As the weather grew hotter, the air here in Yalan also became muggy.
In a factory on the edge of the rainforest, a large number of people were gathered, all working.
There were many women here, all of whom were indigenous residents from the surrounding area, employed by the gangsters behind these factories to handle tasks like filling and labeling the liquor.
In the corner of the factory stood massive barrels, each with a switch and a spout-like faucet at the bottom.
The women sat around rows of these spouts. The bottles were neatly arranged and then handed to them using a special tool.
All they had to do was insert the spout into these bottles and then pull the valve.
The amber-colored liquor would quickly fill the bottles, which would then be passed to the person next to them.
The next person would cap the bottles and then use a special machine to press them tight, pushing a lever.
The force was amplified by the lever, and the caps were pressed firmly onto the bottles, ensuring they wouldn’t leak.
Next, the bottles were placed on a conveyor belt, which would carry them to more women further down the line who skillfully applied labels to the bottles.
As long as it wasn’t too crooked, even a slight tilt was acceptable.
These labeled bottles would finally reach the end of the conveyor belt, where another group of women would pack them into wooden crates.
Then they would grab straw from beside them and stuff it between the bottles to ensure they wouldn’t collide and break during transportation due to shaking.
Finally, the wooden crates would be nailed shut and then stacked neatly on a trailer.
Once a certain number had been accumulated, the trailer would leave, taking them to the port to be loaded onto a ship.
Ultimately, these smuggling ships would, two days later, quietly dock somewhere on the southern coast of the Federation, and the liquor inside would be transported onto land.
This was the entire process of smuggling liquor, from bottling to its arrival in the Federation.
It sounded simple, but it was not so easy to do.
The stuffy environment in the factory was unbearable for almost everyone. Some of the slightly older women were even topless.
From time to time, a higher-level factory worker would come over with a hose and spray the workers with cool water to ensure they wouldn’t delay the work progress due to heatstroke or other reasons.
In a room on the second floor of the factory, a man in a floral shirt looked out the window at the continuous production in the factory, a look of satisfaction on his face.
“People only think they’re bottling liquor, but we all know that it’s actually money.”
A local from Yalan, standing by the window, turned around and looked at the others in the room. He didn’t look like an easy person to deal with.
Just by maintaining a calm state, he gave off a very fierce feeling.
“The people of the Federation are right. Money can grow from the ground. It just depends on how you find it.”
He had a shiny, slicked-back hairstyle, his hair plastered with pomade. The fan, even on its highest setting, couldn’t affect his hair in the slightest.
He walked back to his beautiful chair and sat down. Behind him was a large, interesting-looking, magnified liquor label.
In a field of crops, two women with local ethnic features were holding two large bundles of wheat, with simple smiles on their faces. In the distant wheat field, there were some people working with their heads down, and two granaries.
It had a very nice and easy-to-understand name, “Harvest.”
Harvest blended whiskey sold quite well in the Federation. Its price was not high, and its flavor was slightly unique.
They added some sugarcane juice during the whiskey-making process, which made the finished product relatively sweet, with the special fresh sweetness of sugarcane. Some people liked this slightly sweet whiskey.
In the past, as long as the liquor was produced, it could definitely be sold.
But as more and more gangs started brewing liquor, the competition became more and more fierce.
A year ago, his liquor could sell well without any label. But now, not only did he need a label, but he also had to compete with other gangs.
After all, what flowed out of the barrels was not liquor, but money. It was the same for every gang in the Yalan region.
A trademark helps to cultivate consumer loyalty. This was what an expert he had hired for money had said.
“That what’s-his-name…” he looked at the others in the room, “the one who asked us to go to Golden Port.”
“The Lance Family, Boss.”
He nodded, took out a silver cigar tube, took out half a cigar from it, and put it in his mouth.
“That Lance Family said to let us go and talk to them. What do you guys think?”
Lance had the gangs of Golden Port City release this information to the smuggled liquor suppliers: from now on, if you want to sell liquor in Golden Port City, you must go through the Lance Family.
If anyone wanted to ship liquor directly to Golden Port City or even the entire Likalai State market without contacting them, then the Lance Family would cut off their smuggling channels, so that not a single bottle of their liquor could enter Golden Port City, let alone Likalai State.
The liquor consumption capacity of Likalai State was one of the best in the southern region. If they lost the Likalai State market, their sales would definitely drop.
A drop in sales meant he would make a lot less money, and in order to sell the liquor to farther places, he would have to bear greater transportation costs and risks.
The news had been back for several days. Some people didn’t take this threat from the Lance Family to heart.
Although Yalan was very poor, its population was by no means small. There were plenty of gunmen here who were willing to take risks for a few hundred or a thousand dollars.
If the Lance Family really pissed them off, they would send gunmen over there to teach that what’s-his-name “Mr. Lance” how to communicate with the people of Yalan.
But some people also believed that the Lance Family was not necessarily joking.
The Five Families had all been finished off. Maybe this family really had the power to decide whether their liquor could enter.
The room was very quiet. After a while, the only person here who had graduated from high school spoke up, “We can arrange for one person to go over and see what they plan to say and do.”
“If their plan doesn’t cause us any losses, I think we can do it.”
“But if their plan will harm our interests, then we won’t bother with them.”
The big boss nodded and pointed at the high school student who had spoken with his lit cigar. “You go…”
Since the Federal Coast Guard had started using gunboats, the risk of smuggling directly to the coastline had become greater and greater.
At the same time, the Navy will be stationed in Golden Port City. The difficulty of smuggling ships loading cargo along the coast of Likalai State, and even some of the surrounding coastal areas, will become greater and greater.
This was obvious. If the Navy couldn’t even detect some smuggling ships and prevent them from docking, then what if these smuggling ships were not transporting liquor, but explosives or the like?
So it could be foreseen that wanting to deliver goods to Golden Port City was definitely no longer a simple matter.
If direct smuggling by ship was not feasible, then what?
Customs!
“…The problem you mentioned does indeed exist.” Jack sat next to Lance and gave an affirmative answer to the statement Lance had just mentioned that “some customs officers may have connections with smugglers.”
“Previously, very little smuggled liquor went through customs. But now, the quantity and proportion of smuggled liquor going through customs are increasing.”
“Customs is not the Bureau of Hazardous Materials. We won’t immediately destroy the liquor we seize. This gives some people an opportunity to manipulate it from within.”
Smuggled goods are seized at the port. After being detained for a period of time, when people don’t remember this matter so much, it will be transported out, and then it will be reported to the higher-ups that it has been destroyed.
This kind of thing is very common at customs, and it’s the same for some other smuggled goods.
Even if no one comes to “pay the bill” for some smuggled goods, the customs officers will still secretly take them out and dispose of them.
After all… the scrap after destruction can’t be sold for much money, but these things, if not destroyed, are money.
Who could have a grudge against money?
Including Jack himself, he would also participate in this kind of thing.
It was just that in the past he was a customs officer, and now he is an official. The destruction of some categories of goods requires his signature.
Not only does he have to sign, but he also has to supervise the destruction work. If they don’t get Jack on their side, then this category of goods cannot be “recycled.”
Besides this part of the income, there is also a part from the customs clearance fees for exporting goods.
However, this part is relatively small. For example, the federal government now prohibits the sale of sensitive materials to the Dantra military alliance.
But the capitalists who really intend to sell things over there will not be so stupid as to directly declare that they are sending sensitive materials over there. Instead, they will use a third party or even a fourth party as a springboard to send the sensitive materials around the world and then to the Dantra military alliance.
So relatively speaking, the economic benefits obtained from this part are not much.
“I’ve been doing some things recently. I hope to straighten out the smuggled liquor market in Golden Port City and even the entire Likalai State.”
Lance took a final drag on his cigarette, stubbed it out in the ashtray, and pressed it down repeatedly two or three times before throwing it away.
“I hope the customs side will stop trading with those smuggling groups or gangs, and not let a single bottle of liquor fall into their hands.”
After hearing this, Jack thought seriously for a moment. “I will seize all the liquor that passes through my side, but for the liquor that passes through other people’s side, it’s not easy for me to negotiate with them.”
“After all, this involves a lot of income. Many people need to rely on this to maintain their current lives.”
Lance shook his head. “You’ve misunderstood my meaning. When I said seize, I didn’t mean for you to destroy it.”
“In the past, you sold them to certain merchants, sold them to certain gangs.”
“No problem. Now, sell it to me, at your previous price.”
“This is safer and more efficient.”
“Talk to your colleagues.”
“If anyone thinks this proposal is not appropriate…” Lance laughed out loud, “give me his name.”
“I will persuade him.”
(End of a Chapter)