Armored train in the apocalypse

Chapter 179: Inside and outside
Until it was pecked off by those mutated birds with sharp claws.

So Xiao Zhao and his team are currently researching how to load drones with small firearms specifically to deal with the mutated birds in the sky or to provide fire support for ground units.

This is a great idea; it's the most important project besides improving the database and train terminals.

Director Xu is currently conducting preparatory work using himself as the genetic prototype. His research staff is working with Professor Ma to collect preliminary data and conduct material testing for the train modification.

New materials since the apocalypse have had a tremendous impact on the existing scientific system, but they have also brought about many achievements.

Su Huan brought up the drone's control interface and moved it forward slightly.

The camera captured an armored personnel carrier speeding along the asphalt road, cutting through the rain.

Following behind were bright red fire trucks and several heavy trucks.

There were some small off-road vehicles surrounding the two flanks.

The armed train convoy has now developed its own mode of operation.

Armored personnel carriers lead the way, followed by fire trucks to handle any problems, such as traffic accidents blocking roads or building collapses. Trucks, as transport vehicles, only carry goods and not people.

The other off-road vehicles were found temporarily. As long as there was a "power supplier" in the convoy, the vehicles could be started easily without even a key.

Dispose of it on the spot after completing the task.

However, this time it can be used for website construction.

Just as Su Huan was praising He Jie for not losing his temper this time, he suddenly noticed a huge iron-eating tree being pulled between two heavy trucks in the last direction.

The lush foliage swept away rainwater and debris from the road like a broom.

It was even twice as tall as the truck next to it.

"This guy... would be a good hunter."

Su Huan gritted his teeth.

……

"This iron-eating tree launched a fierce attack on our army, and was then killed by our army!"

“Train conductor, you know me. I’m an honest man and I can’t stand bloodshed.”

He Jie's face was stern, and his powerful voice pierced through the rain.

Even Liang Kuan, with his down-to-earth personality, couldn't help but clear his throat.

The surrounding armed soldiers all kept their faces tightly shut, afraid that they might burst out laughing and be remembered by He Jie.

He Jie is now their combat team's instructor.

They are specifically responsible for daily training.

If you offend someone, you might get a couple of scoldings from the senior flight attendants, but if you fall into the hands of that old dog He Jie, you'll get nine blows in a second, and no teammate will dare to help you share the burden.

Su Huan glanced at the iron-eating tree that had been cut in half at his feet, let out a soft chuckle, and jumped down from the tree.

Acid rain fell on his head, sliding to both sides along an invisible barrier.

Anyway, no one died this time, and the transport mission was successfully completed, so it doesn't matter if they talk nonsense.

The train conductor is quite tolerant.

How much of the building materials we need are left in the warehouse?

Su Huan asked.

He Jie knew the matter was over and breathed a sigh of relief.

"We only took about one-tenth of the quantity in the two shipments. The building materials we can use only occupy about two floors of the warehouse. I estimate that one more shipment will be enough."

With a flick of his finger, He Jie had a thick cigar in his mouth.

"The bullet workshop is short of materials, so this time I prioritized getting brass back."

Su Huan kicked the branches under his feet. "Cut these branches down first. Send the good ones to the truck. Plant the rest around the station, tie them with red ropes, and mark them."

"Hey, got it." He Jie chuckled in agreement, then turned to look coldly at the licking rabbit beside him. "Did you hear what the train conductor said?"

Licking Rabbit instinctively wanted to bow, but hesitated for a moment, then lightly punched its left shoulder with its fist. "Yes!"

Su Huan looked at He Jie, who resembled a rogue soldier, and pondered, "Today I plan to do the final internal construction of the station, and also screen passengers for training purposes. Which job do you plan to do?"

"Training troops?" He Jie's eyes lit up.

Su Huan casually flicked a branch from the iron tree. The branch was tender green, about three meters long, with the first 1.5 meters stiff and the tip pointed, like an oversized horsewhip.

With each wave, the rain curtain seemed to be cut like cloth, with an excellent feel.

He casually explained, "The crew can basically cover the functional aspects of the train. There aren't that many positions available for ordinary passengers. I plan to divert some of them here, select those with combat potential to form an armed force, and fill the rest at the stations. That way, there won't be so many people on the train."

As He Jie had expected, there wasn't enough space on the train to begin with, so it wouldn't make much sense to use twenty carriages to carry ordinary people.

The outstanding talents have been gradually selected and recruited into the cabin crew over this period of time.

The remaining survivors can be placed in the station to both populate the station's population and provide them with jobs and a chance to survive.

After all, this is establishing a completely new gathering place, with far more opportunities than on the train.

He Jie exhaled a smoke ring, which swept away the surrounding rain, and nodded. "Then I'll definitely choose training. But how do you plan to command so many soldiers? Will they all be put into combat groups?"

Su Huan raised an eyebrow and said calmly, "I haven't decided yet, but it definitely can't be classified into the combat group. The combat group consists of elite soldiers who guard the train internally. What do you think about classifying it into the later combat squads?"

He Jie frowned. "Several hundred people, enough to turn a combat squad into a fatso who can't walk, you can forget about their combat effectiveness."

"Then what should we do?" Su Huan shrugged.

He Jie's eyes widened. "No, you're the train conductor, why are you asking me?"

Su Huan narrowed his eyes. "Aren't you going to help the train conductor?"

"...I thought you had already thought it through."

Would you believe me if I said I never even thought about it?

"But I think it's really creative of you to have three systems on one train."

"There's no other way. I have no experience in this area, so I can only try it one step at a time."

He desperately needs a strategist with a broad vision, but unfortunately Li Tao died suddenly.

Now that He Jie is fully committed to the armed train, they can discuss some things in more depth.

He was the only one on the entire train who understood matters related to systems.

After all, our Captain He was the chief executive officer of the Steel Council's major plans in his previous life. He may be a bit reckless, but he is definitely meticulous despite his rough exterior.

Lin Jin has always been a lone wolf, and given his young age, he can't offer any advice at all.

Qu Hang and the goat need no introduction.

A master of self-preservation.

Yu Jing has little interest in anything other than machinery.

Professor Ma, Huang Hai, and others have been busy at the school their whole lives, but they don't have much management experience.

He Jie rubbed his chin. "Your idea of ​​separating the internal and external is correct, but dividing the internal into core members and the flight crew is a bit redundant..." After saying a few words, He Jie felt that he hadn't explained clearly enough, so he squatted down and pulled out a metal buckle to scratch marks on the ground.

While drawing, he explained, "These two lines divide the entire train into three parts: our core members, the crew, and the tactical squad. But to be honest, there isn't a strict hierarchical relationship or a clear path for advancement. Even if Lu Xiao and his colleagues work hard their whole lives, they still won't become the chief purser. Of course, it's good that you opened up the points system, but the terrifying amount is practically nonexistent."

All core members have reviewed the points redemption manual and offered some feedback.

He Jie probably noticed the problem back then, but the issues involved were quite sensitive.

Su Huan asked him today, and that's when he finally revealed the problem.

Then He Jie redraws a vertical line next to it.

The train conductor's name was written at the top, the crew name was written on the left, and the armed forces name was written on the right.

"We can distinguish between insiders and outsiders, but we shouldn't create different levels within them. Combat is inherently a high-risk job, and without corresponding treatment and status, things will inevitably change over time."

"The cabin crew system is quite good, and it was just revised a few days ago, so try not to change it. Perhaps you could add a chief cabin crew leader above the four chief cabin crew leaders, and then add some deputy positions, such as four chief and four deputy chief cabin crew leaders, eight cabin crew leaders in total, leaving some vacant positions. There may not be any need for people immediately; this is for the people below to see."

"The next level is still Level 5 flight attendants, and the whole system is Level 7, which serves as an internal classification."

"As for the armed forces, I suggest we use the existing military ranks directly, since the system for officers of the rank of colonel and lieutenant is already quite complete."

As Su Huan looked at the crack in the ground, which was soaked by acid rain, the chaos in his mind seemed to be split open.

The distinction between inside and outside was based on front and back, and the upward mobility was blocked; those assigned to the crew were of a higher rank than those in the tactical squad.

He Jie is divided into left and right sides, and each path has room for advancement.

"What if I want to retain this task delegation system?"

He Jie wiped the rainwater from his hair. He didn't have Su Huan's skillful ability to block the rain, so he could only rely on his strong physique to endure it.

“Then let’s split it up.” A line extended from the metal buckle next to the armed forces. “I suggest reducing the qualification for tactical squads. After all, you only need elites. Only officers of the rank of colonel and lieutenant are qualified to form tactical squads. For example, lieutenant officers can choose one or two followers from the reserves or regular soldiers to form a tactical squad to carry out the train’s commissioned missions.”

"Turn tactical squads into a privilege reserved only for high-ranking officers!"

"Instead of directly drawing on key personnel to form some kind of special operations team."

Su Huan narrowed his eyes; this was a line of thinking he hadn't considered.

If what He Jie said is true, it's equivalent to a high-ranking military officer having the authority to form a private armed force, and then being able to do some commissioned tasks on trains, or private matters.

There is one difference compared to the Steel Council.

This system did not completely dismantle the armed forces as a whole.

In the later stages of the Steel Council in the previous life, all officers fought their own battles, and some even killed each other in private.

Su Huan made the final decision, "Okay, but the qualification to form a squad must be granted to officers at the colonel level."

He Jie scratched the ground with the broken metal buckle in his hand, then stood up and puffed on a cigarette.

"Those are all minor matters..."

Su Huan patted his muscular shoulder with satisfaction, "Alright, once you've selected the recruits, we'll officially implement this system."

He Jie was stunned, and the half-smoked cigar in his mouth fell to the ground and was extinguished by the rain.

"I just said it offhand, and now I'm not going to think about it anymore?"

Su Huan waved his hand, and the sound of branches slicing through the air rang out. "There's no time for so much consideration. We'll fix it if problems arise."

He Jie scratched his head, "It really is a makeshift team..."

……

An hour later, listening to the sounds of gunfire and artillery outside, He Jie's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

He said there were only two tasks, and he had just finished training his troops when Yu Yue led a team out to carry out a clearing operation within three kilometers of the station.

Su Huan did it on purpose!

The survivors were gathered together in a daze, surrounded by fully armed elite soldiers. Their tactical boots were tightly strapped together, and their tactical vests were full of magazines. They were already a little uneasy, and when they saw He Jie's muscular, bear-like physique and his gloomy face, they even wondered if he was going to shoot them.

The children in the crowd began to sob softly.

Licking Rabbit cautiously glanced at the gloomy-faced boss, then looked at Qu Hang.

The latter, holding a sniper rifle, leaned against a steel pillar, staring blankly at the rain, as if nothing was wrong.

He could only cautiously step forward and say firmly, "Report, the personnel of North District One have all gathered."

"Oh!"

'I knew it!'

The licking rabbit let out a wail the moment it was kicked away.

He Jie crossed his arms, his eyebrows furrowed, and yelled, "Why are you shouting so loudly?! Do you think I'm deaf?! You've scared the kids to tears."

The crowd of over three hundred people, who had been whispering amongst themselves, fell silent after that shout.

The quiet sobbing stopped.

He Jie's nostrils flared as he frowned at the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled people in front of him. "Women and children under sixteen, stand aside."

The crowd was immediately delighted, and more than a hundred people stood to the side, leaving about two hundred men behind.

Several boys who were clearly over sixteen years old stood to one side, and the soldiers ignored them.

This made many people who didn't have the courage to run away secretly regret their actions.

He Jie looked at it, still dissatisfied, "Anyone over forty-five, go away."

This time the crowd was much larger, with more than half running to the side, leaving only about a hundred able-bodied young men.

It's not surprising that young adults make up one-third of the population; the apocalypse has already filtered them out.

"The Armed Train is recruiting reserve personnel. All those selected can become Evolvers. Points are calculated based on combat merits, and the highest rank is general. The treatment is equivalent to that of core members, including food and lodging, and equipment. The higher the rank, the better the treatment. You should have seen that points booklet today, right?"

Everyone was stunned for a moment, but when they realized what was happening, their eyes lit up with envy.

Especially those ordinary people who aren't even evolved beings.

Someone mustered up their courage and asked, "Do we also have that kind of potion that can turn someone into a powerful evolved being with just one injection?"

"Yes, but it depends on the points exchange. The points you get from battles are definitely more than you can get from doing other jobs."

The crowd began to whisper.

He Jie was able to easily hear what they were saying thanks to his excellent hearing.

It's nothing more than questioning the authenticity, whether there will be any consequences, and whether they will be used as cannon fodder.

Regardless of their suspicions, He Jie offered no explanation.

The more you try to explain this, the worse it gets.

Even if the armed train wants to recruit cannon fodder, do these people have any choice?

It's good to get rid of those who can't think straight beforehand.

(End of this chapter)