boyutpedia Chapter 352 Initial Success of the Intelligence Network: Rejecting Kennedy's "Green Goblin
Chapter 352 Initial Success of the Intelligence Network: Rejecting Kennedy's "Green Goblin
Chapter 352 Initial Success of the Intelligence Network: Rejecting Kennedy's "Green Goblin"
On the evening of the 28th, Larry spent his last night in his apartment in Boston's Back Bay.
The next morning, Larry was still half asleep when he heard a soft knock on his bedroom door.
"Who's outside?" Larry asked, sounding a bit grumpy as he woke up.
"It's me! Boss. I have something to tell you—" It was Mr. K outside the door.
Larry frowned slightly, knowing that this guy wouldn't bother him unless absolutely necessary. Larry quickly put on his clothes haphazardly and opened the door.
Mr. K went straight into the room. Just as he was about to speak to Larry, he saw a row of whiskeys and French cognacs in the living room, as well as a cigar cabinet. His eyes widened immediately.
Larry followed his gaze, pursed his lips, and said, "Let's get down to business first. I need to see if your intelligence is worth paying for."
Mr. K nodded, a smile spreading across his face. "Boss! I received some information last night, and it's confirmed by two sources—or, as you would call it, intelligence!"
"Go on!" Larry took two cigars from the cigar cabinet and handed one to Mr. K.
"Boss! Didn't you ask our guys to gather intelligence? Here's some news—" Mr. K pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. "This is intelligence from a convenience store near City Hall yesterday. A guy named Joe with a tumor has contacted our convenience store and several billiard halls. He wants to urgently acquire 20 shares of no-betting tickets."
"Who is Sickly Joe?" Larry asked slowly as he lit cigars for the two of them.
Mr. K didn't even have time to smoke his cigar. Instead, he lowered his voice and said, "He's been a servant of the Adams family for 15 years. You could say he's their loyal henchman! They're buying up NO bonds now to further intensify market panic!"
Larry frowned. "Your logic is flawed. The trial is imminent; what impact would his buying now have? Besides, what are the old money's motives? I don't think either the Adams family or Thomas Sheey would personally get involved in a public feud over a Chinese person, would they?"
Mr. K's face showed an expression of knowing this was coming, and he said excitedly, "I haven't finished yet, boss. It's like this, besides that guy with the tumor-legged bridge bragging at the billiard hall that his boss is going to give Kennedy a good beating, so he has to buy a lot of NO bonds to influence morale—I have other sources of information. What was that line you said again? Confirmation? Or rather, your cross-cutting information—"
"I'm saying that a single piece of evidence is invalid."
"Yes, that's it!" Mr. K said quickly. "On the other hand, the Moore gang has a cleaner at the golf club. He said that last Wednesday, several men from the Adams family had a private meeting there. They ordered the most expensive whiskey, but nobody actually drank it. During the meeting, they kicked all the waiters out, leaving only a deaf-mute waiter, thinking that would be enough."
But Muir was cleaning the front desk when he overheard some snippets of conversation through the brass pipes used to call the waiter.
They mentioned the Chinatown case, with someone saying, "We need to show them that the old money in Boston isn't someone to mess with." Most importantly, they mentioned "no bonds," saying they wanted to make the market believe in justice and stand on the side of the white people.
Larry frowned, and after a moment said, "You say they are all four prominent families in Boston, why do they have to pick a fight with an unrelated Chinese person?"
"I don't know! But I paid that cleaner $200, and he took a big risk to overhear this. I think you could use this to trade with Senator Kennedy—" Mr. K said proudly.
"What, is it about Kennedy again?" Larry looked up at Mr. K in confusion.
Mr. K paused, tapped his forehead, and said, "Look at my brain—I forgot to tell you. Adams and his group aren't targeting the Chinese, they're targeting Kennedy. Their massive purchase of NO bonds is also aimed at him. Clearly, they're using this opportunity to get rid of Kennedy."
Larry was slightly taken aback, but then he understood.
It turns out that these old Boston money people's goal was to deal with Kennedy, especially after Kennedy suppressed the sentiments of the Irish community. They became increasingly convinced that Kennedy was trying to win over and support a new force of immigrants in order to exonerate the Chinese.
Huang Meitang's case has become a turning point between the old money groups and the Boston nouveau riche. The old money groups are using this opportunity to attack Kennedy, and that guy named Shii also wants to kick Kennedy out and become the new agent of the Irish community.
But thinking about this, another question arises—is the Irish community really that important?
Larry suspected the old money group had ulterior motives, especially given the collaboration between Republican senators and New England Democratic heavyweights like Sheey. Their goal was definitely more than just controlling a community.
"Old K, what do you think their motives are for targeting Kennedy? I don't think it's just revenge, or simply wanting to get rid of him—" Larry looked up at Mr. K.
Mr. K thought for a moment and said, "I think it's more like a struggle for control over immigrants—if you look at it from the perspective of the old money, Kennedy is becoming increasingly aggressive in his efforts to win over new immigrants. These people may not contribute voting rights, but they can contribute cheap labor—if there are any large-scale public works projects now, wouldn't this labor force mean the general contracting rights for the project? Whoever holds the general contracting rights can not only make a lot of money, but also gain enormous benefits from community control!"
Hearing this, Larry's eyes widened suddenly. He stood up abruptly, pointed at Mr. K, and said, "You're right! It can't just be a momentary argument. The immigrants' greatest asset is cheap labor—large-scale public works projects, right? That's possible, but what else could it be?"
"Build a railway?" Mr. K frowned, offering an answer he himself doubted.
Larry suddenly realized and exclaimed, "Not the railway! It's the subway, or building highways! It must be that. Only large-scale infrastructure projects require a lot of cheap labor, and the general contracting of such projects is both a huge pie and a great way to expand one's influence."
Mr. K stared blankly at Larry. He had no idea what a subway or highway construction was. But seeing Larry's enlightened expression, he quickly chimed in, "Yeah, boss, I think this is a very good idea. Look at the gangsters at the docks, don't they make a lot of money from these large-scale projects?"
In a sense, the old money is no different from gangsters. They need bigger projects so they can not only retain laborers but also make a fortune.
Larry nodded heavily, then threw his cigar into the ashtray and began frantically getting dressed.
Mr. K asked with some confusion, "Boss, what's going on?"
"I'm going to visit Kennedy now—didn't he tell me to go check on Ford a while ago? I'll go with him and find out about your suspicion—I think it's quite plausible," Larry said as he dressed.
"But what about the betting tickets? Are you really confident that Huang Meitang will win? Sickly Joe wants a lot of no bonds, do we need to satisfy them?" Mr. K asked.
Larry stood there for a few seconds, then quickly made a decision. "Here's what we'll do: notify the Dead Rabbit Gang to print 20 'no' bonds and 10 'yes' bonds, and have them send someone by train to Boston. I'll go visit Kennedy now, and then try to visit the professors at Harvard Law School. If we're really confident, we'll release another 20 to Adams—"
Mr. K immediately understood Larry's meaning: this was market manipulation. Larry needed to decide whether to further expand the odds based on the probability of a judicial ruling and information from Kennedy's side.
"Understood, boss!" Mr. K replied loudly. "What do you think of the information I provided?"
Larry was already dressed. He gestured with his chin towards the bottles of liquor. "Just pick two."
Take the rest of the wine with you. We'll use it on-site when the real estate project goes into pre-sale in a few days.
Larry went to the hotel next door to call Dunbar and the other two, and together they went to visit Kennedy.
On the way, Rattlesnake reported the intelligence he had gathered the day before to Larry.
The real estate project was progressing very smoothly. Rattlesnake, through site visits and interviews with several workers involved in the project, reported that Vanderlip was a strict and meticulous person, and they hadn't observed anything unusual.
Larry nodded his thanks.
The three arrived at Kennedy's estate, a small estate facing the sea and backed by mountains, which still held a captivating allure. Especially after the arrival of summer, the cool breeze blowing from the depths of the sea carried a salty smell, but also brought a sense of exhilaration and liberation.
When Kennedy's butler heard that Larry was coming to visit, he instructed the servants to go out and greet him while he personally reported to Kennedy.
Kennedy was frowning as he read Ford's half-year report when he heard that Larry was coming. His eyes flashed with a cold light.
"This kid should have come a long time ago! I'm quitting Ford today, no matter what."
Kennedy grabbed his coat and, while putting it on, said to the butler, "Prepare the carriage! We're going to the Ford Motor Company now."
Kennedy walked outside and saw Larry and his three men getting off the carriage. Kennedy frowned and called out, "Wait a minute, Larry, don't get off the carriage yet. We're going to the Ford Motor Company together now—you're here today, and I want to see if his technological invention is any good."
Larry paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay!"
Two minutes later, Kennedy's carriage arrived. Kennedy opened the carriage door, got in, and turned around to see Larry standing alone next to his carriage.
"What's wrong, Larry?" Kennedy looked at him questioningly.
Larry smiled. "Senator, may I ride in the same carriage as you? Let my three men ride in that one. It's too crowded if the four of us ride in one carriage."
Kennedy immediately understood that Larry had something to say to him.
"It's my pleasure. Come on up, Larry! I happen to have some new goods that I just imported from Europe in my carriage. You can have a taste."
"Okay, thank you!" Larry smiled and climbed into the carriage.
Two carriages were traveling one after the other on the road to the Ford Company. Kennedy took a bottle of wine and two glasses from the wine cabinet in one of the carriages.
"Would you like some wine, Mr. Livingston?"
Larry laughed. "That would be the best, of course. Oh, right! What are you talking about, these new European goods?" He said this because he didn't want to seem too enthusiastic, and also wanted to test the waters first.
To everyone's surprise, Kennedy's expression changed slightly, and a meaningful smile appeared on his face.
"Wait a minute—I'll get it for you. Try it and see how it tastes." Kennedy said, pressing a button deep inside the liquor cabinet in the carriage. There was a soft "click" sound, as if some hidden compartment had been activated.
Then, Kennedy held a flat, emerald-green, viscous liquid bottle in his hand, and the corners of his mouth turned up in a wide smile.
"A green fairy gift from a friend in Paris — this thing can drive men mad and corrupt women!"
Larry stared at the bottle of green liquid, then swallowed hard.
I thought to myself, "No way? Is this the ticket to infiltrating high-end circles? What is this thing? Why does it look so creepy and weird?"
Kennedy, however, didn't stop. He took out a whiskey glass, filled it to the brim, and handed it to Larry, saying with a strange smile, "Here! Try it! This is the taste of freedom—even though it's illegal."
Larry reluctantly took the glass, first smelling it—a strange aroma, like pine needles boiled in water, with a handful of fennel seeds that had been tucked under his armpits for two hours added—
"What is this thing?!?!" Larry quickly moved the drink away from him, his face showing fear.
"Hahahaha!" Kennedy burst into laughter before explaining, "This is currently the most popular and legendary spirit in Europe. It's often called the Green Muse, or the Green Goblin. After drinking it, you'll have strange experiences, like seeing heaven or feeling like you're floating on air!"
Larry took a deep breath, but as he did, he could smell the stench of the strange green liquor again, and he couldn't help but cough softly.
"Thank you, sir, but I can't drink this stuff—the smell makes me want to vomit." Larry handed the glass back to Kennedy.
Kennedy, a mocking smile on his face, took the glass, examined it briefly, and then said, "This is actually called absinthe. It has a mild hallucinogenic effect. It was a must-have drink for French nobles and writers in salons. Do you know what's in it?"
Larry hadn't intended to play the straight man, but he was also very curious, so he quickly pressed, "What is it?"
"Absinthe, anise, and fennel—the French call them the Holy Trinity!" Actually, this stuff isn't usually quoted directly. The popular way to drink it in Paris is to place a special spoon with perforations or grooves on a dedicated absinthe glass, with a sugar cube on the spoon. Then, slowly drip ice water onto the sugar cube, allowing the sugar water to drip evenly into the absinthe. The ratio of absinthe to water is usually between 1:3 and 1:5.
This process induces condensation, making the wine cloudy, but it also softens its intense flavor and brings out complex herbal aromas.
Larry's eyes were vacant. He thought to himself, "What kind of bizarre method of consumption is this? This doesn't sound like anything good! And what about the hallucinogenic effects?!"
"There's another bohemian way to drink it. I only started to like it after seeing it for myself. It involves placing a sugar cube soaked in absinthe on a spoon and lighting it until it caramelizes. Then, you stir the spoon in a glass of water until the caramel is completely dissolved—it's a fantastic experience! I tried it once, and it worked great!!"
Kennedy's face revealed a hint of indulgent smile, as if he were recalling some great event.
Larry was conflicted. On one hand, he knew this thing called "Green Goblin" was definitely harmful to his health, but on the other hand, he felt a strong temptation, and a voice deep in his mind seemed to be telling him that he had to study this thing later! To criticize it, he had to understand it first!
Larry shook his head to banish the terrible thought, then frowned and asked, "This stuff—it shouldn't be drinkable, right? The smell gives me a headache."
"Normally not, but I like excitement—" Kennedy said, closing his eyes, bringing the glass of wine to his lips, and slurping it down with a soft "sizzle."
The moment the green liquid entered his mouth, the muscles in his face began to twitch and tremble uncontrollably, as if the absinthe was corroding his tongue and brain.
After a full 20 seconds, Kennedy's face regained its composure. He opened his eyes and said lazily, "—74 degrees Celsius, a small sip and you'll see heaven!"
Larry was speechless, feeling that the rich and powerful really did have nothing better to do than court disaster.
After a moment, Larry asked softly, "Sir, have you noticed that the atmosphere in Boston is a bit off lately?"