Chapter 1 The Second Battalion Camp

The 101st Independent Regiment, Second Battalion camp.

Under the dim light of the late night, more than five hundred soldiers, with their hands behind their backs, stood as straight as spears in the square in front of the camp.

The Second Battalion Commander faced them, also with his hands behind his back, and shouted loudly, "Listen up, all of you. Xing, that drunkard, has been promoted. Now he's a senior colonel and he's coming here to pick soldiers. When your name is called, step forward automatically! Got it?"

"Yes!"

The soldiers shouted in unison, their voices synchronized.

Xing Yao walked over speechlessly and kicked the Second Battalion Commander in the butt. "Are you screwing with me in front of all these people again?"

The Second Battalion Commander grinned. "Aren't you hot stuff now? Come on, Mr. Officer, after you!"

"Alright, then I won't be polite. Not many people, just a piece of paper!"

With that, Xing Yao pulled out a sheet of A4 paper from his pocket, densely printed with a list of names.

The Second Battalion Commander took it and trembled with anger, pointing at the list and saying, "Damn it, so many people? Are you trying to drain me dry?"

Xing Yao said helplessly, "No choice, this is a task from above. It's okay if you don't want to pick people, I don't want to go anyway. Why don't you go in my place?"

"Fine! Let you choose!" The Second Battalion Commander gritted his teeth and shouted to the soldiers in front of him, "Attention!"

"Pa!"

Everyone immediately straightened their legs, staring straight ahead.

"Step forward when you hear your name!" The Second Battalion Commander held the list and read out, "Reconnaissance Company, First Platoon, Third Squad, Zhao Xi!"

"Here!"

A soldier with a firm gaze stepped out.

"Firepower Company, Second Platoon, Second Squad, Wang Hai!"

"Here!"

Another soldier stepped out of the ranks.

"Engineering Company..."

The calling of names lasted for a full twenty minutes, and more than a hundred soldiers stood out and lined up in another square formation.

"Enough, right?"

The Second Battalion Commander turned to look at Xing Yao.

"There's more." Xing Yao took another step forward and asked the soldiers, "Anyone under twenty-five, step forward!"

"Swish!"

Fifty or sixty people stepped out of the ranks.

Xing Yao then asked, "Anyone who knows how to assemble artillery positions and assemble light and heavy firepower, and is under thirty, step forward!"

"Swish!"

Another fifty or sixty people stepped out of the crowd.

Only then did Xing Yao nod and say to the Second Battalion Commander, "That's enough."

Added together, these people numbered two hundred and forty or fifty, almost half of the Second Battalion's total strength. The Second Battalion Commander's face turned green with heartache.

Xing Yao patted him on the shoulder. "I'm leaving then! I'll buy you a drink when I get back!"

Hearing this, the Second Battalion Commander paused for a long time, then looked at Xing Yao and replied, "You bring yourself and these soldiers back to me, and I'll damn well treat you."

"You got it." Xing Yao nodded heavily.

The two looked at each other for a moment, then Xing Yao withdrew his gaze and shouted to the soldiers: "Five minutes to say goodbye to your old comrades, five minutes to pack your things and get on the trucks. Dismissed!"

The lined-up soldiers dispersed, and a young man walked along, saying to his comrade beside him, "Damn, just got familiar with you guys, and now I have to leave."

"Be careful, Xiao Hai!"

"Get me a bottle of chopped pepper sauce!"

"There are still five bottles, take them all!!"

"...!"

A group of young men walked and talked, and by the time they returned to the barracks, they had already said their reluctant farewells.

Ten minutes later, Xing Yao watched these people walk out of the barracks and stand on both sides, and simply waved his hand.

More than two hundred people got into the military trucks, not knowing their destination or what they were going to do.

In the camp, the old regimental commander, several battalion commanders, and those soldiers who were not selected, all saluted and watched them leave.

The same thing was happening continuously in the various camps of the People's Army. Fei Pingsheng and Xing Yao personally picked the soldiers, all in secret, with the reason being the reorganization of the troops and the redistribution of forces.

...

One day later, late at night.

More than thirty military trucks stopped beside the camp, and about three thousand soldiers gathered here.

Xing Yao was waving to the crowd, directing the soldiers to constantly carry military supplies onto the trucks, working feverishly.

Fei Pingsheng stood aside, wrapped in a thick military coat, talking on the phone.

From the receiver came the angry roar of his wife, A Hua, "Fei Pingsheng! There are so many people in the command post, why are you standing in front? What are you trying to prove?"

Fei Pingsheng frowned and replied, "Alright, alright, stop shouting. The whole camp can hear you. The orders have already been issued, what's the use of saying this now? Just stay put in Panama City. I know what I'm doing, it's no big deal, I'll be back in a couple of days."

At this point, the couple fell silent.

A Hua thought for a long time, then said to him, "Fei Pingsheng, if it weren't for you, a woman like me wouldn't be doing this kind of thing outside, and wouldn't have been drifting for so many years, do you understand?"

Fei Pingsheng paused for a moment, then slowly said, "I know..."

Although A Hua didn't know exactly what Fei Pingsheng was going to do, anyone who wasn't an idiot could figure it out... A chief of general staff suddenly leading a team away, and being unable to make phone calls, it must be very dangerous.

So, she was silent for a long time, then her voice became a little softer, "It's good that you know... I'll wait for you to come back..."

"Okay!"

Fei Pingsheng nodded, turned his head to look at the troops next to him, and pretended to be relaxed, saying, "That's it for now, you also take care of your health and don't work too hard. I'll be back."

"Mm..."

The two hung up the phone, and Fei Pingsheng returned to the team.

Xing Yao glanced at him and asked with a smile, "Your sister-in-law? She scolded you, right?"

Fei Pingsheng said with a nonchalant expression, "She missed me, cried so hard, it took me a long time to coax her."

Xing Yao chuckled and didn't say anything more.

Fifteen minutes later, three thousand troops boarded military trucks and slowly set off under the cover of the night.

...

Four hours later, more than thirty military trucks stopped on a very muddy dirt road.

Ahead, the mountains stretched endlessly, and the convoy could not proceed. At the end of the dirt road was a dense forest that stretched as far as the eye could see. Everywhere was overgrown with weeds, branches, and vines, forming a single mass, and it was impossible to find a complete path.

Fei Pingsheng sat in the car, looked at the scene in front of him, took out the intercom, and shouted to the entire channel: "All units, attention, everyone dismount! Logistics Regiment, begin unloading cargo and distributing it!"

"Roger!"

More than three thousand troops silently jumped out of the military trucks and quickly stood in an orderly manner on the dirt road, their feet covered in mud.

Then, under the command of the Logistics Regiment, all the military supplies were unloaded and distributed to the soldiers one by one, so that they could carry them manually on their backs.

When everyone was ready, Fei Pingsheng looked deeply at the dense forest in front of him and ordered, "Move out!"

"Yes!"

Each soldier, draped in anti-thermal detection cloth, followed their respective groups, carrying heavy goods on their backs, one foot deep and one foot shallow, and gradually walked into the dense forest.

The officer of the convoy looked at these people, his eyes showing a trace of admiration and solemnity. He turned around and gave Fei Pingsheng a military salute: "We can only send you here, I wish you victory and a safe journey!!"

Fei Pingsheng reached out and patted him on the shoulder and said, "Thank you, go back quickly."

After saying that, he also put on an anti-thermal detection cloth, followed the main force, and plunged into the vast dense forest.

This operation mobilized two brigades, a total of 18,000 people, almost emptying half of the People's Army's Second Army. The reason given to the outside world was that the troops had suffered too many casualties and were being reorganized.

These 18,000 people were divided into six small teams, and they marched towards their intended targets from six different starting positions, carrying military supplies on their backs.