The Warriors Of Shambhala. Sergii Sheludchenko

to Lha-khang, the room where he kept statues of the gods, but not for the passionate prayer before the statue of Buddha. He stood for a long time in the huge room, surrounded by terracotta statues of Bodhisattvas,[10] pondering what he heard. "Shambhala – is an amazing country, which inspires ghostly hope. Perhaps, true knowledge is more expensive than a human life! But the teachings of the Buddha tell a different story. Where is the search for the truth? " A young monk disciple turned sharply and went to his cell, where he lived in solitude as a full member of the monastic community.

      At night he found himself far from the monastery. A cold wind was tearing at his maroon toga, snow gushing around, thus hurting his face. He walked to the side of the Zhongson pass, being at the borders of Nepal, Tibet and Sekima. The fragile young man was one of the forgotten people of Heaven and still on the mountain trail, dressed in his robes, with a knapsack on his back and a heavy stick in his hand. There, beyond the pass, on a high plateau, lost among the Himalayan snows, was the abode of Maitreya Buddha.

* * *

      The Chief of General Directorate of Police in Bangkok, Narong Deng, sat on a soft leather chair drinking a little whiskey and smoking a good cigar, which was all that Deng needed at the moment. He ordered not to be connected with anyone on the phone and canceled all visitors. Although the working day had just begun, the problem did not take long to emerge. Much operational information had accumulated during the night. Narong scanned the sheets and laid them out on the table. Ten murders per day were usual for a fifteen million population metropolis. Next, the operation "East" was a joint development of the Anti-drug trafficking and Interpol. This was something new. Narong knew that a few days ago in Bangkok representatives of some special groups were in attendance. Deng blew smoke toward the air conditioner and set aside the document with the official seal of the Department, this problem had not been dealt with by the police.

      The powerful fans from the air conditioner had dispelled a cloud of aromatic smoke after only a few seconds, filling the room with a pleasant coolness. It would be nice if the problem would melt away. The melodic buzzer lifted Narong from his thinking.

      ‘Chief, you have a call from the Department.’ It was a pleasant secretary’s voice came on the line.

      ‘Put him through.’

      ‘Hello, Deng, how are you?’ The voice of the first deputy head of the Department did not promise anything good.

      ‘Thank you, sir, not too bad.’

      ‘I've been waiting for you for three hours. Tack holds the documents in the case of Taihang.’

      ‘But, sir, the case is with the investigative team.’

      ‘I’ve been waiting for you for three hours!’ Short beeps were heard on the line.

      It has begun! What kind of report can be discussed if the investigation has just begun? The accusation was based on the testimony of the two witnesses who were detained in Myanmar. Taihang tried to smuggle a large amount of cash to Sri Lanka with their help. According to the law, the detainees were threatened with a huge sentence and they kindly agreed to help the investigation in exchange for their inclusion in the witness protection programme. It had long been known that Taihang had a solid share of the illegal gaming businesses in Bangkok, but they could not manage to get close to him. His list of interests included drug dealing, arms trafficking and a network of brothels and hotels catering for many clients.

      Taihang was a native of Taiwan, who had appeared in Bangkok five years ago. He was detained twice by police last time, on suspicion of murder. Money and networking had taken their toll. There was huge corruption and debts, but these were subsequently covered up in many cases. Witnesses disappeared, eyewitnesses refused to testify. In general, everything went according to the old accumulated scheme. As a result, Taihang remained at large.

      Deng Narong foresaw that the case could be reversed, and it was imperative not to force things. He did not want to be extreme. The call from the Department alerted him. Had these important patrons decided to merge Taihang?

      They were crowded in the lobby of the Royal Military Police Department. Deng took off his uniform jacket and mentally wished himself luck.

      The adjutant managed to rise from his seat, welcoming the senior officer.

      ‘Come in, sir.’

      Five people were sitting at a long table in the office of the Deputy Head of the Department. Narong knew two of them. There was the chief Interpol representative and next to him the Head of the Antidrug trafficking. The rest included smart guys with tanned weather-beaten faces, two Europeans and a giant black man. These boys would fit into any field gear much more than ironed parade uniforms.

      ‘The colonel, Narong Deng, came on your order.’

      ‘Come on, Colonel, sit down. I would like to introduce you to our American friends.’

      Deng nodded, greeting the audience, and took a seat next to the chief of Interpol.

      ‘Sir, all are here, and I can start.’ The first deputy spoke in English.

      ‘The central headquarters of Interpol received a report of a major deal that Taihang was going to make, who was detained by you, Narong. Buyers have offered a batch of opium valued at about ten million dollars. Taihang is going to hold an auction, inviting customers from several regions. Naturally he would have to cooperate with those who will offer the most favorable conditions. The meeting place will be a village in the Tapie valley. Interpol controlled stakeholder representatives arriving in Bangkok, and we need to ensure the monitoring of Taihang’s people. This represents a good opportunity to put an end to the gang "Tonga Dragons", as they call themselves. Unfortunately, in connection with the arrest of Taihang we have to cancel the operation, especially the buyers who are most likely to inform about his problems. We need to develop a new plan for the liquidation of the drug cartel. Our American friends have offered us their help. These gentlemen have experience of similar actions,’ the chief pointed to the Americans, who were sitting at a table.

      ‘The Group has successfully completed the mission in South America, and with the kind consent of the Government of the United States, in which several experts were sent to us. Now let’s move onto Taihang. The Bangkok Police Department has launched a criminal case. Witnesses are under the protection programme. Colonel Narong will acquaint you now with the basic materials.’

      Deng outlined the essence of the matter very briefly. The Americans wrote down something in their notebooks.

      ‘Sir, can you trust people working on Taihang?’

      ‘His real name is YueFei. Taihang is rather a nickname or middle name. His parents emigrated from Beijing to Hong Kong. He arrived in Bangkok as part of a Chinese Tonga, called "Dragon". Within a few years he was able to become the head of the clan including some close family members of his. The overwhelming number of employees on the Taihang is Chinese, the other, a local mob, perform menial jobs. The informants reported that Taihang at the time bought large quantities of weapons, but we could not go to his warehouses. People, who were detained earlier, were silent. In their midst operates a strict order of rituals, something like the Italian Mafia.’

      ‘Narong, are you talking about criminals or national heroes?!’

      ‘Excuse me, sir, I didn’t say that. I mean, it is unlikely that they will testify. It's easy to keep track of Taihang’s people, they are not hiding.’

      ‘We must make maximum efforts for the elimination of Taihang’s groups. After the meeting you will receive instructions and a plan of action. Narong’s management in the active phase of the operation will not take part, but will assist with the development of the investigation. Today the Colonel will transfer Taihang’s gentlemen from the special division. We can get valuable information from a detainee by the Interpol head of the Kashgar groups, who cooperated with Tongan "Dragon". Taihang is involved personally in the creation of the organization. Income derived from the sale of drugs in China is much higher than dividends we expected. Taihang tried to get rid of mediators from Kashgar’s clan, and decided to control drug trafficking on his own. An anonymous informant told the time and place of the next transaction, attended by Kashgarians. Naturally, all participants were

10

A bodhisattva is an enlightened being. According to Tibetan Buddhism, a Bodhisattva is one of the four sublime states a human can achieve in life.