Even if I'm a useless bum at Whampoa Military Academy, I'll be invincible in the War of Re

Behind Erlongzhai, Feitianlong secretly rejoiced that he had run fast; if he had been a day slower, he would have been stuck in the narrow passage.

He clung tightly to the chest filled with gold and silver, but it was so heavy that he couldn't run fast at all.

At this time, the mountain stronghold was in complete chaos. Some were scrambling to escape, others were taking advantage of the situation to rob people, and still others were so audacious that they even attacked good people. No one was thinking of resisting.

Explosions rang out one after another, and the sounds of bugles and shouts of battle were terrifying. The government troops stormed up the mountain, and the bandits, big and small, fled in terror like headless flies.

Feitianlong carried the wooden box weighing dozens of kilograms, running until he was out of breath, but he couldn't bear to throw it away, preferring to risk his life rather than part with the money.

The company commander waited for a long time before he saw a bandit crawl into the net, followed by a noisy bunch of people. It was definitely a big fish.

The deputy company commander excitedly leaned over and asked:

"This is definitely a bandit leader. He's carrying a wooden crate as he tries to escape; it's definitely full of gold and silver. Should we take him alive?"

The company commander shook his head and said:

"What's the point of keeping them alive? Are they just wasting food?"

"Open fire! Use machine guns to wipe them out!"

The deputy platoon leader excitedly accepted the order and left. A short while later, machine gun fire broke out. Caught off guard, Flying Dragon was hit by several bullets and fell down.

The treasure chest was smashed open, and gold and silver tumbled to the ground, glittering and tempting even from a distance.

Gunshots shattered the tranquility of the back mountain and startled the fleeing bandits, who scattered in all directions in terror.

Qin Feng had already prepared a backup plan. The soldiers of the Third Company were positioned in a fan shape, and the company's dozen or so machine guns opened fire on the remaining bandits, wiping out a large number of them and completely stunning the scene.

Seeing that they had nowhere to go, the bandits all raised their hands to surrender. Some even captured their leaders to claim credit. The second and third leaders tried to resist but were beaten to death by the bandits.

The Erlongzhai village was in chaos. The First and Second Companies seized the opportunity to rush in, shouting that surrendering their weapons would not result in death.

With nowhere else to turn, the bandits surrendered one after another, and the Tiger Warriors easily captured the mountain stronghold and happily took the prisoners.

The bandits who escaped from the back mountain were also wiped out by the Third Company; some died, some surrendered, and the battle ended in less than half a day.

Next, they would clean up the battlefield and loot the bandit's den. Erlongzhai was one of the most notorious bandit dens in the surrounding area, and Qin Feng was full of anticipation.

As soon as he stepped into the mountain stronghold, Company Commander Xiao Jin came running over excitedly, waving his arms and legs.

"Battalion Commander, we've struck it rich!"

"We've struck it rich!"

Qin Feng, feeling itchy from being tickled, said impatiently:

"Look at your upbringing. What good stuff could a bandit's den possibly have? Hurry up and stop being so cryptic."

Despite being reprimanded by the battalion commander, Xiao Jin didn't care at all and deliberately lowered his voice to say:

"More than 100 bandits were killed, including the chief leader Fei Tianlong. The second and third leaders also escaped. 538 young and strong bandits were captured, along with more than 200 elderly people and children."

More than 400 rifles and pistols, two homemade cannons, and a quantity of ammunition and supplies were seized.

They also found the Flying Dragon's treasure vault, which contained three chests of gold bars (271 bars), over 5 silver dollars, two chests of gold and silver jewelry, and several caves piled high with grain!

Qin Feng never expected that such a small bandit den would contain so much wealth: guns and ammunition, gold and silver jewelry, grain and prisoners. He made a fortune and showed off his wealth.

"Company Commander Xiao, all of this will belong to our Tiger Army from now on. Take your men and empty the entire mountain stronghold, leaving nothing behind, people and belongings!"

Afterwards, destroy the stronghold to prevent others from taking over and becoming bandits.

Xiao Jin said excitedly:

"Don't worry, I'm familiar with this, I know how to do it."

Xiao Jin organized the captured bandits, women, and children to move supplies. Guns, gold, silver, and other valuables were transferred by the troops. Important items were moved first, and food was moved last.

The Tiger Legion, the military headquarters—good news kept coming one after another, leaving Zhao Yunwen almost numb. Then Xie Polu brought another one:

"The 1st Battalion of the 647th Regiment wiped out Feilongzhai, annihilating 700 bandits, including more than 500 prisoners, and more than 200 women and children. The gold and silver jewelry seized alone amounted to more than 100,000 silver dollars."

The amount of guns, ammunition, and food was also considerable; this was the most brilliant victory since the suppression of bandits in southern Henan!

After Xie Polu finished speaking, he handed the list of spoils of war to Zhao Yunwen, who couldn't help but exclaim in admiration after reading it:

"The 647th Regiment did a great job this time, wiping out the bandits who had plagued the area for more than a decade and reaping a great harvest."

Qin Feng was promoted to lieutenant colonel and deputy commander of the 647th Regiment, and commander of the 1st Battalion. Each soldier was awarded 10 silver dollars. All meritorious personnel were to be promoted, with the 1st Battalion of the 647th Regiment reporting the promotions up the chain of command.

Xie Polu continued, saying:

"The various units have achieved remarkable results in suppressing bandits. All the major bandit groups that were known have been wiped out, and the rest have fled in disarray. There are no longer any organized bandit gangs in the Xinyang area."

"In that case, let's stop! The training has been effective; how many bandits were eliminated in total?"

Xie Polu had all the battle results recorded, and when Zhao Yunwen asked, he recounted them in great detail:

"The various units killed a total of 1142 bandits, wounded and captured more than 6, and more than 3 women and children."

More than 3800 rifles and pistols, 4 cannons, more than 400,000 rounds of ammunition, more than 2,000 tons of grain, and valuables totaling more than 500,000 silver dollars were seized.

Zhao Yunwen's smile widened. This victory was comparable to that of the previous medium-sized battle. As expected, he wanted to get rich by first eliminating bandits.

With this in mind, he made a decision:

"I have decided to end the bandit suppression operation here and organize a public trial in seven days at the National Middle School playground in the city."

Bring those bandits, big and small, who have stained their blood with the blood of the people, to the assembly for a public trial! Any people who have suffered at the hands of the bandits can stand up and file a complaint.

We should also do some preliminary research, letting the bandits report on each other in the form of a grievance meeting. Punishing the ringleaders alone is not enough; we also need to take some money and grain from the spoils of war to compensate the victims.

"Prior notice must be given, and local officials and gentry must be mobilized to convey the message to everyone: anyone coming to the city to file a complaint will have their travel expenses covered by the confiscated money and grain."

Xie Polu wrote down all of Zhao Yunwen's requests and then handed them over to Lu Ping to implement.

Zhao Yunwen had made up his mind. Before reorganizing these thousands of bandits, he would carry out a cleanup and make those big and small leaders who had harmed the people pay the price they deserved.

Xie Polu then relayed the order to all divisions, thus ending the bandit suppression campaign. Many of these bandits were defeated soldiers. Relying on their guns, they wreaked havoc in the villages, and the Tiger Legion had just managed to wipe them all out.

With the cooperation of the local government, the news spread quickly, and Li Youtian from Lijia Village also learned of it. He told everyone he met:

"Commander Zhao said long ago that the Tiger Legion is going to fight bandits, so they won't have to pay money or grain to the bandits anymore."

Ernao said in a fawning tone:

"Brother Youtian has finally made an appearance. I heard that the officer who had dinner at your house last time was Commander Zhao."

What a high-ranking official he must be! Even the county magistrate would have to kowtow to him!

My goodness, Commander Zhao even harvested rice for your family.

Fourth Aunt leaned over and said:

"You Tian, ​​I need your help. My daughter Yan Ni has such a hard life. She was harmed by those damned bandits and driven to commit suicide."

"I'm going to the county to take the imperial examination. Could you please put in a good word for me with Commander Zhao?"

Li Youtian said with some difficulty:

"Commander Zhao is in charge of over a million people, he's very busy, I might not be able to see him."

"Youtian, you don't even need to see Commander Zhao. Just talk to those people handling things. I even heard he calls you 'Big Brother'!"

The others also begged Li Youtian for help. He had never felt so proud in front of others before, and he agreed without really understanding what was going on.

The people of Lijia Village agreed to go to the city together, with the clan chief providing the travel expenses. He was just worried about not having a chance to curry favor with Li Youtian.

The seven-day appointment arrived quickly. Li Youtian and the others arrived in the city early and, guided by a special person, arrived at the National Middle School's playground, which was already packed with people.

Many people set off two days in advance, fearing that the long journey would delay things. The officials had already spread the word that they would not only seek justice but also compensate people with money and grain.

Fourth Aunt wanted to seek justice for the tragically killed Ni, so she craned her neck longer than anyone else, but she didn't see Commander Zhao.

She felt uncertain because she couldn't see Commander Zhao.

The Tiger Legion had set up a platform in advance on the parade ground, and the villagers who came to seek justice and watch the excitement surrounded it. Fortunately, the Tiger Legion's military police maintained order, preventing chaos.

Now that it is wartime, safety is always the top priority. The Tiger Legion has not only dispatched military police, but also hidden a large number of snipers at various high points, and there are also plainclothes officers among the crowd.

At nine o'clock in the morning, the public trial officially began. Xie Polu loudly proclaimed:

"Let's welcome Commander Zhao of the Tiger Army to speak!"