In 635 AD, the Abbasids conquered the valley of the two rivers, and the following year, the second caliph 'Umar built a military camp in Basra, which gradually developed into an important city in the valley.

Basra is not only the second largest city in the two river basins, but also the largest port in the two river basins, 120 kilometers south of the Persian Gulf, is the only hub connecting the Persian Gulf and the Tigris and the Euphrates.

In charge of oil extraction near Basra was a team of Persian oil companies, led by an Englishman named Gary Clare.

Protecting the oil exploration team, which numbered less than 100 people, was the 1st Squadron of the 2nd Brigade of the 4th Regiment of the Persian Gulf Division of the Umbrella Company, and the squadron leader was a German named Jensen.

The establishment of the umbrella company is similar to that of the regular army of southern Africa, and the corresponding level of the squadron is a company, but the number of people is only 100 people, not as many as the company of the regular army, and there is no logistics unit, and there is no permanent unit of the regular army such as cooks and medical teams, and there is no umbrella company.

After all, it is a profit-oriented organization, and it can be saved, and mercenaries do not need thoughtful service, it is originally a profession that licks blood with a knife head, and there are no high requirements.

Jensen received the news on March 15 and immediately went to Gary Claire.

"Desert bandits? This is Basra, not the Hejaz, where did some desert bandits come from? "Gary Claire was unbelievable.

Basra is located in the hinterland of the two river basins, the environment is much better than Port Elizabeth, most of the land around Port Elizabeth has been abandoned, the land around Basra is still very fertile, so it is not deserted, there are still more or less settled, in the peninsula, Basra is already a prosperous place.

That's why Gary Claire couldn't believe that desert bandits dared to infiltrate Basra, knowing that there were regular Ottoman troops stationed nearby.

"I just got the news that a desert tribe that has lost the conflict is moving to Basra, so we need to get out of here as soon as possible." Jensen doesn't talk nonsense, believe it or not, the mercenaries have already started to pack their bags anyway.

In fact, there is nothing to pack, the mercenaries' belongings are very few, in addition to the necessary combat materials, the salaries of the mercenaries will be deposited in the RAND Bank or remitted to their families, if there is any windfall during the mission, they will also be sold to the RAND Bank at a discount, and then the money is still remitted to their families, so the mercenaries are very fast, and some have begun to lead camels.

In the desert area, it is not easy for war horses to survive, but the camel is the most common means of transportation, and it is also a symbol of the wealth of the desert nation.

"Kill them then? You can't just leave with that, we have a contract. "Gary Claire is in a hurry, although the valley of the two rivers is relatively safe compared to the chaotic peninsula, but it is not without accidents, without the protection of mercenaries, the inhabitants here, as well as those regular Ottoman army, can turn into desert bandits at any time.

"There is an exemption clause in our contract, in the event of war, serious violent conflict and other force majeure events, we have the right to evacuate in advance, now I am routinely informing you, if you want, you can withdraw with us, if you don't want to, then I will consider you to unilaterally terminate the contract, you can evacuate immediately at any time." Jensen is not in a hurry, there is such a clause in the contract.

"Help Jensen, our oil well has been drilled 800 feet, give me another week, and in a week, I'll find oil." Gary Claire didn't want to evacuate, and if he did, it would mean that all the previous investments of the Persian Oil Company would be wasted.

800 feet, or 244 meters, may not sound like much to mention, but at the beginning of the twentieth century, it was a rare depth.

Speaking of which many people may not believe, in the early twentieth century, many oil wells were dug by manpower, and the oil wells at this time did not have much technical content.

At this time, the oil exploitation technology is not good, there is no water injection, there is no secondary oil recovery technology, basically how much can be pumped, how much oil can be pumped, or the oil pumped out is not enough to make up for the cost, then the oil well will be abandoned.

The oil field discovered by the Persian Oil Company the year before last was able to produce 10,000 barrels per day at the beginning, and then many oil wells swarmed up, but last year, the production of oil wells fell rapidly, and now it produces only a few hundred barrels per day, which is better than nothing.

Gary Claire uses American technology, using mechanical drilling, compared with manual mining, mechanical drilling is of course more efficient and faster, but it also comes with higher costs, in the past, it only cost about 10,000 pounds for a Persian oil company to drill an oil well, and now the cost of an oil well has reached 25,000 pounds.

So Gary Claire really didn't dare to go.

"You said that a week ago, when you had hit 700 feet, and a week later, the well is now 800 feet, and I don't think you need to give me an answer, Mr. William Knox D'Arcy probably needs to get your explanation." Jensen didn't talk nonsense, turned around and left.

"Wait, wait—" Gary Claire chased Jensen out of the tent.

As soon as he got out of the tent, he saw a mercenary running in the distance.

"Sir, the desert bandits are coming, less than ten kilometers from here—" the mercenary shouted from afar.

The camp was suddenly full of chickens and dogs, the mercenaries of the Umbrella Company were busy lining up, and the employees of the Persian Oil Company were at a loss, and some even screamed and fled.

In the peninsula, desert bandits are like the Grim Reaper, and these people go almost everywhere they go, like chickens and dogs, just like locusts.

"Do you hear that? There are less than ten kilometers left, pack your things now, we have to retreat immediately. "Jensen won't fight the desert bandits, how do you say that?

A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall!

"At least you're going to give me time, there's so many people here, so much equipment—" Gary Claire was at a loss, he didn't want to leave, but he didn't want to face the desert bandits.

Jensen didn't talk nonsense, he whistled directly, and several mercenaries came over immediately.

"Take him away, inform everyone, and we'll evacuate immediately-" Jensen pointed to Gary Claire and ordered, at this time, human lives were still at stake, and the equipment or something was at stake.

Several mercenaries immediately swarmed up.

"I'm not leaving, I can't go, let go of me—" Gary Claire struggled hard, but it was clear that resistance was ineffective.

After only ten minutes, everyone was evacuated, leaving only a messy camp.

After another half hour, smoke billowed from the camp, followed by violent explosions.

On a small hill about two kilometers from the camp, Jensen held the binoculars with a solemn face, and Gary Claire sat on the ground in despair and muttered to himself, "It's over, it's all over, how can I explain to Mr. Darcy-"

"Claire, calm down, it's not your problem." Jensen handed the binoculars to the mercenary beside him, sat down next to Gary Claire, and plucked a weed and chewed it in his mouth.

"Whose problem is that?" Gary Claire smiled wryly.

"Not yours anyway." Jensen spit out the grassroots in his mouth viciously, in fact, there are more than 100 desert bandits, if it is really a head-on conflict, Jensen is fully confident that he will win the battle.

"I have two children, both of whom go to school in Birmingham and are still waiting for me to send the money back, and now it's all over, and I've messed it all up, and Mr. Darcy won't let me go—" Gary Claire hung his head as if he had foreseen a tragic future.

"Mr. Darcy - it's not your fault."

"Do you think Mr. Darcy will listen to me?"

Jensen was silent, no one could guarantee that.

"I graduated from Cambridge and then worked on the peninsula for twelve years, and this was the first time I was working on a project on my own, and now that it's all over, I doubt that I can go back to Birmingham, and maybe tomorrow I'll be a nameless corpse in the Persian Gulf—" Gary Clare burst into tears, oil exploration is like that, oil is heaven, oil is hell.

Capital is always cold.

"No, go to Port Elizabeth, I can guarantee that you will get a salary in Port Elizabeth that is not lower than that of the Persian Oil Company." Jensen has been working with Gary Claire all this time, and although Jensen is not sure how capable Gary Claire is, Jensen can be sure that Gary Claire is a responsible person.

If Jensen hadn't ordered the mercenaries to forcibly take Gary Claire away, it is estimated that Gary Claire would really stay in the camp and live and die with the derrick.

"Ha, even when I get to Port Elizabeth, I'm still a loser." Gary Claire screamed, he couldn't listen to anything now.

In the middle of the sound, the desert bandits finally left the exploration camp.

Several mercenaries try to return to the camp to reconnoitre, and only after making sure that all the desert bandits have been withdrawn do Jensen and Gary Claire return to the camp.

The camp was in ruins, the desert robbers had robbed everything they could take away, and everything they couldn't take away was burned, and even the derrick was blown up by the desert bandits.

"Can it be fixed?" Jensen really didn't understand oil exploration technology.

"No way, this oil well is already abandoned, and even if we get the drill bit up, no one can guarantee that the desert bandits will come." Gary Claire sat in the open space in front of the derrick with his head in his hands.

Jensen looked up in the direction of the desert bandits' retreat, and vaguely saw a desert bandit wearing a turban disappearing in a flash on the top of a mountain in the distance.

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