I simultaneously traverse countless worlds

Seeing Captain Balalaika's straightforward question, Li Mo, who had silently arrived at the top floor and had been there for a while, turned around, looked at Captain Balalaika's frank gaze, and sighed. Without any pretense, he extended his hand and stated his intention: "To put it simply, Balalaika, I want to recruit you and your men. What are your thoughts?"

For Li Mo, given the established situation in the Black Reef Complex, there were few forces or figures he felt any fear or concern about. Cleaning up the Fragrant Sand Society was no more difficult for him than stepping on an ant. Li Mo wasn't even interested in dealing with those ordinary people, and directly ordered his personal guards to cooperate with the former paratroopers.

On the contrary, besides indulging in intimate moments with beauties like Robert, Rui Kisugi, and Saeko Nogami, Li Mo is now focusing more on how to operate in the Black Lagoon. Considering that America is now the dominant power, he can only regretfully abandon the idea of ​​directly raising a flag and establishing a country. However, since he cannot openly establish a country, he can still secretly control it. Moreover, Li Mo is prepared to strongly support the Celestial Empire in the Black Lagoon. Therefore, the Red Bear, which has only fallen a few years ago, has become an important treasure trove in his eyes.

Li Mo acknowledged Captain Balalaika's abilities, especially considering her background as a former high-ranking officer in the Soviet Union. Had it not been for her father's mishaps and the subsequent scandal she and her men created in Moscow, it wouldn't have been difficult for anyone with her skills to secure a decent position in the Soviet Union. Moreover, she was a stunningly beautiful Slavic woman, which made Li Mo consider recruiting her.

However, Li Mo's words of recruitment caused Captain Balalaika's expression to change slightly. Her pretty face, half of which was covered by scars from her injuries, turned serious. She stared at Li Mo for several seconds before slowly speaking...

Chapter 34 Persuasion and Facts

"Mr. Li Mo, are you sure you're not joking? If I remember correctly, you just formed an alliance with the [Moscow Hotel]..."

Looking into Li Mo's eyes, Captain Balalaika's beautiful eyes, like pure sapphires, were fixed on him. She stopped smoking the cigar in her hand, and her other hand unconsciously clenched into a fist. Moreover, her feelings were far from calm as she had said. She unconsciously wondered why Li Mo had offered to recruit her and her subordinates.

Recruiting manpower is not uncommon in the Mafia or other forces, but Captain Balalaika knew that Li Mo, as a high-ranking figure in the EU Group, would definitely not lack capable subordinates. So why did he break the tacit understanding with the Moscow Hotel and extend an olive branch to himself and his subordinates who belonged to the Moscow Hotel?

It's important to understand that the Mafia isn't a company you can just poach anyone from. While members of different Mafias might switch sides for mutual benefit, a member suddenly defecting to another could very well trigger a war between the two families. The situation at the [Moscow Hotel] is similar. If Li Mo were to directly poach someone, the [Moscow Hotel] would definitely see it as a provocation, and failing to retaliate would make them appear cowardly to everyone.

Captain Balalaika's loyalty to the Moscow Hotel wasn't that strong, but the problem was that she knew Li Mo also had an elite combat squad under his command. Those guards soldiers, fully armed with AR-15 short assault rifles, were, in Captain Balalaika's eyes, extremely dangerous warriors. It was very difficult to say who would win in a battle between her former paratroopers and a number of guards soldiers of equal strength.

Most importantly, Captain Balalaika was unsure of Li Mo's purpose in recruiting him and his men. What if Li Mo was recruiting them as cannon fodder or scapegoats? Wouldn't he and his men be jumping into a fire pit?

Captain Balalaika had heard of such things. Including Roalapura, many capable fighters had been lured by high bounties, accepted certain missions, and then disappeared. Some died in battle because they failed to complete the high-bounty missions, while many more became pawns sacrificed or unlucky scapegoats because they were involved in some major events. Captain Balalaika did not want himself and his men to become such discarded unlucky scapegoats.

However, Captain Balalaika also felt it was inappropriate to explicitly refuse Li Mo's offer of recruitment. Therefore, she used a more tactful way of refusing, reminding Li Mo, this incredibly strong individual, that he was still an ally of the [Moscow Hotel]!

"Hahaha, Balalaika, your worries are completely unnecessary!"

Li Mo immediately recognized Captain Balalaika's ulterior motives, but he didn't care. Instead, he admired the Slavic beauty even more. However, his tone shifted, and he looked at the Slavic woman in the red women's suit and paratrooper coat with great interest, saying directly, "You wouldn't actually be completely loyal to the [Moscow Hotel], would you? Besides, if I really wanted to, they would definitely not refuse if I offered to exchange with the [Moscow Hotel]..."

Li Mo's tone was calm, but the meaning behind it was something Captain Balalaika couldn't ignore. If the other party really made a deal with the Moscow Hotel, she didn't think those guys at the Moscow Hotel would support her unwaveringly. More likely, they would sell her and her men for a good price.

Under normal circumstances, Captain Balalaika wouldn't be so worried. Even the Mafia has to follow the rules to grow and expand. If word got out that she had betrayed her subordinates, the Moscow Hotel would be thrown into chaos, and it wouldn't be impossible for it to fall apart. However, if Li Mo offered a high enough price and provided a suitable excuse, the leaders of the Moscow Hotel might actually be tempted. She and her subordinates weren't the Moscow Hotel's core members, so it's hard to say what the outcome would be.

Given Captain Balalaika's wariness of Li Mo, having witnessed his strength and skill—he easily wiped out the Xiangsha Society headquarters without causing any major disturbance, and even gained considerable wealth and territory—it's impossible for her not to be worried. She truly couldn't fathom Li Mo's thoughts!

"...Lord Li Mo, I would like to know why you have taken a liking to me and my subordinates. You should not lack capable subordinates, should you?"

Upon hearing Li Mo mention the exchange of benefits with the Moscow Hotel, Captain Balalaika, knowing she couldn't remain silent, couldn't help but voice her doubts. Her beautiful eyes were fixed on Li Mo, trying to understand why he valued her and her subordinates so much, even going so far as to exchange benefits with the Moscow Hotel. She was truly perplexed.

By any measure, the powerful EU Group has no shortage of resources to recruit elite warriors. Moreover, Captain Balalaika has at least learned about the EU Group's general situation in the past few days, knowing that in addition to the elite combat teams they have displayed, they also have a dedicated security company. So why would they be so fond of him and his subordinates?

"Do you really want to know the reason? If you do, then there's no turning back; you'll have to make a choice..."

Faced with Captain Balalaika's very serious gaze, Li Mo suppressed his smile, looked up at this Slavic beauty who had left a deep impression in the original Black Lagoon anime, and spoke in a very solemn tone.

Seriously speaking, among the characters in the Black Lagoon anime, Li Mo only thinks they're pretty good, and Captain Balalaika is undoubtedly one of them. She can be described as an excellent mid-level commander who cares for her subordinates and maintains a certain moral bottom line. The former Red Bear paratroopers under her command are actually quite good at fighting. Although their performance in the original Black Lagoon storyline isn't particularly outstanding, it's mostly for the sake of the plot.

Can you believe that paratroopers from the former elite Red Bear forces would be entangled by one of the major forces of Roarapra?

Even though Li Mo confirmed that the Black Lagoon was superior to the real world he had transmigrated to, and that it was normal for an outstanding individual to be able to take on a hundred opponents, Captain Balalaika and his men seemed to be struggling to deal with the various forces in Roarapra. The actual situation was that Captain Balalaika and his men were too few in number, and they had been semi-exiled by the Moscow Hotel, making it difficult to recruit suitable subordinates in the South Seas. This was why they were in a state of non-interference with the other forces in Roarapra.

In reality, if Captain Balalaika and her men were to spare no expense, crippling half of Roarapura's forces wouldn't be a problem. However, the consequence would likely be the complete annihilation of her and her men, since Roarapura's forces are no pushovers either. These forces are backed by the government armies of Siam and several surrounding countries, and they could overwhelm Captain Balalaika and her men with sheer numbers.

This is the most important reason why Captain Balalaika and her men only occupied a piece of territory in Roarapra and did not actively expand it. The number of paratroopers she gathered from the former Red Bear was limited. Because of the minor news she caused in Moscow, they were semi-exiled to Southeast Asia. It can be said that the support from the "Moscow Hotel" for her was also limited. She and her men could carve out a piece of territory in Roarapra, but they could not occupy the entire Roarapra. Just like in the original plot, in the actions against the Xiangsha Society and the Washi-mine Group in Japan, they could only gain some advantages at most.

Li Mo's recruitment of Captain Balalaika and her group of subordinates was not only a collection of characters from the original Black Lagoon anime, but also because Captain Balalaika was indeed quite valuable. Her personal abilities were a secondary reason; the main reason was that she could still maintain contact with some high-ranking Russian officials. Even if she wasn't necessarily well-liked by them before, having a connection and not having one are two different things.

For this reason, Li Mo, who was preparing to make a name for himself in the Black Lagoon, would not let the other party go easily. Otherwise, it would be more troublesome to find a suitable person. Besides, Captain Balalaika was actually a great beauty after recovering from her injuries.

"Don't I have any other options?"

Seeing that Li Mo's eyes remained unchanged, his calm yet serious expression made Captain Balalaika's heart race. She inexplicably felt that her current choice was very important, but she suppressed the urge and wanted to test whether she had any other options.

"Do you feel that you have other options in many situations? For example, your subordinates, they certainly don't want to fight with guns for the rest of their lives, but if they weren't led by you now, they would be in a very difficult situation in Moscow and even throughout Eastern Europe..."

Li Mo was not angry at Captain Balalika's calm attitude; instead, he smiled slightly. Looking at her pretty face, which was half covered by scars, he directly pointed out her current predicament and even used the experiences of her subordinates to tell this Slavic beauty the particularly cruel truth.

If Captain Balalaika had chosen to go it alone back then, given her family background, she would have had a way out in the disintegrating Soviet Union. Her grandfather was a general, one of the Soviet generals who ended World War II. Finding a way out for herself wouldn't have been difficult. However, when she gathered her subordinates who were struggling financially, some even killed by the Mafia for debt collection, finding a way out in the Soviet Union at that time was practically impossible.

After all, the situation of the Russian bear at that time could be described as very bad. The once-in-a-millennium combination of the Russian leader and the Khitan people completely destroyed the somewhat declining red bear. European and American countries, including America, took the opportunity to divide its heritage and, incidentally, suppress the Russian bear and other separate countries, so that they could no longer pose a threat.

In recent years, the Russian economy has been in a state of unsustainable chaos. The large number of troops that the Khitans and the Communists had previously cut were flooding into civilian life. Former Soviet soldiers who had no food and could not even support their families were naturally forced to take up arms to find food for themselves and their families. It was during this period of chaos that so many powerful mafia were born in Russia. The reason is that a large number of veterans who had experienced the war joined the mafia out of necessity and for the future of themselves and their families.

At that time, Captain Balalaika himself was alright, but his subordinates who had experienced the war in the Central Asian imperial graveyard had no other way out but to retire, given the disintegration of the Soviet Union. The devaluation of the ruble in the disintegrated Soviet Union was comparable to that of the gold yuan issued by the Soviet Union. Even the so-called retirement allowance they received was only enough for a few meals in the city.

Therefore, when Captain Balalaika discovered that one of his men had been killed by a mafia gang because of debt, his final choice was to lead his other men to join another mafia and fight hard for himself and his family. Later, he made a minor scandal in Moscow and was exiled to Loalapra to struggle.

Li Mo could tell that most of the paratroopers following Captain Balalaika were in their thirties or even forties. Many of them were married and had children. Their current combat effectiveness was still quite good, and they could probably fight for another ten years or so. However, for people who were already in their forties or fifties, the decline in their physical fitness was inevitable. Could they still carry guns and continue fighting by then?

To give a somewhat inappropriate example, many of the Japanese yakuza groups before Li Mo's transmigration had members who were mostly over sixty years old. Those Japanese yakuza groups that were targeted by the Japanese police and included in the Organized Crime Control Act were in a particularly miserable state. The higher-ups might still be able to live a decent life by relying on their past savings and wealth, but the lower-level yakuza members no longer had the ability to fight and kill, and even changing careers was extremely difficult. This shows how bleak the future was for those in the yakuza or mafia.

Li Mo directly addressed Captain Balalaika's concerns, stating that he didn't believe the latter could resolve the issue unless Captain Balalaika abandoned his comrades, thus avoiding the difficult choice he was destined to face.

"Lord Li Mo, please explain why you recruited me and my subordinates..."

Unaware of Li Mo's thoughts, Captain Balalaika remained silent for over ten seconds before slowly speaking. Her gaze towards Li Mo was incredibly complex, and her heart felt as cold as if a chilling wind had swept through her, unsure of how to face the future.

Captain Balalaika did not regret her decision to lead her men into the Mafia. The chaotic situation in Russia a few years ago had left her with no choice. But what Li Mo said was a cruel and realistic future. She also did not think that her men could stay in the Mafia forever. And although she and her men were doing well in Roa Arapa now, only she knew how much trouble they had encountered.

Therefore, Captain Balalaika could not ignore Li Mo's words. He was talking about a real choice for the future, so even if she knew in her heart that his intentions were definitely not ordinary, she had to bite the bullet and listen to what he wanted to recruit her for.

"It's very simple. I need Captain Balalaika as a medium to communicate with high-ranking Russian officials. You and your subordinates will become my subordinates and will receive appropriate treatment..."

Upon hearing Captain Balalaika finally take up the conversation, Li Mo's lips curled up slightly, and he spoke his true feelings. He had no intention of deceiving the Slavic beauty in front of him, and the promises he made to her and her subordinates were very realistic conditions.

As for the situation on the Russian side, Li Mo's current agents only have a general understanding of the situation. Even if they can gradually gather intelligence later, it's not as effective as relying on Captain Balalaika to act as a go-between. At least she does have some connections and influence in Russia, which would allow Li Mo to easily find the people he needs. Whether to continue cooperation or simply support an agent is another matter entirely.

At least, Li Mo had to admit that, in the current timeline of the Black Lagoon world, China was far inferior in every aspect to what it would be thirty years later, to the world's second-largest power or even to the point of challenging America. If China wanted to develop faster, resources, technology, and talent were all indispensable. Even the now-collapsed Red Bear still had many legacies that people envied. Li Mo felt that he could still use Captain Balalaika to find a way to excavate the Bear's treasures.

Li Mo's recruitment of Captain Balalaika was aimed at gaining information about the internal workings of the Soviet Union in the shortest possible time. By getting acquainted with high-ranking officials within the Soviet Union, he could arrange for manpower. Whether using the precious [Seed of Fusion] or simply paving the way with gold and US dollars, Li Mo was fully confident that he could obtain valuable resources from the Soviet Union. Combined with his arrangements in Japan and Europe, this could completely accelerate the rise of China in the Black Lagoon integrated world.

Li Mo had already made his assessment in his mind. When he looked at Captain Balalaika again, he still had a slight smile on his face, but he didn't give the other party any chance to make excuses or delay. He directly issued his final ultimatum:

"So, Balalaika, now that you know so much, make your own choice: choose to join me, or continue loitering in the Moscow Hotel?"

Chapter 35 Balalaika's Choice

Should I seek refuge with Li Mo and work for him?

Or should he continue working as a mafia member at the Moscow Hotel?

When Li Mo uttered those words, which could be described as an ultimatum, Captain Balalaika frowned deeply. The cigar in her hand had been extinguished at some point, and the night wind around her seemed particularly cold, making her feel the chill of the night penetrating to her very core.

Although Li Mo's calm tone seemed harmless, Captain Balalaika had personally witnessed how the other man acted alone, defeating him and dozens of fully armed men with his bare hands. He didn't believe that the other man had revealed such important information that if he refused, he could still run back to the Moscow Hotel with his men and continue living there. Otherwise, he would probably end up like the already destroyed Xiangsha Society, becoming one of those missing persons who disappeared without a trace.

Captain Balalaika thought about it more and more and it seemed very likely. As everyone knows, the best way to keep a secret is to make the outsider who knows the secret simply disappear. The dead are the best people to keep a secret.

Li Mo's attitude was very amiable, and he answered all of Captain Balalaika's questions, but this only made her feel more insecure. When Li Mo revealed his thoughts and Captain Balalaika realized what he wanted to do by recruiting her, she felt like she was torn between two conflicting emotions.

If this were during the Soviet era, Captain Balalaika, knowing that Li Mo wanted to use her to contact those high-ranking officials, would probably have refused without hesitation. Even facing the threat of death, it would not have shaken her will. In fact, many soldiers during the Soviet era could do the same. For example, in the early Cold War after World War II, many scientists and elites from various countries abandoned everything to serve the Soviet Union because of the ideals held by the Soviet Union at that time.

Of course, after the Red Bear entered the 1960s, it gradually transformed into an imperialist force, and few scientists and elites from other countries were willing to get close to it for the sake of ideals. After experiencing the war in the graveyard of empires in Central Asia and a series of events that led to the collapse of the Red Bear, Captain Balalaika no longer had her former convictions. At least she herself felt that she should not resist working under Li Mo.

Even though Li Mo had made it clear that he intended to contact other high-ranking officials in the Russian bear family through her, Captain Balalaika, who had already witnessed the collapse of the Red Bear to the current state of the Russian bear, no longer needed to pay much attention to the situation!

"Then, Boss, my men and I will join your ranks. Contacting those people to get what you want will require a lot of money..."

In less than a minute, she had fully grasped her current situation and the consequences of refusing Li Mo's offer. She then bowed sincerely to Li Mo and respectfully mentioned that she might contact her old connections in Russia. She even made a small joke: "Uh, it seems that with your financial resources, Boss, you shouldn't need to worry too much, unless you want something special like a nuclear warhead, which is beyond the scope of money!"

When she said these words, Captain Balalaika had a helpless look on her face, as if she wanted to laugh but couldn't. Before witnessing the disintegration of the Red Bear, she had never imagined that the Red Bear would end up in such a terrible state.

Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, the massive amount of weapons and equipment produced in a frenzy for the Cold War era became commodities that military leaders in various regions had to buy and sell to improve their own and their soldiers' conditions. In addition, Eastern European countries that were dependent on the Soviet Union were also struggling economically and were selling off their weapons and equipment. It can be said that in the past few years, more than 80% of the arms market has consisted of weapons and equipment that were once Soviet.

—The former Soviet Union and its allies in Eastern Europe produced an astonishing number of weapons and equipment during the Cold War in preparation for a hypothetical World War III. A single regular infantry battalion had a stockpile of 4 AK-series automatic rifles, and the production of tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, and other weapons and equipment was measured in tens of thousands. When the Soviet Union collapsed, these massive quantities of weapons and equipment flowed into the world arms market.

Do you need infantry equipment?

These dozen or so warehouses are stock of AK series assault rifles, sold in units of tens of thousands. They are of high quality and low price, and can even come with a few basic loads of ammunition. Other light infantry equipment can be supplied as needed, and there are even discounts for large quantities, which will absolutely meet the needs of customers.

Army equipment?

These tanks and armored vehicles are buy six get one free. The T54/T55s are sold directly at scrap metal prices. The active T72 and T80 main battle tanks are also buy six get one free. Various types of armored vehicles, self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, self-propelled artillery, and attack helicopters are all available for sale. If you need them and pay a little extra, a transport ship flying the Soviet flag will deliver them to your door, guaranteeing timely delivery.

In terms of air force equipment, MiG-23, MiG-29, Su-24 and other types of fighter jets are the most popular, and the sales of bombers and transport aircraft are also very good!

Naval equipment also enjoys a certain level of customer favor...

In any case, just like the plot of the Hollywood blockbuster "Lord of War" that Li Mo once watched, from the collapse of the Red Bear that Captain Balalaika experienced to the present, the biggest source of foreign exchange income for the Red Bear and more than a dozen former member states has been the sale of weapons and equipment, and even conventional military equipment can be sold without any restrictions.

In fact, even sensitive heavy weapons and equipment such as Scud missiles, SAM air defense missiles, Su-27 fighter jets, missile destroyers, nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers would be on the list of items to be sold in the decades following the collapse of the Soviet Union. It should be noted that in the Cold War era when the Soviet Union and America were in confrontation, these advanced weapons were only available to close allies or major customers, and even required them to pay a lot of money and stand on the side of the seller.

However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the weapons and equipment produced by the Soviet Union became a hot commodity for many arms dealers. Many bold businessmen from countries including America went to Eastern Europe to buy weapons. According to online discussions before Li Mo's transmigration, there may have been nuclear weapons that went missing among the Soviet Union and many Eastern European countries. Who knows which country they ended up in.

Therefore, the joke Captain Balalaika told was not a joke at all, but a bloody fact. Apart from extremely sensitive things like nuclear or biological weapons, Li Mo could obtain all kinds of high-tech weapons and equipment from the Russians by spending money.

"What would I need nuclear warheads for? Unless you have a country as your base and the strong support of one of the five superpowers, it's like having enemies all over the world the moment it's exposed. Or you need to have enough leverage to openly possess nuclear weapons..."

Upon hearing Captain Balalaika's self-deprecating remarks, Li Mo, recalling the plot of the movie "Lord of War," curled his lip. He thought the suggestion was a terrible choice. Even if he was confident of obtaining nuclear weapons, he would never openly reveal them.

This is not a conventional weapon. The five major powers—America, Russia, China, England, and France—are keeping a very close eye on this. Before Li Mo's transmigration, many people said that the design blueprints and manufacturing process of the atomic bomb could be found online. But who knew how strict the control over the materials and equipment used to produce the atomic bomb was? Missiles used to deliver the atomic bomb are even more important weapons of a major power. Even the few countries that already possess atomic bombs would find it difficult to acquire them.

Leaving aside other matters, just look at the non-Big Five countries that possess atomic bombs. If America and Russia hadn't facilitated this in order to contain China, India and North Korea would have faced exceptionally difficult circumstances in acquiring atomic bombs. Pakistan, on the other hand, was allowed to possess atomic bombs by China in order to counterbalance India. However, when it comes to intercontinental ballistic missiles, none of the three countries have a reliable model, not even India.

The reason is that the combination of atomic bombs, missiles, and satellites gives them the initial capability of nuclear deterrence. The triad of nuclear deterrence, which is commonly deployed by the five superpowers, consisting of hydrogen bombs, missiles, and satellites, is their biggest trump card to secure their thrones.

Under these circumstances, any person of normal intelligence, from the perspective of the five giants, would not allow a newcomer to pose any threat to them!

Even if the Red Bear were to suddenly disintegrate, America could only weaken it through sanctions and containment, because the Soviet Union still inherited the Red Bear's nuclear arsenal and possessed the trump card to instantly restart the Earth.

This is the time period Li Mo traveled through. It seems that Russia is being held back by NATO, but European and American countries, including America, do not dare to directly declare war. Even if Russia is really angered, it can overturn the table. However, European and American countries that only want to kill Russia for meat again for the New Year do not dare to directly declare war on Russia and start World War III, even though their various actions are tantamount to starting a war. Russia itself can still maintain the powerful deterrent force of one of the five major powers.

It was precisely because of the powerful deterrent effect of nuclear weapons that other countries besides the five superpowers had the desire to research nuclear weapons. However, very few succeeded. Apart from India and Pakistan, which were supported by the superpowers and were not sanctioned, North Korea paid a heavy price to develop its atomic bomb.

The problem is that Li Mo doesn't have a country to support him, nor does he have any powerful backers. He's certain that if the EU Group manages to obtain nuclear weapons from Russia, the day after the news leaks out, America will likely label them as terrorists and suppress them with all its might. Even the other four giants will have to join forces to suppress them. Apart from a few die-hards who have fused with the [Seed of Fusion], the rest of the EU Group will probably have to immediately defect to prove their innocence.

If the news of obtaining nuclear weapons is not leaked, then it is not much different from not obtaining nuclear weapons at all. Li Mo believes that with his extraordinary power and the cheat of the White Mist Space, the troubles he can solve are completely without the need for such a sensitive weapon as nuclear weapons. The troubles that he cannot solve must be very rare, and even if nuclear weapons are used, they may not be effective. So why bother to get nuclear weapons?

Therefore, Li Mo calmly stated that he had no interest in Russia's nuclear weapons at all. What he was interested in was the talent and technological data that Russia had accumulated. As for conventional weapons and equipment, he could take advantage of the low prices to purchase a batch!

"Boss, then there aren't many problems. I can contact them anytime!"

Li Mo's words relieved Captain Balalaika. She had just noticed that the cigar in her hand had been extinguished and put away. She was speaking very seriously to her new boss, and she seemed to be in a very relaxed mood. She felt that it was much better to make connections with the Russian high-ranking officials she could get in touch with than to let others benefit. It was also a way of repaying the favors of those who had helped her and her subordinates in the past.

After all, a few years ago, Captain Balalaika and her men caused quite a stir in Moscow. If it weren't for those high-ranking Russian officials who had connections with her father and father's generation speaking up, she probably wouldn't have been let off so easily!

"Haha, let's talk about that in a couple of days..."

Seeing Captain Balalaika's reaction, Li Mo knew that the other party had truly regarded him as a subordinate and was offering reasonable suggestions. Instead, he remained calm and composed, chuckled twice, and said that there was no need to rush to contact the Russians. In fact, he felt that he should conduct a more detailed investigation before contacting the Russians.

If possible, Li Mo would certainly like to acquire all of the Russian Empire's assets, but he knows that is completely impossible. The Russian Empire has recovered slightly from the most chaotic period of the collapse of the Red Bear, and many things he wants will come at a great cost. Moreover, even if Li Mo wanted to get his hands on many things, the Russian high-ranking officials would not give them to him. Things like the various scientific and technological data and top talents accumulated by the Russian Empire would be extremely difficult to obtain.