activa-t Chapter 22 Remittance
Chapter 22 Remittance
"Listen up, all of you, prick up your ears!" After distributing the money, Demeter's face was grim. He lowered his voice and sternly warned everyone, "Hide all your money on your person, don't let it show, even if you die! This is not a good place."
He glanced warily outside the tent and continued, "That bastard Vorov is a complete vampire! He embezzles supplies, sells weapons, and treats his men like expendable commodities! We'd better keep a low profile while we're stationed here."
"Apart from following orders, no one should provoke the disciplinary squads or officers in the camp. If Vorov happens to have his eye on your money, he has a hundred ways to make you die unexpectedly, understand?"
"Understood." The crowd roared in unison, their eyes filled with resentment and helplessness.
"That's enough for now, take a break. Nobody knows when the next order will come down." Dmitri waved his hand and rubbed his temples wearily.
Alexei and the others left the tent one after another to inspect the weapons and vehicles.
Lu Ye didn't move; he stood quietly in place, looking at Dmitri.
"Lu, is there anything else?" Dmitri looked up at him, puzzled.
Lu Ye stepped forward and pushed all of the thousand dollars he had just received in front of Dmitry.
"Captain, I need your help." Lu Ye's voice was calm, but there was an urgency in it. "I want to convert all this money into RMB and send it to my family back home. Although it's not a lot of money."
Dmitri paused, staring at the money on the table, his brows furrowing tightly.
"Lu, I know what you're thinking. Once you got the money, you just wanted to secure a future for your family." Dmitri sighed, a hint of helplessness in his voice.
"But this is the front line in eastern Ukraine, a war zone! All civilian communication base stations have been destroyed; there's not even a cell phone signal. Where would you find a transnational banking network to send you money?"
"The only place in the entire camp with an encrypted satellite channel is the camp command center, which is that bastard Vorov's personal computer."
Lu Ye did not back down, looking firmly at Dmitry: "Captain, this money is a lifeline for me and my family. If I die tomorrow, it's just a piece of paper."
Looking into Lu Ye's stubborn and determined eyes, Dmitry recalled how yesterday, this recruit calmly killed the enemy sniper and saved the entire squad's lives.
"Hold!"
Dmitri grabbed a handful of hair in frustration and cursed under his breath. After a long silence, he finally gritted his teeth, grabbed the US dollars on the table, and stuffed them into his pocket.
"You saved everyone's lives, I'll help you out! Wait for me in the tent, I'm going to the command post to talk to Vorov."
Dmitri patted Lu Ye on the shoulder, his tone grave, "But Lu, be prepared. That fat pig Vorov will absolutely not provide the satellite channel for free. He's probably going to skin you alive again."
"As long as the money can be sent back, I'll do anything, even if it means losing a fortune. Thank you, Captain." Lu Ye nodded solemnly.
About ten minutes later, Dmitry appeared outside the tent.
As soon as he lifted the tent flap, Dmitry slammed his tactical cap to the ground and unleashed a string of extremely vulgar Russian curses.
"Fuck Vorov! That fat, bastard son without an anus! One day I'll shove a gun barrel into his entrails and empty an entire magazine!"
Dmitri paced back and forth in the cramped tent like an enraged grizzly bear, his chest heaving violently.
Lu Ye stood up, looking at his captain's furious expression, and already guessed most of what was going on: "Captain, he refused?"
Dmitri stopped and turned to look at Lu Ye, his bloodshot eyes filled with anger and guilt.
He took a deep breath and, suppressing his anger, said, "That fat pig agreed to use his private encrypted satellite terminal, but his condition wasn't a cut; he wanted our entire squad to carry out a reconnaissance mission for him."
"What reconnaissance mission?" Lu Ye frowned slightly.
"Fifteen kilometers east of Camp 17, there's an abandoned chemical plant. Intelligence suggests that an enemy heavy artillery position might be hidden there. That bastard Vorov wants the exact coordinates to curry favor with his superiors!"
Dmitry gritted his teeth and said, "But his cannon fodder has suffered heavy casualties and can't infiltrate at all. He has his eye on our fully armed regular squad, and wants to use your remittance as leverage to force us to scout ahead!"
Dmitry abruptly waved his hand and said decisively, "I refused! According to the information he provided, the entire perimeter of that chemical plant is surrounded by enemy minefields and hidden sentries; going there would be a near certain death!"
"Lu, I really want to help you, but I can't use Alexei, Anton, and the others' lives to earn merit for that fat pig! That's my bottom line!"
Looking at Dmitri's slightly trembling eyes, Lu Ye felt a warmth rise in his heart.
In this cold and cruel battlefield, it is his good fortune to have a captain who values the lives of his team members more than anything else.
"I understand, Captain." Lu Ye nodded calmly, putting the US dollars back into his pocket. "You did the right thing. We can't let my actions push the brothers into a fire. We can talk about the remittance later."
Dmitri looked at Lu Ye's unusual calmness, opened his mouth, and was about to say something to comfort him when Anton's urgent shouts suddenly came from outside the tent.
"Captain! Captain! The temporary camp... no, it's Colonel Igor!"
Anton, clutching the military radio, stumbled into the tent. He was so fast that he slipped in the mud and half of his body was covered in mud.
"The colonel has given orders?" Dmitry's expression hardened, instantly concealing all his previous emotions. He snatched the microphone and earpiece Anton handed him. "Take it!"
Alexei, Maxim, and Viktor also rushed over upon hearing the commotion. The group huddled together in the small tent, holding their breath and staring intently at the radio.
Accompanied by a crackling sound of electricity, Colonel Igor's voice came through the radio.
"Calling Seventh Squad, this is Igor Dmitry. Report your exact location and casualty situation."
"Colonel, this is the Seventh Squad," Dmitry said. "We are currently stationed at Forward Camp 17. All supplies have been safely transferred."
"We were ambushed by the enemy en route. The assistant machine gunner, Peter, suffered a penetrating wound to his right shoulder and is currently recovering after initial treatment; the sniper, Seryozha... was killed in action."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the radio, followed by Igor's voice: "Seryozha is a good soldier. But war always kills. Your squad has completed the escort mission; thank you for your hard work. Now, listen to my instructions."
Everyone perked up their ears. Alexei clenched his fists excitedly; he could finally leave this disgusting cannon fodder camp.