Chapter 32: S-Level Mission at Sea

  Everyone chatted for a while, talking about their ignorance before joining the army and their plans after retirement. Before long, it was almost time. Yang Jian glanced at his field watch on his right hand, threw away the cigarette butt in his hand, stood up, and led his brothers who had been through life and death together to the conference room.

  In the exquisitely decorated and simple conference room, a huge oval-shaped conference table was placed in the center. On the wall behind it, several large red embossed characters "Defend the Motherland to the Death" were inlaid, making the atmosphere of the entire conference room very solemn.

  In the conference room, apart from A3 Special Travel's commander Ye Wen Tian, there was another middle-aged man wearing a military uniform with epaulets on his shoulders and an armband that read "General Staff Headquarters" on the right side of his uniform. Neither of them spoke. The ashtray in front of them was filled with cigarette butts.

  "Reporting to the superior! The 177th class has been ordered to attend the pre-war meeting! All members are present, please instruct!" Night Yang Jian gave a military salute outside the door. His voice echoed in the conference room, sounding particularly loud and clear.

  "Oh! Everyone's here, come on in, sit down..." Night asked the sky to sweep away the depression and fatigue from earlier, stood up, and gestured for the warriors to enter and gather around him.

  After the warriors sat down, he took out a few special cigarettes from the drawer of the conference table. He opened one, took out a pack, lit one for himself and handed another to Colonel Eyes, and threw the rest to Ye Yangjian.

  "Give some to the warriors. This is my monthly ration, haha." Ye Wen Tian said with a smile, while his hands didn't stop, opening another one. He grabbed a few packs and started distributing cigarettes to everyone.

  Before going out on a mission, even the company commander and political commissar would take out a pack of special supplies and hand it over to Ye Yangjian, instructing him to reward everyone after the task was completed. At that time, getting a pack of special supplies cigarettes could make the soldiers in the 10th battalion excited for a long time. The special supplies cigarette is no longer just a cigarette, at A3, at 177, it represents a kind of honor.

  But now! The highest commander of the A3 Special Forces! Entire packages, entire strips of special supplies!? ... What level of mission is this? Assassinating the President of the United States? This shouldn't be something we do ourselves. Our 10th squad doesn't have that capability either. Although no one said it out loud, everyone was secretly speculating in their minds. The atmosphere in the conference room became somewhat oppressive.

  "Light up, light up, everyone light up. If not enough, I'll just have to throw in my old New Year's savings. Haha!" Ye Qian asked enthusiastically, inviting everyone to light up their cigarettes, hoping to ease the unpleasant atmosphere.

  "...Commander! Let's talk about the mission first!" Night Yang Jian saw the eye signal from the veterinarians and didn't want to beat around the bush with Da Bo anymore. He stood up and started.

  He furrowed his brow, deep in thought for a moment, then fiercely puffed on his cigarette and stubbed it out in the ashtray. At this moment, he no longer hesitated, stood up, and gazed straight at Ye Yangjian and the soldiers of the Tenth Company.

  "My brave Republican Guards! The motherland needs you!" The night asked the sky to stand upright. "Bang" gave a long military salute! A solemn feeling, immediately spread throughout the conference room. The epaulets on the shoulders of the military uniform, shining brightly with gold.

  "Warriors! Hello! Let me introduce myself, my name is Wang Taoming! From the General Staff Department! Under the order of the Group Army Headquarters, I came here to assist you with this mission!" The colonel with glasses also saluted and said seriously...

  The thick blackout curtains in the conference room were all pulled down. The projector in the center of the oval conference table was working non-stop, "clicking" away, projecting slide after slide onto the screen: satellite reconnaissance maps, personnel, firepower, and equipment of the Bird Island Self-Defense Force, as well as live photos of an offshore drilling platform and other information.

  Each of the ten classes also received a task atlas produced by the General Staff Department, which detailed various details and parameters of the task.

  On July 9, at sea, the naval vessels and cargo ships of Diaoyu Island frequently moved in and out. Many oil exploration companies from Diaoyu Island dispatched exploration ships to operate freely around the area. It is reported that a huge oil reserve resource has been discovered. The construction of an offshore oil platform is being carried out in secret. Apparently, the government of Diaoyu Island and right-wing forces intend to take control first and create a fait accompli...

  "Everyone pay attention to here, here and here! These three positions are heavily guarded by the enemy's Bird Island National Self-Defense Force, and it is estimated that they are equipped with heavy firepower. This is a helicopter platform, where an armed helicopter is parked... Chief of Staff Wang Taoming was introducing the details of the combat area with a cigarette in one hand and a pointer in the other on the projection screen... The conference room was very quiet, everyone listened carefully and constantly marked the places they needed to pay attention to in their combat manuals. The pre-war preparations of the 10th class have always been very sufficient. As Sun Tzu's Art of War says: Know yourself and know your enemy, and you can win every battle."

  "This mission is classified as S-level danger. Alright, that's the general situation. Over the next few days, HQ will be sending over the latest intel, and the mission can start at any time. I'm putting you all on 24-hour standby starting today. Any questions?" Ye Wen Tian asked. At this moment, Ye Wen Tian had fully entered his role and was no longer Ye Yang Jian's uncle, but rather the highest commander of A3. He couldn't show favoritism to his own nephew; as a commanding officer, ensuring the smooth execution of the mission was now his top priority.

  The warriors of the tenth class were all speechless, sitting quietly there, they had already known the danger of this mission from the materials just now. S-level mission, this should be the highest level mission they could touch. With a single combat squad, a ten-man team's firepower, on the open sea, taking down a heavily guarded offshore drilling oil platform? Isn't this a bit too much like a fantasy? In fact, everyone had something to say, but no one started, so they just sat quietly. Soldiers must understand silence...

  "Report! I have a question!" Ye Yang Jian stood up first after carefully analyzing the details and feasibility of the task, he knew that his brothers behind him were all expecting him to do so. Because the loopholes in the task were very obvious.

  "Speak!" The tone of Ye Wen Tian was devoid of any emotion, but in fact, he was also forcing himself. He had already known the nature of this mission, and the best plan was to pay a huge price in casualties.

  "Commander, Chief of Staff! Our mission seems to have a glaring loophole! From the deployment plan, we are using the cover of night to approach the enemy's offshore oil platform in small rubber boats and then eliminate all enemies and destroy their facilities. But how do we withdraw?! It's the open sea, not a jungle! Our rubber boats can't escape the pursuit of enemy warships! What kind of support will we have afterwards? We are jungle guerrilla fighters, not marines!" Night Yang Jian stared at Night Qian Tian and Chief of Staff Wang Tai Ming. Every mission was a matter of life and death, and although they were soldiers, who would be willing to throw their lives away for nothing? Asking in detail was always better. In his heart, he looked up to this elder brother very much, just as Night Qian Tian looked up to him, so he believed that when he led his brothers to complete this dangerous mission, there would be a plan, or several plans, ready to extract them.

  "After this mission is successful, it may involve a wide range of areas, including diplomatic and international public opinion, which may put pressure on the country. Therefore, although we are in our territorial waters, we cannot openly dispatch a fleet to escort you back. Otherwise, wouldn't it be easier to directly send a fleet to bomb the drilling platform of Xiaoyangguo? According to the predetermined plan, after you complete your mission, you must escape to the uninhabited rocky island marked as ZA-93. There will be a maritime rescue helicopter arranged by our military, which will bring you back under the guise of rescuing shipwrecked sailors." Chief of Staff Wang Taoming said this to Ye Yangjian and the soldiers of the 10th squad after reviewing the mission details.

  "But! Chief of Staff! The area of ZA-93 island is too small, it's not enough to provide effective cover and retreat when we're facing enemy pursuit. Moreover, it's too far from the combat zone. How long can the helicopter wait for us? In case of uncertain factors, if we miss the rendezvous time, do we have other retreat routes and methods?"

  "Of course, our General Staff will make detailed arrangements! The motherland will not abandon you." Chief of Staff Wang Taoming said with his hand stroking his glasses.

  Leaving the conference room, Ye Yangjian felt very uncomfortable, specifically where he was uncomfortable, he couldn't say. He always felt that this task was not quite right. Later, Chief of Staff Wang Taoming perfectly explained every question Ye Yangjian raised, which made Ye Yangjian think hard and couldn't find any loopholes... Ye Yangjian stubbornly believed in his elder brother, and no elder would let their own nephew go to death. The mission was dangerous, but it wasn't the first time, wasn't the trip to Taiwan also a narrow escape? He believed that his elder brother understood the danger of this task and would arrange for his own withdrawal work, and being able to entrust such a difficult task to himself to complete, wasn't this proof of Ye Yangjian's ability?

  Back to the barracks...

  The rivers and seas have been waiting for them.

  "Company Commander!" Night Yang Jian and his tenth company saluted together.

  "Don't be so formal, don't be so formal. I'm just here to take a look at you guys, we're all old buddies now, not some new recruits. And stop putting on such airs with me. Just looking at you makes me feel like you're all being particularly hypocritical." Jiang Hai pretended to scold with a straight face.

  Ye Yang Jian and the crowd burst out laughing, indeed, three years of troop life, every day eating, sleeping, training, and going on missions together, plus the tenth class soldiers were mostly only children, from a young age they had only one at home, several years of sharing life and death, the people in one class were already closer than real brothers. And their company commander Jiang Hai, who always cared for them, was like a strict but passionate older brother in the eyes of these young soldiers, privately everyone called him that... Of course, the "Eternal Tang Sanzang" instructor comrade would not be forgotten either, the soldiers affectionately called her "Old Mama".

  "Boss! How did you think of coming to our place today?" The veterinarian said with a smile, taking out a special supply box and distributing it to Lian Jianghai and the other brothers.

  "Ah! This isn't recent, what's going on... the wine worms are crawling out of my stomach! Drinking alone is no fun, and your class 177 is always the most rowdy. Isn't that why I came to drink with you guys?!" Jiang Hai kicked at a couple of cardboard boxes by his feet.

  "Wow! Good guy! All are ten-year-old Moutai! Lianchang, you're living a corrupt life! I've never seen you drink anything lower than Wuliangye! How much does a lieutenant colonel make per month? Next year I'll take the military school exam too! Become a battalion commander and drink Moutai every day!" Da Xiong opened the box, grabbed a bottle of Moutai, and sniffed the aroma while joking with Jiang Hai.