Liang Jian: Commander, save some for me

It's better to clarify some things. Although the twenty soldiers he sent were not handpicked, their combat strength was not weak.

It wouldn't make sense to have these soldiers protecting Commander Zhang indefinitely, especially since the enemy isn't even one of their own.

If it's someone close to you, that's fine, since they won't say much.

"Of course. Once I'm sure you've drawn the main force of the Japanese army away, I'll leave and not bother you," Commander Zhang replied. He had no intention of staying with Mu Jin and his men to fight the Japanese forever.

After all, he had already taken a great risk to come here, and the fact that the Japanese had a secret unit made it even more dangerous.

To be honest, he wanted Mu Jin to send more people to protect him, so that he would be safer.

"That's good, Commander Zhang. It's getting late, you should probably rest. As for the soldiers protecting you, I'll make arrangements when the battle begins," Li Jin said.

"Hmm." Commander Zhang nodded, got up and left. Now that he knew Mu Jin's specific plan, and that the plan was feasible, there was no need to stay here any longer.

Chu Yunfei and the others followed Commander Zhang out of the tent.

"Li Jin, the plan you told us before wasn't detailed enough," Li Yunlong said to Li Jin after watching them leave.

Although they knew the general plan, it wasn't as detailed as Li Jin had described today.

"This is just a supplement to some details, to avoid any unexpected problems," Li Jin replied. The original plan wasn't detailed enough, so he studied it carefully again!
"Indeed, you're quite meticulous in your battles." Li Yunlong nodded, quite admiring of that.

If he were to command, he would be far less meticulous than Li Jin. That's why Li Jin never had any mishaps in battle.

It wasn't without its surprises. When Li Jin attacked the Japanese airport in Wuhan, he made a mistake. He didn't expect the Japanese to send tens of thousands of people to surround and kill him. If Li Jin hadn't reacted quickly, and if it weren't for the fact that the soldiers he led were all top-notch, they probably wouldn't have been able to escape the Japanese encirclement.

"Speaking of which, the Japanese airfield has reopened, and their planes will be deployed soon."
"I'm thinking, shouldn't we find an opportunity to take down the Japanese airfield again?" Li Jin said with a serious expression.

Quite some time had passed since they bombed the Japanese airfield, so the airfield had naturally been rebuilt and a number of planes had been brought in.

He worried that if other units were to move out, they might be bombed by Japanese planes, unless all operations were to be carried out at night.

After all, their troops are quite adept at night fighting.

“That works. As long as we blow up the Japanese planes, they won’t have any air superiority over this area. That would be a good thing for us.” Li Yunlong readily agreed with Li Jin.

"Actually, I don't think it matters much whether it's bombed or not. For safety reasons, we almost always conduct our operations at night."
"The Japanese planes wouldn't dare take off at night. Besides, you've already bombed a Japanese airfield once before, so they'll definitely have heavy troops guarding it. It's probably unlikely they can destroy it now, and it would only delay our battle plan." Kong Jie had a different opinion at this point.

In his view, the Japanese would not let Li Jin destroy the airport so easily, after all, the Japanese had suffered heavy losses last time, not only losing their planes but also suffering heavy casualties among their pilots.

“Old Kong, what you said makes some sense. Before we deal with the Japanese Sixth Division, I think it’s better to play it safe. What do you think?!” Li Yunlong looked at Li Jin as he spoke, and surprisingly, he didn’t contradict Kong Jie.

"Of course. If there's a chance to severely damage the Sixth Division, I won't let it pass. If we're going to take action, we'll definitely wait until things are more or less resolved before we do so," Li Jin said. Before he could even explain his specific plan, Kong Jie and the others had already spoken up.

“If that’s the case, we could try it. If we can severely damage the Japanese, they might not have so many troops guarding the airport anymore, and instead send them to support other places.” Kong Jie agreed and shared his opinion.

He had previously thought that Li Jin hadn't thought of these things, but it seems that Li Jin didn't have time to explain in detail before he spoke first.

“That’s right. Once this major operation begins, it will definitely shock the Japanese. Therefore, it’s highly likely that some of the airport guards will be transferred away.” Li Jin agreed with Kong Jie.

Although the first phase only involved destroying the Japanese railways and highways, the next phase would involve attacking the Japanese pillboxes and checkpoints, and even some key transportation hubs and county towns.

Therefore, the Japanese side would feel short-handed. With so many troops guarding the airport, they certainly couldn't be idle and would have to be put to use.

"Hey, Li Jin, you're the one who came up with those tear gas canisters, aren't you?!" Li Yunlong changed the subject, pointing to the weapon.

"Yes, I created it, and its power is quite good." Li Jin nodded in direct admission, which was not surprising to Li Yunlong.

"Damn it, this isn't just 'okay' in terms of power, it's more powerful than dozens of hand grenades!" Li Yunlong said directly. He had tested the power in the open and felt uncomfortable. If it were thrown into a bunker, it would be enough to give the Japanese a hard time!
"It's not that exaggerated. It's just that it's suitable for use in relatively small spaces, such as Japanese bunkers," Li Jin said. The power of tear gas can only be maximized in small spaces.

“You’ve come up with something this good, and you’re thinking of getting some for our New First Regiment? That’s not right of you. What happened to being family?” Li Yunlong said deliberately with a stern face.

"Commander, we don't need this thing right now, so don't worry too much. Let other units use it first, and I'll make more for you later, okay?" Li Jin said, somewhat amused and exasperated.

The New First Regiment fought alongside the Special Operations Regiment, and taking down the Japanese pillboxes was an easy task for them, so they really didn't need to use it for the time being.

In contrast, other units had a great need for this. Those units lacked effective weapons for assault, making it extremely difficult for them to take down the Japanese pillboxes.

Therefore, it would be better to supply tear gas to other units first, so as to expand the results of the battle. This is a great thing.

As for them, they should not compete with other units for them for the time being.

"You're smart enough to know what's good for you. Remember to prepare some for the new regiment. You don't need too many, just a few hundred boxes will do. I won't mind if it's not too little." Li Yunlong said, looking like he was thinking of Li Jin.

"Several hundred boxes?! Do you want to hear what you're saying? What, you're going to take Taiyuan?" Li Jin was somewhat helpless. Several hundred boxes of tear gas was a huge quantity; just manufacturing them would take a long time.

"But it can't be too few, a few hundred should be enough, right?!" Li Yunlong laughed. He knew this thing was hard to make, so he deliberately asked for an exorbitant amount.

"A few hundred is fine." Li Jin nodded. A few hundred is not a small amount. For the 129th Regiment, they would probably only get a hundred or so, and no more.

"Wait a minute, what tear gas?! What is that?!" Kong Jie finally couldn't hold back and asked. He had never heard of such a thing. "Old Kong, you don't know about this?!" Li Yunlong asked in surprise.

"How would I know?" Kong Jie retorted. He had only just learned about tear gas, a weapon invented by Li Jin, and it seemed to be specifically designed to attack Japanese pillboxes, and it was very effective.

"Didn't the commander of the 771st Regiment tell you?!" Li Yunlong asked in confusion. He only knew about this thing because Blind Cheng told him; otherwise, he wouldn't have known.

"No," Kong Jie shook his head.

"Strange, could it be that the 77th Regiment didn't get any, so they don't know?!" Li Yunlong frowned and said.

“Old Li, I don’t think it’s possible that he didn’t get one. It’s probably because the commander of the 771st Regiment thought Commander Kong had one too, and he was in a hurry to get the rotation settled, so he forgot to mention it,” Zhao Gang said at this moment.

The 771st Regiment was, after all, replacing the Independent Regiment in defense, and they still had to withstand the Japanese attacks. The commanders would not possibly refuse to distribute tear gas to them.

It's possible that other groups might not be separated, but these two groups that are switching positions absolutely need to have tear gas.

"That must be it, Lao Kong. The tear gas that Li Jin developed is incredibly powerful. I tried it myself..." Li Yunlong then recounted his experience testing the tear gas, describing it vividly.

"Old Li, is what you're saying really that exaggerated?! You felt like you were suffocating after just a minute or two?! And you were choking to death?!" Kong Jie looked suspicious and even doubted whether Li Yunlong was lying to him.

"Damn it, why would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, ask Old Zhao. He tried it too." Li Yunlong had no choice but to drag Zhao Gang into it.

"Political Commissar Zhao, is it true?!" Kong Jie looked at Zhao Gang. Compared to what Li Yunlong said, he believed Zhao Gang's words more.

"Yes, it really is that powerful. And after I tried it, my throat felt uncomfortable for several days!" Zhao Gang said, essentially testifying for Li Yunlong.

"Don't try it out recklessly. If you stay in there for too long, the tear gas smoke can cause irreversible damage to your respiratory tract, which is still very dangerous!" Li Jin quickly said.

Fortunately, no one was stubborn enough to stay in the smoke from the tear gas for an extended period.

"Li Jin, you have to get this stuff for the Independent Regiment too! I don't need much, just a thousand or so!" Kong Jie said hurriedly. How could such a good thing only be available to Li Yunlong? Their Independent Regiment should have it too.

"Damn it, Lao Kong, don't go too far! Do you think these are bullets? You can't just make as many as you want!" Li Yunlong was immediately displeased. He only dared to ask for a few hundred, but Kong Jie was even more greedy than him, asking for thousands.

"But it can't be much less than the New First Regiment, right?" Kong Jie said, looking at Li Jin.

"Alright, alright, I'll prepare it for you after the battle is over." Li Jin was also a little helpless, it seemed that the soldiers in the arsenal would have to work hard later.

"Prepare for the New First Regiment first. You came from the New First Regiment, so we're family," Li Yunlong said quickly.

Kong Jie originally wanted to compete, but he found that he really couldn't compete with Li Yunlong, because Li Jin did indeed come from the New First Regiment.

.........

After leaving the command room, Commander Zhang led Chu Yunfei and his men toward their own base. Although they were conducting joint operations, they each had their own bases to minimize the risk of conflict.

"Commander, I have a feeling that Mu Jin is disgusted with you, and he'd love for you not to come," Fang Ligong couldn't help but say.

Remembering Mu Jin's suggestion that the commander should leave once the cooperation was confirmed, he felt that the other party was looking down on the commander.

“That’s normal. If it were soldiers from the 358th Regiment being sent to protect an outsider, you would probably be a little resentful as well,” Commander Zhang replied. He could understand Mu Jin’s thoughts.

Moreover, the other party did not say anything too offensive, nor did they openly express their dislike.

"Besides, the soldiers he sent are probably the best in their regiment. Don't you think those soldiers would feel uncomfortable having soldiers like that protecting an outsider?!"

"If I stay here any longer, I'm afraid I'll be in danger," Commander Zhang said. An elite squad that should have been killing more Japanese soldiers was instead protecting him. He really didn't believe he wasn't angry.

We can only protect him until we are certain that we can cooperate; that's already the limit.

“Aren’t they afraid we won’t cooperate?!” Fang Ligong said.

"Brother Ligong, do you think they should be afraid?!" Chu Yunfei interjected at this moment.

"Uh...this..." Fang Ligong was immediately speechless upon hearing this. Actually, upon closer reflection, it seemed that Mu Jin was not really afraid that they would not cooperate.

The other party made it clear from the beginning that cooperation was only to expand the gains, and that if they did not cooperate, it would not have much of an impact.

"So, once I'm sure the main Japanese force is really drawn away, I have to go back. This operation might really be different."
I feel that the Eighth Route Army's operation this time may give us a shock, but it is also an opportunity for us to understand their strength once again.
"I'm also very curious about how much their strength has developed over the past two years," Commander Zhang said slowly.

This time, the Eighth Route Army mobilized all its units, providing them with a good opportunity to assess the enemy's strength.

"No matter what, it's only been a little over two years. No matter how much they develop, they can't possibly develop as fast as we do," Fang Ligong said. He didn't believe that their development could match that of the Jin-Sui Army.

"Don't say that. They hold a significant place in the hearts of the people, and many people like the Eighth Route Army."
Therefore, there should still be quite a few people joining them. Commander Zhang doesn't think so.

“But even if their numbers grow, their weapons probably won’t keep up, except for the New First Regiment and the Independent Regiment,” Fang Ligong said.

(End of this chapter)