Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2568 No War on the Western Front (First Update, Please Subscribe)
Make noise in the east and attack in the west.

Globally, no one would believe that the SEA's military operation in Lebanon was a feint.

"Syrians must withdraw from northern Lebanon unconditionally."

After entering February of the new year, the Syrian authorities, which had been on the verge of collapse, regained their strength once again, despite the arrival of a Soviet aircraft carrier group in the waters near Syria.

With its support, Syria suddenly and firmly refused to withdraw its troops. Moreover, with Soviet assistance, they are rearming.

On the other hand, the Soviet Union repeatedly sent additional warships, enhancing the combat capabilities of the Minsk aircraft carrier battle group.

The Kremlin also confidently declared that Soviet troops would continue to carry out counter-terrorism operations in Syria.

Syria is no longer a simple Middle East issue; it has evolved into a full-scale confrontation between major powers.

Faced with this situation, the coalition forces did not launch further offensives into northern Lebanon, but instead continued to consolidate their control in southern Lebanon, clearing out the remaining terrorists and eliminating the breeding ground for them.

Although these counterinsurgency operations are carried out by the Lebanese government forces and Maronite militias, they still need the assistance of the coalition forces on many occasions.

To some extent, the existence of the coalition forces is equivalent to the courage of the government forces; as long as the coalition forces are there, they will certainly be able to complete their missions better.

However, the coalition forces do not directly participate in counterinsurgency operations most of the time, because the purpose of the coalition training the Lebanese government army is to enable it to engage in counterinsurgency operations. Moreover, compared to the coalition forces themselves, both the government army and the militia are more adept at performing such tasks.

In contrast, the coalition forces are more willing to carry out civilian-friendly missions.

On the highway, a convoy of dozens of buses, escorted by the army, traveled along the mountain road. As the convoy moved, machine gunners in the Warrior off-road vehicles poked half their bodies out from the roof, operating machine guns and vigilantly watching their surroundings.

Although, according to the Lebanese government army, the terrorists in the area and the environment in which they thrive have been eliminated.

But no one is ever complacent on the battlefield. You never know what might be hidden deep in the mountains or in labyrinthine caves.
Perhaps terrorists are hiding among them.

"Zhao Changyong's task is really too boring."

As soon as someone spoke up, someone else immediately echoed from the other side.

"We're here to fight terrorists, not to be babysitters."

The reason they said that was because their mission was to escort these ordinary people home.

Listening to everyone's complaints, Zhao Changyong said.

"This is to show everyone that we are here to help, not to occupy or invade."

His gaze fell on the bus next to him. Although the road was dusty, he could still see their smiling faces through the bus window.

"These people are very pitiful. They were driven from their homes and became refugees a few years ago. Their fathers and brothers may have been killed, their mothers may have been defiled, and their sisters may have been violated."

Our mission now is to get them home, to show the world that while everyone else remains silent in the face of insurance, only we are upholding justice.

"justice?"

Qiao Zhiwei, who was driving, snorted and then said in a low voice.

"For them, true justice is to send all those terrorists to hell, including their supporters. Only in this way can true justice be served."

“We could never do that,”

Zhao Changyong glanced at Qiao Zhiwei and then said.

“After all, we are civilized people, understand?” Qiao Zhiwei straightened his posture slightly, but did not answer. He only gave a slow and vague reply.

"We are civilized people, but we are facing a bunch of barbarians. If civilized methods cannot solve the problem, then we should resort to barbaric methods!"

He said this because he had met many locals in Beirut, knew their experiences, and knew what had happened there.

Moreover, everything that happened here was reported by news reporters and broadcast on television around the world. Although it was ignored in many countries, the atrocities shocked the soldiers in Lebanon.

That's why they were so hostile to the other group, because in their eyes, those guys weren't there to fight a civil war; they were there to carry out a massacre!

"Hey, I said you..."

With a long sigh, Zhao Changyong turned around and spoke to his comrades.

"Okay,"

He says,

"I know you all look down on those things, but our mission is to protect these poor guys and send them home, back to their homes!"

After driving for more than an hour, the car finally arrived at a village. The village was deserted, with no villagers in sight, only a few government officials waiting for the villagers to return.

Before the car even stopped, the people inside started crying—men, women, and children alike—all sobbed loudly.

Even inside the vehicle, Wang Changde and his comrades could hear their crying, and platoon leader Liu Xingyang, hearing the cries outside, also let out a long sigh.

The people in the car calmed down a bit when it entered the village.
The car eventually stopped in the village square, which was actually not a square, but an open space in front of a church, surrounded by several houses.

As they approached the church, seeing its stone construction and complete lack of the elaborate carvings typical of Parisian churches, Wang Changde and his comrades were somewhat disappointed. "It's just a bunch of stone houses..."

While Wang Changde was saying this, Qiao Zhiwei said:

"But...this is their home!"

Then he said:

“Look, this is their church. They were baptized here, got married here, and lived here. Then one day, someone came here, killed those who resisted, and drove out the living…”

Listening to his comrade's words, Wang Changde silently looked around. He did not lament the experiences of others, after all, they were other people's experiences.

He came here only to fight!

He had imagined war, imagined fighting alongside his comrades on the battlefield, sharing life and death.

But he never expected that the war would be so boring after he arrived here.

There was no fierce fighting, no soldiers charging forward, and no fleeing enemies.

The war seemed to have changed – fighter jets kept dropping guided bombs, drones destroyed enemy strongholds and tanks one after another, and armed helicopters flew over the valleys, destroying any resistance they saw.

And what about them?

These rigorously trained soldiers seemed to have a very boring life, except for the first few days of fighting.

People getting off and on the bus began registering under the arrangement of government officials; some would return to their homes, while others would receive new houses.

Some of them went to church and prayed there.

The church was in ruins, and there were even traces of foreign occupation inside and outside, but that was no big deal.

Once the people here return, everything here will be restored.

"Alright, our mission is complete..."

Taking off his helmet, George Wei took a deep breath and stretched; their mission was over.

Zhang Kai from the second squad was taking pictures of the soldiers with his camera.

He was a new recruit who had just enlisted two weeks ago. I heard he was a college student. After the terrorist attack, he joined the army like many others. After completing his training, he came to Beirut as he had wished.

Even though he was on the battlefield, he was still like a student on vacation, taking photos in his album.

However, he knew why and who he should photograph. Among ordinary soldiers and junior officers, he always chose those who were handsome, tall, and strong, though this was generally the case.

But such people are most likely to appear in magazines—his picture has already appeared in the newspaper and received widespread praise.

"My mission is not just to fight, but also to let everyone know—our young man is not only a hero, but also the most handsome!"

Well, nobody would object to that.

Zhang Kai, camera in hand, looked at the girls huddled together by the square. Although everyone was moving, these girls stood there, watching their comrades with curiosity and anticipation. He thought for a moment, then said to his comrade beside him:

"Hey, can you guys go over and chat with those girls?"

"what?"

“I need some photos. Imagine this: beautiful Lebanese girls, escorted by brave and handsome SEA soldiers, returning to their hometown. They are chatting in front of the church, and the girls are looking at them with affectionate eyes… This is sure to be captivating.”

Zhang Kai originally thought this would make his brothers interested in those girls, but he never expected to be met with resistance.

"Wow, I was originally planning to chat with them and talk about life, but now that you've said that, I have absolutely no interest in it."

"Exactly, who wants to be your promotional material..."

Actually, the reason they didn't go over was quite simple: their mission was to escort these people to the village, and after the mission was over, they would return to the camp.

Even if I went over and chatted with them for a while at this time, what would be the point?

Of course, this doesn't mean everyone was like that. While they were chatting, several girls boldly approached the soldiers and started talking to them in broken English. As they talked, they began to show them around the nearby vineyards and then to the grove of trees.

Seeing this, Liu Xingyang, the platoon leader, wasn't disappointed. He checked the time and said:

"We'll return at 2 PM. The next three hours are free time for everyone..."

However, he didn't forget to remind his comrades to be careful. Although there was no intelligence indicating that there were still terrorists remaining, it was well known that sometimes, for these soldiers, the greatest threat was not necessarily the enemy.

It's probably those flamboyant local women.

But who would want to spoil the fun? Besides, even soldiers need to relax a bit before fully immersing themselves in the battle.

But right now... there doesn't seem to be any fighting. Looking at his comrades communicating with the local girls in English, for some reason, a phrase popped into Liu Xingyang's mind—"No fighting on the Western Front!"

(End of this chapter)