You believe that your gun is no match for my fist?

Looking at the five dark green military vehicles, he released the woman in his arms, took the cigarette out of his mouth, threw it on the ground, and stomped it out.

"Damn it..." Brigade Commander Zhang also saw the military vehicles and muttered to himself.

The military vehicle followed the truck until it reached the vicinity of the group. The truck seemed unwilling to listen, but when the roof was opened and a foreign sergeant took up the machine gun position, the convoy finally stopped.

The passenger doors of several military vehicles opened one after another, and several soldiers in dark blue uniforms got out.

These soldiers were all tall with broad shoulders and bulging holsters at their waists. The leader wore a white-capped military cap and had a square chin.

He didn't rush over; instead, he stopped and looked around. His gaze swept over the gantry crane and the cargo ship before finally settling on Tang Liu and his group.

Tang Liu's foot twitched, as if he wanted to step forward, but then he stopped. He glanced at Zhang Zhenwu, who was speaking calmly to a young officer beside him.

Then, the officer stopped six or seven paces away from Tang. He removed his white cap, revealing a crew cut and a square face. He spoke, in heavily accented but fairly fluent Chinese:

"Mr. Tang, the customs manifest at the dock shows that there is a shipment on this ship that has not been declared to the Albion Concession."

"Mr. Peter, the goods have been cleared through customs at Leclerc, Gaullia," Tang Liu replied politely. He clearly recognized the foreigner.

Albion, also known as the Albion Empire, or Britannia. However, the latter name is best avoided, as it represents a less desirable period of history.

Pete tilted his head. "According to Article 4 of the Annex to the Boxer Protocol and Article 3 of the Pucheng Port Agreement, all goods imported through the Pucheng Port area must go through all the statutory customs declaration procedures of the concession."

"You only reported one company, but not the other. This form is incomplete procedurally."

He gestured with his finger in the air. "So, we need to open the box and inspect it."

The air fell silent for a moment.

Tang Liu's lips twitched. He took out a cigarette case from his pocket, put one in his mouth, and smoked it.

"I understand the rules," Tang Liu said, "but you see, since the goods are Leclerc agricultural machinery, and they're going through Gallusia's channels. It's always been done this way before, and there's never been a problem."

Upon hearing this, Pete thought for a moment, then raised his hand and waved.

A soldier behind him stepped forward, carrying a file folder. He opened the folder, pulled out a piece of paper, and handed it to Pete.

Pete took it, without even looking at it, and simply waved it at Tang Liu: "Yesterday, the customs received a letter from the Municipal Council, which reaffirmed the interpretation of the port agreement regarding dual customs declaration. All imported goods are exempt. It bears the seals of the Municipal Council and Marshal Pei."

As he spoke, he handed the letter to Tang Liu.

Tang Liu didn't take it, but just glanced at the paper and took a drag of his cigarette.

He then flicked his cigarette ash and said slowly, "Mr. Pete, this isn't the first time we've dealt with each other. Just say what you need to say."

Pete smiled.

"Mr. Tang is thorough in his work. But we still need to check this batch of goods." After he finished speaking, he gestured with his chin behind him.

Zhang Zhenwu remained silent, simply pulling his hand out of his pocket and placing it on the metal buckle of his belt.

His men subtly shifted half a step to the side. Gao Zhan noticed that Zhang Zhenwu's thumb was lightly scraping against the metal buckle.

Several soldiers had already walked to the truck. The one in the lead knocked on the driver's side door, raised his chin, and gestured for the driver to get out.

The driver was a thin, dry man, and naturally, he was helpless against these Britannian soldiers.

He pushed open the door and jumped out, stepping aside. The drivers of the cars behind him followed suit, jumping out of their vehicles one after another.

Then, several soldiers went to the back of the vehicle, reached out and grabbed the handle of the back door, and pulled hard, opening the door.

The objects piled up in the carriage emerged from the darkness, their outlines enormous, covered by a dark green waterproof tarpaulin stretched taut, the angular lines beneath faintly visible.

Metal edges peek out from the fabric seams; they are dark gray with rounded rivets.

A smell of engine oil filled the air. Pete walked to the back door, stopped, and looked inside for a while.

A slight smile played on his lips as he looked at Tang Liu: "Mr. Tang, this doesn't look like farm machinery."

Tang Liu glanced at Gao Zhan, and Gao Zhan understood the meaning in his eyes: "Don't rush, don't move."

"Have your men unload the goods; I need to inspect them."

Tang Liuchao waved his hand behind his back, and soon more than a dozen dockworkers ran over, climbed onto the truck, and began to dismantle the back of the truck.

A while later, a huge machine emerged from the dock's factory. It looked like a crane? Its design was rather rugged, with a bit of a dieselpunk vibe.

The truck's cargo bed was quickly removed, and the massive object wrapped in a tarpaulin was fully exposed to everyone's view.

The crane lifted them from the truck to the ground, and the workers immediately went up and tore off the tarpaulins.

After that, Gao Zhan saw a huge object.

It stands upright, about two meters tall, with short, thick legs, and squats on the ground.

Its body is broad and thick, with a heavy machine gun hanging under its left arm and a short, thick cannon barrel protruding diagonally from deep within its iron-gray armor on its right arm.

Sunlight shone on this behemoth, making the rivets and welds clearly visible.

Gao Zhan certainly knew what it was, so he wasn't too surprised. Even back in his hometown of Liutang Town, he had heard of the foreigners' "iron beast."

The waterproof covers on both mechs were removed, and they were quietly arranged on the dock, awaiting inspection by the crowd.

Pete slowly circled the two mechs, the smile still on his face; clearly, this was not unexpected.

He turned around and looked at Tang Liu.

"Is this the agricultural machinery you were talking about?" he asked Tang Liu. "It doesn't look like agricultural machinery, Mr. Tang Liu."

"I think you should perhaps give me an explanation?"

Tang Liu remained silent.

Gao Zhan had been observing the surroundings. Ever since Pete said he wanted to inspect the goods, he had noticed that Brigade Commander Zhang had started making some subtle moves.

Zhang Zhenwu's fingers were still scraping against the belt, again and again.

His expression was calm, even with a hint of a smile. But Gao Zhan knew that this guy was about to make his move.

A martial artist's senses are extremely sharp. From the moment he touched his belt, there were some disturbances on the cargo ship behind him.

As the workers busied themselves, the commotion spread to the surrounding factory area.

Shadows moved cautiously through the factory area. Judging from the frequency of their movements, they were clearly not dockworkers, nor were they patrolling sentries.

soldier.

Gao Zhan knew that now, he had to make a choice. Or rather, Tang Liu had to make a choice.

So he looked away and sniffed. Just like Tang Liu sniffed on the first day, this was a signal.

Upon hearing the sound, Tang Liu's back tensed for a moment, and his fingers twitched slightly.

But he didn't speak or give any signal in response; he simply finished his cigarette in one go and threw the butt on the ground.

"What are you trying to do, sir?"

Just then, Pete's voice rang out. He looked at Gao Zhan and asked, "I noticed you sniffed twice. What does that mean?"

"Of course." Gao Zhan hadn't expected this officer to be so perceptive. He smiled and nodded.

"This means I'm going to kill you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gao Zhan disappeared from the spot.