Southern guerrilla warfare: I led the Red Seventh Army Corps to amassed a million troops.

Hu Tiantao stood with her hands behind her back, her gaze sweeping over the ranks on the playground, her tone calm and unhurried:

"It's okay to be slow. There are so many new recruits, there's nothing we can do about it. But when it comes to the crucial moment, not a single one of them falters or shirks their duties. They're all good comrades."

Zhao Zhiming was still somewhat worried: "But we've expanded too fast. Now, nearly 40% of our regiment consists of new recruits."

"The comrades in the Red Army's team are all alright; they can basically keep up with the pace. The workers are also good; they're hardworking and resilient. It's just those student soldiers from Fuzhou..."

He paused, then sighed, "Sigh, I'm really afraid they won't be able to keep up and will hold us back."

Hu Tiantao's face immediately darkened. She turned her head and glared at him, then lowered her voice and cursed:

"Do you even know how much effort I put in, how many times I talked myself hoarse, to get fifty student soldiers? And you're already complaining?"

"Let me tell you, these are all treasures! At the very least, they'll make you a regimental staff officer. The exceptional ones will have a brighter future than me. You'd better be more careful!"

Zhao Zhiming shrank back after being scolded, and quickly defended himself: "Of course I know they're valuable. But this time we're going to fight on the outside, so... do you think we should leave them behind?"

Hu Tiantao snorted: "Don't worry, the chief of staff knows these things much better than we do. He's known for being extremely meticulous."

He lowered his voice and leaned closer, "I have another good news for you. Now, Comrade Zeyuan is in charge."

Zhao Zhiming scratched his head, looking puzzled. "Here... Comrade Zeyuan has always been in charge, hasn't he? Commander, you're not just finding out now?"

Hu Tiantao immediately cursed, "Bullshit! You're the one who's ignorant. The one I'm talking about, the one who's in charge, is different from the previous one."

"Now, no one dares to challenge him for the helmsman's position. Comrade Zeyuan has already declared that Comrade Su Yu will have full command of this battle."

"The orders from the Legion Headquarters and the Central Committee can be selectively obeyed; this truly means that when a general is in the field, he may disobey certain military orders."

"Huh?!" Zhao Zhiming exclaimed, his voice standing out starkly in the quiet playground.

The soldiers around them all turned to look.

He immediately shut his mouth, leaned close to Hu Tiantao's ear, and asked, "Is this true? This surprise is too sudden!"

Hu Tiantao's lips curled slightly: "How could it be fake? Now do you think there's still a problem with bringing these new recruits along?"

Zhao Zhiming shook his head vigorously, "No problem, absolutely no problem!"

"I have understood Comrade Zeyuan's meaning. We must take the initiative and use combat as training! This will not only strike the enemy but also give these new recruits ample training, cultivating fresh blood for the Red Army."

Hu Tiantao said in a serious tone, "Comrade Zhiming, your recent progress is very obvious, and the organization will not turn a blind eye to it. After this battle is over, I will personally report to Comrade Zeyuan and make sure you perform well."

"Yes, sir! Mission accomplished!" Zhao Zhiming straightened up and gave a standard military salute.

After the Second Division arrived to relieve them.

The troops set off overnight, avoiding Nationalist reconnaissance planes, and headed to the designated assembly point to join the Third Division.

After handing the troops over to the political commissar, Hu Tiantao, accompanied by his bodyguards, went to the command post for a meeting to receive his combat mission.

When Hu Tiantao arrived, the high-ranking officers of the Legion were having a meeting.

He gestured for the guard to stay outside, then lifted the curtain and went inside, quietly sitting down near the door.

Su Yu stood in front of the map, holding a baton in her hand, her expression focused and calm.

He did not stop because of Hu Tiantao's entry.

"Let me first give you an overview of the current enemy situation. On the southern front, along the line from Fuzhou to Datian, which is the lower reaches of the Minjiang River, in addition to our old acquaintances, Wang Jingjiu of the 87th Division of the National Revolutionary Army and Wang Yaowu of the 1st Supplementary Brigade, there is another unit."

"Liu Kan, a newly transferred member of the 83rd Division of the National Revolutionary Army, is currently responsible for the defense along the Minjiang River and supporting the areas of Fuzhou and Datian."

The baton moved north and stopped at the location of Ningde and Fu'an: "On the northern front, there are two more troops. One is the 49th Division of the National Revolutionary Army under Wu Chengren, which came from Hubei and is currently stationed in Fu'an."

"The original newly formed 10th Division was stationed entirely in Ningde, forming a stalemate with our army."

Upon hearing this, Ye Fei continued, "Recently, our Mindong Independent Division and this newly formed 10th Division have had two minor clashes."

"In my opinion, their combat strength is only second-rate. This arrangement is clearly intended to send ragtag troops to their deaths in front, while the core forces clean up the mess behind the scenes."

Su Yu nodded and added, "According to intelligence, Wu Chengren, the commander of the 49th Division, is a graduate of the Whampoa Military Academy, but the division was originally formed from local warlords."

"Therefore, it's possible that both divisions were ragtag units sent to their deaths."

His baton slid to the left, landing in the area between Pingnan and Ningde.

"The 80th Division of the National Revolutionary Army stationed on the Pingning Ancient Road is a core unit of the Central Army. If the newly formed 10th Division can't hold us off, the 49th Division will become the bait."

There was a moment of silence in the meeting room as everyone pondered the possibilities.

Zhou Zeyuan spoke up at the opportune moment: "Let me add something. Chen Mingren, the commander of the 80th Division, is a famous general in the National Revolutionary Army, especially skilled in fighting in adversity. In terms of defensive warfare alone, he is no less capable than Wang Yaowu."

Hu Tiantao raised an eyebrow slightly, his tone carrying a hint of disdain: "Commander, from what you're saying, this Chen Mingren seems to be slightly inferior to Wang Yaowu? He's only good at defensive battles?"

Su Yu sensed the underestimation in his words and his expression turned serious: "Comrade Tian Tao, don't underestimate Wang Yaowu's strength just because we won the Battle of Huanxi."

"We won that battle very narrowly. Military success or failure sometimes does not necessarily indicate the relative strength of the enemy and ourselves."

Sitting to the side, Ye Fei, the political commissar of the Mindong Independent Division, nodded in agreement.

Hu Tiantao curled her lips, and although she did not refute, her contempt was evident in her words.

Zhou Zeyuan saw this but didn't rush to criticize. Instead, he gently pressed his hand down to signal everyone to be quiet.

"There's a detail we overlooked in our last military debriefing. Let me add it."

Upon hearing this, everyone sat up straight.

Liu Shengmu, Zeng Hongyi, and Le Shaohua all picked up the pens on the table and opened their notebooks without prior arrangement.

"In the last Battle of Huanxi, our army was generally victorious, with a casualty ratio of 800 to more than 2,000, which was quite considerable."

"However, half of the casualties inflicted on the 1st Supplementary Brigade by our army occurred during the pursuit. The majority of our casualties, on the other hand, occurred during the earlier defensive battles."

"In other words, in the early stages of the offensive and defensive battles, although our army had the advantage of terrain, our casualties were probably only equal to or slightly higher than those of the enemy."

"Now that I've said that, you probably have a better understanding of the strength of the First Supplementary Brigade and Wang Yaowu, right?"

There was a moment of silence in the command center.

The dismissive look on Hu Tiantao's face gradually faded, and the other commanders' expressions also became serious.

Zhou Zeyuan's words were like a heavy hammer blow, striking hard at the arrogance of the military.