Chapter 5: Abundant Spoils and Intensive Military Training

"Commander, we’ve struck it rich."

Hearing this, Li Yunlong glared at Huzi and lectured him: "Watch your tone. Being jumpy and erratic is a bad habit."

He then took the manifest to inspect it.

This prompted Huzi to mutter under his breath, "As if you can even read it..."

Li Yunlong suddenly realized that he had never been diligent about his literacy, though he didn't offer any explanation. Even though the manifest was written in traditional characters, he could recognize almost all of them.

This made Li Yunlong’s heart race with excitement.

There were 10 large gold bars, over 30 small gold bars, and two full crates of silver dollars—amounting to several thousand—along with a significant sum of legal tender.

As for supplies, there was enough to ensure that his New First Regiment wouldn't have to worry about food for the next two months.

Regarding weaponry, there were over 80 rifles, including Jin-style rifles and Hanyang 88s, as well as three light machine guns. While the ammunition wasn't plentiful—only about 10,000 rounds—there were over 300 hand grenades.

This was enough to equip an entire company.

After reviewing the list, Li Yunlong couldn't help but sigh: This is a windfall! He wouldn't have to worry about food or equipment for the time being.

He immediately issued an order: "Notify Shen Quan. The troops will withdraw in ten minutes."

"Yes, sir!" Huzi turned and left.

Ten minutes later, Li Yunlong led everyone out.

At Weizhuang, the headquarters of the New First Regiment, Li Yunlong convened a meeting of his officers.

Although they had recruited over 80 people, Li Yunlong didn't intend to expand the ranks immediately; instead, he planned to focus on training. With food and weapons now secured, improving the soldiers' capabilities was the top priority.

In Li Yunlong’s understanding, to receive rewards from the system, the soldiers' combat effectiveness needed to reach a certain level. Therefore, strengthening the army was the primary task. Simultaneously, he needed to bolster their ideological education.

To achieve this goal, Li Yunlong formulated a training plan and a set of assessment standards. Only those who passed the test would become regular soldiers; those who failed would be relegated to the militia, responsible for logistical support and other auxiliary duties.

Regular troops received better equipment and benefits than the militia, which greatly incentivized the men to strive to become soldiers.

"These are my requirements. We have one month. Officers at all levels must intensify training, improve the combat strength of the soldiers, and continue recruiting."

"Yes, sir!" The platoon and squad leaders stood up in response.

The New First Regiment now had nearly 200 men, with each platoon reaching about 60 people—effectively the strength of two platoons. They all understood that the commander was giving them a chance to prove themselves, and everyone was full of drive.

Sensing their motivation, Li Yunlong said with satisfaction: "Meeting adjourned!"

After acknowledging the order, everyone left to collect supplies, returned to their respective bases, and began the training plan.

...

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

During this time, besides inspecting the soldiers' training, Li Yunlong focused on strengthening their ideological education. After all, if a unit wanted to go far and stay steady, the foundation had to be solid.

At the same time, Li Yunlong shed his previous disdain for academic study and delved into learning. After a month of effort, he could quickly read through letters and books. He knew full well that his past self had suffered because of his lack of education, so he worked hard to overcome this shortcoming. Since traditional characters were the standard during this period, he made sure to master them.

Li Yunlong's transformation left veterans like Shen Quan stunned. They had initially thought the commander was just on a whim, but they never expected him to persist in his studies. Sometimes, while training with them, he would even explain the Art of War or discuss the habits of the Japanese invaders, working to improve the overall capabilities of his officers and men from every angle.

After a month of training, the time for the assessment finally arrived.

The test covered marksmanship, physical fitness, tactical maneuvers, close-quarters combat, reconnaissance skills, and more. To rapidly improve his men, Li Yunlong had combined his knowledge from the future with the current environment to create a unique training regimen.

Now, it was time to verify the results.

To test marksmanship, Li Yunlong authorized three rounds per person for targets at 50 or 100 meters. It wasn't that he was stingy; he was truly poor. Three rounds per person consumed 600 bullets, and combined with the ammunition used during practice, this was no small expense.

However, Li Yunlong believed it was worth it. Sending men to the battlefield without ever having fired a shot usually came at a much heavier price. Ammunition could be found again, but life was precious.

Following the assessment, 110 men passed. Over the month, while training was the focus, the regiment had also absorbed nearly a hundred new recruits, bringing the total strength to about 300 men—roughly the size of a small battalion.

This meant one-third of his personnel had reached the standard of a qualified soldier. The remaining 200 or so were designated as reserve forces under the militia structure.

Li Yunlong congratulated the soldiers who passed and issued them rifles as a sign of encouragement.

He also reorganized the militia into squads, platoons, and companies to facilitate better command and control, and distributed a certain number of rifles to ensure they had defensive capabilities.

With this, the structure of the New First Regiment was established and organized. The main force consisted of 110 soldiers, with about 200 in the militia.

Li Yunlong then held a command meeting.

"After a month of training, many of you have improved, but this strength requires a final test."

"Soldiers who haven't been baptized by the fire of battle are always just greenhorns. Therefore, we will conduct a combat operation soon."

"Officers at all levels must step up their mobilization efforts."

"At the same time, dispatch the militia to gather intelligence and scout for suitable opportunities for real-combat training."

"Is that clear?"

Everyone replied in unison: "Clear!"

"Go and make your preparations." Li Yunlong nodded slightly and waved his hand.

"Yes, sir!"

As the others left to make arrangements, Li Yunlong felt a sense of doubt as he looked at the silent system. Had a month of training still not met the system's "strong army" standard? Even if these soldiers weren't as good as veterans, their skills were decent, and many already possessed some military background. He couldn't quite grasp the system's criteria.

For now, he could only set his doubts aside and wait for the system's verdict.

In the following days, Li Yunlong continued his studies while waiting for news.

A few days later, Shen Quan rushed to the headquarters, saluted, and reported: "Commander, we just received word. A transport convoy was spotted leaving Pingding County, heading in the direction of Jingxing County."

"From our observations, the convoy is escorted by a Japanese squad and a company of puppet troops. The cargo looks like something significant!"

Li Yunlong felt a slight jolt of surprise and quickly checked the map.

"It seems heaven is about to let our New First Regiment strike it rich again!"