Empire of Shadows

When Pangda learned that the place this "kind person" was sending him to was the Imperial District, he roughly knew who he was going to meet next.

This was an ordinary house by the roadside, with a sign that read "Wanli Affairs Office" hanging above it. He knocked on the door.

The door opened before long, and the person inside sized him up. "Mr. Pangda?"

Pangda nodded slightly, "That's me."

Today, he was wearing a somewhat casual outfit and a fisherman's hat, to conceal his physical characteristics and face as much as possible.

He had his hands in his pockets, feeling somewhat nervous.

As a law enforcement officer, this was the first time he had done something like this.

The person inside invited him in. The slightly dim light bulb could illuminate the corridor, but not as brightly as during the day.

"Mr. Lance is on the phone. You'll have to wait a while, but before that, do you mind if I search you?" The face was very young, even somewhat immature looking.

However, in their eye contact, this young man did not flinch in the slightest, but instead had a provocative feeling!

Pangda felt a little uneasy. This was actually his first contact with a gang member who wasn't of the lowest level. He didn't see a trace of awe for law enforcement officers in the other person's eyes, which made him feel uncomfortable and even fearful.

As a law enforcement officer, everything he possessed was brought to him by this identity, including his safety.

When he lost the safety that this identity brought him, it meant that he would become dangerous, just like his colleagues who had been blown to pieces.

He looked at the young man, slowly took out his hands, and spread them open, "What's your name?"

The young man began to carefully check whether he was carrying anything dangerous, while casually replying, "Allen."

"Allen, are you the captain?"

Allen chuckled twice, "What makes you think that?" He glanced at Pangda's face again, "You see, I'm just a gatekeeper. I'm not a captain, although I aspire to be one."

As he spoke, he continued to perform his duties, including touching Pangda's balls, partly to ensure Lance's safety, and partly to give Pangda a demonstration.

Through this method, Lance wanted to leave a deep impression on Pangda.

The Lance family was not afraid of his identity as a law enforcement officer.

And clearly, Lance's purpose was achieved.

"You can go in. There are no secret rooms here. You can wander around. Someone will take you over there when Lance finishes his call."

Pangda seemed to be very interested in the Lance family now. This wasn't the cold, emotionless text on the files. They could be contacted, talked to, and understood more deeply.

"Why don't you call him 'Boss' or 'Leader'? Is it because your relationship with him is different?"

Allen walked towards a room next door, shaking his head as he walked, "Because we're family, we're brothers. You wouldn't call your older brother 'Mr. So-and-so', so we just call him 'Lance', and nothing else."

"Of course, if you want to, you can do that. No one will force you to do anything you don't want to do."

Allen invited him, "We're playing cards. Want to come in and play for a while?"

Pangda looked through the crack in the door at the several people inside who were also looking over, and their indifferent, somewhat grim eyes, and instinctively didn't want to go in.

But he seemed to notice a smile on the corner of this guy named Allen's mouth, which he couldn't quite describe, and he nodded slightly, "I can watch for a while."

Entering the room, there was a gambling table that could seat a dozen people. About twelve or thirteen people were sitting around the table, very crowded, but they didn't care.

This wasn't a commercial gambling table, it was just for everyone to play together when they had nothing to do.

They were playing a popular game, where each person initially only had two cards in their hand…

Everyone was playing with cash, which led to a large pile of cash on the table, which seemed to be at least several hundred dollars.

Someone cursed, folded their cards, and stood up. Although everyone was brothers, they would still be angry and uncomfortable if they lost money.

"Want to play a couple of hands?"

"Mr. Pangda?"

Someone invited him, but he refused, "I don't know how to play this."

The others all smiled, whether it was a normal, kind, understanding smile, or a mocking sneer, it was hard to say.

After about ten minutes, someone came over, "Lance is off the phone. Who's Pangda?"

Pangda stood up. The person who came motioned for him to follow, "Come with me."

The two of them walked through the corridor. There were people in almost every room here. He even saw a group of people sitting at a table counting money through a half-open door!

People were constantly stacking boxes of change onto the table, and the money on the table was already piled up like a mountain!

When he came to the door of the last office, he was inexplicably nervous. The person leading him knocked on the door, then pushed it open, "Mr. Lance is waiting for you inside. I'll remind you, don't do anything stupid."

With that, he stepped aside, allowing Pangda to enter the room.

This was an office with a large bookcase filled with all kinds of books, which suddenly improved Pangda's impression of Lance.

Compared to those gang members who liked to collect all kinds of bizarre tools or weapons, Lance, who would arrange a bookcase in his office, was ultimately in the minority.

If he knew that Lance hadn't read a single book here, he probably wouldn't think that way.

"Sit!" Lance gestured for him to sit across from him, "Smoke?"

He opened the lid of the cigarette case and pushed it over. One side was cigarettes and the other was cigars. Pangda was indeed a little nervous. He took a cigarette and then sat down.

After he lit the cigarette, Lance looked at him, "Mr. Pangda, I'm a person who likes to make friends. I'm friends with many people."

"I believe that the purpose of your coming here today is also the same."

Lance said with a smile, "I may be speaking too directly, I hope I haven't scared you."

"We didn't know each other before today. I believe that the reason why we're sitting here chatting isn't because I want to understand you, or you want to understand me."

"Maybe we'll get to know each other as our cooperation deepens in the future, but right now, we only have one goal."

"Let's become friends first!"

Pangda's mind couldn't keep up with Lance's speed of speech. After a long while, he said, "You seem different from your age."

He felt that Lance had a very "old-fashioned" feeling when he spoke, more like someone in his forties, with rich experience and who held power. His words revealed a sense of insight and unquestionability.

Lance smiled and said, "When you're whipped by this society until there isn't a single good piece of skin on your body, you'll gain a faster growth rate than others."

"No one wants to become more mature than their peers, Pangda, because only pain can make people grow."

Pangda thought this sentence was very profound and had a deep truth. He could only agree, and then he stated the purpose of his trip, "I need some money, Mr. Lance."

Lance nodded slightly, but didn't express anything. He had to continue, "Fifty thousand dollars, cash or transfer, I can provide you with some information."

"Relay five pieces of information!" He considered it and stated his bottom line.

The losses from Lance's bar being raided were basically around ten thousand dollars, so he thought that fifty thousand dollars for five pieces of information was a worthwhile deal.

But Lance slowly shook his head, "You haven't figured something out, Pangda."

"You're not as smart and rational as your colleagues. For fifty thousand dollars, I can hire at least five of your colleagues to pass me information."

"But you're only willing to give me five pieces of information!"

"You can go out and wander around and see if anyone is willing to spend this money on you."

The word "colleagues" made Pangda begin to question some of his colleagues within the Hazardous Materials Administration, and he also expressed disdain for their "bidding" attitude.

More importantly, this competition made him realize that he wasn't "the only one" to Lance. In other words, it was all the same whether he was there or not.

When a person isn't that important, they will automatically lower many conditions.

Ten thousand dollars…

Okay, ten thousand dollars is indeed not very good. He would have to work for seven or eight years without eating or drinking. In an instant, he suddenly understood why there were corrupt police officers and corrupt agents.

Those federal government officials, those who have power in their hands, why do they take black money?

Because they give too much.

Fifty thousand dollars, forty years of income without eating or drinking. For a moment, he was also a little at a loss, not knowing how to deal with the current situation.

Lance looked at his somewhat dazed appearance and said with a smile, "I'll give you a condition, listen and see."

"I'll give you ten thousand dollars upfront, and then an extra three hundred dollars every month. For every useful piece of information you pass on, I'll give you five hundred dollars."

"But I must remind you once, only the first person to tell me this information will get this five hundred dollars."

"If you work hard, earning more than a thousand dollars a month is a very easy thing."

"And for some intelligence, I may give you more money, two or three thousand, or even five thousand."

Lance also took a cigarette from the cigarette case, lit it, and then his hand gestured on the table, "In addition, I will also provide you with some intelligence clues, so that you can solve some cases and have outstanding performance."

"This is Goldport City, Pangda, it belongs to the locals!"

"No one knows everything here better than us!"

“I can get you promoted faster—senior agent, agent supervisor, even deputy director and director, those aren't impossible! ”

“Our relationship is confidential. No one will know about our relationship. You will become the star of the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau, even the entire system! ”

“You should see this as your starting point, not your destination! ”

Lance stopped talking, leaving the choice to Panda, “Now, all you need to do is make a decision. ”

“Become my friend, or continue to maintain our stranger relationship. ”

The Federation didn't have “resolute hatred for criminals” at this time, so Panda's attitude towards Lance and the criminal syndicate wasn't that firm.

Including the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau at this time, their crackdown on the crime of smuggling alcohol wasn't for justice, but just for a job and to climb up the ladder.

In the end, every event and its outcome are driven by profit. This is just a job.

Panda hesitantly voiced his thoughts, “But I need fifty thousand dollars right now. ”

Lance also gave him a solution, “I can lend you another forty thousand dollars, you just need to sign a loan agreement. ”

Although Lance gave him a plan, he still seemed very troubled.

After a while, he stammered, “I can’t pay back this money. ”

He originally thought that Lance would refuse to lend him money, but unexpectedly, Lance笑着 told him another truth—sometimes repaying money doesn't necessarily mean giving money; other things will do.

“You don't have to worry about not being able to repay the money, Panda. As long as you're still in the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau, you'll be able to repay this money. ”

“Trust me, I'm a professional in this area! ”

He paused, “If you have no problem, we can sign an agreement, and then I can give you the money now… ”

When Panda came, he came empty-handed. When he left, he left with a suitcase of money, all in cash.

He didn't dare to take a check, because checks need to be cashed, and if someone at the bank knew him, it would be a big trouble. Although Lance suggested that he could find someone to help him cash it, he still refused.

Money, only when it's in your own hands, does it truly have the meaning of money!

He told himself that all of this was for Lisa. He loved Lisa and was willing to do anything for her.

At the same time, Lance also gave him a task: to find out how many undercover agents the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau had sent to his place, and who they were.

In fact, if Panda had some doubts before about whether Lance had really bribed other people, then now he didn't have too many doubts, because this matter was very confidential, and only the people in their group knew about it.

Someone had really turned to Lance. The faces of his colleagues kept flashing in his eyes, and his eyes revealed a complex emotional fluctuation that was both annoying and somewhat intimate.

What was annoying was that these people had betrayed Director Dale, and what was intimate was that they were all undercover!

After having someone send Panda away, Lance called Alvin over, “People from the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau may have infiltrated. ”

Alvin found it a little unbelievable, because he had been supervising the recruitment all along.

He used to recruit people himself. Now that he had more things to do, he would still personally check the people he recruited, so he felt a sense of unhappiness.

His expression was also a bit solemn, but he still confirmed it again and again, “Is the news reliable? ”

Lance nodded, “I had him check which ones were their people. His reaction was very surprised, as if he felt that I shouldn't know about this. ”

“A person's first reaction is difficult to fake. He's not a politician, not an actor. I don't believe he would specifically learn this. ”

It's like someone suddenly calling your name. Your first reaction is definitely to see who the hell is so bored to call your name on the street.

Looking back is instinct, it's the first reaction.

Even if you tell yourself not to look back, there will be a brief hesitation when someone calls your name.

Lance believed in his own judgment, “Even if what he said is false, checking it won't cause any accidents. ”

Perhaps considering that Alvin didn't know how to investigate or where to start, he made a suggestion, “Divide them into three groups and send them to three different bars. ”

“Arrange for people to keep an eye on them and see if their behavior is abnormal, and you'll know… ”

Panda returned home. The moment he put the suitcase filled with fifty thousand dollars on the table, he felt that his whole person had been sublimated!

Lisa, who had already prepared food, threw herself into his arms again. After the fierce battle ended, Lisa held Panda's face and kissed him, “I have never felt so happy! ”

“You are everything in my world, Panda. I can't describe my love for you in words. Even if I were to die, I wouldn't hesitate at all! ”

“You are the only one who has walked into my heart, and you are the last one. Besides you, I will never fall in love with anyone again! ”

Listening to what Lisa said, Panda felt that everything he had done was worth it!

After eating dinner and regaining his strength, the two fought fiercely for another two rounds.

Young people's bodies are good, unlike those middle-aged people with money and status, who spend most of their time using tools and torture!

The two fell asleep in each other's arms. The next morning, the two went to the bank together and deposited the money into Lisa's account.

Then Panda sent Lisa to the train station, watched her get on the train, and then returned to the Hazardous Materials Management Bureau to start a new job.

What he didn't know was that Lisa didn't take this train, but got off at the nearest Creek Valley City, and quickly returned to King's Port City, and finally put the fifty thousand dollar check back in front of Lance.

Lance looked at the check, then looked at Lisa's beautiful face, and said with a smile, “He trusts you very much. ”

Lisa skillfully took a cigarette from the cigarette case and lit it.

She crossed her legs, and her red lips, long skirt, and the cigarette in her hand formed a very era-appropriate picture. She shrugged her shoulders, “A kid with not much emotional experience. ”

After all, that was fifty thousand dollars, not a small amount of money, and he just gave it to Lisa like that.

Lisa also felt it was a bit unbelievable. This kind of man was simply a rare animal. She hesitated, “Lance, can you… not hurt him? ”

Lance then picked up the fifty thousand dollar check and put it in the drawer, “I guarantee, as long as he doesn't do anything stupid, he can live to the grand finale. ”

“Grand finale? ”

“The end of life! ”

Lisa understood this time, and she couldn't help but smile, “You have to say something we can understand. ”

Lance was quite interested in exploring, “Are you invested in your role, or are you immersed in it? ”

Lisa suddenly revealed some irritability. She took two consecutive puffs of her cigarette, and the hand holding the cigarette trembled slightly, “I don't know. The moment he gave me the money, I felt like I might have screwed up! ”