New Gods of North America.

Chapter 655 Diffusion
The next day at noon, Wayne, who rarely gets a chance to sleep in, had just opened his eyes in bed when...

A rumor had already begun to spread rapidly in certain circles in Richmond.

Many gentlemen found this matter utterly absurd:
"Charging gangs for using the docks? And conducting tax audits on their illegal income?! Is this fake news?"

"Has the city council recently passed any city ordinances like this? What? The old Dock Construction Ordinance?! Is that tax collector named Quinn crazy? Why doesn't he go and read the Declaration of Independence?"

"Is there a problem with the city hall's finances? They're even targeting gangs. Could this be a sign that Richmond is about to launch a new round of tax increases?"

Some gentlemen, however, found this unsurprising:
“I heard that the monks of the cathedral were attacked by the Erlan gang in the dock area. Tyrell was ordained as bishop not long ago, and now this has happened. It’s not surprising that the city hall will take action.”

“Those two monks are no ordinary people. Their families both have military backgrounds, and one of them is the second son of the commander of the Federation’s First Cavalry Regiment. The Beaton family also has some connections in the military, and the mayor is one of their people. They may be trying to curry favor with the military or seeking support.”

"It seems that the famous detective who runs the detective agency is the real target of the Ellan Gang's attack, and other gangs are also involved. Recently, the detective agency's people were checking for the plague in the dock area, and they seemed to have caused a few big commotions, but the police have blocked the news. Perhaps they had a conflict with the gang members, which adds legitimacy to their counterattack."

Some gentlemen also seemed completely unconcerned about the details of the matter:
"It seems I'm not the only one dissatisfied with the current state of the dock area. Go investigate and find out which gang is being targeted this time. If possible, we should organize some manpower to take over a part of it, so that our words don't carry no weight in the dock area."

“Mr. Pryor just said that he doesn’t want to see O’Sullivan these days, and he will refuse any visits from the guy. Since he’s caused such a big problem on his own, let him solve it himself. There are so many Ellans in the dock area, and there are more than just one or two people willing to take over O’Sullivan’s position.”

"Wayne suggested this to Tax Officer Quinn? Interesting. Although His Holiness the Bishop has given instructions, Grant still hasn't woken up. At least those gangsters should be punished, otherwise the military might have objections. As for the plan for the monastery in the state to cooperate with their detective agency to produce cheese, don't rush to send it over. If Wayne makes things difficult to handle, some of the terms might need to be revised."

Some people were starting to get a little restless.

In a private club, banker Mr. Schwartz happened to "bump into" Senator Mr. Walter, who enjoyed having lunch there. After lunch, the two went together into a relatively private smoking room to enjoy cigars.
These days, not many people are entitled to enjoy a leisurely lunch break. Lunch is usually not as lavish as dinner, and most meals are simple cold dishes. Compared to the food, relaxation and socializing outside of work are more important.

"Mr. Walter, you're better informed than I am. What exactly is going on?"

“I’ve been busy with other state affairs lately and haven’t paid much attention to the docklands and city hall. Didn’t Tyrell already promise you that taxing the gangs in the docklands wouldn’t affect you?”

“But Wayne’s reaction was clearly off. Their detective agency built its reputation on investigating cases, and recently they even helped the prosecutor put several gang members in jail. I’m worried that if they don’t know their limits, not only my business, but many gentlemen’s businesses could be affected.” “Then why did you let the Sailors attack him? Schwartz, the attack that night injured people in the cathedral. It wasn’t easy to persuade Tyrell for you; I’ve done my best. If your men have indeed cleaned up the scene cleanly enough, then Wayne should be targeting the Elran gang now, not your men. Instead of coming to me, you should check if they’ve made any mistakes.”

“Mr. Walter, that’s exactly what I’m worried about. Gang members are often not very thorough in their work, and Wayne has chosen such a broad approach as taxation, which is obviously not just targeting the Elland Gang. I think he’s at least starting to suspect that other gangs are involved. If he investigates and finds out that the Sailors are involved, and then announces it to the public, under pressure from the military and the political establishment, even the Cathedral probably won’t remain silent.”

I initially thought Schwartz would teach Wayne a lesson, but the prosecutor delayed in prosecuting Wayne, and Schwartz even instructed gangsters to carry out a covert attack.
If an ordinary person wants to attack an extraordinary being, they should at least choose to do it in public. This way, the other party would not dare to openly reveal their abilities due to the threat of the church. Now, instead of finding the right person in the middle of the night, they have dragged the cathedral and the military into the mess.

To keep the cathedral silent, Tyrell has already gotten something from Schwartz, but the miser doesn't seem to be willing to offer any more, so there's no need for him to get involved.

How about this?
Pryor has recently become a bit arrogant, even claiming that he intends to skip the positions of lieutenant governor and governor, and run directly for the Senate in the next election.

The infighting between the two dock area gangs has little impact, but if the outcome is unfavorable, it could be enough to make many people question Pryor's actual control. If Schwartz cannot do this, then offending Pryor could also cause his bank to withdraw some more investment.

The federal government only approves a limited amount of funding each year, while the postal system has so many unofficial staff.

I can't really pay for it myself.

“Schwartz, I can give you some advice. Unless this matter causes a bad public opinion among the citizens, based on my understanding of Tyrell, he won't easily take back his promise. The person you should be more worried about now is Prier, who stands behind the Elran gang—only he has the ability and reason to really escalate this matter. Since you don't intend to give up on that sailor gang, you'd better gather some incriminating evidence beforehand, enough to make Prier stop pursuing this matter.”

“Skipping the Airland Gang and going straight to confront the Secretary of State...that doesn’t seem like a wise move.”

“Politics is the art of compromise. You have to trust Pryor’s professionalism as a politician. The Airland Gang has handled so much business for their family, he won’t give them up easily. This isn’t something that can be solved with money. But on the other hand, as long as the Airland Gang is still around, he might not care who is working for him—you can put all the blame on O’Sullivan. I happen to know who has Pryor’s little secret.”

"How should we deal with the city hall's tax collection issue?"

"Let's see how others react first. This is just a pretext for taking action. It involves taxes, and others may interfere. You should focus on the people behind it, not the surface-level events."

(End of this chapter)