Read Novel Full Chapter 514: Jiang Ning, I Need You
Chapter 514: Jiang Ning, I Need You
Hearing Ivanov’s question, Jiang Ning shook her head and said, “I’m used to freedom and don’t want to live a restricted life. If I get tired of the Arctic one day, I might go somewhere else.”
Ivanov gritted his teeth. “There are planes on the base’s warships, but they won’t agree to it.”
“As long as you’re willing to help, I’ll find a way to save your leg.”
“Are you sure you can save my leg?”
Jiang Ning didn’t give a definite answer. “Medical procedures have risks. I can’t guarantee 100%, but we’ve known each other for so long, you should have an idea of what kind of person I am.”
Ivanov was silent for a long time. “I want to see the pilot.”
Jiang Ning called Zhao Quan in, and she waited outside the ice house. Ivanov looked at Zhao Quan. “Is your base big?”
“Yes, it’s big. It’s going to be a city for hundreds of thousands of people. Right now, we’re reclaiming land and building islands.”
Ivanov was familiar with Chinese culture. In ancient times, there was Jingwei reclaiming the sea, and now they are building infrastructure and islands.
“Chinese survivors are really lucky. Even stranded in such a distant Arctic, the country still sends people to rescue you.” He couldn’t help but feel envious, with a hint of hope. “Does our country have a base?”
Zhao Quan spoke politely, “You do, and the U.S. also has one. Your country is militarily strong, and the people are united. I’m sure they’ll send someone as well.”
Ivanov told them the model of the warplanes on the warship. “Can you fly them?”
Zhao Quan’s eyes lit up. “I can.”
The planes weren’t the most advanced, but before the natural disasters, the Eastern Air Force had trained them.
Even though it had been ten years, as long as he could get his hands on the controls, he was confident he could fly again.
Ivanov couldn’t guarantee anything but could only try to negotiate.
Worried that taking only Zhao Quan wouldn’t be convincing enough, he asked Jiang Ning to go with him. “Jiang, I need you.”
Jiang Ning hesitated for a moment before agreeing.
Huo Yishen wanted to accompany her, but she turned him down, afraid of unexpected situations.
Jiang Ning had her space to rely on and could hide in case of danger. He should stay behind to guard the main base. “Don’t worry, Ivanov is still waiting for me to treat his leg, he shouldn’t use any tricks.”
She was confident she could handle it.
Huo Yishen reminded her, “Be careful.”
The snowmobile turned around, carrying Jiang Ning and Zhao Quan towards the base.
It took more than an hour, but they safely arrived.
The Russians lived on the warship, while the transport ships and other ships were converted into planting areas. Many survivors worked in the cold wind.
However, in a short period of time, the group of less than a hundred people has expanded to more than four hundred people, and their ambitions are constantly expanding.
Jiang Ning observed silently, but her face showed no emotion.
After parking the vehicle, Ivanov asked them to wait at the guard post while he went inside to negotiate with the higher-ups.
***
Inside the warship, several men listened patiently to Ivanov’s proposal. One of them sarcastically said, “Have you eaten too many vegetables? What nonsense are you talking!”
Ivanov remained calm. “Grell, I’m doing this for the good of the base.”
“I don’t want to listen to your bullshit.” Who would be a fool enough to just give away a plane to someone else!
Ivanov looked at the captain. “First of all, we don’t have anyone who can fly a plane, so keeping it is useless.”
“Second, the Chinese are good at hiding their strength. They have hundreds of people here in the Arctic, but they refuse to join us. This is a huge threat to us.”
“If they gain strength and one day fight for territory, what are our chances of winning?”
Grell, with a bad temper, replied, “Then let’s eliminate them while they’re still weak.”
Ivanov looked at him as if he were an idiot. “It seems you’ve forgotten how the United Base was destroyed and how we won.”
There is an old saying in China: “Those who are not of our race will have different hearts.”
“The United Base went from more than 20,000 people to complete annihilation, not because their weapons weren’t strong enough, but because everyone had their own agendas. People’s hearts were like scattered sand.”
“The Chinese civilization has stood for 5,000 years without falling, because they always unite in the face of disasters. Though they aren’t aggressive, they are skilled in war.”
“Once we fight with them, both sides will suffer, and it will be easy for others to take advantage of us.”
The last sentence is clear to the Russians; they know they only won by taking an unexpected opportunity.
They hadn’t found the true culprits behind the destruction of the United Base, but they had questioned all the survivors and still felt that the Chinese were the most likely suspects, especially Jiang Ning and Huo Yishen.
They were not soldiers, and with fewer than a hundred of them left, they didn’t dare act recklessly without certainty.
Though they suspected them, they didn’t dare confront them directly, especially given how bloody the fall of the United Base had been.
Thinking about it now, they still felt scared.
So, while they treated the Chinese survivors in their base well, they also kept their distance and remained cautious.
Ivanov, who had severe leg pain and did not want to have his leg amputated, was particularly clear-headed. “China is friendly with our country. They reclaimed islands to build national bases, and sent warships to search for survivors around the world, trying their best to bring them home. This shows that their military strength is very strong.”
“China’s warships are only more than a hundred nautical miles away from the Arctic. If we kill their citizens in the Arctic, do you think they will come to kill us?”
It made sense, but the Russians, known for their fearlessness, were still unwilling to accept giving away a plane without something in return.
“How can it be a free gift?” After analyzing the advantages and disadvantages, Ivanov saw that the captain’s face had eased a little, and he further persuaded, “We give them one plane so the pilot can go back and send word. They’ll bring their warships and take all the Chinese survivors away. That solves our biggest problem.”
“Once the Chinese are gone, who else in the Arctic will be our rival?”
“All we need is one plane to send away a few hundred Chinese. This is a business where we profit greatly. Anyone who refuses is a fool.”
The Russians thought about it, and it made sense.
The captain thought for a moment, his attitude loosening. “So, Jiang and Huo also leave?”
Ivanov had no choice but to tell the truth. “They won’t leave.”
“No.” Grell said loudly, “We can give the Chinese a plane, but Jiang and Huo must leave. They can’t stay in the Arctic.”
Everyone else agreed.
Though there was no concrete evidence, they strongly believed the destruction of the United Base was somehow connected to the two of them, but they didn’t dare act rashly.
Ivanov felt frustrated in his heart and said, “We’ve made our intentions obvious enough. Even if it was them, if they had those ambitions, they could have taken this base back then, but they didn’t!”
Everyone stubbornly refused to back down, insisting that Jiang Ning and Huo Yishen leave before they would agree to give the plane.
“Fine, then don’t give it.”
Ivanov also had a temper. “Go ahead, keep testing them. One day, if you provoke them enough, they might unite with the surviving Chinese from the Arctic, and with a snap of their fingers, they could destroy us!”
“Keep acting, and maybe one day you’ll be the ones who end up dead ”
The captain was still rational and said calmly, “Ivanov, do you have any better ideas?”
“No,” Ivanov was angry. “Give them the plane, let the Chinese base take all the survivors away first, then even if Jiang and Huo choose to stay, if they really fight us one day, won’t it be much easier to deal with them?”