Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 1211 Secret Fight
Inside the command vehicle, a suffocating, oppressive silence once again descended.

Everyone could clearly feel the anger and murderous intent emanating from Song Heping.

His gaze slowly swept over the other people in the car, finally landing on Jiang Feng's face.

"Jiang Feng."

He asked meaningfully.

"What do you think about this matter?"

Jiang Feng snorted and said, "Colonel Kurt's excuses of 'signal lag' and 'interpretation error' are utterly lame. Let's not even talk about the fact that data link latency on strategic reconnaissance platforms like the 'Global Hawk' is typically controlled to the second level. Even if there is a delay, it could never reach half an hour; that completely defeats the purpose of 'real-time intelligence.' This isn't some technical lag or error; it's more like…"

He paused, then thought for a moment and said, "This is deliberate intelligence deception and concealment! I think these bastards saw that our attack on Dagug went too smoothly, and that if we continued like this, we could take down Tikrit in a few days with few casualties. Then it would be even harder for them to control us, so they played this trick of using someone else to kill us, deliberately weakening our forces. I'm worried that even if we take Hurmatu, Tikrit will suffer even more casualties if they believe their intelligence!"

Song Heping nodded in agreement.

Jiang Feng shared the same thoughts as himself.

"You and I are thinking the same thing. To put it bluntly, these Americans need us as a sharp knife to fight for them on the front lines, but they are also constantly on guard against us, afraid that we will become too fast and too sharp and one day turn around and cut their own hands."

At this point, he couldn't help but sneer.

"Damn it, these old bastards, trying to play dirty tricks on me! Fine... you want to play dirty tricks on me? I'll play along... Jiang Feng, immediately contact all combat units and report the attack on the reconnaissance team. Then tell everyone that the situation in the Hurmatur direction is complicated and the intelligence is unclear. The main force should stop advancing and immediately return to Dagula to rest."

"Turn back?"

Jiang Feng was startled.

"Isn't this giving Titrick and Hurmatu's 1515 armed forces time to prepare?"

"Do as I say, and I guarantee you won't go wrong."

Song Heping said in a deep voice, "I guarantee that within 48 hours, those bastards will be lining up to beg us."

……

Bakdad, Green Zone, U.S. Joint Command.

After ending the video call with Song Heping, Colonel Kurt's professional fake smile vanished instantly, replaced by a sinister expression.

He waved to his most trusted intelligence chief and operations advisor.

"Did you see that? Song Heping's reaction was much faster and sharper than we expected."

Kurt's voice was low and his eyes were sinister.

"Although his wording was restrained, it was clear that he already suspected us. This guy is not easy to fool..."

The radical intelligence chief immediately chimed in, "Colonel, given this situation, shouldn't we adjust our strategy? Perhaps the intelligence we provide to Song Heping should be more... 'frank' to avoid escalating the conflict completely? After all, their offensive in the Hurmatu direction is crucial for relieving the pressure on our main attack direction in Ozam."

"No!"

Kurt categorically denied it.

He got up and walked to the huge electronic situation map, pointing to the location of Hurmatu.

"On the contrary! Precisely because his reactions are so sharp and forceful, we must not allow him to completely seize the initiative and his ability to discern intelligence. The intelligence we provide to them afterward must undergo more refined 'optimization' processing."

"Eliminate the obviously false information, let them taste some 'sweetness' to maintain basic cooperation and trust; however, all key information concerning the core of the battle's outcome..."

At this point, Kurt stopped talking and stared at the screen, lost in thought.

After a moment, he turned around and said:

“Continue to selectively delay for at least fifteen to half an hour, or 'blur' the conflict! We need them to continue to bleed them dry on the hard nut of Hurmatu, to ensure they don't have enough strength after the war to threaten the authority of the Kold forces in the northwest, nor pose a substantial threat to us. Remember, we want an obedient, useful hunting dog, not a tiger that turns on its master!” ...

Russian military frontline command in Syria.

Brigadier General Netsov held a detailed telegram that had just been transmitted via an encrypted channel between his thick fingers, and a playful and sarcastic smile slowly spread across his bearded face.

“Look, my dear Abramov.”

He handed the telegram to his chief of staff beside him, his tone laced with undisguised schadenfreude. "I told you, the Americans' hypocritical tricks were doomed to fail! They wanted to use Song Heping to pull chestnuts out of the fire for them, yet they were constantly on guard against him, fearing he might one day turn against them. Now look what happened, they've overplayed their hand! This move at Tuz Valley has essentially ripped through that thin veil!"

Abramov quickly scanned the telegram, a knowing smile spreading across his face: "General, your predictions are always so accurate. So, what should we do now? Should we immediately extend an olive branch to Song Heping, providing some intelligence we have from our satellites... about Hurmatu?"

"No, no, no, the time is not right yet."

Netsov waved his large, hairy hand and walked shrewdly to the large map of the Silya-Iligor theater of war hanging in the sky.

"Adding flowers to brocade is far less valuable than providing charcoal in the snow. Right now, Song Heping is only suspicious and full of anger towards the Americans, but his own strength has not been damaged, and he is far from being at his wit's end. If we go to him now, he may be grateful, but he will never remember it."

He picked up his baton and pointed to Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa: "What we need to do now is two things. First, immediately, through our 'old friend' in Bakhtar, who likes vodka and dollars, we need to 'casually' and in detail inform the U.S. military liaison officer about this matter, emphasizing our 'high concern' and 'sympathy for the injustice suffered by our allies.'"

"At the same time, send a telegram to commend our brave lads who fought valiantly on the front lines of Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa, exaggerating their recent victories by at least 30%, and then publicize it extensively through all propaganda channels, including international social media! Let the whole world know that it is not only the American-backed forces that are fighting terrorism, but that our Russian army is the true mainstay! And 'inadvertently' reveal that it was precisely because of our heroic offensive on the eastern front that we firmly tied down the main force of at least two brigades of the 1515th Army, thus preventing 'allies in certain directions' from suffering even greater losses!"

"second."

Netsov's baton was moved to Hurmatu.

"Get everyone in our intelligence department moving. Compile the high-resolution images taken by our 'Resource' series reconnaissance satellites during their recent overhead passes, focusing on suspicious troop movements around Hurmatu and several suspected underground fortification entrances. Attach our preliminary analysis report. Prepare this 'gift,' but keep it to yourself for now. When Song Heping is most anxious due to the Americans' perfunctory responses and 1515's counterattack, I will personally sign it and send it to him through secret channels. We need to make him clearly understand who, in this chaotic world, is the more pragmatic, reliable, and truly respectful partner who values ​​him!"

While the Americans and Russians were busy with their own calculations, the Persians were not idle either.

Inside the secret command center of the Holy City Brigade, Afanti picked up the cup of Persian black tea on the table, which was steaming hot, blew on it gently, and then took a small sip.

His assistant was giving a detailed report on the Tuz Valley incident. A deep smile, as if he had everything under control, slowly appeared on his wrinkled face.

"Just as I expected."

Afanti slowly put down the exquisite porcelain cup.

"The Americans have ultimately resorted to their old tricks, which they are most adept at and also the dirtiest of all – extreme exploitation, controlled weakening, and ultimately achieving complete control. They have never understood what true respect and cooperation are. In their eyes, everyone, including their so-called allies, is nothing more than a bargaining chip and tool to be manipulated and traded."

He crossed his arms, thought for a moment, and then said:

“Song Heping is a smart man. He will definitely be able to smell the betrayal and scheming in the blood in the Tuz Valley and Kot’s pale explanation.”

The assistant leaned forward slightly and respectfully asked, "Emir (a respectful title in the Arab world), your wisdom illuminates our path forward. So, should we immediately contact Song Heping and present him with the detailed intelligence we possess, especially the locations of those secret underground tunnels that we helped the Iligo militia build years ago—locations that even the Americans might not know—as a 'gift,' thereby increasing trust between us?"

Afanti gently shook his head, his eyes gleaming with a seasoned light: "No, my child. The timing is just a little bit off. Let that bullet, bearing the mark of American hypocrisy, fly a little longer. Let Song Heping experience more deeply the pain of being stabbed in the back by an 'ally,' and let his last shred of illusion and trust in America be completely shattered and vanish into nothingness."

"Only when he feels most isolated and helpless, most confused and angry about the future, will the olive branch we extend and the help we provide be cherished and appreciated like the only spring of sweet water in the desert. Only such a foundation of trust is solid and can withstand the test of future storms."

He stood up and slowly walked to a huge map of the northwestern Iligor region, his withered fingers precisely pointing to the location of Hurmatu.

"However, preparations must begin now. Immediately order our intelligence analysis team to utilize all resources to compile all the details we have about the Hurmatu defense system, including the precise coordinates and firing ranges of each firing point, the possible assembly areas of the reserve forces, and especially those three secret passages that utilize natural caves and early civil defense fortifications to directly connect to the outside of the city. Make them into a detailed, illustrated 'gift.' Remember, the data must be accurate, and Song Heping must be able to tell at a glance that this is something truly valuable."

He paused, a shrewd calculation flashing in his eyes: "Also, notify our 'Wild Wolf' special operations team operating near Ozam to intensify their harassment and sabotage of US military supply convoys starting tonight. However, the operation must be carried out with utmost care and secrecy, disguised as the work of 1515 militants or local tribal militias, and must not leave any trace of our involvement."

“We need to help our American friends ‘consolidate’ their logistical lines, so that they feel more real pressure in the Ozam direction, which in turn highlights the ‘selflessness’ and ‘preciousness’ of our future assistance to Song Heping. I think Song is a smart man; he can certainly distinguish who his friends are and who his hypocritical scoundrels are.”

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(End of this chapter)