The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 680 Black Panther "Amphibious Squadron"

Time flew by and it was already the end of the 1990s.

On this day, the regional headquarters in the far southwest welcomed the calm before the storm.

In the chief of staff's office, Meng Luyu, whose hair was already somewhat gray, was reading a report that had been approved by his superiors.

Meng Luyu frowned as she read the report.

This is a report about recent events in the southwestern border region of the Xia Kingdom...

Due to historical reasons, several local armed groups have emerged in the "Kim Jong-un region" of central and southern China, which are in conflict with the host country. Among them, there are more than 20 groups with a strength of over 1,000 people.

These armed groups all funded their operations with flour, using the money earned from selling flour to purchase sophisticated weapons and equipment.

This also formed one of the most prominent characteristics of the "flour" in the "Golden Three Regions": they were warlords first and foremost, and flour dealers secondarily.

The confidential document in Meng Luyu's possession reveals that the "flour dealers" who pose the greatest threat to the Xia Kingdom are the three Lang brothers, who occupy a county town called Laocheng.

This place is less than 15 kilometers from a port on the southwestern border of the Xia Kingdom. Historically, it was an opium trading center in the northern part of the "Golden Three" region, where more than 300 tons of "flour" were traded every year.

In the past two years, the Lang brothers have been smuggling flour into the Xia Kingdom with impunity, becoming one of the most dangerous flour traffickers in the Xia Kingdom.

The old city was originally the location of the so-called "Kim Sammin's Northeast Military Region".

In the late 80s, the "Allied Forces" fell apart.

Kang Liansheng, the former deputy commander-in-chief of the "Allied Forces," established an autonomous region here.

Later, they had an internal conflict. Lang Hongxian, the chief of staff of the "Allied Army," joined forces with several minor warlords within the "Allied Army" to fight Kang Liansheng. In the end, Kang Liansheng was driven out of the old city by Lang Hongxian.

After seizing power, Lang Hongxian appointed himself "Commander of the Allied Army" in Laocheng. He had more than 3,000 troops under his command, plus two divisions and one brigade originally under Kang Jiansheng, totaling more than 6,000 people, forming the largest armed group in the Northeast region of the "Golden Triangle".

After occupying the old city, Lang Hongxian's elder brother, Lang Hongji, was appointed as a county official, in charge of local administration.

The third brother, Lang Hongxing, was specifically in charge of the economy, which was the production and sale of "flour".

The three brothers had a clear division of labor and each had their own responsibilities, and they quickly developed into the largest "flour dealer" in the northern part of the "Golden Triangle".

The old city is located right next to the border of the Xia Kingdom.

If the Lang brothers' flour were to be transported from the west coast of the Indochina Peninsula, it would have to pass through several other flour traders.
This is an extremely special and arduous task, unlike ordinary military operations.

The opponents were powerful armed forces, but they were not affiliated with any warlord organization in any country.

The area they occupy is the territory of a sovereign state.

Using a large force is clearly not feasible, and sending a small number of special forces to deal with an armed force of several thousand people is unlikely to solve the problem.

After reporting to their superior, Chen Tieshan, the regional chief of staff, Meng Luyu, convened a meeting with several members of the leadership team. After careful consideration, they decided that the most important task at present was to send people to infiltrate the "Jin San area".

The task of thoroughly investigating the enemy's situation before formulating a corresponding action plan was assigned to the regional reconnaissance department.

The Southwest Region's directly subordinate reconnaissance department is personally overseen by Liu Wu, the brigade commander of the "Black Panther Special Operations Brigade."

Liu Wu is now a renowned expert in special operations for the Xia Army. He has personally experienced and commanded countless special operations operations and has extremely rich experience.

……

Lin Xiaoxue, only 26 years old, is an outstanding special forces reconnaissance soldier in the "Black Panther Brigade" with the rank of lieutenant.

Lin Xiaoxue, who was on a mission in another location, was urgently transferred back to the brigade headquarters to participate in the operation to crack down on the "flour smugglers" of weapons and equipment.

One of the key reasons why Brigade Commander Liu Wu assigned her to this special mission was that Lin Xiaoxue had lived in the southwest region since childhood and was very familiar with the local customs and geography of the "Jin San" area, which made it easier for her to carry out the work.

Lin Xiaoxue's father was transferred from the military in the mid-60s to support the development of the border region in the southwest. He later worked in the police system for most of his life.

When Lin Xiaoxue was in elementary school, she would follow her father to many places in the border region during every holiday until her father sacrificed his life and she joined the army.

This time, the regional leader Chen Tieshan decided that Liu Wu, the brigade commander of the "Black Panther Special Forces Brigade," and He Qiu, the brigade chief of staff, would be specifically responsible for completing this arduous task.

After receiving the mission, Chief of Staff He Qiu transferred Colonel Liu Xiaotao, the First Battalion Commander, and Lin Xiaoxue and others to assist him.

Due to the special nature of this mission, only the regional leaders, a few commanders of the "Black Panther Special Forces Brigade," and three other people knew the specific details of the mission.

When Lin Xiaoxue arrived at Chief of Staff He Qiu's office, she found Colonel Liu Xiaotao, the First Battalion Commander, and others there as well.

Chief of Staff He Qiu succinctly conveyed the regional commander's decision to the two of them, and only then did Lin Xue realize the reason for her transfer back.

After Chief of Staff He finished explaining the situation to the group, he picked up a miniature laser red dot emitter, aimed it at the military map on the opposite wall, and pressed it. A clear red dot appeared on the map.

As Chief of Staff He Qiu moved the red laser dot across the map, he said to the two men, "This is the old city occupied by the Lang brothers. According to our intelligence, there are currently two missile launch systems hidden in caves in the mountains around here."

There are more than a dozen towns on our side within the range of these missiles. These ruthless guys will do anything for money.

Headquarters instructed us to both eliminate the threat posed by these flour traffickers to our region and resolutely keep the flour out of the country. The difficulty of this task is self-evident…

Looking at the towns that Chief of Staff He pointed out, Lin Xiaoxue felt her blood flow noticeably faster.

Because her father had sacrificed his life while fighting the D, her family lived in one of the towns in this area.

Of course, there are also many relatives, friends, and classmates here. If this place is attacked, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Lin Xiaoxue secretly made up her mind that she would sacrifice her own life to safeguard national security, and also to protect her family and friends.

Chief of Staff He Qiu continued, "I have already formulated an action plan to infiltrate Kim Jong-un, tentatively called Plan K. Take a look at it first and give your opinions on any problems that arise."

As she spoke, He Qiu picked up a folder from the table and handed it to Liu Xiaotao. She then added, "You can read this in my office. All the contents must remain in your minds. Not a single word about this K Plan can be leaked. This is a top secret plan."

After reading it only once, Liu Xiaotao, Lin Xiaoxue, and others memorized the action plan. They couldn't help but secretly admire Chief of Staff He Qiu for formulating such a detailed and complete action plan in such a short time.

Seeing that the two had finished reading the plan, He Qiuchang continued, "You need to carefully consider every detail of this action plan, and at the same time find people who can carry out the mission, focusing on our 'Black Panther Special Operations Brigade'."

You should first propose a preliminary list of candidates, and then conduct further evaluations.

Time is of the essence, and the task is urgent; we must act quickly, the sooner the better.

After receiving their mission, Captain Liu Xiaotao and Lin Xiaoxue left Chief of Staff He's office.

Needless to say, the two immediately split up and started working, quickly identifying suitable candidates.

In fact, there are many people in the "Black Panther" Special Operations Brigade who are suitable for this mission, because they are all top-notch experts and all-round warriors.

The next morning, Liu Xiaotao and Lin Xiaoxue followed Chief of Staff He Qiu directly to the First Special Operations Brigade.

In the primeval forests on the southwestern border of Xia State, members of the amphibious operations squadron of the First Special Operations Battalion of the "Black Panther Special Operations Brigade" in the Southwest Region are training under the leadership of Squadron Leader Zhang Jincheng.

Although this unit belongs to the Western Region, in order to be able to operate in all geographical environments and climates, their training covers areas such as jungles, plateaus, deserts, and oceans.

At the same time, they will appear from the jungle in the desert or on an island.

Their training footprints can be found all over China, from the Yangtze River to the Great Wall.

The members of the "Tri-Amphibious Squadron" wore four-color jungle combat camouflage uniforms, and each of them had a black panther with wings embroidered on their arm patch, with a drawn sword in its claws.

This is a mark that every soldier longs to have; it is an honor, and more importantly, an affirmation of a soldier's spirit and military qualities.

Every soldier wearing this insignia is the strongest and most loyal guardian of the motherland.

The distinctive armbands reveal the unit's mysterious identity; they are the most formidable special forces in each region, an invincible group of warriors hailed as "tri-amphibious super soldiers."

This is a "tri-amphibious" all-weather combat force that Liu Wu decided to form after he took office as the commander of the "Black Panther Special Operations Brigade" in order to deal with various situations.

To form this "triphibious squadron," the members were all elites selected from various battalions across the brigade and other special forces units.

A bottom-ranking elimination system is adopted, with outstanding team members staying each year and those with average performance being eliminated and returned to their original units.

This approach helps all team members maintain high morale and increases their sense of urgency.

They are the elite of the elite special forces, known as "tigers on land, dragons in the sea, and eagles in the sky".

The first commander of this "Tri-Amphibious Squadron" was Major Zhang Jincheng, who had previously gained international renown. Zhang Jincheng had participated in...

At this moment, the team members had just finished this phase of intensive training, and were emerging from the forest in groups of three or two, quickly gathering in a clearing at the edge of the forest.

After a week of wilderness survival and combat training, the team members showed no signs of fatigue and remained energetic.

Clearly, such high-intensity training is commonplace for them.

Although the face paint obscured their expressions, each of them exuded a powerful fighting spirit, and their movements remained agile and swift.

In such a tropical rainforest, whether there is food or not makes no difference to the special forces soldiers.

They even enjoy this kind of training; finding pleasure in hardship is their best way to relieve stress.

This is the temporary camp of the "Tri-Amphibious Squadron," where the team members set up camp in the desolate mountains and wilderness.

Squad leader Zhang Jincheng said that he stood in front of the team and glanced at his team members. Seeing that everyone had returned to the team, he said nothing and waved his hand to announce the disbandment.

Zhang Jin only gives detailed instructions to his team members when announcing tasks; otherwise, he doesn't want to say a single unnecessary word.

Because their group is like one person, all the team members cooperate tacitly, and they understand each other's meaning with just a glance or a gesture.

Long-term training and combat have forged a deep understanding between them.

After being dismissed and returning to the field tent, Zhang Jincheng didn't have time to wash off the paint on his face when he suddenly heard the roar of a helicopter in the air.

Immediately afterwards, the strong winds generated by the helicopter rotors caused the field tent to bounce violently.

Zhang Jin ran out of the tent and saw a newly commissioned WZ-10 attack helicopter slowly landing not far away.

The WZ-10 is the Army's new generation of main attack helicopter for the Air Force. This model was originally scheduled to be formally developed and put into service ten years later.

However, due to Liu Zhiye's intervention, some advanced equipment from later generations has already been introduced in this timeline.

This includes the Z-10 attack helicopter, the J-10 fighter jet, the Type 99 main battle tank, and the aircraft carrier Fujian, which is currently under construction…

The WZ-10 is a professional attack helicopter independently developed by China, marking a major breakthrough for China in the field of helicopters.

Its performance is excellent in many aspects, reaching the most advanced level in the world.

The "Black Panther Special Operations Brigade," the most elite special forces unit in the Army, was among the first to be equipped with this latest helicopter.

Zhang Jin said that the helicopter's serial number indicated that it belonged to the helicopter aviation squadron directly under the brigade headquarters.

Sure enough, after the helicopter came to a stop, the first person to get off was their squadron leader, Liu Xiaotao.

Zhang Jincheng was quite puzzled at this point. Why did the battalion commander come without giving any prior notice, and why did he arrive in a helicopter squadron's plane?

Then two men and one woman, all soldiers in camouflage uniforms, got off the plane and walked towards him; they were all acquaintances.

Seeing this, Zhang Jin felt a surge of excitement, instinctively sensing that another important task was about to be assigned to them.

Accompanying the battalion commander was the brigade chief of staff, He Qiu.

Zhang Jin hurriedly jogged forward, gave a military salute, and shouted in a loud voice, "Greetings, Commander!"

"Squad Leader Zhang, the Chief of Staff has something important to tell you," Liu Xiaotao said solemnly.

He Qiu returned the greeting to Zhang Jincheng, saying, "Little Zhang, we're all acquaintances, so let's not stand on ceremony. Let's go to your squadron headquarters first..."

This was the first time Lin Xiaoxue had met the legendary Zhang Jincheng.

She felt that Zhang Jincheng's image did not quite match his legendary deeds.

Zhang Jin is the kind of person who blends into the crowd and doesn't stand out. He has a very ordinary appearance, is of medium build, but is not thin.

He stood there like a pine tree on a cliff, unyielding and invincible against any wind, rain, thunder, or lightning.

Only his deep-set eyes revealed that he was no ordinary person.

He Qiu then introduced Lin Xiaoxue to Zhang Jincheng, saying, "This is Lin Xiaoxue. She is familiar with the situation and will be participating in our mission this time."

Zhang Jincheng's rank was major. Lin Xiaoxue saluted him and said, "Good morning, Company Commander!"

Zhang Jin returned the greeting and nodded silently to her.

"Let's talk about the mission!" Chief of Staff He Qiu went straight to the point.

"You guys talk first, I'll go check on the soldiers!" Liu Xiaotao, already knowing the content of the conversation, walked out of the tent.

In addition, Zhang Jin noted that the other accompanying personnel did not enter the tent, but remained outside on guard.

This made Zhang Jin very curious about what kind of mission it was this time.

Lin Xiaoxue and the others did not follow into the tent, but rather it was out of instinct.

This is in a special forces camp. It may seem relaxed on the surface, but in fact, not even a fly could sneak in.

Therefore, no one would easily disturb them.

This field tent served as Zhang Jincheng's command post and rest area.

Zhang Jin poured a glass of water for Chief of Staff He and placed it on the simple workbench.

"Comrade Zhang Jincheng, don't bother with all that, let's talk business first." He Qiu said, sitting down. "You sit down too!"

"Yes." Zhang Jin said as he sat down opposite Chief of Staff He.

"Comrade Zhang Jincheng, I am here to discuss this with you on behalf of the regional and brigade leaders."

The word 'negotiation' is used because this task is very special.

You can agree or refuse; we won't force you.

"Given the importance of the mission, you must remember to keep it strictly secret no matter what," Chief of Staff He Qiu said very seriously.

"Yes!" Zhang Jin replied firmly.

This was the first time Zhang Jincheng had ever heard his superiors use the word "discuss" when speaking to him since he joined the army.

Because this word is rarely used in the military.

This made Zhang Jincheng wonder what kind of mission this was that was so serious.

He Qiu changed his tone and asked, "Are you familiar with the 'Golden Triangle' region across the street?"

"Reporting to the commander, I have seen some materials, but I don't know much about the details." Zhang Jin immediately stood up and answered truthfully.

He Qiu nodded, gesturing for Zhang Jincheng to sit down first, and then continued, "Comrade Lin Xiaoxue will explain the situation to you. After you hear it, please share your thoughts."

Lin Xiaoxue walked in and said to Zhang Jincheng very seriously, "I'll try to be as concise as possible. Due to historical reasons, this no-man's-land in northern Indochina Peninsula is home to..."

After Lin Xiaoxue finished explaining the situation, He Qiu said to Zhang Jincheng:

"...We need to send people infiltrate this area."

This is an extremely dangerous and arduous task.

Our superiors are also very concerned about this situation and have instructed us to strictly control the selection of personnel.

Not only must they have excellent military skills, but more importantly, they must be loyal and able to withstand all kinds of tests.

We selected from all the special forces units, and ultimately chose several candidates; you were one of them.

He Qiu looked at Zhang Jincheng with expectant eyes and said, "Because carrying out this mission requires enduring humiliation and suffering from misunderstandings by relatives and friends, I need to ask for your opinion. You can think it over before answering."

(End of this chapter)