290: Chapter 288: Will It Work If Dead?
290: Chapter 288: Will It Work If Dead?
Gao Yang was not in a hurry to know Mokadi’s whereabouts right away; there were only ten minutes left anyway, and waiting didn’t matter.
In the meantime, he really did plan to have a casual chat with Nate Schumacher.
“I hope you don’t mind me asking, but how much is your commission?
Of course, if it’s inconvenient to answer, that’s fine.
I’m just a bit curious.”
“Oh, our commission?
A hundred thousand US dollars a day.”
Gao Yang smacked his lips and said, “Being famous really does pay off, your commission is pretty high.”
“That’s a hundred thousand US dollars for everyone combined per day.”
Gao Yang nearly spat out the coffee he had just sipped, struggled to close his mouth, and after managing to swallow, he looked incredulous and exclaimed loudly, “A hundred thousand for everyone combined?
You’ve got to be joking!
With your skills, you would accept such a low commission?”
Nate Schumacher shrugged, looking indifferent, and said, “We just got back from South America, and I’d had enough of the damp and humid weather there, couldn’t stand it.
So when we found out someone was looking to hire mercenaries for Bosaso, we came here happily.
First off, Bosaso is dry, which meets my requirement.
Also, Bosaso used to be a tourist hotspot, famous for its beaches—quite dry and the perfect place to enjoy sun and sand.
Why not come here?”
Gao Yang smiled helplessly and said, “I envy the criteria you use for choosing jobs.
But I actually think it’s too dry and hot here.
I’ve been hoping to leave as soon as we take Bosaso.”
Nate Schumacher nodded and said, “Yeah, we’re the kind of people who can’t stay in one place for too long.
If you’re tired of the overly dry climate, then I suggest you take a walk in the rainforests of South America, like Colombia.
The guerrillas there are quite good, and the drug traffickers are rapidly changing, with lots of work available.
Plus, the pay is high; those drug lords are quite generous.
Fighting drug traffickers for other drug traffickers is quite interesting.
Oh, and if you need, I could refer you to some jobs.”
Gao Yang kept shaking his head and said, “Forget it, not even if you killed me.
I hate the jungle.
I absolutely despise it—hot, damp, stuffy, and filled with countless bugs tormenting you.
Although I hate the desert, if you made me choose, I’d rather stay in a desert than go anywhere near those rainforests.”
Nate Schumacher, looking reluctant, finished the last drop of coffee in his cup and said with a troubled face, “I can only enjoy one cup of coffee a day because I can’t swallow it without sugar, but my doctor won’t allow me to have too much sugar.
It’s frustrating.
I’m certain to die on a battlefield, not from diabetes or any heart disease.
Damn it, I should’ve excluded myself when I first set that medical rule, or at least should’ve made an exception for my preferences.”
Gao Yang shrugged and responded, “You can never be too sure.
Maybe you might end up passing away in your bed at home.
My wish is to die of old age in my own bed.”
Nate Schumacher said with a regretful look, “Knowing your wish, it seems unlikely that you’ll join the Angel Mercenary Corps.
Such a pity, because the Angels want madmen, and it’s clear you’re too sane.”
Pointing to his own nose, Gao Yang chuckled and said, “You want to recruit me into your mercenary group?
Buddy, you must be joking?”
“In fact, if I think someone has the qualifications to join the Angels, I always give it a try, and that’s how I found all my men.
I want only the best, but good soldiers are hard to come by, and good snipers are even harder to find.
You’ve incapacitated one of my sniper teams, so I still have to keep searching for someone to replace them, which is obviously not easy to do.”
Gao Yang said with a smile, “Too bad, I’m certainly going to decline your offer.
However, calling me the best flatters me.
Can I take your invitation as a compliment to me?”
Nate Schumacher replied very seriously, “Of course, if I say you’re the best, then you must be the best in the world.
Perhaps not right now, but you will be in the near future.
I’ve got a keen eye for talent.
It’s such a shame, though, you’re crazy enough but not a war junkie.
By the way, can you tell me how the fight went down?
You know what I’m referring to.
I’d like you to tell me, and then let those two lucky chaps who were just crippled know as well.
They’ll surely be interested, at least they’ll understand how they lost.”
Gao Yang recounted in detail how he dealt with the two-man sniper team from the Angel Mercenary Corps, including his judgments and psychological changes.
After hearing the story, Nate Schumacher nodded and said, “Nothing too clever about the tactics, but they’re very practical and classic, plus you’re a good shot, and with a bit of luck, they lost fair and square.”
Receiving affirmation from his opponent, and clearly from someone who was quite capable at that, Gao Yang felt a smidgeon of pride inside, and he smiled as he asked, “Are you German?”
“Judging by my name and appearance, isn’t it pretty obvious?”
Gao Yang shook his head and said, “The name is obvious, because I know of Michael Schumacher, the F1 driver, but as for recognizing the face, I can’t tell the difference between Germans and other white people.”
Nate Schumacher shrugged and replied, “Well, actually I can’t tell Asian faces apart either, even though I know a few Asians.
So, which country are you from?
Given your reluctance to reveal your real name, I’m guessing you might refuse to answer this question, but of course, you can refuse if you want.”
Gao Yang did hesitate for a moment, but he ultimately responded with a smile, “I’m from Huaxia.”
“Aha, Huaxia people, you don’t see many from Huaxia in our circle.
But I do know a few.
Huaxia is known for producing good infantry, brave, tenacious, obedient, and capable of fighting tough battles.
Overall, my impression of Huaxia infantry is quite favorable.
As for other military branches, I haven’t seen them, so I can’t judge.”
Gao Yang laughed heartily and said, “If you put it that way, I must also praise the Germans.
At the very least, I’ve got to tell you that I learned about sniping from a German.
He was a really good old man, a sniper who had served in World War II, probably an ace sniper.
Even though I later received training from others, I have to say the German influenced me the most.
I’ve always been grateful and fond of him.
Not to mention, the tactic I used to wound your sniper team was taught to me by that German.”
Nate Schumacher expressed his surprise, “Served in World War II?
An ace?
Then your teacher is quite a catch.
You’re lucky.”
Gao Yang nodded earnestly and said, “Yes, I’ve been lucky, and I’ve always been quite lucky.
Um, you’re an expert, a very powerful figure.
Could you tell me, is it normal to talk to oneself during combat?
Oh, only when it comes to sniper operations.”
Nate Schumacher laughed and answered, “Talk to oneself?
Just talking to oneself?
Buddy, I’ve got a sniper who likes to sing, and he’s into lullabies.
So when he has to work with a partner on a sniping mission, his partner tends to get a headache.
Eventually, I paired him with a guy who has to pray constantly during operations.
Oh, this guy likes to alternate between praying and singing hymns.
Once on a mission, the two of them sang together for seventy-six hours straight without closing their eyes or mouths, until they finally fired a shot.
Can you imagine?”
Gao Yang took a deep breath and said, “I really can’t imagine it.
How do they keep themselves awake?
Well, anyway, compared to them, I think my little quirk is pretty normal, which is reassuring.”
Nate Schumacher shrugged, “That’s why everyone in Angel is kind of crazy.
And you, you’re clearly not crazy enough.
Oh, it’s been nice chatting with you, but the fun times always fly by.
Time’s up, so what’s it going to be, do you want to continue the fight, or do you have other plans?”
Gao Yang also looked at his watch; it was already twelve o’clock.
He immediately said, “If you don’t mind, tell me Mokadi’s whereabouts first.
If he is under your protection, I’ll have to give up on capturing him alive.
But if you’re planning to end your employment relationship with him, I’d really like to catch that guy.”
Nate Schumacher showed a regretful expression and said, “That guy called Mokadi is an idiot.
He was full of confidence at first, thinking he would have no problem defeating you guys.
But you attacked too quickly, and as soon as the idiot realized things weren’t going well, he chose to run away.
Our contract had just ended, so Mokadi has already fled, and we’re no longer obliged to protect him.”
Gao Yang said sincerely, “That’s really good news.
Can you tell me when he ran and where he went?
I need to catch him.”
After a brief silence, Nate Schumacher shrugged and replied, “Fine, I have no more duty to keep my employer’s secrets.
I can tell you Mokadi’s whereabouts, but I regret to inform you that there’s no chance for you to capture him alive.
Dead, will that do?”
After saying this, Nate Schumacher pointed toward the docks and said loudly, “Poor Mokadi tried to escape by sea, but just as his boat was starting, it ran into your boats.
My men said they saw Mokadi’s boat being sunk, oh, a white yacht, quite pretty.
I have one too, just like Mokadi’s.
Poor and stupid Mokadi gave it to me as payment to hold you off.
I’m planning to take the yacht out to sea for a spin later.”
Gao Yang was stunned.
After managing a forced smile at Nate Schumacher, he immediately picked up the walkie-talkie and spoke anxiously, “Mu He, among the boats you sank, was there a white yacht?”
“Yes, sir, there was a white yacht, about twenty meters long, very fast, but we sank it rather quickly.”
Gao Yang was on the verge of tears and said with difficulty, “Then, did you see anyone from the boat survive?”
“No, after the boat sank, no survivors were spotted.”
Watching Gao Yang’s distressed face, Nate Schumacher said sympathetically, “If you wanted Mokadi dead, I think you’ve got your wish.
If you were hoping to get some money from him, you might consider salvaging the sunken boat.
You could find a haul there since, to my knowledge, Mokadi left with quite a lot of money.” (To be continued.
If you enjoy this work, please visit qidian.com to cast your votes for recommendation and monthly tickets.
Your support is my greatest inspiration.
Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)