Surgery Godfather-Chapter 582 - 530: Luca

The convoy finally squeezed out of the city area, with fewer and fewer people on the road, and the highway getting progressively worse.

Due to the lack of street lamps, the road ahead was entirely illuminated by the vehicle’s headlights, and the surroundings were pitch black.

The sound of gunfire still rang in their ears incessantly, and they could occasionally see the horizon brightly lit up by flashes of artillery fire.

Once they left the outskirts of Aden, the convoy stopped. The Yemeni officer stated that they could no longer continue the escort. Any further, and it would be outside their military jurisdiction. Their presence could give rise to misunderstandings and possibly incite a firefight.

From this point on, it would be safer for the Chinese to escort themselves. Regardless of the faction, all armed forces were very friendly to the Chinese.

Ershun bid farewell to the Yemeni officers and soldiers, expressing his gratitude for their help, and offered them some cash as a token of appreciation.

The officer refused to accept it, reiterating once more that his father had once been saved by Chinese doctors.

After saying goodbye to the Yemeni military, the convoy continued its journey.

Now there were only two vehicles left in the convoy, with a minivan leading the way and a truck trailing behind.

They drove for about another hour.

From a distance, the light from a flashlight swept towards them. Ershun had the minivan stop.

Ershun got out of the car; the minivan did not turn off its engine, and the headlights stayed on. In the light of the car’s headlights, Ershun saw around a dozen fully armed soldiers.

This was a military roadblock.

Unsure as to which faction had set the roadblock, they were currently inspecting all passing vehicles.

Soon, around a dozen soldiers had surrounded the convoy, with two soldiers raising their guns towards Ershun.

Ershun identified himself as Chinese, escorting injured Chinese citizens to Oman.

A junior ranking officer looked Ershun up and down before taking his passport.

Confirming that he was Chinese, his attitude changed instantly. He made a signal, and all the soldiers lowered their weapons.

One soldier who might not have seen the gesture kept his gun raised, which provoked the officer. He walked over, forcibly lowering the soldier’s weapon with his hand and even reprimanding him.

Yang Ping got off the truck just in time to see this small gesture. It was a sign of respect towards the Chinese—the officer was indicating to his subordinates not to aim their weapons at the Chinese.

The officer told Ershun that he had received orders from his superiors that a Chinese convoy, escorting injured persons, would be passing through, but they still needed to perform a routine check and hoped for his understanding and cooperation.

Ershun agreed to cooperate.

Four soldiers came out of the ranks, splitting into two teams to separately inspect the minivan and the truck. They asked everyone to get out of the vehicles.

Having already gotten out of the vehicle, Yang Ping handed over his passport to the two soldiers. When they found out he was a Chinese doctor, the soldiers gave him a thumbs-up.

One of the soldiers climbed onto the truck to inspect the inside. Li Zehui remained in the truck to take care of Dashun, while Robert, Dodge, and Aming were pulled down from the truck by the soldiers.

The officer’s face changed dramatically when he saw Robert and Dodge. He immediately shouted a command.

The soldiers who had just relaxed were immediately put back on guard.

Aming’s passport was Saudi, while Robert and Dodge’s faces didn’t look Chinese at all, so the soldiers singled them out.

As Robert, Dodge and Aming raised their hands, the soldiers brought them in front of the officer, who sternly asked:

"Who are you? Passports?"

At this time, everyone had their passports handy. Robert handed his over. The officer skimmed through it and questioned, "You’re not Chinese?"

Ershun and the interpreter explained from the side:

"They are doctors, responsible for the safety of the wounded on the road. They are students of our Chinese doctors."

Clearly they planned to question each one individually.

The officer paced around Robert and queried, "Student? How can you prove it? Do you have any documentation?"

"Documentation? In such an urgent situation, we don’t have official documents," Ershun told the officer.

The officer beckoned another soldier, one wearing glasses, who looked more educated than the rest.

The officer conferred briefly with the bespectacled soldier, then told Ershun, "Since they are students of our Chinese friends, let them speak Chinese? If they can, let them all pass. If they can’t, they need to stay to verify their identities."

Speaking Chinese was not a problem for Robert, he immediately rattled off a long string of words and even recited a verse from "Thoughts in a Silent Night."

Apparently, the officer didn’t understand Chinese, so he asked the spectacled soldier. The spectacled soldier may have known a bit of Chinese or at least heard it before. Sensing the general meaning, he nodded his head.

The officer pushed Robert towards Ershun and said to Dodge, "You---come here!"

Dodge was pushed forward. His eyes were clouded over, his mind was buzzing. He did not know Chinese. If he had known Chinese would be so useful, he would have learned it long ago.

He looked towards Robert for help, nervous and sweating profusely, his entire body trembling.

Dodge is a doctor, unlike Li Zehui who had been to war-torn areas as a medical support. He’s never seen anything like this before.

Dodge remained silent for a full few minutes.

"You can’t go!"

The officer took his passport and two soldiers escorted him to one side.

"Robert is a student of a Chinese doctor, these two are Robert’s students, so, they are the students of a Chinese doctor’s student. They are all doctors working at IMC Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. They came to help carry stretchers with Mr. Robert. He can’t speak Chinese." Ershun explained for Dodge, not willing to leave him behind.

The explanations were a bit convoluted, but it cleared up the relationships.

After hearing the translator, the Yemeni officer thought that the relationships were a bit complex. He pointed at Robert and said, "I don’t understand your complex relationships, but I got one thing, are you the son of China?"

The officer pointed to Dodge, "Is he China’s grandchild?"

Ershun didn’t want to untangle this any further. It seemed like the officer understood right, basically speaking it was a master-disciple lineage.

"Yes, yes, yes, that’s what it means!" Ershun confirmed his understanding.

"Your great-grandteacher is Chinese, and didn’t you learn any Chinese at all? Are you stupid? I find this hard to believe, next!" The officer lost patience and ordered the soldiers to bring up Aming.

Aming’s passport was Saudi’s. The Saudi coalition was now at war with Yemen, making him a prime suspect for deep investigation.

"You speak Chinese!"

The officer looked over Aming’s passport, leaving no room for argument. In his judgment, anyone who couldn’t speak Chinese was liable to be marked with a question.

Aming immediately said: "The moon born over the sea, seen at the ends of the earth!"

The officer asked the translator and then laughed, patting Aming on the shoulder, returning his passport and letting him through.

Now only Dodge was left detained.

"We received an order that this convoy was transporting Chinese casualties. He’s to be left behind, while the rest can leave now." The officer waved, opening up the roadblock.

"Do you need our help? Need a few bottles of water?"

The officer warmly asked Ershun.

Ershun said that they had enough water in the car, thanks, but could they give Mr. Dodge another chance. He really hadn’t learned much Chinese.

If they just abandoned Dodge, it couldn’t be done. Ershun wished to try negotiating again, if that proved really impossible, he’d report this to his superiors and find a solution.

The glasses-wearing soldier came up, seeming to have devised a strategy with the officer.

The officer changed his mind: "Alright, let him come over. I’ll ask him a question. If he answers correctly, he can leave. If he can’t, I’ll have to detain him, report to my superior and confirm his identity before he can leave."

If he was truly detained, the process of confirming identity would surely be a long one.

Dodge was on the verge of a breakdown. If it wasn’t for the people helping him hold himself up, he would have collapsed.

"Which is the longest river in China?" The officer asked.

This glasses-wearing soldier who suggested the question seemed to know a lot about China.

The glasses-wearer’s logic was simple. Since you’re a student of one of China’s grandchildren generation, your teacher speaks fluent Chinese, you ought to know something about China. Otherwise, it didn’t make sense.

Dodge racked his brains. This was no joke. The other side was armed. One slip-up could cost him his life.

This question seemed to be something talked about in geography classes in middle school.

Studying in Detroit, the books had information on China. What’s the longest river in China?

Robert was getting anxious on the side, but there was nothing he could do.

Americans didn’t put much importance on geography lessons and in middle school most geography classes only talked about America. Non-America related matters were glossed over. Their hegemonic mentality was serious, as if America was the world and there was no need to study world geography.

How the hell don’t you know this simple question?

Robert almost answered for him.

Those on the side were rooting for Dodge, "Yangtze River, Yangtze River, say it quick."

Sweat the size of soy beans dripped down Dodge’s forehead. He clutched at the corner of his clothes, gritting his teeth.

This seemed to be a life-and-death test.

"I’m sorry, you must stay. The rest can leave now. Good luck."

The officer lost patience. Being a student of a someone in the Chinese grandchild generation, and not understanding China at all, that’s impossible. He must have been trying to sneak by.

"You can leave now. We know that you Chinese people mean well and want to take this pitiful friend with you across the border. However, we have our own disciplines to maintain. Our orders are to let Chinese people pass, and we must execute our orders."

The officer seemed helpless, military orders couldn’t be disobeyed, especially during wartime.