Amid the movement of the men, the scattered formation gradually became orderly.
Now neatly aligned, the more than eighty soldiers cut a much more imposing figure. Lin Feng stood before them, bringing the total number of men gathered in this small square to over a hundred and fifty. It made the already modest square feel rather cramped.
"Brothers, I won't beat around the bush, but there is one thing I, Lin Feng, must make clear to everyone!"
As Lin Feng spoke, absolute silence fell over the square.
"Although we are nominally the Special Operations Battalion of the 88th Division, due to special circumstances, our weapons currently rely on captured supplies!"
With that, Lin Feng gave a signal, and a few soldiers stepped forward carrying a Japanese grenade discharger.
"You don't need to guess. Everything is just as you see it—all of these were captured when I led the brothers to annihilate an entire Japanese squad!"
When the grenade discharger was put on display, a wave of excitement stirred in the hearts of everyone looking at Lin Feng. Only then did they understand that the so-called 88th Division was probably just a title! Yet those rows of Type 38 rifles made it unmistakably clear that joining this unit meant fighting to the death on the front lines!
"Now, I'll give you all one more chance! Those willing to fight the Japanese stay behind; those who value their lives and fear death may leave!"
As his voice trailed off, Lin Feng kept his eyes fixed on everyone present, as if waiting for their response.
"Reporting to the Commander! Our country is in peril, and to die fighting the Japanese is my greatest wish!"
After a brief silence, a wave of shouts suddenly erupted from the crowd.
"To die fighting the Japanese is my greatest wish!"
The voices rang out with such force that they practically echoed across the entire field hospital. Even the garrison troops stationed nearby could hear the cry!
"Commander Lin, I beg of you, lead us to kill more Japanese and drive out the invaders!"
When the resounding voices gradually faded, the white-haired old man walked to the front and made a heartfelt plea.
"Good! Full of spirit! From now on, you are all assigned to the 1st Company of the Special Operations Battalion!"
Lin Feng nodded to Hu Youming, and the incorporation began.
With the addition of over eighty men, Hu Youming's 1st Company was finally at full strength.
The reorganization tasks continued until the afternoon. Ultimately, under Lin Feng's arrangement, the hundred and fifty men were divided into three platoons, along with a machine gun squad and a grenade discharger team. In terms of overall firepower, aside from the existing Type 38 rifles, they had acquired thirty-odd Chiang Kai-shek rifles. Out of the three platoons, only two possessed sufficient firepower, while the remaining platoon served as a reserve and bayonet unit.
Once the entire force was reorganized and had eaten their evening meal, Lin Feng led the troops to set out northeast toward Yunzaobin.
Before leaving, Lin Feng went to see Zhang Sanhu one last time. The frontline situation with the Japanese was currently intense, and military installations like the field hospital would certainly not be easily spared. Lin Feng also revealed that Japanese infiltration units were very likely operating near the hospital, and urged Commander Zhang to exercise the utmost caution.
By dusk, the entire force had completely moved beyond Commander Zhang's defensive sector.
"Battalion Commander, what is our mission this time?"
Seeing that the troops had put some distance behind them, Hu Youming moved closer to Lin Feng, eager to get some answers. After all, his battalion commander had gone to see Commander Zhang right before leaving the hospital, so there might very well be a specific mission.
"Old Hu, do you think a force as small as ours will be of much use if we rush to the front lines?"
Lin Feng kept pondering the matter. Setting out for the Yunzaobin front meant they definitely couldn't run out there for nothing or act as mere cannon fodder. According to the Simulator's prompt, marching northeast would inevitably bring them into contact with Japanese infiltration units.
"Battalion Commander, stop joking with me. Forget about a single company—even if you brought another ten regiments, it still might not make a difference!"
Hu Youming considered himself a clever man, but he couldn't quite figure out whether Lin Feng was actually heading for the front lines. Yet he trusted that Lin Feng was certainly not someone foolish or rigid!
"Old Hu, with a force of our size, we shouldn't even be thinking about the main Japanese forces. But since the Japanese love conducting infiltrations, we can certainly lend them a hand!"
As Lin Feng spoke, he began to turn things over in his mind. Right now, the unit had no supplies and no backup; their situation was truly unimaginably difficult.
"Infiltrating Japanese? Most of them operate in small, scattered groups. Will we even run into them?"
Hu Youming nodded slightly upon hearing Lin Feng's strategic objective, but his reaction was swift: the difficulty of encountering the Japanese infiltration units would not be small. After all, since the Japanese were playing the infiltration game, they would undoubtedly keep their movements extremely covert.
"Don't worry about that, I have a pretty good idea," Lin Feng replied. With the help of the Simulator, he had practically real-time awareness of the battlefield dynamics. Still, he remained somewhat clueless regarding supplies and reinforcements.
"Battalion Commander, since you have a plan, why do you look so miserable day after day?"
Hu Youming couldn't think of a good solution either, but Lin Feng's emotions were written all over his face, leaving him no choice but to ask.
"Supplies! Old Hu, the Type 38 rifles we're using right now are fine guns, but the ammunition isn't interchangeable."
Lin Feng voiced his worries. Two heads are better than one, after all.
"Battalion Commander, so that's what's worrying you! Look at how stressed you got over it. If we don't have ammunition, we'll just have the little Japanese make it for us!"
Hu Youming's remark, though crude, hit the nail on the head. Lin Feng's chaotic thoughts suddenly cleared up entirely. He really had fallen into a mental blind spot. The look Lin Feng gave Hu Youming was full of appreciation.
"I can always count on you, Old Hu!"
Patting Hu Youming on the shoulder, Lin Feng immediately cheered up. If they continued their march right now, they were bound to run into two squads of Japanese—nearly a hundred men! That corresponded to hundreds of rifles and tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition! If they could really keep this cycle going, they would be taking everything from the enemy and using it against the enemy!
"Old Hu, have the scouts we sent out returned yet?"
With a countermeasure in mind, Lin Feng took immediate action. Facing two Japanese squads still posed considerable pressure; two squads equipped with their own radio were clearly a medium-sized unit formation. The Japanese squad they had encountered earlier might very well have belonged to this exact detachment.
"Battalion Commander, not yet. The roads around here are rough, but I expect they'll be back soon."
Hu Youming found it rather strange. His battalion commander's mood kept shifting by the minute, making him utterly impossible to read.
The troops marched under the cover of night, but due to the pitted and uneven terrain, their progress was rather slow. Lin Feng simply waited quietly for the scouts to return so he could formulate an attack deployment.
Near midnight, the five reconnaissance scouts sent out by Lin Feng finally returned to the unit unharmed.
"Battalion Commander, three kilometers ahead of us, at Xiaowang Village, we found traces of the Japanese."
Receiving this report allowed Lin Feng to set his plans into motion. He had finally caught these two squads!