Chapter 143: Isn't this more exciting than Top Gun?
"Compared to having a new stepdad, I'd rather Chuck was just being petty and joking to get back at me."
Chandler breathed a sigh of relief.
Monica also realized that Chuck was being petty and teasing Chandler after his earlier comment about painting faces on Joey's butt. She had indeed seen Chuck glance at Chandler before making the General Tso's chicken joke, and she was immediately relieved.
Ross's face froze.
It seemed that he had said a lot of pointed things earlier.
What you fear will come true.
As if noticing that Ross's expression was wrong, Chuck turned and looked at him: "I heard that your museum has received a lot of fossils, all stolen and smuggled from other countries."
"It's not stolen or smuggled! It's protective preservation!"
Ross immediately retorted: "This is for the whole world and all mankind. Fossils and cultural artifacts are placed in those locations without receiving the protection they deserve. Once they are damaged, it will be a loss for all mankind. This is legal acquisition."
"Have you paid taxes on all acquisitions?"
Chuck didn't care about the justifications for acquiring legitimate cultural artifacts from other countries—he only asked one key question.
"...Of course."
Ross's face changed and he said reluctantly.
He suddenly understood Joey's earlier plea to Chuck. If Chuck brought the IRS to the museum and publicly greeted him, then regardless of the actual reason, everyone would think he was displeased about something and was using his IRS connections to pressure the museum. That would be the end of his career.
"Okay, stop teasing them,"
Monica said, suppressing her slight concern about Mrs. Bing and smoothing things over. "Let's go upstairs."
"You guys go ahead,"
Chandler slumped onto the sofa again. "I want to stay here a little longer. You guys are having all the fun, and I'm just enjoying the loneliness."
"If you like, stay,"
Monica said, not wanting to persuade him anymore. She told everyone to leave Mr. Heckles's apartment and return to her own.
"Chuck, what do you want to eat?"
Monica asked.
"I said, Buffalo chicken wings,"
Chuck said matter-of-factly.
"..."
Monica's mouth twitched. She suddenly had mixed feelings about Buffalo wings, but seeing that Chuck wasn't joking, she forced a smile and went along with it.
"Chuck, how's the Gambino case going?"
Joey asked with concern.
"It's officially underway,"
Chuck said. "The next step is to audit the books and see how much we can recover in fines."
"How much can you get?"
Rachel's drowsiness faded at the mention of money. She used to have unlimited access to her wealthy father's credit cards, and back then, she had little interest in money management, but now she did.
"There are always hundreds of millions,"
Chuck said calmly.
"OMG!"
Rachel exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hands.
Hundreds of millions! Enough to buy countless designer bags and clothes. With that kind of money, she could just go shopping without asking prices.
"That's nothing,"
Phoebe said with a pout. "It's not even a fraction of what a Fortune 500 company makes. That's what real money is. The underworld is no match for legitimate business. Large corporations are the real profiteers."
"Is drug trafficking really that profitable?"
Ross asked, skeptical.
Chuck ignored him.
Monica, cooking, watched the situation unfold. Seeing her boyfriend clashing with her brother again, she had no choice but to interrupt with her own question: "Chuck, is drug trafficking really that profitable?"
"I'll give you a simple example, and you'll understand."
Faced with this repeated question, Chuck looked at Monica. "I've taken a quick look at their account books, and there's an interesting expense item. They used connections to buy retired fighter jets, then hired retired fighter pilots to fly them, charging between $1 million and $2.5 million per flight."
"Holy shit!"
"No way!"
Everyone gasped, their faces filled with disbelief and astonishment.
This was completely beyond their imagination.
"Are they still hiring pilots?"
Joey laughed. "Is it too late for me to learn now? This is better than Top Gun!"
"Top Gun" is a classic American film released five years ago. It tells the story of a US Navy pilot who idolizes his veteran pilot father, overcomes adversity, and ultimately becomes an elite pilot, soaring across the vast ocean and sky. It was a successful recruiting film for the Navy and Air Force.
But the thrilling adventures of handsome men and beautiful women pale in comparison to the massive payouts of $1 million to $2.5 million per flight.
Consider that the average annual salary back then was only a few tens of thousands of US dollars, and a $1 million to $2.5 million flight would be almost what an average person would earn in 20 years or even a lifetime of hard work.
In a capitalist society where money is everything, if this were to become public knowledge, there would be no need for military recruitment films.
In the US, wealthy families' children either go into business or politics. Many civilian elites study law, then enter politics, accepting legal lobbying from large corporations. After their government service, they become consultants for these same companies, earning high salaries for minimal work. This is the classic revolving door between business and politics in America.
The drug trafficking organization's actions are truly innovative—a working-class version of the revolving door, a real breakthrough.
First, serve in the military and go overseas, honing your piloting skills. Once you've perfected your skills, retire and earn a fortune flying planes for the drug cartel. A perfect closed loop!
"This industry is incredibly competitive,"
Chuck shook his head. "They're already researching premium products: custom-made, organic, pollution-free, non-GMO, gluten-free, artisanal, and produced with classical music, high-purity, premium-grade merchandise."
"That's amazing,"
Phoebe exclaimed in delight.
"Where there's a market, there's demand."
Chuck gestured to Phoebe Buffay, the quintessential progressive personality—environmentalist, handcraft enthusiast, and music lover. "This is forcing the drug trade to evolve, moving towards Industry 4.0."
"..."
Monica was completely dumbfounded.
What a mess!
She stared at Chuck again and again, trying to determine if this was real or just some elaborate joke Chuck was playing.
"This isn't a joke,"
Chuck nodded.
"OMG!"
Monica finally realized it was real, and couldn't help but let out a classic shocked exclamation.
At that moment, Chuck's phone rang. He took it out and answered it. Jane's voice came from the other end: "Chuck, you're right, the murderer is Danny Cooper."
"That's not surprising,"
Chuck said calmly. "How did the crime happen?"
"The victim was the casino manager and had access to all the surveillance cameras in the casino,"
Jane explained to Chuck. "He discovered his daughter, dressed provocatively, sneaking into a guest room. Further investigation revealed that his son-in-law had lost money gambling and used his daughter to pay off debts..."
At this point, she shouted angrily: "What kind of woman stays with a husband like that? Why would she agree to his despicable request?"
"The world is vast, there are all kinds of people."
Chuck was not surprised.
This kind of thing is actually not uncommon in gambling families.
"Anyway, the victim was furious when he found out Danny Cooper treated his daughter like that."
Jane took a deep breath, suppressed her anger, and continued, "After work, he confronted his son-in-law in the parking lot. He wanted to teach him a lesson and force this worthless son-in-law to divorce his daughter. Danny Cooper didn't want that. Seeing his wealthy and powerful father-in-law making such harsh demands, he got a baseball bat from the trunk of his car and chased after his father-in-law, beating him to death with it. Then he panicked and remembered the mob legends in Las Vegas. He imitated organized crime methods of disposing of people, trying to divert attention. He didn't expect that he couldn't hide it from you at all. You are really amazing."
"You learn this with experience."
Chuck said calmly: "First suspect: inside job. Second suspect: professional hit. Third suspect: revenge killing. Fourth suspect: domestic dispute. Among three crimes and one accident, choose the inside job. Among three accidents and one crime, choose the crime. Between two crimes and two accidents, choose the crimes. When you can't tell crime from accident, choose crime!"
"..."
Jane was speechless, listening to Chuck's tone as if he was reciting test-taking strategies, but she had to accept it. This case perfectly matched the third suspect: the gambler murdered his father-in-law and even severed his hand.
"Has he confessed everything? Where was the body found?"
Chuck glanced at Joey.
Monica had already served the Buffalo wings. Joey, who loved food, couldn't help but eagerly eye Chuck's food, even though he wanted Los Pollos Hermanos' fried chicken the most. But when Chuck mentioned the body while looking at him, he smiled nervously and looked away from Chuck's plate.
"In Lake Mead."
Jane's tone on the other end of the line suddenly darkened as soon as the topic came up. "That bastard dumped his father-in-law in the lake! It's the largest artificial lake near Las Vegas, providing drinking water for 25 million people in seven southwestern states!"
Las Vegas is a city built in the desert, and its primary source of drinking water is Lake Mead. Americans prefer cold water, and while this drinking water claims to be rigorously filtered through multiple processes, anyone in the know understands that companies prefer to reduce costs and increase efficiency, and rigorous filtration systems are extremely expensive, making them the type of expense that will definitely be cut.
If the water quality of the artificial lake were guaranteed, it would be fine, but now a body has been found there. Jane's interrogation of Danny Cooper revealed that he chose that location, just like dumping his father-in-law's severed hand on the Nevada-California border, based on Las Vegas urban legends.
It's clear that there's more than just Danny Cooper's father-in-law's body in Lake Mead.
Jane felt sick when she thought about drinking this kind of "clean and safe" water.
"Makes sense."
Chuck nodded calmly, without any surprise.
According to Las Vegas urban legend, the best places to dispose of bodies are, first, the vast uninhabited desert, where you can just find a place to bury them, and second, Lake Mead, one of the world's largest artificial lakes with an area of 229 square miles.
Just like the classic American "suicide" by shooting oneself eight times in the back, many people bring their own weights, tie themselves up, and then roll into the lake to "commit suicide."
This is not a phenomenon unique to Lake Mead—it can be found in almost every major water source in the United States. In short, Chuck was very glad that his predecessor had been raised abroad by his father and had succeeded in life.
Yeah.
Clean and safe!
(End of Chapter)
If you enjoyed this chapter, leave a Power Stone or Review!
P@atreon/Soulforger (50+ advanced chapters)
Buy me coffee - ko-fi*com/soulforger01