As a young marshal, it's reasonable for me to have 300,000 private troops, right?

After the draw, Qi Fan immediately led all the students of the Second Squad straight to the combat conference room of the Military Academy.

In fact, the scale of this live-fire exercise was not large, with each squad sending 300 trainees. Compared to the real battlefield, even a positional assault, the overall difficulty was within a controllable range.

As soon as he sat down, Chu Shixin spoke first, his tone filled with urgency and trust.

"Hanqing, in our squad, your strategic and tactical achievements are the most outstanding. You must have a knack for dealing with this kind of positional warfare. Now that the situation is clear—we're the ones attacking—do you have any specific plans?"

All eyes immediately focused on Qi Fan, their eyes filled with anticipation.

Qi Fan calmly spread out a detailed map of the training area on the table, and slowly slid his finger across the map, finally stopping at a point marked "Xiaogushan".

"I judge that Yang Qinglin and his team will most likely set up their main position in this location."

He glanced at the crowd and explained further.

"This is the highest point in the entire training area, offering a wide and unobstructed view that can cover the attack routes below from all directions. If they build strong machine gun emplacements here and form a crossfire network, it will be virtually impossible for us to break through head-on."

"Brother, stop teasing us!" Zhang Xuecheng couldn't help but step forward and say.

"Since you can see through their strategy, you must have already come up with a countermeasure. Tell us about it!"

Urged on by Zhang Xuecheng, Qi Fan felt a strange sense of satisfaction.

He finally understood why Jia Xu always left things unsaid. This feeling of being praised and waiting for the answer to be revealed as a "master" was indeed addictive.

But as much as he enjoyed it, Qi Fan didn't intend to keep everyone in suspense and changed the subject.

"We have a rough idea, but there's a crucial problem: we only know the likely direction of their deployment, but we don't know their specific troop allocation or the location of their firing positions. Without this information, any plan is just empty talk."

He paused for a moment, then stated his core idea.

"Therefore, I need to send people to infiltrate their defense zone, conduct close-up reconnaissance of their entire deployment, and obtain first-hand intelligence."

"Huh? This...isn't this cheating?" Bao Yulin frowned and asked hesitantly.

In his view, drills emphasize direct confrontation, and clandestine reconnaissance seems to be against the rules.

"What constitutes cheating?" Qi Fan raised an eyebrow and asked confidently.

"Instructor Guo said long ago that the exercise officially began the moment the lots were drawn. On the battlefield, reconnaissance is of paramount importance and a key link in defeating the enemy. Sending reconnaissance personnel to ascertain the enemy's strengths and weaknesses is entirely in line with the logic of actual combat. What's wrong with that?"

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately understood.

Yes, the purpose of the exercise is to simulate real combat. In real combat, how can you blindly rush forward without reconnaissance?

Bao Yulin nodded and stopped arguing.

Just then, Xu Chengye stepped forward and said with a firm look in his eyes.

"Hanqing, I'll take ten men to scout ahead! I'm an expert at stealth, I guarantee we won't be discovered."

Qi Fan looked at Xu Chengye and saw his determined expression. Recalling his usual clever and cautious nature, he realized that Xu Chengye was indeed a suitable candidate for investigation. He immediately nodded.

"Alright, I'll leave it to you! Remember, safety first. Find out as much as you can, but don't push yourself. If there's any risk of being exposed, retreat immediately."

He thought for a moment, then added.

"It would be best to set off around dinner time tonight. By then, it will be getting dark, and the enemy will most likely be gathered at their camp eating, at their lowest point of alertness, making it the best time for reconnaissance."

"Don't worry! I guarantee I'll complete the mission!" Xu Chengye puffed out his chest, his tone resolute.

After saying that, he immediately turned around and selected ten agile and sharp-eyed companions from among the trainees. After giving them a few brief instructions, he led the group out of the operations room and sneaked towards the defense zone of the first squad.

After Xu Chengye and the others left, the command center was quiet for a brief moment.

Qi Fan broke the silence first, his sharp gaze sweeping over everyone as he spoke in a deep voice.

"We can't sit idly by either; we need to get moving quickly. This offensive battle will certainly be tough, but we also have advantages. As the attackers, we have unlimited space to maneuver, and the initiative is in our hands. So tonight, we need to put pressure on the enemy and disrupt their rhythm."

"Brother!" Upon hearing that there was a mission, Zhang Xuecheng immediately stepped forward, his eyes full of eagerness.

"Just tell me what your plans are, and I'll take care of them! I guarantee I'll handle it perfectly!"

Qi Fan looked at Zhang Xuecheng and, seeing his high spirits, nodded in satisfaction.

"Good! Once you've mastered the skill, you'll take a hundred men and get close to the First Squad's position tonight. Remember, the key is 'harassment.' Absolutely do not enter their firing range, and absolutely do not initiate firefights with them."

He paused, then elaborated on the instructions.

"Divide the hundred men into five groups of twenty each, and have them take turns patrolling the perimeter of the position. You can fire a few sniper shots to create a commotion, the purpose of which is to keep them on edge and make them feel that we might launch an attack at any moment."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xuecheng instantly understood Qi Fan's intention: to wage a war of attrition, first exhausting the opponent's energy.

"Brother, I understand what you mean! It's about keeping them awake at night! Don't worry, I'll take some men to prepare right away!"

"Go ahead, be careful, and make sure you stay within your limits. Don't reveal our true intentions," Qi Fan instructed.

"Okay!"

Zhang Xuecheng responded and immediately turned around to gather a hundred capable people from among the trainees. After briefly explaining the mission requirements to them, he led the team off in a hurry.

After Zhang Xuecheng and the others left, Qi Fan sat back down in front of the map, raised his hand to signal the remaining people to gather around, and began to speak.

"We cannot make specific attack plans blindly. We need to wait for Xu Chengye's reconnaissance intelligence to come back and find out the enemy's troop deployment and firepower distribution before we adjust our tactics and formulate the final attack plan based on the actual situation."

Everyone nodded in agreement. The safest approach at the moment was indeed to wait for intelligence before taking appropriate measures.

After Zhang Xuecheng and the others left, Qi Fan's tense expression eased slightly. He leaned back in his chair and turned his gaze to Lao Xia beside him.

"Old Xia, I'm giving you another task."

Upon hearing that there was a task, Lao Xia immediately straightened his back and patted his chest to guarantee it.

"Hanqing, just give me your orders! I can't guarantee anything else, but whatever you ask me to do, I promise I'll handle it perfectly!"

Qi Fan couldn't help but smile as he looked at his serious expression.

"Training has been tough lately, and everyone's been without meat for ages. Graduation is just around the corner, so go and prepare a good meal for everyone. I think the mess hall should be open by now, perfect for you to show off your culinary skills!"

Old Xia had initially thought it was some important combat mission, but after hearing this, his anxiety instantly subsided.

"Hey, I thought it was something difficult! This? Leave it to me, Lao Xia! I guarantee the brothers will eat their fill and be full of energy!"

After saying that, he turned around excitedly and left the war room, heading straight for the mess hall.

After all the tasks were arranged, Qi Fan stood up and glanced at everyone remaining in the conference room.

"Alright, everything's arranged. Now everyone should go back and get some rest and recharge. We're in a much easier situation than them, there's no need to waste our energy on them."

Everyone nodded in agreement and turned to disperse.

Qi Fan was the only one left in the war room. He walked back to the map, his fingertips lightly tracing the location of Xiaogushan, his eyes deep.

Actually, he already knew what was going on.

The biggest advantage of being on the offensive is that you have the initiative to attack, and you can attack whenever you want.

The defending side, on the other hand, has to be on high alert at all times, reinforcing their fortifications while guarding against surprise attacks, leaving them no time to rest properly.

What he wanted to do was to take advantage of this, first exhaust the opponent's energy and patience, and then seize the opportunity to break the deadlock in one fell swoop and win this exercise steadily.