Since they had decided to attack Mt. Guan to lure the bandits from Mt. Dingyuan, they would have to sneak into the valley to avoid being discovered in advance.
Now that the Soong Clan had eyes and ears all over the Northwest, Fortress 178's plan was to wipe out the bandits in the valley first. This was to prevent these bandits from causing any trouble for the forward operating base when the real war broke out.
Zhang Xiaoman felt that Mt. Guan would be even more difficult to defeat, but Ren Xiaosu did not think so. That was because some of the bandits had died to Yan Liuyuan's earth-shattering curse. He speculated that those bandits had come from Mt. Guan.
At that time, they were near Mt. Kaolei, and the nearest bandit nests were Mt. Tangwang and Mt. Guan. However, the bandits from Mt. Tangwang had already been wiped out by Wang Congyang, so the bandits from Mt. Guan could only be the bandits from Mt. Guan.
However, Ren Xiaosu did not mention this. It seemed like the Soong Clan was still keeping the news of the battle in the wilderness under wraps, so Fortress 178 did not know anything about it.
Fortress 178 was 500 to 600 kilometers away from the battlefield at that time. No matter how many artillery shells were fired at them, they could not hear anything from the fortress.
But Ren Xiaosu knew very well that if it was really as he had guessed, Mt. Guan would definitely not be as difficult to defeat as he had imagined. In fact, it would be much easier to defeat than Mt. Dingyuan.
The Razor Sharp Company was like a group of rats. They suddenly abandoned their trucks and carried their firearms and ammunition supplies as they made their way through the ravine. They lay low during the day and moved out at night to avoid being discovered by the enemy as much as possible.
During the day, Zhang Xiaoman hid in the shadows of the ravine to rest. He said to Ren Xiaosu, "Although I don't know what your superpower is, since you said you can put pressure on Mt. Guan, I'll believe you. But don't tell me you can't do it when we get there. If you can't do it, I'll shoot you no matter who you're working for."
Ren Xiaosu did not say anything. Instead, he hugged his automatic rifle and leaned against the ravine with his eyes closed to rest.
Everyone was slowly eating their individual rations. They were now secretly sneaking into the valley, so they couldn't light a fire to cook.
However, what surprised Zhang Xiaoman and the others was that Ren Xiaosu seemed to be able to endure more hardships than them. When everyone was resting, there would always be a need for someone to stand guard. The other soldiers were tired and resentful, but Ren Xiaosu never complained about anything. When he was asked to stand guard, he would stand guard. It didn't matter if he had to stand guard a little longer.
Zhang Xiaoman had deliberately observed that Ren Xiaosu was indeed very serious and responsible when he was standing guard.
The commander of the Razor Sharp Company muttered, "As expected of someone the commander thinks highly of."
Everyone looked at Ren Xiaosu with even harsher gazes. It was not that they had to make things difficult for Ren Xiaosu, but that when they learned that he might be the next commander, they would always think, 'How am I worse than him? What makes him a candidate for the position of commander?'
Meanwhile, not only did Ren Xiaosu have to stand guard, but everyone also had to take turns carrying the heavy machine guns and mortars as they advanced. Those things were really heavy. The mortars were not too bad as they only weighed 29.4 kilograms. Although it was uncomfortable to carry them over long distances, it was still within an acceptable range.
Meanwhile, the 12.7mm heavy machine guns weighed 50 kilograms, and they even had to carry their own military backpacks. The distance between Mt. Guan and Mt. Dingyuan was still more than 100 kilometers, and the journey was even more arduous. Some of the soldiers had even worn out the skin on their shoulders from carrying the heavy machine guns.
However, Ren Xiaosu never complained about it.
Ren Xiaosu's Strength and Dexterity were now balanced, so he looked very skinny. At the beginning, Zhang Xiaoman deliberately made things difficult for Ren Xiaosu to make him suffer.
However, to Zhang Xiaoman's surprise, Ren Xiaosu did not hesitate to carry the heavy machine gun even though he looked thinner than them. He even took the initiative to share some of the burden with his comrades.
This was how it was in the army. If you were tough and strong, I would respect you. If you were delicate, I would look down on you.
After just a few days of marching in the wilderness, everyone's impression of Ren Xiaosu had changed. This kid was really tough and strong!
The Razor Sharp Company's comrades were vaguely thinking, 'Not bad.'
But this did not mean everyone fully approved of him. Whether he was qualified to be the next commander-in-chief depended on his physical strength and perseverance alone.
At this moment, Zhang Xiaoman was doing some calculations. "Mt. Guan is about 30 kilometers away from Mt. Dingyuan. If Mt. Guan calls for reinforcements from Mt. Dingyuan, we'll arrive there in about half an hour. We'll have to dig trenches and set up an ambush along the way. Otherwise, we might not even be able to defeat those bandits."
Ren Xiaosu said, "This gully is a natural trench."
"That's true." Zhang Xiaoman suddenly asked, "Are you really confident that you can pressure Mt. Guan and make them call for reinforcements?"
Ren Xiaosu said calmly, "I've made a military pledge."
The Razor Sharp Company's communications officer had been in contact with the Forward Strike Battalion at the rear. The Forward Strike Battalion had set off on the second day after they set off. At this moment, they should be about 60 kilometers behind them.
However, the Forward Strike Battalion's target was not Mt. Guan or Mt. Dingyuan. They were going to set up a defensive line in the north to prevent the Soong Clan from launching a counterattack south after they took down Mt. Guan and Mt. Dingyuan.
Other than a combat brigade that was left behind to defend Mt. Guan, the rest of Fortress 178's troops were ready to head to the battlefield.
Ren Xiaosu asked, "Captain, does the Soong Clan really have 200,000 troops?"
Zhang Xiaoman sneered, "How big is the Soong Clan's territory? How dare they claim to have 200,000 troops? Oh, that's not right. If we include their newly expanded refugee corps and private troops, it seems like they do have 200,000 troops. But if our men from Fortress 178 can fight to the last man, the Soong Clan's so-called combat brigade will collapse if several hundred of their soldiers die. "
It was only at this moment that Ren Xiaosu realized the Soong Clan was taking the same path as the Li Consortium. They captured the refugees who did not know anything and used them as able-bodied men. Furthermore, they even had the private troops who could not do anything but spoil everything.
If the Kyung Clan were to do the same, Ren Xiaosu estimated they could muster more than 400,000 troops.
But what was the use of such an army?
Ren Xiaosu asked, "Then how many regular soldiers does the Soong Clan have?"
"About 90,000." Zhang Xiaoman said, "But that's based on last year's intelligence."
Ren Xiaosu nodded. He suddenly felt that this battle was not that difficult to fight, even though Fortress 178 only had 75,000 regular soldiers on the battlefield.
But why did it feel like Fortress 178 was not that strong? Was he hallucinating?
Ren Xiaosu found this a little strange. If Fortress 178 only had this much combat strength, they could still stand tall in the Northwest. However, they definitely would not be able to gain the respect of a true consortium.
Also, Luo Lan had tried to kill Zhang Jinglin, but Qing Zhen did not agree to it.
Did Qing Zhen want Zhang Jinglin to return to the Northwest to contain the Soong Clan, or did he want Zhang Jinglin to continue guarding the humans inland in case they encountered another war with the foreign tribes?
It could also be a combination of both. Ren Xiaosu had a feeling that Qing Zhen was not a fanatic who only knew how to fight.
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