Prime Minister Gerald crossed his arms as he sat in the back seat and asked quizzically, “…Completely enclosed training camp? Do you need Wi-Fi?”
Huo Shaoheng replied, “…That won’t be necessary; I need them to train without any distractions. All the domestic Huaxia Imperial training camps do not have Wi-Fi connectivity.”
“Amazing!” Korchagin gave Huo Shaoheng a thumbs up. “You guys are much better than the soldiers from India! A few days ago, I heard that an Indian soldier shot and killed his superior officer just because he wasn’t allowed to be on his phone and play games during his shift!”
Huo Shaoheng, “…”
“You have to believe us, this actually happened.” Natasha, Korchagin’s secretary, immediately tried to help her superior save face by saying, “It was reported on the news!”
Huo Shaoheng curled his lips and asked, “Oh really? So will India be attending this year’s Annual Warrior Competition?”
“They will attend, of course they will. They will also be holding a joint military exercise with us as well.” Natasha pouted her lips and revealed a coy expression. She clearly looked down on India and dramatically retold many jokes about the Indian special forces’ soldiers. For example, they carried yoga mats everywhere with them, they made curry rice outdoors during a mission to attract the enemy, etc.…
Huo Shaoheng listened with keen interest and automatically asked numerous thoughtful questions.
Prime Minister Gerald suddenly recalled Huo Shaoheng’s previous identity, and he felt as though Natasha was leaking secrets.
He quickly coughed to interrupt Natasha. “There are many countries attending the competition this time. Aside from the Huaxia Empire and India, the other countries include the United States, Japan, Korea, Israel, Great Britain, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy.”
“That many? Then we will really need to find the best location to camp.” Huo Shaoheng discreetly changed the topic and didn’t mention the other countries again.
Their car drove past the Moscow Grand Plaza with the red brick Kremlin flanking either side of it. From a distance, it looked like a sea of red.
The massive size of the plaza was needed to complement the bright red walls of the Kremlin.
If it were the pitifully small Times Square in the United States that was surrounded by a wall of red buildings, it would be a complete eyesore.
Huo Shaoheng sat in the car as he squinted at the distant blue skies above the red walls and white shingles. The iconic, large church across from the Kremlin looked just like a fairytale cottage.
He guessed that Gu Nianzhi would probably like these kinds of things a lot.
In the car, Korchagin’s secretary Natasha kept rambling about the history of Moscow’s Grand Plaza.
“…The military parade was held here during the world war. After the military parade ended, everyone went straight to the frontlines and fought bloody battles. They emerged victorious and protected Moscow, directly turning the outcome of the war around.”
Although this wasn’t the first time that Huo Shaoheng had visited Moscow, it was the first time he officially visited Moscow as a Huaxia Imperial Major General.
He knew much more about the Grand Plaza of Moscow’s history than even Natasha, but he was still inspired by her proud and passionate retelling.
He stared at the quiet and majestic Grand Plaza outside the window as he imagined that exciting military parade.
Countless strong young men had sung “Katyusha” as they raced towards the battlefield.
Most of them were unable to return alive, nor were they able to witness the victory after the war.
No one knew their names, yet their achievements would last for eternity.
But after so many years, most people had already forgotten the high price paid for peace.
Huo Shaoheng fluidly raised his right hand and gave a perfect military salute towards the Grand Plaza of Moscow.
Natasha stopped her passionate narration, her eyes suddenly growing watery.
Using her hand to casually wipe at her eyes like it was nothing, she silently watched Huo Shaoheng set down the right hand he had used to salute before nodding at him with a smile.
Minister Korchagin couldn’t help but see Huo Shaoheng in an even better light.
Even Prime Minister Gerald grew quiet, although he had some negative opinions towards Huo Shaoheng.
He must admit that only soldiers who respected deceased unsung heroes could be truly considered a soldier worthy of respect from others.
A country with this kind of soldier was one that must be terribly powerful.
The car quickly sped past the Grand Plaza and headed towards the city outskirts.
Korchagin’s secretary Natasha became cheerful once again.
They listened to her chatter and giggle the entire trip.
Huo Shaoheng was gradually able to glean a lot of information from Natasha’s casual conversation.
For example, he learned that the Japanese special forces soldiers would be arriving in Moscow tomorrow. This was only one day after their own arrival.
Also, the American and Israeli soldiers would be camping together so they could battle each other first.
Additionally, India was yet unable to amass enough soldiers to build a team for the competition…
Another two hours passed before they finally arrived at the military camp near Katyusha Park on the outskirts of Moscow.
Huo Shaoheng climbed out of the car, first shaking hands with Minister Korchagin and Prime Minister Gerald. He bid them farewell and thanked them for their hospitality.
Korchagin and Gerald had provided Huo Shaoheng with the highest level of treatment.
When subsequent special forces from other countries arrived in Russia, Natasha wasn’t even present to greet them. Instead, the junior secretaries working under Natasha were assigned to meet them.
After Korchagin and Gerald left, Huo Shaoheng and Natasha walked around the entire military camp together.
“Let us camp here.” Huo Shaoheng circled an enclosed barrack.
There were various training venues in the open space belonging to the barracks – prairies, swamps, trenches, hillsides, pools, obstacle nets, and shooting ranges. They could train for any event at the competition there.
Natasha readily agreed. “No problem. Was there anything else you needed?” she asked.
“There is a wall surrounding the barracks, but I want a wire fence that can be electrified.” Huo Shaoheng began listing off and requesting items from Natasha.
Natasha glanced at the list for a while, then looked up at Huo Shaoheng with a smile. “Major General Huo, are you sure you want these things? Sometimes, the more mysterious you are, the more you will attract curiosity…”
“Curiosity kills the cat.” Huo Shaoheng smiled subtly as he folded his hands behind his back and stared at the wall that was as tall as a man. “If the cat were killed, it wouldn’t be so curious anymore.”
Although he only made a casual remark, Natasha could sense lethality hidden in his words.
However, she wasn’t afraid at all because she was a bit excited.
A nation of warriors liked people with hot blood in their veins.
“It’s good as long as you know that.” Natasha took out her electronic notebook and jotted down all of Huo Shaoheng’s requests. “I will deliver them to you this afternoon.”
Huo Shaoheng nodded, then walked Natasha out.
Natasha kept her word and delivered all of Huo Shaoheng’s items that afternoon.
She didn’t have much to do that day, so she stayed with Huo Shaoheng and his men to see how they would set up the barracks.
Soon afterward, the tall walls surrounding the barracks were completely covered by a layer of electric wires.
As soon as it was electrified, no one could enter from the outside, and no one could exit from the inside.
Sensors were also buried under the wall, so alerts would sound as soon as someone trespassed onto the grounds.
Aside from this, there were also countless surveillance systems.
The barracks were basically completely monitored at all angles and without any blind spots.
When Natasha saw the eight monitors she had delivered had been used in such a complicated setup, she exhaled sharply.
“You guys are serious!”
“Of course we are serious.” Huo Shaoheng calmly adjusted the monitors. “Did I suggest I wasn’t going to be serious?”
Natasha was reassured. “Looks like you guys really want to win…”
“Well, of course. Why would we attend the competition if we didn’t want to win?” Huo Shaoheng stood up while he looked at the surveillance monitors in front of him. “…I hope that they can withstand the tests ahead.”
The special forces soldiers spent their first day in Moscow repairing and setting up the camp.
At noon the next day, the special forces soldiers from Japan also arrived in Moscow.
