Liang Jian: Commander, save some for me

"They didn't say anything specific, just that we should pay more attention to the developments of the Eighth Route Army in the future," Commander Zhang said, shaking his head.

Commander Yan simply told them about it, without giving them any instructions.

"How can we possibly keep an eye on them now?! They've already grown to this size." Fang Ligong said helplessly. If they had been able to pay attention before, there would be hundreds of thousands of people there now.

"Why do you care so much? Just do what the commander says to be careful," Commander Zhang said irritably.

"Yes!" Fang Ligong dared not say anything more upon hearing this.

Chu Yunfei also fell into deep thought. In his opinion, the only powerful unit on the Eighth Route Army's side was the Independent Regiment of the New First Regiment. Even if they had obtained a lot of supplies, those supplies were not much in the grand scheme of things. How could they have developed so quickly? He couldn't understand it.

"Actually, I'm a little confused. Why won't the commander let us withdraw?! If we continue to help them, they'll probably gain even more benefits, and then they'll have to develop even more troops in the future!" Fang Ligong couldn't help but ask.

In this operation, Mu Jin and his men will definitely be able to obtain a lot of supplies, especially since the 358th Regiment is also involved. This will allow Mu Jin to kill even more Japanese soldiers and capture a great deal of supplies.

Could the subsequent developments over there be considered a form of indirect assistance from them?

"Perhaps the commander felt that withdrawing now might offend Mu Jin, and a sudden change of heart would essentially ruin their relationship completely."

"That's not the situation the commander wants to see, which is why he didn't order us to withdraw," Commander Zhang said after thinking for a moment.

“I see, that makes sense. Mu Jin will definitely be angry if we suddenly decide to withdraw. In that case, we might not even be able to leave. Since the relationship has already soured, let's make it as bad as possible.” Fang Ligong nodded, agreeing with this statement.

"Yunfei, what do you think?!" Commander Zhang asked Chu Yunfei, who had been silent since earlier.

"Is it possible that, if we think about it more deeply, the commander is actually more worried about that secret Japanese unit?!"

"Compared to the falling out with Mu Jin, it's clearly the Japanese secret unit that's more daunting. Once we withdraw, Mu Jin's plans will have to change, and then it's hard to say whether they can deal with that secret unit," Chu Yunfei said slowly.

Of course, he was not denying what Commander Zhang said, but on a deeper level, the commander hoped that they could help Mu Jin take some time to deal with that secret Japanese unit.

“But even if we don’t help, Mu Jin will still want to wipe out that secret Japanese unit, right?” Fang Ligong had a different opinion.

The Japanese secret troops weren't just a threat to them, but they could also pose a threat to Mu Jin and the Eighth Route Army.

If they don't help, Mu Jin and his men will definitely want to wipe out the Japanese. Moreover, if they don't help, it will definitely take a lot of effort for Mu Jin and his men to eliminate this secret force, and they might even suffer heavy casualties. Wouldn't that be a win-win situation?

"That's what we say, but what if, because we're not here, Mu Jin and the others can't take care of that secret unit in time, giving the Japanese a chance to turn their guns on us?!"

"You have to understand, this unit's combat power is not much weaker than Mu Jin's, and may even be stronger. If they attack us, can we stop them?!" Commander Zhang began to analyze the possibilities.

"Then let Mu Jin and the others come and help. They can't just stand by and do nothing," Fang Ligong replied.

"The most crucial point is that we've offended Mu Jin. Do you think Mu Jin will help us?!" Commander Zhang said slowly.

The premise of all this is that they have now withdrawn, completely offending Mu Jin, which resulted in the Japanese secret forces not being able to be annihilated by Mu Jin, but instead attacking them.

At this point, they shamelessly went to Mu Jin for help again. Would he actually help them?!
"This..." Fang Ligong fell into deep thought upon hearing this. What his commander said made sense. If he were betrayed by an ally and then asked for help when that ally got into trouble, he probably wouldn't help.

Therefore, once they withdraw, Mu Jin is highly unlikely to help if something goes wrong later.

"Even if we assume that Mu Jin will put aside past grievances and come to help, how long do you think he will wait to do so?!" Commander Zhang retorted.

"I guess they'll wait until we're in serious trouble before offering their help," Fang Ligong said after thinking for a moment.

If it were him, he would probably do the same. Although he would take action for the sake of the bigger picture, the betrayal was still fresh in his mind. He would help, but only if he could get revenge.

"So, the commander probably thought of these things, which is why he didn't let us withdraw. Besides, a strained relationship with Mu Jin wouldn't benefit us at all, and those developments are already a done deal; it's too late for us to try to restrict them."
"It would be better to cultivate a good relationship with Mu Jin so that he can allocate enough manpower to eliminate the Japanese secret force. That way, we can also eliminate our worries about the rear," Commander Zhang continued.

In fact, if it weren't for the possibility that the Japanese secret forces might turn their guns on them, the commander probably would have actually chosen to withdraw them, preventing the area from having a chance to develop.

"The commander is truly remarkable; he thinks far ahead of time." Fang Ligong nodded, somewhat admiring Commander Yan, since he himself hadn't considered so many things.

"Yunfei, I didn't expect you to be able to guess the commander's thoughts. It seems you have a long-term perspective when it comes to thinking things through," Commander Zhang praised Chu Yunfei.

"You flatter me, Commander. Actually, I learned all of this from Mu Jin. When we worked together before, he often said that when looking at a problem, you shouldn't just look at the surface, but think about the long term," Chu Yunfei said modestly.

"I must say, this Mu Jin is indeed remarkable, with a vision far beyond that of ordinary people. It's a pity he refuses to come to our side," Commander Zhang said with a sigh.

People like Mu Jin, who are both young and highly capable, are truly rare. At the very least, there is no such talent in their Jin-Sui Army.

Most importantly, the other party is very close to the Eighth Route Army, and may actually join the Eighth Route Army in the future. That would be the real trouble.

"Commander, let's not talk about this anymore. We can't force it." Fang Ligong shook his head. There was no point in saying anything more. Mu Jin didn't even want the position of army commander, so he probably wouldn't want a higher position either. We can't just let the commander step down and give the position to Mu Jin, can we?
Even if the commander agrees, the officers below him are unlikely to agree.

.........

The next morning, Li Jin called everyone to a meeting at the temporary command post, because the intelligence personnel he had sent out had returned.

"Tell me everything you know," Li Jin ordered, looking at the soldier standing to the side. "Commander, based on our observations, the Japanese troops coming from these directions don't seem to be targeting us. They are indeed attacking the base area."

"We just can't find anyone, and the Japanese have burned all those empty villages to the ground. I suspect that if the villagers hadn't been evacuated, they might have been killed as well." The soldier slowly recounted the intelligence.

"If that's the case, does that mean the Japanese didn't set a trap for us?!" Kong Jie frowned and said, because what the Sixth Division did was actually the same as what the other divisions did: attacking their base areas and setting fire to villages they encountered!
This appears to be a perfectly normal task being carried out, with no apparent ulterior motive.

“I don’t think things are that simple. I really don’t believe the Japanese from the 6th Division wouldn’t be interested in us,” Li Yunlong said. He still believed that the Japanese were doing this because they were after them.

"Perhaps the Japanese are trying to lower our guard by letting their troops carry out their missions normally, but in reality, their operational range won't exceed a very long distance!" Zhao Gang said after thinking for a moment.

This is the only possibility that explains the Japanese intentions: it was a superficial effort to lull them into a false sense of security, thereby lowering their guard and making them more likely to attack the Japanese command post.

This played right into the hands of the Japanese.

“Old Zhao’s analysis makes sense; that’s exactly what I was thinking,” Li Yunlong said.

"Bullshit! With your brain, how could you think of that?!" Kong Jie immediately retorted, clearly not believing Li Yunlong's words.

"If some people can't figure it out, they assume others can't either. I'm too lazy to argue," Li Yunlong replied, though his tone was somewhat sarcastic, almost making Kong Jie so angry he almost twisted his nose.

"From what we can see now, the Japanese are indeed lowering our guard. Have you found out where their command post is?!" Li Jin confirmed what Zhao Gang said and then looked at the intelligence personnel to ask again.

"Commander, you were right. The Sixth Division's headquarters is over in the Wilderness Cloud Mountains, and there are several of them."
But we eventually found the real command post. After observation, we found that the real command post was heavily guarded and had more than 5,000 people.
Some of these soldiers looked much stronger than the others. I could sense that their strength was probably not much weaker than ours! The soldier quickly explained the situation and his analysis.

"What?! Are you sure?!" Commander Zhang was shocked upon hearing this and quickly asked.

"Of course, we can see how strong the enemy is," the soldier said with certainty.

Commander Zhang fell into deep thought for a moment. He really hadn't expected that the secret unit Mu Jin mentioned actually existed, and that its strength was indeed considerable. In that case, it was indeed the right choice for the commander not to transfer them away.

"Are there many of them?!" Fang Ligong asked as well.

"I'm not sure about that. We don't dare get too close, or we'll be easily discovered. What we do know is that the real command post won't be easy to take; the fortifications and everything else have already been dug."

"If we really launch an attack, with that secret unit there, we might suffer a great loss!" the soldier said slowly. Although he couldn't be sure how many powerful troops they were, he knew that the Japanese command post would be difficult to attack.

"Just as I expected," Li Jin said. In fact, he had anticipated this long ago. If the Japanese wanted to stop their attack, they would have to prepare their defensive fortifications in advance.

"If I'm not mistaken, what you see as the defense is only the surface; their actual defense is far more astounding. If we dare to attack..."

"Even if that secret unit weren't there, it wouldn't be particularly easy for us to take over the command post," Li Jin continued.

What he meant by "not easy" was simply that it would take longer than attacking the 16th Division.

"Commander Mu, are you still confident you can handle this?!" Fang Ligong asked instinctively when he heard Mu Jin say that they were very difficult to deal with.

As soon as he said it, Li Jin and the others were stunned, and their gazes toward Fang Ligong became strange.

"Why are you all looking at me?!" Fang Ligong asked, puzzled. He had only asked a normal question.

“Brother Ligong, the plan was already finalized a long time ago. Brother Mu was just saying it, but if we carry out the plan, it shouldn’t be difficult to deal with them,” Chu Yunfei couldn’t help but say.

In fact, no matter how the Japanese side planned, as long as the Japanese movement was confirmed, that was enough. Moreover, Mu Jin did not intend to attack the command post protected by secret troops. His idea from the beginning was to lure the enemy away from the mountain.

Without that secret unit, wouldn't it be a piece of cake for Mu Jin and his men to take down the Japanese command post?

"Uh... I forgot about that." Fang Ligong said awkwardly with a smile. How could he have forgotten the plan that had been set long ago?

"It's alright, the plan remains unchanged anyway. If the Japanese want to easily set a trap for us, then let's see who sets the trap for whom." Li Jin didn't take it too seriously.

"Commander Mu, how did you guess the approximate location of the Japanese?!" Division Commander Zhang asked at this moment. Compared to other matters, he was more interested in knowing how Mu Jin had guessed that the Japanese would set up a command post there.

"I can't guess the exact location, I can only make a rough guess. All of this is just from what I see on the map."

"Based on the Japanese army's general plan, and by analyzing the map, we can roughly determine where they might set up their command post. I've also put myself in their shoes. In short, that's how I guessed the approximate location of the Japanese army," Li Jin said slowly.

"Commander Mu makes it sound so easy. I almost thought I could do it too!" Fang Ligong couldn't help but admire him.

Don't be fooled by how easily Mu Jin makes it sound. In reality, it's extremely difficult to guess the location of the Japanese soldiers just by looking at a map. Even just getting a rough estimate is already quite impressive.

"Haha, if you do more research and fight more Japanese devils, you'll definitely be able to guess it too," Li Jin said with a laugh.

"Let's forget about it. I know my own limitations very well." Fang Ligong shook his head. He was a man who could recognize his own situation.

This is something he simply can't do; it's not something that can be accomplished with a few words of praise. It requires a certain level of talent, which he clearly lacks. (End of Chapter)