Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 196: That's a Genuine

Boom boom boom! ! !
The attack aircraft flew overhead for only a short time, at most a second or two.

But the smoke and blast waves, along with the mangled remains of the "Grey Wolves" mixed in with it, made Ross feel that things were developing in a direction he didn't want to see.

After that disastrous airdrop, which was jokingly called "Little Market Garden," Milton must have realized the role the Grey Wolves played in the war.

Given that this sniper squad was able to call in ground attacks so quickly, Ross became even more convinced that they were specifically there to ambush him.

Milton had no regard for their identities; he was there to kill them all!
Despite a slight ringing in his ears, Ross looked up into the walkie-talkie and said, "Get close to them! Get close to the enemy as fast as you can! Engage them in close combat!"

"It would be best to kill their men and seize their flares! Even if they have airdropped supplies, it will take them some time to exchange information and change the color of their flares... This is a good opportunity for us to evacuate."

"Take turns withdrawing and covering each other, and withdraw along the predetermined route—the rebels have lost these places for a very long time, and they are not much more familiar with the road conditions than we are."

"It's going to be late at night... As far as I know, Milton only has some night vision devices that aren't very new, and they don't have infrared thermal imagers yet."

"rush!"

Rose's face was now grim—this was undoubtedly the most devastating defeat of his career, bar none.

There have been times in the past when we found ourselves in danger, surrounded by enemies several times our size in a small building, but in those times, our side had the advantage in terms of support.

If we just hold out for a while, all kinds of support from our allies will arrive.

But now it's completely the opposite. No matter how long Ross persists, the more enemies he fights, the more numerous and powerful they become.

Currently, they are attack aircraft. Once the air defense capabilities of the 2nd Infantry Brigade are completely eliminated, helicopters will definitely follow, and the disadvantage in air power will spread throughout the entire region.

Every day of delay reduces the chances of survival for this pack of "gray wolves".

Looking back on the entire battle, Ross felt nothing but resentment and endless frustration—those soldiers were utterly useless!

If he had been given a disciplined army, the defeat wouldn't have been so devastating.

Ross quickly shook his head, banishing these distracting thoughts from his mind: "Let's move quickly... Milton won't let us get away with this. Heh, a piece of trash warlord from a shithole country, he's lucky today. I'll remember him; we'll have plenty of fights to come!"

"I'm just wondering if he can always be this lucky."

"go!"

"Let these trashy troops see what an absolute gap in combat power looks like—even if they have air superiority, they are no match for us."

"..."

……

Boom boom boom...

At that moment, Milton was flying the plane, frantically scooping up fries.

"The 2nd Infantry Brigade has actually regrouped and is still piled up on the riverbank?" After dropping a barrage of napalm on the south bank where the government troops were located, Milton glanced down as he rolled and turned. "They're not retreating?"

As pillars of fire rose and the extreme heat spread along the riverbank, a large number of enemy soldiers, seeing their retreat blocked by flames and other aircraft, chose to jump into the river in front of them in despair.

With the rebels firing their machine guns furiously in front of them and flames raging behind them, they had no choice but to jump into the river.

They just hadn't witnessed Milton burning Van Cameron's gang, and didn't know that once you were exposed to that kind of flame, even jumping into the water wouldn't help.

The moment you touch it is death!
Even if you jump into the water, it's the same—the extremely high temperature of the flames will only boil the surrounding river water instantly, turning a barbecue into a stew; there's essentially no difference.

The rebels even took advantage of the opportunity to seize a government tank that had been abandoned on the north bank and successfully rescued it.

The tank's coaxial machine gun is now firing wildly at government troops!
The battle situation has become completely one-sided. As long as this intensity of attack can be maintained, the rebels can begin the river crossing campaign within 24 hours to complete the final pursuit and annihilation of the government forces.

Flora said nonchalantly, "It's normal. They only have one option left now: to fight. What difference would it make if they retreated back to Xaltenango?"

“But this large-scale counterattack is also very unusual,” Milton said. “I suspect that these soldiers were used as cannon fodder to cover the retreat of some people… After this attack, I’ll see if I can get in touch with Juan.”

Soon, after another round of bombing and clearing the racks, Milton contacted Juan.

Guided by Milton’s highly information-based operational concept, communication between ground units and near-ground support units emphasizes rapid response and real-time information sharing, with attack aircraft and ground forces interacting directly via encrypted radio.

Unless it is a campaign-level coordination, there is no need to coordinate through the command center.

As soon as the call connected, Milton heard extremely intense gunfire coming from the other end!
Milton immediately spoke up: "Juan? This is hell... This is Milton. How's the battle going?"

"Bang bang bang..."

Juan's slightly ashamed voice came through: "I'm sorry! It seems we can't stop this 'Grey Wolves' anymore. Two of our soldiers have already sacrificed their lives, but we still can't quite hold them off."

Milton was somewhat incredulous: "Didn't you call for near-ground support?"

Juan was still ashamed: "We called for backup, but these 'Grey Wolves' immediately closed in and engaged us in close combat... If it weren't for the heavy body armor you provided, our losses would have been even greater. We will fight to the last man, but we may not be able to hold out for long. I'm sorry!"

Milton was somewhat surprised by Juan's words.

How could a group of "gray wolves" driven to the brink of despair still unleash such formidable fighting power?

It should be noted that Juan's special operations platoon was not much different from the "Grey Wolves" in terms of equipment, so how could they be beaten so badly?
No wonder they are the country most skilled in special operations.

"Forget it." Milton decisively rejected the absurd suggestion of "fighting to the last man." "If you can't stop them, then don't. Your priority is to preserve your own strength. Retreat and let them pass."

Juan became anxious upon hearing this: "How can this be?! They should be very important targets to you, right? You even sent a plane specifically to keep an eye on them, how can you let them go!"

To be honest, Juan was so ashamed he wanted to bury his head in the ground. Even with Milton directly allocating an attack aircraft to help them, they still couldn't intercept the enemy!

Just as the rebels were on the verge of collapse and Juan was about to launch a suicide attack, Milton's reinforcements arrived and saved the day.

With this kind of performance, we really have let our allies down!

Milton chuckled. "Who told you I was going to let them go? I only told you to let them pass temporarily, not that I was going to let them go."

Juan was taken aback: "Huh?"

“Yes, so let them pass for now,” Milton said. “They have nowhere to run, so there’s no need to rush. You just follow them from a distance and cut off their retreat. There’s no need to intercept them anymore.”

"Understood!"

"Very good, await my next order."

After the conversation ended, Flora, who had been listening in the channel without speaking, asked, "'Tax Collector,' how do you plan to intercept this group of 'Grey Wolves'? Do you have any tactics?"

Milton piloted the plane toward the airport, saying, "It's not some sophisticated tactic; it's just about making full use of our advantages."

Flora was intrigued and continued, "What advantages?"

Since Flora would be involved in the operation anyway, Milton said directly, "First, we need air superiority. If one special operations platoon can't stop the enemy, how about two? Or a company? I'll have planes drop men in to intercept them!"

Tactics? What tactics? Human wave tactics!

"So it was a human wave tactic, uh, indeed simple and brutal."

“Analyze the enemy’s escape route carefully. You’ll find that if they want to break out of our encirclement, they must, and can only, go down the mountain.” Milton kept the plane at full speed. “No matter where their destination is, they have to go down the mountain.”

"Let's end this farce right here in this area."

"Don't forget, we still have many helicopters that haven't been deployed yet. Of course, 'Grey Wolf' knows this information and might be on guard. Whether it can be surprisingly effective depends on luck."

Flora sighed, "It's finally going to end... After such a long tug-of-war with Lopez. Are you going to go and arrest Rose yourself later?"

“Of course,” Milton replied without hesitation. “This American has given me a lot of trouble… and I believe he’ll be very rich, very rich.”

Milton couldn't scan Ross without standing in front of him himself.

A lot of money that could have been received might have been missed.

There was no other way; the business was too poor in the early stages, so the warlord himself had to take charge.

“We’ve been flying fighter jets for so long, we’re mentally exhausted,” Milton continued. “It’s about time for a shift change.”

“Connect the ‘anvil’ and the ‘poison’.” Milton, who could now see the airport runway, spoke a little faster. “We’ll rest for a bit, then get ready to take the helicopter to catch these damn rats.”

Soon, both planes landed safely at the airport.

Ground crew rushed over to replenish ammunition, while Milton and Flora left the plane and walked quickly toward the nearby tarmac.

The temporary command camp is located there.

At this moment, many elite soldiers boarded the transport planes on the side—they were the soldiers responsible for airdropping and blocking the "Grey Wolves'" advance route.

As Milton entered the command post, everyone inside saluted him, looking very alert.

"Mr. 'The Godfather'!"

"The enemy's defensive line in Retaluleu has begun to collapse completely!"

"We've been spreading news of the government forces' defeat at the front, and it seems they've gotten some of that information too; their morale has completely collapsed!"

"Many of the defenders even lost the courage to continue their retreat to Quetzaltenango and surrendered to our army."

"However, these soldiers are very poor in combat and their loyalty cannot be guaranteed, so we have temporarily imprisoned them in prisoner-of-war camps."

"We expect to take over Retaluleu City completely within 12 hours at most!"

"The only problem is that the further the front lines advance, the greater the pressure on our logistical support becomes..."

After listening to the report, Milton nodded slightly: "There's no need to advance any further. Just consolidate our gains in Retaluleu. Lopez's army will collapse on its own."

“After the defeat at the front, Lopez lost his army and his money—I don’t know what he sold to get so much money, but whatever he sold, after this defeat he would have nothing left.”

"The task now is to blockade the airspace over Quetzaltenango and get our spies moving—start spreading news of Lopez's defeat in the city and put out bounty posters for Lopez and his men."

"I'm going to trap Lopez in Quetzaltenango! I absolutely cannot let him escape!"

Lopez must be caught.

The soldier nodded and said, "Roger that!"

Milton thought for a moment and then added, "Lopez's army is gone, and his money is all gone. Quetzaltenango is sure to continue to suffer from famine... So, we can regularly airdrop some food supplies over there, but we should also threaten the people there that if Lopez escapes, we will immediately stop airdropping food."

"Brandon, you're the best at spreading rumors. You're in charge of this."

“No hatred matters. What matters most now is letting everyone know that anything associated with Lopez will bring them terrible trouble. They won’t let Lopez escape, and since we’ve blocked off the skies, he can’t leave.”

“Tell Veronica and Luz to draft a document now requesting the president to appoint me as the tax chief of the provinces of San Marcos and Retaluleu.”

"After the war ends, I will submit the nominations for the new high-ranking officials in these three places."

"..."

These people present were all people who had followed Milton all the way—Brandon, Veronica, Lutz, Ismaila…

Milton spoke eloquently, their emotions a complex mix.

Look, this is what a warlord is like!

What does the president matter?
In Milton's territory, the president's name carries roughly the same intimidation as a dog named "Furball" on the street.

Not long ago, they were huddled in two small border towns, surrounded and cut off, and even had to flee to neighboring countries to seek a living.

Now, with their strong and well-equipped army, they are about to occupy the territory of three provinces and become the de facto masters of this land!

“Go ahead and do it.” Milton looked at the excited expressions of the people around him and shook his head. “Don’t get too excited. This victory has only allowed us to barely gain a foothold… We’ve just gone from a nobody small-town ‘gangster’ to a local warlord.”

“But I am different from Lopez. I have a fundamental conflict with the warlords of this country, even the president of this country, and the CIA who are making dirty money all over the place.”

Milton is now barely out of the "beginner's village" and can barely move a few pieces on the chessboard.

Milton's current dire financial situation alone will take a long time to recover.

To rebuild the ravaged city, we must find ways to suppress famine and plague, revive the local economy, and withstand the combined encirclement by other warlords and major drug traffickers from neighboring countries...

One head and two big.

Flora nodded vigorously: "That's right, the real challenge is just beginning. These warlords will definitely take advantage of the fact that we and Lopez are both exhausted to expand their military... They might even form a short-term alliance. We will face considerable pressure."

"Taking a city is easy, but governing it is not so simple."

“Not really.” Milton turned around, picked up his gear and put it on. “At least for the current stage, we still have some shortcuts we can take.”

Someone immediately asked curiously, "What shortcut?"

“Robbery.” Milton tore open a pack of soda crackers and swallowed them with water. “Don’t forget, our attack was sudden and our blockade was comprehensive—not only will López and other politicians from the old government not escape, but the local capitalists, drug lords and so on who are in cahoots with them will also not escape.”

“They have a lot of money, even more than the government.”

“I’m not kidding. The annual income of the entire Pablo Escobar’s cartel exceeded the GDP of the entire country of Colombia at that time.”

To put it bluntly, taxes still need to be collected.

"Finally, it's time to start looking for some experienced sailors and captains, and preferably some people who frequently fight on the surface... Although we haven't raised funds for the navy yet, we must prepare for personnel in advance."

Boats can be bought instantly, but people need time to be trained.

Take the Air Force, for example. What's currently hindering the development of Milton Air Force is actually the number of pilots.

“Alright, let’s go.” Milton stood up and walked towards the nearest UH-1 helicopter. “Time to collect our first tax—those damn Americans are running mercenaries on my turf, this tax has to be paid!”

Flora stretched her limbs, put on her gear, and followed Milton into the helicopter: "Bring the infrared thermal imager. They might be planning to use the darkness to cover themselves. We can't let them succeed."

“Alright,” Milton nodded. “Our soldiers have successfully parachuted into the target area. Let’s move out.”

“By the way… if you want to collect taxes from the ‘Grey Wolves,’ you should capture them alive, right?” Flora asked a crucial question after settling in. “Capturing them alive is no easy task.”

“We’ll take as many as we can.” Milton shook his head and said, “Even if their alpha, Ross, dies, the others will still get their share of the loot—they’re not your average mercenaries.”

"it is good!"

As he spoke, the helicopter took off and, following Juan's directions, chased after the "Grey Wolves" in the direction they had fled.

Ishimaya sat by the door, staring blankly at the sunset outside.

"We've won..."

She never imagined that victory would come so quickly.

And it was at the brink of failure!
Milton said, "Victory is just the beginning. What happens after the victory is troublesome... I will have to talk to Lak about how our two forces should get along in the future, and what his thoughts are."

"Now is not the time to talk about these things. Taking out the 'Grey Wolves' is the most important thing."

Milton skipped the topic and used the helicopter radio to establish contact in a more measured way.

"Juan, report on the battle situation."

Juan's voice came immediately: "We let them pass, and they didn't cause any trouble. They just laid some anti-personnel mines or something along the way to slow us down."

“We found a local hunter to help us find our way – we are currently about 40 minutes behind the ‘Grey Wolves,’ but with the help of the locals, catching up with them shouldn’t be a problem.”

"The men you sent seem to be very close to the 'Grey Wolves.' They are very strong, so be careful."

Milton fiddled with the rifle in his hand and said, "Very good, keep a report on the battle situation."

After ending his call with Juan, Milton immediately contacted the first airborne team.

As soon as the call connected, loud gunfire erupted from the other end!

Bang bang bang!
Milton began briefly, "Report on the battle situation."

"We have encountered the enemy." The soldier reported briefly, "The enemy is very difficult to deal with, but it seems that they are short of ammunition and their firepower is being suppressed by us... They are retreating towards the designated location number 1."

"Continue to maintain suppressive fire," Milton ordered. "Even if we can't suppress them, we must at least keep their ears ringing. Helicopters, get into position immediately, and be prepared to alternate fire and shift positions."

"Try to force them to fire back. I need their precise location, the more precise the better."

"Roger that!"

At this point, the "gray wolves" had no idea that they had completely fallen into a trap.

Three helicopters—a UH-1 and two Gazelles—flew to the reverse slope formed by the mountain, quietly waiting for the target to appear.

The helicopter itself isn't very loud, but combined with the ambient noise and the sounds of various weapons firing, such an ambush would be impossible for most people to defend against.

Perhaps the "gray wolves" were among the few that could be prevented, but their minds were already overwhelmed with a massive amount of information to process, and they were exhausted from nearly a day of intense trekking and fighting.

Problems are almost guaranteed to occur.

Sure enough, after patiently waiting for 20 minutes, several orange-yellow figures suddenly appeared on the thermal imager!
This group of people hadn't even spotted the helicopter in the sky yet!
Because after them, several more figures appeared.

Milton didn't hesitate any longer and said, "Fire!"

Bang bang bang! Whoosh!
Machine guns and rockets rained down on the figures, and several people were immediately hit and fell to the ground.

The others were struck dumb; several frantically waved their hands, sought cover on the spot, or lay down on the ground.

Milton stared at the screen, a smile spreading across his face.

"Continue the attack until they give up..."

Before he could finish speaking, Milton suddenly saw a figure waving his hand, as if he were saying something to his companion.

Immediately afterwards, a large number of orange-red shadows, braving the aerial bombardment, ran in his direction, and then their infrared signals disappeared.

Although at least half of them were lost along the way, they simply vanished from the soldiers' sight.

Flora was stunned for a moment: "What is this?!"

"A cave!" Ishimia exclaimed, her expression grim. "They've stumbled upon a cave... this is going to be difficult."

Many caves have complex terrain, are interconnected, and are easy to defend but difficult to attack.

A direct assault on this terrain could result in extremely heavy losses—limited by the width of the battlefield, Milton's human wave tactics would be unlikely to be effective again.

If the "gray wolves" run inside, they might actually find a way to survive!
The others looked rather grim and instinctively glanced at Milton.

Milton slapped his knee, overjoyed, and exclaimed, "Great! You're going into the tunnel willingly, huh? I was worried we wouldn't be able to leave any survivors! That's wonderful!"

P.S.: It still hurts so much!
(End of this chapter)