Sword of Light: Humanoid Self-Propelled Artillery

Chapter 146 Scheming Against Chu Yunfei

Therefore, Wang Gensheng's proposal for three teams to run the Taiyuan dungeon a second time was put on hold.

There was no way around it. Although Kong Jie was somewhat tempted, Li Yunlong and Ding Wei were not willing to do it! After all, Taiyuan City was only relatively close to Kong Jie's New Second Regiment. The rest were nearly 200 kilometers away, which is equivalent to 400 li. Conducting a large-scale troop march over such a long distance was an extremely passive thing to do.

Moreover, without heavy weapons, attacking a city is an extremely difficult task. Although the city walls are not made of concrete, the walls of Taiyuan City are more than ten meters high and several meters thick, and ordinary small-caliber shells really have no effect on them.

So if Li Yunlong hadn't been provoked, he naturally wouldn't have attacked the county town garrisoned by the Japanese, even though there was a seven or eight times the troop strength difference, and they still fought for several hours.

Seeing that the atmosphere was somewhat dull, Li Yunlong changed the subject, saying:
"Hey Lao Kong, you're here, why did you bring so many supplies? Are you trying to give me, Lao Li, a gift?"

It turned out that after Kong Jie obtained the supplies that Chu Yunfei had stolen from Wang Gensheng, he did not rush to send them to Chu Yunfei. Instead, he went to Li Yunlong's regiment first, since it was on his way.

Upon hearing that Li Yunlong was actually eyeing the supplies he was transporting, Kong Jie immediately said:
"Hey! Those supplies aren't mine, they belong to Chu Yunfei. Chu Yunfei's transport team was robbed by Xie Baoqing of Black Cloud Village, but they happened to run into Wang Gensheng and managed to get them back. As for me, I met the soldiers whose supplies were robbed and promised them I would get them back. So Wang Gensheng entrusted the supplies to me to deliver to Chu Yunfei!"

No sooner had Kong Jie finished speaking than Li Yunlong exclaimed happily:

"Great! What I wished for has come true! You can't return these supplies to him. I've been thinking about how to scheme against Chu Yunfei these past few days!"

Upon hearing this, Ding Wei immediately reminded him:
"Hey Lao Li! Don't do anything reckless. We haven't had any conflicts with the Jin-Sui Army in a long time. You can't just act impulsively and cause trouble!"

No sooner had Ding Wei finished speaking than Kong Jie chimed in:

"Yes! Old Li is currently in a period of cooperation, and we're united against a common enemy! We're united with the National Army against a common enemy! The relationship is delicate, so we have to turn a blind eye to some things! We can't afford to confront each other head-on!"

Seeing that Kong Jie and Ding Wei were both using the concept of righteousness as an argument, Wang Gensheng also spoke up:

"Although we are mortal enemies with them, we can only put aside our hatred and unite against a common enemy when our nation is facing a life-or-death crisis. Although the Japanese are weak now and like grasshoppers in autumn, they have not yet surrendered, so it is best if we do not provoke trouble first, but of course we cannot let them bully us!"

Seeing that Ding Wei, Kong Jie, and Wang Gensheng had all started to persuade him as soon as he had expressed his opinion, Li Yunlong could only smile wryly.

"Hey, you three political idiots! I didn't invite you here to give me a political lecture. Chu Yunfei has already driven a big nail into my territory. Come and see!"

As Li Yunlong spoke, he stood up, pointed to the map hanging on the wall, and continued:
"This is Daguzhen. Two battalions of the 358th Regiment have already entered my territory. Look at this vital transportation route! We can advance into the plains or retreat into the mountains to hold our ground. If anything happens, Chu Yunfei can easily split my territory in two, leaving me unable to connect with my surroundings!"

Ding Wei stared at the picture and nodded, saying:
"So that's how it is. Chu Yunfei's move can be considered a trump card! The timing of the point selection is excellent. Daguzhen is indeed a crucial location. You wouldn't normally see it, but once we enter a stalemate with the Nationalist army, Chu Yunfei's 358th Regiment will definitely have the upper hand!" Kong Jie continued after Ding Wei finished speaking:
"Chu Yunfei has a very long-term vision! The War of Resistance against Japan is not over yet, and the Japanese have not surrendered, but he is already considering the next war."

At this moment, Wang Gensheng sighed:
"Even so, we can't make the first move, otherwise we'll be branded as sabotaging the war effort, which would be a serious blow to the reputation of our Eighth Route Army. If things go wrong, Old Li will be relegated to embroidery!"

Li Yunlong chuckled and said:
"So! This isn't about me, Li Yunlong, competing with him for a moment. This guy's move may seem ordinary, but it's actually very insidious. He shouldn't think he can't do what he's told. I've been thinking about how to deal with him these past few days!"

No sooner had Li Yunlong finished speaking than Ding Wei, as if he had already thought of a good idea, spoke up:

"As I always say, I will not offend others unless they offend me, but if they offend me, I will retaliate. Although Chu Yunfei's entry into Dagu Town poses a threat to me, we have not turned against each other yet. We must not make the first move unless he does, otherwise we will have to bear the responsibility of creating friction!"
I think we should do it this way: First, the logistics supply for the two battalions that Chu Yunfei is stationed in Dagu Town will have to pass through our three-person defense zone no matter which direction they come from. Great! We'll set up roadblocks for him, and we can even set up several more. Second, we'll use the stolen supplies in Kong Jie's hands as leverage to negotiate with him and force him to withdraw his troops.

The third force was heavily deployed and stationed around Chu Yunfei's two battalions. When he drilled, we drilled; when he trained, we trained. We were practically neighbors, yet we never interacted. The goal was to create pressure, to make him constantly feel that his two battalions were always a piece of meat on our plate! We could eat them whenever we wanted!

After hearing Ding Wei's complete plan, Li Yunlong immediately smiled and said:
"Haha! Great idea, Lao Ding! You're a real strategist, just like me! Let me tell you, I've set up three battalions around Dagu Town, sandwiching him in the middle so he can't move! This Chu Yunfei's precious 'running battalion' will be taken by the Li family sooner or later, along with its cannons!"

However, upon hearing that Li Yunlong had used three battalions to surround Chu Yunfei's artillery and infantry battalions, Ding Wei immediately reminded him:

"Hey! Old Li, you're using three battalions, that's your entire main force! What will you do if the Japanese invade your base area?"

However, in response to Ding Wei's reminder, Li Yunlong smiled proudly and said:

"Do you know how many men I have? I'll tell you in a way that will shock you. I'll tell you exactly eight battalions!"

Upon hearing Li Yunlong's words, Kong Jie was immediately shocked and exclaimed:

"Good heavens! Everyone knows you, Li Yunlong, have made a fortune this year, but I never expected you to become a nouveau riche, expanding your army by nearly three times!"

Li Yunlong was quite pleased with Kong Jie's witty banter, saying:

"That's right, and that doesn't even include the Guards Company, the Cavalry Company, and the Reconnaissance Company. Now I'm a real landlord, a rich man!"

Wang Gensheng was speechless at Kong Jie's envy. Although Li Yunlong's family was well-off, Kong Jie's family was not bad either! Before he left the New Second Regiment, Wang Gensheng had earned quite a bit for the New Second Regiment!

(End of this chapter)