Chapter 423: Wang De Has No Future 6668

425. Chapter 419: Wang De Has No Future 6668

Hunter gave Charlie a call.

Although he was now the bureau chief, he still had to put Charlie first.

Don't look at Charlie not being the bureau chief now—he was about to become a Bay Area city councilman.

The nickname "Bay Area Hound" would very likely continue, in recognition of his loyalty to the Bay Area.

Once he became a city councilman, he could do much more for the Bay Area's tycoons, and Hunter himself didn't have particularly close ties to the Bay Area—he could only rely on Charlie's help.

When he told Charlie that this matter might be connected to Lans, Charlie frowned deeply upon hearing it.

"Lans has some connections with the Secretary of State and the State Attorney General. I'm not sure exactly what their relationship is."

"Let's follow procedure and investigate this matter first. If there's any evidence related to him, subpoena him."

"If there's no evidence against him, pretend we don't know about this."

Hunter asked softly, "Bru and Du Ke have been getting close to Lans recently. I'm a bit worried."

"You're worried about that split-the-take thing you set up?" Charlie's frown deepened.

Without waiting for Hunter to answer, Charlie thought for a moment. "I don't have time these few days. After the city council election is over, I'll have a talk with him."

Hunter caught the concession in Charlie's words. Just last month, they hadn't been talking like this at all.

Charlie's attitude at the time had been very clear—he had expressed strong dissatisfaction with Lans meddling in police affairs, and had also said he would stand on Hunter's side.

It hadn't been that long, yet his attitude seemed to have shifted somewhat, becoming a bit more accommodating.

Hunter vaguely understood that this might be related to Lans having communicated with the Secretary of State and the others.

Charlie was an old dog hungry for power—everyone knew that.

The Bay Area tycoons knew it, and Hunter knew it too.

Even Charlie himself knew what kind of figure he was in other people's eyes.

But he didn't care.

Because he had gained tangible benefits. He was about to become a city councilman. Although a city councilman didn't hold any direct, substantive government position,

they could influence City Hall's policy adjustments in governing the city through various means—and that was power.

A man hungry for power, without figuring out the situation, wouldn't be too quick to clash with a higher-level privileged class.

He was sensitive to power, and equally sensitive to the trouble he might run into.

Hunter was a bit displeased. If Charlie were still the bureau chief, he would surely have strongly opposed Lans's interference in police affairs.

But now that he wasn't, he had become more accommodating. Although it was Hunter's interests being damaged, in reality Charlie's base was no longer entirely the Jingang police system.

He had realized his self-worth and been promoted, so the options in his hands had grown.

Hunter was a bit sullen, because the police system was now his true base in the real sense.

Lans's split-the-take system was shaking his base. If every precinct became Lans's people, there'd be no point in him being police chief anymore.

He had no particularly good way to deal with these problems right now, so he could only mutter, "I hope you two can work it out."

Charlie seemed to catch the displeasure in his tone and immediately comforted him. "Hunter, you know me. My intention isn't to let him do whatever he wants."

"The police are still our base after all. I just feel that we were friends before, so we can talk it through first."

"If we can both step back a little, that's the best outcome. But if he refuses to back down, then we'll need to think about counterattacking."

"After all, the Lans of now is not quite the same as the Lans of the past."

"Our attitude when facing him, and the methods we use to deal with him, can't be the same as before either."

Exactly what wasn't quite the same, Charlie didn't say, but Hunter could understand.

The two chatted a few more sentences and hung up. They both sat at their desks, their gazes lingering on the phone, their minds on what had just been discussed.

The impact of the shootout at the entrance of the New Jincheng Century Hotel was still spreading outward.

Everyone in the entire city was talking about the huge event of the day—the deaths of Rick and Salifu.

Lans had just returned to the company when he saw Arthur chatting with Corinda.

He was bent over the front desk, his face wearing that smile of someone who'd spotted prey.

Imperial people were only a small minority in the Federation. Some Federation people felt that Imperial people had a certain "Imperial flair," which was one of the reasons Red Heels had been able to gain a foothold in Jingang City before—they had something special!

A portion of Imperial girls gave off a cold, austere feeling, which was the exact opposite of the sweet Federation girls currently in vogue.

Some people liked sweet, some liked sour. When the mainstream aesthetic of the whole people was concentrated on those golden-haired, blue-eyed girls in red dresses, there were also those who liked girls who looked more distinctive.

Arthur's life hadn't been long—just over twenty years—but he had been with many girls. From high school on, he had constantly dated different girls.

But he had never dated a girl like the one in front of him. He had now turned into a hunter, using jokes he'd picked up out there to keep Corinda laughing nonstop.

But when Corinda called out the name "Lans," Arthur quickly turned around, his expression turning slightly awkward.

He put his hands behind his back, like a child who'd stolen something, but then hurriedly brought them back out and raised a hand to greet Lans.

Lans looked at him. He had originally wanted to shake Lans's hand, but in the end he pulled it back.

"The old man wants to see you."

Councilman Williams wanted to see Lans, because he had also heard about the shootout at the entrance of the New Jincheng Century Hotel—the largest shootout in recent years.

So many people had died—every person in the city was shocked by that number!

And two key figures had died as well. He was even more eager to learn some of the truth!

Lans had someone take care of things, then went to the Williams estate.

There, he saw Councilman Williams, and James.

After Lans entered the room, Arthur tried to squeeze in too, but James blocked his way. The two brothers stared at each other for a moment. Arthur stepped back. "Fine, I've got things to do anyway…"

A smile appeared on James's face. He walked out and hugged Arthur. "Go on, stay safe."

When the door closed again, a hint of loss, and something indescribable, appeared on Arthur's face, but he quickly hid it away.

When he was little, he hadn't felt that his father—Councilman Williams—was biased, because he could always get the best things, and receive more leniency and tolerance.

But as he grew up, until now, and began to come to his senses, he realized that this favoritism was not actually real favoritism at all.

He would not inherit any political legacy from Congressman Williams; he could only inherit a portion of the family business — the commercial side.

The political legacy that was truly valuable all belonged to his elder brother James.

Arthur's mother had hinted more than once that he should spend more time by Congressman Williams's side and take part in some serious matters, instead of thinking all day about dating Misses; he had actually done as she said.

But perhaps because he had never shown outstanding political talent since high school, he was written off by Congressman Williams early on.

This abandonment was indeed a kind of favoritism — at least he didn't have to bear more responsibility.

Born into a great clan like this, the pressure of taking on responsibility is enormous, and not everyone can bear it.

In fact, Congressman Williams keeping him out of political affairs was also a form of protection for him.

Isn't living happily, with no burdens, a good thing?

Of course he might not understand, but that doesn't matter.

After James closed the bedroom door, he walked over to the bar. "Coffee, juice, or water?"

"We also have some custom-made whiskey and brandy here."

"Coffee, I guess," Lans picked one at random.

Soon James came over carrying coffee and pastries.

The pastries were kept in a glass cabinet; around one or two in the afternoon, the family's cook would prepare them and place them inside.

Whenever they wanted some, they could take them at any time, because the glass cabinet was well sealed, so there was no worry of them going soft.

When eaten, the texture was hardly any different from when they first came out of the oven.

If they weren't finished, the butler would come by in the evening and clear them away, and they would become the servants' late-night snack.

Once James had also taken his seat, Congressman Williams finally spoke up and asked, "I heard Rick and Salifu are both dead?"

Lans neither nodded nor shook his head, merely said offhandedly, "They took dozens of bullets. If they could still be alive after that, I'd go believe in God on the spot."

Congressman Williams was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled softly. "Good that they're dead — once they're dead, things become a lot simpler."

As he spoke, there was a touch of melancholy in his voice. "This time last year, there was Wei De, the Five Great Families — nothing had changed."

"In just one year, Wei De is gone, three of the Five Great Families have run into trouble, and all that's left is one cripple and one Kodak Family with no problems."

"Some things really change far too quickly!"

Congressman Williams let out a long sigh. "That fellow Sidney has really done people a world of harm!"

If the mayor weren't still placing bets like crazy, nothing would have changed at all — everything would have remained as stable and peaceful as before.

But this was fine too — at least it gave the Williams Family a chance to climb another step.

Only then did James, standing to the side, realize: Lans had said those two big fellows had taken dozens of bullets. If he hadn't been on the scene, he would never have known such detailed information.

But if he had been on the scene, what role had he played there?

This realization plunged James into deep thought — and this was precisely why Congressman Williams thought so highly of his eldest son: he was a bit more perceptive than that bastard Arthur.

If it had been Arthur, he would probably have just gasped and said, "WTF…"