American Tax Officer

Chapter 701: Chapter 351: Seeing a Ghost, You’re Actually Still Alive!_2
 

Joshua didn’t choose to temporarily lower his pride and back down as Augustine had, his face flushing a mix of green and red before he ultimately opted for silence.

“If you all can overturn the tax agreement between me and the Silicon Valley company ministers, then by all means go ahead, but I must remind you, it has to be in accordance with legal provisions!”

After saying this, David turned his gaze to Rege Cyril Jep, saying, “Rege, Cyril, Mr. Jep, although last time we had some minor unpleasantness, after all, we once collaborated, so I still regard you to some extent as friends. However, the actions you have taken have left me disappointed!”

“David, this matter isn’t really our concern. Since you’re unharmed, let’s just leave it be!”

Jep was the first to speak.

What he meant by this was that they were not the masterminds behind this matter, and now that David was fine, they should just maintain a peaceful distance.

“That’s not how accounts should be settled, Mr. Jep.”

“Then how do you want to settle it?”

“If I hadn’t been a bit more astute, I probably wouldn’t be able to stand here and talk to you today. Don’t you think you owe me an explanation for this matter?”

“An explanation? Hah…”

Jep sneered coldly and did not continue.

David did not press further but walked up to a server holding a tray, from which he took a cocktail and sipped it. It was then that he happened to see Sally, Ted, and John cowering in a corner.

Like everyone else at the scene, the trio was shocked to see David alive, but after the shock, they were even more frightened.

The reason they were able to control the media conglomerate was entirely thanks to David’s efforts.

But now, seeing that David was ‘dead,’ they promptly switched allegiance to Freemasonry. What would be their fate next?

Murdoch, who previously had the mighty backing of Freemasonry, was still ruined by David, losing control of the company.

If David decided to act against them, they had no choice but to go back and wait for their demise.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, please continue to enjoy the banquet. I won’t disturb you any longer!”

As the atmosphere began to stiffen, David dropped this remark and turned to leave, leaving behind a crowd with different expressions.

Those who were bracing themselves for a fury of thunderbolts like Sally’s trio were a bit perplexed. What did David mean by this?

Was he letting them off so easily?

“John, what should we do now?”

Sally and Ted cast helpless looks in John’s direction.

“Since David didn’t die, Freemasonry would surely lose interest in us. And since we’ve only just pledged our loyalty, they’re even less likely to protect us!”

Hearing this, Ted and Sally naturally agreed, and the look of despair on their faces deepened.

“For the moment… I think we might just have to ‘rein in at the brink’ and go back to seek his pardon. As long as we’re sincere, and considering no one else is more suited to control the media conglomerate, I believe he can forgive us!”

Hearing this, Sally and Ted’s eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope.

Yes, they had defected to Freemasonry solely because they had lost their support in David and done so out of desperation.

If they could find David and explain themselves well, there was a chance he could understand them.

With this thought, the trio didn’t linger any longer and briskly walked out the main entrance of the venue.

“Augustine, Rege Cyril Jep, I think we need to talk!”

On this side, Joshua also immediately conveyed this to the Illuminati and Ansa Group.

David came here today not just to prove to these people his supposed death. Anyone could see it was a deliberate threat, so they had to develop countermeasures early.

The factions nodded in agreement and followed Joshua up to a private room on the upper floor.

“Gentlemen, it seems we celebrated too early and fell right into the trap of this youngster. Knowing his vindictive nature, he surely won’t let this matter rest. What do you think?”

As soon as he entered the private room, Joshua couldn’t wait to blurt out,

“The whole mess is on you, Freemasonry, you have to take responsibility!”

Reze said this with a hint of resentment.

It wasn’t hard to understand his grievance; had it not been for Freemasonry’s botched job, which had failed to kill David, would they have fallen into this trap and been outwitted by David?

“This is indeed our responsibility, but now that what’s done can’t be undone, there’s no use talking about it. We need to think of a counterstrategy,” Joshua admitted fault on their side and didn’t put up too much of a fight.

“Hmph, we said before that we would only take action if David were dead. Since he’s still alive, don’t expect us to take the fall for your Freemasonry!”

“Mr. Reze’s words are exactly what I wanted to say. Not finishing him off is a huge letdown; your Freemasonry must bear the corresponding responsibility!” Augustine chimed in with agreement.

“But you can’t just put it that way. David will definitely not let Freemasonry off, but from his stance just now, it’s clear he also knows about the Illuminati and Ansa Group’s involvement. If we fall, do you think you can remain unscathed?”

The speaker this time was Prescott, the Sect Leader of the Rockefeller Family.

“Are you threatening us?”

“No, no, no, this isn’t a threat. We are all in the same boat now and should unite to avoid being defeated one by one,” Prescott said, and both the Illuminati and Ansa Group fell silent, knowing his words made sense.

This was a grudge involving life and death. If they were in his shoes, they would not easily let it go either.

“I need to discuss this with my father.”

“I also need to call a meeting with our members to discuss this carefully.”

Reze and Augustine spoke one after another.

“Of course…”

This was something major and couldn’t be resolved with just a few words. Reze and the others had no intention of continuing the conversation and left the private room with their respective entourages, leaving the mansion.

And so, the so-called celebration dinner ended prematurely with a whimper.

…

New York’s Fifth Avenue.

The armored car troops of the Internal Revenue Service were on their way back.

At this moment, in the middle armored car, seated in the back were David and Carrod, who had just left the mansion.

“Chief Inspector David, are you just going to let them off the hook?”

Carrod still couldn’t understand; this was a major act of vengeance. With David’s abilities, couldn’t he have easily arrested a bunch of them, slapped some charges on them, and thrown them into jail as a stern warning?

“Acting against them now won’t make much difference, trust me, they’ll have their time to weep soon.”

Capturing these people, David certainly could find ways to charge them with crimes.

However, these people held too much influence. If he just arrested them, the Internal Revenue Service would face immense public pressure.

Of course, the main point was that arresting these people wouldn’t be greatly beneficial at this stage and wouldn’t fully satisfy his thirst for vengeance.

The plan he had in mind was intended to be initiated later, but their assassination attempt had crossed his red line, and he was no longer willing to wait. It was time to proceed with the plan.

If it succeeded, he was sure that Ansa Group, Freemasonry, and the Illuminati would all feel what it meant to truly bleed!