American Tax Officer

"Senator Pierce, there's an emergency at my department that I need to take care of, so I'm leaving first. Sorry!"

The words that Bureau Chief Hanson said when he came up to him made it clear to Pierce that this was indeed David's doing, even if he were too foolish to realize it otherwise.

But before he had time to think further, he turned and saw that David had already found the next invited guest to 'communicate' with.

In the time that followed, seven or eight more celebrities who had been invited came up to him to bid farewell, making Pierce feel somewhat restless.

Unable to maintain his dignity, he immediately approached David and said discontentedly, "David, stop causing trouble for me here!"

David stopped what he was doing, turned around with a look of pity, and said, "Me causing trouble? I'm afraid it was you who started it all, wasn't it?"

"..."

This retort left Pierce speechless; of course he knew David was accusing him of attacking the Black Tax Bill, but on reflection, it seemed that it was indeed he who had struck first. Now, what David was doing was merely striking back to some extent.

Ignoring him, David continued to find the next high-profile guest to 'converse' with...

Meanwhile, outside the hotel's front entrance.

"Florenzo left earlier, and now Bureau Chief Hanson, City Manager Bart, and... why are all of these people leaving when the banquet has barely started?"

"One person leaving suddenly is one thing, but so many leaving at once is definitely not normal. Could something have happened inside?"

"Something must have happened, or these celebrities wouldn't be leaving the scene on such a large scale so early."

As the invited celebrities started to come out and leave, the media scrimmaging outside, as well as the public, were all very surprised.

And thinking of David's recent arrival, many people were even speculating that he might be the cause of all this, which increased everyone's curiosity about what exactly had happened inside.

As the outside world speculated, David inside the hotel had 'dealt with' a dozen more invited dignitaries, making the originally lively banquet hall instantly quiet down.

As for those celebrities who had not yet been approached by David, they were now in a great dilemma in their hearts. They, of course, realized that although David was targeting Senator Phipps today, he was also forcing them to take a stand.

Were they to support Senator Phipps, or stand against the Western Suburb Branch?

Considering the ruthlessness of the chief's tactics and the fact that so many of their friends had been forced to leave the scene, the remaining celebrities gradually could not withstand the pressure. They didn't want to be the fish in the pond affected by the calamity at the city gate and eventually came up to Phipps, exchanged some apologetic words, and left together.

Senator Phipps's complexion was terribly dark. He had especially organized today's banquet to curry support from all walks of life, but now it had been ruined by David. If word got out, where would he put his face?

No, perhaps the news had already spread; many people might already be laughing at him!

Thinking of this, Phipps was almost fuming with rage.

On this side, seeing that most of the well-known guests had sensibly left, David was also quite satisfied, which spared him a lot of talking.

"Chief, look over there,"

Hearing the reminder from the prosecuting witness Nisen, David turned his head and saw that in the area to the left of Phipps, a few people were still standing, among them the three siblings from the Camora Family.

"In addition to the Camora siblings, these are also rulers of the gray industries in the Long Beach District, Santa Monica District... several districts,"

Hearing this, David nodded slightly. It seemed these people were determined to support Phipps and thought that by not being in his jurisdiction, they need not fear him, right?

They were terribly mistaken!

Gathering his thoughts, David walked up to Phipps and said, "Mr. Phipps, I wish you an enjoyable banquet tonight!"

With that, David cast a sharp glance towards Camora and the others behind him, then turned and walked away.

Once he left the room, Phipps, already seething with anger, kicked a nearby dining table, sending the food and cutlery on it scattering to the floor.

"Damn it!"

Watching Phipps rage like a lion, the Camora family and others shrank back a little before coming up to him. Rickel Camorra, the current head of the Camora family, began to console Phipps, "Senator Phipps, David's arrogance is merely derived from the power source of the Black Tax Bill. Once this bill is repealed, he'll be a toothless tiger!"

Actually, Phipps's criticism of the Black Tax Bill was intended to gain the votes of California criminals; personally, he had no grudge against David.

But now that David had embarrassed him this evening by disrupting the event, Phipps had secretly resolved that even if he couldn't push Congress to repeal the Black Tax Bill, he would still create big trouble for David and the Western Suburb Branch, letting them know the consequences of messing with him!

Gathering his thoughts, Phipps turned to look at the Camora siblings and asked, "You three are supporting me, aren't you?"
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"Of course, as long as you, Senator Phipps, can persuade Congress to scrap this bill, our family is willing to make some modest contributions!"

Although the Camora family was now ostensibly whitewashed, their gray industries remained the economic pillar.