1026: Chapter One Thousand and Ten Privilege 1026: Chapter One Thousand and Ten Privilege PS: To read exclusive stories behind “War of Mercenaries” and to share more of your suggestions about the novel, follow the Qidian Chinese Network public account (WeChat add friends – add a public account – input qdread to find us), and quietly tell me about it!
Not knowing when they might be called to battle, it was best to obediently have meals at the designated times, otherwise, one might miss the mealtime.
If an emergency deployment came, when the next meal could be eaten was uncertain.
Missing a meal was a minor issue, but fighting on an empty stomach was really uncomfortable.
So, even though Gao Yang was both sleepy and tired, when breakfast time arrived the next day, he still dragged himself up to eat.
Now, mealtime ensured Dani, Farouk, and Gilanor would inevitably show up uninvited.
There was no other reason but to scrounge for a meal.
In Syria, the difference in treatment between officers and soldiers was quite significant; rarely could one see officers and soldiers eating together.
However, after having a meal there, the three of them would rather squeeze in with a bunch of mercenaries than go to their officers’ mess hall for food.
Gao Yang woke up after only a few hours of sleep, his face unwashed and his mind a bit groggy.
However, Li Qiu had gotten up even earlier than him because Li Qiu needed to prepare breakfast.
Those always ready to go to war couldn’t eat like ordinary people.
Even for breakfast, it was meat-heavy and high in calories.
Gao Yang glanced into the food basin, and after spotting it was still basin after basin of meat, he couldn’t help but suddenly start to miss the fried dough sticks and tofu pudding.
“What’s for breakfast today?”
“The main dish is pita, with dishes of tomato stewed beef, cumin lamb, pickled cucumbers, and some desserts sent from the cafeteria.
Oh, and we also have cheese rolls today.”
All those were good stuff to stave off hunger, but unfortunately, Gao Yang could no longer enjoy them.
Initially, he found them novel and tasty, but later, he simply couldn’t stand the sight of them and got annoyed, all in the span of a week.
Gao Yang sighed, then said to Li Qiu, “Eating meat three times a day, day after day, hey, I used to dislike vegetables and only liked meat.
Now, the sight of meat annoys me.
Get me two pieces of bread, a bowl of tomato stewed beef with less beef and more tomatoes, and some pickled cucumbers.
That’s enough, just like that.”
Gao Yang and Li Qiu spoke in Mandarin.
Li Qiu looked at the people queuing up behind Gao Yang, instead of dishing out the food directly into the bowl, he reached down behind the cooking cabinet and pulled out a tomato.
Gao Yang’s eyes lit up.
Li Qiu handed the tomato over to Gao Yang, saying, “Here, ten came in today, eight went into the soup, and I kept one for you.”
The tomato was quite large.
Gao Yang caught it and took a big bite, then laughed, “You’re really thoughtful, kiddo.”
Out of ten, eight were used for cooking, one given to Gao Yang, and where was the last one?
Of course, Li Qiu ate it.
That was the privilege of the head chef.
Li Qiu smiled and scooped some more tomatoes into Gao Yang’s bowl from the big basin, then whispered, “You know, boss, I’ve got something to discuss with you later.”
Gao Yang picked up his bowl and, biting into a tomato, said, “Okay, let’s talk after the meal.
Come find me when you’re done.
Hey, do you know how to make fried breadsticks?”
Li Qiu nodded, “Yeah, but it’s a hassle.
We’ll talk about it later.”
Gao Yang grinned, “All right, carry on with your work.”
Gao Yang turned around, and Blue Shield behind him grumbled indignantly, “Loach, you rascal, I want the same as the boss!”
Li Qiu put on a stern face, not saying a word.
After giving Blue Shield a bit of everything, he rolled his eyes and said, “Are you paying me?
If not, less chatter, next.”
Why did Li Qiu need to personally ladle out the food instead of having a self-service buffet?
Because if it were self-service, the popular dishes would be gone in a flash and the unloved ones untouched.
Hence, Li Qiu, the formidable chef who nobody dared to provoke, took it upon himself to serve the food.
Dani and the others were eating at a table nearby.
Seeing Gao Yang with his meal, Dani quickly waved, “Here, here.”
Gao Yang sat down and began with the tomato.
Only after he finished the tomato did he start dealing with the real breakfast.
Gao Yang always ate quickly.
It wasn’t about liking or disliking the food; once it was on his plate, it would be gone without a trace, never wasted.
Of course, he ate fast, but that was only if he wasn’t compared to Number Thirteen.
Number Thirteen got his food later than him, and by the time Gao Yang finished his meal, Number Thirteen had long left the canteen without a trace.
Waiting for Gao Yang to finish eating, Farouk, with a cheerful face, said, “Just bear with it a bit longer.
Fresh vegetables are indeed a bit scarce now, but by tomorrow at the latest, there will be an unlimited supply of vegetables and fruits as much as possible.
The higher-ups have specifically approved this, there won’t be a problem.”
Gao Yang glanced at the grinning Farouk and frowned, “Don’t you have a report to make today?
Hmm, do you have something to tell me?”
Farouk nodded repeatedly, lowering his voice, “We need to select soldiers today.
Although it’s said that I’m the one to choose, I need your help to do it right.”
Gao Yang shrugged and said, “So it begins today?
Alright, today it is.
Sooner or later, it had to happen, and if selections must be made, let’s do it.
No problem.”
Farouk grimaced and said, “Ram, if all goes as expected, I’ll be leading the team.
These soldiers will be my subordinates, but you surely understand how the military works.
The people I get to choose from are all from the Republic Guard Division, and most are cherry-picked from special units.
They are all elites, and I…I’m just from ordinary infantry.”
Gao Yang understood what Farouk was worried about.
In the military, to effectively lead soldiers, it wasn’t enough to have a high rank.
You had to be able to command respect.
There are many ways to earn the respect of your subordinates, but for special operations forces, at the very least, a commander could not fail to do what his subordinates could.
Such commanders are better off quitting sooner rather than later.
Farouk was just like that.
He was an officer, but he came from the regular army, trained in large-scale combat operations, which are entirely irrelevant to the skills needed in Special Forces.
Yet, due to some twist of fate, he was about to become the commander of a special operations unit.
Without Farouk having to say it, Gao Yang knew what he was thinking.
He drawled, “You want to be a real commander, the kind that earns the respect of his men?”
Farouk’s face set with determination as he spoke in a lower voice, “Yes, I want to be a real commander.
I understand my position, but I don’t want to be kicked aside in the end.
I don’t want to be just a puppet, okay?
Even if I get transferred eventually, I can’t be let go because I’m too incompetent!”
Even though Farouk was openly just a transitional candidate and the real commanding would eventually be done by Gao Yang, Farouk didn’t want it that way.
He could follow Gao Yang’s guidance and let Gao command, but what about when Gao and his team left?
Farouk didn’t want to end up as a one-time puppet commander and then depart in disgrace.
Puppets might have their pride, and Farouk didn’t want to be a puppet at all.
He wanted to learn and become a genuine commander.
Gao Yang scratched his head, and just then, Dani quickly said, “Enough talk, let’s have some tea.
Hasan, Hasan!”
Dani had an orderly, and when Dani was eating, his orderly would stand guard outside the door.
Dani’s orderly came in, and then Dani loudly ordered, “Bring us some black tea, and bring some sweets, too.”
While the orderly went to prepare the tea, Gao Yang looked at Farouk and said, “I get what you mean.
You want to train alone?”
Farouk nodded immediately and said, “Yes, if you could help me with that, I’d be really grateful.”
Gao Yang sighed, “Alright, it’s not out of the question, but you’ll need to have the time, and it’s going to be tough.
Also, our training fees are quite expensive.”
Farouk was taken aback, then hesitantly inquired, “How much money are we talking about?”
Gao Yang shrugged and said, “One hundred thousand US dollars a day, no joke.
That’s our rate for training people.”
Farouk’s mouth fell open in shock and he fell silent.
Gao Yang laughed heartily and said, “I’m just messing with you, joking.
With our relationship, why would I charge you any money?
Just rest assured.
Why would I charge to teach you alone?
As long as you can endure the hardship, you’ll be fine.”
Gao Yang was indeed joking, but it wasn’t entirely a joke.
Satan’s team could fight for free or even pay out of their own pockets because they sought revenge, but it would be impossible to have Satan’s team serve as free instructors.
So while joking, Gao Yang also made it clear to Farouk that if he wanted a whole team trained, he’d just have to pay.
Of course, teaching Farouk alone, as a gesture of friendship, was definitely not a problem.
After sharing a laugh with Farouk, Gao Yang waved his hand and said, “When do you plan to start training?”
Farouk stated resolutely, “Anytime I’m free, anytime will do.”
Gao Yang tapped on the table, pondered for a moment, then said in a deep voice, “I can teach you, but it can’t interfere with the preparations for battle.
How about this, I’ll find a few people to take turns teaching you.”
Gao Yang had systematically learned how to conduct special operations, but he learned it all in Israel.
He had promised not to divulge what he had learned in Israel, which meant he certainly couldn’t teach it to the Syrians, the enemies of Israel.
One has to be honorable and keep one’s word.
Gao Yang decided to first have Li Jinfang and Eileen teach Farouk, especially Eileen, who had completed comprehensive training and had learned from both Germany and America.
Just teaching him any of that would be more than sufficient.
Gao Yang gestured with his hand and called out loudly, “Toad, Tyrannosaurus, come here for a minute.”
After Li Jinfang and Eileen came over, Gao Yang pointed to Farouk and spoke softly, “Farouk has been ordered to organize and command a Special Forces unit but doesn’t know much about it.
He doesn’t want to be outdone by his subordinates, yet it’s inevitable that he will be.
We go way back, and our relationship is good.
We can’t just watch him lose face in the future.
It’s a matter of honor to help him.
You two, go and draft a training plan for me, and fast.
Farouk doesn’t have much time.”
Eileen glanced at Farouk, tossed her chin up at him, then said with a smile, “Training people is my favorite thing to do, buddy.
I hope you can withstand it and not end up wetting your pants and refusing to train.”
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