Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 1217 The Art of Compromise

Colonel Kurt's face turned deathly pale in an instant, visible to the naked eye.

He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

He never imagined that the CIA would have such a clear understanding of what he thought was a flawless deed.

This was actually a private instruction from Brennan, with a Pentagon general personally making a call to his encrypted phone.

But here, I can't say it out loud.

I'm afraid I'll have to take the blame for this myself.

Simon gave him no chance to catch his breath and continued, "According to information that our CIA has obtained through cross-verification from multiple sources, some people in the military may be worried that Song Heping's 'Musician' defense company has been too successful and achieved too great results in Operation Crucible. They are concerned that after successfully completing the operation, he will take over too much territory in northwestern Iligo with his strong combat capabilities and local influence, becoming an uncontrollable emerging local warlord, thus threatening our future strategic layout and distribution of interests in the region."

"That's why we planned and executed this 'using a borrowed knife to kill' operation. The intention was very clear—to use Song Heping's troops to deplete a vital logistical force and elite guard of 1515, while simultaneously using 1515 to weaken or even eliminate the 'Musician's' core and most experienced reconnaissance and assault force. Killing two birds with one stone. Am I right, Colonel?"

He paused slightly, his gaze sweeping over the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, whose faces had also turned grim, before finally settling on Kurt's distraught face.

Then, changing the subject, he continued, "While I also agree with weakening Song Heping's power, this man is not easy to deal with. Why didn't anyone communicate with the CIA before taking action against him? After all, our research on him is far more in-depth than that of any of you here..."

"If we could handle Song Heping with such a childish trick, comparable to that of a Boy Scout, I think the CIA would have eliminated him long ago."

Simon, with the calmest tone, ruthlessly tore open the naked, bloody truth, exposing it to all the members of the highest decision-making body in the United States present.

Kurt felt cold sweat soak through his military uniform shirt, sticking stickily to his back.

He's done.

His career, all his future and glory, could very well be completely ruined at this moment.

I'm going to take the blame for this.

Brennan glared fiercely at Kurt, whose face was ashen on the screen.

That stupid donkey!

You can't even handle the smallest things!

It's become such a mess!

They're utterly hopeless.

He turned to Simon, his voice strained through clenched teeth: "Simon! Now is not the time to hold these... these idiots accountable! The question is, how do we resolve this?! Ozham and Agra could collapse completely at any moment. Once these two strongholds fall, the entire northwestern defense line of Iligor will crumble like dominoes, and our entire plan will be ruined. More importantly, this matter has now been exposed by the news media and is known throughout the city. If there isn't a good outcome, everyone here will pay a political price... Do you understand?!"

The key point of Brennan's statement lies in the last sentence.

Other people are not the focus.

Simon is the key figure.

Simon was the one who spearheaded this collaboration.

If this alliance incident goes wrong, in the end no one will be able to escape the consequences.

A national security advisor of such high standing is so corrupt that he's trying to drag the CIA director down with him, attempting to blackmail Simon through such means.

This comical lapse in composure precisely reflects the seriousness and urgency of the problem.

On the tablet in front of him, the Horizon News website was still lit up; the report was like a thorn stuck in everyone's heart.

Public opinion has been ignited. If the front lines suffer another catastrophic defeat, the resulting political tsunami could overwhelm many of those present.

Simon seemed to have anticipated Brennan's question, and his face remained expressionless.

"The trouble should end it."

He answered calmly, his tone resolute: "This matter arose because our people broke the rules of the game first, resorting to underhanded tactics, so naturally we need to clean up this mess. Colonel Kurt's stupidity has caused us to lose Song Heping's trust and has put us in a passive position."

His gaze swept over the attendees, finally settling on Brennan: "I will personally go to Dagula to see Song Heping."

This suggestion surprised some of the people present.

The CIA director personally going to the front lines of the war zone to meet a mercenary leader was almost unheard of in America's history.

Simon ignored the surprised looks and continued his calm analysis: "Song Heping is not an impulsive person."

His inaction was not a retreat, much less a true 'betrayal,' but rather a wait—a wait for us to pay the price for Kurt's foolish actions, a wait for us to come to him with terms he couldn't refuse. He paused, then added:

"However, based on my long-term observation and understanding of this Chinese man, he is very intelligent, meticulous in his thinking, and... extremely vengeful. His current inaction is a deliberate delay, waiting for us to pay a sufficient price, waiting for us to realize that without his cooperation, our operations in northwestern Iligo will be extremely difficult. Therefore, we should probably be prepared to be overcharged by him on this trip."

Simon sighed.

Even he himself had to admit it.

Song Heping is a formidable opponent.

"After all, in his eyes... war has always been just a business deal. And our people just tried to renege on his due compensation using the most clumsy methods, and even tried to steal his principal. Now, it's time to pay him back, principal and interest."

His final statement highlighted the key point: if Washington could "correct" Kotter's "mistake" and meet Song Heping's "reasonable demands," then public opinion could shift, portraying it as the self-correcting ability of the American system and its firm commitment to its allies.

All of this is contingent on meeting Song Heping's conditions.

No one spoke.

Silence fell over the meeting room.

After all, the great United States of America is actually compromising with a private owner of a defense company...

This is both unbelievable and hilarious.

"Let's adjourn the meeting!"

There's no point in continuing the meeting here.

The most crucial and urgent task now is to solve the problem quietly and discreetly in the current troubles in northwestern Iligo.

The video conference finally ended in an awkward atmosphere filled with defeatism.

"Director Simon, please stay."

Brennan waved, signaling the others to leave first, leaving only Simon behind.

When only the two of them remained in the situation room, Brennan looked at the small dot on the screen representing Dagula and said bitterly, "This Song Heping... what does he really want? Doesn't he know that pushing America into a corner will do him no good?"

Simon slowly stood up and picked up the briefcase that was placed to the side.

"Of course he knew. That's why he didn't push things too far. He just made us understand that on this chessboard, he wasn't a piece that could be discarded at will, but rather... an opponent who could sit at the table and participate in the distribution of profits."

"Public opinion has already taken hold. If we abandon him now, it would be suicide in terms of public opinion; if we suppress him, it would be self-harm in terms of military power. Sir, we have been cleverly hijacked by him. Getting rid of him? In the short term, it is simply impossible. At least, it is impossible before 1515 is completely resolved."

"All right……"

Brennan, with a constipated expression, waved his hand painfully: "Then let's do it your way. Go and solve this problem."

He seemed to suddenly remember something and pressed, "Are you sure you can handle this?"

Simon nodded: "I'm sure. I know this guy too well. We've been going against each other for at least seven years. His background investigation and profile alone are a meter thick."

Brennan could only reluctantly agree: "Then let's go to Dagug. Let's sound him out first, see what he's asking for, and keep in touch with me."

"No problem, Sir."

Simon stood up and said, "I'll arrange the trip to Dagula right now. Hopefully, the 'price' we've prepared will satisfy this 'businessman's' appetite."

Watching Simon's departing figure, Brennan once again turned his gaze to Dagura on the map.

The figure of that distant Easterner became clearer and larger in his mind than ever before.

The trouble and potential threat posed by this person now surpasses even those of the fanatical 1515 activists.

This is a completely different, more sophisticated, and more difficult challenge.

"This is a potential threat..."

He said to himself.

　Asking for a monthly ticket! Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)