America 1919

"No one can bully a member of the Block Family!"

That was the first sentence Carl said after he had made his decision!

Donnie had not even had time to be touched when Carl spoke his second sentence.

"Since we've decided not to sell the Block Tavern, you'll need to take care of two-thirds of Cameron's tuition fees!"

"That's only right!" Donnie had no complaints about the decision. He was now Donnie Block, a member of the Block Family, and having Cameron attend a good university would be a great help to Donnie's future business endeavors.

"I will work hard to earn the tuition fees myself!"

Cameron did not want Donnie to bear too much of the burden.

At this moment, Donnie stood up, smiled, and patted Cameron on the shoulder, laughing, "We're a family, and what you need to do now is to score well on the SAT exam in March next year. Only then will we have more choices when it comes to recommendations!"

Cameron nodded solemnly upon hearing this.

"Raven, the Block Family is going to have lunch, you can go back now," Carl said, effectively showing Raven the door.

Raven nodded with a smile, ready to leave.

"Wait a minute!" Donnie called out to Raven and asked, "When will my car be fixed?"

Raven patted his chest proudly and declared, "Don't worry, I guarantee everything will be fixed within two days!"

Donnie then nodded in satisfaction.

After Raven left, the Block Family sat down to eat lunch. After the meal, Donnie found Carl again and began to talk about brewing liquor.

"If we could brew our own liquor, in the future, we would not only be able to sell it ourselves but also to the taverns in Atlantic City. Perhaps we wouldn't need a whole day to earn Cameron's tuition fees!"

Carl stood behind the bar of the tavern with a cigarette in his mouth, slowly pouring himself a glass of rum, "Brewing isn't a problem, I can brew genuine whiskey and rum with my eyes closed, but there are two things you need to take care of!"

Donnie sat on the high stool outside the bar, picked up a glass and some rum, and poured himself a drink, "On those two killers, there was a total of 324 US dollars, and I have 37 dollars on me. What do you need?"

Carl replied, "A distiller, barrels, and the raw materials!"

Donnie nodded, "No problem, I'll take care of these things!"

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The prohibition was going to start in two months, and not only were tavern owners trying to get rid of their establishments, but the owners of distilleries were also trying to dispose of their factories.

Before prohibition, the entire US had 1500 beer companies, 650 liquor firms, 200,000 taverns, and 7000 wholesale distributors.

But with the onset of prohibition, these numbers plummeted destructively within just one year. By next year, apart from a very few licensed distilleries, the rest would either vanish completely or move underground.

As for raw materials, they were even easier to obtain. Once prohibition started, the manor lords of vineyards began selling their grape pulp, though not under the guise of raw materials for wine. However, these manor lords were very caring and instructed on their product packaging how to use these materials to brew wine!

"I will leave my car here too, to serve as our means of transportation. John will be in charge of that when the time comes!" Donnie continued.

At that moment, John sat down next to Donnie. Hearing that Donnie intended to leave the car for him, he immediately showed a big smile and took a swig straight from the bottle of rum on the bar!

"With me here, rest assured, no one will dare to steal a thing!"

Carl shook his head, "Just John alone is not enough. If things turn out the way you say, our operation will definitely be targeted!"

Donnie nodded, "Rest assured, I have already scouted out an assistant for John."

Cameron, who had just walked over, chimed in, "You mean Robert?"

"Exactly," Donnie said with a smile. "Robert has quite the reputation!"

Despite how easily John had controlled Robert in the church, Donnie had heard Robert's name on more than one occasion during his time in the military; in their unit, Robert was a veritable god of war!

"Now that he's got nothing else to do, he should agree!"

Carl only pondered for a moment before agreeing with Donnie's suggestion. But he still had his own concerns, "The two of them might handle ordinary folk, but if they come up against gang members, it would be dangerous."

Donnie gestured to Cameron, "Go get my bag."

Cameron immediately scampered over and brought Donnie his backpack. After receiving it, Donnie took out Daniel and Brill's guns along with the ammunition.

"These were left by those two assassins before; they might as well be kept for John and Robert."

Upon seeing the guns, John immediately grabbed one and lit up as if he had seen two supremely beautiful women in nightgowns, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

Carl did not bother to look at these things and asked, "Since that George Kurle wants to kill you, if you guys return to Atlantic City, how are you planning to deal with him?"

Cameron interjected, "Big brother, I think we should just sneak back to Atlantic City and directly take out George Kurle. That way we can eliminate any future troubles!"

Far from objecting to Cameron's suggestion, Carl even showed a look of agreement.

"Exactly, no one in Atlantic City recognizes me or Robert. We'll go tonight, and I guarantee we'll take out George Kurle without anyone the wiser!"

With guns in hand, John felt invincible!

Donnie was somewhat tempted by the proposal, but he soon dismissed the idea of taking out George Kurle, as it didn't pose any psychological burden for him. However, he quickly ruled out the thought.

"Killing George Kurle would be easy, but dealing with the aftermath would be troublesome. Besides, with the attempt on my life already made public, George Kurle's side must know that the assassin he sent has been taken care of by me. I imagine he will be more cautious in the future!"

Donnie didn't reveal the true reason to them, because even now, he couldn't be certain whether George Kurle was actually behind it all.

If it was George Kurle, the people around him would surely know. If George Kurle were taken out now, even if he didn't show his face, the other side would definitely suspect his involvement. Considering the backing of the commodore behind George Kurle, Donnie wasn't a match for them at this point!

If it wasn't George Kurle, then the situation became interesting. The other party was obviously trying to stir up hostility between him and George Kurle. If he chose to act now, he would fall into their trap. Those bold enough to target George Kurle at this time were few in Atlantic City.

And those few were not the kind of people Donnie wanted to mess with at the moment!

Thus, in the end, Donnie decided to wait until he returned to Atlantic City to address everything.

"Alright then, since you've made up your mind, I won't say anything more. Just always remember, our Block Family is not one to be trifled with!"

Carl didn't dwell much on this matter!

Donnie nodded.

Cameron had, at some point, excitedly taken a handgun from John's hand and now asked Donnie.

"Big brother, what should I do during this time?"

Donnie smiled at Cameron and said, "Your most important task for this period is to study hard!"

Seeing a hint of disappointment on Cameron's face, Donnie added, "After you graduate, that's when you'll really be needed!"

"Alright!" Cameron nodded with a mix of resignation and anticipation.

With the family affairs resolved, Donnie picked up the glass of rum from the bar and finished it in one gulp. He stood up and said, "I'm going to find Robert, I still need to inform him about this affair!"

"I'll come with you!"

As he spoke, John had already tucked the handgun into his waistband.

Donnie just glanced at him and said nothing.

The two brothers stepped out of the Block Tavern, where dense, yellowing trees surrounded them. Donnie headed toward Robert's house.

"Robert won't be at home at this hour!"

John stopped Donnie, then snickered and said, "I'll take you to catch him!"

Donnie looked doubtful but said nothing.

Following behind John, they quickly arrived at a farm, with fields of haystacks and clusters of barns.

As they approached one of the barns, Donnie heard the muffled grunting of a man and the unbridled screaming of a woman from inside.

"Father Garcia, what brings you here?"

Standing outside the barn, John suddenly shouted loudly.

Immediately, Donnie heard panic-stricken noises from inside the barn, followed by the rustling sounds of hurried dressing. Robert, clutching his trousers, emerged in a flurry.

When he saw only Donnie and John outside the barn, he realized he had been tricked.

"This could get someone killed!" Robert protested with a pale face. "Don't you know Father Garcia really shoots?"

Father Garcia, the only priest in Elwood Village, was held in the highest esteem in the village.

John wrapped a strong arm around Robert while rubbing his head roughly with the other hand, instantly turning his already bird's-nest-like hair into a pigsty mess.

"I haven't had a proper reckoning with you about the previous matter!"

It was then that Robert turned to Donnie with resignation and said, "Donnie, you know me. I want you safe from battle more than anyone else!"

Donnie nodded with a smile. The two had grown up together, and their bond was deep. Otherwise, Donnie wouldn't have considered him.

"I remember Father Garcia doesn't meddle in these matters unless the person inside is...?"

As he finished speaking, a girl with disheveled hair, wearing a rough cotton dress and flushed face, walked out. This girl was none other than Father Garcia's only daughter, Lolita!

"Donnie!"

Lolita stood naturally by Robert's side, greeting Donnie without a hint of embarrassment.

"I'm so glad the news about Robert was false!"

Donnie gave Robert a thumbs-up. To have been with Lolita was indeed the dream of most young men in Elwood Village... but Donnie was not among them, as Lolita was only slightly prettier than the other village girls.

In the brothels of Atlantic City, there were many girls far more beautiful than Lolita.

"Let's talk serious business!" Donnie didn't waste time and directly addressed Robert.

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