Restarting life in Siheyuan

Chapter 456 The changing situation
Before Zong Youzhi could finish his words, he spit out a lot of blood foam from his mouth and fell into a coma again. Zhu Xuefeng checked him carefully and found that he was okay. This kid had extremely strong vitality and was lucky as he had no vital injuries. His right leg was broken and a bullet in the chest went through his lungs. He was able to survive but his body was definitely disabled as his lungs were injured and he would suffer from sequelae for the rest of his life.

When they heard that the person in front of them was the leader, several people were shocked. The leader was fighting alone?

Zhu Xuefeng didn't have time to explain. He pointed ahead and said, "Leave the walkie-talkie behind. Go back and report that I'm taking Captain Zong to heal his wounds. If anything happens, contact me by walkie-talkie. Hurry!"

Several of them should be new recruits. After hesitating for a while, they hurriedly left under Zhu Xuefeng's repeated urging. Zhu Xuefeng took the unconscious Zong Youzhi into the space for treatment. He brought them here to live a good life. If they were injured, he couldn't do anything if he didn't see it, and if he saw it and didn't treat them, Zhu Xuefeng didn't have such a cruel heart.

Then he shot the enemy commander in front of the jeep and even killed the minions on the side. After a while, only eight bodies were left in the entire command scene, and the messenger not far away was dumbfounded.

Captain Xiao on the top of the mountain also discovered the accident here. The battlefield was once again in chaos. Without the commander-in-chief, morale dropped and it was impossible to organize an attack in a short time.

Zhu Xuefeng ignored them and quickly shuttled through the mountains and forests in the direction the scouts returned from, heading towards the direction of the shelling.

He was hit by the artillery fire and almost lost his life. He only got rid of half of his anger by killing the commander. He must destroy this artillery group, otherwise it will be too passive to just defend. Besides, Zong Youzhi also needs to disappear for a few days to heal his wounds.

In the eyes of the scouts, the tightly guarded blockade line could not stop Zhu Xuefeng at all. After searching for several kilometers in the direction of the flying shells, he found an artillery position in a valley. There were more than forty cannons and a military camp not far from the artillery position.

The artillery position was well guarded, with patrols constantly shuttling back and forth. In broad daylight, there was no chance to go in and collect the weapons, so Zhu Xuefeng gave up the idea. He had learned a lesson during the day. Even if there was space, one was not invincible on the battlefield. Who knew a stray bullet could come out of nowhere and kill him?

Observe the range and calculate the coordinates on the top of the mountain, then open the walkie-talkie and call...

The artillery position was hit by a dense rain of artillery fire, and soon the continuous exploding shells turned the entire artillery position into ruins.

"Next target, coordinates..."

The artillery was led to clean out the barracks once again. Unfortunately, most of the soldiers ran away in the first shelling, but the weapons, equipment and vehicles were still there. Intensive artillery fire once again covered the valley. The continuous explosions in the barracks meant that this team could no longer pose a threat, even if they survived.

After a month of special training, Zhu Xuefeng had acquired basic reconnaissance skills, which he did not expect to come in handy here. Thanks to Lao Kong's persistence, Zhu Xuefeng turned on the walkie-talkie again and called the 122nd Battalion.

"Captain Xiao, don't worry. I will return to Jiesha City right away. I have to treat Comrade Zong Youzhi immediately. He has just received emergency treatment and is in good condition. Don't worry, there won't be any accidents. In a few days, I will return you a lively and energetic platoon leader Zong."

"Commander, it's very difficult for us to do this. You left without saying a word. Commander Song just scolded me..."

Zhu Xuefeng was too embarrassed to face the two grassroots commanders, so he smiled, turned off the walkie-talkie, and went straight over the mountains and back to Jiesha City.

Zhu Xuefeng's injury and his solo action made the military top brass very worried, but the fact that the chief single-handedly led the artillery to destroy the enemy's artillery positions greatly inspired the soldiers on the front line, especially the chief's marksmanship, which was promoted by the 122nd Battalion and became legendary after the war.

Zhu Xuefeng, however, could not accept this honor and could only helplessly accept the criticism from Song Yan and Zhou Xingguo. Unfortunately, he lost the opportunity to fight on the front line.

"Commander, this is a war. Your personal heroism may turn a small victory into an unbearable burden for the autonomous region. I know you are very skilled, but for the sake of the autonomous region, you must promise us that you will never participate in frontline combat again."

Faced with the furious Song Yan and the admiring Zhou Xingguo, Zhu Xuefeng had no choice but to agree.

"Okay, I won't participate. I won't participate. Xingguo, I'll give you the gun back. This gun has good accuracy at long distances. You must keep it."

"Is your injury serious? The medical staff will be here soon and will disinfect and treat you." Song Yan was still worried about whether the leader's injury would be infected, it was such a hot day.

"No need, I've already treated it. Don't you know my level of healing? Zong You sent me away for emergency treatment and will send me back in a few days."

Song Yan nodded silently. Zong Youzhi followed him here last year. This time, in order to find out the enemy's artillery positions, he personally brought several recruits and almost lost his life. The recruits are still far from being capable.

"Oh, Chief, Zhou Dayong (Zhou Laoba) in the west sent a telegram saying that the two female comrades have successfully completed the negotiation mission. Five of the thirteen tribes have expressed their willingness to submit, six have expressed their willingness to accept our agreement of peaceful coexistence, mutual trade and help in road construction, and the other two have also expressed their willingness to stay out of the matter and not initiate attacks. This can be considered non-aggression. The team is now heading back and is expected to arrive at Pagang in three days."

"Wow, I didn't expect that what Lao Yang and Li Xiaojun failed to do was completed by two female comrades. Great."

Zhu Xuefeng was overjoyed. These thirteen tribes were stuck along the way to the west and were closely connected with each other. They seemed to have no intention of communicating with Pagang. He did not expect that Lin Na and the other person could really open up the situation.

"Yes, that's good now. We can advance more than 100 kilometers to the west. We are not far from the sea. Now it seems that there is hope that we can reach the sea by the end of this year. This is much earlier than expected."

"It seems that we don't need to wait for the battle here to end before we can continue to open up the west. The enemy's attack here is blocked. If Xiaojun and his men's subsequent plans can succeed, this force will not be able to pose a threat to Jiesha."

Zhu Xuefeng witnessed the enemy's combat effectiveness with his own eyes, and it was indeed not as good as that of the defeated army. There was a considerable gap in both tactics and fighting will. Even though they had more people, they should have no way to deal with the defense of Jiesha City.

The other side didn't think so. The troops in Mogok sent the news back to Mandele. Mandele was determined to eliminate this inexplicable armed force. However, just as he began to dispatch troops to support the front line, the airport suffered a fatal blow. Six fighter planes, which were the key to victory, were bombed, two of the three helicopters were bombed, and the last one was driven away by the other side in a swagger. The air force that came to fight had completely lost its combat effectiveness.

"Chief of Staff, what do we do now?"

"We have to form a siege as quickly as possible. The enemy was able to sneak into Mandele and destroy the airport. It seems that they were well prepared. We can't make a breakthrough in the front. The key is still the terrain. We must force a breakthrough and then form a siege as soon as possible. As long as the siege is formed, this battle will be a sure win. Unfortunately, we were going to bomb Jiesha City, so it seems that we can only rely on artillery."

The commander-in-chief agreed with the chief of staff's analysis. The air force is important, but victory can be achieved without the air force. The enemy also has no air force. The air force is not something that monkeys in the northern mountains can afford to play with. "We still have more than 30 tanks, and the artillery of the Second Division is still there. If we surround Jiesha and bombard him for a few days, the enemy will definitely collapse."

The deputy commander-in-chief couldn't help but stand up. He had experienced the failure of the last encirclement and suppression of Li Mi's troops, and was somewhat afraid of this armed force that could defeat Li Mi's troops.

"But we have artillery, and so does the enemy. How could the First Division's artillery be defeated? The enemy's artillery is no weaker than ours. The only advantage is the air force. The enemy has no air force, and now this advantage is gone. As for tanks, they are a joke in the mountains and forests in the north, unless the battlefield is moved to the plains."

"So, I suggest we use defense as an offense. The enemy has no fighting power to conquer Mogok. We just need to block their trade routes. Without money and new weapons, the fighting power of these armed forces will only get weaker and weaker. It will be easy to destroy them then."

Faced with the deputy's reminder, the commander-in-chief was very dissatisfied. A little setback magnified the enemy's ability infinitely. Is this still the government army? These people have lost their fighting spirit and are not worthy of being a soldier. No wonder the general is very dissatisfied with them and let himself take command.

The battle had only been going on for a few days, and the troops' combat effectiveness was basically intact (except for the air force). The general had issued a death order, to recapture Jiesha, advance northward, and drive this armed force that had emerged from nowhere back into the mountains. The large amount of fertile land near Jiesha must be recovered.

"Hold the front line to suspend the attack and defend on the spot. The Second Division will set out overnight to support Mogok. The Mogok defenders will rush to the front line to support the front line and prevent the enemy from launching a sneak attack. Once the support is in place, bombard the stronghold and complete the encirclement of Jiesha as soon as possible."

The commander-in-chief was unwilling to give up and decided to make a desperate attempt. The enemy's defenders only had 3,000 men in total, and he had several times more troops. Even without the support of the air force, he could still defeat the enemy.

"Commander, the enemy's sabotage squad has not been found yet. If they are still in Mandele to cause sabotage, we must be on guard."

Seeing that the commander-in-chief was determined to do what he wanted, the deputy had no choice but to obey, but he still gave a reminder.

"These people must be eradicated! You stay behind to organize the search!"

Seeing that the commander-in-chief was very dissatisfied, the deputy could only whisper a reminder, "The other party can drive away the helicopter, which means they have a pilot. How can a small force have a pilot? We may not have figured out the enemy's details at all."

Facing his deputy's repeated questioning, the commander-in-chief was very dissatisfied. "That's enough. It's decided. You stay and continue the search. I will lead the people to Mogok. This time I will personally command. It's embarrassing if we can't take down a small hill. As for what you are worried about, Deputy Commander Su, it's all nonsense. How can there be an air force in the north? Even if they sell their ancestors for three generations, they can't raise the money for a plane."

Without the commander-in-chief Mandele, 80% of the army disappeared. When Deputy Commander Su led a team to inspect the damage to the military camp outside the city of Mandele.

The flames rising to the sky in the city made the people in Mandelezhao panic under the cover of night. Deputy Commander Su was very troubled. This group of people appeared and disappeared in a mysterious way, making it difficult to guard against them.

"Curfew, close the city! Search for me!"

The commander-in-chief, who had traveled all the way with great effort, finally led his team to Mogok City as he wished, but it was too late. After receiving the order to set off, Mogok City marched out of the city in a mighty manner. However, only a few hours after the team left, a group of more than 20 armed men sneaked into the city, wreaked havoc and left. The hastily assembled defense troops chased them all the way out of the city and had not returned for more than half a day. Just over two hours ago, intensive gunfire was heard in the mountains and forests in the northwest.

After learning from the telegram that he had led his team away, Mandele suffered three consecutive attacks until Deputy Commander Su imposed a citywide curfew. Unexpectedly, Mogok, two days away, was also attacked a few hours ago.

"Can anyone tell me how many people these northern monkeys who love to climb mountains and trees have sent to cause trouble? Inform the front lines to be careful of small armed groups' sneak attacks and strengthen vigilance and patrols."

Zhu Xuefeng was unaware of the changes in the situation on the front line. After receiving the news that Li Xiaojun had successfully raided the Mandele airport and confirming that he could no longer go to the battlefield, he had to return to Pagang to meet Lin Na and her party.

Looking at Xia Yuhong who was beaming with pride. "Tell me quickly, how did you two do it? You two have made great contributions this time. If you rely on the army to conquer the country, it would conservatively take at least half a year. With the same conditions, why didn't Li Xiaojun and his men succeed, but you two did?"

Lin Na smiled and said, "There's no trick. They saw that Li Xiaojun and his men were full of murderous intent and said that it didn't look like a negotiation, but more like a threat. We are both women, so they are not defensive and are willing to communicate. The conditions we offer are not bad and are beneficial to them. They have no reason to refuse. They are not stupid."

Seeing the smile on Lin Na's lips, Zhu Xuefeng knew there must be something hidden.

"Xiao Hong, tell me, I don't believe in honey traps. I'm just worried that they will detain you two and then negotiate terms with us."

"That's what they really thought at first. Fortunately, your guard captain Xia Gong and your senior brother Bai quickly subdued the leader of the trouble. Haha, Sister Na, I'm sorry for letting it slip."

It turned out that the negotiation was not as easy as Lin Na said. If Yan Zi hadn't asked Senior Brother Bai to go along, something serious might have happened. Senior Brother Bai's superb kung fu was a miracle in the eyes of these mountain people.

When he once again cured a tribal leader's long-standing illness, he was deified.

In addition to the reports from the spies who hurried back, who said there was a fully armed force of several hundred men outside the mountain, more than a dozen tribes sat down to negotiate again.

The other party admired the medical skills here. The conditions in the mountains and forests are harsh and the infant mortality rate is high. Senior Brother Bai promised that their medical clinic in Pagang could provide help. The two then said that after the road is opened, a medical clinic and a health center can be set up here. After development, hospitals and schools can be opened as a priority. Before that, these tribes can take a bus to Pagang for medical treatment...

"We have reached an agreement with just these few conditions?" Zhu Xuefeng couldn't believe it.

"How could it be wrong? You didn't see it live. Senior Brother Bai's acupuncture skills are superb. In more than half an hour, he made the chief vomit a lot of black blood. His years of illness were cured. His face looked rosy. It was really magical."

"Yes, they talked about a lot. Your Senior Brother Bai also said that he wanted to open a clinic here to collect herbs. There are indeed quite a few herbs from those tribes that your Senior Brother has collected. He said that he would collect them for a long time in the future. These tribes will have more work to do, so of course they are happy to do so."

"Also, there are several tribes here that raise elephants and are willing to help cut wood in exchange for canned meat..."

(End of this chapter)