You were tasked with guarding the Sihang Warehouse, and you brought out a Tiger tank?

A delegation from the Fifth War Zone Command, responsible for liaison and inspecting the results of the battle, has arrived.

Leading the group was Lieutenant General Xu of the Guangxi clique, a trusted senior advisor to Commander Li of the Fifth War Zone.

Among the officials accompanying the inspection, Lin Feng unexpectedly spotted a very familiar figure.

Wang Tianlu, former head of the logistics department of the Ninth Group Army.

That old acquaintance with whom he had done several big deals during the Battle of Shanghai.

Lin Feng exchanged a glance with Wang Tianlu without making a sound, and then warmly received the inspection team.

"General Xu, colleagues, please take a look."

Lin Feng led the delegation directly to the temporary spoils warehouse set up outside the town.

When the warehouse door was pushed open, even the well-informed Lieutenant General Xu couldn't help but gasp.

On the wide open space, the captured Japanese weapons were piled up like mountains.

Bundles of Type 38 rifles were stacked neatly like firewood.

Rows of Type 92 heavy machine guns and Type 96 light machine guns emitted a pungent smell of gun oil.

Lieutenant General Xu gasped, his voice trembling slightly as he asked, "This...this must amount to several thousand guns, right?"

"Reporting to the sir, we have over six thousand intact rifles and over three hundred light and heavy machine guns."

Zhao Yushu, who was standing to the side, loudly reported to his superior, and then picked up an exquisite wooden box with both hands and handed it to Lieutenant General Xu.

The wooden box was opened.

Inside lay a finely crafted general's sword and a Japanese officer's ID card stained with blood.

Opening the cover printed with chrysanthemums, the photo and name on the ID card are clearly visible: Major General Kunisaki Noboru of the Great Japanese Empire Army.

At the bottom of the wooden box were several charred pieces of cloth, remnants of Japanese brigade and regimental flags collected after the war.

The iron-like object before him completely dispelled the last trace of doubt in Lieutenant General Xu's mind.

He carefully picked up the wooden box containing the officer's sword, and looking at Kunisaki Noboru's gloomy face on the document, his heart was in turmoil.

After the initial shock, a more complex emotion welled up inside me.

As Commander Li's confidant, Lieutenant General Xu was all too aware of the current situation in the entire war zone.

The Fifth War Zone had been established for just four months. Nominally, it commanded a vast area north of the Yangtze River and the Central Plains, and had hundreds of thousands of troops under its command. In reality, it was riddled with factions, including the Northwest Army, the Sichuan Army, the Yunnan Army, the Guangxi Army, and so on. Each warlord had his own agenda, and command and dispatch were struggling to survive.

What's even more worrying is morale.

Since the establishment of the war zone, the northern section of the Jinpu Railway has been at a disadvantage. From Cangzhou to Dezhou, the troops resisted step by step but also retreated step by step.

The news coming from Jiangnan was all bad: the Battle of Shanghai had collapsed, Nanjing had fallen, and even the most elite German-equipped divisions had suffered heavy losses.

A deep-seated fear of Japan was spreading within the war zone, especially among the poorly equipped and poorly supplied ragtag troops.

Commander Han, a local warlord in Shandong Province, was terrified of the enemy and often avoided battle to preserve his strength.

Commander Li himself was deeply worried about this and urgently needed a victory to stabilize the situation and unite the people.

And what we see before us is the complete annihilation of an entire brigade, the killing of a major general detachment commander, and mountains of spoils...

This is more than just a simple victory.

This is a powerful remedy that can reverse the low morale across the entire war zone.

"Commander Lin is truly a pillar of the Party and the country, a national hero." Lieutenant General Xu grasped Lin Feng's hand tightly, his tone sincere and excited.

"Such a great victory is unprecedented since the start of the War of Resistance. I, Li, will certainly report it in detail to Commander Li and Chairman Chiang, and request that your troops be awarded the highest reward."

He spoke from the bottom of his heart.

At this moment, in his eyes, Lin Feng and the Provisional Eighth Army were not only a meritorious unit, but also a banner that could inspire the entire Fifth War Zone and even uplift the morale of the people across the country.

However, amidst his admiration, a sense of instinctive vigilance and weighing of options quietly surfaced deep within General Xu's heart.

"This person's rise to power and strength far exceeded expectations." Lieutenant General Xu thought to himself, "He is a graduate of the Whampoa Military Academy, but not a pure member of the Central Army; rather, he comes from a security regiment."

He had a distinguished military record and commanded a powerful army.

If Commander Li can be properly managed and utilized, he will surely become a great help to one of the five war zones;

However, if not handled properly...

He thought of Commander Han, who openly defied orders and preserved his strength.

The actual combat strength of Lin Feng's troops is probably several times stronger than that of Commander Han, who was being chased around by the Japanese Fifth Division.

Whether this strength will be a blessing or a curse remains to be seen.

More importantly, Lin Feng is from Fenghua and a graduate of the Whampoa Military Academy, a background that destined him to be closer to the one in Jiangcheng.

Whose prestige will ultimately be enhanced by this tremendous military achievement?

How should the Guangxi clique deal with this suddenly rising military power?

In that instant, a multitude of thoughts flashed through my mind.

But Lieutenant General Xu's smile remained unchanged, and his enthusiasm only grew stronger.

In any case, the most urgent task is to firmly hold this formidable army on the front lines of the Fifth War Zone.

"Commander Lin," he said in a more intimate tone, "Your unit has fought many bloody battles; you've worked hard."

Commander Li is extremely concerned about you. The theater command will fully support your subsequent defense and rest.

If you need anything, just say so.

At this moment, he was thinking about how to make good use of this flag and how to make this sharp weapon break through the most difficult situation for the Fifth War Zone in the upcoming battle.

As for the rest, we can only take it one step at a time.

After the inspection tour was completed, the delegation was allowed to rest.

Lin Feng then used an excuse to invite Wang Tianlu to his private room.

As soon as they entered the room, with no outsiders around, the formal officialdom on their faces vanished instantly.

"Oh, Brother Lin, I've missed you so much!"

Wang Tianlu, beaming with joy, opened his arms and gave Lin Feng a big hug.

"Brother Wang, you've been hiding your true abilities for a long time."

Lin Feng chuckled and patted Wang Tianlu on the back, then looked him up and down at the two gleaming gold stars on his collar.

"After our parting at Shanghai, you not only escaped unscathed, but you also got promoted!"

The two men sat down, and the orderly brought them two cups of hot tea before leaving.

In a private conversation, Lin Feng learned about Wang Tianlu's impressive resume during this period.

It turns out that after this old fox fled to Nanjing, seeing that things were not going well, he quickly found an excuse to cross the river to the north.

He spent a lot of money bribing people, and after some maneuvering, things are completely different now.

Wang Tianlu has now been promoted to Deputy Director of the Fifth War Zone Logistics Department, while also serving as Director of the Logistics Department of the War Zone Commander's Headquarters, making him a full-fledged lieutenant general with real power.

Upon hearing this, Lin Feng was overjoyed.

The Theater Logistics Command is the highest-level organization in charge of logistics at the theater level.

Almost everything in the Fifth War Zone—money, supplies, personnel transfers, and weapon and ammunition distribution—had to pass through his hands.

Lin Feng picked up his teacup, blew on the tea leaves, and began to ponder in his heart.