From the 7th Steel Company to the Synthetic Division

As the saying goes, "Those who walk different paths cannot make plans together."

Ding Kai regarded Chu Zhangang as a guiding light, so naturally Chu Zhangang was the absolute core. When his subordinates questioned Chu Zhangang, he had to find a way to persuade them.

“I’ve been with the brigade commander for so many years, and I’ve learned a lot from accompanying him fishing.”

Ding Kai spoke eloquently: "For example, we need to stay calm when things happen. You can't catch a fish the moment you hook it; you have to wait. The waiting process is the most agonizing, but if you persevere, the fish will take the bait..."

"chief of staff."

Commander Zhu couldn't stand it anymore and interrupted Ding Kai, saying, "I came to talk to you about something practical and meaningful for the development of our brigade. Why are you always talking to me about fishing?"

"If we agree to go fishing, will that improve the military, solve all problems, and defeat the 7th Steel Brigade?"

Commander Zhu's words were very direct, showing that he was truly anxious.

"Rongsheng, don't forget, you're about to join the brigade's leadership team. It's different from when you were the artillery regiment commander. Your position and identity have changed, so your way of thinking about problems must also change. Staying calm is the most important thing," Ding Kai said seriously.

"Okay, I'm all ears."

Commander Zhu wasn't as stubborn as Hong Yi. Even if he was very unhappy, he knew to restrain himself and see what Ding Kai could come up with.

“Once, when the brigade commander was fishing, he cast his line three times, but the bait was all eaten, and the fish just wouldn’t bite. I waited there for more than two hours. Finally, I urged the brigade commander to say, ‘It’s getting dark, let’s hurry back.’ Guess what the brigade commander said?” Ding Kai asked seriously.

"What else can we say? Pack up and leave," Commander Zhu said irritably.

"A sentence from the brigade commander remains unforgettable to this day."

Ding Kai, looking on with a face full of admiration, said in a mysterious tone, "The brigade commander said that one must have a breath in life, whether it is ambition, courage, talent, or arrogance, in short, one must be able to keep one's composure."

Being able to remain calm and composed is a sign of biding one's time and having a long-term vision; it means not becoming discouraged when facing setbacks and adversity.

The brigade commander also said that being able to remain calm is a sign of maturity. In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, when discussing heroes over wine, Liu Bei remained calm and eventually won the three kingdoms.

The Chu-Han Contention...

Chief of Staff Ding spoke at length, citing several examples from ancient times, and every word he uttered was meant to smear Chu Zhangang.

If Chu Zhangang were here to hear this, given his prideful nature, he'd probably be grinning from ear to ear.

"These are lessons learned from fishing? They seem to make some sense." Commander Zhu was just a roughneck; he didn't understand but couldn't pretend to, so he could only give a vague answer.

"It's not a principle, it's a philosophy."

Ding Kai corrected Commander Zhu's words and continued, "Because the brigade commander remained calm and didn't leave, guess how big a fish the brigade commander caught in the end?"

Seven catties! A big fish weighing seven catties...

"Hey~~"

Commander Zhu sighed and interrupted, still unable to contain his anxiety, asking, "But what do we do now? Can we really stay calm after a defeat? Pretend nothing happened? I can't stay calm, I can't do it."

"You won't be the artillery regiment commander tomorrow, so you must change your fiery temper." The chief of staff tapped Regiment Commander Zhu on the chest, giving him a stern warning.

"You guys are really holding your breath now, but I've heard someone's leaving," Commander Zhu dropped a bombshell.

"Who?" Ding Kai asked, puzzled.

“Hong Yi,” Commander Zhu said.

"How could that be? How could he leave? Why would he leave?" Ding Kai couldn't believe it at all.

"Look at the current situation of our brigade. The brigade commander is not taking any action and is not listening to others. Anyone with a little bit of ideas will feel frustrated." Regiment Commander Zhu's tone was like that of a woman in her boudoir who was feeling resentful.

Chu Zhangang is a stubborn, arrogant, and vain person who cannot accept advice or guidance from others.

People who just want to coast through life will find this place very comfortable.

Just follow along and you'll be fine.

But people with ideas can indeed feel very frustrated.

"No wonder the brigade commander asked me to talk to Hong Yi. So that's why. But even if he has objections, he doesn't need to take off his uniform. So many units have been disbanded after the military reform. How many people wanted to stay in the army but couldn't? Why does he still want to leave?"

Ding Kai had not yet realized the core issue and was still only thinking about his own interests, just like Chu Zhangang. He then said to Commander Zhu, "You should also try to persuade Captain Hong to calm down."

We must trust our brigade commander; we believe he will find a way to solve all the problems.

Despite Ding Kai's serious admonition, Commander Zhu did not agree. Instead, he deliberately looked Ding Kai up and down, his eyes filled with obvious disdain and dissatisfaction.

After looking at him for several seconds, he said, "Chief of Staff, I think you only trust the brigade commander now. I'm afraid you don't even trust yourself anymore."

Commander Zhu's words were truly devastating, and incredibly damaging.

Ding Kai's face changed drastically on the spot, turning liver-colored in just a few seconds. He said impatiently, "You, you don't even trust the brigade commander, who else can you trust?"
Rongsheng, we enlisted together and served in the army together for over twenty years.

"What you just said is just something you told me. Don't tell anyone else. Too many people will talk, and it won't be good if it gets to the brigade commander's ears, understand?"

"call--"

Commander Zhu finally realized his mistake at that moment. He took a deep breath and exhaled, muttering, "Now that I think about it, it was a huge mistake to oppose Hong Yi at the meeting."

His proposed 30/70 split is so reasonable and so true.

"With your current thinking and the brigade commander's attitude, if things continue like this, the chances of our 909th Brigade turning the tide are extremely slim."

Ding Kai's expression changed several times as he was rebuked. In fact, he knew very well what was going on, but he didn't have the courage to say it.

He could only force himself to say, "Don't say hurtful things. You need to learn to stay calm. Remember that. Okay, I have things to do. Let's talk again when we have time."

The words fell.

Ding Kai turned and left in a hurry, his steps revealing a sense of panic as he fled.

Commander Zhu watched Ding Kai leave quickly, then stood there for a long time without moving, his eyes growing dimmer and dimmer, devoid of any hope or spirit.

……

The internal problems within the 909th Brigade were escalating, and the distrust between superiors and subordinates was becoming increasingly apparent, but Chu Zhangang remained immersed in the world he had created.

Since Chu Zhangang hadn't even looked at the summary report, he naturally wouldn't hold another discussion with Chen Jun and his group.

So Chen Jun, Wang Qingrui, and two others left the 909th Brigade headquarters early the next morning and arrived at the 708th Brigade around noon.

Wang Kezheng has been in a particularly good mood lately since he learned that he will soon be promoted to a full-fledged division commander.

When I'm in a good mood, I have extra energy for work.

This morning, he personally led the soldiers to the training ground for training, and even personally joined in close combat training with them.

"Brigade Commander, the Brigade Commander of the 7th Steel Brigade, Wang Qingrui, along with Political Commissar Tian Baoguo and Chief of Staff Chen Jun, have arrived together," Staff Officer Jin reported to Wang Kezheng as he ran to the training ground. "The 7th Steel Brigade? Chen Jun? What's he doing here?" Wang Kezheng was very surprised.

No one else paid attention; they only heard Chen Jun's name.

"They said they're here to deliver an operational analysis report and need to speak with you in person," Staff Officer Jin replied.

"not see."

Wang Kezheng assumed they were there to show off and angrily refused without a second thought.

"Disappeared??" Staff Officer Jin was startled.

"Keep them out, and you won't be bothered if you don't see them."

Wang Kezheng was very resolute. Seeing that Staff Officer Jin was still hesitating, he glared at him and said, "Didn't you hear me clearly? Go and carry it out now, don't make me repeat myself."

"Yes, I understand."

Staff Officer Jin, confirming he hadn't misheard, saluted and turned to jog away.

Back in the duty room, Jin called the guard at the gate and relayed Wang Kezheng's order to the guard, instructing him to keep the man outside the gate.

"Comrades, I have not received any permission to pass. Please leave."

The guard was a little nervous facing two senior colonels and a colonel, but he had to carry out his superiors' orders first, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and persuade them to leave.

"Are you serious about asking us to leave?" Chen Jun was amused.

"Why won't you let us in?" Tian Baoguo asked, frowning in confusion.

"The exercise is over now, and we're here to deliver some materials to you," Wang Qingrui said patiently.

"We haven't received any clearance orders or notifications from our superiors. Please leave." The guards couldn't explain further and could only repeat the instructions.

To prevent further trouble, the guards returned directly to their post.

The main message is: if you can't afford to mess with them, then run away as fast as you can.

He, a nobody, couldn't get involved in the fight between the big shots.

"With their attitude, what's the point of continuing? Let's just leave. We don't need to give them the documents; we can just report back to the leader truthfully later."

Wang Qingrui was also a man with a temper. Being turned away made him very unhappy, and he turned to leave as he spoke.

"Once they get a good scolding from the leader, they'll naturally behave themselves. I'm afraid they'll have to beg us to come over then."

Chen Jun didn't want to suffer any humiliation here, so he smiled and followed Wang Qingrui to leave.

"No, brigade commander, chief of staff, wait a bit longer. This is a mission assigned by the commander. We can't leave like this until the mission is completed."

Although Tian Baoguo was also somewhat uncomfortable, as a political cadre, he had to mediate and prevent the situation from worsening in front of him.

Chen Jun and Wang Qingrui gave Tian Baoguo face, after all, he was their own official political commissar.

The two did not leave, nor did they speak again.

Let's see how Tian Baoguo handles this.

"Comrade, please call your brigade commander again and tell him that we are here on orders from the theater command to deliver the summary report to you. The commander has instructed that it must be handed over to him personally."

Tian Baoguo deliberately brought out the war zone commander to put pressure on Wang Kezheng.

"We haven't received any clearance orders. Please don't make things difficult for us. You can call the people inside and have them come and pick you up. That's the rule."

The guards, not wanting to get involved in this mess, chose the smartest way to handle it.

For outsiders to enter the military camp, they must be greeted by someone from inside the camp at the gate; this is indeed a written rule.

Tian Baoguo was naturally aware of these regulations, and he couldn't very well make things difficult for a mere "gatekeeper".

There was a moment of stunned silence.

While Wang Kezheng said he wouldn't see her, he was actually quite concerned. He rushed back to his office immediately and specifically checked the security camera footage from the main entrance.

He also immediately notified Political Commissar He Yazhou and asked him to come to his office.

He Yazhou was working in his office. He came over immediately after receiving the notice from the civil servant. He pushed open the door and said, "What's the matter that's so urgent? Why did you tell me to come over right away?"

"Come, come, come and look at this."

Wang Kezheng beckoned He Yazhou over and pointed to the people on the screen, saying, "The brigade commander, political commissar, and chief of staff of the Seventh Steel Brigade said they wanted to send us some summary materials, but I had them blocked at the gate."

They just want to show off their achievements, they just want to see me make a fool of myself, right? I'm not going to give them that chance.

He Yazhou wasn't as straightforward as Wang Kezheng. When he saw that all three leaders of the Seventh Steel Brigade had arrived, he realized that this matter was definitely not simple.

He frowned and said, "Old Wang, what you're doing isn't a good idea."

Even if you're angry or upset, they're still leaders from our sister unit; we see each other all the time. How can you turn them out?

“If it were anyone else, I would open the doors wide and organize the entire brigade to line up and welcome them, but not Chen Jun,” Wang Kezheng insisted.

Wang Kezheng was furious whenever he thought about how Chen Jun had tricked him, making him a laughingstock during the exercise.

"No, definitely not."

He Yazhou knew he couldn't let Wang Kezheng run wild. Wang Kezheng was naive and straightforward, and his temper was like a child's. If he let him do whatever he wanted, things would go wrong.

After thinking for a moment, he suggested, "How about this, we'll just say you're not in the inn, and I'll come forward instead."

If I remember correctly, the theater army did issue a notice to us some time ago, and there was indeed a requirement to submit a summary report.

"That's not OK."

Wang Kezheng still couldn't understand and said angrily, "Who are they here for? Isn't it obvious they're here for me? Do they want to see me make a fool of myself?"
I've already said, this has nothing to do with you, Political Commissar; I take full responsibility.

Wang Kezheng felt that his words were not enough, so he deliberately added in a serious tone: "Old He, think about it, the exercise hasn't even started yet, and you and I have already been taken prisoner. Is this what you call taking prisoners?"

This is clearly an insult to us, an insult to the 708th Brigade. I haven't even settled accounts with them yet, and here they are, coming to our doorstep. What's so great about them? Huh?

Also, before we could finish our summary, they brought over the summary report from the 7th Steel Brigade and even helped us write one.

"What kind of nonsense is this? Isn't it obvious that this is a deliberate attempt to humiliate us?"

"Isn't your thinking a bit too extreme?" He Yazhou said, speechless.

"Where did I go against your wishes? I haven't mistreated them at all. I already gave the instructions. See? I've been treating them very well," Wang Kezheng said, pointing to the screen. (End of Chapter)