Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Changjin Lake, a Hundred Battles, a Hundred Victories

Chapter 213 Chen Ming, do you want a wife or not?

"Brigadier General, why have you come in person again?"

Chen Ming had just finished inspecting the troops when he looked up and saw the brigade commander striding towards him. He quickly went to greet him, his tone showing a hint of surprise and respect.

"What? I can't come?" The brigade commander paused, his shrewd eyes narrowing slightly as he scrutinized Chen Ming.

"If you're not happy to see me, I'll turn around and leave right now!"

The tone was half joking and half threatening.

"Oh dear, Brigade Commander, what are you saying!" Chen Ming immediately put on a smiling face, with a hint of affectionate helplessness.

"I'd be overjoyed if you could come! But... if you were coming, you should have let me know in advance so I could have lined up a crowd to welcome you, wouldn't you say?"

As he spoke, he gestured "please".

The brigade commander snorted, then spoke in a rather amused, even slightly sarcastic, tone:
"Hmph, you're a really busy man, Chen Ming! Busy! So busy you're never even on your feet! You're over thirty and still a bachelor, you can't even find a girlfriend!"

These words were like a needle, precisely piercing Chen Ming's weak spot, making his back teeth ache.

He couldn't help but think to himself: Brigade Commander, you're a veteran revolutionary!

This is exactly the same tactic my parents used to pressure me to get married back in my past life.
The mere mention of "pressure to get married" gives Chen Ming a major headache.

In the military, his partner, Political Commissar Zhang Zhengze, was the real "leading force" in urging him to get married.

This guy went to extreme lengths, trying every trick in the book to find him a partner.

The most outrageous thing is that sometimes in the middle of the night, when Chen Ming is half asleep, he feels a shadow moving around by his bed.

As soon as I opened my eyes, good heavens, Zhang Zhengze's face peeked out from the dim light, his eyes frighteningly bright, and he asked in a low, mysterious voice:

"Old Chen, do you want a wife? Just say the word and I'll have your sister-in-law bring you one tomorrow!"

That scene could instantly scare Chen Ming's drowsiness away.

He was really afraid that if he mumbled an "uh-huh" in his sleep, Zhang Zhengze would actually bring a living person to stand in front of him the next day.

Chen Ming was completely baffled. Just a few months ago, he was a calm and composed political commissar. How could he suddenly be bewitched and single-mindedly devoted to "matchmaking" him with someone else?

Now, even the brigade commander has joined the "marriage-urging army," and his words have started to subtly and sarcastically criticize him.

As if by prior arrangement, the two of them completed their "identity switch" at some mysterious point in time.

Chen Ming strongly suspected that his former good partner, Political Commissar Zhang, had been "led astray" by the brigade commander in front of him!

Sigh, Lao Zhang, what kind of spell has the brigade commander cast on you?

Faced with the brigade commander, this "great god," Chen Ming had no temper whatsoever.

If you can’t afford to offend, can’t you still afford to hide?
"Brigade Commander, look at what you're saying," Chen Ming could only say with a bitter face, offering a plausible excuse.

"I'm doing all this for the revolutionary cause! I really don't have the mind to think about personal matters right now..."

"Stop spouting this nonsense!" The brigade commander glared at Chen Ming, interrupting him directly.

"Revolutionary work must be done, but personal problems can't be solved? According to you, if the revolution doesn't succeed in ten or eight years, are you just going to be a widower for ten or eight years?"

"Back in the Soviet areas, I saw plenty of female Red Army soldiers carrying babies on their backs while marching and fighting! If the baby cried, the mother would grit her teeth and run an extra three miles!"

"What do you call this? This is called taking care of children and making revolution at the same time!"

The brigade commander became more and more excited as he spoke, his finger almost touching Chen Ming's nose:
"Our revolution cannot be achieved with just sacrifices; it must also be sustained! Do you understand? If our generation is wiped out, to whom will the flame of revolution be passed on? Huh?"

As he spoke, he magically pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and slapped it onto Chen Ming's chest:
"Here! I've already filled out the marriage application for you! All that's missing is the name of the woman! Hurry up and see which of these outstanding women in the performing arts troupe has your eye on?"
"Just say the word, and I'll personally go and do the work for you!"

As the brigade commander spoke, he gestured with his chin toward the cultural troupe he had brought with him.

Chen Ming looked down at the report, which was almost completely filled and only missing a signature, then glanced at the group of female comrades from the cultural troupe, and was immediately at a loss for words.

He finally understood!

No wonder the brigade commander, such a busy man, would take the time to participate in this district-level military exercise, and even brought his cultural troupe along for the first time ever!
This isn't a martial arts demonstration at all; they're clearly here for Chen Ming, not for the martial arts performance!
Chen Ming had no doubt about the brigade commander's ability to execute orders.

This woman's title of "the best matchmaker in the military" is well-deserved.

The brigade commander was adept at both conventional and unconventional methods, and he was truly willing to go to great lengths to win over his subordinates.

"Brigade Commander, this...this is just setting up a marriage!" Chen Ming felt a headache coming on and quickly resorted to changing the subject. "Can we not talk about this for now? Look, all the comrades are here, eagerly waiting for you, their supreme leader, to give your mobilization speech!"

He stepped aside and pointed to the training ground where the troops had already lined up.

"Don't try to play those games with me! Trying to change the subject? No way!"

The brigade commander saw through his ruse immediately and pointed at him, warning, "After I finish speaking, you'd better give me a straight answer! You hear me?"

After finishing his speech, the brigade commander straightened his military cap and strode towards the podium, where he began his impassioned mobilization speech for the large-scale military exercise.

The brigade commander spoke eloquently on stage, while Chen Ming listened from below, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

After finally waiting for the brigade commander to finish speaking, he walked off the stage with a radiant face, and his eyes swept around—where was Chen Mingren?
"Where did that kid Chen Ming run off to?" The brigade commander grabbed Zhang Zhengze, who was presiding over the event, and asked him abruptly.

"Huh? Brigade Commander, he was just here!" Zhang Zhengze looked around blankly.

"Strange, they disappeared in the blink of an eye."

At this moment, Chen Ming had already taken advantage of the pretext of "inspecting the troops" to move freely among the various military formations participating in the grand military exercise.

His sharp gaze, like a searchlight, swept across the soldiers' faces and figures, while his mental notebook quickly jotted down their observations:

"Good! This soldier has a fierce look in his eyes and moves swiftly; he's a promising recruit. Make a note of him!"

"Hey? That one over there is not bad either, solid build, full of energy and spirit, remember him too!"

Chen Ming secretly calculated his own "talent ranking": rabble, newly trained, seasoned veteran, and battle-hardened soldier.

In this large-scale military exercise, all units clearly revealed their strengths, bringing out their best soldiers and key personnel.

Looking around, most of the soldiers had reached the level of "battle-hardened veterans," and there were even some top-notch soldiers like the "battle-hardened elite soldiers" he had just discovered.

The sight made Chen Ming's heart flutter with desire, and he couldn't help but feel envious.

Although there are many soldiers in his independent detachment who have reached this level, who would complain about having too many talented people, especially top combat talents?
Chen Ming's mind was already racing with calculations as he figured out how to "wield the hoe."

There's an old saying that goes, "If you swing your hoe well, no corner is too hard to dig down..."

Cough, no! How can something that happens within the military be called "poaching"?

This is called "talent exchange and coordination within the revolutionary family"!
What can't be coordinated in the military? From a small piece of clothing to large items like weapons and ammunition, there's nothing that can't be "coordinated".

What are the advantages of an independent detachment? It's simply that it has a large pool of talent and ample weaponry!
At that time, Chen Ming will go all out, secure a preferential allocation of talent among the graduating class, and add a batch of real weapons and ammunition support. He doesn't believe he can't win over these elite soldiers!
Although the final allocation of talent trained in the four districts rests with the headquarters.

However, as the head of the training unit, his recommendations on allocation carry significant weight and can influence the destination of these valuable talents.

Think back to when Ding Wei and the new regiment were incorporated into the army. Wasn't it all thanks to a batch of artillery pieces and a platoon of artillery graduates that they were "coordinated" from the brigade commander?
Ding Weijia could handle an entire regiment, let alone a few elite soldiers from other units.
The training in the Fourth Division cultivates trainees who have both a solid theoretical foundation and practical combat experience, enabling them to become the backbone of their respective units with a little adaptation.

Every year as graduation season approaches, the commanders of various units flock to the Fourth Military Sub-district like bees smelling flowers, doing everything they can to reserve talent in advance.

There are too many monks and not enough porridge, so the competition is fierce.

Otherwise, how could Chen Ming have repeatedly "coordinated" so many cadres and technical backbones from the Jizhong base area?
Do they really think he's so arrogant? It's just because he has a key say in talent allocation, and the central Hebei region is hoping to get more talent there to strengthen their forces.

"Hey, I wonder if I'll be the one reviewing the graduation theses of those troublesome officers like Li Yunlong and Kong Jie when they go to the military academy for further studies..."

A slightly wicked thought suddenly popped into Chen Ming's mind.

This wasn't just some random thought. Given Chen Ming's current qualifications, illustrious military achievements, and contributions to training and supplying a large number of key personnel to the entire army, this was a logical conclusion.

Let him go back to the military academy as a student and attend classes with Li Yunlong and the others.
That's a joke!
Why would a senior general who has commanded large-scale military operations and has a vision of the future go on to study basic military theory?

I'm afraid he'll have to co-write all the textbooks he uses! Just thinking about it... um?

Chen Ming quickly reined in his wandering thoughts. It was too early to think about that now; there were still seven or eight years to go.

He steadied himself and continued weaving through the densely packed ranks, his discerning eyes searching for the next target like those of a hawk.

"You little bastard Chen Ming! I was just saying a few words on stage, and you've already come here to 'dig for treasure'?!"

A familiar yet fiery voice boomed behind him like a thunderclap.

P.S.: Due to health reasons, I went to the hospital today, so I can only update this much. I'm taking a day off and will make up for it tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)