New Gods of North America.

Chapter 646 Eat Melon
As Wayne turned the corner near Lina's side, he saw Peter the Spider lying on his back on the table under the awning, grinding his teeth at the faded-looking "gray crystal."

The two little girls were sitting at a small table, eating a fruit that was, in a sense, rather "incorrect" – watermelon.

Wayne unceremoniously reached out and took a piece himself. Although it had quite a few seeds, the taste was fairly cool and refreshing; it must have been chilled in the nearby river.

Unfortunately, the watermelon varieties in America aren't very good these days. If this were in Wayne's world before he traveled back in time, and vendors were selling these things that look like unripe melons, they'd probably get stabbed in the face in a movie or TV show.

While munching on a watermelon, Wayne looked around but couldn't spot the little black girl. He couldn't help but tell Lina, the master of stereotypes, a hellish joke: "Where's Alicia? Why don't you call her over to eat with us?"

Lina clearly hadn't heard of this joke before; upon hearing it, she merely looked up slightly and, like a pea shooter, kept spitting seeds to the side.

"'Softening' just came over with the compiled intelligence, and she's giving her a literacy lesson right now, just like you asked... And this watermelon is the one she brought. The plantation occasionally gives watermelons as rewards to well-behaved slaves, and the manager also had some sent to the workshop as gifts. The rest are all piled up in the kitchen."

Ok,

Even Lina had never heard of it, so watermelons these days probably haven't been labeled with anything like racial discrimination yet...

Wayne's gaze then shifted to Miss Harley, who was standing next to Lena.

This girl ate in a more elegant manner, chewing and biting like a hamster before covering her mouth with a handkerchief and gathering the seeds to a corner of her plate. Miss Harley had actually put down her watermelon as soon as she saw Wayne, but Wayne didn't rush to talk to her because he noticed that she was still chewing the one she had just bitten into.

Once Miss Harley had finally finished talking, he asked, "I heard Doug say that you seemed to have something you wanted to ask me?"

Miss Harley immediately sat up straight like a well-behaved child. "Yes...yes. I heard Father talking about the attack you and the monks encountered today, and I felt it was necessary to come and remind you of the risks."

Quinn, the tax collector?
He is a seasoned and shrewd official with a special position and a deep understanding of the local situation. Someone like him should have a keen sense of things.

"What does he think of this attack?" Wayne asked curiously.

“My father thought something was very wrong with this, that it might be a political conspiracy. Both of the monks attacked had military members in their families. Brother Grant’s brother was a former army captain, and Brother Johnston’s father was the commander of the 1st Cavalry Regiment and an army colonel—both graduated from the U.S. Army Academy and had served in the war against Mexico.”

Good guy,
Virginia truly lives up to its reputation as a state that has almost completely monopolized the presidency of the United States. In Richmond, the capital, you can easily find two monks whose families are not ordinary people.

The United States Army Academy is located in West Point, New York, the famous "West Point Military Academy." The war against the southern neighbor was a major victory for the United States in terms of territorial expansion after its founding. Since then, the territory of the Union has completely stretched across the east and west coasts. Even the speed of statehood could not keep up with the speed of territorial expansion. As for the 1st Cavalry Regiment of the Union, as the most famous unit of the Army, it is now stationed in Texas, which has long been a state. Its main purpose is to prevent the beloved southern neighbor from coveting the land that the United States has already occupied again. In other words, it is to prevent Mexico from "attempting to unilaterally change the status quo by force."

But then again,

Political conspiracies usually involve "pulling out a radish and bringing out the mud"—framing family members is more common, but attacking family members in a sneak attack is unheard of...

Wayne confirmed the identities of the two monks involved. The one still unconscious was Brother Grant; his family's army captain had already retired, so there seemed to be little reason for him to be persecuted. Brother Johnston, whose status sounded higher, was merely the second son in his family and hadn't suffered any serious injuries whatsoever.

Furthermore, considering the task allocation and the choice of ambush locations by the cultivators at that time, the randomness was too great, and it didn't seem like something that could be planned in advance.

Wayne had considered pinning the blame on the Sailors, but for a mere gang to plot against the military was truly outrageous. Even if it were written into the news and published in the newspaper, it would probably be criticized as a "conspiracy theory."
He pondered for a moment, "Hmm... isn't Tax Officer Quinn being a little too cautious? I'm still more inclined to believe this is just a typical gang revenge attack, and that I'm more likely their target."

Miss Harley didn't refute, but the worry on her face seemed to deepen. However, she still nodded: "This is one of the reasons why Father allowed me to visit the two young ladies. He is also very curious about the specific details of the incident, which may be related to his future job selection."

I see. With the mayoral election approaching, although the status of administrative staff is unlikely to change drastically, there will still be differences in the weight and power of their specific positions. If they have enough popularity, it is not uncommon for them to switch sides and run for councilor if things don't look good.
Wayne tried to give Miss Harley a definite answer, "Then I'll stick to my opinion. This attack probably doesn't have any deep-seated reasons; it's more likely just a small operation by the local gang. There's no need to think about it too far ahead."

Afterwards, Wayne took the opportunity to inquire with Miss Harley about the situation of several gangs in the dock area, as a way to verify intelligence.
The identities of the "big shots" behind the gangs are a closely guarded secret to ordinary people, but for a seasoned tax officer like Quinn, they are just common knowledge.

So several names that were not uncommon in the local newspapers were pointed out one by one.

As expected, the Sailors Gang, which Wayne had his eye on, had close ties with the banker, Mr. Schwartz. The Rabbit Gang, which he had recently been in contact with, had many powerful backers, relying on several wealthy businessmen in the state who were keen on trade. As for the Irish gang, which was currently the most suspected of carrying out this attack, the mastermind behind it was said to be the Pryor family, to which the Secretary of State belonged.

Wait a moment,
This last point is inconsistent with the results of the intelligence team's investigation.

Wayne's gaze immediately drifted towards Lina.
The latter, who was leisurely eating melons, muttered an explanation after noticing, "The intelligence team has only been working for a short time. The people they can 'soften' are mostly low-level personnel. It's good enough if they can find out about the state legislator. Who knew that guy was just a stepping stone?"

This was indeed somewhat unexpected for Wayne. While the actual status of a Secretary of State can vary, within a state, there is no dispute that he is a "key political figure."
However, judging from the size of the Erland gang, it wasn't particularly large. Wayne figured he probably hadn't offended someone like the Secretary of State. Maybe this gang was just a small branch or a minor pawn under his control, and they weren't really untouchable.

Well……

The two cultivators involved in the attack were not entirely without "identity."
If the matter might involve the military, the cathedral can't just cover it up without offering a proper reason, can it?
(End of this chapter)