Chapter 166
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 166
Chapter Title: Alliances and Cartels, San Francisco (1)
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#Alliances and Cartels, San Francisco (1)
After returning from Alameda, Winter received some awkwardly excessive compensation.
"The Chinese have peculiar tastes, don't they? Does she really look pretty to you, Lieutenant?"
It was Sergeant Wolf's question. He stood there with arms crossed, gazing at the makeshift stage. This was the deck of a decaying cruise ship. The abandoned facilities were finally serving their purpose again, all for a morale-boosting show put on for the Black Orca gang members.
The crowd cheered wildly toward the singing woman. Was it because entertainment was so scarce? The audience area was packed tight, and even the singer's slightest gesture sent them into a frenzy. Each time, the overseeing Americans, including the sergeant, laughed in disbelief. The singing was barely audible over the noise.
Winter waited for the din to subside before answering.
"Yes. She's beautiful. Even to me, with my Korean heritage, she's strikingly gorgeous."
The female singer had long, thick dark chestnut straight hair that was her standout feature. Her double eyelids and long eyelashes too. Dimples formed every time she smiled. It was a relief to see the haggardness from their first meeting gone. Her name was Zhou Wei. Until recently, she had been a major in the People's Liberation Army under Vice Admiral Xie Lu of the Navy.
"Is that so? Hmm..."
The sergeant seemed unconvinced. He muttered to himself. Her lips are so thin—it's kinda weird, or something like that.
"Wasn't she originally a soldier? A field-grade officer at that. I heard it kept the CIA on their toes for a bit."
This time it was Staff Sergeant Noah Wright, the explosives expert. Winter tilted his head.
"In a way, yes, and in a way, no. The reason she fell out of favor with Vice Admiral Xie Lu was that ambiguous status to begin with. Though there were other reasons too."
"Ambiguous status? What does that mean?"
"She was part of the PLA's Song and Dance Ensemble. Sure, she held the rank of major, but that just meant it matched her position—more accurately, she was a Grade 6 performer."
"Song and Dance Ensemble? What's that, like military entertainers or honor guards?"
"If anything, closer to honor guards. In China, they bestow military ranks on famous celebrities and artists. I only learned about it myself this time."
This differed from other countries' honorary ranks because it was genuine active duty. Starting as officers, it wasn't like Korea's mandatory service entertainers either. They received pay and uniforms, underwent separate performance evaluations, and advanced through seniority-based promotions.
As Sergeant Wright said, she had thrown the CIA into brief confusion. Even though it was a regular unit under the PLA General Political Department, the ensemble was considered non-combat, so they hadn't gathered much intel.
'And the China branch got wiped out too.'
Not all CIA intelligence made it to headquarters. Low-priority info was often handled locally. The China branch had been in Beijing. It was gone now.
The Song and Dance Ensemble's parent organization, the General Political Department, was the hub for Communist Party political officers. It even housed the Mass Work Department, which handled civilian psyops. Navy Political Commissar Lei Yanli, who controlled one of the PLA's major factions, proved the department wasn't toothless.
So it was natural for speculation to arise: that Zhou Wei's status was a cover, and Xie Lu had sniffed out Black Orca's true nature—or at least suspected it.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Winter had brought her along precisely because he feared for her life.
"Good liquor, this. Have a glass."
It was a few days earlier, April 5th. One day after surviving Alameda.
At a private gathering called to offer praise, Vice Admiral Xie Lu had personally poured Winter a drink. It wasn't his preferred beverage, but he accepted without refusal. No point in offending her.
She filled the not-small glass right to the brim. Full liquor is respect, full tea is deceit. The liquor, piled high through careful pours and surface tension, mirrored a mother's joy at her son's safe return.
As a mother, as a soldier, as a general aged beyond her years, she said,
"I've drowned my sorrows in liquor for over a year, but today, welcoming a fine guest, I'll enjoy some happy spirits for the first time in ages."
Winter stood and accepted the glass with both hands. He downed it in one go. A glint appeared in the general's eyes. She seemed impressed that not a drop was spilled.
"Yesterday was too hectic, so let me speak properly now. Thank you for saving my son, Ri. I've heard of your exploits—they were remarkable. Word is you crossed death's door several times. I've never seen that boy so smitten with anyone outside of women. I was worried he'd confess his love or something."
She delivered the joke with a straight face. Her years had hardened into a mask she couldn't remove even if she wanted to.
"Just luck on my part."
The general shook her head at Winter's modesty.
"No. I know my son well. I can tell exaggeration from truth. Even amid his shame over his pathetic self, his testimony about you rang consistently true."
And so, she said, lightly buzzed and earnest,
"Why not come under my command?"
"...Pardon?"
"I know, it's sudden. Recruitment in the middle of all this."
Winter looked at Xie Lu. She was a sturdy woman. Her sagging cheeks were etched with stubborn wrinkles. Her fierce eyes brimmed with power. Pressure emanated from her gaze—not deliberate, just innate. The natural aura of one who had long ruled over multitudes.
"Do you like that watch?"
Beyond the agreed-upon reward, the general had given Winter many things. Her prized possession was less a luxury item, more an artwork.
"Of course. I've never seen anything like it."
It was a first, across all his loops.
"Foreign devils once believed watches symbolized divine providence, didn't they? Intelligent design or whatever—laughable nonsense. But seeing that watch, I thought maybe they were right. Its structure, its precision... almost mystical. Like time itself was trapped inside."
Then the general asked how much he thought she'd paid for it.
Winter examined the precious gift closely. The hands were stopped. An exquisite mechanical watch, not to be wound carelessly. It depicted a night sky with a constellation, gems scattered to form the Milky Way. The blue background was surely sapphire powder.
He had no guess. Watches handcrafted by artisans, part by part, were priceless. You couldn't even browse them in stores—auctions were the norm.
"64 million yuan. About 10 million USD at the time."
"Incredible."
More surprising than the price was the general's wealth allowing such extravagance. Chinese officers often ran businesses, corruption was rampant, but a single general dropping 10 million on luxury? Rare, surely.
Or perhaps her family wielded that influence. Or she had strong Party backing.
Winter offered the watch back to the general.
"What is this?"
"Forgive my rudeness. Though it's a gift, something this valuable belongs with someone who appreciates it. The other rewards more than suffice."
"Is that so..."
The general wouldn't take it. Just keep it, she said.
"I was half-doubting, but you truly don't waver."
A test? Winter's hunch was right.
"Separate from my son's words, I wondered if what he saw was accurate. Ah, no doubting your skills. But character is another matter. That camaraderie you mentioned isn't common. I just wanted to know if it was real."
She said that's why she gave the watch.
"America's still kicking, isn't it? You have citizenship—you can go back anytime."
"..."
"That watch alone, sold for a tenth its value, nets a million USD. Sure, doom's at the door, but luxury lovers abound even now. Or rather, with time running out, they might splurge harder than ever."
The general's insight was spot-on. Winter had seen countless such revelries at civilization's edge, rare luxuries hoarded behind gilded walls.
Sometimes sparking social strife that hastened the end.
'She understands because she's cut from the same cloth.'
A woman who bought such a watch. Winter peered deep into her eyes.
"And yet you return it without hesitation. Meaning your camaraderie outweighs at least a million USD. You've forsaken lasting glory till world's end, choosing comrades who can only live on the battlefield... Fine. Truly fine man."
At least a million, up to ten or more. Money rules people. What was the boy's ransom again?
Even an intelligence officer here would have hesitated.
The general smiled for the first time—something like it.
"Keep it. It's also atonement for testing my benefactor. I'm satisfied. To find China's soul in a place like this..."
"China's soul? I don't follow."
"Yi. Righteousness."
The general answered curtly, then stared silently at Winter. She was gathering her thoughts, so he waited quietly.
"Yi is the soul of the Chinese. Perhaps you're a true son of Zhonghua after all... It shines brighter in these times. Might be hard for a second-gen overseas Chinese like you to accept."
She paused to refill the glasses. The deliberate slowness echoed her initial care.
Cheers. The fiery liquor burned down his throat. Winter felt his balance dull.
"When did yi become so vital? I think it's because old China was too vast."
"Really? Unexpected."
"Ah, glorious history, of course. No nation or people measures up. Rome at best? Every country owes China."
Her voice grew languid, words sighed against the chair back.
"Rewind to the beginning... Yi. Yes, yi. Ancients couldn't live without it. Zhonghua was always world's center, a unified continent. Dynasties changed, but one China. The heartland was immense. Administration couldn't nurture every soul. A single county outdid many nations."
The last bit overstated pride, but Winter nodded obligingly.
Was it idle talk, or purposeful?
"What I mean is, life back then... was a stage of governance and anarchy coexisting. Hm, war of all against all? I see that refined as the Chinese way."
"Everyone needed self-preservation, you mean?"
"You get it. Did your parents teach history?"
"Not really."
She laughed, grabbing the bottle again. A bold habit. More? Winter finally declined. "Just as I heard," she said, downing several glasses in a row. Felt like 40-proof firewater. Impressive tolerance.
============================ Author's Note ============================
#KakaoTalk
Programmer Friend: Hm...
Programmer Friend: 'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'
Programmer Friend: 'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'ㅅ'
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Tunguska: Hard to believe this is a chat among guys over thirty...
#Q&A
Q. kaley: @Author, your innocence terrifies me...! Oh, and finally finished the first run of Halegynnia—saw the hiatus notice at lastㅠㅠ Gonna keep full-rereading with columbarium for the 2n loop ㅎㅎ Miss Quilun or whoever...
A. Why miss that guy... Head Satan? Something like that...
Q. NoblesseBuffer: @... Wait, what? No bad ends in hentai Makoto works? Then what about Hypervelocity...
A. Compared to vast beautiful nature, human life is just petty noise. Pretty backdrop = happy end.
Q. Tomma: @The author's innocence? Readers figured out long ago you swapped the candy.
A. What blasphemy... Without innocence, I couldn't write this novel.