Ultimate Firepower
Chapter 496 - 475: Russian Fast Food

Chapter 496: Chapter 475: Russian Fast Food

It takes time for Alexander to change his mindset, and we can’t be sure he’ll actually do it, so we can’t rush.

The list is ready; just pick out a few people from Constantinople.

Shaman has money, a strong desire for vengeance, and he isn’t afraid of retaliation from Constantinople. This time Constantinople struck first, and if he doesn’t strike back hard, he won’t be able to swallow the insult.

The primary target is the head of Constantinople’s Intelligence Bureau, but the one who must be killed on command is Shashin, who was behind the journalist incident.

Two people, by order of priority, are the not so high-ranking Shashin in the Intelligence Bureau, followed by its director.

Direct participants must die; Shaman here has lost an Intelligence Bureau director, so Constantinople must also lose one.

After Alexander finished reading, he was mentally prepared for the levels of the targets on the list.

"Taking down the MIT director won’t be easy. Shashin needs more intelligence gathering to be sure if he can be easily taken care of. My worry is that knowing retaliation is coming, Shashin might go into hiding."

What Alexander said was nothing new; Gao Yi spread his hands, saying, "If it was easy, why would I need to buy information from you?"

"I need to review the intelligence and then decide on the action plan. Based on the current situation, I think taking down the MIT director is fairly simple. He has many public appearances, and we keep a close watch on him."

Russia and Constantinople are old adversaries. Although relations between the two countries are currently acceptable, in general, cooperation is due to political necessity and is temporary. Confrontation is the eternal theme of the relationship between the two countries. Therefore, the KGB has never relaxed its intelligence gathering on Constantinople.

Gao Yi nodded, saying, "Make it look like an accident."

Alexander was startled for a moment, then said, "An accident, must it be an accident?"

"An accident would be best because the MIT director is a big shot. Direct assassination with extreme force might very well provoke an international dispute. We need to be responsible for our employer; causing the MIT director to die in an accident greatly lowers the possibility of direct conflict between the two countries."

Knowing who did it and accepting that they did are two different concepts.

MIT is the abbreviation for Constantinople’s Intelligence Bureau, and the director of MIT is certainly a big shot in Constantinople. His death would be a significant event.

Alexander of course understands the difference, hence Gao Yi’s request is definitely reasonable.

The task isn’t difficult, but the consequences are severe, and anyone would have to seriously consider whether they could take on the job.

Alexander thought for a long time, then finally nodded, "Alright, let’s craft an accident."

"As for Shashin, he must die a gruesome death, one that’s sensational and ugly to look at."

Shaman didn’t make that request, but Gao Yi knew what kind of effect Shaman wanted. Since the retaliation is targeted, having the target quietly pass away could result in Constantinople possibly concealing the news, preventing anyone from finding out, and thus missing the taste of revenge.

But if Shashin is taken out in a sensational way, it will please Shaman.

"Then it’s even simpler. Any method would do—shooting, bombing, or execution-style."

Alexander took a breath, then seriously said, "This can be done."

Gao Yi’s idea was to establish direct contact with Alexander by subcontracting tasks to him; however, the task couldn’t be too simple for Alexander to complete. Eventually, it would still require reaching out to Nikolai, the head of the FSB, through Alexander.

After establishing contact with Nikolai, it will be time to display the strength of the Garden, show the benefits the Garden can bring, and persuade Nikolai to send someone to join the Garden.

Alexander is a mid-level leader of the KGB, while Nikolai is the big boss.

In other cooperative entities, Gao Yi has always been in direct contact with the heads. He does not want to only establish a relationship with Alexander, who is a mid-level leader at the KGB. However, Alexander is currently the only connection Gao Yi has access to. If it is not possible to establish direct contact with Nikolai, then the role of Alexander becomes very important.

The ultimate goal is to dig Yuri over, but while accomplishing this goal, it’s perfectly fine to stir up interest from Alexander. If they really manage to bring Yuri over and heat up Alexander’s interest as well as establish contact with Nikolai, it would be a perfect outcome that kills three birds with one stone.

And if they add on the KGB resolving the Constantinople mission for Gao Yi directly, with the price being merely fifteen million per person, all the better. Three birds with one stone would then become a grand celebration of fortune.

It’s a nice plan and a simple method, but realizing them is another matter. Everything must be explored and approached step by step.

Right now, it’s best to establish direct contact with Nikolai, but the difference with Nikolai is that although he too makes money under the table, his status is rock-solid, and he has tremendous power in his hands.

Whether Nikolai would even notice Gao Yi is uncertain, for at Nikolai’s level, money is no longer so important.

Alexander has agreed outright that the task can be completed, but with a target on Gao Yi’s list like the MIT director, Alexander howsoever would have to consult Nikolai, right?

"How soon can you act? If it’s too slow, I won’t need your services. But if it’s fast enough, I can pay more."

Gao Yi was still thinking of ways to complicate Alexander’s mission, and it seems that now he can only increase the difficulty on time, while simultaneously hinting to Alexander that there’s more money in it.

It would be best to deal with Nikolai in person, relationships aside, just directly contacting him is good enough.

Alexander thought for a while, then said, "It’s difficult to say when we can act. I don’t have direct contact with Constantinople, so I need to go back and get informed first. Then I can tell you the exact timing of the action plan. Naturally, it would be best if you could pay more; we can discuss the price then, how’s that?"

"Good, let’s agree on that then."

Things can’t be discussed too detailedly; more precise matters need to be addressed after meeting with Nikolai.

Gao Yi stood up and made a gesture of seeing off the visitor; Alexander politely departed.

With Alexander gone, only Sherkin remained – now certain things could be said.

"Is there a problem with our method now? It’s getting a bit complicated at present."

Gao Yi was somewhat worried, while Sherkin whispered, "If we can make contact with Nikolai just like this, it would be great. One step at a time, to be honest, I really didn’t think you could achieve your goal, but I am very optimistic about you getting Alexander to join the Garden."

Yes, it’s hard to poach Yuri, but bringing Alexander over is a piece of cake.

Alexander is Nikolai’s White Gloves, but gloves get dirty after being worn for a long time, and may even turn black. That’s when it’s time to change gloves.

Doesn’t it feel familiar? Xinfeng fell from grace, Dani is under house arrest, and Sith is too famous. They are all marginalized, and it’s because they are marginalized that they can join the Garden.

Alexander is in the same situation. If I can bring him over, it would be way too easy.

But the problem lies in the fact that Gao Yi’s current target is too grand, his pitch too high. He is wholeheartedly set on Yuri, and even if Alexander is excellent, he would be just an extra.

"I don’t want Alexander, and the Garden can’t have duplicate flowers."

Gao Yi also doesn’t want too much Russian influence in the Garden, so he sighed and said, "Let’s wait and see. I think Alexander will definitely come back to seek us out. We’ll assess the situation then. This matter can’t be rushed; I’m mentally prepared that it might take several days of waiting here."

Sherkin nodded and said, "Good, then I will take my leave first. When Alexander comes again, I will... Wait, sorry, Alexander is calling."

Sherkin was about to leave, but he received a phone call, and it was from Alexander.

Sherkin answered the phone, saying, "Hello, what’s up?"

Over the phone, Alexander said, "The Gardener mentioned that if the timing is fast enough, the price could be higher. Now, I want to know how much more can be added if it’s completed in the shortest time?"

Sherkin looked at Gao Yi. After a moment of thought, Gao Yi said, "Twenty million."

It was a casually quoted figure, with no special meaning. Gao Yi felt that the difference of five million was enough.

"Twenty million."

"Alright, I got it."

Alexander hung up the phone.

Sherkin shrugged his shoulders and said, "I suppose he’s calling Nikolai now. Nikolai must have asked him to inquire. This is a good sign; Nikolai must be interested too, or he wouldn’t have sent Alexander to ask."

"Yes, a good sign."

"I’m going to book a room. I have a feeling that Alexander won’t wait too long before he comes back, so it’s better for me to wait here at this hotel."

Sherkin wasn’t staying at the same hotel as Gao Yi. But looking at the current situation, Sherkin thought that instead of frequently accompanying Alexander here, it would be better to just stay, especially since the things that were supposed to be concealed were already exposed; hiding his whereabouts didn’t mean much anymore.

Gao Yi escorted Sherkin to the door, and then he turned back to Lucy and said, "I don’t really like doing things this way. It’s not sincere enough."

Lucy usually doesn’t express her opinions, but this time she rarely said, "This man is formidable. He’s vicious."

"Oh? How can you tell? I didn’t think he was anything special."

"A feeling, or intuition, I guess. I think he’s like a wounded beast, just a feeling."

When you put on Black Gloves, it’s to do dirty work. Those who can be Black Gloves must be capable. What can be affirmed is their strong ability to act because if they were good at scheming, they would be more like the White Gloves type, not Black Gloves.

Gao Yi was casually chatting with Lucy, not after a very long time, maybe half an hour at most, his room door was knocked again.

The door had a Do Not Disturb sign on it, so it definitely wouldn’t be hotel staff knocking.

Gao Yi raised his voice and asked, "Who is it?"

"It’s me."

It was unexpectedly Alexander’s voice. Gao Yi hesitated for a moment, but still went to open the door.

Outside stood only Alexander. Gao Yi opened the door and asked nonchalantly, "What’s up, any issues?"

"Your job here is done. This is the live video evidence. You can also verify it through other channels, but you can pay us now, right?"

Saying something unintelligible, Alexander took out a smartphone and was about to show it to Gao Yi.

Gao Yi was dumbfounded and asked, "What’s done?"

"The mission. Both targets are dead. You said if the timing was quick enough, there would be extra pay. I think this timing should definitely be quick enough, right?"

Of course it was quick enough, because Alexander had only left for a total of half an hour.

For the first time, Gao Yi was shocked by the efficiency of a Russian, utterly shocked.

If what Alexander said was true, then this matter has started to get complicated, very complicated indeed.

Gao Yi wanted to make a lavish meal, to prepare the ingredients slowly, pay attention to the heat control, and cook this feast meticulously.

But Alexander, who was supposed to be part of the ingredients, suddenly became the chef. Moreover, he turned Gao Yi’s feast into fast food.

Russian-style fast food—a big loaf of bread with a handful of salt, extremely simple, but exceedingly fast and filling.