Before the Chaos Began
Shen City time, 11:00 AM.
The sea breeze swept through the harbor area surrounded by greenery, but it still couldn't dispel the midday heat.
But this irritating heat is not a reason to steal a moment of leisure.
Therefore, many Caravan and trading company workers were still counting the goods to be transported that afternoon.
"It's getting hotter and hotter today."
"Dude, are you new here? It's not even April yet, the weather's going to heat up really fast!"
"Haha, this place is famous for having summer for two-thirds of the year, you'd better get used to it!"
The workers chatted loudly as they inspected the goods inside the containers.
Because of the cargo container, everyone's voices were amplified, startling the occasional seabirds that were passing by and causing them to scatter.
"I don't know why those bosses insist on checking the goods twice a day. Nothing has been stolen here for years."
"Well, better safe than sorry."
"You only had two checks on your end, but I had them three times a day, morning, noon, and night!"
They were having a good chat when suddenly a worker's exclamation interrupted their banter.
"Holy crap, I lost something!"
"What? They actually found a problem?"
"Holy shit!"
News of missing goods at the temporary storage point in the harbor spread rapidly on the sea breeze.
At 1 p. m., most of the municipal office staff had just finished lunch.
A cacophony of noise could be faintly heard coming from the Maritime Transport Bureau.
"Shen City Port hasn't had any cargo losses in the last five years."
"We are deeply disturbed by the fact that the military has requisitioned the goods and then lost them!"
In the main conference room of the Maritime Transport Bureau, a middle-aged man in a suit sat at the head of the table on the left.
He was confronting the Maritime Transport Bureau across from him, his words filled with undisguised anger.
Frankly speaking, the loss of goods can be a big deal or a small deal.
After all, not much was lost, so it wasn't something that would really hurt.
But some businessmen have a point.
If they dare to take small things today, they might dare to take big things tomorrow.
This kind of thing can't be ignored.
Therefore, the Shen City United Merchants' Association, which has some official backing, immediately sent people to the City Hall upon receiving the definite news.
This middle-aged man is the person in charge of the Shen City Merchants' Association who came to negotiate this time.
He will represent the Chamber of Commerce president and all Chamber members.
Therefore, he must take a sufficiently tough stance to prevent this from happening.
"Sir, please watch your words!"
But the Maritime Transport Bureau is no pushover either.
He's in this position, so he won't be swayed by the words of these merchants.
"It is unacceptable to rely on one party's subjective assumptions without evidence."
The director's tone was serious, implying that if you have evidence, provide it; otherwise, don't make baseless accusations.
Although the City Hall is also a shareholder of the chamber of commerce, they will not provoke the military without solid evidence.
Especially now, with the front lines still engulfed in gunfire.
"Director, we've come here today for evidence."
Upon hearing the middle-aged man's words, the director suddenly had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, what he said next confirmed the accuracy of his intuition.
"We hope the Maritime Transport Bureau will issue search warrants for the areas where the thefts occurred and thoroughly investigate the harbor theft case."
"This is not only for the sake of social stability and harmony, but also to weed out the corrupt elements within our Human Race army. Please reconsider, Director."
Director:?
Is it true that our Maritime Transport Bureau is going to take on the military single-handedly?
When a question mark pops into my head, it's not that I have a problem, it's that I think you have a problem.
The Maritime Transport Bureau rubbed his temples, somewhat speechless.
He gained a completely new understanding of how greedy and easily emboldened businessmen are.
It's true what they say, "A big forest has all kinds of birds."
He could only give a perfunctory, businesslike reply, "Without evidence, our company will not easily issue a search warrant."
The middle-aged man opposite him rolled his eyes inwardly, gaining a new understanding of the true colors of these officials.
You need a search warrant to find evidence, but you can't get a search warrant without evidence.
Fine, fine, you take 10% of the profits every quarter, and this is how you just fob me off?
Even though he had expected this, the middle-aged man still cursed a few times in his mind.
However, he maintained a negotiating demeanor, as if reluctantly taking a step back, and continued speaking.
"Without a search warrant, we request to view footage from nearby official surveillance cameras."
The director paused for a moment before nodding. "Okay."
Compared to a search warrant, watching surveillance footage is actually more acceptable; at most, it just requires informing the military.
Seeing that the director had agreed, the middle-aged man's aggressive demeanor vanished, and he replied respectfully.
"Grateful."
Shisui listened to the whole thing through Radiant Feathers.
He had no intention of altering the surveillance footage; such an obvious attempt to frame someone would be time-consuming, laborious, and offer no benefit whatsoever, so it was pointless.
Moreover, the Human Race's surveillance facilities are far less widespread than those of the Sea Race.
Therefore, it is normal that the surveillance camera did not capture any footage.
Those businessmen, to put it bluntly, were just trying their luck and testing the City Hall's attitude.
Now that it seems the City Hall won't side with them, they've naturally let the matter drop for the time being.
However, the accumulated contradictions will not simply disappear.
Once the conflicts between various parties in Shen City escalate, even the slightest spark could ignite a massive explosion.