Super Zoo

Baghdad, Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The civil officer from the Huaxia Embassy and Zhao Yun were in the midst of a heated argument with the Iraqi Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.@@novelbin@@

"Deputy Minister, if entrepreneurs from Yangchuan City could be harmed in the capital of Iraq, once the news spreads, no capital in the world would dare to come to Iraq!" Zhao Yun banged on the table heavily.

"Mr. Zhao, please calm down. As of yet, there has been no news of Mr. Su's demise," the Iraqi Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs said.

The civil officer from the Huaxia Embassy adjusted his glasses and spoke calmly, "If we wait until the news comes, I'm afraid it will be too late. Deputy Minister, our ambassador has already reported the kidnapping of our citizen to our high-level officials. The reason I am negotiating with you instead of our ambassador directly contacting your President or the Minister of Foreign Affairs is to minimize the impact."

"We appreciate the goodwill of your country," the Deputy Minister nodded.

"We hope that this appreciation can be translated into actual action, and it must translate into action," the civil officer said. "Huaxia insists on not interfering with the internal affairs of other countries, and since this incident occurred on Iraqi territory, we have not issued orders for a military solution to our peacekeeping forces."

The Deputy Minister was in a state of utter distress. This very morning, the Russians had already paid him a visit, and the Polar Bear's stance was far from gentle, and although the attitude of the Huaxia government seemed 'mild', they had already used this abduction incident to gobble up a large chunk of gains in another business negotiation.

"Rest assured, Mr. President has also been informed of this situation, and we've dispatched the battalion stationed closest to the Zagros Mountains to advance towards the Lure People's settlements." The Deputy Minister gave a confident smile, "Please believe that the Lure People support the government, and this matter should be able to be resolved peacefully."

"Let's hope so," said the civil officer and Zhao Yun, glancing at each other and standing up at the same time, "We will take our leave, then, hoping that we can soon see Mr. Su and Miss Ludmila safe and standing here. Oh, and we have come to an agreement with Russian Moran International that 'as soon as possible' means within 72 hours."

The Deputy Minister's face twitched slightly. A weak country has no diplomacy—this phrase holds true in any era, and the counterpart's words are far from diplomatic etiquette, practically commanding the Iraqi Government.

Those damned Lure People, the military aid they have provided to the government in recent years is less than three companies, and yet they have caused such a huge diplomatic headache for the government—what on earth do they want to do!

...

"Damn it, why the hell are you Americans here?"

The captain of Moran International's mercenaries glared at the five United States Marine Corps members in front of him. Find exclusive stories on My Virtual Library Empire

Shortly after entering the Zagros Mountains, the mercenaries from Moran International encountered these American soldiers retreating from the mountains in the jungle. Both sides were highly tense at the time, mistaking each other for 'enemies' and engaged in a brief firefight. Luckily, they quickly realized that neither party was from IS, and there were no friendly fire incidents.

However, these five American soldiers seemed to have already been through a fierce battle before encountering Moran International. Two of them were covered in blood on their chests and abdomens, and one had injured his leg, all relying on their comrades' support to walk this far.

"****, it's all because of those journalists who swarm like flies!" the leader of the Marine Corps spat viciously on the ground, "****, two reporters from National Geographic secretly entered IS Country, got kidnapped! They're demanding a ransom of one hundred million US dollars from our government, so we were ordered to come for a rescue, and just as we stepped into the Zagros, we walked right into an IS ambush!"

"IS?" The leader of Moran's group was slightly taken aback, "Since when did IS's sphere of influence extend to the Zagros Mountains? Shouldn't this be the traditional territory of the Lure people?"

"How the fuck would I know! Those stupid swine at the Pentagon's intelligence department—ever since World War II, they've caused more of their own people's deaths with their incorrect intelligence than were killed by Hitler and the others! The rescue has failed; we must head back to Baghdad now," the Marine leader cursed, supporting an injured comrade, and stumbling towards the exit.

"IS has occupied this mountainous area..." The captain of Moran International frowned as he looked at the distant jungle. They were here for a rescue and didn't want to get into a real conflict with the Iraqis. The Lure people, after all, were under the government's control, and there was still some logic to be discussed. But if IS fighters were ahead...

"Hey, buddy, I suggest whatever you guys plan to do, you'd better give up the idea, because there's at least a battalion, maybe even more, of IS militants blocking the way into the mountains!" The marine leader turned back to kindly warn them.

"Oh damn, a whole battalion of IS!" On hearing this, the captain of Moran completely abandoned the thought of rescuing anyone. Twelve mercenaries breaking through a battalion's blockade deep into the mountains wasn't a rescue; it was a suicide mission.

"Ludmila, may God bless you!" The captain sighed inwardly. Mercenaries have a pragmatic view of life and death. Since they couldn't rescue anyone, there was no point in forcing the issue. He turned with a wave of his hand and led his warriors to catch up with the five American soldiers.

"Hey, buddy, our ride's down the mountain. There's medical supplies and booze in the car. Let's head back together, and we'll give you a lift."

"Got booze... I think, I can make it..." One of the injured soldiers strained to lift his head and smiled at the captain.

"That's more like a man! Brother, hang in there!" The captain of Moran patted the injured soldier's shoulder.

The small units from both countries combined forces and withdrew from the mountain area, driving back towards Baghdad.

On their way, they saw a large number of regular Iraqi troops moving up the main road in the opposite direction, headed towards the Zagros Mountains.

"Could the Iraqi government be sending troops for a rescue mission?" Both Moran and the American soldiers thought simultaneously.

Moran's mercenaries thought these troops were going to rescue Ludmila and Suming; the American soldiers believed they were there to rescue their country's two journalists.

In a cave in the Zagros Mountains, a Caucasian man's hands were tied behind his back, and a large blindfold covered his eyes. In a low voice, he said, "Miss Nikki, I'm truly sorry that my stubbornness has also led to your misfortune."

In front of him was indeed the black female editor from National Geographic, Nikki, who was similarly 'dressed up' and tied up like a rice dumpling.

Outside the cave, several IS militants were patrolling back and forth.

After being kidnapped, Nikki, for the first time in her life, felt the benefits that 'racial discrimination' brought her: these Islamic terrorists actually considered black women disgusting, just like animals, so they didn't subject her to violent abuse. They hadn't treated her like they did those 'sex...slaves' and lock her in an underground cell; instead, they kept her in the cave as a hostage.

"Tom, you can't blame yourself; it's because I wanted to escape the boring job of being a secretary, to try my hand at journalism, that I insisted on following you here... God willing, the American military will rescue us. I believe!" Nikki said, holding back her fear.