is valuable is not the assassination of the leader of the new wave of refugees by a group of young people, and the death of the leader of this wave, but the fact that the refugees are splitting.

Whether this was created by Lance or it actually exists, George believes that after his news report is published, it will accelerate the occurrence of this event.

He has won a major award, the 'Golden Newspaper Award,' the highest honor for journalists.

In addition to repeatedly winning this award to give him some new sense of accomplishment, simply winning awards and continuing to expand his influence seems to no longer bring him more freshness.

But this time, standing here, he suddenly had a brand new experience.

Because he knows that after his report is published, this group will change, the entire refugee group in the Federation will change accordingly, and even the political environment of the Federation and the refugee group will change!

This is a kind of "power" that he has never felt before, manipulating the occurrence and changes of these major events through his pen.

That feeling is more pleasurable than winning the 'Golden Newspaper Award' or seeking some comfort from his girlfriend!

He turned his head to look at Hope's assistant and turned the camera to take a picture of him as well. The expression of shock and anger on his face was mixed with the subconscious dodge when he was suddenly photographed, forming a feeling of panic.

Very graphic, he thinks this photo is successful.

Interrupted one after another, Hope's assistant didn't know what to say. He had no evidence to prove what he said.

The precinct chief looked at the others. The others didn't have anything to say either. Some of them were still cursing, but some were thinking.

The precinct chief looked at the bald kid and asked the most important question of the day, "Are you a Federation citizen?"

Everyone else's eyes immediately focused on the bald kid. He shook his head, "Although I really hope I am a Federation citizen, I am not. I am a Slade."

"Is there anything that can prove what you said?"

The bald kid was silent for a while, "There is something in my underwear that can prove my identity."

The precinct chief asked the police officer to take out the thing from his underwear, a small rusty iron box. The precinct chief opened it in front of everyone.

Inside were a few photos that clearly showed the bald kid smiling with different body shapes at multiple points in time.

His family was also by his side, and his face was full of smiles, as if taking pictures was a very happy thing.

But his father always showed a serious expression.

In addition to these photos, there were also some documents inside that could prove his identity during his life in Slade.

Without a doubt, he is a Slade, a true pure-blooded refugee.

After the reporter took pictures of all these evidences, they were collected by the precinct chief, "Let's leave it at that!"

“I hope you can truthfully disseminate what you have seen, without any personal modification or embellishment.”

“If I find out that some people have recreated our interrogation process, adding some malicious descriptions, then we will find you, arrest you, and lock you up!”

He paused, then stood up, "You may leave now, gentlemen…"

The news of Hope's assassination spread throughout Gold Harbour City in the first instance, and it is still spreading outwards.

When the news reached Mayor Williams' ears, he was slightly surprised, not expecting Lance to act so quickly and effectively.

Refugees killed refugees, and people can no longer accuse the Federation of doing these things.

Even if they think so in their hearts, can they produce evidence?

Evidence is actually of little practical significance most of the time, but at certain specific times, it becomes very meaningful.

For example, when the Secretary of State faces questions from the Slade Ambassador again, he can retort, "Do you have evidence?"

Passing the buck is also an important part of diplomacy.

At this time, Mayor Williams put down the phone. He looked at the Slade middle-aged man in front of him, who claimed to be thirty-seven years old and looked very much in line with the Federation's aesthetics, and nodded slightly, saying, "Mr. Fitz, there is some very bad news."

Mr. Fitz was stunned for a moment. He changed from a sitting position leaning back in the chair to a slightly forward-leaning posture. This change was a defensive one, indicating that he was at a disadvantage and felt very uneasy and cautious.

Mayor Williams smiled, "You don't need to be so nervous. News just came that Mr. Hope Wright died unexpectedly from a Slade assassination."

“Right outside the door of his current residence, the assassin shot him in front of everyone.”

“My God!”, Mr. Fitz showed an incredible look of surprise on his face. His hands were holding the armrests of the chair, and he was almost about to stand up.

He looked at Mayor Williams, at the half-smiling expression on his face, and the emotions that were still churning suddenly cooled down quickly, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured on them.

He stopped there, half-standing, stopped there.

After several seconds, he slowly sat back, "I'm sorry, Mayor Williams, I was too shocked to hear this news and completely lost control of myself. I sincerely apologize for my impolite behavior!"

When people are talking properly, suddenly standing up is impolite!

No matter what the reason!

Mayor Williams was now very accommodating, "I accept your apology."

Mr. Fitz sat there and waited for a while before his mind gradually regained its ability to think, "Then, the things we talked about before, are they voided?"

There was some regret on his face.

He is also a Slade, a relatively active social activist recently.

He held up concepts opposite to Hope, proposing the views of "Acceptance can only be obtained through non-confrontation" and "Give first, then reap", which have already gained some public support.

Not everyone is as radical as Hope. Some people are willing to be down-to-earth and lower their heads.

Originally, Mayor Williams' idea was to have them hold a debate on the thirty-first, which is tomorrow.

He would prepare some backup plans for this debate, and more people would support Mr. Fitz's views. He would win a great victory in the debate—

If Hope didn't come to participate in the debate, then they would publicize that Hope knew he couldn't win, so he couldn't afford to lose and didn't come.

If he came, he would definitely fall into the trap.

Unexpectedly, the planned things suddenly changed like this, which made Mr. Fitz very annoyed!

Originally, he was only one debate away from success, but Hope's sudden assassination made the joy on his body suddenly drain away.

He had never hoped that Hope could survive and debate with him as much as he did now.

Seeing Mr. Fitz's annoyance and loss, Mayor Williams shook his head, "No, although he is gone, I can still see the shining value in you!"

He paused, "Without Hope, tomorrow's debate will be a 'one-man show'. You must convey your thoughts and ideas to more people."

“Let more people understand your ideas, that is the right idea.”

“When guests come to someone else's house, if they want to have their own room and a place in the dining room, they must pay rent.”

“It can be their hard work, or their dedication in anything, but never force!”

“You have to get more people to support you, and when the time is right, we will conduct multiple consultations.”

Mayor Williams picked up the cigar on the ashtray, took a puff, and then slowly exhaled, "Eventually, you will usher in a new life for the people as a hero."

The expansion of the city requires too much basic labor. The local people of Gold Harbour may not be able to see these jobs, but these refugees certainly can.

Turning demand into a kind of charity can restabilize the city, and some of the dirty water on him can also be wiped off a little.

After hearing this, Mr. Fitz nodded repeatedly, "This is also what I hope for, to bring a better life to the people!"

Although he has turned to Mayor Williams, it does not mean that he does not understand his value.

“Very good, you are a smart man, you will definitely be successful, Fitz, I have great faith in you!”

Mayor Williams arranged for Mr. Fitz to replace Hope and become the new generation of "Slade's Light"—

This iteration is a bit too fast. Hope started a bad trend. I hope this Mr. Fitz can hold on.

Otherwise, this title will only become a joke in the end.

Mayor Williams knew the news, and Mr. Charles naturally knew it too.

He was pacing back and forth in his office. He was just discussing with others some things that needed to be done in Manton after the New Year, and now such bad news came.

Hope is a very important role. For their next plans, suddenly losing such a person makes their war with Mayor Williams passive.

“I heard that there are many new social activists emerging in New Harbour District, and some of them already have considerable influence.”

Mr. Charles shook his head and rejected the proposal, "It's too late, Hope is unique."

“If all we need are influential people, then it is indeed feasible to do so.”

“But what we actually need is someone who can drive people to riot. He must have extraordinary influence and authority.”

“It's not that other people don't have such opportunities, but that we don't have time to cultivate them.”

He stopped, looked around, "If we change the plan, we will still be very passive. We must continue to promote the New Year plan."

“I remember Hope had an assistant who has been with him all the time. Find this person, we need him to replace Hope.”

Someone raised a question, "Can he do it?"

Mr. Charles shook his head, "Whether he can do it or not, he must do it!"

“We must take advantage of Hope's assassination, and say that he was assassinated by Williams' people because they felt scared.”

“Let them know one thing, the Federation is afraid, so they assassinated Hope, so that they will continue to firmly believe that the path they are taking is the right one.”

“If the No. 1 doesn't erupt into a larger conflict, and the Speaker asks us to negotiate, should we negotiate or not?” He looked at the others in the room. A very simple rhetorical question unified their thinking.

Things have reached this point, and there is no possibility of mediation.

But they cannot express their position through "I refuse to mediate." They need another way to tell those who want to mediate.

They refuse to mediate!