Lame Peter

Early the next morning, Lin Fei set off, flying to America.

After more than ten hours in the air, the plane finally landed at California Airport.

It was his first time setting foot in a foreign land across the ocean. On this unfamiliar ground, Lin Fei felt a little nervous.

When he reached the security checkpoint, the officers stopped him and asked him a few questions.

Lin Fei could just about understand what the other person was saying, but his spoken English was poor, and he couldn't explain himself clearly.

The security officer was beginning to lose patience and was about to take Lin Fei away when a fellow Xia citizen nearby spoke up and got him out of trouble.

"Thank you!"

Lin Fei nodded gratefully at the woman. She was in her fifties and had also come from Great Xia.

"Don't mention it. We're all Xia people. We should help each other when we're abroad."

That made Lin Fei feel a little warmth, but he also realized that without someone local to show him around, he might not get anywhere from here on.

Lin Fei had no choice but to call Wu Zhen's lawyer friend. The man told him to wait at the airport and said he would come pick him up.

After more than two hours, a black Ford pulled up in front of Lin Fei.

"Hey, are you Lin Fei?"

"Are you Lawyer Wang?"

"That's me. Get in!"

The lawyer was Wang Yibo. He was in his forties, wore a suit and tie, and had his hair combed to perfection. His face was clean-shaven.

According to Wu Zhen, Wang Yibo was also from Yunzhou. He had come to California to study many years ago.

After graduating, he had stayed to work there. He had been in the area for many years and knew it very well.

"Mr. Wu told you about me, right? He said you two were good friends and asked me to help you as much as I could."

"I heard your friend is sick and you've come to visit him. Which hospital is he at? I'll take you there."

Lin Fei hesitated for a moment, then decided to be honest.

Only then could he accomplish what he came for as quickly as possible.

"Lawyer Wang, I lied. I'm not here to visit a friend."

"Then what did you come here for?"

Wang Yibo wasn't surprised. He looked completely unconcerned.

If Wu Zhen hadn't put in a word for Lin Fei, he wouldn't have cared what Lin Fei had come to do.

"I want to buy guns!"

Only then did Wang Yibo glance at Lin Fei. He pulled the car over to the roadside.

"Young man, what do you want guns for? You can't take them back to Great Xia. You know that, right?"

"If you just want to try them out and get a thrill, I can take you to a shooting club. You can shoot as much as you like, as long as you pay."

Lin Fei's expression was calm, and his voice was just as steady.

"I don't want to try them out. I want to buy guns—lots of them. I have no intention of taking them back to Great Xia."

"I can promise you I won't do anything illegal or criminal. I absolutely won't cause you any trouble."

Wang Yibo fell silent, staring straight at Lin Fei.

Only when a police car passed with its siren blaring did Wang Yibo start driving again.

"If Mr. Wu hadn't introduced you, I'd really think you were crazy."

"I can't help you buy guns..."

Lin Fei had guessed that Wang Yibo would refuse. After all, they had just met, and there was no trust between them.

He had a family and a career here. There was no need for him to take risks over Lin Fei's business.

"One hundred thousand dollars."

"This isn't about money..."

"Two hundred thousand dollars."

"You should find someone else..."

"One million dollars."

"You... Deal!"

Wang Yibo forced a smile and held out his right hand to Lin Fei.

"From this moment on, you're my client. I'll do everything I can to help you get what you want."

Lin Fei shook his hand, then said, "I looked it up online. There are specialized weapons companies and even mercenary companies here in California."

"Pistols, sniper rifles, grenades, flashbangs—I need all of those. You can worry about how to buy them legally. Money isn't a problem."

"Hire me a mercenary. Someone with lots of experience, who's killed before and knows all kinds of weapons. I want him to train me."

Wang Yibo looked utterly baffled and couldn't help asking, "What exactly are you trying to do?"

"Personal interest!"

Lin Fei's answer—"personal interest"—was enough to brush Wang Yibo off.

Wang Yibo didn't press him. He didn't want to invite trouble.

He simply took Lin Fei for a rich second-generation kid with an interest in the military, looking for a thrill.

This kind of thing did happen.

Wang Yibo was professional and practical.

He took Lin Fei to a hotel and arranged a room for him, then asked him to pay twenty thousand dollars as a deposit.

Using the bank card Wu Zhen had given him, Lin Fei withdrew twenty thousand dollars and handed it to Wang Yibo.

Wang Yibo told Lin Fei to rest at the hotel and get over his jet lag. Once everything was arranged, he would come pick him up.

The next day.

Wang Yibo arrived and drove Lin Fei to a farm outside the city.

"Just as you asked, I found someone who fits the bill. He used to be a mercenary, has plenty of combat experience, has killed before, and knows all kinds of weapons."

"This man's name is Luo Hongwu. His American name is Peter. I should warn you, he's got a bad temper."

Lin Fei couldn't help feeling a little eager.

"That's fine. As long as he's the real deal."

Wang Yibo parked inside the farm. A man with a straw hat over his face and a pipe in his mouth was resting in a deck chair.

"Hey, Peter!"

Peter picked up his straw hat and stood from the deck chair.

He walked with a limp, and his face was marked by burn scars. He looked rather fearsome.

Lin Fei turned to Wang Yibo and whispered accusingly, "What kind of person did you find? Why's he lame?"

Peter seemed to hear Lin Fei. He suddenly drew a pistol from his waist and aimed it at him.

Lin Fei tensed at once, his body rigid as he stood perfectly still.

"What's he doing?"

Wang Yibo was about to speak when Peter suddenly swung the gun around and fired several shots.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

With the shots, bottles hanging from a tree dozens of meters away shattered one after another.

Peter put away his gun and silently looked at Lin Fei, as if to prove something.

Wang Yibo hurriedly said with a laugh, "Heh, you saw that, right? Peter may be getting on in years, but his aim is dead-on."

"His leg was blown off by accident during a mercenary mission, so he retired. He'll have no trouble training you."

"Most importantly, Peter is one of our Xia people. You can trust him. He's got plenty of guns and ammunition, so he can definitely meet your needs."

Liu Hongwu spoke up then. "I heard you're willing to pay a hundred thousand dollars for me to train you. Is that right?"

"If you want to buy weapons and ammunition, that'll cost extra."

Wang Yibo leaned close to Lin Fei and whispered, "Damn, I clearly negotiated two hundred thousand. What a crooked middleman—he pocketed half."

"Lin Fei, this money..."

At this point, Lin Fei didn't care about the money. All he cared about was whether he could learn real skills.

"Money isn't a problem!"

"My time is precious. Let's start training right now!"