Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 267 We really need to study Milton properly.
buzzing...

A tugboat and a supply ship departed from Champellico port one after the other and arrived at the battle zone.

Just as Milton had expected, none of the people hiding inside the ship came out. The Tax Scorpion kept a close watch on the enemy ship's deck, but waited in vain.

The drug dealers and several people who were supposedly of unusual status all hid like ostriches.

"Replenish the ammunition and tow the ship back!" Milton was delighted that no one resisted. "Hurry up, this sea is peaceful, there is no war here, clean up the scene and leave."

The enemy chose this sea area because merchant ships would pass through it.

“Boss, this is already at top speed… This thing is much more troublesome than we thought.” Brandon sighed. “If we just sank it, it would be much, much simpler.”

“That won’t do. For the sake of the economy, this museum must be built.” Milton stood on the deck of the “drone carrier,” gazing into the distance. “How’s the pursuit of the other assault boats going? Have we suffered any losses?”

Even after winning the naval battle, Milton remained vigilant and dispatched several drones to scout the surrounding area.

Brandon immediately reported: "The enemy had a total of 6 assault boats, and we sank 4 of them. The losses were minor, with only two assault boats slightly damaged and 2 soldiers slightly wounded. Most of the enemy were killed on the spot, but we still managed to capture some prisoners."

“Excellent!” Milton was delighted to hear of the prisoners. “Hang them all on the ‘Tax Scorpion’ and let them air dry to make sea-flavored cured meat.”

Flora couldn't help but retort, "You're so creative..."

Time passed slowly, and just as Milton was about to finish cleaning up the battlefield, a scout suddenly rushed over.

"Reporting to 'The Godfather'!"

Milton frowned, his smile fading. "Enemy activity detected?"

“No…” the scout shook his head. “It looks like a merchant ship is coming. Judging from the national flag it’s flying, it should be the merchant ship that contracts with our railway.”

Milton paused for a moment: "Oh, that's fine. Let them pass by if they want, just don't get too close to this place. It's a construction site, no unauthorized personnel allowed."

"Yes!"

After a while, the communications officer who had recently contacted Milton came running over again.

"'Godfather,' that railroad contracting team called you again!"

Milton sighed. "Take it."

Sure enough, as soon as the phone was handed over, Jin Kang, who had just spoken to someone, couldn't wait to speak: "Hey comrade...didn't you just say that this sea area is very safe and we can pass through freely? How come someone on my ship said they saw several warships, one of which was badly damaged?"

Damn, it looks like it just finished firing! The cannon barrel might not even be cold yet!

"Even if some warships with malicious intentions try to cause trouble, they'll just end up being taken down by me..." Milton said without batting an eye. "Putting everything else aside, just tell me about safety."

"Sigh...you, you..." Jin Kang really hadn't considered this logic, and finally said, "You'd better take it easy. Let me tell you, this cooperation is very important. Everyone hopes the project can be completed smoothly. You understand what I mean?"

"Don't worry." Milton smiled. "For a long time to come, the safe distance for all my maritime military operations will no longer be the range of my aircraft, but the combat radius of my warships plus the combat radius of my drones."

"Unless the government of a certain country completely breaks off relations and intervenes, drug cartels or terrorist organizations will absolutely not dare to come again."

Jin Kang remained silent for a while before saying, "I believe what you said... Based on my observation, you are a rare person who can combine theory and practice without much compromise. Of course, I am still very curious about what exactly happened on your end, since it involves the safety of the project."

Milton thought for a moment, then picked out the important points and repeated them: "You know about the drug problem in Mexico, right?"

Jin Kang's voice immediately turned serious: "Of course... we have also heard about the various measures you have taken against drug dealers. I will share my experience with you based on what I know. Drug control involves many deep-seated issues and cannot be treated as a political goal alone."

"Drug prohibition is not just a slogan used to attack political enemies, attack adversaries, or sweep away the old forces; it is a truly important issue involving 'national security'."

"I can predict here that once an opportunity arises, many countries, including the United States, will fall into an extremely difficult drug crisis... I hope this doesn't happen on your turf. Drug control for political reasons will ultimately fail for political reasons as well."

Milton laughed: "Don't worry, look at how well I speak Chinese, do I look like someone who doesn't know that period of history?"

"Look at what you're saying..."

"Alright, that's all." Milton glanced at the enemy ship that was already slowly moving under the tugboat's pull. "I'm still preparing for a big museum project. We'll talk again when I get back."

"Beep beep..."

After hanging up the phone, Milton felt the ship rocking on the sea and looked ahead—the transport ship where Jin Kang was was also sailing parallel to Milton's fleet at almost the limit of his visibility.

As they approached the port, they drew closer; one ship headed for the civilian berth, while Milton went for the military berth.

The sun was already setting, and it was dinnertime, but a large crowd of people had gathered on the shore, craning their necks to look at the sea.

As for dinner... many people just bought sandwiches or hamburgers to eat while anxiously waiting for the outcome of the naval battle.

Everyone knows that the incredibly powerful drug cartel filmed a video showing them using powerful ships and cannons, claiming they could send the entire fleet of "Hell Tax Collectors" to the bottom of the sea.

Anyone with eyes can see the "Hell Tax Collector's" fleet leaving port, and its destination is obvious to everyone.

The enemy ships looked so powerful, and the fear instilled by the drug cartels that had been wreaking havoc in the city not long ago had not completely subsided... and yet, they had actually joined forces!
Naval warfare is completely different from land warfare. The army is large in scale, and the loss of a tank, or even a gun crew, can only be considered a major loss, not enough to directly render the entire army incapable of fighting.

Moreover, even if heavy losses are suffered, as long as troops are replenished in time and infantry quickly fill the gaps, at most it will be a temporary shift from offense to defense, and the entire battlefield situation will not collapse all at once.

But the navy follows a completely different logic—the warships built with huge sums of money are often only a few in number.

Once the battle is lost and the warships sink, the sea will be immediately seized by the enemy, and the sphere of influence will immediately retreat to the vicinity of the territorial waters... If there is an air force, at least the safety of one's own coastline can be guaranteed. If there is no air force, then one can only wait to be bombarded by enemy ships riding on one's face.

Most importantly, the sinking of a warship is a huge loss that is difficult to make up for in a short period of time. The construction and delivery time of a warship is often measured in years. A fleet that has been painstakingly built up over more than ten years can be wiped out in one night.

People's concerns are not without reason—as the first generation to personally experience the qualitative change in their quality of life in a short period of time, they do not want to go back to the old way of life.

From a distance...

The "Tax Scorpion" stood proudly at sea, showing no signs of damage whatsoever.

What's even more astonishing is that following behind the "Tax Scorpion" was an even larger ship billowing thick smoke.

Everyone knows that the "Hell Tax Collector" currently only has one capital ship.

So this ship...

Suddenly, someone in the crowd exclaimed, "It's the 'Guadalajara'!"

"It's the flagship of the Pan American Cartel!"

"Did you see the news? Did you see that exercise? That ship in the background is exactly the same as the one in the exercise, completely identical! That ship was seized by the 'Hell Tax Collectors'!"

"We not only won, but we won a great victory, capturing enemy ships in a resounding triumph!!!"

"Long live the 'hellish tax collectors'!!!"

Holy crap! That's invincible!

"Is this the drug cartel's so-called 'invincible fleet'? Suddenly it's kind of funny. Buy ships in the morning, start fighting at noon, and send them to their deaths in the afternoon, hahaha." "Did you see that? Someone's hanging upside down on the 'Tax Scorpion,' probably one of those drug dealers, right?"

“I’ve said it before, analyzing strength on paper is useless. ‘Hell Tax Collector’ will definitely win in the end. If strength on paper could determine everything, then ‘Hell Tax Collector’ would still be a small inspector in Malakan Town.”

"Everyone believed that 'Hell Tax Collector' would win in the end, but no one expected that he would suffer almost no losses and even capture the enemy ship!"

"Thanks to the drug cartel alliance! After this battle, not only did we suffer no losses, but we also gained a capital ship. Now no one dares to offend us, hahaha!!!"

"..."

People who had just celebrated Christmas and New Year's Day were spontaneously starting to hold celebrations. The fireworks that hadn't sold out during the previous two holidays and were supposed to be disposed of were once again snapped up and sold out!

These wars were something we could only ever see in the news before. Victory, let alone defeat, was a privilege reserved for great powers and strong nations.

But now, ever since Milton arrived, news of victories has been coming one after another!
"Let's go home, we're having roast chicken today!"

"..."

……

While some rejoiced and others grieved, Quetzaltenango was filled with celebrations, as if it were Christmas, but in Guatemala City, many people looked ashen-faced.

Even late at night, the conference rooms of the Republic's government building are brightly lit.

At this time, not only officials from the defense department, but also high-ranking officials from other departments gathered here.

The Deputy Minister of Finance, the “reformist” official Viran, has a lot more gray hair now—if President Arsu and that completely figurehead minister hadn’t ignored him, he wouldn’t be in this situation where he has to ask the World Bank for help.

Arsu was even more irresponsible. After implementing some symbolic austerity measures to deal with the additional conditions of the World Bank loan, he did not invest the remaining money in economic development to prepare for the inevitable repayment deadline.

On the contrary, the increased military spending exacerbated corruption at all levels of government.

Unless a miracle occurs in the future, the loans will inevitably become unpayable, and those assets with unlimited potential will be snapped up by the World Bank at a very low price... At that time, without these money-making tools, Guatemala will be forever and completely plunged into poverty, with no chance of ever turning things around.

At least they no longer have the chance to turn things around on their own, and can only wait for an external opportunity.

Whelan then reiterated his point: "I think we should no longer be hostile to Milton at this stage... We should appease him, and as long as he recognizes the government, the local autonomy can be transferred to him. Continuing to fight will not do us any good."

That formidable fleet suffered its most devastating defeat in just one day!
Milton not only suffered no losses, but his fleet strength actually increased.

How is this played?
A senior Defense Ministry official nodded in agreement: "I also think we shouldn't provoke Milton any further... Even if we have to fight, it shouldn't be now. We can slow down a bit, let our money be converted into combat power, and then seek a decisive battle."

"I suggest cutting off the heads of all these capitulationists! Did you all coordinate with Milton all along? Hmm? You're planning to betray your country?"

"Treason... Ha! What I'm seeing is that the news used to always call Milton's army traitors, but nobody calls them that anymore? Who's really shouting slogans here?"

"While Milton's navy is on the offensive, we've already brought in a batch of anti-aircraft missiles—vehicle-mounted anti-aircraft weapons! Does Milton dare to come over? Let him try!"

The military attaché finally snapped: "Then why don't you deploy this batch of anti-aircraft missiles at the front lines? What the hell is it if they're all in Guatemala City? Why should we on the front lines have to wait for the second batch, while you guys sitting in the back get to enjoy the first batch?"

"You mean President Arsu's safety is no longer important?!"

"..."

The entire conference room was in an uproar.

The staff members seemed to see and hear nothing, their gazes wandering, lost in thought.

Arsu slammed his hand on the table: "Alright, stop arguing!"

To be honest, Arsu was also a bit frightened. He originally planned to sit back and watch the tigers fight, and laugh as Milton's sea transport route was strangled. But Milton swallowed the enemy whole, giving all the surrounding forces a huge shock.

For a long time to come, it's unlikely anyone will dare to have any ideas about going to sea.

"Americans, you have more information and the most advanced technology in the world. Do you have any ideas? What exactly happened in this naval battle?"

The aide standing there then spoke slowly: "We also attach great importance to this naval battle internally... We are currently studying the battle report carefully and cannot draw conclusions so quickly."

The emergence of the "drone aircraft carrier" has brought an unparalleled sense of awe to almost all those in the know.

Many people even called "Warwind Company" directly, wanting to contact Flora and pay to buy the specific details of this battle case so that they could study it.

No one expected that a small warlord in a small country would one day be able to use such tactics, which were almost ahead of their time—even though the cost was very high, the potential they demonstrated was enormous.

This has even given many people hope that they can achieve great results with limited resources and mitigate their disadvantages to some extent in asymmetric warfare!
Just as Arsu was about to waver, the aide added, "But I can tell you that Milton's success cannot be replicated on a large scale... The reason is simple: only a very few countries in the world are capable of developing and manufacturing these micro-drones."

"This absolutely does not include Guatemala."

"He probably caught those CIA agents last time, found out the locations of several safe houses, and seized a batch of drones."

"He must have suffered some losses in this naval battle."

"In short, we can be certain that this drone tactic can only be considered Milton's 'trump card'; he cannot use it indefinitely."

"So don't worry too much."

After saying that, the aide shut his mouth and didn't even look at the other people in the conference room.

Arsu calmed down considerably: "Very well, I understand... You're right. If we compromise this time, our allies may not be so reliable anymore."

"Perhaps they will also choose to make peace with Milton. Once these people have their own interests that are directly related to Milton, like that bitch Eunice, we can no longer expect them to be willing to devote their full resources to fighting Milton with us."

"For the long term, everything must remain the same. We must eliminate Milton at all costs!"

"..."

The argument in the meeting room lasted for several hours.

Finally, with Arsu's approval, all opinions were silenced.

Deputy Finance Minister Véran could not hide his anger. He stormed out and grabbed the Deputy Minister of the Interior for Security, the official in charge of the nation's police forces.

"Maine! What did you tell me before? Didn't you agree with my opinion? Why are you hanging out with those people today? You know perfectly well what kind of people they are!"

Mayne chuckled and said, "Veland, let me tell you a little secret. Someone from Milton's side has defected... It's a policeman who had close contact with Milton and was even praised by him. He was a policeman who participated in the nuclear waste cleanup operation."

"He was promoted all the way up and ended up managing the police in a local area... but he felt that the position was too low and that it was not worthy of the hard work he had put in, so he became dissatisfied."

"He promised that as long as he received the treatment he deserved, he would be willing to come and join us with the intelligence. With this firsthand intelligence, we could launch a surprise attack and perhaps even recapture Quetzaltenango in one fell swoop."

"Vilan, can't you see clearly?"

"His Excellency the President does not want to stop the war—he simply does not want to lose."

(End of this chapter)