Bright Sword: Starting from Obtaining the Equipment Slot

"Let them in."

Wei Dayong composed himself and spoke.

A moment later, two men dressed in Jin-Sui Army uniforms entered. The one in the lead was a middle-aged man in his forties, slightly overweight, with a kind smile on his face, who looked like a scholar.

Beside him stood a young officer, tall and imposing, with a hint of arrogance in his eyes.

"I am Fang Ligong, Chief of Staff of the 358th Regiment, and this is my adjutant." Fang Ligong greeted everyone with a broad smile, taking the initiative to introduce himself. His tone was sincere, "I have long admired the reputation of Black Cloud Stronghold! Meeting you today, I can see it truly lives up to its name!"

Wei Dayong sized up Fang Ligong, pondering the other party's intentions.

This man seemed amiable, but Wei Dayong knew that anyone who could rise to the position of chief of staff in the Jin-Sui Army was definitely not a simple character.

Moreover, this man is Chu Yunfei's right-hand man. If you associate with tigers and wolves, you will surely become a beast yourself!

"My surname is Wei, and I am known in the martial arts world as Zuo Shan Diao! I am the third in the stronghold. The chief and second brother have gone out to have some fun and have not yet returned." Wei Dayong had an idea and gave himself a name that was "loud and clear".

"Chief Wei," Fang Ligong continued, "our 358th Regiment has long admired the reputation of Black Cloud Stronghold! The brothers are all heroes, especially after hearing that your stronghold once launched a surprise attack on a passing Japanese convoy—that courage is truly admirable!"

Wei Dayong smiled but didn't reply. He knew Fang Ligong wasn't there for mere flattery. Such polite words were best left unsaid.

Sure enough, Fang Ligong changed the subject: "To be honest, our 358th Regiment had a batch of supplies stolen by those bastards from Qingfeng Village some time ago. The brothers were furious, but unfortunately, military affairs were too busy, and we couldn't spare any manpower for the time being."

"I heard your village and Qingfeng Village have some grudges?" Fang Ligong asked tentatively. "If Chief Wei is willing to help us get rid of these troublemakers and reclaim our supplies, we're willing to give your village 30% of the supplies, plus an additional 500 silver dollars as a reward!"

Wei Dayong sneered inwardly; Fang Ligong had a good plan!

Let Black Cloud Stronghold and Qingfeng Stronghold fight each other, ideally until they are both severely weakened. Then the 358th Regiment can reap the benefits. This way, they can eliminate two bandit groups and recover their supplies—a win-win situation.

"Chief of Staff Fang, you're too kind." Wei Dayong cupped his hands in greeting. "Your army is strong and well-equipped, why don't you personally lead the troops?"

Fang Ligong was prepared and explained, "Chief Wei, you may not know this, but our 358th Regiment has a major battle in half a month, and we really can't spare any manpower. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been replenishing the weapons and ammunition for the First Battalion."

"A major battle? Against whom?" Wei Dayong asked hurriedly.

"The Japanese Sakata Regiment!" Fang Ligong lowered his voice. "We've received reliable intelligence that the Sakata Regiment will be passing through Luye in half a month. Our regimental commander, Chu Yunfei, is determined to protect the region and its people, and we're preparing to clash with the Japanese devils!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Dayong's eyes lit up. The Sakata United Team!

This is the opening big boss from the original novel "Bright Sword"!

Is Chu Yunfei going to go head-to-head with the Sakata team? This is a good opportunity to see Chu Yunfei's command abilities firsthand.

However, according to the original story, the enemy suffered 300 casualties in less than an hour. If they hadn't retreated in time, the 358th Regiment would probably have been completely annihilated.

"Chief of Staff Fang," Wei Dayong said, still intrigued, "could I go and observe from the sidelines? Perhaps I could offer some assistance within my capabilities."

"Hehehe..."

Upon hearing this, Fang Ligong's adjutant immediately let out a cold laugh.

"You bunch of bumpkins...?" The adjutant curled his lip, his face full of disdain. "Our 358th Regiment is fighting the Japanese; do we need your help? You'd be lucky if you just made things worse!"

Fang Ligong quickly smoothed things over, saying, "We appreciate Chief Wei's kindness. However, the battle of Luye is of utmost importance, so let us handle it ourselves. Chief Wei should focus on eliminating Qingfeng Village."

Wei Dayong knew perfectly well that Fang Ligong was being polite, but he didn't really believe they could help. In the eyes of these regular soldiers, bandits were just bandits, not worth mentioning.

"Chief of Staff Fang," Wei Dayong said, "eliminating Qingfeng Village is no problem. However, I have one condition."

"Please speak, Master Wei," Fang Ligong said.

"If we can wipe out Qingfeng Village within half a month, I want one-fifth more of the supplies," Wei Dayong said.

"Impossible!" the adjutant immediately retorted. "You're no match for Qingfeng Village! Half a month? I doubt you can take it in two months!"

Fang Ligong also advised, "Chief Wei, don't be too impulsive. Qingfeng Village has more than 300 men, occupies a strategic position, and is reinforced by the weapons of the Jin-Sui Army. Heiyun Village has less than 200 men; it's probably unrealistic to expect to take it down in half a month."

Wei Dayong feigned anger at his adjutant's words, his face darkening: "What? You look down on Black Cloud Stronghold?"

"No, no," Fang Ligong said hastily, but the contempt in his eyes was undisguised.

"Let's go all in!" Wei Dayong slammed his fist on the table. "If we wipe out Qingfeng Village within a week, all the supplies are mine! If we wipe it out within half a month, I only want 30%! If it takes more than a month to wipe it out, I don't want a single penny!"

Fang Ligong and his adjutant exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.

Wei Dayong is utterly ignorant of his own limitations! Black Cloud Stronghold has less than two hundred people, yet he wants to wipe out Qingfeng Stronghold with more than three hundred people in a week? That's just wishful thinking!

"Boss Wei, are you sure?" Fang Ligong asked to confirm, already plotting how to reap the benefits without lifting a finger.

"Of course!" Wei Dayong said decisively.

"Alright!" Fang Ligong nodded. "Since Boss Wei is so confident, let's take a gamble!"

He was already convinced that Wei Dayong was doomed to lose. Then, with both Black Cloud Village and Qingfeng Village severely weakened, the 358th Regiment could easily clean up the mess.

"Words are no proof; let's have a written agreement!" Wei Dayong said. "Please, Chief of Staff Fang, provide a written agreement!"

The adjutant smugly took out paper and pen from his briefcase and quickly wrote down the contents of the bet. Fang Ligong glanced at it and then readily signed his name.

In their eyes, this document was nothing but a piece of waste paper. Wei Dayong had no chance of eliminating Qingfeng Village within a week.

"Boss Wei, we'll be waiting for your victory news in Dagu Town," Fang Ligong said. "Just come within two months."

After saying that, he took out one hundred silver dollars from his pocket and placed them on the table: "This is one hundred silver dollars as a deposit."

"No problem!" Wei Dayong accepted the silver dollar and stuffed it into his pocket.

Fang Ligong and his adjutant exchanged a glance, both with a hint of disdain in their eyes. In their view, the hundred silver dollars were a complete waste, and Wei Dayong and his men were likely no match for Qingfeng Village.

However, this is fine too, since they intend to use this incident to teach the bandits in their jurisdiction a lesson, which naturally includes Black Cloud Village.

Once the troops are free, none of these bandits will survive!

"Farewell!" Fang Ligong cupped his hands in farewell and turned to leave with his adjutant.

No sooner had they left than Wang Xiao rushed in from outside, his face beaming with excitement: "Battalion Commander! This is fantastic! Someone's actually offering us benefits; we're going to have a prosperous New Year!"

"Yes, Battalion Commander!" Zhou Huaiyuan followed him in. "Tomorrow we'll take Qingfeng Village! Let those bastards see what it means to look down on others!"

The crowd echoed their sentiments, their emotions running high, and they all declared they would rather not steam buns than lose face!

Wei Dayong shook his head: "Tomorrow isn't a good day."

"Huh?" Wang Xiao was taken aback. "Why?"

Wei Dayong smiled smugly before explaining.