King Of War: Starting with Arms Dealer

At 6:30 in the morning, Joe Ga emerged as if fished out of water, listlessly eating a flavorless breakfast in the cafeteria.

He truly couldn't outrun them, even with all his might, he just couldn't keep up.

When he exerted too much force during the long run, the result was his rhythm becoming easily disrupted, making the run increasingly torturous.

The old bull in the cafeteria also had no time to sleep as he needed to lead the team in preparing breakfast early.

Seeing Joe Ga's exhausted state, the old bull, with dark circles under his eyes, said earnestly, "Boss, you've got to take care of yourself. Sometimes haste makes waste, and if you ruin your health, all of us here will be without recourse."

Joe Ga waved his hand to signify the old bull should serve him less cowboy beef stew, shaking his head and saying, "I can't eat anymore. There was an old guy who ran fifteen kilometers and lapped me just now.

Just give me some soup and a couple of flatbreads. I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep if I eat too much."

"That good?"

As the old bull ladled soup for Joe Ga, he sneakily glanced at Karman, who seemed to have no issues, and mumbled softly in Chinese, "Don't compare yourself with the black brothers; they live off God's provisions, they're barefoot, and we're wearing shoes."

Upon hearing this, Joe Ga looked down at his military boots and nodded seriously, saying, "You're right, it must be these heavy boots. Next time I'll switch to a pair of lighter running shoes and give it another try."

The old bull generously added some extra ingredients into Joe Ga's bowl, nodding, "We're fine, it's definitely the shoes' fault."

The old bull's joking comfort considerably brightened Joe Ga's mood.

He walked into the cafeteria, greeted every soldier he passed, then sat down, slurping up the savory tripe into his belly, breaking the flatbread into pieces, soaking them in the soup, and after stirring, he guzzled it down like porridge.

With a stomach full, one's spirits rise.

Now, pulling an all-nighter was no big deal for Joe Ga; quick naps of a couple of hours in his room during midday would fully recharge him.

The black female elite, Lenore, walked into the cafeteria, uneasily holding a lunch box and a flatbread, filled with curiosity and a pinch of anxiety about the place she was about to work in.

After being "abducted" here yesterday, other than Devil Bird assigning her a room, no one had paid her any attention.

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Lenore knew she needed to quickly find her footing, or else, if any misunderstandings arose between the intimidating boss and the Defense Minister Mary Aenola, she'd be in a tricky spot caught in the middle.

To this day, Lenore vividly remembered the words Mary Aenola had spoken over the phone yesterday.

"Listen to him, in all the areas surrounding Sangha Town, adhere to everything he says!"

"Any demands he has, you report to me immediately. Consider coordination of all his actions as top priority, and if you encounter any obstacles, call me directly."

It was at that moment Lenore realized she had "found" a job of utmost significance.

Sangha Town had a few thousand permanent residents, surrounded by numerous opposition armed forces, guerilla teams, and even more drug traffickers.

If indeed she could replace the new boss in negotiating relations among all parties, Lenore felt her career could ascend to new heights. Explore more at empire

Unfortunately, the young lady overestimated Joe Ga's expectations of her. When she approached Joe Ga with formality to greet him and ask if she may sit, it took him a moment to recall who she was.

After Lenore was invited to sit and conveyed the Defense Minister's greetings, she began to elaborate non-stop on the situation surrounding Sangha Town.

Joe Ga, after listening for a few minutes and frowning, waved his hand and said, "I'm not interested in these matters. From today, you'll take over the base's external communications work.

Every day we need fresh meat and vegetables, along with a variety of logistic supplies.

Mary Aenola promised to resolve issues for me, but I haven't seen any action yet.

I've agreed to provide shelter to the nearby villagers, and I need at least 40 pickup trucks, which Mary Aenola must supply as I am fulfilling her duties.

Also, get the troops from Bangassou here sooner. Their amateur level is embarrassing. I'll provide them with three months of training, after which they must continue to be stationed in Bangassou for at least half a year, and coordinate with my operations.

I don't care about any issues that arise; you coordinate with Mary Aenola."

Lenore, the assistant, performed reasonably well, taking out a notebook and jotting notes as Joe Ga assigned tasks.

After he was done, Lenore looked at Joe Ga with a somewhat odd expression and said, "But, boss, about Sangha Town..."

Joe Ga shook his head with a smile and said, "Those opposition forces think it's their turf, but I don't want to hurt them. Also, I can't spare anyone to station there until our new recruits are in place.

My men and I will head into the jungle in 15 days, stirring up some trouble to let those opposition groups know who I am, and then it'll be meaningful to discuss how to coordinate with them.

Oh, and I need to establish a hospital there and accommodate a few doctors from the International Red Cross, and that's for you to arrange.

If you really want to help, then spread the word to the surrounding villages that I need 500 soldiers. They'll have the same food and drink standards as we do now, and I'll supply all the equipment. They'll also be paid 30 US Dollars per month."

"I only want young people, and only those with the best physical quality."

"Before we enter the jungle, I hope to complete the selection and have them start their training."

Upon hearing this, Lenore looked at Joe Ga with a shocked expression and said, "30 US Dollars?"

Joe Ga didn't know what surprised Lenore so much; he felt that as a military contracting company, he couldn't just sustain soldiers with food and drink. How much training could a group of freeloaders who were there just for the meals endure?

But Joe Ga didn't know that the salary of the Central African Government forces was only 15 dollars a month, which was often in arrears, and the soldiers in Bangassou survived on cassava leaves every day, occasionally relying on charging tolls to augment their diet.

What did 30 dollars mean? In a place with a per capita GDP of only 200 US Dollars, an annual income of 360 US Dollars was equivalent to creating 500 high-net-worth middle-class individuals at once.

That was true net worth because Joe Ga covered their food and equipment, and there was nowhere for them to spend their money.

After confirming Joe Ga's terms again, Lenore said with an expectant look, "Boss, do you have any requirements regarding the ethnicity of the soldiers?"

Joe Ga was a bit stunned; in his eyes, all the black guys looked the same. How could he differentiate their ethnicity?

So Joe Ga shook his head and said, "It doesn't matter what ethnicity. As long as they haven't messed around in your unfortunate army, have no bad habits, can pass the physical fitness test, and meet our standards, they can stay.

We will keep a thousand initially, but our three months of training will weed out 500 because I only want the best!"

Lenore listened and was not concerned about Joe Ga's high standards, speaking with hopeful eyes, "So you mean to say, you don't necessarily have to find suitable soldiers from the vicinity, your recruitment range could be broader."

Joe Ga didn't quite understand what Lenore meant, but he nodded and said, "Of course, there aren't that many people nearby, and from among them, I can't gather the number of soldiers I need.

I don't care about their origins; I just want the most loyal, the bravest, those with the most endurance."

Upon hearing this, Lenore tentatively asked, "Then would you mind Congolese people?"

Joe Ga paused for a moment, then shook his head and said, "My target is drug traffickers, and some of them are on the other side of the border line, in the Congo Jungle; of course, I don't mind having Congolese people work for me.

In fact, my first task is to clean up the drug traffickers' camps around my goldmine, and then I will need enough manpower.

I'm spending a lot of money every day; I need to see some return, and the goldmine is my first goal."

Upon hearing this, Lenore said excitedly, "I understand, boss. I'll recruit people according to your requirements."

When Joe Ga heard this, he asked with a hint of curiosity, "Why are you so excited?"

Lenore's expression turned a bit somber as she said, "Boss, I'm Congolese, and my hometown is in that jungle.

If a Father hadn't taken me out of there, I wouldn't be here today.

Boss, the people there are very simple, but the drug traffickers and guerrilla forces are about to turn it into hell.

If you are really willing to offer protection to the villagers around, I can persuade them to migrate towards Central Africa.

They are the best labor force, but they have never had enough to eat."

How could Joe Ga possibly complain about having too many people nearby? The more, the better.

After all, he didn't have to provide salary and food for the villagers, but when the mine starts operating, they would be the best source of labor.

It never occurred to him that a woman he had taken in on a whim would offer such a great suggestion. Joe Ga smiled and nodded, "Then go and do it. If you need to enter the jungle, go find Dragon Gecko; he will arrange for someone to protect you."

Lenore waved her hands repeatedly, "No need, no need, I can figure something out myself. Please trust me, I won't disappoint you.

In 15 days, you will see a satisfactory troop."

For things like this, Joe Ga only needed to see the results.

Initially, his idea was to poach from the Bangassou military during the training, but after interacting with them, Joe Ga was somewhat disappointed in those individuals.

Painting on a blank canvas is easy, but modifying an existing painting is hard.

So now, he would rather put in a bit more work to solidify the foundation of his first troop. This was the capital for his livelihood; it made sense to invest more effort.

It didn't matter to Joe Ga where they were from; in fact, the further away, the better, because people far from home tended to gravitate naturally toward the group, showing more conformity and greater capacity for hardship.

He sent Lenore on her way, telling her to coordinate with Old Niu as soon as possible, to reduce Old Niu's workload.

Joe Ga looked at Nis and Antar who had just entered the mess hall; he waved with a smile and said, "Hey, over here…"