New Gods of North America.

Chapter 612 Rumors
The dock area is a magical place.

On the surface, Richmond's upper class seems to be adopting a haughty attitude, turning a blind eye to the city's current security situation.
However, because goods representing large sums of money need to be constantly transferred and distributed through here, many subtle noises in the dock area often sound unusually loud, and important figures can quickly detect the movements even from a great distance.

Some important figures only paid attention to me briefly during social interactions, and then ignored me afterward:
"I heard that the city hall has sent health specialists to the dock area to investigate the plague. Is that true?"

“That’s true. Members of the Health Committee mentioned this last night. Those people are officially authorized, and it’s said that the cathedral gave them instructions. However, the church didn’t issue any warnings, so it shouldn’t affect normal trade.”

"That probably means that another group of undocumented immigrants with illnesses have smuggled themselves in on the ship. In my opinion, we should strengthen the ethical management of captains, and those undocumented immigrants with poor health should be asked to leave the deck or be sunk into the sea before they get close to the east coast."

“Ah…that won’t do. I’ve already arranged for people to go to the Old World to purchase surplus war medicines, and I’ve also subscribed to some newspaper articles to try and increase the state government and city hall’s investment in health next year. Your ethical proposal can’t really be put forward before the budget is approved.”

"Hehe, that was just a joke. But speaking of the Old World, I heard that several countries there have stopped purchasing medicines for a while now. Besides medicines, what other goods do you think are suitable for cargo ships to bring back recently?"

"You might consider buying some ammunition. If you have the connections, the price of stock should be quite reasonable, and the profit from shipping it to the West might even be higher than that from tobacco and whiskey."

"..."

Some important figures are more concerned with their own and their families' health, as well as tangible and stable interests:

"Have someone keep an eye out for the areas that the health inspectors are focusing on, so that our cargo transportation is not affected. People and goods with health risks should also stay away from the manor recently."

"Yes. The people who just came from the docks reported that today they mainly went to the areas where the Erlan people live, as well as the docks controlled by Mr. Schwartz. It is said that some small-scale conflicts occurred there."

"An area inhabited by the Erlans?!"

"Hmm. The Erlan people are currently maintaining restraint and seem to have no intention of retaliating, and are temporarily acquiescing to the investigation."

"That place isn't far from our docks! The plague is a major event that could affect our business. If those Irish people can't figure it out, we should find a way to get them to replace their leaders. I don't believe any gentleman in Richmond is willing to take the blame from everyone. Whoever is behind the stoppers, they won't allow this conflict to continue."

"Yes. I have already notified the gangs at the docks, and they will not interfere with the plague screening."

"Go and find out who is in charge of this matter, and try to get them to prioritize screening areas related to us. If there are already infected people, you know what to do."

"Don't worry. Those gang members are very good at creating accidents."

"..."

Some important figures are worried about their own interests being affected and are more concerned about specific details:
"Are you sure the church and city hall are investigating for the plague this time?"

"Based on the current situation, that's indeed the case. There haven't been any unusual personnel changes at the police station; the investigation was arranged by the Cathedral. However, they haven't sent out many people, perhaps because they've only noticed some signs. The private detective agency that helped the Cathedral with their case has also joined the investigation. They've recently prosecuted quite a few gang members, and they might take this opportunity to clean up some gangs."

"That famous detective who was suspected of murdering the journalist? If he were rational, he wouldn't have started retaliating before the trial was even over. Could he be investigating something else?" "That guy seems to be getting closer to the Beaton family lately, maybe he's investigating gun smuggling. Vidocq Beaton has re-established his connections with the army and militia, and old Basque might be looking to get a piece of the pie again. As for those neurotic Windsor people, they didn't come on American ships, they have nothing to do with us."

"That's for the best. Once this is over, we'll find a way to get them out as soon as possible. The Whig Party is gone, and old Basque is still not content with his retirement. Let's first remove his tentacles in City Hall and replace him with a mayor who respects local interests more. How much longer do those Windsor residents need to stay in Richmond?"

"When we disembarked, they said it would take at least three months, otherwise the results might not be ideal—just in time for someone's mayoral term to end."

"Is the no-confidence motion ready? That guy has accumulated considerable prestige among ordinary citizens. I have no intention of leaving him a place in the state legislature. This time, we must get rid of him and the people he promoted, just like we got rid of Pastor Beeton. It's already an honor enough for a guy from a common background to resign from the position of mayor."

"Including those gentlemen who are still neutral for the time being, as long as the momentum is strong enough, the vote of no confidence will definitely pass. They just don't want to lose their votes by offending some citizens, but no one will mind if their party has more potential seats. Even if the Beaton family exhausts all their connections, they probably won't be able to change the situation."

“That would be best. Be careful, if the church finds traces of those Windsor people, cut ties in advance if necessary. They are all wanted criminals, and even if it offends MI7, the Windsor authorities will only express their appreciation for their capture.”

"No problem. I've even prepared for the worst. If all else fails, we can have our docks and warehouses suffer the same fate, and then no one can blame us."

"Alright. By the way, what exactly did those people from South Carolina bring over last time? It doesn't seem like they had any particularly eye-catching cargo to bring to port."

"To maintain mutual trust, I didn't send anyone to investigate. They had O'Sullivan's men kill all the knowledgeable laborers and several gang supplies overnight, and a few others were killed by themselves beforehand. It's said that the blood on those corpses was drained, so they were probably 'guests' from the Old World."

"..."

As for the ordinary people who are actually closely related to the events, they often feel powerless in the face of this situation:
"What?! I'm not allowed to take action to deal with those outsiders?!"

"Yes, Mr. O'Sullivan, you should be able to do it, right?"

“Those guys have been chaining my men around my territory all day! I’ve been patient enough, can’t they just let them run into trouble on someone else’s turf at night?”

"I'm sorry, but it won't work. They are specially authorized and currently represent the faces of many gentlemen in Richmond, so it's not permissible, at least not for now."

“I know they were sent by the city hall, and they don’t seem like those weak tax thieves from before. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be alive now!”

"The situation might be more complicated than you think. Let's be patient for a while longer. How are those Windsor people doing now?"

"They're still living in that dilapidated house they rent, dressing up in different ways every night to go out... It was precisely to avoid the authorities getting too close that I arranged for my men to focus on driving out outsiders from the surrounding streets. Now, our gang is becoming the laughingstock of the dock area!"

"I can only express my regret about this. Should I pass these words on to Mr. Pryle?"

The wine glass was smashed on the ground in anger, followed by a somewhat weak reply, "No need. If any problems arise, I will personally report to the Secretary of State."

(End of this chapter)