Empire of Shadows

While reviewing the list of visiting personnel, the Speaker of the House saw a name he had heard of but wasn't very familiar with: Lance White.

"Is this matter also related to this person?" he asked, putting down the list and looking at his secretary.

The secretary glanced at the somewhat conspicuous name on the list, and while continuing with her work, said, "Now that the underworld of Goldport City has been unified, Lance White has become the emperor of its underworld."

"He has a relatively close partnership with the Williams family, and at the same time, he also has some connections with Senator Cleveland."

The Speaker of the House raised his eyebrows and nodded, "Casinos."

The secretary smiled and slightly bowed, "Yes, casinos."

The huge profits brought by the casinos made everyone jealous. He glanced at Lance's information again and curled his lips, "Lucky guy."

In fact, he could also get a share of the profits that Lance's casino transferred to the state government. After all, he was the Speaker of the House, not some small fry, earning about two hundred thousand a year.

To say that this amount of money was a lot, it actually only accounted for about one-sixth to one-seventh of the Speaker's annual income besides his salary.

But to say it was a small amount that didn't arouse interest, it was still two hundred thousand.

Many people, let alone two hundred thousand, couldn't even earn twenty thousand, two thousand, let alone take it out, let alone two hundred thousand.

After checking these materials, he sat there thinking. Soon these people would arrive. The message from the Congress was to have him invite them over for a talk, to stop them from continuing to antagonize each other.

The stability of the city was very important, and this behavior was not conducive to the subsequent development of Goldport City.

He was considering what strategy to use to communicate with them.

To be honest, the Speaker of the House didn't have any direct contact with Mayor Williams or Mr. Charles and those people, at most it was just a matter of personal relations.

Everyone knew each other and could be considered superficial acquaintances. They could exchange a few words when they met, but only a few words, not a word more.

Other than that, there was no deeper communication.

He had a bit of a headache. Those people in Congress had really given him a big headache.

He was truly powerless against this kind of top-down, layer-by-layer pressure!

At twelve-oh-five in the afternoon, a luxurious motorcade stopped outside the hotel, and Lance and Mayor Williams got out of the cars.

The Speaker of the House warmly shook hands with the two of them, introduced himself, and then invited them into the hotel.

A little later, Mr. Charles and others also arrived here. They also had a luxurious motorcade and a security team that looked very large.

They were a little scared, afraid that Lance would suddenly attack them, so they took precautions.

With an overall bulletproof car and a security team of up to fifty people, as long as Lance and his men didn't bring out tanks, even if they were attacked, Mr. Charles and his men could hold out until the Manton Police arrived on the scene.

Having just settled Lance and his men, the Speaker of the House hurriedly ran downstairs again, shook hands with Mr. Charles and others, introduced himself, and then led them into the hotel.

Negotiations would take place after dinner. Before that, they were free to move around.

After lunch, Mayor Williams and Lance prepared to return to their rooms, which happened to be on either side of the corridor.

As they came out of the elevator, Lance took the initiative to ask, "Are you free tomorrow?"

Mayor Williams glanced at James, who took out a small notebook with his schedule for tomorrow recorded on it.

"Yes, an hour and a half, after lunch."

He spoke in a voice that wasn't quiet, without any concealment, so Lance could hear him.

This made Mayor Williams look directly at Lance, with a hint of inquiry in his eyes, as if asking him what he wanted to do.

"There's something I'd like to talk about, with Owen and his friends."

"Owen?" Mayor Williams repeated the name, "A familiar name, but suddenly when you mention this name, I can't remember who it is."

James reminded him, "Isn't that the former mayor's secretary?"

Lance nodded, "That's him."

Some smiles appeared on Mayor Williams' face, "I heard people say that he's actually Sidney's son."

He originally wanted to tell a joke he had heard, but when he saw that Lance didn't show a smiling expression, he was stunned for a moment, "Really?"

Lance pursed his lips, not answering, but it was enough for Mayor Williams to know the answer!

Using a nominal illegitimate son who wasn't his own to attract malicious fire from the outside world, but hiding his real son to the end, and successfully inheriting everything from him.

He had also heard that Owen was now a member of the State Assembly, and Sidney had squeezed out the remaining political value after leaving office, just in time to secure a seat in this year's House of Representatives for Owen.

This start was definitely the best for Owen. In the House of Representatives, he could meet many people and quickly have his own network of contacts.

At the same time, he didn't need to bear the consequences of Sidney's downfall. He was just a secretary, and even if he couldn't get rid of some causal relationships, what fell on him wouldn't be so heavy.

Whether he sought re-election later, or sought to transfer to local development or develop within the party, this was a relatively perfect start.

It couldn't be compared with the start of directly interning in the Presidential Palace, but in the region, it was already a very powerful start.

Although some people in Goldport City were unwilling to admit it, Goldport City ultimately left traces of Sidney's term as mayor, indelible traces!

Mayor Williams agreed, without asking what they would talk about specifically. Anyway, he would know tomorrow.

Lance slept until dinner in the afternoon. Originally, the Speaker of the House planned to have everyone sit down together for dinner, but was still rejected.

Lance made himself something to eat in his room, then took a shower, changed his clothes, and then came to the meeting room.

Mayor Williams and James were already here, looking like they had been here for a while. There were two cigarette butts in the ashtray in front of him.

Even if they weren't all his, he had been here for at least ten minutes.

He took the initiative to raise his hand to greet Lance, and Lance sat down next to him.

The unfriendly gazes of those sitting across from them swept over Lance, then gathered together to whisper to each other.

After waiting for a while, the Speaker of the House arrived.

"There was a bit of a traffic jam on the way. Manton's evening rush hour is really killing me, sorry!"

He sat down in his seat, in the middle of the two groups, and casually took out the documents from his briefcase, placed them on the table, and flipped through a few pages.

"How should I put it?" After looking at it for a while, he raised his head and looked at Mayor Williams and Lance next to him, and then looked at Mr. Charles and them on the other side.

"I don't understand why you two sides have to make such a big fuss over a small matter."

He hoped that someone would continue his words. Negotiation and communication, the most important thing was speaking.

If they weren't even willing to speak, how could they be considered communication?

However, this also made him realize the difficulty of this mediation work. He frowned and looked at Mayor Williams, "Mayor Williams, please speak first."

Mayor Williams touched his hair, "Goldport City's planning is limited by the times and can no longer keep up with the current development speed. I want to expand the city to lay a good foundation for faster urban development. They are hindering the city's development, it's that simple."

The Speaker of the House was a little puzzled. If it was really that simple, how did it get involved with the refugee groups?

He turned to look at Mr. Charles, "What about you?"

"What do you want to say about Mayor Williams' statement?"

Mr. Charles shook his head, "I respect the Mayor's development plan for the new city, but, Mr. Speaker, can't it be that just because the city wants to develop, I have to suffer losses, right?"

He looked at the Speaker of the House and took out several documents and handed them over, "This land was originally on the outskirts of the city, but according to the Mayor's plan, it will soon become a new central area close to the city center."

"You should also know something about the land prices in Goldport City. After these plots are commercially developed, their value is far higher than the compensation plan that the city hall is giving us now."

"I support the city's development, but I won't let myself lose a lot of money for the sake of the city's development!"

The Speaker of the House looked at some of the documents he provided and immediately had a headache.

If it's just a matter of pride, it's relatively easy to mediate, but if it's for money, purely for money, it's the most difficult.

This document explains the changes in land prices, development trends, and people's confidence in the value of these lands. From any perspective, it's not a problem for the prices of these lands to double or triple.

He turned to look at Mayor Williams, who frowned and said, "The city's planning is constantly changing. Previously, the usage of this land was for industrial construction, but later it will indeed be changed to commercial use."

"According to the supplementary contract and local laws, the city hall has the right to reclaim these lands with changed properties and reassign them to you."

Mr. Charles raised his eyebrows, "But the price must be reasonable. The price you're offering now is obviously unreasonable!"

"You plan to give me a few million for my land worth tens of millions. Why should I obey you?"

Mayor Williams glanced at him, "Everyone else can accept the price, why can't you?"

"You just want to blackmail me, don't make your reasons sound so grand!"

Mr. Charles couldn't help but laugh, "Ah ha, that's the funniest joke I've ever heard. I'm blackmailing you?"

"How much money do you have for me to blackmail?"

"Don't pretend to be so upright, Williams. You know me, and I know you. Stow away your tricks."

"You want these lands, fine, no problem, just pay!"

"If you don't pay and still want to get these lands, I can only say there's no way!"

His voice was a little louder than before. After saying these words, he turned to look at the Speaker, "It's not that I don't want to give you face, it's just that these people's words are too infuriating. They're only willing to give me one-tenth, or even less than one-tenth, of the value of something worth tens of millions."

"It's not me begging you, Mayor Williams!"

"It's you begging me!"

He emphasized the title "Mayor Williams," giving people a sense of aggressiveness.

The Speaker watched them argue for a while, then couldn't help but tap the table with his hand, and the two groups quieted down.

He tapped the table forcefully, "Manners, gentlemen!"

"You are civilized people, not illiterate people without education. Maintain your demeanor and etiquette, don't make me think you are all clowns!"

He paused, "I roughly understand your current problem. I think, can we do this!"

He looked at Mayor Williams, "What Charles said is not unreasonable. The city hall is definitely making a steady profit in this deal."

"Can you appropriately increase the amount, don't lock it in so tightly?"

He looked at Charles again, "The city's planning and development are also a good thing for you local businessmen."

"The city becomes more prosperous, with more population, and you earn more money."

"You can completely lower the price a little, don't be so stubborn."

Mr. Charles immediately said, "I can lower it a bit, for your sake, Speaker!"

The Speaker's face showed a little more smile, and then he turned to look at Mayor Williams, who closed his eyes, looking like he didn't want to speak.

This made the Speaker a little annoyed, but he was still trying his best to mediate, "Look, Charles is willing to lower the price a little, why can't you take two steps forward?"

"Mayor Williams?"

Of course, he couldn't take two steps forward. If he took two steps forward, when he returned to Gold Coast City, he would have to take many steps backward!

He took a deep breath, opened his eyes and looked at the Speaker, "Everyone else can accept the price, why can't they?"

"Speaker, it's not that I want you to lose face, but if I do that, I'll be the one losing face."

"How will those who have already signed the contract see me? Will they regret it, will it trigger problems that we cannot predict?"

"This price has been evaluated. From a little over one thousand, it has risen to two thousand. I have already shown my sincerity!"

"Other issues are easy to discuss, but this price cannot be changed!"

Changing it is equivalent to tacitly compromising with the Bay Area. The authority and prestige he has established will be completely lost with the concession.

Charles knew very well that he couldn't back down, so he offered to lower the price a little. That treacherous bastard!

The Speaker looked at Mayor Williams, who also looked at him without fear. Their eyes collided, sparking fire!

Lance coughed twice, interrupting the escalating confrontation.

The Speaker turned to look at Lance, his expression softened a little, for the sake of the two hundred thousand a year.

"Mr. Lance, do you have any insights?"

Lance shook his head, "No, I just think we should rest for a while, everyone's emotions are a bit too agitated."

The Speaker glanced at Mayor Williams again, still giving Lance face, "Okay, then let's rest for a while."

Arriving in the lounge, Mayor Williams sat on the sofa with a gloomy face, crossed his legs, and lit a cigarette, "His ass is completely crooked, maybe Charles and the others have already filled his pockets!"

This was actually just a fit of pique. Both Lance and Mayor Williams knew very well that they were definitely at a disadvantage in this kind of mediation.

And they would become the side hindering the mediation.

Whether Charles and the others concede, and how much they concede, will not affect the actual effect—if the mayor says one, I say two, I win!

Mayor Williams' side, on the other hand, cannot give in at all, even if it only increases from two thousand to three thousand or four thousand, that is also a concession to the Bay Area.

Those who have already signed the agreement will feel regret. What if they had persisted a little longer?

Those who are wavering will stand on the side of the Bay Area again, because the Bay Area has once again proved that they are the rulers of Gold Coast City.

So, in any case, Mayor Williams cannot give in, not even a step.

This seems like a war triggered by "price," but in reality, what they are fighting for is the highest power in the city!

"We can't continue to let this Speaker mediate, he will only become more and more biased. Is there any way... to end this terrible mediation early?"

"For example, let the prosecutor bring the police to arrest those who have evidence?" he suggested.

Lance shook his head, Mayor Williams said to arrest those involved in the Red High Heels's ledger for "prostitution" is meaningless.

This crime may be fatal to politicians, but it does not have much lethality for these capitalists.

Lance was silent for a while, walked to the phone, picked it up, and dialed the number of Melo who was left behind.

"Have someone arrest Charles's family, and then let them find a way to contact Charles."

Saying that, he put down the receiver, walked back to the sofa and sat down, "I have been arranging people to watch them, and news will come soon."

Mayor Williams nodded slightly. James sat in the back and wanted to say something, but didn't know what to say.

Fifteen minutes passed quickly. At the invitation of the staff, they returned to the negotiating table again.

The Speaker glanced at Mayor Williams with an unhappy expression, "After considering it for so long, how have you considered it?"

He also took the initiative to persuade, "These are just some small things, there is really no need to make such a fuss over these small things, it's not worth it!"

Mr. Charles's face still had a mocking and sarcastic expression. He just wanted to see how Mayor Williams would respond after he was willing to cooperate!

Mayor Williams remained silent. The Speaker became a little impatient again. He rarely encountered such a difficult mayor-level small role. He was just about to get angry when someone suddenly knocked on the door. The knock was very urgent.

The Speaker asked someone to open the door. His secretary whispered a few words to the hotel staff at the door, and his face suddenly changed drastically.

After the door was closed, he returned to the Speaker with some hesitation and whispered what had happened in his ear.

The expression on the Speaker's face immediately became serious. He looked at Mr. Charles, who was still a little confused, how did it relate to him?

Before he could figure out what had happened, the Speaker said, "There was a call from Gold Coast City just now. Your family was kidnapped on the way home…"