The 8th Infantry Brigade serving under Fortress 178 in the Northwest set off from Stronghold 144. However, when the troops were deployed this time, the Northwest did not even bother to conceal their movements as they hurried directly for the battlefield in the Central Plains.
Over the past few months, Hope Media, which originally did not have any presence in the Northwest, had also set up new branches in the two main cities of Fortress 178 and Stronghold 144.
Meanwhile, the print runs of their newspaper in the other strongholds were handled by distribution vendors.
With regards to the Central Plains’ overall war situation, the Northwest’s high-profile announcement of their participation to defend against the northern enemy was enough to lift everyone’s spirits.
Although the Alliance of Strongholds had been established for over 200 years, this was probably the first time the Central Plains people were so united again.
These lands had experienced an extended period of separatism. After a displacement in culture and the consortiums’ carefully curated curriculum, a lot of people even forgot that they used to be compatriots before The Cataclysm and should therefore be united as a nation.
And now, it seemed everyone in the Central Plains was infuriated by the Northerners’ action of massacring a city. The words “rousing” and “victory” also started appearing more in Hope Media’s newspapers.
Although Fortress 178 had agreed to Wang Yun’s request to travel together with the 8th Infantry Brigade, Wang Yun, Ji Zi’ang, and Wang Yun’s subordinates were not given any appointments for the time being. It seemed they would have to wait until the war in the North was over first.
During their march, everyone was surprised that Wang Yun and Zhang Xiaoman had become very good friends.
In fact, the two of them had completely different personalities, and their habits and interests were not similar at all. However, they still ended up becoming friends!
Was it because Wang Yun admired the Northwest’s selflessness? No.
Was it because of Zhang Xiaoman’s warm hospitality? It was not that either.
It was because both of them shared a “hatred” for the Great Hoodwinker.
The Great Hoodwinker had single-handedly held together this hard-to-come-by friendship.
Wang Yun sat in the vehicle and asked, “When we parted ways with the Great Hoodwinker, I heard you were only a regimental commander. How’d you get promoted so quickly? You said that your father works in a factory. Could it be a military supplies factory? You have good connections?”
Ji Zi’ang turned around and looked at Zhang Xiaoman as he was particularly interested in this matter. He wanted to know whether there were any privileged classes in the Northwest.
“No, can y’all not look at me that way?” Zhang Xiaoman said with a laugh, “My father works in a factory that produces socks. I only took a few days to become a brigade commander. But do you think I can really lead an infantry brigade to victory in battle? It’s not like I’m a genius at leadership!”
Wang Yun and Ji Zi’ang were stunned at his response. It seemed there was some other reason behind Zhang Xiaoman’s appointment as brigade commander.
Zhang Xiaoman chuckled. “Although I like to brag, I know very well what I’m capable of. I could still manage when I was leading the Razor Sharp Company, but when I became a regimental commander, I realized there was still too much I needed to learn. Soon after learning to be a regimental commander, I was suddenly made a brigade commander who had to lead soldiers to victory. That’s something that I can’t do yet.”
“Could it be that Fortress 178 has another purpose in sending you to the Central Plains?” Ji Zi’ang wondered. “I don’t think that’s appropriate, right? Now that the Central Plains is facing a war, it should be time for us to be united. The Northwest has never participated in the power struggles between the organizations, so there’s no reason they would send troops for other purposes at a time like this.”
“No, no, no. You’re thinking about the wrong thing.” Zhang Xiaoman chuckled. “Let me ask you all a question first. Where’s our Northwest’s future commander?”
“In the Central Plains. He was the one who saved us,” Wang Yun said.
“That’s right. At first, I couldn’t understand why the commander would assign me to the Central Plains. Later, I actually realized that the troops were not for me but the future commander to lead.” Zhang Xiaoman said with a glint in his eyes, “If it were the other veteran commanders who got assigned to the Central Plains, they might not be willing to accept the arrangement and the future commander would not be able to command the troops. What if they disobeyed his orders? But it’s different for me. The commander knew that I would definitely not oppose the future commander, so he sent me to fight this war instead.”
The other brigade commanders, such as Zhou Yinglong, Chai Zhilong, and the others, had been leading their troops into battle for many years and already had their own methods when it came to fighting a war.
So if these people were to join up with Ren Xiaosu in the Central Plains, they might not listen to him.
It was not that they despised Ren Xiaosu or refused to accept him as their future commander, but they would still have their own opinion on things.
But Zhang Xiaoman was different. First of all, he felt a little guilty after being fast tracked for promotion. Second, when he was in the Razor Sharp Company, he had always worked under Ren Xiaosu’s command. His position as the company commander was practically in name only.
Therefore, Zhang Xiaoman immediately guessed the reason for sending him to the Central Plains. As if they would trust him for his leadership ability! It was clear he would be assisting Ren Xiaosu in developing his first group of trusted troops.
Actually, Zhang Xiaoman had become Ren Xiaosu’s trusted subordinate since their time in the Razor Sharp Company.
Furthermore, when Wang Yun and Ji Zi’ang requested to travel together with the troops, the fortress commander had agreed to it very quickly. These two were supernatural beings. At that time, Zhang Xiaoman thought to himself that Commander Zhang had really put in a lot of effort to help Ren Xiaosu build up his support base.
But then again, Ren Xiaosu saved both Wang Yun and Ji Zi’ang, so they would naturally become his trusted subordinates.
After this war, Ren Xiaosu would not have to start from scratch if he needed to be deployed to the front lines the next time. By then, he would already have a group of soldiers who had worked together before, even if it was only one infantry brigade.
Zhang Xiaoman suddenly asked, “How did the future commander save you guys? It wasn’t stated in the letter, so why don’t y’all tell me in detail.”
“The two of us were being held in the secret prison. When the Great Hoodwinker was brought in first, he realized he could not rescue us by himself…” After Wang Yun said that, he could not help but get angry.
Then Wang Yun described the prison break in detail and also told him about the destruction of Stronghold 31. Zhang Xiaoman lamented from the bottom of his heart, “Future Commander is really as fearsome as ever.”
Ji Zi’ang suddenly asked, “I heard from the Great Hoodwinker that all your fortress commanders must come through the Razor Sharp Company. Is that true? Is the future commander also from the Razor Sharp Company?”
“You’ve asked the right person!” Zhang Xiaoman said proudly, “I humbly admit that I’m not talented in leading troops. Back then, I was the company commander of the Razor Sharp Company that our future commander was part of! We followed our future commander’s lead and fought all the way from Shichuan Town to Stronghold 146 in the north.”
“Wait a minute,” Ji Zi’ang was taken aback a little. “If you were his company commander, why were you the one following his lead in fighting your way north?”
“Ahem, those details are not important.” Zhang Xiaoman said, “Disregarding all of that, we really went through thick and thin with him. But after fighting that war, do you know why we were convinced by him?”
“Because he destroyed Stronghold 146 single-handedly?” Wang Yun asked.
“No.” Zhang Xiaoman shook his head and said, “Although there aren’t many powerful supernatural beings around, they aren’t considered rare either. Does it mean that we have to comply just because they’re powerful? No! We were convinced because he told us that he wouldn’t leave any man behind, and in the end, all of us really survived and made it back home.”