"Hello, my name is Burke Dahler." The white man spoke in a low voice as he looked at Jiang Hai, his demeanor revealing that he was quite introverted. After introducing himself, he didn't say anything further and quietly stood aside.
"Hello," Jiang Hai responded, nodding. His sixth sense told him that this man seemed trustworthy.
"This is Philemon Turner, also a cowboy here. His skills are excellent, and his character is also top-notch. He used to run a boat, so if the boss wants to raise fish in the future, he could be of assistance," Robbins introduced the black man.
"Hi, boss. I'm Philemon Turner, from Boston. I used to work as a seaman in California for five years, but when my boss ran off with his lover and the money, I moved to Texas and worked as a cowboy for ten years. Don't let my looks fool you—I can do anything except drive a fishing boat..." Philemon spoke quickly, like he was rapping, rattling off a long string of words. With Jiang Hai's current level of English, he could only catch bits and pieces—mainly that Philemon had been a seaman in California and a cowboy in Texas.
"Okay, Mr. Turner, my English isn't very good yet, so please speak slower. We still need to meet the others, right?" Jiang Hai smiled and raised his hand, cutting Philemon short.
"This is..." Robbins was about to introduce the next group but was interrupted before finishing.
"My name is Faraday Wilson, and this is my brother Augustine Wilson. We're both from Boston. Hey man, if you hire me, you'll avoid a lot of hassle here," said the man, dressed flamboyantly, with a smug smile on his face. But as soon as he spoke, both Jiang Hai and Robbins' expressions soured, especially Robbins, whose eyes burned with anger.
"Faraday, what did you say...?" Robbins shot a sharp look at Faraday, ready to reprimand him, but Jiang Hai stepped in, his expression calm yet piercing as he addressed Faraday.
"Are you implying that if I don't hire you, someone will cause trouble for me? Or that I'll be in trouble?" Jiang Hai asked, his tone steely. Those who knew him could tell that he was in a bad mood.
"Who knows? You're alone in a foreign country; you wouldn't want any trouble, would you?" Faraday replied, a grin on his face, seemingly oblivious to Jiang Hai's displeasure. His thinking was that Chinese people were notoriously timid, easy to manipulate.
"Well, I'm a bit different from the foreigners you're familiar with. I actually enjoy causing trouble, so... you can leave, Mr. Wilson," Jiang Hai replied coldly, eyes narrowed in disdain.
The stereotype of Chinese people abroad is that they're meek, easily bullied. This comes from two sources: first, the education that teaches avoidance of trouble, and second, the discrimination Chinese people often face abroad. But these two factors didn't apply to Jiang Hai.
Growing up in Bingcheng, Jiang Hai's upbringing was harsh, where physical punishment for misbehavior was normal. This taught him to stand his ground. Moreover, despite any lingering discrimination in certain places, Jiang Hai was a wealthy man—he had no reason to be intimidated.
"You!" Faraday seemed momentarily speechless, but his bravado faded when he saw Robbins standing nearby. While he wasn't scared of Jiang Hai, he respected Robbins enough to hesitate. With a hateful glare, he stormed out of the room, his brother Augustine following after him, apologizing to Jiang Hai as he left.
"Boss, that was my bad. Don't worry, that guy won't cause any more problems. I didn't want to bring him, but his brother Augustine is a solid worker. He insisted on bringing Faraday along," Robbins explained, somewhat embarrassed. He then shared some background on the Wilson brothers: Augustine had been a cowboy in Texas, but after a family financial crisis, he returned to find work. Faraday, on the other hand, had failed to find success after graduating college and had become somewhat of a troublemaker.
"It's fine, no need to worry about a clown like him," Jiang Hai replied, shaking his head. While Robbins was responsible for bringing Faraday, Jiang Hai was the one who would decide whether to hire him or not.
"Now, this is Harriman Fells, another cowboy here. His skills are excellent, but he's not the brightest. I asked him to come because he's really good, and he can help you avoid taxes," Robbins whispered in Jiang Hai's ear.
"Avoid taxes?" Jiang Hai was a bit confused. He hadn't made any money yet—what taxes were there to avoid?
"You don't know?" Robbins asked, clearly surprised. "I'll explain more later, but let's finish with the introductions first."
"The last one is Bell-Lester. He's young but capable. He retired from the army last year and has been working at Louis Farm for the past year. He left after Louis lost everything in Vegas and couldn't pay him anymore," Robbins said with a smile.
"Wait, he just retired? Which unit did he come from?" Jiang Hai asked, intrigued, as the U.S. military was always a point of curiosity.
"Delta Special Forces, First Squadron, Third Squadron. Boss," Bell-Lester replied seriously.
"Delta? You're still in your prime. Why retire?" Jiang Hai asked, surprised. Delta is an elite force—retiring from it to herd cattle seemed odd.
"Last year, we had a mission to rescue American hostages. When we got there, we found it was a trap. We took some losses but no casualties and captured a lot of people. My commander wanted to execute all the prisoners, but I disagreed and injured a teammate who tried to carry out the orders. I was expelled from the unit, and it was all over the media," Bell-Lester explained with a shrug, his tone one of quiet resignation.