Although his mind drifted, the situation right now was grim.
Everywhere there were squads of infiltrating Japanese soldiers, and Hu Youming and his men could count themselves lucky.
Pinned down by a Japanese reinforced squad, they had still managed to be rescued by Lin Feng.
The Japanese Type 11 Light Machine Gun was no joke; it was only thanks to having run far enough away that a total massacre had been averted.
"Start this simulation!"
After a moment of thought, Lin Feng immediately ordered the Simulator to begin.
The journey to the field hospital would undoubtedly be fraught with danger, especially with over a dozen wounded soldiers in tow.
Running into a main Japanese battalion out here truly meant walking right into the tiger's mouth.
[Beep! Simulation started!]
[You successfully incorporated a company and marched west toward the field hospital!]
[After covering about five kilometers, you had a head-on encounter with an infiltrating squad of Japanese soldiers!]
[You led your force to rout this squad and captured two Japanese mortars, along with a full basic load of shells!]
[Just as you were preparing to lead the troops away, a Japanese soldier playing dead fired a sneak shot at you!]
[You died!]
Another wave of chilling cold washed over him as lines of text flickered across the screen, culminating in the word: DEAD.
"Damn it! Those filthy Japs are so despicable, they even play dead and shoot in the back!"
Lin Feng cursed inwardly. The simulation he had just redeemed was gone just like that.
Still, fortunately, it hadn't been entirely useless.
He now knew that marching another five kilometers west from this spot would bring him face-to-face with an infiltrating Japanese squad.
[This simulation has ended. Host, please choose from the following options!]
[1: Captured mortars and shells]
[2: Simulated memories]
[3: Primary commander experience]
Just like last time, death was followed by three choices.
Lin Feng hesitated for a moment. Every single one of these options seemed desperately needed right now.
Heavy fire was the ultimate cure for firepower deficiency phobia!
Memories and experience were also essential for someone newly entering the battlefield, especially with so many brothers depending on him.
I choose one!
After wrestling with the decision, Lin Feng ultimately felt that firepower was the ultimate truth.
Yet how would these mortars manifest? Could it be through the legendary power of creation out of thin air?!
While Lin Feng was still pondering, only a few seconds had passed in the outside world.
"Company Commander! Look, what's inside this Japanese wooden crate?!"
The voice approached from afar as a man with a soot-blackened face walked over, carrying a wooden box on his shoulder with great excitement.
"What is it?"
Hu Youming and Lin Feng turned their gazes toward him, and the others followed suit, looking at the man.
Suddenly the focus of so many eyes, the man—who had been grinning ear to ear—suddenly grew bashful.
"It's Japanese mortars! We found them underneath that Japanese corpse over there! These are the shells."
He placed the wooden box securely on the ground and pried open one end, revealing row upon row of neatly packed mortar shells.
"Really?! Holy crap!"
The surrounding men instantly erupted with excitement. Japanese mortars were fantastic gear, and they had suffered plenty at the receiving end of them before.
"Battalion Commander, we won't be acting like cowards this time, haha!"
Hu Youming laughed heartily. As part of the 20th Army, he rarely laid eyes on things like grenade dischargers and mortars.
Lin Feng was equally astonished, never expecting the rewards from the Simulator to materialize in this manner.
He had seen clearly from the hillside earlier that the Japanese hadn't been carrying any such heavy items.
"Old Hu, hurry up and strip the enemy equipment. We need to push on to the field hospital immediately!"
Amidst the excitement, Lin Feng quickly urged Hu Youming and the rest to finish clearing the battlefield, knowing a tough fight lay ahead.
A Japanese squad numbered no fewer than fifty or sixty men.
Based on standard force ratios, an elite Japanese division squad was equipped with two machine guns, two or three mortars, and several dozen Type 38 rifles.
Lin Feng had no idea how he had managed to wipe out an entire squad in the simulation.
Looking at his own force's equipment by contrast, aside from thirteen rifles, one machine gun, and a bunch of basically useless clubs and broken poles, they had almost nothing.
Factor in those two newly acquired mortars, however, and they finally possessed a shred of real combat capability.
"Old Hu, take note. Here is my deployment: select thirteen precision marksmen to form an effective sniping squad.
Then assign a machine gun team to provide covering fire. I will lead the team operating these two mortars personally."
Seeing that everyone around had finished packing up their gear, Lin Feng called Hu Youming over.
"Understood! Battalion Commander, I'll go make the arrangements right away!"
Out of a nearly hundred-man troop, over a dozen were wounded.
Subtracting a platoon to assist the wounded left just over forty able-bodied men.
Lin Feng calculated silently, determined to push their existing firepower to its absolute limit.
Within a few minutes, the men had been reorganized, and the unit was properly deployed by Hu Youming.
The dozen men chosen for the sharpshooter squad were each issued a Type 38 rifle, making the rest of the troops green with envy.
The little fellow from earlier had been assigned to the machine gun team as the gunner.
"Young man, what's your name?"
Seeing him close by, Lin Feng asked, having noticed the youngster's daring during the recent fight.
"Reporting to the officer! My family name is Zhang, but my dad never gave me a proper given name. The brothers all call me Gouya."
Only by looking closely and listening carefully could one realize that the soot-covered, grime-faced little fellow in front of him was nothing more than a teenage boy in his early teens.
"Good! Gouya, if you don't mind, I'll temporarily give you a proper name: Xingguo. How does that sound?"
With everyone standing nearby, hearing the battalion commander offer to give Gouya a name caused a stir.
They all chuckled and watched the fun, looking as though they were waiting for a good show.
"Xingguo? Zhang Xingguo! That's wonderful! Such a good name! Thank you, Battalion Commander!"
Gouya muttered the name under his breath, repeating it over and over, growing more delighted with every iteration.
"You little punk, he actually went and got you a fine name!"
Hearing this, the surrounding men felt their spirits lift. Few people could read in times like these, let alone scholars of culture.
Everyone hailed from rustic villages, and their parents possessed no such refinement.
"Company Commander, you've got to make sure you log my name down! From now on, nobody is allowed to call me Gouya; I'm Zhang Xingguo now!"
Seeing Hu Youming join in the banter, Gouya immediately pressed his demand.
"Alright, alright, noted!"
Hu Youming patted Gouya on the shoulder and then nodded toward Lin Feng.
"Battalion Commander, my unit has finished regrouping and is ready to set out for the hospital!"
Having organized the men, Hu Youming delivered his final report to Lin Feng.
To a miscellaneous-unit company commander like him, being able to wipe out a Japanese squad was a victory of no small magnitude!
"Good! Aside from the wounded transport group, the sharpshooter squad and machine gun team will maintain constant vigilance. The rest of you, fix bayonets and advance in three-man fire teams!"
With a wave of his hand, Lin Feng ordered the entire force to pull out and march west.
Before doing so, he had specifically dispatched four or five nimble scouts to probe the path ahead.
Facing a full Japanese squad, Lin Feng still harbored doubts and anxiety in his heart.
Yet as a certain fierce warrior from Northwest Shanxi had once famously said: when two forces meet in a narrow alley, the brave win!
Giving up before a shot was fired was a recipe for failure.
When trouble comes, unsheathe your sword!