A courtyard house; Li Yunlong, a subordinate of the deputy director of Harbin Military Engineering I

The announcer's voice was noticeably higher than before, filled with barely suppressed excitement:

"...With immense excitement, I must announce a momentous event to the people of the whole country. Our Volunteer Army, with lightning speed, has completely annihilated the US 7th Infantry Division... The following is a tribute to the great... comrade Zhang Renfeng, commander and soldier of the 3rd Army Corps in this battle..."

The old political commissar dropped his cigarette on the ground.

He stood there, as if nailed to the spot by something.

Behind him was a roaring crowd of tens of thousands of people, and beneath his feet was the newly opened railway, but he saw nothing, and his ears were filled with that name.

"........The Divine Shield of China........"

When those four words came out of the loudspeaker, the square fell silent for a moment.

Immediately afterwards, a burst of thunderous cheers erupted among tens of thousands of workers and the masses.

In particular, a group of engineers dressed in work clothes and wearing safety helmets, who had followed their old unit all the way from the Taihang Mountains, jumped up as if a fuse had been lit when they heard the name "Zhang Renfeng".

"Did you hear that? It's the old commander!"

"I heard you! I heard you! Our old brigade commander is unyielding in the face of power!!"

"Who will dare say that our engineering corps isn't the main force in the offensive? Isn't it the backbone of building a strong defensive line? Have they forgotten the Zhengtai Railway sabotage operation back then?"

"Hahaha... the Divine Shield of China!!"

The old political commissar stood on the steps, looking at the engineers waving their hats and the crowd clapping until their hands were red. His lips moved...

Until Commander-in-Chief He walked over and patted him on the shoulder:

"Well done, very well done! You, my esteemed student, have not diminished our prestige at all!"

The old political commissar then came to his senses, bent down to pick up the cigarette from the ground, but his fingers were trembling, and he couldn't bring the cigarette to his mouth even after twirling it between his fingers twice.

He sighed, his tone carrying a sense of relief that had been building up for over a year.

"Oh my, Renfeng has really suffered this past year. He must have been under immense pressure. Spending a whole year luring the enemy and even digging through the Great Wall—who could endure that? This kid must have been carrying a huge burden on his mind!"

He paused, his gaze falling on the excited engineers in the square. His voice lowered, as if he were speaking to Commander-in-Chief He, or perhaps to himself:

"To be honest..."

Comrade Li, who was in charge of the blasting work for the entire Sichuan-Chongqing Railway, took over the conversation with a smile, his voice loud and clear:

"Boss, you probably don't know—the old political commissar hasn't had a good night's sleep all year! He's been asking every day if there's any news from the battlefield! Now, he can finally get a good night's sleep, right?"

Commander-in-Chief He put down his pipe, smiled, and shook his head, his gaze falling on the old political commissar's relaxed face:

"Haha, this is interesting. Old Liu, Chen, and the Legion Commander were still arguing about who was talking behind Zhang Xiaogui's back, and it turns out his teacher is right here?"

Upon hearing this, several elderly comrades around him burst into laughter.

This amusing incident, initiated by Brigade Commander Chen, has always been a popular topic of conversation among the cadres.

It's strange, but it seems like everyone smiles when this topic comes up, and a year can pass by without us even realizing it.

Especially in the southwest, where most of the people are veterans of the 129th Division, they love watching this wonderful Errenzhuan (a type of folk performance), and they often bring up the corps commander, which is a joke in the barren Taihang Mountains.

The old political commissar waved his hand, but he couldn't suppress the smile on his face:

"Renfeng has returned to China and is gone. So, who should take over the position of Deputy Commander of the Volunteer Army Headquarters in the Third Army Corps?"

Commander-in-Chief He, with his pipe in his mouth, thought for a moment, then exhaled another puff of smoke:

"The general direction has been set. The only way to keep the arrogant and fierce generals of the Third Army Group in check is through the old commanders of the former 386th Brigade. Commander Xu, who is currently in Shandong Province, will be heading north in a few days."

As for the deputy commander and deputy political commissar, they would naturally be selected from among the army commanders and political commissars of the corps. Given Renfeng's abilities, he would certainly recommend the most suitable person for the current tactics to assist him.

"Yes, yes..."

The old political commissar smiled slightly and took a deep drag on his cigarette.

"This monk Xu, he really has to thank Renfeng. You see, he was sidelined and idle in the Shandong Military Region for several years, and now he's finally going to come out and do things again."

After this battle, the tide has turned. Those American officers commanding troops in Korea must be kicking themselves! They used their titles of four-star and three-star generals to forge a shield for our Republic. They've truly risen to prominence!!!