Gao Fei had only just arrived at the front line, yet he borrowed a phone with effortless ease.
What was this? This was knowing how the world worked. This was emotional intelligence.
Eat someone’s food and your mouth grows short; take someone’s gifts and your hands grow soft.
Sholokhov was eating Gao Fei’s bread, drinking Gao Fei’s water, and now had an extra pack of cigarettes in his pocket from Gao Fei as well. All of these were hard currency on the battlefield. Now Gao Fei only wanted to borrow his phone to make a call—would Sholokhov have the nerve to say no?
Sholokhov took out a phone, entered the passcode, glanced at it, then handed it to Gao Fei and said, “There’s signal. You’re in luck.”
Gao Fei’s hands were trembling when he took the phone.
There were only two bars, but there was indeed cell signal. After all, this place was not far from the urban area of Bakhmut, and up to this point in the fighting, Russia had never taken the initiative to cut off Bakhmut’s communications with the outside world.
The battery really was very low. The indicator had already turned red.
The time displayed on the phone was 6:50 in the morning. Taking the time difference into account, it would be around one o’clock at noon back in Gao Fei’s hometown.
The timing was right.
After adding the international code, Gao Fei dialed his father’s mobile number.
He didn’t know whether the call would go through, so when he made the call, Gao Fei was unbearably nervous. But very soon, after a beep sounded from the phone, the call was quickly connected.
“Hello…”
Hearing that familiar voice, Gao Fei had no time to get emotional. He said urgently, “Dad, it’s me!”
“Feifei? Why are you only calling now? Are you okay? Did everything go smoothly—”
“Dad, listen to me. I found Hou Yanguo, but that bastard sold me to human traffickers. They wanted to kill me and sell my organs!”
The moment Gao Fei’s father heard that, he exploded. He said urgently, “Fuck! How are you now? Did you run?”
“I ran. I’m fine now.”
Gao Fei had an impatient temper, and so did his father. The two of them spoke so fast their words practically flew.
“Did you call the police? Go to the embassy!”
“I killed Hou Yanguo. I killed two people and ran. The police are in on it with them. When the police chased me, I ran into Wagner’s recruitment office. Now I’m already a Wagner mercenary. I can’t explain it all in a few words. This phone is borrowed, it’s about to die, and the signal’s bad too. I can’t keep talking to you. Anyway, I’m fine right now.”
Gao Fei spoke very quickly. What he needed was to explain his situation clearly, not pour out his feelings. After learning what his situation was, his father also wasted no words and said directly, “You killed people? Can you still come back?”
“My documents are all in the hands of the traffickers Hou Yanguo found. My situation is really troublesome now, but Wagner’s backing here is very strong. The police haven’t kept looking for me, and the Wagner recruiter even said I won’t have a criminal record. I reckon the traffickers and the police might work together to suppress this matter, so it might not be handed over to the police at all. If that’s the case, once my contract here is up, I should still be able to go home.”
“A mercenary has to fight wars, doesn’t he!”
“Yes. I’m already on the front line, in Bakhmut. Dad, don’t tell Mom. Just say I found Hou Yanguo and I’m keeping an eye on him here to collect the debt.”
“I know. Fighting a war! Fuck! Fighting a war… If something happens to you, I’ll kill Hou Yanguo’s whole family!”
“He divorced his wife a long time ago.”
“That’s a fake divorce too. If you’re fine, then forget it. But if anything happens to you, I’ll definitely kill his whole family to avenge you!”
Gao Fei’s personality really took after his father. He had a fiery temper, but his father’s temper was even worse. His guiding principle was clear-cut grudges and favors—if there was a debt, it had to be repaid.
“All right. I get a thousand euros a month fighting here. When the time comes, I’ll transfer it back to you. There are also bonuses. If things go fast, earning twenty or thirty thousand a month won’t be a problem.”
“That’s better than working a regular job, but nothing is better than you staying alive. You have to be careful. But remember, the more afraid you are of dying, the faster you die. You have to be bold but careful, observe more. Don’t ever show off, but don’t ever be a coward either. Cowardly soldiers die fast. You…”
“All right, all right, listen to me. Don’t tell anyone I became a mercenary. If you do, I won’t be able to go back. Just say I’m working here and making money.”
“I know. I definitely won’t say it. This has to be kept secret.”
“The signal here is bad, and I can’t charge the phone either. It’s normal if you can’t get in touch with me. Later I’ll figure out a way to get a phone. Don’t worry. I’ve studied military stuff for so many years. I won’t die that easily.”
“I know. You won’t die. If you die, I’ll kill Hou Yanguo’s whole family to avenge you.”
“Stop saying that. If Mom asks… Forget it, just make something up yourself.”
“I won’t be able to hide it, Feifei…”
Gao Fei’s father’s voice sank. Helplessly, he said, “Once I’ve paid off most of the debt and can take a plane, I’ll go to Russia to save you.”
Gao Fei said angrily, “Can you stop making me worry? Do you want me to never contact you again after this? I’ve already killed Hou Yanguo. What’s wrong with letting me earn some money here in peace? Is wasting my phone battery on useless talk fun?”
“Sigh…”
Gao Fei’s father let out a long sigh over the phone, while Sholokhov said quietly from the side, “Say what’s important. Don’t talk until the phone shuts off…”
“Half a year. I’ll be back in half a year at most. If I get the chance, I’ll call you. Dad, take care of Mom. I can’t talk anymore, the phone’s about to shut off. You and Mom both take care.”
“You be careful! Be careful!”
Gao Fei hung up the phone, let out a long breath, and returned it to Sholokhov.
The call had lasted less than three minutes. It wasn’t very long, but Gao Fei had clearly explained everything that needed explaining.
Gao Fei did not want his family to worry about him, but worry was absolutely better than knowing nothing and being left to guess wildly.
The families of missing persons suffered more than the families of fallen soldiers. Absolutely.
If they knew Gao Fei had ended up on the Russia-Ukraine battlefield, his parents would certainly be heartbroken. But if they didn’t know where Gao Fei was or what his situation was, and spent every day searching for him in fear, then it really would be better to let them know he was dead.
There was just one problem. Based on Gao Fei’s understanding of his father, if he really died, then his father really would avenge him.
But as long as Gao Fei did not die, then his father would not need to avenge him. He definitely would not go to Hou Yanguo’s family to cause trouble, and he would not even admit that Hou Yanguo had set him up, because once the matter blew up, it would be disadvantageous to Gao Fei.
So after making this call, even if Gao Fei died, he would die knowing things were clear. If he had not made this call, if he had not said these things to his father, then neither Gao Fei nor his parents would have a single peaceful day in the time to come.
Now it was good. Everything that needed saying had been said. Even if he died, he would not die carrying a body full of secrets.
“Pah, pah, pah. I won’t die. I definitely won’t die.”
He absolutely could not have such unlucky thoughts. Gao Fei spat three times to drive away the bad thoughts and the ill fortune they might bring.
Now that the call was done and his mind was clear, Gao Fei looked at Sholokhov and said sincerely, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Sholokhov looked at the phone, thought for a moment, then turned it off before putting it back into his pocket. Then, looking rather embarrassed, he said, “I should have let you talk a little longer, but this phone uses a Ukrainian SIM card. Once the credit is used up, there’s no way to top it up. Uh, sorry…”
Sholokhov was an honest man. He still felt bad about urging Gao Fei to hurry.
“It was already enough. Already enough. Thank you.”
“It’s dangerous outside. Get into the shell-proof dugout.”
Gao Fei immediately moved back into his own shell-proof dugout. At this moment, he felt clear-headed and refreshed. Besides, since there was nothing to do while hiding anyway, he could finally properly study the gun in his hands.
There was nothing much to say about a common piece of goods like the AK-74, but Gao Fei had never touched a gun before, so he removed the magazine and looked at it, then inserted the magazine back in, raised the gun, and aimed.
This was the first time Gao Fei had ever properly shouldered a gun and aimed. Earlier, in order to maintain the illusion that he was a veteran, he could only act as if he was not that interested in guns.
Now he could finally play with it properly.
The only problem was that the trench was too narrow. There was no way to aim, and his eyes simply could not focus.
Gao Fei hesitated. He wanted to leave the shell-proof dugout, stand up, and properly aim outside the trench. It would probably even be fine to fire a couple of shots.
But then he felt that doing so was quite risky. A smart person shouldn’t do such a thing.
Yet as an old military enthusiast who had never touched a gun before, now that he had one in his hands, if all he could really do was touch it, how was that any different from having a beauty sitting on his lap and only being allowed to look?
It was miserable. Truly miserable.
Fortunately, in the end, reason triumphed over evil temptation. Gao Fei decided he would just stick out a little, raise the gun, and aim at the sky for a bit. That would be enough.
Then Gao Fei really did exactly that.
There was no field of vision inside the shell-proof dugout, and he couldn’t see the sky. If he wanted to see the sky, he had to lean half his body out. And just as Gao Fei really leaned half his body out and raised his gun to aim randomly at the sky, Sholokhov suddenly said, “What are you doing?”
Gao Fei froze for a moment. Then, for a while, he did not know how to answer.
“You’re a veteran?”
Sholokhov frowned. Suspicion written all over his face, he said, “You’re not a veteran, are you? How did you sneak into the veteran group?”
“Ah, no. I am a veteran.”
Sholokhov shook his head. He pointed at his own eyes and said, “Don’t lie to me. You’re too excited. I’ve seen too many people playing with guns for the first time. I know exactly what someone who’s touching a gun for the first time looks like. You’ve never fired a gun before, have you?”
Gao Fei froze, then said, “No, I was just… observing the sky to see if there were any drones.”
“You don’t need to raise a gun and aim to observe. Do you know what I used to do? I was a safety officer at a shooting range. I’ve received many Chinese people. I know very clearly what a veteran who regularly uses guns should look like.”
Sholokhov’s eyes really were sharp.
“I’ve just never used an AK rifle before, so I was curious. I was observing the sky while familiarizing myself with a new weapon. To me, it’s an unfamiliar new weapon.”
Sholokhov said disdainfully, “Enough. I’m not the recruiter. Even if you’re not a veteran, I won’t send you back. Having one more person here is always good. What are you afraid of? I just want you to tell the truth!”
Gao Fei was somewhat troubled. He was still trying to come up with an excuse, but right at that moment, he really did see a drone.
“Uh, team leader, there really is a drone above us…”
Gao Fei lowered the gun and shrank back a little. From inside the shell-proof dugout, he pointed upward and said, “There really is a drone.”
“No way. Our position is a low-value target. They wouldn’t use drones to attack us. There’s no point, unless it’s an artillery reconnaissance drone.”
As Sholokhov spoke, he stuck his head out and glanced upward. He looked carefully for a while, and when he finally spotted the drone with his naked eye, his face turned stunned. “Suka blyat, an artillery reconnaissance drone! Fuck! Prepare for shelling!”