Empire of Shadows

The atmosphere in the room was a little stiff.

Francesco's maternal family didn't have much support, and Paolo's wife was just an ordinary Sumuli woman.

She didn't have a prominent background, so naturally, she couldn't provide any help to her son in this power struggle.

The only one who could help him was Alberto.

Now there was one more, Lance.

"You are my Uncle Lance!" The sixteen-year-old young man had already reached the level of an adult in terms of thinking ability.

It's just that they haven't experienced the beatings of society and are lacking in experience.

He wasn't so stupid as to think that all his relatives were doing it for his own good.

Lance nodded slightly, "Then am I qualified to sit here?"

"Yes!" After Francesco firmly said the word "yes," his aura seemed to improve a little.

Lance looked at these people, "I'm not here to argue with you. Paolo helped me, and I can't watch you bully his child."

"And I believe that if these things spread, you, the name Paolo Pasreito, will become a joke in Gold Harbour City!"

The expressions of the others varied. Some didn't care, because no matter how they fought, the position of head of the family would not fall on them, but some nodded in agreement with Lance's point of view.

Paolo had just died, and these people were eager to bully Francesco. If this matter spread, it would indeed be a family scandal.

At this time, Vittorio, who had been silent, lit a lighter, a loud kerosene lighter. With a 'ding,' everyone looked at him.

He took two puffs of cigarette and put the lighter on the table. "This is an internal matter of our family, Mr. White, although what you said makes sense."

"But would you be willing for others to interfere in your family's internal affairs?"

He held the cigarette in his hand, holding the edge of the table, "Even if he seems to have a very good reason."

Vittorio's tone was calm and not激烈. This kind of person is more difficult to deal with than others who only yell.

Alberto then opened his mouth and said, "Paolo said that if you encounter trouble, you can look for Lance."

"Now is the time we have encountered trouble, and I don't think it's unreasonable for him to be here."

Paolo did have more communication with Lance for a period of time, and Lance did indeed owe him a favor.

When he wanted to protect Lance, some of these people were against it. They thought it was not necessary to offend the mayor for a small character, although the mayor didn't have much of a presence.

But Paolo still did it, so perhaps he did say such a thing.

Vittorio pondered for a while, "Paolo has now left us, and I have no way to verify the truth of what you said, but for his sake, you can be here, but only this once!"

"I hope you can respect the traditions of the Pasreito family, only this once!"

As soon as he said this, the others no longer accused Lance of having to leave here.

No matter when or where, strength is the foundation for being listened to!

Even if a tramp is shouting on the street with a loudspeaker, you won't care what he's saying as you walk past him, and you won't even remember a few of the keywords.

But if it's your boss, or a social celebrity, a political figure, then even if they're not talking to you, you can remember most of what they say and remember those keywords!

They are the same people, but because of the difference in "strength", they are treated differently.

This society has always been so realistic and direct, and only those who are unwilling to wake up will pretend not to know these things.

Lance nodded and continued to sit.

Vittorio is Paolo's uncle. In other words, he is Paolo's father's brother, which also means that he once had the opportunity to become the head of the family.

Every superior person actually inevitably encounters this situation, that is, he will definitely think that his children love each other and that their families love each other.

They deliberately ignore the selfishness and greed of human nature. Perhaps when these superiors are alive, and when the successor has enough power, their ambitions will not be exposed.

But once the superior dies suddenly and the successor does not have enough power, things will become troublesome.

Just like now.

Vittorio has considerable power in the family. After all, he is Paolo's uncle, and his relationship with him was good since childhood. At the same time, he has a lot of people under his control.

The greater his contribution to the family, the greater the threat to Francesco.

The others stopped talking, and Lance didn't say anything else, just sat quietly.

After a brief silence, Vittorio said with a smile, "Don't let our guests feel bored by our taciturnity!"

"The Cassia family plans to end the war. They are willing to compensate us with a portion of the block, and the family's current situation is also very bad."

"Our manpower is seriously insufficient, and we need to replenish some from the clan as soon as possible."

"Paolo left too hastily, leaving us with a lot of trouble, and Cisco is like this now..."

He seemed to be all for the family, without mentioning his own interests, "I actually think Zakkaro was right just now."

"Cisco, you are too young. When our partners see you on the other side of the table, they are very unlikely to cooperate with you."

"Who would talk about business worth hundreds of thousands or millions with a child?"

"They will doubt whether you understand what business is and how to make money!"

"If we lose this part of the business, it will definitely be a heavy blow to us!"

The people around nodded in agreement with his views, and even Lance thought Vittorio was right.

The Pasreito family has a large number of smuggling businesses and drug businesses, all of which are cooperating with different gangs and forces from different countries.

As the heir of the family, Francesco will definitely have to meet with these organizations, sit down and talk, to ensure that the cooperation between the two parties does not change.

But this kind of business, which makes money, but is very risky, who would talk to a slightly older child?

He can't establish his own authority at the negotiating table, so it will be difficult to establish his own authority in the family.

In fact, even if he were a few years older, as old as Lance, twenty years old, it would be enough!

But it is this age difference that makes him very embarrassed now.

Alberto said from the side, "I will accompany him."

Vittorio laughed twice, "You can't represent the Pasreito family, Alberto."

"You have to remember that your surname is Corti, not Pasreito. What people want to see is the decision-maker in the Pasreito family, not the guy next to him!"

Lance looked at Francesco. At this time, he should say something, but Francesco seemed a little timid in the face of the smiling "grand uncle" and the "uncle" who was not polite to him at all.

He was a little afraid of these people.

Vittorio also glanced at Zakkaro, "Don't scare him..." He glanced at Kazaro, then looked at Francesco, "Why don't we do this, the family's reconstruction work will be handed over to you, but those businesses that you can't handle, I will take care of."

Before Francesco could object, Zakkaro couldn't help but raise a different opinion, "Why should you be responsible?"

He patted the table, "I have always been responsible for many of the family's businesses. If we want to talk, I should be the one to talk!"

For a vibrant social group, funding is also a top priority.

After all, this job is playing with your life. If you can't pay on time, the thoughts of the people below will change.

The Pasreito family's smuggling business has always been in the hands of the head of the family. If Paolo hadn't died so early, then he would have taken Francesco to talk about business together in the subsequent time.

Let him gradually understand how the family business is negotiated, and introduce those business partners to him, gradually becoming his own network of contacts.

But now, he left so early, and Francesco is still so young, he has no advantage in this regard!

Alberto obviously realized this, he glanced at Lance, Lance leaned back, the two of them sat next to Francesco, one on the left and one on the right.

Now Francesco is like a wall, obscuring their communication process.

"Are you going to fight for it?" Alberto asked in a low voice.

Lance asked back, "How are you going to fight for it?"

"If you speak now, they will definitely let Cisco go talk directly."

"Do you know where the bottom line of these businesses is?"

"Do you know where the bottom line of these people is?"

Alberto's face was very ugly, "I don't even recognize all the people."

Not to mention Francesco, he is still in high school. Originally, Paolo planned to let him go to college and get in touch with family business when he turned eighteen.

Now it's good.

"If Cisco goes to talk about these businesses and doesn't negotiate well, it may affect his position and authority in the family."

"Since they want to seize power, let them do it, we'll just keep one or two of the best bars."

"But you can't give it all to one person or two people."

"Cisco has so many relatives, I don't think it's too much for each person to be in charge of one item."

Alberto's eyes lit up, and a smile appeared on his face. "You are indeed smarter than me!"

The two of them sat up straight almost simultaneously, but soon Alberto turned to whisper to Francesco. The young man had also heard their conversation and had no objections.

He cleared his throat, and everyone's attention focused on him. In name, he was still the head of the family.

"What Grandpa Vittorio said just now is indeed true. I don't know those family partners, and I don't know how to negotiate these deals."

"If I were to negotiate, I would definitely make a mess of things, so..."

He paused, and Zaccaro bristled. "You wouldn't want to hand over all these businesses to him, would you?"

Vittorio tapped the table twice with his knuckles, displeased. "Zaccaro!"

Zaccaro looked at him. "What? You still want to scare me?"

Francesco was about to explain, but Lance held his arm and shook his head slightly, signaling him not to speak yet.

Vittorio also felt that he had lost face. "This is Cisco's decision. He is the head of the family now, and you are not."

"It is because of people like you in the family that Mr. White appeared here!"

He implied that Zaccaro was the one who bullied Cisco, which made Zaccaro laugh directly in anger. "You are so shameless!"

"I don't care. I am against handing over all the business to him. Who knows if he will damage the family's interests?"

"If you think he is reliable and hand over all the business to him, I will leave the family!"

The surrounding people were immediately in an uproar. Leaving the family was not a joke, but saying this meant that he had no intention of taking it back.

Lance released his hand. It was time to speak.

Francesco Federal said, "Actually... I think it would be quite tiring if Grandpa Vittorio were to do so much work alone."

"So I thought about it. We are a family, we are one family, and each of us must take on the responsibility of the family."

"So... wouldn't it be fine if each of you is responsible for one business?"

Francesco said these words somewhat nervously. Everyone was stunned for a moment. Vittorio and Zaccaro looked unwilling. One business?

They wanted everything!

But before they could object, those fence-sitters and onlookers hurriedly praised the choice.

"This proposal is good. This way, we can stabilize the family and external business as soon as possible, and then refocus our energy on rebuilding the family, dealing with Dover, and restoring the family's glory!"

Originally, these people were just here to go through the motions. They didn't expect to have a little sense of participation now. Who could refuse the benefits that were handed to them?

With the first person supporting and agreeing, there was soon a second and a third.

Before long, most of the people expressed their approval.

At this time, whether it was Vittorio or Zaccaro, as long as they objected, they were actually opposing the others and destroying their private interests from these businesses.

When there was no actual damage to their interests, who would embarrass Francesco? They didn't care, anyway, it had nothing to do with them.

But when these were related to their interests, who would take away the benefits they had already obtained? They wouldn't do it!

Even Vittorio or Zaccaro, if they wanted to truly gain control of the family, they would need the support of these people.

Otherwise, it would go back to the original question. If they couldn't get the whole family, then why not just break away from the family and build a new one themselves?

Originally, this was a trap Vittorio threw to Francesco. He would definitely not negotiate well, which would undermine his reputation as the legitimate heir.

Then he would step in and bring things back on track. He would get practical benefits and continue to promote his family authority, killing two birds with one stone.

But what he didn't expect was that Francesco actually solved this problem in this way. It seemed that no one had gained any benefits, and he had lost control over these matters.

But in fact, when he was in a weak position, the fact that Vittorio and Zaccaro did not continue to become stronger was the biggest "good news"!

The surrounding brothers and sisters were saying that this idea was good, and Vittorio could only smile and nod, "Indeed, it's not bad."

Against his will.

"Then this matter is settled.", Alberto made the final decision, and most people showed smiles on their faces.

Even if most of the profits from these businesses had to be turned over to the family, they could still get some for themselves.

Even if Vittorio was not satisfied, he could only nod, and so did Zaccaro.

Skipping over this issue, Vittorio said again, "People from Casia have contacted us, hoping to negotiate peace as soon as possible."

"The mayor has been abandoned. The five major families should not continue to be in chaos. The Coda family also holds a favorable attitude."

"What do you think?"

His gaze locked on Francesco again.

Some people said to refuse peace talks because the Casia family had caused them great harm.

But some people also believed that now was a good time for peace talks. The family suffered serious damage, and Dover also took away some people when he left. Although they were only marginal personnel, the family's strength had indeed been reduced by more than half.

Continuing the war was not friendly to them. What they should do most was to recuperate and restore the family's strength as soon as possible.

After those who wanted to express some opinions had expressed their opinions, Vittorio threw the question to Francesco again, "Cisco, you have now inherited the position of head of the family. This matter still needs you to make the final decision."

Zaccaro glanced at Vittorio. This old thing was not a good person. However, this matter was beneficial to him, so he turned his head and looked elsewhere.

In fact, everyone knew that this question was difficult to answer.

If Francesco were to say "reconciliation", then those who had died before, their relatives, friends, and brothers, would be dissatisfied with this Francesco who had no prestige.

If someone else were to say it, such as Paul, everyone would accept his choice because of Paul's family prestige.

But Francesco couldn't suppress these people.

It's like a superior joking with you about your old scars. Even if you feel very uncomfortable inside, you will pretend to be generous and smile, and call the other person "You are so humorous."

But if the person who does this is someone who has no status in your mind, then I'm afraid you won't smile next, you will just turn your face directly!

But if Francesco said to continue the war, then they could use the reason that they couldn't spare much manpower to ask Francesco to find a group of people to continue the war.

But how could he recruit so many people?

People would doubt whether he could do everything a family head should do. Before he proved himself, not many people would invest in him.

He refused to stop the war, but made the subsequent situation a mess, which would undermine his authority in the family.

This was also a very difficult question to answer.

Moreover, there was Alberto beside him now, and it was possible that they were planning to use this method to consume the power in Alberto's hands.

Alberto was also thinking about how to answer. Francesco's eyes were a little erratic. He didn't have any of his own ideas, which made some people in the family less optimistic about him inheriting this position.

At this moment, Lance said in a voice that was not loud, but could be heard clearly by everyone, "We don't need reconciliation. Blood debts can only be repaid with blood. We will fight them to the end!"

Vittorio looked at Lance, then at Francesco, and asked with a fake smile, "Can your words represent Cisco's decision?"