The Wolf of Los Angeles.

The next morning, Walid set off with his men. In the afternoon, someone ran back to report to Jurani that they had been attacked by a roadside bomb, and the car Walid and his men were in exploded and caught fire.

The four bodies were charred black on the car that was towed back.

Since it involved Walid, whom he had trusted most in recent months and was also the most capable under his command, Julani personally led a group to come and check on the specific situation.

The fatal wounds of all four bodies came from shrapnel from a roadside bomb. Apart from the driver, the other three bodies were torn into pieces by the violent explosion and burned beyond recognition by the fire caused by the fuel tank.

Zhu Lani's face was extremely pale. He asked, "Are you sure it's the right person?"

Several of Walid's subordinates were examining the traces left on the body parts and found items such as a watch, a pistol, and a necklace.

One of them even opened up the charred head and pried out two gold teeth.

“This is Walid’s adjutant, Dabakh.” The man reported to Julani: “Last November, he knocked out two of his teeth in battle and replaced them with gold teeth. I’ve seen him many times.”

Jurani remembered this man; he was Walid's right-hand man.

Two other people who were examining the body came over carrying a tray; they were all people who knew Walid very well.

One of them picked up the all-metal M1911 and said, "General, this is the colonel's sidearm."

Another person looked at the watch and diamond necklace and said, "These are the colonel's personal accessories; I've seen them many times."

Julani was somewhat distressed. He waved his hand and had the body taken aside. He then said to his adjutant, "Collect the body and hold a funeral for Walid in the most solemn manner."

He might have died if Walid hadn't been there when the attack happened last year.

Moreover, Walid's abilities and loyalty were beyond question; it was unexpected that such a powerful warrior would die from an ordinary roadside bomb.

Julani did not forget the enemy, saying, "We must avenge our comrades and complete the work that Walid did not finish. Now the entire army is ready for battle, and the target is Abid."

"Revenge! Revenge!" Countless people joined in the chant.

Meanwhile, in Deir ez-Zor, Syria.

Walid, having shaved his beard and disguised himself as a tourist, drove with Dabach, who had also changed his appearance, to the front of the Alan Hotel.

Just as Dabach was about to open the door and get out of the car, Walid reached out and stopped him, saying, "You wait here. I'll call you. If I say 'Come on up,' you leave now. If I say 'Gold Tooth,' then you can go up."

"Boss, you..." Dabach gripped the steering wheel tightly: "Will the company be detrimental to us?"

Walid closed his eyes briefly: "Judging from the previous situations, it's highly unlikely, but we can't afford to be complacent."

He picked up the newspaper he had bought, pointed to the woman in the picture, and said, "That's Cialie, after all."

Dabach nodded vigorously, without any hesitation: "If anything happens, I will risk my life to avenge you."

Walid shook his head: "No, if anything unexpected happens, go to East Asia, find a place to hide, and never show your face again."

After saying that, he got out of the car, quickly entered the hotel, took out a cell phone, and made a call.

The online liaison appeared at the entrance of the coffee shop in the rest area.

Walid quickly went over and followed him inside, finding a place to sit down.

The liaison officer asked, "How is the situation?"

"I faked my death and escaped," Walid quickly recounted what had happened.

The liaison officer was relieved, took out cash and new identity passports, and said, "Leave Deir ez-Zor immediately, go to Damascus, take a flight to the port city, rest there for a few months, and then you can go to Damakin or Los Angeles to reunite with your family, it's all up to your personal choice."

Walid took the two cash bills and passports, and glanced out the window without making a sound. Dabach's car was still parked there, and had not encountered any accidents.

The liaison officer guessed what Walid was worried about and calmly said, "You're overthinking it. Hurricane Company has carried out many similar missions. The personnel who carried out the missions all received the best treatment afterward, including promotions and raises."

He took a sip of coffee: "What seems like a big deal to you is just commonplace to those above."

Walid put away his passport and cash and said, "Good luck, my friend."

"Have a safe trip." The liaison officer shook his hand.

Walid left the hotel, returned to his car, and seeing that Dabach was perfectly fine, said, "Let's go to Damascus."

Dabach started the car and asked, "Are you alright?"

Walid laughed and said, "What could possibly happen? Let's go."

The two arrived in Damascus without incident, took a connecting flight to the port city, and began a relaxed and carefree life after a long period of undercover work.

During this time, they also contacted their families in Los Angeles, completely putting their minds at ease, and prepared to return to Hurricane after their vacation to continue this promising job.

…………

Los Angeles, Coast Building.

News about Walid reached Hawke immediately.

Hawke instructed Edward to inform Bosque to approve the bonus directly.

When it's time to reward someone, Hawke never hesitates.

Outside the building, a commotion arose. Hawke went to the window and looked out, only to see a Cthulhu parade passing by.

Sylvie's inexplicable sacrifice fueled the rise of the Cthulhu movement.

Taking advantage of this public opinion, Cthulhu launched a new round of large-scale demonstrations.

In this situation, even demons and monsters have to temporarily give way to the Cthulhus.

All mainstream media outlets, including right-wing media such as Twitter and Fox News, stood on the side of mourning.

This is not a personal issue; it is an extremist challenge to the authority of the United States.

In the UK, they basically figured out who was responsible for the explosion and even obtained photos of them holding up posters in support of Emma Watson.

Emma Watson was implicated and forced to undergo repeated questioning.

Some extreme Cthulhu groups in the United States have even blacklisted her.

This has also cast a shadow over the future of this British actress.

Hawke saw the latest official report on the case, which pointed directly to Syria and Iraq in the Middle East.

Tom Emmer signed an order urging U.S. forces in Iraq to launch a new round of counterterrorism operations.

How someone behaves in private is one thing, but when facing the world in public, they will inevitably show a completely different face.

Even Brian has issued a series of statements, believing that the US military should take more aggressive action in the Middle East.

The United Nations has also strongly condemned the incident. The Middle East, which had been somewhat calmer, has become lively again, with constant fighting.

Middle East peace is not in the interest of any of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

This also does not align with Hawke's interests.

Roger Keane of the West Coast Investment Foundation and Henderson of West Coast Technology approached Hawke.

The latter stated, "Because of the need to launch a new round of counterterrorism operations in the mountainous region of northwestern Iraq, the Pentagon has placed an order for more than 2,000 all-terrain individual soldier transport vehicles, with a total value of nearly $500 million including logistics, maintenance, and spare parts."

Everything else was secondary; the money in his pocket was real. Hawke was quite satisfied and said, "The Pentagon knows its stuff."

Three-wheeled vehicles are quite useful in the Middle East.

Roger Keane added, "Israel has contacted us and also wants to buy."

Hawke doesn't like squid, but he never hates the money in the squid's hand.

After all, money for squid is money too.

He said, "As long as the Pentagon has no objections, it can be sold to them, but at double the price."

Henderson continued, "I've spoken with General Walker, and the Pentagon is definitely available for sale."

The US military is about to launch a military operation in northwestern Iraq. The forces of Julani and Shamdo are simply no match for them, and it is only a matter of time before they are wiped out.

The Middle East will only become more and more chaotic in the future.

Beyond these overt actions, Hawke's charitable foundation has been using the United Nations' name, under the pretext of protecting the Green Africa initiative, to further expand Hurricane Corporation's influence in Africa.

The United Nations is like a giant spittoon; everyone who comes in wants to spit a few times.

Hawke expressed sympathy for the injustices suffered by people in the Middle East, which prompted Twitter to focus its condolences on Hillary Clinton, but real-world business activities and political maneuvering must continue.

On the second weekend after the New Year, Hawke and Erica co-hosted a New Year's party in Los Angeles.

Numerous celebrities and dignitaries from the political, business, and entertainment sectors attended the event.

President Tom Emmer was unable to attend due to his engagement in an event in Europe, so he sent his wife Claire, who was staying in North America, to participate.

The current Speaker, John Boehner, personally traveled to Los Angeles to attend the event.

Mr. Dong flew to Los Angeles with his daughter to show his support.

"As you know, I am Brian's most steadfast supporter." Facing Hawke and Brian, President Dong shamelessly flattered them, saying, "I have always firmly believed that Brian can reverse America's continuous decline and lead America to create the next glorious decade."

Brian wasn't confused. He waved his hand and said, "The governor of California has already put a lot of pressure on me. We'll talk about the rest later."

Standing to the side, Inee felt somewhat awkward, thinking that her father had gone a bit too far.

But Dong Zong still showed his approachable attitude: "No matter what, I will support you, and we will be the most steadfast allies."

To express his stance, he added, "I have signed a series of agreements with West Coast Environmental Technology Company, and all the technological equipment in the Dong Zong Building will use West Coast products in the future."

Hawke could only respond politely, "Thank you for your support."

"I've entrusted all this business to Yini," said President Dong, emphasizing his daughter's abilities. "Yini is a newcomer to business; please guide her closely..."

Enni stepped forward and shook hands with Brian and Hawke respectively: "Starting this year, I will serve as the CEO of the Los Angeles branch of the Dong Group."

Hawke casually remarked, "She's both beautiful and talented."

More guests arrived, and Mr. Dong, having achieved his basic objective, took his daughter to other places.

He went to chat with the men, while Inee went to the women's area.

Hawke dealt with Robert Iger and his team from Disney.

Brian glanced around and said in a low voice, "This guy is even using his honey trap, but his daughter does have a great figure, she's got a lot of curves."

Hawke glanced at President Dong, who was speaking loudly, and said, "You just need to remember one thing: this guy will be our direct competitor in the future."

Brian said, "I feel that his abilities are far inferior to Tom Emmer's."

"Don't be fooled by his public persona." You can say that President Dong is bad, but you absolutely cannot say that he's incompetent. How could someone who can defeat Hillary and Hypnos be as he appears on the outside?

Even though most of the world's organizations are makeshift, Mr. Dong is one of the most capable among them.

Hawke cautioned, “Our monster and ghost thing stunt may seem popular and have won over a minority, but won’t normal families get tired of it in the long run? While America is becoming increasingly chaotic and its social environment increasingly fantastical, there are actually far more normal people than monsters and ghosts. Many people join the monster and ghost movement with the real purpose of fighting Cthulhu. When the LGBTQ movement threatens their interests, Mr. Dong jumps out to become their spokesperson…”

He paused for a moment, waiting for Brian to think, and then said, "Don't forget, President Dong also comes from a wealthy family and can also win the support of large corporations."

Brian thought for a moment and said, "We need to think of a way to deal with him ahead of time."

Hawke said, "The LGBTQ movement has started to get out of control in two ways. We are gradually withdrawing and giving it a push from behind to make it completely go crazy."

Brian continued, "And then we become representatives of normal people?"

Hawke nodded and continued, "On the other hand, by exploiting Dong's weakness, even if he becomes a rival within the party, he won't really threaten us."

Brian said, "It's the same as before. I'll handle the normal channels. You just need to take care of the rest."

Hawke said calmly, "I'm trying to figure something out."

The space travel he previously discussed with Musk was unlikely to succeed.

Although Mr. Dong enjoys being in the limelight, he is unlikely to be swayed by such a high-risk activity.

Brian suggested, "How about this, let's try to find a way to deal with the sweet talk that President Dong is trying to give us, and you can take the bait first."

Hawke sneered, "Buddy, this is a time bomb."

Speaker John Boehner then entered the banquet hall, and Hawke and Brian went to greet him.

Before the Starlink and return-to-the-moon programs were approved by the budget committee, John Bird's son invested his own money and became a shareholder in SpaceX.

SpaceX is now about to go public, with an estimated value of $500 billion.

This company has a continuous launch business and is among the top space technology companies in the world.

Because there are very few companies, let alone countries, that can actually handle space launches.

There are also related supporting companies, which have tied many members of parliament to them.

The current First Lady, Claire Emery, has a foundation with close ties to West Coast technology businesses, and her Clean Water Initiative has made her a fortune. (End of Chapter)