Even if I'm a useless bum at Whampoa Military Academy, I'll be invincible in the War of Re

As Guan Yudong left, he patted Zhao Yunwen on the shoulder:

"Brother Yunwen, you truly are a role model for our Whampoa Military Academy. I am far inferior to you!"

Other Huangpu alumni came to say goodbye. Zhao Yunwen had really brought honor to Huangpu this time. Even Tang Keqin came over to make his presence known, saying something profound:

"Brother Yunwen, although military orders are absolute, they must be used flexibly. There is no need to defend Pengcheng anymore. We cannot sacrifice the 107th Army, this elite force, for an empty city. They are the principal's darlings. Do you understand?"

Zhao Yunwen nodded symbolically, and Tang Keqin then patted him on the shoulder and said:

"It's good that Brother Yunwen understands. I'll be waiting for you in eastern Henan."

Not only his fellow Whampoa Military Academy graduates, but also Northwest Army bigwigs such as Sun Lianzhong, Commander Zhang, and Commander Pang came over to greet him. Zhao Yunwen was one of the few Central Army generals who they didn't dislike.

When Zhao Yunwen returned to Yixian, the headquarters handed over the 5 new recruits promised by the Military Commission to him, which made Zhao Yunwen very happy.

Upon returning to division headquarters, a military deployment meeting was convened to convey the instructions from higher command and to make new adjustments to the troops:

"The 644th Regiment will remain in Zaozhuang, and the cavalry regiment will cooperate in the operation. We must keep the Japanese troops north of Zaozhuang and not allow a single Japanese soldier to advance south."

After dark, the 323rd Brigade, the artillery regiment, and the division's directly subordinate units secretly moved to the mountainous area south of Yicheng and lay in ambush in the area from northeast of Pengcheng to west of Taierzhuang, ready to ambush the pursuing Japanese troops.

The 647th Regiment of the 324th Brigade will remain in Yixian County. The brigade headquarters and the 648th Route Army will follow me to take over Pengcheng. The ambush force will be under the unified command of Deputy Division Commander Lu Ping. If we don't strike, we won't strike at all; but if we do, we'll make sure to inflict heavy damage on the Japanese, so that they won't dare to chase after hundreds of thousands of people with only a few thousand men.

The 5,000 new recruits brought back by Zhao Yunwen were distributed to various units according to the previously agreed plan. As a result, the 107th Division not only returned to full strength, but also had 2,000 men to spare.

Once the seriously wounded recover and return to their units, the army will have nearly 4,000 extra soldiers, enough to handle a medium-sized battle.

Even so, the 107th Division still had the highest proportion of veterans from the Central Army, reaching as high as 80%, which was unimaginable in other units.

Zhao Yunwen was confident that he could cover the rear. Even if the Japanese attacked from the front, or even if the entire Fifth Division came, the 107th Division would still be able to fight!

Indeed, his target was the Itagaki Division, the strongest Japanese unit, which was highly motivated after capturing Linyi and was also the closest to Pengcheng.

The Japanese could not possibly advance with an entire division; at most, it would be a detachment, or even a regiment, which would be easy to deal with.

Zhao Yunwen's 3D mini-map clearly showed the Japanese troop deployment, which allowed him to ambush them based on their marching route, making the victory somewhat dishonorable.

After completing the deployment, Zhao Yunwen led the 648th Regiment, carrying hundreds of captured mules and horses, straight to Pengcheng.

By the time they arrived, the headquarters had already evacuated under the protection of the elite 21st Army Group, leaving only a security brigade to guard the city.

After Zhao Yunwen took over Pengcheng, Qian Jin, the brigade commander of the security brigade, breathed a sigh of relief and reported to Zhao Yunwen:

"Sir, Commander Li has placed our Security Brigade under the command of the 107th Division. We are all sons of Pengcheng, born and raised here, and we are willing to live and die with Pengcheng."

Zhao Yunwen felt a sense of kinship upon seeing them, after all, their predecessors were also security forces. Although these people were poorly equipped, they had a tenacious fighting spirit.

He thought to himself that these people must be Commander Li's compensation for covering the rear of the 107th Division. Even if they weren't, they had to be. Every little bit helps.

Since they were his own people, Zhao Yunwen asked without any hesitation:

"How many men and guns do you have?"

Colonel Qian Jin straightened his back and answered:

"1876 men, more than 300 guns, all well-trained veterans. Commander Li said the division commander would issue us guns."

Zhao Yunwen grinned, thinking to himself that Commander Li really wasn't going to be polite to him.

More than 1800 people, which exceeded Zhao Yunwen's expectations. This may be related to Pengcheng's geographical location. It is a place of constant warfare and a place with developed commerce. If you don't have some self-defense capabilities, even bandits would dare to come to Pengcheng and cause trouble.

The 107th Division had no shortage of guns, so it immediately incorporated the Security Brigade and reorganized it into an Independent Regiment directly under the Division Headquarters. The original Special Service Battalion of the Training Corps was completely dismantled and merged into the Independent Regiment, with Qian Jin as the regimental commander and the Special Service Battalion Commander as the chief of staff.

The lack of guns and ammunition was replenished locally in Pengcheng.

Zhao Yunwen then ordered everyone to rest on the spot, taking the opportunity to call the system:

"Survey how much equipment and supplies are available for collection within Pengcheng?"

[Host, all I can tell you is that you've struck it rich! Pengcheng has stored up combat supplies for dozens of armies. There are 3 rounds of 82mm mortar shells, over 8000 million rounds of German 7.92mm ammunition, 500 million hand grenades, and countless amounts of food and clothing. If you need, I can give you a list.]

Zhao Yunwen had not expected there to be so many. There were more than 500 well-preserved Czech light machine guns, 100 Maxim heavy machine guns, 50 Min 20mm mortars, and the amount of grain was astronomical.

Zhao Yunwen immediately understood. For example, 500 million hand grenades sound like a lot, but when averaged across an army of 60, it's less than 10 grenades per person. Bullets are also just over 100 rounds per person, barely enough for a medium-sized battle, and you still have to count the bullets.

However, the 107th Division only had more than 20,000 men, which was more than enough for several national-equipped regiments to use for a long time, saving him the trouble of exchanging contribution points.

Zhao Yunwen did some mental calculations and realized that these supplies alone were more than all his contribution points combined.

Sure enough, once the cannons roared, gold poured in!

"System, store half of the food, bullets, and grenades in the system warehouse."

[Instruction received. The system warehouse has added 17.85 tons of materials, bringing the total to 60.69 tons. Warehouse usable space is 67.23%.]

These supplies are enough for an army of 3 to last for two years, with food making up a large portion of them. A satisfied smile appeared on Zhao Yunwen's face.

Having grain at home brings peace of mind. Although it can be exchanged from the system, in times of war, who would complain about having too much grain? Only with grain can one dare to expand the army.

Zhao Yunwen made a fortune from this rearguard mission. He thought it would be great if the troops emptied the warehouse and the Japanese got nothing.

After making the small gesture, Zhao Yunwen waved his hand dismissively:

"Let's go into town!"

The main force of the Nationalist army gradually withdrew from the battlefield, leaving a large vacuum in southern Shandong. The Japanese soldiers quickly discovered the opportunity and were overjoyed.

Major General Kunisaki Noboru felt as if he were seeing the grand spectacle of the Battle of Shanghai again, and he was overjoyed, thinking that the time to turn the tide had come!

The 10th Division was blocked north of Zaozhuang. They were the closest field force to Pengcheng. The opportunity was rare, and he wanted to be the first general to break into Pengcheng.

"Warriors, the Chinese have escaped! Pursue them quickly! Whoever enters Pengcheng first will be credited with the greatest merit!"

The newly appointed Chief of Staff, Lieutenant Colonel Sano, cautiously advised him:

"General, the Ninth Brigade has already broken out and is more than ten kilometers ahead of the main force of the division. Should we stop and wait for the division commander?"

Major General Kunisaki knew what Lieutenant Colonel Sano was worried about, but he didn't take the 20th Army Corps seriously at all, and said disdainfully:

"Sano-kun, you're overthinking it. Times have changed. You don't understand Tang Enbo, the general of the Chinese Central Army. When things are going well, he's a tiger, but when things are going badly, he's a rabbit, faster than anyone else."

No Imperial Army soldier could even see his back!

After hearing this, Sano couldn't help but smile and said ingratiatingly:

"General, you are quite humorous, but your assessment of Tang Enbo is spot on. General Li, who comes from a local warlord background, simply cannot control him."

The army collapsed like a house of cards; no one could command these arrogant and fierce soldiers, let alone organize troops to ambush the Imperial Army—and such a person was not even born into power.

Qiu the Madman was the first to object. He not only wanted to ambush the Japanese, but also to inflict a heavy blow on them, so that they would think twice before pursuing him in the future.

Chief of Staff Xing Chongchong reported:

"Commander, the Japanese are coming! One vanguard company has already entered the encirclement!"

A murderous glint flashed in Qiu Fengzi's eyes, and he coldly shouted:

"No rush, let's wait until all the Japanese are in the trap, then we'll make sure Kunisaki Noboru is alive this time!"