Shadow Empire

Chapter 616: There is always a reason for saying no

The deputy director of the Hazardous Materials Administration has never had much of a presence.

In fact, he had tried before.

Before Director Dale arrived to perform his duties, he arrived in Jingang City ahead of time and invited some core agents to meet, have dinner and build relationships.

To be able to become deputy director in a department that is vertically managed by Congress means that he has connections and influence.

Unfortunately, Dale's connections are stronger than his, and he gets involved with the mayor as soon as he arrives.

So he, the deputy director, was marginalized unknowingly.

Director Dell handled many things himself that he should have handled, and he didn't have any good solutions.

Since you are sure you can’t win in a fight, you can only pretend to be an invisible person and wait for a special opportunity.

Maybe this opportunity will come soon, but it is also possible that this opportunity will not come.

When he got off work in the evening, he got into Director Dell's car. He didn't know what Director Dell wanted to say to him, but there was absolutely no problem with the submissive and respectful attitude he displayed.

When he got off work, he arrived at the parking lot five minutes early and saw Chief Dale coming over. After the two greeted each other, the deputy chief got into Chief Dale's car.

As the car left the parking lot of the Hazardous Materials Administration, Director Dell asked as he drove, "We have been working together for two years. What kind of person do you think of me?"

This question… made the deputy director a little confused, but it did not prevent him from answering immediately, "You are an excellent leader. Under your leadership, the Dangerous Goods Administration has frequently cracked down on some smuggling and alcohol trafficking cases. We are not unknown in this system."

Director Dell nodded. "It's a very formal statement. I know you may not like me very much because I have been leaving you idle and not assigning you any specific work."

The deputy director was even more confused. "My abilities are still insufficient, so my main job now is to learn how to be a good manager, instead of messing up our work."

The red light in front of him came on, and Chief Dell stepped on the brakes and stopped the car in the middle of the road.

There were some honking sounds of cars around, the sound of pedestrians walking on the sidewalk, and all kinds of other sounds. They mixed together to form a very special sound, full of vitality.

Director Dale thought about it and found a starting point, "…Have those matters concerning (agent) been negotiated?"

It was impossible for him to not assign any work to the deputy director, so sometimes when he encountered some problems that he found difficult, he would throw them to the deputy director.

For example, the Prohibition agent he mentioned was shot in the spine by several bootleggers during an arrest at the end of last year and is now paralyzed.

I completely lost sensation below my abdomen and couldn't even control my bowel movements or urination.

The Hazardous Materials Administration has various plans and measures to deal with the situation. Whether it is disability benefits or death benefits, they have compensation standards.

But the problem is that this colleague is in serious trouble. His disability is not just an ordinary one, such as organ failure caused by a serious injury.

After the one-time treatment fee is paid, there are no subsequent costs.

This colleague incurs a hefty bill every week, about one or two hundred dollars.

In addition to various medications, there were also special people taking care of him.

After all, the inability to control urination and defecation means that he will defecate in bed at any time and anywhere. Even his parents can't stand this and have to hire a special caregiver.

At the same time, he won't die in a short time. The hospital said that as long as he can keep up the money, he can live for another 30 years.

Thirty years, one or two hundred per week, this fee is not included in the compensation terms at all.

So this became a problem. Either he had to go to court with the agent to confirm that the Hazardous Materials Administration did not have to continue paying him any fees, or he had to get the state or federal prohibition committee to make an order.

For example, paying his lifetime bills, but the probability of this happening is very small and they won't agree to it.

If you agree to this, you have to agree to the requests of others.

The rules are always cold and inhumane, and the State Prohibition Committee has no intention of continuing to pay compensation, so now the agent's problem has become a problem.

It is unreasonable that he was injured and paralyzed by the federal government, but he is asked to pay for his own treatment.

After the deputy director accepted the matter, he did not take any action. He went to the State Prohibition Committee several times, but there was no progress.

Even now, there is still nothing.

He shook his head. "Ordinary committee members don't care much about this matter, but the executive committee members insist that we execute it in one go according to the compensation standards."

If it were carried out all at once, it would mean that the agent would soon die slowly in his hospital bed because he could not pay his medical bills.

It was cruel to him, and it was cruel to everyone.

They have dedicated everything to the federal government and the Hazardous Materials Administration, but in the end they are abandoned by the department. Even federal officials who believe in "doing their job impartially" cannot accept this.

Director Dale sighed softly, "Actually, I heard one more thing."

The deputy chief asked, "What?"

After organizing his thoughts, he said, "I heard that there are similar situations at the police station. Some people are paralyzed, some are injured, some are seriously ill, and some even need to buy a house but are not eligible for a loan, or their children cannot afford the tuition for college."

"They have a foundation that deals with these things and helps these people get through this difficult time."

The deputy chief nodded. "Yes, I have heard of it, but I heard that this fund seems to be Lance's industry. He used this method to win over all the police officers."

Director Dale nodded. The red light turned green and he stepped on the accelerator. A slight push on the back told the people in the car that the car had started.

"Sometimes his actions make it hard for me to identify with him. He is more like a politician or something else than a gang leader."

The deputy director nodded, agreeing with the director's point of view. "Although I don't want to admit it, you are right. He is a very special guy with charisma."

Hearing what the deputy director said, Director Dell smiled even more. "If someone could set up a foundation for us like him, this case wouldn't be so worrying."

The deputy director had already vaguely sensed that something was wrong. He did not answer immediately, but instead put Director Dell's words together.

He felt as if Director Dale was conveying some message to him, a message he couldn't believe.

After the car started and merged back into the traffic flow, Director Dell kept his eyes on the car in front and asked casually, "Our work is very dangerous. We often have gunfights with those armed criminals, even though our pensions are in the upper middle class among all government departments."

"But danger is not just about injury and death, we need more support."

"In the past two years, our fight against bootleggers has become increasingly fierce. Many people have been injured and left us. I feel guilty for not being able to give them enough support."

He also mentioned several people who had to end their jobs early due to injuries.

But the financial assistance that the Hazardous Materials Administration could provide them was very limited, and could only keep them barely alive.

It is not necessarily possible to live a quality life or even take medicine on time.

It’s not that the system is imperfect, but no matter how perfect the system is, there will always be some areas that are not taken care of.

For example, if you need lifelong treatment or medication, they will pay a lump sum according to the disability standards.

That money is enough for people to use in the short term, but not in the long term.

"What you mean is..." He tilted his head and looked at Director Dale.

Director Dale smiled and said, "I talked to Lance and he is also interested in setting up such a foundation for our Hazardous Materials Administration."

At this moment, the deputy director felt as if he had been electrocuted. His whole body went numb, and then his scalp tightened and he got goose bumps all over his body!
How could he have overlooked the name that Chief Dale had mentioned seemingly off the top of his head?
Even though he was slow to react, he knew what was happening.

Director Dale is actually connected to Lance. What does this mean?
He was a little creepy.

The car slowly stopped again because of a red light. Chief Dell took out a cigarette box from his pocket, gave one to the deputy chief, and lit one for himself.

"Lance... is a very interesting person. We can't look at him in the traditional way of looking at gangsters."

"He's different from those guys, and you'll feel that way after you meet him."

"He's a guy who likes to make friends, and he wants to make friends with you."

The deputy director tilted his head to glance at the director, who seemed to be waiting seriously for the traffic light, and didn't know what to say for a moment.

He also has a background. Without it, he would not have become the deputy director, nor would he have been assigned to Jingang City. In a more popular way of speaking, the people behind him, or those who helped him, allowed him to step onto the brightest stage in Likalai State.

As for how far he can go, that is his own problem, but the people behind him have already done it.

The deputy director didn't really want to have any contact with Lance. Chief Dale's series of mistakes and his current mediocre performance had already made the State Prohibition Commission consider transferring him.

Once he is transferred, he will be the most likely person to take over the position of director.

If he was dragged into this small group of him and Lance at this time, he would not only lose all initiative, but he might also become a blind and deaf man after he took over.

The power he possesses does not belong to him.

So he didn't want to agree to Director Dale. In his eyes and in his heart, his attitude towards Director Dale was not as respectful as he showed.

The green light came on again and the car was back on the road. Chief Dale drove while smoking a cigarette. "Would you consider it?" he said.

The deputy director breathed a sigh of relief and didn't force him to answer immediately, which was the best answer.

He would find a way to contact the people behind him and let the people in the State Prohibition Committee know that Director Dale had betrayed them!

"Okay, I'll think about it!" He continued along with Chief Dale's words with a slight smile on his face. "In principle, I am very willing to get close to Mr. Lance. Just like you said, he is not a gangster in the ordinary sense."

"He has truly brought stability and order to the city. Perhaps cooperating with him is the best approach."

"It is impossible to completely ban smuggled alcohol. What we need to do is not to completely eliminate smuggled alcohol, but to keep everything under our control."

Director Dell also smiled and nodded, "You see it very clearly. The law has been in place for so many years, but there are still so many people committing crimes every year. The same is true for Prohibition."

"No one will really give up such a huge profit just because we enacted the Prohibition Law. If you catch one, you will only create two more."

"Anyway...think about it."

The deputy chief agreed, and Chief Dell chatted with him about work before parking the car outside the community where the deputy chief lived.

"I have other things to do, so I won't take you in..." he said after the car stopped.

The deputy director nodded repeatedly and opened the car door. "Okay, you go ahead."

The two looked at each other for two or three seconds, and then Director Dell nodded and drove away.

After watching Director Dell's car drive away for a long distance, the smile on the deputy director's face gradually faded.

This matter is somewhat troublesome.

What he didn't know was that after Chief Dale turned at the next intersection, he immediately pulled over and dialed Lance's number in a phone booth.

"He's unwilling to cooperate. We need to shut him up as soon as possible. He knows about our relationship."

Since they were going to drag the deputy director into this, their relationship would definitely be exposed, so Lance was not surprised by this. He just said "I know" and hung up the phone.

Chief Dell did not drive away. After driving around, he drove back to the deputy chief's community, bought some fast food, and sat in the car staring at the gate of the community.

At the same time, the colleague in front of Ponda angrily shook off his hand, "I thought you were a warrior with faith, but I didn't expect you to be in collusion with..." He looked around, walked in front of Ponda, put his forehead against his forehead, and said in a low voice, "You are actually colluding with Lance!"

"Hou Lixie, I told them they should learn from you. You are such a shameful thief, Ponda!"

"You'd better take the initiative to explain your problem to your superiors. Since we were once colleagues, I will give you three days."

"If you don't confess your mistake in three days, I will report you!"

"Fuck, you've left me with no appetite at night!"

"Now, stay the fuck away from me. I have nothing to say to someone like you!"

Ponda's persuasion failed, and he just revealed a little that someone wanted to meet with this colleague, chat and make friends.

Then he said Lance's name and the colleague started to explode.

Looking at the righteous expression on the other person's face, Pang Da was a little dazed.

Once upon a time, he was like this, his heart was full of sunshine without any shadow.

Watching the other party leave cursing, he walked into a roadside telephone booth.

He knew what would happen to this messenger of justice who still had a sense of justice after this call was made.

But he also has his own difficulties. He wants to be respected by others, he wants his wife to feel safe, and he wants to control his own destiny!
He needs power, only power can allow him to do this.

"Sorry!", he turned the last number on the dial.

Soon the call was connected, and he said the same word again into the microphone.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Lance, I didn't get him. He rejected my proposal and asked me to surrender to the director within three days, otherwise he would report me."

"Okay... I understand. Okay, bye."

He hung up the phone, feeling a little lost. When he walked out of the phone booth, he felt like smoking again.

He pulled out his cigarette case and took out a cigarette.

The fast-moving pedestrians around him and him standing still outside the telephone booth formed a sharp contrast.

The lonely temperament in him was incompatible with the bustling streets. No one could understand him. There were only cigarettes and alcohol.

He took a puff of his cigarette, looked at the colorful city, exhaled slowly, and then said the word "sorry" for the third time.

Ten minutes later, Chief Dell, who had been watching the community gate, perked up and four cars began to turn and enter the road inside the community.

The security guard at the door simply stopped him and quickly let him pass.

Looking at the figure sitting in the car, Director Dell knew that they were about to take action.

At this moment, he felt a kind of... morbid pleasure that he himself didn't even understand.

Since you don't want to go along with everyone else, I'll destroy you!

Why are you so noble?
What are you pretending for?
He narrowed his eyes slightly, and an incomprehensible light flashed in his eyes.

At the same time, the deputy director sat in the study, supporting his chin with one hand and thinking about the problem.

It's dinner time now. He just called the person behind him, but the call didn't go through. They should be having dinner.

The bigger the person, the longer the dinner will be because he needs to entertain people.

In addition to having dinner, there are many other things to do during the social event, so there is a high probability that the call will not be able to go through before nine o'clock.

He was thinking about how deep the "cooperation" between Director Dale and Lance was, and why they suddenly began to "expose themselves". Did Lance or Director Dale think that everything was under control?

This made him feel terrified. Were they not afraid at all when they exposed these relationships so wantonly?

The deputy director was feeling uneasy at the moment. In addition to wanting to tell the person behind him about this matter, he also made this call while considering whether to transfer away from Jingang City.

After the Lance family dealt with the five major families, they became the emperor of the underground world of Jingang City, coupled with the rise of Congressman Williams.

One of them controls Jingang City during the day, and the other controls Jingang City after nightfall. The city is like a sandbox toy in front of them.

Even if he squeezed out Director Dale, could he really sit in this position?

If he agreed to cooperate with Lance and make friends with him, he would become helpless and it would be better for him to leave early.

Thinking of this, he couldn't wait to try to dial the phone number of the person behind him. After the phone rang twice, the busy tone suddenly disappeared, as if... the phone line was suddenly disconnected.

He stood up suddenly and looked out the window...

(End of this chapter)