[Urban] The End of Dawn (Complete) - 1-3

In episode 1

, as the music began, Moreno sipped his red wine, his eyes constantly glancing towards the bar.

A blonde woman leaned elegantly against the bar, smiling and talking to an officer. Moreno recognized the officer; it was his instructor, Major Shemak.

Tonight was a welcome party organized by the base, and all the high-ranking officers would be there, most with their families, to celebrate the friendship between the two countries. Of course, Moreno knew that what the Russians valued in this friendship was actually the arms deals and economic contracts signed between their prime minister and their leader, Putin, but that was none of his business.

Tonight, he was there to hunt, and he had already locked onto his prey.

He was currently in the officers' club at Khanabad Air Base, a luxuriously decorated place, as comfortable as a nightclub. Whether it was the Uzbek government, Russia, or the former US military, someone had definitely invested heavily in this base, after all, it had once been the second largest air base in the former Soviet Union.

After the Cold War, the base fell into disrepair due to Uzbekistan's lack of a substantial air force and insufficient funds for maintenance. In 2001, the US military, under the pretext of military action in Afghanistan, successfully occupied the base and transformed it into a massive military fortress. In 2005, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), led by China and Russia, capitalized on the impact of the Andijan conflict on Uzbekistan, jointly expelling Western powers (excluding Germany) from the country, including the US military.

Since then, the base has been under Russian control. Although the US military made a high-profile return to Uzbekistan in 2008, the Americans never had the opportunity to return to the base they had painstakingly developed for four years.

Currently, while the Uzbek government has not publicly announced the base's handover to Russia, the Russian military is effectively the user. Russian and Uzbek aircraft patrol together, and Russian instructors train the Uzbek air force. Moreno and his team, who trained in Russia for a year, just transferred their aircraft to the base a week ago.

People began to dance in the ballroom. None of the women present were unattractive; most were glamorous and beautiful. But the blonde beauty didn't leave the dance floor; she remained standing at the bar. Moreno felt this woman was exactly his type. The moment he saw her, he was aroused. While the men and women around him moved about, he instantly spotted her.

He was confident in himself; his interests lay in flying and women. Back home, he had always been successful with women—teachers, flight attendants, models, married women, and so on. He couldn't even remember how many women he'd been with. As an Air Force captain, this job was one that excited women. Add to that his own good looks and handsome appearance, and his father's high-ranking military position—all these factors combined made him feel like a Casanova.

Of course, this was Russia, not some distant South American country. While his family background couldn't offer much help, it didn't prevent him from using his charm.

He was also particularly excited today.

Tomorrow, tomorrow will bring a momentous mission, the very mission they've come for.

For a fighter pilot, this is a once-in-a-lifetime ultimate challenge, and he will witness history firsthand.

If he wins this challenge, he will join the ranks of ace pilots. His father has repeatedly warned him that in a high-tech branch like the Air Force, if you can't fly advanced fighter jets, even if you're the prime minister's son, it's useless; you can't advance. Senior officers in the Air Force all have experience flying advanced fighter jets.

A bright future lies before him; he just needs to seize the opportunity.

Tomorrow, everything depends on tomorrow.

I will create my own legend…

Thinking of this, Moreno was incredibly excited. He downed his drink in one gulp, then secretly took a picture of the woman with his phone—a habit soldiers have when collecting trophies. Just as he was about to go over, he sensed someone watching him from a distance. A quick glance revealed it was that annoying agent again.

This Chinese man named Zhou Xu was an officer in the country's special forces and also a high-ranking military agent under the Ministry of National Defense's intelligence agency. Formerly a mercenary, he was recruited by his country's intelligence agency and participated in the crackdown on the Aceh terrorist organization several years ago, reportedly making significant contributions. He was granted citizenship by the current prime minister and directly recruited into the army. Moreover, he has extremely powerful connections, with close ties to the current defense minister's family.

In Russia, Moreno doesn't care about anyone, except this Chinese man, who is a bit of a headache.

This man is definitely sent by military intelligence to monitor them. It's a tradition of the intelligence department to send personnel with them on any foreign missions to prevent violations of foreign affairs discipline.

Actually, his own affair abroad is already a violation of discipline, and if Zhou Xu takes it seriously, it could cause some trouble.

However, he's not truly afraid of him, especially today. There's important business to attend to tomorrow, and at this crucial moment, Zhou Xu wouldn't dare do anything to him. Zhou Xu also knows his family's background; as long as it doesn't interfere with tomorrow's mission, everything is fine. Moreno also thinks Zhou Xu isn't the rigid type and will just turn a blind eye.

Thinking this, he no longer hesitated. Just then, it seemed that Shemark's attempt to win over the beauty had failed; he shrugged, looking disappointed but still maintaining his composure, and left. Moreno, a charming smile playing on his lips, spoke in broken Russian as he headed towards the blonde bombshell.

Not far away, Zhou Xu watched Moreno flirting with the woman while simultaneously dealing with the enthusiastic advances of the base's deputy commander's daughter. This girl was only in her early twenties, and her figure, perhaps inherited from her father's typical Russian muscular physique, was somewhat overly voluptuous. She wore revealing clothing, and a noticeable "spare tire" around her waist. Her features were actually quite good, though she had a few freckles.

If it weren't for this international social occasion, Zhou Xu would have bluntly told her that there was no chance between them, and that it wasn't going to happen now. This girl didn't seem like the type to stay quiet and unassuming; she danced wildly, and the way she looked at Zhou Xu was pure, unadulterated desire. It seemed that if Zhou Xu simply nodded, she would immediately pounce on him and try to pull down his pants.

"Has anyone ever told you you're handsome?"

The freckled, chubby girl spoke fluent English and clung to him, giving Zhou Xu flirty winks. It seemed she was determined to get what she wanted tonight.

"Oh, thank you..."

Zhou Xu smiled.

"Really, you look a lot like a Hong Kong movie star."

"Wow, really? Maybe I've chosen the wrong profession."

Zhou Xu joked, but his eyes were darting over there. He saw Moreno had easily won over the blonde beauty, and the two were walking outside arm in arm.

"Is my tattoo pretty?"

The chubby girl launched another offensive, pulling up the strap of her tank top to reveal a tattoo on her shoulder that looked like a flower.

"It's beautiful. Did you design it yourself?"

Zhou Xu clinked glasses with her, and the chubby girl downed her drink in one gulp. It seemed she inherited her drinking capacity from her deputy commander father.

“Yes, would you like to see anything else? I have even prettier ones.”

The girl chuckled, pulling down her pants to reveal some patterns on her lower abdomen. “If you want to see them all, let’s find a place. My apartment isn’t far from here.”

Her words were quite explicit.

“Your earrings are nice,”

Zhou Xu began, changing the subject.

“Really? They were custom-made.”

“You can tell me where you buy it, and I might have one custom-made for my wife.”

“You’re married?”

The chubby girl was taken aback, finally understanding the implication.

Zhou Xu smiled and showed her his wedding ring. Then, seizing the opportunity, he excused himself, took a few quick steps out of the dance hall, and saw Moreno with the woman walking towards a white car.

“Where are you going?”

Moreno knew it was Zhou Xu without turning around, and gestured for the woman to get into the car and wait for him. He turned back to Zhou Xu with an indifferent expression.

“Of course, I’m taking this lady home.”

“That’s all?”

“Of course, that’s all.”

Moreno’s face was full of nonchalant smiles.

“What, you’re bothering me with this? Don’t I have any personal freedom?”

“Don’t forget what you’re doing tomorrow. You need to conserve your energy and stay clear-headed.”

“I know what I’m doing. I’m not stupid!”

Moreno’s expression turned a little ugly.

“I’m full of energy, you don’t need to worry about me. If you don’t mind, I have other things to do. Report to whomever you want.”

With that, he turned and walked to the car, opened the door, and headed straight for the base gate.

Zhou Xu watched the car disappear into the distance, feeling helpless.

Of all the people who came out this time, he disliked Moreno the most. This guy was a good pilot, but also the most arrogant and undisciplined. He couldn’t easily control him. Zhou Xu was his equal in rank, and nepotism was rampant in the military. The Moreno family had considerable influence in the Air Force, and this trip to Russia for training was seen as grooming him as a promising talent. His future was limitless. As long as he didn’t cause any major trouble, even if Zhou Xu reported him to his superiors, it would likely be ignored.

Moreover, Zhou Xu wasn’t actually his superior and had no right to supervise him.

Theoretically, Moreno and his group were here to receive training from Russian instructors, who were their superiors, and they were subject to the discipline of the Russian base. If the Russians didn't say anything, basically no one could do anything to them.

This was the contradiction in how the bureaucrats of Country B's military operated: they wanted these agents to accompany them, but didn't give them any power. Zhou Xu basically felt like he was just a figurehead.

Finally, he thought it over. He had a big mission tomorrow, and maybe he needed a way to de-stress. He remembered how he had been in the same situation before. Letting him indulge for one night would probably help him maintain a relaxed and stable mindset. Moreno, although a scoundrel, wasn't an idiot. He knew the importance and urgency of things. If tomorrow's mission went wrong, it would affect his own future, and he was very clear about that. At this crucial juncture, it was best not to have too much of a negative impact on him; everything was for tomorrow.

He made a phone call, gave some instructions to a subordinate, and then returned to the dance hall.

At the entrance, he saw the fat woman inside looking around frantically, clearly searching for him. He hesitated for a moment, then backed out, turned to the other side of the parking lot, lit a cigarette, and took a puff.

He was thinking about tomorrow's mission, wondering which government official had come up with this outrageously crazy idea.

Last year, the Prime Minister of Country B visited Russia. This visit resulted in significant achievements, including the establishment of a bilateral partnership, the signing of a framework agreement for cooperation in various economic, technological, and military fields, and the confirmation of intentions for arms purchases. However, this does not mean the matter is settled. The current cooperation is merely a rehearsal for larger-scale cooperation in the future. If the military equipment purchased this time meets the requirements, subsequent orders will continue to be placed with the Russians, along with cooperation in economic and energy fields—all decided within the overall framework of the partnership.

However, given that this involves billions of dollars, the major component of the arms purchase—air force equipment—has many restrictions, some even stringent. For example, tomorrow's operation involves a batch of Su-27UBK advanced fighter trainer aircraft. These trainer aircraft were specifically purchased to train advanced fighter pilots for the country, but clearly, some within the Country B government do not want the Russians to profit so easily.

Tomorrow, two Su-27UBK heavy fighter jets will take off from Hannabad Air Base, flying over the airspace of seven countries and regions—Kazakhstan, Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkmenistan—circling the Caspian Sea before returning to the base. The government of Country B requires that all pilots participate in this flight, and to test the aircraft's performance, the flight must not disturb any air defense networks in the areas it passes through.

Tomorrow, Moreno and another pilot, Martinez, have been selected as the two best performers in their training to participate in this risky operation.

Calling it a risky operation is an understatement; it is essentially an act of aggression. Even if the aircraft are not carrying any live ammunition, they are still military equipment. Stealthily entering another country's airspace will almost certainly result in interception if discovered, and could very well be shot down. This is a minor issue compared to the major diplomatic trouble that will follow.

The countries they passed through included several hostile nations, such as Georgia; war-torn countries like Azerbaijan and Armenia, which would attack any unidentified target; and countries with robust air defense networks, such as Iran. Some, though allies or neutral, would certainly not be friendly if Russian warplanes intruded into their airspace, given the issue of sovereignty. This mission was extremely dangerous, almost deliberately designed to create difficulties.

Yet, the Russians agreed, even agreeing to train the pilots as a bonus. In their view, even immense difficulties were insignificant compared to a multi-billion dollar contract; as long as the money was in hand, they would do anything, even if the government of Country B asked them to pluck stars from the sky.

Footsteps sounded behind Zhou Xu. He turned around, and a man approached.

"Why aren't you going inside?"

Shemark asked, still holding a glass of wine.

"Just came out for some fresh air,"

Zhou Xu replied. He knew this was the instructor who had flown the same plane as Moreno, a participant in tomorrow's operation, and someone who knew the inside story. Tomorrow's operation is under secrecy. Aside from these people from country B, only the base commander and a few flight instructors at the Russian base currently know about it.

"Are you worried about Moreno?"

Shemark seemed to understand his thoughts.

"Tomorrow's mission is too important."

"Moreno is a good pilot. Although he's a womanizer, he's a good pilot. He knows what he's doing. Believe me, flying is always his top priority."

Shemark said with a smile.

"Besides, I've got his back."

"Do you know that woman from earlier?"

Zhou Xu still felt a little uneasy. After all, he had just arrived at the base and didn't know anyone. Moreno and his gang didn't need to worry about anything; they just needed to fly the planes well. But as the accompanying security officer, he had too many things to worry about. Tomorrow's mission was classified, and he had to ensure no leaks.

"Yes, I know her. She works at the base. I heard she's a relative of the commander."

Shemark's expression seemed a little strange when he said this. Zhou Xu immediately understood—a relative? Maybe a former mistress or something.

"I heard your child is still in the hospital?"

Zhou Xu turned to look at him. He had done some research on the backgrounds of these Russian instructors, and he had heard that Shemark's child had some serious illness that was difficult to treat.

"I'll just leave it there. I'm planning to send him to America to try. I heard there are cases of people being cured there."

“We need to hurry, the child’s affairs are of utmost importance.”

Zhou Xu racked his brains, thinking that this was a potential target. People who need favors are always easily persuaded. Perhaps developing an intelligence agent in the Russian Air Force wouldn’t be a bad thing. In the future, Russia and Country B will engage in deeper military cooperation, which means more deals and bargaining. It’s necessary to plan ahead.

In the business of espionage, there are no friends or enemies, only those who are useful and those who are not.

Shemark was the kind of person who was useful.

“Hey, Zhou, why aren’t you going in?”

A coquettish voice sounded behind him, giving Zhou Xu a headache. Sure enough, the chubby girl appeared at the door, beaming as she approached him. He was about to use Shemark beside him as a shield when he turned around and was surprised to find that no one was there. This guy was obviously very vigilant; he had disappeared so quickly that he could only vaguely see his figure flash by before it was gone. Then the car started and sped away.

As expected of a pilot, his combat reaction was truly impressive; he even dodged supersonic missiles, so this kind of situation was probably child's play for him.

Left with no other choice, Zhou Xu was escorted back like a prisoner…

In an apartment on the outskirts of Barnabas, 15 kilometers from the base, dim red lighting and erotic music filled the space. Moreno and the woman were tightly embracing, their four hands like octopus tentacles, constantly moving and caressing each other's sensitive areas.

The woman emitted lewd moans, her body writhing against Moreno. Her lower abdomen skillfully pressed against his erection, rubbing and pressing against his through his clothing. The man's hands, meanwhile, lifted the slit of the woman's black evening gown, caressing her wantonly. As the man assaulted her, the woman's long, shapely legs, clad in sexy black stockings, would occasionally lift and hook around his buttocks and thighs, teasing him. The black lace stockings and the white skin of her thighs created a sensual contrast, and her beautiful feet, clad in black pointed high heels, tensed with excitement.

Moreno hadn't expected this woman to be so seductive; she was truly a gem. His erection was so strong it felt like his pants were about to burst.

He slipped his hands under the slit of her skirt, kneading her shapely buttocks forcefully. He discovered she was wearing a sexy thong and garter belt. How thirsty she was! He pressed his face against her lower abdomen while burying it in her neck, exploring her body.

The woman began to moan softly, the sounds igniting Moreno's desire like fire. He pulled her forward, pinning her to the bedside and pinning her down. He gripped her thighs, caressing the lace of her stockings and her smooth skin. Her stockinged legs instinctively crossed and wrapped around his waist.

"What's your name?"

Moreno's eyes burned with lust. The woman beneath him had captivating blue eyes, like icy blue gems, but now they held a wild excitement, like a rutting leopard pouncing on a lamb.

"Is it necessary?"

Of course not. One-night stands were commonplace for Moreno. He quickly stripped off his shirt, revealing his well-defined muscles—his assets. The woman looked at him with hungry eyes, reaching out to caress his chest muscles, her fingers teasing his nipples.

"You're my jaguar..."

she chuckled, looking at the jaguar tattoo on his shoulder.

Moreno lewdly pressed down on her, kissing her lips. At the same time, he began to undress her. He pulled down the two straps of her evening gown, revealing her naked body underneath. She wasn't wearing a bra; her two full, round breasts stood erect, and her muscles were surprisingly well-defined, without an ounce of fat.

"Wow, your figure is so captivating..."

Moreno exclaimed sincerely. "Are you a gymnast?"

Based on his experience, he had only ever seen one female rhythmic gymnast with such a beautiful figure in China. This Russian woman might also be a gymnast.

"Maybe, maybe I'm like you... a pilot."

The woman's eyes held a teasing glint.

"Oh, right, you're a lustful, thirsty female pilot. Your mission is to satisfy me."

Moreno understood the woman's meaning, and his excitement grew even stronger. To be honest, there were no female pilots in their country. He had slept with so many women, but he had never seen a female pilot before. Even though he knew this woman was deliberately flirting with him, he was incredibly excited.

The woman's hands began to unbuckle his belt. Moreno, panting, was starting to feel uncontrollably excited.

His erect penis broke free of his underwear and stood proudly erect. The woman's breathing also became noticeably heavier. It had to be said that this man was truly well-endowed. She skillfully stroked his penis with her hand, while simultaneously spitting into it to moisten it. Then, she looked up at him seductively: "Come on, fuck me."

Moreno, panting heavily, pressed his lower abdomen between the woman's legs. The woman's fingers actively pulled aside the strips of her thong, revealing her black evening gown disheveled at her waist. Her beautiful feet, encased in black stockings and high heels, gripped the man's bare waist, rubbing and writhing. The smooth, fine texture of the stockings stimulated the man's sensual reaction. He liked women dressed. Looking at the alluring body beneath him, barely covered yet not completely naked, the man felt a thrill of adultery and rape.

"Oh..."

The man thrust his hips forward, burying his entire length into the woman's honeyed, cracked vagina.

The woman let out a long, drawn-out moan, closing her eyes to savor the fullness of being filled, a satisfied, lewd smile playing on her lips. Moreno braced himself on the bed, feeling how tightly the woman was gripping him; the vaginal walls and lining were filled with secretions, slippery and hot. Sexual pleasure surged through his testicles, making him unable to resist thrusting deeper.

His rock-hard penis churned vigorously within the tight, wet vagina, producing lascivious sounds. The woman's arms wrapped around the man's neck, her sensual lips parted wide, emitting wanton moans.

The man thrust his body like a bull in heat, frantically pounding inside the woman's vagina. The sexy body beneath him swayed with his vigorous movements, their genitals pressed tightly together. The friction between their flesh turned their skin a vibrant rose color, and the area where their genitals met was filled with gushing love juices, soaking a large patch of the sheets.

Moreno's lust grew stronger, yearning to unleash his desire within this woman's body. He adjusted his position, slowing his pace, and scooted forward. The woman's two silk-stockinged legs remained wrapped around his waist, the angle of their folds widening until Moreno's lower abdomen was almost completely pressed against the woman's raised genitals, his weight slamming deep into her vagina.

With her buttocks as a cushion, Moreno could press his entire weight down, his penis fully buried inside. He began to feel it, breathing heavily, slowing down, while his testicles writhed against the woman's buttocks. The woman's buttocks twisted, and her vagina began to contract forcefully, rubbing against her sensitive spots.

His penis was completely swallowed by the woman's labia, only his scrotum protruding. Both of their pubic hair were wet, intertwined like a muddy meadow. Each twist of his penis caused the labia to turn, occasionally pulling out the dark red flesh inside, along with white mucus. This mucus had completely soaked the insides of both of their thighs, filling the room with the pungent smell of sexual secretions.

The woman's moans grew louder, her round breasts swaying, glistening with sweat. The man kneaded them with his hands, then lifted her up by the waist, while he stood up.

"Oh...oh...oh..."

Suddenly stimulated intensely, the woman's moans grew even more wanton. She hung precariously between the man's legs, her thighs still tightly wrapped around his waist. Her buttocks were supported by his hands, and she was lowered repeatedly by gravity, each time the head of his penis slamming against her cervix. Her body convulsed in orgasm, her arms wrapped around his neck, her lower body desperately swallowing his hard, thick penis.

Two sweaty, aroused bodies intertwined, the erotic sounds and fluids stirring the man's sensual desires.

After thrusting against the woman's buttocks for a while, the man leaned back on the bed, letting the woman straddle his hips.

"Oh…you're amazing…"

Moreno panted. He rarely encountered a woman who ignited his lust so fiercely. If possible, he wanted to hold her and roll around on the bed for three days and three nights without stopping, until he ejaculated all his semen into her vagina and uterus. His hands caressed the woman's slender waist, feeling her serpentine, undulating movements.

Outside, Luchena, in his car, looked at the lit window across the street and made a phone call.

"Anything unusual nearby? Is anyone following you besides you?"

"No."

Luchena looked around.

"How long have they been up there?"

"How long? About half an hour."

Luchena checked his watch, inwardly lamenting how lucky he was to have such a sexy woman. Those Air Force pilots were all bastards; they could get women throwing themselves at them with a snap of their fingers. Compared to them, he was pathetic. Military agents sounded impressive, but women shunned them, as if they were all treacherous secret police.

Zhou Xu was silent for a moment on the other end.

"Should I stay here?"

Luchena really didn't want to stay. Inside, a handsome man and a beautiful woman were making love passionately, while he was stuck here guarding the door. He felt it was making a mountain out of a molehill.

We're not in an enemy country, why are we so tense? Moreno isn't a three-year-old; surely he knows the way back to base? It's not far from the base, and the security is relatively good, at least better than back home. The local police patrol diligently; he'd just seen a police car pass by. He didn't understand why Zhou Xu was so nervous.

He knew the accompanying security officials weren't authorized to manage the pilots' private lives; they could only offer suggestions, and even his current surveillance was questionable.

"Um…no need, you can walk around the area first…"

Before Zhou Xu could finish speaking, Luchena exclaimed, "Holy crap!"

Zhou Xu tensed on the phone, asking what was wrong. Luchena, phone in one hand, was simply amazed, his eyes fixed on the second-floor window. Two naked bodies appeared on the glass; the woman's bare upper body was pressed against the glass, her breasts flattened, while the man behind her, also naked, pressed her against the glass, shamelessly thrusting into her from behind. The woman's body swayed with each thrust, and the window rattled slightly.

Luchena quickly grabbed a pair of binoculars and looked up. This time, he could see clearly: it was Moreno and the blonde Russian beauty. Their expressions were nothing short of lewd. The man's fingers were inside the woman's mouth, which she licked with her tongue, while his other hand rubbed her genitals. The woman's hands reached behind her, cupping the man's face, her buttocks thrusting back. Luchena could even vaguely see the shadow of the man's penis moving in and out.

"This is too much..."

Luchena was almost getting a nosebleed; his eyes were practically popping out of their sockets.

Zhou Xu listened to the phone call while Ramos showed him the search results from his portable PDA. Ramos had hacked into the local police department's database, and the results were normal. The address showed the woman's name was Khorkina, the same as the gymnastics champion, and her occupation was a civil servant. She was probably a civilian employee hired by the military, not a member of the armed forces.

Zhou Xu glanced at it and didn't think anything was amiss; perhaps this woman was just a slut who liked handsome men.

"You can circle around a few times and then come back,"

Moreno said, watching the car drive away, a surge of satisfaction in his heart. He gripped the woman's waist, slowly turning her around, his penis still inside her, until he reached the bedside, making her kneel on the bed. He thrust into her from behind, sending waves of flesh rippling through her buttocks, accompanied by the dull thud of flesh slapping against flesh. The woman's moans were like the panting of a wild animal, desperately responding to the man's assault.

The man's hips swayed wildly, his penis thrusting in and out of her tightly clenched, wet flesh. His scrotum slapped against her labia, spraying fluids everywhere. Pleasure filled every nerve and blood vessel, building up for an explosion.

The woman finally collapsed, exhausted. The man pressed down on her back, one hand lifting her chin, the other gripping her shoulder. He thrust his penis deep into her anus, unable to move, his body passively accepting the man's pressure. His penis rubbed against her throbbing vagina, filling every crevice, penetrating to its deepest point.

"Oh...oh..."

Waves of pleasure washed over him; Moreno felt himself about to ejaculate.

He flipped the woman's body over, pressing her face down beneath him, and thrust into her with all his might. His sudden, rough movements made the woman wild as well. Her body convulsed as if in spasms, her legs tightly gripping his waist, desperately squeezing his lower body between them. The force of her grip almost felt like a constraint, but it also pushed his pleasure to its peak.

"Ugh... ah... oh... so tight... you're squeezing too tight..."

Moreno felt a swelling in his lower abdomen, but he was also struggling to breathe from being squeezed by the woman's legs. He tried to spread the woman's legs apart with his hands, but the feeling of being squeezed so tightly made him feel like he was on the verge of ejaculation. Although it was painful, the pleasure was even stronger. He couldn't muster the strength to pry the woman's legs apart. He just wanted to use his last bit of strength to complete the final sprint, or let those alluring silk-stockinged legs squeeze him to death.

"Ah... oh oh oh..."

Finally, with the man's heavy breathing, his body reached the very end. At the same time, the woman's body trembled, and the intense orgasm caused her legs to suddenly tighten to their maximum strength.

Moreno felt a sense of suffocation, as if his waist had been run over by a truck. Before he could react, his lumbar spine suddenly made a terrifying cracking sound. Then, his penis began to throb uncontrollably, and large gushes of thick, hot semen shot out, filling the woman's vagina.

He collapsed onto the woman in the convulsions of ejaculation.

"Ugh... Ahh..."

He felt as if his internal organs were about to be squeezed out of his mouth by the immense force, while the woman's two beautiful legs in black stockings remained wrapped around his waist, like two pythons almost breaking every bone in his body. The woman was still trembling, seemingly in the throes of a violent orgasm.

He had no strength to struggle free, and couldn't even make a loud scream.

"You're going to crush me... Let go... Let go of you, you crazy bitch..."

The woman's face wore a morbid smile, her eyes filled with a lustful and frenzied desire. Her tongue licked her sexy lips, and her gaze at Moreno seemed to want to devour him alive. Moreno was terrified. This woman... she was doing this on purpose! She was going to kill him! She was a madwoman!

But it was too late to realize this; he was already powerless to struggle.

The door opened, and a man walked in. The woman turned to look at him, still wearing that perverted expression. Moreno, seeing the newcomer, felt a glimmer of hope in his eyes and pleaded with his last strength,

"Shemark...save me...help me..."

Shemark coldly watched Moreno's struggles gradually weaken until his arms fell limply to his sides. He lay motionless on the bed. She checked his pulse—no pulse; no breathing; no heartbeat. This strong man had been strangled to death by the woman's alluring, sexy legs in black stockings. The

woman's climax seemed to have subsided. She sat up with a smug smile, not bothering to avoid Shemark's gaze. She casually wiped the fluid from her lower body, then took off her clothes, looking at Shemark seductively.

"You're too late, you missed the show."

"He's dead..."

"That's right, he was a great fuck buddy, I must say he made me feel really good. We still have time, want to try again?"

The woman's eyes were blatantly seductive, and coupled with her naked body, wearing only black stockings and high heels, with fluid seeping from her genitals, her posture was undeniably lewd and alluring.

"After seeing his fate, what do you think I'll say?"

Shemark felt himself getting aroused, and had to admit, this woman did indeed possess a bewitching, lewd allure. It was hard to imagine that such a young, beautiful slut was actually the infamous international mercenary "Red Death," and of course, only the organization behind her had the ability to hack into the Russian police database and forge her identity information.

Of course, only his help could allow her to successfully infiltrate the base; he didn't know what these people were plotting, but it was definitely premeditated.

"That's different, you and I are on the same side. For now, we're on the same side..."

the woman smiled.

“Alright, enough talk…”

Looking at Moreno’s corpse, Shemark didn’t want to have anything to do with this woman. He rummaged through Moreno’s clothes and found the access card; this was the key for tomorrow.

“You should go take a shower; we have a lot to do.”

Shemark threw the card on the table and began cleaning Moreno’s body. The woman pursed her lips and went straight into the bathroom to wash herself…

An hour later, Shemark drove back to the base gate.

The guard stopped the car, and Shemark showed his access card. The guard peered inside, and Moreno handed over her card as well. After verifying their identities, the cards were returned, and they were allowed to pass. The car entered the base’s dormitory area.

The car stopped in front of Shemark’s dormitory. Moreno got out and went straight inside without a word. Before Shemark even entered the house, he saw Zhou Xu approaching from a distance. Zhou Xu frowned as he looked at Moreno's back and asked, "Did you come back with him?"

"I know that place, so I went to bring him back. After all, I'm still his instructor."

"Oh, that's good. You two... have something else to discuss?"

"I need to talk to him about some details regarding tomorrow's mission."

Shemark finished speaking, said goodnight, and turned to go inside. Zhou Xu pondered for a moment, realizing he might be overthinking things. For a fleeting moment, Moreno's figure seemed somewhat unfamiliar, but then he thought about how he wasn't that close to him to begin with, shrugged, and went back inside...

At 5 a.m. the next morning, Shemark and Moreno appeared in the equipment room, changed into their flight suits and pressure suits, put on their helmets, and completed all the equipment checks. Upon arriving at the mission room for the flight briefing, they found only two other people present: Captain Martinez of the B country's Air Force and his instructor, Major Kologin. The base commander personally gave them the briefing. Moreno remained silent throughout, as did the others, simply listening quietly. Finally, with a dismissal, the four men stood up and quickly left the mission room for the airport runway.

Two Su-27UBK heavy supersonic trainer fighters were quietly parked at the end of the runway. Ground crew had completed their checks, fuel was full, and everything was ready.

"The Jaguars are about to roar!"

Before boarding, Martinez shouted the routine command, as was customary back home.

As a fellow member of the Jaguar squadron, Moreno should have responded with a roar like a jaguar.

But this time, Moreno didn't react at all, ignoring him and heading straight for his own aircraft. Martinez stared blankly at him, wondering what was wrong.

The four men split into two groups and quickly climbed onto the plane, donning helmets. As Moreno climbed, a strange excitement flashed in his eyes. However, upon closer inspection, one would notice his eyes had turned blue—a cold, icy blue—no longer the sensual brown of his former self.

The wheel chock operator released the wheel chocks, and the ground crew scattered. The over 20-meter-long steel behemoth began to move slowly.

In the distance, Zhou Xu watched as the engines of the two planes spewed out scorching flames, roaring as they gradually lifted off the ground and slowly disappeared into the dawn sky.

To evade radar networks along the route, especially the American aerial surveillance network deployed in Central Asia, the two aircraft would maintain low or even ultra-low altitudes for the entire flight, shutting off ground communication signals and remaining completely silent on radio. This meant they wouldn't contact anyone during the flight, and their location would remain unknown except to Russian satellite monitoring centers…

Sixteen hours later, the pulse signal of Cheetah 2 disappeared from Russian satellite monitoring screens…

Seventeen hours later, in Erbil province, northern Iraq, in the Kurdish-controlled area, in Khalil,

Amir drove through the desolate desert at night, followed by two other vehicles loaded with military aviation kerosene. Because of his shady dealings, he dared not drive on public roads, relying on the headlights to keep a close eye on the road ahead.

After driving for a long time on rudimentary roads, the agreed-upon meeting place finally appeared. Someone shone a high-powered searchlight on him, and he could vaguely see two heavily armed men standing there.

Amir touched the Browning pistol tucked into his waistband, trying to bolster his courage.

He was an Algerian-Syrian immigrant who had served in the Algerian Air Force before returning to his homeland in Syria. At the time, the US military was fighting in Iraq, and northern Iraq was in a state of near anarchy and chaos, with severe shortages of supplies. He started a smuggling business with a group of people. He had a cousin who was a head of logistics in the Syrian army, and using this connection, he dragged his cousin into the business as well, smuggling military supplies from warehouses and selling them on the black market in northern Iraq.

Over the years, he had become quite successful in the area where Iraq, Syria, and Turkey meet, building a network of connections with his own money. Sometimes he also did favors for certain Americans, procuring things they couldn't do themselves—this was the price the US military paid for turning a blind eye to his smuggling activities.

Now, this was the situation; although he wasn't a US soldier, these people were far more powerful and influential than the US military.

Ahead was an airport; Amir, who frequently traveled this area, knew the place well. This was originally an abandoned airport. After the Gulf War in 1991, a UN no-fly zone was established over northern Iraq, and the Kurds declared autonomy. As a result, the airport was located within the no-fly zone and was abandoned due to its long-term inaccessibility. In 2003, US airborne troops occupied the airport after invading from the north, but later withdrew from the base.

Now, the local bosses are those notorious mercenaries featured on television, or, to put it more politely, private security contractors.

There are several oil fields near the base, and a Western company called Tuoli Energy Development Group has signed a contract with the new Iraqi government. Those mercenaries were hired by the US Department of Defense to protect the company's executives.

Amir knew these mercenaries were ruthless professional killers, and the power behind them was unfathomable. The US military at least had military law to govern them, but these men were uncontrollable; they could shoot anyone they saw, even ignoring the US military. Now that the US had withdrawn, they had become proxies for US operations overseas.

The car stopped, and Amir walked over, raising his hand to indicate he meant no harm.

Two men approached, wearing black beanies and old-fashioned tri-color desert camouflage. Their bulletproof vests were loaded with magazines and grenades, and the weapons they carried were high-quality HK416 assault rifles. Judging from their tactical handling, they were experienced and skilled marksmen.

"You're late."

"We encountered a patrol at the border and had to take a detour."

The flashlight beam shone on the two vehicles behind. "Where's the cargo?"

"It's in the back vehicle."

"Follow me."

The SUV led the way, the airport's wire mesh gate opened, and the trucks arrived at the runway.

"Unload the cargo over there."

The gunman pointed to the open space beside the runway, then handed Amir several bundles of US dollars.

"Hurry up and get going after you've unloaded, don't dawdle."

"Okay, okay."

Amir told the people in the two vehicles behind to unload quickly, his mind racing. What were these guys up to? This aviation kerosene was for military aircraft, could this airport be planning something today...?

Never mind, these guys weren't good people anyway. It wouldn't be surprising if they were up to some shady scheme, he shouldn't meddle.

Soon the oil drums were unloaded, and Amir didn't dare delay, driving away from the airport. But not long after, he heard a familiar engine roar. When he served in the Algerian Air Force, there was a period when he could hear this roar almost every day.

That was the roar of the high-powered turbofan engine of the Su-30 AF-31F fighter jet. Amir thought the sound was familiar, and leaned out the window to look back. He seemed to see a dark shadow descending in mid-air…

The plane slowly came to a stop at the end of the runway, and the two pilots disembarked. Armed mercenaries quickly surrounded them. Shemark looked at them with some tension, but Moreno seemed unconcerned. After removing his helmet, he grabbed his face and ripped off the mask in a few quick movements, revealing a head of striking blond hair and cold, icy blue eyes.

A tall Western man in a suit was waiting for them.

“Your skills are not bad,”

the woman chuckled, seeing it as just a fun game.

“Stop talking nonsense, I need to talk to my son!”

Shemark interrupted her.

“Of course.”

The man in the suit dialed a number and handed the phone to Shemark. Hearing his son's voice on the other end of the line, Shemark finally felt relieved.

“We will keep our promise. Your son will receive the best treatment; you can rest assured about that.”

“What’s next?”

“Of course, we won’t go back to Uzbekistan. You have a new destination.”

The man pulled out a map.

“After refueling, cross the Turkish border, head south through Jordan to the Red Sea. Be careful not to enter Israeli territory; I don’t want you to get shot down by those lunatics. After crossing the Red Sea, this is the final stop.”

The man pointed to a location in East Africa…

Meanwhile, the Russian and B country governments simultaneously received a chilling report: one of the two fighter jets conducting Operation Cheetah had gone missing en route.

Nineteen hours later, one plane returned safely; the other was completely missing.

Twenty hours later, Russian intelligence networks in the countries along the planned route reported that the governments of the countries and regions where the planes were located had not reacted, clearly unaware of the uninvited guests crossing the border.

Twenty-two hours later, Captain Moreno’s body was found. Meanwhile, police and Russian Federal Security Service agents discovered that Shemak's child, who was hospitalized, had been discharged shortly after his takeoff and disappeared without a trace. The $ 20 million

Su-27UBK heavy fighter jet that Moreno and Shemak were piloting had mysteriously vanished …

**************** ... "Why are you sitting here? Where's Lao He?" Lü Zhe remembered that He Gong was sitting next to him when he boarded the plane. Su Chen's seat, 33L, was with Hong Shitai and his group behind them. Last time he saw them, they were chatting and laughing in the back. He wondered how they ended up here. He glanced back and saw Lao He sitting in 33L. The flight attendant didn't seem to react much, probably because she hadn't paid attention. According to the rules, passengers can't change seats on a plane, but if it's an isolated incident, no one usually cares. "Is it Hong Shitai..." Lü Zhe knew Hong Shitai's reputation in the company. This man wasn't from the company. The company's trip to Africa to buy mines was a partnership with a European family. This family used to have colonial territories in Africa, but withdrew after the revolution and is now returning. Lü Zhe had heard of this family. They mainly dealt in mining during their colonial period in Africa and had extensive connections in the industry. Moreover, many large international energy and mining companies have shares in this family. That's why the company chose to cooperate with this family this time. Hong Shitai was the representative sent by this family. This guy supposedly spent many years in Africa and had quite a few connections there. He was capable at work, but his character was questionable, especially his womanizing. In the six months since he came to China, he had slept with several female employees in the company, and he would harass and flirt with anyone even slightly attractive. Many people had complained about him, but because he was a representative sent by a partner company, the company's higher-ups didn't want to offend him, allowing him to remain arrogant to this day. (Episode 2, March 1st ) He had been grumbling about Su Chen sitting with him, and now that he remembered it, he felt a little annoyed, but quickly forgot about it. "What are you thinking about?" His wife pinched his arm again, turned her face away, and ignored him. The turbulence lessened considerably, and the plane became stable again. Lü Zhe looked at Su Chen, but the woman remained silent and didn't look at him. "I didn't say anything. I was just wondering if Hong Shitai's body odor made you come here. Why are you reacting so strongly?" "You're the one with body odor! I didn't even care about you, and you wouldn't even let me sit down!"

As Su Chen stood up to leave, the plane started shaking again, startling her so much that she screamed and slumped back into her seat. This time the turbulence was more intense than before, and Lü Zhe's arm was firmly gripped again.

A female voice in French made an announcement over the loudspeaker, her voice steady and sweet. She asked passengers not to panic, explaining that the plane was only experiencing turbulence and that it would pass quickly. However, Lü Zhe was skeptical. He noticed that the Ethiopian Airlines flight attendant in the bright yellow uniform across the aisle seemed a little stiff, and the sound of the plane was frightening—like a beat-up old bus rattling and clanging.

He didn't know how long the flight had been. Ever since boarding in Beijing, he had been resting with his eyes closed, in a semi-conscious state. Partly to adjust to the time difference, and partly because he had nothing else to do. Once on the plane, he was essentially handing over his weight to the plane; if anything happened, there was nowhere to run in the air, so he could only close his eyes and sleep.

The guy to his left, it was hard to tell if he was Indian or Arab. He boarded the plane late at night at an Indian airport, and immediately wrapped the seat blanket around his head and fell asleep. Even now, with the plane rocking so much, he hadn't woken up.

Looking around, almost no one was sleeping except for this guy; everyone was huddled anxiously in their seats, some coughing.

The plane was mostly filled with Chinese passengers. Experienced Chinese people flying in Africa mostly flew Ethiopian Airlines. Air France was utter garbage and not an option; the ticket price was twice that of Ethiopian Airlines, and you'd have to endure the idiot airport police and immigration officials' "special attention" when transferring in Paris.

Ethiopian Airlines, on the other hand, was not only cheaper but also offered excellent service. After all, it was a three-star airline, and its brand was among the most prestigious in Africa. At this moment, most of the passengers seemed very tense, expressionless, some whispering to each other, but thankfully no one lost their composure.

"What's on the announcement?"

Lü Zhe decided to distract his wife. Su Chen was on this trip as a translator; French was her major in university.

"You can speak French too, can't you?"

The plane was bumping, and the airflow outside the window carried fog. Su Chen only dared to hold onto his arm, not daring to move. She had no mind to listen to his idle chatter.

"My French is nowhere near as good as yours."

"Stop joking around, are we going to get into trouble?"

Su Chen was truly ashen-faced, and her eyes showed obvious panic.

"Nothing will happen! What nonsense are you talking about?"

Lu Zhe wasn't really sure either. He was no stranger to airplanes; he had served in the army in Huangpi, Hubei, and had parachuted from planes countless times. He knew that sometimes inexplicable situations could occur in the air, and no matter how thorough the inspections were beforehand, problems would always arise. This wasn't just true for transport planes, but even for fighter jets.

He had been to the seaside when he went on field training exercises with the troops. He had chatted with a ground crew member at a naval aviation airport, who told him that when fighter jets went out for training, the bombs in their cannons were all live ammunition. In case the landing gear couldn't be lowered on the return flight, they would go to a nearby air force firing range or fly to an uninhabited area of the sea to fire. The shock would sometimes allow the landing gear to be lowered.

This was the case for fighter jets, not to mention the lower-spec civilian aircraft.

Su Chen fell silent, probably realizing that what she had said was unlucky, so she continued to shrink into her seat, but her hand still gripped his arm tightly.

Lu Zhe had nothing to do and was nervous, so he subconsciously started turning his head around, looking around. From his angle, he couldn't see many people. He could only see the backs of heads in front of him, and behind him, he could only make out a patch of nearby faces. Apart from black people, there were mostly Asian faces. Looking closely, there were quite a few women, but attractive ones were rare, though not nonexistent. Apart from the flight attendants, at least his wife Su Chen was a beauty, and the woman sitting behind Su Chen was also quite good-looking.

Crowding back, Lu Zhe couldn't find anything appetizing in the sea of people, so he glanced at the woman behind him a few more times.

She sat in the row behind him, directly behind Su Chen. She was probably around Su Chen's age, Asian, with beautiful long, slightly reddish-brown hair, but wore a pair of cool, dark amber-colored goggles (the kind American soldiers wear in Iraq on TV), obscuring her face. She was dressed like a tourist.

Next to her was a man; he wasn't sure if he was her boyfriend. This guy was quite ordinary; Lu Zhe felt he was at least better looking than him.

Lu Zhe secretly glanced at her a few more times, and because he couldn't see her face clearly, he started fantasizing.

Was this woman a tourist? Or on a business trip? When did she sit here? How come I didn't notice? His gaze lingered on the woman's face, but then she looked up and met his eyes. Behind the lenses, Lu Zhe seemed to sense something sharp in her gaze. He gave an awkward smile and quickly looked away. The man next to the woman in sunglasses looked very nervous, constantly glancing around.

Lü Zhe turned his head back and sat up straight, thinking, "What's with the pretense? Wearing sunglasses on a plane." He figured she was definitely not as pretty as his wife. His gaze drifted to Su Chen, only to find her glaring at him.

"Have you stared enough?"

she muttered coldly. A dangerous signal, Lü Zhe realized he'd gotten carried away and quickly sat up straight.

"What do you mean, 'have you stared enough'? I was just checking where the emergency exits are."

He said it as if it were the truth. For married men, lying without batting an eye is a basic skill.

"Hmph!"

Su Chen snorted, her face frosty, but her hand still gripped her husband's arm tightly.

His wife, Su Chen, was a campus beauty in the foreign language department of university. She even bore a resemblance to Hong Kong's Kelly Chen, with captivating eyes. After the crisis passed, Lü Zhe's mind started wandering again, comparing Su Chen to the woman behind him. He felt Su Chen was slightly better, at least he wasn't as pretentious and cool as this woman.

Despite these thoughts, Lü Zhe was still trying hard to recall when the woman boarded the plane. Finally, he vaguely remembered that they boarded at Douala Airport, but he was half asleep at the time and hadn't noticed how attractive the woman was. Lü Zhe

thought of Douala as a terrible place. He had looked out the window and seen that Cameroon's economic capital airport resembled a long-distance bus station in a Chinese county town—basic, dirty, and chaotic, hot and smelly, with no order whatsoever in security checks, customs, and boarding; it was a chaotic mess, like a refugee camp fleeing a disaster.

He fantasized about how hot this beautiful woman would look in the sexy lingerie Su Chen often wore, while glancing around. Only then did he realize the young flight attendant had an Asian face. He'd heard that Ethiopian Airlines hired Chinese flight attendants, but hadn't paid much attention during boarding. The flight attendant noticed Lü Zhe looking at her and, while trying to maintain her balance, gave him a professional smile.

Lü Zhe stood up, holding onto the back of the seat, and wobbled as he moved. Su Chen looked at him, puzzled, wondering what he was up to now.

"Sir, is there anything I can help you with?"

The Chinese flight attendant seemed unsteady on her feet, holding onto something. She was probably a young, inexperienced flight attendant, already flustered by such situations, and this man's presence only added to the chaos.

"I need to go to the restroom..."

Lu Zhe only said this much before Su Chen pulled him down to sit. Although it wasn't her first time on a plane, her face turned pale and sweat poured down her forehead. She pressed Lu Zhe down in the seat and scolded him in a low voice, "What's wrong with you? Why did you have to go now of all times? Are you going to die if you hold it in for a while? Sit down, sit down."

Even without her making a move, Lü Zhe felt his legs swaying violently, and he half-slumped back down. It wasn't that he absolutely needed to use the restroom; it was just a habit—he felt the urge to urinate when nervous.

"I really need to pee..."

Lü Zhe tried to stand up again, but with a sudden jolt, the overhead bin lid opened with a whoosh, and his suitcase slid out. Hearing the noise, Lü Zhe knew something was wrong and instinctively bent over, bracing himself for a fall.

But the suitcase didn't fall. Turning his head, he saw the cool-looking woman behind him had somehow stood up and single-handedly caught the half-slid-out suitcase in mid-air. Despite the turbulence, she remained steady.

Lü Zhe thanked her profusely. At that moment, a flight attendant came over and helped put the suitcase back in its place. The woman said "You're welcome," smiled politely, and sat down again. Lü Zhe then realized that she wasn't just pretending to be cool; she genuinely was. She had a model-like figure, sexy and tall, and her arm strength was definitely considerable—at least stronger than his.

He knew the weight of the suitcase; he'd initially needed both hands to lift it and stuff it in, while this woman, despite the turbulence, seemed to hold it up with just one hand, and it looked effortless.

Was she trained? Her reaction was incredibly fast. He couldn't tell. But she was definitely Chinese; her accent seemed to have a hint of Northeastern Chinese.

The sunglasses-wearing woman's actions attracted the attention of those around her. Interest in beautiful women knows no borders, regardless of nationality. However, at this moment, the plane was still shaking, and everyone was panicking. Soon, everyone's attention shifted away from her.

The turbulence in the cabin continued; the air currents seemed quite strong. Several flight attendants came out, constantly trying to calm the passengers. Some seemed experienced, maintaining composure and professional smiles, but others looked like Su Chen, clearly quite frightened.

Looking at the passengers, there was a mix of emotions; some were calm, some were panicked. There were a dozen or so Black foreigners on board; some were making the sign of the cross, presumably praying for divine protection. Lu Zhe's heart began to race. Although he had flown many times, this was the first time he had encountered such a situation. His heart pounded, and the more he pounded, the more he felt the urge to urinate. He clenched his legs tightly and kept rubbing them. Looking at the company executives sitting nearby, they didn't seem panicked at all; their faces were ashen.

The higher the rank, the more afraid of death—a wise saying indeed. Why come to Africa to buy minerals when there were so many other options? And now, before they even arrived, this happened. There must be many of them feeling wronged. Lu Zhe knew that some of them were using the opportunity to use public funds for a trip. The kid named Bai Peng was supposedly a relative of one of the company's bigwigs.

Taking advantage of public resources is always a good thing, but when it comes to the point of costing lives, anyone would feel wronged. Now, all he could do was hope for an Ethiopian Airlines plane. Although Ethiopian Airlines was the best airline in Africa, it didn't mean it wouldn't have an accident.

In fact, an Ethiopian Airlines 737 had crashed in the Mediterranean Sea last year.

Of course, thinking about these things now was just making himself miserable.

After a while, the turbulence lessened. This time, it didn't happen again, and the plane resumed a stable flight.

The announcement came on again, this time the turbulence had finally passed safely, and many people visibly breathed a sigh of relief. Lü Zhe heard people letting out long sighs, and even a few older men clapping and cheering happily.

Su Chen was still holding Lü Zhe's arm, and he could feel her palms sweating.

"Okay, okay, I'm fine now. Can I go to the toilet now?"

Lü Zhe said, standing up for the third time. Su Chen pouted and looked at him, seemingly angry about something. Lü Zhe noticed that her eyes seemed to be glancing back intentionally or unintentionally, and he immediately understood. Looking at that cool girl, she didn't even lift her eyelids or look straight ahead. He thought to himself that this woman's jealousy was truly unreasonable. She just helped him out, and he was still upset about it. Besides, her temperament was just different from his.

When he finished urinating and came back, he found that Lao He had returned. Su Chen returned to his original seat, chatting and laughing with Hong Shitai, occasionally glancing in his direction.

"Damn it, you have the nerve to talk back to me. What kind of behavior do you have?"

At 1:25 PM, the plane landed at Libreville Airport, the capital of Gabon. After passengers disembarked and boarded, the plane began taxiing on the runway, but after a short distance, it couldn't pick up speed. Some people noticed something was wrong. Lü Zhe began to worry, fearing the plane might overshoot the runway or crash due to insufficient speed for takeoff. He worried that encountering turbulence in the air and then this happening on the ground—was this business trip destined for bad luck?

He was restless, wishing he could jump out and give the plane a push. But as they approached the end of the runway, the plane still hadn't left the ground, forcing it to slow down and finally stop. The cabin erupted in discussion. The announcement said it was a minor technical malfunction, and passengers were asked to remain in their seats and wait patiently.

An hour later, the plane still hadn't moved.

The cabin had become very hot. Since the plane had lost power, the air conditioning had stopped, and passengers began to restless in the stuffy cabin, ignoring the notice not to leave their seats and pacing back and forth in the aisle.

Lü Zhe also stood up. In this temperature, without air conditioning, it was truly unbearable. He first went to Liu Chen's side at the back, only to find several company leaders looking impatient and uneasy. Their experience in the air had left them shaken, and now the plane was malfunctioning on the ground. Back home, they would probably have been given a hard time, but here abroad, they could only sit there and sulk.

"What's going on?"

the superiors demanded. As a junior employee, he had to be quick to understand; he couldn't expect the leaders to go there themselves. So Lü Zhe strolled over to the catering room at the rear of the plane, where several Ethiopian Airlines flight attendants were standing and talking, along with two passengers.

Surprisingly, one of them was a guy named Bai Peng. He looked like he'd just graduated high school and was trying to flirt with the flight attendants in broken English.

Well, this kid's got potential; he's so young and already trying to pick up foreign flight attendants.

Bai Peng saw him, chuckled, and wasn't embarrassed at all. He was actually quite good-looking, just a bit glib, which is actually quite popular these days. But unfortunately, his broken English was completely incomprehensible to the flight attendants.

There was another guy, a tall, handsome, and masculine man. The flight attendants were mainly talking to him.

Lü Zhe came in, greeted them, and asked some questions, but the flight attendants didn't know the answers. Joining the chat group, Lü Zhe found the tall, handsome man quite talkative and tactful, exuding a calm and experienced aura. They chatted quite congenially. The man introduced himself as a South American Chinese named Zhou Xu, on a business trip to Africa. Several flight attendants' eyes were drawn to him. He suggested opening the side doors for ventilation, which the flight attendants agreed to. Although the outside air was hot, it was fresh and much more comfortable to breathe. With

the Chinese flight attendant inside, Bai Peng finally had a chance to use his charm and started pestering her.

Chatting with a beautiful woman made the time pass relatively easily. An hour later, the plane's announcement stated a malfunction and the plane could not take off, instructing passengers to leave the aircraft with their carry-on luggage and wait in the departure lounge. The flight attendants, not understanding French, asked Lü Zhe what the announcement meant. Lü Zhe explained it to them and quickly relayed it to his colleagues. Everyone cursed their bad luck and, with no other choice, carried their luggage off the plane and onto the sweltering asphalt tarmac to the departure lounge.

In the departure hall, several Chinese people from Equatorial Guinea and Gabon gathered around Lü Zhe when they saw he spoke French, saying they didn't know what was going on or what to do. Lü Zhe asked airport staff, and the answer he received was that the plane would take off as soon as it was repaired.

"The plane will be repaired? When will that be?"

A chorus of complaints rippled through the company, but there was nothing they could do; when you're on someone else's turf, you have to listen to them. Everyone found a place to sit and rest, while those who smoked rushed off to the designated smoking area to satisfy their cravings. Lü Zhe followed suit.

There he ran into Bai Peng, who was puffing out a cigarette.

"What are you doing here? Weren't you chasing after that girl?"

"Sigh, it's a long story."

Bai Peng made an exaggerated expression of disappointment. Lü Zhe felt a connection with the guy and started chatting with him. This kid really was taking the opportunity to travel. He was just 18, in his final semester of high school, and his family had basically arranged his university life, so he was skipping classes and just wanted to have some fun. When asked whose relative he was, the guy dodged the question, pointing to the side and saying, "That woman is the one sitting behind you, right?"

Lu Zhe looked closely and saw it was indeed the cool woman in sunglasses. Looking at her now, she really did have a great figure—tall and fit, especially her long, sexy legs. She wore tight black pencil pants and high heels, exuding a fantastic aura that attracted many eyes.

"Damn, this woman's aura is fucking amazing. She's practically like Nikita from that American TV show."

"What?"

Lu Zhe didn't understand.

"Nikita, you don't watch American TV shows? You mean Li Meiqi, Maggie Q, the one in Mission: Impossible 3? Didn't see that? Die Hard 4? Um… how should I put it, um, right, you've seen Andy Lau in that Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, right? The one with Cao Cao's granddaughter, that's Li Meiqi."

At this point, Lu Zhe finally understood. Looking closely, she really did have that vibe. Clean and crisp, giving off a very refreshing and decisive cool vibe—that was the feeling this woman gave off.

"What's that guy next to her doing? Is he her boyfriend?"

Bai Peng started commenting on the man next to the cool-looking woman in sunglasses again. Honestly, no one would find the two of them together incongruous. The man looked a bit sleazy, giving off a furtive vibe, and he even walked with a slight hunch.

Time ticked by in this tedious wait…

After about two hours of waiting in the departure lounge, someone announced over a loudspeaker that flight ET904 had been cancelled, and passengers were to wait in the lounge for dinner, after which they would be taken to their hotels. There was an uproar. Many people started making phone calls. Several company executives looked displeased, and many Chinese passengers also appeared angry. Back home, this might have led to a disturbance. However, seeing the burly, armed black airport security guards, no one dared to take the lead.

Half an hour later, dinner arrived—fast food unloaded from the plane. Everyone got a serving based on their ticket and started eating. Of course, even the most delicious food tasted bland now, and everyone was wondering where they would stay that night.

After dinner, airport staff led everyone through customs and onto buses. The bus drove for about ten minutes before arriving at the Laico Hotel in Libreville, a five-star hotel on the Atlantic coast. Airport staff assisted the hotel reception in arranging accommodations for all the Chinese guests, finally letting out a sigh of relief.

"Hehe, I didn't expect to turn misfortune into blessing; at the last minute, I get to stay in a five-star hotel for the night," said

Lü Zhe, having finished showering and changed into clean clothes. Su Chen lay in bed watching CNN news; of course, they couldn't receive domestic television channels here.

"What's so good about this? It might waste a lot of time."

"So what if it's wasted time? What's it to you? You're not the boss, why are

you worrying about that?" Lü Zhe put on his slippers. "Anyway, let's just treat this trip as a vacation, we've made a living here for one night. Come on, stop watching TV, let's go for a walk." "I don't want to go, why are you running around ? We don't know anyone here

. I heard that robberies in Africa target Chinese people." "What 's the point of robbing people in this restaurant! I'm not going out, I'll just walk around in this building, what are you afraid of?" At this moment, CNN reported that an Iranian passenger plane had crashed northwest of Tehran, killing all 168 people on board. Lü Zhe watched the TV, still shaken by the plane malfunction during the day. He muttered, "Luckily we didn't take off, otherwise ET904 might have been on CNN too." "Sigh, I always feel uneasy about this trip to Africa... I feel so anxious, sigh..." Su Chen frowned, seemingly lost in thought. "You finally managed to get out here, and look at you. I just asked around, and they said there's a bar on the second floor. Let's go grab a drink, and you'll be fine after that. Come on, don't stay cooped up in the room, it's so boring. The more you stay cooped up, the more you'll overthink things. A little drink will calm you down." "I'm not going." Su Chen buried her face in the pillow. "If you're not going, I'll go by myself." Seeing that the woman didn't react, Lü Zhe left the room. The bar was on the second floor. When he got there, he saw quite a few Chinese people, probably just there to kill time. He glanced around but didn't see many people from the company, but he did see that annoying guy, Hong Shitai. He saw him fawning over a woman at the bar, and upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the cool girl in sunglasses from the plane. Now she had taken off her sunglasses and was wearing a tight red dress. Lü Zhe hadn't expected this cool girl to suddenly become so sexy and hot, but Hong Shitai was buzzing around her like a fly. The woman, however, seemed indifferent, offering only half-hearted responses. " Damn, can't you see she doesn't want to talk to you? Why are you wasting your breath?" Finally, the woman turned and left, leaving Hong Shitai alone. Seeing Hong Shitai's bewildered expression, Lü Zhe secretly rejoiced. The only person he recognized here was Hong Shitai, but Lü Zhe didn't want to talk to him. Hong Shitai stood there for a while, then, finding it rather pointless, finished his drink and left the bar. Seeing that no one he knew was around, and drinking alone wasn't very interesting, Lü Zhe turned to leave, only to see the cool woman standing a short distance behind him, smiling and raising her glass to him. "Wow, it seems I'm having a lucky day with women." Lü Zhe's spirits lifted instantly… ****************************************** Su Chen left the room and headed for the elevator. She tossed and turned, unable to sleep. For some reason, she felt a vague unease about this business trip. This was her first time in Africa, this godforsaken place. Her previous impressions of Africa were limited to war, famine, and AIDS—a barbaric land, teeming with warlords, criminals, and primitive cannibalistic tribes. Was this a place for humans? She couldn't even imagine. Later, after researching online, she learned that the company's destination, Country E, was no peaceful place either. It had been at war with its neighbor, Country A, for the past two years, leaving the land scorched and rivers of blood. Although a temporary ceasefire had been declared through UN mediation and the efforts of the peace factions in both countries, especially Country E's new president, the state of war remained in effect. Thousands of troops were still facing off on the front lines, only temporarily halted due to the rainy season and unsuitable roads for heavy weaponry. Perhaps once the rainy season ended and the ground dried, the tanks would be moving again. Su Chen couldn't understand why anyone would choose such a chaotic country to do business. This was truly bad luck; if war broke out, she might never be able to return.

Her husband, Lü Zhe, wasn't worried at all; he was a carefree guy. He said things like "fortune favors the bold," and that they were doing business here precisely because of the war; otherwise, who would bother with them in peaceful places? Currently, China's iron ore is being strangled internationally, with prices skyrocketing year after year. Without finding its own mines, it will always be at the mercy of others. And now, the mineral resources in most peaceful parts of the world are basically monopolized by a few large energy and mining groups like Tuoli. If China wants to buy its own mines, it has to go to places others dare not go.

But even then, it's impossible to escape the influence of those international monopolies. Su Chen knew that the European family represented by Hong Shitai was one of the major shareholders of the Tuoli Group, according to Hong Shitai himself. If the company wanted to buy mines in Africa in the future, it would inevitably have to face the covert influence of monopolies like Tuoli.

Of course, this wasn't something a mere translator like her needed to worry about; she just wanted to find Lü Zhe. When she was alone in the room, she felt a little uneasy again. This was her weakness; in unfamiliar environments without familiar faces around, she would become timid.

The elevator doors opened, revealing two elderly Black men standing inside, staring at her. Their expressions made Su Chen's heart pound.

She hesitated to go in, but the two men held the doors open, gesturing for her to enter in a string of gibberish. Su Chen felt it would be impolite to refuse, almost like discrimination, so she forced herself in, offering a strained smile that looked more like a grimace. Once inside, she glanced at the security camera in the corner of the ceiling, positioning herself at its angle, her back to the two men.

The elevator moved on, and time seemed to crawl. She felt the two men behind her watching her, and goosebumps rose on her exposed neck. Were these two bad guys?

Finally reaching the second floor, Su Chen practically fled the moment the elevator doors opened. However, the two Black men followed her out. Looking back, she saw them staring at her with lewd smiles. Su Chen's legs nearly gave way. Forcing herself to remain calm, she entered the bar, only to find her husband, Lü Zhe, nowhere to be found, nor any acquaintances from her company. She tried to turn back to her room, but the two Black men blocked her way.

They spoke in a language she didn't understand—neither English nor French—and Su Chen couldn't comprehend a word. Then, the two men started touching her inappropriately, attempting to grope her. Su Chen recoiled in fear. Even a fool would know these two men had ill intentions. As they pressed closer, Su Chen was about to scream when Hong Shitai appeared out of nowhere.

He grabbed Su Chen's arm, glaring at the two Black men.

Seeing a man present, the two Black men backed down, shrugged, and left. Su Chen breathed a sigh of relief, her heart pounding. Hong Shitai didn't let go, still holding her arm. Su Chen didn't feel anything was wrong; at this point, she really didn't dare leave Hong Shitai.

"What were those two doing?"

"I don't know. I met them in the elevator. They followed me all the way, from upstairs to downstairs. It scared me to death."

"Where's your husband? Why isn't he with you?"

"He came down first. I came down to look for him. This hotel is so chaotic."

"I didn't see him here. I was at the bar the whole time. I didn't see him come."

"Where did that guy go?"

Su Chen was both angry and anxious.

"How about this, have a drink to calm your nerves, then I'll take you back to your room. Don't wander around alone anymore, in case those two follow you again."

"Will those two come back?"

Su Chen seemed still shaken.

"Who knows?"

Hong Shitai gestured, took a glass from the bartender, and handed it to Su Chen.

"This alcohol isn't too strong, drink it to calm your nerves. I'm also about to go back, you should go home and get some sleep, don't come out again, you might have to get up early tomorrow."

Hong Shitai said, checking the time on his phone. After Su Chen finished her drink, he immediately took out his money to pay the bill. Su Chen was in a hurry to pay, but Hong Shitai stopped her.

"Next time you can treat me, don't be so polite."

Su Chen felt very embarrassed, so the two left the bar. But when they got to the elevator, Su Chen felt something was wrong. Her head started to spin, she felt hot inside, her mouth was dry, and her reactions became sluggish.

"What's wrong?"

Hong Shitai's face moved closer to Su Chen's.

"I... um... um..."

Su Chen felt particularly impulsive at that moment, her heart was racing, and she felt a strong need for a man's tenderness. Looking at the man in front of her with hazy eyes, she somehow felt that the man holding her was her husband, Lü Zhe, and her body involuntarily went limp in Hong Shitai's arms.

A smug, lewd smile crept across Hong Shitai's lips as he helped Su Chen out of the elevator and into his guest room…

Meanwhile, in room 6008.

“Are you an employee of Dongxing? You work at Dongxing?”

The cool woman seemed to scrutinize Lü Zhe again. “Dongxing is a big company, this is a good place.”

Lü Zhe didn't know how he'd ended up in her room; the woman was very talkative and always had something to say, and he was having a pleasant conversation with her. The man who had come with her wasn't in the room, and he didn't know where he was. But Lü Zhe didn't care; he figured he wouldn't lose out if things continued this way.

“No, we're a subsidiary of Dongxing, we're in the mining business.”

“Dongxing has grown really fast these past few years. Your boss's surname is Hou, right?”

“Yes, surname Hou.”

Lü Zhe had heard a bit about his boss; he was rumored to be a princeling or something like that from Beijing, with a very powerful background. He'd started with air purifiers and gradually expanded into various industries, and his net worth was said to be in the hundreds of millions. He'd also heard that their boss had seven or eight wives, and the government didn't care at all. Rich people were really different from ordinary people; they could have as many wives as they wanted.

"Our company used to work with Dongxing."

"What industry are you in?"

"Hong Kong, Xunjie Investment Consulting, ever heard of it?"

"Uh… I don't know much about it."

Lu Zhe hadn't heard of the company, but his mind wasn't on it at all; he was completely captivated by the woman in front of him.

What did this woman mean? To her, I was a complete stranger, yet she was leading me inside. Could a complete stranger have so much to talk about? Lu Zhe was certain he wouldn't. Was she interested in me? Lu Zhe wasn't sure, but he felt the woman's gaze was somewhat ambiguous, and some of her unintentional gestures seemed to carry a flirtatious undertone.

But there was no doubt that this woman was interested in him; otherwise, why would she have chatted with him for so long?

"And you, you haven't told me about yourself yet,"

Lu Zhe said, looking at her.

"What do you want to know?"

The woman's gaze became more direct, staring directly at him. Lu Zhe felt the content of her gaze was extremely explicit, like Su Chen staring at him like that during sex, trying to seduce him.

"Let's start with how you address me. I can ask for your contact information later."

Lu Zhe felt he was having delusions; even a woman like Hong Shitai wouldn't be interested in him, let alone someone like him.

He steadied himself and made a joke.

"Do you need to know my name?"

The woman looked at him. "We're both adults. I know what you want. Let's get straight to the point."

"What?"

Before Lu Zhe could react, the cool woman had already straddled him, riding on his lap, lowering her head to cup his face, and opening her mouth to kiss his lips. Lu Zhe was taken aback, not expecting this woman to be so direct. He instinctively wanted to push her away, but his hands on her body turned into passionate caresses and embraces.

This woman... what's going on? Am I that attractive? There was no warning at all, she just went ahead and did it. Is she looking for a one-night stand?

His mind was a mess, then went blank. Lu Zhe held the woman's slender, shapely waist, lifting his face to meet her lips. The woman's buttocks swayed on his lap, rubbing against Lu Zhe's sensitive areas, and soon he felt an erection through his pants.

"You're hard, aren't you coming..."

The woman hooked her arms around Lu Zhe's neck and climbed off his lap. Lu Zhe involuntarily stood up, then embraced the woman and caressed her body. The woman's reaction was far more passionate than he had expected; she immediately took off her top, then ripped off Lu Zhe's clothes. The sexy black lace bra almost made the lust in Lu Zhe's lower abdomen burst forth from his eyes.

"Oh... touch me..."

the woman moaned. Lu Zhe slowly laid her down, then saw the fiery red phoenix tattoo on her bare back.

Lu Zhe's movements slowly stopped, and the woman looked at him, puzzled.

"I'll... take a shower first..."

Lu Zhe's expression made the woman understand everything, and she gestured for him to go ahead. When Lu Zhe came out of the shower, the woman was already dressed again.

"I'm sorry... I... I don't want to betray my wife..."

Lu Zhe smiled bitterly and showed her his wedding ring.

“It’s okay, you’re a good man. This proves my judgment.”

The woman smiled. “The one who sat next to you on the plane?”

“Yes, we’ve been married for four years.”

“Have you had children yet?”

“No, we’re planning to this year.”

“Well, it seems we’re not meant to be.”

The woman sighed softly. Lu Zhe almost changed his mind. He didn’t know how he had suddenly become so self-controlled, suddenly thinking of his wife, Su Chen. He felt incredibly awkward standing there, so he wanted to say something but didn’t know what to say, and could only open the door and leave.

After the door closed, the woman’s expression was like cold, hard steel. She remained silent for a while, then took out her phone and made a call.

"Hey, I've got it all set up. It's that guy named Lü Zhe."

"Phew, I got it."

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing."

Hong Shitai threw down the phone and continued to pound on Su Chen's fair, plump buttocks. He was completely naked, and Su Chen was also naked except for the black stockings on her legs. Their genitals were pressed tightly together. Su Chen was lying on the edge of the bed, making muffled moans. Hong Shitai pressed down on her buttocks and kept moving his waist, the sound of flesh slapping against flesh was lewd and crisp.

"Oh...oh..."

Hong Shitai breathed heavily and pressed his upper body against Su Chen's naked back. Su Chen's legs involuntarily hooked back, her black stockinged legs rubbing against the man behind her.

"Oh... um... husband..."

The man behind her intensified his movements. Su Chen's mind was completely consumed by lust, and she had no idea who the man raping her was. She only subconsciously felt that it must be her husband, Lü Zhe. At the same time, she felt that the man behind her was so strong, completely filling her up. Every friction of flesh against flesh produced a fiery pleasure. At this moment, she only wanted the man behind her to possess her more fiercely. She needed more intense sex to release her lust.

Hong Shitai became more and more excited. He felt that this woman's body was incredibly comfortable to have sex with. He flipped her body over, held her legs, and knelt on the bed. Facing the camera, he thrust upwards from below, and the lustful fluid from their genitals splashed down, running down her legs.

Su Chen tightly hugged the man's neck, twisting her waist wildly. The man's powerful thrusts brought her to the peak again and again, almost melting her. Her wanton moans became increasingly high-pitched.

"Oh... huff... huff..."

Hong Shitai began to gasp, waves of pleasure rushing to his brain. He shoved the woman down onto the bed, pressing his entire body against hers, draping her legs over his shoulders. He licked her black-stockinged feet while relentlessly pounding into her like a pile driver. Su Chen's vulva was so thoroughly penetrated that the flesh constantly turned outwards, bringing with it a lot of white, ribbon-like fluid.

At the final moment of climax, Hong Shitai gritted his teeth and thrust all the way in, his thick, hot semen gushing out and filling the woman's cavity.

Su Chen was now in a dazed state of orgasm, her legs, clad in black stockings, spread apart, her vulva wet and messy, her swollen labia slightly parted, occasionally leaking a trace of milky-white, hot, sticky fluid…

When Lü Zhe returned to the room, he didn't find Su Chen.

Lying in bed, recalling the events that had just transpired, he felt a mix of emotions. He had almost cheated on his wife. He never imagined that such an encounter would happen abroad, in Africa. It was something out of a movie, yet it had actually happened to him. Even more unbelievable was that he had actually refused.

This was the first time he'd ever been able to remain so composed, and he was even a little impressed with himself.

"Lu Zhe, you're a real saint! You didn't even eat the delicious food in front of you? Are you brain-dead?" he thought. "It's too late to regret it now. Are you going to go back to her? That woman didn't even give her name; she clearly just wanted a one-night stand.

And you don't have to take responsibility later. Tell me, what were you thinking back then…

sigh…I really don't know what I was thinking…"

Lost in thought, Su Chen returned. Lu Zhe asked her where she'd been, and Su Chen said she'd gone to the bar to find him. When asked where he'd been, Lu Zhe gave a vague answer, and Su Chen didn't press him. They went to bed, but whether they actually slept that night was anyone's guess.

The next day, the hotel breakfast felt like a blessing in disguise. As expected of a five-star hotel, it was the most lavish breakfast Lu Zhe had ever had. There were over a hundred kinds of bread, sausages, fruits, dairy products, vegetables, and drinks—customers could eat and drink as they pleased. Lü Zhe couldn't help but feel grateful that he hadn't eaten well at dinner the day before, as his stomach now had more room for these delicious dishes.

After breakfast, not knowing when they would be going to the airport, many people wandered around the hotel, not daring to leave. Around 9 a.m., they saw flight attendants for flight ET904 approaching in casual clothes. Lü Zhe hurriedly went to greet them and asked when boarding would be. The flight attendants didn't have a definite answer either, and simply told them to wait. Around 11:30 a.m., the hotel shuttle bus stopped at the entrance, directing the group to the airport.

At the airport, they went through security again, entered the waiting hall, and then endured another long wait. The staff kept saying that the flight would take off at 1 p.m., but by 2 p.m., there was still no news. Then, the airport prepared lunch, and people crowded around the food cart, scrambling for boxed meals. Lü Zhe had eaten a full breakfast and wasn't very hungry, so he waited until everyone had left before approaching the cart. The staff said there was no more food, so he could only drink a glass of mineral water there.

Bored, he wandered around again and saw that cool girl. Recalling what happened last night, Lü Zhe really didn't know how to face her. In his embarrassment, he could only turn his gaze elsewhere, only to see that Hong Shitai seemed to be looking in his direction. Looking at Su Chen beside him, who was eating with her head down and not even looking up, Lü Zhe felt that the atmosphere was quite strange.

It was 4 PM, and there was still no news about the flight. Passengers began to stir, and some impatient Black passengers started yelling at the staff. A little while later, the staff started distributing compensation for lost flights; Ethiopian Airlines wrote checks for $300 each. Everyone waited anxiously, and around 5 PM, the flight attendants finally began calling people to board.

Once on the plane, they saw it was the same plane, the same flight attendants, and the same seats. Apparently, Ethiopian Airlines had airlifted parts from its home country to Gabon for replacement, hence the wait of over a day.

Damn, replacing parts on the spot. Lu Zhe felt increasingly uneasy. After sitting down, he saw Su Chen sitting next to him, while Lao He had been sent to the back. He was about to make a joke when he noticed his wife's expression was not good. Her eyes were downcast, and she just leaned against him, holding his arm, without saying a word.

"It's okay, I'm here for you,"

Lu Zhe kissed her cheek and hugged his wife tightly.

The cool woman in sunglasses watched their actions from behind, expressionless.

The plane reached its cruising altitude of 10,000 meters without incident. The woman whispered something to the man.

The man next to her took out a photograph from his clothes. The woman looked at it; it was of a middle-aged Black man with a kind face. He didn't seem to have any connection with Somali pirates at all; he looked more like a teacher or pastor.

"Is that him?"

"Yes, that's him."

"You should know what will happen to your wife and children on the mainland if you try anything funny, right?"

"I know."

The man nodded hurriedly. The woman knew this guy's background. He used to be a fisherman from the mainland. Once, while fishing in the Indian Ocean, he was robbed by pirates. Later, he simply joined a pirate ship, specializing in collecting intelligence on the activities of hijacked ships and arranging the sale of stolen goods. After making enough money over the years, he changed his identity and pretended to be an overseas Chinese to return to China. However, he was arrested on the mainland.

He was specially transferred from the Ministry of Public Security for this operation, on the condition that his wife and children would not be harmed. This guy originally thought he was doomed, but unexpectedly, he was given a second chance and swore to atone for his sins.

This man would introduce her to the "boss" in Somalia.

The woman nodded, her inscrutable gaze lingering on the photograph…

Around 9 PM, the plane finally arrived at its destination—the capital airport of country E. After passing through security, the woman watched as Lü Zhe and his group got into the luxury car that had come to pick them up, and then she and the man got into a taxi parked on the side of the road.

"Where to?"

the driver asked in a strangely accented, simple English.

The man didn't speak, but simply handed him a half-finished US dollar bill. The driver hesitated, looked at it, took out the other half of the bill from his pocket, checked it against the bill, and it matched. Without another word, he drove south along the highway.

Around 11 PM, the taxi arrived at a hotel in Djibouti. The driver then gave them a room key and a mobile phone, and the taxi drove away.

The next morning at 9 AM, a message on the phone led the two to the Harbor Building.

This was the most luxurious and tallest office building in downtown Djibouti, built with French funding. Not far from here is a French military base, France's largest overseas military base in Africa, housing over 2,000 personnel and 10 Mirage 2000 fighter jets. Some of the fighter jets currently bombing North Africa originated from here.

The woman found the scene before her laughable. France is currently one of the most active countries in combating piracy in the Gulf of Aden, having twice launched raids on Somali pirate villages. But who would have thought that pirate tentacles had already reached in right next to their military base?

Downstairs, many luxury cars were parked, and many white-collar men and women bustled in and out. A Western man in a suit and tie, wearing glasses and exuding an elite air, walked out of the building and drove away in his Mercedes. Perhaps he was a senior executive at some company; one wonders what he would think if he knew his office was next to pirates.

And this pirate, this man in the photo, was waiting for her in this building, perhaps watching her.

This middle-aged black man named Menelik was a heavyweight on the Somali pirate route. When the woman met him, she found him no different from the white-collar workers toiling away in the harbor buildings. He wore a sophisticated Italian suit, a Swiss watch, and gold-rimmed glasses, though a sly glint occasionally flashed in his eyes.

"Hello! I'm here on behalf of my client to seek cooperation,"

the woman said in fluent French.

"Welcome, welcome. May I ask how I should address such a charming lady?"

Menelik was very polite.

The woman smiled.

"Feng Wu, just call me Feng Wu."

April 7th, tribal autonomous region within Country E in East Africa.

Lu Zhe sat in his car, looking at the scenery along the roadside, his heart filled with indescribable emotions.

He had heard beforehand that the destination was a tribal autonomous region in northeastern Country E, which had made him uneasy. He had done his research beforehand and had also heard some rumors. In most African countries, a central government and local tribes coexist, and national and tribal politics coexist. Many tribes, while nominally obeying the central government, actually possess considerable autonomy, even having their own police and militias, making them almost like states within states. (

Episode 3, March 1st)

Although Lü Zhe didn't know the true situation of these tribes, the word "tribe" naturally conjured images of cannibals in the jungle, primitive huts and tents, witch doctors dressed in animal skins and grass, and filthy, chaotic, and disease-ridden Stone Age slums. At that moment, Lü Zhe felt a chill, thinking, "Oh no, I might really be here for poverty alleviation."

However, at the airport, when the tribal chief's brother led a group to pick them up, most of the Chinese present were genuinely surprised. The group arrived in a fleet of extended BMW 760s, and the entourage were impeccably polite, speaking fluent English and French, clearly having received Western higher education—completely different from the primitive image Lü Zhe had imagined.

Upon arriving at their territory, they were utterly astonished. The roads were wide and clean, the houses charming and unique, and the taxis were even Mercedes-Benz 320s! This was the epitome of a wicked Western capitalist country, completely different from the dirty, chaotic slums they had imagined. Was this Africa? Was this really Africa? Was this an African tribe? Compared to this, some places in China would hardly qualify as tribes.

The driver maintained a perfectly moderate speed, allowing the passengers to fully appreciate the scenery. Of course, none of the Chinese passengers were unsurprised, but outwardly, no one wanted to show any intimidation. They all remained composed, displaying an air of superiority, as if they didn't care about this place at all.

However, Lü Zhe didn't care about that, nor did he care about the kid Bai Peng. These two were the only restless ones in the third car, craning their necks like country bumpkins in the city, their eyes darting around like crazy. Lü Zhe kept pointing out the scenery to Su Chen beside him, but Su Chen seemed a bit off, speaking very little and only giving half-hearted replies, looking preoccupied.

The convoy ahead stopped at a checkpoint on the highway that looked like a sentry post. Several black men carrying submachine guns approached. Unlike the E-country military police he'd seen at the airport, these men looked very capable. Their uniforms resembled American jungle camouflage, with sun hats, and their gun handling was very practiced, like Western tactical maneuvers. The guns they carried were genuine, with folding stocks, like the old Type 56 submachine guns from China.

The group approached, and the lead car said something to them. The men immediately snapped to attention, saluted, and were allowed to pass. The Black female attendant in the car explained that these were government soldiers, but also the chief's guard, as the government soldiers here were tribal members and primarily obeyed their tribal chiefs.

"Is your guard trained by Western armies?"

Lü Zhe asked the attendant in French.

The attendant glanced at him in surprise before replying, "We hired our own instructors from a civilian defense company in the United States."

"Is the security here bad? Why…"

Lü Zhe gestured.

"No, because our country is still fighting against the evil invaders from country A. To prevent enemy agents from infiltrating and causing sabotage, responding to the central government's call to strengthen vigilance is a necessary measure."

As she spoke, the attendant's expression was very serious, and she looked at Lü Zhe as if he were an "enemy agent."

Lu Zhe remained silent, his worries about the trip growing stronger. Although the two countries were currently in a ceasefire, public tensions remained high, and the situation remained unstable. Due to the territorial disputes involving border areas and decades of accumulated animosity, negotiations between the government leadership were unlikely to reach an agreement, and fighting could break out again at any time. And if these two countries were to resume hostilities, it wouldn't be a small-scale skirmish; it would be a full-scale bombardment involving aircraft, artillery, and missiles.

Among the comprehensive military strength of African countries, Egypt and South Africa, one in the south and one in the north, are undoubtedly the two strongest, belonging to the first-tier group (Algeria, since its arms purchases from Russia, can barely pass as first-tier in terms of technology and equipment). In the second-tier group, countries A and E boast hundreds of thousands of troops, including regular armies and local tribal militias; in terms of equipment, they possess T-72 tanks, Mi-24 attack helicopters, a considerable number of Su-27 and MiG-29 fighter jets and missiles, as well as a large amount of older Soviet-made heavy equipment and enough ammunition reserves for a year-long conflict.

In terms of personnel quality, since the military coup in Country A in the 1970s that overthrew the monarchy, chaos and turmoil have ensued in 14 provinces across the country, along with a war with Somalia that lasted for over a decade. Country E attempted to seize the opportunity to secede from Country A during this period of turmoil, and Country A's military relentlessly suppressed it. Country E officially gained independence in 1993, and the fighting between the two sides has continued intermittently until now. An entire generation has been born and raised alongside the war, which has become an integral part of daily life for the people of both countries. It can be said that the entire nation is mobilized for war and has experienced countless battles.

Decades of relentless warfare have forged a large number of brave, skilled, and fearless veteran soldiers. Moreover, both armies are filled with a large number of highly qualified foreign mercenaries. It is said that Country A's elite air force is contracted to a Russian mercenary company, and all of its Su-27 fighter jets are flown by Russian mercenary pilots. Country E has also tightened its belt and spent heavily to recruit personnel from all over the world. Many Western mercenary companies have recruited pilots from Eastern Europe to apply for jobs in Country A. Such a lineup is undoubtedly of top quality.

Moreover, the conflict between the two countries is deeply rooted and has even extended beyond their borders. In 2006, the situation in Somalia deteriorated. The extremist Islamic militant group ICU (Islamic Court Army, nicknamed the African Taliban, believed to be linked to al-Qaeda, whose leader is currently on the US terrorist list) defeated various warlords, captured Mogadishu, and then launched a major siege of the Transitional Government of Somalia-controlled areas.

Country A, under the guise of the African Union peacekeeping force, sent troops to assist the Somali government forces in organizing a counterattack. Based on the principle of opposing what the enemy supports, Country E immediately sent troops across the border to help the militant group fight, and the war between the two countries had spread beyond their borders.

Later, the ICU supported by Country E was defeated and disintegrated by Country A, and the remnants withdrew into Country E to reorganize. The current president of Country E came to power and pursued a policy of reconciliation. The troops of both countries withdrew from Somalia, but a standoff still exists on the border.

With the collision of these two powerful energy fields, Lü Zhe could almost see the scene of scorched earth. He no longer cared why the company chose this time to come to Africa, or why it chose this godforsaken place. He just hoped that no war would break out during their stay in Africa; if they were to fight, they should wait until they left.

Lost in thought, the female attendant continued explaining the road ahead. They said that about half of the land in the entire tribal area belonged to the chief's family, while the other half belonged to the rest of the tribe. The mine that Dongxing Mining was inspecting was located on the chief's land.

"Half the land… holy crap…"

Bai Peng beside him started showing off again. Lu Zhe still couldn't figure out who this kid was related to.

"This… is too amazing! Half the land, hundreds of square kilometers? What's the difference between that and a private kingdom?"

"I guess there's no difference…"

Lu Zhe felt he had something in common with this kid, so he chimed in.

Honestly, compared to this, what are those coal mine owners and mine owners in China? This guy openly maintains a private army, armed to the teeth; that's what you call a local tyrant.

Driving into the chief's private territory, the road gradually widened. The surrounding area was pristine grassland, where various animals even roamed leisurely. The crowd, captivated by the sight, forgot all about maintaining the airs of a superior nation and crowded around the windows, pointing and admiring the scenery. As Lü Zhe looked at the view, his mood gradually calmed down.

Perhaps fortune truly does favor the bold; who knows? Perhaps the thinking and vision of these international business giants were simply different from those of us insignificant people. They might just be here to try their luck, maybe even strike it rich.

Lü Zhe had never met the legendary CEOs of Dongxing Group. After all, he was just a low-level employee in a subsidiary of Dongxing, and had never even been to the group's headquarters. He had only read Boss Hou's legendary autobiography, "The Golden Carp Is No Mere Pond," a popular work circulating only in underground literary circles, but he had never met Boss Hou in person, nor his even more legendary female confidantes. The highest-ranking leader he had ever met at Dongxing was the general manager of their branch.

Perhaps some of the bigwigs in their company had been there, perhaps they had met Boss Hou, but he hadn't. So he didn't need to bother guessing what they were thinking.

Now, Chinese capital is pouring into Africa. Almost every major state-owned enterprise in China, or even those associated with the state, has projects there. Country A, an enemy of Country E, reportedly has its entire mobile communications business exclusively contracted by ZTE Corporation—a 100% monopoly. Such a large-scale investment is said to be unique in the world. Perhaps Boss Hou wants to emulate it; after all, he's a shrewd and ambitious individual.

After about another hour's drive, they arrived at the hotel arranged for them. Not only Lu Zhe and his group, but even the well-informed company executives were astonished. The hotel was essentially a luxury villa complex within a golf course. Each villa occupied approximately one hectare, had its own swimming pool, and was separated by hedges. It was said that many of the world's wealthiest people enjoyed vacationing here.

Of course, the hotel's claim of being "natural and pristine" wasn't just for show. Hippos and crocodiles roam the waters of the golf course; warthogs, rabbits, and antelopes inhabit the grass; and countless beautiful birds and monkeys perch in the trees next to your rooms. However, guests should remember that they cannot freely venture beyond the hotel walls, as there are two thousand leopards alone outside.

If you wish, you can apply for hunting; hunting is a very lucrative tourist activity in the area. Because the land is privately owned, the wild animals also belong to the landowners, and hunters must pay the landowners for their catch—ten thousand US dollars for each leopard hunted.

"Holy crap..."

This was the only word Lu Zhe could utter now, and even Su Chen, who had been frowning the whole way, showed astonishment in his eyes. Bai Peng, meanwhile, watched a monkey sitting on the fence making strange faces at him, taking pictures incessantly with his phone, trying to get closer. The monkey bared its teeth and howled at him, scaring him into retreating.

For the first time, for the first time, Lü Zhe felt that this trip to Africa wasn't entirely without merit; at least he had the opportunity to stay in such a nice hotel, which was a gain in itself …

**************** ... Regardless, that mine cannot fall into Chinese hands. Several major global energy groups, such as Torg and Vale, have reached a consensus: to force China to accept more favorable terms on iron ore prices, they must completely contain China at all costs. Now, the Chinese have actually gone to that war-torn region in Africa, while Torg remains silent. Since no one is stopping them, I'll have to take action. In the break room, Talbot, while looking at data analysis reports on his computer, wildly thrust into his secretary's plump, white buttocks. The woman writhed beneath him, her sweaty body exuding the scent of desire. Talbot kneaded her buttocks with one hand and gripped her thighs with the other, his erect penis pounding into her warm, sticky vagina. Her lower abdomen slammed against his buttocks, creating waves of flesh, and her breasts swayed with her movements. The room was soundproof; what was happening inside couldn't be heard outside. Of course, this plane was like another home for Talbot; he could do whatever he wanted in his own home. He grabbed the woman's shoulders, thrusting his lower body forward forcefully, his crotch pressed tightly against her buttocks, his penis fully inserted. He shuddered a few times, a wave of pleasure washed over him, and then he ejaculated. His stamina had never been great, but ten minutes was quite an achievement. He pulled out of the woman's body, panting, casually tossing away the condom, then slumped onto the sofa and poured himself a drink. They would arrive in an hour, he checked his watch. Just then, a message came from the Yemeni Air Force escort fighters: they would be returning in 10 minutes. Talbot was very dissatisfied and directly told them into the communicator that he had paid them to escort him to his destination, not to run away halfway. "But we're about to enter the control zone of the coalition fleet, and it's also another country's territorial waters." "I don't care!" Talbot threw down the phone, thinking these black men were really cunning, taking the money and not doing the job. They were still far from the anti-piracy coalition's controlled area, and territorial waters were a joke; they'd barely reached international waters before being asked to enter territorial waters again. Two years ago, when the pirates in the Gulf of Aden became notorious, the Yemeni Navy, taking advantage of its geographical location, openly announced that anyone who paid $30,000 could receive escorts from Yemeni warships and make a fortune. Now the air force was envious too; for this trip to Africa, Talbot specifically hired two Yemeni Air Force fighter jets for a full escort due to security concerns. Unexpectedly, these people wanted to slip away before even finishing their business. Given his relationship with the current president of E country, flying directly to his capital wouldn't be a problem. The E country's air force wouldn't cause trouble, and besides, this was international waters; he'd paid for it, so he wanted to make sure it was worthwhile. He leaned out the porthole and looked out at the pitch-black night sky. He couldn't see if the two planes were still following him. He was about to have his radar search the area when suddenly the dark sky was torn apart by a blinding flash of light. A huge fireball exploded behind his plane, and the entire aircraft trembled violently like a leaf in a storm. Various alarms blared, and Talbot was so shaken that he sat down on the floor. "Attack! Attack!" The MiG-29 pilot was in a panic. His wingman, a MiG-21 fully loaded with fuel, had been hit squarely by a high-speed missile and exploded into a fireball. He didn't know where the enemy was; the radar alarms were blaring, and his radar screen showed a target approaching at high speed. Attack? The Yemeni pilot was bewildered. Was it another country's air force intercepting him? This was international waters; he hadn't entered any other country's airspace. Besides, according to international practice, even if someone accidentally entered another country's airspace, a warning should be given first. It wasn't like this—attacked without warning. However, the rigorous training quickly brought him to his senses. The enemy missiles were almost upon him. He jerked the stick to recover, the fighter jet rolled and climbed rapidly, simultaneously releasing a large number of flares like fireworks in the night sky. Luckily, the missiles missed him and exploded near the flares. Where was the enemy plane? His radar had been intermittent since takeoff, but thankfully it was working again now. But before he could pinpoint the target, a huge shadow swept past him at high speed, keeping pace with him. "Ah?" The Yemeni pilot was truly surprised by the audacity of the enemy, flying alongside him side by side. When he saw the aircraft's markings, a chill ran down his spine. The silhouette was also that of a MiG-29—could it be the legendary Red Death? But he had no time to think. He jerked the stick to break contact, the plane rolled upwards, turned around, and opened fire with his cannons. A streak of red bullets ripped through the night sky, but he hit nothing. The MiG-29 was also circling him. "Fuck you!" The Yemeni pilot's radar had locked onto the enemy aircraft, but at the moment of missile launch, the enemy skillfully executed a violent evasive maneuver, without even throwing out flares. A roll disengaged the radar, and then it surged upwards, disappearing from the Yemeni pilot's radar. The missile, having lost its target, flew aimlessly into the night sky. Damn it! The Yemeni pilot's heart sank. He hadn't expected the enemy to be able to perform such a difficult maneuver; he had no idea that the MiG-29 could do such a thing. In his mind, it was simply impossible. Where was it?! He looked around, but it was pitch black all around. The starlight and the shimmering sea blended into one color, and he couldn't see the aircraft at all. In desperation and panic, he disregarded his escort target, pushed the stick down, and prepared to make a sharp turn to escape, but the radar alarm went off again—another missile was coming. Now he understood. His opponent's skill, experience, and even reaction speed were far superior to his own. Under such immense G-forces, most people would struggle to even move, let alone aim, yet the opponent could seize the perfect opportunity to attack under such adverse conditions. Desperate, he frantically threw out flares, and after exhausting them all, he gritted his teeth, pulled back on the stick, and performed a somersault, attempting to escape the opponent's radar detection zone as much as possible. Luck was on his side again; the missile was detonated by the flares. But by then, he had used up all his flares, and the opponent could launch another attack at any moment. What would he do without his lifeline of flares? His radar couldn't detect the opponent's presence, yet the radar alarm kept sounding. This meant the aircraft was constantly circling him, precisely within his radar blind spot, and locked onto with radar—like a cat playing with a mouse. What kind of technology could achieve this? Run! That was his only thought. He didn't know the opponent's location; he just wanted to get out of this airspace as quickly as possible.

Just as he pulled back the stick to disengage, he was completely unaware that the ghostly MiG-29 had silently appeared at his most vulnerable 6 o'clock position. A cold, triumphant smile appeared on the pilot's lips, and then the 23mm cannon spat out a fierce tongue of fire, a long burst striking the MiG-29 he had been maneuvering around. The wing was instantly torn to shreds by the shell, and then shattered. The engulfing flames engulfed the aircraft, and the pilot didn't have time to eject.

The two escorting fighters were taken down in the blink of an eye, leaving the Globe 5000 completely isolated.

In the cockpit, Talbot watched in horror as the deathly shadow of the aircraft flew alongside him.

His private pilot was now pale with fright, covered in sweat. He frantically called out on the radio, trying to identify himself, while waving the wings to indicate that he was not hostile. They didn't know which country's air force was so menacing; this live-fire combat was terrifying them.

Death had departed, and after reaching a safe distance, it steadily locked onto its prey.

"Oh no, God, he's locked onto us!"

A desperate cry erupted from the cockpit. Their private jet was no match for a supersonic fighter jet; escape was impossible. The desperate pilots frantically called for help on the radio, but there was no response. Meanwhile, Talbot stared blankly at the plane that was about to send her to her death. The mysterious MiG-29 pilot had firmly locked onto her target; she was simply doing her job for money.

For Talbot, some people disliked her coming to E-country; to these people, Talbot's death was worth a hundred million dollars, and the fact that she could fight a good battle in the air was enough.

"Goodbye."

With a soft murmur, the missile, like a fiery dragon chasing its prey, struck the Global 5000, turning it into a fireball. The burning wreckage scattered into the Indian Ocean…

The next day, major media outlets worldwide reported the news: Australia's richest man, Talbot, had his private plane crash in the African sea, with no survivors…

************

Djibouti City, Harbor Building.

Rumors were rampant in the city recently. Some said that militants from Country L had infiltrated Djibouti, preparing suicide attacks against French military bases and French citizens in retaliation for NATO airstrikes against Country L government forces. Others claimed that all white people were within the terrorists' attack range. Therefore, the atmosphere in the city was extremely tense. Police, wearing helmets and bulletproof vests and carrying guns, stood guard at the entrances of important facilities even in broad daylight. Armored vehicles and fully armed French soldiers patrolled the streets.

Security has been heightened in all Western-populated areas of the city. The Harbor Building, a French-funded project, is considered a potential prime target, so security has been increased in recent days, with the number of security guards at the entrance tripling. These guards are burly and heavily armed, looking quite imposing.

Feng Wu has had enough of Menelik's boasting these past few days. Honestly, you wouldn't guess he's a pirate if you didn't know better. He introduces his "company's" formidable resources like a businessman entertaining a legitimate client. They have gunmen in several small fishing villages near Laguda Bay in Mulla Hebel, equipped with small boats and advanced radar and firearms; they have relay stations and transport teams on the road from the fishing villages to Bosaso; and in Bosaso, they have channels to safely smuggle goods to Beira Port for export.

As long as the client knows which ship the goods they need are on, even if the time and location are uncertain, he can get them. The fee depends on the value of the goods and the difficulty of the mission, ranging from millions to tens of millions of dollars.

Of course, Feng Wu remained outwardly calm. Mennilik, that old black man, certainly had connections, but his credibility was questionable. The introducer couldn't guarantee anything either; after all, this was someone else's territory. It would be terrible if he took the money and didn't deliver, or even double-crossed her.

Being double-crossed was secondary; if her true identity was exposed, it wouldn't just be a matter of money.

Historically, those who engage in espionage, like politicians, are never innocent; they're all hypocrites, their outward appearance of righteousness masking their dark and dirty deeds. For example, Somali pirates are now notorious maritime enemies worldwide, yet she was seeking their cooperation—or, to put it more politely, exploitation, but it was essentially the same thing. Any government or organization found to have ties to these pirates was essentially jumping into a cesspool.

Of course, her cover identity was currently fine; her passport was from South Korea, and her company was from Hong Kong, so she had no connection to mainland China for the time being. However, to those with ulterior motives, these identities might not be so secure, after all, their counterparts worldwide use the same tricks.

What exactly is this mission, requiring a journey across the ocean to this unfamiliar continent to deal with and build relationships with these infamous outlaws? Feng Wu has no idea. But it's definitely a very important mission. Those old fogies above are actually quite shrewd; they must have carefully calculated the costs and benefits. The fact that they sent her means that even risking exposure and causing an international scandal is worthwhile.

Is it to impersonate pirates and hijack a ship, or something else? Besides utilizing her pirate skills, Feng Wu can't think of any other use these people might have. It's definitely a ship hijacking, but the target remains unknown. Feng Wu is certain of one thing: the real, crucial objective will absolutely not be revealed to these people.

“Miss Fengwu, you’ve seen our capabilities. I think we should now discuss the specifics of our cooperation. I don’t think you flew over ten thousand kilometers to come here just to see the scenery.”

“This is our first time working together, and you seem quite trusting of me.”

Fengwu smiled, though this was the question on her mind. This black man seemed shrewd; was he really so trusting of a client he’d just met? He wasn’t running a legitimate business; he was practically risking his life. She would never have done that.

“Oh? Is there anything I need to worry about?”

Mennilik seemed to have anticipated her response.

“Aren’t you afraid I might be a policeman or something?”

As she said this, Fengwu glanced at the two bodyguards standing behind Mennilik, but they probably didn’t understand English and didn’t react.

"Hehehe, I understand your concerns. It's our first collaboration, so anyone would be cautious. I appreciate that; I like meticulous people. In fact, you're not the first to raise this issue. But what can the police do to me? And what can the international community, those warships at sea, do to us? We have a very strong network of connections along the Red Sea coast. The Somali government can't control us, and neither can the international community. My office is right next to a French military base; what have they done to me?"

"We're not afraid of the police messing with us at all. Even if things get to the point where we have to find someone to take responsibility, we have plenty of scapegoats. We don't care who the police are; let them infiltrate our network if they want. What we're really wary of are the buyers of the looted goods. Even if the international community arrests me, all I'll get is deportation, and I'll go back to what I was doing back home. Tell me, why would I need to be afraid of you being a policeman?"

Meng Laohei smugly raised his glass and took a small sip. "In fact, many of our clients are currently on warships in the open sea. Their backers have some things they can't do in person, so they turn to us. Maybe like you, Miss Feng Wu."

Feng Wu remained unfazed. "I represent some organizations that are interested in cooperating with your company."

“Of course, of course, I won’t pry into the guest’s background. To be honest, as long as you’re not sent by one of my colleagues to cause trouble, I don’t care who you are. Of course, after my investigation, you have no connection with other gangs, and that’s enough for me.”

“I understand. The information about this target is here.”

Feng Wu handed over a piece of paper, a timetable. Yesterday, she received an email with coded language, saying that a Panamanian-flagged cargo ship would appear in the Red Sea, carrying 50 high-end Japanese cars and a large number of car parts. Feng Wu knew this was definitely not the real target; those people wouldn’t go to such lengths for these cars. This was just a rehearsal, and her task was to deliver this timetable to them.

“Cars, no problem. According to the rules, we need a deposit of 1 million US dollars.”

Mennilik didn’t hesitate at all, immediately asking for 1 million US dollars, his face still bearing a very friendly smile, like a very polite shark. Damn, it’s so easy

to make money like this, 1 million just like that. "When I can't take this anymore, I might as well go out to sea and pull off a heist. This is fucking exciting! A million US dollars! I probably wouldn't earn that much in my entire life. It's so damn infuriating!

" Feng Wu cursed inwardly, nodding in agreement. "No problem, I can arrange the transfer right away."

"Sorry, I only accept cash."

"Cash?"

Feng Wu was taken aback, then realized this black man was quite cautious. He probably didn't want others to know his account. In their eyes, only cash was the safest hard currency.

"Cash might take a little time."

"I understand. I'll tell you what to do once the money arrives."

"Wait, aren't you going to get the money?"

Feng Wu really thought this black man was quite something. No wonder he'd never been caught after being a pirate for so many years; the money never passed through his hands.

"Have you ever seen a general manager personally receive money?"

Feng Wu gave him an approving look. No wonder he was involved in such a big business; he even had dedicated accounting staff. It makes sense; a job that brings in so much money every day must have someone specifically managing the finances. But could this be some kind of scheme? Feng Wu was apprehensive. This wasn't a legitimate business; was it really necessary to make it so complicated? Was he doing this to everyone, or just to her?

Back home, Feng Wu asked the person who had introduced her, and the answer was unexpected.

According to this person, the reason was that too many people were trying to take a share of the profits. Currently, almost all the pirate gangs were connected to local tribes, who were essentially local patrons. Some tribal elders were the behind-the-scenes bosses who divided the spoils. No matter how powerful Menelik was, he couldn't bypass these local strongmen to directly command the pirate gangs. He couldn't keep all the money for himself; everyone had to get a share, and it was distributed by the tribal elders. After all this layering of exploitation, it was hard to say how much of the million would ultimately end up in Menelik's hands.

Was that the reason? Feng Wu pondered all night, but ultimately decided to proceed with the plan. She had actually anticipated this situation; after all, she hadn't planned to personally pay the money in the first place. In this unfamiliar, godforsaken place, with her sensitive identity, only an idiot would risk it herself. She

had enough time; she had already found a scapegoat…

************

Tribal area, above the mine.

The helicopter rotors roared loudly, making it difficult to hear each other inside the cabin; headsets were necessary. Looking down at the mine from the sky seemed strange; it was more like looking at the scenery below, watching wild animals roaming the grasslands.

After checking into the golf hotel, the first thing Lü Zhe and his group did was inspect the mine. The local tribal chief's brother came to pick them up again. Lü Zhe had expected the same few stretch BMWs, but they arrived directly in a helicopter. Later, she learned that wealthy people in the area primarily used private jets for transportation; the hotel even had a private airport, the waiting area resembling a bar, completely catering to the rich.

This chief owned several helicopters; three had arrived this time. Looking at the aircraft, Lü Zhe thought the two larger ones resembled military helicopters, clearly modified, especially with the electro-optical reconnaissance radar pod under their noses. The smaller one also appeared to have been fitted with military equipment, with obvious marks on its skids.

Thinking about it, it wasn't surprising; since they possessed a private army, these helicopters might have been transferred from the military. It seemed this tribe had a strong military, even its own air force.

After circling the area, instead of returning to the airport, they flew directly to the chief's private estate near the mine.

Upon arrival, they realized the estate's immense size. From the air, it resembled an ancient city perched on a small hill, its urban area covering the entire hillside, spanning dozens of hectares. A tall, square tower in the center served as a castle, surrounded by walls three or four stories high. Within the city walls were streets, shops, residences, and a market. On the surrounding oasis grasslands, numerous African nomadic tents dotted the landscape, with caravans of livestock bustling in and out of the city gates, along with cars, motorcycles, and people—a scene of bustling prosperity.

Anyone who didn't know better would think they'd stumbled upon a filming location for an ancient movie.

The helicopters landed in the large courtyard behind the main fortress. This courtyard was a massive military camp, covering a vast area, even featuring an airstrip and a ground control tower. Three helicopters landed on the runway, and as soon as Lü Zhe and the others disembarked, the first thing they saw was the colossal steel machine on the runway.

"Damn, that's… a MiG-29?" He stared intently. This enormous, high-tech war machine, which he had only ever seen in magazines, was now truly before his eyes. Its paint scheme was a striking, eye-catching blood red, its wings were laden with missiles, and the markings on its fuselage were peculiar, resembling a cartoonish squid or octopus.

This was outrageous! Was this real? Could it even fly? Lü Zhe stared at the aircraft, utterly speechless. He thought to himself, "This tribe is incredibly powerful. Not only do they have their own air force, but they also possess such a devastating weapon as the MiG-29." He knew that the MiG-29 was the mainstay of the E country's air force, but he hadn't expected that a local tribal army would also possess such a weapon of mass destruction.

Perhaps this tribe is affiliated with the Central Army, which explains the presence of MiG-29s stationed here. Speaking of which, the paint scheme is really strange; it's not an aerobatic team, so why is the fuselage this color?

Several ground crew members, some Black and some White, were unloading ammunition from the aircraft. A White woman in a pilot's pressure suit was watching, pointing and talking. At first, Lü Zhe didn't see clearly, but as he got closer, he realized the pilot was a woman—a very beautiful blonde, seemingly of Eastern European descent, wearing sunglasses. The woman seemed to notice someone watching her, turned to meet Lü Zhe's gaze, and removed her sunglasses.

Beautiful, stunning! That was Lü Zhe's first impression. Then he felt her eyes seemed to speak volumes, carrying a hint of wanton allure, and her smile seemed fiery and provocative.

This trip to Africa had unexpectedly led to a romantic encounter with a beautiful woman—first, the unknown beauty with whom he almost had a one-night stand at the hotel; Lü Zhe had already mentally nicknamed her Maggie Q. Now it's another female pilot, a fighter pilot at that. This trip to Africa is really full of romantic encounters.

That woman's smile looks a bit lewd... damn, I'm getting hard...

As Lü Zhe indulged in his fantasies, the female pilot turned away from him again. Of course, Lü Zhe wouldn't go over and strike up a conversation; fantasies were just thoughts in his mind, and he wasn't a lovesick fool. It would be ridiculous to take a single glance from her seriously. There were black people everywhere, yet a white person was flying a fighter jet. Lü Zhe recalled various rumors about mercenaries, and it seemed this woman was the one. This was truly an eye-opener; he had seen a real mercenary, and a woman at that.

Next to the runway were barracks, a parade ground, and a parking lot. A group of soldiers were training, dressed like the military police at the previous checkpoints. The parking lots on both sides were filled with all sorts of armored vehicles—Western, Soviet-made, and even a Chinese Type 63 amphibious tank. These behemoths were all equipped with heavy machine guns, some even had cannons, and some had soldiers sitting on them, curiously watching the group of Chinese. Across from them, it was even more impressive, with four American-made tanks parked there, their cannons covered with gun covers.

Lu Zhe, a former soldier, was familiar with these scenes, but none of the others in his entourage had ever witnessed anything like this. They simply walked through the tanks, armored vehicles, and armed troops. Some people took photos with their phones as they looked around, while others dared not look too closely, their faces filled with fear, afraid that these soldiers, who looked like bandits, would come up and cause trouble.

Were they here to discuss business or to negotiate? Lu Zhe was a little nervous. What if the negotiations failed, and they turned on him? Would they be detained here with a single order? Even the company's bigwigs, no matter how experienced they were, had probably never done business under someone's gun.

Glancing around, he saw that the leaders were indeed leaders; the expressions of the senior executives were relatively calm, while Hong Shitai seemed completely at home, constantly chatting and laughing, greeting this person and offering cigarettes to that person, acting as if he were in his element. It seemed this guy was really something; his past experience in this area hadn't gone to waste. The company's partners had sent him as their representative, which was quite competent.

The tribal chief was seen in the main fort's entrance hall, talking to a well-dressed white man who looked like a businessman and was probably a guest of the chief. Hong Shitai, the master of pretense, immediately went up to the white man and greeted him enthusiastically, as if they were old friends.

However, almost everyone knew he was a natural-born social butterfly; they had already witnessed his performance in the barracks—simply showing off his connections in front of these bumpkin Chinese to elevate his own status.

Regardless of Hong Shitai's pretense of familiarity with the white man, the chief's brother introduced the Dongxing Mining group to his brother. The chief looked quite prosperous, plump, unlike his brother's thin frame. Having probably seen many foreigners eyeing his mines, he seemed somewhat indifferent, as if the deal was good or bad. It made sense; besides the Chinese, many others probably wanted to cooperate with him, and he was simply choosing his partners.

After a few brief pleasantries, the chief decided to invite these bumpkins from China to tour his palace.

It was clear he wasn't particularly interested in these Chinese businessmen, except for Su Chen. Su Chen acted as the interpreter while the two leaders spoke. The fat, dark-skinned man's eyes were fixed on the beautiful Eastern woman, filled with lustful hunger, as if he wanted to strip Su Chen naked with his gaze. Before ending the conversation, he even half-forced a kiss on Su Chen's hand, making no attempt to conceal his lewd desire. Lu Zhe, watching from the side, saw everything clearly. If it were anyone else, he would have already attacked him, but for now, he could only endure it.

The group followed the old man into the main castle. The castle looked old and worn on the outside, as if it had been built of earth. However, the interior was extremely luxurious. The walls were inlaid with precious, colorful glazed tiles, and the marble floors were so shiny they reflected one's image. The gardens were filled with various vibrant flowers and exotic plants, and all the facilities with metal parts were either pure gold or gilded—in short, they gleamed with gold.

Armed guards stood at attention and saluted as their master approached. Lu Zhe and his group also enjoyed the privilege of being inspected, but an unpleasant incident occurred as they passed through a corridor. Almost everyone clearly heard a loud scream coming from the other side of the wall.

"What was that?"

Bai Peng blurted out, still in his affected English. This teenager was clearly just there to play, but seeing the glares from the others, he immediately fell silent. Everyone pretended not to hear, but he inappropriately asked that question.

"...A cat's meow,"

the chief said without batting an eye.

No one spoke again; no one would be so tactless as to ask why the cat's meow sounded so much like a human.

Lunch was served in the chief's palace, accompanied by a song and dance performance. A group of slender, curvaceous Black women, dressed in extremely thin and revealing veils, performed a lewd dance. The chief, of course, watched with great interest, laughing heartily with excitement. However, his brother seemed somewhat displeased with his behavior, occasionally frowning slightly, but mostly laughing along with his brother. The guests, of course, couldn't refuse their host, and half-jokingly joined in the commotion. Only Su Chen kept her head down, her face flushed, unsure of where to look.

As the wine flowed freely, the chief, emboldened by the alcohol, insisted on finding a woman among the guests to dance with. Su Chen was the only woman present, so the responsibility naturally fell on her shoulders. As a result, she was half-forced to leave. Lü Zhe couldn't stop him. When he saw that man's groping hand sliding along his wife's waist, his face turned bright red, and he almost ground his teeth to powder. His wife was being harassed, almost crying, while he could only sit there and watch helplessly.

Fortunately, the chief's brother ended the farce before his brother could embarrass himself, half-dragging, half-pulling him back. Everyone present felt as if they had been granted a reprieve. The chief, seemingly disappointed, announced it was time for prayer; he was going back to pray to the true god, and was escorted away by four young maids. What he was praying for, only he knew.

After the lecherous chief disappeared, his brother arranged to inspect the mine. Frankly, after meeting the chief, the Dongxing people were still willing to deal with his brother. Then the BMW 760 reappeared, taking them along the gravel road into the mine.

Inside the car, Lü Zhe handed Su Chen a tissue, which she had asked for to wipe her hands. Remembering those ugly, fat lips lewdly kissing his wife's skin, Lü Zhe couldn't stand it.

"If it doesn't work out, we're quitting!"

Lü Zhe whispered.

"I know, nothing will happen. They are people of status, after all."

Su Chen's eyes were a little red, staring absently out the window. "

People of status?" Lü Zhe had serious doubts. This is their territory; they're the emperor here. What does status matter? They can get whatever they want with a single command. Lü Zhe knew that if it were him, he wouldn't care about such superficial things as status and reputation.

Entering the mine, they realized it was indeed a treasure trove. The iron ore was piled up in the open, in huge quantities, at least hundreds of millions of tons. He, the accompanying engineer, quickly inspected it and found the ore to be of very high grade, with an iron content approaching 60%. However, the chieftain didn't seem to value this high-quality iron ore much, offering only 50 cents per ton—very cheap. But transportation was difficult; it would cost over 20 dollars to reach the port, another 10 dollars to leave the port, and over 70 dollars to reach China.

With piracy rampant and shipping prices skyrocketing, transportation was crucial.

To solve the transportation problem, the partners arranged for Dongxing Mining's personnel to visit the local railway department to understand the transportation situation. The railway system was the dominant force in the area, even beyond the control of tribal chiefs, as it was a state-owned enterprise directly under the central government.

Surprisingly, however, the railway staff were incredibly welcoming to the Chinese visitors, behaving unlike typical Chinese bureaucratic behavior. It was later learned that the railway had been built with Chinese assistance. The railway workers were soldiers during the country's revolution, and naturally, they wanted to work for the nation's best department after the revolution's success. These individuals had been trained by Chinese instructors, hence their enthusiasm for the Chinese.

So, when the bigwigs started trying to get on their good side, they began spouting nonsense. One even claimed his grandfather, a mining expert, had visited Africa. This tactic worked quite well, and the relationship did improve considerably.

The following days were filled with itineraries arranged by the partners. To build a positive image, the Dongxing Mining delegation visited local charity projects and donated to a charity that shelters AIDS orphans. After all the sightseeing and miscellaneous activities

,

the negotiations officially began back at the hotel… **********

...

This is the slums of Doktumo, which looks almost like a village. Few houses exceed three stories; most are haphazardly built, flimsy, dilapidated structures that look like they'd collapse in the wind. A few are brick and mud structures, like where he is now.

Although part of the city, the environment here is vastly different from the neighboring eastern district—it seems like decades have passed. The other part of the city is quite modern, with skyscrapers, clean streets, and a beautiful, comfortable environment—but that's where wealthy Westerners live. He can only sit here obediently.

The air is thick with the smell of cow dung; cows are everywhere. He has some US dollars, but hasn't spent much. Bartering seems to be more common here.

He's also heard that in some parts of E country, the main currency is cows, like his comrade who's wealthy and whose assets are measured in cows. Even though he feels awkward, there's nothing he can do; he has nowhere else to go. He

's been hiding in this wretched place for a while now, and he still has nightmares every night. Every time he closes his eyes, he dreams of his wife and children being blown up.

He knows who did it, and he knows they won't let it go and will definitely send assassins to hunt him down, but he simply doesn't have the courage to confront them, so he runs far away. Fortunately, he had prepared a fake passport and emergency funds when he started smuggling, and now he just hopes those people won't find him here.

To be honest, if he had known it would turn out like this, he definitely wouldn't have gone to deliver that batch of oil that day. Those people are definitely up to something shady. Within two days, someone planted a bomb in his car, and by some accidental factor, his wife and children became the scapegoats, while all the buddies who went with him that day were killed. He knows it's to silence them; they want to kill him. Although he doesn't know why yet, it's definitely related to that plane that day.

He was lucky to have escaped. He doesn't trust his smuggling network; those people are just opportunists. If someone puts a gun to their head, they'll all be dead. Those mercenaries are the tyrants of that border area; they'll definitely target his connections. So he couldn't stay in the Middle East any longer. This place belonged to a comrade-in-arms from his time in the Algerian army. The first floor was the front restaurant, and the second and third floors were casinos. He hid in a room above the casino, never daring to show his face.

He hadn't thought about avenging his wife and children; he was no match for those people, those were ruthless killers. He just wanted to save his own life. At

the other end of the street

, amidst the chaotic flow of people, a dilapidated Land Rover SUV struggled to move. Honking was useless; the locals around seemed deaf, continuing to walk in front of the car at their leisurely pace, making the people inside anxious. Every now and then, disheveled children would surround the car, shouting loudly, whether begging or something else, it was unclear.

The driver seemed used to it, but the passengers all frowned. They hadn't expected this place to be so run-down, and the car driven by the person picking them up was also so dilapidated; the bumpy ride on the mountain roads had nearly left them exhausted.

Two young women were walking through the crowd on the street, glancing around as they went. Both were Black, inconspicuous in the crowd, and their clothing and appearance were unremarkable, not like locals. They were taking photos with cameras, looking somewhat like reporters.

A car horn sounded behind them, and they moved aside. A Land Rover passed by, and the driver greeted them, holding a map and speaking to them in English. The two girls glanced inside; the driver was an Asian man, quite handsome and masculine, and there were two other people dressed as tourists, who looked somewhat like Americans.

The driver pointed to roads on the map, gesturing and explaining for a while. The two girls just shrugged, indicating they couldn't help. Finally, the driver, exasperated, drove off to ask someone else for directions. The two women continued walking, glancing at the building where Amir was a few times, snapping photos, before turning into an alley and heading towards the back of the building.

When the Land Rover, unable to accelerate, reached the building, the driver and his entourage got out and went downstairs to ask for directions. Their eyes darted around the interior, memorizing the location of the stairs, windows, and back door. A while

later, a military vehicle pulled up, carrying seven or eight soldiers from E-country, some sitting and some standing, carrying submachine guns. They honked furiously at the Land Rover blocking the way, and the driver quickly pulled over. Unexpectedly, the military vehicle didn't leave; the soldiers got out, went straight downstairs, and sat down, seemingly preparing to eat.

The driver exchanged a glance with his comrades in the vehicle,

then drove on. Amir was oblivious to all of this. He was lying bored in bed; to him, this place was both a refuge and a prison. **********

... Wearing her cool sunglasses, Feng Wu sat elegantly sipping her coffee at a roadside café. Getting from Djibouti to Country E wasn't difficult, but time was of the essence. She needed to deliver the money to Mennilik before the optimal time for her operation, while also ensuring her identity remained undetected. Therefore, she had to hurry. According to intelligence, the person she was waiting for would appear today; there was a hotel across the street where the Dongxing Mining group would be staying. About half an hour later, the car arrived, and Feng Wu indeed saw the group from the plane, as well as Lü Zhe. Lü Zhe, however, didn't see Feng Wu. He was genuinely excited. He thought to himself that at home you rely on your parents, but abroad you rely on friends. The only truly reliable people overseas are fellow Chinese. He was truly grateful to this elderly overseas Chinese for allowing him to escape this time. His impression of Hong Shitai had also changed; if he hadn't contacted this elderly overseas Chinese, escaping from the hotel would have been a problem. A group of people entered the hotel under the arrangement of the old overseas Chinese. Feng Wu glanced at the hotel entrance and saw Lü Zhe's back. Like a vixen eyeing a hen, she revealed a sly smile before turning and leaving. "What happened? Why did he leave so suddenly? Did the negotiations go well?" In the room, Lü Zhe asked Su Chen, who looked tired. As the security supervisor for this trip, he didn't need to participate in the negotiations. He had been having a good time at the golf hotel these past few days, wandering around with another guy, Bai Peng, who was just there to make up the numbers. Sometimes he would accompany his boss when he went out, to banks or government agencies. Everything was arranged by the partners, so he didn't have to worry about it. Sometimes he even helped translate documents. And from what Su Chen told him when he came back, it seemed that the negotiations had made progress. He hadn't expected that yesterday's meeting would suddenly say that they were changing hotels and leaving that place, and that they were asking for his opinion.

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