Mercenary's War-Chapter 2135 - 2112: Sincerity

The clothes fit well; such words are easy to understand and quite accurate. However, saying that the clothes perfectly match the body always sounds a bit odd.

Gao Yang was truly not accustomed to discussing clothing with a stranger, so he simply smiled reservedly and nodded as a response to Mario’s compliment.

There were only two chairs by the dining table. Thus, Number Thirteen and Rafael certainly had no seats, and Yake, who wasn’t participating as a bodyguard, also had no chair, which seemed slightly unreasonable. However, given Mario’s status, his arrangement was understandable.

After casually praising Gao Yang, Mario raised his hand and pointed at Number Thirteen and the others with a smile, saying, "If you don’t mind, I’d like to have a chat with you."

No one was around Mario, and having two bodyguards behind him was indeed inappropriate. Thus, Gao Yang, with an apologetic face, said, "Sorry, I forgot about their presence. Please, step outside for now."

Number Thirteen nodded, then exited the dining room with Yake and Rafael. At this point, Mario laughed heartily, saying, "Yes, sometimes you do forget the bodyguards’ existence because you’re accustomed to having them around. Like once, long ago, when I was about to take off a model’s clothes, her reaction reminded me that there were bodyguards around me. Damn, they heard all the sweet talk I said. Though it meant nothing, it always feels awkward, doesn’t it? So after that, I stopped having bodyguards constantly by my side."

After smiling and saying some playful words, Mario waved his hand and said, "Huaxia People love to talk while eating; Italians do too. But unfortunately, I can’t invite you to my family dinner because my family is on vacation."

The enthusiastic Mario kept talking non-stop, and Gao Yang didn’t know how to interject, let alone steer the conversation back on track.

However, Mario also brought it up on his own. He placed his hands on the table, rhythmically tapping all ten fingers one after the other, then said with a very interested look, "Before our dinner begins, I want to ask, I heard you’re very interested in collaborating with me?"

Gao Yang immediately said, "Yes. Given your status in the industry, I want to find a reliable partner. Of course, it has to be you. I hope I have the honor."

Mario waved his hand and laughed loudly, saying, "You’re too kind! So, how do you want to cooperate?"

Mario’s question left Gao Yang somewhat overwhelmed. He spread his hands, looking troubled, and said, "How to cooperate, that’s a tough question to answer. I think, just the usual model of cooperation. I pay, and you provide me with information. Of course, I hope to establish a long-term and stable relationship, like having priority in purchasing certain information and having you keep things confidential for me."

Mario nodded repeatedly, saying, "Good, very good. I am very eager to establish a long-term partnership with you."

After saying this, Mario patted the table loudly and said, "Bring our dinner."

Upon Mario’s command, servers began to bring in the first course on silver plates. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

The first course was a seafood salad. A server first laid out a knife, fork, and napkin in front of Gao Yang, placed the salad before him, then poured a glass of white wine and asked, "Sir, is that acceptable?"

Mario raised his hand, smiled, and said, "See if the wine to your liking."

Gao Yang pretended to examine it, then nodded and said, "Very good, thank you."

After the server poured white wine for both Gao Yang and Mario, they left. Mario raised his glass and laughed, "It seems our intention to cooperate has been reached. Cheers to friendship."

"Cheers to friendship."

After taking a sip of wine, Mario put down his glass. He picked up his knife and fork, signaled Gao Yang to start, stabbed a piece of shrimp, and put it in his mouth, casually saying, "Mr. Ram, there’s no problem with us cooperating, but there is one person whose presence might affect our cooperation and the future of our friendship. Let me be frank: it seems Justin has quite a connection with you?"

Finally, the inevitable came.

Gao Yang nodded, as if unaware of any occurrences between Justin and Mario, and smiled, "Yes, we got along quite well. But he’s disappeared recently, and I can’t keep on without a reliable information source. Hence, I came to visit you."

Mario nodded, spread his hands with a bitter smile, and said, "Justin is my brother, my youngest brother. Our father adores him, really adores him. It’s common for a father to favor the youngest. However, my father lost his mind. He wants to pass the family’s leadership to the favorite son, not the most competent one. Regardless of the angle, this is wrong, and the consequences are severe. Justin is my brother, yet I’m forced to turn against him because we are a large family, supporting many livelihoods. I can’t let my father and brother destroy this family."

Gao Yang nodded and then smiled, saying, "I understand, but if I may be frank, Mister Cicero, this doesn’t seem to involve me."

Mario sighed, looking helpless, and said, "As the eldest, I watched Justin grow up. We were close as children, like brothers. Even though we inevitably clashed over family leadership, I wouldn’t kill him. Unfortunately, he doesn’t think so. He fled when I sent for him, leaving me uneasy, worrying that he might do something foolish. I had no choice but to use more forceful means to end our contention, causing our family to fracture. So..."

Mario extended his hand towards Gao Yang and smiled, saying, "I wish to bring him home, send people to protect him. He will lose some freedom, but he’ll still live well. It’s better than one of us having to die. But I don’t know where he’s hiding now. Mr. Ram, you are his friend; perhaps you know where he might be. If you do, I hope you tell me, and naturally, I will reward you."

Gao Yang gave a bitter smile, looking helpless, and said, "Mister Cicero, if I knew where he was, I’d tell you, but I’m sorry, I genuinely don’t know."

Mario stared at Gao Yang for a while. His gaze was very sharp, but after a lengthy examination, Mario finally nodded, smiled, and said, "I believe you, Mr. Ram. Your eyes are sincere. I trust that you truly don’t know, so let’s pretend I never asked. Let’s continue our meal."