Fatal Strike: Paladins Mercenary Road

Chapter 981 Expanding Influence
Mountain Eagle's conjecture soon became a reality...

Just as the Texas police siege of the state trooper headquarters had entered its third day, attracting a large number of media reporters from across the United States to watch and broadcast the event, a bank document along with a video appeared on a Fox News broadcast van.

The video shows an intermediary negotiating with several Syrian "progressive youths." They are using American visas and money to incite these "progressive youths" to attack the Syrian doctor president by fabricating attacks and taking fake photos during the ongoing Syrian civil war.

At the same time, this group deliberately instigated ethnic conflicts in northeastern Syria at the request of the middleman, keeping the area in a state of chaos and giving ISIS time and space to grow stronger.

The bank document proved the video's authenticity!
It is well known that the CIA's interference in the internal affairs of other countries is basically a routine practice. There are too many "progressive young people" around the world who want to escape their current situation in one fell swoop and start a new life in a spiritual ideal country.

Sophisticated egoists may feel that their actions are justifiable, and even romanticize some of their despicable methods as a necessary act of resistance to a better life.

Coupled with the prevailing media and public opinion environment in Europe and America, organizations like the Syrian White Helmets began to thrive with funding from various NGOs...

They won international sympathy and support by fabricating attacks or even staging them themselves, then rushing into the 'disaster site' wearing white helmets to take many touching photos.

However, because one lie requires countless lies to cover it up, and these people were not intelligent or wealthy enough to make things flawless, it was soon discovered that many veteran actors appeared in the photos taken by the White Helmets.

When reporters went undercover to conduct interviews, they discovered that many of the people in the photos were indeed actors. In order to meet the KPIs set by their superior NGOs, the White Helmets had to pay locals to play the role of victims.

Every seemingly grand performance is like opening a hole in Syria, a ship that could sink at any moment.

Once people become accustomed to this narrative, and Syria or similar countries are labeled as backward and undemocratic, politicians in Europe and America can use their power of discourse to manipulate public opinion and arbitrarily inflict violence on such countries.

This is the influence that modern media can exert in the context of electoral politics!
This time, at a time when the United States is about to undergo a change of leadership, someone has delivered a major blow to Fox News, dealing a heavy blow to the Democratic Party!
The so-called "feast" was that the initial revelations were just appetizers. After Fox News, which leans towards the Republican Party, expressed to the whistleblower through its reporting that it "wanted more," new "snacks" were served to them.

The media industry is probably the most competitive and stressful industry outside of Wall Street, because news is time-sensitive, and the first news release often means that the first media outlet has a certain degree of interpretive power.

After Fox News published its first report, which sparked some public discussion, other media outlets had only two choices: follow suit or go against it.

In the media industry, there is no option to 'ignore' anything. Unless someone pays you to shut up, 'ignoring' trending news is equivalent to giving up traffic, and traffic equals economic benefits!
The Democratic government appeared somewhat overwhelmed at this moment, especially as Rahiri was vigorously promoting her Middle East policy. This scandal, which occurred during the Democratic administration, became a reason for her opponents to attack her.

And as Fox News received more 'explosive revelations,' someone finally realized something...

The state police office building in Laredo has become a hotspot and a source of news.

Any report that originates from here will naturally attract more traffic!

Moreover, it was obvious that the crazy kidnapper didn't mind being used in this matter. For three days, he hadn't even made any demands, but instead just picked and chose what to "order" for the hostages in the building every day, as if he wanted to drag this out indefinitely.

When Fox News tasted success, the Republican Party finally found a crack in the almost one-sided media landscape...

Texas, a Republican stronghold, saw them deliberately delaying and preventing federal agencies from taking over the handling of the state police headquarters hostage situation.

The reasons are readily available: it's a state police office building, not under federal jurisdiction, so the federal government has no right to interfere with the state government's actions.

Just as the situation reached a stalemate due to the multi-party struggle, the brown-haired woman who had been voluntarily sent away by the mountain eagle was attacked while receiving treatment at the hospital.

The killer bribed a hospital caregiver to inject her with a lethal poison, and then the killer was caught red-handed by a group of vagrants lying in wait...

Kobe then received a thick document detailing the flow of $14 billion that the U.S. government had supported in Mexico’s drug war over the past eight years. The document included not only the flow of funds but also vivid pictures and videos as evidence.

If this evidence is genuine, it indicates that a significant portion of the anti-drug funds originating from the 'Merida Initiative' ended up in private pockets, with some even falling directly into the hands of drug cartels. This is because some believe that instead of spending time supporting the Mexican military in its war on drugs, it's more efficient to bribe drug cartels to prioritize their own businesses.

The "war on drugs" has become a breeding ground for corruption and an engine for some people to make money in Mexico.

The word 'war' is a very precise word in any English context!

Once a 'war' breaks out, its unique nature will give rise to countless privileges.

It will also create a lawless land without boundaries, allowing those who can exploit 'war' to do whatever they want.

Now someone has handed Kobe a sharp sword, instantly putting him on the brink of disaster...

…………

Yes, I know what happened...

A bunch of heartless bastards pocketed funds that should have been used to support Mexico's anti-drug campaign, indirectly causing the drug war to escalate and even spiral out of control.

Moreover, based on the evidence, this group not only supports drug trafficking, but also participates in nuclear material smuggling and the damned human trafficking.

Mountain Eagle, completely covered up and wearing a gas mask, sat in an office on the 8th floor, holding a phone and laughing as he spoke to Senator William Hurt on the other end: "What's the point of calling me, buddy?"

If I were you, I'd support Kobe getting those sons of bitches thrown in Guantanamo Bay. They're the real culprits behind the Angel of Death's ability to smuggle dirty bombs into America...

I believe you know better than I do that the Angels of Death now hold leverage that could cost the entire United States dearly. Punishing them will give you more room to maneuver when negotiating with them.

William Hurt paused for a moment on the other end of the phone, then said with a hint of helplessness, "Mountainhawk, I've always supported Kobe, and now I want to make sure things go in the right direction."

Mountain Eagle was silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "Sir, from the moment those people sent that woman to shoot me in the thigh, we were destined never to be friends!"

Note my choice of words: 'those people'!
Although that woman told me that you were also a member of the Lake Baikal Foundation, I'm more inclined to believe that someone as important as you has no need to get involved in such low-level business.

Sir, those people are all greedy pigs in my eyes...

"If you can't sever ties with these people as soon as possible, I believe that as the investigation deepens, more media reports emerge, and the Republicans add fuel to the fire, you will suffer even greater losses!"

William Hurt sighed on the other end of the phone and said, "Mountain Eagle, what do you want to surrender and end this farce?"

Mountain Eagle smiled and said, "Sir, I have no intention of making an enemy of a behemoth like the Lake Baikal Foundation, but those guys who treat me like a nobody must pay the price for their stupidity."

I'm an impatient person, and it might take many years for Kobe to bring them to justice...

So I need a list!
I believe that their swift and clean death would be in everyone's best interest!

After listening, William Hurt said in a deep voice, "Mountain Eagle, this is impossible!"

I can give you a list, or you can give the list to Kobe, but don't blame me for not warning you, those guys are not easy to deal with.

(End of this chapter)