Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

Chapter 1128 Wugensheng's Invitation

After leaving Shaolin Temple, Wugensheng went to some other places, but gained very little from them.

That night, he sat in a dilapidated inn with several sheets of paper spread out in front of him, writing a letter.

The first letter was written to Zhang Huaiyi. He and Zhang Huaiyi had some interactions. For a period of time, wherever he went, Zhang Huaiyi would block him and use him to hone his skills. During this time, they became acquainted through fighting and their relationship had become very close. He wrote to invite Zhang Huaiyi to a gathering at the Twenty-Four Heavenly Valley in the Qinling Mountains.

He wrote the second letter to Gao Gen.

Gao Gen was once a top disciple of the Yi Qi Sect and a person with a strong sense of justice. However, in this world, the righteous path is not necessarily righteous, and the evil path is not necessarily evil.

In pursuit of justice, Gao Gen killed many righteous but unjust people.

This was undoubtedly a taboo, and many sects went to the Yi Qi Sect to demand an explanation.

To avoid putting his sect in a difficult position, Gao Gen simply left the Yi Qi Sect. In order to seek protection and to better distinguish between the good and evil among the Quanxing people, he joined Quanxing.

In the new day, he befriended many good people in Quanxing and killed many righteous villains. Of course, he also killed even more villains in Quanxing. Only Quanxing could tolerate his killing based solely on justice and without any principles.

Although Wugensheng was not a purely good person, he was by no means an evil person either. Therefore, he got along very well with Gaogen. In his opinion, Gaogen was undoubtedly a person who was very likely to become the fourth type of person.

He then wrote to Zhou Sheng, whom he considered a person with self-pursuit. However, considering that he had just met Zhou Sheng not long ago, and that Zhou Sheng might not come, he wrote in the letter that he knew of a place that contained the infinite changes of heaven and earth, and invited him to come and have a gathering.

Wugensheng wrote more than thirty-six letters. Over the years, he made many friends from all walks of life, and he wrote to anyone he felt might become a fourth type of person.

Wugensheng himself didn't know how many people would reply, but he was sure that quite a few would come, because he treated each and every one of them with the utmost sincerity. He treated others with sincerity, and they would naturally treat him with sincerity in return.

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Meanwhile, in northwestern Shanxi, the war was raging.

Li Yunlong's life became increasingly comfortable. Ever since the last time he annihilated the Japanese special forces team and captured a large amount of excellent equipment, his independent regiment was like it had been injected with chicken blood, getting better and better in battle.

Li Yunlong is a man with a wild spirit when it comes to fighting. He doesn't play by the rules or follow the rules, but he always manages to gain an advantage.

Zhang Huaiyi was a thief who never left empty-handed, and with the reinforced company he created, its combat strength was getting stronger and stronger, even surpassing the Yamamoto Special Forces Battalion that had been wiped out before.

The two joined forces, and through their efforts, the Independent Regiment expanded rapidly. In just over a year, it grew to eight battalions, each with more than a thousand men, and the entire regiment was nearly ten thousand strong.

A group of 10,000 people—that's terrifying to even hear about.

Keep in mind that a standard tour group consists of only one to two thousand people.

A standard trip costs between five and eight thousand.

Ten thousand men—that's the strength of a reduced division.

The brigade commander knew all this, but he tacitly approved of it. Li Yunlong was his soldier, and Li Yunlong's soldier was his soldier, wasn't he?

Let alone developing it into a division, even if it were developed into an army, he would strongly support it.

While his career was flourishing, Li Yunlong's love life also found its footing.

Xiuqin, the president of the Women's Salvation Association, is a feisty and capable girl. Somehow, she fell in love with this rough and foul-mouthed man. The two met, fell in love, and soon got married.

On the day of the wedding, the entire Independent Regiment was filled with joy. Kong Jie came from the New Second Regiment, and Ding Wei also came from the New First Regiment. The three old comrades-in-arms gathered together and got completely drunk.

After his marriage, Li Yunlong was riding high and couldn't suppress his restless heart, so he set his sights on Ping'an County.

Ping'an County was an important stronghold for Japanese pirates in northwestern Shanxi, garrisoned by a regiment of soldiers. The city was well-defended and easy to defend. Normally, it would be a pipe dream for a regiment to attack a county town defended by a regiment.

But Li Yunlong had 10,000 men under his command. For him, Ping'an County was a piece of fat meat right in front of him. He could smell the aroma of meat every day. How could he not take a bite?

He summoned key personnel such as Zhang Huaiyi, Tian Jinzhong, and Zhang Dabiao, and worked through the night to formulate a battle plan.

The battle began at dawn. Zhang Huaiyi led a reinforced company as the spearhead, sneaking into the city and breaking through the city gates. Just like the Yamamoto Special Forces Battalion, they took down the enemy's command post as soon as the battle started.

Subsequently, the main force pressed forward, the county town was attacked, and Japanese troops from various places came to support them. Local guerrillas began to resist, even though they did not know why they were fighting, but stopping the Japanese was the right thing to do.

In short, because of Li Yunlong's actions, the entire Shanxi-Northwest region was thrown into chaos, with gunfire deafening and flames illuminating half the sky.

Meanwhile, in Ping'an County, the epicenter of the battle, the fighting had already ended. The command post had been destroyed, leaving the Japanese pirates leaderless and in disarray. The Independent Regiment stormed into Ping'an County with unstoppable momentum, annihilating all the Japanese pirates inside and piling up mountains of captured supplies.

Standing atop the city wall, Li Yunlong grinned from ear to ear as he looked at the spoils of war.

"Damn it! I'm rich! I've really struck it rich this time!"

He pointed to several brand-new cannons and shouted excitedly, "See those? Italian cannons! Good heavens, so many of them! I never even dared to dream of such a thing before!"

Standing to the side, Zhang Huaiyi looked at the cannons and felt quite emotional. Over the years, following Li Yunlong in battle, from the initial poverty and backwardness to the current strong and well-equipped army, it had indeed not been easy.

However, although Li Yunlong was happy, he was not blinded by victory. With the current strength of the Independent Regiment, although they could capture Ping'an County, it was wishful thinking to hold it. Once the main force of the Japanese pirates launched a counterattack, their small force would be no match for them.

Therefore, after capturing all the supplies, Li Yunlong decisively ordered the entire army to retreat and return to their base.

This incident had a significant impact. A regiment, without orders from its superiors, attacked a county town on its own initiative, annihilated an entire enemy corps, and captured a large amount of equipment.

This would be a remarkable achievement on the front lines, but merit is merit, and fault is fault. Li Yunlong acted without authorization and violated military orders; this is a fact.

In the end, the brigade commander decided to balance Li Yunlong's merits and demerits, neither promoting nor demoting him, nor rewarding or punishing him.

Li Yunlong was very satisfied with the result. He hadn't expected a promotion anyway; if he were promoted, where would the brigade commander go? Being able to keep his position as regimental commander and also get so much equipment was already a huge stroke of luck.

For a period of time afterward, the Independent Regiment entered a relatively peaceful period.

Li Yunlong began to reorganize and train his troops, expand their equipment, and prepare for the next round of mopping-up operations by the Japanese pirates.

During this process, he and Chu Yunfei of the 358th Regiment had frequent friction.

Chu Yunfei was a member of the Jin-Sui Army, a graduate of the Whampoa Military Academy, and possessed knowledge, insight, and skill. He admired Li Yunlong's military talent but disapproved of Li Yunlong's unorthodox methods. The two were both friends and rivals, their relationship delicate.

The two units' defense zones were adjacent, and they would occasionally clash over minor incidents. However, both sides exercised restraint and avoided any major trouble.

Zhang Huaiyi didn't care much about these things. He led the reinforced company in training every day, and occasionally went out to fight guerrilla warfare. His life was uneventful.

But soon, something happened.

That day, Kong Jie, who had been promoted from deputy commander of the Independent Regiment to commander of the New Second Regiment, recruited a group of bandits from Black Cloud Village, gave them the designation of an independent battalion, and invited them to fight against the Japanese pirates. But just two days before the official designation was to be issued, something happened.

The bandits of Black Cloud Village were incorrigible. They figured they were about to be incorporated into the government and wouldn't have another chance, so they planned to pull off one last big heist before "reforming." As a result, they started robbing people frequently, and they didn't even spare the soldiers who were delivering messages.

That day, Wei Dayong happened to be on his way to deliver a letter and ran into this group of guys when he passed by Black Cloud Village.

Wei Dayong was a Shaolin monk with exceptional skills. Logically, the bandits should have been no match for him. However, while it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, it's hard to guard against a hidden arrow. During the fierce battle, he was ambushed, shot in the back, and fell into a pool of blood.

After he died, the bandits cut off his head and hung it on a tree as a form of humiliation.

When the news reached the Independent Regiment, Li Yunlong remained silent for a long time. Then, he slammed his fist on the table and began to assemble his troops, determined to raze Black Cloud Village to the ground.

Zhang Huaiyi and Tian Jinzhong were also furious. Wei Heshang was one of their men in the reinforced company. How could he die at the hands of a group of bandits? He volunteered to take charge and raze Black Cloud Village to the ground.

He knew this was a difficult matter, so he wanted to remove Li Yunlong from the situation, but Li Yunlong insisted on leading the team himself and taking revenge personally.

Just as the troops were assembled, Kong Jie came to plead for their lives. He had taken over Black Cloud Village and applied for its designation himself. Now that this had happened, he was ashamed, but he still wanted to give those bandits a way out.

But Li Yunlong showed him no respect and tied him up and locked him up. Then, he led his troops straight to Black Cloud Village.

Black Cloud Village was strategically located, easy to defend and difficult to attack, but the soldiers of the reinforced company were all highly skilled, and they captured Black Cloud Village in less than half an hour with zero casualties.

The bandits were either dead or had fled. The leader who had ambushed the monk was captured by Li Yunlong himself, his head chopped off with a single blow, and then brought back to the Independent Regiment and placed in front of Wei Dayong's grave.

This incident had a significant impact. Without reporting it, an independent brigade that was about to be incorporated into the government was wiped out directly, which is a serious violation of discipline at any time.

Logically speaking, Li Yunlong should have been executed this time, but there were reasons for it, and those bandits did indeed deserve to die. After discussion, the higher-ups decided to treat them leniently. Li Yunlong was demoted from regimental commander to battalion commander, and Zhang Huaiyi was also demoted from company commander to private.

Upon receiving the disciplinary decision, Li Yunlong cursed and swore, while Zhang Huaiyi remained silent for a long time. He recalled the events of the past years and remembered what his master had told him when he came: "Go down the mountain to gain experience, see the world, see all living beings, and see yourself."

He saw the heavens and the earth, all living beings, and himself. He felt that he had seen himself, and that continuing to stay here did not seem to conform to his own path.

His senior brother is in seclusion, but he is fighting here. With his current strength, fighting provides him with very little experience.

Previously, he was responsible for his soldiers and many brothers; it was his duty. So even though he wanted to leave, he persisted.

But now, these responsibilities have been shirked.

Zhang Huaiyi felt not sad at all, but rather a sense of genuine relief.

Just then, he received a letter from Wugensheng, inviting him to a gathering.

Holding the letter, Zhang Huaiyi thought of Wugensheng, that shameless fellow, and the days when he used to pester him and hone his skills.

So many years have passed, that guy should have improved by now, maybe I should go and see him!

Zhang Huaiyi suddenly felt a sense of anticipation and decided to leave.

Zhang Huaiyi summoned Tian Jinzhong and Li Yunlong, and the three of them had a meal at the regimental headquarters.

There weren't many dishes, just a plate of peanuts, a plate of pickled vegetables, and a bottle of sweet potato liquor.

Li Yunlong picked up his wine bowl, took a swig, and asked, "Big Ears, are you really leaving?"

“Yes, my mind is made up, Commander, you don’t need to try to persuade me,” Zhang Huaiyi said.

"Where?"

"I don't know, I'm just taking a walk," Zhang Huaiyi said. "I want to see how the people in this war-torn area are living, to gain experience and temper myself."

Li Yunlong was silent for a while, then said, "With you gone, I, Old Li, will lose a great general."

Zhang Huaiyi smiled and said, "Commander, you have plenty of capable men under your command. You don't need me."

“I’m a battalion commander now,” Li Yunlong said. “There are many capable people, but there aren’t many like you who can both fight and teach!”

Tian Jinzhong said from the side, "Huaiyi, why don't I go with you?"

Zhang Huaiyi shook his head: "Jinzhong, you are different. Our senior brother sent us down the mountain to gain experience, each of us has our own path. I feel that we won't gain anything here anymore, but you can stay. The brothers here need you too, so stay."

Tian Jinzhong thought for a moment and nodded. He was indeed a little worried about the brothers in the Independent Regiment.

Li Yunlong took another swig of his drink and said, "Fine, Big Ears, if you want to leave, I won't stop you. But remember, no matter where you go, you'll always be a member of my Independent Regiment! Come back anytime you want!"

"it is good."

Zhang Huaiyi picked up his wine bowl, clinked it with Li Yunlong's, and then drank bowl after bowl of wine.

The next morning, Zhang Huaiyi packed his bags and left the Independent Regiment's post.

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At the same time, Duanmu Ying also left the field hospital.

For the past few years, she has been in the hospital without a single day off. Every day she is busy performing surgeries, teaching students, and writing textbooks.

Her medical skills were superb, and she was efficient in her work, earning her the deep respect of everyone at the hospital. But after all, she was a young woman, and her family kept urging her to go back home and find a partner.

Duanmu Ying originally wanted to delay a little longer, but coincidentally, a friend she had known before wrote to her and asked to meet.

She felt that after spending so much time in the hospital, teaching what needed to be taught, and writing what needed to be written, and with the hospital's medical conditions and doctors' abilities greatly improved, it was time to give herself a break.

She went to ask her superior for leave, saying that she hadn't been home for several years and wanted to go back to visit her family.

The leader approved it without saying a word.

Duanmu Ying packed her things and left the field hospital.

Before leaving, she went to say goodbye to Lu Jin's wife, Lin Yu.

Lin Yu hugged her, her eyes red, and said, "Be careful on the road, and come back soon."

Duanmu Ying smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll be back soon." (End of Chapter)