Chapter 1939 - 1423: Departure! Mosul!

Two days later, Baghdad Green Zone.

Six in the morning, the sky was just beginning to lighten, the orange-red dawn painted the skyline across the Tigris River.

Song Heping stood by the window, holding a cup of coffee that had long gone cold.

His gaze pierced the bullet-proof glass, surveying the scant pedestrians and vehicles on the street below.

"You're really set on leaving today?"

Jiang Feng's voice came from behind, full of worry.

Song Heping turned around, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips: "Walker gave the 'Frost Raven' team two days. Today is the deadline. If I don't show up, they might change tactics; I can't let their efforts go to waste."

"But it's clearly a trap." Jiang Feng walked up to him, sighed, and said, "From Baghdad to Mosul, there are at least three to four ideal ambush spots. If we don't know where the 'Frost Raven' will strike, it's like walking through a minefield blind."

"We know they'll make a move, that's enough." Song Heping sipped the cold coffee and said, "Simon is more anxious than we are. If the 'Frost Raven' succeeds, it will trigger a chain reaction he can't control. Believe me, the CIA might be more tense than we are right now."

Jiang Feng shook his head: "Betting lives on others is not your style."

"This isn't a bet; it's strategy." Song Heping set down the cup, looked at the worried Jiang Feng, and said, "Simon needs me alive. And Walker needs me dead to cover up his weapons smuggling network. Believe me, both sides will invest all their resources on this road. I'm betting on the CIA winning."

He pointed to a spot on the sand table: "Here, about sixty kilometers from Baghdad, remote location, complex terrain, it's perfect for an ambush. If I were the 'Frost Raven' team, I'd set up here."

"Then we take a detour?" Jiang Feng asked.

"No, we'll take this route." Song Heping's gaze was as sharp as a blade: "But we need to adjust the departure time and convoy configuration. Arrange two identical armored SUVs, spaced ten minutes apart. I'll be in the second car."

"Decoy convoy?" Jiang Feng immediately understood the intention.

"Meanwhile, contact our people in Mosul, have them dispatch a support team from the other end, reaching there by three in the afternoon to rendezvous with us."

Jiang Feng quickly noted down the instructions: "Convoy personnel configuration?"

"First car: three security personnel, all wearing bulletproof vests, helmets; but I'm not in the car. Second car: me, you, plus two of our best shooters. Roof-mounted signal jammers to prevent remote detonation devices."

"Weaponry?"

"M4 Carbine, four magazines per person. Add one M249 Light Machine Gun, 600 rounds of ammunition. Bring night vision and thermal imaging equipment, although it's daytime now, there might be fog or dust in the mountains."

Jiang Feng nodded, then asked, "Should we notify the Eligo Security Forces? Have them send a patrol team to escort along the way?"

Song Heping pondered for a moment: "No, that would alert them. Once the news leaks, 'Frost Raven' will adjust their plan. We can only rely on ourselves and potential CIA aid."

"Are you sure Simon will make a move?"

"Absolutely certain." Song Heping looked out the window; in the distance, a bird flew across the sky: "For the CIA, protecting me costs far less than handling the international scandal that might arise if I die."

Jiang Feng took a deep breath, compromised: "Alright, I'll get things arranged. We leave at noon?"

"Eleven." Song Heping corrected, "An hour early. Disrupt 'Frost Raven's' intel."

"That would make the arrival time at the ambush spot..."

"Around three in the afternoon." Song Heping checked his watch, "If everything goes smoothly."

"And if it doesn't?"

Song Heping patted Jiang Feng's shoulder: "Then it's on you, my old comrade."

At the same time, in the Eastern Industrial Zone of Baghdad, an abandoned warehouse.

Six members of the 'Frost Raven' team were preparing for the final actions. The warehouse had been transformed into a temporary operational center, its walls covered with satellite maps, aerial photos, and target tracking charts.

On the central whiteboard, red marker outlined possible routes from Baghdad to Mosul, one of which was circled.

"The target will leave Baghdad at noon today." The leader, 'Scarface', stood in front of the whiteboard, his voice calm and professional.

Team members gathered around.

"This is the shortest and most commonly used route." Scarface pointed with a laser pointer at a spot on the map: "The highway has a U-shaped bend here, flanked by fifteen-meter-high weathered rock piles. Vehicles must reduce speed to 20 kilometers per hour when passing. A perfect ambush point."

Sniper 'Falcon Eagle' pointed at the map and asked, "Configuration of the target's convoy?"

"Two bulletproof SUVs, estimated six to eight security personnel. The target is likely in the second car." Intelligence officer 'Crow' pulled up several blurred photos: "These were captured yesterday, showing Song Heping's security team checking the vehicles."

"Armor grade?" asked demolitions expert 'Vulture', who was assembling a special IED (Improvised Explosive Device).

"B6 or B7, resistant to 7.62×51mm NATO rounds at close range. The windows are 55mm thick bullet-proof glass." Crow answered: "For frontal breach, a .50 caliber or anti-material rifle is needed."

Falcon Eagle patted the sniper rifle next to him: "My Mk13 Mod7 uses .300 Winchester Magnum rounds, can penetrate most light armored vehicle sides at 500 meters distance. But not the front."

"So we need a backup." Scarface walked towards the weapons station: "Vulture, plant an IED at the bend entrance. When the first car triggers the explosion, the second car will be forced to stop. At that moment, Falcon Eagle will shoot the driver from the left rock wall high point. Meanwhile, I, Crow, and Mountain Eagle will launch an assault from the right flank, using AT4 rocket launchers to attack the vehicle's side."