Mercenary’s War

Nate put on a bulletproof vest. As he fastened and tightened the straps, he slowly said, "It doesn’t matter what we’re going to do, and it doesn’t matter where we’re going."

With the combat backpack on, Nate remained indifferent as he said, "Whether we can come back or not, it doesn’t matter."

When putting on the helmet, Nate smiled and said, "Where the body ends up, that matters even less."

Finally picking up a G3 rifle, Nate held the rifle in his left hand, saluted Gao Yang with a casual mercenary salute using his right hand, and smiled, "Since nothing matters, then goodbye, Ram."

Turning around, he walked away with large strides. The entire Angel team followed Nate, all heading out the door.

As they reached the doorway, Nate suddenly stopped, then turned back to Gao Yang and said, "You’re a man of your word, and I don’t want to damage your reputation. The intelligence officer will coordinate with you on anything you need."

All of the Angel team exited, boarded two helicopters, and then the noise rose again as the helicopters flew away.

Gao Yang sat down despondently.

Nate had always been serious. When Gao Yang used a mercenary salute before, Nate always responded with a very formal military salute, but the last time, perhaps for the last salute, Nate used a flippant and casual mercenary salute.

Gao Yang didn’t know what that meant. He really couldn’t figure it out.

Gao Yang sat on the chair without speaking for a long time until Joseph finally said, "Boss, are you really going to just let them go like that?"

Gao Yang said disheartenedly, "Could I have stopped them?"

Joseph didn’t reply.

Gao Yang sighed lightly, looked up with a lost expression, and said to Joseph, "I’m becoming more and more like a businessman. In fact, I already am a businessman because the path of a mercenary only leads to a dead end. I must change, Satan must change."

Joseph nodded gently, and Gao Yang gave a bitter smile, saying softly, "But Nate remains a soldier. He’s a soldier in a mercenary’s guise."

Joseph said calmly, "Is there a difference?"

"There’s a difference!"

Gao Yang looked at the ground at Sirte and said slowly, "I think I understand what Nate meant by his last salute. Maybe he didn’t even understand it himself, but I think I’ve guessed it."

"What do you mean?"

Gao Yang stood up, looked at the open door, and said, "Nate has always been a soldier. Although he works as a mercenary, he is the purest soldier, upholding the pride of a soldier. He leads Angel by the standards of the army and constrains himself by the identity of a soldier. As a soldier, Nate cannot commit suicide with his subordinates because his duty is not yet complete. So, Nate has now abandoned his dignity as a soldier. He doesn’t want to carry his ideals forward with difficulty, so he now considers himself a mercenary."

Joseph said plainly, "What difference does it make?"

Gao Yang smiled slightly, an extremely bitter smile, "A mercenary can act willfully, a soldier cannot."

A mercenary can choose to die when they feel life is meaningless. A soldier cannot act willfully; when the mission is not completed, and the task is not finished, one cannot decide whether life should end by oneself.

Being ordered to hold a position until the last person is gone—this is a soldier.

Being ordered to hold a position and deciding whether to defend, retreat or surrender, based on the situation—this is a mercenary.

If a mercenary is happy to die, they die. If they don’t want to die, they can seek various ways to live, but a soldier can’t. A soldier’s duty is to obey orders and complete the mission; not every soldier can achieve this, but it is the basic requirement for a soldier.

Nate’s last salute may have been intentional or unintentional, but Gao Yang knows that Nate has already removed the last shackle that restrained him; he is free now.

This may be the only time Nate has abandoned his dignity as a soldier, just to act willfully and go to his death.

Gao Yang closed his eyes in pain, with a face full of sorrow, said, "In the last salute, I did not return it."

With that, Gao Yang opened his eyes and suddenly shouted, "Intelligence officer!"

If Nate said the intelligence officer was there, then the intelligence officer must be there.

With a loud shout from Gao Yang, the intelligence officer indeed appeared at the door and quickly came into the room, saluted Gao Yang with a solemn face, and said, "General, I am here."

"Don’t call me General! You all have given up the persistence of being soldiers, haven’t you? Since you no longer see yourselves as soldiers, then you should follow the rules of mercenaries, call me Ram!"

The intelligence officer lowered his head slightly, then raised it and said to Gao Yang, "Hi, Ram."

Gao Yang exhaled a breath and said to the intelligence officer, "Can you work with me?"

"Yes."

"Send Can Opener to the field hospital, once his condition stabilizes, I will take him away."

"Yes, I will arrange it immediately."

Gao Yang said with slight surprise, "The field hospital is still under control?"

The intelligence officer replied calmly, "The morale is just unstable, not completely out of control. If we continue fighting the enemy, there might be a mutiny, but as long as it’s stable, there’s no problem with controlling the soldiers. After all, we’ve led this army for a long time. Anything else?"

Gao Yang nodded and said, "Arrange for someone to send Can Opener to the field hospital, quickly."

The intelligence officer picked up a walkie-talkie, gave some commands, and soon soldiers arrived.

The soldiers appeared slightly panicked and confused. After receiving the intelligence officer’s orders, they lifted Sirte and placed him in an ambulance, quickly leaving.

Sirte’s condition was relatively stable, and Gao Yang had no need to follow to the field hospital because he couldn’t be of help.

Gao Yang sat back in the chair, pointed to the chair across from him, and said in a deep voice, "Sit."

The intelligence officer smiled and shook his head, saying, "That’s... our Colonel’s position, I won’t sit. You can ask questions; I will answer standing, Mr. Ram."

Gao Yang did not insist. He watched the intelligence officer and said coldly, "They all went to die. Why didn’t you go?"

"I’m not particularly good at combat, and I have a task to complete, so I need to stay here and simply wait."

"Wait to collect their bodies?"

After a moment of silence, the intelligence officer nodded, "You could say that."

Gao Yang exhaled and said, "Nate said you can work with me. Work on what?"

The intelligence officer had always had a briefcase, which was slung behind him. Upon hearing Gao Yang’s question, he pulled the briefcase to the front, took out a document folder from inside, gently placed it on the table in front of Gao Yang, and said softly, "Here, we have some remaining money, about twenty million, as well as the common property accumulated by Angel over the years. It belongs to Angel’s collective property, and now it belongs to you. Besides, there are the things Nate owes you. Those coffee plantations have completed the ownership change, and I need to hand them over to you."

Gao Yang reached out and pressed down on the document folder, gritting his teeth and said in a furious voice, "Nate, Curtis your mother!"

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