“You brew wine?”
Nick nodded, not seeing anything to brag about. “We used to brew some wine for ourselves to drink. It’s said that our family has been brewing wine since my grandfather’s grandfather.”
Imperials also had a tradition of brewing wine. Who could refuse a sip of their own fine brew with a meal? Grain, fruit, anything with a bit of starch would do.
Brewing wine was something many people in many regions did. Lance himself had heard a general outline from the elders in his other family—about grain, distiller’s yeast, and so on. He could even tell you a few things about distillation and condensation.
But if he actually had to do it, he might not be able to.
Brewing wine is something that is easy to start but difficult to do well. Lance had been considering finding a few winemakers, but Nick, who had suddenly appeared and owed him a favor, wasn’t he the best candidate?
Of course, before that, he had to taste the wine Nick and his family brewed to see if it met his requirements.
“Is it still here?” Lance looked at Elvin, who nodded, “I put it in your office.”
The group returned to Lance’s office. Lance sent someone to get some food from the door to accompany the wine. When Elvin brought out the two bottles of wine from the cabinet, Lance whistled.
They were wrapped in a thin layer of yellow oil paper, revealing the shape of the wine bottles inside.
Lance gestured for Elvin to give him the wine. He peeled back the yellow oil seal paper, revealing the bottle inside.
It was a pure white glass bottle, and the liquid inside was a slightly deep, rose-red color.
“Wine,” Lance said, looking at Nick, who explained, “Because at the end of the grape season, grapes become very cheap.”
“At this time, our cost of brewing wine is very low, and winemaking is not that complicated.”
He briefly explained, and Lance looked at the bottom of the bottle. There were some sediments, mostly fruit pulp that hadn’t been filtered completely.
“Can I drink it now?”
“Of course.”
Elvin brought glasses. Lance pushed the cork stopper, narrowing his eyes slightly. He still had a bit of a psychological burden, but fortunately, there wasn’t too much gas inside.
With a “pop,” the cork was pushed out, and then the sweet scent of wine began to fill the room.
It was just wine, not dry red or dry white, so… it was more like fermented grape juice with an alcoholic flavor! But for alcoholics, they didn’t care if it was grape juice or wheat juice, as long as it had alcohol.
Lance poured a little into a glass and sniffed it. The smell wasn’t as strong as he imagined, but it was still good, with no rotten or spoiled scent. It should be drinkable.
He took a small sip. After a slightly sweet and sour taste, he could clearly taste the fermented aroma and alcohol, which also wasn’t very strong.
But it must be said, the taste was actually quite good, considering it as grape juice.
“What’s its alcohol content?”
Nick also poured himself half a glass and took a sip. “About twelve percent. It doesn’t have a spicy taste, but anyone who underestimates it will pay the price!”
Sweet and refreshing wine combined with twelve percent alcohol content meant this stuff could definitely be called a “girl killer.” The sweet and sour taste would unknowingly lead many young girls, and boys, to drink too much, causing them to overestimate their alcohol tolerance and pay the price.
Lance put down his glass. “Nick, I haven’t asked yet, what do you do for work?”
Nick seemed a little… embarrassed to speak. “I’m an insurance salesman…”
Lance showed some surprise. Nick’s embarrassment quickly turned into awkwardness, because being an insurance salesman in the Federation wasn’t considered a good job.
Of course, it was divided into two levels. If you could reach a relatively high level, such as a claims manager, then you could definitely make money and earn commissions of varying amounts depending on the type of insurance you were responsible for.
Almost all insurance companies in the Federation implemented a “denial priority rule,” meaning that regardless of whether the insurance company needed to pay the policyholder, denial was prioritized, even if it meant going to court.
If a claims manager successfully denied a claim worth ten thousand dollars, they would receive a reward of approximately five hundred to fifteen hundred dollars.
Furthermore, insurance companies would increase their base salary based on the number of claims they denied and transfer them to more important insurance types to serve as claims managers.
Ultimately, their destination was a senior partner or even a board member of the company.
But this did not include insurance salesmen. They were at the bottom of the insurance company, doing the dirtiest and most exhausting work, and earning very little money.
Moreover, when an insurance company successfully denies a claim, most policyholders do not directly approach the claims manager or the insurance company, but rather the person who helped them purchase the insurance.
They earned the least amount of money but bore the most risk. Sometimes, when things escalated, the insurance company would directly fire them, thus severing direct contact with the policyholder and throwing all the trouble onto the insurance salesmen.
Lance found it a bit surprising. “That’s not a good job!”
Nick smiled, but also said helplessly, “I’m an Imperial.”
Lance’s faint smile faded after hearing this, and he nodded noncommittally. “Terrible society.”
He paused. “Do you or anyone in your family know how to brew beer or spirits?”
Nick thought for a moment. “My father does.”
He seemed to realize something. “Mr. Lance, do you… need us to brew wine for you?”
Lance didn’t deny it. “The price of alcohol is very high now, and it will only get higher.”
Nick was a little worried. “But brewing now…”
Lance smiled and spread his hands. “Do you think we’d be scared?”
Thinking about what these people had done, Nick also relaxed and smiled.
It was an interesting thing. Even though these people had just killed someone and beaten those young men, Nick wasn’t afraid of Lance, Elvin, or anyone else here.
He felt an inexplicable sense of closeness to the people here, emanating from within!
He didn’t know why, perhaps because they had helped him, who desperately needed fairness and justice, or perhaps because they never harmed ordinary and innocent people.
Speaking of which, he really hadn’t heard of them harming any innocent people, which was why he wasn’t afraid.
“I’m not very good at brewing beer and spirits. My father is, and he would be happy to serve you, Mr. Lance.”
“But he has to recover first…”
Lance didn’t insist on the old man getting up and working immediately. “Of course, health is more important than work, and we have plenty of time.”
He then glanced at Nick. “Insurance salesman isn’t a good job. Quit it. We’ll build some underground wineries and put you in charge.”
“You don’t have to worry too much about the police, because every penny we earn, they get a share…”
Nick quickly took this news to the hospital. On his way there, the news of Lance helping Nick get justice had already begun to spread widely.
Everyone felt that Lance and the Lance family were admirable. This feeling was rising among them for the first time.
Although some people might still be hesitant and disbelieving, time would prove everything.
The Lance family’s action immediately deterred serious crime in the Empire District. The remaining four fools were also dumped at the police station entrance—
A truck suddenly stopped at the branch bureau’s entrance, and then they threw the four people out of the truck.
It was clear that these four people had suffered a very painful lesson; each was beaten black and blue.
When several police officers rushed out with weapons, the van was almost out of sight, and the four “victims” were happily fighting to “surrender.”
This ready-made credit made Director Bruce feel Lance’s “goodwill.” That afternoon, Director Bruce wrote a report about the “five men robbing a store and shooting one person” and sent it to the city police department.
Director Charlie also called him, praising him for doing an excellent job in this matter. As for the gunman who died accidentally in a shootout with other gangs?
Whether he died or not wasn’t really important. What was important was that he was “caught,” and they recovered the handgun used to injure someone at the scene.
Public fear was alleviated. Director Charlie then polished the report and had it sent to the newspaper.
As a result, the next day, the headline on the third page of “Golden Port Today,” in the City Life section, carried this news—
“Director Charlie Personally Oversees, Branch Bureau Swiftly Solves Armed Robbery Case”
In this report, Director Charlie, in his outrage, issued a death order, demanding that the branch bureau quickly investigate and apprehend all suspects, appease the residents within the jurisdiction, and provide accountability to the public.
Director Bruce immediately organized elite forces, meeting with Detective Hunter, an expert from the city bureau’s criminal investigation unit. In less than thirty-six hours, they completely solved the case.
And all suspects were arrested…
All participants smiled as they looked at the newspaper. Although it was only a small space, it was on the front page of the section, and it had their names.
After several days of “practical experience,” the newly joined recruits had begun to adapt to their work and life.
Every day, they wore the same uniforms and patrolled the streets. If they found someone committing a crime, they would rush over to stop the crime, apprehend the suspect, and hand them over to the police.
This method of close police-civilian cooperation was even known to the mayor. After learning about Lance’s approach, he suddenly developed some… interest in this young man.
Because he was different from others!
For traditional gangs or families, if disobedient people caused trouble on their territory and were caught, they would either be beaten and released, or simply made to disappear, to deter those who tried to offend the gang or family.
Only by making them realize the severe consequences would they feel fear.
But they never cooperated with the police. Something like beating someone up and then sending them to the police station had never happened.
Moreover, criminal suspects who had been handled by the Lance family were always obedient and quick to confess and accept punishment.
This approach not only deterred random criminal acts but also reduced unstable elements circulating in society.
It had a more positive impact on society than simply beating someone up or making them disappear directly!
He was an interesting, thoughtful young man.
But for the mayor, it was just a passing thought.
In just a few days, the residents of the Empire District had already become accustomed to these people in black clothes and red armbands, and they began to feel a sense of security.
After some small gangs and neighborhood families quieted down, Lance arranged for Elvin to take over the Camille gang’s businesses.
He himself went to a somewhat musty-smelling office.
Heller’s office was long, or rather, deep, its length more than twice its width. A row of windows along the wall faced south. When the weather was good, sunlight would stream in through the windows, illuminating half the room, giving the entire office a very peculiar scent.
It had been about half a month since anyone had cleaned here. The smell of dust, stale air, and the scent of decaying wood mingled together, creating a sense of time-worn stillness.
He walked behind Heller’s desk and sat in the full-enclosed chair, turning once.
This would be his new office. As he was thinking about how to redecorate, footsteps sounded from outside the door. He looked out and saw four people.
A young man, roughly in his twenties, but from his demeanor, it was clear he had a different status.
Among the other three, two were wearing formal suits with law firm badges on their lapels. The other was a woman, also wearing a badge, but different from the two lawyers.
Employees of some high-end firms liked to wear their firm’s badges on their lapels to show their distinctiveness. This habit mainly appeared in some large firms, but not all.
“Mr. Lance, I am Orson from Shengda Law Firm, and this is my client, Mr. Eric.”
“This is my colleague, and this lady, she will serve as the accountant for the Imperial Night nightclub for the foreseeable future.”
Lance stood up to shake hands with this “Mr. Eric,” but the other party turned directly around and walked to the window to look at the scenery, showing no intention of giving Lance any face.
Eric was the mayor’s nephew, but some also said he was actually the mayor’s illegitimate son, born to his cousin’s wife.
As for the truth, no one knew, and those who did couldn’t speak carelessly.
In this city, Eric became a “lucky person.” He always managed to gain an advantage, and combined with his special background and rumors, this gave him a natural arrogance.
For a small figure like Lance, he didn’t even have the desire to speak. Perhaps only the five major families and some well-known large gangs, the leaders of large families, could make him proactive.
Attorney Orson seemed accustomed to such scenes and didn’t care if Lance would be uncomfortable, because he knew that no matter who the other party was, in this city, as long as their status was not higher than the mayor’s, even if they were uncomfortable, they had to appear comfortable.
Attorney Orson acted as if he hadn’t seen anything, walked to the desk, took out some documents, and handed them to Lance. “My client acquired the property rights to these properties from a judicial auction, including this building and everything within it…”
Lance opened one of the documents and glanced at it, and indeed, it reeked of the Federation!
This young Mr. Eric bought this house, worth at least fifty thousand dollars, along with everything inside, for twenty dollars.
Lance couldn’t help but laugh and say, “The document is very standard. It looks legal and is protected by law.”
Attorney Orson knew what Lance was talking about. He didn’t care at all, even showing a hint of arrogant smile. “No one competed with us, so we won.”
Who the hell would compete with the mayor?
Maybe someone would in a hundred years, but not now.
Attorney Orson took out several other documents. “Here are some employee contracts that have been finalized for the Imperial Night nightclub, including the lady beside me.”
“Mr. Eric is hiring you to be the manager of Imperial Night, with a base salary of one dollar per month and thirty percent of the net profit, based on monthly operating conditions.”
“You only have authority over those outside of these employees. You cannot fire anyone on this list, nor can you transfer them to other positions.”
“If you believe their professional skills do not meet your requirements for operating the Imperial Night nightclub, you can submit a request to me, and I will consider your ideas as appropriate.”
“You can arrange for approximately forty employees here, but before doing so, I need a list of their identity information and how much money they can take from here.”
“A reminder: too much won’t do!”
Attorney Orson took out the last letter of appointment, placed it on the table, and pulled out a beautiful fountain pen, pointing to the signature line at the end. “Mr. Lance, sign here, and you will become the manager here. This is a rare opportunity!”
When he said this, it gave Lance the impression that it was a high-handed bestowal.
Lance glanced at him, picked up the pen, and signed his name in the signature field. It wasn’t time yet.
A smile appeared on his face. “When do we start working?”
Orson had seen many similar situations, but few like Lance who got into “the swing of things” so quickly.
Most people were very unwilling and would only comply after some means were used against them.
But this was good too, at least it showed that everything was under control.
“The weather in January is too cold, and there are no customers, so our idea is to complete its renovation work before March 1st and then reopen.”
Lance nodded slightly. “So how much startup capital do I have?”
Attorney Orson suddenly chuckled. “I’m sorry,” he paused, “your startup capital depends on how much money you have…”