Ultimate Firepower
Chapter 338 - 322: Aim the High Altitude Gun Horizontally

Chapter 338: Chapter 322: Aim the High Altitude Gun Horizontally

Luca was in Yemen, still waiting for the right moment to utter the crucial word.

After returning to the United States to receive direct instructions from Panetta, Joelson first went to Baghdad for a secret meeting with Gao Yi, carrying Panetta’s directives with him.

"I’ve come with a mission!"

Joelson’s pride and joy could no longer be concealed. Upon meeting with Gao Yi, he declared that he had received his mission.

Of course, when Joelson said this, it wasn’t because he wanted to boast, but rather to inform Gao Yi that he had received Panetta’s approval and was no longer just someone remotely controlled by Crawford through Panetta.

If Joelson hadn’t received Panetta’s approval, he wouldn’t have shown up at all, and the most likely possibility would have been that he disappeared forever.

Now that Joelson had come with a mission from Panetta, it meant that he had become Panetta’s man. Perhaps not yet trusted enough to be his confidant, but definitely deemed reliable by Panetta.

Gao Yi immediately responded, "Congratulations, you’ve succeeded."

Joelson took a deep, satisfying breath and then whispered, "Panetta asked me a lot of detailed questions, including our first contact, his opinion of you and assessment, and the development of the entire situation. In the end, he sent me back to collaborate with you, to see if you really have the capability, if you are truly able to provide the funds, and finally, he tasked me with collecting the money on his behalf."

Gao Yi asked in surprise, "Collect the money for him? To manage it?"

"Yes."

Gao Yi nodded repeatedly, "Panetta is very cautious, and he’s also bold enough to let you collect the money on his behalf. Hm, does he not have anyone else to manage the money?"

"I don’t know, but I think it’s another test," said Joelson.

"What about Crawford? How is he doing?" inquired Gao Yi.

Upon mentioning Crawford, Joelson’s expression dimmed slightly, and he said in a low voice, "Crawford is definitely finished, but up to now, Panetta hasn’t decided exactly how to deal with him, whether to physically eliminate him or reassign him. The former is a bit too harsh, while the latter is too lenient."

Crawford’s receipt of ten million wasn’t the biggest issue; the problem was he knew too much.

Gao Yi spread his hands and asked, "What do you think?"

"Of course, I hope Crawford is wise enough to keep his mouth shut, which would be ideal, but the problem is..." Joelson sighed softly, "the problem is that Crawford truly lacks the essential qualities to be a big shot. There are big shots among caucasian people, but despite his good circumstances, Crawford has failed to rise to the occasion because he really isn’t savvy enough. He knows the importance of keeping quiet, but he doesn’t understand when to stop. Most fatally, he likes to keep everything to himself!"

A person can be foolish, clumsy, evil, greedy, and still get along just fine.

Crawford, in fact, wasn’t foolish, clumsy, overly evil, or unusually greedy, but he should not have kept everything to himself, and the most fatal mistake was that he did.

If Crawford, after receiving the ten million, had been willing to give Panetta a thirty percent cut, Panetta might still have spared his life at this point.

Gao Yi spoke indifferently, "What did you say?"

Joelson shook his head and whispered, "You said one must never be a traitor, so I never betrayed Crawford from start to finish. The reason my trip took four days is that as soon as I arrived in America, I was immediately taken into custody. Panetta had people torture me, asking about Crawford’s affairs, but I said nothing."

Gao Yi was extremely surprised, "You were tortured upon returning?"

Joelson nodded, "Yes."

Joelson had returned from his last mission severely wounded, thinking he would be interrogated, but nothing happened.

This time, when Joelson returned, he thought it was to face Panetta’s test and then to be reused, but instead, he was subjected to torture.

Gao Yi didn’t know what to say, he subconsciously spread his hands, "What in the world happened?"

Joelson said with a bitter smile, "Crawford is too useless. After I got back, Panetta started interrogating me, but I said nothing. I just claimed that Crawford hadn’t taken any money, neither had I, and that it was all your fabrication, possibly just rumors and lies."

Gao Yi nodded slightly, while Joelson continued, "Then, after two days, Panetta personally slammed the evidence in my face."

"What evidence?"

"Crawford didn’t transfer the money to his own accounts. He’s not that stupid. But he used six fake accounts to transfer the ten million across them. He didn’t pay off all of his loans, which would have been too obvious and difficult to evade financial scrutiny. However, the blank accounts he used were created by the CIA itself. He thought erasing these accounts from the CIA system would mean no one would know, the idiot!"

Joelson finally couldn’t help but curse under his breath before continuing, "The CIA’s dummy accounts could fool most people, but how could Panetta possibly not see through them? Six accounts, eleven transactions, a total of ninety million and two hundred thousand dollars were transferred in. Tracing back the payment accounts, Panetta got hold of all the information, printed it out, and slapped it onto my face."

Crawford’s move is questionable, whether to call it stupid or smart. To call him stupid, he at least knew not to use his own account, but to call him smart, he used some of the CIA’s own dummy accounts, intended to facilitate the agents.

If nobody specifically investigated Crawford, his actions wouldn’t have been a problem. But once someone took notice of Crawford, what he was doing was practically suicidal.

One can only say Crawford was too lazy, trying to take advantage of the CIA for this sort of thing, and as a result, he ended up offering his own head on a platter.

Gao Yi found it amusing and couldn’t help saying, "Well, laziness can be lethal. So, what happened next?"

Joelson spread his hands and said, "Of course I was angry, bewildered, and extremely shocked by the news that Crawford had pocketed ten million dollars. Then came confusion and loss. But I didn’t say a word, no matter how much they tortured me. I just said that Crawford was my superior, and I wouldn’t say anything against him."

Gao Yi nodded and said, "Impressive. If it were me at that time, I might have just told the truth."

Joelson whispered, "Because I judged Panetta to be an extremely suspicious person. He trusts no one, not even the subordinates he appointed. When he got to the crucial point, he sent everyone out, turned off all recording devices, and questioned me alone, personally. At that moment, I felt he might like, no, he needed an extremely loyal fool."

"So you played the fool."

"Yes. Panetta was pleased with my silence. Then he said, whatever Crawford had done had nothing to do with me. Whether or not I took the money, as long as I was willing to work for him, only for him, he would give me a chance."

Joelson clicked his fingers and said, "I didn’t say anything at the time, but Panetta immediately mentioned he would receive twenty million dollars. I was to collect and hold the money for him, and out of that money, two million was for me."

Gao Yi exclaimed in surprise, "Two million for you? A tenth of it? Panetta’s quite generous, huh!"

Joelson whispered, "Yes, that was my reaction too. Then I expressed extreme confusion and shock at his generosity as if I had never heard of such a thing in my life. In the end, after I provided him with some precise emotional value, Panetta immediately decided to completely win me over."

Gao Yi asked with interest, "Oh? What did you say?"

"I said, ’Are you an angel?’"

Joelson smiled and said, "That’s all I said, but my facial expression at the time was quite complex."

Joelson made a face, a Feng Biao-style expression—first showing shock, followed by gratitude. So the main emotion this expression conveyed was gratitude, not shock.

Some people are not persuasive in speaking because their facial expressions and body language do not match up, while for Joelson, using a set pattern of expressive faces was much simpler.

"Not bad, you learn fast."

Joelson sighed and said, "It’s mainly because Wind Vane taught me well, though I didn’t study with him for long, just a few hours, but he has already changed my life."

"Right, you should thank him properly when you get a chance."

Joelson nodded heavily and then continued, "When Panetta saw my expression, he laughed, then he said something very seriously—he said caucasian people can’t dance, black people don’t pay back loans."

Gao Yi looked puzzled, so Joelson explained, "It means black people can’t be trusted with money. I think he was using this proverb to conclude his views on Crawford’s actions. Then he started to assign me specific tasks. When I asked him what would happen to Crawford, he just smiled and didn’t answer."

After finishing, Joelson whispered, "Panetta asked me to check how your preparations were going, what exactly you had prepared, whether you had found people, and where you planned to strike. As soon as I get this information, I am to inform him immediately. Right now, Panetta is most concerned about Freedom Wind. Also, Panetta told me to tell you, he has a very good arms dealer who could help connect you with some business."

"We’ve already found the people. You can tell Panetta that our main force is the War Axe Mercenary Group, with the Lego Mercenary Group as support. With Panetta’s resources, finding out this information should be easy, and the commission and arrangements are all suitable."

Joelson nodded, then he continued, "So, has the ambush location been decided?"

"Not yet, there’s no rush for that."

Joelson immediately said, "Panetta gave a suggestion."

Gao Yi expressed surprise, "Oh, I understand his concern, but does he like to interfere with front-line matters, likes to micro-manage?"

Joelson shook his head, "He told me that Freedom Wind might mobilize a lot of resources because they absolutely cannot afford another failure. So he wanted me to remind you to be extra vigilant, and the way you dealt with Naaoi last time was good."

"The way we dealt with Naaoi last time? What are you talking about?"

"Using the High Altitude Gun as a field gun!"

Gao Yi suddenly realized, and Joelson smiled, "Panetta advised me to tell you that the method last time was effective. So you’d better find a suitable place, get the High Altitude Gun ready, and use whatever heavy weaponry you can. That way, no matter how many people Freedom Wind brings or what kind of troops they have, they’re doomed."

Gao Yi smiled and said, "Panetta’s quite ruthless. But this suggestion... can be considered, hmm, it can be considered!"