Northern Myanmar: Bloodshed in the Golden Triangle, Have I Become a General? - Chapter 48

Chapter 48: Shocking Dragon Nation Mercenaries

While Zhao Hu made a call to his hometown, Zhao Renzhou stood in place, gazing at the moon. It was a moment that seemed to last for a long time.

On the other side, in northern Myanmar, Kachin State, Myitkyina, Zhao Bao led his convoy out of the city and headed toward the direction of the seven border towns.

Inside the spacious SUV, apart from the driver and Zhao Bao in the front seats, there were five Dragon Nation individuals seated in the back. They were all hired mercenaries with elite military backgrounds in the Dragon Nation.

Each one of them had retired from the Dragon Nation’s elite forces, and they looked sharp and well-disciplined. Chen Jie, the team leader, was responsible for command. There was also a sniper, a machine gunner, and two assault team members.

As they left the city behind and entered a new environment, the group fell into a somewhat somber silence. The atmosphere inside the vehicle turned quiet for a while.

Zhao Bao noticed this and took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He grabbed one, lit it, and began to smoke.

Offering the remaining cigarettes, Zhao Bao turned around and asked, “Want one?”

Chen Jie, the team leader, was about to refuse but then saw Guo Si, one of the assault team members, happily accepting a cigarette and lighting it.

Guo Si then passed the pack to the others in the back. Chen Jie shook his head in resignation and looked at Zhao Bao.

“Brother,” he began, “how much longer do you think it’ll take for us to get there?”

Zhao Bao checked the time and replied, “It’s still a way off. This isn’t like the Dragon Nation. With these rough roads in northern Myanmar, we’ll probably arrive in the early hours of the morning. If you’re tired, you can take a nap.”

Chen Jie shook his head and said, “We’re not tired. We slept on the plane. We’re just curious about what exactly we’re doing on this side.”

The others also turned their attention to the conversation. After all, they were in the Golden Triangle, and they hadn’t thought much about the mission when they were assigned to training duties in Myanmar.

However, when they signed the contract and learned that the mission was in the northernmost part of Myanmar, inside the Golden Triangle, they began to have doubts. That region had a notorious reputation for drug trafficking, and they wondered if they were being hired to train soldiers for drug dealers.

But after communicating with Zhao Bao, they felt that something was amiss. It was too organized, too legitimate to be drug traffickers. This made them hesitate and ultimately decide to stay on the mission.

As they approached their destination, Chen Jie couldn’t contain his curiosity and raised his concerns. Zhao Bao heard Chen Jie’s question and understood the team’s doubts. He reassured them, saying, “Don’t worry.

We are a legitimate company called the ‘Golden Triangle Security Group.’ As the name suggests, we provide security services. Our company is dedicated to maintaining peace and development in the Golden Triangle.

We want to change the chaotic situation here with our own efforts. We’ve just been established and lack some experienced instructors.

That’s why we hired a few international mercenary teams with combat experience to work as instructors for us. The contract will be for about two to three years, and each of you will receive a monthly salary of fifty thousand Dragon Nation coins. Of course…”

“More than just your team,” Zhao Bao continued, “there’s also a team from the Free Nation and a team from the Russians. You’ll be divided into three groups. Each group will train a batch of personnel.

We’ll have regular competitions, and the winning side will receive rewards. If the soldiers you train win against those trained by the Free Nation and the Russians, it’s a matter of pride for our country. After all, we’re all Dragon Nation citizens.”

The first part of Zhao Bao’s speech left the mercenaries bewildered, thinking about the idealistic goal of maintaining peace in the Golden Triangle.

However, the mention of competition with teams from other nations ignited their spirits. The prospect of representing their country in a competition added a new layer of motivation.

Chen Jie nodded and said,

“So, that’s how it is,” Chen Jie replied. “That’s reassuring.”

Zhao Bao smiled and assured them, “I understand your concerns. Rest assured, we are a legitimate company. While the conglomerate has some collaborations with certain organizations, our main business is trafficking raw materials, mostly to Mexico.

Eventually, it ends up being consumed by the Free Nation. You could say we’re fighting against the Free Nation’s influence.”

His light-hearted comment elicited laughter from the group. They were beginning to relax and trust Zhao Bao’s words.

However, their laughter was interrupted when the sniper, Yuan Lu, suddenly spoke up while looking at his phone. He wore a puzzled expression as he glanced at Zhao Bao.

Chen Jin, becoming alert, asked, “What’s going on?” The mercenaries shifted into defensive postures.

Zhao Bao, still looking baffled, stayed calm and continued to focus on Yuan Lu.

Yuan Lu raised his hand and said,

“It’s nothing, don’t worry,” Yuan Lu reassured them. “I have a question I’d like to ask Mr. Zhao Bao.”

Hearing that it was just a question, the group relaxed. Chen Jie rolled his eyes at the unnecessary scare tactics.

Zhao Bao remained calm and asked, “What’s your question?”

Yuan Lu nodded and said, “Is the leader of your company named Zhao Renzhou?”

This question made Zhao Bao furrow his brow, and he glanced at the group. After a moment of contemplation, he replied, “Yes, that’s correct. How did you know?”

Yuan Lu’s furrowed brow persisted as he explained, “I found this information on the dark web. Someone posted a bounty for your company’s conglomerate leader. It’s a reward of $500,000, and there are already several people interested in claiming it. The post includes detailed information about someone named Zhao Renzhou, but there are no photos.”

“Publishers on this have said that Mr. Zhao Renzhou…”

“He’s a drug trafficker…”

“What… How can you say that?”

Yuan Lu furrowed his brows and handed over the phone.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense again.

Zhao Bao took the phone.

He looked at the wanted poster translated into multiple languages with a grim expression.

“Alright, I understand.”

He handed the phone back to Yuan Lu.

“You can rest assured about the drug trafficking.”

“My elder brother split with the previous boss because he was unhappy and collaborated in drug trafficking to the Dragon Nation.”

“They were all Dragon Nation citizens, and we couldn’t do such brutal things.”

“Now, all the refining factories below have been shut down.”

“We only export raw materials to Mexico.”

“As for the person who issued this wanted poster.”

“I also know who it is.”

“The Shan State Army is our neighbor.”

“They’re like warlords.”

“On the surface, they’re under Myanmar’s control, but they have their own domain.”

“There was a bit of conflict before due to territory.”

“We thought they had settled down.”

“They haven’t made a move in these two days, didn’t expect they were waiting for us here.”

“You can trust me on this; it won’t affect our cooperation.”

Zhao Bao’s words were sincere, and he didn’t seem like he was lying.

This caused a few of them to lower their guard slightly, but there were still lingering doubts. However, no one voiced their concerns. Chen Jie merely exchanged a glance with Yuan Lu and gestured for him to continue checking information on his phone.

A moment of silence fell inside the carriage…

After a while, Yuan Lu, engrossed in checking the information on his phone, widened his eyes.

“Hiss—”

He took in a sharp breath, looking at Chen Jie in utter disbelief. He handed over the phone to him, gesturing for him to take a look. The three members of the assault team beside them also leaned in to see.

As they looked at the phone…

“What the hell?!”

Guo Si, the leader of the assault trio, couldn’t hold back a curse. On the phone, several news headlines caught their attention.

【Kexin State’s fire has been burning for two days, destroying over 600,000 acres of forests to date.】

【The leader of the Shan State Armed Group publicly accuses Zhao Renzhou, a drug trafficker from the Jia Wei Town area, of setting fire to the mountains, an unforgivable crime.】

【The spokesperson for the Golden Triangle Security Group stated that the accusations made by the leader of the Shan State Armed Group against our company’s chairman, Mr. Zhao Renzhou, are entirely baseless?!】

Combining these headlines with what Zhao Bao had said earlier…

A bit of conflict happened? They thought they had settled down? So, this is how you make someone settle down.

Setting the entire northern Myanmar on fire?!

That’s incredibly ruthless…