Ultimate Firepower
Chapter 390 - 372 All for the Garden

Chapter 390: Chapter 372 All for the Garden

Dubai.

Accompanying Gao Yi was Luca, and no one else came.

Before meeting the old Gardener, Gao Yi would certainly imagine what he looked like.

In Gao Yi’s mind, the old Gardener should have the image of the Kentucky Fried Chicken mascot, neat white beard, dress and appearance very gentlemanly, speaking with that very British Oxford accent. In short, two words, aristocrat.

But when he actually met the old Gardener, Gao Yi couldn’t help but be a bit disappointed.

The clothes were decent enough, but no matter how he looked at it, it was just an ordinary person, so much so that Gao Yi was afraid he would forget what the old Gardener looked like after turning his head.

A white T-shirt, with the collar slightly yellowed, and coffee stains that many washes could not completely remove, a pair of jeans, a fisherman’s hat on his head, and a messenger bag slung over one shoulder.

About 1.75 meters tall, not too tall, nor too short, his build was neither fat nor thin. Judging by the skin on his face, he should be about sixty years old. His face was not big, slightly round, and the hair showing under his hat was somewhat grizzled.

Just a retired Caucasian who was neither down-and-out nor wealthy, not trendy or flamboyant, but not unkempt either, which is why Gao Yi would describe the old Gardener’s dress as decent.

Fortunately, Gao Yi hadn’t set the meeting place at the Burj Al Arab but chose a McDonald’s instead.

It was hard to imagine that two successive Gardeners would meet in such a setting.

Gao Yi arrived first; he and Luca had burgers and fries in front of them, but neither of them felt like eating.

The old Gardener, after picking up his meal from the counter, sat directly in front of Gao Yi with his tray.

"Hello."

At first meeting, there were no surprises, no scares, the most common of greetings.

"Hello."

Gao Yi responded, then looked at the old Gardener calmly and said, "Are we going to talk here?"

"Yes, it’s very safe here."

The old Gardener opened the wrapping of the Big Mac. He took a bite of the burger and mumbled with his mouth full, "Hello, Luca."

Unlike Gao Yi, Luca had an attachment to the Garden and although he had never met the old Gardener, he held a special respect for him.

"Hello... Gardener."

Luca was overly excited, but the old Gardener shook his head, saying, "I’m not the Gardener anymore, haven’t been for a long time. I can’t say I’m totally unconnected to the Garden, but according to tradition, once Gardeners retire, they truly have no more contact with the Garden."

Looking at Gao Yi, the old Gardener smiled and said, "But this time it’s different. If I don’t show up quickly to try and save it, the Garden will be gone. You’ll either be Mercenaries or arms dealers, right?"

Luca just gave an awkward smile, but Gao Yi was expressionless, saying, "Let’s talk seriously, how do you know my master."

The old Gardener waved his hand, saying, "You can call me John Moore."

There are at least three Johns in every ten British men, so this name needless to say, was certainly false.

Gao Yi didn’t want to make their first meeting too stiff, but this John Moore apparently wanted to take control of the conversation, and he was getting a bit impatient.

Or maybe it wasn’t impatience, but an urgent eagerness.

Gao Yi asked again, "How do you know my master?"

"Quite simple, because I’m the head of the Andic Group’s European Department."

Upon hearing this, Gao Yi and Luca immediately stiffened.

After a moment, Gao Yi widened his eyes in astonishment at John Moore.

Luca was clearly just shocked by the identity John disclosed, but Gao Yi thought more, his mind racing faster.

If John was the head of Andic Group’s European Department, then why would Sean have died!

Gao Yi didn’t believe John Moore was unaware, but if he was, then how to account for Sean’s death.

"Sean..."

"I knew, but I didn’t stop it. I just arranged for relatively less capable assassins. Unfortunately, Sean still died."

John Moore felt not a hint of remorse for Sean’s death, he even acted as if it had nothing to do with him.

Luca finally understood, he just stared at John blankly.

John took a bite of his hamburger and continued vaguely, "Would you blame me for not protecting you?"

Gao Yi’s mind was a bit chaotic, unsure how to respond.

John continued, "It seems you would, but let me tell you this, to deal with the Andic Group, you have to understand the Andic Group. And to understand the Andic Group, you must infiltrate its inner workings."

Putting down the half-eaten hamburger in his hand, John took a sip of Coca-Cola, then said calmly, "I will not give up a plan half completed, not for an empty shell of a Garden, not for Sean."

Not knowing what John meant, Gao Yi remained silent.

Now Luca wasn’t sure what to say either; he looked at John, then at Gao Yi, and finally chose to keep silent as well.

"Sean was the heir I had chosen. Not because he was particularly outstanding, but because there was no one else to choose from. The Andic Group almost leveled the Garden, and as a Gardener, watching one’s own Garden being slowly razed, do you think I felt okay? No, of course not. I was furious, I needed revenge, I had to destroy the Andic Group."

John picked up his hamburger again and said with the same calmness, "The year I retired, I mean really retired—from the Military Intelligence Sixth Department—I left the role of the Gardener, created a new assassin organization, and handed over the Garden to Sean. Then I just waited for Andic Group to recruit me. Not surprisingly, with my track record, my abilities, the Andic Group wouldn’t pass up on top talent like me, so, I joined the Andic Group."

Gao Yi and Luca couldn’t help but exchange glances, then Luca said, "You joined Andic?"

"Wasn’t I clear enough?"

John continued eating his hamburger, then resumed his indifferent tone, "Compared to my efforts and plans, Sean’s worth was not enough to destroy them, so I did nothing and watched him get taken out. I thought the Garden would disappear completely, but unexpectedly, he passed the Garden to you. Even less expectedly, you not only turned things around but also created such a favorable situation that I had to abandon my plan to help, support, and protect you. Because obviously, you have a better chance than I ever did at taking down the Andic Group."

"Oh?"

John continued in a low voice, "You ask me how I know your master. It’s simple, because I’m with the Andic Group. You and Luca in Thailand didn’t attract much attention, but after he recommended you to Sean, and Sean took a liking to you, and after Sean’s death, I was forced to start paying attention to you, to investigate you."

At last, John got to the point and let out a sigh, "Then it was easy to find out your identity. All I had to do was check what tasks the Andic Group had completed in Thailand. One of them was to take out everyone at the KT Boxing Gym. Before this task, there would have been a detailed background investigation, so of course, I knew everyone who was there. There were seven of you, including you, the boxer who liked to wear a tiger mask, nicknamed ’The Tiger’, that was you."

These things were not hard to check up on.

Gao Yi said quietly, "So they had been investigating for a long time before Andic made a move."

"Of course. I can tell you, the client was Sai Tabati. He was one of the controllers of the Thai underground boxing market. The opponent you killed in your sixth fight was his boxer. What was supposed to be a standard illegal boxing match, most people were betting on you to win. However, as the bookmaker, Sai Tabati strongly recommended to General Cha Bayu to bet on your loss. Then, he approached the KT Boxing Gym and asked you to take a dive during the match."

Gao Yi exhaled, "Yes, they offered two hundred thousand Thai Baht to make me lose. My master was also in the circle; he knew Sai Tabati’s influence, so I agreed to lose."

"But you didn’t expect Sai Tabati’s boxer would try to kill you."

"Yes, I was looking for an opportunity to lose to him. I let him hit me, kneed me, but then he choked me. He was trying to break my neck."

"So you killed him."

"Yes, he tried to kill me. I wasn’t going to be polite. I punched his head and it burst."

John chuckled and said, "You won, and Sai Tabati didn’t suffer much loss. But the boxer he convinced the General to bet on was dead, costing the General one million Thai Baht. The General was furious. Sai Tabati wanted to apologize and repay the General, but the General taught him a lesson regardless. In a fit of rage, Sai Tabati hired an assassin. After about a month, following a boxing match, Sai Tabati used an assassin from the Andic Group to go to the KT Boxing Gym and kill your master’s entire family."

Gao Yi swallowed hard and said, "So, my enemy is Sai Tabati."

"Sai Tabati is already dead. The General thought he was of no use and wanted him to hand over his wealth. He also wanted a hand in the underground illegal boxing business and had the military arrest and kill him directly. And the assassins who went to the KT Boxing Gym got killed by you on the spot. So, both the client and the assassin are dead."

John held up two fingers and continued, "These were two separate events. Your master’s family’s death had nothing to do with the General, and Sai Tabati’s death had nothing to do with you. While they seem connected, they are indeed unrelated."

Gao Yi was somewhat bewildered.

John kept talking, "Your hatred, your past, I couldn’t care less. I only looked into you because you took over the Garden from Sean. I’m here only because of your current standing and strength. To me, you have an advantage over me in taking down the Andic Group."

Gao Yi looked at John and said, "So what are you trying to say with all this?"

John stated calmly, "Sean was of little use to the Garden and had no chance of taking down the Andic Group. Therefore, I could watch as he got taken down by the Andic Group and do nothing. Conversely, while I’ve been with Andic Group for many years, gaining certain status and power, you have more advantages than I do, so I can sacrifice myself to protect you. Is it that hard to understand?"

It was not hard to understand: keep whoever is more useful—extremely pragmatic, extremely fair.

Gao Yi nodded, "I get it, I am more important than you right now, so you’re willing to sacrifice yourself."

John nodded and then said with a slight smile, "Yes, everything is for the Garden."