Chapter Seventeen: Secret Mission

  "Look! Sanlian is back!", warned Mantou, a vigilant warrior, to his fellow warrior Xianggui.

  "Yes! Look at how good they are! I don't even know when we can get out of here!", said Zhang Shanggui, his eyes filled with boundless envy.

  "What's the hurry, kid? Our turn is almost here. Once this batch goes out, it'll be our turn!" Mantun comforted him.

  "It would be great if we could go out and fight the devils every day!", "Alright! You little brat! Who doesn't want to fight the devils? I dream of it every night! Now our battalion's mission is to defend this place, the battalion commander has repeatedly ordered that we can't make any mistakes. Being able to go out and have a good fight is already not bad, if we make a mistake, we might not even have the chance to go out again. Let's just stand guard properly!", Man Tuen scolded with a smile.

  During this period, Li Xinmin's three battalions had been guarding the arsenal, although their job was to guard the arsenal, but headquarters did not completely arrange the troops to be stationed there, and some small actions were also turned a blind eye. Li Xinmin assigned the main force to each company, and every now and then, he would send out a small team to do some sideline business. This not only ensured the combat effectiveness of the soldiers, increased their actual combat experience, but also supplemented the three battalions' weapons, ammunition, food, and other supplies. However, the soldiers of the three battalions were all very anxious, they hoped to fight against the devils at all times.

  At this moment, the Eighth Route Army headquarters in Wangjiayu is holding an emergency meeting. The outer perimeter of the General Command has reached its highest alert level. Double sentry posts have been set up outside, and the number of guards has increased by more than double. Inside the house, they are discussing an important matter. After a period of study, the leaders decided to mobilize the strength of three regiments.

  "Hello, Commander!", Li Xinmin was led by the guard to the command room of the headquarters.

  "Hmm!", The chief nodded slightly and then spoke very solemnly to Li Xinmin.

  "Director Li! These few comrades are from Yan'an." "Good day, Director!", Li Xinmin immediately saluted these few directors. The few directors surprisingly returned a salute to Li Xinmin.

  "Li Yingchang! After our research, we plan to select a group of people from the third camp to escort these comrades to Shandong." "Remember! Our conversation today is top secret and absolutely cannot be leaked out in any way!", the Chief of Staff instructed very seriously.

  "Yes! Please rest assured, Commander!", "Hm! The combat strength of the Third Camp is something we're familiar with. It can be said that it's the strongest and most formidable. This matter is extremely important, you must be cautious!"

  "Don't worry, Commander! I will definitely select the most elite warriors to carry out this mission!"

  "Alright! We must do a good job of keeping it confidential!" The Chief of Staff instructed repeatedly. "Don't worry, Commander! This time I'll lead the team myself and mobilize another batch of soldiers."

  "No! You don't need to participate in this task this time! Another cadre will be assigned from the third battalion to execute this task, which will take a long time. The journey to Shandong is far and along the way, you'll have to deal with harassment from devils, puppet troops, bandits and other hostile forces. If needed in Shandong, this group of people may stay there for a while, responsible for ensuring the safety of these few comrades."

  "Alright! In this case, Comrade Commander, how about assigning Comrade Huang Yuke, the company commander, to carry out this task?" Li Xinmin asked.

  "Huang Yu Kai? What do you think?", The commander looked at several other chiefs of staff.

  "I think it's okay! Huang Yuke joined our party very early, fought bravely and has a good mind. He should be able to complete this task well," said a staff officer.

  "Right! I know this Huang Yu Kai! Last time at the battle of Huang Ya Dong, he was the first to charge up and block the enemy's attack." The chief of staff also nodded in agreement.

  "Alright! Let's go with Huang Yuke then! You decide on the others yourself!" The commander saw that everyone agreed to appoint Huang Yuke, so he didn't say anything else. As for the other personnel, only Li Xinmin understood best, and he believed that he would definitely choose some powerful warriors.

  "I'd like to send a special forces team with them! Let Captain Gao Dabao coordinate with Huang Yuke's actions."

  "Oh! Special troops? Is it interesting?", one of the leaders from Yan'an asked.

  "Haha! That's right! They formed a small team on their own, and the warriors in this small team are all sharpshooters, with good skills! They're a great bunch of guys!" The chief of staff introduced them with a smile.

  "Haha! This idea is great! Very creative!", "It's all thought up by this Li Yinglong himself! Now this small squad can be said to be the sharp knife of the entire unit."

  "Really? I'd like to see it for myself!" said the commander with a smile.

  "Alright! Li Yingchang! The specific personnel will be arranged according to what you said!", "Yes!", Li Xinmin turned around and left.

  "Write down for me a list of the strongest warriors in each company." Li Xinmin had all three company commanders come and make out a list.

  Before long, three lists came out. Li Xinmin carefully selected personnel with the help of the three company commanders and finally determined a detailed list of personnel. After such a long battle, the Third Battalion was no longer the original one. After some rectification by Li Xinmin, each battalion became an elite force.

  "It's these people! You go down and do the specific work, but I must keep it confidential for me. Absolutely can't let other people know about our camp personnel adjustments." Li Xinmin instructed seriously. For his several subordinates, Li Xinmin was still relatively at ease, after all, they had crawled out of a pile of dead bodies together.

  Li Xinmin gathered the troops together and announced to the soldiers that they were going to form a super-strong company, with one company commander as the company commander, and the rest of the personnel would be reassigned. Li Xinmin took out the list and called out the people on it one by one, reassigning their platoons and squads. Those who had positions continued to hold them, while those who didn't were reassigned. After all the arrangements were made, Li Xinmin reassigned the remaining personnel to the second and third companies.

  Huang Yuke led the troops to arrive at the headquarters with Li Xinmin, and when they saw the neat and mighty three battalion soldiers, several leaders were shocked by the momentum of the soldiers.

  "What a fine troop!", several leaders praised in succession.

  "How's this? Are you satisfied with this soldier?" The commander smiled and started joking with a few comrades.

  "Haha! It's not just satisfactory, it's really likable! It seems that you have not only elite soldiers but also a strong general!" "Hahaha", several people laughed and chatted. Finally, under Li Xinmin's careful instructions and the leader's repeated orders, Huang Yuke led the troops to escort the leaders with Gao Dabao.

  "Alright! Remember what I told you before! Be extremely careful! Cautious, cautious and more cautious! Absolutely no mistakes are allowed!", "Don't worry, Captain! We will definitely be careful!", Gao Da Bao replied seriously.

  "This operation is of great importance, your responsibility is even greater, you must be extra careful!" Li Xinmin patted Huang Yuke's shoulder and instructed.

  "Don't worry, Captain!"

  A line of people slowly disappeared into the depths of the mountains. Although the leader didn't say who those leaders were, Li Xinxin guessed that these people were absolutely not ordinary people, judging from the way the leader spoke to them. Li Xinxin knew that their journey would be extremely difficult, and he had no idea when they would return or how many people would come back with them. He didn't dare think about it, nor did he want to. All he could do was silently remind himself of them in his heart.