531: 527th Chapter: Respect or Despise 531: 527th Chapter: Respect or Despise Gao Yang, who had just been jolted awake from his sleep, was still groggy, but when he saw Nate, Little Donnie, and Uriyangko all standing by the car door, leisurely looking at him with smiles, Gao Yang finally realized he had been tricked.
Nate shrugged as Gao Yang’s face relaxed from tense to calm, and said, “See, my method works the best.”
Little Donnie, with an embarrassed face, said to Gao Yang, “You were sleeping so deeply you didn’t wake up when we called or when we shook you.
But as soon as Nate mentioned ‘stand guard,’ you woke up immediately.”
Gao Yang irritably switched off the safety catch on his gun, flipped Nate the middle finger, and then, rubbing his face, he looked up at the sky only to find that it was already beginning to get light.
Uriyangko laughed heartily and said, “All right, everyone’s here, time to hit the road.”
Nate unceremoniously said to Gao Yang, “Move over, make some room, we’ve got a lot to talk about on the way.”
Gao Yang shifted to make space, and after Little Donnie took the passenger seat and both Uriyangko and Nate were settled in the back seat, the car started moving.
Still heavy with sleep, Gao Yang rubbed his face vigorously and asked, “Where are we headed?”
“Airport, Ivan found a place where we can get on a plane without going through security, we can fly straight to Brazil.”
Gao Yang nodded and said, “Okay, in that case, I’ll go back to sleep.
Just wake me up when we get there.”
At this point Nate, not one to mince words, said, “Buddy, I’ve already met the Prince and Flying Squirrel, and they’re being taken care of pretty well, but there’s one thing you need to explain to me…”
Before Nate could finish, Gao Yang immediately said, “Want a thermal imager?
No way, but one life, yes.
Anything else you want to say?
If not, I’m going to sleep.”
Nate, taken aback, looked at Gao Yang and said, “In my memory, you’re not such a shameless guy, and by the way, buddy, you should remember that no one dares to cheat the people from the Angel Mercenary Corps.”
Gao Yang confidently countered, “What did you say when we talked about the commission?
Do you remember?”
Nate was again taken aback and was left speechless.
Gao Yang sighed and said, “You see, it’s that simple.
You took advantage during a moment of vulnerability, a perfect opportunity to make a buck, right?
We paid your commission, right?
Taking care of the Prince while he recovers is not our obligation, right?
So, me charging for a night vision device as payment for looking after them is reasonable, isn’t it?”
After several “right”s in a row, Nate was once more at a loss for words.
This time, Gao Yang’s tone softened considerably as he said, “It’s just a thermal imager.
Do you really have the nerve to bring it up again?”
Nate, helplessly shaking his head, said, “Alright, forget it, let’s leave it at that.
I have nothing more to say.”
Gao Yang nodded repeatedly and said, “That’s more like it.
Well, since we brought it up, I still want to ask you about that thermal imager.
What brand is it?
What model?
Where did you get it?
How much does one cost?
Can you source more?
Do you still have any on hand?
How about selling me a few more?”
After listening to Gao Yang finish in one breath, Nate looked at him with contempt and said, “If they were easy to come by, do you think I would specifically ask you for an old thermal imager back?
We don’t have any left, we only had four in total, and after you shamelessly snatched one, my two marksmen and the sniper with a medium-caliber rifle each have one now.
If the others weren’t exactly enough, there’s no way I would just let this go.”
Gao Yang helplessly said, “Okay, so if you don’t have any left, where did you get them?
You’re not going to keep that a secret too, are you?”
Nate shrugged and said, “Thing is, I didn’t buy them.
They were seized.
In 2011, we got into a firefight with a six-man combat team.
The guys were tough.
We took out four of them, and seized this stuff.
But their origins, we couldn’t tell.
Judging from their equipment and tactics, they should have been American, but there was utterly no marking on anything they carried, yet it was all very advanced, with a generational edge to it.
I couldn’t figure out where they were from based on the bodies or the gear, so I too want to know where you can buy these things.
I’ve asked many experts, and nobody could identify where the gear we seized came from.
Money isn’t an issue for me, but the problem is, even with money, you can’t buy these things, no, I don’t even know where to start looking.”
Curious, Gao Yang asked, “What weapons were they using?
What other good stuff did you seize?
And since you seized things, it means that the other side couldn’t take the bodies with them, which means you were close at the time, right?
Didn’t you hear them talking or anything?”
After smiling for a moment, Nate quickly deadpanned and said, “Classified.”
Gao Yang said helplessly, “Fine, keep your secrets, I just knew you’d say that.
What a miser you are, not much of a friend.”
Nate scoffed with disdain, “When did we become friends?
I must have missed that memo.
You hired us this time, so we are just mercenaries…”
“Alright, alright, no more talk, just a mercenary relationship, you Angels don’t need friends, nor do you have friends.
Don’t you get tired of saying that all the time?
But rest assured, the next time we encounter a problem, if you guys run into trouble, we will definitely save you, and it’ll be for free too, um, it should be free, depending on my mood.
Remember that.”
After completing Nate’s statement for him and expressing his own attitude, Gao Yang said, bored to tears, “Done?
If there’s nothing else, I’m going to sleep.”
Uriyangko cleared his throat softly and said, “Actually, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
Uriyangko spread his hands with an expression of helplessness and said, “About the small detachment that attacked you, I have looked into it.”
Gao Yang suddenly became interested and said, “Oh, you figured it out so quickly?
Let’s hear it, what happened?”
Uriyangko had a strange look on his face as he said, “Here’s the thing, yesterday, no, the day before yesterday now, the forward command issued an order to the Jaguar Corps to withdraw completely.
However, one of the three combat groups of the Jaguar Corps, under their commander, left the battlefield.
They didn’t return to the designated location though; they disappeared.”
Gao Yang waved his hand and said, “I already knew that.
What else?”
“After that, they found you and launched an attack.
After suffering heavy casualties without achieving any objective, they could only retreat and return to their base to report after you left.”
Gao Yang scratched his head and asked, “What’s the key point?”
Uriyangko smiled bitterly, “The crux is this, their finding you wasn’t a coincidence, but a deliberate action in defiance of orders.
He was extremely dissatisfied with the orders from the forward command.
Although he didn’t know why there was a ceasefire and they were ordered to withdraw, he felt he and his men had been cruelly betrayed after making great sacrifices.
Unable to accept this, he decided to go rogue, secretly taking his men with him.”
Gao Yang smiled wryly, “Honestly, I think he was betrayed too.
We knew all their moves, and we knew the orders they received and reports they sent.
As soldiers, it is indeed sad to have such superiors.
But why could he find us, and why would he want to?”
Uriyangko shrugged, “I don’t know how he found you either; I can only guess that when he couldn’t catch up to the Angel Mercenary Corps, perhaps he knew of a clue or trace leading to your temporary camp and then headed there to either seek revenge for his fallen comrades or disrupt the negotiations.
He and his men refused to disclose their true intentions, even though they’re now facing a military tribunal.”
Gao Yang was startled, “What do you mean?”
Uriyangko said softly, “The guy who attacked you against orders was taken into custody as soon as he returned to base yesterday afternoon.
After furiously lodging complaints against some people, he was quickly put on a military tribunal.
I think he’s in trouble because the losses of his men were quite severe.
Twenty-seven dead, ten severely injured, and of those, four more died in the hospital upon their return.
Among the dead, six were killed by directional mines, the rest were shot.
His unauthorized action has led to grave consequences.
The interrogation started last night, and I only recently received the news.
The verdict hasn’t been reached yet.
It probably needs several sessions before a conclusion is drawn.”
Gao Yang let out a sigh, “Anything more?”
Uriyangko shrugged again, “I’m telling you this because I feel quite reflective.
The officer’s name is Jose de Perez.
A promising young officer, he’s already a major.
Barring this incident, he had a bright future.
But now, well, I think he’s finished.
As an enemy, how would you assess him?”
Gao Yang said coldly, “Foolish, hot-headed, a hot-blooded fool worth respecting.”
Nate also said coldly, “He’s a true soldier in temperament, but a complete idiot in his actions.
He’s not worthy of respect.
Just for getting dozens of his subordinates killed, if it were my command, I would have him shot immediately.
The Jaguars used to be a respectable foe, but ever since their founder died, the Jaguars have become a gathering place for idiots.”
Gao Yang glanced sidelong at Nate and asked, “You knew the founder of the Jaguar Corps?”
Nate replied coldly, “An old adversary.
I killed him with my own hands.
He was a true soldier, so I gave his body to his soldiers.
But that Jose is just a fool.
If I’m not mistaken, Jose must be the son of the Jaguar Corps founder.”
After speaking, Nate waved his fist angrily and said, “As a soldier, I fully understand and support the act of wanting to strike back after feeling betrayed by incompetent superiors, for the sake of fallen brothers.
But blindly leading your men to death without knowing anything about the enemy is not an act deserving respect; it’s a despicable act of stupidity.
He needs to answer for the dozens of lives lost.” (To be continued.
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