Chapter 272

As soon as Claude and the others left, Zachariah and several of the Ballards' elders fell silent in the room. After some time had passed, a middle-aged woman said to Zachariah, "Sir, I think Claude has a point. We need to be wary of Draco Hall!" Zachariah nodded. "Indeed, we do, but I'm afraid that we shouldn't mess with Draco Hall. If Brookbourn Mansion joins hands with underground forces like the Emerald Cloud Gang in dealing with Draco Hall, our reputation and image would be tarnished if word gets out! Moreover, Draco Hall did not commence any further action after absorbing the Cedar Gang." The middle-aged woman thought over Zachariah's words and said, "Sir, the upper-class families hand over ten percent of their income to us every year, don't they? How about we raise that by double? The councils in other cities mostly request a twenty percent contribution from the upper-class families, and this makes us seem a little too merciful." "I agree, sir! We might have a wealth of funds