Chapter 13 Those Departed Brothers

  "Lao Li, it's great that you're here. You're really a big help to me. I was just worried something would happen to you," Cheng Feng said.

  "They all said I couldn't die, and I won't die," Old Li said, puffing on his cigarette, leaning against the door of the rickety cart, taking big drags.

  "But he's really grown up, Lin Yi is a good fighter, this kid is like you, knows how to think on his feet, not like me who only has one trick" Old Li said, lost in the smoke.

  "Tell me, Old Li, how did this kid manage it." Cheng Feng was also very curious.

  "And what's more, you see, this kid has messed up the Indian military's air defense missiles as if they were his own, making it impossible for the Indian military's armed helicopters to tell friend from foe. We can take advantage of the situation and strike them down. If not for this kid's few moves, we would have paid an even greater price." Old Li was speaking the truth.

  "Hmm, if it wasn't for this kid's efforts to gain those crucial few seconds, we might have had more comrades sacrifice themselves, and it's possible that I and the entire convoy would have been sacrificed here too." Cheng Feng thought back to what just happened.

  "Old Li, I think we should leave one vehicle to take care of the wounded. The forward command has already dispatched a rescue helicopter to transport the wounded, but the terrain here is treacherous and I believe we should establish an advance position here."

  "Yes, I agree with you, Lao Cheng. Let's keep three rows of one class. The monitor, Wang Laowu, is not bad, he can fight and defend." Old Li replied.

  Cheng Feng had already made up his mind about the matter, he just wanted to see if there was a difference between what he thought and what Lao Li said. Because in terms of personnel, Lao Li knew more than Cheng Feng.

  Wang Lao Wu is the nickname of Wang Zhi Xun, a squad leader. This Wang Lao Wu, who came from a wealthy family, doesn't seem like someone from that kind of background at all - his words and actions are completely like those of a miser. Usually in the squad, he's extremely stingy, often quarreling with others over a single sugar or cigarette, sometimes even getting into big fights. However, if something big happens to someone's family and they can't solve it themselves, needing the squad to help out, this guy will definitely lend a hand, giving as much as needed without leaving a single cent behind. Many times, he'll even go home to "borrow money" for his comrades' sake, then secretly give it to those in urgent need.

  He's already almost 25, but he still doesn't have a partner. His family has tried to set him up several times, but it hasn't worked out. He's clearly at the age where he should be retiring from the military, but he refuses to leave. His father has used all sorts of connections and even spent money to try to get him to stay in the army. He's determined to stay on, and before the war, his superiors had already told him it was time to retire. But he insisted on going to the front lines with Old Li and the others, and he even volunteered for a suicidal mission.

  "Wang Zhi Xun, come here for a moment" Cheng Feng thought of this and called out to the squad leader through the earpiece.

  "Report to Commander, Wang Zhi-xun has arrived." Soon, Old Wang rushed in front of Old Li and Cheng Feng.

  "Take a vehicle and your squad to stay behind, remember to protect the wounded and the bodies of the martyrs, wait for the arrival of the 7th Company, after the 7th Company arrives, hand over the position and then return." Cheng Feng gave the order.

  "It's Commander Lian Chang, one class guarantees completion of the task." Wang Laowu stood up straight and gave a salute to Cheng Feng and Old Li, saying loudly.

  "Lao Wu, you'd better be careful, the locals around here are unpredictable and we don't know whose side they're on. Also, don't forget to report the martyrs' sacrifices so that they can be recognized," Old Li asked.

  "No problem Old Li, oh no, it's Deputy Commander Li" Wang Lao Wu joked with Old Li.

  "Go die!" Old Li said as he punched Wang Lao Wu in the chest.

  "Oh no, oh no, it hurts so much!" Wang Lao Wu covered the spot where he was hit by Old Li and pretended to be in great pain.

  "Alright, Captain. Let's carry out the order. We'll go with you to bid farewell to the wounded and the martyrs," Cheng Feng said as he led the way towards where the wounded were hit.

  Less than 100 meters behind the turn, there is a large natural cave, which was used by Wang Lao Wu as a place to lay the wounded and martyrs. The bodies of five martyrs were covered with military blankets, quietly leaning against the left side of the cave, while seven wounded soldiers sat or lay on the right side. As soon as Cheng Feng and Old Li arrived, all the wounded soldiers who could stand up stood up and extended their bloody hands to salute Cheng Feng and Old Li.

  "Commander, don't leave us behind, we can still fight, the 8th company has no retreating soldiers," said a soldier with chest and head injuries.

  "And we, Lao Zhang, we want to charge with you to the Great Wall" As this soldier spoke, other wounded soldiers also chimed in unison.

  "No, comrades, you have completed your task. Now there is only one thing for you to do, and that is to go back to the rear to recover from your wounds. The rest of us will take care of the remaining tasks and complete them well, so please don't worry. I know every single one of you is a hero, a hero of our Eighth Company, and a hero of the entire Army Group. You are all good men."

  He paused for a moment and continued: "I'll leave a squad leader to take care of you, waiting for the helicopter to arrive. Comrades, just wait here in the rear for our victory news!"

  Cheng Feng said a lot in one breath. He knew that what he was saying wasn't nonsense, from morning till now, although they had been fighting all the way and bleeding all the way, but every single person in his own Eighth Company had once thought of retreating, even those who had just joined not long ago had already become heroes of the Eighth Company. This feeling couldn't be put into words, but it was truly and deeply felt. That's what the Eighth Company is, that's what the Republic's army is.

  "Alright, everyone take a break in place. Xiao Jiang, you check the wounded again to see if there's anything that was missed." Old Li took over the conversation.

  "Comrades, farewell!" With a "whoosh", Cheng Feng and Old Li gave these warriors a standard military salute. He knew that at this moment, the military salute was the highest honor, and only the military salute could express their reverence for these brave warriors.

  After dealing with the wounded and martyrs as well as the rear guard position, Chengfeng and Old Li returned to the war chariot. After handing over the arrangements for the 8th company to prepare for departure, Chengfeng opened his own display and linked his database with the front command's link, reporting the battle that had just ended to the front command while starting to check for updated data.

  "Headmaster, I'm back. Look at this." Lin Yi appeared in front of Cheng Feng without warning. As he spoke, he held out his hand and produced a chip for Cheng Feng to see.

  "What is this chip, Lin Yi, what thing's on it," Cheng Feng asked.

  "This is the guidance chip of the remaining anti-aircraft missile, I took it down, this kind of missile is very new, we are not very clear about its function, Lao Chang, hand over your terminal to me, I want to scan this chip and send it to the front command." Lin Yi said, stretching out his hand to take back the chip.

  "In the car, you go and deal with it yourself." Cheng Feng said, pointing at the battlefield.

  "Alright, I'll go now." Lin Yi said as he lifted his foot and stepped into the war chariot where Cheng Feng was seated.