New Gods of North America.

Chapter 551 Acquiescence
After having a preliminary idea, Wayne didn't rush out today. Instead, he went back to his room and studied and filtered the list given to him by the priest Tyrell once again.
I don't mean anything by it, I just recently noticed the dock area and I'm planning to take a look at all the guys on the list whose addresses are in that area, and try to take care of them all at once.

Furthermore, there are social dance parties scheduled for the next few evenings, making it even more necessary to do some research beforehand. Having a general idea in mind will make it easier to understand the relationships between the people.

To avoid unknowingly meeting and greeting someone without realizing it, perhaps even having a pleasant conversation, only to later discover that the person was actually your target.

That's so impolite.

Originally, "Softening" was assigned to Willie to investigate the case, but after thinking about it, Wayne arranged for "Vortex," who was originally under Lina's command, to switch him back, so that he could ask about some specific local situations.

Perhaps because Lina's previous work was so astonishing, "Softener" was a little apprehensive about this last-minute change of job, and began explaining as soon as she entered the room:

"Sir, did I do something wrong? My previous remarks about white immigrants were based on a biased understanding and were therefore flawed. I hope you can give me a chance to correct my mistakes..."

This is all a mess.

Wayne pointed to a few names he had copied from the list, steer the conversation back to business:

“That’s not what I’m here to talk about. You know the local situation better than I do. Tell me what you know about these people and what you might need to be careful about if you want to deal with them.”

Among these people, there seemed to be some he didn't recognize, but after scanning the pages several times, he roughly understood Wayne's intentions and gradually relaxed.

Then, seemingly both excited and doubtful, he said, "Our current task is to clean up the gangs in the dock area? But the 'positions' that many of them represent have actually been tacitly allowed to exist all along..."

"Who gave it their approval?" Wayne asked.

"Forehead……"

"Softening" seemed unsure how to respond, pausing for a moment before carefully choosing his words, "Since it's 'tacit approval,' there's neither formal authorization nor any investigation or inquiry... The dock area had already been like this for years before I came to Richmond."

"It has always been like this, so is it right?"

Wayne rarely had the chance to quote famous sayings he knew before his transmigration, so he gave a general overview of the "softening" process: "To put it simply, some big shots are dissatisfied with these people, and our detective agency has also initially grasped some clues about their crimes. The next step is to gradually investigate and prosecute them."

Having finished the "homework" assigned by Pastor Tyrell, Wayne's next task was his own "personal project":
“Besides the names listed above, I also need you to tell me which ‘unofficial organizations’ in the dock area have been quite active but haven’t shown up here.”

This question seemed easier to answer with the concept of "softening," and he quickly took the pen Wayne handed him, writing down a few names on the paper: "The Sheldon-Reach gang, the Jacket gang, the Buffalo gang..." Wayne silently noted them down; these were probably the types who were somewhat "related" to Reverend Tyrell.
In combating crime, the detective agency was instructed by the priest Tyrell to "not show favoritism." Since objectivity and impartiality were required, the remaining gangs also needed to be examined in the same way—but the methods and approaches had to be more careful.

Today, America can be described as "vast and sparsely populated".
Even in the city of Richmond, there are places like the dock area that various forces "cannot manage," or more accurately, are "too lazy" or "inconvenient" to manage themselves.

Objectively speaking, the detective agency's current practice of using the list to carry out its work can be considered as being used by the priest Tyrell as pawns against others.
Being "used" is fine; only those who are completely useless can completely avoid being "used" in any sense. But Wayne doesn't intend to become someone who can be "used and then disposed of at will."

It seems the detective agency can't rely on Priest Tyrell in the future, but Virginia is so big that as long as Bishop Corleone's charter isn't revoked, the agency can always find a suitable place to establish itself, albeit in the margins, as long as it doesn't break the rules.
Since the goal is to "take root," it's not enough to just clean up the criminals provided by the priests of Tyrell. As Lina jokingly said, Wayne actually really wants to become the "King of the Docklands."

Expecting a detective agency to single-handedly handle the local church is somewhat unrealistic, and the two should not be in an openly adversarial relationship.

Fortunately, politicians want votes, the wealthy want money, and the church itself wants believers. In the past, when no one cared about these things in the dock area, they could only "draw blind boxes." But if Wayne were to handle it, the situation might be "a little bit" better.

Once they take advantage of a period when no one is paying attention, they can use investigations and other methods to make the matter a "fait accompli".
Given the checks and balances among various forces, even if the Bishop of Tyrell wanted to abolish the charter, he would probably have to think it over carefully.

Even in cricket fighting, there are rules. If someone were to make an unauthorized move against the winning cricket, the other referees would likely object.

Wayne now wants to win over those who "disagree".
The detective agency may not stay in Virginia for life, but "leaving on your own" and "being kicked out" are vastly different on a resume, and people will gossip about it behind your back.

"These are the gangs that I can think of that haven't appeared yet, sir."

After writing down the names of several dockside gangs, "Soften" turned and handed the paper over with both hands, only to find that Wayne didn't move, seemingly lost in thought.

"Soften" called out softly from the side, "Sir, sir?"

Realizing that "Softening" had noticed his lapse in concentration, Wayne quickly snapped back to reality, taking the items while forcing a smile to hide his embarrassment.
"I understand. However, they are not our focus for now. Please continue to improve the information on this topic, and I will ask you about it in more detail later."

"Let's focus on the people I wrote about before, starting with 'Jimmy,' whom we just met. I heard he has a guy called 'Mr. Schwartz' behind him. Do you know anything about him?"

Upon hearing this, “Soften” nodded and quickly replied, “I didn’t know that James Damody and Mr. Schwartz had any connection. However, Mr. Schwartz is very well-known locally and is a big banker.”

“I remember once when we were on a mission, the team leader specifically instructed us that ‘the higher-ups’ had a very good relationship with Mr. Schwarz, and that we had to prevent his property from being damaged during the operation…”

(End of this chapter)