You are ordered to support the War of Resistance against Japan; China enters Level 1 combat readines

"I'm all set up!"

The brigade commander looked completely innocent.

Deputy Commander Lu was completely dumbfounded.

He stared at the brigade commander with his mouth agape, as if he were looking at someone who was talking nonsense.

"When? You only glanced at the Japanese defense map, and you didn't even hold a war council meeting?"

The brigade commander smiled, a faint smile, as if he were saying something perfectly natural.

"Why hold a war meeting? It's just attacking a county town, what's the need for such a detailed plan?"

He patted Deputy Commander Lu on the shoulder with considerable force, causing Lu to flinch.

"Old Lu, you can keep an eye on it tomorrow."

This time, Deputy Commander Lu was genuinely angry and laughed.

It's just a county town, isn't it?

"Good! Good! Good! Old Cen, you've got quite the nerve! You act like conquering the county town is as easy as drinking water!"

He took a deep breath, swallowed the air stuck in his throat, and nodded vigorously, as if he were talking to himself.

"Tomorrow I'll see how your troops in southeastern Shanxi attack a county town."

The brigade commander laughed heartily, his eyes narrowing into slits.

"Don't worry, I'll make you pay tomorrow."

The two were old acquaintances. A part of the Ludong Column was separated from the 129th Division. Even the current commander of the Ludong Column was the former deputy division commander, who was also one of the top ten most famous.

When old comrades meet, they may be sarcastic with their words, but their hearts are warm with affection.

Deputy Commander Lu rolled his eyes at him.

"Um, I haven't eaten dinner yet!"

The brigade commander paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"So you've come here to beg for money, huh?"

"Great! There's plenty of food today!"

The brigade commander ordered someone to bring some self-heating rations and distribute them to the comrades in eastern Shandong.

A short while later, several soldiers ran over carrying cardboard boxes. When the boxes were opened, they revealed neatly stacked square cardboard boxes inside, exactly the same as what the soldiers had eaten before.

Deputy Commander Lu took the box, looked at it over and over, unsure where to begin.

The brigade commander took it, tore open the packaging, pulled out the heating bag inside, poured in some water, stuffed the staple food bag inside, folded the opening, and placed it on the ground.

"Wait a minute, it'll be ready in a few minutes."

Deputy Commander Lu squatted on the ground, staring at the steaming cardboard box as if it were a bomb about to explode.

His nose twitched as the rich, overpowering aroma wafted out from the cracks in the cardboard box, making his stomach rumble with anticipation.

"Old Cen."

He looked up at the brigade commander, his voice a little muffled.

"Is this what you usually eat?"

The brigade commander nodded.

"No, we only eat this when we're on a major mission or marching."

"We usually eat communal meals at the base, just like you guys."

Deputy Commander Lu nodded. That's more like it.

He looked down at the pile of colorful packaging bags on the ground, then at the mountain of rations piled up beside him, and was immediately filled with anguish. He slapped his thigh and said:

"It's still too extravagant!"

"What about discipline? What about the tradition of building a frugal army?"

"alright."

The brigade commander squatted down, opened the heating bag, and an even stronger aroma wafted out.

He took a pair of chopsticks and handed them to Deputy Commander Lu.

"Try it."

Deputy Commander Lu swallowed hard, still stubbornly insisting, "I won't eat it, it's too extravagant..."

But his hand honestly took the chopsticks, picked up a piece of braised pork, and put it in his mouth.

The tender and flavorful braised pork melts in your mouth, and the rich aroma of meat instantly fills your entire oral cavity.

Deputy Commander Lu's eyes lit up immediately.

He shoveled another mouthful of rice into his mouth and began to wolf it down.

After a few bites, half a box of rice was gone.

The brigade commander crossed his arms, looked at him with a smile, and didn't say anything.

Deputy Commander Lu devoured the entire box in a whirlwind, even mixing the broth with rice and eating it all up.

He put down his lunchbox, wiped his mouth, licked his lips with lingering satisfaction, then looked at the brigade commander with an expectant expression and said:

"Um... Old Cen... do you have any more?"

"Hahahaha!" The brigade commander was thoroughly amused by his old buddy.

Not far away, the soldiers who came with Deputy Commander Lu also received a personal ration.

Looking at the steaming hot food in their hands, they were all moved to tears.

Many people have never eaten such delicious braised pork in their entire lives.

Everyone devoured their food, their faces beaming with happiness.

After we finished eating, it was completely dark.

Bonfires were lit around the camp, and the soldiers sat around them, chatting and laughing.

Deputy Commander Lu patted his round belly, leaned against a rock, and looked at the tanks and cannons gleaming coldly in the moonlight in the distance, his eyes filled with anticipation.

"Hey Lao Cen, you guys are eating so well, don't let us down tomorrow!"

"Don't worry, it won't!"

"You have three days. Can you take Jiaodong City?"

"It should... be okay, right?"

"You guys are already very impressive, taking over a county in three days."

"Right..."

. . .

The next day.

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

The loud reveille broke the silence of Yimeng Mountain.

The soldiers quickly packed their gear and boarded the armored vehicles.

With a command from the brigade commander, the steel torrent was launched once again, charging toward the final objective.

Deputy Commander Lu led the soldiers of the Ludong Column, following at the very back of the main force.

Looking at the endless tanks and armored vehicles ahead, and listening to the deafening roar of their engines, the soldiers of Ludong were all stunned.

The silver-gray tanks were lined up in a neat wedge formation, their heavy tracks grinding across the ground, leaving two deep ruts.

Sunlight shone on the cold armor, reflecting a dazzling light. An armored vehicle followed closely behind, its roof-mounted machine gun gleaming coldly.

The soldiers stood by the roadside, swallowing unconsciously, their eyes filled with awe and longing.

"My God... is this the legendary tank? It's so impressive!"

"Look at that cannon barrel, it's thicker than my waist! One shot and it'd flatten any pillbox!"

"If only we could drive tanks like these! Why would we need bayonet charges to fight the Japanese? We could just run them over!"

Deputy Commander Lu was also deeply moved by what he saw.

He had fought for more than a decade and had seen both the Nationalist and Japanese tanks, but he had never seen so many armored units in such orderly formation.

At 10:00 a.m., the troops arrived at the city of Jiaodong on time.

From a distance, the ancient city wall stands alone on the plain, with a few tattered Japanese flags stuck on it.

The Japanese sentries hid behind the battlements, peering out cautiously with expressions of terror on their faces.

"Old Cen, are you ready?"

Deputy Commander Lu turned to look at the brigade commander and said solemnly, "Don't force yourself. Don't push yourself. Although our Ludong Column is poorly equipped, we still have several thousand men who can step in at any time."

"Don't worry, it'll be fine."

The brigade commander waved his hand and casually picked up the walkie-talkie hanging around his neck.

"Attention, all units! Attention, all units!" The brigade commander's voice was clearly transmitted to every vehicle crew through the walkie-talkie.

"Prepare for attack!"

"Prepare for attack!"