245: Chapter 243 Abu’s Battle Plan 245: Chapter 243 Abu’s Battle Plan The targets faintly lit up, and two seconds later they were immediately extinguished.
In that brief two-second window, gunfire erupted.
The duration the lights were on was irregular; the intervals might be less than ten seconds or even as long as ten minutes.
If you weren’t careful, you’d miss the moment the targets were illuminated.
“Cease fire, unload your weapons, check your firearms,” came the loud command.
After Gao Yang gave the order, he turned on his flashlight and watched as the marksmen lying prone began to stand up, one by one.
When everyone was on their feet, Gao Yang shouted, “Rabbit, report the hits.”
Cui Bo led the sniper team out of the sand pits behind the targets and began reporting hits for their respective shooters.
“Hamir, one hit.”
“Ahmad, two hits.”
“Uliya, no hits.”
“Basane, no hits.”
“Asan, eight hits.”
The results were called out in order.
In this shooting drill, where ten shots made one set, half of the twenty-person marksman group failed to hit the target.
Managing to hit with three or four shots was already considered quite good.
Of course, having only trained for two months, it was unrealistic to expect these individuals to immediately become qualified marksmen.
However, Asan’s results were an absolute exception.
His scores surprised Gao Yang; the kid was a genius, a real genius.
Gao Yang even thought about poaching from Maide’s turf to bring Asan under his wing—good snipers were never in excess.
Asan was the young man who first stepped forward claiming he was a good shot.
At just fifteen, he was still young, but Asan was smart, obedient, and talented.
Although illiterate, he grasped everything quickly, despite being a bit too lively, which is not an ideal trait for a sniper.
However, as a precision shooter working alongside a combat team, there would be no problem at all.
It was just unfortunate for Gao Yang to have nurtured such a promising talent for Maide; he felt bad at the thought of taking Asan away.
Otherwise, when it was time for Gao Yang to leave, he would have insisted on taking Asan with him.
Checking his watch, Gao Yang noted it was almost midnight.
The night’s shooting training needed to end.
He called out loudly, “Rabbit, take the men back, make sure they clean their guns before they sleep.
I’ve got something to discuss with Little Ma.”
After hearing Cui Bo affirm with a response, Gao Yang headed towards Maide’s residence alone.
The Skull Gang now controlled several nearby fishing villages, and Maide resided in one of them, not too far from the Instruction Platoon’s camp.
Gao Yang strolled up to Maide’s house, which incredibly had no guard posts.
It seemed Maide had never realized he was the leader of an armed faction, as he had never arranged for any personal security.
Conversely, Abu, the Gang’s second-in-command, lived more grandly.
Even so, everyone in the Skull Gang, including Abu, followed Maide’s orders without question.
Originally, there was no electricity here, but after Uriyangko had delivered two gasoline generators and a few solar panels, Maide had access to electric lights, a computer, and satellite phone.
There was no cell signal, but the satellite phone still worked.
The fishing villages in Somalia consisted of small round huts made of mud with no surrounding walls.
Gao became very familiar with Maide, and seeing that there was still light in Maide’s hut, he greeted and entered directly.
Inside the hut were only Maide and Abu, both focused on a laptop, conversing in Somali.
As Gao Yang entered, they both stood up, and after settling down on a carpet, Maide smiled and said, “Ram, I’m sorry to disturb you at this late hour, but there’s an important matter.
Abu and I would like to hear your opinion.”
“Don’t mention it, we’re all familiar here.
What’s the issue?”
Maide and Abu exchanged a look before speaking solemnly, “We’re planning an attack on Bosaso.”
Gao Yang was incredibly shocked.
He had not expected Maide to discuss such significant matters with him.
According to Gao Yang’s understanding, the Skull Gang’s ranks numbered over four thousand eight hundred people, but only about two thousand of them were capable of fighting.
Out of those, only roughly a thousand had any real combat ability, and their territory consisted only of coastal fishing villages.
And Bosaso is a big city in Somalia as well, with a population of over 120,000 people.
Gao Yang couldn’t fathom what Maide was thinking in wanting to attack a city with the military force of the Skull Gang.
After pondering deeply for a while, Gao Yang finally said in a heavy voice, “I’m not very familiar with the situation in Bosaso, but I think that with such a large population, the armed forces controlling Bosaso cannot be weak.
With the current strength of the Skull Gang, isn’t it a bit too hasty to strike at Bosaso now?”
Maide said solemnly, “The Mokadi Faction controls the Bosaso city area; they have taken over the entire Bosaso, but the Mokadi Faction only controls Bosaso and hasn’t taken any other regions, so Bosaso is isolated and won’t receive any outside assistance.
Moreover, according to our intelligence, the Mokadi Faction now has an armed force of four thousand men, but they lack heavy weapons and the quality of their troops is not high.
I believe our people are fully capable of winning.”
Gao Yang said in a heavy tone, “There are too many armed factions in Somalia, I’m not interested in knowing who occupies Bosaso, but where does the intelligence about the absence of heavy weaponry and low troop quality come from?
Has it been confirmed?
Even if the Mokadi Faction can’t get outside help, where are their people stationed?
Do we know this?”
Maide pursed his lips, then shook his head helplessly, saying, “Sorry, I don’t know that, but I feel that we are more united, and after your training, our numbers may be smaller but our combat strength is stronger.
Plus, our cause will gain people’s support, so we are bound to win.”
Gao Yang smiled bitterly, saying, “I’m just a mercenary, I have never commanded large-scale battles, nor have I participated in making plans for large-scale combat, so I don’t really have a say.
But I still have to tell you, you have very few men.
To beat the many with the few is not impossible, but everything is hearsay so far, with no solid and reliable intelligence, how do you know that your forces are truly stronger than the enemy despite being fewer?
What if the enemy has more men and stronger forces?
To win against the odds, you at least need to know yourself and the enemy.”
Maide was stunned, then said, “You know I have absolutely no understanding of combat, but taking Bosaso is too important for us.
As long as we take Bosaso, we can openly carry the flag of the Alliance of Fairness and Justice, we will have our own port, and we will have more sources of troops.”
Gao Yang interjected, “And many more enemies.”
Maide sighed, saying, “Perhaps, but we really need to take down Bosaso.
Ram, can you tell me if the Instruction Platoon really has the ability to fight ten with one?
Abu told me that as long as the Instruction Platoon takes action, they will definitely be able to take Bosaso.”
The Instruction Platoon belonged to the Skull Gang, it was Maide’s.
Gao Yang reminded himself of this in his mind before replying solemnly, “To be honest, whether the Instruction Platoon can fight ten with one depends on the level of their enemies.
Just looking at the strength of the Instruction Platoon alone is useless.”
Maide and Gao Yang spoke in Chinese.
At this point, Maide had to translate for Abu as well.
After Maide finished translating what Gao Yang had just said, Abu hurriedly said, “I’ve been to Bosaso, I’ve seen Mokadi’s men, the Instruction Platoon will have no pressure fighting them.
Although there are fewer men in the Instruction Platoon, our equipment is much better than the Mokadi Faction’s, no problem.”
Waiting for Abu to finish translating for Maide, Maide said gravely, “Ram, the Instruction Platoon was trained by you, and the strength of the Skull Gang’s army has risen so quickly also because of your training, so I can’t just listen to Abu.
I must know your opinion.
You are the one who knows our troops’ combat power best.”
“Don’t harbor false confidence just because you have high-quality weapons and equipment.”
After saying this, Gao Yang gave a wry smile and added, “Moreover, I don’t think the Skull Gang’s weapons and equipment can be considered high-quality.
Alright, I shouldn’t sell ourselves short.
Perhaps compared to other armed groups in Somalia, the Skull Gang’s equipment could be deemed high-quality, but I can’t speak carelessly, giving you false confidence.
War means death; we must not speak without certainty.
Unless I see for myself the quality of Mokadi Faction’s equipment and their strength, I cannot offer any suggestions to you.”
Maide nodded and smiled, “That’s the right approach.
It’s better to be cautious about combat.”
After finishing, Maide stood up from the carpet, smiling, “Could you go for a walk with me?
Just the two of us.
We can walk and talk outside.”
Gao Yang, who had been unwilling to stay cooped up in the cabin, immediately got up, grabbed his rifle, slung it over his shoulder, and left the cabin with Maide.
As the two of them strolled on the beach, listening to the waves, Maide sighed deeply and said, “Abu is a bit too eager.
He plans to attack Bosaso immediately after the Instruction Platoon has completed their training.
Initially, I was persuaded by him as well because Bosaso is indeed very important.
But now it seems, both Abu and I were really too impulsive.
I do not wish to dampen Abu’s enthusiasm, so that’s why I’ve invited you out to talk.”
Gao Yang didn’t respond because he knew Maide wasn’t finished speaking, and while waiting for Maide to continue, he looked around.
Indeed, Maide heaved another deep sigh and continued, “Mokadi is the ruler of the Mokadi Faction.
That man is a devil, and his subordinates are a bunch of devils as well.
The thought of the people in Bosaso under Mokadi’s demonic claws makes me anxious uncontrollably.”
After speaking, Maide turned to look at Gao Yang.
Even though he couldn’t see Gao Yang’s face in the dark, he still tried hard to focus on his eyes and said solemnly, “Ram, I need a professional opinion.
I cannot just listen to Abu.
I must know what you think.
So, even though I know this request is abrupt, I still have to ask you.
Could you take your men to Bosaso for reconnaissance, then tell me whether we should attack Bosaso?
Of course, I will pay you a commission.
Name your price, and we will not bargain.”
Gao Yang’s gaze returned, and he said absent-mindedly, “Of course, we can go to Bosaso for reconnaissance after the training ends, and then give you an evaluation…
Wait a minute!
Something’s not right.
Take cover!” (To be continued.
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