"A gift? Is it a military arms order?"

Ramas knew that Song Heping had just assisted the ELN in crushing AUC's total offensive, but at the moment, there was still ongoing gunfire on the Colombian side and the battle wasn't over yet—so how could the order have already arrived?

"The arms order will take at least three months to bear fruit; it's not that quick right now."

"Ah..."

Ramas was somewhat disappointed.

After all, once the arms market opened up, the annual profits from Colombia's arms sales were extremely significant—a tidy sum of income.

"Don't be disappointed, General. The gift I have for you will help elevate your reputation in the military."

Song Heping comforted him, "Money can't run out, but it's also good to earn some reputation first."

"Oh? What is the gift?" Ramas was obviously curious.

"Two CIA operatives, for you."

"CIA operatives?"

Even though Ramas was an old fox, he couldn't help exclaiming at this moment.

"Are they the ones lurking in our country? Damn it! They've been doing this for a long time, always causing trouble behind our backs!"

He paused for a moment and then asked, "Where did you capture these two agents?"

"Near our school," Song Heping said. "They were ordered to investigate our school; I suspect it has something to do with the recent events in Colombia."

"That's not surprising!" Ramas said, "Our Foreign Intelligence Department received queries from Colombia, asking if it was our planes that had entered their airspace and launched an attack on AUC. Song, you have taken a big risk this time; if anything goes wrong, even I can't protect you."

"Don't worry, the Colombian Military doesn't have the capability to detect the two low-flying SU-24s. They were in and out of their airspace in less than half an hour; my people told me there was no radar exposure along the way, which means the Colombian Military didn't even notice them."

"That's a relief," Ramas said. "Besides, our Air Force doesn't even have SU-24 planes in its arsenal."

"So, you can imagine, two CIA agents caught by your troops on your territory, their contacts and spy network in Venezuela are all swept up in one fell swoop..."

"Wait."

Ramas interjected, "They have superiors?!"

"That's right. Superiors," Song Heping said, "My people have already left, and I believe they will capture them soon, down in the southern region of your country."

"Brilliant!"

Ramas became excited.

Indeed, this was a political achievement.

At the very least, the president would consider him very capable.

Otherwise, how could he have uncovered the CIA's spy network on this side?

This truly was a great gift!

"Song, when do you plan to hand over the people?"

"As soon as I've captured everyone, I'll send them all together," replied Song Heping.

"I can't wait to see these poor bastards! Hahahaha!" Ramas laughed heartily.

"General, I do have conditions for handing them over to you," said Song Heping.

"Conditions?!" Ramas was slightly taken aback, "I don't have money."

Song Heping thought to himself that the old geezer was a tightwad—you don't have money? Nonsense!

"I don't need money, but you must promise me, none of these people can leave Venezuela alive. Understand?"

"Why..."

Ramas had just blurted the question out when he immediately realized his blunder.

Of course, they can't let these people leave alive, since they saw the school Song Heping was building, they must have captured some evidence.

Now that Song Heping had taken them captive, isn't it a clear admission of guilt?

Letting them go back and report the situation here serves no benefit to Song Heping.

But the dead are different.

The dead can be claimed to have resisted arrest and were taken down during the process. Although there's no intelligence value, for Venezuela, it's political value at its finest.

If Venezuela takes this and heavily publicizes it in the international media, the Americans' faces undoubtedly wouldn't look good. And it was almost certain that Langley wouldn't acknowledge these individuals' identities and would execute a cut-off as swiftly as possible.

Not only would these individuals die in vain, but it was likely that the bureaucrats at Langley responsible for this reconnaissance operation would face internal sanctions and resign in responsibility.

Song Heping's next words confirmed this.

"I have another condition."

"Song, you sure have a big appetite asking for so many conditions," Ramas chuckled, "But I want to hear it."

"General, we have always had a pleasant collaboration, and I have never made things difficult for you. My second condition is, this matter must be extensively publicized, and all the information made public."

"Hehe, you want to embarrass the Americans?" Ramas still laughed, his laughter filled with implication.

"I don't shoot without aim; I won't bother with things that have no practical meaning. Publicizing this widely benefits us both; first, you in Venezuela can obtain some political leverage with this affair and boost morale as well. Over the years, I am estimating there are upwards of eight hundred to a thousand spies who've infiltrated your country—how many have you caught?"

"And me? My goal is simple. Safety. By wiping out one of their spy networks, although not vast in scope, it's sufficient to make them realize that trifling with me has no benefits. Of course, they can still send people next time, but before dispatching anyone, they will likely weigh the risks and consider if they can endure the potential consequences."

"Brilliant!"

Ramas couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

"Song, if you're willing, I would sincerely recommend you to the president, to have a position within our counter-espionage unit or the military. Your talent is wasted as a mere defense company boss."

Song Heping chuckled, "I am indeed willing to take on some roles within your establishment, and quite glad to work on a few things for you, but what can you offer me in exchange? If the conditions are good enough, I think I won't refuse."

There was silence on the other end of the line.

Ramas seemed to be pondering something.

Song Heping was patient enough.

A full minute later, Song Heping heard a low utterance from Ramas over the phone, "Give me some time, I will give you a satisfying answer. Also, send the people as soon as possible, the sooner the better, to avoid unnecessary complications."

"No problem. Wait for my good news."

Song Heping made the promise and hung up the call.

Jiang Feng asked, "Old squad leader, do you plan to hand the people over?"

"This hot potato—it's cause for stealthy joy if the military is willing to take it! It's touted as delivering a gift, but in reality, Ramas is doing us a huge favor. We can't kill these people, nor can we leave them alive; keeping them is out of the question. Handing them over to Venezuelan forces is the perfect solution."

Just then, he suddenly recalled what Ramas had said before.

Would that guy actually go to the president and secure a job for himself?

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com