139: Undercurrents

Upon hearing this, Ambassador Tao was momentarily stunned before quickly replying, "My apologies, President Fernando, but I personally cannot make decisions regarding arms sales. However, I can relay your request to my superiors. Once they respond, I will inform you as soon as possible!"

"Then I must thank Ambassador Tao. I personally am very fond of China. May our friendship last forever!"

"I am very grateful for your recognition, Mr. President. Our friendship will surely endure!" Ambassador Tao replied with a smile... Meanwhile, at the Prime Minister's office in Israel.

Nenia had already learned the news last night that the fighter jet fleet they sent out had been completely wiped out. At this moment, Nenia's face looked as grim as if his father had died. Also present in his office were Chaha, the Deputy Commander of the Israel Air Force, and Jonar, the Minister of Defense.

"Tell me, how should we deal with this Xinan Country to wash away the humiliation we suffered today?" Nenia asked in a chilling tone.

Air Force Deputy Commander Chaha looked at Nenia and replied, "Mr. Prime Minister, our Air Force underestimated the enemy last night. We didn't expect such a backward country to possess hypersonic missiles. Please give our Air Force another chance. This time, we will make the enemy pay a price in blood!"

"Heh! Deputy Commander Chaha, please face reality, alright? Israel is about five thousand kilometers away from Xinan Country. With our Air Force's capabilities, only the F15I, with aerial refueling, can threaten their homeland. But you saw the battle last night; once the F15I enters their airspace, it simply cannot withstand the bombardment of the enemy's anti-aircraft missiles. Do you really want to send our warriors to their deaths again?" Defense Minister Jonar sneered.

This retort caused Chaha to glare at Jonar, but he couldn't find the words to refute him. After all, what Jonar said was the truth.

"Then does Minister Jonar have any better ideas?" After a two-second silence, Chaha replied.

"It's not exactly a 'good' idea, but it's certainly more reliable than your reckless approach. Actually, the most panicked party right now shouldn't be us. Although we are in a state of war with Xinan Country, the fact remains that we are too far apart. The enemy has hypersonic anti-aircraft missiles, so the current situation is a stalemate where neither side can do much to the other on a large scale. At most, we could send small units to their territory for sabotage, but the extent of the damage would be limited. We've already suffered a loss once; even if the enemy tries to act again, it will be difficult for them to succeed."

"Minister Jonar, what exactly do you mean?" Nenia asked somewhat impatiently after listening to Jonar's analysis.

"Mr. Prime Minister, my meaning is to fan the flames and watch the situation unfold. Think about it: whose territory is Africa? If a fierce tiger suddenly jumps out, who will be the most uncomfortable? There's an old saying in China: 'How can one allow another to snore beside one's own bed?' It means, within one's own sphere of influence, how can one allow a power to emerge that is beyond one's control!

So, the ones who should be anxious right now aren't us. What we should do now is seek help from the Black Palace in the USA and throw mud at Xinan Country, framing it as an obstacle to the interests of Western nations in Africa. This way, I believe that without us lifting a finger, someone will naturally be eager to deal with Xinan Country!" Jonar replied unhurriedly, a look of absolute confidence on his face.

"Good! Very good!" When Nenia heard Jonar's plan, his eyes couldn't help but light up. It was indeed the truth; Israel had no interests in Africa at all. The conflict between the two sides was mostly out of spite and a desire for revenge. Even if Israel's missile units were deployed to strike the enemy, Israel wouldn't gain any substantial benefits. It was essentially a losing business, as the cost of every long-range or intercontinental missile was outrageously expensive.

But if they did as Jonar suggested, although their anger wouldn't be vented immediately, it was the method that best served their own interests. Although Israel was nicknamed the 'Honey Badger'—fearing no one and biting back like a mad dog if provoked—one could see from a general overview that every war Israel had fought over the years was for its own interests. Did people really think they were called 'Honey Badgers' just because they were reckless?

Nenia then agreed to Jonar's solution with almost no objection.

Then, right before their eyes, he dialed the number of their 'Big Daddy,' the USA.

The Black Palace soon realized it was Nenia calling and transferred the call to the leader of the USA, Byrons.

As soon as Byrons answered the phone, Nenia began to complain, accusing Xinan Country of various crimes. Naturally, he only spoke of Xinan Country's faults and didn't mention a word about his own dispatch of agents to Xinan Country to fish in troubled waters or the assassination attempt on Fernando.

In theory, Israel was the spokesperson supported by the USA in the Middle East—essentially the USA's own son. Otherwise, without the USA backing them up, did anyone really think Israel could provoke everyone and still survive to this day?

Now that their son had been bullied, what could the USA do as the father? Naturally, they would seek justice for their son.

After hanging up the phone, Byrons directly invited the top leaders of Gaolu Country and John Country to a video conference.

Why invite these two countries? Naturally, it was because these two, like the USA, had massive interests in Africa.

Once the meeting began, Byrons spoke first: "Have you investigated the background of this Xinan Country yet?"

The presidents of John Country and Gaolu Country both shook their heads. The new regime established by Fernando had risen far too quickly. In just over a month, it had defeated the original Government Army and the rebels supported by the USA, achieving unification. It was so rapid that it gave these countries no time to react. By the time they did, the intelligence personnel they sent had already been arrested. Thus, including the USA, the three nations knew very little about Xinan Country.

"Then what do you plan to do? Continue to watch them grow stronger?" Byrons continued to ask.

"That is obviously impossible," President Mark of Gaolu Country replied immediately as soon as Byrons finished speaking.

If one had to pick the most panicked among the three, it was naturally Gaolu Country. One must know that in Africa today, there are still over thirty countries that use the Gaolu language. Gaolu's influence in Africa is immense, and its interests are naturally the greatest.

"President Mark, we naturally don't want to see them grow either. We know very little about Xinan Country's current regime, and Xinan Country is the second-largest oil exporter in Africa. Since the country was founded, they haven't shown any intention of selling oil to us. This does not align with our interests. Such a regime has already exceeded our control.

How about we join forces to destroy it? What do you say?" A sharp glint flashed in Byrons's eyes. Though his tone was calm, both Mark and the President of John Country, David, could hear the chilling intent within!

Phew!

Mark let out a long breath and then said, "I agree!"

John Country was a staunch ally of the USA, so they naturally wouldn't refuse and quickly expressed their agreement as well.

"Mr. Byrons, do you have a plan? Although Xinan Country's regime hasn't received international recognition yet, they haven't done anything out of line besides the conflict with Israel. If our sides rashly send troops, I'm afraid the public opinion would be very unfavorable," Mark then inquired.

"Haha, sending troops is naturally out of the question. Not only would public opinion be bad, but there might even be opposition within our own countries, which would be very disadvantageous for us. However, just because our home countries aren't sending troops doesn't mean there's no one available. President Mark, stop pretending. Don't tell me you have no armed forces available in Africa. If you didn't, how would Gaolu Country maintain its massive interests there?

As for me, I'll be open with you. I can mobilize the armies of both King Kong Country and Bugang Country. The total strength of the two countries is around 150,000 men. The soldiers have all been trained with our assistance, and their military quality is decent. Of course, you know the situation there—their equipment is a bit lacking, but in Africa, it counts as main-line gear," Byrons laughed.

Mark was not surprised by what Byrons said. As the world's number one superpower, the USA had hundreds of military bases globally, including in Africa. Through these military bases, the USA's global influence was immense, and having a few lackeys was only to be expected.

"My country has a mercenary group in Africa with about three thousand people that can join this operation," the President of John Country then replied.

Mark thought for a moment and grit his teeth, saying, "I can mobilize a full division of the Foreign Legion."

"Haha, then I wish us a pleasant cooperation. Once we take down Xinan Country, we'll prop up a puppet regime, and the oil resources will be distributed among our three families according to our contribution!" Byrons replied with a laugh... That same day, the USA, John Country, and Gaolu Country began their secret deployment.

Since King Kong Country and Bugang Country were adjacent to Xinan Country, John Country and Gaolu Country immediately began to move their forces into these two countries. At the same time, Byrons promised heavy rewards to King Kong Country and Bugang Country, persuading both nations to deploy their troops simultaneously.

Thus, undercurrents began to surge across the African continent... In Northern Myanmar, since the Four Great Families were suppressed, the Yan Huang Armed Forces had taken root in the region. Xin Yang, the head of the Death Warriors' Northern Myanmar branch, had established a relationship with the Nanyun Provincial Government of China by releasing the undercover Police Officers last time.

Shortly after, the Nanyun Provincial Government reported this matter to the capital. China naturally welcomed a faction that was friendly to them, even if that faction was still very weak.

Subsequently, the capital of China dispatched a delegation to Northern Myanmar to negotiate a series of commercial and aid actions with Xin Yang.

With China's support, the area of Northern Myanmar controlled by Xin Yang entered construction mode. For this, Qin Yang also dispatched a Third-level Death Soldier with the 'Planner' skill to assist Xin Yang.

The economy in Northern Myanmar was sluggish; otherwise, it wouldn't have used drugs and telecommunications fraud as its core industries. However, the Third-level Planner, Yang Chengyu, still mapped out a path for the development of this region.

The main focus was on mineral resources. Myanmar is rich in jade and gold mines. Setting aside the gold mines—which Xin Yang intended to hire people to mine himself—those gemstones and jade are highly sought after in China and possess immense value. It was just that previously, the top-tier jade and gemstone resources were controlled by local warlords. These warlords kept them hidden, only selling some occasionally, as rarity increases value and too much supply would cause prices to drop.

By pacifying Northern Myanmar, Xin Yang obtained many raw jade and gemstone stones from the Four Great Families and some minor warlords. Among them, the Four Great Families contributed the most, roughly several hundred tons. Of course, these were all quality pieces evaluated by the Four Great Families; those that couldn't be determined had flowed into the market for trade.

Yang Chengyu wanted to use these raw jade stones to create an event similar to the Jade Public Auction held by the Myanmar government to increase the popularity of Northern Myanmar and attract people. Only when there are people can the economy become active; this is the simplest logic.

At the same time, Yang Chengyu also planned to build gambling hotels in Northern Myanmar, similar to those in Macau, to develop the tourism industry here and form a more harmonious industrial development chain.

The overall plan was to collaborate with China's Nanyun Province to host a Jade Public Auction, then use the lure of wealth to attract people to Northern Myanmar, and finally provide a one-stop service for food, drink, and entertainment to revitalize the economy of their occupied area. This was Yang Chengyu's master plan.

With China's support, one Chinese infrastructure company after another soon moved into Northern Myanmar. Under Xin Yang's investment regardless of cost, Old Street was rapidly remodeled. The industrial parks that were originally harmful were transformed into high-end hotels, shopping malls, and casinos.

However, while Xin Yang was carrying out these drastic construction projects, trouble also came knocking.

On this day, a group of native soldiers, roughly a platoon in size, escorted a vehicle to the border of Old Street. They were stopped at the border by the Yan Huang Armed Forces soldiers on guard.

Then, a middle-aged man in a military officer's uniform stepped out of the vehicle. He walked directly up to the Yan Huang Armed Forces soldiers and said, "I am a representative of the Da Jun. By the order of Commander-in-Chief Edda, I have come to see the leader of your faction."

The Da Jun was the largest warlord faction that actually controlled the entire Northern Myanmar. The Four Great Families that had been eliminated actually survived by relying on the favor of the Da Jun.

After hearing the news, Xin Yang thought about it and decided to meet the representative of the Da Jun to see what they had to say. Since the Four Great Families were wiped out, the Da Jun had not made an appearance, but now they had emerged. Xin Yang had a premonition that it probably wasn't anything good.

As expected, Xin Yang's premonition was quite accurate.

After meeting Xin Yang, the Da Jun representative immediately adopted an arrogant and haughty attitude.

"Are you the leader of the faction currently occupying Old Street and other areas?" the Da Jun representative asked.

"Yes. Do you have some business? It seems we have stayed out of each other's way until now," Xin Yang asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I naturally have business, and very important business at that. You actually started a conflict and eliminated the Four Great Families of Old Street without consulting Commander Edda. Don't you know that the Four Great Families of Old Street were under the protection of the Da Jun?" the representative replied.

"Oh! And then?" Xin Yang didn't care about the other party's aggressiveness and asked calmly.

"And then? Heh, you broke Commander Edda's rules, so naturally, you must be punished. Commander Edda orders that, seeing as this is your first offense, you can be spared once. However, while you may escape death, you cannot escape punishment. You must pay a fine to settle this matter. Furthermore, in the future, Commander Edda can authorize you to manage Old Street and other areas, but you must pay a protection fee every quarter!" The representative, somewhat annoyed by Xin Yang's cold and aloof manner, sneered.

"How much?" Xin Yang's expression remained as calm as a still pond.