Fatal Strike: Mercenary Road of Gunfire Ranger
Chapter 137 Negotiation

Chapter 137: Chapter 137 Negotiation

Pulichenko was at a disadvantage in the standoff at the door, naturally being a step below the mafia as a police officer.

While entering, he was warned by Mountain Eagle with insinuations, and the fact that he did not turn hostile immediately implied that he subconsciously acknowledged his weaker position.

Eventually, he faced the awkward situation of host-guest reversal in the drawing room...

Mountain Eagle, harnessing the lethal 20 million US Dollars and the authority borrowed from the Thai Police Team, solidly suppressed Pulichenko, a mafia leader.

Though it seems miraculous, these were actually just petty tactics in business negotiations.

Yet, these tactics were all too familiar to the battle-hardened Mountain Eagle.

Backed by the entire Thai Police Team, Mountain Eagle naturally held the upper hand, especially now that Pulichenko needed him.

If Mountain Eagle were to show courtesy out of so-called manners at this time, it would contradict his professional experience.

Mountain Eagle understood too well what negotiations entailed...

He and his team had once endured a meeting in St. Petersburg where the other party was three hours late, and the air conditioning in the meeting room malfunctioned, leaving everyone shivering from the cold.

After a day of unsuccessful negotiation, they even experienced a fire drill in their hotel the same night...

Only during the debriefing led by the team leader later did they realize that these seemingly malicious actions were meant to put them in their place.

Stepping over boundaries and overpowering the opponent both mentally and in spirit, disturbing their mindset, enabled one to take the initiative during negotiations.

In billion-dollar deals, fighting for even a fraction of a percent could yield significant benefits!

Thus, one should never feel surprised by any unusual maneuvers from the opponent.

One should be mentally prepared especially when playing as the visiting team, as the opponent might resort to any mean trick.

Negotiations halting could even lead to deception, a strategy that many leaders had fallen victim to...

Almost all negotiations aim to maximize benefits, attempting to achieve win-win situations whenever possible.

As long as there is a possibility to sit down and discuss, except for traps, there is definitely room for cooperation between both sides.

However, in practice aside from some special cases, usually, the party with greater strength reaps more benefits.

Mountain Eagle chose to fight on visitor’s turf, but his series of consecutive attacks disoriented Pulichenko.

Once momentum weakened, Pulichenko could no longer maintain the demeanor of a leader in the negotiations.

After all, his lifeline was in the hands of the Thai Police!

The Great Russian Mafia was formidable and wealthy, but the truly affluent were those oligarchs stationed atop the Eastern European pyramid, not a mere branch manager like him laboring overseas.

If he couldn’t retrieve those 20 million US Dollars, even selling his blood wouldn’t fill the colossal void, and the subsequent punishment could doom him irreversibly.

At this moment, Pulichenko was both dangerous and vulnerable!

Yet, as someone accustomed to high stakes, once Pulichenko realized he was at a disadvantage, he stopped acting, heavily sat down on the sofa, and with a cold gaze looked at Mountain Eagle and said, "What exactly do you want?"

Without addressing his question, Mountain Eagle sat opposite Pulichenko and said to Bianca, "Could you bring Mr. Pulichenko and me a cup of coffee or hot tea? He seems quite agitated right now, maybe drinking something hot will make him more comfortable."

While speaking, Mountain Eagle looked at Pulichenko, spread his hands, and said, "This is a trick taught to me by an elder...

Whenever I’m unsure what to do, I pour myself a cup of hot tea and sit quietly in a corner.

After calming down, my mind would conjure various ingenious ideas appearing just in time to turn around the troubling situations."

Watching Bianca actually preparing the tea as Mountain Eagle requested, Pulichenko maliciously said, "You, a policeman, closely associated with the Weapon Bank—is this your ingenious solution to problems?"

Mountain Eagle chuckled and waved his hand, saying, "Bianca and I are friends, which has nothing to do with my being a policeman.

Consider this an emotional connection that transcends interests...

Of course, you might not understand, but all you need to know is, whoever causes trouble for Bianca will find others standing by her!"

While Mountain Eagle spoke, Bianca placed two cups of brewed black tea next to them, then the thirty-something lady leaned over from behind Mountain Eagle, kissed the top of his head gently, and said somewhat moved, "Thank you!"

Mountain Eagle looked up at Bianca’s face and smilingly said, "No need for thanks...

You should sit down and listen, our Mr. Pulichenko seems quite curious about our relationship, let him know you’ve helped him a lot, maybe then he will reevaluate his past attitude towards you."

As Mountain Eagle looked at the expressionless Pulichenko, he continued smilingly, "Isn’t that right, Mr. Pulichenko who lost 20 million..."

Pulichenko, with a contorted expression, sternly said, "No one can steal my money without a price..."

Mountain Eagle retorted with a scoff, "It’s only considered stealing if Benson and his boss behind the scenes, Alex Sorin, took that 20 million...

"The Thai Police took that 20 million, it’s called confiscation of illicit funds!"

Mountain Eagle feigned a gesture, covering his mouth and said, "Oh, you don’t know who Alex Sorin is, do you?

Your good friend Benson didn’t tell you that his boss Sorin is a Congressman from Arizona, and also a major shareholder of several military contracting firms, and it is said that he has deep connections with the Pentagon...

You know that Thailand is politically weak. Right now, the United States is putting pressure on the police through the British Government, and once Benson is taken out of the hospital, that 20 million of yours will really be untraceable.

Oh, wrong, you have a deep relationship with Benson, so you probably already knew that Benson planned to steal the money...

That was company money, wasn’t it—wow..."

Mountain Eagle was making random and wrongful accusations, causing Pulichenko’s face to turn pale...

As you know, stealing company money is even more serious than stealing the boss’s woman!

The mafia is not a court; they don’t need evidence, just results that make sense to them; they will torture for a confession.

If Mountain Eagle’s words were to leak out, even if Pulichenko could survive this ordeal, he would have no future left.

"You’re spouting nonsense..."

Pulichenko forcefully slapped the armrest of the sofa, his face contorted as he said: "You can insult me, but you can’t defame me."

With that, Pulichenko looked at Mountain Eagle with disdain, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice: "What exactly do you want?

What do I need to do for you to return that 20 million US dollars to me?"

Mountain Eagle took a sip of black tea and smiled as he said, "We won’t be returning this money to you anytime soon..."

Upon hearing this, Pulichenko stood up agitatedly and shouted, "Then let’s go to war, no one can take away my money."

Mountain Eagle looked down on Pulichenko, who was agitatedly stomping, and shook his head, "Once the war starts, it won’t just be a police issue anymore, at that point, your adversary will be the military...

Do you think you are capable of getting the money back from the military?"

As Mountain Eagle was speaking, he gestured for Pulichenko to sit down while shaking his head: "Buddy, do you not watch the news at all?

Do you even know what’s going on out there?"

Pulichenko was stunned by the question, how could he have had time to care about anything other than his 20 million these past few days?

Looking at Mountain Eagle’s serious expression, Pulichenko heavily sat back down and said loudly: "What exactly are you trying to say?"

Mountain Eagle pretended to be profound and said: "Thailand is undergoing a major transformation, and the Thai Government, led by Yingla, is engaged in a fierce battle with the opposition.

The only reason I am sitting here is that the Thai Police need gangsters like you to stay quiet during this intense period of political conflict, and not add to Thailand’s social security burden.

You may choose not to listen or you could mess around, but the consequence would be a military crackdown."

Pulichenko listened; he was breathing heavily like a bull, his eyes red with rage as he stared at Mountain Eagle and said in a deep voice: "If I stay quiet for a month, will you return the money to me?"

Mountain Eagle nodded, then shook his head and said, "Of course, it’s not that simple..."

As Mountain Eagle spoke, he looked at Pulichenko who was getting agitated again, and sternly said: "To get back that 20 million, you need to meet a few conditions...

First, shut down the strip clubs and casinos in Pattaya, and all members of the Great Russian Mafia must remain quiet...

Second, find someone to confess and pay, and publicly pay a 2 million US dollar fine...

Third, you must know the Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce, Nivatari; you surely have evidence of him taking bribes...

If you meet these three conditions, your 20 million US dollars will be returned to your account within 30 working days."

"That’s impossible..."

Pulichenko stood up agitatedly, then sat back down heavily, looking at Mountain Eagle who remained very relaxed, and said: "If I betray Nivatari, my business is finished...

Unless you can give me enough security!"

Mountain Eagle shook his head and said, "Besides returning your money, I will not provide any security.

However, if you are worried about Nivatari retaliating, I suggest you watch the news, or just give him a call...

Oh, you must have called already, I bet that big-shot definitely doesn’t have time to focus on you."

At this point, Pulichenko finally seemed to understand, shocked, he looked at Mountain Eagle and said, "Could it be that the Thai Government will..."

Mountain Eagle waved his hand and said, "That’s not something you should be worried about, you should first think of yourself, and then happily agree to the conditions I’ve set...

If you agree, I hope you will say ’thank you’ to me!

Because I am saving your life!"