49: Chapter 49 Calm 49: Chapter 49 Calm Gao Yang, who hadn’t smoked in three years, slowly blew out a smoke ring.
By his feet lay more than a dozen cigarette butts, most of which were not fully smoked, leaving long, unburned halves.
The mixed-type cigarettes were too harsh for Gao Yang, as he was still accustomed to smoking flue-cured varieties.
Anxious and agitated, Gao Yang extinguished the burning cigarette in his hand and, looking at Cui Bo’s calm face, suddenly felt a surge of irritation.
He walked over to Cui Bo, who was sitting on a chair cleaning his gun, and slapped him on the head, then whispered, “You heartless idiot, the Old Russian is still in surgery, and here you are cleaning your damn gun!
Shouldn’t you be comforting me, saying that Glolov will definitely be okay?”
Cui Bo looked up in confusion, his eyes blurry as he gazed at Gao Yang and said, “Huh?
Oh, isn’t the Old Russian having surgery?
What are you worried about?
He’s not giving birth.
What are you pacing around for?”
“You, you, you…”
Gao Yang was completely at a loss for words.
He pointed at Cui Bo, stammering without knowing what to say.
Perhaps, in Cui Bo’s mind, sending the Old Russian into the operating room meant that everything was fine.
And Gao Yang didn’t know how to explain to Cui Bo that having a shambling old man operate in a makeshift surgery room, a surgery that had been going on for four hours without any news, if that all meant everything was definitely okay, then it could only mean that either Cui Bo was really an idiot or that Cui Bo’s heart was big to an extreme degree.
Watching the frantic Gao Yang, an Arab who was sitting calmly at the side suddenly said, “Be quieter.
If your friend can be saved, then he will be just fine.
If your friend can’t be saved, it won’t matter who you bring in.
I’ve already told you, the old man who went in there is Libya’s best doctor, a world-class doctor, so if the surgery isn’t over yet, that means the situation isn’t bad.”
Gao Yang let out a bitter laugh and said, “Thank you, Mr.
Abdul.
I believe what you say, but I’m still worried.”
Abdul was the agent Morgan had arranged in Libya, in his forties, looking no different from a local in both appearance and attire, yet he had the typical mannerisms and style of an American.
Gao Yang knew that Abdul was originally from Libya, but had gone to the United States at a very young age.
Abdul stood up, took the pack of cigarettes and lighter from Gao Yang, lit a cigarette for himself, and still with a calm face said, “You asked for a smoke, but you didn’t say you were going to smoke all of mine, and you’re wasting them.
You should know that in an Arab country, cigarettes are hard to come by.”
“Sorry, I’m just too tense.
Please understand, the one having surgery is my friend, and I can’t calm down.”
Abdul glanced at Cui Bo then back at Gao Yang and suddenly said, “Comparatively, your sniper friend is much calmer than you.
He hasn’t shown a single sign of irritation.
You should learn from him.”
Gao Yang gaped, and after a long pause finally said sheepishly, “Please, that’s not called being calm, okay?
He’s just a heartless, naturally dumb guy, alright?
Do you know what ‘naturally dumb’ means?”
Abdul shook his head and replied, “You’re very agitated.
Does this help your friend inside?
If not, why not learn to be a little calmer like that sniper?”
Gao Yang was left speechless.
He thought carefully about Abdul’s words and felt there was some truth to them.
Cui Bo could be considered heartless, but also someone who maintains his cool in any situation.
Such a trait is essential for a sniper, and a successful sniper often possesses this seemingly cold-hearted ability.
Gao Yang touched his head and sheepishly sat back down, trying his best to calm himself.
Meanwhile, Cui Bo, who didn’t understand what Gao Yang and Abdul were saying, suddenly said, “Brother Yang, if the Old Russian is okay, you should quickly figure out how to get back home.”
Gao Yang gave a wry smile and said, “Stop kidding, how can I go back now?
We still don’t know how the Old Russian is doing, and besides, how am I supposed to go back?”
Abdul suddenly spoke in a somewhat odd-sounding Chinese, “Mr.
Morgan has given orders that as soon as there’s a chance, you’ll be arranged to go back to your country immediately.
He said you miss home very much.
If you wish, I can arrange for your departure right away.”
Gao Yang, surprised, said, “You can speak Chinese?”
“I can speak twelve languages.
As for Chinese, aside from Mandarin, I can also speak Cantonese and Sichuanese, and a little bit of Shanghainese.
You can talk to me in any dialect you prefer,”
Gao Yang shook his head and said, “Forget it, I don’t know any dialects other than Mandarin.
If you spoke to me in Cantonese, you might as well speak English with me.
Alright, now I know why Mr.
Morgan would choose you as his agent — you must be a trained elite from the CIA.”
Abdul pursed his lips and said, “That’s in the past.
You haven’t answered me.
Do you want to leave?”
Of course, Gao Yang wanted to go back.
He nodded vigorously and then asked curiously, “Weren’t the airports all closed?
When we arrived, the plane even landed on a highway.
Do you plan to take off from the highway again?
Or do you mean, you can get me out of Libya and go through another country?
But I don’t have a passport, I won’t be able to buy a ticket.”
Abdul smiled and said, “Leave the arrangements to me; you don’t have to worry about the rest.”
No sooner had Abdul finished speaking than the doors of the operating room, which had been closed tight, finally opened.
A grey-haired old man, looking exhausted and leaning weakly against the door frame, said, “The surgery was very successful.
He’s completely out of danger.
As soon as the anesthetic wears off, he will wake up.
I’ve done as you requested.
When can you get my family out of Libya?”
Abdul, expressionless, said, “Please step aside, my friend needs to go in.
As for your matter, don’t worry.
Once your surgical patient is fully recovered, I will send you to any country you wish to go to.”
Gao Yang now understood why Abdul was able to find the best surgeon in all of Libya.
It wasn’t the use of money as he had thought, but the ability to offer the doctor’s family safe passage abroad amidst the chaos.”
After sincerely thanking the doctor, Gao Yang and Cui Bo entered the operating room, where a man and a woman were taking care of Glolov; they were the doctor’s assistants, as well as the doctor’s children.
Seeing Glolov lying on the operating bed, breathing steadily and appearing to be completely out of danger, Gao Yang finally breathed a sigh of relief.
All he wanted to do at that moment was to find a place to get a good night’s sleep.
As Cui Bo nodded calmly and then shrugged at Gao Yang, he said indifferently, “See, I told you it would be fine, all that worrying for nothing, Brother Yang.
Not to criticize, but sometimes you’re just too anxious.”