Chapter 8: Mismatched Expertise

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Inside a mansion in Houston’s wealthy district.

Having just finished his shower, Yang Jie sat boldly on the sofa, shirtless, his muscular arms as thick as an ordinary man’s thighs, displaying a skull tattoo smeared with fresh blood. He sipped his tea with a casual air.

Despite her curvaceous and tall figure, and her expertise with various firearms, none of Li Siyao’s colleagues, who had worked with her for years, had any idea that their fierce captain’s private pastime was brewing kung fu tea.

At this moment, Li Siyao wore linen clothes, a string of expensive beads adorning her fair wrist.

The tea table was filled with tea trays and various teacups as she carefully brewed tea for everyone.

After taking a sip, Yang Jie furrowed his brows.

“When did you start drinking rock tea? The flavor’s a bit strong.”

Yang Jie rarely drank coffee; he usually favored Jin Jun Mei, the kind that costs tens of thousands per pound.

Used to Jin Jun Mei, the taste of rock tea was somewhat unfamiliar to him.

Li Siyao lit a plate of agarwood incense and said calmly, “Authentic ‘horse meat’—it tastes great but isn’t cheap.”

Yang Jie snorted. “Horse meat” is a variety of rock tea called Ma Tou Yan (Horse Head Rock) cinnamon, simply nicknamed “horse meat.” Since the region is limited, authentic production is scarce, and quality varieties start at five figures.

He took another sip, savoring it. “The tea soup is full-bodied, rich in flavor, with distinct layers, and smooth going down.”

Hearing this, Li Siyao was clearly pleased. After all, only the two of them truly understood tea here. The others’ sour expressions revealed their complete lack of taste.

Especially Jin Zhiyan, whose face had turned sour.

“Everyone, let’s report the situation,” Li Siyao said, pointing to the passports beside her.

“From today onward, we can all start anew.”

Yang Jie smirked. It sounded almost like they were about to become monks.

“How much did it cost?”

“Five million.”

Yang Jie gasped.

“Your family’s surprisingly generous. They could have just robbed us but actually gave us stuff—tsk, tsk!”

Five people needed to have their identities wiped clean, yet the fee was a million dollars each. Such appetite was extraordinary.

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Li Siyao took a sip of tea, her expression satisfied.

“My immediate family has long been gone. I was raised in Longguo from a young age. The family barely considers me one of their own. Being able to pay to get things done is already quite good.”

“Outside, countless people try to curry favor with our family, but even money can’t buy this chance.”

Yang Jie shrugged nonchalantly. Li Siyao’s mother was from the Lighthouse Country, while her father was from Longguo.

When she was twelve, her parents died. Her uncle in the Lighthouse Country took her in; he was a military contractor.

This exposed Li Siyao to firearms early. By fourteen, she was already working on the battlefield doing odd jobs.

Unfortunately, her uncle had the face of someone doomed to an early death and was killed within a few years by a 155mm howitzer shell.

Helpless, Li Siyao had to take over the military contracting company alone. Luckily, the family supported her, but only as long as money was provided. Without funds, no support was forthcoming.

Her mother had, besides this uncle, a younger sister and a slew of relatives. Who knew how indifferent this peculiar family was to blood ties?

Yang Jie glanced at Sophia and Cui Huizhu.

The two women exchanged looks, but Cui Huizhu spoke first.

“Through some suppliers, we’ve procured hundreds of tons of white sugar and dozens of standard containers of alcohol—mainstream liquors and spirits.”

After she spoke, the atmosphere turned heavy. Zhao Baitong was stunned, incredulous.

“You only bought this much?”

Sophia and Cui Huizhu exchanged glances, giving a look typical of contemporary Longguo university students.

“What else is there?”

“Smack!”

Yang Jie and Li Siyao both covered their heads, utterly resigned. No matter how strong their specialties were, this line of inquiry was off-target!

Zhao Baitong counted off on her fingers, addressing Cui Huizhu.

“Sugar and alcohol may be strategic resources, but are we supposed to live on just this? For example, you two mother and daughter, me, Yang Jie, and Li Siyao all have to eat—we need to stockpile rice.”

“Seraphova needs bread and potatoes, which means flour, potato starch, canned potatoes, and most importantly, pickled cucumbers.”

She paused, looking at Sophia with some puzzlement.

“What do Persians usually eat? Don’t you stockpile some yourself?”

“Cough, cough!”

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Sophia coughed tactically, a bit embarrassed.

“Actually, after splitting from you all, I hired a Longguo chef. I mostly eat Chinese food now.”

Zhao Baitong was surprised.

“But didn’t you say Chinese food was too greasy?”

Sophia retorted with some annoyance, “After getting used to it, going back to Persian food suddenly felt strange!”

Persian cuisine isn’t very different from the western regions of Longguo. Breakfast also involves flatbread with honey, cucumbers, and olives.

Since joining the trio of Yang Jie, Li Siyao, and Zhao Baitong for Chinese meals, well, she admitted she had grown accustomed to it over the years.

Zhao Baitong shrugged.

“So your mission is basically done like this?”

“Forget it, I’ll handle it. You two assist from the side. I’ll report on my own work first.”

Zhao Baitong pulled out her laptop, speaking in a businesslike tone.

“Yang Jie, I’ve sold everything possible. Your total assets are approximately 342.96 million US dollars.”

Yang Jie frowned.

“That can’t be right. I made quite a bit these years, hired accounting firms, and paid the lowest taxes! How come it’s only this much?”

Zhao Baitong sighed.

“Every year you have to pay the military, Fuboer, and CIA for public relations. That takes up thirty percent of your income. You also donate half a million each annually to the Houston Police Department and the police union—otherwise, Yaoyao wouldn’t have been promoted so quickly.”

Yang Jie’s ears turned red like an airplane’s wings. His mood sank. After fighting hard for over ten years, he had earned only this much. Thinking of Commissioner Smith and General Wilson, his resentment grew.

Zhao Baitong continued, “Next is Sophia. Tsk, tsk, I didn’t expect a supermodel to make this much—ranked twenty-sixth, with a net worth close to forty million dollars.”

“But I’m curious. Weren’t you crazy about luxury watches? You bought so many and still saved this much?”

Sophia chuckled.

“I used to buy watches, but after talking with Yang Jie, I now use zero-cost purchase organizations. I place orders, and those old black market guys selectively stock goods for me!”

Everyone looked at Yang Jie with amused expressions, but he didn’t care in the slightest. Joking aside, ignoring loopholes would be foolish!