CHAPTER 498: CHAPTER 462: UNEXPECTED KILL

Mountain Eagle was somewhat taken aback by Taigore’s news...

Cooperation between Thailand and East wasn’t something remarkable, after the Mekong River operation there has been a joint task force permanently stationed in Chiang Rai, Thailand, whose main mission is to counter drug trade.

Due to the misalignment between domestic and international propaganda, many people in the country have some misunderstandings about their own nation.

East really can’t exercise long-arm jurisdiction like the United States, picking fights all over the world.

But when East is fully prepared and has found sufficient legal basis, other places aside, no country in Southeast Asia can withstand it.

The Mekong River operation is just one thing that everyone knows about, but if someone actually pays close attention to the Central channel long-term, they would know that similar operations have occurred in the surrounding areas many times.

It’s just that the Mekong River operation has been made into a movie and became well-known to everyone.

This might have something to do with East’s traditional character, which is not to promote military force.

Sometimes, a passing remark in the news contains content that could make people’s blood boil with excitement.

Last year, after the Mekong River major case, when the Nuokang Group was dismantled, East launched a Safe Passage initiative and incorporated all six countries through which the Mekong River flows.

The joint task force located in Chiang Rai is responsible for this work!

Now East wants to pull Thailand into police collaboration, specifically targeting fugitives, which is quite interesting.

Mountain Eagle is very clear about his own capabilities; he doesn’t believe that East would go through all this trouble just to target him...

It’s more likely that East is aiming to deepen cooperation with Thailand, targeting those who commit crimes and flee to the Golden Triangle, or those trying to use the Golden Triangle as a stepping stone to escape abroad.

It’s common knowledge that those who seek underhand means often go through the Golden Triangle, while those in finance go through Hong Kong and Macau.

Likewise, for smuggling, those headed to the Golden Triangle rely on their legs, usually going to Myanmar or Thailand first to buy an identity and then running farther away.

For those using the Hong Kong and Macau route, they can take ’Big Flying’ boats from the coast of Guangzhou to Hong Kong and Macau; these people generally have foreign identities arranged in advance and can smoothly leave from Hong Kong and Macau with their foreign identities.

So, smart people even make their escape with a little more grace!

Mountain Eagle himself is the typical desperado, and the wealthy desperadoes who escape through the Golden Triangle have definitely committed major and vile crimes within East.

Cooperating with Thailand, catching one or two big fish a year would not only be highly profitable but also subtly influence the establishment of communication mechanisms between police forces of both countries and project influence.

Miss Tessa’s trip not only got Xiao Wan and her child out, but also surprisingly birthed a line of communication.

Mountain Eagle wasn’t worried at all, just irritated!

After all, his identity had been exposed, and if any trouble arises internally within Thailand and someone tips off his identity to the joint task force, it could become very unpleasant to discuss.

Thinking of Taigore’s schadenfreude when he hung up the call, Mountain Eagle sighed wordlessly, leaned back in the lounge chair, and tried to rest his eyes...

However, for some reason, even though his body was extremely tired, he couldn’t fall asleep at all.

Because he thought he saw an opportunity to extricate himself, yet he was a bit uncertain whether he should start preparing.

The scheme he thought of was quite ruthless, and he worried that his father-in-law would erupt in anger and come down on him.

...........

As time ticked by, Mountain Eagle just couldn’t fall asleep...

After the kids had their fill of making noise and eating, they soon fell asleep in the tent, even snoring softly.

Mountain Eagle sat on the porch outside the tent, under the clear starry sky surrounded by the fragrance of grass and trees.

Several big and small dogs quietly lay around him, occasionally pricking their ears and standing up to look towards the distant woods, then settling back down again.

There were many things on his mind, but Mountain Eagle didn’t feel the slightest bit restless...

Ever since he woke up, he hadn’t slept in a bed.

The pain in his body made it impossible for him to sleep, only this adjustable deck chair allowed him to find a barely acceptable position to doze off when he was extremely fatigued.

Daria brought many opiate drugs from the hospital to alleviate Mountain Eagle’s pain so he could get a full night’s sleep, but he refused them all.

Mountain Eagle, a true-born Easterner, had the fortitude to endure hardships without complaint; his resistance, even fear, of using opiate drugs far outweighed the fear of physical pain.

He chose to combat pain with mental happiness, and has managed to hold on without breaking down, in fact, his condition has been gradually improving.

Not far from Mountain Eagle, Daria deliberately left her tent open, pretending to work earnestly on her computer late into the night wearing glasses, just waiting for the boss to ask her, "Why are you still up so late?"

She had flipped through many books on office culture during the day and prepared several drafts, waiting for the boss barely ten meters away to glance at her, but he did nothing but toss and turn in his chair, emitting painful groans, without giving her a single look.

Daria, who kept coming up with new ideas after failures, walked over with her medical kit and squatted down beside Mountain Eagle...

"Boss, taking some Pain Killers won’t affect your tough guy image at all..."

Mountain Eagle opened his eyes and glared at Daria with disdain, grumbling, "But not taking them makes me even tougher. You’re so free late at night; why not get me some ice instead...

Maybe an ice bath will make me feel a bit better!"

Daria spread her hands helplessly and said, "Most Alaskans don’t even buy refrigerators, where would the camp have ice cubes?"

Then, Daria slapped her forehead and said, "How about I accompany you to the Yukon River for a soak? The wetlands on the other side are also fine. The current water temperature is around 10 degrees, which should be safer than ice water."

After hearing this, Mountain Eagle struggled to stand and said, "Fine, I’ll give it a try. You stay and watch the kids. You haven’t finished your work anyway, and watching the kids while working should be easy for you."

Daria looked at Mountain Eagle’s staggering figure, clenched her fists, and swallowed the ’promotion speech’ that filled her belly...

Hearing the noise behind her from the tent, Daria looked over and saw Luna standing up like a sleepwalker, with her eyes closed, she fumbled her way to the tent’s inner washroom.

Seeing that this ancestor intended to sit straight down, Daria sighed and hurried inside...

Inspired by Daria, Mountain Eagle called Pigeon, who was on night watch duty. The two rowed a small boat to a downstream area where the water was relatively calm. After Mountain Eagle stripped down to his underwear, he grabbed a rope and jumped into the water.

The water at around 10 degrees Celsius wasn’t bone-chillingly cold, but the moment the uncomfortable Mountain Eagle entered the water, it felt like being pricked by ten thousand tiny needles - first stinging, then sore and numb, followed by itchiness and swelling.

Mountain Eagle wasn’t sure if it was a psychological illusion or if the more intense sensations masked the pain in his muscles and bones, but he actually felt a bit of relief.

Pigeon, who had been frequently away from the team, saw his boss lying in the water with a slightly relaxed expression. He let out a small sigh of relief and said, "Boss, I’m sorry..."

Mountain Eagle let himself float, opened his eyes to look at Pigeon, and curiously said, "Sorry for what?"

Pigeon somewhat embarrassedly said, "I’m sorry I didn’t join the Alaskan operation, so it was only you and Butcher..."

After hearing this, Mountain Eagle frowned and asked, "Your daughter has recovered?"

Pigeon nodded and said, "The surgery ended a while ago. Miss Tessa arranged for the best hospital and doctor, and the surgery went well."

Mountain Eagle waved his hand and said, "You don’t need to tell me this. Working for me isn’t slavery. To make you go into battle with me while worrying about your daughter, I wouldn’t be human."

As he spoke, Mountain Eagle felt a slight change in his body and gestured with his hands, "Stop talking, let me rest for a while..."

Mountain Eagle felt the river water passing over his body, cooled his temperature, and also carried away a bit of the heat from within.

With long-term pain, even a slight relief would feel quite pronounced.

Mountain Eagle felt a little less pain and relaxed. Then, incredibly, he fell into a deep sleep.

Pigeon was a little worried, but seeing the boss snoring so soundly made him dare not wake him.

Lacking in medical knowledge, Pigeon didn’t know how to handle the situation. He could only call Butcher over the radio, who then made a phone call to wake up the main doctor in Anchorage for remote guidance on what to do.

When the doctor heard it was about Mountain Eagle, he immediately woke up from his sleep. He was too curious about Mountain Eagle...

He thought that if Mountain Eagle were willing to cooperate with his experiments, it wouldn’t just be about the Nobel prize - getting a few awards in the American medical community would be a sure thing.

However, when he learned that Mountain Eagle had refused all Pain Killers and started to choose the cold river water for pain relief, he completely gave up trying to persuade Mountain Eagle to cooperate.

If someone could endure pain of level 6 or higher throughout the body and still not try pain relief that was within arm’s reach, then that person simply couldn’t be persuaded by words.

Unable to comprehend this level of madness, the main doctor could only ask Butcher, the amateur veterinarian, to check Mountain Eagle’s various physical indicators and tell him that as long as his blood pressure and body temperature were within a reasonable range, it was okay for him to stay in the water.

Butcher was very worried about the boss getting hypothermia. He tested the temperature every few minutes, but to his surprise, although the boss was soaking in cold water, his core body temperature remained around 37 degrees Celsius.

A normal body temperature of 37 degrees indicates a fever for most people, but Mountain Eagle seemed quite comfortable...

The moment the pain lessened, fatigue broke through his mental defenses, such that even when Butcher occasionally touched him, Mountain Eagle didn’t feel anything.

Mountain Eagle, deeply asleep, rapidly recovered as the icy river water neutralized the prickly itch.

About three hours later, Mountain Eagle suddenly felt something tugging at his right hand in the water...

Because it was dark and his hand was submerged, the small movements didn’t catch Butcher and Pigeon’s attention.

Mountain Eagle, indulging in the comfort, had no desire to wake up. But the thing went from tugging to bumping against his body.

Mountain Eagle resisted for a while, but eventually gave up and opened his eyes, irritably lifting his right hand, wanting to see what on earth it was...

"Splash..."

When Mountain Eagle lifted his right hand and pulled the ’culprit’ out of the water, he couldn’t help but let out a cry of surprise...

"Oh shit..."