Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 54, Suppressing Bandits in Fuyang: A Combined Air-Ground Operation
The moment bandits were mentioned, all fell silent.

This word carries a lot of weight in Fuyang.

A local gentry member stepped forward and said, "County Magistrate, let me explain the situation to Mr. Fang."

“Alright, you’ve been in this county for many years and know the situation best, so you can speak.” The county head nodded in agreement.

This person seemed to recall something from the past, and a sense of sadness welled up within them even before they began to speak.

“Our Fuyang is located on a plain with abundant grain, and it used to be a good place. But in recent years, it has been plagued by bandits, each one more vicious than the last. This once prosperous granary has been turned into a place of fear and misery for the people.”

Fang Wen's expression changed as he listened.

In his mind, bandits were just a few dozen people who robbed and plundered.

But to my surprise, it turned out to be as brutal as the local gentry had described, with thousands of people involved at the drop of a hat.

The problem lies in the geographical characteristics of Fuyang.

This is the border area of ​​several provinces. Because of the warlordism in different provinces, bandits who committed crimes in other places would flee here.

Other warlords couldn't cross the border, and the local ones couldn't defeat these bandits.

Over time, the bandit forces grew stronger in Fuyang.

Looting villages, seizing territory, and even massacring entire villages and families were not uncommon.

At their peak, they even attacked county towns, and after being granted amnesty, they transformed into local warlords.

Even now, although the warlords are gone, there are still two bandit groups.

One group consisted of several thousand deserters led by a former Kuomintang regimental commander.

They had many warhorses, which moved quickly and roamed all over the Huainan Plain.

The other group consisted of local bandits, comprised of dozens of gangs, and were the most ruthless.

Because the two bandit groups were familiar with the terrain and secretly colluded with the locals, they were always able to escape by giving advance notice of each raid.

They are now constantly harassing the perimeter of the anti-bandit army, but they have been unable to track them down.

After listening to the local gentry's words, Fang Wen looked at the two officers.

What are your thoughts on this?

Regiment Commander Ning Hangsheng spoke up: "I am a soldier, I am straightforward and speak the truth. The fact that the bandits have been able to evade our encirclements every time means that someone in Fuyang is colluding with them, and not just an ordinary person. I think it is very likely that it is among you. What we discussed today will probably reach the bandits' ears by tonight."

The local officials and gentry present immediately became noisy, wanting to debate with the officer.

The county magistrate stood up to stop him: "What Commander Ning said is not impossible. In order to ensure the success of the bandit suppression, I think it would be best for everyone to avoid suspicion."

Despite their dissatisfaction, the officials and gentry followed him downstairs and left after the county magistrate's persuasion.

People are gone.

Ning Hangsheng smiled and said, "Mr. Fang, I have no choice but to play the bad cop. Now that's convenient, we can talk business."

The deputy, Ni Shinai, stood up. "I've arranged for guards to keep watch around here. This time, there will absolutely be no leaks."

With Ni Shinai gone, only Fang Wen and Ning Hangsheng remained on the second floor of the restaurant.

Ning Hangsheng took out a map, his face serious.

"Both bandit groups had their own territories. The deserters operated in the Fangji and Gongqiao areas, while the local bandit gang operated in the Chaiji area."

"The orders from above are for me to annihilate the local bandits, defeat the deserters, and then incorporate them into other places. From now on, this place will be garrisoned by my regiment."

"My idea is that you, Mr. Fang, conduct aerial reconnaissance and mark the bandits' activity area on the map, and then I will send people to surround and wipe them out. In this way, no third party will know my plan, and we will definitely be able to annihilate the bandits."

Ning Hangsheng spoke clearly and logically, and the entire operation was well-planned.

If it were a different pilot, he might have done as he said.

But Fang Wen wouldn't; with his knowledge of the future, he saw things more clearly than Ning Hangsheng.

He gave an example.

"Commander Ning, two months ago when we were bombing the Japanese army, we encountered enemy aircraft blocking our way. Our friendly forces in the direction of Nanjing Airport and Jianqiao Airport were blocked. They did not plant spies within our ranks, but instead sent people to guard outside the airports to record the number of flights and the time, and then sent them back. The Japanese staff then analyzed this information and made interception arrangements."

Ning Hangsheng's expression changed.

“I understand what you mean. Even if it’s a last-minute action plan, it won’t escape the eyes and ears of the city. Once my group takes action, they might pass the information to the bandits. It’s really troublesome, Mr. Fang. Since you say so, do you have a way to deal with it?”

Fang Wen nodded, "There is a method, and we're not afraid of the bandits finding out. It's called 'air-ground coordinated operations'."

"Air-ground coordinated operations, does that mean our unit and your aircraft are conducting joint operations? How exactly will that be done?" Ning Hangsheng asked, puzzled.

“The airport tower has a radio that can communicate with the aircraft in real time, but it needs a power source to operate. Therefore, you need to arrange a military vehicle to carry the radio and diesel generator.”

Fang Wen described the prototype of the future battlefield command vehicle, feeling a little proud. He could boast that he was the first person in the world to propose the concept of a battlefield command vehicle. Ning Hangsheng was amazed after listening to Fang Wen's explanation.

So this is how war can be waged.

It was something he had never learned at military school.

But one can understand the mystery behind it.

The essence of war is simply knowing yourself and your enemy, and defeating the enemy beforehand.

If we do as Fang Wen said, the planes in the sky will report the bandits' whereabouts to the ground in real time, and our army can attack wherever we want without worrying about the bandits having spies or moving in advance.

“Great! Our regiment has a truck that transports military supplies. We can do as you suggested, sir. We’ll head back now.”

Ning Hangsheng couldn't wait to pull Fang Wen downstairs and hurriedly led the deputy regimental commander and guards away from the county town.

The officials and gentry of Fuyang who were waiting outside were completely baffled and had no idea what the soldiers were up to. They could only disperse and wait for the outcome.

Fang Wen returned to the airport, and Ning Hangsheng's headquarters also moved into the airport.

They began to plan the action.

The equipment inside the control tower was carefully unloaded by the soldiers and placed into military trucks.

Then they lifted the 20-horsepower diesel generator into the truck.

In this way, aviation radio equipment can be used in the truck, powered by the diesel generator.

After airport staff tested and confirmed that the wireless equipment was working properly, the plan began.

The next morning, the entire Ninghang student group assembled and waited for orders.

Fang Wen boarded the Qingyun aircraft and flew into the sky.

High above Fuyang County, Fang Wen is determining the location.

Chaiji is marked on the map as being southwest of Fuyang.

He turned the plane around and flew southwest.

Before long, in his mechanical perception state, he discovered the cluster of buildings on the ground.

That's Chaiji.

But where are the bandits?

Fang Wen focused intently on observing, trying to find anything unusual.

Below, wisps of smoke rise, indicating that people are preparing breakfast.

These days, people burn firewood and coal, which produces a lot of smoke.

But in one place, the smoke was particularly thick.

An ordinary family doesn't need to burn that much firewood, and even three to five families wouldn't need it.

There's definitely something wrong there.

Fang Wen shifted his attention to that place.

It is a courtyard on a hillside.

The area was surrounded by simple stone walls, which served both defensive and visual obstruction purposes.

Inside the stone wall, a large group of people were eating in front of several large pots.

There are approximately 200 people.

But there was something else amiss behind the earthen slope.

Dozens of horses were grazing, and a group of people sat on the ground next to them, making a fire.

These circumstances combined indicate that they are definitely not ordinary people.

There are no local militia forces in Chaiji, so there is only one possibility: they are a branch of bandits hiding here.

Fang Wen picked up the wireless microphone.

"Eagle calling jackals, please respond."

"Jackal, please speak."

"Target located, number between 200 and 300, including cavalry. Location: earthen hill east of Chaiji. Your unit may proceed. I will provide updates as needed."

(End of this chapter)