America 1919

Donnie indeed was able to use his foresight to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with the young Roosevelt in advance.

But to place all his bets on such a venture was not a foolproof plan.

"Moreover, you mustn't forget that our relationship with those people is merely one of mutual interest, you should never trust the words of politicians, for in their eyes interests always come first. If a party offering greater benefits appears in the future, and they are our competitors, I believe those people will definitely not hesitate to sell us out!"

Robert was the person under Donnie's command who knew the most about his affairs, and it was crucial for Donnie to ensure that he understood his thinking at all times!

Robert simply thought for a moment and then understood Donnie's intent, saying, "I see!"

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After this matter was settled, Donnie entered a period of calm.

Time quickly advanced to the end of June this year!

The century boxing match between Jack Dempsey and George Caponti was less than two weeks away.

By this time, the betting on the boxing match was heating up. With the previous Miss America preliminaries as a precedent, betting activities for this match were now being organized efficiently in all the major cities across the nation.

Although it had been said that everyone preferred to make money with Donnie in a safe way, greed isn't so easy to control, and there were still people who couldn't suppress their own greed!

And this person was none other than Donnie's old acquaintance, Joseph Adonis from Los Angeles.

"Boss, Joseph has already opened another betting pool, and he's heavily promoting the idea that George Caponti will win!"

The ones informing Donnie of this were Max and others whom Donnie had taken under his wing in Los Angeles.

After spending more than two months in Atlantic City, Max and his group returned to Los Angeles. Having gained Donnie's backing in the bootlegging business, they had now become a somewhat notorious group in Los Angeles.

"How did you find out?"

Donnie asked, holding the phone, with an expression that revealed no change.

"I have a good relationship with one of the minor leaders under Joseph, and he told me when he had too much to drink!" Max said somewhat excitedly.

Donnie simply thought for a moment and said, "I am aware of it now."

Then Donnie hung up the phone.

"If what Max says is true, then Joseph promoting George's victory means there will be a lot of people in Los Angeles betting on George to win. If Jack indeed wins in the end, he would make a fortune!"

Robert analyzed, sitting on the couch.

You shouldn't think of those gamblers as rational beings. If they were truly rational, they wouldn't be gamblers in the first place.

They act on hearsay, which is to say, they're swayed by rumors.

Now that George Caponti is being touted as the likely winner, naturally, more people will bet on his victory.

"What does our person in Los Angeles say about this?"

Donnie asked Robert.

Whenever there was a major betting event, Donnie would have Robert send a group of people to various cities, ostensibly to assist the local gang bosses in better managing the betting stakes.

But in reality, both Donnie and the gang bosses understood this was Donnie's way of monitoring their behavior!

Hearing nothing from his own people in Los Angeles, but having Max report it to Donnie first, made him suspect that those he had sent might have been bought out by Joseph!

Robert also considered this possibility, looking somewhat disturbed as he said, "They haven't said anything!"

Donnie chuckled and stated, "It seems these people can't be trusted anymore!" Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire

Robert replied, "Dealing with these people is easy, but what worries me now is whether there are others doing the same in other cities? Maybe just because there is no one like Max there, we just don't know about it?"

Donnie gave it some thought and decided to trust in human nature... greed!

"I believe there will be. However, such a thing can't be dealt with all at once; we can only make an example out of one target to serve as a warning!"

Since it was unclear who else might have done this, they could only choose Joseph, who was a confirmed case, to make an example of.

Robert expressed his concern, "Joseph is quite powerful in Los Angeles, and we don't have concrete evidence. Taking action against him could make things difficult for John in the Family Alliance!"

Donnie smiled and said, "Punishing someone doesn't always mean killing them, and we don't need to get our hands dirty!"

After a pause, Donnie asked with a smile, "What do you think is the reason Joseph can be the most powerful gang boss in Los Angeles?"

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Robert was momentarily startled, but he quickly grasped the point, "Because he can make those around him money!"

Donnie nodded in approval. Personal charm, leadership, and fierceness were all secondary; the fundamental reason someone could gather a gang or a company around them was the leader's ability to make money for their subordinates!

All those motivational talks in later generations, about industry leaders giving up six-figure salaries to start a business partnership with someone for a few hundred in wages, all cited the person's ability as the reason.