civilwarnovels Chapter 3336 Bloody New City (85)
Chapter 3336 Bloody New City (85)
Chapter 3336 Bloodshed in New City (Eighty-Five)
"Pavel Smith, Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service." The brown-haired woman in a black suit flashed her ID to Bruce, and two tall and strong subordinates holding shotguns came over and stood behind Bruce.
"We have received the information you sent us. We will now implement the witness preservation process on you. You will be fully supervised and protected by the IRS until we complete the investigation. Thank you for your cooperation."
Bruce was taken to the helicopter, but Pavel hadn't left yet. He looked back at the Pale Knight and said, "Mr. Mayor, nice to meet you. This is the first time we meet, but it won't be the last. I hope you can cooperate with our work. Thank you."
After saying that, he also got on the helicopter, leaving Pale Knight and Nightwing staring at each other.
Suddenly, a faint sound of electricity broke the silence, as if some giant creature was waking up. The two turned their heads and looked towards the city.
The first screen lit up, and the dazzling blue light was like a sharp blade, splitting the darkness. Then, the second, the third... countless screens spread rapidly along the outer wall of the building like ignited sparks. Neon advertisements, holographic projections, and data streams surged like a tide, drowning the entire city in a sea of virtual flames.
"It's great to meet you all again. I'm Penny, the host of Gotham Evening News."
"I'm Pollock."
Two voices that were very familiar to ordinary people in Gotham appeared on the screen, and the host of Gotham News gave a professional smile to the screen.
"Our mission here today is not to broadcast news, but to explain a live broadcast. You can think of this as a variety show. Later we will switch to a professional variety show host outside to comment on the content of the show."
"Yes, today's show is a little special. The organizer of the variety show calls tonight's theme 'Night of Death'."
"Please don't get me wrong, no one is really going to die. So feel free to let your children sit in front of the screen. It may even teach them a lot of professional knowledge."
"Yes, Penny. My son is on the live broadcast right now, and I want him to learn from it. After all, there are not many such opportunities."
"Well, I guess the audience is asking us to keep us in suspense." The female host smiled and said, "Tonight's program will be broadcast live, and the theme of the live broadcast is 'tax inspection'."
"Yes, you heard it right. It's not April now. But Gotham will still face an unprecedented tax cleansing. Next, let's connect with Ms. Smith, the special commissioner of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service in charge of this operation, to explain it to us in detail..."
The screen flickered, and a woman's back appeared in the screen. She pressed the headphones and said, "I have nothing to say. You bastards in Gotham are too much! I have been waiting for this day for a long time."
"Ahem, okay. Residents of Gotham, please don't panic too much. As long as you pay your taxes on time, this action will never harm you. On the contrary, we will make those rich people spit out the taxes they deserve and transform this damn city!"
Ordinary people standing in front of the screen looked at each other. Although they had all heard of the IRS, few of them had ever been hit by it. But almost everyone had been oppressed by the elite, and now they were a little skeptical when they heard such harsh words from them.
Suddenly, the screen flashed again. This time the screen was much richer, and the familiar face appeared on the screen again - Patrick, the host of the variety show "Downtown Jazz Dance".
"Hi, good evening, everyone. I'm Patrick. Guess where I am? I believe some of you have guessed it from the background behind me. Yes, the Fells Casino. Its closure saved a lot of families, right?"
Patrick's exaggerated movements and expressions, combined with the slightly hellish jokes, immediately made people laugh. The fat middle-aged man on the screen waved his hand and said, "I'm not here to give anti-gambling education, quite the opposite. Today I want to play an interesting game of gambling with you all."
"You should have heard about the tax inspection. This is no small matter. But we are not the ones who are in trouble, so why not have some fun together?"
"Okay, did you see the phone number that appears at the bottom of the screen?" Patrick pointed downwards and said, "Take out your phone book now and write this number down. If you get rich in the future, this will always be your lucky number!"
"Have you memorized everything? How about you? And you? You don't think your brain can remember such a long string of numbers, pick up your pen immediately..."
"Okay! I think everyone has already memorized it. So please listen carefully. What I'm going to say is very important. This is a rare opportunity that only comes once in a century. I don't want any of my fans to miss it."
"We all know there are a lot of rich people in Gotham, right? You can always name a few, Justin who runs a supermarket, Pete who does real estate, and who else? Charabon who runs a factory? Haha, he's gone."
"How much do these guys make every day? Does anyone know? You must be thinking, who cares? He won't give me a penny anyway."
"Yes, of course he won't. Even if you kneel down at their feet and beg them, they won't even look at you. Because you are just a dirty poor guy. There is even reproductive isolation between you and them."
"But, but, guess how they face those gentlemen from the IRS? Haha. Does anyone want to see them kneeling on the ground licking their leather shoes? I do!"
"Today is a big day. The IRS has finally had enough of these lawless tax evaders in Gotham. They've decided to do a big purge and broadcast the whole thing live."
"They would fight to the death, right? Even if they made so much money, they wouldn't pay taxes. But unfortunately, if you watched the news, you would know. They were kidnapped."
"Now they can't use the old methods to escape punishment. My program, I mean myself, was fortunate enough to contact the kidnapper. He expressed great interest in the tax investigation and was willing to let my photographer take pictures of their despairing expressions."
As soon as Patrick finished speaking, a small window appeared next to him. The small window gradually enlarged, and Patrick himself became a picture in the picture.
The new screen showed a dark cell hall. There was a huge long table with several chairs placed next to it. There was a person sitting on each chair. Their hands were handcuffed to the armrests of the chairs.
The lights suddenly came on, and the audience could see their faces clearly - the elites of Gotham.
These are indeed some familiar faces. Their industry is almost monopolized in Gotham. But besides them, there are some other people in the cell. These people in the cell are not so familiar, most of them are the followers of this group of core figures.
In the center of the long table was a huge map of Gotham. As the camera gradually moved up, it could be seen that the map simply showed the topography, but more importantly, it drew the locations of various family businesses.
A high-definition map image appeared on one side of the screen. The audience could see it clearly. It used different colors to mark different industries. It also had grids and routes drawn like Monopoly.
With a clang, two dice fell in the center of the map.
"I'm sure everyone must be confused." The scene in the cell froze, and Patrick returned to the center of the screen again. At this time, a huge screen with a map printed on it appeared behind him. He pointed at the map with a thin long pole like a weather forecast host.
"This is the game we're going to play today. I call it 'Tax Monopoly.' The gameplay is not much different from the regular Monopoly game. In short, you just roll the dice and make a certain number of moves. Wherever you stop, you check that place."
"Of course, this kind of gameplay would be a bit boring if you just sit in front of the TV and watch it. But our organizer obviously had a better idea and he decided to let everyone participate."
"Everyone has seen it. There are many forks in the road on the map." Patrick gestured on the map, then took out a magnetic figure, stuck it on the map, and imitated the figure walking forward step by step.
"If the number on the dice causes our commissioner to stop at a fork in the road, you will need to take out your cell phones to vote for the direction."
"Every text message you send represents one vote. Oh, and by the way, don't worry about the phone bill, the text messages are free."
"We will count the votes on site. The commissioner will go in the direction with the most votes. In other words, you can control where the commissioner will check first."
"Some people will ask, tax audit is a very serious job, how can it be treated so lightly? Shouldn't we first investigate those big tax evaders?"
"That's exactly what you asked. According to insiders, there is no rich person in Gotham who doesn't evade taxes. This means that we have to investigate sooner or later. It doesn't matter who we investigate."
"In the past, when conducting tax audits, we had to select targets to focus on. This was because we were afraid that those big tax evaders would run away. But in Gotham, this is not a problem. Thanks to the kidnapper, Ms. Joker. None of them can escape."
Patrick suddenly pointed a finger at the screen and said, "I know what you're saying. This guy is talking nonsense again. How can voting with a mobile phone be related to getting rich?"
"Look where I am, guys! The Fells Casino is back in business! That's the main event of the day - let's bet on their prison terms!"
"I know you don't understand the law. So let's take a look at how a few unlucky people who have had precedents were sentenced!"
Patrick waved his hand. Several avatars appeared on the screen. All of them were handcuffed and dressed in prison uniforms. They were all celebrities who were in jail for tax issues.
The video was played synchronously on the large screen in front of the dining table in the cell.
A rhythmic electronic synthesized sound rang out.
"Wesley Snipes - Tax doomsday for a famous hero! Code loophole: 0 tax returns for three consecutive years X fake tax return documents. Ending: 3 years in federal prison, plus a $700 million fine - hotter than a vampire sunbath is the IRS audit laser!"
“Laura Van Dusen - the dark web wallet of the Silicon Valley goddess! Crypto trap: using an offshore company to transfer $2000 million in income and virtual assets to deduct taxes. Ending: writing "Blockchain and Tears Behind Bars" in the VIP area of San Quentin Prison, with a sentence 2.4 times longer than her algorithm cycle!”
"Morris McMahon - the real estate king's paper maze! Architectural shenanigans: 47 skyscrapers with 'loss' statements X deductions for 'business consulting fees' for mistresses. Ending: While bulldozers crush his marble desk, federal agents are using AR glasses to scan his Swiss bank's quantum key."
"Yvonne Starling - the fabric scam of the fashion godmother! Creative tax evasion: Declared $500 million in "clothing destruction losses" X wrote her private jet as a "fabric transport plane". Ending: The latest fashion show was held in the laundry room of a women's prison, and the prison uniform number was her new brand logo."
"Remember: Gotham is a city of sin and lawlessness - but it's not a tax-free zone!"