In the next few days, Wenster seemed to be hit by a storm.

A storm of taxes.

A storm of human hearts.

The power of the tax return system exceeded people's imagination.

Or rather, the jealousy and greed in people's hearts exceeded their imagination.

Every day, every hour, it seemed like someone was being arrested, shot, forced to confess, or reported.

For a moment, people were panic-stricken.

Yet this storm seemed like it simply couldn't stop.

At this time, Frank seemed to regain his aura of prestige and aggression in the Royal Capital, his eyes filled with arrogance towards George's three sons.

But that was only towards them; when he turned to his second brother Joseph, he showed none of that demeanor. Instead, he became careful, cautious, even humble and ingratiating.

After all, how could a second-generation scion idling in the Royal Capital like him compare to an elder brother who held great power at such a young age?

"Joseph, it's really great to see you again." Frank tried to show a smile, making himself appear very obedient while seeming genuinely happy to see his brother.

Joseph was also smiling.

Joseph truly was the kind of person who appeared very amiable.

Those who had caught a glimpse of him through the car window that day were not wrong in their impression.

His appearance was extremely friendly, not particularly handsome, but definitely the type that puts people at ease at first sight, causing them to unconsciously lower their guard and open up their hearts.

So Frank immediately relaxed as well.

"Frank, long time no see, how have you been in Wenster?" Joseph gestured for Frank to sit down and even had someone serve him a cup of tea.

Upon hearing this, Frank seemed unable to hold back anymore and began to recount the hardships he had suffered in Wenster, especially the incident where Ethan had sent people to assassinate his guard, embellishing the story for a long time. He then spoke of how Ethan was sinister and tax-dodging.

"Frank, rest assured, with me here, no one will be able to bully you anymore." Joseph's voice was very gentle.

Frank seemed to recover from his emotions, saying, "Oh, Joseph, actually, I've done some minor work. You know I've subdued those outsiders; all their properties are now in Ethan's hands. Ethan absolutely can't handle it that quickly. I have a lot of information here and can contact some key people. As long as you take action, Ethan is doomed!"

"Well done, Frank, well done." Joseph seemed very gratified.

Seeing this situation, Frank took the opportunity to embellish the story of Oswaldo trying to harm him.

However, Joseph interrupted him, saying he already knew.

This left Frank a bit disappointed, but he dared not show it.

After Frank left, Joseph slowly put away his genial smile and became expressionless.

Staring at the pile of information Frank brought with him, he didn't seem too excited.

"Director, should we act against this Ethan now?" The captain who had spoken out that day stood by and asked.

"Why not? Although my brother is an idiot, he has done us a favor. Investigate thoroughly, make Ethan feel that we are truly using the Evans Clan's industry to break through him."

Joseph seemed to have a certain fastidiousness, his emotions remained calm until he paused slightly while mentioning the surname Evans.

That afternoon, the key industries under Ethan, which originally belonged to the Evans Clan, were all investigated.

Many people were taken away for questioning.

But Ethan, upon receiving the news, showed no concern.

As Eugene had said before leaving, now all the accounts are clean on the surface.

When he received the news of the new tax law, he realized that the Evans Clan, as well as all the industries annexed thereafter, would pose significant tax risks, so he had long been taking measures to handle them.

If he hadn't anticipated even this step, then he wouldn't continue to hold his position.

He was now thinking about another issue, which was...

Could he make use of the Kingdom Statistical Bureau?

These days, he had been pondering over Joseph.

Since he obviously came for a great achievement, sending a big Mafia head like Ethan to prison would indeed be sensational.

However, this person doesn't necessarily have to be Ethan, does it?

As long as it's someone of sufficient weight, or even more weight, like Oswaldo, for example.

Comparatively, sending a governor of a prosperous city to prison would be a greater achievement, right?

Yes, this was exactly what Ethan was thinking.

The pressure from the Kingdom Statistical Bureau was substantial.

But Oswaldo's pressure was also close at hand. The trap he set during Holiday Sunshine was vicious enough, and even though Vito's sharpness was temporarily blunted at the dock, no one knew what new schemes he might be plotting in secret.

Especially since he couldn't ignore the Kingdom Statistical Bureau.

"We have to strike first." Ethan was sitting in the Shire family's garden in the afternoon, taking the opportunity of afternoon tea to speak with Ned.

"Your thoughts are similar to mine." Ned nodded slightly, "But Oswaldo is very cunning, he hasn't shown any major flaws in the past two years."

"Then what about now? The Saint Kuanti reconstruction plan, the sewage project, land reclamation, and especially since he let the Steel Brotherhood get involved…"

"We can't use our people. Your people, my people, are not suitable, because Oswaldo will definitely be on guard. We need to use outsiders."

Ned said while looking at Ethan.

Ethan thought of an organization—

Gathering of True-Nameers.

Previously, the King of Winster, namely Principal Loren, could even mobilize people from within to explore the extremely dangerous Saint Kuanti.

However, ever since something happened to the King of Winster, the Gathering of True-Nameers had disbanded.

Ethan glanced at Ned, realizing that Ned's eyes were gleaming, possibly having thought of a similar answer.

"Leave this to me, I'll think of a way."

Ned is very likely to restart the Gathering of True-Nameers.

After all, he and Loren were part of the same organization, and it's possible that he provided the manpower and resources for the Gathering of True-Nameers in the first place.

After afternoon tea, Ethan returned home and had just sat down when he received a long-distance call from the Royal Capital.

The caller was that art dealer Jackson, who exclaimed to Ethan in an eager tone, "Success! Ethan! We succeeded! Ten million! A whole ten million! Your painting was a complete success! No, Ethan, it's you who succeeded, you've already made it."

The altered version of "The Persistence of Memory" had been handed over by Ethan last month, and once Jackson received it, he started hyping it up in the Royal Capital, saying it was ready for auction.

Ethan had actually been waiting for this day, because if it succeeded, no one would question the value of his art anymore.

Then, he could successfully use his artwork for money laundering.

Now, there was no problem.

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