"Calling Fruit Bat, how's the situation on your end?"
Xia Yu turned on the radio and asked Alvin about the situation at the airport.
"The planes have been towed back to the hangar, and the strike operation originally scheduled for tomorrow has been canceled. The weather here is really bad."
Alvin quickly responded that the communication quality was a bit low due to the interference of the sandstorm.
Perhaps to demonstrate military strength after the false alarm was exposed, the Germans increased the frequency of patrols in the war zone and carried out high-density air strikes against many armed factions whose locations were confirmed.
Ground combat personnel and army aviation do not intervene; it is simply fighter jets dropping precision-guided bombs.
This operational model cannot eradicate those armed factions completely, but it can play a certain role in deterring and weakening them.
I'm warning you, don't cause me any trouble during this time.
While they can't defeat the extremist groups that have gone into hiding, these armed factions are still quite easy to bully.
Jihuo Defense also subcontracted a lot of orders, keeping Alvin very busy.
Hans went with them twice, which could be considered as restorative combat training.
"We'll get orders. We'll have a get-together at the camp tomorrow and collect our share of the profits with the alpacas."
Xia Yu continued.
To be precise, it's about dividends and wages. They've been in Mari for over a month now. Apart from receiving last month's wages at the beginning of the month, this month's wages have been delayed by two or three days due to various strike and patrol missions and equipment maintenance.
Now that we have nothing to do during this sandstorm, let's take stock of the accounts and settle all the outstanding debts.
“That’s great, the alpaca and I will come over tomorrow morning.”
After ending the call, Xia Yu turned on her computer and got to work.
He hired an accountant last time, but the accountant was only responsible for the museum side; he still had to handle all the accounts for the fire defense himself.
No, I need to enroll Liv in an online finance training course. It's time for her to prepare to take on the responsibilities of being the boss's wife.
The field medics continued to receive their salaries, plus a financial allowance, which covered their daily expenses.
As for large purchases, it seems that their large purchases are all about buying various tanks and fighter jets.
So-called high-end consumption didn't actually account for much; at least the supercars and luxury homes were completely excluded.
The "luxury house" in his hometown in the countryside has already broken ground, and it will be ready for the roof-raising ceremony when he returns.
He won't have time to stay here this time; he'll have to rush back to Afica after the New Year.
After settling the accounts, they opened the safe in the corner of the barracks, which was filled with the spoils of the last battle.
Xia Yu has already counted the cash; the important thing is the gold dust.
All of them were stored in the warehouse, and after the impurities were purified, they were printed into 99.99% pure sheet metal per kilogram. A total of 107 pieces were obtained, which weighed 107 kilograms. More than 600 grams were directly calculated as fire loss.
Based on yesterday's international gold price of $1,150 per ounce, the gold here is worth $3.956 million.
Five dollars were taken out and moved around, and the remaining amount, plus 1.5 million in cash, was deducted from the company's share by 50%, resulting in a total bonus of 2.635 million US dollars for the employees.
The amount isn't large, but it's only an interim dividend.
I've heard that the Al-Qaeda faction of the Nasser independence movement is much richer than the Az faction, who can only dig for gold from the ground, because they control multiple smuggling routes.
With a coefficient of 1 for 9 people, 0.5 for 1 person, and 0.3 for 20 people, this one share is worth $170,000.
It seems like the losses amounted to quite a bit, but this is the fault of the Taiwanese. Apart from the busy Fruit Bat crew earning their flight allowances, 18 combat employees were unable to participate in this strike operation.
They lowered the denominator by using a coefficient of 0.3, but fortunately this was only temporary. With lucrative actions to come, the Germans have lost the will to participate.
"Calling Begonia Rabbit, this is Weasel, call Honey Badger to come and help."
Xia Yu called Liv, saying that the accounts were settled and it was time to prepare to distribute the money.
In the past, it was usually the boss and his colleague Domi who were in charge, but now the boss wants to slack off a bit.
Liv, who was taking stock of the remaining medicines while holding onto Domi and Dundu, was once again conscripted by Xia Yu.
"I bet I'll get paid tomorrow."
Upon hearing Xia Yu's call on the public channel, Mariano nudged Rob next to him in the activity room.
"It's time to distribute the profits, but Otter, you, Leopard Cat, and 06 have to treat us to a meal. You'll get the full share of the profits."
Lawrence, who was sitting opposite him, egged him on.
"It's just treating people to a meal, it's negotiable."
Mariano said nonchalantly.
I made over ten thousand dollars more than the guys who didn't go, so what's wrong with taking out twenty or thirty thousand to have some fun?
These are people who know how to spend money and enjoy life. After achieving Adidas freedom, many members of the Slavic group bought cars and purchased properties in their hometowns.
But with more money they can't spend right away and are worried about it depreciating, they're discussing going into business together or investing to outpace inflation.
This is the trouble of the rich; those who joined later are not yet qualified to understand it.
The richest is Hans, no, the richest is Liv.
She won over the boss; even though she wasn't a veteran, she was the richest among the employees.
At this moment, Liv lacked the self-restraint of a wealthy person. As she stuffed $97,000 into a woven bag with her name on it, she couldn't help but feel a little breathless.
Last time I received nearly 75,000 yuan, and this time, with my salary and allowances, it's almost 100,000 yuan, which is higher than a teacher's after-tax annual salary.
With such limited ambition, what does a salary amount to? The real money comes from the profits of the fire defense and museums. You'll never get rich relying on a salary.
However, with such a large salary this month, and the upcoming trip to China in two months to meet Xia Yu's parents, her gift budget will be able to increase considerably. She just doesn't know what they will like.
They like you, the couple said. They knew their son was making money abroad, but now that he had money, he should find someone!
Since they hadn't heard anything, they had refrained from asking, and Xia Yu, taking the opportunity, also kept quiet, preparing to give them a surprise.
Meeting your daughter-in-law this year, holding your grandson next year, holding two sons the year after, and then holding three sons after a short break—isn't that efficient?
Don't scare the elderly; they weren't prepared at all.
"Great! You found it too! And you also spotted a B-25 bomber!"
Xia Yu's voice interrupted Liv's thoughts. She saw him leaning against the window making a phone call.
He's such a busy person, making endless phone calls and doing countless business deals every day.
What does it matter if you're busy and making money? Bruce, whom Xia Yu sent to North America, has successfully found the H4 catapult he needed. There are many people who buy guns, tanks, and airplanes, but very few who buy hydraulic mechanical catapults.
One museum even has several sets; if you find the right connections, it's not difficult to get one.
Bruce even followed this lead and found information about the B-25 bomber, but something went wrong.
"You said the plane's condition isn't good, and it can't take off."
It's understandable that it can't fly; those B-25s that perform at major air shows year-round and are in excellent condition are not cheap.
Of course, it's not uncommon to find only two flyable B-29s or five airworthy B-17s, those four-engine bombers.
Putting aside whether the second floor of the museum is crammed with four engines, even if the third phase of the aircraft carrier were equipped with catapults, it still wouldn't be able to fly such a massive machine.
At most, they can only operate three-engine aircraft like the Junkers-52, which is already their limit.
"Never mind whether it can fly or not, just take it down first. Anyway, the plane will need to be reinforced and a lot of things modified when it's brought back!"
After a detailed investigation, Xia Yu discovered that the B-25 cannot be ejected. No wonder the movies emphasize weight reduction, weight reduction, and more weight reduction; it's all to reduce the weight of the fuselage and take off against the wind.
Museums need to perform on time, and they can't wait for headwinds, so strengthening the structure and installing a catapult is the best solution.
For the steam catapult-level modification and reinforcement of jet fighters, we need to ask our hometown for help. The mechanical hydraulic catapult system on the old propeller can be completed in a few hours, which is not troublesome at all.
"I understand, sir. There is one more thing I need to report to you. I have made some progress on the magnesium-based second-hand fighter jets that you asked me to keep an eye on."
Bruce continued on the phone.
Xia Yumi and Sukhoi already have quite a collection, so now they're eyeing the Americans.
While older aircraft like the F-4F Wildcat and F-6F Hellcat are on the list, they are used by museums to make money. He personally prefers second-generation and third-generation aircraft.
Fourth or fifth generation isn't out of the question either. Anyway, we're not going to take it out. It's just a flying figurine, a collectible during life, and a burial item after death.
His hobbies are relatively normal, but aside from the bronze chariot frames and painted human figurines, there are also burials of golden monkeys, iron-eating beasts, and Asian tapirs. It's practically turned into a zoo.
"Tell me, what's the progress?"
Xia Yu gestured for Bruce to continue.
"It's a Florida company that's preparing to sell an F-16 fighter jet for $8.5 million. It was manufactured in 1980, has accumulated 6,000 flight hours, and is expected to have 2,000 more hours of service life."
Upon hearing Bruce mention this, Xia Yu was initially surprised. "Wow, is the US really that ruthless? They're even selling active-duty aircraft. This makes the UK, which only sells retired aircraft, seem rather conservative."
Then I thought about it and realized that this was quite normal. The old man had taken apart the weapons and fire control systems; what couldn't he sell? In a capitalist society, everything is about money.
"I'd better not. 6,000 hours is too long. I'm afraid I won't be able to finish flying the remaining 2,000 hours before I crash."
Xia Yu rejected the F-16 fighter jet.
"Too old" is just his excuse. The system can completely restore the machine's lifespan to its factory value, but the main problem is that it's too expensive.
That's 8.5 million! That's enough to buy so many Su-27s from Eastern Europe. Even if American aircraft have a premium, his highest price shouldn't exceed 3 million—the price of a Bugatti.
"By the way, this F-16 was disposed of with the approval of their Congress."
Xia Yu asked another question.
Besides the 1,500 F-16s of various models stored in the aircraft boneyard, the United States also converted old F-4s into QF-16 unmanned target drones. Previously, these were all converted F-4s, so perhaps they were short of funds to sell them off.
"No, it was purchased and refurbished by the Palm Beach aircraft leasing company from John."
Bruce explained the reason.
This company also sells old Black Hawks and old C130 Hercules aircraft. If it weren't for the high prices, Xia Yu would definitely have asked how much a Chinook costs.
"Oh, this is an old acquaintance of mine. I know. You should get the B-25 deal sorted out first, and we can talk about the rest later."
Xia Yu hung up the phone, a playful expression on his face.
Thousands of kilometers away in the Middle East, the old king, who was having a great time with his body leaning out of the command tower of the late-stage Tiger tank, suddenly felt a jolt in his heart.
What's wrong? Why am I suddenly experiencing heart palpitations?
You've been targeted, haven't you? Who told you to deal with so many F-16s? Apart from the first batch that was leased and then delivered, the rest were all second-hand goods bought from Europe.
Second-hand goods are actually quite appealing; after flying for a thousand or so hours, they can be resold three times, highlighting their cost-effectiveness.
Xia Yu doesn't care how many times a F-16 has been used; he only cares about the price, which must be high.
I just got back from China just in time for the official opening of the old king's Royal Tank Museum. I'll take the opportunity to "extort" some money from him on the way.
However, while the F-16 is secured, the F-15 remains a problem.
This heavy twin-engine aircraft was produced at less than half the rate of the F-16, and the number exported to various countries was also small. To collect it, one not only needs to plan ahead but also needs to seize the right opportunity.
I'll buy a new one whenever it falls down, but it won't work if it's too far away. It's all up to fate.
Pulling his wandering thoughts back, Xia Yu looked up and realized that Domi and Dundu, who had come to help, had already left, leaving only him and Liv in the room.
"Smack!"
Xia Yu slapped his thigh, and Liv immediately came closer.
Couples who have just started dating always have passionate feelings for each other. The key is to keep those feelings alive and well as they walk towards marriage and through the long years to come.
"It's so beautiful, it's hard to believe it's nearly a hundred years old."
Holding Liv in her arms, the girl unlocked her phone and showed him the renovated old house, earning Xia Yu's praise.
This is a traditional German-style wooden truss house. Unlike the log cabins of Russia, you can't tell from the outside that it's a wooden building.
However, Xia Yu still prefers stone to rotten wood.
“Those stones are castles, aren’t they? There are quite a few castles near my house.”
Hearing her boyfriend say that, Liv casually replied.
As a country known for its castles, the country boasts over ten thousand castles of varying sizes. After all, one didn't need a high rank; as long as one had enough wealth, even a medieval knight could own a castle.
Xia Yu prefers underground castles to those built on the ground, but it wouldn't hurt to build one on the ground for fun, since he has money now.
In Europe, or rather in his country, he also needs a place where he can openly settle down.
A castle is more fitting than a manor, especially when a bomb comes crashing down...
Xia Yu wasn't quite sure what the effect would be, since there didn't seem to be any steel reinforcement inside the rock, but surely no one could drop aerial bombs within Dezi territory.
It doesn't matter if it's thrown away; he can use a small tunnel boring machine to dig a small bunker under the castle, combining the eagle's nest and the wolf's den into one.
Just thinking about Seele's miserable state, Xia Yu had collected many pistols, but not a Walther PPK.
No, the captured weapons don't count. Sasu's gold-plated PPK is still in his cabinet!
Or I could find an opportunity to give it to them later, otherwise I'll always feel uneasy.
Xia Yu didn't delve deeper into the topic of the castle. He planned to give Liv a surprise later, since he couldn't really let the girl live with him in the bunker.
Replacing it with a castle would be much better.
The next day arrived quickly, and Alvin and Wang Kai arrived at the camp early.
I'm having some writer's block and it's late again. The realistic impact of the events can't be that intense, so the daily life scenes in between will have to be filled in with content from the later outline, which can also be considered as laying the groundwork in advance.
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