For McCock to recognize him at a glance, Lance was not surprised.

Although in the eyes of the big shots at the top, he might still be a small character, but in the eyes of ordinary people, he was already a big shot.

“If there isn’t a second Lance Family in Golden Port, then you must be talking about me.”

The two men’s hands parted. Lance invited them to sit down, “I don’t know what you like to eat, so I didn’t order…” He snapped his fingers, and a waiter quickly walked over from a distance with a menu.

“Don’t save money for me. You know, I’m very good at making money!”

McCock laughed upon hearing this, “Yes, I know. You are all very good at making money.”

“So today I’ll ride on your coattails and eat something I’m usually reluctant to eat?”

“Be my guest!”

McCock didn’t actually order anything outrageous: a steak, a rack of lamb chops, and some beef cubes.

All these things added up to about a dozen dollars.

Jack ordered something of a similar price, not because he wanted to rip Lance off, but because if he ordered something too cheap, it would make what McCock ordered seem too expensive.

This would make McCock a little uncomfortable, so ordering just the right amount is also a skill. What Lance wanted was also similar to theirs.

While waiting for the food to be served, they naturally started chatting. Lance started the conversation by expressing his confusion about McCock’s work.

“Our work is the same every day, patrolling on time, and then dealing with all kinds of tedious and boring work.”

“If your ship loses power at sea, and if you also have a radio, you can contact us. We will also be responsible for the rescue.”

“And catching smuggling ships, but more often it’s helping some ships at the docks with towing work.”

“There are too many ships here. If there is no towing, it may cause chaos. In short, I don’t think we are much like the Coast Guard, more like ordinary dockworkers!”

They were indeed responsible for many things. This was not an easy job.

Lance handed him a cigarette, “Congress has recently strengthened the Coast Guard. Your work should be a little more comfortable.”

McCock lit the cigarette and tilted his body slightly, “How should I put it?”

“Our equipment is indeed better, but we also can’t slack off anymore.”

“They require us to increase the number of patrols to curb the sea smuggling channels.”

“But Lance, you should understand that the coastline is so long. If we only patrol once, it’s definitely not enough. We can only keep patrolling.”

“In the past, we could find some excuses not to do so, for example, saying the patrol boat was not good enough, or for some other reason. Now we can’t find any reason at all.”

He looked at the table, as if wanting to get some wine, but seeing only lemonade on the table, he picked it up and put it down again.

At this time, a waiter came over with a tray. Lance asked, “Do you have the wine I stored?”

The waiter nodded, “Of course, sir. May I ask what kind of wine you stored?”

“I stored several bottles. Pick the strongest one from them!”

The waiter nodded slightly but still reminded him, “Sir, our service fee is very expensive.”

Lance waved his hand, not caring much.

Although the Bureau of Hazardous Materials was cracking down on illegal liquor everywhere, there were still many restaurants selling liquor under the guise of “stored wine.”

Because the profit from liquor was too great!

For a restaurant, a meal like Lance’s, which cost close to $50, would have a cost of over $20.

Of the remaining $30 gross profit, after deducting other expenses, the restaurant could probably earn about $15.

Does that seem like a lot?

But a bottle of mid-to-high-end liquor could bring the restaurant so much profit!

A bottle of wine, just by taking it out from where it was hidden and putting it on the table, was worth the profit of a whole table of food.

Plus, after Prohibition, people’s desire for alcohol became even higher. As long as they had money, they would want some!

They couldn’t refuse this!

“Mr. Lance, everyone says you are very generous, and now it seems it’s true!”

McCock seemed very happy. The waiter brought a bottle of wine, “Sir, do you see if this is the liquor you stored here?”

Under the wine bottle, there was also a note with the number “one hundred” written in cursive.

It was advertised to the public that this was the storage number for the wine, but in fact, this was the price of the liquor.

The cost of this bottle of wine was less than $20, but now its price was $100. This was the reason why the restaurant couldn’t refuse it!

“Yes, please open it for me, thank you.”

The waiter smiled and opened the wine, and also took the initiative to pour for the three of them. Soon someone brought a screen to block it a little.

McCock took a sip, took a deep breath, and then exhaled heavily. The exhaled breath was full of the smell of alcohol.

“Good wine!” In fact, he couldn’t tell the difference between good wine and bad wine. It was just that the $100 made him have to think that this was a good bottle of wine.

“I have a question, McCock. Can I call you that?”

McCock nodded, “Of course, you bought me a drink, we are friends!”

“Friends all call me that.”

“I’m honored that we can be friends, McCock.”

“How do you usually deal with the smuggled goods you’ve seized?”

McCock was stunned for a moment, “Of course, it’s handled according to the procedures. For some, if they are willing to pay the fine and make up the tariffs, we will still give them back.”

“But the vast majority of people are unwilling. You know, the cost of their smuggling is far lower than the taxes they have to pay.”

“If they can get one shipment in out of three, they make a profit. So most things will be put in the warehouse, and finally disposed of and auctioned according to regulations.”

Lance also raised his glass and clinked it with his, “And the money from the auction?”

“Of course it’s handed over to the Treasury Department!” McCock pursed his lips, “They treat us as a revenue-generating department.”

Currently, the Coast Guard was still under the management of the Federal Treasury Department. The proceeds from those auctions certainly had to be handed over. They themselves actually didn’t get much benefit.

At most, they would secretly take some things back for their own use, or sell them, but they couldn’t do it too much.

Someone from the Treasury Department would also be responsible for regular inspections. Once it was in the warehouse, it basically couldn’t be moved much.

Even if it could be moved, it was the result of those people turning a blind eye.

Lance looked quite sympathetic after hearing this, “This job sounds very hard, and there isn’t much good income, is there?”

McCock pursed his lips, “It definitely can’t make as much money as you.”

“Who doesn’t want to have money?”

“But we have no good way…”

As he spoke, he fell silent, “Lance, this is our first time meeting. I am friends with Jack. If you have something to say, just say it directly.”

“If you have something you want to bring in, my advice is to wait a little.”

“The crackdown is very strict recently. We are almost always on patrol, with no time to rest.”

He also thought that Lance wanted to smuggle something in. With Jack as a guarantor, plus Lance treating him to a meal and ordering a $100 bottle of wine, he felt that he was being respected.

So he might as well speak more clearly. In fact, it was not necessarily without the meaning of refusal.

If you want help, not now, we’ll see later.

Lance also heard it, but he didn’t stop, because he knew that McCock would definitely choose to stand on his side.

“How do you usually deal with the liquor you find?” he asked a more specific question.

McCock poured himself another glass of wine, “If it’s liquor, these things will be handed over to the Bureau of Hazardous Materials, and they will be publicly destroyed.”

As he spoke, a smile appeared on his face, “But we can also drink a little. Just don’t overdo it.”

Lance handed him a cigarette, “Have you ever considered disposing of that liquor yourselves?”

McCock realized what Lance meant, “Did you have your liquor seized?”

He thought for a moment, “I haven’t heard about it these past few days?”

“But even if it was really seized, it’s very difficult to have room for maneuvering. We have people watching over there. Everyone hopes for some big case to happen.”

He shook his head with a smile as he spoke, “How can there be so many big cases to catch?”

Lance took a drag on his cigarette and exhaled slowly, “There will be tomorrow.”

McCock, who was eating, was stunned for a moment, “I don’t quite understand, Lance.”

“Liquor worth $600,000 to $700,000 is coming in.”

“Yours?” McCock looked around, but because of the screen, the places he could see were actually very limited. He lowered his voice and said, “Are you crazy?”

“With so much liquor, if it’s found, it’s all over!”

Lance told the truth, “Not mine, someone else’s. This guy has some conflict with me.”

“I don’t want him to succeed in this business.”

“You guys take this batch of liquor, and then sell it to me.”

“I’ll give you $250,000, in cash.”

McCock’s heart suddenly began to beat uncontrollably. The number $250,000 had scared him!

I don’t know if it was because of these things, or because he had drunk two glasses of wine, but he suddenly became dry-mouthed.

Even the lemonade he didn’t like to drink, he picked it up and took a big gulp.

“Mr. Lance, don’t… joke.”

Lance shook his head and said, “I’m not joking.”

“You can think about it.”

“No matter what decision you make, I will tell you the time and address of the pickup. You will definitely be able to find them, and also find this batch of goods.”

“You can hand them over to the Bureau of Hazardous Materials, and then they will either sell them secretly or destroy them in public, and receive praise from the Presidential Palace and Congress.”

“Everyone will be able to get a large bonus, and accumulate capital for promotion from it.”

“And you guys will get nothing, no bonus, no flashbulbs, no commendations, maybe only one or two sentences in the news.”

“There is another way. You sell this liquor to me. Besides you and the people you can trust, no one will know!”

“The delivery person won’t know, the receiving person won’t know. Only you, me, we will know.”

“I can continue to sell my liquor, and you can also get $250,000 in cash.”

“Whether you split it among a few people or a dozen people, I don’t care.”

“But my suggestion is, if you choose to sell the liquor to me, I can arrange for my people to get on the ship. This way, you can get a bigger share of the money.”

“Think about it carefully, McCock. I’m not in a hurry for you to make a decision.”

“Even if you decide not to cooperate with me, I will still give you the intelligence. As I said, I have a grudge against him.”

“But I sincerely hope you can consider the second option. After all, the fruits of your adventure will ultimately only become the capital for others’ praise and promotion.”

“I feel it’s not worth it for you, my friend!”

Lance looked at his watch as he spoke, “I still have something to do this afternoon, so I’ll be leaving first.”

He waved his hand and placed $180 on the tray, “Keep the change.”

Then he looked at McCock, “You can also have this kind of life every day!”

Jack, on the side, was also a little dazed. In fact, his heart was also fighting a similar battle, because someone had also asked him to raise his hand a little, and he could get a large sum of money.

The choice he faced was not much different from McCock’s.

Looking at the wine in his glass, McCock picked it up and drained it in one gulp. He glanced at Jack, “You’ve given me a difficult puzzle to think about.”

Jack also sighed, “Tell me about it.”

He didn’t finish all the wine but had the restaurant put it in a kraft paper bag and then tucked it into his coat.

After returning to the Coast Guard, he had to go out on patrol in the afternoon. While sitting bored on the sea, he couldn’t help but take a sip of the wine.

His whole person instantly felt comfortable.

The difference between good wine and bad wine is huge!

Blowing in the sea breeze, which sometimes also contained salt crystal particles, plus the sun’s exposure, his whole person turned red and black!

He remembered when he was young, when he had just joined the Coast Guard, he would peel off a layer of his skin every day!

This was not a comfortable job. It was the hottest in summer at sea, and the coldest in winter.

Even now that they had switched to armed boats, they still had to stand guard when it was their turn.

The next morning, he finished his work, returned to the ground, and drove home.

As soon as he entered the house, his wife couldn’t help but nag, “The bill day is almost here. If you don’t want people to come to our door like last time, you’d better prepare in advance.”

“I told you long ago, we shouldn’t have changed cars, at this special time!”

“And the teachers of our two children called me. They both have the opportunity to go to university. They asked if we would consider it.”

“If we hope they can go to university, the teachers are willing to write them letters of recommendation…”

She chattered on about many things. Almost none of her words mentioned money, but every sentence was inextricably linked to money!

He sat on the old shabby sofa bought when they got married, staring blankly at the bright sky outside the window.

His wife’s words in his ears were like a magic spell, making his whole head ache!

In his whole life, he had never really had a good time. Even when eating out, at a gathering, he had to calculate so as not to overspend.

He had to be meticulous about everything he did, but thinking about Lance, who casually gave $180.

The money on the plate still left a deep impression on him to this day!

Whether it was work or life, he felt… it was actually quite pathetic.

He slowly turned his head to look at his wife and asked hesitantly, his eyes a little dazed, “If… they go to university, will they have a bright future?”

His wife, while ironing clothes, said, “Of course, after they graduate, they can go to big companies and earn a salary of $70, $80, or even $100 or $200, not like us!”

“Buying discounted clothes, buying discounted food, living in a discounted house, driving a discounted car…”

“How much does it cost to go to university?”

She didn’t look up, but said a little absent-mindedly, “If both of them are going, it will cost about $700 to $800 a year.”

“For one person.”

“At least.”

McCock sat in a daze for a while, then suddenly stood up. His wife asked, “Aren’t you off today?”

McCock shook his head and drove straight back. He found the captain on duty today and talked about changing shifts.

“I might have to go out for a few days. Can I swap shifts with you?”

“I’ll be on duty tonight, and you can help me out in a few days?”

This kind of thing was very normal for colleagues of several decades.

Who doesn’t have a difficult time?

The other party quickly agreed. McCock returned to his office and dialed the number Lance had left him…

Half an hour later, McCock’s trusted subordinates all arrived.

The number was more than Lance had imagined, a full eleven people.

When they found that there were some strangers who were going out to sea with them, they were all a little confused, but with their trust in McCock, they said nothing.

Some colleagues didn’t come, and some strangers were added. There must be some changes.

After the ship left the coast, McCock called them all over and briefly explained the matter.

“We just need to intercept the ship, and then… they will do the killing.”

“The ship and the goods will go with us. When we get close to the coastline, they will split up and take them away.”

“We will continue our patrol. After the matter is over, they have promised to give us $200,000.”

In an instant, every one of them sucked in a cold breath.

He observed these people. Except for a few, the eyes of the others were all full of surprise!

One of the guys who had followed him the longest couldn’t help but ask, “How will this money be divided?”

McCock pursed his lips, “I’ll take $40,000. You guys can split the rest.”

Their math wasn’t very good. After writing and drawing for a good while, they finally came to a conclusion: each person could get more than $14,000.

Many people immediately expressed their stance, “Let’s do it!”

Let alone more than $10,000, a few hundred, a few thousand, was enough to hire a third-rate assassin to kill someone.

Not to mention this was more than $10,000, and they didn’t have to do the dirty work themselves. They just had to intercept the ship and assist Lance’s men in dealing with those smugglers.

Such a simple matter, and a large sum of money could be earned. Who wouldn’t be tempted?

But someone also asked, “Will there be any trouble?”

“After all, so much liquor, so much money!”

A wave of light flowed in McCock’s eyes, “We’ve been drifting on the sea almost our whole lives. I don’t owe this country a single thing. It owes me!”

This sentence made everyone fall silent again. In the recent case, so many people had just died, and this was just what was reported.

In fact, the Coast Guard lost people every year. Many times, it wasn’t even reported. They just died silently.

The sea is very scary. Even in the coastal waters, there will be risks!

They could feel McCock’s determination and didn’t continue to persuade him.

Some people were very excited, and some were very calm.

Everyone had different thoughts, attitudes…