Ultimate Firepower -
Chapter 323 - 307: Frame Him
Chapter 323: Chapter 307: Frame Him
Dinner was at an unassuming but authentic Chinese restaurant.
In fact, Gao Yi had a strong tolerance; he could accept food from anywhere and to be honest, there were quite a few genuinely tasty things in Libya.
However, the food in places like Libya had one fatal flaw—it was too monotonous, especially during his time in prison, which made it even more so.
Gao Yi was not one to complain all day about unpalatable food. He possessed a remarkable and invaluable capability—if he loved a dish, he could eat a lot of it; if he didn’t, he simply wouldn’t feel hungry.
How to describe Gao Yi’s first proper meal after his release from prison?
There’s a saying: "Restaurant owners don’t fear a big-bellied man," but this time, Gao Yi had frightened both the restaurant owner and the waitstaff.
At a common Sichuan cuisine restaurant, aside from everything else, Gao Yi had consumed four servings of twice-cooked pork and eight bowls of white rice, and as for the other dishes, there were twenty-eight in total.
It couldn’t be helped; those who practiced martial arts had large appetites, and once they really began to eat, ordinary people couldn’t compete.
Lucy also ate a lot, but in the end, it was just Lucy and Joelson watching Gao Yi eat, and later on, the owner had to check in from time to time, fearful that Gao Yi might overeat and create trouble for him.
Finally, the meal was over, the bill arrived, and then Joelson uncharacteristically took the initiative to settle the bill as an American.
Waiting for Joelson to return from paying, Gao Yi, picking his teeth with a toothpick, asked, "How much did this meal cost?"
Joelson, wincing at the expense, said, "Sixteen hundred US dollars."
Whether earning ten thousand or a hundred thousand a month, to the vast majority of Americans, a meal costing sixteen hundred dollars was definitely a sky-high price.
"That expensive? It seems that running a restaurant can indeed be lucrative."
It was just a casual remark from Gao Yi, but after a brief but deep contemplation, Joelson smiled and said, "It is indeed expensive, but as long as you enjoyed the meal, any price is worth it, and for me, having this opportunity to treat you to a meal makes it even more valuable."
"Indeed! That’s the sentiment, you’re catching on,"
Gao Yi spoke highly of him, telling Joelson, "Not denying it’s expensive because it is just that—costly—but directly addressing the topic, precisely providing emotional value, your prospects are starting to look good."
Joelson smiled while pouring tea.
Gao Yi was immensely impressed, finding someone who could describe ingratiating as precisely providing emotional value was truly a talent—such eloquent people should speak more often, making it easier for others to emulate—or rather, for someone to learn from, thus benefiting the public.
"Well-fed and attitudes adjusted, let’s talk about serious matters now. Crawford and Panetta have decided to appoint you as the operator, right?"
Joelson put down the teapot and spoke softly, "Yes, but it’s just temporary, no official appointment yet. My current task is to inspect the financial situation of various regional offices as a special envoy, not even officially listed in the CIA’s position catalog."
"So, you’re basically auditing?"
"Yes, but it’s really just a temporary position set up to facilitate contact with you, not a long-term or official position."
"No worries, auditing is real power."
Joelson grimaced and said, "Meaningless. If I dared to actually audit, those being audited would dare to get rid of me, so it really is pointless."
Gao Yi had thought Joelson held significant financial authority, but it turned out he had no real power at all.
Gao Yi thought for a moment then said, "So now, Panetta is eager to get rid of Freedom Wind. What about the intelligence? We must know where Freedom Wind has gone. Is Freedom Wind still trying to track my whereabouts?"
"Freedom Wind is definitely still looking for you, but the problem is that we currently don’t know where Freedom Wind has gone. Freedom Wind’s whereabouts are kept secret internally; the Intelligence Bureau wouldn’t notify the management, so... we suspect that Freedom Wind might be in Saudi or France, still searching where you’re most likely to appear."
After discussing personal matters, they now turned to the issues most valued by Panetta. Joelson took out a USB drive and spoke quietly, "This contains all the information about Freedom Wind. It’s not very detailed, but it indeed is everything they know."
Gao Yi nodded and took the USB drive.
Then Joelson continued softly, "Iron Fist George has appeared."
Gao Yi was slightly taken aback.
The French had taken Gao Yi to the UK for Iron Fist George, and then, Gao Yi had delivered several resounding slaps on the faces of the Military Intelligence Sixth Department on behalf of the French—it was a cathartic release of resentment.
But Iron Fist George ultimately wasn’t found.
Now, why had the CIA suddenly mentioned Iron Fist George?
Joelson kept his voice low, "Panetta knows what you did in the UK, and knows it was because of Iron Fist George. Freedom Wind is definitely more aware, and now, Iron Fist George has suddenly appeared in Germany. This news was leaked by someone in the Intelligence Bureau, then became known on the Dark Web, and afterward, the Directorate-General for External Security was informed of it by an information broker on the Dark Web."
Gao Yi wasn’t aware of these events, and no one had mentioned them to him.
Joelson looked at Gao Yi and said, "So we have reason to suspect that Freedom Wind orchestrated this, using Iron Fist George to draw you out. It was done very cleverly, and outsiders would definitely think that Iron Fist George just accidentally left traces, but only the CIA knows that this information was deliberately leaked."
Gao Yi stroked his chin.
To others, Iron Fist George sounded like the very challenge Gao Yi needed to tackle; however, the problem was that Gao Yi was no longer in France, nor did he owe any obligations or have any need to continue engaging with Iron Fist George.
Iron Fist George was the French’s problem, not Gao Yi’s.
"Oh, Freedom Wind wants to use Iron Fist George to bait me."
Unable to help himself, Gao Yi chuckled and waved his hand, "Let them try; I won’t bite."
Joelson seriously said, "The French should have already received the news, but given the French’s lax nature, there’s a real possibility they might overlook it, so, do you want the French to take action? It would help muddy the waters."
"No, I won’t follow the opponent’s rhythm. It’s best if the French know, but it doesn’t matter if they don’t—it’s unrelated to me."
Resolute in not getting involved and not following the rhythm set by his adversary. Regardless of whether Iron Fist George was bait or not, just revolving the situation around him was already a disadvantage.
Joelson hesitated for a moment, then said, "Then there’s nothing urgent left to handle. Panetta is mostly interested in taking down Freedom Wind; money-making doesn’t seem to be his focus."
"That’s because he never showed interest in front of you; probably because Crawford never mentioned making money. Huh, Crawford is really cutting off his own escape routes. How has he even survived until now?"
If not for direct contact, one wouldn’t know Crawford was such an incompetent man, not even providing ways to make money for his backers. What use is he?
It’s possible that within half a year, Joelson could replace Crawford.
Cutting out the middlemen, rejecting middlemen making a margin—is it feasible or not?
Gao Yi pondered for a moment and said, "Can you get in touch with Panetta?"
"No, I haven’t even met him. All communication is relayed through Crawford."
"Find a way, seize the opportunity to personally contact Panetta. Um, is Crawford the type to take responsibility?"
Joelson hesitated for a moment, his expression troubled as he said, "I’m not sure now. I used to think he was very responsible, willing to share the burden with me, willing to protect, support me, but now, it feels... off."
"Well, that makes things easier. Create a big leak, force Crawford into a position where he can’t take responsibility, and you’ll be able to directly contact Panetta. Of course, that’s just a ruse; I’m not actually asking you to mess things up. We’ll set a trap later, but there’s no rush now since you haven’t contributed anything significant. If Crawford falls, you’re done too."
Joelson nodded, and Gao Yi rhythmically tapped on the table, saying, "Still, we need to handle the matters at hand. However, so far, Panetta wants us to do something we’re unwilling to, so there’s absolutely no real work left for us to do. This won’t work. Panetta might become impatient before seeing any benefits."
Joelson thought for a moment, then said, "So what should we do now?"
"Let’s start by making some money. We’ll earn him a substantial sum first—with high profit, low risk, and quick completion. One shot, and we’ll pull Panetta in, letting him see your worth."
Gao Yi stood up and paced back and forth a few steps in the private dining room.
There was only ten million left in capital. Really doing an arms deal wasn’t out of the question, but letting Khalid’s arm act as a distributor, no, making Libyan Salvation Army handle the distribution was still too inefficient, and the money to be made was too little.
The key was, without ever meeting Panetta, how would he know how much money would move him?
Where else could it be?
After pondering for a long time, Gao Yi suddenly said, "Houthi’s Arms, do you have a channel?"
"Houthi’s Arms?"
Joelson thought for a moment and said, "Yemen is currently a hotspot in the Middle East; we definitely have people there, but it’s not something Panetta can handle."
"Let me think, Saudi supports the Yemen Government Army, and Houthi’s Arms is backed by Iran, but the thing is, Saudi has already directly entered the war, no need for secrecy, so..."
Gao Yi looked at Joelson and said, "We could do a big deal with Yemen, at least a billion in scale."
Joelson was startled and said, "Can we just decide to do such a business on a whim?"
Of course, we can decide right away; isn’t this easy? Yemen Government Army is currently backed by Saudi financially and militarily. Saudi can switch the weapons it was going to directly send to arms purchased through Gao Yi, then let Gao Yi deliver them to Yemen Government Army.
This deal could also involve Grasse, making it profitable for everyone involved. How great.
All Gao Yi needed to sacrifice was a favor, and it wasn’t even a big one—who wouldn’t do it?
Gao Yi pointed at Joelson, saying, "I’ll handle this. You wait to report to Crawford. We’ll work out what to say, and once it’s done, you can sideline Crawford and replace him."
Joelson hesitated for a moment, then in a low voice, he said, "You don’t seem to like Crawford?"
Gao Yi did not hesitate at all as he replied, "That’s right, because the way he looks at my girlfriend really annoys me. It’s best to get rid of such tactless people early; they’re bound to cause trouble sooner or later."
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