Chapter Fifteen: The Northwestern Shanxi Iron Triangle Reunites, and Su Changqing Becomes Their Direct Superior.

The bullet from Su Changqing’s Mauser rifle left the barrel, flying toward Li Yunlong, who was two hundred meters away.

Without even glancing, Su Changqing tossed the Mauser rifle in his hand toward his young bodyguard, Lin Yu.

At that moment, almost everyone’s hearts were filled with profound sorrow.

After all, with Su Changqing’s marksmanship, hitting a standing copper plate at two hundred meters was effortless.

Let alone a living man like Li Yunlong.

“What’s going on?”

“Is Old Li still alive?”

“Did the commander miss?”

The bullet almost grazed Li Yunlong’s head. He had thought this time his death was certain.

Yet, unexpectedly, he was not hit.

Hearing Li Yunlong’s familiar voice, everyone hastily opened their eyes.

“Old Li! Old Li!”

“You’re alive! You’re alive! That’s wonderful, wonderful.”

“Commander, I thought you— I thought you…”

“Commander, Commander Su missed, he missed! You’re not dead…”

A group of burly men sprinted toward Li Yunlong’s position.

For a moment, the scene was heartwarming beyond words.

Yet, with Li Yunlong’s sharp wit, he immediately understood.

Su Changqing’s shooting was renowned throughout the 24th Regiment.

Such precision.

And yet, at this moment, he had missed.

That said everything.

“Commander, Old Li’s life from now on belongs to you.”

“They say a man’s knees are worth gold, but this kneel…”

“Old Li owes you!”

Such a tough, iron-willed man as Li Yunlong, even if a bullet pierced his skull, would have bones so hard the bullet would flatten.

But at this moment, Li Yunlong, this iron-hearted warrior, suddenly “plop” knelt before Su Changqing.

At that instant, everyone finally realized.

Surviving a shot from Su Changqing was not because the bullet missed by accident.

Nor was it mere luck.

It was because Su Changqing deliberately aimed away.

He spared Li Yunlong’s life.

In that moment, everyone’s respect for Colonel Su Changqing reached a new height.

To describe their devotion as unwavering would be no exaggeration.

“Commander!”

“Commander!!”

All eyes turned to Su Changqing, who had already turned his back with casual grace.

He hadn’t even looked to see if the bullet hit Li Yunlong.

---

It turned out Su Changqing knew the bullet could not hit Li Yunlong.

The reason was simple.

Since Su fired the shot, he was absolutely confident.

He raised his right hand high, still facing away.

“I missed. My shooting’s not precise.”

“Li Yunlong, you damn lucky bastard.”

“Next time, luck won’t be so kind.”

Hearing Su Changqing’s slightly nihilistic words, the iron-willed Li Yunlong couldn’t help but shed tears.

“Commander!”

“Li Yunlong will never let you down from now on.”

...

At the Battle of Zhiluozhen, Su Changqing, commanding a single regiment, routed an entire division of the Northeast Army.

Nearly six thousand enemy soldiers were captured, along with senior officers from the Eighth Division of the Northeast Army.

This battle dealt a severe blow to the Northeast Army’s morale.

From then on, the Northeast Army no longer dared to launch attacks lightly against the Rainbow Army.

And this time, the 24th Regiment gained greatly.

Besides some weapons and equipment handed over to headquarters,

the 24th Regiment kept one thousand Type 13 bolt-action rifles, ninety German Empire MP-18 submachine guns, six Czechoslovakian ZB-26 light machine guns, and four heavy machine guns, including copies of the Type 13 heavy machine gun and the Maxim gun.

They also acquired twenty-one Mauser C96 and Mauser 712 pistols.

In addition, they captured six Type 82mm mortar guns from Liaoning, one Schneider M1929 105mm howitzer from the Gaul Empire, one Type 13 75mm field gun, one Type 14 100mm grenade launcher, and one Czechoslovakian Skoda VZ75 mountain gun.

Forty thousand rounds of ammunition and six thousand one hundred sixty-three hand grenades.

This time, the 24th Regiment truly upgraded from birdshot to artillery.

The Northeast Army never expected the 24th to suddenly unleash a cavalry battalion,

and with the lightning speed of the Cloud Tornado remnants, capture the command post of the Eighth Division.

This caused the Eighth Division to surrender almost intact.

After all, without a command post, what choice did they have?

Of course, this was also due to the Northeast Army soldiers being displaced, their morale broken.

They longed to return home and fight fiercely against the Japanese devils.

These soldiers withdrawn from the Northeast were not all spineless.

Now, scorned nationwide as “cowardly troops”,

many among them did not want civil war.

They wanted to unite their guns against the foreign invaders, to reclaim the Four Provinces from the Japanese.

“My home lies on the Songhua River in the Northeast,

where forests, coal mines, and endless fields of soybeans and sorghum grow.”

“My home lies on the Songhua River in the Northeast,

where my people live, and my aging parents.”

The mournful song brought the captured Northeast soldiers to tears.

These lyrics pierced their hearts.

Stirring their homesick longing.

The impact of a single song surpassed any words.

“Still, you kid have your ways. Headquarters didn’t know what to do with these Northeast prisoners.”

“You just had to sing that one song, and they all quieted down.”

“In literary propaganda, you’ve got talent.”

The old senior slapped Su Changqing’s shoulder with a chuckle.

“We’re all soldiers of Greater Xia. Our homeland lost, our families crushed under the Japanese iron heel.”

“Who could bear such humiliation?” Su shook his head.

“They just lack guidance; their spirit is broken.”

“The role of the art troupe is to uplift their morale. The future counterattack to reclaim the Four Provinces depends on their strength.”

Su Changqing gazed among the captured Northeast soldiers, feeling some faces strangely familiar.

After pondering, they resembled characters from the TV series “My Regiment, My Regiment.”

Milu!

One of the core figures in the drama, Milu is a rough, hearty Northeast veteran in his thirties, wild and passionate about life.

He loves his family, gambles, yet always escapes misfortune, with “scoundrel” as his catchphrase, fond of singing Er Ren Zhuan.

He lived a legendary life from shelter soldier to Pugan battlefield assault captain to black market boss.

Though he bullied those close to him, he cared deeply, willing to sacrifice his life for those he loved.

Li Wula, from Jin City in Liaoning Province, once a junior officer platoon leader of the Northeast Army.

After the September 18 Incident, he lost his home, suffered defeat after defeat, retreating to the southwestern frontier.

Though initially despondent, upon learning Yu Xiaoqing planned an expedition to Pugan, he resolved to sacrifice for the country.

Ultimately, he was shot down heroically by Japanese devils in Burma.

Unexpectedly, among the captured Eighth Division soldiers, these two men appeared.

While Su Changqing was lost in thought, the old senior patted his shoulder.

“Changqing, orders from above.”

“The old man in Jinling has made a move. Apparently, that Hu Army Commander who chased us for tens of thousands of miles has been summoned back to Jinling City and severely reprimanded.”

“Higher-ups believe Hu will collaborate with the Northwest Three Horses to launch an attack on Shaanxi.”

“The boss is also preparing to organize a Western Expedition. You’re on the list of generals the boss wants.”

“This time, your achievements are significant. They think one regiment is too small a stage for you.”

“So, they’ve decided to assign you as commander of the First Corps.”

“Under your command are three regiments!”

“One of them is naturally the 24th Regiment. Li Yunlong has performed well recently and will be reinstated.”

“As for the other two regiments, they also come from the Rainbow Fourth Front Army and are old acquaintances of Li Yunlong.”

“You should know at least one of them.”

“The 18th Regiment, commanded by Ding Wei.”

“The 26th Regiment, commanded by Kong Jie.”

Upon hearing these names, Su Changqing was momentarily stunned.

Then a grin nearly split his face.

So quickly, he had gathered the Iron Triangle of Jinxi North?

Ding Wei, Li Yunlong, Kong Jie.

What kind of scene would it be with these three under his command?

Regarding this, Su Changqing was quite eager to see.