From the 7th Steel Company to the Synthetic Division

The strength of the Mountain Eagle Brigade and the Tsunami Assault Brigade was enough to attract the attention of everyone present, but that was all; it was far from being something to be wary of.

The 7th Steel Brigade has risen from a combined arms company to where it is today through sheer strength and hard work.

"Both of these brigades from the Navy and the Air Force have undergone special operations training, so their combat capabilities are definitely not bad. It's quite surprising that the Navy even has a special operations squadron. Do you have any information about their brigade commanders?" Wang Qingrui asked.

"The commander of the Tsunami Brigade is surnamed Wang. He was recently transferred and we don't know much about him. The Electronic Company is organizing people to infiltrate their network," Qiu Ming replied.

"Then you should focus on the situation of Xiahou Lan, the commander of the Mountain Eagle Brigade," Tian Baoguo requested.

"The Mountain Eagle Brigade was established relatively recently, and the intelligence it could gather was also limited."

Qiu Ming took two steps forward to the table, turned on the military computer he had brought, and pulled up the intelligence, saying, "However, we eventually learned some basic information about Xiahou Lan from the National Defense University's database."

He graduated from the Air Force Flight Academy, was a top-class pilot, and served as a flight regiment commander.

He later entered the Army Command Academy to study and served as the commander of the airborne battalion. At the beginning of last year, the Air Force formed a rapid reaction assault brigade, and he became the brigade commander of the Mountain Eagle Brigade.

It's worth noting his graduation thesis at the National Defense University.

“It was only established at the beginning of last year, so it’s not much older than us, so it’s a brigade of the same age. Xiahou Lan’s paper must be quite extraordinary to be able to become the brigade commander,” Chen Jun guessed.

"His paper, titled 'The Importance of Strengthening the Blue Force's Strength and Initiative in Exercises,' is similar to the professionalization of the Blue Force in Zhurihe," Qiu Ming said.

"Oh? I'll have to take a look then. Send this paper to my computer later."

Chen Jun made a request to Qiu Ming, and then said, "Everyone understands the situation. Now go back and rest for an hour to think about a few things."

First, since we're here to stir things up, how should we do it?

Secondly, they are currently facing off between two parties. Should we fight on both sides, stand idly by, or choose to fight one of them first?

Third, since we are a specialized hypothetical enemy, to what extent will we be specialized this time? Since we're going to disrupt things, we'll cause chaos, but to what extent?

Everyone should go back and think about these three points. We'll return here in an hour for a meeting, and then brainstorm and discuss them afterward.

Chen Jun made his requests to everyone, and Wang Qingrui then added a few more points to note. The meeting then adjourned, and everyone went their separate ways.

Qiu Ming then sent the paper that Chen Jun wanted to Chen Jun's military computer.

Chen Jun opened the paper and found it quite interesting.

The content is:
The traditional red-blue force-versus-force confrontation model is too formalistic and no longer meets the requirements of modern training. It must be adjusted under the premise of reform.

Creating a "blue team" by imagining a hypothetical enemy is undoubtedly the most suitable approach for the current situation.

The world’s first standardized and recognized adversary force was the Foreign Air Force Simulation Group, which was formed by Israel in 1966.

At that time, an Iraqi pilot named Muriel defected to Israel in his fighter jet. The Israeli military then quickly assembled a group of excellent pilots, and Muriel trained them according to the Soviet military training methods, imitating the enemy's air combat maneuvers.

After conducting combat training with this simulated squadron, the Israeli Air Force's combat capabilities were significantly improved. In subsequent air battles against Iraq, it inflicted heavy losses on the enemy with a casualty ratio of one to twenty.

This shows that the establishment and strengthening of the PLA Air Force's adversary force is imperative.

The aircraft types, airframes, paint schemes, communications, command methods, control techniques, tactics, and operational concepts used by this unit.

We must do our utmost to achieve a resemblance in form, and then in spirit; we cannot treat the Blue Team merely as a target...

Xiahou Lan's paper, which is several thousand words long, is very attractive from the beginning, and the content is equally impressive. It also cites a large number of cases as evidence to prove his hypothetical enemy, the Blue Army.

After reading Xiahou Lan's paper, Chen Jun couldn't help but think more highly of him.

He praised without reservation: "Great minds think alike. I never expected that Xiahou Lan would have such insights. He is truly admirable."

If someone were to write a paper in 2025 emphasizing the creation of a professional "blue team" targeting hypothetical adversaries.

That's really nothing.

This model, which has already been implemented and widely adopted in the military, is practically the standard answer, so it's not surprising that everyone knows it.

But this was more than 20 years ago in 2002, and the information technology reform had only just begun.

How should the Blue Team be built? Is the hypothetical enemy model suitable for the exercise? How should integrated forces be constructed? What is the optimal route for the exercise?

These are all newborn babies, and everyone is still feeling their way across the river.

Xiahou Lan's ability to accurately identify the right path in this era, based on his own understanding and analysis, is undeniable.

Being able to compete against such a strong opponent made Chen Jun eagerly anticipate the competition.

"Chief of Staff, you are the Zhuge Liang of the Seventh Steel Brigade, with uncanny foresight that led to the defeat of the army from a thousand miles away. Who else could earn your admiration?"

Hong Yi pushed open the curtain and walked in. He had just overheard Chen Jun's last words from outside.

"Who else could it be but Xiahou Lan from the Mountain Eagle Brigade? He's really got some skills. I just read his graduation thesis, and it's truly well-written," Chen Jun praised.

"So that means..."

Hong Yi sat down next to Chen Jun and said seriously, "It can now be completely confirmed that the Mountain Eagle Brigade is a quasi-professional opposing force unit of the Air Force."

"It seems you already have the answer. Tell me about it." Chen Jun knew it himself, but wanted to hear Hong Yi's analysis.

"The fact that their brigade commander Xiahou Lan's papers are so appreciated by you, Chief of Staff, proves that he really has some skills."

Hong Yi first analyzed Chen Jun's words, and then went on to analyze other evidence, saying: "The Mountain Eagle Brigade has undergone special operations training as a whole, so its ground combat capability is definitely not bad, and it is also equipped with a helicopter squadron."

The combination of air and ground operations is enough to prove that this is a force particularly suited for integrated air and ground operations, with a primary focus on rapid ground maneuver warfare.

The characteristics and advantages of rapid airborne operations were brought into full play.

Based on this, I think the Air Force should also have a specialized Blue Force aviation unit, which was formed specifically to hone the Red Force pilots.

Judging from Xiahou Lan's experience, he is very likely the mysterious Blue Team commander of the specialized aggressor aviation unit.

Hong Yi's analysis is broader in scope and extends to specialized air forces.

This piqued Chen Jun's interest.

Although Chen Jun has rich experience in leading troops and combat experience far exceeding that of ordinary people, and also has the golden finger of later generations, he is still within the realm of human beings and cannot be omniscient and omnipotent in everything.

For example, Chen Jun had never heard of the specialized opposing force in the air force that Hong Yi mentioned before. Although Hong Yi's idea was just a personal conjecture, Chen Jun strongly agreed with it, believing that the possibility was extremely high.

"Now that you mention it, does that mean the J Committee working group's decision to bring us to participate in the exercise wasn't just to cause trouble, but also had some other ulterior motive?" Chen Jun guessed.

“Judging from Xiahou Lan’s background, the formation of the Mountain Eagle Brigade, and the recent exercise situation, he is roughly equal to us, and may indeed have other ulterior motives.” Hong Yi agreed with Chen Jun’s guess.

"Team Leader Tan wants to bring our two units together for a confrontation, to conduct a real-combat assessment of the professional opposing force. In short, he wants to use us as a whetstone for the professional opposing force."

The more Chen Jun thought about it, the more likely it seemed, and his eyes lit up.

"Yes, that's it, that's what I was thinking, that's definitely what it means." Hong Yi nodded repeatedly, his eyes filled with excitement at having solved the riddle.

"Oh, you two are having a secret discussion?"

At that moment, Gao Cheng ran in with a smile and couldn't help but tease the two of them as they discussed animatedly.

"Deputy Brigade Commander Gao, I arrived a little earlier than you," Hong Yi explained with a smile.

"Old Gao, you've come uninvited, so you must have a lot of ideas and opinions to share. Tell us quickly," Chen Jun urged with a smile.

"Old Chen understands me best, haha."

Gao Cheng laughed and sat down on the other side, saying, "We used to feel like we hadn't met our match, so the fights weren't very exciting. But this time, I think we've definitely met our match."

"You mean, the confrontation with the Mountain Eagle Brigade?" Chen Jun asked with great interest.

"Correct."

Gao Cheng nodded and said, "In a sense, this shows the high importance that the J Committee and the Theater Command attach to the construction of our informationized combined arms brigade and specialized adversary force..."

"Are you guys having a private meeting without inviting me, the brigade commander?"

Before Gao Cheng could finish speaking, Brigade Commander Wang Qingrui chuckled and lifted the curtain, walking in and turning Chen Jun's tent into a small conference room.

The fact that Gao Cheng, Hong Yi, and Wang Qingrui all came to Chen Jun's place without prior arrangement highlights that Chen Jun is the core figure in their hearts.

The fact that the three of them arrived in less than an hour proves that they had seriously considered the three questions Chen Jun had left behind and had found the answers, which is why they were so eager to come.

"No, no, we weren't in a meeting, we just came over for a chat."

"Yes, yes, I was really bored, so I came to chat with the chief of staff."

Although they knew Wang Qingrui wasn't really angry, Hong Yi and Gao Cheng still had to give him face, so they immediately smiled and explained.

"It's good that the brigade commander is here. We're just killing time anyway, so let's discuss before the meeting where we should start to cause trouble tomorrow," Chen Jun suggested.

"My idea is to sit back and watch the tigers fight. As a newcomer, we should first figure out the situation and not rush to take action now," Hong Yi said, expressing his thoughts.

"Since we're here to cause trouble, and we happen to run into their exercise, we should at least leave an impression and give them some trouble," Gao Cheng suggested.

“It’s fine to cause trouble, but I think we should concentrate our efforts on taking down one target first,” Wang Qingrui said.

“Since you all think we should fight, then let’s just fight both sides,” Hong Yi said.

"Both sides attacking together?"

Gao Cheng admired Hong Yi's courage and laughed, "Can we beat both of them together? Besides, if we anger both of them, they might gang up on us and we'll be in big trouble."

“No, I don’t mean open warfare. We can fight secretly.” Hong Yi explained.

"Hey, hey, that's a great idea."

Chen Jun liked Hong Yi's idea very much and said, "A covert attack is a good idea. It can hide us. Think about it along this line of thought."

"I thought so."

Hong Yi organized his thoughts and said in a deep voice, "We will send out two small teams to launch simultaneous attacks on both the red and blue teams participating in Operation Warrior."

However, we need to use a few tricks. When attacking the Tsunami Assault Brigade, we'll attack under the name of the Mountain Eagle Brigade; when attacking the Mountain Eagle Brigade, we'll use the Tsunami Assault Brigade's banner.

"Okay, that's a good idea."

Wang Qingrui clapped his hands and said, "By stirring up trouble and secretly provoking incidents, we can be good spoilers and sit back and watch the tigers fight."

"Brigade Commander, have you noticed?"

Gao Cheng said with a smile, "Before, we only had one bad guy here, but now we have another one. Look how underhanded Hong Yi's tactics are."

"Hahaha." Wang Qingrui was amused.

"What bad guy? I didn't do anything wrong. This is just tactic, a fair and square tactic."

Hong Yi chuckled and explained, then continued, "However, we don't know much about the Tsunami Assault Brigade yet, so targeting them would be risky."

However, I already know a bit about the Mountain Eagle Brigade and Xiahou Lan, and I think he should be a formidable opponent.

To be fair, if we're talking about insurance, it's safer to only apply to the Mountain Eagle Brigade.

From initially choosing to sit back and watch the fight, to later taking action and immediately devising a plan, and ultimately remaining rational and offering a warning from a safety perspective.

This is enough to prove that Hong Yi is a rare and talented general with both courage and intelligence.

“Sparring with masters is a real treat and a rare opportunity. We can also gain a lot from our competition with them,” Gao Cheng said expectantly.

"This is an opportunity, yes, but it might not work out. We'll have to see how things unfold," Chen Jun said thoughtfully.

“I think we should take the initiative to visit them and ask for their advice, and go and find out what they’re up to first,” Hong Yi suggested.

"Visit first, then ask for advice—that's a good idea."

Chen Jun's eyes lit up when he heard the suggestion, and his mind immediately began to race.

While the Seventh Steel Brigade was having a heated discussion, another group had left Songping by motorcycle half an hour earlier and had now arrived at their post in Shiliupu Village.

Through the reconnaissance platoon's radio, communication has been established with the brigade headquarters and the situation has been reported. (End of Chapter)