Chapter 638: Debriefing

The next morning, the landing transport returned to the shore under the dawn light.

After disembarking, the first thing that met the support personnel's eyes was the chaotic sight of corpses and severed limbs strewn everywhere.

One good point was that the sand couldn't hold liquid; the blood spilled in the night battle was quickly absorbed by the tides and sand grains, so visually it wasn't as shocking.

Even so, to prevent the rapid proliferation of various bacteria in the tropical region, the logistics personnel immediately began disposing of the corpses at the first moment.

Living in the terrifying seventeenth century, what the Transmigrators were probably most proud of over the years was using means including but not limited to clubs, whips, docking wages, and even reform through labor to teach their subjects hygiene — I don't need you to know what bacteria are, I only need you to memorize the sanitation regulations by rote and follow the procedures.

In the current age, citizens of the Great Yan, if nothing else, are all experts at cleaning, whether in the New District dormitories or on a corpse-strewn beach in the South Seas.

And so all the corpses, natives and their severed limbs alike, were immediately loaded onto boats and taken out to the open sea for "burial."

This also included the corpses of the pioneer team members.

No one raised any objection to this.

In times of emergency, expediency governs all.

In this current landing phase where every second counts, the personnel ashore simply had no time or manpower to conduct any traditional burial rites. For these fallen team members, at most, Wu Sanye, representing the group, would sprinkle three cups of wine on the beach as a token of commemoration.

All of the above was par for the course.

In fact, ever since the Pioneer Army was established, the higher-ups had consciously and continuously instilled a pioneering spirit into these team members. In real history, during the Age of Discovery, the seemingly cruel act of colonizers throwing countless sick and dead bodies into the sea ultimately led to the flourishing prosperity of the entire North American Plains and their descendants.

Any gain comes at a cost. As people who have "been there before," the Transmigrators at least possessed the courage to break with this tradition.

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As the ships continuously shuttled between the open sea and the shore, by the time the morning sun had fully risen, the personnel and supplies landed on the beach gradually became more substantial.

While the corpses were being transported, fresh reinforcements ashore relieved the brothers who had stood watch all night.

The current state of the heroes who had endured a great night battle was certainly miserable.

The survivors, pale-faced and weak, lay limply within the fortifications. Most of them bore injuries, and blood seeped through their hastily tied bandages.

However, except for some severely wounded who were rushed to the transport ships out at sea for intensive treatment, all the remaining lightly wounded who could still move actually stayed firmly at their positions and did not evacuate with the ships.

Could it be that a great spirit of internationalism was sustaining their belief in not leaving the line of fire despite light injuries?

Obviously not.

The reason supporting these thugs, reform-through-labor convicts, bullies, and bandits in staying behind was that they had received a notice: some big shots would be coming ashore soon to award them honors on the spot.

Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao arrives.

At the moment the rising sun broke the horizon, several big shots, led by Commander Wang, boarded the same ship and landed on the beach.

After coming ashore, the big shots first inspected the battlefield.

Although the corpses had been cleared away, the scattered broken weapons and pale stains everywhere still spoke of the ferocity of last night's battle.

Next, in front of the beachhead position, the big shots formally received the surviving combat team members.

The total number of personnel who had garrisoned the beachhead position last night was eighty. This morning, those who could stand in formation leaning on their guns numbered only sixty-two.

Among them, the severely wounded who had been transported away numbered six, meaning that a full eight people had died in battle last night, not counting any severely wounded who might not be saved in the future.

Truly standing before these figures who had undergone the baptism of battle, seeing their bloodstained wounds and the killing intent forged through bloody combat, Wang Bo felt deeply moved inside.

This was, after all, different from seeing it on an iPad.

"Heroes, all of you are heroes!"

Walking past each team member one by one, patting the shoulders of these people striving to straighten their chests, Wang Bo finally stood before the formation and loudly declared: "From this day forward, you have all been reborn. In addition to my admiration, I have decided to bestow upon you a new title: 'Warrior!'"

The sixty-two men recognized as Warriors by Commander Wang subsequently received benefits.

First, Commander Wang announced that to commemorate last night's battle, the colonial fortress to be built on the plateau in the future would be named "Standing Awl Fort."

Deputy Landing Commander Wu Meng was appointed on the spot as the first Fort Lord of Standing Awl Fort.

The sixty-two Warriors who survived last night's bitter struggle would all receive promotions this time, designated for focused development. Next, with these sixty-two as the core officers, two brand-new Honor Pioneer Squadrons would be formed.

Half of them would, effective immediately, withdraw by ship back to Saigon to await the arrival of subsequent recruits and train them into a unit on the spot.

Of course, that unlucky fellow Wu Sanye would still have to hold his post until the new squadrons were formed and came to relieve him.

With the promotions done, it was time for a pay raise.

The Pioneer Army was different from the regular army. In this loosely organized military unit, its members were steeped in the ways of the Edo, so pay raises were always given out on the spot, Golden Triangle style, nothing fake.

In the next moment, stacks of new-issue Great Yan banknotes were personally handed out by the big shots into the hands of the new Warriors, whose eyebrows bloomed with smiles.

One kind of currency, so long as it can purchase all daily necessities at any time and be freely exchanged for precious metals, will certainly become hard currency accepted by the populace.

The Transmigrators never forcibly promoted paper currency. The Ministry of Finance initially only gradually used banknotes within the civil service and military. However, as time passed, the "domestic" populace, having experienced the benefits of the banknotes' stable value and ease of use, ultimately accepted this "Treasure Note" issued by the Cao Clan.

To this day, the Great Yan banknote has long been a truly genuine hard currency. Its scope of use already encompasses the Guangdong New District and the areas surrounding Guangzhou City. Additionally, in port cities like Shanghai and Tianjin, a considerable number of intermediate and large-scale merchants have become loyal users of the banknotes.

Do not look down on the small circulation volume; in fact, purely in terms of hard currency status, the Great Yan's Treasure Note can without a doubt be called a "Gold Round."

The so-called Gold Round's greatest characteristic is the ability to be exchanged for precious metals on the market at any time. Before 1971, the American currency could also be exchanged for precious metals, hence it was honorifically called the "Gold Dollar."

And when the Bretton Woods Monetary System collapsed in 1971, the so-called Gold Dollar was downgraded to the US Dollar, decoupled from precious metals.

Later on, the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons, lazy and gluttonous, toyed with dollar hegemony and financial games, running the printing presses at full speed, and finally turned the US Dollar into toilet paper.

The rise and fall of empires serves as a clear mirror for this.

After pacifying the meritorious personnel, the big shots, in high spirits, climbed hand in hand onto that strategically significant seaside plateau.

Hands on hips, waving and pointing across the landscape, they made grand plans facing the vast mountains and dense forests. The Transmigrators ultimately swore to quickly level this land and plant rubber saplings, then envisioned a wonderful scene where everyone would be an old driver with a vehicle (bicycle) to drive.

After that, Wu Sanye, who had the honor of accompanying the big shots on this outing, was called alone to the top of the plateau to "be privy to confidential matters."

Pointing at the South Seas Map spread out on the spot, Wang Bo solemnly told Third Lord that last night's battle held immense significance. This victory had even prompted the Cabinet, which had been hesitating all along, to be resolved to adjust the South Seas strategy.

Just this morning, upon learning that the beachhead position had been held, the Senior Grand Secretary of the Cabinet convened an emergency meeting and made the following strategic adjustments.

One: Immediately dispatch a reinforced battalion of regular troops, accompanied by a heavy artillery company, aboard naval vessels to rush to the South Seas. In the future, this reinforced battalion will be stationed in Saigon, resisting Zhenla to the north, spying on Siam to the west, and controlling Annam to the east, becoming the great rear area for the Zhenghe Island pioneering base.

Second: Increase investment in the Standing Awl Fort base on Zhenghe Island. A large fleet will depart soon, bringing a large batch of construction materials and construction personnel to Standing Awl Fort.

Third: Plan Number Two for Vietnam officially begins implementation.

This third "confidential item," Wu Meng didn't understand and didn't dare ask. But he understood the first two clearly: After last night's battle on Zhenghe Island, the pioneer team led by him, Wu Sanye, had proven they could gain a firm foothold.

That is to say, his — Wu Meng's — and Standing Awl Fort's importance within the system had greatly increased.

After finishing the strategic adjustments, Wang Bo again carefully compared the map and laid out the future expansion steps for Wu Meng.

Here Wang Bo stressed a key point: based on last night's battle, it now seemed that, apart from building rainproof fortifications, the landing personnel must also press on with felling the rainforest.

As soon as a sufficient isolation strip was cut, the troops were to find a day with suitable wind direction, use gasoline to set fire to the forest as thoroughly as possible, and clear a spacious volley-fire safety zone for potential future engagements.

Hearing this, Third Lord nodded repeatedly: he was thinking the same; his Old Man truly did not wish to fight the Natives in hand-to-hand combat a second time.

Having arranged up to this point, Wang Bo thought for a moment, then bent down and quietly gave Third Lord the next instruction: once they had a firm footing in the future, do not fear casualties — go take more "turns" around the area and "invite" some Natives to "assist" with the infrastructure construction.

Third Lord understood these words at once — an old hand at infrastructure from the Yangmingshan Second Construction Group.

Seeing Third Lord's knowing look, Wang Bo nodded with an "Mm," turned around with his hands behind his back, and after a long silence finally said: "Wu Meng, in a few days once the cargo is unloaded, I will take the fleet and leave. All supplies will be left for you then, and I will leave you as many men as possible. After that, you must look after everything yourself."

"Wu Meng understands."

"Wu Meng, you have great leadership ability. This time your responsibility is heavy; you must work hard and get things done well."

"Please rest assured, General. This subordinate will absolutely not fail the trust placed in me!"

Facing the emerald waves rolling across the sea surface below the cliff, Wang Bo was silent for a long while before finally speaking again: "Wu Meng, do you know that at 6 a. m. this morning, your great name was known even to Cao Jiangjun and Senior Grand Secretary Xia?"

Third Lord had long known that the Cao Clan's higher-ups possessed a treasure capable of transmitting messages over a thousand li. Hearing this, he felt joy in his heart and hurriedly bowed with clasped hands, saying in a rapid stream: "Wu Meng thanks the General many times over for his patronage!"

At this moment, however, Wang Bo suddenly spun around: "Do you know that in ten years' time at most, Cao Jiangjun will proclaim himself Emperor and contend with that Ming Emperor for the realm?"

Seeing Third Lord Wu frozen there by that one sentence, Wang Bo finally smiled faintly, turned and began descending the mountain, and at the same time, one last line drifted over leisurely: "Do your work well, and when the time comes, you, Wu Meng, will be a Dragon-Raising Meritorious Official. Which path to take — ponder it yourself."

Five days later, all the fleet's supplies had been transferred. Wang Bo took the fleet, raised sails and weighed anchor, and sailed back to Saigon.

And Wu Meng, Fort Lord of Standing Awl Fort, leading 00 armed personnel, began a harsh pioneering journey on Zhenghe Island.

(End of Volume Six)