891: Chapter 881: To Gain Something, You Must Lose Something 891: Chapter 881: To Gain Something, You Must Lose Something Fame has its pros and cons.
The good part is that with increasing fame, naturally, more tasks become available, and for the same task, while an ordinary mercenary group would take five million, the Satan Mercenary Corps would start at ten million.
The benefits are indeed significant.
However, the downsides hardly need mentioning.
As the saying goes, ‘fear notoriety as pigs fear fattening’; becoming too famous inevitably means becoming a target.
And in the mercenary business, no matter who sets their sights on you, there’s absolutely no upside to it.
Outstanding ability naturally builds reputation over time, and then both the benefits and the troubles start to emerge—that’s the nature of give and take.
Both the advantages and disadvantages are quite clear, so the only solution is to strike a balance.
One must not become as widely known as Blackwater, known by the whole world, yet must ensure that potential customers, especially big clients, are aware of Satan’s existence.
And this would be a test of Little Donnie’s capabilities.
It’s a mixed bag for a mercenary group to become famous; in the worst-case scenario, dissolving the group is the end of that story.
But personal fame, coupled with an exposed identity, would leave one with no benefits at all.
Mr.
Ram’s alias has gained significant fame, but Gao Yang is Mr.
Ram.
Right now, only a very small circle of people, all of whom Gao trusts, are in on this secret.
One complication, though, is that Gao’s characteristics are too distinctive.
As soon as he enters combat, it’s easy for people in the same circles to recognize him.
Those like Rafael, Jansen, and Tommy, when they go into battle, won’t be recognized as long as they don’t reveal their identities.
But Gao is different.
As soon as he fires his weapon, whether hitting easy or difficult targets, the result is the same: people recognize that he is Mr.
Ram.
Ultra-accurate and ultra-fast—these two qualities, already hard to achieve individually, become exponentially more challenging when combined.
And shooting habits aren’t something you can change just like that.
In the heat of battle, when you wish your foes would fall faster, there’s no way to deliberately slow down your rate of fire or intentionally miss.
So, as soon as Gao Yang fires his gun, he might as well be wearing a sign on his forehead saying “I am Mr.
Ram, I am the number one marksman.”
In the elevator, Gao Yang thought a lot.
After feeling briefly pleased about his fame, he hadn’t even reached the top floor before he started to feel troubled by it.
But what could he do?
The answer was nothing, unless he retired immediately or never fired a gun again.
The elevator doors opened, and a woman dressed as a business professional stood at the entrance.
On seeing Gao Yang and Little Donnie, she immediately bowed slightly with a smile and said, “Mr.
Ram, Mr.
Copfield, welcome to both of you.
I am Mr.
Tomler’s secretary.
Please follow me.”
Mr.
Tomler’s secretary had changed, a different person, but like the last one, very young and very beautiful.
Little Donnie was beaming, a world of difference from the last time Gao Yang saw him here.
With a gentle knock on the door, the secretary softly said at the entrance, “Mr.
Tomler, your guests have arrived.”
“Please come in.”
The secretary opened the door, and then Gao Yang saw Mr.
Tomler stand up from behind his large desk and quickly walk towards the door with a beaming smile.
As Gao Yang and Little Donnie entered, Smith Tomler had already reached the doorway, extending his hand from afar.
Shaking hands with Gao, Tomler looked moved and said, “Mr.
Ram, we meet again.
Firstly, I must admit that I made a grave mistake.
Also, I need to state something.
From the first time I saw you, I knew that we would have an opportunity to collaborate, I just didn’t expect it to come so soon.
I must say, you’ve done an outstanding job, the name of Satan is now truly resounding.”
Gao Yang was quite moved.
The last time he came here, the fact that Smith Tomler stood up from his chair had already shown him great respect, and that respect was due to having a powerful referencer, a friend of Morgan—certainly no ordinary person.
This time, having Tomler rise to greet him already spoke volumes.
Satan was no longer the Satan of before, and he was surely not the same Mr.
Ram from his first visit.
Of course, this had nothing to do with slapping faces.
One mustn’t be too arrogant.
It was normal for Tomler, who was used to big business, not to be impressed by Satan at first.
Today, with Satan’s newfound clout, Tomler immediately welcomes him with a smile, but this was just the attitude a businessman should have toward a business partner—it had nothing to do with slapping faces.
Unlike Long Aotian, who seemed to step on toes everywhere and then had to slap faces left and right, eliciting loud slaps along the way, Gao Yang couldn’t do that, nor did he have the ability.
So his rejection at the first visit didn’t feel like he was being looked down on, and being welcomed today didn’t mean he had Tomler under his boot.
After all, Tomler was a big shot, and he was not.
Without good psychological quality, how could one ever become a marksman, let alone be recognized as the top marksman?
Therefore, Gao Yang’s psychological quality had always been quite good.
Gao Yang said with a peaceful and calm smile, “It’s an honor to meet you, Mr.
Tomler.
You flatter me.”
Smith Tomler laughed and let go of Gao Yang’s hand.
After taking Little Donnie’s hand, he said with a face full of emotion, “Little Donnie, I always knew you would make it big.
Old Donnie was an incredible agent.
He may not have been the most successful, but I’ve truly never met an agent more loyal, more dedicated, or more trustworthy than him.
All that Old Donnie lacked was a famous mercenary group.
Other than that, his career was impeccable.
And you, Little Donnie, you’ve achieved what your father did and even what he didn’t manage to do.
My respects to Old Donnie and congratulations to you.
I think your father would be very proud of you up in heaven.”
Mr.
Tomler was very good with his words.
He managed to praise Gao Yang, Old Donnie, and Little Donnie all at once, and he even seemed very moved.
Little Donnie said gratefully, “Thank you, Mr.
Tomler.”
Mr.
Tomler nodded and gestured for Gao Yang and the others to sit down.
Instead of returning to his desk chair, he sat on the sofa next to Gao Yang and smiled, “Would you like something to drink?
Coffee, tea, or perhaps some wine?”
Knowing that favors come with expectations, Gao Yang was very aware of this and was somewhat wary of Mr.
Tomler’s kindness.
Simply put, Gao Yang feared that he was being marked.
Gao Yang smiled and said, “A coffee for me, please.
Thank you.”
Little Donnie also wanted coffee, and Mr.
Tomler then instructed his secretary, “Three coffees, please.”
Once the secretary had left, the real conversation began.
Gao Yang didn’t bother with pleasantries and asked right away, “Mr.
Tomler, may I ask what matter you have for us?”
If Mr.
Tomler was planning to have Satan Mercenary Corps join his camp and become part of Tomler Global Defense Company, Gao Yang couldn’t just leave without giving the proper respect, but he also wouldn’t waste words.
If, however, Mr.
Tomler wanted to discuss a business deal, they could all seriously and enthusiastically have a good talk.
Gao Yang’s question was direct, and Mr.
Tomler also got straight to the point.
After all, he was used to dealing with mercenaries, and these people didn’t appreciate beating around the bush.
Mr.
Tomler sighed and said, “Mr.
Ram, you know that I am mainly engaged in the business of large-scale military contractors.
Mercenaries – well, I tend to do more business with larger mercenary groups.
But this time, I’ve encountered some trouble and need the help of a small but strong mercenary group to resolve it.”
Goals should be expressed straightforwardly without beating around the bush, but the upcoming negotiation required some finesse.
One shouldn’t force an immediate answer of yes or no, as that would appear too aggressive.
It was important to maintain civility and proper customs during detailed negotiations.
Therefore, after Mr.
Tomler candidly stated his intention, he immediately changed to a softer tone and said with a wry smile, “I hope your schedule isn’t too packed, for how could the Satan Mercenary Corps ever be idle?
Although I can’t possibly know your recent activities, I’m aware that you must be very busy.”
Mr.
Tomler was indirectly asking if Gao Yang was willing to cooperate.
This was about business, and Gao Yang responded with a smile, “It’s not too bad lately.
Actually, I was planning to go on vacation.”
Gao Yang’s response indicated they could cooperate, but with the caveat that not any assignment would be accepted.
He was open for serious business, but for tasks with little pay and high risk, it was better not to start that conversation – he would prefer to be on vacation.
Mr.
Tomler laughed heartily and said, “Haha, I must be quite lucky then.
Mr.
Ram, perhaps there’s a mission that you might consider.
The thing is, I’ve received a task.
It’s quite simple: to escort a shipment from Iraq to Syria.
The cargo isn’t much, nor is a large team required, yet the pay isn’t low – fifteen million dollars.”
After Mr.
Tomler stated the main content of the mission and the remuneration, he had to mention specific details.
He sighed and continued, “In our line of work, honesty is needed.
So let me explain the difficulty.
The task would normally be straightforward, but as you know, in Iraq, it is anything but simple.
Currently, I really lack an extremely small and capable mercenary group.
I recommended one to the client, but they were nearly wiped out in Iraq.
They encountered a group of over a hundred armed individuals, and the mission failed miserably.
Mr.
Ram, I have told you before that my business success rate is quite high.
I don’t want to tarnish my reputation, so I must ask for a super capable group like the Satan Mercenaries to help me now.”
Mr.
Tomler had provided a rough outline of the mission.
If one felt it was doable, specific inquiries would follow.
If one wasn’t interested, other topics could be discussed instead.
After pondering for a moment, Gao Yang felt the mission was still within their capabilities.
He spoke gravely, “Mr.
Tomler, please tell me what the cargo is, the exact points of departure and arrival, and most importantly, does this mission involve any official government?
Any country’s official government!” (To be continued.
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