Chapter 368

When you are unconditionally good to someone, only to receive an unimaginable result in return, the first thing that often comes to mind is

When you are unconditionally good to someone, only to receive an unimaginable result in return, the first thing that often comes to mind is

When you are unconditionally good to someone, only to receive an unimaginable result in return, the first thing that often comes to mind is “Why did this happen?”

Curiosity, expressed more quickly and strongly than anger or hatred.

He looked at Dover, his expression somewhat strange, like a defendant in the dock awaiting sentencing. He wanted to know not just the outcome, but also why it had happened.

“Ever since you were a child, I have always been very good to you, no matter what they said…”

“I have been doing my best to make up for everything you have lost, do you remember?”

“I even attended a few parent-teacher conferences for you.”

For a time, Paul really treated Dover as his own child. His father had died for him, so he had an obligation to take care of Dover.

But since Dover’s mother died, the problems between them not only did not ease or get closer, but the gap became even wider.

Paul actually knew some of the reasons, because of the death of Dover’s mother.

The death of Dover’s mother was the only direction she could find amidst her internal turmoil and torment.

Her husband had died, and then Paul was so good to Dover, as if he were competing with her for her child, and she could not resist this process.

In the end, she chose to use death to tell Dover that Paul was not his father, nor could he ever be.

Things that come at the cost of life are often impossible to ignore, like the extreme anger of an ordinary person, like the pencil gradually being clenched in the hand of a bullied child, and also like… a revolution.

Of course, the death of a woman was not a revolution. It would not bring any heavy and unavoidable topics to this world, but it affected a young child, affecting his present, and his future.

Dover looked at Paul. He didn’t know what to say, just looked, a bit dazed.

Paul was waiting for his answer. Dover blinked, coming back from his wandering thoughts. “They said… if he hadn’t been stupid enough to take a bullet for you…”

Paul looked at him. “I’ve heard it. They said if it wasn’t for my father taking a bullet for me, maybe he would have had a chance to sit in my current position.”

“But, Dover, tell me, do you believe it?”

“The succession of the Pasoretto Family has always had rules. Look at Mueller, his surname is also Pasoretto. He didn’t take a bullet for me, but did he become me, or replace me?”

“No, he didn’t. Even if your father hadn’t taken that bullet for me, even if I had died, the position of family head would not have been your father’s.”

Paul looked at him, mercilessly tearing apart the beautiful dream that Dover himself, his friends, and those with ulterior motives had woven for him.

Dover looked at Paul, stared straight at him. “Why… didn’t you say this before?”

Paul looked at him as if he were looking at a fool. “Do you think I need to clarify this kind of rumor?”

“And how would I clarify it?”

“I walk up to you, put my arm around your shoulder and tell you, ‘Hey, your father was just one of my subordinates. If he were alive, your life would be worse than it is now’?”

“After you had already lost your father and mother?”

“Dover, I am grateful for what your father did for me, so I will do my best to protect you, give you better conditions, and I haven’t even refuted these rumors.”

“I hoped that your father’s heroic deeds would give you a better environment to grow up in, but what I didn’t expect was that you would actually be hung up on the relationship between your father and me.”

He showed a very regretful and disappointed expression. “If this is the reason for your betrayal of the family, Dover, you have disappointed me greatly.”

Paul took a deep breath and stopped talking. Dover suddenly felt a wave of fear. He keenly sensed that Paul’s attitude was changing.

He knew Paul. Although Paul was a good man most of the time, when he made up his mind, he would become another person, just like that dog.

Paul used to have a dog, a hound. He loved that dog very much. It was shiny black and very loyal to him.

Once, Dover secretly went to try to lead the dog out. He wanted to… show off in front of the other children.

After all, such a large and beautiful dog was rare. But he didn’t expect that the dog, which was so docile in front of Paul, would show its fangs to him.

He was bitten. When Paul found out, he rushed over. He first comforted Dover for a while, then hugged the dog.

At first, he didn’t understand why, when he was the one who was bitten, Paul went to hug the dog.

Until two minutes later, Paul took out a gun and, in front of him, killed the dog.

At that time, Paul’s eyes and expression had scared him.

To this day, he could not forget that moment, the way Paul held the gun to the dog’s head, said “I’m sorry,” and then fired.

The Paul of that moment seemed to have reappeared.

Dover fell to his knees with a thud. He didn’t want to die. “It was them, it was all them who bewitched me. They said my father should have been the head of the Pasoretto Family, and I was the young master.”

“Uncle Paul…” he crawled on his knees to Paul’s leg and hugged it, trying to obtain Paul’s forgiveness through this kind of begging.

Paul put his arm around his shoulder. His eyes were gentle, but behind the gentleness was a trace of pain and determination.

He really had raised Dover as his own child and had given him everything he could.

But now, he had to make a choice.

Dover was his relative, but he had many more relatives. He couldn’t give up others for Dover’s sake.

He reached out and ruffled Dover’s head, his hand gripping his shoulder tightly. His eyes became somewhat painful, and then he took out that pistol. “I’m sorry…”

However, the next second, his eyes suddenly widened, because at some point Dover had actually grabbed his pistol.

After a brief exchange of glances, their eyes became sharp. Caught off guard, Dover forcefully struggled for the pistol, so much so that he actually managed to snatch it away.

At that very moment, as his fingers left the pistol, he fired a shot.

But the next second, the weapon fell into Dover’s hands. He took a step back and, without even giving Paul a chance to say more, pulled the trigger directly.

Outside the door, under Mueller’s gaze, the people in the room dared not speak, sitting there awkwardly and uncomfortably.

Mueller was of the same generation as Paul and could be considered their uncle. Some of the younger ones were even Mueller’s grandsons in terms of generation.

When such an “elder” stood here staring at them with an unfriendly gaze, and most of these people were detested by everyone, they would become very uneasy.

It was as if thorns and hair were growing all over their bodies, itching terribly, but they couldn’t scratch. Their whole bodies were uncomfortable.

They were still discussing in low voices why Paul had suddenly come to find Dover, whether he was going to give Dover some mission, when suddenly gunshots rang out from the room.

First one shot, then several in a row. Everyone stood up, looking at the door in horror and disbelief. Mueller, at the door, squinted slightly as he looked at them. “Sit back down!”

No matter how stupid they were, they knew what had happened. Paul was actually going to kill Dover.

The men slowly sat back down, their faces flushed, their hearts racing. They began to feel fear, and unease.

Two minutes later, the door opened. Mueller’s gaze was still fixed on these people. He was afraid that if he turned his head, these people would make a move.

Although he didn’t think they had the ability, the situation was special now. When it was time to be careful, one had to be careful.

Then he noticed the surprised looks on the faces of those wastes, and saw their shocked expressions. Just as Mueller had a bad premonition, something cold was pressed against his head.

In that instant, his mind went blank.

Paul was dead?

He turned around without any regard for the threat. Before he even had time to see who was behind him, the gun fired.

He felt as if something had hit his head hard, and he fell to the ground with a thud.

In his rapidly dimming vision, he saw the shadow of Dover stepping over his body.

“Dover?!”

Dover’s hands were still trembling. The ivory-handled pistol, said to be from Paul’s grandfather, was held in his hand. Until this moment, he had not yet recovered from the shock of killing Paul.

Paul wanted to kill him, he could only fight back.

Just as he hadn’t expected Paul to really want to kill him, Paul also hadn’t expected that he would not only dare to fight back, but also dare to kill him.

At this moment, Dover put the weapon in his pocket. He squeezed his hands together, trying to calm himself down.

He looked at these people. “He wanted to kill me… I didn’t agree.”

“Didn’t you all always say… that if I were to become the family head, you would support me?”

“Now, it’s your turn to fulfill your promise.”

Alberto was very depressed now.

Everyone in the company looked gloomy. After throwing a tantrum in his chair for a while, he made a call to Lance. “Are you free?”

“Have a drink with me.”

A dozen minutes later, Alberto arrived at Lance’s office. Lance took out a bottle of liquor and poured him a glass.

Alberto looked at the gold-stamped lion on the bottle, a little curious. “I’ve heard of this liquor. Where did you get it?”

Lance shook his head. “I have my ways. You’re here to drink, not to stock up.”

He poured Alberto a glass of liquor, then picked up his glass and clinked it with his. “Run into some trouble?”

Alberto took a large gulp and said dejectedly, “Dover sold out the family’s intelligence. We suffered heavy losses.”

“That son of a bitch is like an untamable wild dog. He should really be killed!”

“But even so, Paul is still protecting him!”

Without waiting for Lance to raise his glass, he took another big gulp on his own, then picked up the bottle and started pouring for himself again.

There were ice cubes in the glass, large ice cubes.

The liquor would first land on the ice cubes, then flow down along them to the bottom of the glass. In this process, it would be cooled down to a point where it wouldn’t feel harsh on the throat.

The advantage of this was that the strong liquor wouldn’t be so uncomfortable to drink. Even women could drink it without any problem.

But the disadvantage was, it was easy to drink too much.

Alberto cursed “Fuck,” then slammed his fist on the table. “The Howard brothers are dead, and several other good men were killed. But now Paul is still planning to protect him!”

“If he really protects Dover, I’m quitting!”

Lance walked to his side, pressed his shoulder, and took a small sip from his glass. “Why don’t you consider getting rid of him directly?”

“Get rid of who?” Alberto, who had just taken a sip, suddenly put down his glass and asked, “Dover?”

“Uh-huh, maybe it’s not convenient for Paul to make a move?”

Alberto opened the cigarette box on the table, took one for himself, and lit it. “Keep talking.”

Lance sat down in a nearby chair. “Look, Dover’s father died protecting Paul, so no matter what, Paul must guarantee Dover’s life, even if he doesn’t want to.”

“Otherwise, people will say that Dover’s father died for him, and then he killed Dover. The whole family died because of him. It’s a difficult position for him to be in.”

“But if someone other than him makes a move, won’t things be better?”

Alberto’s eyes began to light up. “That’s a good idea!”

He thought about the possibility. “Coming to you for a drink was the right choice, Lance. You know how to solve problems.”

He was silent for a moment, then soon had a headache again. This matter needed someone to do it, but not him personally.

Alberto was very distressed. He talked a lot with Lance, complaining, lamenting, blaming. He also drank a lot of liquor and finally passed out drunk in his office.

He made a call to Fordis, and soon Fordis drove over.

He saw Alberto passed out on the sofa, walked up to Lance, and gave him a hug. “Thanks for letting him drink so much.”

Lance smiled and patted his back. “That doesn’t sound like a compliment, Fordis.”

Fordis also couldn’t help but laugh twice. “He’s been very distressed these past few days. A little sleep is actually good for him.”

“Lend a hand!”

Lance helped him lift Alberto up and then stuffed him into the car.

Interestingly, he got stuck in the back seat. They couldn’t push him in. Lance stepped on his ass and forcefully pushed him in, leaving a clear footprint on his pants.

“When he wakes up, tell him he was kicked back by me!”

Fordis nodded. “No problem, I’ll definitely tell him.” He hugged Lance again. “Stay safe, it’s been terrible lately.”

The betrayal had hurt them all, and their morale was low. Some even talked about not continuing to serve the Pasoretto Family.

They were only distant relatives, not direct descendants of the Pasoretto Family. Having suffered such a huge loss, even if they left the family, no one could say anything.

If Paul still wanted to protect Dover this time, they would quit.

Lance watched the car leave. When he turned around, Elvin was standing by the door, pointing into the room. “There’s a call from Williams.”

Lance stared at the departing car for a while before turning and walking into the room.

He sat in the chair and picked up the receiver. “Councilman Williams?”

“I have already spoken with some of my old friends. If you can make the situation big enough, they will intervene directly.”

“But, there is a prerequisite.”

Lance leaned back in his chair and asked, “What?”

A slight crackling sound came from the receiver. It was the sound of Councilman Williams smoking his pipe. “They also have some requests.”

Lance pursed his lips. “Let’s hear them. Maybe I can solve their little problems.”

Councilman Williams chuckled twice. “This is very easy for you, Lance.”

“Golden Port must be kept under the control of the Social-Democratic Party. This city is too important. You must stand on our side!”

Lance considered for a moment. “Am I suitable to join the Social-Democratic Party?”

Councilman Williams also couldn’t help but burst out laughing. “That’s very funny, Lance. You have a great sense of humor!”

A gang leader joining the Social-Democratic Party?

If he really did that, and the Social-Democratic Party accepted him, then tomorrow it would be the front-page headline all over the world.

The Social-Democratic Party has started to harbor filth.

So it was impossible for them to agree. Even if Lance took the initiative to ask, the Social-Democratic Party would not allow him to join and pollute the party’s clean reputation.

To Councilman Williams, this was a funny joke.

“I will be running for mayor of Golden Port later. You must support me with your people. In addition, you must also support subsequent mayors, if they are Social-Democrats.”

“Besides that, you also need to prove to the higher-ups that you are on our side, you know?”

“Your sincerity!”

“Sometimes, they will also have some work for you to do.”

“If you can agree to these three things, they will take the initiative to intervene.”

Lance thought for a moment. The first thing was political support, to clearly support the Social-Democratic Party. This had nothing to do with whether he himself was a member of the party.

He could agree to that.

The second point was not a big problem either, just a matter of funneling benefits. Everyone was doing it. He wasn’t unwilling to give money to Congress; he just didn’t have the channel.

So now that Congress was willing to take his money, he was overjoyed. Why would he object?

What made him hesitate was the third point. He didn’t object to doing dirty work, but doing dirty work for Congress was a bit not so good.

Who knew if they would give him a sensitive dirty job, and then send people to make him keep it a secret. That would be tantamount to forcing him to stand on the opposite side of those big shots in Congress.

The long period of no response also made Councilman Williams a little nervous. “What are you worried about?”

Lance said honestly, “I don’t want to be toilet paper, to be used and then thrown away.”

Councilman Williams found this a bit… incomprehensible. What an honor it was to do dirty work for the big shots in Congress.

Even if he were given the chance, he would be willing to take this job.

It meant he could grasp some of the senators’ deeper secrets. Although things have two sides, you can’t always look at the bad side; you can also look at the good.

The benefit was that he would have a direct channel to Congress. Perhaps this channel was not very stable, but at least he had one.

“Lance…”

Lance didn’t let him continue. “I can give a little more money, but I don’t want to do dirty work.”

Councilman Williams considered for a moment. He thought those big shots would agree. “Alright, you can proceed with your idea now…”

Two minutes later, Lance strode out of the office. He casually pointed at some people. “Get in the car, we’re going to the docks.”

Elvin trotted to catch up. “Deal’s done?”

Lance nodded. “Deal’s done. As long as we make a big enough scene, there will be no problem!”

“How do you plan to make a scene?” Elvin was very curious.

The two walked out the door. He ran two steps and opened the car door for Lance.

Lance stood by the car door, turned around, and looked at him. “Do you know what the docks have the most of?”

Elvin shook his head. “What I’m thinking is definitely not the same as what you’re thinking.”

Lance got into the car. “Money!”

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