"Umm, I'm no longer in the business, you know. I'm also on probation, so your words.... That Laurence guy will probably come to have a chat with me in a bit, too."
Hearing Robert's downtrodden voice, Jiang Chen stopped and almost couldn't restrain his laughter.
The guy must not be having the best time right now. By probationary period, he probably meant that the FBI was monitoring his phone after telling him to his face, "I'm watching you right now."
[Showing off despite your current state, and you even said that you would have me covered when I head to Los Angeles.]
He smiled but inwardly cursed. Jiang Chen shook his head and got ready to end the call.
"Okay, looks like you can't do this deal then. I'm going to hang up."
"No, no, no, wait—"
The call disconnected, but his cell phone rang shortly after.
He picked up, mocking, "You switched numbers?"
"Hehe, other than the fact that the phone bill is a bit more expensive, this number is pretty convenient. Ahem, what business do you have?"
"I heard you say you're a producer now, but from your tone of voice, it seems you haven't had the best time?" Jiang Chen asked jokingly.
He remembered that the gold deal had been worth around 500 million USD. With a 9% commission, minus the loan and other costs, he should have at least 10 million or more.
Ran out of money already? It was in USD, too.
"Urg, ahem, it takes longer for a movie to return the investment, you know." Robert forced a laugh.
"Did you spend all that money on tail over there in Hollywood?" Jiang Chen chuckled.
[This pervert. There are definitely better ways to spend the money.]
But as that thought crossed his mind, his expression turned sour. He felt those same words applied to him as well.
"Ahem, let's talk about business." Robert awkwardly laughed from the other side of the call.
Jiang Chen didn't continue to make fun of him as he adopted a more serious tone.
"You've always worked in sensitive areas, so you must be close to mercenaries?"
"Oh? Do you want to hire mercenaries? But in China—"
"Not in China," Jiang Chen interrupted. "I need your help hiring a group of people to train bodyguards for me."
[Bodyguards?] Robert paused for a moment.
"In that case, Blackwater International is not bad."
"Not Blackwater." Jiang Chen refused right away. "You said before, they're too close to the FBI." He finally managed to leave a circle of influence; there was no way he was entering another one.
"Hehe, I knew it—you must be thinking of some bad things." Robert ridiculing voice passed through the phone. He continued, "All of the mercenaries in the U.S. are all somewhat associated with the White House. If you want to find people who only recognize money, you'll have to go to Africa, the Middle East, or Eastern Europe."
"Then let's do that. Make a trip with me to Eastern Europe," Jiang Chen said.
"Not possible. If I go there, before the plane even fully lands, I'll probably get deported. Speaking of which, are you not in the gold business anymore?" Robert forced a smile.
"Gold is not grown out of the ground. Don't you want to do something big?" Jiang Chen abruptly laughed.
The other side of the phone went silent.
Jiang Chen didn't rush him. He knew Robert was debating with himself, but in the end, he would agree.
Without taking risks, could he still be called a businessman? He was a risk-taker down to his bones.
"Okay, you convinced me. But my instincts tell me that you may be crazy this time. I don't understand. You've been doing pretty well over there and successfully transitioned your business. Why—"
"I have my own troubles, Robert, just like how you have your own," Jiang Chen said meaningfully.
"... All right, I understand. Now that you say it, it does make sense. Once sh*t touches your hand, you can never wash it off, hehe."
Despite stepping out of the business after Iraq, trouble seemed to always follow Robert. He spent most of the money, and though the producer title was pretty nifty, ultimately, it boiled down to money. With money, directors were more than happy to make friends with you.
And without it, who gave a fu*k about you?
He did invest quite heavily, but he had no idea how much profit would come out of it. In the movie industry, he was a completely outsider.
"Then let's talk about your pay first. Twenty million USD—"
"Deal!"
Jiang Chen paused, then began laughing. "Are you not going to ask me what the deal is? If I told you to go bomb a place, would you do it?"
With a sheepish laugh, Robert touched his nose and said, "Ahem, my friend, I trust you won't do things like that to me. If I did receive your money to plant explosives somewhere, you'd be in trouble, too."
Jiang Chen didn't deny it.
"Back to the topic. First, mercenaries. I don't care how, but I need ten people with experience."
The other side lapsed into silence.
"I'll get Nick to go to Ukraine—I have some connections with General Markanov. Although I won't be there in person, a recommendation letter should be enough. This guy really loves money."
"I'll make a trip myself, so get Nick to wait for me. Would it be acceptable to pay with gold?"
"Of course, they only recognize gold and USD there."
"Secondly, refugees. Europe has many refugees, right? I'll take some of their burdens for them. Help me think because I need around one hundred people."
"Sh*t, what are you trying to—"
"I remember you said yes," Jiang Chen said casually.
After deliberating, Robert let out a sigh of defeat.
"Okay. Let me think, where do you want these people to get off the boat?"
"Africa."
"Okay, I think I get what you mean. Do you want to start your own mercenaries? Or for the people behind you—"
"Ahem, I don't think you should know too much, am I right?" Jiang Chen interrupted with a smile.
[Mercenaries? You are underestimating me.]
"My fault." Robert forcefully chuckled. Suddenly, he remembered the last time in Iraq, Jiang Chen had brought out a drone and a heat-sensor grenade. The organization behind him was likely something he shouldn't know too much about. "Mhmm, capture a trafficking shop in the Mediterranean Sea, and get off at Libya. Then go on land to Nigeria?"
"Is Nigeria chaotic enough?"
This was the question Jiang Chen was most concerned about.
"Somewhat. It's poor enough there. A few hundred thousand USD is enough to buy a plot of land from the chiefs and have them keep their eyes closed to whatever you do there." Robert laughed.
Africa was a haven for mercenaries.
Poverty provided them with a source of troops, and the chaos allowed them to pass freely between borders with weapons. Although he didn't know why Jiang Chen refused to recruit cheap people from there, Robert knew by now not to ask any more.
"Great, then transporting them will be up to you. I'll take care of the other things."
"Is that all?"
"No, one more point." Jiang Chen smiled mischievously. "I heard you're a producer in Hollywood?"
"Ugh? Yes, I remember that you know." Robert was uncertain of the meaning behind his words.
"Play the bad guy for me. Your pay check will be twenty million, in gold."
Jiang Chen laughed malevolently.