Zhang Heng had been lying on the snowfield for half an hour, holding the M28 in his hand and resting the butt on his right shoulder. His fingers were a little red and swollen from the cold. Even with his usual calmness, he couldn't help but wonder if he could complete today's training.
This was the 79th day since he came to this world. The time limit for the mission had long passed, but because of the extra 24 hours, the time he stayed in this world of ice and snow was extended to 140 days. Now, only a little more than half of the time had passed, but the good news was that it was not far from the end of the war.
According to the history books, the Winter War between the Soviet Union and Finland could be roughly divided into two periods. The first period started on November 30th, 1939. The Soviets divided their troops into four groups and launched a fierce attack on Finland. However, they were as ferocious as a tiger. Other than achieving their goal at the northern end of the battlefront, they were defeated in the other areas. Hence, they were forced to stop attacking and continue to reinforce their troops.
At this time, the Soviets had basically beaten the Soviet Union to a pulp, especially in the Karelian Isthmus. The Soviets were unable to break through the Mannerheim defense line that Finland had painstakingly operated for more than a decade. Since they couldn't figure out the Finnish army's defenses, the Soviets paid a heavy price and were only able to occupy a 20-60 kilometer area.
But in January, the situation began to take a turn for the worse. The Soviets established the Northwestern Front Army at the Karelian Isthmus and appointed Timoshenko as their commander. At the same time, Timoshenko was also the commander-in-chief of the frontline.
A total of 21 infantry divisions and six tank brigades launched a fierce attack on the Mannerheim defense line. At this time, the Finnish army was lacking in manpower, heavy weapons, and ammunition.
Recently, there were more and more urgent reports from the frontline, but none of them had anything to do with Zhang Heng. During this period, he had experienced more than 20 battles, and he was on the verge of death almost every day. It wasn't as easy as it was during the first battle. Even with his cautiousness, he still died a few times. The most dangerous time was when a grenade landed right in front of him. Perhaps it was the rabbit's foot on his waist, but the grenade didn't explode in the end, and Zhang Heng escaped death.
This was indeed the most dangerous round of the game he had ever experienced. There were many uncontrollable factors on the battlefield. Even if he made all the right choices, he could still die accidentally.
However, the immense pressure also allowed him to unleash unprecedented potential. His skiing and shooting skills improved rapidly, especially the latter. It took him less than a month to level up to Level 1. At this rate, he might be able to reach Level 2 in another month.
Now, his sniping range had increased to 200 meters. At this distance, he could basically guarantee a hit rate of more than 80%. However, his main improvement was not in range.
Simon had been helping Zhang Heng improve his sniper's overall qualities and battlefield sense. That was the reason why his performance was getting better and better.
The two were now doing observation training. Simon used a trap to capture five snow weasels. These were small, slender animals that looked like mice. The girl marked them and released them. Zhang Heng needed to kill three of them to complete the training.
These little creatures were covered in pure white fur, and it was very difficult to distinguish them in the snow. They were also very alert. After half an hour, Zhang Heng had only found and shot one of them. The other four were nowhere to be found. Zhang Heng even suspected that they had run out of the area.
After another ten minutes, Zhang Heng finally found half a small head in a snow ditch. At the moment, the distance between the two was a little far. Zhang Heng didn't plan to wait any longer, afraid that the little thing would disappear again. He pulled the trigger, but his stiff fingers obviously affected his accuracy.
The shot didn't hit the target. After being frightened, the snow weasel disappeared into the snow ditch.
Zhang Heng shook his head, put away the rifle in his hand, and gave up the training.
On the other side, he saw Simon sitting in front of the campfire in a daze.
For the past week, the guerrillas had also taken a break. The battles in other areas had basically ended, and all that was left was to wait for the Karelian Isthmus to determine the winner. To be more precise, they were waiting to see if Finland could hold on until international aid arrived.
Britain and France promised to send an expeditionary force to Finland. However, Sweden and Norway explicitly rejected the Allies' request to cross the border. The Germans made it clear that they had no intention of participating in the Soviet-Finnish war, nor did they want to mediate. Finland began to become pessimistic about whether reinforcements could arrive in time and whether they could withstand the Soviet attack.
At the same time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had been negotiating with the Soviet Union, seeking the possibility of a truce. However, the harsh conditions put forward by the Soviets were difficult to accept.
It was now February, and as the weather got warmer, the situation would become more and more disadvantageous.
Zhang Heng was able to let go of these things quickly because he did not belong to any side of the war. For Simon, however, her country was about to be defeated, and it was even in danger of being destroyed. It was a different feeling in her heart.
Zhang Heng could feel that Simon's mood had been a little down lately. However, there was not much he could do. His personal strength had little to no effect on the war. Even if he had the same strength as Simon, he could not change the final outcome.
So, he could only think of other ways to improve her mood.
Pak! A snowball hit Simon's back, and a look of confusion appeared on her face. When she turned around, two snowballs hit her left arm, and she immediately bent down to make more ammunition.
A top-notch sniper's precise counterattack landed on Zhang Heng's chest. Just then, Zhang Heng fired two shots at her. Simon managed to dodge the first one, but the second one hit her neck. She could not help but shiver when the snow fell into her collar. However, it also ignited her competitive spirit.
The snowballs spun in the air, and for a brief moment, Simon temporarily forgot about the trauma and pain brought to her by the war.
…
By the time the two returned to the camp, it was already night. Zhang Heng boiled some water and took a hot shower. When he put on his clothes and walked to the woodshed, he was surprised to see the female doctor, Maggie, standing there.
"You guys came back very late."
Zhang Heng raised his eyebrows. "What's the matter?"
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